With Smackdown moving to Thursdays this month on SyFy in its original time slot, NXT on the WWE Network had to be moved so it doesn’t clash.
The show will now be airing on Wednesdays at 8PM EST on the WWE Network starting January 14. It’s not known if WWE will also change the tapings to Wednesdays instead of Thursdays but the NXT specials every quarter will also move to Wednesday to avoid going head to head with Smackdown.
WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler is currently hospitalized in Memphis at the Methodist North Hospital and is being treated for diverticulitis.
Lawler’s girlfriend, Lauryn McBride, posted some photos of her and Lawler sporting new year hats and acting goofy. “He’s up and awake for the time being, so we decided to put our cute hats on and take some NYE pics of our awesome hospital NYE party,” she wrote.
Diverticulitis is small, bulging sacs or pouches of the inner lining of the intestine that become inflamed or infected. It’s the same condition that Brock Lesnar was suffering from when he was in the UFC and the reason why he preferred to hang up his MMA gloves at that time.
Lawler is expected to be released from hospital this weekend.
CM Punk has chosen Roufusport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as his new MMA gym as he begins his journey in the UFC.
Roufusport was ideal for Punk as it’s just a 90 minute drive away from where he lives in Chicago which means he doesn’t have to relocate to train.
The MMA academy has two champions in its group at the moment, Anthony Pettis, the UFC Lightweight champion, and Ben Askren, the One FC Welterweight champion.
“I am excited to work with him,” the owner of Roufusport, Duke Roufus, told MMAFighting.com. “I’m just that type of person, I believe in positive mental attitude. You work hard and dedicate yourself and magic things happen.”
Roufus added that Punk is his friend and while everyone would have loved to work with him, he said those people know his wrestling persona whereas he knows the real Phil Brooks.
“I’m going to connect and find a way for Phil to be successful. That’s what I bring to the table. And I’m really excited about the challenge, honestly. There are so many naysayers, but I enjoy that,” Roufus said.
WWE stocks ended the year 2014 at $11.30 a piece, dropping 8.43% in aftermarket hours after it finished the trading day at $12.34.
It was quite a turbulent year for the stocks, reaching a 52-week high of $31.98 earlier this year as Wall Street was bullish on WWE Network subscribers and the TV rights renewal with NBC Universal.
But that all came crumbling down when Network subscribers were disappointing and WWE got way less than they envisioned for their U.S. television rights, with stocks losing 50% of its value the day after WrestleMania. The 52-week low was $10.55.
One of TNA’s few remaining pay-per-views, Lockdown, will now be airing as part of Impact with tapings being held on Friday, January 9, at the Manhattan Center in New York.
All matches during this broadcast will be inside the 6 sides of steel including the main event known as Lethal Lockdown.
The decision to put a former pay-per-view on free television was done to start Impact on Destination America on a good note and it’s not known if Lockdown will be replaced with another show for pay-per-view.
Lockdown – which usually airs in March – was a PPV only event along with Sacrifice, Slammiversary, and Bound For Glory last year.
TNA will be taping several weeks worth of TV shows during three days in New York so most likely the Lockdown episode will still air in either late February or early March.
In a video interview with WWE.COM, Daniel Bryan discussed the “disbelief” after he was told he’s cleared to return to the ring after so many struggles and hurdles and no one knowing what was going on with his arm.
Bryan said they found a guy in Denver, Colorado, and he said he knew how to fix him. He didn’t believe him at first but sure enough, it was true.
The former champion added that he doesn’t know life without professional wrestling and that was a hard realization when he was faced with this injury. He said he’s thrilled to come back and this is what he loves to do and there’s nothing in the world he wants to do.
TNA Wrestling today announced that Hall of Famer and former champion Kurt Angle has signed a new contract with the company.
“Kurt Angle’s arrival nearly a decade ago put TNA on the map. Now Kurt leads a fresh, young IMPACT WRESTLING locker room into a whole new era on Destination America,” said TNA President Dixie Carter. “Once Kurt steps inside those ropes there is no greater talent in professional wrestling.”
Angle has teased an announcement for two months saying he is choosing the deal that best fits him. Rumors were that WWE wanted him on a full time job but Angle was hoping for a part time gig, something that WWE wasn’t interested in. Angle and WWE parted ways not in the best of terms in 2006.
“I’m extremely excited to remain with TNA Wrestling,” said Angle. “The driving force behind my signing is the honesty, great communication and positive changes being made by Dixie Carter and John Gaburick. Things are moving upward and forward at TNA, and 2015 will be a great one for all of us at IMPACT WRESTLING.”
Randy Orton was advertised to appear at the Verizon Center last night in Washington, DC, and he did, only after the show went off the air though.
After cameras stopped rolling, Big Show, Seth Rollins and J&J Security continued the attack on John Cena and after a few, the former WWE champion showed up for the save.
Orton then gave Noble, Mercury, and Rollins an RKO while John Cena gave the AA to the Big Show to send the fans home happy after silencing them with the return of The Authority.
The crowd popped huge as soon as Orton’s music hit the speakers and played along as well for every RKO he delivered. You can see the video below.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebeq4AJZK1E&w=700]
The whole Survivor Series Team Cena vs Team Authority match seems like it was for nothing as yesterday on Raw, The Authority made their return and will start 2015 in charge again.
WWE pulled the plug on the angle just after a month when Sting “saved” everyone from The Authority and Triple H and Stephanie McMahon raised a glass to the new year at the top of the ramp as the show went off the air.
The Authority were brought back after John Cena was forced to make a decision thanks to Seth Rollins’ master plan. Rollins threatened to Curb Stomp Edge on a briefcase unless Cena brings back WWE’s power couple as J&J Security and Big Show guarded the ring. Cena then saved his former rival, by announcing that The Authority can come back in power.
