Dave Meltzer reported on the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio that Jeff Hardy’s shoulder injury occurred during the 30 minute Iron Man match at the Great Balls of Fire pay-per-view in July, so he’s been working with it for over two months. It was noted that he will probably have the shoulder examined this week.
Source: WrestlingINC
Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California with the fallout from Sunday’s No Mercy pay-per-view.
* What will happen when Reigns is the guest on a special “Miz TV” to kick off Raw?
* With a loss to Brock Lesnar, is Braun Strowman more dangerous than ever?
* What will be the fallout from chaotic Raw Woman’s Champion Fatal 5-Way Match?
* How long is the Enzo Amore Era destined to last?
* Will Jason Jordan get another opportunity at the Intercontinental Champion?
John Cena’s post-match actions after losing to Roman Reigns at WWE No Mercy had a lot of fans speculating on his WWE future. Several WWE Superstars even tweeted “thank you Cena” and wrote about respecting Cena, which added to the speculation. The official WWE Universe Twitter also used the “#ThankYouCena” hashtag in a post.
Below is video from Cena’s appearance on RAW Talk after the pay-per-view went off the air.
When asked by WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler if he’s retiring, Cena says he just thinks his role in WWE is different now. Regardless of outside opportunities or not, he’s 40 years old and has had 15 elite years in WWE. Cena says he doesn’t know how much longer he can keep it up but he needs to know when to say when.
Cena says he is not done but he’s not sure if he can keep going at the pace he has been going at, and that’s a major thing he needs to consider. Cena goes on about how he lives WWE and says he will become like a “weird Batman character” that comes running when they shine the light.
Source: WrestlingINC
(Kickoff) – Elias vs. Apollo Crews
Intercontinental Championship: (C) The Miz w/ The Miztourage vs. Jason Jordan – Winner: The Miz
Finn Balor vs. Bray Wyatt – Winner: Finn Balor
RAW Tag Team Championship: (C) Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose vs. Cesaro & Sheamus – Winners: Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose
RAW Women’s Championship – Fatal 5-Way: (C) Alexa Bliss vs. Sasha Banks vs. Bayley vs. Nia Jax vs. Emma – Winner: Alexa Bliss
John Cena vs. Roman Reigns – Winner: Roman Reigns
– after the match, Cena raised Reigns hand in a show of respect, before leaving the ring, Cena bowed and waved to the crowd, fans chanted thank you Cena, then from the top of the ramp Cena saluted the crowd
WWE Cruiserweight Championship: (C) Neville vs. Enzo Amore – Winner and new WWE Cruiserweight Champion
Universal Championship: (C) Brock Lesnar w/Paul Heyman vs. Braun Strowman – Winner: Brock Lesnar
Company officials have confirmed to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the GFW name is being phased out of the Impact Wrestling brand. The recent Bound For Glory press release listed the company as Impact Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corporation.
While the company announced the GFW – Impact merger months ago, the deal had not been completed and with Jeff Jarrett on an indefinite leave, the name that Jarrett owns is no longer being used. Regarding Jeff’s status, the company may say publicly that Jarrett will be back but privately, no one is certain of anything.
One of Anthem’s long-term goals is to make Impact a Canadian company, because Anthem is based in Toronto and because of some potential economic advantages. There had been some sentiment against another re-branding and continuing to use the GFW name but it appears that is no longer an issue moving forward. There’s a feeling that the company wants to re-brand itself and get away from the negativity associated with the TNA says but they will always be seen as TNA as long as they are based in Orlando.
It will be interesting to see how they pull off the November 5th Bound For Glory pay-per-view in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada as the Aberdeen Pavilion isn’t really an arena – it’s normally used to host wine shows, senior citizen breakfasts, trade fairs and other small-time events. The company will have to do some minor construction as there are no dressing rooms and just a few bathrooms in the building. There are also no bleachers, just a flat floor with room for 2,800 seats. The current internal goal is for them to sell around 500 tickets per night, for Bound For Glory and then the TV tapings that week.
