NEWS

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 19, 2021
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton
The week of the fans continues as we have the first Raw in front of a crowd since March 2021. Smackdown and Money in the Bank seemed to go pretty well but this is the big test. This is the Raw that WWE has literally had months to plan for and they can put on their best show possible. John Cena is back and opening the show so they should have a good start. Let’s get to it.
Here is John Cena to get things going as they’re starting fast tonight. Cena says he can still see some people coming in so come on down. After acknowledging a kid’s “I’m turning 11 and I’m here to see John Cena” sign, Cena says he missed us. Cena talks about what a group effort Raw is and how he was here last night for the end of Money in the Bank.
Paul Heyman panicked, Roman Reigns didn’t know what he was supposed to do, Michael Cole was really happy and Pat McAfee still did..

Another shakeup. WWE is in the middle of a bunch of changes and that might not be the worst thing. The company has been in a bit of a rut over the last several months but the talent is certainly there. Sometimes you need something to switch it up a bit and that is what we have been seeing as of late. Now they are making a series of changes and now we have the next one.
According to PWInsider.com, Naomi has been moved from Monday Night Raw to SmackDown. This comes after Naomi participated in the Money in the Bank ladder match as a member of the Monday Night Raw roster in a losing effort. Naomi has wrestled on both Monday Night raw and SmackDown over the course of her career, including two reigns as SmackDown Women’s Champion.
Naomi has some star power. Check out what she can do on SmackDown:
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Opinion: This is the kind of move that could help both SmackDow..

He had something to say. We are well on the way to Summerslam and that means it is time to get ready for one of the biggest shows of the year. This time around, WWE seems like they want to treat the show even more seriously than usual and that is going to start at the top of the card. They took care of that at the end of Money in the Bank, but the night was not over yet.
John Cena made his return to WWE to end Money in the Bank and confronted Roman Reigns. The show ended on a shot of the two looking at each other with nothing being said. WWE has released a video from after the show, featuring Cena addressing the crowd. Cena talked about how strange it was to be cheered and promised that it was the first night instead of a one night return. He thanked the fans for returning and left the ring before throwing his gear to the fans to end the show. In another video, Cena announced that he would be opening this week’s Monday Night Raw.
This should work. Check out how Cena’s night went down..

That’s a bit too far. One of the most infamous changes in WWE history was the shift towards a PG style. This has created quite a bit of backlash from fans, but at the same time it has brought WWE a whole lot of money and opportunities, as more companies are interested in working with them. It does mean that some changes have to be made at times though, which was briefly the case this weekend.
The video feed went dark for a few seconds during the Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte match at Money in the Bank over the weekend. According to PWInsider.com, the video cut out due to Charlotte crotch chopping and flipping off the crowd due to their WE WANT BECKY chants. The chants began at the start of the match and were acknowledged by commentary. Becky Lynch did not appear during the show.
It was a heck of a match anyway. Check out the match, what happened later, and Lynch vs. Charlotte:
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Yeah he’ll do. This has been an eventful year for WWE as they have tried to come out of the Coronavirus pandemic while also keeping things going at nearly full strength. Somehow they have managed to make that work well enough and now coming up on what might be the biggest show of the year with Summerslam. A show of this magnitude needs a huge headliner and now we might have just that.
John Cena made his return to WWE at the end of Sunday’s Money in the Bank to confront Roman Reigns. Cena stared at Reigns and gave him the You Can’t See Me sign to end the show. While not confirmed, this is likely to set up a Summerslam main event. Reigns had retained the Universal Title over Edge in the main event and said that everyone had to acknowledge him, which brought Cena out.
Cena has been absent from WWE since WrestleMania 36, when he lost the Firefly Fun House to Bray Wyatt. He has spent the majority of his time focusing on his acting career but has been teasing a return to WWE. Cena is curre..

