The recent stories of friction between Mauro Ranallo and John “Bradshaw” Layfield dominated many websites, but the issue remains largely unaddressed by the company who has a history of backstage bullying and hazing.
Ranallo, who is pretty much no longer the Smackdown announcer and reportedly not appearing again till his contract runs out in August, can’t technically address the situation as he is still under a WWE deal. The popular announcer is currently on sick leave, battling depression, and has been off WWE television for over a month now.
While nothing official was announced, the reason Ranallo is out is because of the alleged bullying by fellow commentator JBL. JBL has a history of being one of the “leaders” when it comes to backstage shenanigans and was only silenced when he tried to pull something funny against guys who are legitimate bad asses in real life. Think of people like Steve Blackman and you get the idea.
The Wrestling Observer is reporting that WWE is trying to find a settlement with Ranallo that will prevent him from talking about the situation once he is no longer on a WWE deal.
Justin Roberts, the former WWE ring announcer, recently published his book which also details several bouts of bullying and hazing, specifically mentioning JBL. Layfield took to Twitter to counter these claims, calling Roberts an idiot who was disliked by many in the WWE locker room.
ESPN this week conducted an interview with Justin Roberts and briefly touched on the situation. Roberts didn’t pull any punches. “The overall culture there definitely starts above JBL, and that culture exists in many different forms. You see it on TV, you hear about it, you see it behind the scenes, so it’s really just something that comes from high up and trickles down,” Roberts said.
Roberts also said that if you’re a big fan and you work for WWE, you’re bound to get abused more. He mentioned that if you do good work, people will give you hell for it because there are some very insecure individuals backstage who can’t be happy for anyone else backstage.
Fans also lashed out at Jonathan Coachman of ESPN for not reporting the news of Ranallo. Coachman sided with his company and his former employer, saying they don’t report on rumors and then following the backlash, decided to no longer be part of the WWE reporting on ESPN. Coach is a good friend of JBL and did not say anything bad about him. Fellow ESPN employee Peter Rosenberg also called the whole thing a “witch hunt” and sided with JBL. Rosenberg is also on the WWE books and has his own WWE Network show so saying otherwise would have been the end of him in the company. When Eric Bischoff, the former WCW President who worked for WWE as Raw General Manager was asked about bullying and this specific incident, Bischoff pretty much toed the company line and said that he was always respected backstage and Bradshaw was good to him during his time there.
This week on Smackdown, WWE security ejected a fan who held a sign that read “JBL bullied me” after he refused to hand it over. Fans even chanted “Fire Bradshaw” during the show but so far, everything has fallen on deaf ears. The more WWE trie to hide it, the more it will eventually backfire.
The last time WWE had to publicly deal with a case of bullying and harassment was a few years ago when former developmental talent ganged up on Bill DeMott, the former head coach of the WWE Performance Center. WWE sided with their coach, but he eventually resigned amidst more allegations. He was replaced by Matt Bloom, a highly respected former WWE Superstar who has steered the ship away from any rough seas following DeMott’s departure.
Websites such as Yahoo.com, the New York Post, Sports Illustrated, and many others all featured the bullying allegations and wondered how long will WWE try to cover it. That seems to be the million dollar question at the moment and judging by how WWE has so far tried to deal with the situation, it looks like there is no end in sight.
Total Divas episode 12 of season 6 which was titled Feel The Glow drew 593,000 viewers, down 76,000 viewers from last week’s episode. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Former NXT champion Shinsuke Nakamura was given a fantastic sendoff during last night’s NXT episode on the WWE Network as he moves permanently to the main roster.
Nakamura’s farewell was the main event of the show and started with Nakamura cutting a promo in the middle of the ring, thanking everyone at the Performance Center and NXT and the fans, who he called unique. Nakamura said he will always be NXT.
After the promo was done, the whole locker room emptied out and walked to the top of the stage to give the Japanese superstar a standing ovation along with the fans. Fellow NXT stars sang along to his theme song and congratulated him when he walked to the top of the ramp. Former NXT champion Finn Balor also showed up to congratulate Nakamura before the show faded to black.
Nakamura debuted on Smackdown on the show following WrestleMania. He spent exactly a year in NXT, arriving at NXT Takeover: Dallas for a fantastic match against Sami Zayn and then went on to have some epic matches where he won the NXT title twice.
During his latest podcast, Jerry “The King” Lawler revealed that WWE actually put a security agency guard to look over The Undertaker’s jacket, gloves, and hat following WrestleMania at the hotel in Orlando.
The items, which would cost thousands of dollars considering it was The Undertaker’s last match, were guarded over fears that they might be stolen similar to Tom Brady’s Super Bowl 51 jersey which was stolen from the locker room.
After The Undertaker descended under the entrance ramp at WrestleMania following the loss to Roman Reigns and the Camping World Stadium was cleared, the hat, gloves, and jackets remained in the middle of the ring as the WWE crew started to disassemble the set and clearing out the field.
