Episode 9 of season 6 of Total Divas titled What Happens In Vegas… drew a total of 580,000 viewers, down 4,000 from last week’s show. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Trish Stratus gives birth to second child
Trish Stratus gave birth to her second child, a baby girl named Madison Patricia this past Saturday. Stratus posted a photo of Madison’s tiny foot with the words, “She’s here” on Twitter earlier today.
The former WWE Women’s champion delivered her baby girl at Southlake Hospital in Newmarket, Ontario on January 14. She and her husband Ron have a son, Max, who is three years old.
She announced her first pregnancy at the Hall of Fame ceremony in 2013.
She's here… https://t.co/lkknQNT0qY pic.twitter.com/C1mBJIBnLA
— Trish Stratus (@trishstratuscom) January 19, 2017
Smackdown rating for 01/17/2017
Smackdown drew 2,652,000 viewers this week, up 119,000 from last week’s show. Apart from the December 27 broadcast which saw the return of John Cena, it was the most watched show since the 900th episode on November 15. Smackdown was #1 in the 18-49 demographic chart for the night with a 0.90 rating. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
How Vince McMahon convinced Donald Trump to take a stunner at WrestleMania 23
In an interview with Complex.com published today, WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin described how he got to hit the stunner on now fellow WWE Hall of Famer – and President-Elect – Donald Trump at WrestleMania 23.
Austin said that it was Vince McMahon who originally came up with the idea, pulling Austin aside and telling him that he’s going to see if Donald Trump would take his finishing move.
“I said, ‘you think?’ He says, ‘Oh yeah, it’ll be great, it’ll be great,’” recounted Austin. The Chairman and CEO of WWE then went up to his friend Donald and first introduced him to Austin and then asked point blank if he can take the Stunner after the whole match was over.
“Donald says, ‘You think it’d be a good thing?’ and Vince goes, ‘Oh, of course it would be. It would just blow the roof off the place,’” Austin continued, adding that Trump’s “right hand guy” shot down the idea, telling his boss that he didn’t need to do it as they have other things to do.
“And Donald says to Vince, ‘You think it’ll help?’ and Vince goes, ‘I promise you it’ll help.’ And Donald says, ‘Okay, I’ll do it,’” Austin said.
Keeping his word, Trump took the stunner, although Austin said it wasn’t “a picture-perfect” execution as Trump pretty much fell over rather than taking the bump. “But I give Donald Trump a hell of a lot of credit for being a man. He was a stand-up guy, he was there to do business and we did business, so I respect the man for that. If I see him giving a speech on the TV, I don’t think, ‘Hey, I gave this guy a stunner.’ We were doing business and we did business. The fact that he is going to be the next President of the United States, it’s a hell of a story,” Austin concluded.
Donald Trump will be taking the oath as President of the United States tomorrow.
AJ Styles robbed on Monday night at WWE live event in Arkansas
Region 8 News in Arkansas is reporting that WWE champion AJ Styles was robbed and Arkansas State University police are still investigating the case.
The theft occurred on Monday night while Styles was performing at a WWE show at the ASU Convocation Center in Jonesboro.
Styles reported the theft of a black bag containing $1,000 in American currency, $7,000 in Japanese yen, iPhone, a set of Beats headphones, a small screen TV, an Xbox 360, and six Xbox 360 games.
Region 8 News has requested more information to be released in the case, but Arkansas State University has denied their request.
Angle discusses addiction, HOF, best matches and return on ESPN
Kurt Angle appeared on ESPN’s SportsCenter Off The Top Rope segment with Jonathan Coachman last night to promote his WWE Hall of Fame induction.
Asked what his favorite match is, Angle said it’s difficult to pinpoint one but when it comes to WrestleMania, his matches against Brock Lesnar and Shawn Michaels are up there while his match against The Undertaker at No Way Out 2006 is one of his best.
Angle said he wishes he wrestled Superstars such as The Rock, Triple H, and Steve Austin later in his career when he hit his prime and said that he would love the fans to see his matches against AJ Styles, matches that happened in TNA. Angle never mentioned TNA by name in the interview.
The interview also tackled his addiction and rehab, like North Miami Drug and Alcohol Recovery – Transitions Recovery Program. Angle said that ever since he went through the ordeal, the whole experience made him a better husband, a better father, and a better man as he learned a lot from it. He said once you’re in a dark place and get out, you start to appreciate the finer things in life, such as family and love. Angle said that he has been clean for four years now and then talked about his Angle Strong Initiative.
The Coach then finished the interview asking Angle if we will ever see him in a WWE ring again. “I cannot say, right now I’m only focused on the Hall of Fame. Would I like to eventually? Yes,” Angle replied. He said that for now, he’ll enjoy this Hall of Fame journey and then he’ll go from there.
Raw rating for 01/16/2017
Monday Night Raw this week drew 3,271,000, way up from last week’s 2.9 million viewers. This was the first week with no football competition on ESPN since September.
The first hour drew 3,519,000 viewers, followed by 3,221,000 viewers in the second hour, and then 3,074,000 viewers in the third and final hour. The bad thing is that Raw lost 445,000 viewers as the show went along.
This was the most-watched Raw since the August 29 edition and the first hour with 3.5 million viewers was the best since the post-WrestleMania 32 Raw which drew 4.27 million in the first hour back in April 2016. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Jerry “The King” Lawler to do commentary for the Royal Rumble match
Jerry “The King” Lawler has not done any commentary for WWE television since mid-2016 but that will all change come the Royal Rumble.
It was announced last night on Talking Smack that the WWE Hall of Famer will be back in the commentary booth to call the 30-man over-the-top rope Royal Rumble match along with Michael Cole and Corey Graves, leaving no Smackdown announcer calling the action.
