Big E vs. Drew McIntyre Set for WWE Title Match at Crown Jewel 2021
Oct 5, 2021
Drew McIntyre will challenge Big E for the WWE Championship at Crown Jewel on Oct. 21.
McIntyre issued the challenge before an impromptu tag team match pitting him and Big E against Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler. Following their victory, the champion accepted.
McIntyre made his intentions perfectly clear one week ago. Following Big E's successful title defense against Bobby Lashley, The Scottish Warrior made his way out from the back and pointed his claymore directly at the champion.
The two-time world champion was subsequently drafted to SmackDown, raising questions about his immediate future. But the results of the draft won't officially go into effect until the night after Crown Jewel, keeping him a member of the Raw roster for the time being.
The same situation surrounds the SmackDown Women's Championship Triple Threat match since two of the competitors (champion Becky Lynch and challenger Bianca Belair) are due to land on Raw.
Crown Jewel leaves open the possibility that McIntyre beats Big E and takes the WWE Championship with him to SmackDown. In that sense, Big E is not only looking to retain the gold, but he's also fighting for Raw's honor.
WWE Draft 2021: Becky Lynch Moves to Raw, Sasha Banks Remains on SmackDown
Oct 5, 2021
The Man is coming to Monday nights.
Becky Lynch spoiled her change of scenery to open Raw, and it was subsequently made official. The SmackDown women's champion was Raw's first pick on the second night of the WWE draft:
The results of this year's draft won't be reflected on the two shows until Oct. 22, one night after the Crown Jewel pay-per-view. That lends some unpredictability for how the Saudi Arabia-based event will shake out.
Still, Lynch's move didn't come as a big surprise after Raw women's champion Charlotte Flair was a Round 1 selection for SmackDown last Friday. That left WWE's flagship program in need of a women's singles champion.
Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men Pro Wrestling Podcast (via Wrestling Inc's Marc Middleton) also reported in August that USA Network executives weren't happy with what they thought were imbalanced rosters on Raw and SmackDown.
Lynch was cited in the report after having originally been on Raw but getting put on SmackDown after returning to the ring at SummerSlam following her pregnancy.
Rumors on Braun Strowman-Impact, Chad Gable-AEW, Rey Mysterio's WWE Medical Status
Oct 4, 2021
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 11: WWE wrestler Braun Strowman is introduced at a WWE news conference at T-Mobile Arena on October 11, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Strowman will face heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury and WWE champion Brock Lesnar will take on former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez at the WWE's Crown Jewel event at Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on October 31. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Bleacher Report catches you up on the
latest news from the WWE Universe.
Braun Strowman Drawing Interest From
Impact Wrestling
Adam Scherr, who used the Strowman moniker during a nine-year run in WWE, hinted Sunday he's now free
to sign with any promotion after being released by WWE in early June.
— The Monster of all Monsters (@Adamscherr99) October 3, 2021
Fightful Select reported (via Kellie
Haulotte of Wrestling Inc.) that Impact Wrestling is "heavily
interested" in the 6'8'', 385-pound star and noted "company
officials believe they are going to be able to sign" him in the
near future.
Scherr was pushed into the main event
scene on multiple occasions during his WWE run, but he only captured
one of the company's top titles once, when he defeated Goldberg at
WrestleMania 36 in 2020 to win the Universal Championship.
He dropped the belt at that year's
SummerSlam after a nondescript title reign. While he'd made
some strides as an in-ring performer and utilized his size to successfully portray himself as a "monster among men," he lacked the promo skills to become
one of WWE's biggest performers.
It wouldn't be a surprise if he
ultimately takes a path similar to Drew McIntyre, who was released by
WWE in June 2014. McIntyre made several stops with other promotions,
including TNA, and refined his craft enough to earn another shot with
WWE in 2017. He's since emerged as one of the company's top
Superstars.
If Scherr can improve his work on the
mic, he could be a major asset for WWE or AEW. A stop with Impact
would be a solid landing spot in the short term.
Friends Urging Chad Gable to Make AEW
Jump
Gable is one of the most technically
strong wrestlers in the business, but he hasn't been featured
prominently in WWE since making his debut in 2014 following a decorated amateur
wrestling career.
The 35-year-old Minnesota native had a
couple promising tag team title runs alongside Jason Jordan on both
NXT and SmackDown, but it never led to something bigger. He's kind of
been lost in the shuffle lately and could benefit from his recent
move to Raw in the WWE draft.
