Today, Wrestling-Online.com has released its free version of the W-O News app for Android phone devices and is available to download immediately from the Google Play Store.
The ad-supported free version of the app contains all the news that is found in the paid app with the only difference being the small ads served at the bottom.
The app is available worldwide through the Google Play Store only. The paid version is available on Google Play Store and Amazon’s Appstore.
WWE will have a presence at this year’s world’s largest comic con – the San Diego Comic Con – which starts on Thursday, July 24.
On Thursday, WWE’s involvement will start at 10AM at the Mattel booth (#3029) with WWE Slam City Takeover where there will be photo ops, displays and interactive moments featuring the Slam City characters. That will go on till 7PM.
Between 10:15AM and 11:15AM, Daniel Bryan, Paul Heyman, Hulk Hogan, and Michael Cole will give a sneak peek look at the new Mattel action figures as well as a showcase of the WWE Network. This takes place at Room 6DE.
Hogan and Bryan will then be signing autographs between Noon and 1PM at Mattel’s booth (#3029).
From 5:30PM to 6:30PM at Lionsgate’s booth (#4045), Kane and Hornswoggle will be signing autographs on behalf of WWE Studios and promoting their movies, Leprechaun Origins and See No Evil 2. Afterward, starting at 7PM, both Superstars will join filmmakers for a special behind-the-scenes look at both movies at Room 7AB.
On Friday, Big E will be signing autographs at Mattel’s booth (#3029) between 11AM and noon and then from 2PM to 4PM, Big E will join Microsoft at the Xbox Gaming Lounge at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Seaport Ballroom in the 2nd floor to showcase Xbox One.
It was bound to happen sooner or later. Brie Bella had a nip slip on RAW last year but not to be outdone by her twin sister, Nikki had a nip slip on RAW last night for all the opposite reasons her sister had one last year!
When you combine a very tight outfit and pack a large rack inside, well, accidents do happen. And that’s what happened to ‘fearless’ Nikki Bella as she fought four of her fellow Divas – Cameron, Eva Marie, Alicia Fox, and Rosa Mendes.
After Nikki was thrown out of the ring and she hit the mat something that shouldn’t have popped out popped out and the guys back in the truck took a few seconds to realize that female nipples shouldn’t be visible on a TVPG show!
In case you took a bathroom break during the Divas segment, we got you covered, and you can see at the wardrobe malfunction below.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has made it to the Forbes’s annual ranking of the highest paid actors in Hollywood coming in second place with a whooping $52 million for the year.
That is $6 million more than the list released last year where Johnson was estimated to have done $46 million for his acting and producing jobs. The former WWE champion was the only one who made more than the previous year.
The list was topped by Robert Downey Jr, the man behind Iron Man, who made an estimated $75 million, the same amount as the previous year.
In the wrestling business everyone has learned to say never say never. But CM Punk is ready to break the mold after admitting on TV that he’ll never get inside a wrestling ring again.
A clean shaven CM Punk co-hosted the AP Music Awards yesterday night and told CBS 19’s Chris Van Vliet before the show that he’s feeling “f**king awesome” and that he was asked before to host this particular show before but he had other commitments on Monday nights but now those “fell through.”
When asked what he’s been up to in the past six months, he said, “There’s chunks of my life that I don’t remember due to staph infections and concussions. You know, you can’t blame it all on drugs with this guy because I’m straight-edge.” He also showed his wedding ring to show what has happened in the past six months.
“You think there’s ever a chance we’ll see you back in a squared circle?” Van Vliet asked. “No. Never ever ever ever,” said Punk, who added that they’re going to go crazy on Twitter now and they’re going to hold him to it! You can see the short interview below.
Last night was Battleground, so did the WWE landscape change again, or is John Cena still the WWE World Heavyweight Champion?
Who else was able to have gold last night? Did The Usos manage to escape with their Tag-Team Titles against Luke Harper and Erick Rowan? Was Paige able to regain the Divas Championship? Who is the new Intercontinental Champion?
Also, Chris Jericho and Bray Wyatt faced off for the first time ever? Which microphone and wrestling expert came out on top?
Who won the country-war, Jack Swagger for America or Rusev for Russia?
Did Seth Rollins defeat Dean Ambrose, then cash in his Money In The Bank contract for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship? Or was Paul Heyman’s “Plan C” put into effect?
All this, and much more, as the build to SummerSlam officially starts now!
Monday Night Raw TV Report for July 21st, 2014 – “A Convincible, Planned, Decision”
Introduction Segment: Welcoming
Justin Roberts asks us to welcome the Chief Operating Officer, Triple H. His music plays and “The Game” walks out as Michael Cole also welcomes us, informing that an Authority member “DID NOT win the WWE World Title.” John Cena held on to his championship.
Cole and Lawler talk about HHH revealing John Cena’s next challenger for SummerSlam. In the ring, Triple H talks about the speculation of his mood after the WWE World Heavyweight Championship was retained by Cena. He admits that he is “madder than I have ever been in a long time. But I have options on how I handle this. I have options.” He mocks everyone who just uses Twitter to vent their frustrations. “Or I could just fire everybody back there.” (Pointing to the stage.) “Or I could just relax. I could relax, knowing that, sooner or later, I always win.” // “At SummerSlam, I can guaran-damn-tee that John Cena will no longer be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion.”
