With Monday Night Raw falling on a holiday in two days time, WWE announced a steel cage match for the broadcast involving one of the most over stars at the moment.
The Labor Day edition of Raw will feature Braun Strowman taking on new-look Big Show inside a 15-foot high steel cage. Their last match, in April of this year, saw the ring implode after a massive suplex from the second rope, sending the referee flying.
Raw shows that fall on a holiday tend to suffer from a dip in viewership, sometimes a considerable dip depending on the holiday. This year has been the exception somewhat as Raw registered an increase on Martin Luther King, President’s Day, and only had 3,000 less viewers than the previous week on Memorial Day.
September will see a few new shows on the WWE Network as the company continues to upload original content in hopes of maximizing their subscriber base.
On September 4, the next episodes of the Mae Young Classic will debut. Episodes five through eight will take the tournament to the semi finals. Episode nine will be the finale, live on September 12 at 10PM EST from Las Vegas.
Also this month is a brand new documentary shot exclusively for the WWE Network titled Trailblayzer: The Alundra Blayze story. The WWE Hall of Famer, better known throughout the years as Madusa, sat down for an in-depth interview about her career, including the controversial moment when she dumped the WWE Women’s title in the trash can on a live episode of WCW Nitro.
New episodes of WWE Story Time will also be added with The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, and Diamond Dallas Page recounting their own crazy stories from their time on the road and in the business.
And finally, perhaps one of the most anticipated Table for 3 episode as WWE Hall of Famers Ric Flair, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, and Sting sit down for a chat. This was recorded during WrestleMania weekend in Orlando a few months ago.
Last night, John “Bradshaw” Layfield announced his immediate departure from the Smackdown commentary booth, a position that he has held since July of last year.
“After much consideration, I will be stepping back my weekly role as Smackdown announcer to dedicate more continuous time on the work I have done since 2010 with at risk kids and communities,” JBL wrote. He said that he will continue his relationship with WWE in the meantime, appearing on shows such as Tribute to the Troops, WrestleMania, and other big pay-per-views.
Bradshaw said that he will be focusing on Beyond Rugby Bermuda, an organization he founded in 2010 to help at risk kids.
“I’m proud to say that in addition to being Smackdown’s longest reigning WWE champion, I inspired WWE’s Tribute to the Troops over 10 years ago. WWE has been my partner in all my philanthropic works and this new deal with WWE ensures that will continue. WWE has made my dreams come true and helped me become a global name. And now, WWE is helping me use that name to make a difference,” he concluded.
Layfield returned to commentary in 2012 doing Raw until he moved to Smackdown when the WWE Draft happened. Smackdown now has Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton as the commentary team and it’s more than likely that a third individual will be added to replace JBL.
Impact this week drew 268,000 viewers, down 32,000 viewers from last week’s show. It tied the June 29 show for the least-watched episode since May 4. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
While she did not appear on Smackdown Live, former WWE Women’s champion Charlotte spoke with Renee Young backstage to give an update on her father, Ric Flair.
“It’s probably the hardest two weeks I’ve had, but my dad is a fighter. I just wanna thank everyone,” Flair said. “He’s got nine lives!”
Charlotte said they were swamped with messages, prayers, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and text messages, and it really means a lot to her, her family, and especially her father.
“He has a long road, I’m not saying he’s gonna be back next week strutting,” Flair added, but the outlook is very positive. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think it was okay. Everything is looking good and I’m glad to be back.”
Charlotte said that it was great to see her WWE family again after two weeks and was looking forward to returning to work.
WWE and FOX Sports Mexico today announced the launch of a new weekly Spanish-language show, WWE Saturday Night, featuring the best action from WWE, beginning tomorrow, September 2 at 9PM CDT on FOX Sports 2.
Distributed throughout Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, WWE Saturday Night features highlights and pivotal moments from Raw and SmackDown, as well as WWE’s premium live events, including WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Royal Rumble and Survivor Series. WWE Saturday Night is presented by renowned FOX Sports Mexico broadcasters Verónica Rodríguez and Jimena Sánchez and also includes exclusive interviews with WWE Superstars and social media features, giving viewers in Latin America a unique, localized WWE experience. Additionally, WWE Saturday Night will be available on-demand through the FOX app to authenticated FOX Sports subscribers.
“We are very excited to launch this new project with WWE that we have been working on for many months,” said Ernesto López, Senior Vice President, FOX Sports Mexico production and programming. “We are confident that WWE Saturday Night will strengthen our relationship with a great brand like WWE while also delivering unique and spectacular content to our viewers.”
Joaquin Del Rivero, WWE Vice President & General Manager, Latin America said, “We are excited to partner with FOX Sports Mexico to deliver new, localized content throughout the region and expand our reach. WWE Saturday Night offers a premier destination for FOX Sports Latin America’s viewers to enjoy WWE’s blend of action-packed, family-friendly entertainment.”
