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  • WWE RAW live results (10/26): Hell In A Call fallout

    The Big Takeaway: 

    It was an important night for the company without John Cena and Randy Orton, and it went very well. The fans in San Diego were staunchly behind Roman Reigns, and since the show was built around him, that made it all the better. Reigns defeated Kevin Owens, Alberto Del Rio and Dolph Ziggler in a four-way to become the new number one contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The Wyatt Family beat up Kane and carried him off into oblivion, just like they did with the Undertaker at Hell in a Cell. This was the best Raw since the Montreal show last spring. 

    Show Recap: 

    HHH and Stephanie McMahon started the show. Stephanie introduced Seth Rollins. HHH and Stephanie put him over as the man who lead the WWE into the future. Stephanie said Rollins stepped up to every challenge put in front of him and triumphed every time, just like her husband HHH did during his career. HHH told Rollins that he was proud of him. Rollins thanked the Authority and ordered the crowd to cheer them. 

    Stephanie said Rollins has left them in an unusual situation because Rollins has beaten all the worthy challengers for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. So all the winners from last night’s Hell in a Cell PPV will compete tonight. The four winners will meet in a four-way match in tonight’s main event, with the winner being the new number one contender. 

    Roman Reigns came out to a very positive response. Reigns said he was going to be the number one contender after tonight and would beat Rollins for the championship. 

    Kofi Kingston came out to challenge Reigns. Kofi and Big E. said the biggest difference between the New Day and Reigns was they were champions and he wasn’t. The new wrinkle for New Day is throwing up a unicorn horn, which means placing a finger on the top of their head in salute to Xavier Woods. They even wore “XW” armbands. 

    Roman Reigns defeated Kofi Kingston to advance to the Fatal Fourway (12:44) 

    This was the most over Reigns has been in a long time. Crowd saw him as a star and chanted “Let’s Go Reigns.” On top of that, Reigns had a really good match with Kingston. The finish came when Reigns hit Big E. with the Superman’s Punch, Kingston missed the Trouble in Paradise and Reigns caught the spear for the pin. 

    The Miz got a product placement for the new WWE 2K16 video game, where he was shown playing with the Stone Cold Steve Austin character. 

    Kevin Owens defeated Cesaro to advance to the Fatal Fourway (10:22)

    The usual good match between these two with the usual result. Crowd was hot for Cesaro. The Cesaro Section signs were back, and they popped for the Uppercut Express spot. Then Cesaro hit a springboard uppercut, which elicited “This is awesome” chants. Owens did the rope-and-dope to force Cesaro off, then kicked Cesaro when he wasn’t looking at got the pin with the Pop-Up Power Bomb. 

    Paige was on the cell phone talking to someone when Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Paige bragged about being on Conan O’Brien last week. Lynch and Charlotte were about to leave, but Paige stopped them. Paige said Charlotte deserved the Divas Championship and extended her hand. Charlotte shook her hand, but told Paige that if she finds out it was her that attacked Natalya, it was going to be dire consequences. Paige promised it wasn’t her, then said she wanted to reform Team PCB to face Team Bella tonight. Lynch and Charlotte reluctantly agreed. 

    Team Bella defeated Team PCB (5:22) 

    Nikki Bella pinned Lynch with the Rack Attack in a fair match. Postmatch, Paige turned on Charlotte and Lynch, giving them both the Rampage. She put Charlotte in the PTO and left both laying. Paige got a heavy amount of cheers, as well. 

    They ran a statistic from Forbes Magazine that named the top sports events brands in the world. WrestleMania was rated #5 behind 1. Super Bowl. 2. Summer Olympics. 3. Winter Olympics and 4. the FIFA World Cup. I’d love to see the ad rates to those top four compared to WrestleMania. 

    They promoted an interview with Bray Wyatt for later in the show. 

    Alberto Del Rio and Zeb Coulter did a promo. Coulter cited John Lennon’s “Imagine” and the lyric “Imagine there’s no country.” Coulter said he wanted to start a new country called MexAmerica. And with that, Del Rio has no chance to become the over Mexican star the company badly needs. Del Rio said he wasn’t going to let Neville stop him from becoming the WWE World Champion. This Coulter-Del Rio combination might have worse chemistry than Rob Van Dam and Ricardo Rodriguez. 