Before he can let us know who John will face, “The Viper” Randy Orton’s music interrupts and demands his rematch against Cena for SummerSlam. Orton says he has been waiting four months for his one-on-one bout, which Triple H concurs is a good case, but it is not just him that needs to convince the C.O.O. “I’m gonna give everybody the opportunity to convince me tonight. The entire roster is going to have an opportunity to convince me. You know what Randy? I want somebody to impress ME! I want somebody to go the extra mile and show ME! I want them to get in here (ring) that they want it; more than anything in their life, that they want it! MORE THAN THEY BREATHE! More than ANYTHING that they want to be WWE…”
Randy interjects again telling HHH that he’d already be WWE World Heavyweight Champion if Kane had done his job and helped out in the Fatal-4-Way. Kane now walks out and replies. He wants to be thought of to take on John. “I know that I can beat John Cena. I know that I can be the one to bring the title back to The Authority. So long as I’m not acting as Randy Orton’s ‘protector.’ I am tired of ‘babysitting.’”
The third man involved in Battleground’s main-event now makes his way through the fans. Roman Reigns stands on the apron and wants to be a part of this talk about the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. “Because last time I checked, nobody wants to see John Cena VS. Kane.” (Boos) “And don’t nobody wanna see Randy Orton VS. John Cena again.” (Boos) “It sounds like everybody wants to see John Cena VS. ROMAN REIGNS!” (Loud cheers) “BELIEVE THAT!”
Reigns charges the ring and levels Kane with the Superman Punch! Orton exits the ring, and Triple H books a match immediately – Roman Reigns to take on Kane and Randy Orton!
Commercials.
Match #1: Two-On-One – “The Viper” Randy Orton and Kane VS. Roman Reigns
Orton and Reigns are starting with an elbow/collar tie-up. Randy kicks Roman in the gut, but Reigns fires back with a headbutt. He gives Orton the corner 10-punch, but Orton slams Reigns’ head to the canvas off the ropes. Kane now in and also locks up with Roman. Kane hammers away on the back of Reigns, but Roman counters a run with a Samoan Drop. He covers, but only gets one. Randy’s back in and knees Reigns in the gut, then stomps away. Both Kane and Orton begin to pick apart Roman, trading tags and beatings.
Reigns reverses a suplex by Kane into one of his and gets a two following. Reigns slugs away with punches and a headbutt on “The Big Red Machine,” but Kane reverses a whip and hits a corner-clothesline. Roman counters with a boot out of the opposite corner then dives off the rope with clothesline of his own. Kane counters again and tosses Reigns to the floor. Roman reverses another whip and hurdles Kane into the steps!
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Orton now has Reigns in a standing headlock, but Roman fights out with punches. He gets taken down again with an elbow block and Orton takes control. Kane and Randy continue to dominate, wearing out Reigns with various punches, kicks, and ripping holds. Roman works his way out of a reverse chinlock, punches up and delivers a Samoan Drop! He gives a leaping clothesline to Kane off the ropes, then sets him up for the floor-to-apron running front dropkick! Reigns signals for the Superman Punch, but has to knock Orton on the apron first.
Kane slides out of another Samoan Drop and gives Roman a boot-to-the-face. He wants to tag Orton, but Randy just stands there. Kane clutches Orton by the throat, but turns around into the Superman Punch and Spear from Roman! He covers Kane to get the victory!
Winner via Pinfall: Roman Reigns
Post-match, Orton had walked away and Reigns eggs him back to the ring. Orton approaches but backs off again.
Later tonight, Chris Jericho will have Bray Wyatt on his “Highlight Reel,” while Nikki Bella will face four Divas at once, next!
Segment #2: Backstage Promo
Cameron, Alicia Fox, Eva Marie, and Rosa Mendes are chatting when Stephanie McMahon walks up. She claims that the women will “annihilate” Nikki Bella. They confer and walk off.
Commercials.
Match #2: Four-On-One – Rosa Mendes, Cameron, Eva Marie, and Alicia Fox VS. Nikki Bella
(Note: Footage from last month’s Payback Pay-Per-View where Brie Bella quit and slapped McMahon is shown.) As Nikki makes her entrance, she looks to the crowds with a smile on her face. In the front row is Brie, and Nikki hugs her. Before this bout gets underway, Stephanie walks out and mocks The Bella Twins, as well as Daniel Bryan. As Stephanie walks away, Brie calls her a “bitch.” McMahon stops and demands security eject Brie, but she produces a ticket. McMahon insinuates that Bella is “blocking the view of the people behind you”, but Brie snatches the mike. She accuses Stephanie of taking these actions “because I left my handprint on your face!” Brie calls McMahon a “vindictive bitch!” Stephanie slaps Brie but security clutches Brie and hauls her away. McMahon orders the bell to be rung, and this ends as quick as it starts, with a mauling of Nikki and Alicia finishing her off with a scissors kick.
Winners via Pinfall: Rosa Mends, Cameron, Eva Marie, and Alicia Fox
Post-match, the women roll Nikki out of the ring while Stephanie stands over her and mocks her. “Sooner or later, you’re going to do just what your sister Brie did, and QUIT!”
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Match #3: Single – “The Inspirational” Bo Dallas VS. Damien “LeBron James” Sandow
(Note: Before the contest, Sandow is dressed as NBA Basketball star LeBron James, donned in a Miami Heat jersey, with “Miami” crossed out and “Cleveland” taped on, mocking the real-life trade. Sandow tells Bo he should just make like LeBron and leave!)
Damien quickly kicks and hammers Bo, but Dallas comes back with a clothesline and backdrop. He clotheslines Sandow over the ropes, then punches away again. Sandow comes back with an elbow and hammers away on Bo’s back and head. Bo reverses into a Small Package for a near-fall, but Damien hits back with another clothesline. Sandow clamps on a grounding headlock, then knees Dallas in the gut. Sandow mocks a LeBron James taunt, and yells “Cleveland, I’m coming home!” He misses the Elbow Of Distain, allowing Dallas to capitalize with the Bo-Dog running corner bulldog and the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pinfall: “The Inspirational” Bo Dallas
Up next, it’s Highlight Reel time!
