The WWE Network will air a tribute to the Ultimate Warrior tonight starting at 8PM EST.
Subscribers to the Network will be able to watch highlights of Warrior’s induction into the WWE Hall of Fame plus his return to Monday Night RAW this week, his first and last appearance on the show since 1996.
Afterward the Network will air WrestleMania VI in its entirety which is without a doubt Warrior’s biggest achievement in professional wrestling, defeating Hulk Hogan for the WWE title.
TMZ.COM is reporting that according to an eye witness, Warrior grabbed his chest and collapsed while walking to his car with his wife yesterday, most likely dying on the spot as he was pronounced dead as soon as he arrived at the hospital.
TMZ also adds that those who were around the WWE Hall of Famer during the weekend were a bit concerned as he looked stressed and sweaty all the time and was about to burst at the seams.”
One eyewitness who remained anonymous said that Warrior looked like in pain and very uncomfortable during the whole weekend and it was apparent to a lot of people that something did not look right.
“We all felt like he looked like he was going to blow a gasket. It was pretty easy to see,” this eyewitness said. When Warrior shook the ropes on RAW he looked very weak and couldn’t even shake them properly.
Hulk Hogan, a long time nemesis of the Ultimate Warrior both in the ring and outside the ring, posted on Twitter that the two patched things up during WrestleMania weekend, forgiving each other and shook hands.
“I am so sad. God bless his beautiful family,” Hogan wrote on Twitter after posting a RIP WARRIOR tweet.
Hogan also posted a photo of the two of them together smiling along with Pat Patterson after Warrior delivered his last promo on Monday Night RAW. Hogan said that Pat Patterson was happy that the two were friends again and Warrior told him his wife was glad as well.
You can see the photo below.
Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports spoke with Scottsdale police spokesman Sergeant Mark Clark about The Ultimate Warrior’s death and he was issued the following statement.
“On April 8 at 5:50PM 54-year-old “Warrior” James B Hellwig collapsed while walking with his wife to their car at the Gainy Suites Hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona. Scottsdale Fire transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead soon after arrival. At this point in the investigation, it appears as though a catastrophic medical condition caused his death.”
Warrior passed away yesterday after he arrived from a weekend in New Orleans where he was honored at the Hall of Fame ceremony, at WrestleMania, and then spoke on Monday Night RAW live.
TMZ.COM is now reporting that according to officials with knowledge of the situation, the Ultimate Warrior collapsed while he was walking to his car with his wife at a hotel in Arizona at around 5:50PM on April 8.
Warrior was transported to a nearby hospital but it was too late as he was pronounced dead upon arrival. No more information is available.
Warrior left New Orleans this morning from his WrestleMania XXX weekend with fans who spotted the legend now posting their photos with him at the airport on social media.
Born James Hellwig in 1959, the Ultimate Warrior made his wrestling debut in 1985 teaming up with Steve Borden, better known to wrestling fans as Sting.
In 1986, he moved to World Class Championship Wrestling before joining the then-WWF one year later, making his television debut in October as The Ultimate Warrior.
With growing popularity thanks to his character, Warrior was given his first title at SummerSlam 88, defeating the Honky Tonk Man in under 30 seconds to become the Intercontinental title.
His greatest moment came at just 30 years of age when in 1990 he defeated Hulk Hogan at the SkyDome in Toronto, Canada, at WrestleMania VI in a match billed as “The Ultimate Challenge” where both his Intercontinental title and the WWF title were on the line.
He lost his title in January 1991 to Sgt. Slaughter at the Royal Rumble and then started a feud with Randy Savage which climaxed at WrestleMania VII in a retirement match, a match which Warrior won.
In 1991, Warrior’s relationship with the WWE went through a rough patch and he demanded $550,000 for his participation at WrestleMania among other royalties and threatened to walk out of the company even though he was in the main event of SummerSlam that year. Eventually WWE paid Warrior what he wanted but he was fired as soon as the pay-per-view was over.
