Monday Night Raw drew an average of 3,066,000 viewers, down 38,000 viewers from last week’s broadcast.
Hour one had 3,136,000 viewers, followed by 3,184,000 in hour two, and then down to 2,878,000 for the third and final hour.
Raw was #2, #3, and #6 in the top 50 cable chart among the 18-49 demographic with the NBA Playoffs on TNT winning the night with nearly 4.7 million viewers. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Impact Wrestling will be presenting a new weekly show on Twitch hosted by Anthony Carelli and Destiny Wrestling’s Iceman. Carelli is the man formerly known as Santino Marella in WWE.
The show, titled Behind The Lights, will take a look at the latest news in the world of pro wrestling and mixed martial arts and will debut tomorrow at 4PM EST on Impact’s Twitch channel which is located at twitch.tv/impactwrestling.
This will be Carelli’s first time working for Impact Wrestling. He worked for WWE between 2005 and 2016. He runs the Battle Arts Academy, a 15,000 square foot multi-use facility and gym in Mississauga, Ontario, and is also a Sportsnet 360 analyst.
ECW Press today announced that they will be releasing the autobiography of Dylan “Hornswoggle” Postl in Summer 2019, a collaboration between the former WWE star along with co-writers Ross Owen Williams and Ian Douglas.
Titled Life is Short and So Am I, the book will delve into the physical and emotional challenges of being a little person in both a big person’s world and, often, a large person’s industry, as well as charting Dylan’s emotional path to parenthood, and varied relationships within his own family. Postl was born with achondroplasia, a condition causing disproportionate dwarfism and he stands at only 4’5”.
“Looking back through my life to this point has been crazy,” says Postl. “It’s just reinforced something I’ve always thought which is ‘this should never have happened’. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve found myself backstage at a big event or on a movie set, and even this last week over in Saudi Arabia in front of 60,000 people halfway across the world from where I was born, thinking ‘how did this ever happen to me?’ It’s unreal.”
Hey everybody! It’s @TheMagnumDA with another installment of the RAW report, live from Montreal! Tonight was a well-paced, well-built show that focused on Backlash, which is this Sunday on the WWE Network. Be sure to come back here next Sunday for the Backlash Pick’em report with the W-O Pick’em Crew. Here’s a recap of how everything went down!
The Results:
Opening promo featured Roman Reigns making his case for last Friday’s Universal Championship match. If you did not see it: The WWE Universal Title match ended in controversy, as Reigns speared Lesnar through the cage. Although Reigns’ feet hit first, the ref made a judgment call and gave the match to Lesnar. This led to an appearance from Jinder Mahal and the hometown boys, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. They proceeded to beat down Reigns until Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley made the save. Six-man tag match set for tonight!
1. Elias defeated Bobby Roode by referee’s stoppage (*3/4)
2. The Authors of Pain defeated Francois and Jean-Paul with The Last Chapter (1/2*)
Seth Rollins came out to a hero’s welcome. They gave him a thunderous, lasting ovation multiple times. Rollins talked about his match with Miz next Sunday, but this was interrupted by Finn Balor. Balor challenged Rollins for the IC title in tonight’s main event.
3. Ruby Riott (w/ Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan) defeated Sasha Banks with the Riott Kick (**1/2)
Another “Moment of Bliss”, where Alexa recalls the time when Nia Jax bullied her at Disney World by having the park employees measure her height before every ride, including the Mad Tea Cups. This was another golden segment by Alexa Bliss.
4. Braun Strowman, Roman Reigns and Bobby Lashley defeated Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens and Jinder Mahal (w/ Sunil Singh) after Strowman hit the Running Powerslam on Owens (**)
5. No Way Jose defeated Baron Corbin with a roll-up cradle after interference from Titus O’Neil (DUD)
6. Natalya (w/ Ronda Rousey) defeated Mickie James (w/ Alexa Bliss) with a small package (1/2*)
7. Intercontinental Champion Seth Rollins defeated Finn Balor to retain the Intercontinental Championship with a Curb Stomp (***1/2)
The Good
Great Main Event: I thought that Rollins/Balor match needed to be saved for a PPV, but I’ll take this! It was a great TV match that, with another 10 minutes on PPV, could have turned into a five-star classic. I thought the pacing was good, the selling was excellent, and their timing is something special.
