Vince McMahon made an appearance after the Survivor Series went off the air joining his daughter and son-in-law as The Authority.
The whole thing started after Cena challenged WWE champion Randy Orton for a champion vs champion match, a match which Orton declined. After that, Kane tried to get in the ring to attack Cena but Triple H held the Big Red Machine, something that Kane didn’t like, so he proceeded to try and chokeslam Triple H, only to be stopped by Randy Orton.
After the chaos cleared, Cena grabbed the mic and started mouthing off The Authority and Triple H came back out but Vince McMahon stopped him. Cena then proceeded to mock Vince, and then Vince wanted to hit the ring but Stephanie and Triple H stopped him as well. Cena then did something to Stephanie, and she charged the ring but Triple H ran back to stop her.
It was quite the show! You can see the full video below.
Here are the results from last night’s Survivor Series which took place from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.
The Miz defeated Kofi Kingston in the kickoff match; Roman Reigns was the sole survivor as The Shield and The Real Americans defeated The Usos, Cody Rhodes, Goldust, and Rey Mysterio; Big E Langston defeated Curtis Axel to retain the Intercontinental title; Natalya and Nikki Bella were the survivors of team Total Divas which included Eva Marie, Brie Bella, JoJo, Naomi, and Cameron when they defeated AJ Lee, Tamina Snunka, Kaitlyn, Alicia Fox, Rosa, Aksana, and Summer Rae; Mark Henry defeated Ryback; John Cena defeated Alberto Del Rio to retain the World Heavyweight title; CM Punk and Daniel Bryan defeated The Wyatt Family; and Randy Orton defeated Big Show to retain the WWE title.
Tonight’s 11th episode of Total Divas is titled ‘Seeing Red,’ and will tackle mainly three story lines.
The first one is Brie Bella’s difficulties accepting Daniel Bryan’s rise to the top which brings some complications to their relationship; the second is Natalya who is not liking Eva Marie for getting “close” to her husband TJ; and the third is Nikki Bella’s struggle accepting John Cena’s demands after she moved in with him.
Tonight’s Total Divas, which airs at 10PM EST on E!, will run head-to-head with the Survivor Series. Not a great move as when the show ran against a pay-per-view it always lost a significant amount of viewers.
Live tonight from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, WWE presents Survivor Series on pay-per-view. The full card is as follows:
Randy Orton vs Big Show for the WWE title; John Cena vs Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight title; The Wyatt Family vs CM Punk and Daniel Bryan; Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, Jack Swagger, and Antonio Cesaro vs Cody Rhodes, Goldust, The Usos, and Rey Mysterio in a traditional Survivor Series elimination match; Bella Twins, The Funkadactyls, Eva Marie, JoJo, and Natalya vs AJ Lee, Summer Rae, Tamina, Aksana, Kaitlyn, and Alicia Fox; plus The Miz vs Kofi Kingston in the kickoff show.
Tom Billington, better known to wrestling fans as the Dynamite Kid, has suffered a stroke according to the Wrestling Observer. Unfortunately no more details are available regarding his condition as of this writing.
Billington moved back to the United Kingdom following his retirement from professional wrestling. He is in a wheelchair as he is paralyzed and cannot make use of his left leg.
His disability comes after years of of injuries throughout his wrestling career and thanks to using the diving headbutt frequently. He has been told that he would never walk again.
The former one half of the British Bulldogs has been out of the wrestling scene ever since and very very rarely makes appearances. Earlier this year Highspots.com released a documentary on the life of the Dynamite Kid.
WWE Executive Vice President of Creative, Stephanie McMahon, was honored by CableFAX in an event this week in New York.
CableFAX named McMahon one of the Most Powerful Women in Cable and she also presented a keynote speech at a breakfast celebrating the honorees.
This is the third year in a row that CableFAX named Stephanie McMahon as one of the Most Powerful Women in Cable.
The McMahon family has been ranked in the CableFAX 100 twice, in 2007 and 2008. WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon was inducted into the CableFAX Hall of Fame in 2008.
