NEWS

That’s how you get started. Every now and then you see someone debut and make an impact as soon as they start up. It does not happen often, but on the rare occasions when it does, you know that you are in for something special. Things can be made even better if someone has an extra boost upon their arrival, and that was the case again this week with a special debut.
This week’s debut edition of NXT 2.0 began with Bron Breakker making his debut backstage by confronting LA Knight. The two had a match, with Breakker picking up the surprise win. At the end of the show, Breakker congratulated new NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa, suggesting that he wanted a shot at the title. Breakker is better known as Bronson Rechsteiner, the son of Rick Steiner and nephew of Scott Steiner. Breakker’s family history was not mentioned. While he has not wrestled before, he has made some appearances in NXT as an extra.
I’d say he had a good night. Check out how the debut night went down, plus some of the family..

It’s nice to see some familiar faces. This week’s edition of NXT marked the launch of NXT 2.0, which saw the biggest change in the history of the show. All kinds of new names debuted on a new set with a new layout of the Capitol Wrestling Center. That alone should make for something new, but there were also some familiar faces showing up for the first time in a good while.
There were two surprise returns this week on NXT. First, Austin Theory returned from his self imposed hiatus to take part in the wedding between Dexter Lumis and Indi Hartwell. Theory appeared at the wedding and was asked to present the rings, which Ikemen Jiro actually had. In addition, NXT Cruiserweight Champion Kushida returned after missing several weeks due to testing positive for the Coronavirus. Kushida agreed to defend his championship against Roderick Strong next week, in a match originally planned for last month.
It certainly was an eventful night. Check out what happened with the returns, plus a mashup f..

NXT
Date: September 14, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett
We have arrived as it is time for the all new NXT, featuring a lot of the same people and whatever angles need to be wrapped up. I’m almost terrified of what this is going to include as the usual suspects from Raw are in charge. We have a wedding and a vacant World Title to fill though so let’s get to it.
We open with a quick recap of Samoa Joe vacating the NXT Title and the setup of the four way for the vacant championship.
Tommaso Ciampa doesn’t care which NXT it is because he’ll be champion.
Pete Dunne thinks it is time for a Bruiserweight Champion.
Kyle O’Reilly is ready to achieve a goal sixteen years in the making.
LA Knight knows Samoa Joe was scared of him and now three men are stuck in the same spot. Someone named Bron Breaker (better known as Bronson Rechsteiner) comes up to Knight and says he wants a chance to prove himself. Knight tell..

They needed someone new. NXT has been completely relaunched as NXT 2.0 and that means things are being completely reset. There is a new set, new wrestlers and new stories, but something had to change on top as well. Samoa Joe has vacated the NXT Title due to injury and a new champion had to be crowned. That was taken care of during this week’s edition of NXT.
This week on NXT, Tommaso Ciampa won the NXT Title in a fatal four way match. Ciampa pinned LA Knight in a match that also included Pete Dunne and Von Wagoner. Kyle O’Reilly was originally the fourth participant in the match but was attacked by Dunne and Ridge Holland. As a result, General Manager William Regal inserted Wagoner into the spot in Wagoner’s NXT debut.
He has been here before. Check out Ciampa’s time around the NXT Title:
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Opinion: This is a smart and safe pick, as Ciampa has the resume..

I’d call it a positive. There have been a lot of changes in WWE in recent months and one of the biggest came this week as Big E. became the new WWE Champion. The win marks Big E.’s first World Title in WWE, making him a member of a fairly exclusive club. The win is a long time coming as Big E. has seemed to be ready to break through to the other side for along time now, but how has it been received?
According to PWInsider.com, Big E.’s title win caused a boost in backstage morale for the locker room. Big E. is well liked and the win was seen as a special moment. The wrestlers from SmackDown, where Big E. had been in recent weeks, were said to have wished they could have been in the arena for the win. Big E. cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase on Bobby Lashley to win the title this week on Monday Night Raw.
I’d say it was big. Check out the win and the fallout:
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That’s a win for WWE. There have been a lot of roster moves over the last few months in WWE and there is a good chance that several more are coming. Above all else, there is a question of who is going to go where now that AEW has become a new player for wrestlers’ services. WWE has already lost a few names to AEW but they have one important name locked up.
According to Fightful Select, WWE has re-signed Pete Dunne to a new contract, keeping him with the company for several years. This comes after Dunne’s contract was reportedly set to expire later in this year. WWE COO Triple H was said to be directly involved with the contract negotiations. Dunne debuted in WWE in 2016 and is a former NXT United Kingdom Champion and NXT Tag Team Champion.
Dunne has been a star under the WWE banner. Check out what he has done so far:
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Opinion: This is a big win for WWE a..