Two down. Money In The Bank is one of the most unique events of the year as it features a pair of major concept matches. The show is built around its namesake matches, featuring both a men’s and women’s version since 2017. The Money in the Bank ladder match is one of the most important of the year for both divisions and now this year’s editions are in the book. So who won?
Nikki Ash and Big E. won the women’s Money in the Bank and men’s Money in the bank ladder matches respectively. Their wins allow them to challenge for their respective singles title from either Monday Night Raw or SmackDown at any time in the next year. It is the first Money in the Bank win for both and neither have ever held a World Title in WWE. Big E. is a former Intercontinental and NXT Champion.
It was a huge night. Check out the ladder matches and the fallout:
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The gold shifts again. WWE is in a state of flux at the moment as fans are being allowed back into the arena for the first time in well over a year. That is the kind of thing that the company has been waiting on for a very long time now and it seems that they are going to be making the most of it. There are a few ways to do that and one of them was on display this weekend.
During Sunday’s Money In The Bank pay per view, Charlotte defeated Rhea Ripley to win the Raw Women’s Title. The win came via the Figure Eight, after Charlotte crushed Ripley’s leg using the steps. This makes Charlotte a five time Raw Women’s Champion to go with her five SmackDown Women’s Titles and one Divas Title. WWE also counts her two NXT Women’s Titles and Women’s Tag Team Title, billing her as a fourteen time champion as a result.
Charlotte has won some gold. Check out some of her title matches:
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Another one on the resume. There are a lot of titles to be won in wrestling and some of them can make for some rather prestigious prizes. It can be even more impressive when someone wins a title more than once, which is often the case in WWE, where titles change hands fairly frequently. It was the case again this weekend, as a championship changed hands.
The Usos won the SmackDown Tag Team Titles on the Money In The Bank Kickoff Show by defeating Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio via an assisted rollup to Rey. The win makes the Usos seven time Tag Team Champions, between various titles. This comes after the Mysterios successfully defended the titles against the Usos in their only previous title defenses.
The Usos are quite the team. Check out some of their greatest moments:
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Opinion: I’m not sure what other option they could have had here, as the Usos we..

Money in the Bank 2021
Date: July 18, 2021
Location: Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, Texas
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Michael Cole, Pat McAfee
After Friday’s dress rehearsal, it’s time for the first show of any serious value in front of fans. The briefcases get pulled down tonight and it would not surprise me to see one of them get cashed in, as WWE is going to want to have a big splash going into the Summerslam build. A last minute replacement would not be shocking either. Let’s get to it.
Kickoff Show: Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio The Mysterios are defending and walk through a portal near an Aztec pyramid to come into the arena. Dominik wristdrags Jimmy out of the corner to start and grabs an armbar. Rey comes in to a nice reaction and Dominik powerbombs him onto Jimmy for two. A cheap shot takes Rey down so the double teaming can begin in the corner. Rey wastes no time in getting over to Dominik for the tag as the pace pi..

Get them all in there. The biggest story coming out of this week in WWE has been the return of fans to the arenas. This has been a very long time coming and you could see just how much of a difference the fans being around made for everything else. The energy was back and that was a great thing, including for the wrestlers. Now one more wrestler is back to feel it as well.
According to Wrestlinginc.com, the post SmackDown dark match featured a battle royal, including Big E., Shinsuke Nakamura, Apollo Crews, Commander Azeez, Finn Balor, and more. One of the participants was a returning Shane Thorne, formerly known as Slapjack in Retribution, working his first match since March. There is no word on when Throne will return to television. Big E. won the battle royal and addressed the crowd after the show was over.
Shane Thorne came out after Smackdown went off air ? pic.twitter.com/OFSv4TGcQV
— Bálor Club ? (@BalorsThorne) July 17, 2021
Battle Royal #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/aznDPJuXH..

It’s time for one of WWE’s biggest pay per views as the briefcases will be hung above the ring for some ladder matches. This time though there are going to be fans in attendance, which means that one of the biggest spectacles on the WWE calendar is going to have a live audience. Money in the Bank is always one of the harder to predict shows of the year so it’s guessing time. Let’s get to it.
Kickoff Show: SmackDown Tag Team Titles: Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio(c) vs. The Usos The Mysterios have defended the titles against the Usos twice now so a third title defense makes all the sense in the world right? That is how Tag Team Title stories go in WWE and I’m not sure what other idea they could have here. Hopefully they have something good here, as the teams should work well together, though putting them in this spot is a little bit weird.
Take three:
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The Usos are getting those titles sooner rather than later so I’ll say they get them here. T..

It was a busy night. WWE is the biggest and most powerful wrestling company in the world but it is absolutely no the only one. There are all kinds of other places to see very talented wrestlers around the world and that is a great thing for fans. Sometimes a former WWE wrestler will go somewhere else and we will get to see them thrive in a very different way. That might be the case all over again.
Several new stars made their debuts or returns at Impact Wrestling’s Slammiversary. Three wrestlers made their debuts and two more made a return, while another wrestler was teased for a future debut. During the show, No Way (formerly No Way Jose in WWE), Thunder Rosa and Jay White made their debuts. Chelsea Green (formerly known as Laurel Van Ness in Impact Wrestling), and Mickie James both made their returns to the promotion. Finally a vignette aired teasing the Drama King, which was the nickname for former WWE star Aiden English.
No Way appeared as a mystery tag team partner for Fallah Ba..