Another Moment of Bliss: Alexa Bliss is killing it right now as the “victim”. After ALL of the terrible things she said about Nia leading up to WrestleMania, we see this side of her. It’s pretty amazing. Her acting chops, and her facial expressions, are really good. She’s got a talent!
Reaction to Rollins: I love the Montreal crowd. In the right atmosphere, they will hail their heroes for the entire night. I remember the reaction Hulk Hogan got on Smackdown (in Montreal!) after his WrestleMania match with The Rock. It’s the stuff of legend. Rollins did not get *quite* the response that Hogan got, but man that was a tremendous reaction for one of the most gifted in-ring performers of this generation.
The Bad
Corbin & Jose: This entire storyline reminds me of Adam Rose vs. Damian Sandow from 2014. You know the formula…”Party guy (Jose) has fun, serious guy (Corbin) shuts it down, and then the party guy beats him and keeps partying.” Rinse and repeat. Same deal here. Jose’s a talented wrestler, so just let him do his thing! These “party” gimmicks (especially the ones with an entourage) never pan out.
TWENTY MINUTES for the Six-Man Tag Match: This match felt like it took two years to complete. I thought that it was entertaining, but it was too long. Cut this down to 15 minutes, and you could have a good match with these guys.
The Ugly
Titus Slip-n-Slide Worldwide: We’ve all seen the clip from the Greatest Royal Rumble. As it stands, Titus tripping and sliding under the ring during his Rumble entrance is one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen. However, Vince has a tendency to take something funny and then drive it into the ground. That’s how I’m feeling about this joke already. Tonight, Titus came out during Corbin’s match and started bumbling around as if he’s the modern Shockmaster. I worry about how far this is going to go.
Alright everyone, that’s it for me! See you tomorrow for the Smackdown Live TV report! @TheMagnumDA, signing off.
The WWENetworkNews.com website is reporting that Sunday Night Heat is the next series that will be uploaded on the WWE Network with the first batch of episodes appearing on Monday, May 7.
The show aired for ten years starting in August 1998 on USA Network. In October 2000 it moved to MTV and then to TNN/Spike in April 2003 before moving exclusively to WWE.COM in September 2005. The last episode aired on May 30, 2008 and there are a total of 513 episodes of Heat in WWE’s library.
Perhaps Heat’s biggest episode came in 1999 during the Super Bowl 33 halftime show. It was titled Halftime Heat on USA Network and featured the empty arena match between The Rock and Mankind for the WWE title. That night, Heat did a massive 6.6 television rating.
It’s not known how many episodes will be uploaded in the initial batch but WWENetworkNews.com says that they will start from episode one from August 2, 1998.
It’s a very important day for WWE Superstar Kane who will be running in the the Knox County primary today with hopes that he will be selected to run for Knox County Mayor later in the fall.
There are five individuals running in this primary. Kane, whose real name is Glenn Jacobs, is running as a Republican.
The former WWE champion has been doing a lot of door-knocking over the past few weeks and held several rallies and events which were attended by fellow WWE Superstars in hope to attract more people. From Ric Flair to Chris Jericho to even The Undertaker, his peers all pitched in to get Glenn Jacobs in office.
Early indications of the final result will come in at around 8:30PM EST
Dwayne Johnson announced in a video on Instagram that that upcoming movie The Janson Directive which his production company Seven Bucks Productions is making with Universal Studios has found its leading man: John Cena!