Commercials.
Segment #3: Arena Promo
The camera focuses on the announcers, as Cole and Lawler inform us that a “situation has unfolded” regarding Chris Jericho. “Miami, we’re here.” The Wyatt Family, not Jericho, saunter to the ring amid darkened arena and cellular phone lights. “Hello everyone, and welcome to the Highlight Reel! Unfortunately, your scheduled host, Chris Jericho, is unable to make it at the moment. He’s a bit ‘indisposed.’ Now where, oh where, could Chris Jericho be? I wonder,” Bray opens and points to the Titantron.
Footage shows The Wyatt Family attacking Jericho in his locker room,, with Bray giving him Sister Abigail against the lockers. He sits in the locker and tells Chris, “sooner or later, they all fall down,” then walks off humming “He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands.”
Back live, “now, where is Chris Jericho? Where is your ‘savior?’ Surprise, surprise, he ain’t here for you. But you know who is? I am. I am here for you just like I have been every day since I’ve been around. And I know what you’re thinking. ‘I can read your thought.’ I know, that you’re thinking, that because last night Chris Jericho had his arm raised at the end of the night, that you believe he is a better man than I. do you really believe that I would burden myself with such petty, squeamish things? A lost in a battle means nothing to me. Because I know, that it is the war that counts. And war, that’s my ‘game’ man. I created war. And it wasn’t so long ago that The Wyatt Family entered a WWE ring for the very first time. And in our short reign of terror, we have dismantled giants, we have destroyed monsters, and most importantly of all, we have brought so-called ‘heroes’ to their knees. And I ask you right now Chris Jericho, just who in the hell is it you really think you’re dealing with man. I am Bray Wyatt, the ‘Eater of Worlds,’ and I am every bit the monster they think I am. You will find Chris, that you cannot measure me like you measure a normal man. You cannot measure me by how much dollar bills I have in my pocket; because society is my ‘plaything.’ You cannot measure me by the days of the year, because time is irrelevant to me. I live a hundred years a day man. And there’s been something, ever since last night, it’s been recurring over and over again in my head and I can’t shake it. It’s something that Abigail used to say to me. She used to say, ‘be careful going out and chasing vengeance Bray. Because if you do, you’ll need to dig two graves: one for your enemy and one for yourself. But unfortunately for you, Chris Jericho, I am forever.” Bray laughs and drops to his knees. “Follow the buzzards.”
Chris Jericho is now shown with R-Truth, Zack Ryder, and a WWE Doctor checking on him. His left ear is bleeding.
The NEW Intercontinental Champion makes his way to the ring. That man is … The MIZ! (Yay!) he will be in action next!
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Match #4: Single – Intercontinental Champion The Miz VS. “The Show-Off” Dolph Ziggler (Non-Title)
(Writer’s Note: Hopefully, this match is given lots of time, as it could be pun-intended, AWESOME!) Miz rolls out of the ring right away, taking off his shades and protecting himself. Dolph punches at him, but Miz escapes again. Ziggler runs after on the floor and into the ring, but Miz rolls away before Dolph can punch him again in the face.
Ziggler chops Miz against the barricade, but Miz blocks a potential head-slam on the steel steps. Miz catches Dolph with a kick in the ring and takes control. Dolph flips out of a backdrop and they trade roll-ups for one-counts. Ziggler gives Miz a hip-toss and repeated elbow drops, with the fans counting to nine. Miz rolled out before ten, then takes over again. He has Dolph in a grounding headlock, but Dolph reverses into a hammerlock. Ziggler leaps around, but is swept up by the legs. Miz slingshots him over the ropes, but Dolph hangs on like Hall Of Famer Shawn Michaels at the 1995 Royal Rumble. They both trade hits on the apron, then Miz tosses him to the floor with a flapjack!
Commercials.
Miz is dominating with vicious kicks and gives him a suplex for a near-fall. Ziggler punches his way out of a rear chinlock and rolls-up Miz for two! Miz misses a running clothesline in the corner and crotches himself against the turnbuckle. The referee begins the count as both men are down. Dolph fires up and clotheslines the I.C. Champ a couple of times. He splashes Miz in the corner and twists him around with a neckbreaker. He goes for the Fameasser but Miz counters with a roll-up. 1 – 2 – Dolph kicks out! Ziggler reverses a neckbreaker into a backslide for another near-fall! Miz drops Dolph with a side effect slam for two also! Dolph leaps onto Miz and rolls over with a sunset flip, but Miz reverses and tries the Figure-4. Dolph kicks him off and drives him down with the leaping DDT! 1 – 2 – Miz still kicks out!
Dolph clamps on Miz’s head, but Miz works out of it and DDT’s Dolph for another two! Miz knees Ziggler’s knee and goes for another Figure-4, but Ziggler rolls into an inside cradle for a near-fall! Miz catches a kick attempt and finally clutches the Figure-4! Dolph struggles but manages to grab the ropes for a break! Miz tries again, but Dolph kicks off and plants him with the Fameasser! 1 – 2 – Miz gets the shoulder up! Crowd now chanting “this is awesome!”
Ziggler leaps on Miz’s back, but he pushes off. Ziggler snapmares Miz out of a Skull Krushing Finale attempt, then goes for a kick. Miz turns around to preserve his face, but Ziggler surprises him with the Zig-Zag and covers to take this back-and-forth battle!
Winner via Pinfall: “The Show-Off” Dolph Ziggler
(Writer’s Note: Excellent match!)
Post-match, Miz orders Justin Roberts to announce him as STILL the Intercontinental Champion. (Nice touch!)
