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, June 20, Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Nebraska
Money in the Bank qualifiers are always important, but one this Monday will be particularly personal. Asuka and Becky Lynch will clash again, with only the winner going on to vie for the briefcase on July 2. Will this finally be the start of Becky’s big comeback, or will the Empress of Tomorrow prove to be a thorn in her side again?
Also, Elias is back! Still tormenting Kevin Owens, Ezekiel has promised that his older brother would return to Raw in full concert mode. Not sure how this is going down for … reasons, but should be a lot of fun, as this whole angle has been highly entertaining.
AEW Dynamite preview – Wednesday, June 22 – UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, Milwaukee
Jon Moxley and Hiroshi Tanahashi will go head to head this coming Sunday at Forbidden Door to find out who will be Interim AEW World Champion. But first, they’ll join forces on Wednesday to battle Chris Jericho and Lance Archer, two men who know NJPW and its Ace. It’s “can they coexist?” in the finest pro wrestling tradition.
Another important piece of Forbidden Door will be settled when the final AEW spot in the All-Atlantic Championship Match is decided. Penta Oscuro and Malakai Black have had plenty of clashes to date, but this one has arguably the highest stakes yet.
Also scheduled for Dynamite:
- Orange Cassidy and Roppongi Vice take on Will Ospreay and Aussie Open
WWE SmackDown preview – Friday, June 24 – Moody Center, Austin, Texas
Ricochet was having a solid run as Intercontinental Champion until he ran smack into Gunther, who thrashed him but good while taking his gold. He’ll get a rematch against the Ring General this week, but it remains to be seen if he’ll fare any better.
We’ll also see a Money in the Bank Ladder Match qualifier between Shinsuke Nakamura and Sami Zayn, which has some fun subtext since Zayn’s recent failure made Roman Reigns have to defend his championships against Riddle … though since that turned out fine in the end, maybe the Tribal Chief isn’t mad at Sami. Maybe.
Also announced for this week:
AEW Rampage preview – Friday, June 24 – UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, Milwaukee
Somewhat surprisingly, AEW hasn’t announced anything yet for its final show before Forbidden Door, one that will air on TNT just two nights before the joint card with NJPW in Chicago. That said, because this is being taped on Wednesday after Dynamite, we’ll know by the end of that show most of what to expect on Friday.
There’s still time for more matches to be added to Forbidden Door, for sure, so expect that to be the case right up through Friday night.