Tag: Paul Heyman

Paul Heyman named 1st member of WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2024

WWE will induct Paul Heyman in their WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2024 during WrestleMania 40 weekend.

WWE Hall of Fame reveals now happens closer than ever to WrestleMania, featuring increasingly smaller classes. The 2023 inductees, led by active talent Rey Mysterio, only had five people.

Now, for the second consecutive year, an active member of the WWE roster, although not a wrestler, will headline the class.

The Associated Press reported that Paul Heyman will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2024, which WWE later confirmed. The ceremony will take place on Friday, Apr. 5 after SmackDown.

It’s a momentous tribute to an individual who has profoundly shaped the professional wrestling realm for over three decades. It famously began with his transformation of Extreme Championship Wrestling, providing an alternative during the Monday Night Wars era and elevating it to a powerhouse within the professional wrestling landscape.

In 2001 once ECW caved to financial problems, Heyman joined WWE, initially serving as a color commentator and undertaking various behind-the-scenes roles for several years. During this period, he prominently managed Brock Lesnar, standing alongside him for the majority of Lesnar’s WWE career. Heyman also managed other notable WWE talents, such as CM Punk and Rob Van Dam, through his multiple stints with the company.

Certainly, Heyman is best recognized today for managing the Bloodline stable, which includes Roman Reigns, Solo Sikoa, Jimmy Uso, and temporarily, the Rock. The former Paul E. Dangerously has been associated with the group throughout Reigns’ ongoing record-setting championship run and a figure in one of WWE’s most prominent storylines of the last five years.

The question now becomes about the additional inductees joining Heyman in the class. Given his strong ties to Philadelphia and WrestleMania 40 taking place in the City of Brotherly Love, there might be another ECW figure involved. With just weeks remaining until WWE’s premier event of the year, we can expect to learn the answer soon.

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WWE SmackDown live report 12/1/23: Randy Orton strikes

Wrestling Junkie was in the house for the Friday, Dec. 1 episode of WWE SmackDown, where Randy Orton was the center of attention.

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BROOKLYN, NY — WWE atmospheres exude a special feeling these days. The content is hot, the fans are eagerly consuming it and venues are consistently drawing near sellouts. Friday, Dec. 1 at the Barclays Center proved no different.

WWE filled most seats for the first episode of SmackDown since Survivor Series: WarGames, when, you know, that CM Punk guy returned. Everyone came to see the fallout and if WWE had another surprise planned, which they did not since the Straight Edge Superstar wasn’t advertised. Yet that sense of hope for something helped spark a crowd that stayed active through the night.

But have no fear, because WWE advertised Randy Orton, the other returning top star, mid-week for SmackDown. While it wasn’t made clear what he would do until the show went live Friday, this marked his third WWE TV appearance in a week after missing 18 months. It was an early Christmas present for his fans and a jolt entering Royal Rumble season.

Orton’s WWE future became the focus of the night, as a question of choice arose. Would he sign with Raw or SmackDown? In pro wrestling, the either-or angle is always effective in keeping fans on their feet. With WWE having a ton of time to spare due no premium live event, in December, it was a smart move to have something like this to keep fans engaged, especially among a group in Brooklyn who were prepared to cheer.

WWE always draws great in New York City, and they consistently elicit strong reactions, resulting in high-quality shows. This was no exception.

WWE SmackDown results from Brooklyn:

  • Bianca Belair cuts a promo about wanting “her” title back from IYO SKY. Without Bayley, Damage CTRL emerge and they dsay that Belair must defeat every member of the group in order to earn a title shot. As a result, a brawl erupts between Belair and the heels, with Charlotte Flair and Shotzi joining in to level the playing field.
  • Damage CTRL question Bayley backstage about not accompanying them in the first segment.
  • Bobby Lashley def. Butch via pinfall in a fun, hard-hitting match where the Brooklyn crowd went wild for everything the All Mighty did.
  • Nick Aldis tells Paul Heyman he wants to sign Randy Orton, who’s a free agent, as soon as tonight. The Wise Man questions this, and Aldis says he’ll offer the entire Bloodline to make it happen.
  • Promos play for New Day and the Undertaker’s Netflix choose-your-own-adventure show and WWE’s partnership with the Big 12.
  • Butch tells Kayla Braxton he does not know why Ridge Holland has been walking out of matches. Then, Pretty Deadly interrupts and mocks one half of the Brawling Brutes, which causes a fight between the three men.
  • Santos Escobar says he wants to finish what Rey Mysterio started since Rey chose Carlito over him.
  • Santos Escobar def. Joaquin Wilde via pinfall with a Phantom Driver. Dragon Lee makes the save for Wilde in the post-match brawl. With everything he does, Lee is gaining more popularity as makes his way toward stardom.
  • Nick Aldis and Adam Pearce argue backstage about whether to sign Randy Orton for their respective brand.
  • Amazingly, Logan Paul came out for just his first WWE TV appearance since winning the United States Championship at Crown Jewel. As he bragged about defeating Rey Mysterio, he received one of the largest reactions of the night. He then announced that the No. 1 contender’s tournament to determine his next challenger will begin next week …
  • … and out came one of the competitors, Kevin Owens, to tell Paul WWE isn’t like his world. Not sure how much shelf life this angle possesses since Paul has been with WWE for over a year, but the crowd responds well to the “us vs. them” story.
  • Grayson Waller and Austin Theory interrupted Owens, who punched Theory in the face as he ran his mouth.
  • Kevin Owens def. Grayson Waller in a long, uneventful match that consumed a chunk of the second hour.
  • WWE touted the social media reactions to CM Punk’s return, but then announced Punk will return to SmackDown on Friday, Dec. 9 for Tribute to the Troops to overwhelming boos. Fans had thought he might make a surprise appearance at the Barclays Center, but alas.
  • Bianca Belair def. Kairi Sane by pinfall. After the referee sent everyone else away, Bayley attempted to help her Damage CTRL teammate at ringside. However, despite her efforts, Sane still lost. That’s probably concerning for Bayley’s future with the group.
  • Randy Orton signed with SmackDown over Raw in a Royal Rumble season-building segment. Paul Heyman attempted to influence Orton against joining the blue brand by sending Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso after him, but the Viper put pen to paper anyway. LA Knight also made the save mid-brawl to even the odds.
  • Seth Rollins def. Shinsuke Nakamura by pinfall to retain the World Heavyweight Championship in a post-show dark match. It went maybe 10 minutes and had little to no reaction from the crowd.
  • Cody Rhodes def. Dominik Mysterio by pinfall in the final dark match of the night. Their entrances lasted longer than the match.

WWE SmackDown live notes:

  • As he did at Survivor Series and Raw, Randy Orton soaked in the atmosphere, seeming moved by it while he posed for the crowd. Having him back when his career once looked over is just wonderful. Let’s appreciate every moment, since we can’t be sure how much longer WWE will have the Apex Predator.
  • On a scale of 1-10, LA Knight’s pop was a 12.
  • WWE announcing CM Punk for next week garnered the biggest heel reaction of anything.
  • Most of the arena had cleared out after the show, but Cody Rhodes was still taking pictures with fans. He might become a great heel one day, but that won’t happen while he’s still beloved by the fans.

The best WarGames matches of all time, ranked from worst to best

WarGames matches are about as memorable as they come. We rank every one from WWE and WCW history.

“Mad Max” is among the most memorable action franchises in film history, but it is the third installment of the franchise, “Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome,” that was particularly notable, as it starred the late great Tina Turner and featured a dome-like structure where two people entered and only one left after a fight to the death.

Although “Beyond Thunderdome” isn’t necessarily seen as the peak of the “Mad Max” franchise, its look at a gritty, post-apocalyptic dystopian future undoubtedly left an impression on its viewers. 

One of the viewers that were particularly inspired by what they saw was a man by the name of Virgil Runnels, better known to professional wrestling fans as the “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes.

There have been a number of pieces written over the years about the verbal prowess of Rhodes. But as much as he was a force in front of the camera, Rhodes was arguably even more influential behind the scenes. 

He was the primary booker for multiple territories during his career and while he could map out a week-to-week story, Rhodes’ true creative genius shined when it came to creating spectacles.

