Monday Night Raw this week drew an average of 1,810,000 viewers, up 95,000 viewers from last week’s broadcast. It was still the second least-watched Raw of 2021 so far.
The show started with 1,935,000 viewers, then dropped to 1,806,000 viewers, before ending the night at 1,690,000 viewers.
Raw was #1, #3, and #4 in the top 50 cable chart with 0.60, 0.57, and 0.53 ratings respectively. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select is reporting that WWE has filmed material for a second NXT show, tentatively titled NXT: EVOLVE.
Sapp says that Gabe Sapolsky and Jeremy Borash are overseeing this project which has been taped from a warehouse close to the WWE Performance Center, giving the show a different look from what we’re accustomed to. Josiah Williams was the host of the show but there was no live commentary during tapings.
NXT: EVOLVE is set to feature developmental talent, who before the pandemic kicked in, toured Florida doing non-televised live events in front of small crowds to start preparing them for the bright lights of WWE television.
Ever since last March, there have been no live events and those in developmental have not practiced for an audience ever since. NXT: EVOLVE will give those training at the Performance Center an opportunity to get back into performing and build their characters in front of TV viewers.
The show is expected to be a WWE Network-only broadcast.
Taking a break from betting is always a good idea; it will help you gain a fresh perspective and hone your betting skills to earn big money. These documentaries will help bettors get an idea of the different strategies that can be employed to win and understand the world of sports betting without any hiccups. Some documentaries stand out better than others; they have captured the attention of many and influenced bettors across the world. Some of the sports betting sites, such as SBObet, have gained immense popularity over the last couple of years due to widespread access and have proven to be a safe choice as it is licensed.
Top 5 sports documentaries
Conclusion
There are several blogs such as GclubBase that give out information on the different online gambling sites available, which you can get hooked onto with easy and safe access. Sports betting documentaries will give a real and rare insight into the world of gambling that could help bettors learn different strategies and realize the world of betting is indeed unpredictable, making it clear that there will be winners and losers, and it’s all about strategy.
NXT will have its post-Takeover show tonight live on USA Network and unlike Dynamite, nothing much has been advertised except for one match.
The match will see Karrion Kross take on NXT Cruiserweight champion Santos Escobar in a non-title contest. Kross, who is undefeated in NXT, took out both Raul Mendoza and Joaquin Wilde last time and now wants his encounter with the former El Hijo del Fantasma.
Perhaps the future of The Undisputed Era will also be tackled after Adam Cole took out Kyle O’Reilly in the show-closing angle last Sunday. Cole predicted big things for The Undisputed Era in a tweet earlier this year…but it looks like the faction is about to implode.
NXT Takeover also had the arrival of LA Knight, the former Impact Wrestling champion who wrestled under the name of Eli Drake. Will Knight make his presence felt tonight in his NXT on USA debut?
The United States title match at the Elimination Chamber this Sunday could undergo a change and become a one-on-one match rather than a triple threat match as Keith Lee’s participation in the show is up in the air.
Lee, who returned last week on Raw after more than a month out, was once again absent from this week’s broadcast with the announcers saying that Lee was “injured” after last week’s attack by Bobby Lashley.
The former NXT champion missed the Royal Rumble, a match which he was expected to have a big part of and the day before the show his fiancee Mia Yim tested positive for coronavirus as well.
It’s not known what the real issue with Lee is at the moment and for now he’s still being advertised for the match by WWE.
The Elimination Chamber also had another casualty in the form of Lacey Evans, whose match against Asuka was scrapped after Evans announced that she’s pregnant.
Davey Boy Smith Jr, the son of the British Bulldog, revealed some details about the upcoming WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony while speaking to UK publication Metro.
The HOF, which was canceled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, will be taking place this year in some form with last year’s inductees taking center stage.
The former WWE Superstar said that he’s already planning what topics he wants to cover but it all depends how much time they will allow him, noting that his mother and sister will join him at the podium and all three have to divide the time that WWE will allocate to them.
“I’m pinpointing things down now, and trying to think of specific stories that I might want to address or what might be something the WWE Universe hasn’t heard,” he said. “Of course, definitely appreciative to them for all the support they’ve given my father and the wrestling industry – definitely big thanks to them. I’ll have to see how much time I have to really decide.”
