Monday Night Raw this week drew an average of 1,821,000 viewers, up 7,000 viewers from last week’s broadcast.
Raw started with 1,928,000 viewers, then dropped to 1,809,000 viewers in the second hour, and finished the night with 1,725,000 viewers, with over 200,000 viewers tuning out throughout the show. The Olympics against Raw scored nearly 13 million viewers.
In the 18-49 demo, Raw scored 0.51 rating, up 0.02 from last week and the show was #1, #2, and #3 in the top cable chart.
While the numbers have slightly improved compared to shows from May onward, Raw did similar numbers in the first few months of 2021. (Ratings credit: Wrestlenomics)
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Wrestling via his Select service is reporting that the artist formerly known as Ruby Riott is heading to All Elite Wrestling when her 90-day notice with WWE ends.
Now going by the name of Ruby Soho, the 30-year-old was cut from WWE in June of this year due to budget cuts after a four and a half years with the promotion. She started with NXT in January of 2017 and stayed with the black and gold brand till the end of the year before moving to the main roster.
Ever since being released from WWE, Ruby has largely stayed out of the public eye and just yesterday unveiled her new look with fiery-red hair on Twitter.
Despite being one of the best female wrestlers, Ruby never won a title in WWE but hopefully that will change if or when she’s able to link up with All Elite Wrestling.
During a media conference call with reporters, AEW EVP Cody Rhodes spoke about resuming touring in the United States and hopefully in the United Kingdom as well.
Rhodes said that the company has a full schedule already mapped out going forward and the company wants to go to the United Kingdom. He said that anyone who runs a wrestling promotion and fails to go to the UK, then they don’t really run a wrestling company.
Asked about if AEW is thinking of doing a big stadium show, Rhodes said that personally, he would love if they run one at the American Family Field, previously known as Miller Park, but that’s just his personal opinion and cannot say if it’s being discussed or not.
With the COVID-19 Delta variant running rampant and the risks of shutting down again, Cody said that the company will always abide by mandates of each state they will perform in and said that fans should wear a mask if it makes them feel better. Cody also urged everyone to get vaccinated.
Impact Wrestling today announced a new membership channel on YouTube which gives access to a raft of premium content, brand new shows and exclusive perks not available anywhere else.
Titled Impact Insider, there are two membership tiers available: Level one is priced at 99 cents per month and gives fans access to fan loyalty badges that identify them as members, exclusive community posts and the flagship two hour television show, Impact!
Level two, titled Impact Ultimate Insider, is priced at $4.99 and apart from Level one perks, there’s also new Originals featuring The Good Brothers, Josh Alexander, Sami Callihan and Dlo Brown, every Pay-Per-View in TNA/Impact history, access to Impact Wrestling’s “big four” PPVs just 30 days after they take place, exclusive merchandise offers, and exclusive live chats with Impact wrestlers.
With the launch of Impact Insiders on YouTube, the company will discontinue its presence on Twitch. Are you a vlogger and run your own channel? Learn how to promote your YouTube channel!
The former NXT tag team Ever-Rise, featuring Chase Parker and Matt Martel, will be appearing on AEW Dynamite tonight, just over a month after they were released from WWE.
The duo got surprisingly cut on June 25 but wasted no time in securing a new job. Now known as 2.0, Jeff Parker and Matt Lee will be teaming up with Daniel Garcia to take on Jon Moxley, Eddie Kingston, and Darby Allin on the Homecoming episode of Dynamite live on TNT.
“Free agency huh? Hell of a thing! How about it? Free agency feels really good,” the duo said in a promo hyping up their AEW arrival.
Formerly known as 3.0, the two signed a WWE deal in January 2019 and were regulars on 205 Live, hosting their own show, and wrestling on NXT.
For the second week in a row, NXT will be airing on Syfy tonight as the Olympics are taking their slot on USA Network. This show was taped two weeks ago and will air at 8PM ET.
Four matches have been announced so far for the broadcast. A love her or leave her match will take place between Dexter Lumis and Johnny Gargano. The stipulations are simple: if Lumis wins, then he gets to date Indi Hartwell. If Gargano wins, then it’s all over for the love story. The other matches are Hit Row vs Legado del Fantasma, Bobby Fish vs Roderick Strong, and Joe Gacy vs Trey Baxter in the NXT Breakout Tournament.