He returned in 1992 at WrestleMania VIII, saving Hulk Hogan from Sid and Papa Shango but his return was short-lived, and in November of that year he was released even though he was set to main event Survivor Series weeks later with Savage, Razor, and Flair.
He returned once again 1996, defeating Triple H at WrestleMania XII but again problems with the McMahons led to another early departure that same year.
He moved to WCW in 1998, wrestling only four matches while he was employed by the Atlanta-based company. He eventually lost to Hulk Hogan at Halloween Havoc 98, a match which is considered one of the worst in WCW history. He departed WCW that same year and retired.
His return to WWE was announced in 2013 as part of the WWE 2K14 game where he was added as a playable character and in January of this year he was announced as the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2014.
Warrior headlined the Hall of Fame this past Saturday with a passionate speech and then appeared at WrestleMania XXX with the other Hall of Fame inductees before being given his own few minutes on TV for a promo on Monday Night RAW where he donned one of his old jackets and put a mask to address the WWE fans.
“No WWE talent becomes a legend on their own. Every man’s heart one day beats its final beat. His lungs breathe a final breath.”
And that is how the Ultimate Warrior started his short promo on Monday Night RAW last night, his first ever appearance on the show since 1996, words that will certainly haunt many after the news came out of his untimely passing just 24 hours after he spoke to the WWE Universe live on USA Network.
“You are the Ultimate Warrior fans. And the spirit of Ultimate Warrior will run forever,” he concluded, before telling fans that there are several potential legends in the back, some of who have the Warrior spirit. He hoped that the same fans who supported the Warrior would do the same for them and make them legends.
You can see his final promo below.
The wrestling world was shocked to its core late Tuesday night after the announcement of the Ultimate Warrior’s passing was made public.
“We are all so sad that the Ultimate Warrior has passed away. Our heart is with his wife Dana and his two daughters,” said WWE CEO and Chairman Vince McMahon, who just this weekend posed for a photo hugging the Warrior backstage, a photo which was distributed online by Stephanie McMahon’s Twitter.
“#RIPUltimateWarrior Your strength of character is to be admired. There will never be anyone like you. Your spirit lives on in your family,” Stephanie McMahon added.
“Saddened to announce the passing of the Ultimate Warrior. Icon and friend. My sympathy to his wife Dana and his daughters,” wrote Triple H, who was the brains behind the Warrior/WWE reunion lately.
Tons of current and former WWE Superstars including Hulk Hogan, Chris Jericho, Chyna, Bella Twins, JBL, Jim Ross, Bill Goldberg and hundreds of others passed their condolences on their official Twitter accounts, all in disbelief over what happened.
WWE.COM broke the news just now that the Ultimate Warrior passed away at the age of 54 just a day after he returned to Monday Night RAW.
“WWE is shocked and deeply saddened to learn of the passing of one of the most iconic WWE Superstars ever,” a statement on WWE.COM read. This past weekend, Warrior was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and on Sunday came out in front of 75,000 fans at WrestleMania XXX. Details surrounding his death are still unknown at the moment and this comes to a complete shock to everyone as Warrior looked in good health and shape over the weekend.
Warrior is survived by his wife Dana and his two young daughters, both of whom accompanied their father to the stage at the Hall of Fame on Saturday.
Fandango today posted a tweet dumping Summer Rae as his dance partner in an angle that will probably end up playing on television.
“Hey, @RealSummerWWE. Did you get my text? Like I said, it’s really not me, it’s you. It’s over…” he wrote.
The 30 year old blond bombshell made her debut with Fandango in April 2013 during RAW, replacing the previous dancer. She had been under a developmental contract with the WWE since 2011.
Rae is not leaving the company by any means and will move on as a singles wrestler in the Divas division.
TNA has gotten themselves a new member on its creative team in the form of former Knockout Christy Hemme.