David Otunga, the new arrival to the Raw commentary table, will not debut for a few weeks as WWE.COM announced that the former Nexus member has been cast in the lead role of a new action movie.
WWE.COM says that Otunga will be away from his announcing duties for the next six weeks as he films the new movie, titled Katrina, leaving a void on the commentary table. Otunga was swapped with Byron Saxton during the Superstar Shake-up on Monday night.
Otunga will play DEA agent James Lawson in this movie set in 2005 New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
Episode 12 of season 6 of Total Divas airs tonight on E! with a new episode titled Feel The Glow.
The synopsis of tonight’s show reads, “Maryse and Eva’s friendship comes to blows over a bikini photoshoot. Meanwhile Renee and Dean Ambrose go on a sexy vacation but can’t find the romance. Retired Brie decides to go back on the road to be with her husband but hates it and Trinity bites off more than she can chew when she pitches a new ‘Glow in the dark’ character.”
Smackdown pulled its second biggest number since switching to live on Tuesdays, getting 3,105,000 viewers for this week’s show. The record so far on USA Network is 3,170,000 viewers on July 19, which was the draft episode.
The number saw a big bump from last week’s 2,885,000 due to the second night of Superstar Shake-up. Smackdown was #1 in the top 50 cable chart among the 18-49 demographic. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
WWE’s Renee Young announced that she and Intercontinental champion Dean Ambrose are now married. “Marriage is nice. Thanks for all the love,” she wrote on Twitter amidst several congratulatory messages from fans and other fellow WWE co-workers.
The two have been dating since late 2013 and have been living together in Las Vegas, Nevada where Ambrose has his house. Both Renee and Dean were added to season six of Total Divas.
Dolph Ziggler took a swipe at Renee last night on Talking Smack after he was introduced and walked in eating an apple. “What, you got an apple in your hand?” asked Renee. “Yeah, what’s in your hand? What’s on your finger?” replied Ziggler. Renee then hid her left hand and said, “Nothing!”
Kevin Owens, who joined later in the show, also decided to have some fun with Renee and said congratulations her. She pretended that she didn’t know why he was saying that. “I don’t think we’re talking about that,” said Shane, who was sitting next to Renee. “I’m talking about it, what are you going to do if I talk about it,” replied Owens.
WWE Superstar Lana wrote on Twitter about the horrible experience suffered at the hands of TSA agents at Boston’s Logan International Airport.
Lana claimed that she was sexually assaulted, a tweet that was later removed, and then replaced with a tweet that read, “The most inappropriate behavior @BostonLogan TSA is doing to me. I have never felt this violated in my entire life.”
Several complaints in the past have marred TSA’s image at airports, with mainly female passengers complaining of inappropriate touches when going through security.
The Twitter account of Boston’s Logan International Airport responded to Lana’s tweet, urging her to report the allegation to TSA and apologizing for the poor treatment she received at the airport. With video cameras everywhere in airports, it will not be hard to confirm – or deny – Lana’s allegations.
When we contacted TSA’s public affairs office, a spokesman said, “TSA is aware of these allegations. We reached out to the passenger and plan to communicate with her directly.”
PWInsider.com is reporting that Finn Balor suffered a concussion on Raw after he was on the receiving end of a vicious right elbow to the head by Jinder Mahal.
Balor looked to be completely knocked unconscious when he got hit as he fell on the floor face first without protecting himself. Balor eventually recovered and finished the match, winning with his finishing move.
The former WWE Universal champion just made his return after 8 months out on the sidelines and Balor will probably not be cleared to wrestle until he passes the multiple tests needed following a concussion.
The slow-mo replay shows how bad the hit was which you can see below.
While a few high profile Superstars moved to Raw from Smackdown, Smackdown gained some pretty good names as well last night during night two of the Superstar Shake-up.
Moving over to the blue brand are United States champion Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Charlotte, Tamina, all three members of The New Day, Rusev, Lana, Jinder Mahal, Sin Cara, and The Shining Stars.
This means that a total of 13 Superstars moved to Smackdown while 11 moved to Raw. Owens, Zayn, Charlotte, Rusev and Lana are the biggest names acquired for Smackdown after losing Superstars such as The Miz and Maryse, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, and former Smackdown Women’s champion Alexa Bliss to Raw.
Kevin Owens brings over the United States title with him as well, a move which was expected after Dean Ambrose and his Intercontinental title switched over to Raw.
The “Superstar Shake-Up” is half-way through; last night on Raw, many Smackdown! superstars went to Monday night. Who will be “traded” from Raw and have a new home here? Only one way to find out – read on!
