– RAW Superstar Finn Balor is celebrating his 35th birthday today. WWE is teasing that he could make his main roster debut tonight.
– WWE announced on Monday that Flo Rida will be holding a concert during SummerSlam weekend to benefit the Connor’s Cure charity. WWE, the Barclays Center and iHeartMedia are teaming up for the event, which takes place on Thursday, 8/18 from Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. Proceeds will help fund pediatric cancer research.
– After covering last week’s Republican National Convention for Fox Business and Kennedy Nation, DZ is heading to Philadelphia for this week’s Democratic National Convention.
– Zack Ryder’s patriotic ring gear for last night’s Battleground was inspired by Sting, The Ultimate Warrior and Randy Savage. Ryder tweeted this photo after the loss to US Champion Rusev:
– This backstage video from Battleground features WWE Champion Dean Ambrose talking to Andrea D’Marco after retaining over Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns in the main event. Ambrose mentions that he and his former Shield brothers have been the faces of WWE for a while but after last night, he seems confident that he’s the man.
– This was expected but F4Wonline.com confirms that WWE has plans on breaking up a few tag teams at Tuesday night’s Draft.
– The 2016 ESPYs on ABC hosted by John Cena fell 29 percent in overnight viewership compared to last year. The 3-hour show averaged 5.48 million viewers, down from 7.7 million in 2015. For more details, visit TVByTheNumbers.com.
– Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has been named the highest paid actor in the world on Forbes‘ annual Celebrity 100 list. The Rock ranked #19 on the list, having brought in approximately $64.5 million over the past 12 months.
– Goldust might be launching a podcast soon. He tweeted:
– Zack Ryder vs. WWE US Champion Rusev has not been confirmed for Monday’s RAW. Ryder did issue a challenge on SmackDown this week but Rusev indicated in a backstage interview that Ryder needed to issue the challenge to his face on this coming Monday’s show. Ryder tweeted the following about what appears to be a renewed push:
An Entrance…New Music…Mic Time…A Win! It's a WOO Day, yes it is! #SmackDown#WooEra
On a related note, Justin Call of Downstait tweeted the following and revealed that the band actually recorded the song a few years back and that it was Ryder who helped get the song in use:
– Heath Slater and his wife are in their home state of West Virginia this week to help with relief for victims of the recent flooding. Slater spoke with WVVA.com and commented on giving back:
“To me, it was just heartbreaking to see the pictures, and knowing that I had time off to come up here and try to put some smiles on kids faces and uplift some people…I think I can help too.”
WWE United States Champion Rusev will defend his title against Zack Ryder on Monday’s RAW from the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. This comes after Rusev retained over Titus O’Neil this week.
On a related note, Ryder is debuting a new theme song on this week’s SmackDown. He revealed the change on Twitter:
– WWE originally had plans to do the John Cena vs. AJ Styles singles rematch at the 8/21 SummerSlam PPV in Brooklyn, according to Wrestling Observer Radio. No word yet on if that is still the plan but it’s expected. Cena will team with Enzo and Cass to face Styles and The Club at the 7/24 WWE Battleground PPV.
– For those who missed it last night, Shane and Stephanie McMahon did not appear, despite being advertised. Shane has not appeared as advertised several times since May.
– This RAW backstage video features Zack Ryder celebrating after his main event win last night. Ryder says 2016 is the best year of his career and he’s just getting started.
– As noted, WWE recently applied to trademark Legion of Doom, the name used by WWE Hall of Famers Paul Ellering and The Road Warriors, Hawk and Animal. Speculation was that Ellering would be bringing the name back for The Authors of Pain in NXT. However, WWE dropped the trademark application earlier this week.
– Triple H tweeted these photos from his visit to Shanghai, China last week for some business meetings and a WWE tryout camp:
-Blake Oestriecher has published a new article for Forbes looking at AJ Styles’ feud with John Cena. Oestriecher makes a compelling case that AJ Styles is bringing out the best in Cena, more than Triple H, Bray Wyatt, Del Rio and countless other superstars ever could. Check out the article over at Forbes.com.
Discussion: How do you see this feud going? Will AJ win the first match and then go on to lose the series, or can the Phenomenal One break the trend we’ve seen with Bray Wyatt and Kevin Owens?
– WWE.com has published photos from WWE’s first-ever tryout camp in China.
– Zack Ryder is giving away free autographs to fans who buy his new WWE Shop t-shirt, the first in a few years. Details are in this tweet:
– Zack Ryder gets shocked while recording with Dolph Ziggler in this new WWE Swerved clip. As noted, the second season premieres in its entirety after RAW tonight.
– Zack Ryder and Mojo Rawley are working main roster WWE house shows this weekend. “The Hype Bros” lost to The Club on Friday night in Sprinfield. Mojo tweeted this clip earlier in the day:
– Next week’s Table For 3 on the WWE Network will feature Candice Michelle, Michelle McCool and Molly Holly “sharing their hilarious experiences from both in and out of the ring.”
