Episode 15 of season 6 of Total Divas airs tonight on E! with an episode titled Swimming with Pigs.
The synopsis for tonight’s show reads, “Forced to retire her signature move, the Rack Attack, Nikki struggles to find her new identity as a WWE Superstar. Maryse and Eva take their hubbies on a joint, sexy honeymoon trip to Exuma, but end up swimming with pigs. Nattie crashes a meeting with the Bellas’ pet agency, sparking a full-fledged Divas pet war.”
This is the penultimate episode of season 6 of Total Divas, with the season finale airing next week.
NWA’s President Bruce Tharpe, who sold the rights to everything that involves the National Wrestling Alliance, said in a post on Facebook that the decision to sell to Billy Corgan came after “many weeks of negotiation and deep consideration.”
Tharpe said that Corgan is a very successful businessman and has a deep admiration and respect for the NWA. He added that with the capital and business acumen that Billy Corgan is bringing with him, he is confident that he can take the National Wrestling Alliance to the next level.
“I am not leaving wrestling – but after four years at the helm of the NWA – I look forward to stepping back and allowing someone new and passionate to take control of this great and noble organization,” Tharpe said.
The deal does not include the NWA video-on-demand service or any footage that is part of it. PWInsider.com adds that in the sale, none of the promotions or wrestlers were acquired. The NWA name is being licensed to several promotions across the United States and promoters pay a sum to carry the name.
Jinder Mahal is being photographed with the WWE Championship – even though he hasn’t won it yet – until Commissioner Shane McMahon stands behind him. He tells Jinder that “titles are earned” and takes back the championship. He also informs Mahal that he will be wrestling Sami Zayn tonight!
The regular Smackdown! Live opener then plays.
Arena Promo
Commissioner Shane McMahon enters the arena in Fresno, California. After giving props to the fans, he welcomes Chris Jericho, who won the United States Championship from Kevin Owens at Payback, to the roster. Jericho is happy to be on Smackdown! and McMahon tells him he will be wrestling Kevin Owens in a rematch for the title tonight.
A.J. Styles interrupts and reminds Chris of their history. He also reminds Chris that Smackdown! is “the house that A.J. Styles built.” Jericho retorts, wanting to put Styles on “The List” for interjecting, but Kevin Owens now does. He is not pleased with all in the ring and vows to regain the United States Championship later tonight.
Owens orders A.J. to vacate, so he does and charges right for Kevin! They brawl in the aisle until referees and McMahon separate.
Later tonight, Women’s Champion Naomi and Charlotte team-up to face Natalya and Carmela.
Commercials.
Match #1: Single – Sami Zayn VS. Jinder Mahal (with The Singh Brothers [Harv and Girv])
During entrances, a recap of last week’s Talking Smack with Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin airs. They lockup and trade holds. Sami rolls and twists his way out of a wristlock, but Mahal puts him to the canvas. Jinder whips Zayn to the ropes but Sami counters with a headscissors, and then dumps him to the floor soon after.
Commercials.
Mahal is now in control, hammering away on Sami with an elbow and then wearing him down with a grounding rear chinlock. He catches Zayn off of the ropes in a tilt-a-whirl slam for a near-fall! Jinder springboards a few kneedrops on Sami’s head and then presses his knee against Zayn’s face.
He hits Sami a couple of times with elbows and then a short-arm clothesline! He goes for a superplex out of the corner, but Sami headbutts to counter. He leaps off of the turnbuckle but Mahal stops the dive! Soon after, Zayn regains momentum again and almost takes this with a crossbody from the middle turnbuckle!
One of the Singh Brothers hops the apron and Mahal small-packages Sami for two; Zayn reveres into one himself for two! Sami springboard-armdrags Jinder and then goes for his Helluva Kick, but the same Singh Brother pulls Mahal out of the away. The other Brother yanks Sami’s leg, and Jinder capitalizes with a Cobra-Clutch Full-Nelson Slam! Mahal covers to receive the victory!
Winner via Pinfall: Jinder Mahal (with The Singh Brothers [Harv and Girv])
Backstage Promo
Becky Lynch is walking the halls and meets Tamina, James Ellsworth, Carmela, and Natalya. Natalya tries to convince Becky to join them, so they don’t get taken over by Charlotte and Women’s Champion Naomi. Lynch says she’ll “think about it.”
Commercials.
Video Promo
Shinsuke Nakamura’s career highlights – thus far – are shown.
Backstage Promo
Dolph Ziggler is talking to a couple of unknown wrestlers about Shinsuke. He also criticizes Commissioner McMahon and General Manager Bryan for making Nakamura star. McMahon is behind and Ziggler threatens that Sin Cara, who he is facing later, will be in harm.
Match #2: Single – Aiden English VS. Tye Dillinger
Aiden is aggressive early, pounding away on Tye. “The Perfect 10” his back with a running forearm and stomps away soon after in the corner. He quickly completes this with his finisher, a T.K.O. knee-to-the-face!
