Tag: AJ Styles

Opening Bell: WWE prepares for Extreme Rules, Dynamite going to OT

Get set for the week in WWE and AEW with Opening Bell: quick previews of Raw, SmackDown, Dynamite and Rampage.

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, Oct. 3, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN

With Extreme Rules beckoning at the end of the week, WWE is pulling out all the stops to drum up that final interest. To wit, there’s a ton advertised for Monday’s Raw in Minnesota — more than usual, for sure.

It’s almost a requirement to have a contract signing for the last Raw before a premium live event, and Bianca Belair and Bayley will have theirs in St. Paul. The champ has been doing a good job of preventing Bayley from living in her head, but will have to stay strong this week ahead of their Ladder Match.

Matt Riddle and Seth Rollins have a feud that’s even more “on sight” than Belair and Bayley, but they’ll also have their face-to-face confrontation on Raw. Because they can’t keep from throwing down when they’re together, WWE says if either man makes contact with each other on Raw, they’re out of their Extreme Rules Fight Pit match. So it’ll be words, not fists, supposedly. And how will the news that UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier is refereeing that match get worked into the mix?

Also on tap for Raw this week:

AEW Dynamite preview – Wednesday, Oct. 5, Entertainment & Sports Arena, Washington D.C.

Perhaps the most exciting thing that’s been revealed about this week’s Dynamite is that it will go an extra 15 minutes. That implies something big, or at the very least a pretty stacked show.

We already know one of the matches will see MJF take on Wheeler Yuta. These two have been going at it since MJF’s return, and though hardly anyone can hang with the self-professed Devil on the mic, Yuta can certainly give him a full night’s work in the ring. Alas, one gets the feeling that The Firm will bail MJF out if he runs into too much trouble.

Another big bout will see Daniel Garcia tag with his idol, Bryan Danielson, to face Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara. Garcia has been wavering for a while on his Jericho Appreciation Society membership, and after the American Dragon invited him to jump to the Blackpool Combat Club, this could be the chance for him to make a clean break. But you know “The Ocho” will have something to say about that before it’s all said and done in this battle of teams featuring two ROH champions.

Here’s what else has already been promoted for Dynamite:

  • Darby Allin takes on Jay Lethal, who’s promised to leave his entourage behind this time around
  • Luchasaurus will be in action
  • The Acclaimed will get everyone to help celebrate National Scissoring Day, because everybody loves The Acclaimed

WWE SmackDown preview – Friday, Oct. 7, DCU Center, Worcester, Mass.

‘Twas the night before Extreme Rules, and it also happens to be the episode that WWE is promoting as the season premiere of SmackDown. So it’s being headlined by a very big match indeed: the rematch between champion Gunther and challenger Sheamus for the Intercontinental Championship. These two tore the house down the first time around, so fans are pumped for round two.

Solo Sikoa will be in action on Friday as well, taking on Ricochet. Sikoa’s friendship with Sami Zayn has been one of the most pleasant surprises on recent WWE programming, so you can bet Sami will likely be on hand to support Solo for this one.

And because it’s never too early to start promoting the next big premium live event (and because the Tribal Chief isn’t working Extreme Rules), Roman Reigns and Logan Paul will go face to face. Crown Jewel is only a few weeks away, after all.

AEW Rampage preview – Friday, Oct. 7, Entertainment & Sports Arena, Washington D.C.

It’s two shows in three nights for AEW this week in the nation’s capital, with both of them live. Rampage has a special bonus feature this week too: Battle of the Belts IV will take place live immediately after it at 11:00 p.m. ET. That special is expected to have multiple title matches, with the one announced featuring Pac defending his All-Atlantic Championship against Trent Beretta.

As for Rampage proper, we know the Dark Order’s 10 will face off against Andrade El Idolo with some surprisingly big stakes. If 10 loses, he forfeits his mask, but if he wins, Andrade has to leave AEW. Expect Dynamite to add some more spice to this card as well.

Opening Bell: Riddle takes on The Judgment Day, AEW rolls into Philly

Get set for the week in WWE and AEW with Opening Bell: quick previews of Raw, SmackDown, Dynamite and Rampage.

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, Sept. 26, Rogers Place, Edmonton

Matt Riddle, you may have bitten off more than you can chew.