As per the Survivor Series angle, Cena was the only person who could bring back The Authority back to Monday Night Raw so at least WWE kept that part of deal intact.
Former WWE World Heavyweight champion Daniel Bryan announced on Raw last night that he will be entering the 2015 Royal Rumble 30-man over-the-top rope match.
Just hours before appearing on Raw, Bryan sent out a tweet that many thought he would be announcing his retirement. “Everyone comes to a crossroads in their life and I’ve come to mine. I look forward to telling you all about it tonight on #Raw,” he wrote.
But that wasn’t the case and the former champ will be lacing up his boots again for the first time in 8 months. Bryan last wrestled in May against Kane at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view, successfully defending the title he won at WrestleMania XXX.
Bryan struggled to get back in shape after he underwent neck surgery and there was a possibility of him undergoing another surgery but the second surgery was avoided.
Tonight is the last Raw of 2014! Hopefully, it will be much more exciting than last week’s, and end off the year with a bang! What will go down, as we continue the build towards Royal Rumble? Will be there any surprise appearances? How about a title change or two? All of the above, would be great, so let’s read on to find out!
Monday Night Raw TV Report for December 29th, 2014
Introduction Segment: Video Promo
A reflective video of Edge’s retirement speech from April 11th, 2011 is shown, then the announcement that he and his long-time friend and tag-team partner Christian will be hosting Raw!
Segment #2: Welcoming and Arena Promo
Michael Cole welcomes us to Raw, then Edge and Christian make their long-awaited return. They both want to finish Raw well, so but Christian wants to have a guest on his “Peep Show.” Edge debates this, saying it should be “The Cutting Edge” instead; they both finally agree to combine and go with “The Cutting Edge Peep Show.” Edge decides that the first guest will be “the self-proclaimed ‘Future Of The WWE’” Seth Rollins, but not being interviewed; instead he will be facing Roman Reigns! Christian then books a match, a Champion VS. Champion match, with United States Champion Rusev taking on Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler! Christian then gets a vote on Daniel Bryan, to a very loud pop of course, and says he will be out later tonight to talk about his career.
Before they can go on, WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar and his advocate, Paul Heyman, interrupt (again, to a loud pop!). Pual E. has the microphone and inquires to both Edge and Christian with their severe life-threatening injuries “would swim in the shark-infested waters that are inhabited by the biggest, most unmerciful predator in the WWE Universe, the reigning and defending WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar.” Heyman might have put them at ease, by invoking that Lesnar is not interested in them, but in a “fresh” body, his challenger at the Royal Rumble, John Cena.
The man himself now walks out and face a smirking “Beast Incarnate.” Everyone in the ring listens to the barrage of “Let’s go Cena/Cena sucks” chants. Cena keeps it short and sweet, telling Lesnar he doesn’t want to “knock him clean into 2015” to avoid Brock having a reason as to why he is not 100%, then goes to attack Heyman! Lesnar runs at John, who catches him in an A.A. position, but the WWE World Heavyweight Champion wiggles out and retreats with Heyman to the back.
Up next is the Champion VS. Champion contest!
Commercials.
Match #1: Intercontinental Champion “The Show-Off” Dolph Ziggler VS. United States Champion Rusev (with Lana) (Non-Title)
This contest begins with Rusev rushing Ziggler into the corner and kicking away at him. Ziggler fires back with punches, but Rusev rams him with shoulders. Rusev starts to dominate, dropping repeated elbows like Dolph. He clamps on a grounding submission, but Ziggler breaks out of it with a sit-down jawbreaker and an uppercut! He leaps onto Rusev but it tossed off, however Dolph slides under and nails a high-dropkick then a leaping-DDT! Rusev goes to the outside for a break.
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The United States Champion is back in control, wearing him down with the same submission as a above, but Ziggler punches out and jawbreaks him naturally, then twice with the ropes! The I.C. champ flies off the turnbuckle with a crossbody, but Rusev catches him! Dolph gets out of it and puts Rusev to the mat with another diving dropkick from the turnbuckle! Ziggler ducks a clothesline and plants Rusev with a Fameasser for a near-fall!
Rusev attempts a backdrop, but Dolph flips out and goes for a superkick, however Rusev catches him and spins him abroad the ring! Dolph tries again and manages this time to hit the superkick for a two! Rusev bullies Dolph again, repeatedly stomping him and using the ropes, which forces the referee to call for the bell!
Winner via Disqualification: Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler
Post-match, Rusev continues to beat on Ziggler, and locks on The Accolade Camel Clutch submission, using the ropes. Referees try to break hi up, but to no avail. Rusev eventually lets go, and then faces a “big” challenge from Ryback! “The Big Guy” charges down and fends off Rusev and his cohort Lana, then helps Ziggler up and stands tall.
The commentators announces that the Tag-Team Championships will be on the line later, as Champion Miz and Mizdow will defend against The Usos!
Commercials.
Segment #3: Arena Promo
Ryback is (surprisingly) still in the ring. He talks about his career in WWE so far, which all started with the “Million Dollar Tough Enough” over 10 years ago (2004, I believe.) Ryback says after being eliminated (footage was shown, and then he was known as Ryan Reeves), he “fell into a deep depression.” He was embarrassed by not getting the job done and did not speak to his family for nearly a year because of that guilt. Ryback says all he had was WrestleMania DVDs in his apartment and those refreshed him on what he didn’t have. However, it all changed after reading a book called “The Secret” about positivity and changing your mind/life for the better. Ryback says he was brought back to WWE, where he debuted as Skip Sheffield with The Nexus. (Cheers, then footage is shown.) His career stalled again, as he broke his ankle in three places shortly after (he asks the cameraman to go close-up on his leg scar) Following recovery, Skip Sheffield re-debuted as Ryback. All this has lead to Ryback being who he is, and now it is a “big guy kicking another big guy’s ass thing” between him Rusev.