The Janson Directive is based on a novel written by Robert Ludlum, the now 73-year-old author who wrote all Jason Bourne movies. Johnson was originally attached to be the star of the movie but that changed and he will now be behind the cameras while former WWE champion John Cena does his first movie with his former rival.
Johnson said that he’s excited for Cena to do this movie and can’t wait to get going. “And remember, as your producer if you screw up, I’m coming to set and bang…People’s Elbow,” The Rock said.
Cena and Johnson share a long history which started with a lot of animosity from Cena’s part where he used to call out The Rock for “loving WWE” yet he never comes back. The heat was real at the time and the two eventually patched things up, main evented two consecutive WrestleManias and now Cena is in the same position as Johnson was at the time: less time in the ring, more time in Hollywood.
Ironic how things work out in life!
Showtime announced today that they will be premiering a documentary chronicling NXT announcer and Showtime sportscaster Mauro Ranallo’s lifelong battle with mental illness on Friday, May 25. The release will coincide with Mental Health Awareness Month and it will air on Showtime at 9PM EST.
Titled Bipolar Rock ‘N Roller, the documentary will look at Ranallo’s Bipolar Affective Disorder, a condition afflicting nearly five percent of the U.S. population according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. As a national sportscaster for preeminent boxing, mixed martial arts and WWE events, Ranallo has long been an advocate for ending the stigma of mental illness. Now, for the first time, he exposes the true extent of his daily struggle. Through extensive behind-the-scenes video footage, candid personal interviews and detailed accounts from his loved ones and doctors, the doc takes an unflinching look at mental illness and its effects.
The film explores Ranallo’s career, including his work on the two biggest pay-per-view events in television history, and his relentless pursuit of a childhood dream despite seemingly insurmountable odds. Through this deeply personal portrait, Ranallo hopes that the film might inspire others to persevere in pursuing their dreams despite the challenges of a mental health condition.
“I have always tried to do my part to bring awareness to mental health issues,” said Ranallo. “Over the last several years, I allowed my best friend, Haris (Usanovic), to film me at my lowest points as well as at my highest. The idea is simply to show others who suffer that they are not alone and that, even when the outlook is bleak, you can overcome and achieve success. Mental illness is a life sentence—there is no cure—but it doesn’t have to be a death sentence.”
Ranallo was the voice of the two biggest pay-per-views in television history: Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao and Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor. He joined WWE in 2005 as the Smackdown commentator but then left the company in March 2017 before returning in June of the same year.
Bipolar Rock ‘N Roller is produced by Brian Dailey, the network’s Vice President, Sports Digital Content and Strategy, and MALKA MEDIA GROUP. Directed by first-time filmmaker Haris Usanovic, the film is executive produced by Stephen Espinoza and SHOWTIME Sports.
Several major news outlets around the world – including the Wall Street Journal, the UK Independent, BBC News, CNN, Associated Press, and others – carried Saudi’s General Sports Authority apology from the Greatest Royal Rumble in the weekend after WWE aired the dual-brand PPV commercial featuring the WWE women dancing and signing along with fellow male WWE Superstars for the audience in the stadium.
The Kuwait Times wrote that Saudi Arabia “embraced ‘trashy’ Americana” and noted that the advert on the big screens of “scantily clad female wrestlers” drew euphoric cheers from men and women alike who didn’t mind posting videos of the ad from inside the stadium on their social media.
In their apology, the Saudi GSA said that they did not approve of the ad and that they will make sure something like this never happens again as it is against the values of their country.
WWE has not commented publicly about what happened so it’s not known if it was a genuine mistake airing the advert in the stadium or someone going “rogue” defying Saudi orders.
With the Greatest Royal Rumble done and dusted, Monday Night Raw will now start focusing on Backlash, which believe it or not is this coming Sunday on May 6.