When Rhodes laid eyes on the Thunderdome, he saw his next project.

Rhodes added a few wrinkles to make the concept pro wrestling-friendly, but the violence and excitement remained. The result is one of the most anticipated matches in professional wrestling, one that has provided countless fond memories during its near 40 years of existence. 

But which WarGames match is the best of all time? Conversely, which one is the worst? I am here to answer that question once and for all. Well, in my opinion, at least. 

Before we dig into the rankings, some ground rules: First, this ranking will only feature WarGames matches from the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling and NXT/WWE. Yes, I know, AEW has its own version of WarGames called Blood and Guts, but for the sake of this list, I’m only including matches that actually carries the match’s namesake.

Secondly, this list does not include WarGames matches that were not televised. Televised WarGames matches only!

Lastly, remember that this is merely my opinion, so don’t kill me too much if you disagree. Please feel free to disagree and give your thoughts. But again, these are just my thoughts after recently watching all of the matches that qualified for this list.

With that said, let the WarGames ranking begin!

WWE Fastlane 2023 predictions: Who walks out of Indianapolis with their hand raised?

WWE Fastlane is about to roll into Indianapolis. Here’s who we think will win every match.

Let’s be real for a second: Fastlane is typically one of WWE’s premium live events that I am not going out of my way to watch.

It’s placement was usually right before WrestleMania, which also usually meant there wasn’t going to be anything of tremendous consqeuence on the card unless it was setting up something for the much more important event the next month.

This year’s Fastlane has some of those same hallmarks. It’s still not considered to be a major premium live event, it’s taking place before a more consquequential event in Survivor Series, and WWE’s top champion, Roman Reigns, is not even scheduled to appear.

However, there is a different feel about this edition of Fastlane. Maybe it’s because John Cena is on the card. Maybe it’s because there are some unique tag team matches. Maybe it’s because Jimmy and Jey Uso are both on the card in tag team matches, but they are not teaming together.

Either way, the 2023 edition of Fastlane has the potential to be exponentially more fun than the Fastlane events of years past. 

One thing that hasn’t changed is that I’ve got predictions. Here’s what I believe will go down in Indianapolis:

Image credit: WWE.com

John Cena and LA Knight vs. Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso

When Cena was commonly referred to as “Super Cena,” the prediction for this contest would have easy. However, this is grizzled vet Cena, who has already lost to Austin Theory at WrestleMania this year.

That win has done very little for Theory, but it is not outside the realm of possibility that Cena takes another loss here, especially if Reigns gets involved to ensure a victory for his family. 

Reigns is not currently advertised for Fastlane, but he is advertised for next week’s edition of Smackdown (as is Triple H, for that matter). 

With all of that said, I think the one thing Cena and LA Knight have going for them is all of the momentum the latter currently has. Every week, the pops seem to be getting louder and louder for Knight. The people are clearly behind him, and I see no reason to hand him a loss at Fastlane. 

If anything, Knight needs this win to cement as main-event player. Because of that, I’m going with the babyfaces here. 

Winners: John Cena and LA Knight

Image credit: WWE.com

WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Boy, is there a lot of speculating and theorizing going on around Seth Rollins at the moment. 

For the record, none of it has been confirmed, but that has not stopped fans from throwing them out there.

One thing I know for certain is Rollins is walking out of Fastlane with the world title. What’s next? I can’t wait to find out.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Image credit: WWE.com

WWE Women’s Championship: IYO SKY (c) vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka

IYO SKY being put into a Triple Threat match she did not ask for is a good way to stack the deck against her heading into Fastlane. However, I believe she will overcome the odds of having to face two very accomplished wrestlers and retain her championship:

Winner: IYO SKY

Image credit: WWE.com

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship: Finn Balor and Damian Priest (c) vs. Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso

What a unique a fun matchup this has the potential to be. While it should be fun, I believe the outcome is academic: The champs retain.

Winners: Finn Balor and Damian Priest

The LWO (and mystery partner) vs. Bobby Lashley and The Street Profits

Here is another unique match that has the potential to be a lot of fun.