Segment #4: Office Promo
Triple H is talking with Seth Rollins, telling him not to risk everything just yet. He doesn’t want Rollins to face Cena at SummerSlam because of his Money In The Bank contract. Seth says that anytime he tries to cash in, Ambrose is there to foil it.
Cesaro walks in and tries to convince Triple H that he should be the one to face John at SummerSlam. Cesaro reveals he is not a “Heyman guy” anymore. “The Game” tells Cesaro to convince him by taking on Dean Ambrose later tonight.
Up next, Divas Champion A.J. Lee will team with her friend/rival Paige!
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Match #5: Tag-Team – Natalya and Emma VS. Paige and Divas Champion A.J. Lee (Non-Title)
Emma and A.J. begin, locking up. A.J. hammerlocks Emma, but she is elbowed. Emma trips up Lee and rolls her for one, but A.J. comes back with a victory roll for two! A.J. clutches Emma by the hair and skips around. She tags in Paige who headbutts Emma, then mocks Emma’s dance. Emma counters a run with the Tarantula lock against the ropes. Emma tags in Natalya who gives Paige a front-dropkick and jackknife cover. Paige bridges out and rear-bumps Natalya in a backslide position. She shoves Natalya into Emma on the apron, but the third-generation Diva fires back with a clotheslines. She clamps on the Sharpshooter, but Paige struggles to and tags in A.J. The Divas Champ holds Natalya in the Black Widow Octopus hold, forcing her to tap.
Winners via Submission: Paige and Divas Champion A.J. Lee
Post-match, both Divas celebrate until the inevitable. As A.J. turns around, Paige yanks her down and repeatedly headbutts her! She tosses the Divas Champion to the floor and is now getting boos. “C’mon A.J.” she says as she hurls Lee into the barricade and the ring post. “I told you this was my house! THIS WAS MY HOUSE!” Paige whips A.J. over the announce table and eggs her on again. Paige crawls onto the table and reminds Lee/Us, “my house, A.J.” Paige walks off with a sadistic smile, then skips away like A.J. “My house!”
Commercials.
Match #6: Single – Fandango VS. “Long Island Iced-Z” Zack Ryder (with Summer Rae and Layla)
Fandango controls for a bit, until Ryder counters with a facebuster and double-knees. Fandango counters a missile dropkick and pounds away, but misses a clothesline and falls to the RoughRyder! Layla did move Fandango’s leg off the rope to give Zack the advantage.
Winner via Pinfall: “Long Island Iced-Z” Zack Ryder (with Summer Rae and Layla)
Segment #5: Backstage Promo
Rene Young is with Raw Guest Star Flo Rida. He is happy to be back in WWE when Heath Slater walks in. He pushes Flo because Rida did that at WrestleMania, XXVIII, his last WWE appearance. Flo shoves Slater back into equipment and walks off. He will perform next.
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It is announced that United States Champion Sheamus will face Rusev this week on Main Event.
Segment #6: Arena Performance
Flo Rida and his musicians perform.
Near the announce table, Stephanie McMahon is chatting with real authorities. They arrest her and Brie Bella reappears. Both women get into a yelling match and need to be held back. McMahon is taken away in handcuffs.
Backstage, Triple H argues with the authorities while Stephanie is being walked off. They load her into the car and drive away.
Commercials.
Segment #7: Office Promo
Triple H is packing up to leave when Agent (and former wrestler) Joey Mercury walks in. he hates to ask the question, but wants to know “The Game’s” decision on who’s facing Cena at SummerSlam. At first, Triple H is only concerned with Stephanie, but then realizes it will be a while before he can see her, due to processing and all, so he decides to stick around and leave after he’s made his decision.
Match #7: Tag-Team – Rybaxel (Ryback and Curtis Axel) VS. Big E. and Kofi Kingston
Ryback and Big E. engage in an elbow/collar tie-up to start. Ryback gets the advantage with punches, but Big E. comes back with a shoulder block and a side belly-to-belly suplex. He also knocks Axel off the apron, but turns around into a spinebuster. Axel now in and both he and Ryback kick away at Big E. in the corner. Suplex by Ryback for two! Ryback pounds away on the back of Big E. then gives him an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. He goes for the Meathook Clothesline, but Big E. counters with one of his own! Big E. crawls to Kofi for the hot-tag, who leaps in and chops Ryback down! Kofi flies around with a dropkick and the S.O.S for a near-fall!
Big E. clotheslines Curtis over the ropes while Kingston soars off the top rope with a crossbody, but Ryback reversed into a cover to suddenly get the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winners via PInfall: Rybaxel (Ryback and Curtis Axel)
Post-match, Big E. wonders what happened with Kofi, when Xavier Woods appears. He is attired in a white suit with red shirt and glasses. “Everybody listen. I need you to pay attention to what I’m about to say. This is exactly what I’ve been talking about. You cannot move ahead by shaking hands, kissing babies, singing and dancing like a puppet. You cannot move ahead by always doing what you’re told. Now, this is our time. This is our place. It is time for us to find focus. It is up to us to find order. Together, it is our time to find purpose. Because we do not ask any longer. Now, we take!” Big E. and Kofi seem to agree, with Kofi nodding his head yes. (This new alliance could be interesting – more on that in my “excellence” part of my review.)
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Match #8: Single – “The Super Athlete” Rusev (with “The Ravishing Russian” Lana) VS. The Great Khali
Before the bout, Lana tries to talk but Khali interrupts her. Rusev wins this pretty easily, making Khali tap-out to The Accolade (Camel Clutch)
Winner via Submission: “The Super Athlete” Rusev (with “The Ravishing Russian” Lana)
Segment #8: Backstage Promo
Stardust is holding a globe and singing. “There’s no earthly way of knowing which direction you are going.” He spins right around into Goldust. He says that they are the brightest of stars, and says “it needs us.”
