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Smackdown TV report for 07/12/2013

The Smack is being laid Down for us tonight in Hampton Virginia. SmackDown begins with Daniel Bryan making his way to the ring for our first match.

Match #1: Daniel Bryan versus Christian.

The two men lock up and Bryan gets behind Christian and applies an arm lock. Christian escapes and knocks Bryan down with a shoulder block. Christian climbs to the top and hits a missile dropkick. Bryan drives his shoulder to Christian’s gut and then hits him with a series of kicks and knees.

Bryan pulls Christian’s arms behind his back, but Christian escapes with a back kick. Bryan lands a kick and Christian responds with a spinebuster. Christian hits Bryan with a forearm and then backdrops him to the floor. Christian goes for a baseball slide dropkick but misses; Bryan responds with a clothesline. Bryan hits Christian with a running knee to the head.

Commercial

Bryan misses a running dropkick. Christian and Bryan exchange several strikes. Bryan throws Christian to the floor and attempts a suicide dive, but Christian cuts him off in mid air with a right hand to the head. Bryan lands a punch and then a kick to Christian’s arm is it lay on the steel steps. Bryan lands several more kicks to the arm. Bryan rolls Christian into the ring.

Christian whips Bryan to the corner but Bryan runs up the ropes and leaps over Christian’s head. Christian takes Bryan down with a sunset flip. Christian lands several right hands to the head; Bryan responds with several kicks. Christian trips Bryan into the ropes, leaps over the top, and hits Bryan in the head. Christian goes to the top and misses a flying crossbody.

Bryan goes to the top and misses a flying headbutt. Christian goes for a tornado DDT but Bryan blocks it and lands several kicks to the body before missing with one to the head. Christian hits Bryan with an inverted DDT. Christian tries a spear but Bryan blocks it with a kick. Bryan lands several kicks followed by a running dropkick; Christian responds with a spear! Bryan kicks out at 2. Christian goes for the kill switch but Bryan blocks it and tries to get the yes lock. Christian blocks the yes lock and lands a kick.

Christian climbs to the top and leaps off at Bryan, but Bryan sidesteps and applies the Yes lock! Christian taps, Bryan wins!

Teddy Long is in the back on the phone. Dolph Ziggler comes in to talk to him about Alberto Del Rio and the World title. Teddy tells Dolph that Alberto has a match with Sin Cara tonight and he doesn’t want Dolph interfering so he orders Dolph to leave.

Commercial

Match #2: Seth Rollins versus Jay Uso.

The two men lock up and jockey for position for the first few minutes. Rollins applies a headlock and then lands a couple strikes. Jay knocks Rollins down and then hits him with a clothesline. Rollins whips Jay to the ropes, Jay responds with an elbow. Rollins takes jay down with a suplex and then stomps him.

Seth applies a chin lock but Jay punches out. Rollins lands a punch and then slams Jay’s head into three different turnbuckles. Rollins land a few chops but Jay is hulking up and not selling them. Jay lands a couple punches and kicks before hitting Seth with a stinger splash in the corner.

Jay hits Rollins with the running ass to the face. Roman Reigns comes up to the ring apron to interfere but is cut off by Jimmy Uso. Reigns and Jimmy fight outside the ring. Seth Rollins hits Jay with a running high knee for the win.
After the match, Rollins and Reigns pose with the tag titles on the announce table.

Commercial

Match #3: Chris Jericho versus Curtis Axel.

Axel attacks first and pummels Jericho the opening minute. Jericho recovers and lands an elbow and several chops. Jericho hits Axel with a missile dropkick and a knee lift. Axel responds with a knee, a forearm, and a kick. Jericho tries to hit the codebreaker, but Axel holds on and drops Jericho into the corner.

Commercial

Jericho tries to apply the Walls of Jericho but Axel counters with a suplex. Axel misses a running splash; Jericho hits a flying crossbody. Jericho takes Axel down with a 1 armed bulldog and then misses with a Lion sault but lands on his feet. Axel lands a kick followed by a second rope neckbreaker.