As far as a winner, I have to go with Bobby Lashley and the Street Profits to further establish them as a unit to be reckoned with.

Winners: Bobby Lashley and The Street Profits

WWE SummerSlam 2023: Top takeaways from all the happenings in Detroit

SummerSlam was a good show that elevated several wrestlers, but did it live up to sky high expectations overall?

Fans having high expectations for an event is usually a good thing, as that means people are engaged with the product.

But in the case of SummerSlam, it turned out to be kind of a detriment for WWE.

On the surface, SummerSlam wasn’t a bad show. In fact, I think it was a pretty good one. A couple of years ago, that would have been good enough by WWE standards.

But the bar has been raised throughout 2023, making SummerSlam, at least for me, only a decent show that had potential to be a lot more.

As usual, I have takeaways from the night in Detroit.

Jimmy Uso betrays his own brother

I had a feeling that this could happen. I had a feeling it could go down like this. I didn’t really want to entertain the idea that Jimmy Uso could turn on Jey Uso. But when someone as integral to a story as Jimmy Uso goes missing, wrestling fans can assume that they will resurface during the ensuing major encounter. 

That is exactly what happened Saturday night, as Jimmy Uso thwarted his brother’s chances of defeating Roman Reigns by pulling him out of the ring during a pin attempt. After a shocking reveal, Jimmy Uso delivered a gut-wrenching superkick to his twin brother.

While it may be hard to believe for some that not one but two of Jey Uso’s blood brothers have turned on him in favor of their narcissistic yet insecure cousin, it didn’t make it any less heartbreaking to see the Usos essentially break up after years of being one of the best tag teams in the world.

It is professional wrestling, though, which means they will surely reunite one day. But for now, it is just kind of sad.

So where do we go from here?

I can only assume this means we will see the Usos face each other in a one-on-one match at some point. Will WWE save that for next year’s WrestleMania? Time will tell, but it seems like the logical direction either way.

Where does Reigns go from here? In the immediate future, I honestly have no idea. Outside of Cody Rhodes, who we’ll discuss more in a little bit, I don’t see a long line of credible challengers for Reigns. 

Does that mean Reigns is in line for an extended break? Reigns has had a busy summer, so much so that you almost forget that he has essentially risen to the level of a part-time wrestler, and we may not see him for a while after this.

IYO SKY cashes in and cashes out

As I predicted earlier in the week, IYO SKY cashed in her Money in the Bank contract and won the WWE Women’s Championship at SummerSlam.

I must admit, though, that my prediction had SKY cashing in on Charlotte moments into her 15th title reign. Instead, it was Bianca Belair who pulled off a triumphant victory, only for SKY to come down and rain on her parade.

Unlike Reigns, there are a slew of credible challengers for SKY to go up against. First on the list is Belair, who will probably enact an automatic rematch clause to set up their next encounter.

However, I feel like this will eventually lead to jealousy amongst Damage CTRL and eventually end with the group dissolving right before our very eyes.

Brock Lesnar endorses Cody Rhodes

Brock Lesnar has been involved with professional wrestling for more than 20 years, and I don’t think I have ever seen him put someone over the way he did for Rhodes Saturday night.

Not only did Rhodes defeat Lesnar clean as a sheet in the middle of the ring, Lesnar shook Rhodes’ hand, gave him a hug, and raised his arm after the match, essentially endorsing Rhodes as “that guy.”

Receiving such an endorsement from Lesnar of all people should mean a lot. And if WWE follows through on that, it should mean Rhodes is the person to dethrone Reigns. Right? Why else would you have Lesnar single him out like that? 

If that is the case, when does this happen? Is WWE pushing this all the way until WrestleMania? I guess it could happen, especially if Reigns takes an extended break. 

But what do you do with Rhodes in the meantime? He’s already slayed the biggest threat in the promotion outside of Reigns. Who else would pose a credible threat at this point?

Could we see that match before the end of 2023? I’m of the opinion that WWE should save a second match between Reigns and Rhodes for WrestleMania, but I also understand how that is easier said than done.