The regular commentary teams will be doing their own matches on the show and the change will only be done for the Royal Rumble match.
Jerry Lawler returned on Smackdown last night to host a special edition of The King’s Court with Dolph Ziggler. That did not turn out well for The King who got super kicked in the chest by Ziggler.
Lawler has been off WWE television for the past few months after he was removed from the pay-per-view Kickoff panel shows along with Lita.
Total Divas episode preview for tonight: What Happens in Vegas…
Tonight’s episode of Total Divas promises to be a wild one as the crew head to Vegas for episode 9 of season 6 which is titled What Happens in Vegas…
The synopsis for the show reads, “Lana runs into a whole lot of chaos during her bachelorette trip to Vegas, which brings up questions of her upcoming wedding to Rusev. Meanwhile, Nikki’s nerves get the best of her when her family has to walk the red carpet as her boyfriend John Cena hosts the ESPYS’.”
Kurt Angle on tonight’s ESPN SportsCenter to discuss HOF induction
Kurt Angle will be joining The Coach on tonight’s Off The Top Rope segment on ESPN SportsCenter to talk about headlining the 2017 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
This will be Angle’s first WWE-related interview since 2006. He is under contract until Hall of Fame night comes around and with the Royal Rumble around the corner, there are always rumors that he might be one of the surprise entrants in the 30-man over-the-top rope match.
Speaking to Sports Illustrated in a separate interview, the Olympic gold medalist said that he was with his wife and three kids when he found out. “My younger kids don’t know about my career, but they looked at the screen and said, ‘Daddy’s on television!’ And then my younger daughter started calling me ‘Kurt Angle,’ and I said, ‘No! I’m Dad, not Kurt Angle,’” he said.
Angle said he did not speak to Vince McMahon yet and the only person he talked to was Triple H. He did reveal that they did not want to talk about anything apart from the Hall of Fame, so an in-ring return at this point is not on the cards.
Just who could be the winner of the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal?
WrestleMania is on its way – an event where anything can happen and where new stars can be made and reputations confirmed. WWE badly need wrestlers who can breathe a bit of fresh air into the upper reaches of the card.
Could they use the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania to do that?
After all the fuss they made of the match which pays tribute to the legendary WWE Hall of Famer, it’s struggled to even make it onto the main card. 2014 saw Cesaro win the inaugural Battle Royal, for no apparent reason at all. The Big Show was victorious in 2015 and last year Baron Corbin made an immediate impact on the main roster by being the last man in the ring.
WWE didn’t quite turn Cesaro into the quality talent that we know he should be. He’s worth far more than a tag team reign with Sheamus, that is for sure. Forget Big Show. He didn’t need the push and it’s just amazing that he went through the match without a change of attitude. Baron Corbin has shown in recent weeks just how good he can be and an Intercontinental title run or even a Smackdown World title reign wouldn’t come as a shock.
So just who might WWE decide should win this year’s Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal? Winning this isn’t as important as being victorious in a Royal Rumble or winning a Money in the Bank match, but it does show some faith in your ability and hopefully bigger matches in the future. There are always great odds available at 888sport and you’ll find that the current favorite is Braun Strowman at 2/1 He was rumored to win last year’s Battle Royal. but that never materialized. He’s been getting a massive push on Raw in recent weeks and sooner or later will be put into Universal Title contention. A win at WrestleMania would add plenty more momentum to his growing reputation.
Last year Baron Corbin went from rising NXT prospect to Battle Royal winner. Could the same happen this year with Samoa Joe finally making it to the main roster? It wouldn’t be a surprise if he showed up in the Royal Rumble to see what kind of reaction the crowd would give to the former ROH and TNA World Champion. A positive reaction could just convince Vince McMahon to take another Indie star and push him into a prominent position in the company.
Other likely winners? A lot depends on the progress of The New Day in the coming weeks. A split could well be on the cards and if that does happen, Big E. is the most likely to be a success in the singles division. Having him win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal would certainly go a long way to relaunching him in the singles division and if causing conflict, say with Kofi Kingston, there’s a ready-made feud for the Summer.
Big Cass (there are far too many ‘Big’ wrestlers in WWE) is another candidate to use a WrestleMania moment (even a pre-show one), to take his career to another level. It’s probably a bit early for him though and there’s plenty of mileage in his partnership with Enzo Amore. If WWE want to get sentimental, then perhaps victory could go to Mark Henry who’d most likely be appearing in his last WrestleMania, or perhaps Kane whose in-ring career is also reaching its conclusion.
It’s only a Battle Royal but it could well prove to be the most important moment of someone’s career. It might not even be on the main card, but there are plenty of reasons to pay plenty of attention to this match.
WWE title to be defended inside the Elimination Chamber next month
The WWE championship will be defended inside the Elimination Chamber on pay-per-view next month, the final hurdle before earning a spot in the main event of WrestleMania.
The announcement was made by Smackdown Commissioner Shane McMahon yesterday at the beginning of the show. Six WWE Superstars, including the WWE champion, will be competing in the Elimination Chamber match. None of the participants were announced, and probably none of them will be until the Smackdown after the Royal Rumble.
AJ Styles will be defending the WWE title against John Cena at the Rumble and it’s probably a fair bet to say that both men – no matter who will be the champion at the end of the Rumble – will be in the Chamber match.
The Elimination Chamber takes place on February 12 at the Talking Stick Resort in Phoenix, Arizona.
La Luchadora unmasks…it’s Mickie James!
Mickie James was unveiled as La Luchadora last night on Smackdown, marking her first time appearing on the main roster since 2010.
