Month: August 2021

Impact Wrestling Emergence 8/20/21

Impact Wrestling Emergence airs tonight at 8 pm ET from Skyway Studios in Nashville Tennessee.

Emergence streams exclusively on Impact Plus.

* Christian Cage (c) vs. Brian Myers (Impact World Championship)

* The Good Brothers (c) vs. Rich Swann and Willie Mack vs. Violent By Design (Impact World Tag Team Championship)

* Josh Alexander (c) vs. Jake Something (Impact X Division Championship)

* Chris Sabin vs. Moose vs. Sami Callihan vs. Ace Austin (Four-Way Match to determine number one contender for Impact World Championship)

* Petey Williams vs. Steve Maclin

* Impact Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo and Matthew Rehwoldt vs. Melina and Trey Miguel

* Decay vs. Tasha Steelz, Savannah Evans, Fallah Bahh and No Way

* Matt Cardona vs. Rohit Raju

* Madison Rayne vs. Taylor Wilde

AEW Rampage “The First Dance” Preview 8/20/21, CM Punk To Debut?

Tonight’s AEW Rampage: “The First Dance”  airs on TNT at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Although not officially announced, it’s likely that CM Punk will be making his AEW debut on this show.

* Jade Cargill with Smart Mark Sterling vs. Kiera Hogan

* Private Party with Matt Hardy vs. Jurassic Express (AEW World Tag Team Title Eliminator Tournament)

* Jon Moxley with Eddie Kingston vs. Daniel Garcia with 2.0

WWE SmackDown Preview 8/20/21

The SummerSlam go-home edition of WWE SmackDown on FOX will air tonight live from the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

WWE has not announced any matches or segments as of this writing, but they are teasing a final pre-SummerSlam showdown between John Cena and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns.

Tonight’s show should also include follow-ups on Baron Corbin stealing Big E’s Money In the Bank briefcase, and King Shinsuke Nakamura winning the WWE Intercontinental Title from Apollo Crews last week.

Toni Storm is also in Phoenix for tonight’s SmackDown. Storm made her blue brand debut back on the July 23 episode, with a win over Zelina Vega, but she has not been used since.

Finally, WWE 24/7 Champion Reggie is also at tonight’s SmackDown and will likely be appearing on the show.

Advertised locally for tonight’s show is Carmella vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair, plus six-man action, likely the dark main event, with Cena and The Mysterios vs. Reigns and SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos.

Another Major AEW Acquisition Reportedly Coming Soon

Another big name is reportedly headed to AEW soon.

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair is expected to sign with AEW in the near future. Flair asked for his WWE release earlier this month, and received it on August 3.

In an update, Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reports that sources close to AEW, that would be alerted to such things, have noted that a “new major AEW acquisition” is coming into the company soon, on the heels of the deals for CM Punk and Daniel Bryan.

Punk’s AEW signing is expected to be announced on AEW Rampage tonight, and Bryan is rumored to debut on September 22 during the Grand Slam edition of AEW Dynamite in New York City.

It was recently exclusively reported on Wrestling Inc. that The Nature Boy does not have a non-compete clause with WWE, which means he is free to appear for any other promotion right now. He appeared at AAA’s TripleMania pay-per-view last weekend, and has been announced for the NWA 73rd Anniversary pay-per-view on August 29.

It’s possible that Flair is the “new major AEW acquisition” coming in, but that has not been confirmed.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Renee Paquette To Interview CM Punk Before Tonight’s AEW Rampage

A new edition of Renee Paquette’s “Oral Sessions” podcast will premiere tonight at 6pm ET with special guest CM Punk.

The timing of this interview is interesting as it’s believed that tonight’s AEW Rampage episode at 10pm ET will feature the official announcement on Punk signing with AEW to make his long-awaited return to pro wrestling.

The Paquette – Punk interview will premiere on Renee’s official YouTube channel at 6pm, just a few hours before Rampage hits the air at 10pm. Below is the official synopsis for the interview:

“It’s clobberin’ time when Renee is joined by none other than CM Punk, and the ‘voice of the voiceless’ has plenty to say about his short-lived UFC run, the fate of WWE Backstage and the most controversial questions facing the industry today.”

Punk and Renee previously worked together on WWE Backstage for FS1.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Impact Wrestling Preview 8/19/21, New Impact World Champion Christian Cage

Tonight on Impact on AXS TV:

* Emergence go-home show

* Impact World Champion Christian Cage makes his first appearance since winning the title.

* NWA’s Melina makes her in-ring debut

* Chris Sabin & Sami Callihan vs. Ace Austin & Moose

* Doc Gallows vs. Joe Doering

* GCW World Champion Matt Cardona vs. Shera

* Madison Rayne’s “Locker Room Talk” returns with special guest Tenille Dashwood

* Knockouts Tag Champ Havok will be in action against Tasha Steelz on Before The Impact at 7 PM ET!

Be sure and check out our live coverage of Impact Wrestling tonight at 8 PM ET!

Paul Wight Confirms In-Ring Return, Will Face QT Marshall At All Out

Former WWE Superstar Paul Wight will make his in-ring AEW debut against QT Marshall at All Out next month.