The 35-year-old, who’s also contemplating a return to the WWE ring, said his dad’s induction is “long overdue” but is grateful that it’s finally happening and for now, he’s the one who’s going to be doing the induction.
Davey Boy Smith Jr also speculated that there won’t be an audience and a ThunderDome-style set-up will allow fans to participate virtually.
Episode one of Young Rock, titled Working The Gimmick, and which premiered yesterday on NBC did 5,034,000 viewers in the overnight numbers and was the second most-watched show on network television. The show was second in 18-34, 18-49, and 25-54 demos with 0.4, 0.9, and 1.4 ratings respectively. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
When CM Punk signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, there was a sense of optimism that he could overcome the odds and flourish. In hindsight, such hope was perhaps a little misguided. After suffering back-to-back defeats to Micky Gall and Mike Jackson, Dana White, the organization’s president, said that the WWE superstar’s UFC career was over. Following his unsuccessful run in MMA, Phillip Brooks stated that he was “too old” for MMA and left such an experiment too late. Of course, there’s some truth to that, but there was also a significant skill discrepancy. So, let’s look back on Punk’s UFC career and consider how much of a factor age had on his performances.
Over the years, numerous professional wrestlers have sought to broaden their horizons and cross over into the world of mixed martial arts. Aside from Brock Lesnar and Ken Shamrock, who both fought for belts in the organization, few others have experienced success in the Nevada-based promotion. When CM Punk entered the UFC, he faced a tough challenge in the form of six-foot-two Gall. At the time of their bout in September 2016, the 29-year-old was unbeaten in professional MMA, winning each of his previous two contests by first-round submission, as per his profile at Sherdog.
Unfortunately for Brooks, he became the third competitor to suffer a first-round rear-naked-choke loss to Gall. As expected, the fight itself was a one-sided contest, with the WWE superstar throwing just eight strikes, landing only two. However, there’s no shame in losing to the Green Brook-born jiu-jitsu expert. In Jackson’s fight with Gall, he threw six punches, and he’s a competitor who has long trained in various combat practices.
Granted, when Brooks and Jackson met in the cage in June 2018, Jackson showcased that CM Punk was well below the level required to be victorious in the UFC. At the time of bout, the crossover star was 39 years old, and few competitors in the promotion’s history have shone at that stage of their career. Undoubtedly the opportunity did come a little late in Brooks’ career, but there was perhaps a hint of naivety on his part in believing that he could beat experienced fighters with a few years of combat training under his belt.
At the time of writing, Randy Couture is the only fighter in the UFC’s history to win a world championship aged 39 and over. Before losing his title to Brock Lesnar at UFC 91, a 45-year-old Couture stopped Gabriel Gonzaga in the third round of their highly-anticipated fight. Although Brooks never aimed to achieve title-winning success, it speaks volumes that some of the company’s best-ever fighters fell short of victories as they approached 40. Not even Anderson Silva, arguably the promotion’s all-time best fighter, sustained his success. The Spider held the middleweight title at 38. However, after losing the belt to Chris Weidman in July 2013, Silva has won just one of his next eight fights since then.
If Silva fell off at the age of 39, expectations shouldn’t have been too high for Brooks prior to his UFC debut. Ultimately, age catches up with professional sports athletes eventually, especially as young, hungry competitors fight their way to the top. Israel Adesanya is a prime example of the importance of youthfulness. After success in the 185-pound division, the Last Stylebender is now striving to become a two-weight world champion when he faces Jan Blachowicz at UFC 259. As of February 15th, and for those placing a bet online at Royal Panda, Adesanya is currently 4/10 to beat the reigning light heavyweight champion.
Although he failed in claiming a victory in the UFC, CM Punk didn’t embarrass himself or the world of professional wrestling. At an age when few are at their peak, he suffered a fate comparable to experienced fighters at the hands of Gall. Although the 42-year-old didn’t set the combat world alight, it’s hard to argue that such a venture didn’t come too late into his career.
AEW will hope to continue their recent run of good numbers with tonight’s broadcast which will be headlined by a tag team title match.