James, as La Luchadora, helped Alexa Bliss retain the Smackdown Women’s title in a cage match against Becky Lynch. While the La Luchadora character has been appearing on WWE television over the past few weeks, it was the first time that she was under the mask and costume.
James was offered a new full-time deal with WWE following her match with Asuka at NXT Takeover: Toronto in November and she accepted the deal. The former 5-time Women’s champion wrestled in TNA after she departed WWE but wrapped up her TNA duties in 2015.
Smackdown’s women roster was in need of some additional help considering the roster is a bit weaker compared to the one on Raw.
Smackdown! Live TV report for 01/17/2017
Tonight, we have a Steel Cage Match for the Women’s championship! Need I say more? Nope! Read on!
Introduction Segment: Video Promo and Welcoming
A montage of Becky Lynch’s feud with Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss plays, which may (or may not) culminate tonight in the Steel Cage! Mauro Ranallo, John “Bradshaw” Layfield, David Otunga, and Tom Phillips all greet us from Memphis, Tennessee.
Arena Promo
Commissioner Shane McMahon struts out. After putting over the Royal Rumble Match at Royal Rumble on January 29th, he moves onto the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, which will return on February 12th. Shane announces that whoever the WWE World champion is by then will be putting their title on the line inside the Elimination Chamber!
WWE World Champion A.J. Styles walks out and has a questionable look on his face. He is not pleased with McMahon’s decision, and neither are the fans as they call out “A.J. Styles.” Shane puts A.J. in his place, insisting that the Elimination Chamber Match will take place. He does put Styles over as “one of ‘the best.’” “You are what you say you are; you are ‘phenomenal.’” “The Phenomenal One” threatens to leave WWE and the USA with his WWE World championship in tow to Japan.
John Cena – who will challenger for the WWE World Championship at Royal Rumble – interrupts and runs to the ring. Styles cuts him off and shuts down Cena and McMahon; The Miz and Maryse now join, claiming to steal Styles’ spotlight. Miz is happy with McMahon’s booking, and says that he will be both the Intercontinental Champion and the WWE World Champion by WrestleMania (on April 2nd).
“The Awesome One” recaps that he already defeated Cena back in 2011 in the main-event of WrestleMania XXVII, and declares that he has brought the I.C. Title back to prominence. A.J. responds with a sexual insult against Miz and Maryse, and John eggs on Miz to retaliate. Shane breaks them
Commercials.
Backstage Promo
Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose walks up to Commissioner Shane McMahon. He wants a new title as the I.C. one he holds smells too much like products that Miz used to keep himself clean. Shane says he really can’t do that. Ambrose moves on and wants a match with Randy Orton. Shane can do that and does!
Match #1: Single – WWE World Champion A.J. Styles VS. The Miz (with Maryse) (Non-Title)
(Note: John Cena is on commentary.)
Miz wristlocks to start, but A.J. flips out of it and grabs Miz’ wrist. He runs into a hammerlock, and then Miz goes to the outside for a break. He gets back in the ring and they perform a test-of-strength on each other, and then A.J. hits a dropkick after Miz runs the ropes a couple of times.
Styles hits a couple of forearms in the corner, but is kneed in the gut as he ran off of the ropes. A.J. soon tries the Calf-Crusher, but Miz wiggles his way to the bottom rope. A.J. continues to get the better until Miz distracts him on the apron, which allows Miz to run at him with a boot.
Commercials.
Miz has A.J. locked in a surfboard-stretch, and then hits a couple of running-dropkicks in the corner; he uses General Manager Daniel Bryan’s “Yes” taunt, but is hit in the gut as he dove off of the top turnbuckle. Miz soon thumbs A.J. in the eye, but Styles reverses a Skull-Krushing Finale attempt into a victory-roll for two! Miz is knocked to the floor with a Pele Kick (thanks, Mauro), and then A.J. chucks Miz into Cena, who shoves him off, but causes a dq!
Winner via Disqualification: The Miz (with Maryse)
Post-match, Miz is given an Attitude Adjustment, as is Styles after he missed a Phenomenal Forearm! Cena stands over A.J. and holds the WWE World championship high.
Up next, Nikki Bella will be out to talk about her rivalry with Natalya.
Commercials.
Arena Promo
While Nikki makes her entrance, replays are shown of hers and Natalya’s brawl from last week’s Smackdown! Live. Nikki challenges Natalya to meet her in the ring and “finish what we started.” Natalya doesn’t respond for a bit until she starts calling from the crowd. She tells Nikki to watch the Titantron, and then goes to the merchandise stand. She rants about how there is nothing of hers to sell, and then Nikki charges her. They brawl once again until assistants pull them apart.
Commercials.
Backstage Promo
Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss is interviewed about her steel cage match with Becky Lynch tonight; she vows to retain against the “Human Chucky Doll.”
Video Promo
Kurt Angle’s career is highlighted. He will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year!
Intercontinental champion Dean Ambrose makes his entrance and will be wrestling Randy Orton, next!
Commercials.
Match #2: Single – Intercontinental champion Dean Ambrose VS. Randy Orton (with Wyatt Family members Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt) (Non-Title)
To start off, a replay is shown of Randy and Luke’s potential dissension. Ambrose tries a quick hit but Orton avoids and rolls-up for a quick two. Dean is distracted by Bray and Luke on the outside, and that allows Randy to measure Ambrose and tie him up in a side-headlock takedown. Orton runs but is tripped with a drop-toehold, and then Dean wrenches at his face.
They work each other over slowly, until Ambrose is able to dive from the top turnbuckle with an elbow onto a standing-Randy for two! They fight to the outside and “The Viper” takes control after running Dean into the ring post and backdropping him onto the announcer’s table.