Triple H was a guest on ESPN’s First Take to talk WWE, promote the Mae Young Classic, which debuted this week on the WWE Network, and more.
When asked about Ronda Rousey and her chances of making it in the WWE, Triple H said that Ronda is a huge fan who is interested in doing professional wrestling. And if she’s interested in working with the WWE, then he’ll be more than happy to give her the opportunity. “We’re all about personalities. And that is what she brings to the table,” he said, adding that we’ve seen her personality shine in the UFC, Hollywood, and anything she touches.
The former WWE champion described the promotion behind the Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor as very good, saying they did a lot of things the correct way. He said he doesn’t think anyone can replicate that and the fight delivered with an entertaining 10-round match which ended with a predictable result, but still something which delivered. Triple H said that both McGregor and Mayweather had that WWE-style personalities in them which helped sell the pay-per-view.
Mexican luchadora Sexy Star played the victim in a message she released, her first public comments since the incident with Rosemary occurred this past Saturday night at TripleMania XXV in Mexico.
Star said that these past few days have been very difficult for her and she thinks “it all went out of hand.” She wrote that she’s “a bit confused” and blamed several people for trying to retire her from professional wrestling. “I will not stop, on behalf of all women who have been mistreated, physically or psychologically,” she added.
Sexy Star wrote that she was doing what she had to do and now “it seems that the girl is injured.” Star finished off her statement saying that she’s not aware of her opponent being injured. “That’s all I can say!”
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer is reporting that GFW has signed a new, one-year television deal with POP TV, their current broadcaster in the United States.
The original deal was signed in mid-November 2016 after Destination America decided not to renew their contract with the company who was known as TNA back then.
Impact Wrestling made its debut on POP TV on January 5, 2016 with POP becoming the company’s fourth television home in 12 years. Impact previously aired on Fox Sports Net, Spike, and Destination America.
GFW makes no money from Impact advertising as POP gets all that money in return for the airtime. It was POP President Brad Schwartz who spearheaded the deal to bring Impact to their network after Dixie Carter started shopping around for a new home. Schwartz called Carter “impressive” at the time and once the meeting was over, she had won everyone in the room with her “amazing spirit” and “good, positive energy.”
For the year 2016, Impact averaged 311,000 weekly viewers while for the year 2017 they currently average 301,000 weekly viewers.
Global Force Wrestling posted a statement on the ImpactWrestling.com website tackling their relationship with AAA, TripleMania this past weekend, and the incident with Sexy Star.
GFW noted that while the incident with Star marred an outstanding show, AAA executives have confirmed to them that they are taking appropriate measures to handle the situation, adding that both AAA and Star have apologized to Rosemary for the incident.
“It was an honor for GFW to be invited to participate in TripleMania XXV,” the statement said. “The AAA talent that we have worked with have been consummate professionals and the company organized and delivered an extraordinary event, in which both DJZ and Andrew Everett had spectacular showings following their recent surgeries.”
The statement said that it is now time to focus on the positives that came out from the weekend, including Eddie Edwards winning the GHC Heavyweight title.
Smackdown pulled in 2,455,000 viewers this week, down nearly a quarter of a million viewers from last week’s 2.68 million viewers. It was the least-watched show since the July 4 edition. Smackdown was #1 in the top 50 cable chart among the 18-49 demographic and was #8 in the overall viewership. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Eight WWE Superstars occupy the Pro Wrestling Illustrated top 10 chart in the PWI 500 list, a list compiled every year ranking the top 500 wrestlers in the world.
This year, the list was topped by NJPW’s Kazuchika Okada. Following him were AJ Styles in #2, Kevin Owens in #3, Roman Reigns in #4, Shinsuke Nakamura in #6, Dean Ambrose in #7, Samoa Joe in #8, Bobby Roode in #9, and The Miz in #10. The other non-WWE Superstars on the list is Kenny Omega who came in #5.
Last year it was Roman Reigns who was #1 followed by Okada. This was the first time in a long time that John Cena didn’t crack the top 10 list.
As Summer turns to Fall, the independent wrestling circuit shows no sign of cooling down anytime soon. While August may have only brought five new wrestling shows on the FloSlam network, these shows were jam-packed with enough action to leave any wrestling fan eagerly waiting for September to see what exciting shows next month will bring. So, without further ado, let’s begin our top five countdown.
5. Fred Yehi versus Ethan Case – Style Battle – Season One Episode Six
This match makes our countdown mainly because it helps to demonstrate that the independent wrestling circuit is capable of developing a storyline without the benefit of the weekly programming and video packaging that the WWE enjoys. For the past two shows at Style Battle, popular wrestler Fred Yehi has made it to the final battle of each tournament only to be thwarted in the end. Thus, this Style Battle was said to be Yehi’s final opportunity to be in the Style Battle finale. However, the match was not completely given to Yehi. Ethan Case fought valiantly using a combination of attempted submission holds, and strikes as well as use of the entire arena to give Yehi a run for his money. Ultimately, however, it was Yehi who was victorious.