Axel lands a punch and tries a bodyslam but Jericho counters with the Walls. Axel prevents Jericho from locking the Walls in, but then gets hit with an enzuigiri. Jericho backdrops Axel to the floor, but then misses with a baseball slide dropkick. Axel hits Jericho with a clothesline and then rolls him back in.

Axel starts to reenter the ring, but Jericho hits him with the codebreaker, knocking him back to the floor. Axel tries to make it to his feet, but can’t beat the 10 count; Jericho wins by countout.

After the match, Curtis Axel throws a temper tantrum. This is the second time this week Axel has lost to Jericho.

Commercial

Match #4: Ryback versus the Miz.

The Miz sends Ryback flying into the corner twice. Ryback charges the Miz, but the Miz ducks and pulls the top rope down, sending Ryback out to the floor. Miz hits Ryback with a double axe handle and rolls him back in. Miz tries to slide in under Ryback but gets caught.

Ryback picks Miz up but Miz escapes and goes to the top rope. Miz flies but Ryback catches him. Ryback plants Miz with a front slam and then stomps him. Ryback clubs Miz’ back and then slams him into the corner. Ryback whips Miz hard into the corner and then steps on his head. Miz lands a couple weak punches to the gut before being picked up by Ryback. Miz slips out and takes Ryback’s knee out from behind.

Ryback flattens Miz again and then slams his head repeatedly into the mat. Ryback bodyslams Miz and then goes for a splash, but Miz gets the knees up. Miz lands a couple punches and a dropkick to the knee. Miz hits Ryback with a running corner clothesline. The Miz goes back to work on Ryback’s bad leg, hitting it with several kicks and then snapping it down on his shoulder.

Ryback screams in pain and he tells the ref he heard something pop. The ref appears ready to stop the match, but Ryback tells him not to. Ryback slowly staggers to his feet while pleading that he is hurt. Suddenly, Ryback explodes at Miz and knocks him down with a clothesline. Ryback gets Miz up on his shoulders with some difficulty, and delivers the Shell Shock for the win.

Rene Young interviews Sheamus after the match. Sheamus says he plan on winning tonight against Randy Orton and again Sunday in the Money in the Bank Ladder match. After the interview, Sheamus tells Rene she’s cute. She thanks him.

Commercial

When we return, Teddy Long is in the ring with all of the Divas. He’s arranged a contract signing with AJ and Kaitlyn. It did actually suck less than it sounds. AJ starts to talk trash, but Teddy says they don’t have time for that and tells her to hurry up.

Just before Kaitlyn signs, AJ warns her that if she does, she’s going to humiliate her. Kaitlyn signs, and AJ tries to humiliate her. AJ produces several text messages that she sent to Big E when she thought she had a secret admirer. Kaitlyn complains a little about some of her fellow Divas, and gushes romantically over her secret beau.

Kaitlyn doesn’t lose her composure though, and tells AJ she’s not going to let her get to her again. Kaitlyn also calls AJ crazy in multiple ways, prompting AJ to violently attack her. Big E pulls Kaitlyn off, but Kaitlyn slaps him HARD across the face and then spears AJ.

Commercial

Match #5: Fandango versus Wade Barrett.

Zeb Coulter, Jack Swagger, and Antonio Caesaro make their way to the announce table to join on commentary. Wade starts off fast, going for a quick cover and pummeling Fandango. Barrett hits Fandango with a backbreaker and several knee lifts before placing him on the top turnbuckle. Team Rhodes Scholars comes out to confront Zeb Coulter and the other “real Americans.” Fandango hits Barrett with a kick, rolls him and pulls the tights for the win!

Commercial

Match #6: Alberto Del Rio versus Sin Cara.

Sin Cara attacks before the bell and pummels Alberto. Sin Cara looks taller, and a little more ripped than usual today. Sin Cara hits Alberto with a Zig Zag, and that’s the giveaway; this is Dolph Ziggler in the mask and NOT Sin Cara. Dolph/Sin does a few of Dolph’s signature poses for the crowd.