Commercials.
Orton and Ambrose are going back-and-forth, and then they both try their finishers but reverses each other. Orton kicks Dean into the ropes and then Ambrose hits back with a clothesline! 1 – 2 – Randy raises his shoulder! On the outside, the IC Champion runs through the ropes, sending Orton onto the announce table!
They get back in the ring and Randy drops Dean with the slingshot DDT! Harper hops the apron, which distracts Randy and gives Dean the chance to roll him up for the 1 – 2 – 3!
Winner via Pinfall: Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose
Post-match, Orton and Luke want to tear each other apart but Bray stands in between them. He then slugs Luke in the mouth; Randy smirks, and then Harper walks to the back.
Up next, “The King’s Court” with Jerry “The King” Lawler and Dolph Ziggler!
Commercials.
Arena Promo
Jerry “The King” Lawler is in the ring, donned in his wrestling attire with crown and robe. He is happy to be back, and then gets right to business, asking Dolph Ziggler to come out.
Dolph does join him in the ring, but does not say anything about what Jerry questions him on. “The King” then shows him his attack on Kalisto and Apollo Crews from last week’s Smackdown! Live. Lawler inquires again but Dolph doesn’t respond. Jerry tries one more time, and Ziggler finally talks. He says he didn’t want to fall into Lawler’s “game,” so he also shows a clip; this was from September 2012 when they were in a match together and Dolph elbow-dropped him several times. This was the night that Jerry had his heart-attack. Back live, Lawler calls him a “loser” and then Ziggler super-kicks Jerry in the chest. Dolph leaves and Layfield runs from commentary to aid. Lawler wants Ziggler back in the ring, but Dolph refuses.
Commercials.
Video Promo
“The Wyatt Family will be entering this year’s Royal Rumble match. But first, there is a personal matter I must attend to. You see, a family divided is no family at all. So next week, my brothers Randy Orton and Luke Harper will compete in a match. One will stand and one will fall, but The Wyatts will be stronger than ever,” Bray proclaims.
Becky Lynch and Alexa Bliss make their entrances for the steel cage match!
Commercials.
Match #3: Steel Cage Single for the Women’s Championship – Becky Lynch (Challenger) VS. Alexa Bliss Champion)
(Stipulation: Win by Pinfall, Submission, or Escape)
Alexa tries to get out but Lynch pullers her back. They battle back-and-forth, and then Becky slams Alexa’s head against the turnbuckle a few times. Bliss elbows and kicks back out of the corner, and then tries to climb again; Lynch pulls her away but is planted to the canvas. Alexa slingshots Becky into the turnbuckle, but Lynch lands on her feet and begins to climb. Bliss stops her and then takes over. They both go at it on the top rope, and Alexa rams Lynch’s head into the cage, but then Becky drops Bliss face-first onto the turnbuckle!
Commercials.
Alexa is still in control, trying a pin to no avail. She rams her shoulder into Lynch’s gut against the cage wall, but misses one and that lets Becky regain momentum. She is able to front-dropkick Bliss from the top turnbuckle but only gets two! Lynch scales the wall and is almost out, but Alexa pulls her by the hair back into the ring. Becky trips Bliss onto the turnbuckle and then gives her an exploder suplex!
They scrap and then La Luchadora appears; she blocks the entrance. Lynch is able to turn Alexa into her Disarmer Submission, but La Luchadora kicks Becky away! Bliss capitalizes with a DDT and covers for the victory!
Winner via Pinfall and STILL Women’s Champion: Alexa Bliss
Post-match, both Bliss and Luchadora put the boots to Becky. She fights back and manages to tear off the mask, revealing La Luchadora to be former WWE Women’s champion Mickie James! They pose over Lynch to close the show.
End of Smackdown! Live.
Reporter’s Rumblings
This was a pretty-good Smackdown!, but I felt a little diminished from the first two weeks of the New Year. Onto the analysis:
Excellence: promos by Shane, A.J., Miz, Cena, Nikki, Alexa, Lawler, Ziggler, and Bray. Matches between Miz/Styles and Ambrose/Orton.
Kurt Angle in the Hall of Fame; very surprising, but well-deserved and will be great to have him back!
Alexa as champion needs to continue; she is the best on the Smackdown! Women’s Division, and I want her to keep the championship until WrestleMania, at least.
I really enjoyed the segment with Jerry and Dolph; if this leads to Lawler’s final match, it should be a good one and a great person to have it with!
The potential Triple-Threat lining up between Cena, Miz, and Styles! These three could pull it off, and I think that a match with them at WrestleMania would be fantastic! (Miz pins a non-champion Cena, and then he and A.J. feud since Styles was never pinned, but still lost his championship!)
Bogus: while the brawling and the real-heat feeling between Nikki and Natalya is great, I thought Natalya’s promo was over-the-top.
Where were Tag-Team Champions American Alpha? I believe all champions should be on every week, unless explained in storyline.
For all the hype, I was very disappointed by the Women’s Main-Event; it should’ve been longer, and I also think that La Luchadora should’ve remained a mystery and attacked Alexa after helping her win, setting up Mickie (eventually revealing herself) VS. Alexa for the title at the ‘Rumble.
All-in-all, a decent show, but it failed where it shouldn’t have. Let’s hope they pick it up again next week! Until then, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Fans!
WWE draws mixed criticism for “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka tribute
The WWE-produced Jimmy Snuka tribute video on Raw drew mixed criticism from the Internet wrestling community, some praising it, and some coming down hard on WWE for making a tribute to an alleged murderer.