Stephanie was accompanied by her mother, former WWE CEO Linda McMahon, at the event.
TMZ cameras caught up with WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan outside LAX airport and was asked again about being at WrestleMania XXX this coming April in New Orleans.
“I haven’t been to WrestleMania for years brother,” Hogan said, adding that his wife Jennifer has never been and would like to take her.
Rumors are running wild (brother!) that the Hulkster will indeed be going to Mania as he is currently in negotiations with WWE for yet another return. In an interview with Jimmy Hart last week, Hart said that Hogan will for sure be at the show.
Former TNA Knockout and Hulk Hogan’s daughter Brooke has called off her engagement with NFL’s Dallas Cowboys Phil Costa according to TMZ.COM.
Hogan got engaged in June of this year in Las Vegas when TNA was there for their Impact tapings.
“Happiest moment of my LIFE,” Hogan wrote at the time after the Costa popped the question. “I am marrying my best friend. I wouldn’t choose anyone else. I am so lucky and so grateful,” she added.
TMZ says that Brooke already moved back to Los Angeles where she is working on her new album and be close to her mom Linda as well.
Aces & Eights are no more thanks to Mr. Anderson, a former member of the group. The group had to disband after Anderson defeated Bully Ray on last night’s Impact with the stipulation that if Anderson loses, he has to leave TNA for good but if Ray loses, the group is no more.
The stable made its debut on June 14, 2012, on an episode of Impact, attacking Sting, and then later Hulk Hogan, and other TNA Superstars.
The group had several members in its 18-month spell including D.O.C., D’Lo Brown, Devon, Wes Brisco, Mr. Anderson, Tito Ortiz, Ivelisse Velez, Mike, Bully Ray, Brooke Tessmacher, Garett Bischoff, Kunx, and Taz.
Aces & Eights was largely an Eric Bischoff idea and with Bischoff no longer much active in the company it was decided it’s time to close the chapter.
Former TNA champion Kurt Angle will be joining the popular group One Direction tomorrow for their global 1D Day event.
Angle will take part along with other celebrities such as Simon Cowell, Celine Dion, Piers Morgan, Robbie Williams, and others in a seven-hour live stream which will be aired by YouTube.
TNA President Dixie Carter was interviewed by Sports Illustrated’s Loretta Hunt with the full interview published yesterday on SI.COM.
Talking about the somewhat failed experiment of taking Impact on the road, Carter said that they went with the idea that selling up to 2,000 tickets would be good.
“We went in with a very conservative budget. We didn’t come out here thinking we’d sell out arenas. The truth is we exceeded those budget numbers. We hit our revenue numbers, but we overspent when it came to loading out of the Universal studio. There was a two-month overlap that cost us,” Carter said.
Speaking about Hulk Hogan, Carter said that spending all the money on Hulk was worth it at the end of the day.
“He’s opened a lot of doors for us. When you’re about to lose a deal in an international territory and one phone call from Hulk Hogan makes a man who doesn’t even speak your language melt and you get your deal back, that carries a lot of weight,” she said of the WWE Hall of Famer.
Carter added that the one thing that they did wrong with Hogan was that they put him on televise too much and said if he stayed with them we’d probably see less of him.
In the rest of the interview, Carter talks about her family, getting into the wrestling business, and also features comments from current TNA Superstars.
It’s a good read and you can check out the full in-depth interview at http://bit.ly/17NO4IB
PWInsider.com is reporting that former WWE and World Heavyweight champion Batista was backstage at the NXT tapings yesterday at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.
Batista left WWE in 2010 after he was unhappy with the direction that the company was headed to and got himself into mixed martial arts and even Hollywood.
Since leaving WWE he shot five movies – House of the Rising Sun, The Scorpion King 3, THe Man with the Iron Fists, Riddick, and the latest one, Guardians of the Galaxy.
In recent interviews he said that he might eventually go back to WWE under the right circumstances.
TNA taped their Impact show at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, yesterday, the first time the company has been back since March 7.
