Author: John Bass

Shelton Benjamin Made His WWE Return on SmackDown Live (Video)

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Former WWE Intercontinental, United States and Tag Team Champion Shelton Benjamin made his long awaited return to WWE last night on SmackDown Live.

SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan called Chad Gable to his office and revealed that he made a deal with RAW General Manager Kurt Angle – in exchange for Jason Jordan going to RAW, Angle would help Bryan sign one of his friends. Bryan then introduced Benjamin and told them that they would team up on next week’s SmackDown from North Little Rock, Arkansas.

Benjamin last worked for WWE in 2010. He was set to return to the company last year but the return was put on hold due to an injury that was discovered during medical testing.

Bobby Roode Made His “Glorious” SmackDown Live Debut (Video)

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SmackDown Live has just became “Glorious” — Former NXT Champion Bobby Roode made his WWE main roster debut last night on SmackDown Live.

Roode defeated Aiden English.  Roode was interviewed in the ring by Renee Young after the match and he congratulates the SmackDown bosses on breaking the bank to sign him, the hottest free agent in sports entertainment. Roode went on and said SmackDown went from being great to absolutely glorious.

The NXT Twitter account confirmed that Roode will be working the rest of the yellow brand dates that he’s been advertised for. They congratulated him with this tweet:

Breaking News: Dana Brooke’s Boyfriend Found Dead At 26

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Dallas “Big Country” McCarver, the boyfriend of RAW Superstar Dana Brooke, was found dead in his Florida home Monday evening after apparently choking on his food, according to TMZ.

Brooke told TMZ that 26-year-old- McCarver, who is a big star on the bodybuilding circuit, was found unconscious in his home on Monday evening by a friend shortly after they spoke on the phone. McCarver told Brooke that he was going to make dinner. His last words to her were, “I love you. Goodbye.”

Brooke said that there are no signs of foul play, and it appears he died after choking on his food.

It was noted that McCarver had collapsed onstage at the 2017 Arnold Classic Australia this past March, but had appeared to be doing much better recently.

Brooke had posted the photo below with McCarver on her Instagram last night:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BYFQJImAeIX/

Source: WrestlingINC

WWE 205 Live Preview 8/22/17

Tonight’s 205 Live will take place from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

* Can Tozawa repeat history and defeat Neville once again? – WWE Cruiserweight Title rematch: (C) Neville vs. Akira Tozawa

* The Brian Kendrick hopes to reason with Gentleman Jack Gallagher in a Gentleman’s Duel

SmackDown Live Preview 8/22/17

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown Live will take place from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn with the final fallout from SummerSlam.

* Will Nakamura be looking for payback?

* How is Kevin Owens handling his loss to AJ Styles?

* How will SmackDown LIVE’s women react to new champion Natalya?

* Will The New Day bounce back from losing the SmackDown Tag Team Titles?

WWE Announces RAW Injury To Big Cass

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Big Cass apparently suffered a leg injury during Monday’s Brooklyn Street Fight with Enzo Amore at the post-SummerSlam RAW from the Barclays Center. WWE has confirmed that Cass suffered an injury to his left knee. He’s set to undergo an MRI on Tuesday and an update should be available after that.

WWE announced the following on the injury:

Big Cass sustains knee injury on RawBig Cass suffered an injury to his left knee during the Brooklyn Street Fight against Enzo Amore on Raw, WWE.com can confirm. The injury occurred after Amore dodged a big boot by pulling down the top rope, sending Cass to the floor in the process.

“It’s hard to tell what the extent of the injury is, but we’re going to send him to get an MRI tomorrow and figure that out,” said WWE ringside physician Dr. Chris Robinson.

Stay with WWE.com as more details about Cass’ condition are revealed.

Steve Austin Comments On WWE Trademarking ‘3:16’

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WWE successfully trademarked the term “3:16” in July for city-specific merchandise use. While 3:16 references John 3:16 from the Bible, it is known in wrestling circles as “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s signature catchphrase. The plain black “Austin 3:16” shirt is the best selling WWE shirt of all time, and the phrase was born after Austin defeated Jake “The Snake” Roberts, who was doing a religious gimmick at the time, at the 1996 King of the Ring pay-per-view.