Tuesday Night Smackdown! Live Television Report for April 11, 2017 – “A (Partly) New Crew”
Introduction: Arena Promo
The United States Champion – Kevin Owens – is the first wrestler out, and is now a part of Smackdown! Also, commentator Byron Saxton has come here too. He saunters out and claims this as “the new Kevin Owens show.” Owens rips on America, proclaiming Canada to be superior. He challenges someone – in French at first, since he is from Quebec – to take him on, and declares himself “the new face of America.”
Baron Corbin answers, and recognizes that Kevin may be able to attack most of the arena and the wrestlers, but wants a title match against him because Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose moved to Raw. Sami Zayn’s music plays and he jumps out! Owens is not pleased, but the fans are. He announces himself as the newest addition, but Baron says “nobody cares.”
“The Phenomenal One” A.J. Styles enters now. To the happiness of the crowd, he puts himself over. General Manager Daniel Bryan walks out to the stage. He makes the first call of Kevin Owens taking on Chris Jericho at Payback for the United States Championship still happening, since it was booked before the “Superstar Shake-Up;” he declares that the winner will officially be on Smackdown! As well, he makes a Triple-Threat for tonight between Baron, A.J., and Sami to determine who will wrestle the U.S. Champion after Payback for the title.
Later tonight, Commissioner Shane McMahon will talk about the women’s division, and up next, WWE Champion Randy Orton wrestles Wyatt Family member Erick Rowan.
Commercials.
Match #1: Single – Erick Rowan VS. WWE Champion Randy Orton (Non-Title)
Orton controls early until Rowan hits him hard and punches in the corner. He places Randy atop the turnbuckle and tries a superplex, but Orton battles out. He hits an elbow, ducks a clothesline, and plants Erick with a powerslam! They go to the outside where “The Viper” throws Rowan into the steel steps.
Randy catches Rowan with his Draping DDT and gears up for an R.K.O.! The screen then turns to The Wyatt Family’s video and Bray is on the Titantron. He talks to Randy about them meeting in “The House of Horrors,” and then Erick hits Orton with the steel steps, forcing the referee to call a DQ.
Winner via Disqualification: WWE Champion Randy Orton
Post-match, Rowan gives Orton a Full Nelson Slam to the canvas!
Up next, the Tag-Team Championships will be on the line as The Usos defend against American Alpha!
Commercials.
Match #2: Tag-Team for the Tag-Team Championship – The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) (Champions) VS. American Alpha (Jason Jordan and Chad Gable)
Jason slams Jey and Alpha double-team him. Jey switches with his brother, but is also doubled-up on. Jordan and Gable are dominating early.
Commercials.
Jordan and Jey are going at it, with The Usos now in control. Jimmy is tagged in, but chucked to the floor. Jey tries a splash, but Jason moves and he face-plants the post! Jordan gets the hot-tag, and Chad cleans house on The Usos with many German and Exploder suplexes! He lands an awesome moonsault for a near-fall! Jimmy superkicks and splashes from the top turnbuckle, but Gable reverses into a cradle for two!
Alpha hit a double-team bulldog from the top turnbuckle but Jey just breaks the count! Chad and Jordan are dumped to the outside, but they catch and overhead belly-to-belly suplex both Usos out of a dive-through-the-ropes!
Back in the ring, The Usos one-up and superkick Alpha. They cover for the victory!
Winners via Pinfall and STILL Tag-Team Champions: The Usos
Post-match, Primo and Epico assault Alpha! They are now a part of SD!
After the break, Mojo Rawley takes on Jinder Mahal – who also moved from Raw.
Commercials.
Match #3: Single – Mojo Rawley VS. Jinder Mahal
Mojo starts fast but is taken down. Jinder grabs him in a grounding rear chinlock, but Rawley punches back. He hits a splash in the corner, but gets a boot in the other. Mahal goes to the outside and in the face of the NFL’s New England Patriots tight-end Rob Gronkowski; Rob throws his beer in Mahal’s face, which allows Mojo to take advantage. He hits a hard forearm back in the ring and gets the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pinfall: Mojo Rawley
Post-match, Mojo celebrates with Rob and J.B.L.’s hat.
Commercials.
Arena Promo
Commissioner Shane McMahon builds up the Women’s Division, and asks the current women of Smackdown! to join him. Women’s Champion Naomi, Natalya, Carmela (with James Ellsworth), and Becky Lynch make their way. Shane congratulates Naomi on her WrestleMania Women’s Championship victory, but James interrupts and says that he and Carmela are the only important ones. Naomi warns him to shut-up and gives Shane the spotlight back.
McMahon announces the two newest members, who are both second-generation wrestlers – Tamina and Charlotte.
Sami is shown in the back preparing for his match later tonight.
Commercials.
The announcer’s go over more wrestlers moving to Smackdown! – Kalisto and Rusev.
Arena Promo
Aiden English is alone now, and starts to sing in an opera-like tone. “The Perfect 10” Tye Dillinger interrupts him and they are going into a bout!