Just about everyone who has tangled with The Judgment Day has come to regret it, though arguably none more than Rey Mysterio since he lost his son to the group. Nevertheless, Riddle has gotten tangled up with Judgment Day business during his own ongoing vendetta against Seth Rollins, and will try to make the best of it Monday night by defeating Damian Priest.

The trick, of course, is dealing with the rest of the group. He may not even have Rey to back him up since the elder Mysterio has his own match with Rollins to worry about.

Also on tap for this week’s show in Edmonton:

AEW Dynamite preview – Wednesday, Sept. 28, The Liacouras Center, Philadelphia

The Forbidden Door isn’t closed. No sir, as Jon Moxley is about to find out this week on Dynamite, it still is open a crack every now and then, and you never know who might walk through it.

In this case, it’s NJPW’s Juice Robinson, showing up in Philly for an AEW World Championship Eliminator. And while we don’t usually like these “beat the champ to get a shot at the champ’s title” bouts, we’ll make an exception for Rock Hard in this case.

AEW is also promoting these segments for Dynamite:

  • Saraya will speak, following her dramatic debut at Grand Slam.
  • The Jericho Appreciation Society will hold a championship celebration after the seemingly unlikely Chris Jericho ROH World Championship victory … and maybe say something about fellow ROH champ Daniel Garcia too.
  • MJF will be on the show to stir the pot again, probably.

WWE SmackDown preview – Friday, Sept. 30, Canada Life Centre, Winnipeg

WWE continues its tour of the North by hitting Winnipeg for SmackDown on Friday night. If you watched any college or NFL football this past weekend, you no doubt heard Michael Cole’s voice on promos advertising a few matches already set for this show.

Most notably, new BFFs Solo Sikoa and Sami Zayn will team to face Madcap Moss and Ricochet. The latter duo was only trying to warn Sami about his inevitable heartbreaking betrayal by the Bloodline, but Solo wasn’t trying to hear that talk and gave them a good thrashing.

Two other matches have also already been revealed for SmackDown in Winnipeg:

  • Shotzi, perhaps finally driving her cool tank again, will nonetheless be the underdog when she faces Bayley.
  • After being publicly disrespected by Los Lotharios during their watch party last week, Hit Row will get a chance at some payback.

AEW Rampage preview – Friday, Sept. 30, The Liacouras Center, Philadelphia (recorded on Sept. 28)

AEW has actually been doing a nice job of teasing some Rampage matches a week in advance, but that wasn’t the case this time out thanks to Grand Slam being a bigger than normal deal in its own right (and expanding to two hours just for last week).

So surprise! We may know more as we get closer, and certainly by the time Dynamite is on some matches will be revealed before they are taped later Wednesday night, but this show is a question mark for the time being.

10 WWE stars you probably forgot were in their 40s

A number of WWE stars continue to shine even though they’re in their 40s. Here are 10 you may have forgotten are in that age range.

When Finn Balor interrupted Dolph Ziggler during his backstage interview on the Aug. 22, 2022 episode of Raw, it touched off an interaction that included Balor calling Ziggler “Kid.” That was funny for two reasons; the first, as Ziggler pointed out immediately after, is that both wrestlers are almost the same age.

The other reason Balor’s wording was humorous is that neither man is a kid at this point. When they faced off in the ring a while later, you might be surprised to know that they did it at a combined age of 83.

Ziggler and Balor are still amazing in-ring performers, of course, but they’re only part of a large contingent of WWE stars who are getting it done in their 40s. It’s actually so common for veterans to be around longer than you think that we’ve rounded up 10 wrestlers who you may not have realized are 40+.

Note that this list doesn’t even include some of the more obvious superstars in that age range who are still active, including Edge, Rey Mysterio, Randy Orton and John Cena. In alphabetical order, here are our 10 WWE wrestlers who are aging gracefully in the ring right in front of our eyes.

Randy Orton might miss SummerSlam. Who should Roman Reigns face instead?

With Randy Orton potentially missing SummerSlam due to his back troubles, Roman Reigns may need a new opponent. Here are 7 possibilities.

It’s not always simple to tell which WWE injuries are legitimately bad (except for Cody Rhodes‘ torn pec, which was pretty obvious) and which are being played up for the sake of storylines. But when Riddle has been mentioning how bad Randy Orton‘s back has been bothering him, he hasn’t been exaggerating.

