NXT will be airing tonight for a Super Tuesday special on USA Network as the show is pre-empted from its usual time slot tomorrow due to the NHL playoffs.
The biggest match tonight is the 60-minute iron man fatal four-way match featuring Finn Balor, Tommaso Ciampa, Adam Cole, and Johnny Gargano where the winner will be crowned the new NXT champion. The NXT title was vacated last week by Karrion Kross due to a separated shoulder injury he suffered at NXT Takeover: XXX.
Two other matches are also announced with Timothy Thatcher taking on Bronson Reed and a street fight between El Legado del Fantasma and the team of Breezango and Isiah “Swerve” Scott.
Deadline.com is reporting that Netflix has opted not to pick up a second season of The Big Show Show, the collaboration between the streaming giant and WWE Studios featuring WWE Superstar The Big Show.
A total of eight episodes are part of the first – and only – season with Big Show starring with Allison Munn, Reylynn Caster, Juliet Donenfeld, Lily Brooks O’Briant, and Jaleel White. In the series, Show plays a retired WWE Superstars whose teenage daughter goes to live with him, his wife, and two other daughters.
Series co-creator Jason Berger thanked Netflix and all the fans in a message on Twitter after the news made it online. “On behalf of the staff, cast, and crew of #thebigshowshow…thank you to everyone who watched either with your fam or alone in your basement. Netflix was a dream to work with AND we had a blast making the show. Rare air! Please take care of each other,” Berger wrote.
Deadline adds that a one-off Christmas special of The Big Show Show will air on Netflix in December. The episode was filmed a few months ago.
It does seem like something of a paradox when sports betting and the WWE are mentioned together but stranger things have happened. Don’t worry, we have done our research and we do know that the WWE is scripted, but that doesn’t mean you still can’t make some coin on it. You just need to crack the code.
Since its beginnings in the fifties, wrestling as an entertainment spectacle has garnered plenty of fans. Many may still believe that there is no script but we aren’t here to judge. We are here to break down the sport into what it can do for you as a betting enthusiast: make you some money whilst enjoying the show.
Can you Really Bet on Something That’s Scripted?
You betcha! The reality is that the gambling powerhouses of the world are happy for you to bet on anything, as long as the odds are with them. They just need to ensure it’s profitable as they’re running a business. When it comes to WWE, bookies take bets on the result because essentially, it’s as much up in the air as any other game of chance. That’s because the people who control the strings in WWE are the writers and for them to make a success of what they do, their stories are kept closely guarded at all times.
It’s the same basis as any entertainment. No one wants to know the ending as the surprise is the key to our curiosity. Take that away and you take our need to know away with it, in this case our need to know the outcome of the fight. With the surprise spoilt, the income of the writer goes with it.
What Are We Betting on?
Essentially, like all sports betting, you are betting on the result. The fact that the result is predetermined means little to the bookies as the winner is kept a secret at all costs. The writers don’t want you to know who the winner will be as that will stop you watching. And that’s where it gets interesting because you are not placing a bet on the fight’s result but on the direction of the writer’s story.
And like any good soap opera, the story lines of the WWE are anything but boring. The writers are there to keep things exciting and the writers are good! It’s these exotic story ideas that can have the WWE fetching some pretty tasty odds.
How Can We Make Coin?
I’m glad you asked. The writers are there to keep things interesting and being good at their jobs, they know how to do just that. If the champion was to win every time, that would get boring. If the hero never falls, that will get boring. The key to winning is to get inside the writer’s head and work out which series of events is most likely to garner more interest and therefore more ratings. That’s what the writers will do.
Fight your natural instincts and forget about the skills and history of the actual athlete. You’re not betting on them, you’re betting on the writer. And like all good stories, you need a beginning, middle and end. Building up an athlete’s reputation at the beginning of the season lends to his interest from the fans. Add in some heroics to set the scene for an almighty finale then boom, here comes the twist. You know that upset is coming, you just need to work out from which corner it will come.
