NEWS

Dynamite
Date: July 21, 2021
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross
It’s another special show this week with Fyter Fest Night Two, headlined by the IWGP United States Title Texas Deathmatch between Jon Moxley and Lance Archer. The recent shows have been pretty good as of late and I’m curious to see how well they can keep it up. Odds are they will, as they tend to do. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Spears Tully Blanchard is at ringside, MJF is on commentary Spears can use a chair but Jericho can’t. Jericho knocks him down to start but gets the chair taken away from him. That means Spears can chop him into the corner, only to be sent outside. A whip sends Spears into the barricade and Jericho heads back inside, leaving Spears to grab another chair. The triangle dropkick is cut off with a chair being pelted at the head.
Jericho scores with an enziguri but gets belly to belly superplexed back down. S..

The battle continues. WWE has posted a new video to its YouTube channel in which they show the full match between John Cena and Kevin Owens for the United States Championship from Battleground 2015.
You can see the video in its entirety below:
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From WWE.com:
After absorbing some serious punishment from K.O. in the early goings of this anticipated rubber match, Cena caught Owens with an Attitude Adjustment, a maneuver that somehow only garnered a two-count. With frustration beginning to set in, Cena attempted to go high-risk, taking the challenger to the top rope for a superplex. Anticipating Cena’s next move, Owens reversed the maneuver, sending The Champ crashing down hard on his left shoulder. Cena reeled following that sickening impact, but this fight was far from finished.
Dazed and visibly pained, Cena evaded a Pop-up Powerbomb from his opportunistic foe and again went for the Attitude Adjustment. However, Owens quickly countered with..

That would be a big one. There are certain wrestlers who have been away from the ring so long that it is almost impossible to imagine them actually coming back. Even if it might not seem logical, the allure of such a return is so strong that it is impossible to completely ignore. That is the case with one former wrestler in particular today, but that former might be going away soon.
According to Fightful Select, CM Punk is in negotiations to return to the ring as a wrestler, with AEW being the front runner. There are no further details on the situation including the length of a potential deal or who Punk would be facing. Punk, 42, has not wrestled since the 2014 Royal Rumble, as he left WWE over disagreements with the company over a variety of issues.
You might remember him. Check out Punk in the ring:
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Opinion: As usual, I’ll believe this when I see it,..

Hopefully it isn’t bad. You never know when you are going to see an injury in wrestling and they can often be a lot worse than they seem. It is a rather scary sight to see a lot of the time as you never know how bad something is going to be. You can often tell when something is wrong though and that was the case this week, though it might not have been as bad as it seemed.
Xia Li was injured during the main event of this week’s NXT. Li was challenging NXT Women’s Champion Raquel Gonzalez when Gonzalez hit her with a middle rope backsplash. Gonzalez covered her and Li kicked out but the medical staff immediately came down to check on Li. After a few moments, Li got up and Gonzalez immediately used her lifting powerbomb to retain the title. According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful, Li was said to be ok after the match.
For those asking about Xia Li, we were told she appeared okay backstage after NXT.
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) July 21, 2021
It was a nasty one. Ch..

Can you blame them? As is the case with so many other things, a first impression can mean almost everything in wrestling. At the same time though, it is very rare to have a wrestler really make their first impression, as so many wrestlers have performed elsewhere before someone can be seen. One wrestler made their first impression this week and it has not exactly been well received.
Reigning NXT Champion Karrion Kross made his Monday Night Raw debut on this week’s show, losing to Jeff Hardy in a non-title match in one minute and forty seconds. This was Kross’ first loss in a singles match at any level in WWE and it seemed to be his official debut on the main roster. Such a loss was quite the surprise and it seems that some people are not happy.
According to Fightful Select, one unnamed wrestler said that they felt “a message was being sent” with Kross’ loss, though it was not clear what kind of message it was supposed to be. Some wrestlers are said to be annoyed for the NXT wrestlers..

It took long enough. Every now and then, a WWE wrestler will go away for one reason or another. It could be for something physical, mental, creative or something else, though occasionally we don’t actually know what is going on. The latter is the case this time, but we got a pretty cool return this week on Monday Night Raw. Now we know a little bit more about what is going on.
Keith Lee made his return to WWE television this week, wrestling his first match since since the February 8 Monday Night Raw. According to PWInsider.com, Lee’s return is not a one off appearance, meaning he should be back regularly. Lee has also been cleared to return and he was not being held off of television for a creative issue. There is no word on why Lee has been gone for the last five months, but he has said he will explain his absence when he can.
Lee is a former NXT and North American Champion, having held both titles simultaneously in July 2020. Soon after losing the NXT Title to Karrion Kross, Lee wa..