Winner via Pinfall: Tye Dillinger
Commercials.
Backstage Promo
Rene Young interviews United States Champion Chris Jericho until Aiden English walks by. He appears to be crying, which Jericho calls him out for and puts him on “The List,” as well as Rene!
Replays of Tamina, Natalya, and Carmela disrupting the Women’s Championship Match from last week’s Smackdown! are shown.
Backstage Promo
Dasha asks Charlotte about the Women’s Championship situation. Carmela walks up and then she, Tamina, and Natalya attack Charlotte, throwing her against equipment tubs!
Commercials.
Match #3: Tag-Team – Women’s Champion Naomi and Charlotte VS. Natalya and Carmela (with James Ellsworth and Tamina)
Unfortunately, Charlotte does not show-up, so it is just Naomi. She actually has the upperhand a few times but Natalya and Carmela soon take over and dominate for a while. Naomi and Natalya run at each other with a double-crossbody, and then Charlotte’s music plays! She slowly walks to the ring and climbs on the apron. Naomi makes the hot-tag and Charlotte cleans house on Carmela and Natalya until Nattie hits her with a discus clothesline on the apron.
Commercials.
Carmela now has Charlotte tied in a leg-scissors but Charlotte slams out of it; Carmela slams back and then rapidly stomps on Charlotte! The Women’s Champion gets tagged in and has the momentum; she hits the Rear-View Smash on Carmela, but Natalya distracts the ref! Carmela takes advantage with a roll-up for the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winners via Pinfall: Carmela and Natalya (with Tamina and James Ellsworth)
Post-match, Tamina, Carmela, and Natalya beat up Naomi and Charlotte until Becky Lynch makes her way out. She shakes Tamina and Carmela’s hand, looking like she’s joining them. She motions for a hug but then throws him into Tamina! She goes after Carmela and Natalya, but they are too strong and attack back and then escape to the aisle.
Commercials.
Video Promo
The New Day “are coming soon.”
Match #4: Single – Sin Cara VS. Dolph Ziggler
This one, surprisingly, goes back-and-forth for a bit until Dolph hits a superkick to complete!
Winner via Pinfall: Dolph Ziggler
Commercials.
Video Promo
Tyler Breeze and Fandango present “The Fashion Files.” This takes place in a “Police Office,” with pictures and headlines of recent on-goings in WWE posted on a billboard wall like a crime-scene trace. They rip on a few teams, in particular Tag-Team Champions The Usos, who they will face at Backlash on May 21.
United States Champion Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens make their entrances for their bout, next!
Commercials.
Match #5: Single for the United States Championship – Chris Jericho (Champion) VS. Kevin Owens (Challenger)
(Stipulation: A.J. Styles is outlawed from ringside)
The two punch away right off the bat and brawl for a little. Owens soon gains control, dropping himself onto Jericho with a senton-splash! He chops in the corner and then whips Jericho into the opposite one, but Chris elbows back and launches off of the middle turnbuckle with a missile dropkick!
Jericho throws Kevin into a turnbuckle, but misses the follow-up splash and tumbles to the outside. Owens follows with a Cannonball Splash against the corner barrier!
Commercials.
The U.S. Champ counters a couple and tries his Springboard Moonsault, but Kevin lifts his knee. Owens goes for a Cannonball but misses and Jericho hits the Lionsault for two! He traps Kevin in the Walls of Jericho but Owens crawls and gets the bottom rope for a break! Kevin hits a superkick for a close-one, and then goes for the Pop-Up Powerbomb! Jericho reverses with a hurricanrana and struggles, but manages to clamp Owens in the Walls again! Kevin edges again and slides under to the floor.
Chris goes for a baseball slide, but Owens moves and dumps him on the concrete of the aisle. He puts Jericho back in the ring and then hits another superkick for a very close-fall! “Y2J” small-packages Kevin for two, but Owens suddenly whips him into the ropes and plants him on the canvas with his Pop-Up Powerbomb! He covers for the victory!
Winner and NEW United States Champion: Kevin Owens
Post-match, Kevin is in the aisle while medical personnel run out to check on Jericho. Owens slides back in and gives Chris another Pop-Up Powerbomb. He yells “you were never my best friends,” and then takes his U.S. Championship. Referees order him out of the ring, and Jericho is helped out of the ring. Owens runs back out, hitting Chris again. He places a chair around Jericho’s head and smashes him into the ring post. Jericho is bloody in the mouth as Kevin walks away to close the show.
Smackdown tonight will be headlined by a rematch for the United States title as Chris Jericho will defend his title against former champion Kevin Owens.
Jericho won the title at Payback this past Sunday and moved to the Smackdown roster from Raw as well. However, Jericho’s win was a bit of a surprise to many as he is leaving the WWE for a bit to start touring with his Fozzy band.