LA Knight has finally his moment

It may have occurred in a sponsored battle royal with virtually nothing at stake, but LA Knight finally had his moment to shine, winning said battle royal and getting a lot of love from the fans in Detroit in the process.

At this point, WWE needs to stop messing around and get fully on board with Knight being a potential top guy. It’s not often that WWE has someone on the roster as over as Knight currently is. And the times it has happened, the company has often been late to the party and failed to capitalize on the momentum.

Hopefully, that is not the case with Knight, who has earned at least a chance to show that he can run with the ball. He has to prove that he actually can in the long run, but he has definitely earned the opportunity.

A worked MMA match?

If there is one lesson I have taken away from my multiple decades of watching professional wrestling, it’s that simulating anything other than pro wrestling is usually a mistake.

Roddy Piper and Mr. T tried to put on a worked boxing match at WrestleMania 2, and it ended up being one of the worst matches in the event’s illustrious history.

Almost 20 years later, WWE put Big Show into a worked sumo match with sumo legend Akebono. That turned out to be an abomination as well.

With the rise of mixed martial arts, I should have known that it was only a matter of time until WWE tried to simulate an MMA fight. And no, not in the way of NXT’s Fight Pit or Raw/NXT Underground, or even Ken Shamrock’s Lion’s Den matches, which still largely resembled professional wrestling contests.

This was Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler doing their best to make it seem like they were back in UFC, which unsurprisingly, did not turn out well.

If this is indeed the end of Rousey’s run with WWE, what an anticlimactic way to go out. Her run started out with so much promise. WWE immediately slotted her into big matches and into the main event of the biggest show of the year. The company basically promoted the one and only all-women’s pay-per-view around the fact that she was going to be on it.

But there she was Saturday night, being choked out by Baszler in the middle of Ford Field. 

In theory, this should be a springboard for Baszler to ascend to bigger and better things as a single. In reality, however, I’m not sure it will be. That is how far Rousey’s stock has fallen as of late.

Who’s to blame for that? Oh, there is plenty to go around. Regardless of who you place the blame upon, Rousey’s run in WWE was not the cash register the company was hoping it would be. It also didn’t make any real progress in putting women’s wrestling on equal footing with the men. 

To be fair, the latter is not Rousey’s fault, but it is just another aspect of a run that did not reach its full potential.

WWE SummerSlam 2023: Predictions for every match set for Detroit

Who will prevail at WWE SummerSlam in Detroit? Here are picks for every match.

Wrestling fans have truly been spoiled this summer with some amazing wrestling.

Throughout this summer, we have seen banger after banger (from all over the world, mind you), and we potentially have another on the way with the season’s most notable event, SummerSlam. 

At SummerSlam, we’ve got one of the biggest matches of the year on top of the card and an undercard that is worthy of sitting all the way through until the main event rolls around.

Naturally, I have predictions. Here is what a rundown of what I think will go down in Motown.

Undisputed WWE Universal Championship (Tribal Combat): Roman Reigns (c) vs. Jey Uso

The story leading up to SummerSlam has been great, but the outcome has never been in doubt.

In short, Reigns will retain his title along with his status as Tribal Chief, extending his already historic reign. With that said, I fully expect WWE to pull out all of the stops with this one. That means there will be plenty of interference and an overabundance of familial drama. 

Buckle up folks, this could get wild.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

As of this writing, there has been no added stipulation to their third encounter. Whether one is added or not means nothing to me, as I believe Rhodes will finish this particular story with a win.

Winner: Cody Rhodes

WWE World Heavyweight Championship match: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Finn Balor

With Damian Priest looming in the background with the Money in the Bank briefcase, this could get pretty interesting.

For all we know, Priest could take a page out of Rollins’ playbook and cash in during the match, making it a triple threat. 

Cash in attempt or not, I think Rollins will retain his world title, mainly because I think the only person that should take that title away from the current champion is Gunther. 

Since Gunther is still on the road to becoming the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion of all time, he is probably not going to pursue the world title until he has broken the long-standing record.

And yes, that could mean Priest fails at cashing in his Money in the Bank contract.

