Tag: WWE

Dates For The 2021 WWE Draft Revealed

The 2021 WWE Draft will reportedly be held after SummerSlam. The previous two drafts were held in October

The dates for the upcoming 2021 WWE Draft are reportedly set.

According to a report from Andrew Zarian of Mat Men Pro Wrestling Podcast, the WWE Draft will be held on the Aug. 30 and Sept. 1 episodes of Monday Night Raw (in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) and Friday Night SmackDown (in Jacksonville, Florida), respectively. These are the final two dates for WWE’s 25-city tour that will commence with the July 16 episode of SmackDown at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Earlier this month, Zarian reported that the draft would be held after SummerSlam, set for Aug. 21 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. The last two drafts have been held in October. Previously, the WWE Draft was usually held in April after WrestleMania weekend.

Instead of the draft format, WWE ran a Superstar Shake-Up every year from 2017 to 2019, with a handful of wrestlers switching brands. But instead of simply moving a small number of superstars around, the format changed in 2019 after SmackDown moved to Friday nights on FOX. All of the main roster talents enter the draft and are either selected by Raw or SmackDown. Those who aren’t drafted become “free agents” and can sign with any promotion.

It has been reported that major changes will be coming to WWE after they return to performing in live crowds. On top of the WWE Draft, it sounds like we’ll see Hall of Famer Edge and John Cena return for SummerSlam season.

Post-SummerSlam is the ideal time to run this year’s WWE Draft. As noted above, the draft usually took place following WrestleMania, so why not run it after another marquee pay-per-view like SummerSlam? It will lead to more more excitement and anticipation towards the end of the summer holidays. The draft is exactly what WWE needs to shake up the product, and they have no reason to wait until October this year.

Source: The Sportster

Roderick Strong Returns To NXT As Leader Of The Diamond Mine

Roderick Strong returned to NXT for the first time in three months and revealed himself as the leader of the much-hyped Diamond Mine.

It all went down in the Capitol Wrestling Center on the most recent edition of NXT on USA Network. Strong’s former Undisputed Era colleague Kyle O’Reilly had just defeated NXT Cruiserweight Champion Kushida in a non-title main event when Adam Cole appeared. Cole and O’Reilly began to scuffle, his was the cue to NXT’s new enforcer Samoa Joe to intervene with his team of peacekeepers.

While Joe and his peacekeepers were distracted with Cole and O’Reilly, three mystery assailants entered the ring and began attacking Kushida. IT soon became clear that the chief assailant was the returning Roderick Strong who was flanked by NXT newcomer Tyler Rust, and Japanese veteran Hideki Suzuki.

Manager Malcolm Bivens then joined the three men and introduced them as the Diamond Mine.

https://twitter.com/WWEonFOX/status/1407527351966175232

As you might recall, Roderick Strong was last seen in NXT back in April when he appeared to resign from the brand after struggling to adapt to life as a solo performer in the wake of The Undisputed Era’s breakup.

Strong handed NXT General Manager William Regal his letter of resignation but was informed that he’d be welcome back anytime. It seems that Strong’s solution to no longer being a member of a stable was to start his own.

Source: The Sportster

WWE NXT Preview 6/22/21

A loaded line-up has been announced for tonight’s WWE NXT episode on the USA Network.

* Samoa Joe appears live after returning last week

* Million Dollar feud between Cameron Grimes and Million Dollar Champion LA Knight will continue after WWE Hall of Famer Ted DiBiase was attacked by Knight last week

* NXT Cruiserweight Champion Kushida vs. Kyle O’Reilly in a non-title match

* Adam Cole will be in action

* The encore of Franky Monet’s recent World Premiere

* The Diamond Mind opens up

* Hit Row vs. Ever-Rise

* More build for Great American Bash

[Report] Backstage Details On Major Changes Coming In WWE When Crowds Return

Several changes to the WWE product are reportedly on the horizon as they await the return of live crowds.

According to Paul Davis of WrestlingNews.co, Edge and John Cena “are expected” to return next month to prepare for SummerSlam — set for Aug. 21 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. Reports indicate that Cena will face Universal Champion Roman Reigns in the main event of SummerSlam, while the Rated-R Superstar is reportedly set to feud with Seth Rollins.

Davis also reported that The Bella Twins, who were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year, are also “getting ready to return.” According to Davis, some in WWE also hope to have The Rock wrestle at Survivor Series as a way to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his debut with the company.

Last week, WrestlingNews.co also reported that WWE chairman Vince McMahon knows “the product is stale.” The report also noted that some in WWE management believe they’re saving the “good stuff” for the live crowds. WWE will begin a 25-city tour on July 16, when SmackDown runs live at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Davis also noted that it looks like Becky Lynch will return soon. The former Raw and SmackDown Women’s Champion was at the Performance Center last week, supposedly to get ready for a return to the ring. Lynch has been on leave since May of last year. Lynch and Seth Rollins had their first child together, a daughter named Roux, in Decembe

WWE is also reportedly working on Brock Lesnar’s return. He hasn’t been on WWE programming since WrestleMania 36 14 months ago.