The big controversy coming out from the Saudi show was the ending of the steel cage match between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns. While Lesnar did exit the cage out first following the spear, it was Roman Reigns whose feet touched the floor first and the rules of the cage match are that both feet must touch the floor to be declared the winner. The side of the cage prevented Lesnar’s feet from touching the floor but he was still announced as the winner of the match. Reigns has Samoa Joe to take care of at Backlash but the controversy surrounding the Universal title match might be addressed tonight.
Ronda Rousey’s program will also continue following last week’s 10-woman tag match which ended when Rousey interfered and locked in the armbar on Mickie James. New Tag Team champions were crowned at the GRR as Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt claimed the vacant straps. Sheamus and Cesaro are off to Smackdown so we might be seeing the new champs’ first opponents tonight.
The show will take place from Montreal and you can bet hometown hero Kevin Owens will be in the house to raise some hell as only he can!
Jake “The Snake” Roberts has agreed to drop all charges against Harry Smith, the son of the late British Bulldog, charges which stem from their altercation at WrestleCon in New Orleans earlier this month.
Smith wrote in a Facebook message today that he spoke with Jake Roberts on the phone and apologized for his actions and also publicly apologized to Roberts. “I’m a man of m word, and I’d like to say sorry to any fans that I stressed with the situation also. I wish Jake all the best and glad that we squashed this heat,” Smith wrote.
The incident took place after Smith was trying to get Jake Roberts apologize for what he said about his father at a recent podcast. Smith went to Roberts’ table at WrestleCon but Roberts refused to even speak to him. Smith then challenged Roberts to settle their problem outside the venue but “The Snake” just told him to “f*ck off.” At that point, Smith got angry and threw a cup of coffee he had in Roberts’ face. Police were called in but Smith left the scene before they got there.
Former WWE champion Dave Bautista is part of Hollywood history as the movie he is part of, Avengers: Infinity War, had its biggest worldwide opening in history.
Avengers: Infinity War had a $250 million opening in the United States and $380 million internationally, for a gigantic $630 million worldwide opening weekend.
Bautista plays Drax the Destroyer in an ensemble cast from different movies part of the Marvel Universe.
Dwayne Johnson and his Rampage movie sits in #4 on the box office chart with a total $77,930,557 domestically and $256,700,000 in international box office receipts for a worldwide total of $334,630,557.
John Cena is also on the chart with his movie Blockers, standing in #8. The movie has $75,315,490 in worldwide box office.
The Riyadh Report Twitter account is reporting that WWE will be holding another major show in November in Saudi Arabia, this time in the capital city of Riyadh.
There are three stadiums in Riyadh – the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, the King Saud University Stadium, and the King Fahd International Stadium. The first one holds 22,500 seats, the second seats 25,000, while the third one holds 67,000 seats.
WWE has not yet commented on this second Saudi show which would be close to the planned mega show in Melbourne, Australia which is rumored for October at the MCG.
https://twitter.com/RiyadhReport/status/989909349769334784
Prior to traveling to Saudi Arabia for the Greatest Royal Rumble, John Cena attended CinemaCon in Las Vegas to promote his upcoming movie Bumblebee.
Unfortunately for him, facing the press means you have to answer even questions that you might not be in the mood for, and several outlets did ask him about the break-up from Nikki Bella. Cena soldiered on and with his game face on, tackled every question presented to him.
When asked by Access Hollywood how he’s doing, Cena did not beat around the bush. “I’m not doing well. I love Nicole. We’re not together,” he said, adding that when you live your life in the public eye, you have to take the good with the bad. “Everybody has problems. Every person has problems. It sucks. I love her, and I miss her. And that’s that.”
In a separate interview, Cena said that it’s currently a tough time for him as he still loves Nicole and will always love her. “The fact that my heart hurts for her…I know I was in love. So, I’ll always have that.”
Cena showed up with co-stars Hailee Steinfeld and Jorge Lendeborg, Jr. as well as director Travis Knight to present the first footage from the Bumblebee movie.
On a side note related to CinemaCon, Ronda Rousey was also in town to promote the movie Mile 22 with her co-stars.