Universal Studios moved TNA to sound stage 19 instead of their old home at sound stage 21. Sound stage 19 is equipped with fiber and satellite transmission equipment and while it’s larger than sound stage 21, TNA is getting only a section of the stage, which is actually smaller than their previous home.
TNA first started taping Impact and other pay-per-views in Universal Studios in June 2004.
It was announced during the WWE Main Event television show yesterday that E! has picked up Total Divas for a second season, a move which comes to no surprise to anyone considering the ratings success the show has been for the network.
Total Divas season 2 has already started filming although there’s no word on who the cast includes. The cast of the current season includes Brie and Nikki Bella, Cameron and Naomi of the Funkadactyls, Natalya, Eva Marie, and JoJo, with regular appearances from John Cena, Daniel Bryan, Jimmy Uso, and Tyson Kid.
WWE Hall of Famer Maurice “Mad Dog” Vachon passed away this morning at the age of 84.
The Montreal native had his leg amputated in 1987 after a car accident and back at one of the early In Your House pay-per-views, Vachon was attacked by Diesel when he was at ringside, with the former WWE champion ripping out his artificial leg as part of the match.
He was a former AWA tag team and Heavyweight champion and in 2010 he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
21 year old Swedish-born Sarah Backman has started at the WWE Performance Center down in Orlando, Florida, this past Monday after complications with her work visa resulted in a longer-than-usual wait to make her way to the United States.
“It’s exactly 7 years ago I started armwrestling – Nov 19 2006,” she wrote on her Instagram account yesterday. “Pretty funny that I started WRESTLING almost the same date 7 years later,” she added, saying that it’s going to be very exciting to see where she will be in seven more years. Her comments were accompanied by a selfie of her wearing the Property of WWE Performance Center t-shirt.
The eight-time World Arm Wrestling champion signed a developmental deal with the WWE earlier this year after retiring from arm wrestling to pursue a wrestling career with the WWE.
Backman was also on the Swedish version of Gladiators, playing Gladiator Spirit on the show.
You can see some photos of Backman below. Don’t let the good looks fool you, she looks like she can beat anyone’s ass anytime!
Monday Night RAW this week did an average of 3,802,000 viewers for a 2.73 rating, just a 34,000 increase in viewership over the last week.
Hour one did 3,768,000 viewers, followed by 3,965,000 in the second and then 3,674,000 in the third and final hour. (Ratings compiled by Nielsen Media Research and put online by PWInsider.com)
WWE issued a press release today along with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announcing that WrestleMania 29 generated $101.2 million in economic impact for the New Jersey/New York region this past April, according to a study conducted by the Enigma Research Corporation.
This marks the second consecutive year that WrestleMania generated more than $100 million in economic impact for its host city.
“On behalf of the great state of New Jersey, we thank all of WWE’s devoted fans who descended on our region from all over the world to be a part of WrestleMania,” said Governor Chris Christie. “The entire week of events helped generate a tremendous boost for our economy, and we look forward to the possibility of MetLife Stadium hosting a future WrestleMania.”
George Fertitta, CEO of NYC & Company, thanked the WWE for its continued support to the city.
“WrestleMania 29 was a tremendous success for WWE and New York City. Fans took advantage of all that our region has to offer, including the best hotels, restaurants, retailers, cultural and entertainment options in the world. We are grateful to WWE for its continued support of our City.”
Fans from all 50 states and 34 countries attended WrestleMania earlier this year. Key highlights from the study include: $101.2 million of direct, indirect and induced impact derived from spending by non-locals visiting specifically for WrestleMania 29; 54% of fans that attended WrestleMania were from outside the New York/New Jersey area and stayed an average of four nights; The economic impact derived from WrestleMania Week was equal to the creation of 943 full-time jobs for the area; $5.2 million was spent by non-locals at New Jersey and New York restaurants.
Back in the U.S.A., tonight Raw is live from “Music City,” Nashville, Tennessee! Of course, the major storyline is that we are six nights away from Survivor Series.
Following last week’s thrilling ending, what will go down tonight with The Authority and everyone involved in the big brawl? It has been announced that C.M. Punk and Daniel Bryan will take on The Wyatt Family at S.S. (so, there’s goes my huge 12-man Tag-Team speculation!), but where does that leave The Shield, The Usos, and Tag-Team Champions The Rhodes Brothers?