Dean Ambrose now makes his way to the ring and will be taking on Cesaro next!
Commercials.
Rene Young is outside The Authority’s locker room, and says that Stephanie is going to be arraigned tonight for “battery” against Brie Bella, with possible further charges of “resisting arrest.”
Match #9: Single – Dean Ambrose VS. Cesaro
Cesaro grabs Ambrose’s injured arm right away, but Dean works out of it and punches. Cesaro counters a suplex attempt and elbows Ambrose’s left shoulder. Amborse puts Cesaro to the floor, then leaps onto him from the apron and punches away. Cesaro kicks Ambrose as he re-entered the ring. He throws Dean shoulder-first into the ring post, then suplexes him from the ring to the floor! Cesaro wears Ambrose’s bandages shoulder with an armlock, Dean hits back with flurry punches, and sling-shots himself over the ropes, but Cesaro counters with a European uppercut.
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Cesaro has Dean gripped in another armlock, but Dean works his way out. Cesaro catches him in a German suplex pin for two, then sets him atop the turnbuckle. He kicks hard at the shoulder, then tries for a suplex. Ambrose counters and headbutts him off. Dean rockets off with a front-dropkick, then off the ropes with a crossbody and punches. Ambrose is gaining momentum, spinning Cesaro around with a Tornado DDT out of the corner. He runs Cesaro head-first into the turnbuckle, then pulls down the ropes which sends Cesaro tumbling to the floor! Ambrose follows up with a suicide dive! He hits a bouncing clothesline and covers, 1 – 2 – Cesaro kicks out!
Cesaro yanks Ambrose’s arm on the ropes, and gives him a hard clothesline of his own. 1 – 2 – Ambrose kicks out! Ambrose elbows Cesaro and climbs the top rope, but Cesaro chops him off and kicks away as Dean is hanging upside down! Ambrose reverses a whip and shoves Cesaro three times shoulder-first into the ring post, then collects a steel chair from ringside. He nails in the arm with it, causing the DQ!
Winner via Disqualification: Cesaro
Backstage, Rene Young is with Triple H. She wants a word but he is on his way out to make the WWE World Heavyweight Championship announcement. She asks if he should be with Stephanie, but “The Game” just glares at her and walks away.
Commercials.
Segment #10: Arena Promo
Triple H reveals the new #1 Contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, to face John Cena at SummerSlam. Randy Orton’s music plays and he walks out happy. Before he can get to the ring, Roman Reigns comes from the other side and brawls around the arena with him. They fight to the back area as the C.O.O. looks on.
Paul Heyman now walks out to the stage! He has a microphone and looks worried. “Mr. C.O.O., you, you know how much respect I have for you, sir. I hate to point out the obvious, but ‘Plan A’ just, just isn’t working with Randy Orton; not while Roman Reigns is around. I mean, ‘Plan B,’ I like ‘Plan B.’ Seth Rollins is great. But every time Seth Rollins is going to try and cash in that Money In The Bank briefcase, Dean Ambrose is going to stop him. Which is why, Triple H, I think The Authority has the uncomfortable decision right now to agree with me, that you need to make the ‘dangerous’ choice of implementing ‘Plan C.’” He points to the stage and the music of his first and current (again) client walks out – the man who broke The Undertaker’s streak at WrestleMania XXX – Brock Lesnar!
Triple H agrees, shaking the hands of both Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar! He walks away while Heyman puts over his client, “BROCK LESNAR!” Paul announces that he is going to “conquer John Cena and take the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam.” Heyman says that Lesnar recognizes the lovers and haters of Cena. ‘Now it doesn’t matter to my client which side of the fence you want to ride on. This malpracticing ‘Dr. Of Thug-A-Nomics’ is in for the beating of a lifetime!” Heyman backs up his points with video evidence, which is from WrestleMania XXX when he defeated The Undertaker.
“Oh John Cena, that same beating awaits you!” // “At SummerSlam, my client will take John Cena down. Brock Lesnar will punch John Cena’s face in. John Cena, you are going to be hurt by Brock Lesnar. Brock Lesnar is going to injure John Cena. Brock Lesnar is going to mangle John Cena. Then, and only then, Brock Lesnar is going to F-5 John Cena and strip John Cena of the dignity of being the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. The same way Brock Lesnar stripped The Undertaker of his dignity and exposed ‘The Streak’ as just being a myth. The same myth that Brock Lesnar hears every week on television when John Cena is referred to as being ‘the greatest WWE Champion of all-time.’ 15 World Titles in ten years; now that sounds like something worth conquering.” // “Ladies and gentleman, my name is Paul Heyman. And I’m ‘the one’ behind ‘the one in twenty-one-and-one’ and at SummerSlam, my client Brock Lesnar will Beat John Cena and become the WWE Heavyweight Champion of the world.”
Lesnar’s music plays as Heyman greedily smiles. “Will ‘The Greatest’ or ‘The Beast Incarnate’ rule at SummerSlam,” Cole ponders as the camera focuses in on Brock’s face to close the show.
End Of Raw.
Reporter’s Rumblings – By Moe Tapp
This was a great Raw, both in follow-up to Battleground and set-up for the next Pay-Per-View, SummerSlam. It started off and ended off hot, plus really ran smooth and kept attention mostly throughout. Onto the particulars:
Excellence: Opening promo; everything about it was well-done. From Triple H’s truthful tirade/cheap-shots about people on Twitter, to Randy Orton and Kane’s explanation of why they should be #1 Contender, to Roman Reigns surveying the fans’ SummerSlam choices in a subtle way. Even though it was heavily rumored and inevitable of who the person was going to be, liked they kept us in suspense until end of the show for the “big announcement.”