After the match, Vickie Guererro enters the ring area from the crowd. She has a ticket and she’s not happy; in fact, she’s screaming hysterically. She thinks Teddy Long is horrible and she wants to be treated with respect. Teddy Long comes out and orders security to take her away.

Commercial

When we return, Teddy Long confronts Sin Cara and asks him what he thought he was trying to pull. Sin Cara looks about the same height as Teddy now, I think this may be the real Sin Cara. Sure enough, Dolph Ziggler shows up smiling and puts his arm around Teddy.

Dolph says he knows he’s not supposed to be there, but he just needed to pick up a few things and he would be leaving immediately. Dolph also congratulates Sin Cara for his performance against Alberto. Sin Cara appears to be playing along with the ruse despite not saying anything. Teddy seems confused.

Match #7: Sheamus versus Randy Orton.

The two men lock up, jockeying for position until they end up against the ropes. The two men exchange several strikes until Randy rakes the eyes. Randy follows up with several punches until Sheamus lands a knee lift. Sheamus hits Orton with a suplex. Orton lands a headbutt, Sheamus replies with a frontslam. Randy throws Sheamus to the floor; Sheamus pulls Randy out. Randy lands several punches, Sheamus slams Orton into the announce table. Randy hits Sheamus with a clothesline.
Commercial

Orton has Sheamus in a chin lock but Sheamus punches his way out. Randy hits Sheamus with a dropkick and then reapplies the chin lock. Sheamus gets to his feet and they exchange punches. Sheamus takes Orton down with a clothesline and then follows up with a pair of double axe handles.

Randy responds with a clothesline and a powerslam. Randy lands a kick; Sheamus replies with the Irish Curse backbreaker. Sheamus picks Randy up but Orton escapes with an elbow strike and follows up with a backbreaker to Sheamus. Randy lands a kick and then tries the rope hung DDT but Sheamus blocks it.

Sheamus wraps Orton’s arms up in the ropes and then clubs his chest 10 times. Sheamus hits Orton with a rolling senton; but even more amazingly, Michael Cole actually calls it a rolling senton! He’s called a few wrestling holds in recent weeks, he may get in trouble with Vince if he’s going to start calling this like a wrestling show. Sheamus goes for the Brogue Kick but misses. Randy lands a lot of punches and then hits Sheamus with the rope hung DDT.

Randy goes for an RKO but Sheamus blocks it. Sheamus climbs to the top but Orton cuts him off. The two men exchange punches perched atop the top turnbuckle. Orton hits Sheamus with a headbutt and both men fall to the floor outside the ring.

Daniel Bryan runs out to the ring and pulls out a ladder. As Sheamus and Orton reenter the ring, Bryan knocks them both down with the ladder. Bryan sets the ladder up and begins to climb, but Christian runs out and stops him. Sheamus, Orton, Bryan, and Christian all take turns trying to climb the ladder and getting knocked off by one of the others.

Eventually, Daniel Bryan knocks the ladder over, knocking Christian to the floor. Bryan gets RKO’d by Orton before he can climb the ladder. Orton is the only man left standing and he climbs the ladder and retrieves the briefcase. Orton poses with the briefcase as SmackDown goes off the air.

First cast photo of the upcoming Total Divas show released

E! today sent out a press release hyping up the Total Divas show along with the first photo of the whole cast posing.

Total Divas will follow the Bella Twins, Natalya, Cameron, Naomi and two future Divas, JoJo and Eva Marie, as the go through their everyday lives working for WWE. Apart from the Divas, John Cena, Daniel Bryan, Jimmy Uso, Tyskon Kidd, Fandango, The Great Khali, and Hornswoggle will be making appearances in this first season of the show.

The press release also featured a small bio on each of the Divas who will be appearing. You can see the cast photo of all the Divas looking stunning below. (click to enlarge)

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Rampage Jackson revealed as the last member of Main Event Mafia

Former UFC champ Rampage Jackson was revealed as the fifth and final member of the Main Event Mafia group on last night’s IMPACT.

The version 2 of the group now consists of Sting, Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Magnus, and Jackson.