Match #4: Single – Aiden English VS. Tye Dillinger
Tye shows-off early with a couple of quick moves and “10” taunts. Aiden does the same with his operatic-version, but Tye regains and finishes Aiden with his Tye-Breaker!
Winner via Pinfall: Tye Dillinger
Video Promo
A.J. Styles’ Smackdown! career montage plays.
Commercials.
Video Promo
A couple of clips of Lana – who appears to have a makeover as a Dancing With The Stars look – airs; she is “coming soon” to SD!
Arena Promo
Dolph Ziggler is in the ring and denounces the importance of all who now have come to Smackdown! Shinsuke Nakamura – who debuted last week on Smackdown! – interjects. Dolph does not seem impressed, but Shinsuke lets the fans do the chanting.
Nakamura does introduce himself, and taunts Ziggler to take him on. Dolph backs away and Shinsuke poses.
Commercials.
Arena Promo
The announcers tell us that Sin Cara and The New Day are joining in the next while!
Video Promo
Sami’s career highlights are shown.
Sami, Baron, and A.J. make their entrances for the main-event, next!
Commercials.
Match #5: Triple-Threat – Sami Zayn VS. Baron Corbin VS. A.J. Styles
(Stipulation: #1 Contender’s Bout to the United States Championship)
Baron knees Sami, but then Sami and A.J. double-team on Corbin. They go for a double-suplex, but Baron reverses it and suplexes them both! He kicks Zayn in the corner, and then harshly clotheslines Styles to the outside. He whips Sami into the ropes, but Sami counters with a springboard and then a headscissors! He and A.J. clothesline Corbin to the floor!
A.J. and Sami face-off and lockup. They counter and hit moves on each other, and then Baron trips Zayn and pulls him out of the ring. He puts Styles to the outside mat, and launches Sami into ropes, but Zayn lands on the apron and springboards back with a moonsault onto both A.J. and Baron!
Commercials.
“The Lone Wolf” is governing both Sami and A.J., but Sami begins a comeback. He drives Corbin into the corner with an exploder-suplex but is driven by A.J. with a fireman’s carry knee-to-the-back-of-the-head. Baron follows with a hard clothesline on Styles. After a small rest, Corbin runs around the ring but right into a running-knee from A.J. on the apron!
In the ring, Zayn spins Styles around with his Blue Thunder Bomb but can’t take this as A.J. just barely kicked out! All three trade hard-hits, and A.J. and Sami are left. Styles springboards off of the top rope with a 450-splash, but also can’t take this!
Soon after, it is only Zayn and Styles again and A.J. manages to hit his Phenomenal Forearm from the top rope! He covers Sami for the hard-wrestled victory!
Winner via Pinfall and #1 Contender to the United States Championship: A.J. Styles
RAW pulled in 3,429,000 viewers for the first night of Superstar Shake-up, and while it was down 338,000 viewers from the Raw after Mania, it was higher than any other show this year except for the Raw after the Royal Rumble.
Hour one did 3,432,000 viewers, followed by 3,600,000 viewers in the second hour, before going down to 3,256,000 viewers in the third and final hour. Between the second and third hour, Raw lost 344,000 viewers which is obviously not a good sign.
Raw placed #2, #3, and #4 in the top 50 cable chart among the 18-49 demographic. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Former WWE champion Kane today officially announced that he is running for mayor of Knox County next year. The announcement was made today at Sweet P’s in South Knox County in front of family, friends, and members of the press.
Kane, whose real name is Glenn Jacobs, has been rumored to be running for the job for quite a few months and last month he appointed a treasurer, a mandatory position for anyone running. Jacobs is running on the Republican ticket for this election which takes place on May 1, 2018.
“I’m officially announcing my candidacy for Knox County Mayor. As Knox County Mayor, I promise to keep taxes low and make Knox County a place everyone can be proud of,” Jacobs said, as reported by ABC affiliate WATE 6.
Part of his logo includes a flame, something which is always associated with his WWE gimmick, a gimmick which he has been using since 1997. He has been absent from WWE television since early December and also missed WrestleMania.
11 WWE Superstars and one commentator jumped ship from Smackdown along with the Intercontinental title in the first night of Superstar Shake-up last night on Monday Night Raw.
Those who made the jump are Apollo Crews, The Miz, Maryse, Dean Ambrose, Curt Hawkins, Bray Wyatt, Kalisto, Heath Slater, Rhyno, Alexa Bliss, and Mickie James.
The Miz and Maryse along with Bray Wyatt and Intercontinental champion Dean Ambrose are the high profile Superstars who switched. With Smackdown losing a title and a champion, it is expected that the blue brand will get a title in return, rumored to be Kevin Owens and the United States title.
The commentator who also switched was David Otunga, who now joins Corey Graves and Michael Cole on Raw. Byron Saxton joins Smackdown in return.
