The annual WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view seeks to pit Raw vs. SmackDown in competition to determine brand superiority. And the only way to do that is to pick the best of the best for each team...
Bischoff Rips CM Punk's AEW Ratings Impact; WWE UK PPV Rumors; 2-Night WrestleManias
Oct 26, 2021
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - SEPTEMBER 17: CM Punk speaks on stage at Living Colour's set during Riot Fest 2021 at Douglass Park on September 17, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images)
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.
Bischoff Suggests Punk Hasn't Helped AEW's Ratings
Former WCW president Eric Bischoff had some choice words for CM Punk on his 83 Weeks podcast regarding Punk's impact on AEW's television ratings or lack thereof.
During an AEW discussion on the podcast (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), said the following regarding whether Punk has moved the needle for AEW as much as hoped:
"Punk hasn't delivered. Punk was the guy that came out and his first comments were, 'The addition of this talent was more significant than Scott Hall and Kevin Nash,' constantly making references to WCW because they want to be the company that WCW was back in the mid-'90s. There's these constant references to WCW. When Scott Hall and Kevin Nash came in, we took off. Punk, you came in and you s--t the bed, in terms of ratings."
Bischoff was referencing something Punk said after Bryan Danielson and Adam Cole made their AEW debuts at All Out in September.
At the time, Punk expressed his belief that himself, Danielson and Cole arriving in AEW was bigger than Hulk Hogan, Hall and Nash forming the nWo in WCW in 1996.
Punk's AEW debut after seven years away from wrestling was huge news, and it undoubtedly had a positive impact on the ratings at first.
While AEW didn't announce Punk's debut ahead of time, it was widely assumed he was set to appear on the Aug. 20 edition of Rampage in his hometown of Chicago.
Despite the show airing in the 10 p.m. ET timeslot on a Friday night, that episode of Rampage averaged an impressive 1.129 million viewers.
Ratings have dropped precipitously since then, though, even when it comes to shows that feature Punk.
Punk most recently wrestled on Rampage on Oct. 15 when he beat Matt Sydal in the opener, and that show brought in only 578,000 viewers.
Bischoff has taken great exception to the idea that AEW is anywhere near the level of WCW in the mid-to-late '90s when WCW was bringing in millions of viewers each week and beating WWE in a head-to-head competition on Monday nights.
AEW may reach that level at some point, but the numbers suggest Bischoff is right for now.
WWE Reportedly Planning UK PPV in 2022
WWE released its pay-per-view schedule Monday for 2022, and it was notable that the event listed for Sept. 3 or 4 didn't include a PPV name or location.
According to Fightful Select (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), the current plan is for that show to take place in the United Kingdom.
It was noted in the same report that WWE has put an "increased focus" on holding stadium shows and making WWE pay-per-views a "destination" for fans.
Holding a pay-per-view in the UK is significant, since WWE has not put on a main roster pay-per-view there since Insurrextion in 2003.
The first official UK pay-per-view was SummerSlam 1992, followed by One Night Only in 1997. WWE then held two pay-per-views per year in the UK from 1998-2002 and finished up with Insurrextion 2003.
WWE did return to the UK for NXT TakeOver: London in 2015, and it also held three NXT UK TakeOver events there, with two in England and one in Wales.
A main roster UK pay-per-view has apparently been in the works for quite some time, as heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury divulged back in March that he was supposed to face Drew McIntyre at a UK PPV in 2020.
Fury said the plans got nixed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it seems as though WWE is back working toward a return to the UK.
It is unclear if Fury vs. McIntyre is still the plan for that show, but given how big of a star Fury is after beating Deontay Wilder again this month, bringing him in would be a major coup for WWE.
WWE Reportedly Holding 2-Night WrestleManias Moving Forward
As part of its 2022 pay-per-view announcement Monday, WWE made it official that WrestleMania 38 will be a two-night event on April 2 and 3, 2022, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
That will mark the third consecutive year of two-night WrestleManias, and it reportedly may be here to stay.
According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t H Jenkins of Ringside News), it is presumed WWE will continue with two-night WrestleManias for the foreseeable future.
WrestleMania 36 in 2020 marked the first-ever two-night WrestleMania, and it was essentially born out of necessity since the COVID-19 pandemic forced WWE to hold the event inside the WWE Performance Center with no fans in attendance.
The two-night format was well received by fans, as it allowed for more wrestlers to get on the card and didn't burn out the viewers, as they got to watch two three-hour shows rather than a six- or seven-hour marathon.
WWE went back to the format for WrestleMania 37 this year with fans in attendance, and it seemed to work well once again.
WrestleMania has long been one of the biggest spectacles in sports entertainment, and getting more people involved and more eyes on the product by spreading it over an entire weekend will only serve to make it even bigger.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).