The murder charges against Snuka, which were dropped earlier this month after he was deemed unfit to stand trial, pretty much dominated Snuka’s final year and a half on this earth. When Snuka was charged, he was also removed from the WWE Hall of Fame website as WWE distanced itself from him and the case.
Snuka was arraigned on November 2, 2015 in Lehigh County Court for the killing of his mistress Nancy Argentino, a case from 1983 which went cold until it was re-opened by the District Attorney following an investigative report in the Morning Call newspaper.
The 72-year-old former professional wrestler was charged two months earlier with third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter after a grand jury determined he repeatedly assaulted Argentino in the former George Washington Motor Lodge in Whitehall Township, then left her in bed to die.
While all charges against Snuka were dropped due to his severe battle with dementia and another losing-battle with stomach cancer, WWE officials were left in a tricky situation where they were going to get criticized if they showed or not showed some kind of tribute on Raw.
WWE went all out instead, first showing the “in memoriam” graphic at the beginning of the show, then Michael Cole going over the story, followed by a tribute video and screenshots from Twitter of past and present WWE Superstars paying tribute to Snuka.
Snuka’s daughter Tamina works for WWE, which makes it even more of a weird situation. There are even many rumors of Vince McMahon knowing about the alleged murder and allegedly paying off someone when Snuka was questioned back then. Snuka was one of McMahon’s biggest stars in the early 80s.
In his biography book, Snuka wrote that he remembers McMahon and himself meeting with District Attorney William Platt, Assistant District Attorney Robert Steinberg, forensic pathologist Isidore Mihalakis, Whitehall Police Detectives Gerry Procanyn, Al Fritzinger and Vincent Geiger in the DA’s office law library. There’s no official record of what was said.
“All I remember is [McMahon] had a briefcase with him,” Snuka wrote. “I don’t know what happened. The only thing I know for sure is I didn’t hurt Nancy.”
This is not the first time that WWE got blasted for airing a video tribute for one of their wrestlers. When Chris Benoit died, the company canceled Raw and dedicated the whole show to him replaying some of his best matches. Just a few hours later it emerged that Benoit killed his family before committing suicide, with some still arguing that WWE knew what went down before Raw but still decided to go ahead with the tribute.
Tajiri and Darren Young sidelined with injuries
Injuries have sidelined two WWE Superstars – Tajiri and Darren Young – for an undetermined amount of time as both of them suffered problems while performing in the ring.
Darren Young was injured yesterday while taping a match against Epico for Main Event. The match was stopped by a WWE doctor at ringside after Young suffered a bad bump on the apron according to eyewitness reports.
Meanwhile, Tajiri has not been cleared to compete according to WWE.COM after the Japanese Buzzsaw injured his right knee at the NXT television tapings a couple of weeks ago. Tajiri teamed up with Nakamura to take on Samoa Joe and Bobby Roode and it was during that match, which seemed to be only for the fans inside Full Sail University, that he suffered the injury.
Tajiri returned to the company full-time earlier this month and is part of the Cruiserweight division.
“Huge announcement” to kick off Smackdown Live tonight
Smackdown will kick off tonight with an announcement by Commissioner Shane McMahon, which WWE.COM dubbed as “huge” and “very big news.” No details were given about what this announcement might be about.
The only match announced for tonight’s live broadcast in the steel cage match for the Smackdown Women’s title at Alexa Bliss defends her gold against Becky Lynch.
Also tonight, WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler returns on WWE television to host The King’s Court with special guest Dolph Ziggler.
Monday Night Raw TV report for 01/16/2017
Hello! Welcome to the Raw Report. I’m @TheMagnumDA. Tonight’s show opens with a dedication to “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka, followed by a touching opening video for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
We are LIVE in Little Rock, Arkansas. I love southern crowds…the people are typically vocal and exuberant.
Roman Reigns comes out to start the show! They recap Reigns losing the US Championship to Chris Jericho last week. Reigns says that nobody, including KO, can beat him one-on-one. Before he goes any further, Paul Heyman arrives and declares that a storm is coming to Raw. Brock Lesnar will be joining us TONIGHT. The fans start a huge GOLDBERG chant, and Heyman is obviously upset about this. He tells the fans Goldberg’s not here tonight. “Eat, Sleep, Elimination, Repeat!”
Reigns cuts him off, but Y2J and KO show up! They declare themselves to be the US/Universal Champions! The mere mention of Jericho winning the Royal Rumble makes KO’s skin crawl. KO declares himself the “longest reigning Universal Champion.” Well, the other guy only held it one day…so there ya go.
Seth Rollins comes out to a huge reaction! He tells the crowd he knows what it takes to win the main event of Wrestlemania, and that anything can happen. Yet ANOTHER interruption, as Braun Strowman arrives and stares down Roman as Brock Lesnar’s music hits!
Brock comes out and he’s PISSED. As he comes up to the ring, Sami Zayn (?!) climbs on Braun Strowman as a brawl breaks out! Lesnar suplexes Zayn, and Braun finally has his showdown with Lesnar. Strowman walks off, and Lesnar gets hit with a Superman Punch! Reigns clears house, and Lesnar returns serve with an F-5! What chaos!
Match #1 – Enzo & Big Cass vs. Rusev & Jinder Mahal
Graves goes into 2011 Michael Cole mode, saying that he gets “sick to his stomach” at the sight of Enzo & Cass. Why do I feel like that’s Vince speaking through the headset? Mahal and Enzo blow a spot in the corner, and Enzo tags Cass in. Cass then goes after Rusev, and clotheslines Mahal over the top rope! Man, Enzo just isn’t the same since his injury.
