NEWS

Smackdown
Date: October 8, 2021
Location: SAP Center, San Jose, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee
We’re done with the Draft, though we still have a few weeks before we switch over to the new roster. Until then we have Crown Jewel in less than two weeks, which is likely to get a lot of the focus tonight. Since it’s WWE, we also have a contract signing to deal with tonight. Let’s get to it.
We open with the contract signing, with Bianca Belair in the ring, Sasha Banks on the announcers’ table and Becky Lynch at her own table in the aisle. Becky doesn’t think much of Belair, who she beat in 26 seconds and Banks, who looks like a disco ball. Banks thinks Becky is jealous because she’s a bigger star than the two of them.
Belair doesn’t want to hear it and just wants to get the contract signed. Becky gets her attention so Banks runs in to jump Belair, meaning the brawl is on. That just lets Belair put them both in the KOD but she can’t flip them over. Instead she puts Bank..

We’ll call those lofty goals. It is rare to see someone who comes off like a true prodigy in wrestling. When you do find one though, it can make for a very special situation because you see them flying up the charts in the blink of an eye. There have not been very many of them over the years and now WWE might have another one on their hands. It turns out they have some big plans for him too.
During this year’s WWE Draft, Gable Steveson was drafted to Monday Night Raw despite not yet wrestling a professional match. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE plans to have Steveson become a regular after college wrestling season ends in March. The current plan is to have Steveson make his in-ring debut at WrestleMania. There is no word on when he will be making his first appearance on WWE TV.
Steveson could be a star. Check out what he and other Olympians have done in WWE:
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Call it a communication issue. There have been a lot of changes taking place in WWE over the last few months and there is nothing to suggest that they are going to stop anytime soon. That can make for some interesting moments, but ultimately things have not exactly been pleasant. It feels like there are multiple people in charge at once and now it seems that communication continues to be an issue.
Several NXT names moved up to the main roster during the 2021 WWE Draft, including the entire Hit Row stable. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the call had been made to move the team up days before the Draft, but NXT was not told about the impending move. This was the case with all of the NXT moves, which also included Ridge Holland, Austin Theory, Xia Li and Aliyah
They need to work on this. Check out some of the names coming to the main roster:
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NXT UK
Date: October 7, 2021
Location: BT Sports Studios, London, England
Commentators: Andy Shepherd, Nigel McGuinness
Things are about to change again in a good way as the fans are going to be returning to the show rather soon. The taping has already taken place and now we get to see just how the show can work with an audience. As for tonight, it is FINALLY the end of the Heritage Cup #1 contenders tournament as Noam Dar faces Wolfgang. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of the tournament to get us to the finals.
Opening sequence.
Jinny vs. Emilia McKenzie Joseph Conners is here with Jinny. They fight over wrist control to start until Jinny flips her over for two. A front facelock has Jinny in some trouble but she reverses into a leg crank and elbows at the head. McKenzie is back up with a dropkick and fisherman’s neckbreaker but can’t grab a German suplex. Instead Jinny twists her down by the arm and puts on an Iron Octopus for the always cool sounding hold. Now it’s off to a..

I guess that’s a no. There have been all kinds of roster moves in WWE over the last few months, with several wrestlers leaving the company in large groups. Some of these names have been a lot more surprising than others but it has certainly been a huge change for the company. There were some names that surprised a lot of fans and now one of them seems to be trying to get back in.
According to Ringsidenews.com, Braun Strowman has been trying to get his job back in WWE following his release from the company in June, but WWE has no interest in bringing him back. During the WWE Draft earlier this month, the writing teams for Monday Night Raw and SmackDown were asked if there was any interest in bringing Strowman back and both said no. Strowman is said to be the only one with interest on a return, as WWE does not want to bring him back.
Strowman was a force in WWE. Check out his time with the company:
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That’s a weird number. NXT has been undergoing a lot of changes in recent months and there is a good chance that those changes are going to continue in the future. The roster has been shaken up in a big way and it should be interesting to see where everything shakes out. It should also be interesting to see how the audience is affected, and now we know a bit more about that.
Wrestlenomics Brandon Thurston is reporting that the median age, meaning the middle age of the range of fans, of this week’s NXT audience was 62 years old. That is the highest for any WWE show in recent months. There are also fewer women watching NXT in the 18-49 demographic, though that is from before NXT’s relaunch last month. This week’s NXT was up against the Major League Baseball Wild Card playoff game.
Median age for NXT last night was 62, the highest for any WWE show at least in recent months.
Are women watching NXT less than before? Yes, at least within 18-49 (I don't have F2+ data), but that predat..