Common Bets in the WWE
So now you know the ways of the samurai, let your instincts guide you. Anything from first out of the ring, longest contender and appearance bets are all becoming more common for bookies. Obviously, the winner of the fight is always available but better odds will be displayed for the more adventurous.
As far as betting goes, WWE may not be that quick fire, money spinner that we all dream of but it sure goes a long way to entertaining us. And nothing is more exciting than a small wager to spice things up.
Rey Mysterio suffered a torn triceps on Sunday at Payback during his match where he teamed with his son Dominik to take on Seth Rollins and Murphy.
The injury was announced by WWE.COM yesterday and Mysterio was then taken off his scheduled match against Seth Rollins on Raw and replaced by Dominik, who lost again to Rollins.
His injury is believed to be not as serious as a full tear, but still one that will need a couple of months to fully heal. Mysterio is not expected to undergo surgery, at least not yet.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer also reports that Mysterio recently signed a new WWE deal believed to be in the region of three years.
Mauro Ranallo’s time with WWE has come to an end as the popular NXT announcer has decided to part ways with the company.
Ranallo, who has been doing NXT broadcasts from his home rather than Orlando, missed the last few shows due to a family issue, said to be the hospitalization of his mother.
“I appreciate the opportunity I had to realize my childhood dream of working in sports entertainment, and I wish WWE well in the future,” Ranallo wrote in a statement. “Now I want to direct my focus and devote my time to my other projects and to my mental health charitable activities and the well-being of my mother and myself.”
Meanwhile, WWE also issued a statement on his departure, which this time seemed more amicable than last time around.
“WWE and Mauro Ranallo have mutually and amicably agreed to part ways. Mauro’s passion and enthusiasm left an indelible and exciting mark with WWE and its fans, and we wish him the best in his future endeavors,” WWE said.
Ranallo left WWE the first time around a few years ago because of bullying by fellow peers but was then brought back to the company by Triple H to do NXT instead of Smackdown.
The relationship between the two parties has healed since then and Ranallo had some of the best calls while in NXT.
Brock Lesnar’s WWE contract has expired and the former WWE and Universal champion is now free to pursue any other opportunities.
Several industry insiders reported that Lesnar and WWE were still locked in contract talks over the past couple of months but they did not find a common ground yet.
With negotiations going nowhere, WWE pulled all the Brock merchandise from its WWEShop.com website yesterday with a search for his name yielding zero results.
Lesnar has pretty much worked for WWE since his return in 2012 and the controversial Superstar always got the best deal around – more money for less working dates.
Brock last appeared on WWE television at WrestleMania 36, losing the WWE title to Drew McIntyre in the main event of night two.
Last week, his advocate Paul Heyman aligned himself with Roman Reigns, perhaps suggesting that this time around, Brock will not coming back at all.
The PWInsider.com website is reporting that Wade Barrett is currently locked in talks with WWE for a potential return as an announcer on a full-time basis.
Much to the surprise of everybody, Barrett, real name Stu Bennett, returned to NXT last week to call the post-Takeover episode and will also be doing commentary for tomorrow’s episode.
Barrett wrote on Twitter last week that he enjoyed calling the action for the yellow brand and had a crazy few days to say the least. It’s unclear if Barrett would stay on NXT or move to a different show if he were to accept WWE’s offer.
PWInsider.com also adds to the story that NXT UK was also mentioned as a possible place where he could lend his voice to.
The next installment of Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions will be a one-on-one interview with WWE Hall of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler and the episode will premiere on Sunday, September 6.
With a career in professional wrestling spanning five decades, there will certainly be no shortage of topics for Austin and The King to discuss.
This is the eighth episode of the popular Broken Skull Sessions series on the WWE Network, with Austin already holding interviews with The Undertaker, Goldberg, Kane, The Big Show, Bret Hart, Ric Flair, and Mark Henry.
All episodes are part of the paid version of the WWE Network.
The funeral service for “Bullet” Bob Armstrong will be held on Saturday afternoon.
Both the viewing and the funeral will take place at the Cornerstone Christian Church located at 14047 S. Albama St. in Jay, Florida, with a viewing starting at 1PM and then the funeral at 2PM.