The Superstar Shake-up continues tonight on Smackdown.
Hey fans, it’s @TheMagnumDA! RAW is live from Long Island, New York! Tonight is the ROSTER SHAKEUP! This should get interesting.
We start by having John Ce…oh, Miz. You’re good. Miz & Maryse come out as John Cena & Nikki Bella. The bit is pretty damn good, not gonna lie. I didn’t expect it to start Raw, though! They talk about going to Hollywood and DEAN AMBROSE comes out! Apparently, the fact that these guys are showing up gives away the fact that they’re switching rosters. Ambrose plays the total fool here, acting like he’s talking with Cena & Bella. Finally, Miz stops and informs him their true identities. Ambrose says, “Oh…well in that case…” BOOM! Dirty Deeds! So I guess Raw gets The Miz, Maryse, and Dean Ambrose! I suppose, as the shows go on, we’ll find out who is going where. It does beg the question, though…will they do something similar tomorrow on Smackdown Live?
Kurt Angle is backstage when Sami Zayn interrupts. Sami is told by Kurt that Smackdown is very interested in him. Miz and Maryse come into the frame and demand respect. Sami starts to speak, but Miz cuts him off and says, “Grown-ups are talking.” Ouch! Angle books Miz vs. Sami for later tonight. Hey, it’s a fresh match! I’ll give them that.
Match #1 – The New Day vs. The Revival
This is the Xavier/Big E version, as Kofi was injured last week by Dash and Dawson. To compensate, they bring out an inflatable man in dreadlocks. Big E points out that this is not Kofi Kingston. This guy’s hilarious. Dash’s shirt “WE BROKE KOFI’S ANKLE” is a classic tribute to Wahoo McDaniel and Greg Valentine. Xavier kicks Dash in the guts to start. Woods attacks Wilder in the corner and tags in Big E. They hit a double team wheelbarrow, but it only gets two. Woods is back in but Dawson sets up the distraction. The Revival hits a double team on Woods as we go to break.
After the break, Woods fights out of a gutwrench, but he can’t make the tag. Dawson hits a back suplex on Woods for two. He continues to pounds Xavier in his corner, and then tags in Dash. They team up on Xavier, and then they prevent the tag once more. Hot tag to Big E, who hits a series of belly-to-belly suplexes and the WARRIOR splash! Dawson tries to distract Big E, and this allows Dash to roll up Big E for ONE, TWO, NO! This leads to an outstanding finish: Xavier heads up as Big E sets up the Midnight Hour. Dash grabs Dawson’s leg and pulls him off Big E, leading into a SHATTER MACHINE to Woods as he dives off the top rope. That was INCREDIBLE. ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winners: The Revival (**3/4)
Backstage, Charly is with the Cruiserweight Champion Neville. Adrian points out that Aries is not on the “Neville Level”. TJ Perkins comes in and says, “Some day, someone’s going to make you eat those words.” Neville tells him that he was the first champion…and now, he’s a joke. Neville claims that he still has respect for TJ, even if others may not. Aries comes in and asks TJ if he actually believes Neville’s lies. TJ walks away. Later tonight, we get Austin Aries vs. TJ Perkins.
Curt Hawkins gets on the mic and says that it’s a big deal that he’s on Raw. He believes that his appearance on Raw should lead to a massive celebration. With tiki torches! Big Show appears and knocks him the hell out. I guess both guys are on Raw now! I kinda liked it better when they would actually announce when someone is making a move.
Match #2 – Austin Aries vs. TJ Perkins
Aries pulls TJ’s finger during the handshake. TJ gets a gutwrench, but Aries reverses and catches a quick two-count. Great series leads to a headscissors by Perkins. This is followed by a Dab. 2016 called…they want their taunt back. TJ with an armbar, which Austin counters with a cartwheel. Aries hits a sweet dropkick from a headscissors position. Aries taunts TJ, and then hits a flying elbow to the back of the neck. This gets two. They get up and TJ gets a couple of kicks to Austin’s gut. TJ tries a springboard pendulum dropkick, but he misses. Austin hits a neckbreaker on the ropes, and climbs to the top to hit an elbow to the floor. Aries starts to taunt on the barricade, which infuriates Neville for some reason. Aries goes back into the ring, but he’s caught off-guard by a Perkins roll-up! ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winner: TJ Perkins (**)
After the match, Perkins goes full-blown heel on Aries, elbowing Austin right in the neck with his back turned. TJ ends up DRILLING him with the DETONATION KICK. Trust me, the fans have been wanting to boo this video game dork for some time.
Backstage, Seth Rollins is palling around with Cass & Enzo. Rollins insists on “No Handshakes, only Fist Bumps” with Enzo. I don’t know why I found that hilarious, but I did.
