Category: WWE

WWE NXT Preview 9/10/2024

WWE NXT tonight on USA Network.

WWE NXT General Manager Ava took to Twitter today to announce that TNA’s The Rascalz (Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel) were unable to compete due to “somewhat conspicuous circumstances.”

Instead, The Street Profits will challenge Nathan Frazer & Axiom for the titles. This match will open the show.

  • TNA Knockouts Championship Open Challenge: Jordynne Grace (c) vs. TBA
  • NXT Tag Team Championship: Axiom & Nathan Frazer (c) vs. The Street Profits
  • NXT Heritage Cup Match: Charlie Dempsey (c) vs. Je’Von Evans
  • Last Man Standing Match: Trick Williams vs. Pete Dunne
  • Ridge Holland vs. Duke Hudson
  • Chelsea Green vs. Giulia

WWE Raw Returning To Two-Hour Format For Last Three Months Of 2024 Before Netflix Move

For over a decade, “WWE Raw” has been a three-hour affair. As the red brand’s time with USA Network draws to a close, however, it has been announced that WWE’s flagship show will be temporarily reverting to a two-hour weekly schedule. WWE took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to make the announcement during the season premiere of “Raw” on Monday night. The reason for the format change was not disclosed.

The change is expected to begin on the October 7 episode of “Raw,” immediately after WWE’s upcoming Bad Blood premium live event, and last through the December 30 episode of “Raw,” which will be the show’s final episode on USA Network before it moves to Netflix in January. During this period, the show will air from 8pm to 10pm EST; as pointed out by Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, this means the Monday night 10pm EST television block will be free of wrestling programming for the first time in decades, as the previous two-hour format started at 9pm EST for much of its run.

Whether Netflix will maintain the two-hour run time, return the show to three hours, or implement some other plan is currently unknown. Despite USA Network’s recent acquisition of “WWE SmackDown,” there are no known plans to change the blue brand’s run time or that of “WWE NXT,” which is preparing its own move to The CW Network.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Backstage Update On Why Kiana James Was Removed From Internal WWE Active Roster

WWE quietly releasing stars has seemingly become more common than their mass “budget cuts” of years prior, presumably in an attempt to draw less negative attention. Recently, reports noted that “WWE Raw” talent Kiana James was moved off of WWE’s active roster page to the “miscellaneous” section, leading many to speculate that she might have been quietly released. 

Since then, PWInsiderElite has updated their original report, and while they initially hinted that a severe injury was likely the cause for her move on WWE’s website, they’ve now confirmed that this is the case. PWInsiderElite says their sources confirmed James suffered a leg injury that will likely keep her sidelined upward of six months. Notably, James was drafted up to “Raw” earlier this year, but has barely been used since, with “Fightful Select” even going so far as to inquire into her and former WWE star Dijak’s status on the roster at one point. Unfortunately, Dijak ultimately ended up being released, which is likely why many have been concerned for James’ future with WWE.

It remains to be seen when or if James returns to action in WWE, but the star got quite a vote of confidence from Booker T shortly after her main roster call-up, who believes she checks all the boxes that the promotion needs to cultivate a major star. The veteran also noted that he was excited to see her next step, that she had matured enough in “NXT,” and would someday set a lot of records. 

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE RAW Preview 9/9/2024

The season premiere of WWE RAW tonight live on USA Network from the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

  • WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart to appear
  • We will hear from Drew McIntyre
  • Judgment Day’s Dominik Mysterio vs. LWO’s Dragon Lee
  • WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship: Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill (c) vs. The Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn)
  • WWE Intercontinental Championship No. 1 Contenders Match: Jey Uso vs. Braun Strowman vs. Ilja Dragunov vs. Pete Dunne
  • Street Fight: Wyatt Sicks (Dexter Lumis, Joe Gacy, Erick Rowan and Nikki Cross) vs. American Made (Julius Creed, Brutus Creed, Chad Gable and Ivy Nile)
  • Lyra Valkyria, Zelina Vega, and TBA vs. Pure Fusion Collective (Shayna Baszler, Zoey Stark and Sonya Deville)

WWE SmackDown Preview 9/6/2024: Final show on FOX

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown will be the final live broadcast on FOX. The show returns to the USA Network beginning next Friday. SmackDown will take place from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Fallout from Bash in Berlin

  • The return of Giovani Vinci
  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes will respond to Solo Sikoa
  • The Bloodline (Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu, Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa) vs. The Street Profits (Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins) and DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa)
  • Tiffany Stratton vs. Bayley

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown will go head-to-head with a special Friday night (live) episode of AEW Collision on TNT.

WWE Reportedly Reviving Saturday Night’s Main Event

A revival of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event is in the works.

The original WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event specials aired on NBC from 1985 to 1991, replacing Saturday Night Live. In 1992, WWE presented the special on FOX before it was discontinued.

WWE brought Saturday Night’s Main Event back to prime time in March 2006 as part of RAW on USA Network. This continued until August 2008. WWE has previously used the theme for a limited number of house shows.

WWE is expected to announce its first NBC primetime special since August 2008 in the coming days. There has been internal discussion about whether WWE would use the Saturday Night’s Main Event name.

In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported, “WWE told us that the return of Saturday Night’s Main Event will be announced very soon so that would indicate this is accurate.”

The exact air date of the special remains unknown at this time.

Source: eWn

Musician Files Lawsuit Against Cody Rhodes, WWE & Fanatics

Musician Wesley Eisold, vocalist of the band American Nightmare, has filed a lawsuit against Cody Rhodes, WWE, and Fanatics. The lawsuit, filed on September 4, alleges that the defendants have broken terms that Rhodes previously agreed to regarding merchandise that used the “American Nightmare” phrase. Eisold has accused the defendants of breach of contract, inducing breach of contract, and intentional interference with contractual relations.

