NEWS

Saying goodbye. The wrestling world is a fairly tight knit group and it hurts a lot when the industry loses one of its own. It can be made even harder for some when it is a wrestler that the fans have grown to respect over the years, which was the case with the latest big name to pass away. Now it is time for some people to say their last goodbyes, which have come in fast.
Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff passed away on Monday at the age of 71. Throughout his career, he wrestled just about everywhere, including for the WWF, where he headlined the first WrestleMania. He also spent a considerable amount of time in the NWA/WCW, meaning that he had quite the set of credentials on his resume. Several wrestlers and companies have sent out their condolences and memories of Orndorff.
AEW joins the wrestling world in mourning the passing of a true legend, “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff. Our thoughts are with his family, his friends and his fans. pic.twitter.com/3GpYkRpWfS
— All Elite Wrestling (@A..

That’s how you cut down on costs. WWE has been undergoing a bunch of changes this year and some of them have been a little more interesting than others. Several of the changes have involved members of the roster being let go, many of which have shaken things up in a pretty big way. It turns out that the changes are not done yet, but this one might be a little more difficult to spot.
According to PWInsider.com, WWE will be using fewer independent wrestlers as extras going forward. Several wrestlers who had been booked as extras in upcoming weeks and months have been called to cancel their appearances. In some cases, WWE will only be booking two extras per show. This is likely being done as a cost cutting measure now that the company is going back on the road.
WWE has used some extras in the past. Check out some cameos you may or may not remember:
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Opinion..

She has a future. The WWE women’s division has come a long way in recent years but it is currently in a bit of a bad place. A good number of the wrestlers are either gone or injured for one reason or another and that means it might be time for something new. That was the case on SmackDown when a pair of women came up from NXT, but the additions might not be done yet.
According to Fightful Select, Sonya Deville will likely be returning to the ring soon, though it is not known when exactly she will be back. There has been a push in WWE to have Deville fill in the last SmackDown spot in the women’s Money In The Bank ladder match, though this may not be the case. Deville’s most recent match took place at Summerslam 2020 before taking time off due to the legal issues involving her stalker’s situation.
Deville is a heck of a talented star. Check out what might be coming back to the ring:
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You might remember them. The right name is one of the most important factors of a wrestler’s career. If someone is not called by the right hand, their career very well may hit an early rut with little way around it. WWE has a bad habit of picking some questionable names for their wrestlers but now it seems that they have figured out a solution to some of them.
According to PWInsider.com, WWE is changing the names of two wrestlers. Former Retribution stars Reckoning and Slapjack will be returning to their former ring names of Mia Yim and Shane Thorne respectively. There is always the chance that either could be turned back to their Retribution names when they return to the ring. Yim has not wrestled since December 2020 while Thorne has not wrestled since the April 9, 2021 SmackDown.
Retribution debuted in WWE in August 2020 as a large group with several unnamed members. Eventually the team was cut down to only a handful of members, with Reckoning and Slapjack being joined by Mace, T-B..

One more for the card. We are less than six days away from Money In The Bank and that means it is time to start having the card finalized. WWE certainly has a tendency to take its time to set up its show, and that is what they have done again. The show’s namesake matches have not left many options available, but WWE is trying something. This time around they have added another match to the show, and some titles are going to be on the line.
During this week’s edition of Monday Night Raw, a Raw Tag Team Title match featuring the Viking Raiders challenging AJ Styles and Omos was announced for Money In The Bank. The Viking Raiders earned their shot by winning a tag team battle royal last month. They are former champions in their own right, having held the titles for a little over three months from October 2019 until January 2020.
This should work out. Check out both teams in action:
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Monday Night Raw
Date: July 12, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves
We are finally, and I do mean finally, coming to the end of the Thunderdome and that means a taped go home show for Money in the Bank. The card is mostly set, at least on the Raw side, but it is time to build some serious momentum for the show’s namesake matches. Maybe Nikki Cross can even take another pin. Let’s get to it.
In Memory of Paul Orndorff.
We open with a long recap of Big E. vs. Kofi Kingston, including last week with the New Day beating Lashley and MVP.
Xavier Woods vs. Bobby Lashley Non-title with Kofi Kingston/MVP at ringside. Lashley throws him into the corner to start but Woods takes the leg out. A step up backsplash gets two but seems to just annoy Lashley. They head outside with Lashley sending him hard into the steps as we take a break.
Back with Woods still in trouble but managing a superkick. A tornado DDT sends Lashley outside..