Brie/Stephanie – at first was not really into this angle, but it seriously got hot tonight (in the subject-matter way, not looks!) and both really finally delivered on the microphone. Loved the added touch of Brie pressing charges on Stephanie for assault and having her arrested after getting thrown out of the arena.
I’m very interested in Xavier Woods’ new character; it seems to resemble Clarence Mason and maybe a new Nation Of Domination (for newer fans, a 1996 – 1998 group, somewhat doing the same thing) type faction. Hopefully they actually do run with this and make these guys (Big E, Kofi, Woods) dominate and heels to freshen them up and get this over.
Fantastic match between Ziggler and Miz, both story-telling and wrestling-wise. Also, Miz losing does not hurt him, as this now gives Dolph a legitimate shot at the Intercontinental Championship.
As always, loved Bray Wyatt’s promo and this feud with Jericho. I see an “I Quit” match for SummerSlam?!
Cesaro dumping Heyman was surprising, but loved the aggressiveness he displayed in his match with Ambrose. I am a little worried he’s going get lost in the shuffle though, but maybe it is a new feud now with Dean after tonight.
I’ve always loved Paige’s attitude and wrestling ability since watching her on NXT; this new persona will hopefully get her over even more and elevate her better, as well as the Divas Championship and a hot (both in wrestling, and yes, I’ll admit in looks) feud for the rest of the summer, and maybe beyond!? Plus, the actual match tonight was wonderfully wrestled between all four women!
I was a little skeptical and thought they should’ve ended Raw with the handshakes between Triple H and Lesnar/Heyman, leaving us in waiting to hear next week. But Heyman’s promo was gold and really helped Lesnar seem legit again, especially since Cena has already beaten him once. They could easily spin it that the first time they faced off, Lesnar lost was because he didn’t have the guidance of Heyman. Now that Heyman has led him to defeat The Undertaker at WrestleMania, which no one else could, Paul E. can lead him to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship again, which he also did back in Brock’s debut year of 2002.
Bogus: Didn’t like the back-to-back multiples-on-one matches. Waters the “specialty” of them down to be one-after-the-other. Worried that Bo Dallas is starting to go nowhere; he didn’t even have an entrance tonight. At least he won in a somewhat quick fashion. Really don’t care for this Fandango/Summer/Layla storyline and it needs to end!
On another note, regarding the Lana/Rusev situation, I just read what they said at Battleground. It was definitely smart of WWE not to give Lana her usual promo tonight, and I believe they should’ve complete steered away from that line/talk, as it is wa too much of a surreal and uneasy real-life situation/feeling.
All-in-all, a darn good show, but I will miss writing about next week’s, as I am on vacation. So hopefully they keep up the momentum when I return for August 4th! Until then, as always, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Readers and Wrestling Fans!
Following the negative publicity that the company has received from International media outlets regarding the Lana and Rusev segment and the wording used in the promo at the Battleground pay-per-view, WWE issued a statement today defending its angle.
“Last night’s segment during WWE’s Battleground event was in no way referring to the Malaysia Airlines tragedy. The storyline with characters Rusev and Lana has been a part of WWE programming for more than 3 months. WWE apologizes to anyone who misunderstood last night’s segment and was offended,” the statement reads.
The statement doesn’t sound like WWE is going to put a stop to the angle regardless of what is going on in the region at the moment.
A segment from last night’s Battleground pay-per-view has landed WWE, Lana, and Rusev, on some media and news websites for indirectly referencing the Malaysia Airlines MH17 crash from last week.
The not-so-good free advertising blasts WWE for even touching the hot subject, with the segment seeing Lana – played by American CJ Perry – telling WWE fans, “You blame Russia for the recent current events?”
Websites and newspapers such as News.com.au, Daily Mail, Yahoo! UK, Washington Post, New York Daily News, TMZ, The Independent, New York Post, Deadspin, and others all carried stories and a video that shows Lana – in her Russian accent – blasting the crowd.
Many thought that WWE would maybe tone it down or avoid going in that direction completely considering the sensitive subject and the fact that almost 300 people died in the downing of the plane.
Back in 2005, WWE ditched an angle featuring Muhammad Hassan after the 2005 London bombings.
During the Battleground pay-per-view, Paul Heyman tweeted a photo of himself sitting in an airplane with the words, “In case you’re wondering … Heading to pick up #PlanC … Just in case.”
Plan C is something that Heyman proposed to the Authority in case John Cena walked out of the Battleground pay-per-view still as the WWE World Heavyweight champion.
The Plan C will result in the return of Brock Lesnar, the man who defeated the Undertaker’s streak at this year’s WrestleMania. Lesnar is scheduled to appear on RAW tonight while John Cena will not be there live due to the filming of the movie Trainwreck.
Lesnar has not appeared on WWE television since RAW the day after WrestleMania XXX.
WWE World Heavyweight champion John Cena will be missing several television dates as he is pulling double duty filming the upcoming movie Trainwreck, directed and produced by Judd Apatow.
Cena was announced as joining the cast of the movie back in March of this year and will not have the biggest role in this comedy film. Amy Schumer is the star of the movie and she too has somewhat of a wrestling connection as she is the former girlfriend of WWE Superstar Dolph Ziggler.
Other stars in the movie apart from Cena and Schumer are Bill Hader, Brie Larson, Colin Quinn, Barkhad Abdi, Mike Birbiglia, Jon Glaser, Vanessa Bayer, Ezra Miller and Tilda Swinton.
WWE will not be doing Axxess this year at SummerSlam in Los Angeles however WWE has now announced somewhat of a replacement – SummerSlam Panels.