Hemme has been working for TNA Wrestling since 2006 but wrestled her last match in 2008 before moving on as a backstage interviewer and ring announcer.
She joins John Gaburick, Dave Lagana, and Matt Conway on the creative team.
Hemme started her professional wrestling career in the WWE, winning the Diva Search contest in 2004.
Mr. T used Twitter to air his thanks and frustration regarding his Hall of Fame speech getting cut before he was finished.
“Thank you very much for all your support! I am very disappointed and saddened that you couldn’t hear the rest of my speech. I was told my speech went too long? Really? Seriously?” Mr. T wrote.
He said that all the inductees were told that the fans would want to hear their stories and were instructed to “take our time and enjoy the moment.”
Mr. T added that he was moved by the support fans showed to him after his speech was cut short and he will post the remainder of the speech for everyone to read it.
“My mother taught me to stand up for what I believed in. I put a lot of care and love into my speech. I wanted it to inspire and motivate people when they are hurting. Since my mother taught me to always try and take the high road, I will. If my speech helped just 1 mother & 1 son out there, thank you GOD,” he wrote.
Mr. T also thanked Rowdy Roddy Piper for his words after his speech, saying they meant a lot to him. The two were not very friendly due to the heat they had at the time of WrestleMania I and II.
WWE Divas champion AJ Lee was finally dethroned after 295 days by NXT newcomer Paige last night on Monday Night RAW.
AJ told the fans inside the arena that she was the “best Diva in the world,” resulting in a big pop and chant for her boyfriend CM Punk. The celebration was quickly cut off though as NXT Women’s champion Paige made her WWE TV debut to a thunderous pop from the New Orleans crowd.
AJ challenged Paige in a match however Paige said she wasn’t ready, and was slapped in the face for her answer. Eventually the match kicked off and Paige pulled the upset, pinning AJ with her Paige Turner finishing move.
The 21 year old British wrestler became the youngest ever to hold the Divas title and also the first one to hold both the NXT Women’s and WWE Divas title simultaneously.
After the match, Paige was greeted backstage by WWE Divas who congratulated her on her win. An emotional Paige then cried her way through an interview for WWE.COM which you can see below.
Wow! What a WrestleMania! And I mean that in a great way! Two moments were real “WrestleMania Moments” and helped solidify it as “The Granddaddy Of Them All!” I won’t say anything more, as I don’t want to spoil for those who haven’t seen it and may be looking forward to this report, sans pre-spoilers. Let’s hope Raw follows on the heels of one of the better WrestleManias in a long while! Onto the show.
Monday Night Raw TV Report for April 7th, 2014 – “The New Generation, Part 2”
Introduction Segment: Video Promo
The same Daniel Bryan career highlight package airs, with still images of him winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania to cap it off.
Segment #2: Arena Promo
The show opens with the fans chanting “yes, yes, yes” and Justin Roberts welcoming the NEW WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan! The most-popular star on the roster today parades out with his new titles, to loud adoration from the crowd. He has the microphone and takes in the “Daniel Bryan” calls. He puts over the fans’ enjoyment of his big win, and their “yes” motion movement. The people then call out “you deserve it” numerous times. Bryan cites the fans’ defiance against authority (and I mean that in both storyline and backstage means) for helping him get to where he is today and changing the times.
Before he can continue, Bryan’s long-time rivals, C.O.O. Triple H and Stephanie, interrupt this gleeful moment. The fans chant “a$$hole” at him. He tells Daniel that he will not enter the ring, in fear of doing something to Bryan that he would later regret. Bryan takes advantage and eggs him on by standing in front of him and chanting yes with the two championships. “The Game” then informs Bryan his reign won’t last, as he personally challenges Daniel for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, tonight! Triple H declares that he will put an end to all of this. “This is my show and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.”
Bryan holds up the championships with “yes” chants again.
Later tonight, there will be more on “The Streak” coming to a close after Brock Lesnar defeated The Undertaker in a true WrestleMania shocker!