The Big Show continues to pick fights with WWE Champion Randy Orton before their match at the pay-per-view. Who will get the upper hand and build their momentum prior to the WWE Championship bout?
World Heavyweight Champion John Cena is rolling along, but Alberto Del Rio is sure playing “arm games,” (like what I did there?!) and trying to intimidate The Champ, also leading to their face-off at Survivor Series.
All this and much more, plus my picks for the long-time annual show, so read on to find out what went down on Raw!
Monday Night Raw TV Report for November 18th, 2013 – “Wrasslin’ City”
Introduction Segment: Recap & Welcoming
A video montage of the chaotic Raw seven nights ago is aired, then Michael Cole welcomes us to “Raw Country.” Tonight, the band Florida Georgia Line will be on hand to perform, as will The Wyatts & The Shield, facing Daniel Bryan, C.M. Punk, The Usos, and Tag-Team Champions The Rhodes Brothers. Intercontinental Champion Curtis Axel will also defend his title against Big E. Langston.
Segment #2: Arena Promo
The Authority waste no time in making their presence known and reinserting their power. Triple H and Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley declare that those in charge of Raw’s “mess” from last week will be taken care of. Before they can go any further, WWE Champion Randy Orton marches out and is angry. He blames The Authority for not protecting him, since he is the “face of the WWE.”
Triple H takes umbrage with Orton’s mood, but they get interrupted again, this time by Brad Maddox and Vickie Guerrero. Maddox quickly blames Guerrero for the faults, but that “makes no never mind” (quoting a favourite movie of mine) to The Authority.
Stephanie announces that they will both be in matches tonight, as Guerrero takes on Divas Champion A.J. Lee; HHH gives Brad to the WWE Champion Randy Orton. He does give Brad a bone, making the bout No-Disqualification rules. Maddox tries to escape, but turns right into the Director Of Operations Kane, who turns him around and subtly tells him that he’s not getting away.
Commercials.
Match #1: Single – WWE Champion Randy Orton VS. Raw General Manager Brad Maddox (Non-Title)
Stipulation: No Disqualification Rules
As Orton approaches, Maddox hops outside to get a quick break as best as possible. He keeps playing chicken, hiding around the announcing area. “The Viper” eventually catches him, but is nailed with the microphone by Maddox, then run into the ring post. Brad soon realizes what he could accomplish and jumps in the ring for a cover. 1 – 2 – Orton kicks out!
Now, Randy gets that look in his eyes and starts to tear apart the commentary table and Maddox himself. Orton rips off Maddox’s stylish pink shirt, then rests him on the barricade and drives him down with the DDT. Orton takes the microphone and pummels away at Brad’s head in the ring repeatedly.
The referee gets the WWE Champion to back away and promptly calls for the bell, pronouncing him the winner.
Winner via Referee Stoppage: WWE Champion Randy Orton
Backstage, both Big E. Langston and Intercontinental Champion Curtis Axel are shown walking through the hallways and preparing for their contest.
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Backstage, Raw General Manager Brad Maddox is shown on a stretcher and being wheeled away by paramedics. Smackdown General Manager Vickie Guerrero looks on with worry.
Match #2: Single for the Intercontinental Championship: Big E. Langston (Challenger) VS. Curtis Axel (Champion)
They trade waistlocks to begin, but Curtis elbows his way out and chops back. Langston regains control, hitting a backdrop for two. He catches a boot from Axel, then clotheslines him down. He picks him up on his right shoulder, then just tosses him off with ease. Axel comes back again, jawbreaking Langston on the ropes, then hitting a clothesline to the back of Big E.’s head, the pounds away on the mat.
Commercials.
Langston back in control briefly, until he gets dropkicked. He clutches on a front-facelock but is easily tossed off by Langston. Big E. fires himself up with a belly-to-belly suplex and eventually drops him with the Big Ending flapjack for the victory!
