Welcome to the Opening Bell, where we round up what’s been announced for WWE (Raw and SmackDown) and AEW (Dynamite and Rampage) programming for the week we’ve just begun.
WWE Raw preview – Monday, Feb. 20, Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa
Sami Zayn came up short in his heroic effort to topple Roman Reigns at Elimination Chamber, but that doesn’t mean it’s the end of Canadian WWE stars hunting for gold.
After surviving the Men’s Elimination Chamber match with his United States Championship intact, Austin Theory felt good enough to issue an open challenge for this week’s episode of Raw. As fate would have it, the challenge was answered by Edge, who must be feeling good himself after a victory over The Judgment Day in Montreal.
Since Theory has been on a quest to put anyone he considers the past beneath him, he should really enjoy this … unless he loses, of course. We’ll find out Monday night.
The other match WWE has promoted will see Mustafa Ali go up against Dolph Ziggler. Ali has been adamant that Ziggler keeps getting opportunities not afforded to him, then refused to team up for the recent tag team tournament. Can he pay Dolph back in Montreal?
AEW Dynamite preview – Wednesday, Feb. 22, Footprint Center, Phoenix
When Tony Khan talks, the pro wrestling world usually listens. AEW’s CEO, GM and Head of Creative is teasing an important announcement for this week in Phoenix, which is sure to be the subject of much speculation over the first part of this week.
Several matches have been advertised for this week’s show, starting with Orange Cassidy defending his All-Atlantic Championship against Wheeler Yuta. Jon Moxley will take on a suddenly more assertive Evil Uno, while Skye Blue tries to upset Saraya. Last but certainly not least, The Acclaimed will go up against Big Bill and Lee Moriarty.
Perhaps the most interesting one, however, is a tag team battle royale. One duo will emerge with a shot at The Gunns at Revolution, except it will only be one of three other teams facing the tag team champs there. Got that?
Oh, and there are some non-match segments to look forward to in Phoenix for good measure:
- Tony Schiavone will talk to Christian Cage about his recent return
- We’ll hear from Bryan Danielson
WWE SmackDown preview – Friday, Feb. 24, Ford Center, Evansville, IN
It’s not unusual for WWE to play things close to the vest about SmackDown the week after a premium live event, which is the situation we’re in now. One match we know will take place in Indiana will see Karrion Kross face off again with Rey Mysterio, as their “hey that’s right, they’re still feuding” bit continues.
It’s worth noting that SmackDown has been the primary driver of the Bloodline story for the past few months, so the fallout from Elimination Chamber at the top of the card is likely to hit here. That alone might be reason enough to tune in Friday night.
AEW Rampage preview – Friday, Feb. 24, Footprint Center, Phoenix (recorded on Feb. 22)
Another week, another time where we don’t have any pre-announced matches for Rampage. We’re coming up quickly on Revolution, however, which means this week’s show could be more significant than most pre-recorded episodes. Keep a close eye on Dynamite on Wednesday to see what ends up being revealed.