Commercials.
Segment #3: Office Promo
Stephanie is pumping up Triple H to shutdown the “yes movement” tonight. Batista walks in and is displeased with his loss of a one-on-one match for the title. Randy Orton now interjects and wants his entitled rematch. Triple H says they will get it, but not tonight. Stephanie now books Batista and Orton to team up and face The Usos later tonight for the Tag-Team Championships. (Man, The Usos better win!)
The lights go out and The Wyatt Family announce they are here! Bray leads Erik Rowan and Luke Harper down to the ring. Up next, they will face John Cena, Sheamus, and Intercontinental Champion Big E!
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Match #1: Six-Man Tag-Team – The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, and Erik Rowan) VS. Sheamus, Intercontinental Champion Big E. and John Cena (Non-Title)
This starts off as a quick brawl between all three, then the faces start to capitalize. John Cena plants Bray with a bulldog, then Sheamus springboards over the ropes with the Battering Ram shoulder block. The Family regain control as Rowan slugs it out with Sheamus. He delivers a few punches in the corner, but Rowan shoves him off. (Too a big pop, The Wyatt Family are clearly the favourites.) Big E. now in and gives Rowan a couple backbreakers. Rowan switches with Harper, who gets a shoulder block, then a spin-out backdrop from Cena. He picks up Luke for the A.A., but Harper wiggles out and slams Cena down. 1 – 2 – Cena gets the shoulder up!
Commercials.
Cena breaks out of a submission and tries another A.A. but Harper gets out of that one too. Rowan tags in and slams Cena down, then trades with Bray. He stomps away viciously in the corner, but is clotheslined by Cena for a break. Bray chokeslams Cena down, then Luke comes in and uppercuts him. He switches with Rowan, as does Cena and Sheamus. The big Irishman is all over both Rowan and Harper, ascending the top rope and diving off with a double-shoulder block. Bray gets the attention of Sheamus, which allows Rowan to put him down with a harsh clothesline.
Both Bray and Big E. are in, and the I.C. Champ dominates. He goes for the Big Ending, but Bray slides out and Luke nails a superkick! Rowan takes out Cena with a big boot, and Harper suicide dives on Sheamus to the outside! Bray does his Spider Walk (to which the fans chant “Bray’s going to kill you,” mocking TNA Superstar Samoa Joe’s chant). He follows up with Sister Abigail on Big E. and the victory!
Winners via Pinfall: The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, and Erik Rowan)
Commercials.
Segment #4: Video Promo
Footage of NXT star Bo Dallas airs, promoting him and everyone to “Bo-Lieve.”
Match #2: Mixed Tag-Team – Fandango and Summer Rae VS. Santino Marella and Emma
(Hopefully this is short and should end this feud!) Marella and Fandango begin, taunting each other with dances. Marella hip-tosses Fandango and goes for The Cobra right away, but Fandango out-wits him and tags in Summer. Emma has to come in and locks in “The Dilemma” (tarantula on the ropes), then her “Emmalock” submission (Indian Deathlock with bridge and modified Camel Clutch) for the tap-out!
Up next, “The Streak” is done!
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Segment #5: Arena Promo
Brock Lesnar and Brock Lesnar enter the arena. Heyman takes the mike first, and is proud to be the advocate for “The Beast Incarnate” and “the conqueror of The Undertaker’s ‘streak.'” Heyman touts Lesnar’s major success, to which the fans respond with “bulls**t.” Heyman says “we hate to tell you ‘we told you so,’ but ‘WE TOLD YOU SO!'” “Brock Lesnar is hear to shock the WWE Universe and put tears in the eyes of children.” Heyman tells us that The Undertaker fell backstage after the match, with paramedics attending to him. Heyman reveals that ‘Taker is being looked after for a concussion, and is lucky that is all because Lesnar would’ve gone further. Paul E. took umbrage with J.B.L. and “those two other — who call themselves announcers” for giving The Undertaker a standing ovation, despite him losing. Heyman yells that Undertaker is a “LOSER!” Heyman then calls the rest of the wrestlers and the fans “wannabees.”
