WWE Hall of Famer Edge was backstage at the Survivor Series last night according to PWInsider.com, his first time back since he got injured in his match against Randy Orton after WrestleMania.
Edge, like many who appeared on screen to honor Taker, has quite a history with The Undertaker, being part of the Ministry of Darkness and then having a feud over the World Heavyweight title, even headlining WrestleMania 24 together. The Rated-R Superstar did not show up on television though as his on-screen comeback is being saved to when he’s cleared to return to the ring.
Several WWE legends were backstage at the show last night for Taker’s final farewell, many of whom got their own entrance during the show. Everyone involved had a hectic time backstage as WWE producers were trying to film as much content as possible for future WWE Network documentaries and series.
Past and present WWE Superstars paid tribute to The Undertaker last night after Taker’s 30-year WWE in-ring career came to an end at the Survivor Series.
Social media was buzzing with tributes as the likes of The Rock, John Cena, Vince McMahon, Triple H, Shane McMahon, Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley, Trish Stratus, Bray Wyatt, Karrion Kross, and many, many others saluted The Phenom, and some even posted a personal story about him. Their tributes joined hundreds of thousands of others from wrestling fans who helped get the Dead Man trending during his final farewell.
“30 yrs ago today, he made his iconic #SurvivorSeries debut,” wrote The Rock in a post on his social media. “Like EVERYONE – I was in awe as a rookie in the @WWE when his first words pierced my soul as he walked in the dressing room and said, “Muthafucka” True story! Honored to share the ring w you, my brother.”
John Cena said that after three decades of The Undertaker committing wholeheartedly to the WWE, tonight we witnessed the end of an extraordinary body of work. “For all the in ring moments and as a member of the @WWEUniverse, I say #ThankYouTaker,” Cena wrote.
Triple H, who says he shared the greatest moment in his wrestling career with Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker after the Hell In A Cell match at WrestleMania, wrote, “For being loyal…. no matter what! For every second of every day, every mile, every tour, every shot, every ounce of wisdom, every drop of sweat, pint of blood, for times we were ‘social’ or just having a ‘sandwich,’ for every ride I’ll never forget, #ThankYouTaker.”
Vince McMahon called The Undertaker the measuring stick and the locker room leader. “The Phenom. Three decades ago today, @Undertaker changed the landscape of sports-entertainment. His legacy is incomparable, his impact immeasurable,” McMahon wrote.
Ric Flair congratulated The Undertaker said he cannot express how much he meant to him personally. “With a career so extraordinary, you deserve the greatest farewell of all! WOOOOO!”
Members of the All Elite Wrestling roster also joined in with the tributes, many of who worked with The Undertaker during their WWE days. Those included Matt Hardy, Miro, Lance Archer, Jim Ross, Chris Jericho, and others.
Jericho even filmed a video and uploaded it on his YouTube channel, congratulating the man behind the gimmick for the amazing accomplishments, calling him the greatest character and performer in WWE history.
The TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view will be taking place on December 20, five days before Christmas at the ThunderDome inside the Tropicana Field.
This will be the last WWE pay-per-view of 2020 and the first one in the domed baseball stadium as WWE moves its elaborate production from the Amway Center.
With less than a month away for the pay-per-view, the build will immediately start tonight on the post-Survivor Series episode of Monday Night Raw.
TLC, a match which was eventually expanded to its own pay-per-view just like Hell In A Cell, typically has a men’s and women’s tables, ladders, and chairs match. Last year the two matches were King Corbin vs Roman Reigns and Kabuki Warriors vs Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.
The Undertaker said his goodbye yesterday in the main event of the Survivor Series, 30 years exactly to the date when he made his WWF debut at the Survivor Series on November 22, 1990.
Before Taker was introduced, a bunch of his friends made their way down to the ring one by one, each with their own respective theme song. Those in attendance were Shane McMahon, Big Show, JBL, Jeff Hardy, Mick Foley, The Godfather, The Godwinns, Savio Vega, Rikishi, Kevin Nash, Booker T, Shawn Michaels, Ric Flair, Triple H, and Kane.