Seth Rollins comes out and tells the fans “Thank you” for having his back during the Road to WrestleMania. Seth says that together, they all took part in the King of Kings going down. Seth says that he wants to stay at Raw, but he knows Steph will make his life a living hell. Nonetheless, Rollins remains firm that he wants to stay on Raw. This brings out KURT ANGLE, the Raw General Manager! Angle confirms that Rollins has a place here on Monday Night Raw. This seems to be a happy ending, until SAMOA JOE tries to attack Seth from behind. Seth fights back and hits a WICKED superkick on Joe. Angle separates them as Rollins stands tall.
Charly is backstage with Kevin Owens, who does not seem too impressed with the Roster Shakeup. Owens tells Charly to ask how Chris Jericho is feeling right now. Obviously, Jericho is home recuperating. Owens calls himself the top champion on Raw, which leads Charly to ask…”What about Dean Ambrose?” Owens tells Charly that Dean needs to know his place on Raw. KO calls himself “the premiere champion”.
Match #3 – Charlotte vs. Nia Jax
Nia just DROPS Charlotte during a lock-up. Charlotte tries to fight off Nia, catching her with a few knees. Nia just splashes her. Charlotte tries another offensive surge, but Nia just picks her up and hits a Shoulder Breaker. That looked really ugly. Nia puts her in the Cobra Clutch as a drunk New York fan gets thrown out. Charlotte fights up, but Nia ragdolls her across the ring. Charlotte fights out of a Samoan Drop with some Flair chops. Nia throws Charlotte to the apron, and Charlotte tries a roll-up back into the ring. Nia picks her up, but Charlotte is able to hit the NATURAL SELECTION! ONE, TWO, NO! Nia gets up and misses a charge into the corner. Charlotte then throws Jax into the corner post to the outside. Charlotte climbs to the top rope and hits a moonsault on Nia Jax! Charlotte crawls back into the ring, and Nia makes it during the eight-count. Mafia Kick connects by Charlotte. Charlotte goes for the Figure 4, but Jax kicks Charlotte into the corner. Nia hits a HUGE splash in the corner, followed by a Samoan Drop! ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winner: Nia Jax (*3/4)
I really do wonder if Charlotte is hurt. That was a sloppy affair, but it was an effective way to make Nia Jax the #1 heel in the women’s division for Raw. The announcers play a build-up video for Finn Balor. He’s up next!
Match #4 – Finn Balor vs. Jinder Mahal
Jinder puts Balor in the ropes and slaps him! They trade knees and Mahal takes the advantage. Balor eventually catches him with a fierce dropkick. Mahal gets more offense, though! He kicks the ropes to Finn’s face! They trade more chops and Mahal hits a HUGE forearm right to Finn’s temple. I can’t believe how much offense Mahal has received! Finn finally catches Mahal with the Slingblade, followed by the dropkick in the corner. COUP DE GRACE hits by Balor onto Mahal! ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winner: Finn Balor (**1/4)
After the match, BRAY WYATT appears on the Titantron! He’s here…on Monday Night Raw! I guess he’s the newest acquisition! Wyatt says that he’ll be challenging Orton in 3 weeks at Payback. Wait, does that mean Orton’s coming to Raw too? Wyatt then gives a warning to Balor: You better keep an eye on me, because I’ve got an eye on you. I’m still curious about Orton…is he coming to Raw too?!
They recap the Shakeup, including acquisitions to Raw from earlier today: Apollo Crews, Heath Slater, Rhyno, and Kalisto.
Match #5 – The Miz vs. Sami Zayn
Sami gets an armbar, but Miz kicks him in the gut. Zayn hits a series of armdrags on Miz, followed by a Cannonball attempt that is stopped when Maryse is pulled in front of Miz. Ah, the old Macho Man and Elizabeth spot. I love it. After the break, Miz has Sami in a chinlock. Zayn fights up, but Miz hits a neckbreaker for ONE, TWO, NO! Miz props up Sami in the corner and mocks Sami’s chant. He tries a Superplex, but Sami hits him with some forearms to knock him off the ropes. They have an exchange that leads to Miz hitting a huge DDT on Zayn. Miz continues to mock Daniel Bryan, even on Monday Night Raw! Zayn catches Miz with a Blue Thunder Bomb! ONE, TWO, NO! Crowd is really getting into this. Sami goes for a HELLUVA KICK in the corner, but Maryse pulls Miz out! Sami follows Miz out and then back into the ring, but Maryse grabs Sami’s leg. Sami gets distracted and caught in the Skull Crushing Finale, but he turns it into a Victory Roll on Miz! ONE, TWO, THREE! Good stuff! Miz continues to be on a roll, and so does Sami.
Winner: Sami Zayn (***)
Kurt Angle books Ambrose vs. KO for later tonight!
