The Miz will get his second pay-per-view pre-show match in a row as the returning former WWE champion was announced to be taking on Cody Rhodes this Sunday before Extreme Rules goes on the air.
Miz returned last night on RAW after he’s been out for a month due to the filming schedule he had in Vancouver, Canada, for his upcoming made-for-TV Christmas movie which will air on ABC.
The pre-show starts streaming live at 7:30PM ET on WWE.com, the WWE App, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo!, Google+, Pinterest, Samsung SMART TVs and Xbox 360.
At Extreme Rules, the World Heavyweight title will not be defended since Dolph Ziggler is out with a concussion which wipes the triple threat ladder match off the card.
The other two Superstars who were supposed to be involved in the same match – Jack Swagger and Alberto Del Rio – will however wrestle in an I quit match on the pay-per-view to determine the number one contender for the World Heavyweight title.
Ziggler suffered a legit concussion last week during the Smackdown tapings when Jack Swagger kicked him in the head. He was later diagnosed with retrograde amnesia.
Former TNA champion James Storm was injured on Thursday’s IMPACT episode while refereeing the tag team match of Austin Aries and Bobby Roode versus Daniels and Kazarian.
According to doctors, Storm has suffered a torn lower abdomen and ligament damage and will be going back again on Wednesday for an MRI to check if he has a hernia injury as well.
Storm labeled his injury as a “freak accident” since he injured himself while refereeing instead of wrestling!
The WrestleMania 29 Blu-Ray and DVD will be released tomorrow in stores nationwide and online. The DVD version will contain the 3 discs while the Blu-Ray version will have 2 discs.
Extras on the DVD version include the pre-show match between Wade Barrett and The Miz and the complete 2013 Hall of Fame ceremony.
The Blu-Ray version will have the same extras as the DVD version as well as the Triple H and Brock Lesnar contract signing from the March 18 edition of RAW, CM Punk and the Undertaker segment from the March 25 RAW, and the Legends Q&A session with Rock and Cena also from the March 25 RAW.
Chris Jericho’s dancing partner for tonight’s dance off against Fandango will be Edyta Sliwinska, a Polish ballroom dancer who was a regular on the first 10 seasons of the popular reality TV show Dancing With The Stars.
“Hey A dancing tip for @Edyta_Sliwinska,” wrote Fandango on Twitter. “Avoid breathing through your nose when dancing with @IAmJericho #RawIsFandango #danceoff.”
The last time Jericho decided to dance in front of Fandango, he took his dancing partner Summer Rae before throwing him off the stage.
WWE commentator Michael Cole has decided to tag team with his broadcast partner JBL to climb Mount Whitney in August as part of JBL’s Seven Summits program.
Cole wrote in his blog on Layfield’s website that he wants to drop down 40 pounds by mid August to be in better shape for his first climb. It will be interesting to see how it works out with his WWE schedule.
Mount Whitney is the highest summit in the contiguous United States with an elevation of 14,505 feet and lis located in the Sierra Nevada range in California.
JBL is trying to climb the world’s highest peaks on every continent in an effort to raise money for kids in Bermuda through the Family Centre. WWE is sponsoring his climbs.
The character of Abyss made a surprise return on IMPACT Wrestling this week, joining number one contender Sting and Kurt Angle to take on Bully Ray, Devon, and Mr. Anderson in the main event of the TNA show.
Abyss – played by Chris Parks – last appeared on TNA television at the Genesis pay-per-view in January of last year where he was assaulted backstage.
Parks returned to television in March of that year as Mr. Joseph Park, Esq., in a storyline where he was Abyss’ brother and looking for him.
We have decided to stop covering mixed martial arts here on Wrestling-Online.com due to lack of resources from our end among other factors.
Covering wrestling is already a difficult task, adding MMA to the mix was a big undertaking, but with the help of our MMA TV reporter David Comer it was a bit easier. He wrote tons of PPV and TV reports over the past year and we appreciate all the work he’s done for the site.
Unfortunately though without additional help, covering MMA was going to be impossible. It is because of that that we are sadly closing our MMA chapter on Wrestling-Online.com. We’re still fans of the sport, and will continue to follow it as always, but we’re just not going to write about it here.
