NEWS

NXT UK
Date: May 12, 2022
Location: BT Sports Studios, London, England
Commentators: Andy Shepherd, Nigel McGuinness
It’s a big time show this week as we have the 200th episode (though that doesn’t seem to be the case if you actually count them up). Counting issues aside, we have a big main event as United Kingdom Champion Ilja Dragunov is defending against Jordan Devlin in a title match that is also Loser Leaves Town. Let’s get to it.
The opening video looks at the title match.
Opening sequence.
Ashton Smith/Oliver Carter vs. Gallus The winners move on to a triple threat Tag Team Title match and it’s the Coffey brothers for Gallus. Mark powers Carter to the mat to start and it’s quickly off to Joe for a chop as commentary talks about Joe never winning anything. Carter sends Mark into the corner with a headscissors and starts in on the arm, with Smith coming in to do the same. That doesn’t work for Mark, who runs Carter over and hands it back to Joe….who is quickly knocked to the f..

It might be a good idea. Wrestlers have a tricky job as they have to find the right combination of everything to make their career work. This can take a lot of time, but being able to get the right look, the right style, the right persona and more can make all the difference in the world. Now a star might be getting an overhaul, which could be to his benefit.
Last week on SmackDown, Happy Corbin attacked Madcap Moss and Pillmanized his throat, resulting in Moss being taken out of the arena in an ambulance. According to Wrestlingnews.co, there have been pitches to change Moss into a more serious character, including dropping his jokes and changing his gear. There is no word on if these pitches have gone anywhere or when Moss will return to television.
Opinion: I’ve heard worse ideas than this one, as Moss was only going to get so far under his joke telling character. That is not exactly something that has the longest shelf life and hopefully WWE has something better for him next time…

I guess he isn’t a fan. There are all kinds of wrestling legends in the world but only a few of them are among the all time names. It is very rare to get to see someone still active into a sixth decade, but we might be seeing that later this year if a rumored match takes place. However, a former wrestling personality is not too thrilled at the idea of a legend getting back in the ring.
Earlier this week, news broken that WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair, 73 years old, was considering a return to the ring to wrestle a match later this year. Since the announcement, former WCW broadcaster Chris Cruise has contacted the Maryland State Athletic Commission, saying that due to his age and health issues, Flair should not be allowed to return to the ring. There is no word on a response from the Commission. Here are Cruise’s comments, from his Facebook:
“Hey you rubes, I screw around here a lot, but this is serious: Ric Flair should not be allowed to wrestle. Some reports indicate he has been worki..

It’s an upgrade. There are a lot of people who make a wrestling show work and several of them are not even in the ring. While the wrestlers themselves are the people who put on the matches, there are others who work with them to get everything ready. In WWE, these people are called producers and now another former wrestler has received a promotion backstage.
According to Fightful Select, Ariya Daivari worked on his own as a producer at this week’s Main Event taping. Daivari produced the Apollo Crews vs. Akira Tozawa match on his own, marking the first time he has done so. This comes after Daivari and Curtis Axel received tryout as producers in WWE, with Axel working on this week’s SmackDown. There is no word on if the two are now full time producers.
Opinion: It is nice to see WWE bringing in some fresh blood to the producers’ ranks, as you are only going to get so far with the same people doing the same matches over and over. Daivari and Axel can offer a fresh perspective on the mat..

You’re not supposed to do that. Wrestlers have a difficult job to do every single night. Aside from having their match and keeping everyone involved safe, they are also required to make the fans believe in whatever it is that they are doing. This is the hardest part of wrestling but when it works, it can be quite the success. Over the weekend, it went a little too well.
This weekend, IWE ran an event in Georgia, featuring a wrestler named Joe Black. Following Black’s match, a fan headbutted him at ringside. Black started swinging at the fan, who was then ejected by security, referees and other wrestlers as Black had to be held back by other referees. There is nothing to suggest that this was an angle or anything other than legitimate.
This got intense very quickly. Check out the whole incident:
[This post contains video, click to play]
Opinion: You see this happen every so often but that doesn’t mean it is ok. The fan went too far and Black defended himself, as he would be expected..

That’s a specific list. Wrestling is a visual medium, as stars are going to need to look a certain way to make fans want to see what they are doing. This can come in a variety of ways and WWE is known for caring about appearance more than a lot of other things. That can create some issues, and now WWE has made a rule about a specific change of appearance for some wrestlers.
According to Fightful Select, WWE has issued a list of wrestlers allowed to get haircuts, which has leaked online. This list is wrestlers whose haircuts have been approved in advance, though there is nothing to suggest that wrestlers not listed are not allowed to have their hair cut in general. There are no female wrestlers included on the list. Here is the list of names:
RAW: AJ Styles, Bobby Lashley, Cody Rhodes, Damien Priest, Dolph Ziggler, Edge, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Miz, Randy Orton, Riddle, Seth Rollins
Smackdown: Drew McIntyre, Happy Corbin, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, Kofi Kingston, Madcap Moss, Paul Heyman, ..