Last week’s NXT on Syfy drew the lowest audience for an NXT broadcast with just 520,000 viewers tuning in.
Former NXT referee Drake Wuertz, who was fired for his radical views and failure to comply with COVID-19 regulations within WWE in May of this year, announced today that he’s running for Florida State Representative in District 30.
“The land we love has changed in recent years. We’ve seen our liberties and rights be stripped away at the quake of others fears. We’ve been told that it’s selfish to defend our God-given Rights,” Wuertz wrote in a post on social media, accompanied by a photo of him and his family. “As a Christian, a family man, and a community leader I’m answering the call to rise up and defend our great state while representing the hard working constituents of District 30.”
Wuertz refereed in NXT since 2014 and was the head of the NXT referee group. He raised some eyebrows with his far right political beliefs and participating in some questionable online meetings sporting WWE merchandise from the Performance Center over the past few months.
Last month, Wuertz confirmed that he was fired for refusing to comply with WWE’s COVID-19 rules. “I questioned, pushed back, and then defied this tyrannical overreach of control. That didn’t fit their narrative and I was punished,” Wuertz wrote.
The 36-year-old described himself as a “MAGA Republican” and “a bold conservative” and vowed to be “the warrior our state needs to push back against the radical left.”
Wuertz opened a campaign website at www.votedrake.com where he is accepting donations to “keep Florida great!”
In a statement issued via social media, Ric Flair said that he’s able to respond to all questions from the press related to his release from WWE.
“I want to make it really clear with everyone that I’m not upset with WWE at all,” Flair wrote. “They solely are responsible for putting me in the position of life that I’m in right now, where I’m seen in the brightest light ever.”
Flair added that he and WWE have a different vision for his future and he wishes them nothing but continued success.
“Thank you for everything! Nothing but respect,” Flair concluded.
WWE announced that they released Ric Flair last night in a super short statement that was missing the customary “we wish him luck in his future endeavors” sentence.
The statement simply read, “We have come to terms on the release of Ric Flair as of today, 8/03/2021,” suggesting that things did not end on a good note between the two parties.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer hinted that Flair didn’t ask to be let go, but was fired after he complained about the booking involving his daughter.
The 16-time champion signed a new WWE deal last year and said that while it was not a contract for life, he wished that WWE would renew it every time. This came on the heels of Flair handing over his trademark of “The Man” to WWE, a fight which Flair took public.
Upon learning of the release, Sting – who shares a long history with the Nature Boy – tweeted a GIF of Flair chopping him and writing “Woooo!”
Following his appearance on Monday Night Raw yesterday, Hall of Famer Goldberg got what he wanted for SummerSlam – a match for the WWE title against champion Bobby Lashley.
Things got personal between Goldberg, Lashley, and MVP last night after Lashley confronted Goldberg’s son Gage who was at ringside. Lashley told Gage that he will beat his dad bad at SummerSlam. MVP then pushed Lashley back and talked to Gage.
“You see that man right there? That man is going to end your father’s career,” MVP said. As he continued to run his mouth, Goldberg came back down the ramp and speared MVP.
Goldberg’s last shot at the WWE title came at the Royal Rumble this year but lost to Drew McIntyre. Goldberg has never won the WWE title in his career, winning the World Heavyweight title and the Universal title during his time there.
“Nature Boy” Ric Flair has departed WWE effective immediately, a news that both Fightful Wrestling and WrestlingInc confirmed today.
Flair was still under a deal and was last involved in a storyline featuring Lacey Evans. The storyline was dropped after Evans announced that she was pregnant in February and the feud was scrapped as Flair was siding with her in her battles against his daughter Charlotte. The two were rumored to be having a match at WrestleMania to end the feud.
The 16-time champ has been pretty much under some sort of a WWE deal since 2012, making countless of television appearances since then.
The relationship between Flair and WWE has been rocky sometimes, most recently when WWE gave Becky Lynch the nickname of The Man. Flair even threatened to open legal proceedings against WWE for use of his trademark but eventually came to an agreement to transfer the mark to WWE in May 2020 in return of compensation.
Flair signed a new WWE deal in May of last year and said at the time that while his contract is not for life, he hoped WWE continues to give him a new one. But the former 16-time world champion wanted out and WWE granted his wish.