Owens is expected to regain the title and Jericho will be written off television, possibly tonight. Y2J will not be traveling to Europe with the rest of the crew for the European tour.
Monday Night Raw drew a total of 2,870,000 viewers, the worst number of 2017 so far and down 137,000 viewers from last week’s broadcast.
Hour one did 2,924,000 viewers, then 3,039,000 viewers for the second hour, before going down to 2,649,000 viewers in the third and final hour. Raw lost 390,000 viewers from hour two to hour three, 130,000 more than the show lost during the same time last week.
The NBA Playoffs once again took the night, and a good chunk of the Raw audience. Raw finished in #4, #5, and #6 in the top 50 cable chart in the 18-49 demographic. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
It is being suspected that Sean “X-Pac” Waltman had the drugs on him with the intent to sell in the United Kingdom considering the large amount of meth and marijuana found in his possession.
Waltman was sniffed out by sniffer dogs at the Los Angeles International Airport on April 29 and was arrested on the spot by LAX police. TMZ says that Waltman was on a CBP watchlist for narcotics and when he came through customs, a dog was sent to search his luggage.
The arrest report, obtained by TMZ, says that police officers found 3 cannabis chocolate bars, two THC liquid cigarettes, 38 meth capsules, and $736.10 in cash. Police officers charged him with possession of narcotics with intent to sell, which is a felony in the United States and carries a maximum prison sentence of up to four years.
WWE starts their hectic post-WrestleMania tour of Europe tomorrow, with the Raw brand already off for their first show in Italy and the Smackdown crew leaving after tonight’s broadcast for Scotland.
In total there will be 22 shows in 12 days across 14 different countries in Europe. This tour used to start a week after WrestleMania but this year WWE altered the touring schedule to give everyone some time off before starting this very tough tour.
The tour starts on May 3 with one show at the Palalottomatica in Rome, Italy. On May 4 there are two shows, one at the Unipol Arena in Bologna, Italy, and one at The SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland.
On May 5, there’s one at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland, and one at the Cardiff Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, Wales. May 6 will have one show at the Plaza de Toros de Valencia in Valencia, Spain, and one at The SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
On May 7, it’s one at the Liverpool Echo Arena in Liverpool, England, and one at the Coliseum da Coruña in A Coruña, Spain. Monday Night Raw will be live-to-tape on May 7 from The O2 in London, England, while the Smackdown crew will run a show at the Bournemouth International Centre in Bournemouth, England.
Smackdown will be live-to-tape from The O2 in London, England, and the Raw crew will do a show at the Zénith Arena de Lille in Lille, France. On May 10, it’s one show at the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland, and one at the Genting Arena in Birmingham, England.
Germany gets their only show on May 11 at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, and Sheffield, England gets its turn with a show at the Sheffield Arena. On May 12, it’s one show at the Country Hall de Liège in Liège, Belgium, and one at the Newcastle Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle, England for the last show in England.
May 13 will see one show at the Hovet in Stockholm, Sweden, and one at the Ahoy in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The final show will be on May 14 at the Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Former WWE and WCW Superstar Sean “X-Pac” Waltman was arrested at LAX airport this past weekend according to TMZ.COM after he was busted by police trying to carry meth and marijuana through customs.
Waltman was supposed to appear at the IPW:UK event during the weekend but obviously was a no-show. “It is hugely important to us that in the event of any issues we let fans know right away. As of this moment, we are working on the expectation X-Pac will not be making tomorrow’s event. This is a developing situation,” a statement from IPW:UK read on April 29.
TMZ says that airport police arrested Waltman on the spot and then he was taken to a nearby jail and booked for possession of a controlled substance. Waltman also had an outstanding warrant for a prior DUI arrest, making things worse. His bail was set to $35,000 and was released from behind bars after the bail was paid.
Hey Everybody! It’s @TheMagnumDA with you for tonight’s Raw Report. I hope you enjoyed Payback! I thought it was pretty hit-or-miss, with the “House of Horrors” being a real mess of a match. To give our fans an idea of how poorly planned this match was…the match was to start in the “House of Horrors”, and then it would end in the ring at the arena. So they filmed the “House of Horrors” segment at night, but the match itself finished at 7:00 PM in San Jose. Where it was still partly sunny out. Good show, lads.
We are LIVE from Sacramento, California.
We start with the WWE Women’s Division (from Raw) in the ring. Alexa Bliss, the NEW WWE Women’s Champion, makes her way down the ring. As many of you are aware, Alexa defeated Bayley last night to win the gold. Alexa brags about her accomplishments, and runs down practically everyone on the Raw Women’s Roster. She says there is no longer a Queen…there is now a Goddess, and she is named Alexa Bliss. Funny moment: Alexa backs into Nia Jax and says “We’re good!” Finally, Alexa gets to Bayley, and reminds her of last night’s title change. Alexa brings up Bayley’s nephews, and says she vividly remembers their crying faces after the match. Bliss tells Bayley that it’s alright, because now those kids finally have someone worth looking up to. Bayley loses her STACK and charges after Bliss. The entire place turns into chaos, as all of the women are fighting in the ring! That was quite the segment.