After everyone was packed in the ring and a video of the history of The Undertaker aired, they were gone, presumably staying there but off camera, and Vince McMahon was introduced. Vince put over The Undertaker and then introduced him for one last time.
Laser, smoke, pyro, and everything in between accompanied The Undertaker’s entrance, who was eventually elevated on a platform once he reached the corner. Taker took his time taking it all in before and while speaking to the WWE Universe. Taker did not speak much but said, “My time has come to let The Undertaker to rest in peace.”
As he went down on his knee to do his trademark pose, a hologram of Paul Bearer was displayed in the ring holding an urn, a nice, touching tribute to his late manager. Once that was done, Taker got back up on his feet, looked at the hard cam and did the throat slash and exited the ring.
Before heading to the back, Taker turned around to look at the ThunderDome and raised his fist in the air.
Hey everybody! It’s @TheMagnumDA with another edition of the PPV Pick’em report! Tonight, we’re going to have the first ever Triple Threat Confidence Pool! Yours truly will defend the title vs. Heel Turn Tom and our very own Colin Vassallo. The WOPC Pick’em Championship is on the line!
We are aware of the Battle Royal taking place tonight (I’ll pick Big E, by the way), but as of this writing, there were six matches announced for the main card, so we’ll be picking the matches on a scale of 6 points (most) to 1 point (least) in terms of confidence. Without further ado, here’s our picks!
5-on-5 Men’s Survivor Series Elimination Tag Match
Team Raw (AJ Styles, Keith Lee, Sheamus, Braun Strowman, and Matt Riddle) vs. Team SmackDown (Kevin Owens, Jey Uso, King Corbin, Seth Rollins, and Otis w/Chad Gable)
Magnum: I feel like Raw has more to build, while Smackdown has more elements that would cause it to self-destruct. Rey’s likely lurking around, same with Daniel Bryan, Tuckee, and a host of others. Raw’s got some people they’re looking to elevate, so I feel very confident about Raw winning this one. Four points.
Colin: Comparing the teams, the Raw team is obviously much more stronger here. Corbin and Otis, really? They could have had Daniel Bryan on at least instead of one of them. Oh well. Hoping Keith Lee has an MVP performance like last year so tipping Raw to win this one. Five points.
Heel Turn Tom: I miss when Survivor series was all tag matches of babyfaces versus heels. I don’t really care for what team will work best together like the last couple years. But I need to make a pick and I see Team Raw winning with Keith Lee and Braun Strowman being the survivors. Four points.
5-on-5 Women’s Survivor Series Elimination Tag Match
Team Raw (Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, Lana, Lacey Evans, and Peyton Royce) vs. Team SmackDown (Bianca Belair, Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, Bayley and Natalya)
Magnum: There will be tables involved. Sorry Lana. I’m expecting a few developments between some wrestlers that could lead to some winter feuds…but for tonight, I’ll say Team Raw. I’ll put three points on it.
Colin: My booking would be Lana becomes the sole survivor…then they all come out for a hug, and bam! Through another table! But that’s not going to happen. Expecting Bianca Belair to steel the show here and we can’t have Raw win both elimination matches, right? Team Smackdown will pick this one – Four points.
Heel Turn Tom: First prediction of this match, Lana will go through a table and be the first eliminated. My superior picking skills is telling me to go with Team Smackdown and that Bianca Belair and Bayley will be the survivors. Three points.
US Champion (Raw) vs. Intercontinental Champion (Smackdown)
WWE US Champion Bobby Lashley vs. WWE IC Champion Sami Zayn
Magnum: I really, really don’t like Sami Zayn’s chances here. I’ll take Bobby Lashley, but I won’t go all the way. Five points.