After the break, Enzo & Cass continue to double team Mahal. Rusev breaks up a roll-up attempt with a nasty slam on Enzo. Rusev kicks Enzo down and bodyslams him. I love how Rusev is trying to move quick in light of Jericho calling him a “Sloth” on Twitter.
Mahal hits a knee to Enzo and applies a rope choke. Rusev comes in and dominates Amore. He puts him in a bear-hug, and the crowd tries to rally Enzo. He gets to a corner and kicks Rusev in the corner, and follows that up with a Tornado DDT!
Cass is in and he’s a HOUSE OF FIRE. Fallaway slam and a splash for Mahal! The Empire Elbow hits for one, two, but Rusev interrupts! Mahal gets a roll-up on Cass, but Cass nails him with a nasty boot. Cass and Enzo hit the Rocket Launcher for one, two, three! Enzo & Cass pick up the victory. Sloppy, but entertaining. **
Jack Gallagher is on his way to the ring for commentary! He looks totally dapper.
Match #2 – Ariya Daivairi vs. Lince Dorado
Dorado almost completely eats it jumping off the top rope during his entrance. What have I been telling you about people in capes? Daivairi backs Dorado into the corner and hammers Lince. Lince returns with a springboard crossbody.
Ariya puts Dorado in the corner again and continues to punch and kick. He starts yelling at Gallagher. Dorado takes advantage and hits a chop and a Springboard Stunner for two. Crowd loved seeing that! It’s hard to call this match because they keep cutting back to Austin Aries and Jack Gallagher.
Dorado missed a crossbody off the top, and Daivairi hits a wicked lariat. He puts Lince in a Cobra Clutch Crossface for the submission! That’s an AWESOME finish. *1/2, too short.
Gallagher is right ANGRY, pointing his umbrella in Daivairi’s general direction! Tomorrow night, they face off in an “I Forfeit!” Match on 205 Live. This just keeps getting sillier. I love it.
Recap of The Undertaker declaring himself eligible for the Royal Rumble. This is followed by a recap of the UK Championship Tournament. Fantastic viewing this past weekend, if I may say so. Tyler Bate defeated Pete Dunne in an incredible final. After this, we recap a video that was on the WWE Facebook page. It’s Sasha Banks testing her left knee during a training session. As she’s running the ropes, NIA JAX shows up and straight up splatters her with the standing Vader splash. Jax looked like a Kodiak Bear right there. She’s scary as hell.
Match #3: WWE Tag Team Championship Match
Sheamus & Cesaro (c) vs. Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson
Cesaro and Anderson to start. They trade offense and Sheamus gets a blind tag as Cesaro hits a backbreaker. Cesaro and Sheamus hit some double team offense, including a double stomp that Cesaro almost missed. Anderson takes advantage and tags in Gallows. They hit a pretty pedestrian running Demolition Decapitation for two. Gallows pounds Cesaro in the corner, and pounds some more.
Tag into Anderson, who hits a snapmare and knees in the face for two. Anderson has an armbar on the injured arm of Cesaro, and tags Gallows back in. Gallows tries a back suplex, and Sheamus gets another blind tag and a shoulder tackle. Sheamus climbs the top rope and hits a lariat for two. Gallows gets caught in the ropes and Sheamus hits the forearms from the outside. Anderson hits a drop kick to Sheamus’ knee, and Gallows hits a SWANK mafia kick. This sends Sheamus to the outside as we go to break.
When we return, Gallows splashes Sheamus in the corner, and Anderson tags in to hit a nasty suplex for the two! Anderson tells Gallows to “Finish it”. Sheamus comes in and he’s ALSO A HOUSE OF FIRE! He hits European uppercuts and a hard drop kick for two. Giant Swing on Anderson, but Gallows breaks it up. Cesaro holds him at bay and nails Anderson with a 619 instead! Cesaro takes out Gallows outside, and uppercuts Anderson from the outside! He comes inside and hits another uppercut for one, two, NO!
Cesaro tries the Giant Swing again, and sends him for a half-dozen rotations before trying the Sharpshooter. Gallows comes in and attacks Cesaro, breaking it up. Anderson tries a two-count but he cannot put away Cesaro. Anderson starts slapping him around, and Cesaro fights back. As this happens, Sheamus comes in and clears everyone out, including the ref! Another ref comes in as Anderson & Gallows hit the Magic Killer. ONE, TWO, THREE! We have NEW champions! But wait…the original ref comes to…and DQ’s Sheamus? Who exactly does this help? Anderson & Gallows win the match, but not the championships. **
Recap video of opening segment. This is followed by a tribute video to Jimmy Snuka. My condolences go out to his family, but my heart goes out to the family of Nancy Argentino. So many unanswered questions.
Sami Zayn is backstage with Roman and Seth Rollins. A 6-man tag match is set up for tonight. Zayn acts like a total geek here.
Match #4 – WWE Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann vs. Tony Nese
Neville vs. Swann is announced for the Royal Rumble. As they play a recap video, Neville comes into the ring from the crowd and kicks Swann’s head in! Swann fights back and they brawl while the refs try to split them up. Nese blindsides Swann and Neville pulls him off. Nese runs back to attack Swann, but Neville throws him out of the ring. Neville comes back with another kick to the head, and apparently we’re not going to have a match. BUT WE TAPED THE ROPES PURPLE!
Backstage, Neville calls Americans “hypocrites” and says at the Royal Rumble…Swann will be broken by the King of the Cruiserweights.
New Day is out pouring Booty-O’s on errrrrybody! They talk about the STACKED line-up for the Royal Rumble match. Xavier kills it doing impressions of everybody. My two favorite are Braun Strowman (“I don’t know, what does he do?”) and The Undertaker (awesome eye-roll).
