Tonight’s WWE NXT 2.0 episode on the USA Network will feature more build to the upcoming WarGames event on December 5.
Tag: WWE
WWE RAW Preview 11/15/21
Tonight’s WWE Survivor Series go-home edition of RAW will take place from the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
What A Top WWE Star Was Reportedly Told About Not Getting The COVID-19 Vaccine
WWE released 18 wrestlers last Thursday night and it was later reported that between 4 and 5, or perhaps more, were released due to the talents not having the COVID-19 vaccine. The New York Post reported that Nia Jax was released due to her vaccination status, but Jax later issued a statement and said her vaccination status was never brought up.https://6930f116441d4f103bc81903a9c5ad31.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
It was later reported by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that that some of the wrestlers were released due to a refusal to get vaccinated, and not being big enough stars to get away with that. It was also said that main roster talents cannot tour foreign countries without being vaccinated, which creates potential issues for the company. The Observer also noted how talents who were reportedly cut due to their vaccination status were reportedly told they were being let go due to budget cuts, not the vaccine.
In an update, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter now reports that while no one was told that if they didn’t get the COVID-19 vaccine their jobs would be on the line, there were people who were very much encouraged to get the vaccine. Multiple sources indicated that nobody told the wrestlers they had to get the vaccine, or warned them that their jobs would be in danger if they didn’t.
One top WWE wrestler who was not vaccinated was reportedly told that if they didn’t get vaccinated, they would be less valuable to the company due to not being able to go on overseas tours.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
WWE SmackDown Preview 11/12/21
Tonight’s WWE SmackDown on FOX will air live from the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.
WWE has announced just one match for tonight’s show and that’s a non-title bout between King Xavier Woods and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns. This will be for the control of the blue brand.
It’s believed that tonight’s SmackDown will also feature the in-ring TV return of Sheamus, but that has not been announced as of this writing.
TakeOver Branding Dropped For Upcoming NXT 2.0 WarGames Event
WWE has confirmed that NXT 2.0 will run a WarGames event in 2021. Interestingly, the TakeOver branding is absent from all promotional artwork.
WarGames is officially coming back! On December 5, NXT will play host to the carnage that is WarGames in what will be the brand’s first pay-per-view since TakeOver 36 back in August. It will also be the first pay-per-view of the 2.0 era, which may explain why the TakeOver is branding is nowhere to be seen.
The 2021 WarGames event was announced during this week’s edition of NXT 2.0. The word “TakeOver” is absent from the promotional artwork that has been shared so far, and was not mentioned in any of WWE’s social media posts regarding the upcoming event.
NXT pay-per-views have used the TakeOver branding since 2014’s inaugural TakeOver event, which went down at Full Sail University on May 29 of that year and was the second-ever pay-per-view of WWE’s then-fledgling developmental brand. The brand’s first pay-per-view was called Arrival, but after TakeOver, every subsequent NXT pay-per-view was called TakeOver followed by a subheading (typically the name of the city in which the event was taking place, or a number denoting the number of TakeOvers that have occurred up to that point).
The WarGames match concept was dreamt up by the legendary Dusty Rhodes and originally held in the National Wrestling Alliance. It later became an annual event in WCW.
Source: TheSportster
NXT’s Zoey Stark Opens Up About The Extent Of Her Legitimate Injury
Former NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion Zoey Stark has revealed the extent of the injury she sustained at the hands of Toxic Attraction.
NXT star Zoey Stark recently underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL … but she’s already on the mend and is expecting to be back stronger than ever.
In case you missed it, Stark was the victim of a brutal backstage assault at the and of Toxic Attraction’s Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne on the November 2 edition of NXT 2.0. Stark and her tag partner Io Shirai lost the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship to Dolin and Jayne in the Scareway To Hell Ladder Match at Halloween Havoc the previous week, but the title win clearly wasn’t enough for Toxic Attraction — they wanted to completely incapacitate their rivals, and the attack on Stark got them halfway there.
In Stark’s absence, Shirai has joined forces with Kayden Carter and Kacy Catanzaro in order to do battle with Dolin, Jayne, and Mandy Rose of Toxic Attraction.
Of course, the backstage attack is just the storyline reason for Stark’s injury. The real cause of the injury is yet to be revealed, but Stark to Twitter to provide an update on her recovery.
“Sadly, I tore my ACL/Meniscus due to Toxic’s attack,” tweeted Stark. “Here’s the bad news for the ‘champs.’ Surgery went great and I’m already rehabbing. I’ll be back BETTER & STRONGER with three targets in mind! Until then [Io Shirai] [Kacy Catanzaro] [Kayden Carter] kick their ass tonight!” she added.