4. Stormy Lee versus Priscilla Kelly for the Shine Nova championship at FIP
This first defense of the Shine Nova championship was a masterful display of talent by two of the independent wrestling circuit’s finest female wrestlers. For those who were expecting a match dominated by hair pulling and scratching, you watched the wrong match. Priscilla Kelly used her masterful kicking and striking abilities to defeat her opponent. However, Stormy Lee could defend herself well using submission holds with ease. However, these ladies are ignorant of the fact that majority of wrestling fans also enjoy a little sex appeal to go with their female wrestlers. While Stormy Lee’s ring attire gives off a sexy secretary vibe, Priscilla Kelly’s sexy vampire image has caused her to develop a cult following. Also, her licking of the Shine Nova championship only adds to her creepy mystique.
3. Ethan Case versus Parrow
In ACW they don’t announce all the matches on their card for each show. However, sometimes these unannounced matches provide the best entertainment for fans watching both in the arena and online. There is no better example of this than the unannounced match for the ACW Heavyweight championship. Even though Ethan Case had already had a weekend filled with wrestling matches having competed in Style Battle just days before, he still managed to defend himself against the big man, Parrow. Typically when giants like Parow have matches against smaller wrestlers, they generally win without giving the smaller man much of a chance. However, this wasn’t the case in this matchup. Case managed to hold the big man down for a two count multiple times during the match. In the end though, Parrow slammed Case up against the wall of the arena, which allowed Case to be thrown for a loop allowing Parrow to eventually retain the championship using a maneuver similar to Brock Lesnar’s F5.
2. Darby Allen versus Timothy Thatcher
At Evolve 90, this was the best match on the card for many reasons. The main reason that the match was so good was that it was Timothy Thatcher’s farewell match because he’s leaving Evolve. Both men put forth an outstanding effort throughout the match. There was a time where both men exchanged three reversals in a row. Ultimately, as is usually the case in farewell matches, Thatcher’s opponent emerged victorious. The highlight of the match actually came after ended when Thatcher said a touching goodbye to his manager, Stokely Hathaway. Hathaway begged Thatcher to go, but Thatcher maintained that he had to. Thatcher then embraced his manager, and walked off into the sunset.
1. Matt Riddle versus Lio Rush
Thatcher wasn’t the only wrestling who said farewell to Evolve this month. 22-year-old Lio Rush also signed a contract with WWE recently, so he had his final match with WWN champion, Matt Riddle. There have been rumors that the match was originally scheduled to be a title match, but Rush’s imminent departure made giving him this title pointless, because when wrestlers go to WWE they must vacate all titles from other federations. However, the lack of a title didn’t stop competitors from putting on an excellent match. Both men put on a match using a combination of wrestling holds and highflying maneuvers at the end of the match, both men embraced which is a sign of high respect and esteem.
Keep watching this website for more of T and D’s indy top five including a special article about the 3 Day German Tournament taking place this October.
GFW’s Rosemary issued another statement, her last one about the whole incident with Sexy Star.
She said that the injury is thankfully only a strained tricep/bicep with swelling around the area, an injury that came thanks to Sexy Star who went full-on shoot mode with the armbar.
“Returning to the ring will come when the doc is happy with my strength and range of motion, but I am optimistic that time lost will be minimal,” she wrote.
Rosemary added that if anyone can learn something from this messy situation is that everyone needs to take care of each other, not just in the ring and if you mess up, you should own up to it and be accountable for your actions.
She once again thanked everyone who reached out to check in on her and for the outpouring of love and positivity.
Former WWE champion John Cena will be lending his voice to a new animated series titled Dallas & Robo, produced by the folks behind Robot Chicken. The series will be exclusively for YouTube Red, the paid streaming service of the popular YouTube website.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the eight-episode series will premiere on Red in 2018. John Cena will be voicing the warrior-poet Robo and 2 Broke Girls’ Kat Dennings will be the sassy space trucker Dallas. The story of the series revolves around the duo who navigate their way through cannibal bikers, rival space truckers and vending machine burritos as they try to make a few dollars through the seedy world of interplanetary big rigging.
The voice cast also includes Jane Lynch, Dana Snyder, Giancarlo Esposito, Clancy Brown, Bree Williamson, Nat Faxon, Taran Killam and Milana Vayntraub.
“With Kat Dennings and John Cena bringing these animated characters to life, I have no doubt viewers are going to have fun watching this imaginative, new outer space comedy from Shadowmachine,” said YouTube global head of original content Susanne Daniels.
“I’m thrilled to join Kat and the rest of this fantastic voice cast for Dallas & Robo. The writing for this series is flat-out funny and very creative, and I’m really looking forward to being a part of such a unique, entertaining project,” added Cena.
WWE will also host Dallas & Robo on its YouTube channel, which has more than 17.4 million subscribers.
The next number one contender for the WWE title will be announced next week as Mahal’s previous two challengers – Shinsuke Nakamura and Randy Orton – will go one on one with the winner getting a shot at the title.