The MMA section on our mobile apps will still be appearing until the next update. Stories will not be updated and the section will be eventually removed with the next release.
A new match has been added to the Extreme Rules pay-per-view featuring Big Show taking on Randy Orton in an extreme rules match.
Meanwhile, the Sheamus vs Mark Henry match also at the same pay-per-view is now a strap match, making all matches announced so far with stipulations.
Show vs Orton is the fifth match on the card with one week to go for the pay-per-view. It is headlined by Cena vs Ryback for the WWE title in a last man standing match.
Dolph Ziggler’s concussion from the Smackdown tapings on Tuesday has been described as “serious” according to Jim Ross, who said that there’s no timeline as to when Ziggler will be returning to the ring.
Speaking to WWE.COM, Ziggler said that he doesn’t even remember what happened the day before, his involvement at RAW, driving to Smackdown, and being at the tapings.
The World Heavyweight champion told WWE.COM that his headaches have gotten better and on Friday he only had a slight headache, a big improvement over what he had yesterday.
“I’ve had a couple of concussions before and just had a headache. I’ve never not remembered entire days, like someone in a movie,” Ziggler said, saying that this concussion has been the worst one so far in his career.
The champ has been diagnosed with retrograde amnesia and he needs to go back to the doctor in a few days where he might need a scan.
There has been no announcement over what will happen to Ziggler’s involvement at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view yet. The idea of him wrestling in a ladder match certainly won’t help his clearance!
Hulk Hogan is going all out at trying to remove all traces of his sex tape from the Internet according to TMZ.COM.
The article states that Hogan’s attorneys are firing off letters to websites who have posted screenshots or published any part of the footage from the sex tape threatening to take legal action against them.
One website which was targeted is TheDirty.com and it seems like that the editors have complied as the entry for their two posts regarding the sex tape have been emptied.
It will be interesting to see how Hogan’s team plan to eliminate the tape from the Internet since as you might have guessed, it’s quite a bit difficult to wipe something completely off the web!
WWE.COM announced that the May 27 edition of Monday Night RAW from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, will be a Bret Hart Appreciation Night as the WWE Hall of Famer and former WWE champion will be in attendance.
While previous appreciation nights celebrations happened after the show went off the air, this time around it will all be televised as WWE pays tribute to one of Canada’s most famous Superstars.
It is rumored that fellow Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels will be in Calgary as well for this show, something which is expected considering the long history between the two.
The last time WWE planned an appreciation night for someone – Patt Patterson – it ended up being canceled as it was on the night that Jerry Lawler suffered his heart attack in Montreal.
Impact begins with Sting and Kurt Angle making their way to the ring. Sting grabs the mic first and puts over Angle; Angle calls out AJ Styles. AJ comes out and gets a little bit of “good cop bad cop” from Angle and Sting.
Angle is sick of AJ refusing to take a side, and Sting is trying to get Kurt to calm down and coax AJ into helping. AJ eventually just walks away and Kurt confronts him on the entrance ramp. Angle and AJ start fighting while Sting watches from the ring. Aces and Eights sneak up behind Sting and take him out with a 3D, courtesy of Devon and Bully Ray.
Commercial
Match #1: Tara with Jesse and Gail Kim versus Mickie James and Knockouts champ Velvet Sky.
Mickie and Gail start the match off. Mickie hits Tara with a Punch, a clothesline, and then dropkicks Tara. Jesse trips up Mickie and Gail stomps on her. Gail tags Tara and they double team Mickie. Gail ties Mickie upside down in the corner and then hits her with a baseball slide dropkick to the face.
Gail hits Mickie with a couple forearm shots and a clothesline in the corner. Mickie fights back with a couple forearm shots and a kick to the head. Both wrestlers tag out at the same time. Velvet hits Tara with a pair of clotheslines and a kick.
Velvet follows up with a neckbreaker and Gail runs in to make the save. Velvet whips Gail into Jesse, and then hits Tara with In Yo Face (double underhook sit out facebuster) for the win. After the match Gail attacks her partner Tara, apparently because she got pinned. Gail puts Tara in a rope hung figure four leg lock.