With Bully Ray bullying Chris Sabin in the ring with Hogan also present, Sting, Angle, Joe, and Magnus interrupted the festivities and introduced their “heavy hitter,” the fifth member of MEM, Rampage Jackson.

The original incarnation of the Main Event Mafia included Kurt Angle, Sting, Kevin Nash, Booker T, Scott Steiner, and Samoa Joe.

You can see the clip of Jackson joining the group below.

Dwayne Johnson helps Hugh Jackman get in shape for latest movie

Access Hollywood has a story online how actor Hugh Jackman enlisted the help of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to get in shape for his upcoming movie The Wolverine.

The story notes that Jackman built his body up for his previous movies however this time around he was doing another movie, Les Miserables, which required him to drop a large amount of weight. The Wolverine started filming immediately afterward and Jackman thought there’s no one better than the former WWE champ to help him get in shape.

“First of all, he said, ‘When you’re lean-ing down, still keep your strength. You can still go in and push weights, so that as soon as you start eating again you’ll go back quickly’. But, he said, ‘You gotta eat 6,000 calories a day, you’ve gotta train three hours,'” Jackman recounted.

Jackman said that he exchanged phone calls with The Rock during the whole process and one time he called Johnson who was in the trailer himself waiting to go on set to film scenes for one of his movies.

“In the background someone knocked on his trailer door and he goes, ‘Hang on a second!’ He opens it up, he goes, ‘I’m talking to Wolverine, you tell them on set they can wait,'” he laughed.

Kane to be pulled from MITB ladder match on Smackdown tonight

During the Australian version of Smackdown, which due to time difference has already aired over the other side of the world, it was revealed that Kane will not be participating in the Money In The Bank match this Sunday.

The announcement was done by Michael Cole while he was doing commentary and no replacement was announced during the broadcast.

The decision to pull Kane was done to make him sell the beating he received from the debuting Wyatt Family, who destroyed the Big Red Machine during Monday’s episode of RAW.

With Kane out of the match, it leaves Christian, Rob Van Dam, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Sheamus, and Randy Orton to battle for the briefcase which will enable the winner to cash in a WWE title match any time within a year.

WWE officially opens the Performance Center in Orlando

The 26,000 square feet WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, was officially opened today after an investment of $3.5 million by the company to strengthen their developmental system.

Tons of WWE Superstars, Divas, and developmental talent, along with WWE officials, press, and politicians from the area were present for the grand opening. The opening got a lot of press in Orlando and online, where #WWEPC was the top tending topic on Twitter for a while.

The new center will employ nearly 100 workers as future WWE Superstars and Divas will call this state-of-the-art building their home till they get called up to the main roster.

The WWE Performance Center consists of seven full-sized wrestling rings, a gym, high-tech production and edit suites where Full Sail University students edit and produce NXT, a fully functional kitchen, and a sports medicine program.

Steve Austin says WrestleMania match possible if “stars align”

Speaking on the Busted Open radio show on Sirius, WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin said he’d be ready for a WrestleMania match if “the stars lined up,” although he admitted that it would take a lot of those stars to be lined up to get him back in the ring.

He said to be involved at a WrestleMania it would be around a four month commitment from him and he would need to leave a lot of things behind. But if the angle makes sense to him, he would agree to the challenge.

Austin said that he’s healthy enough to have another match and the only thing that is bothering him a bit are his knees since he has two new ligaments. He said that everything else is “pain free” and he’s in great shape as he works out harder than he’s ever did before.

RAW rating for 07/08/2013

Monday Night RAW drew a 3.08 rating with an average of 4,167,000 viewers, up from last week’s 2.98 rating and around 200,000 additional viewers.

Hour one of the show pulled in 3,790,000 viewers followed by 4,308,000 in the second and then 4,403,000 in the final hour. (Ratings compiled by Nielsen Media Research and put online by PWInsider.com)

Kane “doubtful” for this Sunday’s Money In The Bank

WWE.COM is listing Kane as “doubtful” for this Sunday’s Money In The Bank match and rumors are that the injury angle will force the former WWE champion out of the pay-per-view. Kane was attacked by the Wyatt Family on Monday’s RAW and was stretchered out.

