Opening Bell: Tribal Chief defends his gold, Jericho has his hair at stake

Get set for the week in WWE and AEW with Opening Bell: quick previews of Raw, SmackDown, Dynamite and Rampage for the week of June 13.

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 13, INTRUST Bank Arena, Wichita, KS

The Judgment Day received a big shakeup last week, with Finn Balor joining and then immediately assisting with the ouster of Edge from the group. Now Edge is out with a (storyline) injury, so there’s no fear of immediate reprisals. That leaves the stable free to plot a new course, which WWE says it will do Monday night.

Speaking of injuries, Cody Rhodes suffered one of the more notable ones in recent memory, and he’s now out recuperating from successful surgery to repair his torn pec. But while the American Nightmare said he was ready to move on from Seth Rollins, the Visionary had different ideas, attacking Rhodes one last time for now. WWE says Rollins will “answer” for his attack, so look for him to possibly be booked against some tough competition.

AEW Dynamite Road Rager preview – Wednesday, June 15, Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis

Once upon a time it felt like AEW was getting a little carried away with themed episodes of Dynamite, but it’s cut back on them to the point where Road Rager is a bit of a breath of fresh air. The card is suitably loaded, headlined by a three-way Ladder Match for the tag team titles, with Jurassic Express defending against both The Hardys and Young Bucks.

Chris Jericho is also putting something on the line against Ortiz … but it’s his hair, not a championship. The former Inner Circle teammates turned bitter rivals will do battle, and someone will be bald when it’s over.

Also advertised for Wednesday night:

  • An All-Atlantic Championship qualifier sees Miro go head to head with Ethan Page.
  • Wardlow battles 20 of the plaintiffs in the security guard class action lawsuit. No, really.

WWE SmackDown preview – Friday, June 17, Target Center, Minneapolis

This is a big one. After jumping through several hoops to get the attention of Roman Reigns, Riddle finally got what he wanted by defeating Sami Zayn last week in a match that stipulated he’d get a Undisputed WWE Universal Championship shot if he won. Can Riddle get some payback for his buddy Randy and win some serious gold? Probably not, but you won’t want to miss it just in case he pulls it off.

Also expected for this week’s show:

  • Madcap Moss and Happy Corbin will meet in a Last Laugh Match, which we assume will end the feud between them, one way or another.
  • After running into travel issues last Friday, Max Dupri will reveal his first recruit for Maximum Male Models.

AEW Rampage preview – Friday, June 17, Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis (taped)

Rampage has been live more often than not the past few weeks, but this week’s episode reverts to its more typical pattern of being taped at the Dynamite show for the week, which in this case is in St. Louis.

AEW hasn’t officially announced anything yet for this episode, but we’ll update this post as soon as there’s something set.

AEW Rampage results: Hookhausen trains, Blackpool Combat Club wins again

Check out full AEW Rampage results for the May 20, 2022 episode (taped on May 18) from Houston.

We’re not quite in the home stretch for Double or Nothing, but tonight’s episode of AEW Rampage from Houston is pretty darn close. Before we head to Las Vegas for all of AEW”s shows next week, there’s some business to attend to in the form of the Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament. Kris Statlander, a late entry to the bracket, takes on Red Velvet for the right to face Ruby Soho in one semifinal.

AEW has also promised the latest from the duo the fans have dubbed Hookhausen: Hook and Danhausen. This odd couple (and to be fair, it’s mostly Danhausen who’s odd) has formed to combat Tony Nese and his meddling manager, Smart Mark Sterling. Though Sterling is hurt, Danhausen is Danhausen, so this could be a somewhat even fight during the Double or Nothing pre-show.

And for some reason, Matt Sydal and Dante Martin challenged the Blackpool Combat Club to a match. That’s likely to end in a BCC win, but we shall see.

Quick AEW Rampage results are below, but keep scrolling if you’d like more details on any match or significant segment.

AEW Rampage results in 30 seconds:

House of Black def. Evil Uno, Pres10 Vance and Fuego Del Sol by pinfall

Fuego has ongoing beef with House of Black, but Dark Order has been feuding with them as well, so this is more than a marriage of convenience. Malakai Black tries for a leg lock that makes 10 pound his way out of it, and Fuego tags himself in.

Buddy Matthews mocks Penta’s cero miedo hand sign as he gets in to work for the first time, and Brody King is quickly in as well. Uno escapes a power move from King, but Fuego gets knocked off the apron to the floor.

After some picture in picture goodness, Fuego makes the hot tag to 10, who even manages to send King to the floor. Uno hits a nice cannonball senton to the floor as his Dark Order teammate gets a near fall.

Black gets 10 in a kneebar but Uno is able to get a quick save. 10 connects on a discus lariat on Black, but his now injured knee is a problem. That leaves Uno and King to face off, but King backdrops out of a powerbomb attempt. As all heck is breaking loose with the other combatants, King hits a big clothesline and his powerbomb finisher to score the pinfall.

Death Triangle comes to the ramp, where Penta Oscuro reveals a tombstone with the House of Black’s name on it and a Double or Nothing placard. Ominous.

Shawn Spears def. “A Giant” by pinfall

The announcer sell this as Spears’ opportunity to show he can handle Wardlow, but … this isn’t much of a giant. It’s Big Damo, formerly known as Killian Dain. He actually handles Spears jus fine in the opening minutes, but one knee and a C4 wraps things up.

Kris Statlander def. Red Velvet by pinfall – Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Quarterfinal

Since she will face the winner, Ruby Soho is a logical and interested observer on guest commentator. Statlander does an overhead press with Velvet and switches to a single hand, and Soho notes this is a brand new Statlander.

Velvet traps Statlander in the apron skirt as Chris Jericho awards her the Sports Entertainer of the Week award. After a commercial break, Velvet hits the Final Slice but Statlander surprises everyone at the announce table when she kicks out.

When Statlander goes for her finisher, Velvet counters but is countered herself and gets the three count. Kiera Hogan attacks Statlander after the bell, Soho is in there as well, but Jade Cargill makes it three on two. Anna Jay ends up as the equalizer, stealing Mark Sterling’s crutch for use as a weapon to drive off the heels.

Bryan Danielson and Jon Moxley def. Matt Sydal and Dante Martin by pinfall

Excalibur notes how he’s stuck between Taz, Chris Jericho and William Regal at the announce table, which sounds tense but fun. Sydal is hanging in pretty well against Moxley, using kicks and some flashier moves to keep him on the defensive.

Martin has a run of offense while the action is side by side with ads, but Danielson hits him with a double underhook superplex and transitions right into the Lebell Lock. Martin nearly makes the ropes, and gets his foot there when Danielson pulls back his arm. Regal is impressed.

Moxley gets double teamed by his opponents, and Sydal goes up top but decides to give Danielson a meteora on the apron. Martin hits the Nose Dive on Moxley and Danielson needs to make a save.

Looks like it’s Mox and Martin to the finish here, and Moxley nearly wins it with a piledriver after he counters a top rope maneuver. A Paradigm Shift seals the deal a moment later, though Moxley is bleeding from the mouth. Regal and Jericho have some words as the former leaves the announce table.

But Jericho isn’t leaving without the final word, and the assembled Jericho Appreciation Society is out on the ramp, followed by Eddie Kingston, Santana and Ortiz.