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John Cena apologizes for AJ Styles surprise intro at Crown Jewel

By
Colin Vassallo
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Appearing on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, John Cena apologized for catching everyone off guard at Crown Jewel: Perth with the surprise introduction for AJ Styles.

Cena admitted he went about it the wrong way and went into business for himself because he never informed anyone in the back, nor anyone from WWE creative.

“I should have gotten permission to do that. And I would have gotten permission to do that, but I told no one about it because I wanted to do something special,” Cena said. “And in doing so, the people running the show felt surprised. And that’s not a position I ever want to put them in because they award me such creative liberty.”

Cena handed a note to ring announcer Alicia Taylor to read for her introduction of AJ Styles, which played off his previous roles with the Bullet Club and TNA.

“I can keep it from AJ, I can keep it from Alicia, but if I tell my teammates who are crafting this show, maybe they make it look better,” Cena continued. “And the first thing I did was thank AJ. The second thing I did was pull a few creative individuals aside and say, ‘I’m sorry, that will never happen again. I know where I f*cked up. I’m so sorry.'”

NXT title evades Je’Von Evans again as Iron Survivor Challenge shot is missed

By
Colin Vassallo
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Je’Von Evans invoked his NXT championship match which he earned the right to at Deadline on NXT last night but once again came up short as Oba Femi retained the title after Ricky Saints screwed the Young OG.

Evans had the match won after delivering two cutters in a row but as the referee’s hand was coming down for the three-count, Saints pulled the referee out, breaking the pin in the process.

The champion eventually recovered and destroyed Evans with a big lariat and the Fall From Grace finisher to retain the title.

With Evans out of New Year’s Evil, a fatal four-way match has been set to determine the new number one contender for that show. NXT General Manager Ava announced that the match will involve Dion Lennox, Joe Hendry, Myles Borne, and TNA’s Leon Slater, all of whom had one point at the Iron Survivor Challenge match during the weekend.

Royal Rumble 2026 tickets go on sale this morning

By
Colin Vassallo
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Royal Rumble 2026

Tickets for the 2026 Royal Rumble and the Smackdown on the eve of the Rumble, both live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia go on sale this morning at 11AM ET.

Both shows are listed as taking place from the King Abdullah Financial District, which is not an arena or stadium in itself, but rather a large urban development which encompasses several buildings.

The poster for the Rumble also does not include the stadium or arena name and just has the Riyadh Season, Vision 2030, and KAFD logos as well as the sponsors for the Rumble, which include Cricket, Ram, and Intuit Turbotax.

Tickets for Smackdown cost as low as the equivalent of $14 while tickets for the Rumble start from $22.

Dynamite rating for 12/03/2025

By
Colin Vassallo
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Dynamite logo

Last week’s episode of Dynamite drew 496,000 viewers, up 5,000 viewers from the prior week. It’s the fifth time out of six weeks that the show did less than 500,000 viewers. Dynamite had a 0.09 rating in 18-49, down 0.01 from the previous week and ranked #12 in the top 50 for the night. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)

Tickets for TNA Impact debut on AMC on pre-sale now

By
Colin Vassallo
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Impact

Tickets for the TNA Impact AMC debut on Thursday, January 15, 2026 went on pre-sale this morning using the code SCORE.

The show will be held live from the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas, a popular location for wrestling shows especially for AEW and NXT.

Tickets are priced $56, $79, $101, and $236 for ringside.

Pre-sale for the TNA+ event Genesis, taking place from the same location two days later on Friday, January 17, also went on pre-sale this morning using the same code.

Tickets for both events go on general sale on Thursday, December 11 at 10AM ET.

John Cena signs five-year WWE deal in ambassador role

By
Colin Vassallo
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Speaking in a lengthy interview with Fox Sports reporter Tom Rinaldi, John Cena revealed that he has signed a brand-new five year deal with WWE to serve as an ambassador for the company after his in-ring career comes to a close this Saturday.

“I’m already signed on for another five years,” Cena told the former ESPN reporter, saying that he asked WWE for the longest contract they could possibly offer.

“I would like to be in this family as an employee, as a contribution part for as long as I can,” Cena continued.

The record-breaking 17-time world champion said he’s looking forward to his new role with the company, to encourage more people to watch the product, and hopefully offer mentorship to talent who otherwise he would not have had time to spend time with.

Cena also reiterated that he has zero plans to wrestle again, and while he does not often speak in “absolutes,” this is one of those topics that he does not plan to reverse his decision.

The full one-hour interview can be seen below.

NXT rating for 12/02/2025

By
Colin Vassallo
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This week’s episode of NXT drew 532,000 viewers, down 44,000 viewers from last week’s episode and the least watched in a month. It had a 0.08 rating in 18-49, down 0.04 from the previous week. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)

Dwayne Johnson comments on Golden Globes Awards nomination

By
Colin Vassallo
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The Smashing Machine

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson recounted what it meant to him to receive his first-ever Golden Globes Award nomination for his portrayal of Mark Kerr in the movie The Smashing Machine.