Set for the show are the main event of The Young Bucks defending their titles against Santana and Ortiz of The Inner Circle, a six-man tag team match featuring Jon Moxley, Lance Archer, and Fenix versus Eddie Kingston, The Butcher, and The Blade, a first round match in the AEW Women’s Title Eliminator tournament with Riho vs Serena Deeb, Hangman Page and Matt Hardy vs The Hybrid2, and FTR vs Matt & Mike Sydal.
A Sting appearance is also on the card where he will call out Team Taz ahead of their match at Revolution.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson returns to television screens starting tonight with the season premiere of Young Rock on NBC at 8PM ET.
Young Rock focuses on different chapters of Dwayne Johnson’s life, from growing up in a strong and resilient family, to being surrounded by the wild characters of his professional wrestling family, to playing football at the University of Miami, the show will explore the crazy rollercoaster that has shaped Dwayne into the man he is today and the larger-than-life characters he’s met along the way.
Adrian Groulx, Bradley Constant, Stacey Leila, Joseph Lee Anderson, Uli Latukefu, and Ana Tuisila will play 10-year-old Dwayne Johnson, 15-year-old Dwayne Johnson, Ata Johnson, Rocky Johnson, 20-year-old Dwayne Johnson, and Lia Maivia respectively. Johnson will appear in every episode of the series.
Young Rock is co-written by former Fresh Off the Boat showrunner Nahnatchka Khan and her longtime collaborator Jeff Chiang. Both will exec produce alongside Johnson and his Seven Bucks Productions’ Dany Garcia, Hiram Garcia, Brian Gewirtz and Jennifer Carreras.
Impact Wrestling announced today an agreement with Africa’s electronics and media company StarTimes, bringing more than 250 hours of Impact Wrestling content to the platform in 2021. The acquisition extends Impact’s reach even further across the globe, bringing a slate of the promotion’s most popular series to over 13 million DVB subscribers and 20 million OTT users throughout Sub-Saharan Africa including Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa and Côte d’Ivoire, among others.
“IMPACT has cultivated a large and loyal following in Africa throughout the years, and we are proud to be able to reach even more viewers in the continent’s Sub-Saharan region through this partnership with StarTimes,” said Ed Nordholm, Chief Corporate Officer of Anthem Sports & Entertainment and president of IMPACT Wrestling. “The worldwide demand for high-quality professional wrestling content has never been higher, and IMPACT is committed to expanding our footprint as far as possible across the globe. This agreement is the perfect reflection of that, providing us with an invaluable opportunity to bring classic IMPACT Wrestling programming to the StarTimes’ audience.”
“We are excited to partner with IMPACT Wrestling. Wrestling has a strong fanbase in Africa and our viewers will love the action of IMPACT Wrestling,” said Kristen Miao, Sports Deputy Director of StarTimes.
Bad Bunny got his first WWE title win last night on Raw after he won the 24/7 title during a backstage segment.
Bunny was being interviewed with Damien Priest when all of a sudden, Tozawa beat Truth close by. Tozawa celebrated but ran into Priest, who didn’t appreciate the bump. Priest then threw Tozawa around and told Bunny to pin him. Bunny quickly hooked the leg up and the referee counted to three, awarding him the title.
The switch was probably made because Bad Bunny will be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live on NBC this weekend so maybe he can show up with the title for some free advertising.
Bunny, who’s constantly training at the WWE Performance Center, is well-liked backstage and Triple H noted how respectful he is to everyone around him. His immense popularity also shows with WWEShop.com, raking in hundreds of thousands of dollars from his WWE merchandise.
Online gambling has become quite popular for those in Switzerland, and with leading sites offering real money games, you can enjoy secure banking methods. Each casino will have an assortment of options that can be used for safe casino deposits. Before playing at any online casino Swiss casino site, take some time to learn about the most popular methods supported. With these, players can instantly add funds to an account and start enjoying the best games online for real money payouts.
Major credit and debit cards are accepted at online casinos, and players from Switzerland will find Visa and MasterCard the most popular options. Both of these will offer instant transactions. Maestro is also accepted at most sites, and you can conduct a Swiss Franc deposit using this debit card. You will not be able to use a Swiss-issued credit card to fund a casino account. The credit card companies in Switzerland discourage online gambling and will not process any transaction to a casino account. Players looking to use credit and debit cards will have success with international cards.