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Match #2: Single – Natalya (with Tyson Kidd) VS. Divas Champion Nikki Bella (with Brie Bella) (Non-Title)
Nikki sweeps up Natalya right away and punches, but Natalya makes a comeback. She shoves Nikki off the apron, to which Tyson caught! Nikki smiles at Tyson, but Natalya is not pleased with her husband. Nikki takes advantage, finishing Natalya with the “Rack Attack” (dropdown Torture Rack)!
Winner via Pinfall: Divas Champion Nikki Bella
Segment #4: Backstage Promo
Tag-Team Champions Miz and Danien Mizdow are talking when Naomi suddenly comes up and hugs Miz. They both as Mizdow to leave, then Naomi gives her gratitude for Miz getting her music career started. She walks off and leaves Miz with a puzzled look.
Commercials.
Match #3: Tag-Team for the Tag-Team Championship – The Usos (Jimmy and Jey) VS. The Miz and Damien Mizdow (Champions)
After formal introductions, Jimmy starts out with Miz, hurrying him into the turnbuckle. Miz hits back hard with furious punches and stomps. Naomi is shown watching on backstage. Jimmy takes control and splashes Miz in the corner, then tags in his brother. Both Usos work over Miz until Miz catches a rocketing Jey and jawbreaks him on the ropes. (Loud “we want Mizdow” chants break out.)
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Miz is still in control over Jey, then teases the fans on switching with Mizdow. Jey gets the hot-tag to Jimmy, who gives a Samoan drop to Miz and tosses Mizdow over the ropes. Jimmy soars over the ropes onto Miz, but in the ring is caught with a kick and DDT by “The Awesome One!” Jimmy counters with an uppercut, then spirals off the top with a twisting plancha! 1 – 2 – Miz gets the shoulder up! Miz manages to trip Jimmy up and turn his legs into the Figure 4! Jimmy fights it and inches his way to the rope; he clasps on for the break!
Miz tries the Leglock again, but Jimmy reverses into a Tequila Sunrise (former WWF/WCW star Konnan’s submission). Mizdow breaks it up, but is shoved into a superkick, by his own partner! Jey superkicks Miz and Superfly Splashes him, but Miz gets his knees up to block and drives him down with the Skull-Krushing Finale! 1 – 2 – Jey raises his shoulder! A great close-up of a shocked Miz is shown, then he is quickly taken down by both Usos. They double-superkick him, then Jimmy flies off with The Superfly! 1 – 2 – 3!
Winners and NEW Tag-Team Champions: The Usos (Jimmy and Jey)
Post-match, Naomi runs out and celebrates with her Husband and Brother-In-Law. Jerry “The King” Lawler conducts an interview, where Jey happy to reign again, and Jimmy and Naomi reveal that their “issues” were a ploy all along to swerve The Miz, which obviously worked!
Segment #5: Video Promo
With Seth Rollins scheduled to take on Roman Reigns later tonight, a montage of their history is aired.
Commercials.
Match #4: Single – Cesaro VS. Bad News Barrett
Cesaro is in the ring, sitting in the corner with a towel over head kind of like former WWF, ECW, and WCW star Raven. Cesaro rants on how 2014 was not the year it was supposed to be for him.
“Bad News” quickly punishes Cesaro with a backbreaker and knee-choke on the ropes, then knees and boots him to the outside. He runs at Cesaro, who catches him and smashes his face against the barricade. Cesaro follows up with a top-rope axe-handle dive for a two-count, then pounds away on Wade. He works on the injured shoulder of Barrett, then goes for repeated German-suplexes. Barrett countered with an elbow, but Cesaro hits back with a clothesline and fierce punches. Barrett nails Cesaro in the gut with a kick then a clothesline, but Cesaro tries a comeback with a Cesaro-Swing. Barrett manages to get the upperhand, literately, as he knocks Cesaro down with The Bullhamer Elbow for the victory!
Winner via Pinfall: “Bad News” Barrett
Segment #6: Backstage Promo
Luke Harper cuts a Bray Wyatt-esque oratory, saying that people like him have always been shunned, but he is “your nightmare.”
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Segment #7: Video Promo
“The Ascension Will Rise Tonight!”
Match #5: Single – “The Real American” Jack Swagger VS. Luke Harper
Harper dominates the bout until Swagger dumps Luke to the floor and gives him a running shoulder-block.
Commercials.
Luke is back in control, wearing Jack down with a submission then delivering a big boot. He covers, but Jack kicks out! “The Real American” starts to make another comeback, chop-blocking Harper and slamming him within an amateur-type suplex. He attempts to grapple The Patriot Lock Ankle Lock, but Harper gets out of it and gives him a superkick! Swagger manages to dropdown and clutch Luke in the Patriot Lock, but Harper grabs the ropes. Jack bounces off the middle rope with a Swaggerbomb, but Harper had gotten his boots up, then bashes Swagger with a discus clothesline and takes this bout!
Winner via Pinfall: Luke Harper
Segment #8: Locker Room Promo
Edge, Christian, and John Cena are reminiscing about Cena and Edge’s long-standing feud, until Christian makes an off-hand remark about Edge beating up John’s dad. Christian awkwardly leaves, but Cena gives Edge his credit for both of them putting on a show “night-after-night.” They hug and Cena walks off.