Seth Rollins Earns WWE Title Match vs. Big E After Winning Ladder Match on Raw
Oct 26, 2021
Seth Rollins makes his way to the rign during the WWE World Cup Quarterfinal match as part of as part of the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Crown Jewel pay-per-view at the King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh on November 2, 2018. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine / AFP) (Photo credit should read FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)
Seth Rollins is making himself right at home on Raw.
The Drip God, who moved to WWE's flagship show in the 2021 draft, beat Finn Balor, Kevin Owens and Rey Mysterio in a Ladder match Monday night to earn a shot at WWE champion Big E.
Since the draft fell before the Crown Jewel pay-per-view, this was the first night of the new-look roster on Raw. Rollins brought his feud with Edge to a conclusion on that show, losing in a Hell in a Cell match that was an instant classic.
With Big E's most recent challenger (Drew McIntyre) now on SmackDown, he was left without a clear No. 1 contender. Monday's Ladder match was a great way to determine the next in line as it allowed for a wider field of candidates and provided fans with a thrilling spectacle.
Whatever show he has competed on, Rollins has never been too far from the world-title scene, following the breakup of The Shield in 2014. He's a two-time WWE champion and a two-time universal champion.
But pitting him against Big E represents a fresh matchup with these kinds of stakes. The bulk of their singles encounters outside of live house shows came when they competed in NXT together.
Their shared history in the developmental brand could bring an interesting dynamic as well. Rollins became the first-ever NXT champion in August 2012, and Big E dethroned him in January 2013.
Beyond allowing him to hold a major singles title again, this feud could help Rollins gain a measure of revenge more than eight years later.
Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair Set for Raw Women's Title Match on WWE Raw
Oct 26, 2021
Becky Lynch will defend the Raw Women's Championship against Bianca Belair in one week's time.
The announcement comes after the two stars had a war of words on Raw that turned physical.
Earlier in the fall, the pair jostled for the SmackDown women's title. Their feud has carried over to WWE's flagship program following the 2021 draft.
To some extent, Belair can reasonably argue she hasn't really gotten a fair shake at the champion.
Lynch took the SmackDown title away from her at SummerSlam after she was the surprise replacement for Sasha Banks. Banks then forced a disqualification during their rematch. Their most recent encounter was a Triple Threat match involving Banks at Crown Jewel, so Belair was again denied a one-on-one opportunity to regain the gold.
WWE might be looking to bring some closure to this feud with Survivor Series on Nov. 21 the next pay-per-view on the calendar.
Around this time each year, individual rivalries are typically put aside in order to put the stars of Raw and SmackDown against one another. Whoever comes out with the championship next week will likely next be on a collision course with Charlotte Flair, the current standard-bearer for SmackDown's women's division.
WWE Rumors on Roman Reigns, Bryan Danielson, Charlotte, Bray Wyatt, Braun Strowman
Oct 25, 2021
Roman Reigns greets the fans ahead of his match during the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Crown Jewel pay-per-view in the Saudi capital Riyadh on October 21, 2021. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from WWE and AEW.
WWE Never Saw Bryan Danielson on Roman Reigns' Level
Make no mistake: Bryan Danielson loved being in WWE and the company loved having him. That said, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer says the company never quite saw him as face-of-the-company material.
"Keep in mind while they absolutely liked him and saw him as a star, even as he saved a WrestleMania and sports teams throughout the country were doing 'Yes' chants, they never thought he was the top guy and that Roman Reigns was, because they know more than the fans," Meltzer said.
This, of course, is obvious to anyone who saw the booking of the two stars. Danielson got over through his brilliance in the ring and as a character, along with the overwhelming willpower of the fans. Reigns got over very much through the WWE machine. WWE saw a superstar in Reigns and gave him every possible advantage—and even then it still didn't totally work until Reigns' heel turn allowed him to flip a switch.
In the end, Reigns is absolutely the face of the company WWE saw when they initially put him in The Shield. You can't argue with the success. That said, it's fair to wonder if Reigns would have reached these heights earlier in this career if WWE had listened to the overwhelming fan desire for a heel turn.
There are certainly times when fans should be ignored in service of a larger narrative. But WWE's initial hesitance to push Danielson, along with their stubbornness with Reigns, shows a flagrant disregard for the audience that doesn't work in modern wrestling.
More Charlotte Flair Backstage News
There has been a seismic dump of negative backstage talk about Charlotte Flair since her backstage confrontation with Becky Lynch at Friday's SmackDown. The prevailing narrative has painted Lynch in an entirely positive light, while Flair has been seen as an increasingly difficult personality who has alienated herself from her peers.