That clears things up. Sometimes you see a character in wrestling who catches your eye because there is no one like them. It might be for one reason or another but there is something about them that you have to watch. That is the case with a current WWE star, but he has not been around for a little while. Now we know a bit more about him, at least in a way.
Bray Wyatt has not wrestled since WrestleMania 37 and has not been seen since the Monday Night Raw after the show. According to PWInsider.com, there is a specific reason for his absence, but it is not currently known what the reason it. While the reason is unknown, it is not believed to be a creative problem. Wyatt was originally planned to defeat Randy Orton at WrestleMania 37 but the plan was changed at the last minute. The match is Wyatt’s only of the year to date.
Wyatt is a crazy talented wrestler. Check out what is on WWE’s sidelines:
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[T..

There’s a reason for that. The last week of WWE shows have been among the most eventful in recent memory as fans have returned to the arenas for the first time in about fifteen months. That is a long time to go without anyone in the arena and it is great to have them back. WWE has been trying to do some things to make the shows more interesting and now we know a bit more about why.
This week on Monday Night Raw, Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler split from Reginald, who immediately went on to win the 24/7 Title. According to PWInsider.com, WWE’s play is to present Reginald as a babyface going forward. The idea is that Reginald has a unique set of skills which could be used as a way to boost the 24/7 division. Reginald debuted on WWE television in December 2020 and has served as a valet for Jax, Baszler and Carmella.
This could be a change of pace. Check out the new champ:
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Mark your calendars. WWE has been around for a long time and they know how to do the big shows. They have built their company around the idea of making you want to see the special events and making the cards feel that much more important. The same idea has worked in NXT as well, and now we know when to expect the next major show from the promotion.
During this week’s edition of NXT, Takeover 36 was announced for Sunday, August 22 from the Capitol Wrestling Center in Orlando, Florida. This will be the day after Summerslam 2021, making it the first time that Takeover has aired the day after a major WWE pay per view. There have been no matches announced for the card as of yet. The most recent Takeover was Takeover: In Your House 2021, which took place on June 13, 2021.
This should work. Check out the announcement and the previous Summerslam weekend Takeovers:
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Plans change? With so many wrestlers on the WWE roster, it can be hard to keep track of all of them. When you throw in the amount of wrestlers who have been let go from the company this year, things get all the more confusing. There are going to be some who catch your attention a bit more than others, but one of them might be on the way to a new home.
Back on April 30, Daniel Bryan lost to Roman Reigns, forcing him to leave SmackDown. Bryan’s WWE contract has since expired, making him a free agent who has yet to hire anyone. According to PWInsider.com, Bryan is not listed on any internal WWE roster and is not expected to be included as a part of the upcoming Mattel action figure line. This could be a sign of something bigger.
Bryan has not been mentioned backstage whatsoever lately, which has led some sources to believe that Bryan is either planning to sign or will sign with AEW. This is just speculation at the moment and there is nothing to guarantee that this is the case. AEW has m..

Impact Wrestling
Date: July 15, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Lo Brown
It’s the go home show for Slammiversary and that should make for a different kind of night. The card is set, but there are still a few things that could use a bit more of a boost. Impact has a tendency to do well around this time of year and we might be in for some more teasing of some new arrivals. Let’s get to it.
Opening recap.
We get a video from Sami Callihan, who wants his Slammiversary World Title match against Kenny Omega to be a No DQ match.
Tenille Dashwood/Kaleb With A K vs. Rachael Ellering/Jordynne Grace Grace cranks on Kaleb With A K’s hand to start and plants him with a release side slam. There isn’t much of a challenge here so Grace throws him into the corner for a tag to Dashwood. Ellering comes in with a World’s Strongest Slam and everything breaks down in a hurry. Stereo spinebusters plant Dashwood and Kaleb With A K to put them both down.
..

Main Event
Date: July 15, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Byron Saxton
So THIS is the final Thunderdome show because we really can’t escape that place. As much fun as it would be to see a big Thunderdome farewell, it is much more likely to be the run of the mill Main Event, as the show can’t go that long without disappointing me all over again. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Angel Garza vs. Jaxson Ryker Ryker powers him into the corner to start so Garza grabs a somewhat desperate headlock. That’s broken up and Ryker slaps him in the chest, setting up a slam for two. There’s a release gordbuster to drop Garza again but Garza runs OUT OF HIS PANTS. A running dropkick puts Ryker down and Garza actually wins a strike off. Garza hits a basement dropkick for two and it’s off to an armbar. Some elbows to the head keep Ryker in trouble and a bulldog sets up a double arm crank. Back up and Ryker hits a running shoulder in the corner, followed ..