Colin: Deja vu of an old angle which I wasn’t particularly a fan of. Zayn has become so much better now but the almighty Lashley will not lose this one. The Hurt Business is over and Lashley needs to get the win here. Six points.
Heel Turn Tom: Unless Retri-poo-tion gets involved, I predict that Lashley makes Sami tap. Six points.
Tag Team Brand Supremacy – Non-Title Match
WWE Raw Tag Team Champions The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) vs. WWE Smackdown Tag Team Champions The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford)
Magnum: I think that this is one of those “passing the torch” style matches. It will have a lot of flash and sizzle, but when the smoke clears, The Street Profits‘ stock will be up. Way up. I’ll put six points on it.
Colin: I found it silly that they just swapped titles when the draft was held. That was dumb and lazy booking in my opinion. With that said, The Street Profits need this win more than The New Day needs it. Should be a good match regardless of the outcome but I am picking red cups and smoke. Three points.
Heel Turn Tom: Tough one but one of the two teams, The New Day does not need the win. I think you have to keep the Street Profits looking strong and will win this match. One point.
Women’s Brand Supremacy – Non-Title Match
Asuka (Raw Women’s Champion) vs. Sasha Banks (SmackDown Women’s Champion)
Magnum: I think Sasha Banks is on top of the world right now…which means she’s finally going to be able to leave a PPV still champion! She’ll get her win back on Asuka tonight. Two points on it.
Colin: I love Sasha Banks! She’s awesome. She’s fantastic. And she plays her part to perfection. Asuka got the win last time these two wrestled each other so maybe it’s time to return the favor? Sasha is the hottest thing going on in WWE at the moment but I’m expecting Carmella to cost her the match. Asuka wins. Two points.
Heel Turn Tom: Sasha has been on a push and she just appeared in The Mandalorian. There is no way Sasha loses tonight. Sasha with the bank statement for the win. Two points.
Men’s Brand Supremacy – Non-Title Match
WWE Champion Drew McIntyre (Raw) vs. WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns (Smackdown) w/Paul Heyman
Magnum: This one is too close to call. I think that Drew is more likely to swap the title around a few more times before WrestleMania. I think Roman is truly trying to build a dynasty here. I’ll take Roman, but it’ll be a good match. One point.
Colin: Tough one. Drew just won the title. Roman is on fire. What do you do? I can’t see this match ending clean in any way. If there’s a clean win, it won’t be beneficial for any of them. Maybe a Jey Uso interference to help Roman win? Or a DQ? It’s hard betting against Roman so I’m picking Reigns. One point.
Heel Turn Tom: Of the two champions, the push has been longer and more consistent for Roman. I am seeing a missed claymore and then a spear for the 1-2-3 win for Roman Reigns. Five points.
Well, there you have it folks! That’s our picks for tonight’s Survivor Series. We’re also aware that there will be an incredible celebration planned for The Undertaker, in honor of his 30th Anniversary with the company. It’s going to be amazing to watch – without question, he’s the greatest character EVER in the history of the WWE, and it will be a treat to see him finally receive the accolades he so richly deserves. Thank you Taker!
With that, this has been the 2020 Survivor Series PPV Pick’em report. @TheMagnumDA signing off.
It’s pay-per-view Sunday and WWE will be live with Survivor Series tonight, a special event that will honor The Undertaker and his 30-year career in the company with his final farewell.
Six matches will be part of the pay-per-view card and another one will be on the Kickoff show. We will take a look at the latest betting odds for the show below but remember that numbers will probably change by the time the show starts in a few hours. If you’re interested in doing some betting, you can use the Coral promo code for an offer if you’re in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
A WrestleMania-caliber main event will probably headline this show with WWE champion Drew McIntyre taking on Universal champion Roman Reigns. The tribal chief remains the favorite to win this match with odds of 1/2 while McIntyre, who regained the title on Monday, is 6/4 to beat Reigns.