Up next, we are with Roman Reigns. He talks about his victory over The Undertaker at WrestleMania. Roman called it bittersweet, because he respects The Undertaker. He said it’s heavy to know that he was the guy who ended The Undertaker. Roman says he’s the big dog now, and that this is his yard.
Suddenly, BRAUN STROWMAN appears and completely destroys Roman. MAMMOTH toss into the tables! There’s a huge “THANK YOU STROWMAN!” chant that erupts out the crowd. Strowman throws Roman across the entire backstage area, beating him into a complete pulp. Strowman then POWERSLAMS Reigns into the loading cases. From there, he rolls the case right into Roman’s face! Wow! Roman has some trouble with the blood capsule, but we’ll get him an A for effort. Crowd continues to chant “THANK YOU STROWMAN!”
Reigns is carted off in the stretcher as the fans continue to cheer. “YOU DESERVE IT!” chant! Unreal! Just when you think this thing is over, BRAUN REAPPEARS AND THROWS THE STRETCHER OFF THE LOADING DOCK! Holy Mother of God! A terrifying scene as Reigns finally gets placed into the Ambulance. STROWMAN APPEARS AGAIN! HE TURNS OVER THE AMBULANCE! Just WHAT in God’s name was THAT?! Well, that segment gets five stars. It certainly proved that Strowman is a persistent son of a gun, if nothing else.
When they come back from commercial, Roman is placed in a smaller Emergency vehicle. Damn…I was thinking that Braun would be driving it. We are promised a medical update later tonight. I am hopeful that Braun will appear at the hospital.
Match #6 – Shining Stars, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows vs. Sheamus, Cesaro, and the Hardy Boyz
Just as Matt & Jeff Hardy make their appearance, we see THE DRIFTER walk across the entrance stage! Matt Hardy gets an armbar on Primo, and tags in Jeff. Jeff hits the snapmare, followed by the dropkick. Primo knees Jeff, and Cesaro tags in. Primo tags Karl Anderson, and Cesaro knocks him down with an uppercut, followed by the double stomp. Sheamus and Cesaro trade tags and double team moves, leading to a cross body by Cesaro onto Anderson. WHAT’S WITH ALL OF THESE TAGS?! Cesaro tries the Giant Swing, but Gallows pulls Anderson to the outside.
After the break, Gallows has Cesaro in a sleeperhold. Cesaro fights up, but Gallows misses a suplex. Anderson and Gallows fight Cesaro in the corner. A small fracas ensues, and Primo interjects and hits the Back Stabber on Cesaro. Epico tags in and Cesaro tags Matt! Matt throws Epico into the corner, and follows with a clothesline, and a Side Effect! Matt’s Twist of Fate is blocked, but Jeff comes in and hits a Twist of Fate of his own! The fights sprawls outside, and the Hardy brothers hit the POETRY IN MOTION! Back inside, Epico gets hit with the TWIST OF FATE! Jeff tags in and hits the SWANTON BOMB! ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winners: Sheamus, Cesaro, and the Hardy Boyz (**1/2)
Backstage, Emma visits Dana Brooke. Emma tells Dana to join her once more time, but Dana tells her to bugger off. Well, alright then.
BAYLEY is on her way to the ring! Before she gets there, SASHA BANKS makes her entrance to the ring! Talk about upstaging. Eventually, Sasha introduces Bayley, who thanks the fans for staying by her side. The fans give her some sincere applause. Sasha also congratulates her, but then tells her that WrestleMania is over. Things get tense, but then ALEXA BLISS shows up. She says that she’s here to put an end to this weird sideshow. Before she goes any further, MICKIE JAMES shows up and says that she’s back on Raw! Out of nowhere, Nia Jax appears and FLATTENS Mickie James! Nia goes into the ring and destroys Sasha (Alexa threw Sasha into Jax and ran out of the ring). Bayley then gets flattened by Nia Jax’s Samoan Drop! Nia and Alexa have a brief stare-down (well, a stare-up for Alexa).
We get a recap of “THE BRAUN THAT WOULDN’T DIE!” Cole shares that Roman Reigns has cracked ribs, internal injuries, and a separated shoulder. Bad day at the office, then.
Match #7 – WWE US Champion Kevin Owens vs. WWE IC Champion Dean Ambrose (non-title)
Owens beats down Ambrose to start, and then pounds him in the corner. Ambrose returns with some rights in the corner, and tries Dirty Deeds early. KO goes outside, and Dean follows him to brawl around the barricade area. Back inside, Dean tries to capitalize but KO goes outside AGAIN! Dean hits a dive to the outside!