    Coulter rides to the ring with a motorized cart with an part American-part Mexican flag, similar to what Tito Ortiz used to wave. 

    Alberto Del Rio defeated Neville to qualify for the Fatal Fourway (12:02) 

    Good match that the crowd was worn down by. Neville climbed the ropes to go for a plancha, but Del Rio grabbed the ropes and Neville wound up upside-down against the turnbuckles. Del Rio followed by coming off the top rope and stomping down on Neville’s chest for the pin. Del Rio was over by the end, but not as much as someone who has been absent from the company for 14 months.

    King Barrett, Rusev and Sheamus defeated The Dudley Boyz and Ryback (6:12)

    King Barrett pinned Bubba Ray Dudley with a schoolboy cradle after Devon Dudley and Ryback went for the tables. Earlier in the show, Kingston talked like the New Day’s program with the Dudleyz was in the past, and this result seemed to back that up. Rusev was a total afterthought. The lesson here is you can marry someone in real life. Just don’t expect it to help you professionally, unless it’s the boss’ daughter. 

    Bray Wyatt was in the ring and did a promo. He said for 25 years, the Undertaker had no equal. But last night, the apocalypse showed it’s face. Destruction and desolation rolled in and carried out the soul of the Undertaker. Wyatt told Reigns that one day, they would dance again. But not until Wyatt was properly revitalized. That’s why the demise of the Undertaker has become his resurrection. Wyatt said he’s feasting on the soul of the Undertaker and he wants more. He won’t stop until the Undertaker is just a memory and Wyatt ascends to his throne. 

    Wyatt said, right now, the Undertaker’s soul is being ripped to shreds piece-by-piece. So Wyatt asked everyone to bow their heads, place their hands on their television set and share a moment of silence to the Undertaker, who has lost his soul to Wyatt. He finished by saying “Rest in Peace, Phenom.” 

    As Wyatt laughed, Kane came out. Just as Kane entered the ring, Luke Harper, Braun Strowman and Eric Rowan magically appeared. Rowan and Harper were cast aside quickly, but Strowman stood face-to-face. Kane threw punches on Strowman before Harper came back. Kane threw Harper over the top rope, and Strowman fell over the top rope after running at Kane. Eventually, Rowan and Harper ganged up on Kane, giving him a double choke slam. The Wyatt’s beat down Kane until he was lifeless. Then the Wyatts carried off Kane to the back the same way they carried off the Undertaker last night. 

    Dolph Ziggler defeated Big E. to advance to the Fatal Fourway (13:52)                                                                                                                                             Another good match that Dolph Ziggler won with the Zig Zag. After Ziggler made his entrance, Tyler Breeze made his Raw debut, coming out with Summer Rae, who was acknowledged as his girlfriend. So three weeks ago, Summer proposed to Rusev. Breeze and Ray got their own VIP section and ringside with velvet ropes around them as they ate popcorn accompanied by a bodyguard.. The week after that, she broke up with him. Now, she’s with Breeze. Now that’s a rebound. Big E. got near fall after near fall with power moves like a power slam. Big E. catapulted Ziggler into a ringpost, then took a sip of champagne  from Breeze’s VIP section. 

    Dean Ambrose gave Reigns a pep talk before the main event. Reigns said he’s got this.                                                                                                            

    Most of the company’s roster joined Titus O’Neal and a group of breast cancer survivors in the ring for the latest Susan G. Komen Foundation presentation. O’Neal really is a good singles babyface the company hasn’t taken full advantage of. O’Neal did the Millions of Dollars dance with the ladies.           

    In a segment that was taped last week but presented as if it was live tonight, Miz won a match on the WWE 2K16 video game, playing as Steve Austin and pinning the Rock with a stunner. Next thing you know, the real Austin showed up. The pop was so huge from the crowd it almost drowned out the dialogue between Austin and Miz, but nothing physical happened. Austin just quizzed the Miz about the game. 

    Roman Reigns pinned Kevin Owens to become the new number one contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in a match that also included Alberto Del Rio and Dolph Ziggler (15:00) 

    Another excellent match. Reigns pinned Owens after Owens attempted the Pop-Up Power Bomb, but Reigns hit him with a Superman punch and followed with the spear. Great near falls with so many kicks being thrown, you would think it was a rib being played on the Young Bucks. Crowd was solidly behind Reigns, with no jeers at all. Del Rio looked great, and Ziggler held up his end, as well. Rollins was on commentary. From his facial expressions, it was clear that Rollins didn’t want Reigns to win, but he didn’t outright say it. Instead, he tried to be diplomatic and congratulated Regins on his win. Reigns and Rollins had a long staredown afterwards with the fans chaning heavy for Reigns. 