They inherit the Three Musketeers rule, where if one of them win the Rumble…all three of them will win the Rumble. Titus interrupts and challenges any member of New Day for their Royal Rumble spot. He tells them to get in a huddle and figure it out. Kofi rips on Titus’ inability to know what a huddle actually looks like, otherwise he’d still be playing football (burn!)
Match #5 – Royal Rumble Qualifier
Big E vs. Titus O’Neil
Titus pounds on Big E in the corner, but Big E reverses and hits a big elbow for 2. Titus tries to shoulder tackle E, but E moves out of the way and they go outside. Titus shoves Xavier outside, and hits a Boot on Big E afterwards. He gets a few nearfalls, followed by a few elbows for another two. Titus hits a nasty Dominator for one, two, NO!
Titus puts Big E in the most pitiful crosslock I’ve ever seen, and finally settles in with a sleeperhold. E fights out, but Titus hits a powerslam and a legdrop for two. Titus slaps Big E around and then attempts…I don’t even know how to call this. Titus puts Big E in an abdominal stretch. Out of nowhere, Titus runs his hand down his tongue. Then Titus starts slapping Big E’s stomach. For some reason, he goes south and start to slap Big E’s ass. This is all very bizarre.
Big E fights out, hits a couple of clotheslines and a belly-to-belly. Big Splash on Titus, followed by the Big Ending for the win! Big E keeps his spot for the Royal Rumble. *1/2 I don’t even know what to say to that. What was Titus thinking during that abdominal stretch segment?
Charlotte comes out for an interview. She plugs her match with Bayley for the Women’s Title at the Royal Rumble. Charlotte says that when you look up the word “Average” in the dictionary, you see a picture of Bayley. Very original. Charlotte’s starting to get the “What” treatment!
Charlotte starts to show pictures of Bayley with WWE wrestlers. Then Charlotte starts to get a little creepy, pulling some of Bayley’s personal poems and writings out for people to see. Then Charlotte starts insulting the crowd. This is starting to fall off the tracks. Then they pull out some footage of Bayley crying as she read one of her writings about wanting to be a pro wrestler.
Charlotte calls her work childish. As she continues on, Bayley shows up and runs her off. Bayley says that none of this is necessary. Charlotte says that she’s nothing more than an “average fan”. Bayley says she has no shame for who she is. She tells a story about her Dad taking her to shows even when they had no money. The fans start to get behind Bayley, but then she starts spitting out ridiculous rhymes (“I’ll be smiling cheek-to-cheek when I break your PPV streak!”) and the fans turn on her. That was not supposed to happen.
I’m not going to lie…when she started doing this, I immediately thought of the Grim Reaper in “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey” when he says, “You might be a King or a little street sweeper, sooner or later you’re going to dance with the reaper!” It was that level of corniness.
Yet ANOTHER recap of the opening segment.
Kevin Owens and Jericho are talking to Strowman backstage. They give Strowman a couple of ideas for tonight’s match. This includes pulverizing Reigns and Rollins. Strowman tells them that he’s going to make his opponents scream for their lives. Well, alright then.
Match #6 – Cedric Alexander vs. The Brian Kendrick
MORE PURPLE TAPE! They recap Cedric dumping Alicia Fox and her subsequent meltdown. Kendrick hits a drop toe hold into the corner. Cedric gets a headscissors, dropkick, and a springboard slingshot moonsault. Cedric runs inside, but Kendrick catches him with a dropkick. He follows up with a superkick, but it only gets two. Kendrick tries to get Cedric in a Full Nelson, but Cedric fights out. Cedric hits some chops and runs for the ropes, only to get caught by a Kendrick back elbow.
Kendrick runs into the corner, but Alexander catches him with a wicked kick and a shoulder tackle in the corner. He hits a sweet kick and the top rope front bulldog for two! Kendrick counters a back suplex into the Captain’s Hook! Alicia Fox shows up and pulls the rope towards Cedric. He grabs it and goes outside to see why she’s here. Kendrick kicks Alexander right in the back of the head.
Kendrick tries the Captain’s Hook, but it’s countered into the SWEET Lumbar Check for the one, two, three! **1/4 Cedric throws Alicia Fox some shade afterwards, for good measure.
Nia Jax backstage. She says that Sasha is not “The Boss” anymore, and for once…people are talking about Nia Jax. Someone’s been craving attention.
The first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2017 is…KURT ANGLE (!!!) I take it his in-ring career is over, then? Maybe it’s for the best.
Main Event 6-Man Tag Team Match – WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens, WWE US Champion Chris Jericho, and Braun Strowman vs. Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Sami Zayn
They talk trash to start, and Zayn runs for Strowman right away. Pier 6 brawl to start. Reigns and Strowman are the last two men in the ring. Strowman throws Reigns out of the ring with ease as we go to commercial.
When we return, Jericho gets the tag from Braun as all three men beat Reigns down in the corner. Jericho catches a snapmare and a kick to Reigns’ back. Y2J slaps Roman in the face, and Reigns returns serve with a huge right hand. Zayn tags in and throws Jericho into the turnbuckle. He hits a backbreaker and a standing moonsault, but it only gets two.
Owens tags in and it’s CHAPTER CCXVXVXVXIII of Zayn vs. Owens. Owens kicks Zayn in the back, and works on the back before putting him in a sleeperhold. Zayn fights out, but Owens hits an enziguiri for two. Jericho tags in and hits a huge suplex on Sami for another two-count. Jericho throws Zayn in the corner and clotheslines him. Jericho goes to the top, but Sami catches him on the way down with a fist to the gut.