Fightful Select reported today that Orton’s back issues “have gotten progressively worse,” which may mean surgery that puts him on the shelf for the remainder of 2022. That’s a potentially big problem because as the article also notes, “Orton had been pitched and heavily figured in to SummerSlam plans, which are now in question.”

For all the flak WWE receives when its narratives are illogical or appear hastily thrown together, it doesn’t get enough credit when the opposite is true. According to several top wrestling news outlets, the tentative plan for Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns this summer was to face Riddle, then Orton at SummerSlam, and finally Drew McIntyre at Clash in the Castle.

If Orton is a no go for SummerSlam, that leaves a big hole in the middle of this otherwise nicely conceived roadmap. It’s one that needs to be filled, too; Reigns is pretty much mandatory for the show, party because he won’t be at Hell in a Cell, and also because it’s the second-biggest event on WWE’s calendar. Leaving both of the company’s primary men’s titles off SummerSlam would be unthinkable.

Working off the assumption that Reigns has to face someone on July 30 in Nashville, and Fightful Select noting that WWE has “already put alternative creative plans in place,” let’s take a look at some ideas on who could step in for Orton, along with some pros and cons for each option.

CM Punk and Cody Rhodes are injured. Which AEW and WWE stars can step up to fill the void?

With CM Punk and Cody Rhodes injured, we run down the WWE and AEW performers best positioned to step up while they are out.

Fans of traditional sports know how one unexpected injury can torpedo a promising year. It’s no different in pro wrestling, where both AEW and WWE have had the injury bug strike top performers at the worst possible time.

CM Punk had literally just won the AEW World Championship when he hurt his foot during Dynamite last week. That led to an appearance on Rampage on June 3, when he revealed he would be out of the picture for a while while he has surgery.

Cody Rhodes hadn’t won a title yet since returning to WWE at WrestleMania, but he was repaying the company’s faith in him as a top star and looked like he was on the path to contending for championships sooner rather than later. Then he tore his pec, which led to a legendary Hell in a Cell performance before he, too, announced that surgery was in his immediate future.

The situations aren’t exactly the same, but they’re eerily parallel in some respects and the injuries struck just days apart. In AEW’s case, we already know how it plans to pivot — the promotion is holding a mini tournament to crown an interim champion — but the absence of both Punk and Rhodes will be acutely felt.

The silver lining in both cases is that there are opportunities for other talent to step up and claim more of the spotlight while they are away. Who’s in the best possible position to take a step forward over the next few months? Let’s take a look at a few possibilities.

Who could fill in as Raw’s top babyface with Cody Rhodes out?

Riddle

The King of Bros has been rumored to be the next championship contender for Roman Reigns, but his alliance with Shinsuke Nakamura and ongoing issues with The Usos put at least a little doubt on that plan. The most recent episode of Raw made it appear Riddle has his sights set on Reigns again, and the timing couldn’t be better.

Riddle is arguably as popular as he’s ever been in WWE right now, and has shown he has the knack for balancing an edgier side to his persona with his unmatched comic stylings. Pursuing Reigns means he’ll likely appear on both shows over the next month, but he has the potential to stay Raw’s top face even after Money in the Bank.

Bobby Lashley

Speaking of performers who are as over as they’ve ever been, we’re living in the time of Peak Good Guy Bobby Lashley if recent crowd reactions are any indication. Putting him up against the larger Omos helped him as he wasn’t able to win just by being bigger and stronger, but still looked impressive in overcoming the odds.

The only hiccup here is that Lashley just started a program with Theory, so his ascension to top dog on Raw could be more of a medium-term play if Rhodes ends up out until almost the end of 2022.

Edge

Yes, Edge has just spent the last little bit recruiting other wrestlers to be part of The Judgment Day, definitely not a face faction. But then Finn Balor joined and the group turned on him, so he’s going to be a good guy by default.

The 48-year-old WWE Hall of Famer is playing with house money at this point in his illustrious career, but if the company wanted to give him one final babyface run, this is now the ideal chance to do it.

AJ Styles

Not to quite the same degree as Edge, but Styles is headed toward the end of his time as a main event caliber attraction too. It’ll be interesting to see if he joins forces with Edge in an “enemy of my enemy” sense, but why couldn’t WWE push him to the very top of the card right after they deal with The Judgment Day?