    SUMMARY: 

    Maybe it was just one show, but Reigns could have turned a corner tonight. It was the first time where he came off like a potential top star in the company. The crowd reacted to him in that matter and it was vital that happened in the postmatch staredown with Rollins. Otherwise, it would have felt flat and that’s the last thing they need going into this stretch without Cena. This was the start of making Regins the chosen one, and it was a great beginning. On the flip side, the Del Rio-Zeb Coulter pairing seems forced. They have no chemistry. Del Rio in WWE reminds me of Public Enemy in ECW. Neither was a corporate act. Del Rio could get over stronger in Mexico because the WWE doesn’t have the mentality to develop a minority superstar. They can’t even make a female superstar. 

    Superstars results:

    – Bo Dallas beat Fandango

    – Kalisto beat Viktor

  • Wrestling Observer Live 10/26: WWE Hell in a Cell fallout

    Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive returns today with Hell in a Cell fallout, tons of notes on the shows, calls, text messages and more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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  • WWE: Brock Lesnar injury update post-Hell In A Cell

    Brock Lesnar needed nine staples to close the forehead cut suffered when he went headfirst into the ring post during his match with Undertaker at Sunday’s Hell in a Cell show, a match Lesnar won.

    Blood, which is frowned upon by WWE, was a huge part of the match with both Lesnar and Undertaker clearly wanting to bleed, as opposed to it being an accident.

    While Vince McMahon was upset at the gorilla position and ordered the doctor to the ring to have the blood wiped off, nothing was said to the talents after the match regarding the subject.

    Blading is strictly forbidden in WWE. The last guy who did it and was caught trying to hide it was Dave Bautista several years ago, fined $100,000 for doing so in a match with Chris Jericho.  He was caught by one of the cameras and everyone involved in the match was called into McMahon’s office, heavily reprimanded and fined.

    Neither Lesnar nor Undertaker suffered any significant injuries during the match itself.

  • Wrestling Observer Radio 10/25: Hell in a Cell recap show plus weekend news!

    Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back today to talk all the news in wrestling and MMA including full results of Hell in a Cell, all the matches and angles, Undertaker vs. Brock, blood everywhere, plus news on Global Force Wrestling, AJ Styles, mailbag and more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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  • Bryan & Vinny Show 10/25: Full WWE Hell in a Cell recap!

    The Bryan & Vinny Show is back today with full results from the WWE Hell in a Cell PPV, plus all the backstage news from the main event! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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  • WWE Hell in a Cell live results: Brock Lesnar vs Undertaker, John Cena defends US Title (with updates on Alberto Del Rio)

    Welcome to WrestlingObserver.com’s live coverage of WWE Hell in a Cell from the Staples Centre in Los Angeles, California. As the days get shorter and the air turns chilly, autumn brings with it one of WWE’s most destructive and chaotic events. On this night, the ominous steel structure known as Hell in a Cell will encapsulate the ring on two separate occasions as we bid farewell to a number of long-running feuds.

    18 months in the making, The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar will write the final chapter in their storied rivalry when they step into the cell, as will both Roman Reigns and Bray Wyatt. In addition, all

    We’re looking for your thoughts on tonight’s show, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

    five championships will be defended including John Cena’s US Title as he faces a mystery partner in perhaps his last appearance until December.

    WWE Hell in a Cell Preview and Predictions and here are Dave’s thoughts on the mystery opponent for John Cena.

    Don’t miss the Wrestling Observer Live Preshow that begins at 6PM ET – 3PM PST.  LISTEN HERE

    Bryan and Vinny will be back with a new Bryan and Vinny Show shortly after Hell in a Cell ends. And if that wasn’t enough! Dave and Bryan will return with a Wrestling Observer Radio WWE Hell in a Cell post show.

    Join us at 8PM ET for our live coverage of WWE Hell in a Cell.