10 hours after the Saudi Arabia General Sports Authority Twitter account tweeted that last night “was like a dream,” they issued an apology for an ad that WWE aired during the broadcast which included women.
“The General Sports Authority wishes to apologize to viewers and attendees of the event held yesterday in Jeddah for an ad that appeared before one of the segments,” the statement read.
The apology continues saying that the General Sports Authority was clear in their decision made to WWE that no women should be part of the broadcast, live or via other footage such as advertising, as it conflicts with the values of the Saudi society.
The advert in question was the dual-brand PPV music video which features several WWE women including Carmella, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Alexa Bliss, Naomi, Becky Lynch, and Nia Jax as they dance and sing. The Saudi General Sports Authority said that it disapproves of the decision and is committed to wipe anything that goes against their values, adding that the advert showed women wearing indecent clothing and acting in an indecent way.
The Saudi GSA Twitter account is currently filled with photos and videos from last night’s event. Turki al Sheikh, the head of the GSA, was present at the event and presented the Rumble winner Braun Strowman with a custom-made title and trophy.
Meanwhile, a short video recorded via Snapchat from inside the stadium shows the crowd reaction when the ad played and Carmella was on the screen.
#الهيئة_العامة_للرياضة pic.twitter.com/LsCGEwbu3K
— وزارة الرياضة (@mosgovsa) April 28, 2018
The Greatest Royal Rumble featured some hilarious moments, iron man performances, some former stars coming back…and a lot of statistics!
A total of eight individuals stayed in the ring less than one minute, making their trip to Saudi Arabia a bit pointless. But with so many wrestlers in the ring, someone had to take one – or eight in this case – for the team. Mike Kanellis, Tyler Breeze, Curt Hawkins, Tye Dillinger, The Great Khali, Hiroki Sumi, and Viktor of the Ascension all spent less than 60 seconds in the ring. Mike Kanellis has the record of the quickest exit with just 3 seconds on the clock from the moment he stepped in to the moment his feet touched the floor.
After Daniel Bryan’s 1 hour and 16 minute performance, it was Elias who lasted the longest, with 34 minutes and four seconds on the clock. He’s the only one who had over half an hour in the ring while Rey Mysterio, Dolph Ziggler, and Braun Strowman each had over 20 minutes, Mysterio with 20:25, Ziggler with 21:44, and Strowman with 22:14.
Out of 50 WWE Superstars, 22 of them eliminated somebody while the rest, well, they just got eliminated. After Strowman’s impressive 13 over-the-top rope tosses, Elias came in second with five and Randy Orton with four. Kurt Angle, Baron Corbin, Mark Henry, and Daniel Bryan each had three. Mojo Rawley, Dolph Ziggler, Bobby Roode, and Bobby Lashley had two each and the rest – Xavier Woods, Big Cass, Tony Neese, Roderick Strong, Apollo Crews, Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, Hornswoggle, Kofi Kingston, Big E, and Tucker Knight – had one each.
27 WWE Superstars from the Raw brand took part in the Rumble, with 14 from Smackdown, four from NXT, and five who are not associated with anyone. Those five were Mark Henry, Rey Mysterio, Hornswoggle, The Great Khali, and Hiroki Sumi, a sumo wrestler from Japan.
Sin Cara, who came in at #3, has the honor to say he was the first one booted out from The Greatest Royal Rumble, just one minute and 18 seconds after he got in. Chris Jericho had #50 and was the last entrant but only lasted three minutes and 18 seconds before he got eliminated by the eventual winner.
The Greatest Royal Rumble over-the-top rope match lasted a total of 1:17:20.
As you might have guessed, Titus O’Neil was the star of the Greatest Royal Rumble yesterday and him tripping down and sliding all the way underneath the ring was one of Twitter’s top moments. “A meme is born as Titus O’Neil slides into WWE history,” Twitter’s official Moments account tweeted.
