Category: WWE

WWE SmackDown Preview 12/17/21

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown on FOX will air live from the Allstate Arena near Chicago.

Universal Champion Roman Reigns returns to SmackDown this Friday

“The Samoan sabbatical is over this Friday. After taking a week away on a night that saw Brock Lesnar wreak more havoc on the blue brand by attacking Sami Zayn yet again and hunting down WWE Official Adam Pearce to tell him a rather threatening story, Universal Champion Roman Reigns is set to return to Friday Night SmackDown. What will The Head of the Table have in store? How will he respond to The Beast’s latest actions on the road to their championship showdown at WWE Day 1? Find out live on SmackDown this Friday at 8/7 C on FOX!,” WWE wrote in their official preview for tonight.

Kevin Owens Has Signed A New Deal With WWE

According to a report, Kevin Owens has re-signed with WWE. His current deal runs up in January.

According to a report from Fightful Select (h/t WrestlingNews.co), Owens has signed a new deal with WWE. As previously noted, his current deal will expire in January.

Back in 2018, Owens announced that he had signed a new five-year deal with the company. The contract was reworked, and it thus pushed up the expiration date to Jan. 2022. But that’s all a moot point now, because the 37-year-old and longtime fan favorite is here to stay for the long run.

It’s worth noting that the contract of Owens’ close friend, Sami Zayn, is reportedly slated to expire soon as well. With Owens now signed long-term, WWE can now focus on working toward a new deal with Zayn. Keeping Owens, simply put, can only help WWE’s chances of convincing Zayn to stick around.

WWE has been giving both Owens and Zayn more television time in recent weeks. The Prized Fighter is now working in the WWE Championship scene on Raw with Big E, Bobby Lashley and Seth Rollins. Those four will face off for the title at the upcoming Day 1 pay-per-view.

Despite signing a three-year deal, Kevin Owens could be released at a moment’s notice.

According to Dave Meltzer, the deal is three years long and could be worth as much as $3 million to the former Universal Champion. Owens will also be working a lighter schedule moving forward. That’ll be more like live events every other week, not four matches a year like Brock Lesnar.

The other interesting note made on Wrestling Observer Radio is KO’s contract does not include a clause granting him immunity from being released. One of the main reasons The Prizefighter likely opted to re-sign is for job security. He has a wife and two young children at home, so the guaranteed money that comes with signing on with WWE will have likely been a big factor behind his decision to stay.

Owens said the decision to re-sign with WWE was easy because it was the best thing for his family.

“I’ll just say that my contract still ends on January 31, but not 2022,” Owens said. “I will still be in WWE for several years, The decision was pretty easy because it was the best thing for my family, really. When it comes to that, it’s always a pretty easy decision to take. WWE has been my home for seven years now, so I have a sense of belonging.

“Basically, I spent the majority of my career here. When you look at all the wrestling companies I’ve wrestled for, in WWE, that’s where I’ve been the longest. That’s where I need to be for the next few years. That’s how I felt and that’s the decision I made.”

While a three-year contract might sound like job security as well as a hefty wage, WWE has proved more than ever this year that anyone can be let go at a moment’s notice. There have even been cases in 2021 where it has felt as if WWE has signed wrestlers to new deals just so they can release them soon after. That forces those wrestlers to sit and do nothing for 90 days as opposed to moving on right away had their deal been allowed to run out. Hopefully, Owens won’t suffer the same fate and will be with WWE for at least three more years.

As for Zayn, he challenged Universal Champion Roman Reigns for the title on the Dec. 3 episode of SmackDown. Zayn lost quickly, however, as Brock Lesnar attacked him before the match started.

Source: TheSportster

WWE NXT Preview 12/14/21

Tonight’s WWE NXT 2.0 episode on the USA Network will feature more build for the upcoming New Year’s Evil episode on January 4.

Jeff Hardy Speaks For The First Time Since His WWE Release

Jeff Hardy made an appearance on his brother’s Twitch channel.

WWE shocked and upset a lot of fans last week when it was revealed that Jeff Hardy had been released from his contract. The company is actually yet to officially confirm Hardy is no longer with WWE, but apparently, the former World Champion was offered help and rehab by his former employers but he turned it down. Whether a relapse or ongoing issues with addiction led to Hardy’s release also remains unclear.

