NEWS

One more off the list. The biggest series of stories in WWE this year has been the string of releases. All kinds of wrestlers have been let go from the company and the roster has been reshaped as a result. There is more to it than that though, as some wrestlers will have the chance to sign with other promotion. Some of them have already done so, and we got a big moment from one this week.
This week on AEW Dynamite, Malakai Black, formerly known as Aleister Black in WWE and Tommy End elsewhere, made his debut. Black attacked Arn Anderson with Black Mass before laying out Cody Rhodes with the same move. During the segment, commentator Excalibur referred to Black as Tommy End and then as Black. There is no word on when Black may wrestle for the company. Black was released from the company on June 2 along with other wrestlers.
This could be a big one. Check out the debut and what AEW might be getting:
[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to play]
..

As she should be. WWE has undergone a lot of changes over the last several months as dozens of wrestlers have left the company. This has led to quite the shakeup to what we have seen in WWE as of late, but that is just on the television side. The releases have led to several other changes, with a lot of them being in the lives of the wrestlers still in WWE. One of them has been hit pretty hard by the changes.
During a new interview with Metro UK, SmackDown’s Bayley has been hit hard by some of the recent releases. Without mentioning any specific names, Bayley mentioned that several of the wrestlers were close friends and very talented. She also mentioned that it was going to be hard to not see some of the released wrestlers backstage as they went around on tour. Bayley is currently scheduled to challenge SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair at Money In The Bank.
Bayley has had a pretty strong last year. Check out some of her recent efforts:
[This post contains video, click to pl..

You don’t do that. The return of fans is going to be a game changer for every wrestling promotion in the coming months as it opens a different world. You can only go so long with empty arenas and most of the promotions have gone way past the expiration date. AEW now has fans back, and they certainly noticed one of them in particular during their first show back.
During this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite, a fan attempted to jump into the ring during a segment between MJF and Chris Jericho. The fan was cut off by security, with Jericho helping to shove him off of the ramp. After the incident, MJF said that any fan should come to the ring to get beaten up by him. Later in the segment, Jericho mentioned that he should have let the fan beat MJF up.
It was a nasty situation. Check out the fan coming in and being taken away by security, plus some better instances of people coming out of the crowd:
[This post contains video, click to play]
[This post contains video, click to play]
[This ..

Things are starting to get back to normal in WWE and that is a very good thing to see. The Coronavirus has shaken up the company in a huge way over the last year and a few months but now it is time for things to settle back down. This includes bringing the shows back to the road, but there are going to be a lot of wrestlers missing, but that might not be the worst thing in the world.
Probably the biggest stories in WWE this year has been the string of releases that has seen dozens of wrestlers leaving the company. That is not the kind of thing you usually expect to see, as WWE has not been releasing huge numbers of wrestlers in recent years, and even then they never came close to doing it like this. Some of these releases have been more surprising than others, but not all of them are the worst changes.
This week we’re going to take a look at some of the releases and go into why some of them were both necessary and long overdue. I’m not going to break them down and go over them one by..

Double it up. The biggest wrestling story of July will be fans returning to the venues, both for AEW and WWE. Things are going to change again and this time in a more positive direction. There is something very cool about seeing wrestling companies going back on the road, as the energy will be boosted up all over again. It turns out that the boost is coming from two places at once in one instance.
WWE has announced that SmackDown will air from two venues on July 23, which will be the second edition of the show featuring fans in attendance. The show will be split between the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio and the Rolling Loud Festival in Miami, Florida. There is no word on if the show in Cleveland will have additional matches to make up for part of the card taking place elsewhere.
There have been some split location shows before. Check out a few of the past versions:
[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post cont..

I hope you used an erasable pen. Some wrestlers have a hard time figuring out what to do after they leave the ring and that can create some problems. Every now and then you do find someone who can get out on their feet though and that makes for some interesting situations. Occasionally someone tries their hand at another sport and fails, but now one of them might have done a bit better than previously thought.
According to MMAJunkie.com, CM Punk’s loss to Mike Jackson at UFC 225 has been overturned and reversed into a no contest. Jackson failed a post fight test for marijuana, resulting in Punk’s decision loss being overturned. There is no word on why it took so long to announce the result, as the fight took place on June 9, 2018. As a result, Punk’s mixed martial arts record is now 0-1-1. Punk has yet to comments on the change.
Following his exit from WWE in 2014, Punk eventually tried his hands at mixed martial arts and fought twice in the UFC. Punk lost his first fight to Mickey G..