Roman Reigns makes his entrance for his match against Seth Rollins, next!
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Match #6: Single – Roman Reigns VS. “Mr. Money In The Bank” Seth Rollins (with J & J Security)
(Note: The Big Show also came out and is on commentary.) Roman begins with a standing side-headlock and whipping Rollins off the ropes, then giving him a shoulder-block. Seth takes a quick break to the outside with Noble and Mercury. Reigns continues to dominate in the ring, flipping Rollins from the apron to the canvas then arm-locking him. Seth gets the quick jump on Reigns, slamming his head to the mat and stomping away. He works him over with a grounding rear chinlock, but Roman battles out with a couple blows, then a jumping roll-up for two! He turns the roll-up into a powerbomb, which puts Rollins to the outside. Reigns follows and intimidates Mercury and Noble a couple times. He nails Rollins with the floor-to-apron front-dropkick, but Seth gains advantage again after Noble and Mercury helped.
Commercials.
Rollins is back to the mat with the rear chinlock, and turns a suplex attempt into a chop-block. Seth flatlines Reigns into the middle turnbuckle, but Roman catches Rollins with a turn-around gutwrench slam! Both men are down, then lock up to get to their feet. They punch at each other, then Reigns hits a flying clothesline! He one-arm slams Seth for a two-count and continues to dominate. He catches Rollins’ kick and flips him over, but Rollins lands on his feet and hits an Enziguri! 1 – 2 – Reigns lifts his shoulder! Rollins is measuring Reigns and goes for The Curb Stomp; he misses and they trade back-and-forth until Reigns hits The Superman Punch! Reigns roars for The Spear, but The Big Show pulls him put of the ring, causing the bell to signal.
Winner via Disqualification: Roman Reigns
Post-match, Show punches and hurled Reigns across the announce table! He then turns over the structure onto Roman, which is speculated that he is “seriously hurt.”
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Segment #9: Backstage Promo
Rollins, Noble, and Joey are happy with The Big Show’s actions, then Seth says he is going to ask John Cena to be a part of The Cutting Edge Peep Show for a “New Year’s Toast.”
Commercials.
Segment #10: Video Promo
The rivalry between Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt is recapped with footage dating back to Hell In The Cell in October.
It is then announced that next year (ok, really next week on Raw, hehe; wanted to make that joke!) Bray and Dean will collide in an Ambulance Match!
Segment #11: Backstage Promo
Bray Wyatt prophesies in an ambulance. “To a place, where life both begins and ends. Everything in this life must come full circle, eventually. And you and I Dean, we have reached the point of no return. This, this is where our great journey ends. It’s too late for you, Ambrose. it’s too late for you, man. They will not be able to resuscitate him, because he is already dead, and I, I alone, have his soul. I have his soul.” Wyatt laughs maniacally and the ambulance blares its sirens, driving away.
Daniel Bryan is hugging R-Truth and Tag-Team Champions The Usos, and will be out next!
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Segment #12: Arena Promo
Daniel Bryan makes another return to an ovation, then stands in the ring seemingly happy. “You know, it’s an honor to come out here and be here for Raw, the last Raw of 2014. but it’s always an honor to be in this ring, every single time. Who would’ve thought that a small kid from Aberdeen, Washington, who was always labelled a ‘B+ Player,’ who would’ve thought that that guy could’ve main-evented WrestleMania? Nobody. Nobody, except you guys. Thanks to you, I got the opportunity to beat Triple H, Randy Orton, Batista, all in one night in front of seventy-five-thousand people to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship! That opportunity was given to me by you guys, and I could never repay you for that.
Five days after WrestleMania, I married the woman of my dreams, and that was the greatest week of my life. But then everything changed; when we got back from our honeymoon two days later, my dad died. And uh, I wasn’t there for him, because I was here, wrestling. And then a month after that, I had a career-changing injury that required surgery, and the doctors didn’t know what was wrong; they couldn’t fix me. And all I could do was sit at home on my couch and watch. And all I wanted to do was be in this ring because being in front of you guys is the only thing that has ever taken the pain away. Because this is what I love, this is what I’ve dreamed of my entire life, is coming out here and performing in front of all of you.
I don’t think there is anybody who cheered louder than I did when Dolph Ziggler pinned Seth Rollins and sent The Authority out of power. It was a great moment, but it hurt, because I couldn’t be here for that. And the doctors didn’t have any answers. I talked to my friends, I talked to my family. I even called Edge, who knows a thing or two about career-ending, life-altering injuries. And you get to a point when you have to make a decision on whether or not; (loud “No, no, no” chants are heard) you get to a decision, you get to a time when you have to make a decision, whether all of this is worth it or not. And because you guys have supported me my entire career, I made a special request so I could come out here and make this announcement in front of all of you – is my career over? …..
NO! THAT IS NOT THE ANNOUNCEMENT I CAME HERE TO MAKE! I AM READY TO FIGHT! I AM READY TO COMPETE! AND WILL I BE IN THE 2015 ROYAL RUMBLE? YES, YES! ….”
Bryan rejoices with the fans in thunderous “yes” chants!
Segment #13: Office Promo
Edge and Christian are goofing around when Miz and Mizdow enter, complaining about their loss. They want a rematch, and get it, but not against the Tag-Team Champions, The Usos. They will know up next!
Commercials.
Match #7: Tag-Team – The Miz and Damien Mizdow VS. ???
Miz and Damien away their opponents, who are the main-roster-debuting The Ascension. Connor and Viktor completely decimate Miz and Mizdow, finishing them with “The Fall Of Man” combo, a sweeping-running-uppercut!