He goes over Lesnar’s career success in all his paths, then rags on the biggest wrestling names like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin or The Rock for not doing the same. He calls Brock “the one,” as in “the one in twenty-one-and-one.” Heyman mocks the fans, repeating the phrase extremely (pun intended!) slowly. Heyman restates that Brock Lesnar is “the one,” then they walk off.
Up next, the Tag-Team Titles are on the line!
Commercials.
Segment #6: Video Promo
Another highlight, this time for up-and-coming Adam Rose from NXT, airs. “Coming soon.” (This guy’s a great wrestler and has an awesome entrance/exit! He is carried and leaves the ring “mosh-pit” party style by a bunch of dancers dressed eccentrically and chanting “hey” and “whoa” along the way.)
Match #3: Tag-Team for the Tag-Team Championship – “The Animal” Batista and “The Viper” Randy Orton (Challengers) VS. The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) (Champions)
Batista and an Uso start out (I can’t tell them apart, because Jey covered up his original chest tattoo), with Batista dominating. Orton now in and out, as are The Usos. The former Evolution teammates are completely controlling and destroying the brothers. They take them to the outside and both teams end up getting counted out.
Winners: None due to Double Count-Out
Post-match, Batista gives an Uso a Batistabomb on the steel steps, then he and Orton pose in the ring.
Later tonight, Hulk Hogan will present Antonio Cesaro with the Andre The Giant Memorial Trophy.
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Justin Roberts welcomes back Rob Van Dam, and he proceeds out for the next bout!
Match #4: Single – Rob Van Dam VS. Damien Sandow
Sandow controls this early with knees and a Russian legsweep, plus an elbow drop. Van Dam comes back with a couple of kicks, sending Damien to the floor. Loud “ECW” calls, as R.V.D. sets him up on the barricade and nails the spinning legdrop from the apron. Fans chant “you still got it!” In the ring, he hits Damien with another spin-kick and the Rolling Thunder somersault splash, then follows up with the 5-Star Frog splash for the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pinfall: Rob Van Dam
Commercials.
Match #5: Single – Rey Mysterio VS. Bad News Barrett
(Finally, back in the ring is Wade Barrett; and to a decent pop from the fans!) He quickly gets the microphone instead, but can’t deliver the “bad news” since Rey cut him off (to huge boos!). Rey dives onto Barrett on the outside, but is kicked in the gut and mount-punched, to cheers! He spins Mysterio around with a slam and gets a near-fall, then tries to bring Rey off the top. Mysterio counters with a headbutt and seated-senton splash, following with a headscissor-DDT! He hits the 619 and signals for the top-rope splash. Wade crotches him off the turnbuckle, then takes this one following the Bullhammer Punch!
Winner via Pinfall: Bad News Barrett
Up next, Alexander Rusev will make his debut.
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Segment #6: Video Promo
Another Adam Rose package airs.
Match #6: Single – “The Super Athlete” Alexander Rusev (with “The Ravishing Russian” Lana) VS. Zack Ryder
(This one’s over before it begins!) Rusev tears apart Ryder, finishing him off with the Camel Clutch, which is called “The Accolade.”
Winner via Submission: “The Super Athlete” Alexander Rusev (with “The Ravishing Russian” Lana)
Up next, after the Hall-Of-Fame highlights, newest Hall Of Famer The Ultimate Warrior makes his Raw return for the first time in 18 years!
Commercials.
Segment #7: Arena Promo
The Ultimate Warrior is out to a decent crowd reaction. “Speak to me, ‘Warriors'” he calls out as the fans call back “Warrior.” At first, he cannot figure out what to say; then he puts on a Warrior mask, and the words spill out. Warrior puts over everyone who works hard to be a big star in this business, and calls the fans “the legends of The Warrior.” He informs the fans they are the ones who make the boys in the back “warriors.” He restates that he is The Ultimate Warrior and the fans are the …
Up next, Divas Champion A.J. Lee will be out to gloat about her survival of the Vickie Guerrero Divas Invitational at WrestleMania.