    SHEAMUS & RUSEV & KING BARRETT VS. DOLPH ZIGGLER & NEVILLE & CESARO

    Stardust and The Ascension were at ringside but played no part in this.  Good match, particularly the last few minteus.  Neville did an assisted Fosbury Flop dive on Rusev and Sheamus.  Ziggler superkicked Barrett and then Cesaro did a 16 rep giant swing and Neville pinned Barrett using the red arrow.

    JOHN CENA VS. ALBERTO DEL RIO WITH ZEB COLTER AS MANAGER FOR THE U.S. TITLE

    Coulter came out in a motorized wheelchair as he’s still not recovered from surgery, and said that he’s bridging things and said Del Rio was his new guy.  Del Rio was a lot bigger and more muscular than before.   They had an average match, short, with Del Rio getting out of the Attitude Adjustment and Del Rio used a backstabber and superkick and got the pin.  Nobody was ready for that to be the pin. 

    Backstage, HHH & Stephanie and Seth Rollins were backstage.  Kane came in smiling and Rollins said tomorrow he’d be out of a job.  Kane smiled and said, “Good luck,” but then turned mad face and said, “You’re gonna need it.”

    Alberto is still AAA champion and was booked on all their big shows going forward.  Alberto just told AAA about this over the weekend so they got their second big blow in a short period of time.  They irony is a major reason Myzteziz left was Alberto, and now Alberto is gone as well.  This was really a huge blow to them.  Alberto had pretty much decided when he had it with Lucha Underground to go to WWE.  Combate Americas was also left in the lurch by this one as there were big plans for him there.  I believe they also just found out about this.  We’ll have a lot more on this later tonight.

    ROMAN REIGNS VS. BRAY WYATT IN A HELL IN A CELL MATCH

    Very good long match.  This was a long slow match, 70s pacing where Rerigns sold a ton and for a long period of time, would make some comebacks.  Very deliberate and well worked.  Wyatt used a uranage off the apron through a table.   Reigns speared  Wyatt off the apron though a table.  Reigns kicked out of Sister Abigail.  The finish saw Wyatt set up two kendo sticks in the corner with the idea he was going to throw Reigns’ face into the sticks.  Reigns, who was selling like he was dead, blocked it, pulled one of the sticks out and hit Wyatt.  He then threw Wyatt eye first into the kendo stick and followed with a spear for the pin.  Crowd really got into it late.

    BIG E & KOFI KINGSTON VS. DUDLEYS FOR TAG TITLE

    Xavier Woods isn’t here.  He was getting married this weekend so they did an injury angle to take him out for the weekend.

    The New Day retained.  The Dudleys had the 3-D set up on Kingston but E hit Bubba with part of the trombone that Bubba broke over his knee during the match, and Kingston pinned Bubba with Trouble in Paradise.   Match was okay.  They did a total  Arena Mexico spot a moment earlier where Kingston threw the trombone to Bubba and the ref turned around, Kingston fell to the ground selling like he’d been hit with Bubba holding the trombone.  They teased a DQ, the ref went to signal for the bell, and then decided against it.  They went right to the finish from there.

    CHARLOTTE VS. NIKKI BELLA FOR THE DIVAS TITLE

    Everyone is banned from cheerleading at ringside.

    Really good match.  Probably the best women’s match on a WWE PPV in a while.  Charlotte retained the title by reversing out of the rack attack into a cradle and the figure eight.  Charlotte was bleeding from the bridge of the nose after a hard elbow early.  Most of the match was Nikki working over Charlotte’s back and the story was that Charlotte couldn’t bridge for the figure eight, but she “gutted it out” for the finish.  

    After the match Paige and Becky Lynch ran in to congratulate them.  The idea is Paige was disingenuous. 

    They are pushing that  Survivor Series next month will be the 25th anniverary of The Undertaker.  So something should happen today or tomorrow to set him up for a match there.

    SETH ROLLINS VS. DEMON KANE FOR WWE TITLE VS. KANE’S JOB

    Good match.  Rollins won clean with the pedigree after a kick to the chest when Kane went for a choke slam.  Rollins kicked out of a choke slam.  Rollins did a series of springboard knees and two superkicks, followed by a frog splash but Kane kicked out of that.   So Corporate Kane lost his job.   A big spot also saw Rollins power bomb Kane onto the Spanish announcers table, which didn’t break.  They teased a count out spot but Kane got in at nine.  