There is a need for some changes, and having major stars return will obviously help enhance the television product. With live crowds set to return, it’s the perfect time for WWE to bring in the required changes.

Source: The Sportster

WWE RAW Preview 6/21/21

Tonight’s WWE RAW will feature fallout from Sunday’s Hell In a Cell pay-per-view.

WWE has not announced any matches for tonight’s show, but the first real build for Money In the Bank should begin. That pay-per-view will take place on July 18.

Will WWE Champion Bobby Lashley gets an idea of his next challenger on tonight’s show, and will he celebrates his Hell In a Cell win over Drew McIntyre?

The Charlotte Flair vs. RAW Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley feud should also continue tonight as their match at Hell In a Cell ended with Flair winning via DQ.

Brock Lesnar Reportedly Talking With WWE

Brock Lesnar and WWE have been in recent talks about Lesnar making his return to the company, according to Fightful.

The report noted WWE has plans in place for the WWE Superstar and are hoping his return could be imminent. No word on when he’ll be on WWE TV though.

His WWE contract reportedly expired last August without the two sides agreeing on new terms and, at that time, Lesnar’s merchandise was removed from WWE Shop. It was expected Lesnar would eventually return to WWE, despite not re-signing.

His most recent appearance was at WrestleMania 36 when he lost the WWE Championship to Drew McIntyre.

With SummerSlam nearly sold out, it was previously noted WWE is looking to put together a WrestleMania-level PPV that would likely include Lesnar. This year’s PPV is on Saturday, August 21 from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.

It was reported earlier this month WWE was considering Lesnar vs. WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns at SummerSlam.

There has been some talk of a possible Lesnar vs WWE Champion Bobby Lashley at SummerSlam.

WWE Hell In A Cell Results 6/20/2021

KICKOFF
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Natalya defeated Mandy Rose

WWE SMACKDOWN WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP (HELL IN A CELL)
Bianca Belair (c) defeated Bayley

Seth Rollins defeated Cesaro

Alexa Bliss defeated Shayna Baszler

Sami Zayn defeated Kevin Owens

WWE RAW WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP
Charlotte defeated Rhea Ripley (c) via Disqualification (Ripley retains the title)

WWE CHAMPIONSHIP (HELL IN A CELL)
Bobby Lashley (c) with MVP defeated Drew McIntyre (McIntyre can’t challenge Lashley for the title again.)

WWE SmackDown Preview 6/18/21 – Reigns vs. Mysterio (Hell In A Cell Match)

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown on FOX will be the Hell In a Cell go-home edition of the show.

WWE Hell In A Cell 6/20/2021

DATE: June 20, 2021 7:00 pm
LOCATION: WWE ThunderDome, Tampa, Florida
AVAILABLE ON:Peacock, WWE Network (outside of the U.S.) and on traditional pay-per-view

CARD

WWE CHAMPIONSHIP (HELL IN A CELL)
Bobby Lashley (c) with MVP vs. Drew McIntyre
If McIntyre loses, he can’t challenge Lashley for the title again.

WWE SMACKDOWN WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP (HELL IN A CELL)
Bianca Belair (c) vs. Bayley

WWE RAW WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP
Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Charlotte

Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins

Shayna Baszler vs. Alexa Bliss

Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayne

Stephanie McMahon Promises Surprises For SummerSlam

SummerSlam 2021 is just a few months away, and WWE’s Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon is guaranteeing that there will be some big surprises at the event, which goes down on August 21, 2021, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Stephanie was being interviewed by Yahoo Finance when she was asked when she’ll be getting back in the ring again.

“Ever since Ronda Rousey broke my arm, I have a little PTSD. I’m not sure you’re going to see me in the ring anytime soon,” Stephanie said. “But I guarantee for SummerSlam, there is going to be a lot of surprises,” she added.

In the same interview, Stephanie addressed the recent WWE layoffs, the challenges the company faced during the pandemic, and its touring preparations.

“Like a lot of media companies, we’re in the process of transition and evolution,” she clarified. “When you consider the fact that we had three different media teams doing the same work, we realized there was a lot of duplication and Inefficiency. It’s being more prudent business people and looking at our business in a different way.”

“The live event is where our event really comes to life,” Stephanie said. “When you think about WWE superstars, they are akin to superheroes, except they’re real, genuine, authentic, you can come see them in person.”

SummerSlam will be WWE’s first major pay-per-view to take place in front of a capacity crowd since 2019’s Royal Rumble. It will be the second WWE pay-per-view on WWE’s 25-city tour, which will run from July 16 to Labor Day. The first one, Money in the Bank, will take place on July 18 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. Last year’s SummerSlam event was held at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. It was the first WWE pay-per-view to feature the ThunderDome concept.

Source: The Sportster