After the break, KO is punching Owens all around the ring. He misses a clothesline, and Dean catches a lariat and some rights of his own. Ambrose gets a running charge but he misses and hits his shoulder on the post. KO goes out to the apron and catches a SWANK knee right into Ambrose for two. KO settles in on a rear chinlock, and this turns into a sleeperhold. Ambrose fights up and hits KO with a headbutt, but he gets thrown outside. KO picks Dean up in a fireman’s carry, but then launches him right into the post! Ambrose can barely make it back in before the ten-count. Back in, KO hits a backbreaker for two. Dean blocks a senton attempt, and grabs the top rope which sends Owens to the outside. Dean hits a suicide dive outside! They head back in once more, and Dean tries Dirty Deeds again. KO whips Dean into the ring, but Ambrose catches him with a series of clotheslines and forearms. KO throws Dean into the corner on a missed bulldog attempt. He climbs up to try something, but Dean catches KO on the ropes, and follows with a SICK clothesline from the middle rope for two. Ambrose goes back up top as KO rolls outside, and hits Owens with a top rope elbow to the outside! These guys just can’t stay in the ring, can they? Back inside, Ambrose tries a move from the top, but KO catches him with a shot to the ribs! KO with a Package Cradle Bomb for ONE, TWO, NO! Dean tries a third Dirth Deeds, but KO catches him with a kick to the ribs. They counter each other once more, but Dean FINALLY hits on the fourth attempt of Dirty Deeds. ONE, TWO, THREE!
Winner: Dean Ambrose (***1/2)
After the match, Chris Jericho appears! He hits KO with the Codebreaker! Y2J celebrates in the ring as we go to credits.
Final Thoughts: I thought there were some good matches tonight, but I didn’t like the way wrestlers were rolled out during this big “Shakeup”. There should have been a little more fanfare. Just my two cents. Fun show, though! See you next week!
Former WWE Raw Tag Team champion Kofi Kingston will be out of action for several weeks after undergoing ankle surgery.
Kingston was written out of television on the Raw after Mania when The Revival attacked him and shattered his ankle. Kofi did not wrestle in that match and took the unusual role of the cheerleader when that spot is usually reserved for Xavier Woods.
Speaking to WWE.COM, Dr. Chris Amann said that Kofi had fragments of bone break off the ankle bone, requiring arthroscopic surgery to remove the bone chips from the damaged joint.
WWE, through its WWE Studios Finance company, has filed at 10-page lawsuit in the district of Connecticut against a group of 14 users who were distributing its newest movie Eliminators through the popular peer-to-peer software BitTorrent. The story was originally reported by worldipreview.com.
All users identified live in the state of Connecticut, identified through the geolocation of IP addresses shared by the Internet Service Providers. WWE does not know the names of the defendants yet. “WWE believes that information obtained in discovery will lead to the identity of each Defendant and will allow WWE to amend this Complaint accordingly. WWE also intends to seek further discovery from the Defendants in order to determine the identity of the specific party responsible for the infringement,” the lawsuit reads.
WWE is looking for defendants to be required to pay to WWE either the actual damages the WWE has sustained because of the infringement or else statutory damages in the amount of $150,000 per infringement.
WWE is requesting a trial by jury. You can read the lawsuit here.
Ryan Satin of ProWrestlingSheet.com is reporting that two-time WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair had a little problem at a bar in Fort Wayne, Indiana last night and was kicked out for insulting one of the employees.
The Nature Boy went to The Deck at the Gas House located at 305 E Superior St bar and grill and called one of the bartenders a “fat ass.” The choice of adjective used by Flair did not go down well with management and Flair was asked to leave the premises. According to eye witness accounts who posted on Twitter, Flair was in and out of the bar in less than five minutes.
WWE and DAZN today announced that Raw and SmackDown will be available live in Japan with Japanese commentary for the first time ever, beginning tomorrow at 9AM on DAZN.
Fans will be able to live stream all three hours of Raw and two hours of SmackDown exclusively on DAZN. Raw will be available live every week on Tuesdays at 9AM, while SmackDown will be available live every week on Wednesdays at 9AM. Both shows will also be available via video on demand for DAZN customers.
In addition, fans will soon be able to watch other WWE featured content and highlight shows on DAZN, including WWE Experience, WWE Bottomline, and WWE This Week. Fans can download the DAZN App and watch WWE content on Smart TVs, smartphones, tablets and gaming consoles, as well as via Chromecast on iOS and Android.
“We’re really excited to add WWE to our portfolio in Japan,” said John Gleasure, Chief Commercial Officer of DAZN. “Raw and SmackDown complement and strengthen our overall international sport offering, plus the live and non-live content available for fans to watch works perfectly for our business model.”
“Our new partnership with DAZN will enable WWE to engage with fans in Japan like never before,” said Ed Wells, WWE Executive Vice President, International. “DAZN will provide WWE fans with a destination to watch Raw and SmackDown live and in Japanese on the device of their choice and follow WWE Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura as he continues his WWE journey.”
WWE joins DAZN’s strong portfolio of international sports which includes La Liga, Bundesliga, Major League Baseball, Formula One and UFC.