Ring of Honor
Date: July 7, 2021
Location: UMBC Events Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman
We are almost up to Best in the World and that means we should be in for the big final push towards the show. This time around though, we have a special fight between the Briscoe Brothers, taking place from their chicken farm. That might sound absurd, but these two could absolutely pull it off. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Quinn McKay welcomes us to the show and gives us the weekly preview.
Last week, Bandido won Survival of the Fittest and is REALLY excited to get to challenge Rush for the World Title at Best In The World. He gave Quinn a big hug, which she said never disappoints.
Fred Yehi talks about how he has been having a bit of an up and down time around here as of late. Now he is on a roll and has a Pure Rules Title shot against Jonathan Gresham. He and Gresham had the same trainer and they have met a lot over the years. They’ll shake hands ..

We have some sad news to report today, as WWE Hall of Famer “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff has passed away at the age of 71.
From WWE.com:
Orndorff was a standout running back at the University of Tampa and joined Mid-Southern Wrestling after a brief stint in the World Football League. Early rivalries with Jerry Lawler, Ted Dibiase and Jake “The Snake” Roberts gave way to NWA North American Heavyweight and National Heavyweight Championship reigns.
Orndorff joined WWE in 1983 and was tabbed with the “Mr. Wonderful” nickname by his then-manager “Rowdy” Roddy Piper. With his awe-insipring in-ring style and umatched swagger, “Mr. Wonderful” turned his talent into a prototype for the modern-day Superstar. He made a memorable debut on January 23, 1984, with a win over Salvatore Bellomo at Madison Square Garden and launched right into the main event picture with matches against World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan. Mr. Wonderful achieved sports-entertainment immortality by competing alongs..

She’s another one. We are less than a week away from Money In The Bank, which is one of the more complicated cards to put together throughout the year. There is only so much that can be done when you have sixteen people tied up exclusively in two matches, meaning there are not many options elsewhere on the card. Now we know another name who is going to be tied down.
Sonya Deville has announced that Natalya will be the seventh entrant in this Sunday’s Women’s Money In The Bank ladder match. Deville announced that the match needed someone steady and no one is as steady as Natalya. This leaves one remaining spot in the match, which will also include Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Naomi, Nikki Cross, Liv Morgan and Zelina Vega.
With all the changes and challengers for #MITB and #Smackdown, I will be the one to establish some consistency for this Sunday and there is NO ONE more consistent than 1/2 of our @WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions… @natbynature. Nattie, welcome to the MITB Ladder Match!
— Dadd..

That would explain a lot. The biggest WWE story of the week has been Jimmy Uso’s DUI arrest. Uso has a history of issues with alcohol but it does not seem to have stopped WWE from pushing him. This week’s SmackDown was partially centered around Uso, who was treated the same as his brother Jey to end the show. It seems that there might be a reason behind Jimmy’s treatment.
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, WWE may have decided to move forward with Jimmy’s push because he is already part of a main event angle on SmackDown involving Reigns. The story could ultimately involve the Rock, who may be facing Roman Reigns in a future WrestleMania match. As a result, there is a chance that WWE will not be punishing Uso for his issues.
Rock can be quite influential. Check out some of his best moments in WWE:
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Opinion: I’m not sure if this is wha..

Three for one. Titles are the easiest concept in all of wrestling as anyone can get it: someone, either a singles wrestler or a tag team, hold a championship and another wrestler/wrestlers try to take them. There are several ways you can go with that idea, but ultimately it is about getting two people into a ring with a title on the line. That was certainly case over the weekend.
There were three title changes at Ring of Honor’s Best In The World pay per view over the weekend. First of all, Dragon Lee defeated Tony Deppen to regain the Television Title. Lee had held the title for a year before having to miss a title defense due to an injury. King lost the title to Tracy Williams, who went on to lose it to Deppen, who held the title for seventy four days.
Next up, Homicide and Chris Dickinson of Violence Unlimited won the Tag Team Titles by defeating Jonathan Gresham and Rhett Titus of the Foundation in a Fight Without Honor. Titus was substituting for Jay Lethal, who had lost a match..

The more things change. WWE is almost ready to go back on the road and that is going to open up a lot of doors. There are so many different benefits from running live events, including extra practice for the wrestlers, a dry run to see what works and what doesn’t and more exposure, but there is one more big thing. However, this time around WWE might be making even more changes.
According to Wrestling Observer Radio, WWE might have made a variety of NXT callups in response to the lower ticket sale advances on the company’s upcoming return to touring. Vince McMahon was reportedly unhappy with the amount of tickets being sold and made the callups as a result. So far, Shotzi Blackheart and Tegan Nox have appeared on the main roster, with the chance of more to come.
Live events can be fascinating. Check out some of the cool things you can see there and how callups work:
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