In the past, Flair discussed his big friendship with Tony Khan, the President of AEW, but said that he wouldn’t go anywhere else if WWE didn’t renew his deal.
Monday Night Raw tonight will be live from a sold out Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, and considering the pretty much confirmed news that CM Punk is heading to AEW, it will be interesting to see how the rowdy Chicago crowd responds.
CM Punk chants at Chicago WWE events are nothing new but now, Chicago’s favorite hero has gone “all elite” and for sure not appearing anywhere near a WWE logo.
And just like a New York crowd, Chicago fans are notorious for letting you know if you’re good or you suck and they do not tend to shy away from being very, very vocal.
Advertised for tonight’s show is Goldberg, the former World and Universal champion who is gunning for a WWE title shot at SummerSlam against Bobby Lashley.
Randy Orton is also advertised to be part of a six-man tag team match, most likely a dark match, teaming up with Drew McIntyre and Riddle to take on Lashley, AJ Styles, and Omos. Orton has been out of action for over a month.
The Ultimate Fighting Championships, or UFC, sees a number of mixed martial arts combined into creating a perfect fighter. The sport of MMA sees various different combat sports come together. These include boxing, kickboxing, muay Thai, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, taekwondo, judo, and karate. Many MMA fighters start off their combat sports career doing one of these mentioned sports. However, it is usually later in their career that they move into the sport of MMA. This is why you see many fighters with their own unique style as they combine the martial arts they are most skilled at.
MMA has become one of the most popular sports in the world. It is the most popular in the USA, as it has grown massively in recent years. It seems as if it is only a matter of time before it catches up with popular sports such as football and baseball. It is said that wrestling is the best foundation for a mixed martial artist. After all, if they are struggling in a striking exchange, a talented wrestler can just take the fight to the mat, where they will likely have an advantage. This has proved itself repeatedly, with many of the UFC’s top fighters having a strong wrestling background. But who are the best wrestlers in the organization?
Jon Jones
Jon Jones may go down as the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. He is the youngest person ever to capture the UFC belt, being just 23 years old at the time. He was rampant in his early fights, which saw him earn a title shot. Jones has a legendary resume when it comes to his victories. Some of those names include Daniel Cormier, Vitor Belfort, Lyoto Machida, and Rashad Evans. Jones’ wrestling was a huge part of his success and has been the difference in some of his more recent fights against Dominick Reyes and Alexander Gustaffson. Jones is now preparing for a move to the heavyweight division. In a weight class that is mostly filled with strikers, it’s likely you’ll see Jones implement his ground game when he makes the move.
Kamaru Usman
Arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC right now, Kamaru Usman has been nothing but dominant in the welterweight division. He really showed how good of a wrestler he is when he first challenged for the belt against UFC great Tyrone Woodley. Despite the champion having a 94% takedown defense, Usman dominated him in the wrestling department, taking him down several times.
Colby Covington
Another UFC welterweight with extremely impressive wrestling is Colby Covington. The American with a pro record of 16-2 has been dominant in nearly every fight he has fought under the UFC banner. His performances were so good he earned himself a title bout against champion Kamaru Usman. Despite fans expecting a wrestling match for the entire bout, neither man attempted a takedown throughout the fight. It almost appeared as if both men respected each other’s ground game to the extent they didn’t want to test it. With the two men having bad blood, they are set to run back the bout after Usman won the fight in the fifth round. Will fans get the wrestling match they expected this time around?
Disney’s Jungle Cruise movie, spearheaded by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson took the number one spot on the box office this weekend but its result was a disappointing one.
The movie opened with $34.2 million in domestic receipts according to BoxOfficeMojo.com from a total of 4,310 theaters. The movie has $27,630,000 in international box office for a total of $61,830,000 worldwide. Jungle Cruise also opened on Disney+ on the same day for a $30 price and it made an additional $30 million just from Disney’s streaming service.
Carrying an A- CinemaScore grade, Jungle Cruise cost a whooping $200 million to produce and millions more to market.
WWE’s largest non-televised live event for years took place yesterday at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, with over 10,000 fans packing the arena, less than a thousand tickets from a sell out.