Jeff’s brother Matt, who is incredibly active on social media, has been providing fans with updates. Matt let fans know Jeff is doing okay and that his brother would share more information with him if and when he was ready. Well, the reason for Jeff’s release still isn’t any more clear, but The Charismatic Enigma has spoken publicly for the first time since his time with WWE came to an end.

Jeff made an appearance during Matt’s most recent Twitch stream. The appearance was part of a pre-taped clip Matt aired during the stream during which he is discussing how he was the architect of The Hardy Boyz with a ladder in the background. Jeff then appears with headphones on before joining his brother and revealing he was listening to a song called Release Me by Wilson Phillips.

“I am the Whisper In The Wind, I am The Swanton Bomb but without you there is no Poetry In Motion,” Jeff said, referencing the nods to The Hardy Boyz’s past Matt had just brought up. After finishing the rehearsed bit, Jeff proceeds to tout that he will be performing music at a number of live dates later this week, giving the locations and adding that he will be interacting with fans at the shows.

Matt told fans not to worry or read too much into what happened between Jeff and his brother over the weekend. He certainly seemed to be doing okay during his Twitch cameo, and must be in somewhat of a good place to be performing live music just a couple of days from now. The best of luck to Jeff and hopefully we will see him wrestle again elsewhere once his non-compete clause has expired.

Source: TheSportster

WWE RAW Preview 12/13/21

Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota with more build for the WWE Day 1 pay-per-view.

WWE has announced just one match for tonight’s RAW and that’s the RK-Bro-Nament finals with The Street Profits vs. The Mysterios. The winners will become the new #1 contenders to RAW Tag Team Champions Randy Orton and Riddle, likely for a title match at Day 1.

WWE has also announced that Bobby Lashley will address last week’s attack on WWE Champion Big E, Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins. It’s believed that this will lead to Lashley being added to the Triple Threat for the WWE Title at Day 1.

Regarding Becky Lynch, it’s believed that her feud with Liv Morgan will continue tonight. WWE has teased a rematch between the two after Lynch retained last week via handful of tights. The rematch is rumored for WWE Day 1.

WWE SmackDown Preview 12/10/21

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown on FOX will air live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles as the road to WWE Day 1 continues.

Jeff Hardy WWE Release Update, News On When He Will Become A Free Agent

Jeff Hardy is reportedly locked into a WWE non-compete clause until March 2022.

As noted, it was revealed on Thursday that Hardy was released from his WWE contract. The company reportedly offered him help and rehab, but he turned them down, and was then released. Hardy’s departure came after the incident at last Saturday’s WWE live event in Edinburg, TX. Hardy was sent home after the Edinburg show, and replaced by Rey Mysterio the next night in Corpus Christi.

In an update, WWE officials reportedly offered rehab to Hardy following the incident in Edinburg, but he refused. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter adds that Hardy was fully aware that if he refused the help, then WWE would have to take action.

The decision was then to let Hardy go instead of suspend him. He was given a 90-day non-compete period where he will be paid through Wednesday, March 9. At that point Hardy will become a free agent, and able to work with whoever he wants.

It remains to be seen if AEW or Impact Wrestling will be interested in signing Hardy due to the nature of his WWE release and the fact that he refused to accept treatment.

Hardy still has not commented on his WWE release, but his wife Beth Hardy issued a statement on Thursday morning, which you can read at this link. You can click here for messages of support from WWE Champion Big E, WWE United States Champion Damian Priest, Bayley, and others.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Johnny Gargano Reportedly Rejects Multiple WWE Contract Offers, Becomes Free Agent

Johnny Gargano will reportedly become a free agent at midnight on Thursday, December 9 after rejecting WWE’s attempts to re-sign him.

Johnny Gargano has reportedly rejected several contract offers from WWE and is set to officially part ways with the company. Fightful Select’s Sean Ross Sapp reports that Gargano’s current WWE contract is set to expire at midnight on Thursday, December 9, at which point the former NXT Champion’s WWE tenure will officially come to an end after five years.

