NXT, streaming today at 8 ET on WWE Network.
* Ricochet vs. Adam Cole II
* What does Kassius Ohno have to say?
* Taynara Conti takes on Aliyah
* Street Profits prepare to bounce back
* Dominik Dijakovic meets Shane Thorne
WWE NXT UK Preview 2/13/19
NXT UK, streaming today at 3 ET/8 GMT on WWE Network.
* NXT UK Women’s Champion Toni Storm is scheduled the kick off the show
* WWE United Kingdom Champion Pete Dunne vs. Gallus’ Wolfgang
* Noam Dar vs. Jordan Devlin
* Jinny locks vs. Mia Yim
AEW Double Or Nothing Quickly Sells Out
All Elite Wrestling’s Double Or Nothing event sold out in just 4 minutes today, according to the official AEW Twitter account.
The pre-sale sold out in less than 30 minutes on Monday. The general on-sale kicked off today and those seats sold out in just 4 minutes. There have been seats available on the secondary market, at as much as three times the face value.
AEW Double Or Nothing takes place on Saturday, May 25 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. This will be the first event for the new promotion.
Below is AEW’s tweet on the sell out along with a look at what the current card looks like:
https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1095731800666763264
enny Omega vs. Chris Jericho
PAC vs. “Hangman” Adam Page
The Young Bucks vs. Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix
Cody Rhodes vs. Mystery Opponent
Dr. Britt Baker vs. Kylie Rae vs. Nyla Rose
Team All Elite Wrestling vs. Team Oriental Entertainment Wrestling
SoCal Uncensored (Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, Scorpio Sky) vs. Cima and two partners to be announced
Aja Kong vs. Yuka Sakazaki (teased, not confirmed)
* Appearances by Brandi Rhodes, MJF, AAA World Cruiserweight Champion Sammy Guevara, Sonny Kiss, The Best Friends (Beretta and Chuck Taylor), and others
Source: WrestlingINC
Backstage News On Plans For The WWE Women’s Divisions
WWE is planning on doing more crossing over between the RAW and SmackDown women’s divisions, according to @Wrestlevotes.
It was noted today that the female Superstars are “slowly going to be crossing over more between both shows” here soon.
@Wrestlevotes also noted that the plan is to have the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions appear on both RAW and SmackDown at first, but not on a weekly basis.
The WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions will be crowned at Sunday’s Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, inside the Chamber. It will be Sasha Banks & Bayley vs. The IIconics vs. Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville vs. Liv Morgan & Sarah Logan vs. Tamina Snuka & Nia Jax vs. Carmella & Naomi. The match will start with Deville & Rose vs. Bayley & Banks.
Source: WrestlingINC
Backstage Update On Sasha Banks’ Injury
Sasha Banks has not wrestled a legitimate match since she faced Ronda Rousey for the WWE RAW Women’s Championship at the Royal Rumble PPV last month. Banks first missed out on competition a couple of weeks ago during a qualifying match to be part of the Elimination Chamber for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships at this Sunday’s Elimination ChamberPPV. With Banks remaining sidelined, Bayley would ultimately pick up the slack and get the victory for her team in the qualifying match.
In the latest Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer notes that, as of Tuesday, Sasha Banks has been officially cleared to return to in-ring competition. Banks was only partially cleared on Monday’s RAW, which explains why she was briefly in the three-team match before taking a bump into the barricade and being escorted to the backstage area by refs & trainers.
Banks and Bayley, also known as the “Boss N’ Hug Connection,” are scheduled to start Sunday’s Chamber match against the team of Sonya Deville and Mandy Rose. The other teams in the match are The IIconics, Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan, Carmella and Naomi, Tamina Snuka and Nia Jax.
WWE provided their own storyline update last night on SmackDown with the announcement that Banks “re-aggravated her shoulder injury” during the three-team match on Monday’s RAW. Despite that, Banks took to Twitter yesterday to emphasize that she will be ready to go on Sunday at the Chamber pay-per-view in Houston, TX. She tweeted the following:
Source: WrestlingINC
Wrestling Legend Pedro Morales Dies At 76-Years-Old
Wrestling legend Pedro Morales has passed at away at the age of 76.
WWE.com confirmed Morales’ passing on Tuesday. The former wrestler had reportedly been battling Parkinsons Disease in recent years.
WWE.com posted the following:
WWE is saddened to learn WWE Hall of Famer Pedro Morales has passed away.
A native of Culebra Island, Puerto Rico, Morales moved to New York in his youth and debuted in the ring in 1959 at age 17. After establishing his reputation as a fiery competitor in WWE on the east coast, Morales traveled west to territories in Texas and California, where he competed for much of the 1960s. In California, he battled The Destroyer in a famous rivalry, and formed a popular tag team with Pepper Gomez.
Morales returned to WWE in 1970, and in less than a year, he captured the WWE Championship from Ivan Koloff inside Madison Square Garden. During his nearly three years on top, Morales developed a passionate following in the northeast, particularly among New York City’s growing Hispanic population.