The two teamed up last night to take on Mahal and Rusev in the main event and the night finished with Orton sneaking up on Nakamura and hitting him with the RKO.
Mahal and Orton wrestled three times already, at Backlash, Money In The Bank, and Battleground in a Punjabi Prison match. Nakamura had one shot at Mahal at SummerSlam.
It still remains unclear when the title shot would take place as the next Smackdown pay-per-view is in October. September will only see one Raw pay-per-view on the 24th.
Al Snow became the latest wrestling personality to publish his biography through ECW Press. Titled Self-Help: Life Lessons from the Bizarre Wrestling Career of Al Snow, the book will be published in April 2019 in collaboration with Ross Owen Williams.
In his biography, Snow will be telling the story of his life, combining the highlights of his career with stories from the road that have given Al pause. Planned chapter titles include “How (Not) to Train Dogs,” “How to Get into Films. . . with the Mob,” and “How to Transport Naked Little People in a Big People Mover.”
Snow said it’s an honor for him to be able to share his journey and see it all in a book. “What I’m particularly excited about is the fact that ECW Press, Ross, and I have all agreed to take a slightly different slant than other wrestling autobiographies. Naturally, we will revisit all the notable moments in my career, but we want the book to cover more than what I did in front of the cameras. There are so many stories from the road – things that only seem to happen to me – that have made me who I am today. I’ve always considered every new situation as a potential learning experience and this book will give me the opportunity to share that, for better or for worse,” he said.
Michael Holmes, Executive Editor for ECW Press, described Snow’s book as a “special and important addition to our growing catalogue of wrestling titles.”
Al Snow was recently employed by Global Force Wrestling but has since departed from his position with the company.
Smackdown! Live Television Report for August 29, 2017 – “Restarts, Rematches, and Rewards!”
Introduction Segment: Arena Promo
We are live right away with Tom Phillips announcing a tag team main event, with Randy Orton and Shinsuke Nakamura taking on Rusev and WWE Champion Jinder Mahal.
The Singh Brothers – Samir and Samil – introduce their leader, WWE Champion Jinder Mahal. He puts over his “skills” when talking about the main-event tonight, and then goes on a tirade about “disrespect” displayed towards him wherever he goes. Mahal demands that “somebody must pay the price” for that contempt. The Brothers say they’re sorry for not protecting him against Shinsuke last week, and then want to kiss his feet to make it up; they just about do it when Nakamura’s music plays!
Samir and Samil try to block Shinsuke’s way, but he just parts them and slugs it out with Mahal! The numbers become too much, even when Orton runs out, because Rusev also joins. Jinder slams Nakamura to the canvas with The Khallas and poses over him with the WWE Championship.
Later tonight, United States Champion A.J. Styles will have a United States Championship Open Challenge! Up next, Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin make their Tag-Team debut!
Commercials.
It is announced that Shinsuke Nakamura will wrestle Randy Orton on next week’s Smackdown! Live to determine a #1 Contender to WWE Champion Jinder Mahal.
Match #1: Tag Team – The Ascension (Viktor and Konnor) VS. Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin
Chad and Viktor begin, with Gable kipping-up from a wristlock and kneeing Viktor in the gut. He tags in Benjamin, who double-underhook-suplexes Viktor. Ascension gain control after Chad is thrown to the ropes and Konnor pulls down the top rope, sending Gable tumbling to the floor!
Commercials.
Konnor is in now, trying to prevent Chad from switching with Shelton. He pulls Gable back with a spinebuster for a near-fall, and then Viktor is back in and stomps away. He chops Chad, but Chad chops back. Konnor’s in again, but Gable moves and leaps for the hot-tag! Benjamin high-backdrops Viktor and then hits a spin-kick on Konnor! He kicks Viktor from the apron and soars off of the top turnbuckle with a clothesline, but Konnor breaks up the pin-try. Chad dumps Konnor to the outside and Shelton finishes this with a jumping-flatliner!
Winners via Pinfall: Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin
Backstage Promo
Rene Young asks Baron Corbin about his losing of the Money In The Bank Briefcase; he blames John Cena for the distraction and then for “hiding” on Monday Night Raw. He moves on to taking A.J. Styles up on his United States Championship Open Challenge.
Commercials.
Match #1: Single for the United States Championship – A.J. Styles (Champion) VS. ??? (Challenger)
The man to appear to answer is actually … Tye Dillinger! As he goes to the ring, Baron Corbin attacks him! Tye attacks back, and then signals for the bell to ring so he gets the shot! Referee Charles Robinson makes it official!
Dillinger is fast with ten-punches, and counters the Phenomenal Forearm into a Tye-Breaker position; Styles reverses that into the Calf-Crusher, forcing Tye to give-in!
Winner and STILL United States Champion: A.J. Styles
Post-match, Baron assaults Dillinger again, but A.J. fights back and then yell at each other.
