Category: WWE

WWE SmackDown Reportedly Moving To New Night With $1 Billion FOX Deal

Smackdown Live

As reported, FOX has reached an agreement to acquire SmackDown Live to join their programming. This comes off the heels of NBC Universal maintaining their partnership with WWE after their contract ended in September 2019, but only keeping Raw as a part of the deal.

According to The Wrap, the deal between WWE and FOX will also result in a change of day that SmackDown will be aired, which will be Fridays, according to a source with knowledge of the deal. In addition to FOX, SmackDown has also been aired since its series debut in 1999 on UPN, The CW, MyNetworkTV, and SyFy. Past incarnations of SmackDown have been aired on both Thursdays and Fridays.

For the first time ever, SmackDown moved exclusively to Tuesday nights on July 19, 2016 to help promote their move to USA at the beginning of the year, as well as the brand split. The name of the show was then changed to SmackDown Live.

The current FOX 2018 lineup for Friday has Last Man Standing airing from 8-8:30, The Cool Kids at 8:30-9, and Hell’s Kitchen from 9-10, so those shows would have to find a new night with the new deal.

For many years, WWE taped SmackDown on Tuesday nights to assist with their production scheduling, along with their WWE live event schedule. Per this report, there is no information on whether it will stay live. The SmackDown crew works live events from Saturday – Monday with television on Tuesday.

Regarding the terms of the deal, The Hollywood Reporter reports that it is a five-year agreement worth more than $1 billion, $205 million annually. This is a three-fold increase to what NBC Universal is currently paying for the blue brand on USA. There was even a bigger offer from another party, but WWE agreed to partner with FOX due to the company’s ability to heavily promote the product across a platform with other sports including NFL and MLB.

Averaging at 2.59 million viewers a week, SmackDown Live is still the sixth most watched original program on cable television.

Source: WrestlingINC

SmackDown Live Preview 5/22/18

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown Live will take place from the DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts as the road to Money In the Bank continues.

* Daniel Bryan and Jeff Hardy to battle in a match with WWE Money in the Bank implications tonight on SmackDown LIVE

* The New Day to join The Miz on “Miz TV” during SmackDown LIVE

* Lana and Billie Kay to clash in Women’s Money in the Bank Qualifying Match tonight on SmackDown LIVE

* Naomi to face Sonya Deville in a Money in the Bank Qualifying Match tonight on SmackDown LIVE

WWE 205 Live Preview 5/22/18

Tonight’s WWE 205 Live will take place from the DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts.

* Is Buddy Murphy ready for Cedric Alexander?

* Hideo Itami vs. Akira Tozawa

John Cena And Nikki Bella Said To Be ‘Basically Back Together’

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People.com reports that John Cena and Nikki Bella are officially on the road to reconciliation, just over one month after they announced their breakup.

A source told People that “they’re basically back together.”

“They both got a wake-up call once they canceled the wedding, and they both realized they could fix what was broken,” the source told People.

Cena and Nikki admitted in media interviews that they have had some communication but People says they never stopped talking.

“They never stopped talking,” the source told People. “Other than the actual wedding weekend, when they took some space, they have been talking.”

Cena made it clear on NBC’s “Today” show that he wanted to have a family with Nikki and still wanted to marry her. It appears that was what Nikki wanted to hear.

“He has poured his heart out to her, and she was more than ready to take him back once she heard what she needed to hear,” the People source added. “He’s been saying and doing all the right things.”

As seen below, TMZ spotted the couple in San Diego this past weekend, their first appearance together since the split.

https://twitter.com/StevenCena76/status/997951422112194563

Source: WrestlingINC

WWE Reportedly Is Increasing PPV Length Beginning With Money in the Bank

Money in the Bank

Beginning with the Money in the Bank PPV on June 17 from Chicago, WWE will be increasing the length of all Pay Per View events to a four-hour minimum per multiple wrestling media reports on Monday night.

WWE is said to have informed many of their main domestic and international PPV providers, including InDemand and Sky TV, that the Money in the Bank PPV will be pushed back from its usual 8:00 PM ET start time to a 7:00 PM start time and that most PPV events will begin at 7:00 PM ET going forward.

This means that the Kickoff pre-shows will likely start at 6:00 PM ET.

It is also said that the WWE’s four major PPVs (WrestleMania, SummerSlam, Survivor Series and the Royal Rumble) will all become five-hour PPV events going forward. This is being done as a way to accommodate both rosters for RAW and Smackdown Live, with all non-major events being co-branded on the WWE Network.

WWE has not issued any comment nor confirmation on this reported change.