In the back, Bully Ray and the rest of Aces and Eights celebrate the first ever 3D on Sting. D Lo shows up, apparently uninvited. D Lo is in serious trouble for saying “I quit” in his match against Kurt Angle last week.
Commercial
When we return, Kaz and Daniels (Bad Influence) are trying to bribe James Storm with beer. Storm will be the special referee in the #1contenders match later tonight between Bad Influence and Aries/Roode. Kaz even proposes reuniting Fortune with just the three of them; they could call it “threetune”.
Storm drinks the beer but I don’t think he was impressed. Aces and Eights go the ring en masse. Bully Ray asks D Lo what he is going to do to earn his way back into the club. D Lo says he wants to be the man to face Magnus in his scheduled match tonight. Bully says Doc is going to face Magnus instead, and D Lo can sit at the timekeepers table and hope Doc wins.
Commercial
Match #2: Doc versus Magnus.
Doc starts the match off with a headlock. Doc lands several punches and a Stinger splash on Magnus. Doc puts Magnus in a chin lock and Magnus elbows his way out of it. The two men exchange several strikes and clotheslines. Magnus goes to the top and Doc cuts him off.
Doc tries for a superplex but Magnus pushes him off. Magnus hits Doc with a flying elbow from the top rope and gets a two count. D Lo pulls Magnus out of the ring and Magnus slams D Lo into the steps. Magnus re enters the ring and Doc hits him with a flapjack. D Lo looks disoriented and grabs Doc’s leg by mistake. Magnus rolls Doc up for the win, thanks in part to D Lo’s blown interference.
Commercial
D Lo is getting chewed out in the Aces and Eights clubhouse. Bully tells the others to hold him down and takes his colors from him. Bully says D Lo is a bitch, and from now on is only a prospect, not a full-fledged member. Now D Lo’s job is to make sure the beer is cold and to wash the bikes.
In the back, Austin Aries and Bobby Roode approach James Storm and try to bribe him with beer and wine. Aries had already convinced Roode to tell Storm that Storm was the real star of Beer Money, and that the only reason he beat him for the world title is because he hit him with a beer bottle. Roode reluctantly does it, but I’m not sure Storm was buying it. Storm tells Roode it was no fluke when Aries beat Roode for the world title, stirring things up between them.
Commercial
Match #3: Austin Aries and Bobby Roode versus Daniels and Kazarian for the #1 contender for the tag titles.
During the introductions, Austin Aries backs Christy Hemme into the corner and then climbs the ropes, posing with his groin in her face. Aries and Kazarian start things off. The two men trade arm locks and reversals until Aries gets a takedown and spins on Kazarian’s back. Aries poses in the corner.
Aries and Kaz go at it again and they each rake the others eyes. Both men stagger around the ring blind and walk over to the wrong corner. They eventually make their way to their respective corner and tag in Daniels and Roode. The two men exchange kicks and shoulder blocks. Roode hits Daniels with a clothesline and a pair of knees to the gut. Roode takes Daniels down with a leg sweep and follows up with a neckbreaker.
Roode tags in Aries and Aries lands a flying elbow to Daniels and goes for a cover. Storm is very slow to start the count and Aries only gets a two. Aries hits Daniels with a punch, a palm strike, and an elbow. Aries throws Daniels to the floor and then climbs to the top. Aries hits Daniels with a double axe handle and then rolls him in. Daniels throws Roode to the floor and Kaz hits him with a double axe handle. Kaz rolls Roode back in and then Kaz and Daniels double team him. Roode tags in Aries and Aries hits Kaz with a dropkick.
Aries hits Daniels with a punch and a roaring elbow and then backdrops him to the floor. Aries hits Daniels with a suicide dive and then rolls him into the ring. Aries climbs to the top and hits a frog splash, but Kaz runs in to make the save. Kaz and Daniels double team Aries until Roode comes in to help. Aries hits Kaz with a shoulder block and Daniels hits Roode with an STO.