Held between August 15 and 17 at the Club Nokia at LA LIVE, SummerSlam Panels will feature four panels, each consisting of uncensored and unfiltered conversation between a WWE moderator and the featured Superstars, followed by a Q&A session in which attendees can ask questions directly to the Superstars! Then, after the Q&A is a 90-minute VIP experience, in which VIP ticket holders can get a photo onstage with the Panel headliner(s).
On Friday August 15 between 7PM and 10:30PM there will be Hulk Hogan on the panel, on Saturday between 10AM and 1:30PM there will be a WWE 2K15 Roster Reveal with John Cena, Hulk Hogan, Sheamus, Cesaro and Roman Reigns. Later on in the day between 7PM and 10:30PM the panel will be held by Shawn Michaels and Triple H and then on SummerSlam Sunday there will be a panel with Steve Austin between Noon and 3:30PM.
Tickets go on sale at AXS.com starting this Saturday, July 26, at 1PM EST. VIP floor tickets which include a professional photo with the headliner, SummerSlam Panels signed poster, and priority seating costs $200. Floor tickets are $100 and also include a SummerSlam Panels poster, and balcony seating will cost $50.
Adam Rose defeated Fandango; Cameron defeated Naomi; The Usos defeated Luke Harper and Erick Rowan to retain the Tag Team titles in a 2 out of 3 falls match; AJ Lee defeated Paige to retain the Divas title; Rusev defeated Jack Swagger; Chris Jericho defeated Bray Wyatt; The Miz won the Intercontinental title 20-man battle royal; John Cena defeated Kane, Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns to retain the WWE World Heavyweight title.
It is being reported by several websites that WWE Hall of Famer Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat has been released by WWE due to latest budget cuts.
The former NWA champion has been working for WWE since 2005, first starting as a road agent before moving to NXT as a trainer and also helping in the talent relations department.
Steamboat was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009 by his good friend Ric Flair.
If the rumors of Steamboat being released are true it will be a great loss for WWE and especially down at NXT where he’s been helping training up-and-coming WWE Superstars and Divas.
Live tonight on pay-per-view and WWE Network, WWE presents Battleground from the Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa, Florida. The full card is as follows:
John Cena vs Kane vs Randy Orton vs Roman Reigns in a fatal 4 way for the WWE World Heavyweight title; 20-man battle royal for the vacant Intercontinental title; AJ Lee vs Paige for the WWE Divas title; The Usos vs Wyatt Family in a 2 out of 3 falls for the Tag Team titles; Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins; Bray Wyatt vs Chris Jericho; Jack Swagger vs Rusev; and Cameron vs Naomi in the kickoff match.
CBS-19 reporter Chris Van Vliet from CBS-19 from Cleveland sat down with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to talk about Hercules and just like in every other interview, the topic of wrestling keeps popping up.
The Rock basically repeated what he said before about returning, saying he’d be open about it as long as the opponent makes sense and also talked about the incredible atmosphere at WrestleMania XXX when he came out with Hogan and Austin.
However during the interview, the host asked Rock about Sting, a topic which no one has gone for yet during these sit-down interviews.
“You think Sting will come back?” the host, obviously a wrestling fan, asked.
The Rock smiled and after thinking about it for a second he said, “I do, yeah, and I know a guy or two, so, let’s just put it like that!”
You can see the interview below.
Betfair Sportsbook, a subsidiary of Betfair Casino, released the odds for all the matches for tonight’s Battleground pay-per-view.
Usually when there’s going to be a switch, a lot of money is exchanged very late so these numbers can and probably will change as the event gets closer to air tonight.
Here are the bets for each match:
WWE title match: John Cena – 11/8, Randy Orton – 7/2, Kane – 7/2, Roman Reigns – 7/2.
Tag Team title match: The Usos – 11/8, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan – 4/7.
Intercontinental title battle royal: Cesaro – 5/1, Kofi Kingston – 33/1, The Great Khali – 33/1, Rob Van Dam – 9/1, Dolph Ziggler – 7/1, Big E – 11/1, Ryback – 11/1, Curtis Axel – 14/1, Alberto Del Rio – 9/1, Bo Dallas – 33/1, Sheamus – 11/1, Fandango – 9/1, Sin Cara – 33/1, Zack Ryder – 33/1, The Miz – 14/1, Diego – 33/1, R-Truth – 33/1, Xavier Woods – 33/1, Heath Slater – 33/1, Titus O’Neil – 33/1.
Ambrose vs Rollins: Dean Ambrose – 10/11, Seth Rollins – 10/11.
Jericho vs Wyatt: Chris Jericho – 11/10, Bray Wyatt – 8/11.
Swagger vs Rusev: Jack Swagger – 4/5, Rusev – EVS (double the stake).
Divas Title Match: AJ Lee – 8/13, Paige – 5/4.
Kick off match: Cameron – 2/1, Naomi – 4/11.
There’s also a bet about Sting making his first WWE on-camera appearance with yes at 8/11 and No at 11/10.
TNA has announced that their Hardcore Justice-themed Impact television show will be taking place on August 5 at the Manhattan Center in New York when the company returns there for another series of tapings.
Hardcore Justice was one of yearly TNA pay-per-views that the company scratched off their calendar but still held for free as an episode of Imapct.
TNA returns to the Grand Ballroom at the Manhattan Center on August 5, 6, and 7, after successful tapings last month.
Both WWE Hall of Famers Hulk Hogan and the recently returned Ric Flair will be appearing together on the non-televised live event from the SAP Center in San Jose, California, on August 16, the night before SummerSlam.