Winner and NEW Intercontinental Champion: Big E. Langston
Post-match, Big E. celebrates with the fans his big (yes, pun intended!) win.
Segment #3: Locker Room Promo
The Shield and WWE Champion Randy Orton strike a deal to help each other out in their respective matches.
Commercials.
Segment #4: Divas Musical Chairs
I kid you not, the title of this segment is what’s actually happening! Very quickly, this pointless skit ends with a big Diva brawl.
Ads.
Match #3: Single – The Big Show VS. Ryback
They circle around each other, then lockup. Both shove off and go again with another elbow/collar tie-up. Show gets the better this time, then punches away in the corner. Show slaps him hard against the ropes. Ryback takes a breather on the outside, then knees and punches Show this time. Big reverses an Irish whip with a shoulder block, but later Ryback comes back with a chop-block.
Ryback takes control, wearing him down with a front-facelock before DDTing him. 1 – 2 – Show kicks out! Ryback goes back to the submission, but Show counters with a backdrop! Show comes back a bit but is suddenly spinebuster-slammed by Ryback! He gears up for the Meathook Clothesline, but Show grab shim by the throat as he ran. Ryback shoves him off and has him face-down on the mat. Ryback attempts the Shellshock, and actually drops him with it! 1 – 2 – Show still kicks out!
Ryback tries to get the 7-Footer up again, but Show pushes off and hits him square with the knockout punch as he came back! 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pin Fall: The Big Show
Post-match, WWE Champion Randy Orton comes out of nowhere with an attack, but Show counters with a huge spear! Orton rolls to the outside and the two glare at each other intensely.
Segment #5: Backstage Promo
Zack Ryder is chatting with Florida Georgia Line when 3.M.B. walk in. They plug themselves and try to impress the real country band. Pointless.
Commercials.
Segment #6: Training Room Promo
WWE Champion Randy Orton is cheesed and verbally bashes the trainer. He wonders where is protection from The Shield and The Authority.
Match #4: Tag-Team – The Real Americans (Jack Swagger and Antonio Cesaro) (with Zeb Colter) VS. Kofi Kingston and The Miz
Cesaro and Miz start out, with Antonio using locks to take Miz down. Miz counters quickly, but also fakes out tagging Kofi for some reason. He runs at Cesaro in the corner with a clothesline, then follows up with the Axe Handle off the top. He leaps onto Cesaro, but The Real American catches him and turns it into a slam!
He hurls Miz to the outside, and tags in Jack, who clotheslines him to the floor. Swagger now the legal man, rams his shoulder repeatedly into Miz in the corner, then hits the Swaggerbomb splash, followed by Cesaro’s leap-over double-stomp.
Miz is getting dominated by The Real Americans, but Miz counters a backdrop. He falls into the ropes, allowing Kofi to blind-tag himself in. Kingston leaps all over Swagger, nailing the Boom Drop legdrop and gears up for Trouble In Paradise. Cesaro is taking out with a kick, but Jack catches Kofi with an Oklahoma slam! 1 – 2 – Kofi kicks out! Jack runs at him with a clothesline, but Kofi literately turns around and flips over into a DDT! (impressive!)
Miz wants the tag and as Kingston goes for it, he suddenly hops down to the floor. Swagger takes advantage and clamps on the Patriot Ankle Lock for the tap-out!
Winners via Submission: The Real Americans (Jack Swagger and Antonio Cesaro) (with Zeb Colter)
Backstage, Vickie Guerrero looks around then knocks on the trainer’s door. She yells “Doug,” then drops down and appears to have passed out.
Ads.
Segment #7: Backstage Promo
Guerrero is strapped to a stretch when Stephanie McMahon walks by. She doesn’t fall for Vickie’s antics, and orders the paramedics to bring her to the ring.
Match #5: Single – Vickie Guerrero VS. Divas Champion A.J. Lee (with Tamina Snuka)
Vickie is rolled into the ring by the paramedics, then tries to fake-out again with faints. She literately runs into Tamina, but A.J. chases her down the aisle and drags her by the hair to the squared circle. A.J. plays around a bit, then clamps on the Black Widow Octopus hold/stretch, and Guerrero quickly gives up.