Zoey Stark (real name Theresa Serrano) made her debut as a professional wrestler in 2013. In January of this year, she signed for WWE and reported for duty at the WWE Performance Center. Stark and Io Shirai joined forces to defeat The Way (Indi Hartwell & Candice LeRae) for the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship at The Great American Bash. Shirai and Stark’s reign lasted for 112 days until they were dethroned by Toxic Attraction at Halloween Havoc.
Source: TheSportster
WWE NXT Preview 11/9/21
Tonight’s WWE NXT 2.0 episode will focus on Toxic Attraction as they look to continue their dominance, as seen in the teaser promo below.
WWE has announced a six-woman match for tonight’s show with NXT Women’s Champion Mandy Rose and NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne going up against Io Shirai, Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter.
Dolin and Jayne have invited NXT Tag Team Champions Imperium to watch the match from ringside.
Kay Lee Ray has also been announced for tonight’s show in her return to action. KLR noted in her latest teaser vignette that she is “ready to rage” this week.
Another tag team match announced for tonight is The Creed Brothers vs. Kushida and Ikemen Jiro of Jacket Time.
It’s likely that NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa and Bron Breakker will not be on tonight’s NXT as they were still working the WWE UK tour as of Monday. The show in Leeds on Monday saw Ciampa retain his title over Breakker and Sami Zayn in a Triple Threat.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
WWE RAW Preview 11/8/21
Tonight’s WWE RAW will take place from the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky with build for the upcoming Survivor Series pay-per-view.
WWE has announced just one match for tonight’s show and that’s Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens.
It’s expected that Bobby Lashley will be back in the storylines with tonight’s show. He has not appeared on TV since losing to WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg at Crown Jewel, but he did return to action at the recent WWE live events in England, and just lost to WWE Champion Big E at Saturday’s show in London.
WWE RAW And SmackDown Survivor Series Teams Revealed
WWE revealed on Twitter both the Men’s and Women’s Survivor Series team for RAW and SmackDown.
This year’s PPV is on November 21 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
* Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio are members of Team RAW
* Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, King Woods, Sami Zayn, and Baron Corbin (with Madcap Moss) are members of Team SmackDown
* Bianca Belair, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella, and Queen Zelina are members of Team RAW
* Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya, and Aliyah are members of Team SmackDown
WWE Reportedly Did Not Give Warning Before Releasing Unvaccinated Stars
Earlier this week WWE released 18 talents: Karrion Kross, Scarlett Bordeaux, “B-Fab” Briana Brandy, Gran Metalik, Lince Dorado, Eva Marie, Keith Lee, Mia Yim, Nia Jax, Harry Smith, Oney Lorcan, Franky Monet, Ember Moon, Trey Baxter, Jessi Kamea, Jeet Rama, Zayda Ramier, and Katrina Cortez.
The company line was that the latest cuts were for budgetary reasons, although it was also reported that a handful of stars had refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine and were not big enough stars to get away with that.
It was noted that main roster talents cannot tour foreign countries without being vaccinated, which creates potential issues for the company. Age was also said to play a part in some of the releases as the company looks to get younger talent on TV.
On the latest Wrestling Observer Radio, it was reported that at least a half dozen or more didn’t get the vaccine, which was a big reason for their exit. Apparently, no warning was given by WWE that if they were against getting vaccinated, they would be cut.
As previously reported, the New York Post reported that Nia Jax was released because she was unvaccinated. Jax stated on her Instagram that the company never mentioned her vaccination status when cutting her.
“I recently took a short leave of absence from WWE for a mental health break,” Jax wrote. “I’ve been working through so much — more than I can share — and so I took some time, the full support of the company, to take care of myself. Earlier this week, after WWE sent me my schedule to return to the ring for the November 15 show, I asked for an extension to my mental health break, feeling that I needed more time and hoping I would have the ongoing support of the company I have given my all to for the past 7 years. I did not receive a response. The next I heard, I was being released. My vaccination status was never mentioned. I wasn’t given any choices or options.
“It breaks my heart to be so abruptly let go, without consultation, while dealing with so much privately. I loved my career at WWE, I love the men and women I worked with, and I am going to need time to process this huge loss. I appreciate those people who have shown understanding and compassion during an incredibly difficult time.”
Older NXT talent were reportedly on the bubble for being released this week.
Source: Wrestling Inc.