Styles has faced Reigns in championship matches before, but not for years, so a program between the two of them could still feel fresh. With Money in the Bank on the horizon, it’s easy to imagine him winning the briefcase and then turning his attention to the Tribal Chief.

John Cena or Brock Lesnar

These are names mentioned somewhat in jest, but if WWE feels this is a “break glass in case of emergency” situation, it’s already announced that John Cena is returning to Raw in a few weeks. And Brock Lesnar is presumably just a phone call away.

Who will emerge as AEW Interim World Champion while CM Punk is on the shelf?

Jon Moxley

He’s got a leg up already in narrative terms since he is guaranteed a spot in the main event on Dynamite to determine who will go on to fight for the interim title at Forbidden Door. And since he’s held the real title before, people know what they’re getting from a Jon Moxley reign.

That’s the downside though, too. The AEW World Championship hasn’t been around all that long, as Mox already held it for some time. Pushing him more right now might feel like something fans have already seen, and not as effective as elevating someone new. The Punk-Moxley unification bout at the end of the rainbow would be sweet, however.

Wardlow

Now that Wardlow has freed himself from the machinations of MJF and become a legitimate star, why not just strap a rocket to him? It’s almost certainly not what the promotion was planning, but injuries have a way of changing plans, and this could be a change that pans out.

His path to the interim championship would also afford AEW a chance to put him over even more, as it would mean winning a battle royale, then defeating Moxley and someone at Forbidden Door, likely Hiroshi Tanahashi. That’s earning it, for sure. Plus it would be easy to turn Punk heel to play off him for their showdown when the current champ returns.

Eddie Kingston

Anyone who has followed Eddie Kingston during his career in the indies is probably already in favor of this idea, and people who only discovered him through AEW TV have to be impressed with him by now. In terms of building a story and selling it with promo work, Kingston could have one hell of a feud with Punk when he returns.

Does AEW view him as a top guy? It would be interesting to know, but if Eddie gets a chance to run with the ball right now, that would go a long way to answering that question in the affirmative.

Bryan Danielson

Just a quick note that while Bryan Danielson had a shot at the AEW World Championship while Hangman Adam Page held it, he wasn’t successful in winning it. The American Dragon has an unlimited amount of goodwill with the fans and would be easy to accept as the interim champ.

He and Punk wouldn’t be a brand new program, of course, but it’s been a decade since they faced each other with gold on the line. Both men shift effortlessly between face and heel roles, so it would be a showdown that can go any direction the creative team envisions once Punk is healthy again.

Hiroshi Tanahashi (or Kazuchika Okada, or anyone from NJPW)

Even in the Forbidden Door era, it seems unlikely that AEW would let someone from another promotion hold its main championship for any length of time. An interim title, though? That’s another story altogether.

Tanahashi was getting ready to face Punk later this month before the injury, and has already invited Punk to face him at Wrestle Kingdom next January. That could be to unify the regular and interim championships if so desired. Or Tanahashi could defend the interim strap in NJPW for the rest of 2022, opening up the possibility of dropping it to Kazuchika Okada or another top NJPW talent. The sky is really the limit should AEW choose to go in this direction.

WWE Hell in a Cell: Everything you need to know

Get ready for WWE Hell in a Cell with our preview, including predictions for each match, start time, how to watch and more.

WWE fans in the Chicago area, get ready to go on lockdown. Hopefully the fun kind, in this case, as the Allstate Arena prepares to host Hell in a Cell on Sunday, June 5.

Similar to Money in the Bank, Hell in a Cell has evolved over the years into an entire event themed around its namesake gimmick match. But that’s where the similarities end; while MITB is now a major show with ramifications that echo far down the road, HIAC feels like something of an afterthought. To wit, this year’s card features only two title matches and just one appearance by the Cell itself.

That said, WWE premium live events that look forgettable on paper sometimes surprise to the upside thanks to the hard work of the talent, and the potential for that in 2022 begins with Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins inside Hell in a Cell. WWE has consistently positioned Rhodes as a top star since his return, and Rollins is as reliable a main event performer as the company has.

The show will also pay off the most entertaining subplot on WWE programming since WrestleMania when Kevin Owens faces Ezekiel. Owens is a gem both in the ring and on the microphone, but he has taken his character to the next level with his paranoia-fueled disbelief over the true identity of Ezekiel. If you needed proof that excellent pro wrestling storytelling can happen at any part of the card, this is it.

