News

Surprise Title Change Takes Place Over The Weekend *SPOILER*

February 13, 2022 • Admin

It was worth the wait. There are some wrestlers who do not last long in the industry for one reason or another. Maybe they do not like it or maybe they aren’t cut out for what they are doing, but for some reason it just doesn’t work. At the same time, there are some people who feel like lifers and eventually make it big. It can be a long road to get there, but the eventual win can make it worth the wait. That might have been the case this weekend. Matt Cardona, better known as Zack Ryder, won the NWA World Title from Trevor Murdoch Saturday night at the NWA Super Powerrr event, which will air next Tuesday. Cardona has been wrestling on the independent circuit as well as in Impact Wrestling since his release from WWE in April 2020. Since then, he has also won the Game Changer Wrestling World Title, defeating Nick Gage for the title in July 2021. I did it. I am the @nwa World’s Heavyweight Champion!#NWAPowerrrTrip #AlwayzReady #StillHere pic.twitter.com/x6THyEh1de — Matt Cardona (@T..

Update On WWE’s New Philosophy For Signing Wrestlers

February 13, 2022 • Admin

They do have a plan. WWE has changed up its roster over and over in recent years and that seems to be continuing. Since the company has released dozens of wrestlers, they are going to need to bring in some new ones to fill in those gaps. There are more than a few places to find the wrestlers who can fill those gaps, and now we know a bit more about the path that WWE will be taking for them. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE will be holding another tryout camp in Dallas over WrestleMania 38 weekend. The plan is to sign “no more independent wrestlers than can be counted on one hand” and even fewer than that from camps in the future. WWE’s goal is to sign as many non-wrestling athletes as possible in an effort to mold them into stars in the future. WWE is holding another tryout camp this weekend and seems to have signed former Ring of Honor Women’s Champion Rok-C, who participated in the camp. Opinion: This is one of those ideas where WWE seems to keep swinging from ex..

WWE Spoils Major Event At SmackDown Tapings *SPOILERS*

February 13, 2022 • Admin

They let you know in advance. WWE is in currently on the Road To WrestleMania and that means things are going to start to get bigger in a hurry. We are less than a week away from Elimination Chamber and less than two months away from WrestleMania 38, but there are a few more shows to get through on the way there. That includes a few television shows, one of which was taped in advance. WWE has actually acknowledged something that happened on the show. WWE has revealed that Sami Zayn defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to win the Intercontinental Title during this weekend’s SmackDown television taping. The match was taped in advance and will air on the February 18 SmackDown, as WWE will be in Saudi Arabia on February 19 for Elimination Chamber. Zayn had been #1 contender for several weeks before the title match eventually took place. Opinion: This is something that was almost bound to happen as there was little reason to keep the title on Nakamura any longer. He had been champion for over six m..

LOOK: WWE’s Very Specific Message About Elimination Chamber (Over And Over)

February 13, 2022 • Admin

I guess they’re on the same page. WWE is less than a week away from returning to Saudi Arabia for their latest special event, with Elimination Chamber taking place on February 19. As is usually the case with a Saudi Arabia event, the card is absolutely stacked, but in this case, there is a certain group of matches on the card that has gotten some extra attention. Now WWE is acknowledging that in a very certain way. Elimination Chamber will feature three women’s matches, marking the most ever for a Saudi Arabia show. The three matches include an Elimination Chamber match, Charlotte/Sonya Deville vs. Ronda Rousey/Naomi, and Becky Lynch defending the raw Women’s Title against Lita. The title match is important enough that it has been advertised on several billboards in the country. Several WWE names have tweeted out an image of the billboards, with a near identical message of “WWE Continues To Influence The World” or something similar. There is no word on if this is a WWE mandate or the ..

205 Live Results – February 11, 2022

February 13, 2022 • Admin

205 Live Date: February 11, 2022 Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida Commentators: Sudu Shah, Nigel McGuinness We’re back to this show and last week actually gave me a bit of hope. There are a lot of NXT stars who have nothing going on at the moment so give some more of them some time instead of these lower level prospects. I know they need ring time, but if you are going for the entertaining, get some better stars out here. Let’s get to it. Ikemen Jiro vs. Trick Williams Kushida and Carmelo Hayes are here too. Williams spins out of a wristlock to start but Jiro takes him down, meaning it’s time for some showboating. A cravate has Jiro in some more trouble and a dropkick to the back of the head makes it even worse. The crossarm choke goes on but Jiro slips through the legs and flips him over for the escape. Jiro runs him over and hits a double springboard moonsault for two but Williams drops him face first onto the top. A running neckbreaker finishes Jiro at 5:13. R..