The Raw and Smackdown Women’s champions will go head-to-head as Sasha Banks tries to get her revenge on Asuka from their SummerSlam encounter. The odds have flipped from the past few days with Banks now the favorite at 8/11 and Asuka is 1/1 to win.
Bobby Lashley has been favorite throughout the past several days for his match against Sami Zayn as the United States champion clashes with the Intercontinental champion. Lashley is currently 4/11 favorite while Zayn is 2/1 for the upset.
The Street Profits will be taking on The New Day in a battle between the Raw and Smackdown Tag Team champions. The Smackdown champs have the advantage in the odds with 8/11 odds while The New Day are 1/1.
There are two five-on-five traditional Survivor Series elimination matches, one featuring the men and one with the women.
In the women’s match, Team Smackdown – consisting of Bayley, Bianca Belair, Liv Morgan, Ruby Riott, and Natalya – will take on Team Raw – with Lana, Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, Lacey Evans, and Peyton Royce. Team Smackdown is the favorite with 8/13 odds while Team Raw is 6/5 to emerge victorious.
The men’s match has the same odds but flipped as Team Raw – with AJ Styles, Braun Strowman, Keith Lee, Sheamus, and Riddle – are 8/13 favorites to beat Team Smackdown – with Seth Rollins, Otis, Jey Uso, Baron Corbin, and Kevin Owens – who are 6/5 to win.
In a video uploaded on their YouTube channel, Nikki and Brie Bella doubled down on their desire to make a comeback to WWE but they are still not sure when that will happen.
The twins said that they have not held any talks with the powers that be about returning yet and they’re just talking between them and making sure they don’t do the mistakes that Brie did when she returned after she had Birdie a few years ago.
Brie said that her last return did not come at an ideal time as she was mostly sleep deprived, trying to be a mom, and training at the same time. “I’d like to wait until the boys are like two years old, or something like that,” she said. “I see us making a comeback in a couple of years, or maybe it’s next year! I don’t know..but it’s not next month!”
Nikki echoed her sister’s statement and said the last run failed a little bit because it wasn’t their main focus as they were running three different companies, filming Total Bellas and everything else in between. “The comeback didn’t get its full attention from us that we wanted it to have, so, we’re gonna make sure on that too,” Nikki added.
The Bone Street Krew, the group which ran with The Undertaker during the Attitude Era, have all reunited in Orlando in anticipation of tonight’s final farewell to The Undertaker at the Survivor Series.
Rikishi posted a photo with The Godfather, Savio Vega, Rikishi, Mideon, Henry Godwinn, and Taker himself in Orlando. All of them, along with the departed Yokozuna, Crush, Mr Fuji, and Paul Bearer, were part of the BSK. Also pictured with them were former referee Tim White and WWE Hall of Famer Booker T.
Mideon, real name Dennis Knight, also posted a photo saying the BSK tested all negative and “it’s beginning,” probably referring to all the shenanigans that will take place among them leading up to the event.
The 10th episode of season two of Miz & Mrs, titled The “IT” Family of Four, did a total of 412,000 viewers this week with a 0.13 rating in the 18-49 demo. That placed the show #58 on the chart. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Live tonight from the ThunderDome inside the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, WWE presents the 2020 Survivor Series on pay-per-view and WWE Network. The full card is as follows:
Drew McIntyre vs Roman Reigns in a non-title match; Asuka vs Sasha Banks in a non-title match; The New Day vs The Street Profits in a non-title match; Bobby Lashley vs Sami Zayn in a non-title match; AJ Styles, Keith Lee, Sheamus, Braun Strowman, and Riddle vs Kevin Owens, Jey Uso, King Corbin, Seth Rollins, and Otis in a five-on-five traditional Survivor Series elimination match; Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler, Lana, Lacey Evans, and Peyton Royce vs Bianca Belair, Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, Bayley, and Natalya in a five-on-five traditional Survivor Series elimination match; a dual-brand battle royal with participants still to be announced will take place in the Kickoff show.