Welcome to KB’s Old School (and New School) Reviews. I’ve been reviewing wrestling shows for over ten years now and have reviewed over 5,000 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?
Bash at the Beach 1996
Date: July 7, 1996
Location: Ocean Center, Daytona Beach, Florida
Attendance: 8,300
Commentators: Bobby Heenan, Tony Schiavone, Dusty Rhodes
This is one of the first non-WWE reviews I ever did so it is LONG overdue for a second try. I’m pretty sure you know this one, as it is built around the question of who is the third man. The Outsiders arrived about a month and a half ago and are now ready for their first match, but they need a partner. Now who is that going to be? Let’s get to it.
I do mi..

Dynamite
Date: July 7, 2021
Location: James L. Knight Center, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur
We’re officially back on the road and that means there are fresh fans in attendance. That is certainly a good thing and something that did not feel possible over the last year plus. First up we have Road Rager, featuring the Tag Team Titles on the line, a strap match and the debut of Andrade El Idolo. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Cody Rhodes vs. QT Marshall South Beach Strap Match with the four corner version. Cody dives on him before the bell and the fight is on with Cody pulling Marshall into the ropes. We look at various UFC fighters at ringside as Marshall gets in a shot to the ribs. A moonsault only designed to get knocked out of the air gets knocked out of the air and Cody hits a few buckles. Aaron Solow breaks it up but Dustin Rhodes fights him into the crowd to get rid of one goon.
Nick Comoroto follows and Cody gets three buckles, only to get..

The future is bright. One of the things that almost every wrestling fan does at one point or another is fantasy book. There is something fun about writing out your own ideas and seeing what kind of shows and matches you would put together. WWE does the same thing, and it can be interesting to see what they come up with, as well as who they choose to push. Now we know a bit more about someone they want getting the next shot.
According to Fightful Select, WWE is planning to push Roderick Strong as a focal point in NXT, with a focus on helping to boost the Cruiserweight division. Strong returned from a hiatus in June as part of the Diamond Mine, followed by winning a match over Asher Hale. During his time away from NXT television, Strong signed a new deal with the company, which has been the case with other missing wrestlers in recent memory.
Strong is worth the effort. Check out what NXT is focusing on:
[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to pl..

You have to practice. It is pretty rare to have two wrestlers in a romantic relationship but it does happen occasionally. What is even rarer is to have them be two top level stars who can train with each other, as there are often various issues to prevent it from taking place. It is the case with a current major WWE star and an AEW star, who recently got in the ring together.
WWE’s Charlotte has tweeted out a video showing her and AEW’s Andrade El Idolo, her fiance, training together in a ring. In the video, Charlotte is shown practicing a move of some sort on him as she rolls him around the ring. There is no word on where or when the video was shot. El Idolo was released from WWE earlier this year and debuted in AEW in June.
This is quite the pairing. Check out the two of them in the ring together and on their own:
[This post contains video, click to play]
[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to play]

Opinion: This is one of those things t..

You need to make it special. This week’s edition of NXT is the Great American Bash special and that means viewers are in for a big night. NXT knows how to fill out major cards, but there is not room on them for everything. Sometimes you need to save something for later though and that is what we are going to be seeing next week as there is going to be a huge main event.
During this week’s edition of NXT, Johnny Gargano and NXT Champion Karrion Kross had a face to face meeting in the ring. General Manager William Regal announced that the two would meet in a title match the following week, with Samoa Joe as the guest enforcer. The two have been feuding in recent weeks, including Kross defeating Gargano and three other challengers in a title defense at Takeover: In Your House 2021.
It should be a big one. Check out how we got to the title match:
[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to play]

[This post contains video, click to play]

Opinion: T..

It’s so sad. While there are all kinds of wrestlers throughout history, you are very rarely going to find someone who is truly unique. On those rare occasions where you do find them though, it can be amazing to see just how good they are. It can make it even harder to see them fade away though, and now it seems that we might be getting close to losing one of the best ever.
This week, rumors began circulating that Terry Funk has been living in an assisted living facility due to mental health issues. These stories were confirmed by a post on Funk’s official Twitter account, saying that Funk is receiving residential care for both mental and physical issues. Funk is also said to have some days that are better than others, but there is no word on any specific issues.
Funk, 77 years old as of last month, began wrestling in 1965 and wrestled his most recent match in 2017. He wrestled or appeared in nearly every major wrestling promotion over the course of his career, including winning World..