“Talk about your Psalms, talk about John 3:16. Austin 3:16 said I just whipped your a–!” Austin exclaimed after the win, to a big pop from the crowd.

Despite Austin popularizing “3:16” in WWE, he has no problem with WWE trademarking it. I recently visited the set of Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Ranch. While giving myself and a few other journalists a ride in his humvee touring the massive set of the show, I asked Austin about WWE trademarking the phrase.

“Smart move, I wish I would have thought about it. Hell, I didn’t want to mess with John!” Austin joked, referencing John 3:16.

“Nah man, I’m cool with it,” Austin continued. “I think Stephen Colbert did something about it [which is in the video above], I didn’t see it.”

Source: WrestlingINC

Nikki Bella Reportedly Joining ‘Dancing With The Stars’

According to a report by People, Nikki Bella has been cast in the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars.

A source tells People that Nikki and Drew Scott of the HGTV series Property Brothers have both signed onto compete on the upcoming season of ABC’s long-running reality dance competition series.

Season 25 of Dancing with the Stars premieres opposite Raw on Monday, Sept. 18.

Nikki would be the third wrestler to compete on Dancing with the Stars, following Stacy Keibler and Chris Jericho.

In early 2006, Keibler, competed in the second season of the show, alongside her dance partner, Tony Dovolani. Keibler was eliminated in the final episode, coming in third to NFL legend Jerry Rice, who placed second in the final round of the competition, and singer Drew Lachey, the winner of the season. Two of the judges, Bruno Tonioli and Len Goodman, felt Keibler should have at least placed second. Oddsmakers had also considered her the favorite to win the competition.

Jericho competed on season 12 in spring 2011, alongside Cheryl Burke. He was the fifth contestant eliminated on the show.

Source: WrestlingINC

NXT Women’s Champion Asuka Injured At ‘NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III’

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WWE announced today that NXT Women’s Champion Asuka broke her right collarbone during her match with Ember Moon this past Saturday at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III. The typical recovery time for the injury is 6-8 weeks.

“During the match, she landed awkwardly from a throw from Ember Moon and was able to complete the match, but had notable pain and discomfort,” ringside physician Dr. Jeffrey Westerfield said. “We performed an initial ultrasound backstage that was highly suspicious of a break that was later confirmed by an X-ray.”

No timetable has been given for Asuka’s return. The next set of NXT tapings takes place this Thursday at Full Sail University.

Source: WrestlingINC

Backstage WWE News: Heat On Baron Corbin and Enzo Amore – Bobby Roode Coming To SmackDown?

In the past week Baron Corbin cashed in and lost his Money In The Bank contract, and then lost a basic match to John Cena at SummerSlam, which opened the show. Fans have picked up on Corbin likely having backstage heat and chanted “You f–ked up” when he appeared during the NXT Takeover Kickoff show this past Saturday night.

Dave Meltzer noted on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio that Corbin is definitely being punished, and the way he was booked in his match with Cena was indicative of his heat.

As noted, Meltzer reported over the weekend that WWE is very high on Bobby Roode, who is expected to join the main roster soon. Meltzer speculated that Roode may be brought to SmackDown and take Corbin’s spot.

As for Enzo Amore’s backstage heat, Meltzer reported that it has gotten even worse for some unknown reason. He said that “everybody” hates him, and the cooling crowd response to him is bad news because his reactions had been saving him.

JBL spoke publicly about Enzo’s heat on Bring It To The Table a few weeks ago, and said that the “odds are completely against” Enzo making it in the company.

“Now here’s what’s bad about it. Most of those guys – except for Miz, Miz is the only one – never made it,” JBL said. “Once the locker turned against these guys – they were sprayed with human repellent or whatever – they never made it. So the odds are completely against Enzo. Now I think he’s very talented, I’ve had a good working relationship with him but apparently there’s a lot of problems with him and the rest of the world.”

You can check out the full episode of Wrestling Observer Radio by clicking here.

Source: WrestlingINC