Aries and Daniels trade strikes. Daniels goes for Angels Wings but Aries blocks it; Aries goes for the Brain Buster but Daniels blocks it. Daniels rolls Aries up but he grabs the tights and Storm refuses to count. Aries offers Storm a beer and Storm drinks it. Storm hits Daniels with a superkick as Aries cheers. Aries covers Daniels but Storm only counts to 2.
Storm then hits Aries with a superkick and walks away. I smell a triple threat match for the tag titles. After the match, Magnus gets beaten down by Aces and Eights in the back. He fights back for a while, landing a nut shot and taking a couple people out with a stick, but eventually he gets overwhelmed and crushed under some metal equipment.
Commercial
When we return, X division champ Kenny King makes his way to the ring. King praises the returning Chris Sabin (Hail Sabin!) and expresses his admiration for the way Sabin has fought back from his injuries. Sabin says after losing the last two years to injuries, he’s going to wrestle each match like it could be his last, and promises to win the X Division title.
King offers to let Sabin hold the X Division title one more time out of respect. King then shows his true colors and calls him “Frail Sabin” and says this is the closest he’s ever going to get to being X division champ while King is still alive. King also promise to rain golden showers on his parade and demands his belt back. Sabin tosses King the belt and then knocks him out of the ring.
Commercial
Match #4: Mr. Anderson, Bully Ray, and Devon versus Sting, Kurt Angle, and possibly someone else if Hogan is able to convince him to show up.
Angle and Devon start the match off and exchange strikes. Devon rakes Angles eyes to get the advantage. Angle hits Devon with a back elbow and a belly to belly suplex. Devon tags in Bully Ray and Ray lands an elbow. Angle takes Bully Ray down with a couple arm drags and then tags in Sting.
Ray tags in Anderson and Anderson hits Sting with a kick and a punch. Sting hits Anderson with an atomic drop and a dropkick. Anderson gets caught up in the ropes and Sting pulls the ropes up into his crotch. Sting tags in Kurt and Kurt lands several strikes to Anderson. Anderson tags in Devon and Devon whips Angle into the corner.
Aces and Eights isolate Angle in their corner and triple team him for a few minutes. As Bully and Devon continue beating on Angle, the screen switches to the back area where everyone from Aces and Eights has been knocked out. No explanation given, but it looks like whoever Hogan was trying to get has shown up.
Commercial
When we return, Bully Ray hits Angle with a dropkick! It looks like Bully Ray finally found a use for his massive calves. Bully tags in Anderson and Anderson lands a couple punches. Anderson tags in Devon and Devon hits Angle with a neckbreaker. Devon keeps working on Angle’s neck until Kurt is able to punch his way out. Devon hits Angle with a bodyslam and follows it up with a leg drop.
After the leg drop, Devon poses and flexes like Hogan. Devon tags in Bully Ray and Ray hits Angle with a double axe handle and a neckbreaker. Ray lands a chop but then Angle pulls an Angle slam out of nowhere! Angle crawls over to Sting and makes the tag; Ray tags in Devon. Sting hits Devon with a splash and a Scorpion Death Drop. Anderson runs in to help but Sting throws him out of the ring.
Sting hits Devon with a Stinger splash and a one armed bulldog. Bully Ray runs in to make the save and Bully Ray and Sting face off. Sting will be facing Ray for the TNA title at Slammiversary. Sting and Ray exchange punches with Sting getting the upper hand. Sting locks in the Scorpion Death Lock but Anderson breaks it up. Anderson hits Sting with a Mic Check and then rolls out of the ring to slam Kurt Angle into the steel steps.
Devon and Bully Ray set up a table in the ring but get interrupted by the return of the monster Abyss!! Abyss takes down Devon and Bully Ray at the same time with a double clothesline. Abyss hits Devon and Bully Ray with big running splashes in the corner and then hits them both with boots to faces (could be a chant.)
Anderson slides back into the ring and gets choke-slammed by Abyss through the table. Abyss hits Devon with a black hole slam and covers him for the win! Abyss stands triumphantly in the ring as Impact goes off the air.
WWE didn’t take YouTube’s subscription-based channel offer, but TNA Wrestling was ready to jump in and fill the wrestling void.