WATCH: WWE Stars Help Make A Sick Fan’s Night Special

February 13, 2022 • Admin

They’re good at that. Wrestlers have a difficult task, as they are asked to make fans believe what they are doing is real while also having a fully cooperative match. This is in addition to building up a character, which is often best done through promos and segments. Sometimes a wrestler makes it work very well, which is the case with some modern stars. However, some of them broke character for a rather nice reason recently. Jarrius Robertson, a WWE fan with a chronic live disease who has undergone two liver transplants, was in attendance at this week’s SmackDown. Various wrestlers acknowledged him throughout the night, including Roman Reigns, Big E. and Jimmy Uso, the latter of whom gave Robertson his shirt. Robertson is a longtime WWE fan and received the Warrior Award at the 2018 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony. This was pretty awesome. Check out some of the WWE roster interacting with Robertson: [This post contains video, click to play] [This post contains video, click to ..

Time And A Half: Update On Mustafa Ali/WWE Situation

February 12, 2022 • Admin

That’s a long time. There have been a lot of departures from WWE in the last year and a half and several of them have come from mass releases. WWE has let go all kinds of wrestlers at once in multiple groups, leaving the roster a bit weakened. However, there is one wrestler who is sticking around, even if he does not seem to want to. Now we know a bit more about what is going on. Over the last few months, Mustafa Ali has been attempting to gain his release from WWE, but the company refuses to let him go. This stems from an argument between Ali and Vince McMahon over Ali not agreeing to some kind of an idea that McMahon had for him, as well as a lack of being used. Ali sent out a tweet over the weekend, saying that he will see us in “about two and a half years”, suggesting the length of time that he has left on his current WWE contract. i’ll see ya all in like 2 1/2 years — Mustafa Ali / Adeel Alam (@AliWWE) February 12, 2022 Opinion: This is a situation where I can see both sides, ..

REVIEW: Elimination Chamber 2015: The Bonus Show

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Welcome to KB’s Old School (and New School) Reviews. I’ve been reviewing wrestling shows for over twelve years now and have reviewed over 6,000 shows. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be posting a new review here on Wrestlingrumors.net. It could be anything from modern WWE to old school to indies to anything in between. Note that I rate using letters instead of stars and I don’t rate matches under three minutes as really, how good or bad can something that short be? Elimination Chamber 2015 Date: May 31, 2015 Location: American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas Commentators: Michael Cole, Booker T., Jerry Lawler It’s another pay per view just two weeks after Payback but the card has been put together fairly well this time. The main event this time is WWE World Champion Seth Rollins defending against Dean Ambrose, plus the Tag Team Titles and Intercontinental Title being decided inside the Chamber, both for the first time ever. Let’s get to it. Pre-Show: Zack Ryder vs. Stard..

On The Dotted Line: AEW Announces New Free Agent Signing

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Next woman up. The AEW roster has been built up rather well over the company’s three year history and that is a great thing to see. Above all else, AEW has done a great job of choosing who will be on the roster and that has made for some great moments. WWE knows what it is doing when it comes to making decisions and now they have picked up another promising star. This week’s edition of AEW Dynamite included a match between TBS Champion Jade Cargill and AQA. Following the match, AEW has announced that AQA has been signed to a contract with the company. AQA has wrestled several matches for the company on Dark and was trained by WWE Hall of Famer Booker T. There is no word on when AQA will be wrestling her next match in AEW. She’s a shooting star, and now @_AQA10 is All Elite! #AEW #AEWDynamite #AEWRampage pic.twitter.com/LZ7ocHROhC — Tony Khan (@TonyKhan) February 11, 2022 Opinion: I’m a bit surprised at AQA getting signed after the match on Dynamite as it was not exactly the smoothe..

Why WWE Is Going Out Of Their Way For Major Upcoming Live Event

February 12, 2022 • Admin

They must protect their house. WWE has been around for a very long time now and the company has been through a lot. The company has grown to levels that almost no one would have believed possible but they have managed to make it work. At the same time though, the company still wants to keep some of the traditions that they have had before. Now that means they are going out of their way to make something better this time around. WWE will be returning to Madison Square Garden in New York City on March 5 for a live event. There are two matches advertised for the show, including Brock Lesnar challenging Bobby Lashley for the WWE Title and Seth Rollins challenging Roman Reigns for the Universal Title. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE is hoping to draw a higher attendance for the show because the previous show in the city did not do well. The arena is considered WWE’s home base and has been for several decades. Opinion: This isn’t the biggest surprise, but there were a f..