More than 22,000 fans turned out to Shea Stadium in 1972 to watch him battle close friend and former champion Bruno Sammartino in the main event of the inaugural Showdown at Shea supercard. After 75 minutes of action, the bout was ruled a draw in accordance with the state athletic commission’s strict 11 p.m. curfew.
He held the WWE Title for a staggering 1027 days before losing it to Stan Stasiak in December 1973. Morales puts his name in the record books again in 1980 when he won the World Tag Team Titles with Bob Backlund and then the Intercontinental Title to become the first Triple Crown Champion in WWE history.
Morales hung up his boots in 1987 but continued on as an ambassador for sports-entertainment. He later became a commentator for both WCW and WWE’s Spanish announce teams, and in 1995, he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
WWE extends its condolences to Morales’ family, friends and fans.
Mustafa Ali Replaced In Elimination Chamber Match Due To Injury
It was announced last night on SmackDown live that Mustafa Ali has been replaced in the WWE Championship – Elimination Chamber Match with Kofi Kingston.
As noted, Mustafi Ali suffered a concussion at Sunday’s WWE live event in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, according to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio. Ali was scheduled to be re-evaluated at SmackDown in Toledoby WWE doctors to determine if he was able to compete at Elimination Chamber this Sunday.
Ali addressed not being able to compete this Sunday at Elimination Chamber in a video on SmackDown last night.
WWE SmackDown Live Preview 2/12/19
Tonight’s WWE SmackDown Live will take place from the Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio with the final hype for Sunday’s WWE Elimination Chamber pay-per-view.
* High-stakes Gauntlet Match to take place to decide who enters last in WWE Championship Elimination Chamber Match
* The Usos to join Shane McMahon & The Miz on “McMiz TV”
* Will Andrade start to end the legend of Rey Mysterio?
* What does Charlotte Flair’s WrestleMania shocker mean for Team Blue?
Cody Rhodes Undergoes Successful Surgery Today
All Elite Wrestling Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes underwent successful arthroscopic knee surgery earlier today in Atlanta.
While teasing a t-shirt toss into the crowd, Cody suffered the injury back on November 9 at a ROH Global Wars live event in Buffalo, NY. Cody underwent an MRI at that time and it was revealed that he had two tears in his meniscus. He would then lose to ROH Champion Jay Lethal at Final Battle on December 14, then he dropped the IWGP United States Heavyweight Title to Juice Robinson at New Japan’s Wrestle Kingdom 13 event on January 4. He’s also made a few in-ring appearances at indie events since then.
Brandi Rhodes noted on Twitter earlier today that Cody would be better in time for AEW’s first event on Saturday, May 25 in Las Vegas – Double Or Nothing. There’s no word yet on who Cody will wrestle at Double Or Nothing but he is expected to be in action. Dave Meltzer noted on F4Wonline.com that the surgery would likely keep Rhodes out of action for 2-3 months. He is not scheduled for any matches until Double Or Nothing.
Source: WrestlingINC
Paige Opens Up About Hitting Rock Bottom After Her Suspensions And Leaked Sex Tapes
Most wrestling fans are aware of the peaks and valleys that Paige has gone through in her career – both inside and outside of the ring. But many may not be aware of just how low those valleys were in the aftermath of her 2016 WWE suspensions for violating the Wellness Policy and the subsequent leaking of sex tapes involving Paige.
Paige suffered from bouts of depression and was nearly suicidal by 2017 as she dealt with the fallout of her private life becoming public. She was also treated for anorexia and her hair started falling out according to a profile from the New York Post.
“To be publicly humiliated like that was terrible, and I don’t wish that for anyone,” Paige said.
All the while this was going on, Paige was also dealing with a neck injury that kept her on the shelf for a year-and-a-half.
When she thought she had hit rock bottom, a random encounter with a seven-year-old girl at a grocery store changed Paige’s outlook on life.
“Of course, [the girl] didn’t have the internet and thought I was the most beautiful and most successful woman in the world,” Paige said. “It opened my eyes to so many things. I was like, ‘I’m gonna let videos get in the way of things?’
“I thought, what am I doing? I need to be successful for her. My whole journey was supposed to be about inspiring people.”
Just as Paige strives to inspire others, this chance encounter with the young girl inspired Paige and she was able to snap out of the funk she had been in.
Unfortunately, a new injury to her neck would ultimately end Paige’s career, but as one door closes, another one opens and Paige became the General Manager of SmackDown Live until this past December.
She also launched a makeup and clothing line and her journey in wrestling has made its way to the big screen. Fighting With My Family debuts in theaters on Friday and it depicts the career of Paige up to her becoming the youngest Divas Champion in WWE history.
The film is co-produced by The Rock and it also features several other wrestlers including Zelina Vega and The Big Show.
Source: WrestlingINC