Plus, The Undertaker will be in attendance for the final farewell as the curtain closes on his illustrious 30-year WWE in-ring career.
A special episode of The Bump and a Watch Along will be accompanying the Survivor Series today, with both shows airing free on WWE’s social media properties.
At 4PM ET, The Bump will go on the air on both YouTube and WWE Network for a special Survivor Series episode. Lana and The Street Profits will be the special guests and joining them as well will be Bruce Prichard, who 30 years ago today accompanied The Undertaker to the ring for the first time at the 1990 Survivor Series as Brother Love.
Then, starting at 7PM ET, Watch Along will return as a bunch of Superstars will be joining in to give running commentary during the show. Those appearing are Angel Garza, Apollo Crews, Billie Kay, Ever-Rise, Dominick Mysterio, Kelly Kelly, Rey Mysterio, Shotzi Blackheart, and Tamina.
Tonight is the night where wrestling fans all around the world will say goodbye to the character of The Undertaker, as the final farewell takes place at the Survivor Series, 30 years to the date of his debut.
But what’s going to happen? What is planned? Well, nobody knows that, and even The Undertaker has been left in the dark about it.
Speaking to the Sports Illustrated podcast ahead of tonight’s show, Taker admitted that the information he has is the same as the one the general public has!
“Hmm…the only thing I can safely say is at some point I will make an entrance and go to the ring and address the WWE Universe,” Taker said when asked what the plan is. “And that’s about as much as I know right now…to tell you the truth!”
What we also know is that a bunch of former colleagues are also being flown in for the evening, including members of the BSK – Bone Street Krew – who were part of The Undertaker’s inner circle back in the day. If they appear on camera or are there for any WWE Network specials remains to be seen though.
The Survivor Series go-home episode of Smackdown did 2,215,000 viewers in the overnight ratings, an increase of 74,000 viewers from last week’s overnight. Last week’s show eventually did 2.23 million viewers once the final number came in on Monday.
The first hour of Smackdown did 2,202,000 viewers and then increased to 2,228,000 viewers for the second hour. The show was second in 18-34, second in 18-49, and first in 25-54 with 0.3, 0.6, and 0.75 ratings respectively. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
We are just over 24 hours away from one of the big four pay-per-views, the Survivor Series, and this year it’s extra special as WWE will be honoring The Undertaker and his 30-year career as The Phenom.
Several online betting websites are offering odds on tomorrow’s Survivor Series and you can check out some of the odds from a variety of sports at https://megapari.com/. Today, we will look at the updated odds for the show and then tomorrow night we will publish the final odds. Remember, odds will probably change as the show gets closer.
Universal champion Roman Reigns is favorite to beat WWE champion Drew McIntyre with the tribal chief having 1/3 odds and Drew at 2/1 for the win.
The Raw Women’s champion Asuka is at 4/6 favorite to beat Smackdown Women’s champion Sasha Banks who is at 27/25 to get her revenge on the Empress of Tomorrow.
The Street Profits, who are the Smackdown Tag Team champions, have odds of 4/6 to win against their counterparts over at the red brand, Raw Tag Team champions The New Day. The New Day, like Sasha Banks, have odds of 27/25.
The United States champion from Raw will take on the Intercontinental champion from Smackdown and Bobby Lashley is currently favorite with 11/25 odds while Zayn is at 8/5 to win.
There are two, five-on-five traditional Survivor Series matches with the men and women from each brand taking on each other. In the women’s match, Team Smackdown is 2/5 favorite to win against Team Raw who is at 7/4 while for the men’s match, Team Raw is favorite at 1/2 odds while Team Smackdown has 7/5 odds.
Episode two of season six of Total Bellas, titled Bellas Break Free, drew a low 257,000 viewers, down 159,000 viewers from last week. Th show had a 0.12 in the 18-49 demo and placed #62. This was the least-watched episode in the history of the show. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
WWE will be packing out of the Amway Center after the December 7 Monday Night Raw following a short extension to finish up its residency there in anticipation of the December 11 start date at the Tropicana Field according to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer.