The movie might have been a box office flop, but it has earned Johnson and his co-star Emily Blunt Golden Globes nominations and Johnson, who often said did not care about the box office success of this particular movie, noted how he wanted to do it because he wanted to push and challenge himself for the role.

“I had something very special to me, which was the story,” Johnson said.

The Rock said that the nomination represents the fight in everybody, especially those with addictions and the demons they battle.

“Mark Kerr had it all and lost everything, and then has since become sober. He did overdose twice. Life is good because he’s sober and because he made it. Not everyone is that lucky. That’s the movie that we wanted to make: a nod to those who fight,” he continued.

He said that over the last years, he lost 15 friends to addiction, all of whom were wrestlers and fighters.

“Some OD’d, some decided to check out. Life was too hard,” Johnson continued. “It shook me, and then it restabilized me in a way like, ‘Okay, I’m so happy we made this film.’ It is a love letter to those that I just talked to you about. That’s why this nomination means so much.”

The Last Time Is Now Superstore to open Thursday in DC

By
Colin Vassallo
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Saturday Night's Main Event

WWE will be opening The Last Time Is Now Superstore in Washington, DC to celebrate John Cena’s retirement.

The store, by Fanatics, will be located at Gallery Space DC at 737 7th St NW and will open on Thursday.

Opening hours are Thursday from Noon to 7PM, Friday from 10AM to 11PM, Saturday from 10AM to Midnight, and Sunday from 10AM to 3PM. Entrance is free.

A collection of The Last Time Is Now merchandise and other WWE apparel will be available for purchase.

The Usos re-enter the WWE tag team division

By
Colin Vassallo
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Jey and Jimmy Uso have re-entered the WWE tag team division and will be reuniting as The Usos on Raw, at least for the time being.

The former multi-time tag team champions confronted the current WWE World Tag Team champions AJ Styles and Dragon Lee as well as The New Day on the show last night.

Jimmy said that it was his idea to team up together again as Jey’s losing streak continued over the past couple of months.

The segment ended with The New Day getting disposed of and The Usos having a stare down with the champions.

The brothers last teamed together at Wrestlepalooza in September, losing to Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed.

Tag match added to December 13 SNME card

By
Colin Vassallo
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Saturday Night's Main Event

The fourth match for Saturday Night’s Main Event this weekend was announced yesterday on Raw.

NXT’s Je’Von Evans will team up with TNA X Division champion Leon Slater as they take on the current WWE World Tag Team champions AJ Styles and Dragon Lee in another exhibition match.

This match joins Bayley vs Sol Ruca and Cody Rhodes vs Oba Femi on the undercard before the main event of John Cena vs Gunther in what will be Cena’s last ever match.

The whole WWE vs NXT exhibition matches idea came from John Cena himself, who shot down a two-hour tribute show revolving around him to instead give air time to those who believe will be the future of this industry.

NXT rating for 11/25/2025

By
Colin Vassallo
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NXT Gold Rush

NXT Gold Rush night two drew 576,000 viewers on The CW, down 74,000 viewers from the first Gold Rush the prior week. This was a taped episode and did not air live. The show had a 0.12 rating in 18-49, up 0.01 from the previous week. (Ratings credit: F4WOnline.com)

Paramount launches hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery

By
Colin Vassallo
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Paramount Skydance today announced a hostile takeover bid for all assets of Warner Bros. Discovery in a transaction worth $108.4 billion, more than the $82.7 billion which Netflix offered.

The offer is going straight to shareholders, and Paramount CEO David Ellison believes that’s the offer they will choose when they see what’s on the table for them.

The Paramount offer is different than Netflix’s. Netflix has bid to take over the Warner Bros. Studio, HBO Max, and HBO, as well as all the intellectual property rights owned by the studio. The offer does not include WBD’s cable channels which include TNT, TBS, CNN, Discovery, and others.

Paramount is putting a bid for all the company, including the cable channels in a bid to merge two of the largest movie studios in the world.

WBD currently has the media rights for AEW television and pay-per-views, with AEW shows airing on TNT, TBS, and HBO Max.

Netflix is WWE’s media partner worldwide for all shows and Raw in the United States while Paramount is the media rights partner for the UFC starting next month, which is owned by the same company that owns WWE, TKO Group.

Buy WrestleMania 42 On Location Silver package and get upgrade to Gold

By
Colin Vassallo
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WrestleMania 42

With WrestleMania 42 On Location packages suffering from sales, the company is now offering a free Silver to Gold package upgrade for those ordering by December 14.