The WWE Hall of Famer died last week at the age of 80 after a long bout with cancer which spread to different parts of his body.
The family is asking for donations to the American Cancer Society in the name of Bob Armstrong in lieu of flowers.
It wasn’t a clean sweep on Sunday night but it was certainly a good night for the betting favourites at SummerSlam. Most came out on top, with the matches as a whole going as the betting suggested they would with the odd exception.
One of the main events of the night was one that didn’t go the way of the favourite, this was the upset that saw Drew McIntyre defeat Randy Orton for the WWE title.
Which Betting Favourites Came Out on Top?
For anyone betting on favourites to win at SummerSlam, the chances are they had a good night.
The Fiend took home the Universal Championship with him and he was a strong favourite to defeat Braun Strowman.
Asuka was a really interesting fighter on the night because she was fighting in two bouts in a bid to win both Raw and Smackdown women’s titles. The betting had her as the underdog to win the Smackdown title and favourite to win the Raw title. That is exactly how things went, she took home the one title she was fancied to win.
Apollo Crews defeated MVP to retain the United States title and this was another fight that went the way of the favourite. Rounding off the winning favourites, Seth Rollin got the better of Dominik Mysterio and Mandy Rose won her ‘loser leaves the WWE’ match against Sonya Deville.
As you can see, it was a very good night for those betting on the favourites. The big events such as SummerSlam are all available for punters to bet on, with odds usually available with bookmakers a few days in advance of the event. You can view sports betting at betfromindia to see the next big events from around the world, either wrestling or something else you enjoy.
Did We See Any Surprises?
Although there weren’t too many surprises on the night, we did see a couple of notable ones , including in one of the main fights of the night. That was Drew McIntyre defeating Randy Orton, a fight that Orton was the favourite for.
Elsewhere, another surprise came in the Raw tag team title matchup. Although holders of the titles, the Street Prophets were big outsiders to retain them when they faced Andrade and Angel Garza but it was the title holders that came out on top in this one. This will likely go down as being the biggest shock of the night on a night when few others took place.
It will be really interesting to see the story lines that come out of the event, as ever with SummerSlam there is plenty to talk about and that will no doubt include WWE Payback which is on the horizon.
This is often a key moment of the year for many WWE superstars, and we are right in the middle of the action now. What we saw at SummerSlam was many of the favourites winning their bouts, but the feeling is that there is plenty more coming in the next few weeks that could change things.
New champions were crowned last night at Payback on pay-per-view, with all the titles on the line changing hands.
Bobby Lashley was the first one to win the United States title from Apollo Crews. Lashley won the match via submission thanks to a full nelson. This is his second United States championship reign, with his first coming in May 2006.
The Women’s Tag Team title reign of Bayley and Sasha Banks also came to an end last night with Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax getting their hands on the titles for the first time. With their loss, Bayley loses her “dos straps” name and Banks is back to carrying no titles. It was Baszler who basically took down both Bayley and Banks, applying the Muta Lock on Banks and the Kirifuda Clutch on Bayley at the same time for the win.
And lastly and certainly not least, The Big Dawg won the Universal title in the triple threat no holds barred match. Reigns, as a full-on heel with manager Paul Heyman, came in halfway through the match to wreck everyone…and leave with the title. Reigns was locked in the mandible claw but he low-blowed Wyatt to escape and then landed a big spear on Strowman for the win.
Unfortunately for The Fiend, his reign as Universal champion came to an end after just a week. Reigns, who was supposed to win the title at WrestleMania 36 from Goldberg, came back and picked up where he left off.
Here are the results from the Payback 2020 pay-per-view which took place from the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida.
The Riott Squad defeated The IIconics; Bobby Lashley defeated Apollo Crews to win the United States title; Big E defeated Sheamus; Matt Riddle defeated King Corbin; Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax defeated Bayley and Sasha Banks to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles; Keith Lee defeated Randy Orton; Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio defeated Seth Rollins and Murphy; Roman Reigns defeated The Fiend and Braun Strowman in a no holds barred triple threat match to win the Universal title.