The legendary Paul Wight will lace up his boots for the first time since July of 2020 when he goes one-on-one with QT Marshall at AEW’s upcoming All Out pay-per-view on September 5th.

Wight announced his imminent return to the ring on the most recent edition of Dynamite, but the catalyst for his return was ignited on Dynamite a few weeks ago when QT Marshall poured a protein shake over Tony Schiavone’s head during a backstage interview. Schiavone had been critical of The Factory (QT Marshall, Aaron Solo, and Nick Comoroto) and their dastardly antics in the weeks leading up to the incident, much to the chagrin of Marshall, who lashed out and tried to make an example out of the veteran broadcaster.

The following week, The Factory continued to torment Schiavone by assaulting his son in front of his eyes. Paul Wight had no intention of letting Marshall and his cronies bully his old friend and current broadcast partner and so he inserted himself into the matter. The artist formerly known as The Big Show came to the ring and hit Solow with a huge Chokeslam while QT and Comoroto got outta dodge.

On this week’s Dynamite, Wight joined Schiavone in the ring for a chat. He explained that it felt good to hit that chokeslam and said he was still hyped up about it. Before he could go any further, QT and The Factory interrupted. Marshall was clearly concerned that Wight was considering an in-ring return because he came prepared with images of Wight’s carious surgeries, which he displayed on the big screen for all to see. Marshall’s attempts to deter Wight from getting back in the ring failed, and Wight revealed that he would be making his in-ring AEW debut at All Out … against QT Marshall.

https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1428162490261811203
https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1428163484357906442

Wight’s match at All Out will be his first for AEW. His last match took place in WWE back in July of 2020 when he lost to Randy Orton in an Unsanctioned match on Raw.

Source: TheSportster

AEW Dynamite Preview 8/18/21

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite episode airs on TNT at the Fertitta Center in Houston, Texas.

* The Young Bucks (c) vs. Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus (AEW World Tag Team Championship)

* Shawn Spears vs. Sammy Guevara (who also has a major announcement)

* Darby Allin and Sting vs. 2.0 (Texas Tornado Tag Match)

* MJF vs. Chris Jericho (5 Labours of Jericho: Chapter 5 – Jericho can’t use judas effect in the match, can’t use his “Judas” theme song)

* FTW Champion Ricky Starks and Brian Cage confrontation

* Thunder Rosa vs. Penelope Ford

* Britt Baker in action

Goldberg Reveals How Many More Matches Are Left On His WWE Contract

Goldberg appeared on The Bump this week and revealed that he only has two more matches left on his current WWE deal.

SummerSlam is almost upon us and Goldberg will be getting a WWE Title shot as part of the proceedings. The one title that has managed to evade the Hall of Famer for his entire career. Some fans are unhappy that Goldberg is able to waltz in whenever he likes and demand a title shot, while more casual fans are happy to see someone they know back and competing at the top of the card.

Goldberg’s age is one of the primary reasons some fans aren’t all that happy to see him back. When Goldberg’s age is combined with Bobby Lashley’s, it makes their WWE Title match this weekend the second oldest in the championship’s history. As for how much longer Goldberg thinks he can go, he may have shown his hand a little during an appearance on The Bump this week.

Goldberg was asked to pick a winner in the other World Title match taking place at SummerSlam, Roman Reigns versus John Cena. After declaring he isn’t backing either of them, he digressed into speaking about which one he would prefer to face. That conversation ended with the revelation he only has a couple of matches left on his current deal.

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1428007101603909634

“I’ve only got one more match, or two more matches on my deal here so we’ll see what happens,” Goldberg says in the clip above. The hesitation over exactly how many matches he has left to wrestle might even suggest his showdown with Lashley could be one of those two matches. If so, he may have to choose between Cena and Reigns for his final match unless he plans on signing a new deal.

If Goldberg wins on Saturday, then perhaps the final match on his current deal will be against whoever he loses the title to. There’s even a chance both matches happen on the same night. Many are lobbying for Big E to cash in on Goldberg at SummerSlam so The New Day man can face his dream opponent and become WWE Champion on the same night. Whether a Money in the Bank cash-in counts as an official match in terms of Goldberg’s deal could be a little dubious, though.

Source: TheSportster

Fans Attending AEW Rampage In Chicago Required To Wear Masks

Fans attending AEW Rampage at the United Center in Chicago this Friday will be required to wear masks.

On Tuesday, Chicago officials imposed a new indoor mask mandate which covers all indoor public settings, including bars and restaurants, clubs and common areas of residential buildings.

Starting Friday, anyone over the age of 2 will have to wear a face mask in indoor public spaces, regardless of vaccine status, Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said in a news conference.

Following Friday’s Rampage, AEW will return to Chicago for three consecutive shows – Dynamite on Sept. 1, Rampage on Sept. 3 and All Out on Sept. 5.

With rumors of CM Punk showing up at United Center, Friday’s Rampage is expected to be one of the biggest shows in AEW history.

Source: Wrestling Inc.