Locker Room Promo
Rusev is getting ready when WWE Champion Jinder Mahal walks in. He talks to Rusev about their two countries joining up, but Rusev says it is only for tonight and not about their cultures. Rusev warns Jinder that he will be challenging for the WWE championship after they win tonight.
Commercials.
Match #2: Single – Mike Kannelis (with Maria Kannelis) VS. Bobby Roode
Roode governs most of this bout and completes with his Glorious DDT (Implant DDT)!
Winner via Pinfall: Bobby Roode
Kevin Owens is walking through the backstage area and Tom Phillips predicts he will be out, next!
Commercials.
Arena Promo
Aiden English is in the ring and sings his intro, but Kevin Owens interrupts. He dismisses English and gets to his beef with Commissioner Shane McMahon. Owens shows footage of last week’s main-event finish where Shane made himself referee after Baron Corbin was screwing up the job.
Back live, Kevin disputes McMahon’s actions and is furious with the outcome. He compares how Smackdown! is run to how Raw was run when he was on it, and then Commissioner McMahon joins on stage. Shane describes exactly what happened last week to the tee but that does not please Owens. McMahon then orders Kevin to leave and have Aiden begin his schedule contest.
Match #3: Single – Aiden English VS. Sami Zayn
(Note: Kevin Owens joins commentary.)
English starts off strong with punches until an Irish Whip is reversed and Sami clotheslines Aiden to the floor. Owens suddenly enters and rips the referee’s shirt off and makes himself the official! Kevin counts Zayn as he’s on the top turnbuckle and then Pop-Up powerbombs him! Aiden covers and receives the fast-count victory!
Winner via Pinfall: Aiden English
Commercials.
Backstage Promo
Rene Young inquires Commissioner McMahon about Kevin Owens’ actions. Shane says that the match is “stricken from the record,” and leaves the building just like Kevin just did.
Backstage Promo
Dasha interviews Dolph Ziggler about his new start tonight. Dolph denies it and makes fun off all of the other wrestlers who have uniqueness about them.
Tag-Team Champions The Usos and The New Day make their respective entrances; Xavier Woods is injured, walking out in a boot on his left leg.
Commercials.
Match #4: Tag Team – Tag-Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) VS. The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E.) (with New Day partner Xavier Woods)
(Stipulation: Winners pick the stipulation in their Tag Team championship rematch.)
The Usos have it going their way against Big E. until E clotheslines Jimmy out of the corner! They both tag-out, and Kofi flies around over Jey, and sets up for Trouble-In-Paradise, but Jey moves. Kingston almost takes his after a crossbody from the top turnbuckle, but Jimmy breaks the count! Kofi reverses a Samoan Drop into a Dragon Sleeper with Scissors, but Jimmy and Jey switch, with Jimmy rolling up Kingston for the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winners via Pinfall: Tag-Team Champions The Usos
Backstage Promo
James Ellsworth rips the microphone from Dasha and then interviews Carmella himself. He tries to make nice with Carmella after blabbing about her plan to cash in her Money In The Bank Briefcase. Women’s Champion Natalya interjects and institutes a match with her for next week’s Smackdown! Live; Naomi then joins and does the same for two weeks, for their Women’s Championship Rematch.
Commercials.
Match #5: Single – Zena Stockland VS. Tamina (with Lana)
Tamina completely crushes (pun-intended as that’s what Lana orders Tamina to do) Zena.
Winner via Pinfall: Tamina (with Lana)
Post-match, “photographers” take pictures of Tamina and Lana in the ring.
Video Promo
Season Two of “The Fashion Files” begins with a new intro. Tyler Breeze and Fandango are back in their office with boxes labelled from their previous “Fashion Files.” Breeze shows off new equipment for them to use – headphones, a blacklight-flashlight, and a belt. They “clap off” the lights and find arrows and a message of “Two B or Not Two B” with the flashlight. They wonder if this is related to Aiden English and Shakespeare. The “Files” will continue next week!
Commercials.
Match #6: Tag-Team – Rusev and WWE Champion Jinder Mahal (with The Singh Brothers) VS. Shinsuke Nakamura and Randy Orton
This starts out as a brawl before the bell rings!
Commercials.
Shinsuke and Jinder are now going at it, with Nakamura front-dropkicking Mahal and kicking him away! Jinder pulls Shinsuke back and punches. Nakamura counters with a jawbreaker and tags in Randy! He is all over Mahal and backdrops him on the barricade, and then tosses him with a fall-away slam back in the ring! Samir and Samil distract the referee, allowing Rusev to shove Orton into the ring post.
Rusev tags in and punches and kicks Randy in his and Mahal’s corner. He traps Orton in a front-facelock to wear “The Viper” down. He spin-kicks Randy and then tags out, allowing the WWE Champion to work Orton over. Jinder runs at Randy in the corner but misses and eats the ring post, shoulder-first!