Source: WrestleView

Enzo Amore Announces Interesting Live Appearance For Next Monday Night

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Former WWE Superstar Enzo Amore took to Instagram last night to thank fans for their support. The posts come less than a week after it was announced by Enzo and his attorney that no charges were being filed by Phoenix police over the rape allegations made by a woman back in January, which led to Enzo’s WWE release while he was the Cruiserweight Champion. You can read the full statement from Enzo’s attorney at this link.

Enzo also announced his first post-WWE appearance. He will be meeting fans in New York City’s Times Square next Monday, Memorial Day, at 9pm. He noted that he will break his social media silence at 9:15pm for one big Instagram post, live from Times Square.

Enzo wrote with one of his posts, “I want to engage, interact, and personally than all of you who ever supported me! IT WAS YOU WHO WISHED ME LUCK ON MY FUTURE ENDEAVORS!! BUT I WON’T NEED LUCK…. JUST YOU!!”

He wrote in another post, “THERE IS NO BETTER SUPPORT than the support of the city that I LOVE! I’LL SEE YA SOON!! THANKS FOR THE LOVE… I’ll be reciprocating it soon.”

Enzo also revealed what looks like his new logo. You can see his recent IG posts below:

I’ll be down there TO PERSONALLY THANK YOU …. Times Square 9:00 pm #MemorialDay… #HowYouDoin!?

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjDxLCmgw5w/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjDyCkqgc8Q/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjDyS9Yg6Eq/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjDx97JgXQr/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjDw-ncA7Lr/

Source: WrestlingINC

CM Punk Was Allegedly Backstage During “All In” Press Conference

The rumor mill surrounding CM Punk making an appearance at “All In” is about to go into overdrive … because the ex-WWE champ was apparently backstage during the show’s press conference.

Jenn Sterger — who hosted the conference — spilled the beans during an interview on the latest Collider Bodyslam podcast.

“If you got your tickets at face value for this event, I’m just saying it literally might be the best in the world,” Sterger told the show. “I will only say someone wearing sweatpants and training for something walked into the back of the building that the press conference was in — with marks, mind you, lining the entire sidewalks in the front of the building — and I just kept thinking ‘if they knew you were back here, they would literally tear down the front of the store.’”

The host says CM Punk was allegedly there to pick up shirts from Pro Wrestling Tees, but none of the people involved in the event would confirm or deny if he’d be making an appearance at All In.

With a scheduled signing the day before the event, and the fact he lives in Chicago, Jenn told the show that she thinks it only makes sense for the UFC fighter to be there. Adding, “What better way — if you were going to make your return to wrestling — than the biggest indie show ever?”

Listen to a portion of the interview below, then check out the full show — AVAILABLE HERE.

https://twitter.com/attitanium/status/997598858233380864

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

RAW Preview 5/21/18

Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the Times Union Center in Albany, New York as the road to Money In the Bank continues.

* How will Sami Zayn “expose” Bobby Lashley?

* Will The Big Dog’s rampage continue?

* Which Raw Superstars will join the Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match?

* How will Raw’s male Superstars gain “Money” momentum?

* Who will be next to challenge Seth Rollins?

* Nia Jax prepares to face The Baddest Woman on the Planet

WWE Reportedly Has “Agreed In Principle” To Bring Smackdown Live To FOX In October 2019

Smackdown Live

ESPN.com is reporting that WWE has an agreement in principle with FOX, described as a “massive” offer, to bring SmackDown Live to the network in October of 2019.

WWE representatives declined to comment on the story, while any representatives for FOX were not immediately reached at the time of the report on Monday morning.

A report last week by the Hollywood Reporter indicated NBC Universal was interested in retaining Monday Night RAW for “triple the rights fee amount”, all the while declining the option to renew SmackDown Live which airs live every Tuesday on the USA Network.

SmackDown Live has been averaging 2.59 million viewers per week in 2018 and has been part of the NBC Universal family on cable since October of 2010, airing first on the SyFy network and then moving to the USA Network in 2016.

Back in February, FOX executives attended a Smackdown Live taping in Los Angeles including on-air personality Colin Cowherd. Not long later, Cowherd hinted on air that WWE programming was “coming to a network near you.”

We will continue to follow this story as it develops.

Source: WrestleView

Randy Orton Underwent Successful Knee Surgery

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Randy Orton will be out of action for awhile on SmackDown Live after undergoing successful surgery on his knee. WWE issued the following:

Randy Orton has undergone successful surgery to repair a medial meniscus tear in his left knee, WWE.com can confirm.

“I’ve known I needed the surgery since late last year, but I’ve been waiting for the right time to get my knee cleaned out,” Orton told WWE.com. “Right now was the right time.”

The Viper is currently recovering at home with his family, but says he is “staying motivated to come back and dominate the blue brand.”

Stay with WWE.com as more details on Orton’s condition become available.