It’s an unfortunate mistake. Wrestlers are a unique group of people as they are TV stars who are supposed to make you believe that they are larger than life characters who are being their real selves. That is one heck of a trick to pull off, but ultimately they are still people once the cameras stop rolling. That means they are going to make mistakes, which was the case with a former wrestling star.
PWInsider.com is reporting that former Impact Wrestling and WWE star Chris Harris was arrested in Kenton County, Kentucky on October 5for driving under the influence and being unable to provide proof of insurance. Harris spent about thirteen hours in jail before being released on a $2,500 bond, with a court date set for November 2. He last wrestled in 2018 but appeared on Impact Wrestling earlier this year as part of the build to former partner James Storm’s 1000th match in Impact Wrestling.
Harris was a heck of a star. Check out some of his career:
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They’re doing ok. There have been a lot of changes in WWE as of late and some of them have gone a bit forgotten. Last year, WWE issued a new policy saying that their wrestlers would no longer be allowed to operate third party platforms, including Twitch streams. Instead, WWE would take the accounts over and the wrestlers would receive a portion of the revenue. Several wrestlers were unhappy with this and now we might know why.
According to the BBC, Twitch suffered a data breech this week, revealing tons of information about the platform. This includes a list of the income made by several wrestlers, as well as Impact Wrestling’s Twitch channel. The revenue listed covers a period from September 2019 – September 2021 and does not include any sponsorships or donations the streamers might gain as well. Here are some of the amounts, courtesy of Wrestlinginc.com:
Paige: $478,224
Zelina Vega: $341,748
Adam Cole: $318,080
Impact Wrestling: $69,140
Tyler Breeze: $43,755
Evil Uno: $35,742
Colt ..

What could have been. There are certain moments in wrestling that fans remember for a long time to come. Some of them are remembered for better reasons than others, but there are things about them that stick in fans’ minds for a good while. That was the case with one such moment about ten years ago, and now we are learning something new about it.
CM Punk was a guest on the Heel Turn Sport 1 Wrestling podcast and discussed his Pipe Bomb promo from the June 27, 2011 Monday Night Raw. During the interview, Punk said that he wrote everything in the promo and only gave an outline to Vince McMahon, with Punk filling in the details on the way. Punk did not tell McMahon the specifics of what he was going to say, with McMahon only asking him to include something making fun of Stephanie McMahon. The promo included some references to Stephanie, as per Vince’s request.
It’s one of the most famous promos of all time. Check out the promo, and some of its legacy:
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She has a good reason. With so many wrestlers in the industry today, it can be hard to find one who really stands out. You get one every now and then, but one of the best ways to gain a reputation is to walk away when you are still a major star. That was the case with one of the biggest female names in wrestling back in 2015, but now we know a bit more about why she’s back.
Earlier this week, WOW Women of Wrestling announced their return, with the surprise of AJ Mendez being involved as both a color commentator and an executive producer. According to PWInsider.com, Mendez chose to return in this situation because it allowed her to continue with her projects in Hollywood. WOW Women of Wrestling also offered her the chance to be an executive without having to give up much of her schedule, which would not have been the case in WWE or AEW. Mendez will not be able to wrestle due to her neck injuries.
Mendez is quite the star to land. Check out what she could do during her in-ring career:
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Stick around. Wrestlers have a weird career trajectory as you don’t always know when someone is going to hang up their boots for good. Some wrestlers are going to announce their retirements and walk away, but others have a tendency to come back over and over. Another rather young wrestler is doing that as well, and now we have an explanation about why.
Last week, AEW announced that Lio Rush had signed with the company. This came only a few months after Rush retired from wrestling, though he was fulfilling his contractual obligations with New Japan. Rush appeared on Vickie Guerrero’s Excuse Me podcast, where he explained why he continued wrestling for AEW. During the interview, Rush explained that his family took a financial hit due to his WWE release and his music career did not pan out as expected. He also did not get to spend as much time as he wanted with his children and moved to AEW as a result.
Rush is a heck of a talent. Check out who is coming to AEW:
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A change of pace? With so many wrestlers on the WWE roster, it can be hard for a wrestler to find a way to stand out. There are only so many ways to do so and a lot of them have been done to death already. Some of them are a little more interesting than others though and we might be seeing one of the classics being dusted off as a way to drum up some fresh interest.
Asuka has been out of action since Money in the Bank in June. However, she has since sent out an image on Twitter, showing her face imposed on the Breaking Bad logo, next to main character Walter White. While not confirmed, this could suggest that Asuka will either be debuting a new character or turning heel upon her return. There is no word on when she will return, though she was last seen with a brace on her arm.
pic.twitter.com/h23ViA8WUF
— ASUKA / ??? (@WWEAsuka) October 5, 2021
Asuka has been quite the force in WWE. Check out her time in the ring:
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