Winners via Pinfall: The Ascension (Connor and Viktor)
Segment #14: Backstage Promo
Rene Young wants to confirm that Seth Rollins is asking John Cena to join The Cutting Edge Peep Show. Rollins does this, and also wants WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar to join them.
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Segment #15: Arena Promo
Edge and Christian are in the ring, and bring out Seth Rollins, who is followed by Noble and Mercury. Christian and Edge make fun of Rollins, but retorts by sucking up to the long-time tag-team. E & C aren’t buying it, but Rollins tries again. He questions them on who has had a more successful 2014 other than him, but Edge and Christian a few others first.
Rollins promises not to be a “party-pooper” and wants to turn a new leaf. He then asks his “good friend” The Big Show to be at the party, and the 7-Footer does so. Seth now requests John Cena, but the former “Dr. Of Thug-A-Nomics” does not appear. Rollins confesses that he covets something of John’s and keeps demanding for him to show. Seth then makes Cena come out, by slugging Christian with the Money In The Bank briefcase, then pinning Edge down in a Curb-Stomp position.
Cena runs to the ring, but is stopped by the threats of Rollins permanently disabling Edge. Seth continues to egg him on and wants to find out if Cena is “the phony that I’ve been calling out for months, or are you the ‘real deal,’ John?” “John, bring The Authority back. Bring them back, John, or I promise, I will paralyze this man and it will be on your conscience for the rest of your stinkin’ life. Don’t take another step.”
John orders Seth to stop, then Noble gives Cena a microphone. Cena nods and agrees to rehire The Authority. Rollins is jubilant, but is going to hurt Edge anyway. John jumps in the ring, but is fastly mauled by Show and Rollins. They and J & J Security stand tall over a prone Cena, then walk to the back. WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman walk out and shake hands. The Authority now joins them, champagne in hand. They all pose and celebrate on the stage as Raw fades to black for the last time in 2014!
End Of Raw.
Reporter’s Rumblings – By Moe Tapp
This was an awesome Raw and a tremendous way to conclude 2014! The show flowed really well start-to-finish and I thoroughly liked it! Onto the analysis:
Excellence: Edge and Christian hosting Raw, right from the get-go with their comedy shtick. “Their” booking was also very nice, as it presented Raw to be loaded from the beginning; a great way for the last episode of the year!
While I thought Ryback’s promo was misplaced (he is in the middle of a feud, and this type is usually to start one or right after one finished) he was very well-spoken and seemed very candid. I hope he gets some more love after this, as it was a much-improved mike-talk.
The amount/quality of matches on the show! From the opening Champion VS. Champion contest, to the Reigns/Rollins bout, most were well-wrestled; particularly the Tag-Team Championship! Speaking of which, that was a nice little surprise for the Tag-Titles to change hands. I was somewhat facetious with my introductory comments about a championship switch for the last Raw, but was pleased they actually did do it! A couple other surprises were cool too, especially the return of “Bad News” Barrett. I wish for him to have a soaring year in 2015 and major push!
Looking forward to the Ambulance Match next week; it will be brutal for Ambrose and Wyatt!
Super-glad that Daniel Bryan’s career isn’t over; I know it was sketchy for a while, but I’m happy he can come back from injury. I wish him all the best and to retain the top spot at some point soon in 2015.
The closing segment was well-done overall. Rollins has been super-hated every week since his betrayal of The Shield, but tonight’s actions will surely rocket him to #1 Heel.
Bogus: Enjoying the feud between Nikki and Natalya, but didn’t like how short their match was. Should’ve gone longer, and I hope the rivalry goes on. However, where was Paige and A.J. Lee? Missing them again is not good!
While I loved the return of “Bad News,” I was unhappy that Cesaro got fed the loss/job after a pretty-decent promo. I figured he might be onto another good push and restart after his speech. Also, love The Ascension; they were awesome in NXT, but judging from their video promos and style, I believe they should’ve been heels; better fit. Still intrigued to see what they’re going to do on the main roster.
Again, I was surprised but disappointed The Authority returned; I think they should’ve saved them until next week and let the speculation of what they will do.
Overall, I was quite jovial with this Raw and thought it was one of the better in recent times. Great episode to close out 2014!
On that note, I would like to wish you all reading this a Happy New Year, and best-wishes and blessings for 2015! Until next week/year, Be Excellent Wrestling-Online Readers and Wrestling Fans!
Kevin Nash has been pulled out of all the advertising for the January 19 Monday Night Raw in Dallas, Texas.
That Raw, one week before the Royal Rumble, is being billed as a Raw Reunion and Nash was supposed to join Scott Hall and Hulk Hogan as the nWo. However both the WWE and the American Airlines Center have removed Nash’s name from those scheduled to appear. Hall and Hogan are still there along with Shawn Michaels, and other current WWE Superstars.
As noted before, WWE suspended Nash’s Legends contract pending the outcome of the investigation in his battery arrest incident from Christmas Eve.
Tonight’s Raw, the last of 2014, will be hosted by former tag team champions Edge and Christian, as WWE rolls into the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C.
Edge last appeared on WWE television in September 2013, but recently appeared on the WWE Network to promote the 15th Anniversary of Smackdown.
Tonight’s broadcast will also see the debut of former NXT Tag Team champions The Ascension, who will finally make the jump to the main roster after several weeks of promo videos.
The Verizon Center website also lists WWE World Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton as appearing.
W-O reader Paul Latif attended last night’s WWE non-televised live event in Cincinnati, Ohio, and sent in the following results from the show:
Sin Cara defeated Justin Gabriel; Los Matadors and El Torito defeated Titus O’Neil, Tyler Breeze, and Hornswoggle; R-Truth defeated Adam Rose; Roman Reigns defeated Rusev via disqualification; Natalya, Naomi, and Charlotte defeated Summer Rae, Cameron, and Sasha Banks; The New Day defeated Cesaro and Tyson Kidd, and Goldust and Stardust; Dean Ambrose defeated Bray Wyatt in a Cincinnati street fight.