Match #1 – Bayley, Sasha Banks, Mickie James, and Dana Brooke vs. Nia Jax, Emma, Alicia Fox, and the WWE Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss
Bayley and Alexa to start. Alexa ducks out of the way and tags in Emma. Emma looks extra orange tonight. She gets a go-behind on Bayley and beats her down with forearms. Bayley fights back and gets an armbar on Emma. Mickie gets tagged in and takes Emma down with her own armbar. Emma pulls her down by the hair, but Mickie kips up twice and kicks her in the gut. Dana gets tagged in, but Emma dodges out and tags in Alicia Fox. Fox gets tossed into the corner and Dana hits a handspring elbow. Sasha gets tagged in and she works on Alicia’s arm now! Bayley tags in and does the same after a double-team nearfall. Alicia is put in the babyface corner, and Mickie gets tagged in for the corner splash. She hits a sweet diving kick on Fox for the ONE, TWO, no. Sasha tags back in and rolls up Fox for two. Sasha gets the pullback sleeperhold and WRENCHES IT. Fox somehow fights up and catches Sasha in the gut. Banks returns with a hiptoss and knees to the face for two. Booker T calls the Women’s Division “Stiff”. Okay, then. Fox elbows Sasha with an elbow, and dumps her out of the ring. All 8 women use NAME CALLING on the outside as we go to break. Sorry, just entertaining myself at this point. But seriously…name calling into a break?
After the break, Fox has Sasha in…you guessed it! A CHINLOCK. Sasha starts to fight back, but Alicia hits a CRISP Northern Lights Suplex. Alicia starts to put her in a sleeper, but she immediately stops, tags in Nia, and puts Sasha in an armbar. Somebody missed their cue! 😉 Jax comes in and throws Sasha Banks around. She hits a set of elbows for a nearfall. Nia locks in a sleeperhold, and Sasha tries to fight out. Banks is taken back down, but she eventually tries again to kick out. She gets DROPPED in the opponents corner as Alexa gets the tag. Alexa stomps on Sasha’s back and tries to get a three-count. Sasha fights up and makes the hot tag to Bayley. Bayley is a house of fire, hitting her signature moves, followed by the ten-count head smash in the corner post to Alexa. Bayley hits the charge in the corner, followed by the Belly-to-Bayley. This is countered by Alexa, as Nia comes in and saves the day. The match turns into a war on the outside and inside, with all eight women brawling everywhere. FOX AND BANKS ARE KICKING THE CRAP OUT OF EACH OTHER OUTSIDE! Back inside, Alexa catches Bayley with an eyerake and a DDT! ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winners: Nia Jax, Emma, Alicia Fox, and the WWE Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss (**1/2)
The announcers recap last night’s PPV bouts, including victories for Braun Strowman and Seth Rollins at Payback.
Match #2 – Enzo Amore vs. Luke Gallows
Enzo and Cass come out to do their bit, but Gallows and Anderson come out to start some trouble before the bell. After the break, the match is underway. Gallows hits a HUGE boot to start. Enzo gets stomped down and pounded in the corner by Gallows. Luke wrenches the arm and takes Enzo down. Enzo fights out, but his dropkick is swiped away, and Gallows follows with a clothesline and an armbar into a gutwrench. This is turned into a one-armed body slam. Luke continues to wrench the arm, to the point that the ref asks Enzo if he wants to continue. Luke grabs the arm and pulls against the rope. Enzo is hurting here. HUGE boot in the corner by Gallows. Enzo tries to fight out of the corner, but Gallows nails the arm once more, taking down Amore. Gallows goes back to the arm, as the crowd tries to get into this match. Enzo gets up on his feet, but gets pulled back down by the hair. Enzo finally fights up and fights out of the corner, planting Gallows with a miracle jumping DDT from the middle rope! He hits Gallows with fists and a kick to the knee, taking him down. Enzo does a dance, but Gallow drills him with another boot. Somehow, Enzo rolls up Luke for the ONE, TWO, NO! Enzo goes up but gets distracted by Karl Anderson, leading to Gallows catching Enzo on his shoulders and finishing him with a modified fireman’s slam for the ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winner: Luke Gallows (*)
Backstage, TJ Perkins says that Neville may have escaped with the title last night. Neville tells him that this is about the title, and TJ wants a shot…he’s got to beat Austin Aries tonight. It feels like Neville is holding something over TJ’s head…maybe it’s just the title! Maybe more.