Winner: Seth Rollins

WWE Women’s Championship match: Asuka (c) vs. Bianca Belair vs. Charlotte Flair

While I think Priest may fail in his attempt to cash in his Money in the Bank contract, I think IYO SKY will successfully cash in hers. 

However, that comes after Charlotte Flair wins her 15th world title in WWE, which would put her one shy of tying her father for 16 world title reigns.

WWE seemingly looks for ways to get Charlotte Flair extra title runs, so I can easily see the company have her defeat Asuka and Belair, only to quickly lose it to IYO SKY.

It’s happened before, when Carmella cashed in on Charlotte Flair back in 2018.

Winner: Charlotte Flair, but eventually, IYO SKY

WWE Intercontinental Championship match: Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre

As of this writing, Gunther is a little more than a month away from surpassing Honky Tonk Man to become the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion in history. Since I believe Gunther is going to break that record, the prediction is easily Gunther retaining.

However, I fully expect this to be a brutal affair that will leave a few bruises before it is said and done.

Winner: Gunther

MMA Rules: Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey

An MMA rules match is kind of hilarious given that WWE is about to be part of a media conglomerate that features the most prominent mixed martial arts promotion in the world under its umbrella.

If this match took place in the UFC, the prediction would definitely be Rousey winning. But since this is simulated combat and not real fighting, I’m going to go with Baszler to pick up the much-needed win.

If the reports of Rousey stepping away from wrestling are true, it would make even more sense for Baszler to come away with the win and use it as a springboard to bigger and better things.

Winner: Shayna Baszler

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet

As I wrote back in a previous column, being paired with Paul has benefitted Ricochet. But like Tribal Combat, the outcome has never been in doubt.

Paul hasn’t won a match in over a year, and Ricochet represents a quality opponent to finally get back in the win column.

Winner: Logan Paul

SummerSlam Battle Royal

As of this writing, the full field has yet to be unveiled. However, I don’t need to see the entire field to know that this has be LA Knight’s moment to shine.

Winner: LA Knight

Tribal Combat at SummerSlam is the biggest WWE match of the year so far

Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso in Tribal Combat at SummerSlam will be hard for WWE to top in 2023.

In a perfect wrestling world, the biggest possible match WWE can produce takes place at the promotion’s biggest show, WrestleMania.

Heading into this year’s WrestleMania, Roman Reigns versus Cody Rhodes felt every bit of that. The big hook was Rhodes looking to finish the story of capturing the one title that has eluded his family, with an unstoppable champion standing in his way.

But heading into SummerSlam, Rhodes’ story remains unfinished, as he lost to Reigns at WrestleMania, albeit in controversial fashion. I, along with many others, assumed that Rhodes would get another chance to vanquish Reigns at SummerSlam, the event WWE promotes as its second-biggest show (although you could make the case that distinction actually belongs to the Royal Rumble).

Rhodes versus Reigns would have been a fine main event for the summer extravaganza. However, WWE is offering fans something even better: TRIBAL COMBAT! 

On the July 21 edition of Smackdown, Jey Uso ripped up the contract he was supposed to sign to make his Undisputed WWE Universal title match against Reigns at SummerSlam official. Instead, he went to the elders of the Anoa’i family and asked for permission to challenge Reigns to Tribal Combat. No, not Mortal Kombat, which has another edition of its long-running series set to release in September. Tribal Combat.

What is Tribal Combat? We don’t fully know. Judging by the concern that washed over Reigns’ face after Jey Uso laid down the challenge, it is a brutal family affair, except without the hideous shirts you typically see at family reunions.

What we do know is that the elders approved Jey Uso’s request and we will see Tribal Combat in the main event of SummerSlam. No legal documents are needed when the Anoa’i family elders sign off, apparently. 

We also know that “anything goes,” according to Jey Uso, and that Reigns is putting not only his titles on the line, but his status as Tribal Chief as well.

Between the story, the talent in the ring, the stipulation, and what’s at stake, we have the ingredients that make up the most anticipated match WWE has promoted all year — and it will be extremely difficult to top during the last quarter of 2023.