Ewallets are perhaps the most used form of banking at any online casino, and you will find many options being supported. The majority of licensed sites will accept payments using Skrill, PayPal, and Neteller. These three e-wallets are known to offer fast ad secure payments, and you can easily manage an account. Just create an account with your chosen e-wallet service, fund that account, and instantly transfer those funds to your preferred online casino!
Prepaid cards are a great way to deposit funds while making sure you do not overspend. You will purchase these cards at a retail location for a certain amount. You can then redeem the cards to make a deposit online and play real money games. Prepaid cards can only be used or deposits, and you can only deposit up to the value of the voucher. Some of the preferred prepaid options for players in Switzerland include Paysafecard, Neosurf, EcoPayz, and Flexepin.
Many online casinos will accept a bank or wire transfer to fund an account. However, if you reside in Switzerland, you may find this hard to do. Banks in this country discourage any transactions to online casinos, and most deposits will be denied. Players may have to find alternative payment methods instead of taking the chance of a failed bank transfer.
For those that wish to remain anonymous while enjoying a real money experience, cryptocurrencies are a great option. The most popular crypto offered at leading Swiss casinos is Bitcoin. With this, you can make instant deposits and fast withdrawals without having to provide any sensitive banking information to the casino. Other cryptocurrencies often used by Swiss gamblers include Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple.
The first round of the Japanese side of the bracket of the AEW Women’s Title Eliminator tournament aired yesterday on the AEW YouTube account.
The show was taped from the Ice Ribbon Dojo in Saitama, Japan and Dynamite commentator Excalibur did voice-over commentary for the broadcast. AEW Women’s champion Hikaru Shida, who traveled to Japan for this, helped produce the show on the ground.
In the matches, Yuka Sakazaki defeated Mei Suruga, Emi Sakura defeated Veny, Ryo Mizunami defeated Maki Itoh, and Aja Kong defeated Rin Kadokura. The next round will now feature Emi Sakura vs. Yuka Sakazaki and Aja Kong vs. Ryo Mizunami.
Kofi Kingston is entering the Elimination Chamber again this Sunday after he managed to beat The Miz for his spot in the match.
The Miz wanted to give his place to John Morrison but The New Day argued with Adam Pearce that Morrison is not a former WWE champion and all participants are. A match was set up with the stipulation that if Miz beats Kofi, Morrison gets his spot but if Kofi wins, Kofi replaces Miz.
Kofi’s incredible performance at the Elimination Chamber two years ago led to him being in one of the main events of WrestleMania 35 where he won the WWE title from Daniel Bryan.
In other Elimination Chamber news, Sheamus won a gauntlet match yesterday on Raw to earn himself the last entry spot in the match. Sheamus beat WWE champion Drew McIntyre with a Brogue Kick to win the match. All the other participants – including Kofi Kingston – participated in the match. The order of eliminations were Kofi, AJ Styles, Jeff Hardy, Orton, and McIntyre.
Another WWE Superstar is pregnant and will be missing Elimination Chamber this Sunday. Lacey Evans, who is currently in an angle with Ric Flair and feuding witch Charlotte and Asuka, announced on Raw that she has a bun in the oven.
Evans tagged with Peyton Royce on Raw last night to take on Charlotte Flair and Asuka but Evans remained on the apron for the whole match. When Royce went to tag, Evans did not even try to reach out to her…until Royce forced a tag.
With Evans bailing, she grabbed the microphone. “Wait, you’re not putting your hands on me. Charlotte…I’m pregnant!” That prompted a hilarious response from the Nature Boy. “What? Really? Wooooo!,” Flair said as he danced around on the ramp.
WrestlingInc.com reports that her pregnancy is real and not just an angle and WWE were informed about it today before the show. Evans was supposed to take on Asuka on the pay-per-view but that match is obviously not happening now.
The 30-year-old and her husband Alfonso have a daughter together named Summer.
Rapper Bow Wow wrote on Twitter that he has decided to start wrestling training with Rikishi at the Knokx Pro Entertainment in Van Nuys, California.