Segment #8: Video Promo
A package of all that technically goes into a WWE Show airs, but reiterates that is us, the fans, that make it go round-and-round.
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Segment #9: Arena Promo
Divas Champion A.J. Lee and Tamina Snuka proceed out. “295. For two-hundred and ninety-five days I have been your Divas Champion. The longest-reigning Divas Champion of all-time.” A.J. remembers that she stood at the top of the ramp a number of months ago and “tore them a new one.” She says they have since then had 294 days to prove her wrong, which they didn’t. “I have gone from being a poor girl in New Jersey to being the best Diva in the world. I am the ‘saviour’ of your Divas Division.”
Just now, another NXT debut, as Paige, the NXT Women’s Champion, walks out! (I called that one last week!) “I just came to do what no one else would, and that’s to congratulate you A.J.” she declares. A.J. puts her down, not wanting the homage and calling her “the sweetest little crumpet.” A.J. challenges Paige, then slaps her hard. “Are you ready, now?” A.J. steps up and puts her championship up for grabs. “Read or not, this is my house. I’ll tell you when you’re ready.”
A referee enters the ring and it’s on!
Match #7: Single for the Divas Championship – A.J. Lee (Champion) (with Tamina Snuka) VS. NXT Women’s Champion Paige (Challenger)
A.J. is all over Paige and clamps on the Black Widow Octopus submission early, but Paige gets out of it and plants her with her Paigeturner finisher. She covers, 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pinfall and NEW Divas Champion: Paige
Post-match, Paige stands at the top of the ramp with her newly-won title, while A.J. seethes in the ring.
Up next, the presentation of the Andre The Giant Memorial Trophy.
Commercials.
Segment #10: Arena Promo
Hulk Hogan walks out and actually pronounces the correct arena name for WrestleMania! (That was my cheap-shot – hehe!) He puts over the Battle Royal, as the fans chant “Cesaro, Cesaro, Cesaro.” He puts over the late-great Andre The Giant and now brings out Cesaro.
Cesaro walks to the ring with Zeb Colter, who takes the microphone first. Colter tries to put himself over first, saying that he was responsible for getting Cesaro more noticed and calling him a “Zeb Colter guy.” Cesaro rips the mike from Zeb, and instead calls himself a “Paul Heyman guy!”
Paul E. walks out and reveals that he is also the advocate for “The King Of Swing” Cesaro. Colter can’t believe it, as Heyman walks over to the announcers and wants to tell them out to talk about Cesaro. Out of the back, Jack Swagger suddenly assaults Cesaro and breaks the Trophy!
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Match #8: Single – “The King Of Swing” Cesaro (with Paul Heyman) VS. Jack Swagger (with Zeb Colter)
This match already in progress. Swagger in control for a bit, receiving major heel-heat for his actions. He tosses Cesaro across the ring. Cesaro fights back with a couple of uppercuts, but is turned over with a suplex. 1 – 2 – Cesaro kicks out. Swagger attempts a Swaggerbomb out of the corner, but Cesaro gets his feet up! He suplexes Swagger over the turnbuckle and nearly takes this one!
Cesaro makes his comeback, running Swagger turnbuckle-to-turnbuckle with uppercuts. He signals for the Big Swing, but Jack rolls out of the ring and chooses a count-out instead.
Winner via Count-Out: “The King Of Swing” Cesaro (with Paul Heyman)
It is announced that The Shield will face The Wyatt Family on Main Event this week.
Commercials.
Clips of news stories about The Undertaker’s WrestleMania loss are shown.