People around him apparently have other
ideas to help his career go to the next level, though.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer
Radio reported (via Joshua Gagnon of Wrestling Inc.) Gable's friends "really want him to sign with AEW as it would likely be a good fit
for him."
A lot of former WWE wrestlers have
landed in AEW, including CM Punk, Bryan Danielson and Christian Cage
among countless others, and they've been given the creative freedom
to get back to their roots away from the more structured WWE
environment.
The one concern is that if the AEW
roster becomes overcrowded with the infusion of high-profile
signings, it could lead to similar issues of wrestlers being reduced
to limited roles because there's a finite amount of television time
to feature a growing number of marquee storylines.
It's unclear how much time Gable has
left on his contract, but if his move to Raw alongside current tag
partner Otis doesn't spark a move up the card, it wouldn't be a
surprise to see him explore other opportunities in the future.
Rey Mysterio Unavailable Because of
Medical Issue
Mysterio has continued to appear on WWE
programming in recent months alongside his son, Dominik, but he
hasn't had a televised singles match since Aug. 20 against Jey Uso. He's been mostly restricted to large-scale tag matches at non-televised live
events, according to the Internet Wrestling Database.
Fightful Select reported (via Felix
Upton of Ringside News) that Mysterio has been dealing with a health
issue that kept him out of this weekend's house shows.
"As of Friday night, Rey Mysterio
was sidelined for an undisclosed medical reason and would no longer
be able to perform at the Saturday night live event where he was
scheduled to face Roman Reigns," the report stated.
No timetable was given for how long the
46-year-old legend will be unavailable.
His "passing of the torch" storyline with Dominik has been a slow burn, but it'd be intriguing if they ultimately face off at one of WWE's biggest events—perhaps next year's WrestleMania.
As for the long-term outlook, Mysterio
is a virtual lock to eventually earn his rightful spot in the WWE Hall of Fame.
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Report: Former WWE Star Bray Wyatt, Impact Aren't 'Close' to a Contract amid Rumors
Oct 3, 2021
Three months after his release from WWE, Bray Wyatt remains a free agent with no indication where he might end up signing.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select (h/t Joshua Gagnon of Wrestling Inc.) reported Wyatt is not close to a deal with Impact Wrestling after a rumor made the rounds linking the two sides.
The report noted that Impact asked a member of its roster to reach out to Wyatt with the hopes of recruiting him to join the company.
Amid a series of roster cuts over the summer, Wyatt was a surprise release by WWE on July 31. It came as a shock because he had been one of the biggest stars in the company for a number of years, and "The Fiend" gimmick was very popular with the audience.
Since then, Wyatt has frequently been connected to AEW and Impact.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.) noted last month that Wyatt could have debuted on the Sept. 29 episode of Dynamite if he had signed with AEW.
He recently stoked some of the rumors in response to a fan on Twitter:
Everything will be clear. I’ll see you all very soon. Revenge is a confession of pain.
Wyatt spent his entire professional wrestling career working under the WWE banner. He made his debut in 2009 for Florida Championship Wrestling, which has since been rebranded as NXT.
After a brief stint with The Nexus in 2010-11, Wyatt returned to FCW for a short period of time. He returned to the main roster in 2012 as the leader of the Wyatt Family. The 34-year-old had several high-profile feuds in WWE, including WrestleMania matches with John Cena and The Undertaker.
Wyatt also held the WWE championship once and the WWE universal title twice.
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WWE Draft 2021: Bianca Belair Moves to Raw, Charlotte Flair to SmackDown
Oct 2, 2021
After a chalk start to the 2021 WWE draft, things got very interesting for Raw and SmackDown with their second picks.
Making picks for the blue brand, Sonya Deville brought Raw women's champion Charlotte Flair over to Friday Night SmackDown. Adam Pearce followed up by adding Bianca Belair to Raw.
🔵 ROMAN REIGNS 🔴 BIG E 🔵 CHARLOTTE FLAIR 🔴 BIANCA BELAIR
The first two picks saw WWE universal champion Roman Reigns staying on SmackDown and WWE champion Big E remaining on Raw.
The selection of Belair is notable because the first three picks were all current singles champions. Becky Lynch, the current SmackDown women's champion, is still on the board.
WWE did announce earlier in the day that Lynch will defend her title against Belair and Sasha Banks at Crown Jewel on Oct. 21.
Depending on which brand Banks ends up on, it would seem to suggest that Belair could be winning the championship on that show. Draft picks don't take effect until Oct. 22, so Flair will continue to appear on the red brand for the time being.