Hello everybody! Welcome back to the PPV Pick’em report with your boy, @TheMagnumDA. After Summerslam 2020, there was a NEW WOPC Champion…Heel Turn Tom vanquished all foes, and has returned to defend his title TONIGHT. Just like the Universal Title match, we’re going to have a Triple Threat! Tom will defend against myself and WO’s own Colin Vassallo. We decided to forgo picking the preshow match, because we all think the Riott Squad will walk all over The IIconics.
So without further ado, ON WITH THE PICKS!
Keith Lee vs. Randy Orton
Tom: This is tough as normally you wouldn’t think a NXT call up would lose his first match, but Keith Lee is going up against the Legend Killer. I am sure they will make Keith Lee look strong, but after an RKO out of nowhere, Randy Orton will win this match.
Colin: Lee is the new kid on the block on Raw. Giving him a loss on his first pay-per-view on the “main roster” would be bad. So I’m expecting Drew McIntyre to give Lee a “helping hand” and eventually beat Randy Orton.
Magnum: I read somewhere that Wrestlemania 37 plans are being revamped, at the moment. Originally, in those plans, Randy Orton was going to be defending the WWE Championship against Edge. I know that plans are always up in the air, but if Orton loses this match, it’s almost a lock that he’d be out of consideration for a main event spot at Wrestlemania. I have to take Orton here.
Dominik and Rey Mysterio vs. Seth Rollins and Murphy
Tom: Hard to believe Dominik will have two PPV matches in his first month with WWE. Now with it only being a week ago that Seth won and Rey has a lot of motivation from what Rollins and Murphy did to his boy, this will be a Mysterios win with Dominik getting a frog splash and 1-2-3 on Murphy.
Colin: This pay-per-view is called Payback so totally expecting the Mysterios to, erm, get their payback on the Messiah and his disciple. To me, it would make zero sense for Rollins and Murphy to win this one after what they did to the Mysterios at SummerSlam last week. So Dom and Rey for the W.
Magnum: I think Tom, Colin, and myself are going to see eye-to-eye for most of these other matches. I…what?! Oh, I see. Sorry, these jokes just write themselves! As for tonight, look for Rey Rey and Dom Dom to get revenge for last Sunday. Mysterios win!
Matt Riddle vs. King Corbin
Tom: It feels like they have been hot and cold on Riddle. The fans still like him and I think WWE would and should do something with him, especially since he would fit well with the Raw Underground. The King of Bros will make Corbin tap for the win.
Colin: I don’t like King Corbin. He has that “get off my TV” heat with me…and I’m sure with millions of others. So give me the Bro here to pick up the victory. Matt Riddle wins.
Magnum: I’m taking the chalk here – everyone’s going with Matt Riddle, and so am I…BRO.
Big E vs. Sheamus
Tom: Doesn’t feel like there was enough build up for this match, but then again they did just have one of their big four PPVs last week. I think Big E has need a singles push for a while and this is a good time to try it. So, I am going with the former Iowa Hawkeye D-Lineman Big E with the win over Sheamus.
Colin: Looks like Big E is getting ready for a big push. His stuff on Talking Smack over the past two weeks were excellent. Can he take the ball and run with it though? We’ll see. But I’m picking Big E for the win here.
Magnum: Big E is going to take it here. I think there are some big, big plans for our man in the near future. Here’s the start of that journey to the top.
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship
Bayley and Sasha Banks (c) vs. Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax
Tom: WWE is building up the match between Bayley and Sasha. There were some cracks in their friendship last week on Smackdown. Bayley and Sasha match should be at Wrestlemania, but I don’t see WWE waiting that long. I do think they will wait for Survivor Series, and for that reason, I see Bayley and Sasha retaining their titles over Baszler and Jax with more build up for the team breakup.
Colin: This is an interesting one. I guess they’re trying to recreate the Austin/Triple H tag team reign with Baszler and Jax. Both hating each other but both having to work together. The question is, who takes the fall, Bayley or Sasha? I’m going for Baszler and Jax new tag team champs tonight!