Shinsuke receives the hot-tag and is all over Rusev! He locks on an armbar, but Mahal breaks it up. Nakamura hits a knee from the middle turnbuckle and then runs at Rusev with his Kinsasha knee-to-the-face! Shinsuke covers and gets the victory!
Winners via Pinfall: Shinsuke Nakamura and Randy Orton
Post-match, Orton and Nakamura chat, predicting their match next week, and then Randy hits an RKO! He poses to close the show.
Hello! @TheMagnumDA here with tonight’s Raw report, LIVE from Memphis!
Tonight, our main event is a rematch from SummerSlam, where WWE Women’s Champion (Raw) Sasha Banks defends her championship against Alexa Bliss. We start tonight at the commentary booth, where Jerry Lawler is filling in for Booker T.! We are then told that Booker T. was unable to fly out of Houston, TX due to Hurricane Harvey. I want to send thoughts and love to the people in that area…I don’t think anyone saw this coming. Prayers go out to my friends Jesse and Erica out in Katy, TX. I loved going to WrestleMania XXV with you, but I’m sure wrestling’s the furthest thing from your mind right now. Stay safe! We love you!
We start tonight’s show with The Miztourage! WWE IC Champion The Miz is flanked by his wife, Maryse, as well as Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel. As they come into the ring, Miz has a microphone in hand. Before he is able to get a word out, we hear the music of Raw General Manager Kurt Angle! Miz is furious about this, and tells Angle that the Intercontinental Champion is getting NO respect. Angle informs Miz that we will be starting Raw with a 15-man battle royal, where the winner gets a shot at Miz’s Intercontinental Championship. Well, that’s that!
Match #1 – Battle Royal – Winner is #1 Contender to the WWE Intercontinental Championship
Alright, let’s get a role call here. We have Curt Hawkins, and…well…we *had* Curt Hawkins. He was thrown out in five seconds! We also have Goldust, The Hardy Boyz, Gallows & Anderson, Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel, ELIAS, R-Truth, Big Show, Kalisto, Apollo Crews, Jason Jordan, and Finn Balor. We’ll fast forward to the 15-minute mark (!!!) where there are six men left. It’s down to Balor, Jordan, Axel, Dallas, Elias, and Jeff Hardy. BRAY WYATT appears from out of nowhere to eliminate Finn Balor. After that, Jordan is able to eliminate both members of The Miztourage with a double clothesline over the top rope! We’re down to three! Jordan continues his hot streak by tossing Elias, as well! However, this allows Jeff to knock out Jason Jordan to win a shot at the Intercontinental Championship! I don’t rate battle royals, but this was pretty long and dull.
Winner: Jeff Hardy
Backstage, Charly is with Alexa Bliss. Alexa repeats the fact that Sasha Banks might be a four-time Women’s Champion, but she cannot successfully *defend* the Women’s Championship. Bliss tells Sasha that she hopes she enjoyed playing champion for the last week, because tonight…the Goddess will be taking back her throne. Every time she says “Goddess”, I think of Elizabeth Berkeley in “Showgirls”. Don’t ask why.
We are then joined by Enzo Amore, who has officially joined the Cruiserweight Division. There is a flashback to last week’s Raw, where Big Cass tore his ACL in a match against Enzo. Amore tells the fans that he proved he can hang with the giants on Raw, so why not give the Cruiserweight Division a shot? I am not sure I follow that logic, but whatever. Enzo namedrops his buddy Money Mayweather (which gets some boo’s!) and then introduces his opponent…”the man with two first names”, Noam Dar!
Match #2 – Enzo Amore vs. Noam Dar
Neville is shown backstage watching this match. This is a pretty pedestrian match, with fists and stomps instead of your typical Cruiserweight fare. Enzo wins with a super sloppy Inverted Stomp Facebreaker for the victory.
Winner: Enzo Amore (*)
After the match, Charly is backstage with Neville. Charly asks, “Is Enzo the type of man that would come for your Cruiserweight Championship?” What kind of question is THAT?! Neville claims that he will hold onto the title “forever and ever.” I wouldn’t be so sure of that, considering Vince’s thought pattern these days.
We are then joined by Paul Heyman and the WWE Universal Champion, BRRROCK LESNAR! Heyman gets out a cheesy line about how they refuse to “Cry the Blues” in Memphis over Braun Strowman. They will admit, however, that Braun is Brock’s most worthy challenger. Heyman talks about Strowman hitting the two Powerslams on Lesnar through a table at SummerSlam, and then reiterated Corey Graves’ description of the way Strowman “powerhandled” Lesnar.
Umm…he did what? I’ll try to keep my mind out of the gutter, sorry.
Heyman also recapped last week, where Strowman hit Lesnar with yet another Powerslam. Paul then tells the Memphis crowd that at No Mercy, Lesnar will do whatever is necessary to get a piece of Strowman. Lesnar will not duck Strowman, and he will face him head-on. Lesnar then grabs the mic and says, “What he’s trying to say is….Suplex City, bitch.” The crowd cheers as they leave the ring area!