Segment #11: Office Promo
Stephanie is with Kane and The Shield. She is ordering them to make sure Triple H walks out of Raw as the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. The Shield seem to be on board, but provoke the Director Of Operations by inquiring where is friends, The New Age Outlaws, are. Kane gets into a yelling match before Stephanie settles it down between the two sides.
This week on Smackdown, Cesaro will face The Big Show, and up next is the WWE World Heavyweight Championship!
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Match #9: Single for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship – Daniel Bryan (Champion) VS. C.O.O. “The Game” Triple H (Challenger)
Bryan enters first, but Batista and Randy Orton saunter out instead of Triple H. They beat up Bryan good, giving him both their finishers. Kane’s pyro blows and he marches to the squared circle. He orders Batista and Orton to leave, then looks over a fallen Bryan. He clutches him by the throat and Chokeslams Daniel down. Now, Triple H enters as usual with Stephanie.
HHH gloats and makes Mike Chioda ring the bell. Just as he approaches Bryan, The Shield’s music blares. “The Hounds Of Justice,” decked out in new masks, come through the crowd and surround the ring. Orton, Kane, and Batista hop the other side of the apron. A great stare down ensues, as Triple H begs both parties not to engage. The Shield enter the ring first, then Orton, Kane, and Batista.
HHH continues to play mediator, but turns around into a spear from Roman Reigns! The big brawl happens, with The Shield taking out everyone but Bryan! Ambrose, Rollins, and Reigns circle Triple H, but let him turn around into a running knee by Daniel! Kane pulls Trips out of the ring, as The Shield and WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan stand tall.
Winner: None due to No Match Actually Happening
The Shield and Bryan taunt The Authority to close the show.
End Of Raw.
Reporter’s Rumblings – By Moe Tapp
This Raw definitely lived up to the post-WrestleMania show it has become in the last few years. It kicked off right with the new champion, featured a couple of debuts, promo’ed some new stars, had some great in-ring promos, and finished off hot. Onto the analysis:
Excellence: WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan – loved his promo and the love the fans in the arena gave him. Nice touch with the “you deserve it” chants. So glad this man is the new champion, and hopefully he is given a long reign (at least until Summerslam) with the championship. 6-Man between The Wyatts and Langston/Sheamus/Cena. Very physical, and I’m happy it looks like Cena’s feud with The Family will continue.
Paul Heyman’s promo – I think he was genuinely jubilant and cut one of his best oratories in a long while. (Aside from the Chicago Raw on March 3.) The man really put over the importance of what Lesnar had done to The Undertaker. Only he would’ve been able to get this point across with the way he can talk. Also, great twist of Cesaro revealing that he has aligned himself with Heyman. This partnership will help elevate Cesaro to the main-event. Liked the count-out finish to his match w/ Swagger, as they can keep this rivalry going on for a while. Imagine the promo-work between Heyman and Colter!
Ultimate Warrior’s speech was nice and sincere. Great to see him put over the younger guys and give them that “pump-up” chat to ignite their careers.
Loved the abundance of video packages to establish NXT Stars Bo Dallas and Adam Rose. Both these guys are great talent and will bring a lot to the main roster. Let’s hope they get a decent push.
Absolutely adored the debut of Paige, mainly because I’ve wanted to happen and said this should be the next step for A.J. and her Divas Championship. I was surprised that she actually won the title tonight; I think they could’ve got a little mileage with her chasing for a bit; but at least it’s a new feud, so I’m totally cool with it!
Once again, glad Trips did the right thing and kept Daniel the champ. I admit, I was scared that they were going to pull another twist/”shocker” and give “The Game” the championship again, just to prove “anything can happen.” They already did that last night with Undertaker’s loss, so it wouldn’t have been necessary tonight. Plus, it’s time for the newest generation to take control and sit at the top for a long while.
As always, the fans make the show. These people are always hyped up and you can really feel the energy. Having Raw in the same city as WrestleMania has worked out to give the show a vibrancy and maybe attract more viewers.