Anything can happen. While you might not care for the quality of the show itself, there is little denying just how polished everything is in a WWE production. Between the lights, the pyro, the music and everything else that goes into it, WWE puts on a good looking show. There is always the chance of an error though, and this time the error was in part of the wardrobe situation.
Over the weekend, WWE held a live event in Washington DC, which featured a street fight between Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal. McIntyre came to the ring, but could not get his kilt to come off. Ring announcer Byron Saxton had to help McIntyre, who ultimately took the microphone and asked if anyone in the crowd could help him get out of his kilt. Eventually he shook it off, after which he said he hoped no one had a cell phone camera in the building.
It can only happen live. Check out what happened to McIntyre, plus some other funny WWE moments:
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That’s what’s next. NXT fans got a big shock over the weekend when reigning NXT Champion Samoa Joe announced that he was being forced to step away from the ring and therefore vacate the NXT Title over health issues. This is the kind of thing that can be rather devastating to a career, but it seems that there is already a new plan in mind for him to start soon.
According to Wrestling Observer Radio, Samoa Joe is still a part of NXT but will likely be moving into more of a backstage or coaching role. This was the plan when he was re-signed earlier this year, though he will still be getting into the ring on occasions. Part of the reason for the switch is Samoa Joe is in his 40s and NXT is attempting to focus on younger wrestlers.
He has been a big deal around there. Check out some of Samoa Joe’s time in NXT:
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Opinion: As sudden as this was, the end result d..

That makes it official. There are a lot of things taking place at any given point in WWE and it can make for some complicated situations. It doesn’t help when there are so many wrestlers running around the company and working on different shows. Some wrestlers even work on more than one show, but not we know when some of those names will be given a fresh coat of paint.
This week on Monday Night Raw, WWE officially announced the dates of the 2021 WWE Draft. This year’s edition will begin with the October 1 SmackDown and will conclude on the October 4 Monday Night Raw. The WWE Draft is an annual event which will reset the shows’ rosters as several wrestlers will be moved from one roster to the other. It is not clear how much NXT involvement will be included this year.
The Draft has been a big deal before. Check out some of its best moments:
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Opinion: This ..

Welcome to KB’s Old School (and New School) Reviews. I’ve been reviewing wrestling shows for over twelve years now and have reviewed over 6,000 shows. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be posting a new review here on Wrestlingrumors.net. It could be anything from modern WWE to old school to indies to anything in between. Note that I rate using letters instead of stars and I don’t rate matches under three minutes as really, how good or bad can something that short be?
Smackdown
Date: April 13, 2007
Location: Dunkin’ Donuts Center, Providence, Rhode Island
Attendance: 8,000
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Michael Cole
We’re on the way to whatever the next Smackdown pay per view is and Batista wants his rematch with Undertaker for the World Title. That’s fine with Undertaker, but he isn’t cool with King Booker jumping him to end last week’s show. It sounds like something he is going to deal with sooner than later and that isn’t likely to go well for Booker. Let’s get to it…

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 13, 2021
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton
We’re getting close to Extreme Rules and it seems we’re getting the main event really early. This time that means we are seeing Bobby Lashley defending the WWE Championship against Randy Orton in a match that was scheduled for the pay per view, which sounds like a way to set up a rematch. Let’s get to it.
Here is Mr. Money in the Bank Big E. as a guest star as RKBro comes out for a chat. Before they can even get in the ring, Bobby Lashley and MVP cut them off. Big E. says he’s cashing in but Riddle asks him to not do it on Randy. MVP doesn’t want to hear this because Big E. isn’t cashing in on anyone. This was supposed to be MVP/Lashley vs. RKBro for the Tag Team Titles but then Orton politicked his way into a title match. Orton is asked how he did that but Orton says he did it to throw Lashley off his game. Big E.: “We got two big meaty men bumpi..

They went big. Money in the Bank is one of the biggest game changers in wrestling as you can see someone go from absolutely nothing to the champion in one match. It has been used regularly for over fifteen years now and still packs quite the punch. You don’t see it used often but it works well when it does. That is the case again as we have a new champion.
This week on Monday Night Raw, Big E. cashed in his Money in the Bank contract against WWE Champion Bobby Lashley and won the title for the first time in his career. Lashley had announced that he would cash in the contract and did so after Lashley successfully defended his title against Randy Orton. This makes Lashley a member of the Monday Night Raw roster, reuniting him with the rest of New Day.
I’d call that huge. Check out the celebration plus how Big E. got here:
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Opinion: I’ve been a fan of Big E…