Alex McCarthy of talkSport provided a somewhat better picture of Flair, saying she wanted to lose the Raw women's championship to Bianca Belair on last week's Raw rather than hand it over via title exchange with Lynch. That report notes that Flair is a Belair fan and wanted to put the EST of WWE over in a big way.
Objectively speaking, this would have been a much better plan than the awful segment that concluded Friday's SmackDown.
It's just not clear if it's entirely accurate. Fightful Select reported people in the WWE locker room "challenged" the notion that Flair pushed to lose the match.
Regardless of which side of the aisle you stand on in these conflicting reports, it's clear Flair has some damage control to do with her co-workers. She's unquestionably booked as the top women's star in the division, and many would argue deservedly so. But this recent increase in tensions behind the scenes could impact her spot at the top of the card—especially with someone as well-regarded as Lynch standing in her opposition.
Impact Fails to Land Several WWE Stars for Bound for Glory
While The IInspiration opened the show making their Impact debut, several other former WWE stars were contacted by Impact ahead of Bound for Glory but did not make an appearance.
Fightful Select reported Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt and Bronson Reed were all in contact with Impact ahead of the event. Strowman was widely reported to have met with Impact's Scott D'Amore just a week before Bound for Glory, and many expected him to make his debut with the company—even those inside Impact.
No deal has been made between the two sides.
Reed was initially booked for the show but was pulled for undisclosed reasons.
Wyatt, meanwhile, won't make an appearance on any wrestling programming until his non-compete with WWE is up at the end of this month.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).
WWE 2022 PPV Schedule: 2-Night WrestleMania 38, SummerSlam in July, Saturday Shows
Oct 25, 2021
LAS VEGAS, NV - JANUARY 08: WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon speaks at a news conference announcing the WWE Network at the 2014 International CES at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas on January 8, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The network will launch on February 24, 2014 as the first-ever 24/7 streaming network, offering both scheduled programs and video on demand. The USD 9.99 per month subscription will include access to all 12 live WWE pay-per-view events each year. CES, the world's largest annual consumer technology trade show, runs through January 10 and is expected to feature 3,200 exhibitors showing off their latest products and services to about 150,000 attendees. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
WWE pay-per-views are headed to Saturdays.
The company announced on Monday a slew of pay-per-view dates for 2022, with the company moving the majority of their events to Saturday night.
Here is a look at the announced dates.
Saturday, Jan. 1: Day 1 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta
Saturday, Jan. 29: Royal Rumble at The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis
Saturday, April 2 and Sunday, April 3: WrestleMania 38 at AT&T Stadium in Dallas
Sunday, May 8: TBD pay-per-view at Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, R.I.
Sunday, June 5: TBD pay-per-View at Allstate Arena in Chicago
Saturday, July 2: Money In The Bank at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas
Saturday, July 30: SummerSlam at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee
Saturday, Sept. 3 or Sunday, Sept. 4: TBD pay-per-view at TBD location
Saturday, Nov. 26: Survivor Series at TD Garden in Boston
WWE says additional pay-per-view events will be soon released for February and October. Those events are likely the company's Saudi Arabia events. All of WWE's Crown Jewel pay-per-views have taken place in October or early November. The other events have moved around the calendar, but the most recent Super ShowDown took place in February.
It's also possible that WWE will have stateside pay-per-views in October and February and is waiting on the announcement until the Saudi dates are set.
Moving most events from Sunday to Saturday breaks a longstanding tradition for WWE and arguably shows the influence of All Elite Wrestling, which has regularly held two of its four yearly pay-per-views on Saturday. AEW's other two pay-per-views are held on Sundays, but they typically are part of a traditional long weekend with a Monday holiday.
WWE began changing its own course over the last year, with WrestleMania having one of its two nights on Saturday and SummerSlam moving to Saturday. Both events were seen as major successes and seemingly gave WWE enough confidence to move nearly its entire PPV slate to Saturday.
These changes do create a potential conflict with UFC and boxing pay-per-views, which are typically held on Saturdays. However, the main event in both of those sports regularly takes place after midnight ET—well after WWE events are concluded. This is also not much of an issue for WWE anymore because they've gone away from the traditional pay-per-view format in their subscription deal with Peacock.
International fans are likely thrilled with the change, given that a WWE pay-per-view could stretch into a Monday.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).
WWE's Carmella, Corey Graves Announce Engagement on Twitter
Oct 24, 2021
Professional Wrestling: WWE SummerSlam: Carmella in action vs Charlotte Flair during match at Barclays Center.
Brooklyn, NY 8/19/2018
CREDIT: Rob Tringali (Photo by Rob Tringali /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
(Set Number: X162079 TK1 )
WWE's Carmella announced her engagement to fellow wrestler Corey Graves Saturday on social media.
