Collision this past Saturday airing at the unusual 4PM ET time slot, drew a record low of 144,000 viewers, down 212,000 viewers from the prior airing. In the 18-49 demo, Collision drew just a 0.03 rating, down 0.08 from the previous show. This was the least-watched episode of Collision ever.
Pat McAfee says it’s an “absolute honor” to return to WWE
Reacting to Triple H’s announcement that he will be returning full time to WWE, Pat McAfee said it is an “absolute honor” to be asked back to return to the company.
“A childhood dream realized every single time I’m lucky enough to be in an arena with the @WWE Universe,” McAfee posted on X.
“Can’t wait to be talking into a microphone next to @MichaelCole again.. He’s the [goat emoji] I’m excited to tell the worldwide audience on Netflix how great the WWE Superstars are…and how big of scumbags some of ‘em are too. Let’s go!”
Triple H told the press on Tuesday at the Netflix media event that McAfee would be returning to the company in January. He left his commentary position in August to resume his College Gameday duties on ESPN.
Raw rating for 12/02/2024
WWE Raw drew an average of 1,709,000 viewers this week for the post-Survivor Series show, up 200,000 viewers from the prior week and their best number since August 26.
Raw started strong with 1,815,000 viewers but then dropped to 1,603,000 viewers in the second hour. Raw faced ESPN’s Monday Night Football as its main competition which did 11.8 million viewers.
The show had a 0.54 rating in 18-49, up 0.07 from the prior week and was #3 on the top 50 cable chart for the night and also #3 in all of TV, beating everything else apart from NFL. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)
Ryan Nemeth’s complaint on CM Punk while in AEW unveiled
Fightful is reporting through their Select service that former AEW star Ryan Nemeth, the brother of TNA champion Nic Nemeth, had filed a complaint with AEW claiming abuse and harassment from CM Punk while he was part of the company.
According to the document obtained by Fightful, Nemeth backed up his complaints with copies of e-mails, phone call logs, text messages, and other electronic records but AEW failed to address the situation and instead, he was “ordered to verbally antagonize” Punk on television in return.
Nemeth wanted changes to the AEW policies addressing harassment and abuse and was also offered money in exchange for signing an NDA. The document states that Nemeth was offered three years salary in return for an NDA but that offer was rescinded for unknown reasons.
Nemeth’s complaint started in April 2023 and went on for a few months. He said that Punk threatened him in the locker room after Nemeth tweeted that Punk was the “softest wrestler alive.” His complaint went straight to Megha Parekh, who at the time was the AEW Chief Legal Officer.
Three months after filing the complaint, Nemeth once again got in touch with Parekh because his issue was not addressed and was sent home a couple of times from TV. He was last seen on AEW TV in November 2023 and his deal was not renewed.
The full report is available at https://www.patreon.com/posts/ryan-nemeth-to-117319855 but a subscription is required.
Fletcher and Castagnoli remain unbeaten in Continental Classic tournament
Two Continental Classic tournament matches took place on Dynamite last night with two winners extending their unbeaten run so far.
Kyle Fletcher defeated The Hurt Syndicate’s Shelton Benjamin in the blue league. Fletcher now is at six points after earning another three last night while Benjamin remains with three points from two matches.
In the gold league, Claudio Castagnoli defeated Brody King during the main event of the show. This also sends Castagnoli to the top of the chart with six points while King remains at three points.
Rampage this Friday will feature three matches: Daniel Garcia vs The Beast Mortos and Kazuchika Okada vs Mark Briscoe from the blue league while Ricochet takes on Komander in the gold league.
The action continues Saturday on Collision with Okada vs Fletcher and Garcia vs Briscoe from the blue league and Komander vs Darby Allin from the gold league.
Pat McAfee returning “full time” to WWE next month
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque said at the WWE Netflix media event yesterday that Pat McAfee will be returning “full time” to WWE next month.
McAfee had his last Raw broadcast on August 19 as he had to resume his duties with College Gameday on ESPN.
“Letting the cat out of the bag a little bit right now,” Triple H said. “Pat’s actually about to come back with us here, full-time on Monday Night Raw.”
His return was expected and he will team up with Michael Cole to be the voices of Raw while Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett, and Corey Graves will be doing Smackdown.
TNA to hold pay-per-views in Los Angeles and New York in 2025
TNA Wrestling today announced that they will hold two major live events in Los Angeles and New York next year after an online vote from fans was split between the two cities.
The Rebellion pay-per-view will be on Sunday, April 27, live from the Galen Center on the campus of the University of Southern California.
The Slammiversary pay-per-view will follow on Sunday, July 20, at UBS Arena in Belmont Park, New York.
