Tonight’s WWE NXT episode on the USA Network will feature more on the road to WWE Survivor Series and NXT “TakeOver: WarGames.
Johnny Gargano is unable to wrestle at NXT TakeOver: War Games due to a neck injury.
Pro Wrestling Sheet‘s Editor-in-Chief Ryan Satin first reported the news on tonight’s edition of WWE Backstage on FS1.
According to sources, WWE management was hoping to have Gargano wrestle against Finn Balor at the event taking place during Survivor Series weekend.
However, due to the neck injury, that won’t be possible.
The severity of the injury is unclear at this time.
Gargano last appeared on NXT TV in a segment involving Finn Balor landing his finisher on Johnny on the ramp to launch a heel turn.
AEW Dynamite has topped WWE NXT in viewership for the sixth week in a row, however it was by the smallest margin to date.
Wednesday’s Full Gear go-home edition of Dynamite on TNT drew 822,000 viewers, topping NXT’s 813,000 viewers on the USA Network by only 1.1%, according to Showbuzz Daily.
AEW ranked #8 in the Cable Top 150, while NXT ranked #12. AEW ranked #31 in viewership, while NXT ranked #32 in viewership.
For NXT, it was the best number for the show since its two-hour premiere on October 2nd. It was the second lowest number for Dynamite behind last week’s show which averaged 759,000, however that episode was against Game 7 of the World Series.
Last week’s Dynamite episode drew 789,000 viewers and ranked #6 in the Cable Top 150, and #28 in viewership, so the audience was up 4.2%. Last week’s NXT episode drew 580,000 viewers and ranked #32 in the Cable Top 150, and #42 in viewership so NXT saw a much larger 40% increase.
AEW drew a 0.35 rating in the 18-49 demographic while NXT drew a 0.30 in the same demo this week. Last week’s AEW episode drew a 0.33 in that demographic while NXT drew a 0.18.
* Monday’s Crown Jewel go-home edition of RAW on the USA Network drew an average of 2.133 million viewers, down from the previous week’s 2.342 million viewers. RAW was #4 in the 18-49 demographic on the Cable Top 150, with a 0.72 rating
To compare, this week’s pro wrestling viewership looks like this so far:
* Monday’s post-Crown Jewel edition of RAW on the USA Network drew an average of 2.136 million viewers, barely up from last week’s 2.133 million viewers, and the fourth-lowest non-holiday episode in RAW history. RAW was #12 for the night in viewership on cable and #4 in the 18-49 demographic on the Cable Top 150, for the second week in a row, with an average 0.76 cable rating
* Tuesday’s Total Divas episode on the E! network drew 191,000 viewers, down from last week’s 283,000 viewers for the lowest viewership in the history of the show. Total Divas ranked #93 on the Cable Top 150 this week with a 0.08 cable rating in the 18-49 demo
* Tuesday’s official WWE Backstage premiere on FS1 drew just 49,000 viewers in the 11pm hour. The show did not make the Cable Top 150 but drew an 0.02 cable rating in the 18-49 demographic
* Wednesday’s Full Gear go-home edition of AEW Dynamite on TNT drew 822,000 viewers, up from last week’s 789,000 viewers. Dynamite was #31 for the night in viewership on cable and #8 in the 18-49 demographic on the Cable Top 150 with a 0.35 rating
* Wednesday’s NXT episode on the USA Network drew 813,000 viewers, up from last week’s 580,000 viewers. NXT ranked #32 for the night in viewership on cable, and #12 on the Cable Top 150 with a 0.30 rating in the 18-49 demographic
Below is 2019 NXT Viewership Tracker:
September 18 Episode: 1.179 million viewers (one hour on the USA Network)
September 25 Episode: 1.006 million viewers (one hour on the USA Network)
October 2 Episode: 891,000 viewers (season premiere, both hours on the USA Network)
October 9 Episode: 790,000 viewers
October 16 Episode: 712,000 viewers
October 23 Episode: 698,000 viewers
October 30 Episode: 580,000 viewers with a 0.18 demographic in the 18-49 demographic
November 6 Episode: 813,000 viewers with a 0.30 demographic in the 18-49 demographic
Below is 2019 AEW Dynamite Viewership Tracker:
October 2 Episode: 1.409 million viewers (premiere episode)
October 9 Episode: 1.018 million viewers (on TNT, 122k on truTV)
October 16 Episode: 1.014 million viewers
October 23 Episode: 963,000 viewers
October 30 Episode: 789,000 viewers with a 0.33 rating in the 18-49 demographic
November 6 Episode: 822,000 viewers with a 0.35 rating in the 18-49 demographic
The estimated attendance for Wednesday night’s Dynamite episode from Charlotte was in the 5,000 range, according to PWInsider. A hot topic on social media has been the photos going around of the empty seats on the hard cam side, which you can see below:
https://twitter.com/JayNetwork2/status/1192245097557118977
Saturday’s AEW Full Gear pay-per-view from the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, MD, Ticketmaster shows more than 1,200 tickets left at this link. They are going for $30 – $125. There are also two floor seats that come together, and include the commemorative take-home chair, for $300 each.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
Tonight’s WWE NXT episode will air live from the NXT Arena at Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL as the build to “Takeover: WarGames 2019” and Survivor Series continues.
