Category: RAW

WWE World Heavyweight Champ Seth Rollins Says He Should Probably Have Surgery

Professional wrestlers are often working through injuries on a daily basis and fans have no idea. Such is the case with current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins who revealed on “Impaulsive” that he should probably have surgery on his back.

“I try to change my training up based on how I feel. There are constant injuries,” Rollins said. “My knee has been bugging me since before WrestleMania, I was having an issue with that. My neck acting up. My lower back has been at me since 2019, probably should get some surgery on that, but trying to just do whatever I can to make sure I don’t need it because I have a couple of stress fractures back there.”

Rollins added, “I tried some stem cells, I’ve done a couple of stem cell treatments. I found that they were temporarily helpful. I wasn’t taking time off. I wasn’t just idling while I was on the stem cells, I was still working pretty much a full-time schedule with WWE. I found it temporarily helpful, but long-term it kind of faded off a little bit. I got maybe four or five months of ‘Ooh, okay.'”

The 37-year-old hasn’t missed considerable time due to surgery since 2015 when a torn ACL, MCL, and medial meniscus cut his first WWE Championship reign short. He missed nearly seven months of action before returning in May 2016. His current world title reign marks his first since 2019 when he claims his lower back began troubling him. As of this writing, Rollins is set to be in a marquee match at WWE SummerSlam on August 5 when he defends against Finn Balor.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE RAW Preview 7/17/2023

WWE Raw will air live tonight on the USA Network from the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.

  • Women’s Tag Team Championship: Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez (c) vs. Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green
  • Viking Rules Match: The Viking Raiders vs. Alpha Academy
  • Matt Riddle vs. Gunther (Imperium members Giovanni Vinci and Ludwig Kaiser are banned from ringside)
  • Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. The Judgment Day (Dominik Mysterio & Damian Priest)
  • Brock Lesnar returns after Cody Rhodes made a SummerSlam challenge last week

Back on July 9, Arrow and Heels star Stephen Amell revealed on his Facebook page, that he would be heading to the July 17 episode of WWE Raw in Atlanta. However, as of this writing, WWE has not officially advertised his appearance, which means they are obviously saving it as a surprise, should he show up during the show.

WWE RAW Preview 7/10/2023

WWE Raw will air live tonight on the USA Network and will emanate from the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York.

  • No Disqualification Match: The Miz vs. Tommaso Ciampa
  • Becky Lynch vs. Zoey Stark
  • Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle vs. Two members of Imperium
  • Face-To-Face with Logan Paul and Ricochet
  • Cody Rhodes to delivers a “special message” to Brock Lesnar
  • Chad Gable and Otis to throw a Graduation Ceremony for Maxxine Dupri

Backstage Update On Drew McIntyre’s WWE Return & Contract Status

Drew McIntyre made his return to WWE at Saturday’s Money In The Bank 2023 pay-per-view event and confronted Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER following the latter’s victory over Matt Riddle.

According to a report from Pwinsider, McIntyre’s contract expires in early 2024. As of now, contract talks are yet to commence as there is sufficient time left on the deal. McIntyre is reportedly unhappy with recent WWE creative and is also far apart on money with the company for a new deal. WWE could extend his existing deal to around WrestleMania next April.

While WWE wanted McIntyre to return at Money In The Bank 2023, the Scottish Psychopath demanded a strong storyline for his return and both parties finally reached an agreement in the final days leading up to the show.

McIntyre was reportedly in continuous communication with Triple H and was also dealing with some injuries that had piled up in the lead-up to WrestleMania 39.

WWE kept McIntyre’s return a well-guarded secret and both sides went particularly silent on the matter in the weeks leading into Money In The Bank 2023.

It’s believed McIntyre will challenge GUNTHER for the Intercontetnial Title at SummerSlam.

Source: eWn

WWE RAW Preview 7/3/2023

Tonight’s WWE Raw will air live on the USA Network and emanate from the CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, MD.