Source: WrestlingINC
A new promo for Asuka aired on tonight’s WWE No Mercy Kickoff pre-show and confirmed that Asuka will make her red brand debut at the WWE TLC pay-per-view. TLC takes place on October 22nd from the Target Center in Minneapolis.
No word yet on what the undefeated former WWE NXT Women’s Champion will be doing at TLC but we’ll keep you updated. Below the new teaser promo:
Source: WrestlingINC
“The Phenomenal” AJ Styles has won titles everywhere he’s gone and now he can add one more to his list — the title of comic book writer!
Styles was revealed to be one of the writers of Boom! Studios’ upcoming Royal Rumble Special, which will take a look behind the curtain of historic moments in the Rumble.
AJ’s edition will be focused particularly on his surprise debut.
Styles told CBS Sports, “This was such an important night in my career. I think you can get what I kind of went through during that day and what took place and how I felt.”
The story will be co-authored by Michael Kingston of Headlocked, who says the story ties together all of AJ’s motivations leading up to his rivalry with John Cena.
The Royal Rumble Special goes on sale January 10.
Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet
“The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes says he’s no longer a free agent and has inked a domestically exclusive contract with Ring of Honor for the next “several years.”
Cody’s manager put out a press release stating, “After an incredible run like no other this past year that saw Cody compete all around the world in promotions such as New Japan Pro Wrestling, Impact Wrestling, The Crash, APW, PWA Canada, and Northeast Wrestling just to name a few, The American Nightmare has decided to ink a domestically exclusive contract with Ring of Honor Wrestling, where Cody is currently the World Heavyweight Champion.”
Rhodes adds, “I grew up in this business, I’ve seen its peaks and valleys…I know we are entering an unprecedented time in pro wrestling/sports entertainment and it’s time to put my flag in the sand. Joe Koff and his team put together such a generous offer…with some non-wrestling projects on the horizon that I hope to announce soon, and the potential of starting a family down the road…it was a perfect fit. Myself, Marty Scurll, Hangman Page, Matt and Nick Jackson…it’s the dream team…like the 1992 dream team. I have several goals in mind for myself and for ROH and I can’t wait to get started.”
The exact terms/length of the deal weren’t included, but they claim it’s “the most generous offer in Ring of Honor history and Cody will be in an ROH ring for the next several years.”
Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet
Pro Wrestling Sheet reports that Jeff Hardy is currently dealing with a bad shoulder injury and may need to get surgery.
WWE held a live event in Sacramento on Friday night, but Jeff was unable to wrestle due to his banged up shoulder … so Matt wrestled Karl Anderson in a singles match instead.
It’s unclear exactly when the injury occurred, but Jeff certainly appeared to be clutching his shoulder in pain during the main event of Monday Night Raw this week.
It’s unclear if the Charismatic Enigma will need surgery at this point. However, it’s definitely an option — amongst a few others — and they should know more in the days to come.
The Kingdom vs. Bully Ray and The Briscoes (Winners get ROH Six-Man Tag Team Title shot) – Winners: The Briscoes and Bully Ray
“The Kentucky Gentleman” Chuckie T vs. “The Villain” Marty Scurll – Winner: Marty Scurll
Street Fight: Jay White vs. Punishment Martinez – Winner: Punishment Martinez
ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship: The Young Bucks and Adam Page (c) vs. The Kingdom or Bully Ray and The Briscoes – Winners: The Young Bucks and Adam Page
ROH World Television Championship: Kushida (c) vs. Kenny King – Winner and new ROH World Television Champion: Kenny King
Last Man Standing Match: Jay Lethal vs. Silas Young – Winner: Silas Young
ROH World Tag Team Championship: The Young Bucks (c) vs. The Motor City Machine Guns – Winners and new ROH World Tag Team Champions: Motor City Machine Guns
ROH World Championship: Cody (c) vs. Minoru Suzuki – Winner: Cody