“I have officially decided to train with my boy @TheREALRIKISHI at his gym in California to get ready for the @wwe. LOCKED IN,” Bow Wow tweeted.
Over the past several days, the 34-year-old has also been egging on a few WWE Superstars on Twitter, in particular Damian Priest and his association with Bad Bunny.
“Tell your little pet Bad Bunny I’ve been watching…” Bow Wow tweeted to Priest. “And I’m not impressed,” he added, saying that he got Morrison’s back.
Priest didn’t leave him without a reply though. “Every Monday we’re living what you’re chasing homie,” Priest replied. “But by all means, keep shooting blanks on Twitter!”
Earlier today, the rapper continued dissing WWE Superstars saying a lot of them who are coming for him should be happy he’s going back and forth with them. “Most have like 70k followers. I’m actually helping you become a bigger name,” he wrote in typical heel fashion. “How you on RAW with 50k followers. Something not adding up!”
The women’s triple threat match for the NXT Women’s title was cut short and ended after around 12 minutes only, the shortest match on the card.
Speaking to the press after the show, Triple H said that the three did not have a time restriction and were free to go longer but there were some mishaps during the match, including a table break that didn’t go as planned, which somewhat derailed plans.
However, Triple H praised Io, Toni, and Mercedes for adapting to the situation and adjusting on the fly, saying that sometimes you need to roll with the punches and all three did it seamlessly.
The botched table spot came after Toni Storm went to clear the announce desk and the table broke with the slightest of touch. “Storm’s tearing apart our desk,” said Beth Phoenix on commentary before the table collapsed. “Literally and figuratively,” continued Vic Joseph.
After a bit, Io Shirai climbed the steel structure at ringside and hit a cross-body block on Storm and Martinez from way up high. Shirai then went missing in action for a few minutes as Storm and Martinez continued one-on-one. After a flying headbutt from Storm, Shirai hit a moonsault out of nowhere, landing on top of them and covered Martinez for the pin.
Wrestling has been around for a while now. It was actually one of the first five sports that were part of the first Olympic Games that where held in Greece. And since then, well, a lot may have changed but it is still the sport that many love.
According to www.acepokies.net, nowadays, wrestling is both a sport as well as entertainment avenue. That is why we have several wrestling shows that have managed to catch the eyes of the viewers. And from those shows we have top wrestlers that have managed to stand out. And today, we want to look at those wrestlers who stood out to the extent that they managed to get their own action figures made on their behalf.
One of the greatest and creepiest wrestlers of all time was The Undertaker. He had some top moves like the Tombstone that managed to knock out his opponents. And it was all that that and a whole earned his own action figures. The best of those cation figures was the debuted at the San Diego Comic-con International of 2013 that was a Mattel’s Flashback version of the wrestler. It was part of the toymakers Elite Series 23.
Trish Stratus was one of the baldest diva’s ion the wrestling ring, and it no shock that she also managed to get her action figure. The cation figure was created with a retro like twist that also came with a cartoony feel as well. The action figure has Stratus in here signature pose with a top written “100% Babe.” We are sure if we look closely at the best casinos online games we play today, we will be able to spot one or two wrestling figures that we recognise as well.
The “You Can’t See Me” star was a fan favorite that the audience loved and the women literally adored. He was a top wrestler who knew how to give the fans a great time and to make sure that he was never forgotten, he even got his own action figure as well.
It is being reported by multiple insiders that Sammy Guevara was supposed to be part of the Impact Wrestling TV tapings this week but Guevara was pulled after he complained about the creative direction.
Fightful Select and Wrestling Observer both revealed how Guevara traveled to Nashville, Tennessee but was vocal about what he was supposed to do on the show. Impact decided not to deal with him and did not use him at all. The website Slam Wrestling was the first one to shed light on the story, saying it was Jericho’s idea to have Guevara show up on Impact and the angle was green lit after Tony Khan signed off on it and Impact agreed to play along.
While details are not 100% confirmed at this point, Guevara never made it to the Skyway Studios and was told not to report to the building after his complaints were registered and reported to AEW.
Guevara quit The Inner Circle on last week’s Dynamite.