AHH! AEW’s Keith Lee Has Done Something Awesome After Debuting

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Well that’s clever. There are a lot of wrestlers in the world but only a few manage to stand out. Some of them do this because of their ability to talk while others are able to get over because of what they can do in the ring. One thing that will always get some attention is an impressive physical accomplishment, and now one of the more awe inspiring moves is getting a pretty funny name. This week’s edition of AEW Dynamite featured the surprise debut of Keith Lee, who signed with the company after being released from WWE last year. Lee defeated Isiah Kassidy in his debut match, which featured Lee bieling Kassidy across the ring. The match has received some attention online, which prompted Lee to officially dub the move the Uncle Phil Biel. The move is named after the Fresh Prince of Bel Air, where Uncle Phil would throw Jazz out of his house as a running gag. Opinion: That is the kind of thing that I like about non-WWE promotions as WWE would never allow some kind of a pop culture re..

WRESTLING RUMORS: WWE Has Its Eye On Another AEW Star

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Someone has caught their eye. WWE has made a lot of changes in recent years and a lot of them involve their roster. Some things have been more severe than others, including WWE releasing well over a hundred wrestlers from the company in the last year and a half. That means WWE is going to need to fill in some spots on its roster, and now they might have someone else that they want to take one such spot. According to the Mat Men Podcast, WWE is interested in signing AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill. The company has been impressed by what they have seen Cargill do on television. There is no word on when Cargill’s current AEW contract expired, though she made her debut on the November 11, 2020 edition of Dynamite. Cargill is currently undefeated and the inaugural TBS Champion. There is a lot to it. Check out the full podcast: [This post contains video, click to play] Opinion: I can understand why WWE would be interested in bringing in Cargill, who is a physical marvel and someone who co..

SPOILERS: WWE Smackdown Live TV Taping Results For 2/18/22

February 12, 2022 • Admin

The following are spoilers for the February 18, 2022 edition of Smackdown, which was taped in New Orleans this evening. This is because WWE superstars and crew will be heading to Saudi Arabia next Friday to prepare for the Elimination Chamber premium live event the next day. * The face-off between WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns and WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg opened the episode. This was basic trash talking between the two, not a long segment at all, and no fighting. Goldberg came out to his longer entrance from his dressing room, with pyro and all. * Ricochet defeated Sheamus. * Sami Zayn defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to become the new WWE Intercontinental Champion. [h/t to WrestlingInc.com] “GET EXCLUSIVE UPDATES! Click here to sign up for the exclusive Wrestling Rumors daily newsletter, delivered right to your inbox.” Follow @WrestleRumors The post SPOILERS: WWE Smackdown Live TV Taping Results For 2/18/22 appeared first on WrestlingRumors.net.

SmackDown Results – February 11, 2022

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Smackdown Date: February 11, 2022 Location: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana Commentators: Corey Graves, Michael Cole We have less than ten days before Elimination Chamber and the only big thing on the Smackdown side is Goldberg vs. Roman Reigns. That might not sound too appealing, but that’s what the people paying for Elimination Chamber want to see. Other than that, we have the fallout from Ronda Rousey destroying Sonya Deville and choosing to face Charlotte at Wrestlemania. Let’s get to it. We open with a recap of Ronda Rousey picking Charlotte for Wrestlemania and also taking out Sonya Deville for a bonus. Here is Sonya Deville, with her arm in a sling, to say she is tired of people disrespecting her. There will be consequences for the actions of people like Ronda Rousey and Naomi. Therefore, she has requested that Rousey be fined $100,000 and suspended indefinitely. Cue Adam Pearce to say Vince McMahon has responded to her request via email. Said email says that Vi..

AEW Rampage Results – February 11, 2022

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Rampage Date: February 11, 2022 Location: Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey Commentators: Excalibur, Ricky Starks, Chris Jericho, Taz This show has its work cut out for it after this week’s pretty awesome Dynamite. They do have a pretty big card already set though as the Young Bucks are back in action against Roppongi Vice. That means we could be in for a Jay White appearance as well, plus maybe something more on Jon Moxley/Bryan Danielson later. Let’s get to it. Opening sequence. Young Bucks vs. Roppongi Vice Orange Cassidy is here with Vice and they’re already in the ring so we’re starting fast this week. Beretta sends Nick outside to start and so Matt comes in and get punched back and forth into the corners. The Bucks get kicked down though and heads up the ramp, with Roppongi Vice giving chase. That means the Bucks can hit stereo superkicks and try to beat the countout. Vice makes it back in time and it’s Romero getting caught with a neckbreaker/backbreaker combination...