Seth Rollins is out for a promo. Great reaction from the crowd! He talks about last night’s victory at Payback over Samoa Joe. He says that everything has come full circle in the last month, and now he’s ready for more. He wants BROCK LESNAR! Before we go any further, we get FINN BALOR. He comes out and says that when it comes to challenging The Beast, the line starts here! This brings out the IC Champion Dean Ambrose, who says he’s itching for action. The Miz and Maryse are here! Miz is in full Wall Street mode with that greasy, slicked back hair. Miz starts talking smack, so the guys all yell “SHUT UP!” Dean Ambrose polls the fans, and then calls Kurt Angle on his cell phone. Silly touch. A Triple Threat match is announced for the #1 Contender to the Intercontinental Championship, featuring The Miz, Seth Rollins, and Finn Balor.
We get a recap of last night’s main event from Payback, where Braun Strowman destroyed Roman Reigns.
Match #3 – Tony Nese, The Brian Kendrick, and Noam Dar vs. Rich Swann, Akira Tozawa, and Gentleman Jack Gallagher
MORE PURPLE TAPE, PLEASE! In addition to William III, we have a William IV and William V sighting (!!!) Akira and Kendrick trade forearms to start, and Akira takes advantage. Akira rolls out and kicks Kendrick right in the face. Nese tags in and smashes Akira with an elbow. Nese whips Akira in the corner, and launches him with a hip toss. Nese puts Akira in the Torture Rack, but Tozawa rakes the eyes and tags to Swann. Dar tags in and it’s all about that FOXY LOVE. Gallagher tags during a sequence, and they start brawling all over the place. Nese is tossed out onto his teammates as the good guys celebrate in the ring!
After the break, Kendrick has Tozawa in a front face lock. Kendrick with a snap suplex for the two count. Nese is tagged in, and he picks up where Brian left off. Nese kicks Akira while he is down and taunts. Tony hits some more forearms, followed by a one-armed flexing suplex belly-first onto the TOP ROPE! That was VICIOUS. Dar tags in and snaps Tozawa’s arm in four places. Well, it looked like it. Akira fights up but gets dropped again by Dar. Nese tags back in. This is quite a showcase for Tony Nese. Another Torture Rack to Tozawa. Akira tries to fight for a tag, but he gets dropped by Nese. Nese taunts again and gets suplexed by Tozawa. Dar tags in and here’s a hot tag to Rich Swann! Lariats for all three men, followed by a kick and a rolling Harlem Sidekick, followed by a splash for ONE, TWO, NO! Kendrick tries Sliced Bread #2, but Gallagher tags in! Headbutt for two! Nese comes in and he gets a headbutt! Kendrick from behind with the Captain’s Hook! SHINING WIZARD by Tozawa! Dives to the outside! Back in, GENTLEMAN’S DROPKICK by Gallagher to Kendrick! ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winners: Rich Swann, Akira Tozawa, and Gentleman Jack Gallagher (***1/4)
The announcers recap more matches from Payback, including the WWE Tag Team Championship Match. The Hardy Brothers retained against Cesaro and Sheamus. Two things became apparent: First, the Europeans turned heel. Second, I am really starting to dislike Sheamus for his utter in-ring carelessness. First, Daniel Bryan…and now Jeff Hardy last night. Not cool. Both times, the guys were prone, yet Sheamus had to hit as hard as he did. No excuses.
Sheamus and Cesaro come out for their promo. Michael Cole with a decent Travis Bickle impression! Sheamus says he’s been living in a “fog of delusion”. That might explain why he’s such a sloppy worker. He explained that Cesaro tried to talk him into a positive mindset, but that was thrown out the window when the Hardy Boyz showed up. Cesaro cuts an impassioned promo as a heel! Not bad! Sheamus rubs it in with the “whole tooth”, and they have a new catchphrase: “WE DON’T SET THE BAHHR, WE AHHR DA BAHHR!!” Whatever. Matt and Jeff Hardy show up, and we get a little bit of the Broken Matt Hardy, complete with illuminating words! They even get to “DELETE!” before running down the aisle to fight. The Europeans retreat and pose on the stage.
Miz is backstage with Charly. Dean shows up, takes Charly’s microphone, and interviews Miz. Miz is mortified, and walks off. Dean throws it back to Gene and Bobby. I love it.
Match #4 – Heath Slater vs. Apollo Crews
Good reaction for Apollo and Titus! Crews powers Slater down, but Slater reverses into a front face lock. Apollo powers out of this and puts Heath in a headlock. Good sequence where Apollo and Heath trade headlocks and legscissors. Crews shoulder tackles Slater, but Heath catches him with an armdrag! Crews catches an arm drag and a dropkick for two! Slater with a roll up for the two! After they go outside, Slater catches him with a headlock, Crews with a huge kick and a kip up! Crews catches the enziguiri on Slater! Sit out ATOMIC BOMB by Crews! ONE, TWO, THREE! I like this Apollo/Titus tandem.