WWE has not confirmed any RAW or SmackDown Superstars for tonight’s show, but it’s rumored that some will appear to continue the Survivor Series build.
The first NXT Women’s War Games match has been set!
The match was announced by William Regal on last night’s NXT following Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai’s title shot against the Kabuki Warriors.
Following a losing effort, Shayna Baszler and crew hit the ring to taunt Team Kick. Tegan fought back though and a brawl ensued. This led to Rhea Ripley making the save, but Io Shirai cut her off. Candice LeRae and Bianca Belair joined the action at that point and chaos broke out.
William Regal then appeared as they were all being separated and said, “I’ve got a very simple solution for this … WAR GAMES!”
The exact teams were not finalized – so it’s unclear how many competitors will be in the match – but the segment ended with LeRae, Ripley, Nox and Kai staring down Baszler, Jessamyn Duke, Marina Shafir, Io Shirai and Bianca Belair. Baszler & Ripley were later named as Team Captains, with more info to come from CBS Sports.
NXT TakeOver: War Games is set to take place November 23.
Watch the announcement below.
Tonight’s WWE NXT episode will air live from Full Sail Live in Winter Park, FL.
There will be a special one-hour version of last week’s NXT episode that airs on the USA Network at 7pm ET, serving as the lead-in for tonight’s new episode.
NXT Superstar Jordan Myles has released a statement on social media apologizing for his “disrespectful” and “unprofessional” tweets yesterday.
Myles took to Instagram on Tuesday morning to vent in a lengthy caption which reads:
My tweets yesterday were completely disrespectful and were unprofessional.
I have offend a ton of people and used anger to fuel me. With that being said.. I’d like to take this time to state an apologize for not giving a shit about what others think of me. The anger I have inside of me has been built up for years now. Call me what you want, but you’ll never EVER be able to call me fake. I’ve been lied too, used, and often mistreated by others who I viewed as associates. I’ve tipped toe around, kept quiet, even took some Ls when necessary. Emotionally charged up due to the shirt which triggered past emotions. I’m never going to be sorry for being me nor will I take back my words. I’m the damn professional wrestler in the WORLD & universe today. My ribs are touching and I’m tired of waiting. Time to snatch plates from those that have been eating far too long and always gets seconds while guys like myself have to eat crumbs from the floor like an unwanted child. For 4 years .. I gave my all to a promotion only to find out that you could only reach so high just as long as you didn’t surpass certain “people”.. I never begged for anything, I never kissed no ass, nor did rub elbows with the right ppl to get ahead. I HUSTLED, WORKED HARD. I didn’t call Hunter everyday to get booked in New Japan (s/o to NJPW) I earned it. I’ve always wanted to be “The Guy” and of no one will allow me to be in that spot.. I shall blaze my own trail to that spot rather it be by the approval of others or not. Today i shall continue to go the distance. Today I shall Lee moving forward. Today I shall rise up from my past ashes like a Dark Phoenix and promote change in this industry. Remember these words I AM THE BEST IN THE WORLD! AND NO MAN OR WOMAN WILL STOP ME FROM BEING HONEST. GO THE DISTANCE.
In case you missed it, Myles expressed his frustration with WWE over a shirt design they made for him which featured a combination of red lips and white teeth on a black background which looked similar to offensive blackface and “Sambo” imagery.
WWE later responded with a statement in which they claimed Myles had approved the design after collaborating with their team on it. Myles confirmed this, but said the design was shown to him on a black background.
Jordan’s post can be found below.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B4M0wPeJxlh/?utm_source=ig_embed
Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet
WWE has released a statement on Jordan Myles saying he’s unhappy about the shirt they designed for him, claiming the wrestler collaborated with them on the design and gave them approval to sell it.
Myles tweeted a photo of the shirt on Sunday saying, “I will keep posting this till my voice is heard. I’m not sorry for anything I say or do. Representation is important. If this is [Vince McMahon] & [Triple H]’s “vision” of me then this is a slap in the face to EVERY African American performer, fan, and supporter.”