Winner via Submission: Divas Champion A.J. Lee (with Tamina Snuka)
Segment #8: Office Promo
Triple H is with Damien Sandow and Dolph Ziggler. He tells “The Intellectual Saviour Of The Unwashed Masses” and “The Show Off” that they will take each other on in a “Broadway Brawl.”
Commercials.
Match #6: Single – “The Show Off” Dolph Ziggler VS. “The Intellectual Saviour Of The Unwashed Masses” Damien Sandow
Stipulation: “Broadway Brawl” Rules
The ring is decorated with various musical instruments for the competitors to use. Sandow aggressive early with kicks and punches, but misses a swing with the electric guitar. Dolph uses the steel steps to jump on Sandow, but Damien quickly regains control by hitting him a couple of times with a stand. Sandow slugs away in the corner, but Dolph kicks him in the gut and hits a beautiful dropkick!
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Returning, Ziggler is getting rammed in the corner and headbutted by Damien. He his whacked with a chair, then Sandow sets it up in the corner. Dolph reverses into an inside cradle for two! He sweeps him up and punches away, but gets hit square in the noggin with a fiddle! 1 – 2 – Ziggler kicks out!
Damien runs Dolph into the steel chair in the corner, but Ziggler blocks it and comes back with a high-angled jumping DDT! 1 – 2 – Sandow kicks out! Dolph swings another fiddle and hits Sandow in the back, then plants him with the Fameasser! 1 – 2 – Damien kicks out again!
Dolph attempts the sleeper, but Sandow tosses him off and into the corner-laid chair. 1 – 2 – Dolph still gets the shoulder up! He is run into the cello, and Sandow winds up with an electric guitar, but runs right into the ring post after Ziggler moved! He uses the snare drum (thanks Jerry Lawler for the reminder!) and smashes it over Sandow’s skull! He does the same with a bigger base drum (again, kudos Lawler!), then finishes this one with a guitar-shot to Sandow’s head, a la Jeff Jarrett!
Winner via Pin Fall: “The Show Off” Dolph Ziggler
Segment #9: Office Promo
WWE Champion Randy Orton barges in to The Authority’s office and asks Triple H and Stephanie if he has their “confidence as the face of the WWE.” Stephanie retorts that they “have to think about it.”
World Heavyweight Champion John Cena is making nice with Florida Georgia Line, and will be out next.
Commercials.
Segment #10: Arena Promo
World Heavyweight Champion John Cena comes out to his usual mixed reaction. Cena’s left arm is back in a sling. He thanks Nashville for the reaction. Cena recaps how he got the sling, courtesy of the attacks from Alberto Del Rio last week.
The Champ is all business, but puts over the fans as the “energy and excitement that makes me want to come back.” John then questions whether he should’ve come back this quickly and be the World Heavyweight Champion. Cena just as quickly about-faces, declaring his usual “fight through the pain” and “Super Cena” personality.
Alberto Del Rio takes the opportunity to interrupt. He mocks Cena’s words, then challenges him to hold the Heavyweight Title up with his injured arm. Del Rio continues to provoke Cena until The Champ tosses off the sling and fights with the Mexican Aristocrat. Del Rio backs off and the two mince words.
Ads.
Match #7: Tag-Team – The Rhinestone Cowboys (Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre) (with Heath Slater) VS. R-Truth and Xavier Woods
R-Truth raps his way to the ring, and introduces NXT (maybe former) wrestler Xavier Woods. He is impressive leaping around and ducking manoeuvers from The Cowboys. R-Truth puts McIntyre down with a suplex/jawbreaker move, then lets Xavier take this one with his “Lost In The Woods” finisher.
Winners via Pin Fall: R-Truth and Xavier Woods
Segment #11: Office Promo
Triple H and Stephanie walk back in and give Orton the confidence he is looking for. However, they believe in him so much that they are banning The Shield and any other interference from the ring.