It’s possible that WWE could still add a match or two during SmackDown this week, in which case we’ll update our preview with the latest. In the meantime, read on to get up to speed on everything you need to know for Hell in a Cell 2022.

WWE Hell in a Cell 2022

  • When: Sunday, June 5
  • Where: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Ill.
  • Start time: 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT
  • How to watch: On Peacock in the U.S., or on WWE Network internationally
  • Matches announced: 6

Opening Bell: WWE, AEW previews for the week of 5/30

Get ready for Raw, SmackDown, Dynamite and Rampage with WWE and AEW previews for episodes airing the week of May 30, 2022.

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 ahead.

WWE Raw preview – Monday, May 30, Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines, IA

Cody Rhodes was just trying to have a normal, competitive match with The Miz when it was unceremoniously ended thanks to an ambush by Seth “Freakin'” Rollins. He’s not going to let that go without addressing it, which he’ll do this week on Raw. When? The Cody Clock will probably let us know on Monday night.

There’s also a contract signing set to take place. Bobby Lashley lost his match with MVP a week ago, meaning his former manager got to pick the stipulation for a third bout with Omos at Hell in a Cell. MVP chose a Handicap Match, so all three men will have to sign on the dotted line this week.

Also on tap for Raw:

AEW Dynamite preview – Wednesday, June 1, Kia Forum, Los Angeles

Double or Nothing was a entertaining but lengthy affair, so it’s good that AEW has some time to catch its breath … but not too long, as the company is set for the first live wrestling event at the Kia Forum since 2015. So far, just one match has been confirmed for L.A., but it’s a big one: Jungle Boy, Luchasaurus and Christian Cage (who still hasn’t turned heel) will join forces with The Hardys in a 10-man tag team match against the Undisputed Elite (Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish and Young Bucks).

It would be a surprise if we didn’t hear from new AEW World Champion CM Punk, who needs his first challenger. And we may or may not hear from MJF because … well, you know.

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WWE SmackDown preview – Friday, June 3, The Schottenstein Center, Columbus, OH

WWE hasn’t confirmed any matches yet for SmackDown in Columbus, but the venue has been advertising Drew McIntyre, Ronda Rousey, the New Day and The Usos. All of them make sense to appear.

On top of that, The Schottenstein Center is also saying AJ Styles will face The Miz, though that could be a dark match, for sure.

AEW Rampage preview – Friday, June 3, Toyota Arena, Ontario, CA

Last but not least (unless Rampage gets moved up again for the NHL playoffs, in which case SmackDown will air last), Rampage rolls into Ontario (not the Canadian one) to close out the week in televised Big 2 wrestling. Toyota Arena is promoting this as a homecoming for the Young Bucks, so they should be involved in some capacity.

As well, at Double or Nothing, Scorpio Sky promised Dante Martin he could have a shot at the TNT Championship, and given Rampage is on TNT, this feels like the proper place for that bout. Expect it to be officially confirmed during Dynamite.

WWE fans react to the epic Undertaker-AJ Styles boneyard match

The boneyard match was one of the best WrestleMania matches of all time.

Earlier this week, we ranked the greatest WrestleMania main events of all time. After Saturday’s Night 1 of WrestleMania 36, there may be a new GOAT. The Undertaker and AJ Styles capped the first night of WrestleMania with a mysterious “boneyard match,” a vague stipulation that was never defined before the show, which left fans guessing as to what could happen. The result was absolutely unbelievable.

The boneyard match didn’t take place inside the WWE Performance Center, and instead was staged in a foggy graveyard. WWE has tried its hand at these type of cinematic outdoor matches in recent years after the Hardy Boyz found great success with The Final Deletion, but never quite nailed the execution. The boneyard match, though, was a masterpiece.

The match opened with a hearse arriving to the Undertaker’s theme music, but Styles popped out of a casket instead and called out The Undertaker. The Deadman arrived on a motorcycle in a throwback to his biker character. With the help of a surprise group of druids, Styles got the upper hand and was about to bury The Undertaker alive – but Taker teleported from out of a grave to turn the tide, and later chokeslammed Styles off the roof of a barn. It was glorious, and I’m not sure how WWE could possibly follow this on Night 2.

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