    KEVIN OWENS VS. RYBACK FOR IC TITLE

    A 5:00 match with Owens winning with a power bomb after Owens kicked him in the chest, although Ryback sold it like his eye was poked.  It was fine for what it was.  The crowd was heavily for Owens.  Ryback did have chants, but he was also booed.

    BROCK LESNAR VS. UNDERTAKER IN A HELL IN A CELL MATCH

    Great match.  Lesnar won with his third F-5 on the exposed boards after Lesnar had tore the canvas open and pulled the mats away.  The story of the match is that Lesnar as learned form Undertaker to make him the perfect fighting machine.   Both guys were bleeding.  Lesnar was thrown into the post and threw his head in hardway.  Lesnar punched Underaker in the head or threw him into cage and he bled.  The doctor twice tried to wipe the blood off Lesnar.  During the match Undertaker kicked out of the first two F-5s while Lesnar kicked out a tombstone piledriver.  Loud “Thank you Taker” chants when it was over.  The crowd heat was way higher for this than anything else onthe show.  Undertaker got a standing ovation when it was over. 

    The Wyatts came out for Undertaker.  Harper, Strowman, Wyatt and Rowan surrounded the ring.  They all attacked him.  Strowman throwing knees.  They held him while Wyatt attacked him.  They carried him on their shoulders to the back to end the show.  One would think Undertaker will form a team against the Wyatts.  Real strong presentation, espeically the set up for the final angle.

  • Daily Update: WWE Hell in a Cell preview, AJ Styles injured

    WWE HELL IN A CELL SUNDAY FROM THE STAPLES CENTER IN LOS ANGELES AT 7:30 P.M.

    • Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker Hell in a Cell match – I don’t sense this was built up to its maximum for the blow-off of the angle that started with the most shocking WrestleMania moment of all-time.  I’d like to see something past a finish here, such as an angle giving up future directions on both guys.  Neither guy is advertised for Raw, which doesn’t mean they won’t be there.  If there is no interference, Lesnar should win, but having Undertaker conclusively lose what would be remembered as his biggest feud is an interesting decision.  Vince McMahon has more money tied into Lesnar.  The surprise element would be the shocking interference turn.
    • Seth Rollins vs. Kane for WWE title vs. Kane’s job as Director of Operations – The stakes are significant with Kane’s job as part of it, since without that stip, nobody is believing Rollins has a chance to lose.  With the stip, you can always do a one or two month deal given the weakness on the face side and with the exception of Reigns, lack of obvious challengers for the title.  Plus, even though Reigns is being groomed for a title shot, it’s doubtful it comes that soon.    
    • Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt Hell in a Cell match – Reigns should go over, and probably transition to Braun Strowman, as not promising as that sounds.  
    • John Cena vs. ? for U.S. title – There’s been more talk about this match in the last 24 hours than anything.  As noted elsewhere, Samoa Joe is scheduled to be in Sacramento wrestling today.  In fact, we just got a call that Joe was in Sacramento at the moment of this writing.  Tyler Breeze is at this moment also in Sacramento signing autographs.  It’s a little over a one hour flight, so it’s not impossible, but I don’t see them having talent in Sacramento right now if they are going to be on the show tonight.  That also seems to indicate no Breeze involvement with Ziggler in his match.  Chris Jericho starts touring this coming weekend, which doesn’t rule him out as just coming in and losing, but I don’t think they’d go with him as the mystery guy twice in a row.  Dean Ambrose makes sense because it’s his time and a win over Cena would do him good.  If Cena is to retain, Ambrose is the last guy I’d put in the spot.  If Cena was to retain, maybe I’d go with Cesaro who would at least have a fantastic match, and it’s not like losing will hurt him given how he’s booked.  There are the Daniel Bryan rumors today, which would be a huge pop if he’s cleared.  Given the babyface situation, that would be the best case scenario timing wise, but his situation has always been about whether they believe it’s best for him to ever wrestle again..
    • Big E & Kofi Kingston vs. Dudleys for tag titles – The Dudleys have come up short several times but this doesn’t feel like the right time for New Day to lose.
    • Kevin Owens vs. Ryback for IC title – Owens needs to win and a new challenger needs to be set up for him.
    • Charlotte vs. Nikki Bella for Divas title – Nikki winning is a step backwards,.  With Paige’s promos and all, her getting involved in the title program next makes sense.
    • Neville & Dolph Ziggler & Cesaro vs. Rusev & Sheamus & King Barrett (preshow match at 7:30) – The heels won at TV.  It’s the faces turn tonight.  Doesn’t really matter either way, but it’s more star power than they’ve had for a preshow match.