“I am beyond excited to defend the TNA World Championship from coast to coast, in the two of the most iconic cities in the world, Los Angeles and New York City,” said TNA World Champion Nic Nemeth. “This is a groundbreaking day for TNA Wrestling. I cannot wait for the ride that TNA will be on in 2025.”
Tickets for both live events, in Los Angeles and New York City, will go on-sale on Friday, December 20, starting at 10AM local time. The exclusive presale for TNA+ subscribers starts Wednesday, December 18, at 10AM ET.
Road to WrestleMania European tour tickets to go on sale on December 13
Tickets for the 11-city European tour on the road to WrestleMania will go on sale to the general public on Friday, December 13 at 9AM GMT.
A pre-sale will start two days earlier and fans can register now to receive an exclusive pre-sale offer by visiting: https://www.wwe.com/roadtowrestlemania-europe-presale-registration.
This tour will consist of six televised shows – three Raw and three Smackdown – and six house shows across nine different European countries.
It starts with Smackdown on March 14 in Barcelona, Spain. Two live events on March 15 and March 16 are in Dortmund and Hannover, Germany. Raw on March 17 will be from Brussels, Belgium and Smackdown on March 21 follows from Bologna, Italy. The weekend will have one live event on March 22 from Belfast, Northern Ireland and March 23 from Nottingham, England.
The action continues with live Raw from Glasgow, Scotland on March 24 and Smackdown from London, England on March 28. Vienna, Austria hosts the March 29 live event and then another live event from Amsterdam, Netherlands on March 30. It wraps up with a live Raw from London, England on March 31.
WWE President Nick Khan says WWE will remain PG on Netflix
At the WWE Netflix media day yesterday in Los Angeles, WWE President Nick Khan said that WWE will retain its PG rating and continue to offer family-friendly programming even once it moves to Netflix.
“We’re not changing the rating of our programming,” Khan said. “There’s some online chatter about, oh, it’s going to be R-rated, or for us old folks, X-rated.”
Khan said that it’s “definitely not happening” and they want to remain multi-generational, advertiser-friendly programming moving forward.
“It’s gonna stay that way. I would look for more global flair, especially as the relationship continues to develop,” he said.
The media day was attended by WWE champion Cody Rhodes, WWE Women’s World champion Liv Morgan, WWE Women’s Tag Team champion Bianca Belair, The Miz, Rey Mysterio, Rhea Ripley, Seth Rollins, Becky Lynch, CM Punk, along with Khan and WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H.
Saturday Night’s Main Event announced for January 25 in San Antonio
WWE today announced via a press release that Saturday Night’s Main Event will return on Saturday, January 25 at 8PM ET on NBC live from the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas.
Tickets go on sale Friday, December 13 at 11AM CT on Ticketmaster.com with a pre-sale kicking off two days prior on Wednesday, December 11.
The date was chosen by NBC and falls just a week before the Royal Rumble premium live event. It will cover the first quarter SNME since there will be four throughout the year, one in each quarter.
Pre-sale for Elimination Chamber in Toronto kicks off
The pre-sale for the Elimination Chamber in Toronto started today on Ticketmaster.ca using the code UNIVERSE.
The Rogers Centre, the location formerly known as the SkyDome, will host the Elimination Chamber next year. The seating chart shows that only half the stadium will be used with no big stage being set up.
Ticket prices start from CA $187.80 up in the rafters all the way to CA $9,606.60 for ringside. Other prices are significantly expensive, with level 200 seats at CA $457 and CA $588 for level 100. Floor seats all the way to the back start from CA $661.
Tickets go on sale to the general public this Friday at 10AM ET.
Smackdown rating for 11/29/2024
The taped episode of Smackdown which served as the go-home episode for Survivor Series drew 1,341,000 viewers, down a whopping 237,000 viewers from the prior week. Smackdown was #1 on cable television for the night with a 0.40 rating, down 0.06 from the previous show. The show went head-to-head with college football games which drew around 15 million viewers combined. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)
Juice Robinson out of the Continental Classic due to injury
Juice Robinson is no longer part of the Continental Classic tournament after an injury, believed to be a broken foot, which he suffered last week.
Robinson lost his first round robin match to Will Ospreay during Saturday’s Collision.
AEW President Tony Khan announced his replacement in the form of Komander, who Khan said is the gold league’s first alternate.
Komander now has Darby Allin, Brody King, Claudio Castagnoli, and Ricochet to face in the gold league but will not face Ospreay.
The Continental Classic continues tonight on Dynamite.
Last two qualify for the 2024 Iron Survivor Challenge on NXT
The last two individuals for the Iron Survivor Challenge qualified last night on NXT.
First, Wren Sinclair defeated Cora Jade, Jaida Parker, and Kelani Jordan in the fatal four-way match which saw the interference of Lola Vice, who accidentally knocked out Sinclair on Jade while taking out Parker. The referee then counted to three as Sinclair fell backwards on Jade who was already down on the mat.