Next Generation Up: Top Independent Star Signs With WWE

February 12, 2022 • Admin

She’s a valuable star. The wrestling world has been shaken up time after time in the last few years and a lot of that has been due to the amount of wrestlers entering the free agent market. This has come from a mixture of WWE making a massive series of releases and Ring of Honor going into hiatus. That means several wrestlers have been up for grabs, but now one of the more prominent appears to be off the market. According to PWInsider.com, former Ring of Honor Women’s Champion Rok-C was backstage at this week’s WWE SmackDown and appears to have signed with the company. This comes after Rok-C took part in a recent WWE tryout camp and a strong push began to sign her to the company. There is no word on when Rok-C will make her WWE debut or what her new WWE name might be. Opinion: This one felt like more of a matter of time for WWE and that is not a bad thing. Rok-C is someone who made an impact rather quickly in her career and that is something that very well could be continuing in WWE...

New Grudge Match Set For WWE Elimination Chamber

February 12, 2022 • Admin

Add it to the card. We are just over a week away from WWE Elimination Chamber and that means it is time to get the rest of the card together. There are several matches already set up for the show but a few spots are still available. WWE has a tendency to stack up these cards and that is what they are doing again, this time by adding in a pretty big grudge match after this week’s SmackDown. The main event of this week’s edition of SmackDown saw Charlotte defeat Naomi to retain the SmackDown Women’s Title. Following the match, Sonya Deville and Charlotte attacked Naomi until Ronda Rousey ran in for the save. After the show went off the air, WWE announced a tag team match between Rousey and Naomi vs. Charlotte and Deville for Elimination Chamber. This is the third women’s match on the show, after a women’s Elimination Chamber match and Becky Lynch vs. Lita for the Raw Women’s Title. Opinion: This is something that makes sense for the show and is also a good sign for the future of these ..

Impact Wrestling Results – February 10, 2022

February 11, 2022 • Admin

Impact Wrestling Date: February 10, 2022 Location: Charles Dodge Center, Fort Lauderdale, Florida Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan We’re almost up to No Surrender and the card is starting to look good. What makes things all the better is that the entire show has been working in the last few weeks. The Bullet Club is here and seems to be going after the Tag Team Titles, which is better than putting them near the top of the card. Other than that, Honor No More continues to look interesting and I want to know where they’re going in the long run. Let’s get to it. The opening recap looks at W. Morrissey attacking Moose on the way to their World Title match. Opening sequence. Here is Josh Alexander for a chat, but first he has to soak in some WALKING WEAPON chants. He isn’t about to let Impact Wrestling go to war against Honor No More without him so he’ll be there at No Surrender. That isn’t the only match at No Surrender, as W. Morrissey is going for the World Title against ..

Update On Big E. And Kofi Kingston Reuniting On SmackDown

February 11, 2022 • Admin

The new plan. Stables have long since been an important part of the wrestling landscape, as they are such an easy concept. Having a stable allows wrestlers to be put together into a group, which makes it easier to get more people on television than before. There have been several successful stables in WWE history and now one of them seems to be coming back together. It just might not be that simple. Over the last few weeks, Big E. has returned to SmackDown and been reunited with Kofi Kingston. However, according to Fightful Select, this is not considered a New Day reunion. Vince McMahon reportedly decided he wanted Kingston and Big E. back together because he missed the magic they created, but did not want them to be called the New Day again. There is no word on if this will continued when or if Xavier Woods returns to join the team. Opinion: So let me get this straight: McMahon wants New Day but doesn’t want New Day? Am I getting that right? This is one of those things that probably..

Backstage Update On WWE Producer Being Away From Work

February 11, 2022 • Admin

That’s a good reason. There are a lot of people who help the wrestlers make a WWE show that much better. While the people in the ring have a lot to do with the strength of a show, the people backstage work rather hard to make a show work. The producers do a lot to make the show work, but one of them has been missing backstage. It turns out that it isn’t for the worst reason. Earlier this month, reports surfaced that several women did not want to work in the women’s Royal Rumble because TJ Wilson, better known as Tyson Kidd, was not working as a producer on the show. This was reportedly due to Wilson being unhappy with how things had been going in the company, but that does not seem to be the case. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Wilson is on good terms with WWE and is taking time off to allow his neck to heal. Wilson’s neck injury caused the end of his in-ring career and led to him being offered the producer job in WWE. Opinion: That is nice to hear, as Wilson seems t..