WWE is spreading the draft out over two nights this year. Night two will take place on Monday's episode of Raw. All superstars, including those in NXT, are eligible to be selected, and anyone who isn't drafted will be a free agent eligible to sign with the brand of their choice.
Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, Sasha Banks Title Match Set for WWE Crown Jewel PPV
Oct 1, 2021
WWE announced Friday that Becky Lynch will defend the SmackDown Women's Championship in a Triple Threat match against Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks at the upcoming Crown Jewel pay-per-view.
The bout will be of great significance since it will mark only the third women's match to occur in Saudi Arabia, following Natalya vs. Lacey Evans at Crown Jewel 2019 and Bayley vs. Naomi at Super ShowDown in February 2020.
The match will stream live on Peacock on Oct. 21 at 12 p.m. ET from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The seeds were planted for the Triple Threat back at SummerSlam in August when Belair was supposed to defend the SmackDown Women's title against Banks. It was announced just before the match that Banks would be unable to compete, leading to a surprise return.
Lynch made her first appearance on WWE programming in over a year after giving birth to her daughter, and after tricking Bianca with a handshake, she won the SmackDown Women's Championship in less than 30 seconds.
The Man developed a heel persona in subsequent weeks and put the title on the against Belair at Extreme Rules on Sunday, however, there was no definitive finish, as Banks returned and attacked both Superstars.
With The Boss set to address both Lynch and Belair on Friday night's episode of SmackDown, WWE made the Triple Threat official for Crown Jewel.
Banks and Lynch are already two of the greatest and most accomplished female wrestlers of all time, as well as members of the Four Horsewomen with Charlotte Flair and Bayley.
Meanwhile, Belair is well on her way to becoming an all-time great as well after winning the 2021 women's Royal Rumble and beating Banks for the SmackDown Women's Championship in the main event of Night 1 of WrestleMania 37.
The match will occur approximately three weeks after the SmackDown and Raw rosters receive a shakeup through the WWE draft, which will take place Friday and Monday.
If one or two of the women in the Crown Jewel Triple Threat get moved to Raw in the draft, it could have a major impact on who leaves Saudi Arabia as champion.
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Omega-Danielson Rematch; WWE Draft Rumors; Adam Cole Talks AEW's Impact on NXT 2.0
Oct 1, 2021
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
Omega vs. Danielson Rematch to Occur in Mexico?
A rematch between Kenny Omega and Bryan Danielson seems virtually certain, but it may not be guaranteed that their next encounter will take place in AEW.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), AAA executive Dorian Roldan saw the match between Omega and Danielson on the Grand Slam edition of AEW Dynamite last week, and it gave him an idea.
Roldan reportedly wants to have Omega vs. Danielson on a AAA card, and it may not be outside the realm of possibility since Omega is the reigning AAA Mega champion.
Even dating back to his time in WWE, Danielson has always been outspoken about his dreams of wrestling in Mexico, specifically in a hair vs. mask match.
There is plenty of meat left on the bone in the Omega vs. Danielson feud since their first AEW match went to a time-limit draw.
Omega has since said he doesn't intend to give Danielson a rematch, although it will undoubtedly happen at some point. AEW Full Gear, which is scheduled for November, could be when the rematch occurs.
Doing Omega vs. Danielson either before or after that in AAA would be a great way to further their rivalry, however, and it would likely result in great publicity for both AEW and AAA.
Rumored NXT Names for WWE Draft
Night 1 of the WWE draft is scheduled for Friday night's episode of SmackDown, and there reportedly could be some surprising names included.
According to Meltzer (h/t Upton), there is internal belief within WWE that former NXT stars Dakota Kai, Aliyah and Xia Li will be part of the draft.
Meltzer noted that none of them have been seen on NXT recently, and all of them have worked dark matches before main roster shows during their NXT absences.
Kai is the biggest name of the group, as she was involved in several high-profile matches and feuds in NXT. That included vying for the NXT Women's Championship against former partner Raquel Gonzalez at NXT TakeOver 36 in August.
Aliyah's last NXT match was back in July when she and Jessi Kamea lost to Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter. Aliyah attacked Robert Stone after the match and it was assumed at the time that she was poised for a call-up.
Li's most recent NXT match was also in July when she unsuccessfully challenged Gonzalez for the NXT Women's Championship. Prior to that, Li had been a part of the Tian Sha stable with Mei Ying and Boa, but only Mei Ying and Boa have been seen on NXT over the past few weeks.