– Summer Rae posted this behind the scenes photo from her shoot with Regard Magazine:
In a WWE exclusive interview with Michael Cole, Zack Ryder discusses a range of topics including the first time his entrance music was played at WrestleMania, his emotional Intercontinental Title win and subsequent loss and how his battle with cancer motivated him to become a WWE superstar and keep fighting in his 10 year career.
Longtime WWE Superstar Zack Ryder and WWE Diva Emma have decided to go public with the fact that the two are a real-life couple.
Ryder and Emma posted the following photos of the two spending the New Year’s Eve holiday together in Los Angeles, California this weekend, as well as pictures of their trip to Disney California Adventure Park on New Year’s day.
The popular Zack Ryder last appeared on WWE television in a Royal Rumble segment on last Monday night’s edition of RAW, while Emma has been paired with Dana Brooke in NXT as of late.
Below are the photos Ryder and Emma posted on social media, where they confirmed their relationship by writing “with my woman” and “with my man” on the posts.
– Longtime friends Zack Ryder and Dolph Ziggler teamed together over the weekend when Ryder’s Hype Bros partner Mojo Rawley did not attend the WWE live event from Chicago:
– On Monday’s post-Survivor Series edition of WWE RAW in Nashville, Tennessee, a match between the current and former Zeb Colter guys was announced as WWE United States Champion Alberto Del Rio will go one-on-one with Jack Swagger in a non-title match. Featuring a Thanksgiving theme this week, WWE SmackDown will be taped on Tuesday evening at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
– The following matches were taped on Monday night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee prior to RAW for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
* R-Truth def. Adam Rose in one-on-one competition in the first of two matches taped for this week’s show.
* The Miz def. Zack Ryder in the main event of this week’s WWE Superstars taping. The crowd in Nashville was actually pretty hot for this match, which The Miz ended up winning to finish up the taping.
WWE taped the following matches on Monday night in Dallas, Texas, prior to the WWE Hell In A Cell “go-home” edition of WWE RAW for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars.
– Fandango def. Heath Slater in one-on-one action to kick off the evening in Dallas, Texas. The match was given only a few minutes and in the end, it was Fandango who managed to score the pinfall victory.
– Cody Rhodes def. Zack Ryder in the second of two matches taped for this week’s Superstars. During the match, the ring rew was covering the Susan G. Komen logo on the ramp and the stage, appearing to be setting up some special entrances or camera shots for RAW. In the match itself, Stardust ended up scoring the “W” after hitting Ryder with his finisher.
WWE taped the following for this week’s edition of WWE Superstars prior to RAW on Monday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
– Zack Ryder def. Heath Slater in the opening match of the evening. It looked as though Xavier Woods was on commentary during this match, which Ryder ended up winning with the Rough Ryder in about five minutes.
– Los Matadores def. The Ascension in the second of two matches taped for this week’s WWE Superstars. The finish here saw Matadores score the pin after a cool series of moves, winning the contest at about the seven minute mark.
– The following matches are scheduled for tonight’s NXT television tapings, which are scheduled to take place immediately before the NXT Takeover: Brooklyn event.
* Eva Marie vs. Carmella
* Enzo Amore, Big Cass, Zack Ryder and Mojo Rawley vs. Jason Jordan, Chad Gable, Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson
* Charlotte vs. Emma vs. Becky Lynch vs. Dana Brooke
* Bull Dempsey vs. Elias Samson
– The final episode of the WWE Tough Enough post-show “Tough Talk” on the WWE Network airs next Tuesday night with host Byron Saxton. The official description for the show reads as follows:
“Join Byron Saxton as he recaps the TOUGH ENOUGH highlights and sits down with the eliminated competitor whose WWE journey came to an end.”
– The latest edition of “Culture Shock with Corey Graves” airs on the WWE Network on Wednesday at 4pm EST. The official description for that one reads:
“Corey Graves heads to Baltimore, Maryland to experience BronyCon, the fan convention dedicated to all things ‘My Little Pony.'”
WWE taped the following matches prior to the WWE SmackDown television taping on Tuesday night in Tulsa, Oklahoma for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event.
– Neville defeated King Barrett in the first match taped for this week’s Main Event. The crowd was into this match from bell-to-bell. The finish saw Neville hit the Red Arrow on Barrett for the 1-2-3.
– Becky Lynch defeated Brie Bella in Divas action, as the “Diva Revolution” continues. They gave this match more time than usual for a Divas match. In the end, Lynch picked up the win with her finisher.
– Bo Dallas defeated Zack Ryder in the third of three matches taped for this week’s Main Event. The crowd was into jeering Dallas and doing sing-alongs with some of Ryder’s stuff. In the end, Dallas scored the clean pinfall victory.