Gargano’s deal was initially due to expire on December 3, but he signed a brief extension that allowed him to tie up some loose ends on-screen.

https://twitter.com/JohnnyGargano/status/1467726092702294018

Gargano’s last WWE match was the men’s WarGames match at NXT WarGames on December 5. Johnny Wrestling teamed up with LA Knight, Pete Dunne, and his former DIY partner Tommaso Ciampa to represent the NXT old guard as part of Team Black & Gold in a WarGames match against Team 2.0 (Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Grayson Waller & Tony D’Angelo).

Gargano came out to his old “Rebel Heart” theme and was wearing gear that paid homage to some of his previous outfits. He had the adulation of the crowd, and the NXT commentary team appeared to imply that this was his last match in NXT … although they also used the word “if” a lot so it’s possible that Gargano hadn’t actually made a decision by that point.

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1468988825624006660

The following Tuesday on NXT 2.0, Gargano cut an impassioned, emotional promo that felt very much like a farewell speech. Tragically, the NXT stalwart was unable to finish the speech because he was ambushed and brutally beaten down by Aussie upstart Grayson Waller. Waller’s attack on Gargano seemed to cause some confusion regarding whether Gargano was actually bidding NXT farewell, or whether the whole thing was just an angle.

https://twitter.com/SeanRossSapp/status/1469120452811448323

Source: TheSportster

WWE Has Released Jeff Hardy

His release comes after the wrestler was sent home from a live event at the weekend.

WWE has been having something of a spring clean when it comes to its contracts in 2021. The thing is, the company’s spring clean season has lasted pretty much the entire year. More than 70 wrestlers have been shown the door already this year, and it seems one more name can now be added to that list.

As first reported by Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, WWE has apparently come to terms on the release of Jeff Hardy. Sapp followed up on the tweet breaking the news with another saying Hardy was offered help and rehab by WWE, but the former World Champion turned down the offer. That resulted in the two parties seemingly agreeing to end his current deal with the company.

Hardy’s release comes less than a week after the veteran was sent home from a WWE live event over the weekend. Footage of Hardy leaving the ring mid-match during Saturday’s main event in Edinburg, Texas has surfaced online. The released star exits through the crowd and was replaced by Rey Mysterio in the main event the following night in Corpus Christi.

No further information on why Hardy was sent home or how he’s doing was shared by WWE or the wrestler after he was sent home. However, Jeff’s brother Matt Hardy, who is currently contracted to AEW, let fans know earlier this week that Jeff is doing well. Matt added that he didn’t want to share anything more, saying that it was up to Jeff if he wanted fans to know anything else about how he was doing or the details surrounding why he was sent home by WWE.

The hope among fans was that Jeff had suffered an injury or a knock of some sort and WWE had sent him home so that he could rest up and recover. The note that Jeff was offered help and rehab by WWE but turned it down suggests the actual reason was the wrestler’s demons when it comes to his addiction continue to haunt him. Even though he turned down help from WWE, hopefully he will seek it out away from the company and has left so he can recover for good this time. Our best wishes go out to Jeff and his family.

Source: TheSportster

“Hacksaw” Jim Duggan Announces He’s Cancer Free Following Worrying Diagnosis

WWE Hall of Famer “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan has revealed he is now cancer-free following prostate surgery.

“Hacksaw” Jim Duggan has announced that he is cancer-free after undergoing surgery as a result of prostate cancer. The WWE legend, who talked up early detection, said the cancer had not spread throughout other parts of his body in a video tweeted out on Wednesday.

“The cancer was encapsulated inside my prostate,” he said. “They checked my bones, that came out clear. The surrounding tissue came out clear, the lymph nodes came out clear – so thank God I’m cancer-free.”

https://twitter.com/OfficialHacksaw/status/1468605030219534338

Duggan announced back in October that he was set for surgery following his diagnosis. His wife would subsequently reveal that the operation went as planned.

In his short video on Wednesday, Duggan also disclosed having battled kidney cancer 20 years ago. He was also hospitalized three years ago after experiencing chest pains that prompted a diagnosis noting his heart had gone into atrial fibrillation. The former WWE and WCW superstar was rushed to hospital for emergency heart surgery this October as well.

Source: TheSportster