During the show, Bad News Barrett came out to cut a promo but said he wouldn’t be wrestling in a “crappy city like Cincinnati.” Also Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Hart were there and had an in-ring segment which was interrupted by Rusev and Lana. Eventually Roman Reigns made the save which led to the Reigns and Rusev match.
The Extreme Rules pay-per-view in 2015 will be taking place at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, on April 26.
Tickets go on sale to the general public on Saturday, January 10, but there is a pre-sale going on at Ticketmaster.com right now with the code EXTREME.
Prices for the show are $25, $50, $80, $125, $150, $350, and $500 for ringside with collectible chairs. All prices quoted do not include the associated fees which range from $10.40 to $22.25.
2014 was quite a big year for the world of professional wrestling. You can easily pin-point nine or ten big stories that happened throughout the year, all of which had a big impact.
I personally had eight listed which in my opinion were the most impactful of the year. Some may argue the choices, some may not. All the news from 2014 will be published in an upcoming e-book which will go on sale in January 2015 titled 2014: Pro Wrestling Year In News featuring over 600 pages and well over 1,000 stories that made up 2014.
The launch of the WWE Network
On January 8, 2014, every WWE fan’s dream came true. Vince McMahon announced the launch of the WWE Network, the company’s over-the-top streaming service that was eventually going to replace pay-per-views. All for just $9.99 a month.
The service launched in the United States on February 24, with over 1,000 hours of archived footage and WrestleMania XXX was going to be the first pay-per-view event to be streamed live. Everything went great, Wall Street was optimistic, driving the WWE stocks to record highs…until the company released the first subscriber numbers the day after WrestleMania: 667,000.
Wall Street hated it. The target of 1 million subscribers by the end of 2014 was a long way away and investors hit the company hard by driving down the stock 50%. WWE sacrificed their pay-per-view revenue and put everything on the line with the WWE Network.
By the end of July, the company had 700,000 subscribers, and in mid August, the WWE Network went global in 170 countries but it was missing from countries such as Italy, Germany, United Kingdom, China, Thailand, and other important WWE targets. At the end of October, WWE dropped the 6 month commitment and gave the month of November for free for new subscribers. By October 30, 731,000 subscribers were getting the Network, 269,000 subs away from the 1 million target with two months to go.
The WWE Network is a great service. All the pay-per-views from WWE, WCW, and ECW are archived along with tons of other shows available. By the end of the year, WWE had converted over 2,500 hours for the Network. All for just $9.99!
Daniel Bryan’s journey to WrestleMania XXX
No wrestler was more over with the crowd in 2014 than Daniel Bryan. It was ridiculous. The sea of people with their hands up chanting ‘yes, yes, yes’ was a pretty impressive visual. It’s funny to think that Daniel Bryan wasn’t even figured in the main event of WrestleMania until the fans made their voices heard.
Remember when at the Royal Rumble, Rey Mysterio came out at #30 and fans realized Bryan was not in the Rumble? It was a bad day to be Rey Mysterio. And it wasn’t even his fault, mind you. I doubt he heard so many boos in his wrestling career. Fans didn’t appreciate the Daniel Bryan snub and eventually WWE listened.
His feud with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon was molded somewhat from the Austin and McMahon feud. A rising star trying to get to the top with the powers that be putting every obstacle in the way. The pay off was a big one, Daniel Bryan got his hands on Triple H at WrestleMania, won, and went on to the main event later that night, submitting Batista to become the new WWE World Heavyweight champion.
The 75,167 fans inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, gave Daniel Bryan his most memorable wrestling moment ever, one that he will never forget. Two titles, fireworks, confetti, and 75,167 pair of hands in the air. And a lot of ‘Yes’ chants.
Unfortunately for Daniel Bryan, his dream run was cut short due to an injury. He only managed to defend his WWE title once since winning it at WrestleMania XXX and then had to surrender the title since it was pretty obvious he wouldn’t be able to wrestle for quite a long time. As 2014 ended, there was still no definite date on Bryan’s return.
Brock Lesnar ends The Undertaker’s streak
It was the holy grail of professional wrestling. For 21 different WrestleManias, the Undertaker destroyed his opponents.
His ‘victims’ include Jimmy Snuka at WrestleMania VII, Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts at WrestleMania VIII, Giant Gonzales at WrestleMania IX, King Kong Bundy at WrestleMania XI, Diesel at WrestleMania XII, Sycho Sid at WrestleMania XIII, Kane at WrestleMania XIV, Big Boss Man at WrestleMania XV, Triple H at WrestleMania XVII, Ric Flair at WrestleMania XVIII, Big Show and A-Train and WrestleMania XIX, Kane at WrestleMania XX, Randy Orton at WrestleMania XXI, Mark Henry at WrestleMania XXII, Batista at WrestleMania XXIII, Edge at WrestleMania XXIV, Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 25 and XXVI, Triple H at WrestleMania XXVII and XXVIII, and CM Punk at WrestleMania 29.
Perhaps his biggest challenge would come at WrestleMania XXX, facing an old nemesis, Brock Lesnar. Lesnar and Taker fought a few times years ago and Taker never managed to get a win over the former UFC Heavyweight champion.
Rumors of a WrestleMania match between the two started when Taker showed up at the UFC 121 event in 2010, an event headlined by Brock Lesnar and Cain Velasquez. Lesnar lost the UFC title that night and while being interviewed cage side by Ariel Helwani, the Undertaker and Lesnar got into an exchange of words. “It’s kind of a personal thing,” Taker said at the time. The Internet wrestling community quickly started making up theories but obviously nothing happened back then.
