Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan with the go-home build for the WWE Day 1 pay-per-view.
* The go-home build for WWE Day 1
* AJ Styles vs. Omos
* WWE United States Champion Damian Priest defends against Dolph Ziggler
* Austin Theory vs. Finn Balor
* RAW Tag Team Champion Randy Orton vs. Otis
* The Miz and Maryse renew their vows in the ring
WWE has reportedly taken an approach of “the show must go on” to the upcoming week despite there being a number of wrestlers and staff who are unable to work due to positive COVID-19 tests, according to PWInsider.
Regarding talent availability for Saturday’s WWE Day 1 pay-per-view, word is that if the show was held tonight, multiple matches would have ot be changed, according to @Wrestlevotes. WWE officials are hopeful that they can keep the card as is, but everything is “fluid” at this point.
WWE will present a live RAW tonight from the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, a live WWE NXT on Tuesday from the Performance Center, and then the live pay-per-view on Saturday from the State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
WWE Superstar Seth Rollins took to Twitter to reveal that he has tested positive for COVID-19.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
Tonight’s AEW Rampage Holiday Bash edition will air on TNT from the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC.
* TNT Championship: Sammy Guevara (C) vs. Cody Rhodes
* Hook vs. Bear Bronson
* Jungle Boy vs. Isiah Kassidy
* “Legit” Layla Hirsch vs. Kris Statlander
Tonight’s Christmas Eve edition of WWE SmackDown on FOX will not air live. The episode was taped this past Friday from the Allstate Arena near Chicago, IL
* SmackDown Women’s Championship: Charlotte Flair vs. Toni Storm
* 12 Days of Christmas Gauntlet Match to determine the new #1 contender to WWE Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
* Miracle on 34th Street Fight: The Usos and Madcap Moss vs. Drew McIntyre and The New Day
WWE reportedly had more talents and staff who tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.
As noted, it was reported on Wednesday morning how several WWE wrestlers and crew members have tested positive for COVID-19, and how it’s very likely that the spread of the Omicron variant will lead to more schedule and/or talent changes. You can click here for that original report.
In an update, PWInsider reports that there were additional talents and staff members who tested positive throughout Wednesday. Those talents have not been identified for obvious reasons, but there were also a number of talents who were contacted and asked to get tested out of an abundance of caution.
As of Wednesday afternoon, WWE officials still expected to go forward with all live events and tapings planned for the United States, but there has been a lot of phone calls being made and “a lot of running around” as the company tries to stay ahead of the situation while receiving additional details on talents and staff who may not be cleared to travel this weekend.
One WWE source noted that they are dealing with the same issues that Broadway and other sports leagues have dealt with in recent weeks, and that it’s nothing they could have avoided as they have held regular COVID-19 testing before allowing people into venues.
While no schedule changes have been confirmed as of this writing, it was noted that WWE is working on alternative line-ups for live events just in case a talent isn’t able to perform this weekend. A worst case scenario would see WWE fill up the undercard slots with wrestlers from WWE NXT, if necessary.
There’s hope that if wrestlers are unable to perform on the annual post-Christmas Holiday Tour of live events, then the WWE Day 1 pay-per-view is far enough away that wrestlers would be cleared in time to perform on that show, which is now less than 10 days away.
The Holiday Tour is returning this year after being nixed in 2020 due to the pandemic, and there are still no plans to nix any of the tour dates in the United States next week. The tour kicks off this Sunday in Tampa and in New York City at Madison Square Garden, and wraps next Thursday with a show in Buffalo. Next Thursday’s show scheduled for Quebec has been postponed until March, but that is the only change as of now. The other Canadian date, which is Wednesday in Toronto, is still on as of now.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
Former NXT star Kyle O’Reilly reunited with his Undisputed Era teammates Adam Cole and Bobby Fish on this week’s Holiday Bash edition of AEW Dynamite.
Kyle O’Reilly is officially ALL ELITE!
The former NXT star reunited with Undisputed Era stablemates Bobby Fish and Adam Cole on this week’s special Holiday Bash edition of AEW Dynamite on TNT.
It all went down during the opening match at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. Ada Cole and Orange Cassidy were going at it in a thoroughly enjoyable match when O’Reilly debuted. Cole’s buddy Bobby Fish distracted the referee and O’Reilly took advantage of the referee’s distraction to interfere on behalf of his old friend Adam Cole by attacking Cassidy. Cole then hit Cassidy with the Boom knee strike to score a pinfall victory.
After the match, Cole and Fish looked upon O’Reilly confusingly, as they didn’t exactly part ways on good terms when they last shared a ring. The Young Bucks arrived and appeared to ask Cole what was going on. Cole eventually left the ring with Fish and O’Reilly by his side.
While this was all going on, AEW president Tony Khan took to social media to confirm that O’Reilly had indeed signed a contract with All Elite Wrestling.
Source: TheSportster
The Holiday Bash edition of AEW Dynamite on TNT will air live tonight from the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC.