On the surface, Tribal Combat sounds a little absurd. But because the story has been so well done leading up to this point, the fans don’t even care. They have already bought in. Actually, they have leaned in — all the way in — and they have been doing so for three years now. So much so that fans are having fun just talking about what outfits they are going to wear to Tribal Combat.

For those wondering, I plan on being hella fresh come August 5.

Fans don’t typically pick out their attire for one match. For an entire show like WrestleMania or SummerSlam? Sure. But for one match? That is not a common occurrence.

But neither are the immaculate vibes surrounding just one match. Regardless of what else happens at SummerSlam, one thing wrestling fans can almost certainly count on is that Tribal Combat will deliver in a variety of ways.

It should make a fun night in Detroit.

The Bloodline just might be the best storytelling WWE has ever produced

For three years now, The Bloodline story has made every little moment and detail matter. It has wasted none of our time.

Once upon a time, Bryan Danielson, then known as Daniel Bryan, stood in the middle of a ring on live television and called wrestling fans around the world “fickle.”

Truer words have never been spoken. And that fickle nature has often derailed various stories and even a wrestlers’ push to the top of the card — all because the fans became bored and turned on it.

But here we are, three years into The Bloodline story, and fans are still fully invested.

Sure, there have been fans here and there who were mad online and expressed how they were over the long-running story. Those cries grew even louder when Roman Reigns defeated Cody Rhodes in the main event of WrestleMania.

But then you watch the July 7 edition of Smackdown, and you hear the fans in Madison Square Garden, the world’s most famous arena, get swept up in every single moment of the Tribal Court of the Tribal Chief, and you can plainly see that there is nothing fickle about how these fans feel about this story. They are still very much with it.

How many stories in WWE history can say that? How many stories in the history of professional wrestling can that? 

How many people can say they were part of an angle that went strong for three years, with no dips in quality? The Bloodline can.

Sure, the New World Order lasted from 1996 until World Championship Wrestling closed its doors in 2001, and even had a brief run in 2002 in WWE, but the quality took a sharp turn in the wrong direction by 1998. And by 2002, the group was a mere shell of its former self.

Not The Bloodline. Not right now.

How many stories can have people frothing at the mouth for a segment that involves sending people to court?

Granted, Vince McMahon sent Steve Austin to jail multiple times in 1998 and ’99, but by 2001 we had been there and done that. At least that’s what Austin thought, which is why he wanted to turn heel and align himself with McMahon to begin with. Even he felt like it was getting a bit stale.

So far, The Bloodline has endured no such missteps. And those lack of mistakes have come as the group itself has shifted and changed over time – but not in a way where you would lose track of who is even in the group, which is how it was with the New World Order. Each addition or subtraction to The Bloodline has carried a lot of weight.

At first, you just had Reigns and Paul Heyman. But then Jey Uso fell in line. Not long after, Jimmy Uso fell in line. Eventually, The Bloodline took in Sami Zayn, which sparked its own arc that had fans yearning for Zayn to headline WrestleMania against Reigns.

At Clash at the Castle, Solo Sikoa made his main-roster debut. And with perfect timing, WWE began to unveil the cracks in the group’s seemingly impenetrable armor. 

Out the door went Zayn, and The Usos soon followed. And despite the group being down to only three members, the story is still as enthralling as it was at its full strength.

The only story that can stack up against this is Austin vs. McMahon, which had fans buying into the fact that the world champ could headline the pay-per-views against a middle-aged non-wrestler.

And while that story was basically a license to print money and made a massive cultural impact, the quality wasn’t always tremendous. For as many hits Austin and McMahon produced together, they produced some misses, too, most notable their infamous handshake at WrestleMania 17.

But for The Bloodline, I see no misses. If this story was an album, there would be no skips. From the matches to the segments that lead up to them, the drama and emotion that has been on display throughout these last three years is all worth reliving.

Everyone has played their part. Reigns has elevated his game to a degree some didn’t think he was capable of. His work as the Tribal Chief has made his work prior to the pandemic as “The Big Dog” feel like child’s play.

“The Big Dog” had no depth. It was a very one-dimensional character. What was his character? He was just good at what he did.

The Tribal Chief? Not only is he good at what he does, he’s the very best, which comes with an extremely toxic ego.