Match #3 – Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins
This match is joined in progress. Dean Ambrose and Sheamus, the partners of Seth Rollins and Cesaro, are at ringside for this match. Rollins goes up to the top rope for the Blockbuster, followed by a Sling Blade. Rollins climbs to the top rope again, but Sheamus attempts to trip him up. Rollins makes an incredible leap over Sheamus, but he gets distracted by a brawl between Sheamus and Ambrose outside the ring. Rollins walks RIGHT INTO a huge European Uppercut by Cesaro. This is enough for the one, two, and three!
Winner: Cesaro (**)
After the match, Sheamus and Cesaro celebrate this victory. Somehow, this leads to Sheamus challenging Ambrose to a one-on-one contest. Rollins and Ambrose return to the ring area to accept the challenge. We are then treated to a video package previewing the Contract Signing between John Cena and Roman Reigns for No Mercy.
Match #4 – Dean Ambrose vs. Sheamus
Throughout the match, Sheamus continued to work on Ambrose’s lower back. He pounded Ambrose with vicious knees and clubbing forearms to the lower lumbar area. At one point, Sheamus even had Ambrose in the Stretch Muffler! Sheamus turned up the psychology big time, hitting Ambrose with the Irish Curse and the Rolling Senton from the middle rope. The finish came when Ambrose made his comeback, and Cesaro came up on the apron. Seth Rollins pulls Cesaro off the ropes, and this leads to a big chase where the ref stops Cesaro dead in his tracks. While this is happening, Sheamus is setting up White Noise on Ambrose. With the ref’s back turned, Rollins is able to catch Sheamus with the knee to the face (off a springboard), allowing Ambrose to hit the Dirty Deeds for the one, two, three!
Winner: Dean Ambrose (**3/4)
Emma and Mickie James are backstage bickering to one another about hashtags. I know it’s 2017, but I don’t want to see an angle where women complain to each other about their Twitter trends. Somehow, there’s a stipulation added to this where Mickie will hashtag anything Emma desires…as long as Emma gets the win tonight. If Emma loses, she will be forced to stop tweeting about starting the Women’s Revolution. SO MUCH AT STAKE! Smell the anticipation!
Match #5 – Mickie James vs. Emma
Mickie James kicks Emma RIGHT in the face to start. Mickie goes for a roll-up, but somehow this is reversed by Emma! One, two, three! Well, that’s two minutes I’ll never get back.
Winner: Emma
After the match, Emma continues to claim that she started the Women’s Revolution. She does this all the way until she leaves the ring area. That’s like claiming you won the 1994 World Series.
John Cena & Roman Reigns – The Contract Signing
For those of you living under a rock, the wrestling world has been abuzz over this promo. We start with Raw GM Kurt Angle, who introduces both men. First, he introduces John Cena. Cena shows some love to the hometown King, and then he heads in the ring. Cena talks about this match being worthy of a WrestleMania main event, but it’s happening at No Mercy. Cena brings up his desire to come to Raw and be face-to-face with the man who says he runs this yard, the big dog…Roman Reigns. Cena then lights up Reigns, calling him a “protected” blue chip prospect. Cena thinks that Roman wants nothing to do with him, because Roman knows that Cena just doesn’t give a f**k anymore.
Angle introduces Roman Reigns, who is booed out of the building. Wow. Reigns is apoplectic that Cena would even think about telling people that Reigns is ducking him. Reigns said that Cena isn’t a big deal anymore (ouch!) and that he did something Cena could never do: retire The Undertaker at WrestleMania. Reigns then tells Cena, “It’s not that I don’t want to fight you…maybe I just don’t need to.” Cena cuts him off and says, “You’re right because you’re the BIG DOG.” I think I caught a hint of sarcasm there. Cena says that while he can be a polarizing wrestler, he gets a reaction. Cena says while there may be some people who want him to turn aggressive, nobody wants to see Roman, period. Cena then calls him a “a cheap ass, corporately created, John Cena bootleg.” Shit’s on. The crowd is chanting “YES!” Unreal!
Cena then turns it up even more: He suggests that Reigns is not “the guy”. Rather…he is just a guy trying too hard to fill shoes that could never be filled. Cena said that he’s not The Undertaker, a hobbled veteran with a bad hip. Cena then claims that he’s faster, stronger, and hungrier than he has EVER been in his entire life. Cena told Reigns that if he signs that contract…the Roman Empire will…(mic drop). The fans went wild for this. Reigns started to retort, but he forgets his words in the promo!! Cena then says, and I quote, “I’ll wait. It’s called a promo kid. If you want to be the big dog, you’re going to have to learn how to do it. See ya, fourth wall!” WOW!