Magnum: I have a very strong feeling about titles changing hands this evening. I think the next chapter of the Bayley/Sasha breakup happens here – they might be an odd couple, but I’ll take Shayna and Nia Jax to win the gold.
WWE United States Championship
Apollo Crews (c) vs. Bobby Lashley (with MVP and Shelton Benjamin)
Tom: The Hurt Business could be a really good group. But WWE seems to book all of them looking like fools early in the night and then strong in the Raw Underground later. I am hoping they have more plans for the Hurt Business. I predict that Lashley will make Apollo submit to become the new US Champion.
Colin: I think Crews’ reign as the champ will come to an end tonight. The Hurt Business is cool, I like the faction, and Lashley needs a big win. Does he need the title? Probably not, but he will still get it.
Magnum: Again, I’m sensing a theme here…I think there will be multiple titles changing hands tonight. The Hurt Business is getting a lot of TV time, so I’m expecting them to start wearing gold soon. Give me Lashley to win his second US Championship tonight.
WWE Universal Championship – No Holds Barred Triple Threat
“The Fiend” Bray Wyatt (c) vs. Roman Reigns (with Paul Heyman) vs. Braun Strowman
Tom: I feel like Bray and having to defend my title one week after winning at the Summerslams PPV but the difference is I am going to defend. I hope Roman isn’t wearing the old Shield gear now that he is heel. The Fiend does not need the title to be in a good story line. I feel like Strowman never got over as much as the WWE would have liked. This will be the reset that WWE wanted to do at Wrestlemania and they will make Reigns the new Universal Champion and start the evil Roman Empire.
Colin: I wish they let Braun keep the title at SummerSlam and then have this match because I have zero doubt in my mind that the Big Dawg will be the new Universal champion tonight. I just hate that it comes at the expense of The Fiend. But I’m digging a heel Reigns with Heyman by his side. New champ! WOOF WOOF!
Magnum: WOOF WOOF? Colin…you are such a bandwagon jumper! LOL…now you’re cheering Roman Reigns on?! You used to despise the guy! Anyways, Colin has a good reason for getting behind the big dog: he’s going to win the title tonight. With Paul Heyman in his corner, and the landscape about to change with the WWE Draft, it only makes sense that Roman becomes the man on Smackdown. Roman Reigns wins it.
There you have it from the WOPC Pick’em Crew! Until next time, we’ll see you in September! @TheMagnumDA signing off.
WWE is back in the ThunderDome for another pay-per-view, just a week following SummerSlam. This is the first time since 1991 that WWE held two pay-per-views so close to each other and if you remember back then, it was Survivor Series first and then This Tuesday in Texas.
Today we will take a look at all the odds for the matches on this Payback card. Remember, odds might – and will probably – change as the show gets closer to bell time. And if you’re not interested in wrestling bets, maybe you want to check out virtual horse racing betting which is also pretty popular!
The Big Dawg is back and if bookmakers are correct, then Roman Reigns will be walking out of the Amway Center with the Universal champion. Reigns is currently favorite for the win with odds of 2/5 while the current champion, The Fiend, has 2/1 odds and Braun Strowman is a long shot at 16/1.
The WWE Women’s Tag Team titles will be on the line tonight as well. Interesting enough, the Raw and Smackdown Women’s titles are not up for grabs on the broadcast. The team of Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax, the challengers, are currently favorites with odds of 8/15 while the champs, Bayley and Sasha Banks are 11/8 underdogs. Looks like Sasha Banks will be ZeroBeltBanks if the odds prove to be correct.
The only other title to be defended tonight is the United States title and the champion is also the underdog with Apollo Crews having odds of 11/4 against Bobby Lashley of The Hurt Business who is 1/4.
Keith Lee gets his first pay-per-view as a Raw Superstar and he faces Randy Orton in a rematch from their TV match on Monday. Keith Lee is the favorite with 8/11 odds and Randy Orton is 1/1 to win.
One of the most anticipated matches of the show is the tag team match between Seth Rollins and Murphy against Rey and Dominik Mysterio. With this PPV titled Payback, it’s only natural that the Mysterios are the favorites in this match with odds of 4/7 against Rollins and Murphy who are 5/4.