Segment #12: Arena Band
Florida Georgia Line perform “Round Here” to the delight of the fans, and were actually pretty good. I’d recommend to give them a listen and try.
Daniel Bryan and C.M. Punk make their entrance for the 12-Man Tag-Team bout next!
Commercials.
Match #8: 12-Man Tag-Team – Daniel Bryan, C.M. Punk, The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) and Tag-Team Champions The Rhodes Brothers (Cody and Goldust) VS. The Shield (United States Champion Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns) and The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Erik Rowan, and Luke Harper)
Jimmy and Dean start it out with a lockup. Ambrose hits hard early with a shoulder block, but Jimmy comes back with a clothesline and scoop slam. Jey is now in but so is Roman Reigns. Uso controls then tags in Goldust, who Roman holds back to switch with Rollins.
Goldust is on fire with an inverted atomic drop and kick-to-the-knee. Jey is back in and hits Seth in the gut with a smacking kick, but gets harshly elbowed. Luke Harper blind-tags himself, which infuriates The Shield. They and The Wyatts get into an argument.
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Goldust and Seth are going at it, with “The Bizarre One” pounding away in the corner on Rollins. Cody Rhodes now in and sunset flips Rollins for a two-count, but then hits the middle turnbuckle with his head after Rollins switched around the Irish Whip. Ambrose back in and with Reigns, dominates over Rhodes. The Shield control Rhodes for a while, but he counters Harper with the Disaster Kick!
Daniel Bryan receives the superemely-hot tag, and basically takes out everyone that is moving until Luke Harper catches him and drops with a powerbomb! Both Shield and Wyatts are back to controlling this bout. Bryan begins to come back again with elbows and a knee-to-the-gut, but before he can tag out, both Shield and Wyatts knock all his partners off the apron!
Commercials.
Daniel reverses a backdrop from Reigns into a high-DDT! He is gaining his momentum and hype from the crowd to tag-in C.M. Punk! He soars in off the ropes with a springboard clothesline, then drops Ambrose and Rollins with a double-neckbreaker! He knees and clotheslines them both, then flies off the top turnbuckle with an elbow drop! Punk attempts the G.T.S., but Bray Wyatt comes in. Punk takes him out with a high-kick, and The Usos fly over the top to take out Harper and Rowan with planchas!
Punk tries the G.T.S. again, but Ambrose counters into his DDT! 1 – 2 – Goldust breaks it up! Most hit their finisher, and Bryan & Punk plant Seth with a Hart-Attack Clothesline (Punk holds him up and Bryan runs off the ropes with the clothesline)! It is Punk and Ambrose left, with “The Straight Edge Superstar” dropping the Go To Sleep for the hard-fought victory!
Winners via Pin Fall: Daniel Bryan, C.M. Punk, The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) and Tag-Team Champions The Rhodes Brothers (Cody and Goldust)
Post-match, as Punk celebrates, The Real Americans come out and everyone attacks again. But, in a true surprise return, Rey Mysterio charges out and helps Punk and Bryan take out the heels. Rey-Rey hurricanranas Cesaro over the ropes, takes out Rowan, and hits a double-619 on both Harper and Swagger. Punk and Bryan follow with the G.T.S. and running knee-to-the-head on Luke respectively! Mysterio, Bryan, Punk, The Usos, and The Rhodes Brothers all celebrate with ovations from the crowd to close the show.
End Of Raw.
Reporter’s Rumblings – By Moe Tapp
Raw was definitely a show of entertainment, and unfortunately I think it diminished the meaning of pushing into Survivor Series. They put way more emphasis on “Raw Country” than they did the traditional long-standing favourite pay-per-view, and that was not a good thing for a “go-home” show. Onto the analysis:
Excellence: Big E. Langston/Curtis Axel – was a great “power” match. Langston is definitely over again as a face, and hopefully this will give another much-needed revival to the Intercontinental Championship. It is too bad that Axel’s reinvention didn’t work out, because I did love the lineage/heritage of his new name. But honestly, if Paul Heyman couldn’t get him over, then unfortunately, there’s probably not many chances left.