The large shift in tickets can be attributed to the addition to John Cena, who pretty much lifted every house show he’s appearing in so far. This was a Supershow, a combined event featuring Raw and Smackdown Superstars with a main event of John Cena teaming up with the Mysterios to take on Roman Reigns and The Usos.
Sasha Banks was also back on the road and wrestled a match against Bianca Belair. Banks returned on Friday after a four-month layoff.
Speaking of John Cena, the former champ showed up at the Birmingham 8 theater in Detroit for a surprise appearance before the Noon advance screening of The Suicide Squad, a movie where he plays the role of Peacemaker. Cena – in full wrestling gear – talked with the crowd for a few minutes. The movie comes out on August 6.
AEW will begin broadcasting in India from August 15 after Eurosport India acquired the broadcasting rights to both Dynamite and Rampage.
In addition to Dynamite and Rampage, Eurosport India will be broadcasting the AEW pay-per-views as well starting with All Out this September. All the shows will also be available to stream on Discovery+.
“Pro-wrestling is a sport that every kid in India has grown up watching, and its popularity is on the rise. Eurosport has always believed in building communities and bringing quality content for passionate fans,” Head of Eurosport India Vijay Rajput said. “AEW, in a short period, has grown rapidly and this partnering with AEW allows us to bring to our fans some of the biggest names in the pro-wrestling world—thus strengthening our commitment of bringing world-class action to fans.”
AEW President Tony Khan added, “In less then two years since launching AEW Dynamite, we’ve started a professional wrestling revolution. Through our partnership with Eurosport India, we’re looking forward to showcasing the best professional wrestling that fans in India demand and deserve. We were an instant success in the U.S., and now fans across the world are discovering AEW, feeling refreshed and excited about professional wrestling again. We can’t wait for fans in India to experience our dynamic storytelling, high-flying action and incredible roster of global stars and homegrown talent on a weekly basis.”
Raj Giri of WrestlingInc.com is reporting that Adam Cole’s contract with WWE will be expiring right after SummerSlam and the former leader of the Undisputed Era has not signed a new one yet.
Giri revealed that his original deal actually expired after the Great American Bash NXT episode on USA Network but extended by several weeks to where it now ends at the end of August 2021.
Adam Cole is considered as one of the leaders in the NXT locker room and is universally liked by his peers and management. The former NXT champion, who holds the reign of the longest champion in the black and gold brand, would surely be a hot property if he were to leave WWE this time around.
Cole has been part of NXT since 2017 and won every major title in the brand.
Impact Wrestling this week drew 113,000 viewers on AXSTV, up 9,000 viewers from last week’s broadcast. The show drew a 0.02 in the 18-49 demographic, down 0.02 from last week. (Ratings credit: Wrestlenomics)
Matthew Rehwoldt, better known to wrestling fans as Aiden English, made his Impact Wrestling debut at the Homecoming Impact Plus event which aired yesterday night.
A vignette at the Slammiversary pay-per-view last month aired promoting the arrival of the Drama King and during Homecoming, Rehwoldt was revealed as Deonna Purrazzo’s mystery partner. The two eventually went on to win the mixed tag team tournament, beating Hernandez and Alisha Edwards, Matt Cardona and Chelsea Green, and Crazzy Steve and Rosemary to become the Homecoming King and Queen.
Rehwoldt worked for WWE between 2012 and 2020 and was one of the many unfortunate individuals who were cut following WrestleMania due to budget cuts due to the coronavirus pandemic. He is a former NXT Tag Team champ with Simon Gotch when the two were known as The Vaudevillains.
Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com is reporting that according to multiple sources, Bray Wyatt was released due to the never-ending budget cuts and Wyatt never asked for his release.
John Laurinaitis, the man who unfortunately has to deliver the news, called Wyatt personally to advise him about the 90-day notice. Wyatt was actually being advertised to return for some shows in August so his departure came as a surprise to pretty much everyone within the company.
Johnson adds to the story that the relationship between Wyatt and Vince McMahon hasn’t always the best, mainly due to creative decisions. McMahon, Johnson says, has allowed WWE President Nick Khan the freedom to do many changes that would put WWE in a better position financially so those with big money contracts, just like Braun Strowman, are all suffering the same fate.
Bray has not appeared on WWE television ever since the Smackdown following WrestleMania 37 and was also absent for the majority of the months leading up to the show.