Winner: Apollo Crews (*)
We get yet ANOTHER recap of the match from Payback between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman. Kurt Angle arrives for an announcement regarding these two men! Braun Strowman apparently has a torn rotator cuff, which is actually a huge news story, if true. As Angle continues, he’s interrupted by the keeper of the HOUSE OF HORRORS! So quick editorial…is it just me, or is it finally time for Wyatt to have a character makeover? He’s really losing me with this goofy, southern-fried horror show. Reminds me of something on the Sci-Fi Network at 2 AM. Anyways. Wyatt stands in the ring with Angle, and offers a handshake. Wyatt declares himself to be a savior who will help Kurt Angle. Bray asks Kurt if he’s going to stand in his way while Wyatt does his bidding. Kurt simply says that this is his show. I think that’s a “No”, young Brayden. I think I’m starting to get it: Whereas The Undertaker was The Lord of Darkness, Bray Wyatt simply fancies himself as Satan…with Battlefield Earth dreadlocks. Ooh, maybe Wyatt is Xenu!
Seth Rollins is backstage when DEAN AMBROSE interviews him. Awkward, but funny exchange between the two. Their feelings are thinly veiled. “BACK TO YOU, GORILLA!”
Match #5 – Austin Aries vs. TJ Perkins
MORE PURPLE TAPE, PLEASE! Aries tosses TJP to start and POUNDS him in the corner. Aries with a huge set of elbows to the head. Aries with an EARCLAP, bringing TJP to his knees. They tussle on the apron, and Aries catches a missile dropkick for two! Last Chancery is blocked, but Aries elbows Perkins and knocks him down. Aries starts to go up the ropes, but TJ kicks out Aries’ leg from under him, causing a Tree of Woe effect! Aries might be seriously hurt. They go to break with Aries down and the ref checking on him.
After the break, TJ DABS for the crowd, and then wraps up Aries in the modified Rings of Saturn. They have an awesome exchange where TJ attacks the knee, as Perkins continues to kick Aries down in the corner. Aries’ knees are worked over some more, and during an irish whip Aries collapses in the middle of the ring. Somehow, Aries fights back into the match. Aries takes TJ to the corner, but he can’t get up. He tries to spear him, but TJ moves and Aries gets caught in a sick leglock from the top rope! TJ goes outside and grabs Aries’ legs, but Austin pulls the legs in and Perkins gets knocked into the post.
Aries fights up and hits the HEAT SEEKING MISSLE from the bottom rope! Aries with chops, an STO, Tick-Tock, and a snapmare leading to a back elbow to TJ for the ONE, TWO, NO! Aries loses his grip on a suplex, and TJ catches a kick combo. Aries fights up and hits a shin breaker into a sick flip suplex! TJ gets up and takes advantage, looking to finish Aries off! TJ goes for the Detonation Kick, but it’s rolled right into the Last Chancery with the bridge! TJP taps!!
Winner: Austin Aries (**3/4)
After the match, TJP locks in the signature kneebar. Aries is screaming in pain! The crowd is booing TJ out of the ring. Backstage, Dean Ambrose is interviewing Finn Balor. They enjoy a donut together and talk about their future plans. THE DRIFTER shows up. Dean is hilarious here. “Do you know any Pearl Jam?” Then we go to Goldust and R-Truth, who get themselves booked into a Tag Team Turmoil match next week. The winners become #1 Contender’s to the Tag Team Championship.
Main Event – Triple Threat #1 Contender’s Match for the Intercontinental Championship
Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins vs. The Miz
Miz rolls out of the ring as Balor and Seth start. Balor and Rollins are trying to have a match, but Miz keeps sticking his nose in, and this distracts the two. Finally, they’ve had enough. They chase down Miz and he tries to negotiate with both men. They both attack him and Balor throws him out of the ring. Meanwhile, Rollins tries to catch a quick one on Balor! Miz gets drop kicked by Seth, but Balor gets a dropkick of his own after a reversal!. Balor goes to the apron, where Miz pulls him off and sends him crashing. Rollins hits a SICK FLIP over Maryse onto Miz! Back inside, they all trade offensive moves on each other in rapid fashion, leading to Seth Rollins getting thrown off the top rope by Miz onto the barricade!
After the break, Miz has Balor in a headlock, and then drives a knee to the ribs after an Irish Whip. Balor gets the knees up after a charge, and then hits a dropkick. Rollins almost lands on his head with a NASTY SPRINGBOARD DIVE that goes awry! Lands right on Balor’s shoulder! Miz and Rollins seem to improvise while Balor rolls outside. Balor gets up on the apron, and Miz rams Rollins right into Finn! Miz takes advantage with the Daniel Bryan kicks to the chest! Dropkick into a DDT combination to Rollins and Miz! “THIS IS AWESOME” chant! Balor with running chops to each corner, and a kick sends Miz to the outside! Balor with a PREMIER LEAGUE KICK to Miz’s face! Finn runs Seth into the barricade and sends him back in. 1916! ONE, TWO, NO! Balor and Miz have an exchange where Finn sends Miz to the outside, but Miz interrupts Finn while trying to finish Seth Rollins.