* More details will be announced on The Owen Hart Foundation Cup Tournaments
* Adam Cole vs. Orange Cassidy
* Adam Cole gives The Young Bucks and Bobby Fish the best Christmas present ever
* Ruby Soho vs. Nyla Rose in a semi-finals match for the AEW TBS Title tournament
* Malakai Black vs. Griff Garrison
* AEW Women’s World Champion Britt Baker and Tony Schiavone host a Christmas party
* CM Punk, Sting and Darby Allin vs. MJF and AAA World Tag Team Champions FTR
The COVID-19 Omicron variant is forcing tighter restrictions around the world, and word now is that WWE is once again dealing with significant issues related to the pandemic.
A number of WWE talents and staff members were reportedly feeling run down coming out of last weekend’s live events and TV tapings, and some have since tested positive for the coronavirus, according to PWInsider.
While some have already tested positive, others are still waiting for their test results to return.
Friday’s Christmas Eve edition of SmackDown on FOX is already taped (spoilers here), but the COVID-19 positives could have an immediate ripple effect on the return of the annual post-Christmas Holiday Tour, which is set to return this year after being nixed in 2020 due to the pandemic.
It remains to be seen how widespread the issues are for WWE, but with the timing of the positive tests and quarantine requirements, it’s almost impossible that there will not be some repercussions as there is not enough time for some talents and staff to test negative and be cleared to return to work.
There are currently no plans to cancel any events in the United States, but next week’s events in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and Laval, Quebec are up in the air due to COVID-related shutdowns and restrictions. Tickets for the Quebec show are no longer being offered, but the event is still listed as taking place as of this writing.
It’s interesting to note that due to the COVID-19 Omicron variant, FOX has canceled their “New Year’s Eve Toast & Roast 2022” special that was set to air next Friday night. This was the reason WWE SmackDown is being bumped to FS1 on New Year’s Eve. It’s been reported that due to the bump, WWE went with a Year In Review show for SmackDown that night.
FOX has not announced replacement programming for New Year’s Eve as of this writing, but WWE has no event scheduled for that night, which is the night before the WWE Day 1 pay-per-view at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, on New Year’s Day. It’s possible WWE could tape some SmackDown content at Sunday’s live events in Tampa and Madison Square Garden in New York City, Monday’s RAW in Detroit and Monday’s live event in Orlando, Tuesday’s live events in Pittsburgh and Washington, DC, Wednesday’s live events in Toronto and Baltimore, or Thursday’s live events in Buffalo and Quebec, but nothing has been announced.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
AJ Styles showed up at the WWE Performance Center on Tuesday, December 21 … but he wasn’t there for a workout. Instead, “The Phenomenal One” was there to confront the most hated man in NXT; Aussie upstart Grayson Waller.
It all went down on this week’s edition of NXT 2.0 when Styles confronted Waller, who earned the ire of the entire NXT locker room when he interrupted Johnny Gargano’s departure speech a few weeks ago, has been roasting Styles on social media over the last few days. As a result, Styles put Waller on notice and told him to expect a visit soon.
In case you missed it, Waller senselessly attacked Dexter Lumis with a steel chair following Dexter’s victory ver Trick Williams on Tuesday. As Waller gloated from inside the ring, live footage of Styles arriving at the Performance Center appeared on the screen. The arrogant Waller didn’t look perturbed in the slightest.
Following a commercial break, Styles made his way to the ring and came face-to-face with the dude who insulted his hairstyle on Instagram earlier in the week. Waller and Styles went back and forth on the mic, with Styles attempting to bury Waller by pointing out his shallow attempt to get a rub from a bigger star. Waller talked a big game and threatened to “end” the former WWE Champion.
The situation almost got physical, and Waller even took off his shirt in an attempt to goad Styles. When Styles called his bluff, Waller backed down and left the ring, telling Styles that he wants Omos to take care of Styles first.
As you might recall, Omos and AJ split on the latest edition of Raw after AJ loudly chastised Omos and Omos retaliated.
Source: TheSportster
Tonight’s WWE NXT 2.0 episode will feature more build for the upcoming New Year’s Evil event.
* AJ Styles appears for new feud with Grayson Waller
* Dakota Kai vs. Raquel Gonzalez in a Street Fight
* Pete Dunne vs. Tony D’Angelo
* Trick Williams vs. Dexter Lumis
* The Grizzled Young Veterans vs. The Creed Brothers
* Von Wagner will appear
NXT 2.0’s Grayson Waller posted a video on Twitter this week in which he mocked former WWE Champion AJ Styles and even stole his phenomenal moniker. Styles responded to the video on Twitter and will seemingly follow up on that via a physical confrontation.
Waller questioned whether he had heard right, tweeting that Styles had better wipe his feet should he dare to show up in NXT tonight. WWE then retweeted Waller’s message, not confirming Styles is going to show up, but effectively doing so by ackowledging the whole thing. It’ll be a welcome break for Styles and a chance for him to be in a ring without having to check Omos isn’t lurking nearby.