The NXT wrestler’s frustration is due to the combination of a black shirt, red lips and white teeth looking similar to racist blackface and “Sambo” imagery used to put down African Americans.
WWE released the following statement on the matter:
“Albert Hardie Jr. (aka Jordan Myles) approved this t-shirt for sale. As always, we work collaboratively with all of our performers to develop logos and merchandise designs and get their input and approval before proceeding. This was the same process with Albert, and we responded swiftly once he later requested that the logo/t-shirt be redesigned. No t-shirts were sold.”
The new shirt currently for sale on WWE’s custom site now resembles the Space Jam logo.
Jordan Myles has responded to WWE’s statement about his controversial t-shirt, claiming he was uncomfortable with it from the beginning but was told Triple H wanted the design.
“When I originally saw the design I was uncomfortable,” Myles tweeted. “Rather than addressing the issue I decided to counter offer with another. Baker Landon lied to my face! He said HHH wanted this design so my hands were tied. I spoke with [Triple H] in person and his impression was I approved.”
The 31-year-old wrestler tweeted a screen shot of an email correspondence on the matter with Landon, who is Creative Services Talent Coordinator at NXT, seen below.
Hey Albert,
Triple H attended a meeting and had a revision for your logo, but loved it for your character. He wanted to the letter to be more “teethy” and what I have attached is what he liked.
Also have basic t-shirts on there that he approved as well. Road Dogg preferred the gray, but let us know what you think!
Thanks, Baker
Myles also shared a video of himself saying, “WWE doesn’t care about black people” while throwing up a middle finger at the camera.
In addition, he wrote the following: “THE WHOLE WWE SYSTEM IS FRAUD! THEY CREATED THIS SYSTEM WHERE YOU CANT TRUST ANYONE, YOU GROW COLD, AND YOU GROW APART FROM WHAT YOU LOVE THE MOST! The fact that [Hulk Hogan] is still employed after giving the locker room an apology for being caught says enough. #ForTheCulture.”
UPDATE: Myles deleted the video, seen below, not long after posting it on Twitter. He also says the initial design showed to him was on a white background, not black.
Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet
There has been talk of taking the weekly WWE NXT TV show out of Full Sail Live in early 2020. Now it looks like NXT will continue to run Full Sail Live at times, just not every week.
The current talk going around is that NXT will continue to run Full Sail Live in 2020, just not weekly, with the idea of doing the other shows in arenas outside of Florida, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Full Sail is a lot more cost-effective for the show, but the location and the look is believed to be part of the reason for the drop in viewership, especially with head-to-head competition with AEW Dynamite, according to the Observer.
WWE officials have reportedly had discussions with arenas for NXT TV starting in January 2020. The Observer adds that the main reason for doing the weekly USA Network NXT TV show from Full Sail Live was because they rushed to get the show on the air so they could get the jump on AEW, and didn’t have time to book arenas.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
The closing segment of last night’s WWE NXT saw Finn Balor turn heel.
Last night’s main event saw Roderick Strong retain his NXT North American Title in a hard-hitting Triple Threat over Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic. After the match, the rest of The Undisputed Era (NXT Champion Adam Cole, NXT Tag Team Champions Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish) hit the ring to celebrate with Strong and attack Lee.
The beatdown stopped when the music hit and out came Tommaso Ciampa with his crutch. Ciampa stood in the ring and faced off with The Undisputed Era until Johnny Gargano came out next to join him. DIY reunited to face off with The Undisputed Era until Balor’s music hit and then he came out to an even bigger pop. Balor, Gargano and Ciampa faced off with The Undisputed Era in the middle of the ring until Balor turned heel out of nowhere and dropped Gargano with an overhead kick.
The crowd and the announcers were stunned as the rest of The Undisputed Era attacked Ciampa and beat him down while Balor watched from the corner. Cole traded a quick stare with Balor, then dropped Ciampa with a running knee to the back of the head. Balor then left the ring, to a mixed reaction, and dropkicked Gargano into the barrier. Balor pulled Gargano over to the bottom of the ramp after that, and spiked his head into the steel.
At first it looked like Balor was joining The Undisputed Era but that was never made official. After Balor dropped Gargano on the ramp, he pointed down at Gargano and looked up at The Undisputed Era, as if he was offering Gargano to the group. The group stood in the ring with their signature poses while Balor offered the beaten Gargano to them. This may have been an indication that Balor turned heel without joining the group. Balor then marched up the ramp and went to the back as his music played, with an angry look on his face. NXT then went off the air with The Undisputed Era standing tall in the ring.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1187191291987156993
https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1187189810252804096
https://twitter.com/WWENXT/status/1187190332577857537
Balor took to Twitter today and issued his first comments since the big turn.
He wrote, “I’m back”
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