However, Reigns adds an extra layer of complexity by making the Tribal Chief highly insecure, and his ability to convey that confidence and fragility at the same time is sheer brilliance.

The Usos have never been hotter. They compel fans to empathize with them because a lot of people have been bullied and manipulated, and a lot of times, a close family member was the culprit.

Even Solo Sikoa has displayed his conflicted emotions at various points, which is saying something for someone whose main directive is to be as stoic as possible on television.

And then there’s Paul Heyman, who always conveys the importance and gravity of every situation. The look on his face when Reigns threw down his title belt this past Friday night was classic. And it only added to the moment of Reigns bending a knee before Jey Uso, which garnered a massive reaction from the fans.

The people have bought in hook, line, and sinker. Why? Because we believe everyone that is involved. We have met them. We have met a master manipulator with a fragile ego like Reigns. We’ve become fed up with our relatives like The Usos. We’ve also been Sikoa, who would love for everyone to just get along, but is still willing to do what he believes is best for the family – for now.

We even know someone like Heyman, who is so willing to kiss the ring of the person that would happily use the same hand to keep them in line if they saw fit.

The Bloodline story has made every little moment and detail matter. It has wasted none of our time. And while I was also wondering where they would go next after WrestleMania, WWE managed to keep me and many others invested.

And here we are, three years after Reigns returned to WWE after a pandemic-induced hiatus, he is set to defend his title against Jey Uso. Three years ago, that match would not have meant all that much.

Today it will be the most anticipated WWE match since WrestleMania. And those usually fickle wrestling fans will be there for every single moment.

It has been pro wrestling storytelling at its finest, and outside of Austin-McMahon, I don’t think anything else WWE has ever produced can measure up.

Does Conor McGregor calling out Roman Reigns mean anything?

Conor McGregor mentioned SummerSlam, and WWE and UFC are in the process of merging so … just saying.

Crossing over with other fighting sports, WWE has drawn some of the biggest boxing and MMA stars to the squared circle over the years. The likes of Mike Tyson and Tyson Fury have competed in matches while Ken Shamrock and Ronda Rousey (who’s still competing) signed full time.

Arguably MMA’s top talent of the past decade, Conor McGregor has never appeared on WWE programming, despite numerous company mentions on social media over the years. If the opportunity arises, however, the longtime UFC star appears to know what he wants.

Starting Wednesday, McGregor began tweeting messages about Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman when a rumor about the former’s title run went viral.

Since Reigns holds the WWE and Universal Championships, McGregor noted his own multi-title run with the UFC Featherweight and Lightweight Championships. He took it to an audio message, too.

Heyman’s not fighting anyone anytime soon, but McGregor still wants a piece of him anyway.

It seemed playful until McGregor referenced SummerSlam.

“Summerslam I’ll pull in on the yacht. Roman and Paul out the bus,” the 34-year-old legend said.

This could merely be a fun social media exercise since Endeavor owns WWE and UFC. It goes viral, gets people talking, and creates some speculation.

But, again, Endeavor owns WWE and UFC. Could McGregor actually make his WWE debut at SummerSlam?

McGregor keeps tweeting about the “I’ve held two world titles before you” aspect, which may be all that is needed to make this work, along with additional intrigue for what he could do in his WWE debut.

Such a move would be a massive draw for SummerSlam, which takes place at Ford Field this year and holds roughly 65,000 people — a WrestleMania-sized venue fit for a megastar in the fighting world like McGregor.

Right now, there’s no logical SummerSlam challenger for Reigns since he and Cody Rhodes are on different brands. No one else is being built to Rhodes’ level, so could McGregor vs. Reigns in a non-title match actually happen? It’s crazy, but the stars could align.

Astonishing images from WWE’s SummerSlam 2022

WWE SummerSlam saw an incredible night and a mind-blowing finish to a fight between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns

One of WWE’s biggest events of the year took place in Nashville, Tennessee, on Saturday. SummerSlam featured superstars, returns, and all sorts of high-flying action in and around the ring. Pat McAfee and Logan Paul were acrobatic in victories. Oh, and Brock Lesnar lifted the ring with a tractor.