Fallout from Money In The Bank

Women’s World Championship: Rhea Ripley (c) vs, Natalya

Major Changes For WWE RAW Rumored To Be Explored When UFC Merger Finalized

WWE merged with UFC under the Endeavor umbrella back in April, but details on how the company will operate after its completion have been kept close to the vest, for the most part. However, a new report states that it could lead to some major changes being implemented on “WWE Raw.”

According to the “Wrestling Observer Newsletter,” the merger not being finalized is delaying some of WWE’s plans for its flagship Monday night show. The company reportedly wants to explore some changes when the merger is firmly in place, but the report doesn’t clarify what those plans might entail.

Since the merger was announced, some fans and pundits have speculated on the possibility of WWE and UFC running crossover events. However, UFC President Dana White has stated that both companies will remain separate, and their collaborations will pertain to helping each other behind the scenes. So, it’s unlikely that the aforementioned changes are related to bringing MMA stars to “Raw.”

Of course, the aforementioned “Raw” changes could relate to media rights deals. Back in May, WWE CEO Nick Khan said that WWE is negotiating with networks such as Fox and USA in an effort to land the best deals possible. With that in mind, it’s possible that WWE is waiting for the merger to be finalized as those types of decisions will likely require input from their new business partners.

Elsewhere, Khan has toyed with the possibility of “Raw” moving nights and making the show more adult-oriented. If that’s the case, WWE officials might need to run those changes by Endeavor before they make any final decisions. It appears that the UFC merger hasn’t been finalized yet, buts its completion could change the landscape of WWE programming.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE RAW Preview 6/26/2023

WWE Raw will air live tonight on the USA Network and emanate from the Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia. Tonight’s Raw is the red brand’s go-home show for this Saturday’s Money in the Bank

  • WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins will provide an update on his condition after he was attacked by Finn Balor on Night One of last Tuesday night’s NXT Gold Rush episode.
  • Women’s Money in the Bank Summit with competitors Trish Stratus, Becky Lynch, Bayley, IYO SKY, Zoey Stark, and Zelina Vega  
  • Dominik Mysterio will address Cody Rhodes

WWE RAW Preview 6/19/2023

Tonight’s WWE Raw from the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio on the USA Network at 8/7c.

  • Seth Rollins defends the World Heavyweight Championship in an open challenge
  • Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bronson Reed
  • Money in the Bank qualifying match: Trish Stratus vs. Raquel Rodriguez
  • Non-title match: Women’s World Heavyweight Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya
  • Matt Riddle vs. Ludwig Kaiser
  • Logan Paul returns

Rhea Ripley Receives New Women’s World Championship On WWE Raw

In addition to the major news behind the scenes involving Endeavor, the promotion has been undergoing some cosmetic changes as well. Specifically, the company’s world championships have gotten a bit of a facelift lately — after ceremonies were held for Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Asuka, who all received new title belts, it was finally Rhea Ripley’s turn on Monday night.

This week’s edition of “WWE Raw” started with WWE official Adam Pearce in the ring to introduce the reigning “SmackDown” Women’s Champion. When “The Eradicator” hit the ring, she was presented with the all-new Women’s World Championship. Bearing a similar design to Rollins’ newly introduced World Heavyweight Championship, except with a white strap, the title was secured around Ripley’s waist by fellow Judgment Day member Dominik Mysterio (who was welcomed by the live audience with a sea of boos).

Unfortunately, “Mami” didn’t get to bask in the glory of her new championship for very long, as Cody Rhodes emerged to issue a challenge to her “Dom Dom.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE RAW Preview 6/12/2023

WWE Monday Night Raw live this evening at 8/7c on USA Network from the Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas.

  • Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. Gunther & Ludwig Kaiser
  • Cody Rhodes vs. The Miz
  • Men’s Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Matt Riddle vs. Damian Priest

SmackDown Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley could possibly be getting a new Title belt just as Asuka received a new WWE Women’s Championship this past Friday on SmackDown