Graves and Carmella have been dating since 2019. Graves was previously married and has three children with his ex-wife, Amy.
Carmella previously dated wrestler W. Morrissey, then known as Big Cass in WWE.
The relationship between Graves and Carmella has been detailed on Total Divas.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).
Report: WWE Superstars Support Becky Lynch After Rumored Confrontation with Charlotte
Oct 24, 2021
MUMBAI, INDIA - NOVEMBER 14: (EDITORS NOTE: This is an exclusive image of Hindustan Times) WWE Raw womens champion Superstar Charlotte Flair poses during an exclusive interview with HT Café-Hindustan Times, at ITC Maratha, Sahar, n November 14 2019 in Mumbai, India. (Photo by Aalok Soni/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
The WWE locker room has reportedly sided with Becky Lynch over Charlotte Flair after their heated argument at Friday's SmackDown.
PW Insider reported there is no backstage heat on Lynch, who was seen as merely defending herself against Flair, who derailed their in-ring title exchange to close the show. Fightful Select previously reported Flair was asked to leave the arena before Lynch finished her dark match.
There has been increasing tensions with Flair backstage, who is seen as being difficult to work with. PW Torch previously reported Flair disrespected Lynch and undermined Sasha Banks when she threw the Raw women's championship on the ground during her exchange with Lynch, which was not part of the script.
Banks later interrupted the segment to set up a feud and position herself as the top babyface woman on SmackDown.
Lynch and Flair then got in a heated altercation backstage after the show went off the air.
All Elite Wrestling's Andrade El Idolo, who is engaged to Flair, tweeted "Fu... WWE !!!!!" late Friday night. It's unclear if the tweet and Flair's incident are related, as Andrade had a match on AEW Rampage the same night against PAC, another former WWE talent.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).
The Rock Jokes Foul in Sounders vs. Sporting KC MLS Match Was a 'Rock Bottom'
Oct 23, 2021
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - JULY 24: Dwayne Johnson attends the World Premiere of Disney's "Jungle Cruise" at Disneyland on July 24, 2021 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
A foul in Saturday's MLS matchup between the Seattle Sounders and Sporting KC required the analytical skills of The Rock.
After Fox Soccer tweeted a video asking for help to figure out what move KC goaltender Tim Melia used to take down Cristian Roldan in the net, the Great One declared it was "a devastating, 'Rock Bottom.'"
💯 this is called delivering a devastating, “Rock Bottom” 👏🏾👏🏾 + I assume player in green got up and fought his ass off, unless he got his bell rung. + I also assume there was a card delivered in the red color palette 🤣 https://t.co/anvlN9Sx5T
It actually is fairly close to being a perfectly executed Rock Bottom. The only difference from the real thing is Roldan didn't jump, so the impact wasn't as great as it usually is when Rock delivered it.
Regardless of the overall form, odds would seem good that it hurt Roldan at least a little bit. The only part of this that didn't make it a full-scale tribute to the Rock is Melia didn't immediately pop up and attempt to deliver the People's Elbow.
Adding insult to injury for Roldan and the Sounders, the referees didn't give Melia a red card. He was issued a yellow card, one of three given to Sporting KC in the match.
KC won the game 2-1 to clinch a playoff berth. Seattle, which leads the Western Conference standings with 58 points, already clinched a spot in the postseason.
AEW Announcer Jim Ross Announces Skin Cancer Diagnosis
Oct 23, 2021
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 06: Jim Ross attends SiriusXM's "Busted Open" celebrating 10th Anniversary In New York City on the eve of WrestleMania 35 on April 6, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
Jim Ross, lead announcer for All Elite Wrestling, announced he has been diagnosed with skin cancer.
In a post on Twitter, Ross said he is waiting on his radiologist to study the cancer to determine the best treatment:
Ross tweeted on Thursday that he was undergoing a CT scan after dealing with skin problems for more than one year.
The WWE Hall of Famer has had numerous health issues. He has had multiple bouts of Bell's palsy dating back to his first stint with WWE in 1994.
Ross previously had surgery in 2005 to have part of his colon removed after a cancer scare.
The 69-year-old was one of the first people hired by AEW after the company was formed in January 2019. He signed a three-year deal with the promotion to serve as the lead play-by-play commentator.
Prior to joining AEW, Ross made sporadic appearances for WWE from 2017 to 2019. He called the main event of WrestleMania 33 between Roman Reigns and the Undertaker. He reunited with Jerry "The King" Lawler to call part of the Raw 25th anniversary show in January 2018.
WWE inducted Ross into its Hall of Fame in 2007. He has also worked for New Japan Pro Wrestling and several independent promotions in recent years before landing his current gig with All Elite Wrestling.