    We’re looking for your thoughts on tonight’s Hell in a Cell show from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, with a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com” target=”_blank”>dave@wrestlingobserver.com

    We’re looking for reports on yesterday’s ROH show in Dayton at Dave Meltzer

    Raw will be live in San Diego on Monday night.

    Smackdown and Main Event will be taped in Phoenix on Tuesday. 

    ****

    Figure Four Weekly:

    Jerry McDevitt cuts quite the legal promo on Konstantine Kyros as part of his latest screed in the ongoing legal battle over WWE’s alleged role in wrestlers’ brain damage.

    Figure Four Weekly October 19, 2015: Latest Update On WWE Concussion Lawsuits

    ****

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter

    The WWE’s record low ratings, even with bringing in all the big names on Monday, is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer newsletter.  We look at the ratings, the competition, the build to Hell in a Cell, and what type of programming is and isn’t working in ratings now.  We also look more at John Layfield’s interview with Eric Bischoff and WCW and how pro wrestling has changed since the death of WCW, as well as more on the political goings-on in Mexico, what modern era wrestlers have had the most four star matches and a wrestling show in a few weeks that you don’t know of that is going to have a paid attendance of more than 30,000 people.  CLICK HERE FOR A FULL WRESTLING OBSERVER PREVIEW

    Check out the latest issue:  Wrestling Observer Newsletter October 26, 2015: Raw ratings woes continue, More Eric Bischoff notes

    You can also order the print Observer right now and get it delivered to your door via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to dave@wrestlingobserver.com” target=”_blank”>dave@wrestlingobserver.com

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    SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE

    • Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Hell in a Cell and the latest news, plus you can send e-mail questions to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com
    • I want to thank everyone for all the nice messages yesterday for my birthday.  It means a lot.   
    • A correction from the Jay Lethal vs. Roderick Strong ROH TV title change listing on the site.  Strong won the match and TV via Texas cloverleaf submission, not a pin.

    WWE

    Afternoon results

    Enzo & Cass beat Jason Jordan & Chad Gable

    Bull Dempsey beat Elias Sampson

    Bayley beat Alexa Bliss

    Samoa Joe beat Baron Corbin

    Evening results

    Apollo Crews beat Tye Dillinger

    Emma beat Carmella

    Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson beat Vaudevillains to keep tag titles