The Undertaker’s matches at WrestleMania are just as important as the main event simply because of the streak. With a 21-0 record, no one thought Lesnar was going to be the one who ends it. No one ever thought the streak would be defeated. But oh man, we were in for a big surprise.
Three F5’s later and the referee counted 1, 2, and 3. Silence fell over the Mercedez-Benz Superdome with fans shocked at the sight of 21-1 projected on the big screens inside the stadium. The Undertaker’s streak was over. And perhaps, so was the Undertaker himself. The shocking result made it on several mainstream media news sites, showing how legendary this streak was.
The return, and death, of the Ultimate Warrior
A lot of Superstars left WWE on a bad note. Maybe no one worse than the Ultimate Warrior. Warrior and WWE had a very bad relationship for several years with lawsuits filed against each other and no end in sight.
But as Vince McMahon often said, in the wrestling business, never say never.
In January, the WWE announced that the Ultimate Warrior would be inducted into the Hall of Fame, headlining the event during WrestleMania XXX weekend. The two parties patched up their relationship and signed an agreement that was going to bring back Warrior to WWE, not as a wrestler, but as someone who can represent the company.
The long awaited return of the Warrior happened at the Hall of Fame, his first WWE event since 1996. Many thought he would eventually slam the company in his speech, but Warrior was respectful, gave credit where its due, and left all the dirty laundry out. The next night at WrestleMania, fans welcomed back Warrior as he came out at the Superdome to his iconic music, saluting the fans.
On Monday Night Raw the night after WrestleMania, Warrior came out to talk to the fans during a live televised segment.
“Every man’s heart one day beats its final beat, his lungs breathe their final breath and if what that man did in his life makes the blood pulse through the body of others and makes them believe deeper in than something larger than life, then his essence, his spirit will be immortalized.”
The next day, the Ultimate Warrior, aged 54, passed away due to a heart attack while walking with his wife. The news shocked the pro wrestling world to its core. His speech from Raw the day before raised several eyebrows with the choice of words, with many suggesting that Warrior somehow knew he was going to die.
WWE made a promise to Dana Warrior, his wife, that they would take care of them. And they kept their promise, even sending two officials to live with the Warrior family until they get settled back into everyday routine. To this day, Dana and her two daughters, Indiana and Mattigan, are very much part of the WWE family.
The WWE and the Ultimate Warrior had their reunion cut short. But the spirit of the Ultimate Warrior will live on forever.
Sting debuts at the Survivor Series
Ever since WWE bought out WCW back in March 2001, fans drew up fantasy matches between WWE and former WCW stars. Most made the jump. The nWo, Goldberg, Rey Mysterio, Diamond Dallas Page, Booker T, and others. But one didn’t. And that man was Sting.
Sting was pretty much the last big name Superstar to have never worked for Vince McMahon. Even those who didn’t like McMahon or had a bad history with the company, they all went or eventually returned. But not Sting. He avoided WWE throughout his career, admitting he came close to sign a deal a couple of times but never pulling the trigger.
After WCW closed up shop, Sting decided to join TNA. It was simply the only other alternative for someone to be wrestling on national television. It wasn’t as successful as WWE, but Sting didn’t care. He was not interested in joining WWE and despite the offers he remained loyal to TNA.
The rumors of Sting jumping ship to WWE usually always start when WrestleMania season starts. The big dream match of Undertaker vs Sting has been a fantasy for thousands of fans. The Phenom vs The Icon. WWE’s backbone vs WCW’s backbone. It came close to reality a few years ago but Sting pulled out late in negotiations.
Then this year, Mattel, the toy company, made the first move and managed to get Sting on their WWE lineup. Talks continued and Sting signed a Legends deal, allowing WWE to sell his likeness on clothing, toys, etc. Sting then showed up at a Mattel/WWE event at Comic Con and that’s when the world of professional wrestling started buzzing that it’s now really, really close!
Joining Hulk Hogan, Paul Heyman, Daniel Bryan, and others, the former WCW champion then appeared at a panel at SummerSlam weekend. And that was the last time we saw him. Until the Survivor Series.
On November 23, the man known as Sting finally made his WWE debut. Coming out to help Dolph Ziggler and Team Cena, Sting went face to face with Triple H. Triple H took the first shot but missed and Sting then hit the Scorpion Death Drop on HHH and pulled Ziggler onto Seth Rollins for the cover.
Now known as “the vigilante,” Sting has yet to appear on WWE television again but with WrestleMania season soon starting, the rumors can start again. This time though, it can really happen.
CM Punk’s “break the internet” podcast
Kim Kardashian didn’t break the internet. CM Punk did.
Podcasts are a dime a dozen. Everybody and their mother has one. Hosts compete to get the biggest interview but sometimes it really helps when you’re best friends with possibly the most explosive interviewee of the year.
Colt Cabana and his podcast The Art of Wrestling landed the big one in 2014, CM Punk. Punk and Cabana are close friends so it was no surprise that Punk chose his friend’s podcast to set the record straight. It was a big, explosive interview that shed some light on Punk’s final few years in WWE leading up to his departure and beyond.
Punk revealed a lot in the two-part interview, the mess backstage at WWE, his thoughts on the doctors who take care of the wrestlers, the frequent prescribing of the antibiotic Zithromax Z-Pak, his constant battles with Triple H, quitting the day after the Rumble, getting suspended, and receiving his termination papers on the day of his wedding. The former WWE champion also dropped the F-bomb and a variation of it probably 3 million times during the two podcasts and he was trending worldwide for like a week or so.