According to sources, the reaction backstage was similar to those of the announcers…everyone was in stitches laughing. And they enjoyed it so much that it was replayed five different times for everyone’s amusement. And you now Vince McMahon must’ve liked it because otherwise we would not have seen it again. The cameras missed his tumble during the live broadcast as they cut to the main camera focusing on the ring before he tripped and only showed O’Neil reversing from underneath the ring.
Several WWE Superstars commented on the incident on Twitter and even O’Neil looked at the bright side of the embarrassing situation. “@WWEShop Get That MERCH ready!!! I’m about to slide….These extra checks right into the bank,” he wrote.
Fit Finlay even suggested that he should change the name now to Titus WorldSlide instead of Titus Worldwide!
A meme is born as Titus O'Neil slides into WWE history
The Fighting With My Family movie which is based on Smackdown General Manager Paige and her family has been pushed back by a couple of months and will now be released in 2019.
Deadline.com is reporting that the new release date is March 1, six months later than the original planned September 2018 release. The entertainment website says that the move was done because September will see a bunch of new releases that will potentially tower over this movie.
The movie is produced by Dwayne Johnson’s Seven Bucks Productions in association with WWE Studios. Florence Pugh plays the role of Paige in this flick which also features a cameo by The Rock who plays himself.
The trailer for the movie was released worldwide during the Hall of Fame ceremony in New Orleans earlier this month.
Although he won the cage match in a controversial fashion yesterday at the Greatest Royal Rumble, the WWE Universal title remains in the possession of Brock Lesnar and the former UFC Heavyweight champion is inching closer and closer to another WWE record.
As of today, Brock Lesnar is at 391 days as Universal champion. He won the title at WrestleMania 33 in Orlando last year, beating Goldberg in one of the main events of the show. While holding a different championship, Lesnar is just over 40 days from overtaking the record currently held by CM Punk of 434 days as WWE champion. That is the modern-day record of the longest WWE championship reign and considering that Lesnar does not defend the title that often, it is looking likely that he will be surpassing the 434-day number soon.
The Universal title is still relatively new, having been introduced in July 2016. The first champion was Finn Balor but he had to surrender it just 24 hours later due to an injury. Kevin Owens then won the title and kept it for 188 days before losing it to Goldberg who kept it for 28 days until WrestleMania 33.
Just like at WrestleMania 34, the odds were stacked against Lesnar to keep the title but the champ once again kept the gold with another possible rematch with Reigns down the line.
During an interview with Chad Dukes of 106.7 The Fan to promote The Avengers: Infinity War, former WWE champion Dave Bautista confirmed the story reported a few weeks ago that he was originally asked to team up with Ronda Rousey at WrestleMania.
Bautista said he was willing to do it only if they teased something between him and Triple H for the following WrestleMania and initially, the powers that be loved the idea and said they can work around that. He said that they constantly talked about it for three weeks until all communications stopped.
“I sent a text to Hunter. I was like, ‘Hey man, I don’t know if you put any more thought into what’s going on. I’m really excited about the possibilities,'” Bautista said. He explained how he never heard anything back from them after that and all he wants is to end his career the right way.
“I’m faithful and loyal to the WWE. I’m proud of being from there and I want to do good business with them, but they just don’t make it easy. You know, they just don’t,” he said.
Bautista added that if nothing happens next year, then that will be it for his wrestling career as he will be turning 50. “I’d be willing to. I feel great. Physically, I’m in great shape. I’ve never let up on that. But I just don’t want to be the old guy in the ring and I don’t want to overstay my welcome,” he said. “I just want to end my career the right way and next year will be the last opportunity, so if we can’t make something happen by next year, then I’m just gonna officially hang it up.”
He said that while he doesn’t need to go back to WWE, he loves it there and even though fans “totally crapped on me the last time I was there,” he would still go back in a heartbeat. “I’d be happy to be there. But, I just don’t get it, man. I don’t get that company. I just don’t understand.”