Those who will buy a Silver Priority Pass Package for WrestleMania get the Gold-level hospitality which includes two-day premium seating, an all-inclusive pre-show hospitality with on-stage appearances by The Undertaker, Paul Heyman, and The Steiner Brothers, a Roman Reigns Funko Pop, the Friday Kickoff Party at AREA15 with live Q&A from Cody Rhodes, Rhea Ripley, and others, a four-day priority pass WWE World and Superstore access, and a WWE World shopping bag.

This package is available from $1,636 per person. For more information, go to https://onlocationexp.com/wwe/wrestlemania-holiday-offerings.

Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt get Golden Globe Awards nominations

By
Colin Vassallo
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The Smashing Machine

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt both received Golden Globe Awards nominations this morning for their involvement in The Smashing Machine movie.

Johnson was nominated for Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama. Others nominated in his category include Jeremy Allen White, Joel Edgerton, Michael B. Jordan, Oscar Isaac, and Wagner Moura.

Blunt was nominated in the Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture. Others nominated in her same category are Amy Madigan, Ariana Grande, Elle Fanning, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, and Teyana Taylor.

The Smashing Machine movie was a box office flop but critics were impressed by Johnson’s and Blunt’s acting. There are also rumors for Academy Award nominations for the movie.

This is Johnson’s first Golden Globe Awards nomination.

The awards ceremony are set for January 11, 2026 and the Beverly Hilton and will be hosted by Nikki Glaser.

Smackdown rating for 11/28/2025

By
Colin Vassallo
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Smackdown on Friday night drew 1,142,000 viewers, down 68,000 viewers from the prior week. The show had a 0.28 rating in 18-49, down 0.01 from the previous show and was #1 on cable television for the night and #4 in all of TV. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)

Saraya says fan slapped her ass three times at recent event in Chicago

By
Colin Vassallo
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Former WWE and AEW star Saraya voiced her concern on her latest episode of the Rulebreakers podcast about how a fan inappropriately touched her while at a signing in Chicago, saying that incidents like this from fans are on the rise.

Saraya said that she feels there’s been an increase from certain fans who feel comfortable grabbing female stars.

“Just this past weekend in Chicago, a fan decided he wanted to slap my ass three times in a row because he thought it was funny,” Saraya said. “And security didn’t do a f*cking thing.”

She said they eventually gave her a security guard.

“The fans are getting way too comfortable. This is the second time this year a fan has touched me, tried to kiss me, and slap my ass,” she continued.

Rhea Ripley, AJ Lee, Jey Uso, and others have also talked about fans not keeping personal space and Lee recently encountered one person at a convention who turned their photo into a kissing video with AI. The company then announced they would be banning the person permanently from attending further events.

Saraya noted that the majority of fans are great but you always get that weirdo that gets “a little too handsy” who thinks they have a parasocial relationship with them.

The former AEW Women’s champion is still a free agent having departed AEW in March of this year.

No official Royal Rumble 2026 location with just under two months to go

By
Colin Vassallo
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Royal Rumble 2026

With less than two months to go, an official venue for the 2026 Royal Rumble has not been announced yet and tickets have not gone on sale.

The show will take place from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and will be the first Rumble to be held outside North America. It is believed to be taking place from the Kingdom Arena, the home of the Al Hilal football club with a seating capacity of 26,000.

However, there’s been no official announcement of the exact location as of yet as the venue could change to a different one within the city.

The Kingdom Arena hosted the Night of Champions premium live event this past June.

The Royal Rumble is set for Saturday, January 31 as part of Riyadh Season.

Get John Cena’s final WWE merchandise drop ahead of retirement match

By
Colin Vassallo
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John Cena’s final merchandise from The Last Time Is Now farewell tour is now available to purchase on WWE Shop.

Using the color scheme of the Washington Capitals of red, white, and blue, the merch carries the date of December 13, 2025 to mark his retirement. T-shirt, caps, socks, wrist/arm bands, football jersey and of course the replica title are all available for sale.

WWE has marked each of his appearance on this year-long farewell tour with localized color schemes depending on which city he was in.

Oba Femi ready for Cody Rhodes, says change is coming

By
Colin Vassallo
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Saturday Night's Main Event

New NXT champion Oba Femi is ready to take on Cody Rhodes this Saturday and he warned the WWE champion that change is coming.

Femi earned the right to take on Rhodes as part of the John Cena final show undercard on Saturday Night’s Main Event after he defeated Ricky Saints to regain the NXT title this past weekend at Deadline.

“The biggest factor is change. Change came knocking at the door of Ricky Saints tonight and it asked for his title and he had no choice but to relinquish because change always wins,” Femi said in a video posted on the WWE social media.

“When change met the dinosaurs, he sent the meteor. When change met man in the Old Testament, he sent the flood,” Femi continued. “And when change comes to the main roster asking for Cody Rhodes, he will send the ruler, the destroyer, the bringer of war, Oba Femi!”

The undercard will feature exhibition matches between WWE and NXT stars, with the other match so far being Bayley vs Sol Ruca.

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