It can happen to anyone. Injuries are one of the worst things that can happen to any wrestler as you never know when someone is going to be put on the shelf. They can be long or short term but they always happen to someone at some point. The question then becomes just how long someone is going to be on the shelf and now that is the case with a current WWE star.
Monday Night Raw’s Shelton Benjamin has revealed that he has been out of action with an injury. Benjamin did not specify the nature of his injury but said he would be back in a little while. He has not wrestled a match since April 25, when he wrestled a match taped for Main Event. Benjamin also revealed that this is only the second time in his career that he has been out with an injury.
For only the second time In my career An injury has put me on the shelf. I’ll be back soon. In the meantime I will be putting in the work to come back better than I was before my little setback. See you guys soon!
— Shelton J. Benjamin (@Shelt..

That’s even worse. Wrestlers are larger than life characters who can inspire fans to do a lot of things, many of which are fairly over the top. They do not do things that make a lot of sense but can often pull you into their own world. At the same time though, they have real world problems that can be very serious, especially when it comes to health issues. That is the case again with a former wrestling star.
Virgil has announced that he has been diagnosed with Stage 2 colon cancer, but he cannot afford any of the medical treatment necessary. He has set up a PayPal account asking for help with his expenses, which you can donate to right here. This comes about a month after Virgil announced that he is battling dementia as well as recovering from a series of strokes.
It’s really shitty right now. Too make things worse I know have stage 2 colon cancer. I am a fighter but need your help. I cannot afford any of the medical bills and would love your support. https://t.co/PG7VkpQWxP love yo..

It’s something new for him. Wrestlers have a weird relationship with acting, as while they are acting on a wrestling show, they are always seen as wrestlers instead of actors. There are some wrestlers who are very talented at acting though and occasionally you will see someone trying their hand at acting in a bigger way. That seems to be the case again with an AEW star.
AEW’s Brian Pillman Jr. has announced that he will be appearing in the upcoming movie the Charisma Killers, joking that he has graduated from Varsity Blond to Hollywood Blond. This is Pillman’s first acting role, though there is no word on when or where the film will debut. Former WWE and Impact Wrestling star Jesse McKay will also appear in the film, which is directed by Michael Matteo Rossi.
The news that I was excited to share with you all today! Just landed my first acting role! I guess you could say I graduated from Varsity Blond to Hollywood Blond!!! ???? https://t.co/l4OxUHyVGB
— Brian Pillman Jr. (@FlyinBrian..

Well, that could be a problem. According to a report from Cageside Seats, AEW superstar Hikaru Shida may not have been aware that she was pulled from the Owen Hart Memorial Tournament.
Shida, who was written out of the tournament due to injury, simply tweeted, “what?” with regards to the announcement:
What? https://t.co/rTZp7pi0pb
— HIKARU SHIDA ?? ? (@shidahikaru) May 13, 2022
She would go on to say that she has competed in four matches after her street fight with Serena Deeb and had just finished the most fantastic fighting musical show. She then said that somehow she was injured, according to AEW, and that she was sorry that she wasn’t in the tournament.
Well…. I already had 4 matches after the street fight and just finished the greatest fighting musical show.
But I seem to have been injured…
Japanese wrestling is nothing for them. I’m so sorry.
And sorry couldn’t be in the tournament too.
— HIKARU SHIDA ?? ? (@shidahikaru) May 13, 2022
Shida has been wrestling in Japan since..

One more time (again). There are certain wrestlers who seem like they cannot completely get out of the ring. While some of them will stay away for a long time and then come back one more time, there are some who seem like they cannot get away for good. That is the case with one certain all time legend, and now it seems that he will be getting back in the ring one more time.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Ric Flair is planning to come out of retirement and wrestle again. This comes after Flair has released videos showing himself working in the ring with AEW’s Jay Lethal. While not confirmed, the match would possibly be Flair teaming with FTR against the Rock N Roll Express and someone else. There is no word on when or where the match will take place. Flair, 73, last wrestled in 2011 on an episode of Impact Wrestling in a loss to Sting.
He still has something. Check out Flair’s latest training session with Lethal:
[This post contains video, click to play]
Opinion: I ..

They might have a place to go. With so many wrestlers in the world, the rise of AEW has been a huge change of pace as there are now so many more spots available for top stars to hone their craft. It has made a huge difference with all kinds of wrestlers, including some who do not fit in with WWE. Now it might be the case again, albeit with one wrestler and a manager.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there is a chance that both Malcolm Bivens and Candice LeRae could be going to AEW. Bivens was let go from WWE last month when he declined to sign a new deal, with the thought being that he wanted to go to AEW. Should he sign, he is allowed to appear there on May 29. In LeRae’s case, there is reportedly interest from Tony Khan in signing her, but it is not clear if LeRae is interested. LeRae’s WWE deal expired, meaning she could show up at any time if the two sides come to terms.
Opinion: Neither of these moves would surprise me, and I almost fully expect at least Bivens to..