According to the SAP Center website, the two will be “co-hosting” the show which includes matches John Cena vs Kane in a street fight, Randy Orton vs Roman Reigns, and Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins among others.
This will be the final WWE show in the Bay Area prior to WrestleMania 31.
While his real name is Jeff Hardy, Impact television gave us his alter ego, Willow, better known as “Willow the Wisp” from his earlier days in independent wrestling. Willow was not getting over with the audience. His character did not make any sense because through his character we saw Jeff Hardy: same ring presence, same ring attire, same hair-style; the only difference was his demonized mask and his umbrella he would carry to the ring to show his adoration for the great Julie Andrews (I made that up, sue me).
Sebastian Maldonado wrote a great piece regarding Willow on Bleacher Report as he explained that the Willow character was set up to fail from the beginning (view article here). I agree to the extent that Impact failed miserably in creating an alter-ego to Jeff Hardy that would give the fans a new twist on the legendary character like the way Kane and Undertaker have done with theirs. However, it appeared Impact Wrestling was not quite certain the kind of direction his character would evolve to. We witnessed that on the July 10th, 2014 edition of Impact Wrestling when Jeff Hardy made his return at a battle royal to determine the number one contender for Bobby Lashley’s TNA Wrestling’s World Heavyweight Championship. He ended up winning (as Jeff Hardy), which also signaled the end of the Willow character once and for all.
Sometimes the best thing to do is just kill the character off when you know he is not receiving the proper response from the audience that the creative team had initially expected. I am one of the few who were looking forward for this character to evolve into something different we have not seen before. People were comparing the Willow character to Bray Wyatt; sadistic, controversial and tells-it-like-it-is. I appreciated the fact that Impact Wrestling was able to take a popular wrestler like Jeff Hardy, whose merchandise is one of the top sellers in the company, and be able to elevate him to a different level we have not seen before. Due to all the roster cuts and the old veterans retiring or signing Legend contracts with World Wrestling Entertainment, it was not a far-fetched idea to give Jeff Hardy a chance to show others what he has done in other promotions; become the star by being different.
His wrestling style somewhat resembles that of Rob Van Dam. Rob Van Dam is unique and different in his own right. He puts you in the mindset of someone who resembles what athletic competitors would be if those athletic competitors would legitimately get in the ring and make you fight to the finish. Jeff Hardy may not resemble that of a Roman warrior, he does, however, give you the impression that he does symbolize what a professional wrestler should do in a wrestling ring; and completely separate the notion of any global comparison between mixed martial arts and professional wrestling. The face paint, the baggy clothes, the enigma that is Jeff Hardy makes you want to continue to tune in on Thursday nights to see what he will do next; which meant that Willow had to come to an end in order for Hardy to continuously shine bright and help raise the stable ratings numbers on Spike.
So, what should Impact Wrestling do now that Jeff Hardy has “returned?” Apparently, for starters, he will be reuniting with his brother, Matt Hardy, on Impact Wrestling’s tour to New York City. While, I am of the notion that great tag teams who reunite for a special show at the Manhattan Center in New York City is something to be really excited about, I do believe this was ill-timed for the company. Since we have not seen Jeff Hardy appear on television in quite a while, rather than bring back his old tag team & brother, Matt, placing him in a tag team after months of absence is not the way you want to book Jeff Hardy back in the main event picture. Rather than pair him with Matt, why not have Matt surprisingly attack Jeff Hardy in the middle of the Manhattan Center for the audience to shout obscenity at him causing the brothers to face one another on the Impact Wrestling show? It may be an impromptu match; I do not believe Matt would mind putting his brother over considering he does not work for the company full-time and is enjoying much success at Ring of Honor.
At the same time the two brothers have faced one another before at WrestleMania 25 when Matt Hardy had defeated Jeff in a singles match; they know how to work with one another, so why ruin the spotlight for a fresh Jeff Hardy just to receive a quick reaction from the audience on hand?
Regardless of some of my banter, I am very much looking forward to what Jeff Hardy will do from here on out. The company was in dire need of his character to return to television in order to help them land a new television deal with Spike. Now that you have other stars on the roster, having Jeff Hardy to push to become the face of the franchise once again, it could garner stiff competition for NXT Wrestling on the WWE Network. I do not believe there needs to be any form of competition, but it definitely would not hurt for the creative writers of the company to take the extra time to script a show that will want the audience to target their brand more than WWE’s, at least on a Thursday.
Jeff Hardy has returned to Impact Wrestling and with MVP on his way to a full recovery, Bobby Lashley being your champion, and the fresh faces that continue to come to Impact Wrestling, it makes for an exciting time to be a fan of Impact!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Peter Bahi is an avid wrestling fan who has followed professional wrestling since the early eighties. He is Columnist for several pro wrestling websites, including: Wrestling-Online.com and OnlineWorldOfWrestling.com. You can see some of his guest columns on 1wrestling.com from time to time and has a personal blog; AdapttoAdopt.Blogspot.com, where he shares his passion for adoption. He is currently pursuing a Bachelors degree in Business Management from Penn Foster College where he hopes to one day, begin getting paid for the amount of time he puts into his craft of writing. He can be reached via twitter @PeterBahi.
WWE stocks went up 6% today, hitting a day high of $13 before closing at $12.61 amid new speculations of a company merger.
The report was initially drawn up by SeekingAlpha.com after 21st Century Fox’ failed attempt to buy Time-Warner. The attempt led to speculation that Rupert Murdoch’s company is targeting other companies, with WWE one of them.
WWE’s over-the-top Network service was also listed as somewhat of a hot property even though it has failed to attract a large quantity of subscribers so far.
A couple of months ago there were big rumors that AMC Networks was in talks to take over the company which led to another spike in stocks however the rumor never materialized.