Ryback/Big Show – was a great match too, “power-wise” as well; again it will be interesting to see where Ryback goes without Paul E. by his side. Also a cool match between Ziggler and Sandow – brought back memories of the “Attitude Era” – could we see more? Also, a one-off for Dolph, or is he in line for another push?
World Heavyweight Champion John Cena and Alberto Del Rio – both were superb in their usual promos, and Cena did have me suckered in a little, thinking that he would be hurt enough not to wrestle at Survivor Series but as usual come back as “Super Cena” and retain the title. Del Rio was awesome as normal to with his slimy and sadistic mocking of Cena.
The main-event & ending – this is the hottest storyline right now, and I believe everyone involved are the hardest workers (plus John Cena) on the roster. Once again, the fans ate into it beautifully, which always makes it more exciting. Rey Mysterio’s return was a complete “wow” moment, and it will be interesting to see who they square him off with. I look forward to all of these guys mixing it up every week!
Bogus: Opening promo – again why have General Managers and leave them in charge if you’re going to criticize their booking decisions? Just makes no sense. In the “don’t care” file: the Divas “musical chairs,” (and as my Dad pointed out – when did Kaitlyn come back and suddenly side/turn heelish with A.J.? Weren’t they bitter rivals over the title? Wonderfully explained there!)
The Rhinestone Cowboys – again Heath Slater is the most talented out of that group and should be given the singles run again like the summer of ’12. McIntyre and Mahal need to be repackaged. As of now, where did The Miz’s heel turn come from? That could’ve been much more explained and better laid out – not wasted in a Tag-Team bout.
Really was not a fan of the whole “Randy Orton ticked off at The Authority” side story. I totally get where they made him come from and that was fine, but for Triple H and Stephanie to go back on their “face of the WWE” build of Orton so quick was too far. It kind of made no sense that they went through all this effort to put him in the top position and then, just because he was attacked by Big Show a few times, they go back on their word? If they truly believed in him, they would have more faith and go to bat better.
All-in-all, I thought this show was downgraded from the last few weeks. The “country” side-gig (and there was a lot of it!) really took away from a serious standpoint it should’ve had, because we were only six nights away from Survivor Series. Hopefully next week will be much better, and the pay-per-view itself can still be hot.
Speaking of which, my picks: John Cena to retain the World Heavyweight Championship and move on to a new feud. The Wyatts will win some sadistic way over Bryan and Punk to keep the story going. Team Total Divas over Team Divas Champ A.J., also producing a new contender for A.J.’s title. The Real Americans Team to defeat The Rhodes Brothers’ team, and set up a future Tag-Team Championship rivalry. (I know they are already having a match on Smackdown, but I see Cesaro/Swagger getting a bigger push and keep a series of bouts going with Goldust/Cody.) Somehow, Randy Orton will keep his WWE Championship. They can’t play “hot potato” with the title this quickly, I hope. This will allow him to assert that he really is the “face of the WWE” in his own mind and keep the backing of Triple H/Stephanie.
Enjoy Survivor Series for those who are watching (I won’t, but will also avoid so I can have natural reaction when writing/watching next week’s Raw.) and as always, until next week, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Readers and Wrestling Fans!
WWE today announced the appointment of Matthew Singerman as Executive Vice President, Programming. Singerman, who previously held senior level positions at Fox News Channel, TV Guide Network and Reelz Channel, will report directly to WWE Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Vince McMahon.
In this newly created role, Singerman will be responsible for the strategic development of content, including original, unscripted and scripted shows, scheduling of all programming and operations across all distribution platforms, including a potential WWE Network.
Singerman brings more than 20 years of experience in production and programming from various broadcast and cable networks. Most recently, Singerman served as a consultant for well-established and start-up channels, including NFL Network, Nuvo, Pivot and Back9 Network. Prior to his role as an industry consultant, Singerman was the Senior Vice President of Programming at Reelz Channel. In this position, he oversaw all programming, development and acquisitions, including The Kennedys, which was the highest-rated show in Reelz Channel history. The network’s rating grew more than 300 percent during Singerman’s tenure.