Kane is part of the MITB “All Stars” match featuring Orton, RVD, Punk, Bryan, Christian, and Sheamus as well and the removal of Kane from the match will leave the match with just six competitors. The first few MITB matches always had six wrestlers but then it was increased to eight however for this pay-per-view both MITB matches have seven wrestlers.

WWE and Doritos announce partnership for SummerSlam

WWE today announced that it has teamed up with Doritos for the first time ever as the popular brand will be the presenting sponsor of next month’s SummerSlam pay-per-view.

Apart from sponsoring the pay-per-view, Doritos is also holding two national promotions. The first one is to be able to win an “unforgettable” SummerSlam viewing party and the second is a contest offering fans the chance to interview WWE Superstars as a correspondent for the WWE App.

“By teaming up with WWE, we will deliver over-the-top experiences – just like our Doritos Jacked product line – to our fans, making it a summer to remember,” said Ram Krishnan, vice president of marketing, Frito-Lay. “Just like WWE Superstars and Divas, we know our fans are fearless so we have one more surprise in store this summer that will push this bold experience to a whole new level.”

Details of the promotions can be read at the full press release located here.

TNA announces new TV deal in Portugal

TNA Wrestling has announced that it has signed a new television deal to bring IMPACT in Portugal to one of the biggest sports stations in the country, SPORT TV.

“SPORT TV wishes to integrate in its programming the most important and prestigious international competitions to reinforce the quality that our subscribers are looking for,” said SPORT TV Programming and News Director Nuno Ferreira. The same channel broadcasts the NBA, NFL, NHL, Formula 1, UFC, and football from leading European leagues.

“Europe is a key growth area for TNA IMPACT Wrestling and we are delighted to be returning to TV screens in Portugal. Portugal has always been full of fanatical wrestling fans and now they can watch the most innovative experience in professional wrestling each and every week – only on SPORT TV,” added TNA Executive Vice President Andy Barton.

IMPACT will air every Tuesday at 10.30PM with repeats each Thursday at 7.30PM. TNA’s monthly One Night Only and PPV events will air on Monday nights at 9.30PM.

WWE announces SummerSlam 2013 Axxess information

WWE has announced the return of SummerSlam Axxess, which will take place on August 17 and 18 at the Nokia Plaza at L.A. LIVE during SummerSlam weekend.

Tickets will go on sale on Saturday, July 20, at 1PM ET and there will be normal general admission and limited VIP tickets available. They will be sold at AXS.com and at the STAPLES Center box office.

Three sessions will be held, two on Saturday, August 17, one from 11AM till 3PM and then from 3PM till 4PM, and the other one on Sunday, August 18, starting at 11AM till 3PM.

SummerSlam will once again be held at the STAPLES Center.

Matt Morgan released from TNA Wrestling

TNA has released Matt Morgan from his contract after the former tag team title holder requested to leave the company.

Morgan signed with TNA back in 2007 after a three year stint with WWE. In June 2012, Morgan left TNA after he worked only non-televised live events in his final month with the company. The “Blueprint” hinted at a WWE return several times on his social media accounts however Morgan returned to TNA just three months later at a non-televised event, entering through the crowd in street clothes and attacking Robbie E.

His last appearance for TNA came on the June 13 episode of IMPACT where he participated in a four-way match in the Bound for Glory Series against Magnus, Kenny King, and Rob Terry.

Commenting on Twitter, Morgan thanked TNA for his “awesome experience” and for granting his release. “This is what is best for my career & family,” he added.

Randy Orton officially divorced and scores a nice deal

Randy Orton is officially divorced according to TMZ.COM and the WWE Superstar has gotten the best end of the deal.

TMZ.COM reported that his now-ex wife Samantha filed for divorce citing that their marriage was “irretrievably broken” and the divorce order was signed last month. The two married in 2007 and separated in 2012.

According to legal documents, Orton gets a 2012 Range Rover, 2011 Bentley, 2009 Harley Davidson, his gun collection, a couple of six-figure bank accounts, a house, jewelry, and 100% rights of his WWE contract. The ex gets a 2013 Infiniti, one house, jewelry, and a bank account worth over $650,000. TMZ says that Orton has a monthly salary of $291,666.