    Finn Balor beat Tyler Breeze to keep NXT title

    OTHER WRESTLING

    • John Gaburick talks TNA trying to find an Indian superstar
    • A.J. Styles didn’t wrestle on the ROH shows this weekend due to a back injury.  He was at both shows.  The impression I have is that he’ll be wrestling on the New Japan PPV show on 11/7.  At least he’s still listed for it.
    • Young Bucks vs. Ricochet & Matt Sydal and Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Rocky Romero & Baretta are the semifinals of New Japan’s tag team tournament on the 11/1 show at Korakuen Hall.  The finals will be on the PPV show on 11/7 in Osaka.
    • USA Championship Wrestling ran its show to honor Lance Russell last night in Jackson, TN.  Results saw Alex Taylor b Kevin Zion, Daniel Eads b Nathan Star, LT & Tony Falk b Johnny Dodson & Derrick King, Danny Dollar b Kevin White, Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson b Rude & Pokerface, Chase Stevens & Thorn b Young Lions, Matt Starr b Matt Boyce to win the U.S. title, Jerry Lawler b Terry Funk-DQ.  People went crazy for the main event, on their feet the whole time.  Funk bled.  Objects were used.  Funk was beating up referees until Lawler stopped him with a fireball.  The highlight of the show was also Russell & Dave Brown conducting interviews with area legends like Funk, Bill Dundee, Koko  B. Ware, Danny Davis, Rocky Johnson and Jim Cornette.  I heard it was a great time for those who grew up on the product.    
    • The Lawler-Funk fireball
    • At Saturday’s Prairie Wrestling Alliance show in Calgary, Alberta, Canda, it was announced that Paul Ellering’s daughter Rachel Ellering will make her debut teaming with Lance Storm Nov 21st to battle Brett Morgan and Gisele (no, not THAT Gisele.) Also on last night’s show, MVP beat Morgan in the main event.
    • Promoter Danny Duggan of CWE sent out a release stating that he had booked George Murdoch (Tyrus) for an August tour, and had sent a deposit.  Duggan said that before the tour, Murdoch told him  TNA required him to be in Japan during those dates so he had to cancel and would sent back the deposit.  He said that it’s now 10/23, months later, and that Murdoch has not returned the deposit and Murdoch’s agent is no longer returning his messages.  Duggan wrote that if anyone has any questions on this or wants to resolve it he’s at dannyduggan@gmail.com
    • New matches from Houston at NWAClassics.com are Steve Williams vs. Angel of Death in a chain match and One Man Gang vs. Jim Duggan.
    • The Empire Wrestling Federation in Covina, CA is trying an iPPV on 11/6 at 11 p.m. Eastern headlined by Mega King vs. Gary Yap’s Man in Black.  We’ll have more on that as the show approaches.
    • Dave Bautista has been in the U.K. this past weekend promoting his role as Mr. Hinx, a lead villain in the Bond movies.  He was on Soccer AM, a popular show there, yesterday morning.
    • CHIKARA Pro from last night in Jeffersonville, IN:  Ophidian & Shynron b Drew Gulak & Orange Cassidy, Prakash Sabar b Farmer Frog, Lucas Calhoun & Missile Assault Man b Arik Cannon & Darin Corbin, Blind Rage b Eddie Kingston, Juan Francisco de Coronado & Boar of Moldova b Jakob Hammermeier & Soldier Ant, Blaster McMassive b Chuck Taylor, Icarus & Dasher Hatfield & Mark Angelosetti & Kimber Lee b Hallowicked & Race Jaxon & Hype Rockwell & Heidi Lovelace (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
    • XICW from last night in Warren, MI:  Jay Maynard b Maserati Rick, Jeff Brooks & Dickie Bronson b Idris Abraham & Aaron Tl, Willie Watts b Chris Moore, Movado b MK Ultra, Jake Something b Hakim Zane, Zach Gowen b Sonjay Dutt to win the lightweight title, DBA & Malcolm Monroe III  Jaimy Coxx b Vinny Scarboni & Sonny Scarboni & Palmer Cruise, Rhino b Joe Coleman & Mark Gjoka & Johnny Delicious in a handicap match, Orlando Christopher b PJ Black (thanks to Leonard Brand)
    • World Women’s Wrestling on 11/22 in Beverly, MA at the Cove Community Center with Mistress Belmont & Alexxis Neaeh vs. Nikki Valentine & Vanity Vixen.
    • GOUGE from last night in Fuquay Varina, NC:  Old School & Waylon Maze b Fabulous Frankie & Luscious Lance, Otto  Schwanz b Encore, Juan Jremi b Jimmy Jack Funk Jr.-DQ, Seymour Snott b Mickey Gambino-DQ, Roni Nicole b Jennifer Blaze, Timmy Lou Retton b Chet Sterling
    • Prairie Wrestling Alliance from last night in Calgary:  Richie Rage b Shaun Moore, Frenteico b Tony Cage, Deryck Crosse b Galico, Fabian RiBerio b Gabriel, Western Lions b Colton Kelly & Reid Matthews, Mephisto b Alexander Prime, MVP (former WWE star) b Brett Morgan.
    • Lance Storm will wrestle again on 11/21 in Calgary, teaming with Rachel Ellering, the daughter of Paul Ellering, who he is training, to face Brett Morgan & Gisele for PWA. (thanks to Dwayne Soper)
    • Lucha Xtreme TV from last night in Fresno:  Big Dogg b Danny Fernandez, Brandon Groom b Jesse Poole, Sktizo b Prince Nagi, Guerrera de la Muerte b Jake O’Brien-COR.  
    • Santana Garrett had two matches today in Stardom as they had both a noon and evening show in Tokyo.  In the afternoon main event, she teamed with Hiroyo Matsumoto to beat Io Shirai & Mayu Iwatani.  In the evening show, she teamed with Hiromi Mimura to beat Kris Wolf & Datura.
    • Riot Pro Wrestling from last night in Melbourne, FL:  Archangel b Gabriel Black, Aaron Epic b Derick Jordan and Mike Reed and Aryeh Amor, Siniestro & Night Stalker b Josh Parker & JW Outlaw, CJ O’Doyle b Dalton Murphy, Lince Dorado & Jon Cruz & CT Brown b Jason Static & Josh Hess & Slade Porter, Chico Adams b Leo the Lion, Shaniah  Ariyana & Grace Storm b ML Knight & Cherry Layne, Rhett Giddins NC JD Amazing (thanks to Al Haft)
    • Maryland Championship Wrestling from last night in Windber, PA:  Sexy Steve & Jimmy Stars b Drake Carter & Shaun Cannon, Rob Locke b Rayo, Big Ron b Jeremiah & Chef Home Boy RD, Fenix Fury & Meya b Amber Rodriguez & Chuck Lennox, Brandon Scott b Drolix, Oakley Woods b Mega Pixel, Bill Collier & Jimi the Hippie b Tommy Valor & Omega, Ryan McBride b The Bruiser to win the MCW title.  Mick Foley was on the show.  Next shows are 11/13 in Waldorf, MD and 11/14 in Joppa, MD with Ric Flair, Baby Doll, JJ Dillon, Tully Blanchard and Tessa Blanchard.
    • Gold Rush Pro Wrestling from last night in Pacifica, CA:  Manny Mars b Alexander G. Bernard, Shamrock b Rik Luxury, Suburban Commandos b Jeff Cobb & Tony Vargas, Mr. Prime Time b Boyce LeGrande 2/3 falls, Lisa Lace b Kikyo Nakamura-DQ, Mike Matthew b Virgil Lynn, Thunder Rosa b Cheerleader Melissa to win the Lady Luck title, Drake Frost & Matt Carlos b Doc Atrocity & Synn in a cage weapons match, JR Kratos b Dylan Drake to retain Gold Rush title (thanks to Matt Mann)