Meltzer added that WWE desires to build a Chinese star after seeing how China reacted to Zhang Weili holding the UFC women's strawweight championship. Because of that, Li could be in for a big push.
Kai, Aliyah and Li all bring unique skill sets to the table, and they will all add some much-needed depth to the Raw and SmackDown women's divisions if they have indeed been called up.
Cole Believes NXT 2.0 Was Born from AEW's Success
After four years with WWE as part of the NXT brand, Adam Cole left the company and made his AEW debut at All Out last month.
Cole and NXT went head to head with AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights for a period of time before NXT moved to Tuesdays.
Recently, NXT underwent a significant change, as it is now known as NXT 2.0. In addition to a new name and logo, NXT has clearly shifted its focus as well with younger, more inexperienced wrestlers getting the spotlight over veterans from the independent scene.
During an appearance on Talk Is Jericho with current AEW and former WWE star Chris Jericho (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Cole expressed his belief that AEW consistently scoring higher ratings than NXT led WWE to change NXT's presentation:
This is all just me guessing. I think, for sure, [AEW beating NXT] played a part [in the rebrand]. I also understand the thought process of … there were so many guys in NXT who were presented a certain way and then they'd go to Raw or SmackDown and it was a complete 180. I see the standpoint of, if I am Vince McMahon, him looking at NXT as this breeding ground for guys on Raw and SmackDown, he wants his hands in it a little bit more and he wants bigger guys. Not saying everyone is going to be big, but more guys who are geared to be ready to go for Raw and SmackDown.
I understand that. When I was there at NXT, it was treated as a third brand. We got on television because of it, we had the big Survivor Series month, which was really cool. It was the more athletic pro wrestling storytelling and style. Them going back to this, certainly, AEW has to play a factor in my mind. It just has to. More important, I do think it's so they don't have to change a thing about guys when they are in NXT now.
Cole is the longest-reigning NXT champion of all time with a reign lasting over a year, and he was one of the faces of the brand when it was at its highest point.
For a period of time, WWE was signing all of the hottest talent from the independent scene, as well as Ring of Honor and Impact Wrestling, but its philosophy has clearly changed.
Now, AEW is signing independent talent, while WWE is signing amateur wrestlers and other athletes with the goal of building them into stars from the ground up.
That already seems to be paying dividends to some degree given that Bron Breakker is viewed as one of WWE's future top stars just a few weeks after debuting.
Cole undoubtedly felt AEW was the best fit for him given his background and skill set, although it would have been interesting to see what the former leader of Undisputed Era could have done on the WWE main roster as well.
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Big E Defeats Bobby Lashley in Steel Cage Match, Retains WWE Title at Raw
Sep 28, 2021
Big E passed his first big test as WWE champion, beating Bobby Lashley in a Steel Cage match in the main event of Raw on Monday night.
Lashley thought he put his opponent away with a Spear, only for Big E to kick out. That summed up a match in which both men left everything in the ring.
Sensing the need to take a risk in order to gain a decisive edge, Big E connected on a Big Ending from the second rope for the victory.
Lashley and Big E opened Raw with a traditional singles match, the former's first crack at the champion since dropping the belt. The bout ended in a disqualification after a brawl at ringside between The Hurt Business and The New Day spilled into the squared circle.
That led WWE official Adam Pearce to pit Lashley against Big E in a situation that would limit the outside interference.
Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin still found a way to make their presence felt. Xavier Woods returned the favor when he slammed the cage door on Lashley as he was attempting to exit to the outside.
Whereas title rivalries often extend across multiple pay-per-views, Big E and Lashley may already be headed in separate directions.
Prior to the main event, Goldberg left little doubt as to his desire to gain a measure of revenge against The All Mighty following their encounter at SummerSlam.
For Big E, the upcoming two-night WWE draft could provide a hint at his next challenge. The champion could end up on SmackDown or have a top contender move over from the blue brand.
Assuming he sticks around on Raw through the draft, Drew McIntyre's arrival at the close of Raw was certainly telling.
Ronda Rousey, Travis Browne Announce Birth of Daughter La'akea Makalapuaokalanipo
Sep 28, 2021
WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 25: Travis Browne (L) and Ronda Rousey arrive at the LA Family Housing Annual LAFH Awards and Fundraiser Celebration at The Lot on April 25, 2019 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Amanda Edwards/WireImage)
Ronda Rousey announced the birth of her and Travis Browne's first child together, La'akea Makalapuaokalanipo.
ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported in April 2019 that Rousey was taking time away from her wrestling career with WWE to begin a family with Browne. Two years later, the couple confirmed they were expecting.
The birth of her daughter will likely spark speculation of a return to a WWE ring for Rousey. Nick Khan, the company's president and chief revenue officer, told Colin Cowherd in April (via Sean Rueter of Cageside Seats) the 34-year-old "is gonna be coming back at a certain point in time."
Those comments provided some clarity as to Rousey's status since her original WWE deal was due to expire at around the same time as Khan's interview.
Becky Lynch was out for more than a year because of her pregnancy. The Man made a surprising return at SummerSlam and beat Bianca Belair for the SmackDown Women's Championship.
Having been in Rousey's position, Lynch told SPORTbible's Josh Lawless she thought giving birth "is going to light a fire under her ass."
"She’s seen what I can accomplish straight off and she might come searching," Lynch said.
Danielson Talks WWE Creative; Rollins Talks WWE Contract; Rumor on Lynch-Belair Feud
Sep 27, 2021
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 05: WWE Superstar Daniel Bryan Celebrate's Wrestlemania 35 at The Empire State Building on April 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Santiago Felipe/Getty Images)
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from WWE and AEW.
Bryan Danielson Says He Enjoyed WWE Creative
Most wrestlers who leave WWE tell you how much they hated working under the company's creative confines. Jon Moxley did it; Miro did it; on and on we could go with wrestlers saying they felt unshackled after leaving WWE.
Bryan Danielson isn't most people.
Danielson, who has remained complimentary of his time in WWE since leaving for AEW, says working with writers was a pleasant experience for him, and there were even times it helped him creatively.
“I love working with the writers. I like collaborating. I had a really good time with that," Danielson said on the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast. "Actually, one of my favorite times was as a bad guy in WWE as the ‘Planet’s Champion’, and the writer I worked with was Robert. We had so much fun, and he would present me with a piece of paper. I had a lot more leeway than a lot of people in WWE. I would work with the writer and be like, ‘Hey, what if we say this? What if we say this?’ And Robert was great because he would pull me back from the edge."
AEW, in stark contrast to WWE, tends to allow its wrestlers to cut their own promos with some level of guidance to help move forward the storyline.
It's worth noting that Danielson's experience isn't the one had by most wrestlers in WWE. He had the clout of being a multitime WrestleMania main eventer who was considered the best worker and one of the most over characters on television. That tends to lead to some more leeway in terms of storylines.
Rollins Talks Future, Contractual Status
One person we'll likely never see make the leap from WWE to AEW is Seth Rollins, who has been a company man through and through—sometimes to his own detriment.
That said, he's begun thinking of what his life would look like after wrestling. Rollins said he plans on continuing with WWE through his current contract, which he says runs for three or four more years.
“Now, as a dad, part of me is starting to shift a little bit. I have a couple years left on my contract, I definitely want to see that through," Rollins said on the Broken Skull Sessions. "After that, we’ll see what happens. I don’t know, I wish I had a proper answer because I love it, but life is starting to get a lot bigger when you got a little baby girl and when my contract is up, she’ll be about 3 or 4 and ready to go into school and do stuff. We’ll see. If it all ended tomorrow, I’d be pretty satisfied with the things I’ve accomplished and the contributions I’ve made to the business. I always wanted to leave it better than I found it and I’ve been able to do that in some respects. I’m proud of that.”
Rollins is 35, so he'll be either 38 or 39 by the time his contract runs out. We've seen several wrestlers continue at a high level well into their 40s in the modern era, and Rollins takes excellent care of his body.
It seems possible, if not likely, that Rollins would want to work a more limited schedule when his next contract comes around. Outright retirement doesn't seem like it's in the cards.
WWE Happy With Lynch-Belair Program
Fans may not love it, but WWE is reportedly happy internally with how things have gone in the Becky Lynch-Bianca Belair program.
Fightful Select reported the feud has been well-received backstage, even as fans haven't quite bought in to Lynch as a heel quite yet. Around half of the crowd at Extreme Rules still very much wanted to cheer Lynch, who was arguably the company's most over babyface before going on maternity leave.
Lynch returned as an arrogant heel—much to the chagrin of some fans—and entered into a program with Belair, who stepped into the void at the top of the women's division.
Both women have done excellent work to get this creative over with fans, and Belair is probably the only babyface woman on the roster well-liked enough to make fans boo Lynch. With Sasha Banks now in the mix, it'll be interesting to see how things play out Thursday on SmackDown.
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