Then, Eddie Thorpe defeated Cedric Alexander, Lexis King, and Axiom in the men’s fatal four-way match. His involvement however remains up in the air as Thorpe was taken out backstage by an unknown person as the show went off the air.
The men’s Iron Survivor Challenge now has Je’Von Evans, Nathan Frazer, Wes Lee, Ethan Page, and Eddy Thorpe while the women’s Iron Survivor Challenge has Giulia, Stephanie Vaquer, Zaria, Sol Ruca, and Wren Sinclair.
Eric Bischoff and X-Pac live on NXT on CW tonight
WWE Hall of Famers and former nWo members Eric Bischoff and X-Pac will be both at tonight’s NXT on CW.
Bischoff will moderate a face-to-face between NXT champion Trick Williams and his number one contender Ridge Holland. It’s unknown what X-Pac will be there for and no details have been revealed since he invited himself to the show last week.
We will also find out the last participants of the Iron Survivor Challenge matches with two fatal four-way matches taking place. Eddy Thorpe, Lexis King, Axiom, and Cedric Alexander will fight for the last place in the men’s match while Jaida Parker, Wren Sinclair, Cora Jade, and Kelani Jordan go for the last place in the women’s match.
There will also be a #1 contenders battle royal for the NXT Tag Team titles and Karmen Petrovic vs Nikkita Lyons.
WWE Superstars at Netflix in Los Angeles for media day
PWInsider.com is reporting that several WWE Superstars and officials will be at the Netflix offices today in Los Angeles, California for a big media event.
Several of the top WWE talent will be on hand for interviews and photos with journalists from the entertainment industry as the push from Netflix to promote WWE’s arrival goes into full swing.
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque and WWE President Nick Khan will also be at the Netflix location accompanying the talent.
WWE will officially move to Netflix with Raw in the United States on January 6. The majority of the rest of the world will be getting more than just Raw, with Smackdown, NXT, and premium live events as well during the same time.
Bracket for Women’s WWE Intercontinental title tournament revealed
The bracket for the Women’s Intercontinental title tournament was revealed last night on Raw.
The first quarter final match took place yesterday with Damage CTRL’s Dakota Kai advancing after she defeated Shayna Baszler and Katana Chance in a triple threat match.
Kai will now face the winner of Zoey Stark vs Raquel Rodriguez vs Kayden Carter in the second match on the left side of the bracket.
The right side of the bracket has Lyra Valkyria vs Zelina Vega vs Ivy Nile in the first match and Alba Fyre vs Kairi Sane vs Natalya in the second match. The winners of those two matches meet each other in the other semi final.
No date was announced as to when the final match will take place.
Two title matches added to the Saturday Night’s Main Event card on December 14
The WWE World Heavyweight title and the Women’s World title will also be defended on Saturday Night’s Main Event, marking WWE’s return to NBC with three huge title matches so far.
Gunther will be defending his title against Judgment Day member Finn Balor while Liv Morgan will defend her gold against Iyo Sky, joining the WWE title match featuring Cody Rhodes vs Kevin Owens.
Balor attacked Gunther last night on Raw following Gunther’s win against Dominik Mysterio. This prompted Raw General Manager Adam Pearce to make the match official for December 14, but Balor might be in even more trouble.
Pearce also dropped a hint that Balor and JD McDonagh will have to defend the WWE World Tag Team titles on the same show so Balor might have to pull double duty.
Iyo Sky became the #1 contender for Morgan’s WWE Women’s World title after she won a battle royal earlier last month. The two were opponents at the WarGames match this past weekend.
Saturday Night’s Main Event will air on December 14 starting at 8PM ET on NBC.
Drew McIntyre returns on Raw
Drew McIntyre returned to Raw last night, his first appearance since losing the Hell In A Cell match against CM Punk this past October at Bad Blood.
McIntyre made his presence felt at the end of the broadcast when he attacked Sami Zayn with a Claymore kick after Zayn lost to Seth Rollins in the main event of the show. McIntyre wore a hoodie covering his face, but then removed it to give the camera a menacing look before Raw went off the air.
Before the main event started, Jey Uso was taken out backstage but his assailant was never shown, with Zayn thinking it was Rollins who did the job after their segment at the start of the broadcast which also involved CM Punk.
Dynamite rating for 11/27/2024
Thanksgiving Eve proved to be a tough night for AEW as Dynamite drew just 536,000 viewers last week, down 104,000 viewers from the prior week. This was the third least-watched Dynamite in its five-year history. In 18-49, Dynamite drew a 0.15 rating, down 0.05 from the prior week and was #3 on the top 50 cable chart for the night. For comparison, last year’s Thanksgiving Eve episode drew 845,000 and a 0.26 in 18-49. (Ratings credit: Programming Insider)