The daughter will be staying with her mother who gets sole legal and physical custody although Orton gets visitation rights. The former champ also has to pay $4,500 in child support every month.

Brad Maddox announced as new RAW GM as Vickie gets “fired”

A red hot Baltimore crowd helped fire Vickie Guerrero from her supervising manager duties of Monday Night RAW yesterday during a somewhat entertaining job evaluation segment involving Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon, Triple H, Vickie, and Brad Maddox.

Taking the WWE app results as the final judgment, Stephanie McMahon told Vickie that she is fired from her job after 75% voted that Vickie failed in her job. Guerrero threw a fit in the ring and screamed at Triple H and Stephanie while a more sympathetic Vince told the fans that they made the wrong decision.

To reward everyone for their wrong decision, he then announced Brad Maddox as the new general manager of RAW because we “deserve it.”

The Ultimate Warrior to be part of WWE 2K14 video game

The Ultimate Warrior is coming back to WWE, although in a digital form for WWE 2K14, the next installment in the popular video game.

An advert for the game which appears in the latest WWE magazine has a head shot of the Ultimate Warrior in the corner with the text, “Pre-order and receive The Ultimate Warrior.”

This will be the first time that the Ultimate Warrior will be in this video game franchise. The last time Warrior was in a WWE video game was for the WWE All-Stars game, a deal he did separately with THQ at the time.

Meanwhile the WWE games Twitter account has started promoting Warrior’s inclusion in the video game by posting a small photo of his biceps with the comment, “First appearance in franchise history.” They have not revealed his name publicly yet but the advert on the WWE mag clearly gives it away.

WWE 2K14 – the first game published by 2K – will come out for Xbox and Playstation in late October.

Stacy Keibler back on the market after split from Clooney

Several celebrity gossip websites are reporting that former WWE Diva Stacy Keibler and Hollywood mega star George Clooney have split up after two years together.

It seems that this time around it was Keibler who called it off as she wants to have kids, something that Clooney isn’t keen on helping!

“Stacy called it quits. She wants to have children and a family someday. She knows where George stands on that,” a source close to the couple told PEOPLE exclusively. “They talked and they quietly stopped being a couple several weeks ago.”

Keibler, 33, and Clooney, 52, haven’t been photographed together since March and have spent most of the time since then apart.

Wyatt Family debuts tonight on Monday Night RAW

After weeks of vignettes on WWE television, the Wyatt Family will make their debut tonight live on Monday Night RAW.

The group consists of Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan, all of whom are NXT Superstars. Wyatt – played by Windham Rotunda – has already appeared on WWE television before as part of The Nexus under the name of Husky Harris. He is the son of Mike Rotunda.

This will be Luke Harper’s and Erick Rowan’s first appearance on the main roster. The two have been the NXT tag team champs but lost their titles last month.

Premiere episode of Total Divas to air on USA Network as well

The premiere episode of the upcoming Total Divas show will be airing on USA Network as well the day after it originally airs on E!

The show debuts on Sunday, July 28, with an episode titled “Welcome to the WWE” and USA Network will then air the episode again on Monday, July 29, right after RAW ends at 11:05PM EST.

This is the only episode set to air on both E! and USA Network as all the other episodes will air exclusively on E! USA and E! are both part of NBCUniversal.

More Superstars announced for San Diego Comic Con

More WWE Superstars have been announced for the upcoming San Diego Comic Con which will take place starting July 18.

As noted earlier, The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, and Rob Van Dam will be WWE’s reps on Thursday, July 18, with the first two involved with the Mattel/WWE booth while Van Dam will be involved in a panel later in the day.

On Friday, July 19, Rey Mysterio, Mick Foley, and Daniel Bryan will be signing autographs between 11AM and Noon while on Saturday, at the same time, Sheamus and Ryback will be signing autographs.

Tickets will be distributed on first come first served basis and will be given out at 9:30AM of the day of the signings.

All autograph signings will be done at Mattel Booth #3029.