Roman immediately gets pissed and starts tearing down Cena. He called John a “fake bitch,” and then followed it up by calling him a “part-time fake ass bitch.” Reigns says that he’ll be damned if he was going to bust his ass on the road, only for Cena to come in and take his spotlight. He ripped on Cena’s co-hosting spot on the “Today” show, and then ridicules John for showing up on WWE TV “if the company pays him enough money.” Zing! Roman then tells Cena that he won’t be using his golden shovel to bury talent this time, because Roman’s the one guy John can’t bury. Roman then closes with a great line: “Why would I want to cheapen my legacy by being the next John Cena…when I can be the one and only Roman Reigns?” This received considerable heat from the crowd.
Cena comes back with a masterful choice of words: “Everybody in the back thinks I’ve got this mystical golden shovel, these magical powers to control everyone’s fate. It was really the fans who held the keys, they always have and always will. I’ve heard what Reigns has said for ten years. Reigns believes that I hold everybody down. I haven’t main evented WrestleMania in five years, and I was the opening match at SummerSlam. I held the U.S. Championship to give younger stars a chance, guys like Kevin Owens and A.J. Styles. Reigns took the U.S. Championship as a demotion. Reigns blames me, but I blame Roman because I’m still here because Reigns can’t do his job. When it comes to this yard, there’s only one rule: step up or stand aside. And over the years, there’s been a few to step up, but not one to keep up. Then I heard about Reigns, the one who could possibly keep up, but I’ve listened to Reigns. I think that Reigns should be ashamed that I’m part-time, because I can do this better part-time better than Reigns could ever do it full-time.” This could be his best work on the mic, to date.
At this point, they sign the contracts and Reigns turns over the table. Before there are any fisticuffs, the GOOD BROTHERS (Gallows and Anderson) appear! They call out Reigns and Cena, and Angle orders a tag match to take place…now!
Match #6 – John Cena & Roman Reigns vs. Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson
This was a showcase for Reigns and Cena, although Reigns was pretty funny as the sarcastic cheerleader in Cena’s corner. Both men start a game of “Can you top this?” with each of them hitting their signature moves. Finally, Cena hits the AA on Luke Gallows! As this is happening, SPEAR by Reigns to Anderson! Roman gets the cover for the one, two, three!
Winners: John Cena & Roman Reigns (*3/4)
Next up, ELIAS is here to treat the Memphis crowd to a new song. Elias recalls a story where Dusty Rhodes once called him the “Elvis” of the WWE. The King cuts off his crooning, which leads to an appearance by “Pelvis Wesley” of Southpaw Regional Wrestling. This is basically Heath Slater in an Elvis jumpsuit. Elias puts the boots to Pelvis as the crowd cries out, “He’s got kids!” Okay, that was a pretty funny chant. Still, what a strange segment.
After this, The Miztourage is backstage leaving the arena. Renee Young tries to interview Miz, but Miz is furious that Jeff Hardy got a title shot simply by winning one match. Young points out that he beat 14 other opponents, but Maryse wisely points out that Jeff did not pin anyone to get the shot. They storm off in a huff. After this, Charly interviews Sasha Banks, who vows to successfully defend her championship.
Main Event – WWE Women’s Championship (Raw)
Sasha Banks (c) vs. Alexa Bliss
Sasha misses a baseball slide early, allowing Bliss to throw her into the dasher boards! Sick! The story of this match focused on the back of Sasha Banks, as Alexa Bliss continued to work it over. Bliss caught Banks with an elbow to the mush, and then followed it up with the Code Red! One, two, no! At this point, Sasha makes her comeback, culminating in the Shining Wizard! One, two, no! The ending came when both women went to the top rope. Bliss caught Banks with an awesome Superplex, but this was quickly turned into a Bank Statement! Bliss is unable to get into the ropes, so she rolls on her back! One, two, no! Sasha tries for the Bank Statement once more, but Alexa runs Sasha’s face and eyes into the ropes! OUCH! With Sasha in a prone position, Banks hits the DDT for the one, two, three! We have a NEW Women’s Champion! The fourth title reign has ended for Sasha Banks.
Winner and NEW Champion: Alexa Bliss (***)
The real story comes after the match, as Nia Jax comes to celebrate with Little Miss Bliss! As Alexa is hoisted onto Jax’s shoulders, you could almost feel the turn coming. Suddenly, Nia Jax DROPS Alexa with an Electric Chair. She grabs the title and holds it up over Alexa’s lifeless body. I think we have a match for No Mercy! The crowd loved this. We go to credits!
Final Thoughts: There was a lot of talking, but it was good. We only had one championship match, but it was a doozy. In the end, the stuff that mattered was really good. That’s all you can ask for. I will be off next Monday, but I will see you on 9/11 for the next Raw report!
Monday Night Raw pulled in 3,303,000 viewers last night, down 101,000 viewers from the post-SummerSlam broadcast.
Hour one started with 3,384,000 viewers, then went slightly down to 3,364,000 viewers, before finishing off the night with 3,163,000 viewers. The show was above the usual numbers.
Raw was #1, #2, and #3 in the top 50 cable chart among the 18-49 demographic and it was also the most-watched show on cable. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