It was the interview of all the interviews in 2014 and nothing came even close. WWE tried to fire back by putting Vince McMahon on the Steve Austin podcast live on the WWE Network a few days later. Austin asked some good questions and it was entertaining but there was nothing earth-shattering about it. McMahon did eventually apologize to Punk for the miscommunication about his termination on his wedding day, calling it a coincidence but Punk and Cabana take the honors of the most shocking, entertaining, F-bomb-filling interview of the whole year.
TNA leaves Spike and joins Destination America
Did TNA leave Spike or did Spike leave TNA? Either way you look at it, the 9 year relationship between the two parties came to a close in December.
Rumors of Spike not renewing TNA’s deal had been ramping up for months and then one fine day TMZ broke the news that Spike pulled the plug on TNA. Both sides denied the TMZ story and said that negotiations were still ongoing. Eventually TMZ were proven to be on the right side of the story as TNA later announced that they were signing on with Destination America. Destination what?
A wrestling company without a television deal can never survive. At least not if you’re a wrestling company the size of WWE or TNA. That’s where they make their money from. Television rights. Many predicted the demise of TNA if they wouldn’t have found another network and they might have been right. Some said it would be the best thing to happen, but no, in reality, a wrestling company closing up shop is not what’s best for business. True, they’re not on the level of WWE, but it’s an alternative workplace for the wrestlers and production to earn their livelihood.
Spike were nice enough to extend TNA’s deal for three months until they got their stuff sorted out and agreed to carry Impact until the day before Christmas. TNA then announced in the beginning of December that Discovery Communications came to their rescue by offering to host their television shows on Destination America.
It wasn’t the best choice for TNA. They went from airing in almost 100 million homes to half of that and went from a decent Wednesday time slot to Friday night, considered to be the death slot in the television industry. But hey, at least they’re on television and hopefully they will be able to survive for a couple of more years.
CM Punk signs with the UFC
Two top CM Punk stories in a year? Damn right. How do you get back into the spotlight after the furor of the podcast interview? Announce that you are signing with the UFC!
It was never a secret that Punk was a big MMA and UFC fan. He’s been spotted several times cage-side at UFC events sitting next to UFC President Dana White. Punk was even once going to walk out with Chael Sonnen in Chicago for a pay-per-view until Vince McMahon thought it was a stupid idea.
But fresh off the dynamite interview, CM Punk appeared during the UFC 181 pay-per-view and announced to the world that he has signed a multi-fight deal with the UFC and would be making his debut in 2015! Say what?
The news once again took the Internet by storm. Another “fake” professional wrestler trying out his luck in mixed martial arts. Let’s face it, CM Punk is not the athlete that Brock Lesnar is. But CM Punk is an athlete regardless and you should never count anyone out. He goes in the UFC with a 0-0 record, a dangerous precedent for the MMA company, but a move that will surely bring in millions of dollars and eyeballs, at least for his first fight.
Punk took on the press on his own after the UFC 181 event and was very respectful and grateful for the opportunity. The odds are surely stacked against him but he seemed determined to make the most out of his dream.
He won’t try his GTS finisher in the Octagon for sure, but can you imagine if he ever wins a fight with the Anaconda Vise?
2014: Pro Wrestling Year In News is an e-book coming out in January 2015 featuring over 600 pages of all the wrestling news that happened in 2014 as covered by Wrestling-Online.com. It will be available for iOS through the iBooks store or Android and Kindle devices on Amazon. Stay tuned for more information.
Tonight at 8PM EST, NBC will air a one hour WWE Tribute to the Troops special with footage from the event that the company taped at Fort Benning a couple of weeks ago.
This is the 12th Tribute to the Troops holiday special that WWE has done and it has become part of the company’s yearly calendar of events. In addition to footage which already made it on the two hour USA Network broadcast, there will also be footage of the recent trip to Kuwait by Vince McMahon, Big Show, R-Truth, Summer Rae, and Alicia Fox. U.S. Senator Pat Roberts joined the WWE crew on the trip.
Former WWE champion Randy Orton returned to action last night at Madison Square Garden facing Kane. It was Orton’s first wrestling match since November 3, where he was written out of storylines following a match with Seth Rollins on Raw.
Orton’s absence from television was due to him filming The Condemned 2, a WWE Studios movie which is set for release next year. Filming took place in New Mexico. Orton is now back on the road full time and will be on Monday Night Raw for the last show of 2014.
Speaking of Madison Square Garden, the company also announced that they will be returning for another non-televised event on February 27 with Hulk Hogan also making an appearance, his first in the historic building since an episode of Raw in 2005.
The UFC is not the only company looking for the services of Brock Lesnar if the current WWE World Heavyweight champion decides to hang up his boots once again come next year.
MMAFighting.com is reporting that the Viacom-owned company Belabor MMA has reached out to Brock Lesnar although Bellator’s President Scott Coker said no actual negotiations have been made and it was just their way of “saying hello” and that they were interested in him.
“There hasn’t been any serious dialogue,” Coker said. “But when the time comes to have serious dialogue, we’ll be right there.”
Brock Lesnar has not made a decision if he wants to go back to mixed martial arts, a sport that he retired from in 2011 after losing to Alistair Overeem at UFC 141. However the rumors of Lesnar going back into the cage have been increasing every month and with Lesnar’s deal with WWE expiring just after WrestleMania, it wouldn’t be a shocker if he decides to give it one more shot.
UFC President Dana White has publicly stated that if Lesnar decides to go back, the UFC will take him back in a heartbeat. Lesnar was one of the biggest pay-per-view draws in the company’s history during his short stint there.
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