Joining UFC, Cars.TV, National Geographic, 50 other companies, the TNA channel will be available for $4.99 a month and features the majority of the TNA pay-per-view library and DVD releases. Additional titles from 2012 and more premium content will be added on a weekly basis!
The new TNA channel is available at http://www.youtube.com/TNAwrestlingPLUS. The old channel will still be available with free content.
WWE announced yesterday a new multi-year deal with The Bridge Direct, a toy manufacturer to develop and market WWE construction toys.
The new toys will be marketed for kids of the ages between 4 and 14 and will include figures, accessories, and construction bricks to “build your own” playsets.
“We are excited to partner with The Bridge Direct and bring WWE’s new construction line to market for the first time,” said Casey Collins, Executive Vice President of Consumer Products, WWE. “The new product line will provide the youngest members of the WWE Universe with an entirely new way to engage with our brand, further cementing their connection to WWE.”
Jay Foreman, President and CEO of The Bridge Direct described WWE as one of the greatest sports entertainment franchises in the world today.
“We are thrilled to partner with WWE on an exciting product line that offers a compelling and interactive way for young fans to engage with one of their favorite entertainment franchises.”
The WWE construction toys are expected to begin rolling out at major mass retailers in Spring 2014.
WWE.COM is reporting that World Heavyweight champion Dolph Ziggler suffered a concussion during last night’s Smackdown tapings when he interfered in a match involving Big E. Langston and Jack Swagger.
“He [was] having some memory difficulties and a bit of a headache … he definitely has a concussion,” said WWE doctor Michael Sampson. “We’re checking him out, and going to be doing neuropsychological testing and just keep it monitored,” Sampson added.
All WWE Superstars and Divas who are on the receiving end of a concussion are immediately pulled out of action to avoid further medical problems. Those who suffer a concussion have to undergo a series of tests to determine when they can get back in the ring.
Ziggler is supposed to be involved in a triple threat ladder match for the World title at Extreme Rules against Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger however this injury will certainly shake things up a bit.
Variety is reporting that WWE opted not to be a part of YouTube’s subscription-based model, keeping the popular WWEFanNation channel on the Google-owned website free of charge.
The story says that YouTube tried to lure WWE into signing as a pay-channel however WWE is happy doing money with advertising running throughout their thousands of videos. Representatives from both YouTube and WWE declined to comment for the Variety story.
The last time YouTube threw in a big party, WWE was one of the first to sign up, being named as original content partner for the popular video-sharing website. A couple of weeks ago WWE signed a new content deal with Yahoo! that will bring several shows – including a 30 minute RAW preshow every week – to their additional digital home.
TNA’s flagship television show IMPACT will be moving back to its original time slot of 9PM EST starting on May 30. The big news was announced by TNA President Dixie Carter on Twitter earlier today.
It was on May 31, 2012, that Spike and TNA agreed to move IMPACT an hour earlier to kick off at 8PM EST, a move which didn’t bring much pluses when it came to viewership on Thursdays. The 8PM time slot was announced on the same day that it was revealed IMPACT would be going live every week.
IMPACT is now airing live once every two weeks and is no longer taped at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. TNA took the old WWE model where they go around the country with their show, doing one live television show and then taping the next week’s show immediately after.
Sin Cara will be returning to the ring next week according to a tweet by the man behind the mask.
“Finally I was given the all-clear to go back to wrestling. Next week my comeback to the WWE ring,” Sin Cara wrote.
He has been out since mid March after he suffered a concussion and was kept off television because of his injury.
The former Mistico had a rough journey in the WWE ever since he was signed and announced at a press conference in Mexico City in February 2011. His WWE career has been hit with several injuries as well as Wellness Program violations.
Monday Night RAW this week pulled in less than 4 million viewers in total, getting an average of 3,917,000 viewers over three hours for a 2.9 rating. That is down 368,000 viewers from last week.
Hour one drew 3,970,000, followed by 3,870,000 in hour two and then down to 3,910,000 in hour three.
This has been the lowest number since the December 31, 2012 edition of the show. (Ratings compiled by Nielsen Media Research and put online by PWInsider.com)