WWE and its crew will have to tear down the ThunderDome inside the Amway right after Raw and re-build it at the Tropicana Field in time for the Smackdown broadcast on Friday. The Tropicana Field will present its own logistical issues since this is an old stadium and not an arena.
The company paid the Amway Center a base lease of around $200,000 and $12,500 extra for Sunday shows, $10,000 extra for Monday and another $10,000 for Friday shows, $7,500 for days when WWE worked inside the venue, and an additional $2,500 for the rest of the days when the venue was just sitting idle.
WWE started its ThunderDome residency inside the Amway on August 21 and held every Raw, Smackdown, and pay-per-view there ever since.
Ahead of his final farewell at the Survivor Series, The Undertaker took on a spicy challenge for First We Feast on Hot Ones, where the legendary WWE Superstar ran the gauntlet of spicy sauces and chicken wings!
Hot Ones is a popular show where celebrities test out their tolerance for everything spicy and with Taker doing media rounds to promote the Survivor Series, it was only fitting to go in a fiery one-on-one – or one-on-ten in this case – too see how really tough the Dead Man is!
During the 30-minute episode, The Undertaker also opens up about a variety of subjects related to professional wrestling. The episode has already been seen by over 3 million people.
In its second filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday, WWE revealed that it has agreed to settle a previously disclosed class action lawsuit brought forward by the City of Warren Police and Fire Retirement System for $39 million.
The Plaintiffs in the lawsuit alleged securities law violations by the WWE, its current Chief Executive Officer and its former Co-Presidents, related to certain disclosures concerning the business relationship in and with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. WWE was accused of inflating its stock with a promise of a TV deal in the Middle East when in reality negotiations had already failed and senior WWE executives sold nearly $300 millions worth of stock before news came out and the stock tanked. To this day, WWE remains without a television deal in the region.
The out-of-court settlement was reached between attorneys for both parties and WWE’s insurance. The settlement will include a full release of all defendants in connection with the allegations made in the lawsuit, and will not contain any admission of liability or admission as to the validity or truth of any or all allegations or claims by any of the defendants.
“The Company believes that resolving the matter is the right business decision and that it is prudent to end the protracted and uncertain class action process,” the filing said.
In a first of two filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday, WWE announced the hiring of Karen Mullane as its Controller and Principal Accounting Officer.
She replaces Mark Kowal, who was terminated after 19 years with the company. John Brody, WWE’s Executive Vice President and Global Head of Sales and Partnerships, was also removed from his position as the company continues to replace personnel in top positions.
Prior to joining WWE, Mullane, 56, has served as the Chief Financial Officer of CreateMe Technologies, Vice President and Corporate Controller of SeatGeek, Inc., Vice President and Corporate Controller, Chief Accounting Officer for SoulCycle, and Vice President and Corporate Controller of Etsy, Inc.
She joins with a base salary of $415,000 per year, an annual target incentive award of 35% of her base salary, a sign-on bonus in the amount of $61,500, as well as relocation expenses and temporary housing. Mullane also got $166,000 worth of WWE Class A common stock.
Just two days before the show, the Smackdown Survivor Series teams are now complete. The men’s team had one more competitor left to be added while the women’s team had two more spots to fill.
Former Money In The Bank briefcase holder Otis was handpicked by Adam Pearce to join the men’s blue team while Bayley was also picked by Pearce for the women’s team. That left only one spot on the women’s team and a last chance qualifying match between Natalya and Tamina was held to determine the final member. Natalya eventually won that match to get her ticket to Survivor Series.
The Smackdown men’s team now has Seth Rollins, Jey Uso, Kevin Owens, Baron Corbin, and Otis while the women’s team consists of Bianca Belair, Liv Morgan, Ruby Riott, Natalya, and Bayley.