The other two remaining matches on the main card include Matt Riddle favorite at 2/5 against King Corbin who is 7/4, and Big E the hot favorite at 1/10 against Sheamus who is 11/2.
And in the Kickoff show, The Riott Squad are 2/7 favorites to beat The IIconics who have odds of 9/4.
Ahead of NXT UK’s return in September, Triple H talked about the brand with UK-based Metro and what we can expect.
Triple H put over their partnership with BT Sport and said that their studio is perfect for what they do. NXT UK will be moving permanently to the BT Sport Studios in London to film television for the next few months.
He called BT Sport an “amazing partner” and said the company has one of the most technologically-advanced studios on the planet. “The intent is for us to be able to be in there long term to be able to create this content, and I think if later down the line, we get to a place where fans can come in – obviously we’d be thrilled and excited,” Triple H said.
The topic of #SpeakingOut movement also came up with the British and European wrestling scene hit hard with several accusations, including few of which from NXT UK stars. HHH said that part of the reason they started NXT UK was to put a system in place where everyone can feel safe in the UK.
“We take every allegation very seriously, and you can refer back to our policy. It’s zero tolerance for things of this manner. We look into everything. We look into it, we go from there to see what is legitimate, what is not, what is real, what isn’t, and deal with it accordingly. While a lot of these things happened years ago, we take them very seriously,” Triple H said.
In concluding, Triple H said that the company is looking to reintroduce fans to the brand after five-plus months of no new content on television. He said that they did the best they could considering everything but now it’s time to shift into high gear again.
“While there are a lot of fans that are very used to the product and love it, we’re going to reintroduce this to everybody and built it out in a bigger way than we have done before.”
Live from the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, WWE presents Payback on pay-per-view and WWE Network. The full card is as follows:
The Fiend vs Braun Strowman vs Roman Reigns in a triple threat no holds barred match for the Universal title; Bayley and Sasha Banks vs Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax for the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles; Apollo Crews vs Bobby Lashley for the United States title; Keith Lee vs Randy Orton; Dominik Mysterio and Rey Mysterio vs Seth Rollins and Murphy; Matt Riddle vs King Corbin; Big E vs Sheamus; and The Riott Squad vs The IIconics in the Kickoff show.
Just like what TNT did with Dynamite due to the NBA playoffs, USA Network will be doing the same with NXT over the next two weeks as it pre-empts the yellow brand for NHL.
NXT will be airing on Tuesday on September 1 and September 8 at 8PM ET, giving AEW a free ride for their pre and post-All Out pay-per-view shows on Wednesdays. SyFy will air an encore presentation on NXT on Wednesdays in its usual time slot during those two weeks.
This is the first time that USA Network has pre-empted a WWE show in several years. The September 1 episode will be headlined by a 60-minute Iron Man fatal-four way match to crown the new NXT champion.nxt
Wade Barrett, who returned to NXT this week to do color commentary with Vic Joseph and Beth Phoenix, will be returning for round two next week.
“Thank you for all of the nice messages about my return to @WWENXT. Crazy couple of days, but I enjoyed it so much, I’ll be back for #NXTSuperTuesday next week,” he wrote on Twitter, while thanking Joseph, Phoenix, and Phillips for “taking it easy on the new kid.”
Barrett stepped in as Mauro Ranallo missed the episode after also missing Takeover: XXX. A family problem was said to be the reason why Ranallo was missing in action during the SummerSlam weekend.
The former five-time Intercontinental champion also thanked Triple H for the invite, saying it was a privilege to be a part of such an epic NXT show.
Smackdown did an average of 2,180,000 viewers this week, up 13,000 viewers from last week’s broadcast. This was the most-watched Smackdown since April 17. The first hour did 2,210,000 viewers and then it was followed by 2,151,000 viewers in the second hour. Smackdown did 0.3 in the 18-34, 0.6 in the 18-49, and 0.7 in the 25-54, beating everything else on network TV. For the first time in a while, the show also beat several other broadcasts in overall viewership. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