Bogus: The Usos beatdown – they are the Tag-Team Champions and shouldn’t have been decimated like this. It was absolutely pointless and went no where for Batista/Orton to team up for the Tag Titles. If Trips wanted Evolution to ride again, why would Batista/Orton throw away a legitimate shot at the titles?
Didn’t like them having three tag-team combination matches in a row. Need to mix it up with a single. Fandango/Summer & Emma/Santino – did not care for. Please end this pointlessness! I thought R.V.D. and Bad News Barrett should’ve returned in the ring stronger with a storyline. They looked awesome in the ring, but I’m afraid they’ll just go back to mid-card status quickly and no direction or angle. Same with Rusev; should’ve taken charge with him earlier and announced when he’d be competing, or had him in the Battle Royale at WrestleMania.
All in all, a great Raw and I am looking forward to next week for the continuation of many hot storylines! Until next week, as always, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Readers and Wrestling Fans!
WWE stocks took one hell of a beating on Wall Street today after they announced the WWE Network subscribers count, obviously falling behind Wall Street’s expectations.
Stocks opened the day at $27 and went down to $21.73 before going back up to $23.90 for a drop of 14.7%. Stocks continued to slide in after hours trading, losing an additional 1.21% to finish off at $23.61.
The post-WrestleMania sell off certainly doesn’t bode well for the company as it shows that investors have no high expectations that WWE will eventually break even or make profit off the Network as previously thought.
WWE has said that it will need 1 million subscribers to break even on the Network and hoped to reach that number by the end of 2014.
The blond female and the small kid who joined Daniel Bryan in the celebration after he won the WWE World Heavyweight title at WrestleMania yesterday were his sister and his little niece.
Brie Bella, the fiance of Daniel Bryan, wrote on Twitter that she would have loved to go celebrate with her man but WWE officials were not keen on the idea.
“I’m sooo proud of my fiance! Sooo well deserved! Wow! Wish I could of went out to celebrate, but wasn’t allowed.”
Several members of Bryan’s family were in attendance for the big night.
One person who missed the ending of the pay-per-view was WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon, who decided to abandon the show he was producing to ride in the ambulance with The Undertaker for the hospital according to PWInsider.com.
The job of making sure the rest of the show went as planned was left in the hands of Stephanie McMahon and Triple H, who did the bulk of the job in producing the actual show. The duo also pulled double duty as they interfered in the main event as well.
McMahon leaving the show to accompany Taker shows you just how much the man means to the company and the respect he is given inside and outside the ring. The status of the Undertaker for tonight’s RAW remains a mystery.
Ezekiel Jackson announced on his Instagram account that his contract expired yesterday, on WrestleMania Sunday, and it wasn’t renewed.
“In my time in the #WWE I became the last #ECW Champion and a one time Intercontinental Champion… I’ve also traveled the world given the opportunity to do what I love. Encountering some of the most passionate and reliable fans in the world,” Jackson wrote.
He thanked Vince McMahon and the company for allowing him to live out his childhood dream and said he is looking forward for the next chapter in his life.
The 35 year old started with the WWE in 2008 after signing a developmental contract a year earlier. His string of injuries pretty much halted his WWE career in the past couple of years so his departure isn’t much of a surprise.
One half of the Funkadactyls, Cameron, suffered a wardrobe malfunction during the Vickie Guerrero 14 Diva Invitational yesterday at WrestleMania XXX.
Halfway throughout the match Cameron’s top got detached from the back and had to resort to holding the front so the top doesn’t come off completely. Emma then put her in a tarantula but the cameras avoided the visual as the top was barely hanging up! She eventually rolled out of the ring before the top could come off completely.
“Tonight I lost the battle bc my entire top ripped in half. Sandra gets the girlbye! Given the circumstances I did what I could #cameron4champ,” the Total Divas star wrote on Twitter afterward, adding that regardless what happened she was still “#thebombdotcom.”