According to court documents, Eisold filed a trademark for “American Nightmare” in November 2016, relating specifically to music and clothing. Rhodes, whose legal name is Cody Runnels, did not file a trademark on the term until more than two years later. In 2021, Runnels and AEW came to an agreement with Eisold, in which Runnels paid the musician $30,000 and in return was able to continue using “The American Nightmare” moniker under certain conditions.

One of those conditions was that “Cody Rhodes” must be featured on any shirt that uses “American Nightmare,” and the Rhodes name must be 75% larger. The lawsuit alleges that Rhodes’ merchandise with WWE and Fanatics has not adhered to the agreement, with photo evidence showing shirts featuring “The American Nightmare” text and logo without Rhodes’ name. What will likely be determined in court is whether or not that agreement can be enforced after Rhodes left AEW in favor of WWE.

Additional Details On Wesley Eisold’s Trademark Infringement Lawsuit

In the lawsuit’s preliminary statement, Eisold’s lawyers claim that there is “widespread confusion” regarding WWE fans contacting Eisold, asking the musician if he has any association with Rhodes. Additionally, it is alleged that fans of American Nightmare — the band — often find themselves accidentally buying Rhodes’ WWE merchandise.

Despite allegedly being contacted by Eisold’s representatives, WWE and Fanatics are accused of ignoring notices regarding the trademark infringement. Eisold is now asking for a jury trial in the matter, as well as up to $900,000 in damages across all five counts.

There is some level of irony to the lawsuit, as the band American Nightmare was actually forced to change their name in the early 2000s under the threat of a lawsuit from another band with the same name. The hardcore punk band changed their name to Give Up The Ghost and broke up several years later before eventually reuniting under the American Nightmare name. The band continues to play on a part-time basis while Eisold dedicates much of his time to the synth wave project Cold Cave.

Eisold has evidently been contacted online by a number of WWE fans since the news about the lawsuit became public. The vocalist addressed wrestling fans in a post on social media platform X last night, defending his decision to file the lawsuit.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Bryan Danielson Received Legal Letter From WWE After Applying For ‘Yes’ Trademark

In a recent interview with “Luke James Chats,” Bryan Danielson revealed that he received a legal notice from WWE after filing a trademark for his “Yes! Yes! Yes!” catchphrase.

Danielson submitted the trademark application in July and continued to use the chants as recently as AEW All In London 2024.

Danielson said, “I applied for it, but then I got, it wasn’t necessarily a cease and desist. I got some sort of legal letter from WWE. It’s really weird because my manager texted me and said, ‘Hey, this thing is available, do you want to get it?’ I was like, ‘How much does it cost?’ It wasn’t that much. ‘Okay, sure.’ Shortly after that, I got an email from WWE saying, ‘This is infringing on this or that or whatever.’ I’m like, ‘I’m not trying to sell anybody anything. I just do my thing.’ It did feel good to see the crowd raising their hands like that after such a long time.”

Danielson defeated Swerve Strickland to win the AEW World Championship at All In London 2024 at Wembley Stadium. He will defend the title against Jack Perry this weekend at All Out 2024 in Chicago.

Source: eWn

Backstage Report Details Odyssey Jones’ Removal From WWE TV

Odyssey Jones (real name Omari Palmer) has been absent from the last several tapings of “WWE Raw,” with a flurry of discussion emerging around his status in the last few days. Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful has posted an update on social media regarding the situation, alleging that Jones was taken off TV after the company learned about domestic violence claims against the wrestler.

There don’t appear to be any charges filed against Palmer right now, and Sapp noted that talent had not been informed about the situation. Wrestling Inc. has reached out to WWE for comment.

Palmer had begun making regular appearances on “WWE Raw” last month, joining forces with Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods of the New Day. The trio defeated The Final Testament on the August 19 episode of “Raw,” which marks Palmer’s last in-ring appearance with the company as of now.

WWE signed Palmer in 2019, with his first televised match taking place two years later, on an episode of “205 Live.” He then spent the next several years in WWE’s NXT developmental system before getting called up in the WWE Draft earlier this year and eventually winning his debut “Raw” match last month.

Earlier yesterday, Fightful Select posted a brief report on Palmer’s status before Sapp’s more recent update. The wrestler was reportedly removed from the company’s creative plans for the foreseeable future, despite being in the midst of a storyline with prominent performers, including a former WWE Champion in Kingston.

Additionally, a report from PWInsider Elite backs up the claim that there are no longer creative plans for Palmer. However, he is still currently listed on the company’s internal roster, leaving some wiggle room as to his current status.

Bryan Alvarez reported on Wrestling Observer Live that Palmer had, indeed, been released by WWE, though it’s yet to be confirmed. “There has not been a press release or anything like that. But I’ve been told Odyssey Jones is fired. There are rumors online, also from Fightful, that it was a domestic violence allegation. Apparently no arrests at this point but I was told fired.”

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE Raw Preview 9/2/2024

WWE Raw airs live tonight on the USA Network from the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado.

  • Fallout from Bash In Berlin
  • WWE Intercontinental Championship No. 1 Contenders Tournament Match: Sheamus vs. Bronson Reed vs. Ludwig Kaiser
  • WWE Intercontinental Championship No. 1 Contenders Tournament Match: Ilja Dragunov vs. Dragon Lee vs. Dominik Mysterio
  • WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles No. 1 Contenders Match: Unholy Union (Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn) vs. Damage CTRL (IYO SKY and Kairi Sane)
  • Zelina Vega vs. Shayna Baszler
  • WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Celebration with new champs Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair
  • American Made (Julius Creed, Brutus Creed and Ivy Nile) vs. Alpha Academy (Otis, Akira Tozawa and Maxxine Dupri)