Miz and Seth with a HOT series of moves, including a kick to the injured knee on Rollins, leading to a Miz DDT. Figure 4 try by Miz, but Rollins counters. Miz tries again after grapevining the leg with his own shoulder, and gets it. Balor interrupts Miz for the ONE, TWO, NO! This is followed by a wonderful kick sequence and a Thrust Kick by Rollins to Balor! ONE, TWO, NO! Miz gets planted into the corner by Rollins, and then Seth connects with a DOUBLE BLOCKBUSTER and a FROGSPLASH to Balor! ONE, TWO, NO! Rollins and Miz with an UNBELIEVABLE sequence, where Rollins catches Miz in the corner and leaps for the Superplex into the Falcon Arrow! Suicide Dives to both Balor and Miz, but SAMOA JOE comes in and hits the Uranage on Rollins! Back inside, SLING BLADE and the dropkick to the corner by Balor to Miz! THE LIGHTS ARE OUT, IT’S BRAY WYATT! SISTER ABIGAIL TO BALOR! Miz crawls to Balor’s body and drapes an arm over him! ONE, TWO, THREE! That was the best match of Miz’s career, no doubt. He’s got two incredible dance partners to thank for that one.
Winner: The Miz (****1/2)
Final Thoughts: Well, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but that was an absolute blowaway Main Event. I’m seriously impressed that Miz could keep up with those young stallions, and this match opened the doors to your three key matches at the next PPV. I thought this was a fantastic Raw coming off of a lackluster Payback. Awesome stuff.
Twitter user @SYNJE_Vox has revealed that the house used in the House of Horrors match last night at Payback is actually located in Richmond, Missouri, a couple of thousand miles away from San Jose where the pay-per-view was held.
The two-bedroom fixer-upper is listed on real estate website Movoto.com with a price tag of $36,000 and is being sold “as is.” It sits on a 3 acre site.
It’s interesting to note that the location of the house is around a 45-minute drive from Kansas City, the site of last week’s Monday Night Raw. It’s most likely that the filming of the first part of the match was done last week when WWE was in town for Raw. When the match started on the pay-per-view, there was still sunlight in San Jose while the match was shot under in the dark. It seems that whoever is in charge of continuity missed that tiny detail.
PWInsider.com is reporting that Billy Corgan, the former TNA Wrestling President and Smashing Pumpkins lead singer, has agreed in principle to purchase the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), a deal that would see Corgan taking over the name, rights, trademarks, and the NWA title.
The NWA has been historically the largest group of independent wrestling promotions in the world, operating several territories since its inception in 1948. TNA also used the NWA name in its early years, using the NWA title as well before the partnership between the two dissolved in mid-2007.
Corgan has been out of the wrestling business ever since he was ousted from his role at TNA in late October of last year, a break-up which resulted in several lawsuits. He eventually got paid back his investment in TNA along with any interest, a sum rumored to be in the $3 million region.
Alexa Bliss made history yesterday, becoming the first Superstar to win both the Raw and Smackdown Women’s titles. It wasn’t Charlotte, it wasn’t Sasha Banks, it wasn’t Becky Lynch, but a fellow former NXT star who dubs herself as the “five feet of fury” and someone who usually don’t get the same star treatment as the members of the Four Horsewomen.
Ever since moving up to the main roster during the 2016 Draft, Bliss has slowly – but surely – become one of the most successful female stars in the company. She is now a former two-time Smackdown Women’s champion and the reigning Raw Women’s champion. Interestingly enough, Bliss never managed to get her hands on the NXT Women’s title during her three year stint there.
As for Bayley, she continues the trend of Superstars losing the title in their own home town, something that WWE likes to do very often. Bayley spent 76 days as the Raw Women’s champion, a title she won on Raw in Las Vegas in February.
Jeff Hardy was on the wrong end of a kick from Sheamus last night at Payback and walked to the backstage area after the match with one less tooth.
Jeff needed a trip to the Dentist Chicago after the show to fix the gap left after one of his front tooth went flying thanks to Sheamus. A WWE.COM video showed Jeff receiving medical attention as the WWE doctor checked his mouth for further damage.
The former WWE champion then uploaded a drawing on his Instagram by his daughter, showing a picture of him with one tooth missing and the words at the top reading “Sorry dad! Mom is sad so am I.”
His brother Matt also came out with some wounds, receiving a cut under the right eye.
Here are the results from last night’s Payback pay-per-view which took place from the SAP Center in San Jose, California.