  • Samoa Joe eliminated as mystery opponent for John Cena

    We’ve had confirmation minutes ago that those in NXT have said Samoa Joe is scheduled to wrestle on one of the two shows in Sacramento today, which would eliminate him from speculation as far as being John Cena’s opponent in the U.S. title match.

    As noted on the audio last night, there was a rumor in Los Angeles regarding Joe in that spot, but that made no sense to me because I didn’t think they’d have him work an NXT show yesterday if that was the case. Last night we were told by someone close to the situation that Joe was never scheduled for the spot.

    We have a correspondent in Sacramento who said that he hasn’t seen Joe personally, but was told he is scheduled to wrestle and was still in Sacramento.

    Tyler Breeze, another name speculated about online in recent days, is also currently in Sacramento at an autograph signing.

  • Who is John Cena’s mystery opponent at Hell in a Cell?

    The identity of John Cena’s mystery opponent at Sunday’s Hell in the Cell pay-per-view tonight is still unknown.

    While we don’t know the identity, names such as Tyler Breeze, Samoa Joe and James Storm were all denied from different sources last night, either by people within the company or those would have knowledge of the goings-on.

    Joe was in Sacramento on Saturday for the NXT shows, working the afternoon show in beating Baron Corbin.  He did not work the Saturday night show. As he was In Los Angeles the last few days, Joe’s name was rumored, but that seemed unlikely because he was working the NXT shows, although Sacramento is a short flight.

    Because Breeze just debuted, and a Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler program has already been set up, his name was was also speculated.

    Dean Ambrose, Luke Harper, and Braun Strowman were all taken off the card when Randy Orton suffered a shoulder injury and their match was replaced by a six-man tag. Sheamus’ name has been rumored since Cena vs. Sheamus was announced for holiday house shows when Cena returns.

    Sunday’s HIAC event is the last one Cena is advertised on until the 12/26 Madison Square Garden event.

  • Observer Radio 10/24: WWE Hell in a Cell preview, UFC Dublin report, Jon Jones returns, all the weekend news

    Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez, Dave Meltzer and Filthy Tom Lawlor returns today with our first of many shows this weekend talking WWE Hell in a Cell, ROH and GFW crowning new champions, New Japan’s latest show, UFC Fight Night Dublin, the return of Jon Jones and tons more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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