Owens tags in and catches Sami before he can tag out. Owens goes for a splash but Zayn gets the knees up. Hot tag to Roman Reigns, who is a HOUSE OF FIRE! Clotheslines in the corner for Reigns, followed by a big boot to KO. Reigns locks and loads for the Superman Punch, but Y2J interrupts. That’s interrupted by Seth, who gets dropped by Braun. Braun gets on the apron and decks Roman, allowing KO to catch a superkick.
After the second break, Reigns is being destroyed by the opposing team. KO screams “WATCH THIS!” and then puts Reigns in a SLEEPERHOLD OF AMAZING DISCOMFORT. Devastating move. Reigns fights out, and catches KO with a Samoan Drop. Hot tag to Seth Rollins, and we have our FOURTH HOUSE OF FIRE! Blockbuster to Jericho! Stereo stage dives by Zayn and Rollins!
Rollins hits a flying knee on Jericho for one, two, NO! This sequence is really heating up. Rollins tries to hit a Pedigree on Jericho, but Braun Strowman gets tagged in. Rollins tries to knock Strowman down, but Braun catches him. Zayn interferes and gets dropped, and Rollins’ Pedigree attempt is failed. Rollins hits two running knees on Strowman and a crossbody to the outside on KO & Y2J!
Zayn tries a splash on Strowman for one, two, NO!! The crowd is totally psyched. Zayn tries the Heluva Kick, but gets massacred by Strowman. Running Powerslam gets the one, two three! Braun’s awesome run continues. ***
Braun goes to destroy Sami after the match on the Raw broadcast booth, but Rollins clips Strowman with a chair! Reigns hits an AMAZING Spear on the staging area! The former Shield brothers go to dismantle the table, but Y2J & KO stop them. Rollins hits a Pedigree on Y2J, but KO clocks him with a chair. Then Roman gets nailed with the same chair, just because. Show closes with KO hitting a HUGE Power Bomb through the broadcast booth.
Goldberg next week in Cleveland! BE THERE!
Kurt Angle only notified about HOF news on Monday afternoon
Kurt Angle told ESPN.COM that he only found out that he was selected to headline the 2017 WWE Hall of Fame on Monday afternoon, just mere hours before the news made headlines on wrestling websites and ESPN.COM, who were given the exclusive.
The former WWE and TNA champion said he was shocked as he has been out of WWE for so long and he didn’t expect it. “It’s a huge honor. This is the only Hall of Fame that I’m not in and probably [the one] I want to be in the most. This is the one that means the most for me. I had a lot of fun entertaining the fans for seven years with WWE, and I’m glad that my hard work paid off,” Angle said.
Angle acknowledged that he spoke with Triple H last May about a potential return but no one followed through and thought that WWE either decided not to do anything with him, or just plain forgot. He revealed that when Triple H personally made the call to break the news to him, he said the Hall of Fame is the first thing they want to do. “And whether I wrestle or not after this – which is irrelevant right now – I’m just really proud to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame,” Angle added. He said this contract runs through the Hall of Fame ceremony only and does not include a match at WrestleMania.
“We have not talked about any wrestling,” Angle said. “Whether we do or not, that remains to be seen. There are no guarantees. I think right now the most important thing is the Hall of Fame, and I think both sides feel that way.”
When he was asked to describe his relationship with Vince McMahon and Triple H over the past decade or so, Angle was blunt in his response. “There wasn’t one,” Angle replied. “It was one of those things where, when I left WWE, it wasn’t on bad terms. It was just that I couldn’t do anything for them anymore because I was banged up and they couldn’t do anything more for me. I never felt ill will against them. It wasn’t like a nasty parting, it was just our time is up. You go your way, and I’ll go mine.”
You can read the full interview at http://es.pn/2j24gxk.
Kurt Angle to headline the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2017
The WWE Hall of Fame will finally get its own Olympic gold medalist as WWE announced yesterday night that Kurt Angle will be the headliner for the class of 2017.
“Kurt Angle’s accomplishments both in the Olympics and WWE were extraordinary,” said WWE’s Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events and Creative Paul Levesque. “He was one of the most gifted athletes to ever enter the ring, and we are honored to welcome him into the WWE Hall of Fame.”
Triple H also added on Twitter later that he’s never seen an individual adapt and succeed in the wrestling business so naturally. Kurt Angle, tweeting right after the announcement, simply said, “I’m coming home!”
The 48-year-old made his pro wrestling debut in 1998, signing an 8-year deal with the WWE. Initially, Angle was sent to a developmental territory before making his full in-ring debut on WWE television at the 1999 Survivor Series.
Angle’s rise in the WWE ranks was quick and he won the WWE title in his first year, defeating The Rock. He continued to be one of the main eventers in the company, having epic feuds with the likes of Triple H, Steve Austin, Brock Lesnar, Eddie Guerrero, Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker, and many others.
Things turned for the worst in 2006 and after he was drafted to the ECW brand, Angle was fired from the company due to health issues, mainly addiction.
After leaving WWE, Angle quickly signed on with TNA where he had some of his best matches in his career. He was inducted in the TNA Hall of Fame in 2013 and had his farewell tour with the company in January 2016.
Throughout his WWE career, he won the WWE title 4 times, the World Heavyweight title, the WCW title once, and the WCW United States title once, the WWE European, Hardcore and Intercontinental title once, and the WWE Tag Team title once with Chris Benoit.
In TNA, he won the TNA World title six times, the X Division title once, and the TNA World Tag Team title twice with Sting and AJ Styles.
Kurt Angle becomes the second person to be inducted in both the WWE and TNA Hall of Fames. The first one was Sting.