Enzo and Cass defeated Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson in the Kick-off match; Chris Jericho defeated Kevin Owens to win the United States title and move to Smackdown; Austin Aries defeated Neville via DQ with Neville retaining the Cruiserweight title; The Hardy Boyz defeated Sheamus and Cesaro to retain the Raw Tag Team titles; Alexa Bliss defeated Bayley to become the new Raw Women’s champion; Seth Rollins defeated Samoa Joe; Bray Wyatt defeated Randy Orton in a House of Horrors match; Braun Strowman defeated Roman Reigns in the main event.
In its third week of release, The Fate of the Furious with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson part of the leading cast, managed to cross the $1 billion mark worldwide. The movie now sits #21 in the all-time worldwide box office chart.
The eighth installment in this franchise has so far pulled $192 million in US box office receipts and a whopping $867 million in foreign box office. This weekend it remains in the #1 spot in the box office chart in the United States.
Meanwhile, another former WWE Superstar, Dave Bautista, is part of the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 movie, which opens next week in the United States. The movie already opened in several markets internationally and pulled in $101 million in five days. Marvel’s movie is expected to topple Fast 8 in the box office chart next week once it’s out.
Braun Strowman is the heavy favorite to defeat Roman Reigns tonight at Payback, ending his losing streak of the past five pay-per-view outings. Strowman is 1/50 for the win while Reigns is at 10/1.
In title matches, Alexa Bliss is favorite at 1/7 to win the Raw Women’s title while Bayley is 4/1 to retain. Chris Jericho is also favorite at 1/16 for a win, although not necessarily to win the United States title, while Kevin Owens is at 7/1. Matt and Jeff Hardy are 1/50 to retain the Raw Tag Team titles and Sheamus and Cesaro stand at 12/1 for the upset. The Cruiserweight title is expected to stay in Neville’s possession with odds at 1/33 to retain, while Aries is at 10/1 to win.
In the other matches, Bray Wyatt is at 1/20 to win over Randy Orton at 8/1 in the House of Horrors match, Seth Rollins is 1/25 favorite against Samoa Joe who is at 9/1, and Enzo and Cass are at 1/33 to defeat Gallows and Anderson who are at 10/1.
Live tonight from the SAP Center in San Jose, California, WWE presents Payback on pay-per-view and WWE Network. The full card is as follows:
Roman Reigns vs Braun Strowman; Kevin Owens vs Chris Jericho for the WWE United States title; Randy Orton vs Bray Wyatt in a House of Horrors match; Bayley vs Alexa Bliss for the WWE Raw Women’s title; The Hardy Boyz vs Cesaro and Sheamus for the WWE Raw Tag Team titles; Seth Rollins vs Samoa Joe; Neville vs Austin Aries for the WWE Cruiserweight title; and Enzo Amore and Big Cass vs Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson in the Kick-off match.
If you have never subscribed to the WWE Network, you can watch Payback for free by subscribing today at http://w-o.it/wwentwrk.
Baby Danielson was supposed to arrive today however Daniel Bryan and his wife Brie Bella announced in a YouTube video that baby Birdie Joe will be late, possibly arriving next week.
The two filmed a video for the Bella Twins YouTube channel, first giving an update before arriving to the doctor’s office for a check-up, saying that this is supposed to be the last check-up before delivery, but then came back after the meeting saying that there’s no sign yet that the baby is about to pop out so they will have another appointment next week.
Bryan said that the baby is healthy and comfortable in her mother’s belly.
The Smackdown General Manager was not at the show this week as WWE gave him the days off to prepare for the arrival and most likely he won’t be at Smackdown next week either.
WWE Superstar Sami Zayn and Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon attended the official announcement of the brand new WWE Arabic program on OSN, titled WWE Wal3ooha, earlier today in Dubai.
This will be WWE’s first Arabic-speaking show geared specifically for Arab fans and it will air every Thursday night at 8PM local time. Moein Al Bastaki and Nathalie Mamo will be the hosts of the show, which is to be produced from the OSN Studios in Dubai.
“We are excited to partner with OSN to bring our passionate fans original and localized content featuring their favorite WWE Superstars,” said Stephanie McMahon. “WWE Wal3ooha provides a new destination for our fans in the Middle East to enjoy WWE’s unique blend of action-packed, family-fun entertainment.”
OSN is the exclusive television partner for WWE in Middle East and North Africa and their contract runs through 2019. OSN also carries the WWE Network as a linear channel via their set-top box.
With the WWE quarterly earnings report around the corner, WWE is doing their utmost to boost the WWE Network subscribers.
Over the past two days, random former WWE Network subscribers who have not renewed their subscription, received an offer to sign up again to the service and receive three months free in return.
Earlier this month, WWE announced a total of 1.95 million subscribers, a 7% increase over the day after WrestleMania last year. Out of those 1.95 million subscribers, there are 1.66 million subscribers who are currently paying for the service, with the rest on a free trial.
If you have never subscribed to the Network, you can get one month free by going to http://w-o.it/wwentwrk.