– Former WWE Diva Torrie Wilson is Jim Ross’ guest on this week’s edition of the “Ross Report” podcast, which is available now. You can download the show at PodcastOne.com.
– The following matches are confirmed for tonight’s edition of NXT on the WWE Network:
– Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady vs. Jason Jordan and Sylvester Lefort
– Dana Brooke vs. Cassie
– The Hype Bros (Zack Ryder and Mojo Rawley) vs. Sawyer Fulton and Angelo Dawkins
– Finn Balor vs. Rhyno
– Plus, Hideo Itami will address his injury
– WWE posted the following “unseen footage” of Triple H’s special “Terminator: Genisys” ring entrance at WrestleMania 31 earlier this year.
WWE taped the following matches for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event prior to taping WWE SmackDown on Tuesday night in Buffalo, New York.
Dark Match
– Zack Ryder def. Brad Maddox in what was apparently a quick, basic opening contest.
WWE Main Event
– The Prime Time Players def. The Ascension in tag-team action to kick off the Main Event taping. Prior to the match, the PTP taught the crowd how to do their “Millions of Dollars” dance, while The Ascension cut a promo welcoming us to “Wasteland.” In the end, Young hit the gut buster on Viktor to score the 1-2-3.
– King Barrett def. Heath Slater in singles competition. Barrett won in what was said to be a good little match. Afterwards, R-Truth came out as “King What’s Up?” He pardoned “Lil’ Jimmy” and declared Barrett “King Jackass.”
– Naomi def. Summer Rae via submission in Divas action. Tamina was in Naomi’s corner during this one.
– Ryback def. Adam Rose in a pretty quick match with Rose surprisingly enough getting in a good bit of offense. Ryback ended up winning with the Shellshock. After the match, Ryback scared Miz to the back and then celebrated with the crowd.
– Luke Harper & Erick Rowan def. The Lucha Dragons with their new 3-D finisher. This was said to be a very face-paced and entertaining tag-team contest.
WWE Superstar Zack Ryder recently spoke with Long Island Herald to discuss the recent final RAW at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Long Island. Below are some highlights from the interview.
On fans supporting him and his YouTube show a while back: “The fans, they are responsible for the success that I’ve had. People said, ‘This kid is a wrestling fan, let’s support him and help him get where he needs to be.’ I didn’t know if I was going to get in trouble backstage; I knew that I just needed people to know my name.”
On appearing with the Entourage cast on RAW: “There could not have been a better night for Zack Ryder. In the past few months, I wasn’t really prominently featured on RAW, so I’m hoping to ride that momentum for a bit. I compare my career to Disney World: at Disney, you’ll wait on line for a ride, and some people get that fast pass and go right to the front of that line. I know I don’t get the fast pass, so when I get my chance, I’m going to make the most of it.”
– WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair is scheduled to appear at the NXT live event in Columbus, Ohio next week. Flair, however, is not booked to appear on the NXT live event in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Also booked for next week’s NXT live events is WWE Superstar Zack Ryder.
– ECW Original Axl Rotten is the guest on the latest edition of Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast. You can download the show right now at PodcastOne.com.
– WWE posted the following video of NBA star Dwight Howard at the SmackDown television taping this past Tuesday night in Houston, Texas.
WWE taped the following matches prior to Tuesday’s SmackDown taping for this week’s edition of WWE Main Event.
Dark Match
– Kevin Owens def. R-Truth in a quick match. Owens picked up the “W” after hitting him with the pop-up powerbomb.
WWE Main Event Taping
– Prime Time Players def. The Ascension in tag-team action. O’Neil scored the pinfall on Viktor.
– Zack Ryder def. Heath Slater in singles action. Ryder picked up the win with the Ruff Ryder.
– Nikki Bella def. Summer Rae in Divas competition. Bella scored the pinfall after hitting Summer with the Rack Attack.
– Neville def. Adam Rose in the final match of the taping. Rose cut a promo about there being no more Exotic Express and no more parties 24/7. Bo Dallas was on commentary for the match, which ended when Neville hit the Red Arrow on Rose for the 1-2-3.
– Tonight’s WWE Main Event and SmackDown tapings take place from the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Rusev vs. Ryback has been announced for Friday’s SmackDown. Join us here later tonight for live spoiler results.
– Zack Ryder tweeted the following after competing against John Cena at last night’s RAW, WWE’s final show from the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, New York:
That was my WrestleMania…thank you Long Island!!! #Raw
– WWE’s Archivist Twitter account posted this photo on Monday night of the Elimination Chamber structure being taken out of storage to be transported to Corpus Christi, Texas for Sunday’s PPV:
– After his appearance on Monday’s WWE RAW, Zack Ryder celebrated backstage with the cast of Entourage. Although Ryder came up short in his match against John Cena, he still invited the guys to go out partying with him on Long Island.
– Dean Ambrose reacts to his arrest on RAW and hypes his match against Seth Rollins this Sunday at Elimination Chamber.