NEWS

NXT UK
Date: May 20, 2021
Location: BT Studios, London, England
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Andy Shepherd
It’s time for a title match as we have A-Kid defending the Heritage Cup against Tyler Bate in their rubber match. That alone should be enough to carry the show but we should be getting some other good stuff around here to make the rest of the show work. If it is like their recent efforts, everything should be fine. Let’s get to it.
We open with a video on A-Kid vs. Bate, with Bate becoming a huge star and A-Kid needing to become his own man. Bate needs to win something to get back on top and it’s time for a showdown.
Opening sequence.
Rampage Brown vs. Wolfgang They trade cravates to start as we hear about their various European championships. Brown hits a dropkick but gets whipped hard into the corner to put him down as well. It’s already time to go outside for the slugout with Wolfgang sending him into the post. A backbreaker gives Wolfgang two back inside and we hit the ..

What a pair. The WWE women’s division has come a very long way in the last few years and that is a very good chance of pace. Above all else, women’s wrestling is finally being treated seriously and that is the kind of thing that has been missing for a very long time now. This includes getting rid of some of the more over the top ideas, though now we might be seeing a bit of a return.
One of the biggest stories in the women’s division at the moment is taking place on Monday Night Raw. Alexa Bliss has gone from being the Fiend’s willing follower to having powers all of her own, mainly provided by a doll named Lily. Bliss has spoken about the power that Lily has given her, which has caused SmackDown’s Sasha Banks to ask to be shown the power of darkness. Bliss responded, saying there was always room for more on the playground, to which Banks said “let me in”. Banks has not been seen on television since the SmackDown after WrestleMania 37, where she lost the SmackDown Women’s Title.
Let ..

Time for a new job. The wrestling world has changed quite a bit in the last few years and it seems to have been for the better. The rise of AEW has shaken up a lot of things and there is a good chance that the shaking up will continue. While this would seem to only affect the top companies, there is always the chance of a domino effect, which seems to be the case again with another promotion.
According to Fightful Select, Impact Wrestling’s Don Callis has lost most of his backstage authority, which has been transferred to Scott D’Amore. Callis is expected to stay with Impact Wrestling in an on-screen role while also becoming Kenny Omega’s full time manager in All Elite Wrestling. There is nothing to suggest that Callis is being punished in any way.
Callis is quite the talent. Check out what he has done in AEW and Impact Wrestling:
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Opinion: This is the k..

That’s one for the books. There are certain wrestlers in history who are always going to be remembered for a few different things. Some of these things might be a little bit better than others, though it can be interesting to see what happens when those same wrestlers make an appearance after being away for a bit. That was the case recently, and one of them had a gift for one Vince McMahon.
A new video has been released on Twitter, featuring former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam backstage at the WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony earlier this year. Van Dam meets with McMahon and after saying hello, presents McMahon with a package of his officially branded RVD420 rolling papers used for smoking. McMahon sees what they are and laughs while accepting them.
This is one that almost has to be seen to be believed. Check out the clip, plus some of Van Dam’s better moments in the ring:
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From the other side. The World Title means more than any other accomplishment in professional wrestling, at least in theory. The title has been the symbol of excellence in wrestling since the concept began and that is not likely to change for a very long time. There are other World Titles outside of WWE though, and this time they had another sport’s World Champion at one of their events.
WWE has tweeted out a photo of World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Tyson Fury backstage at this weekend’s WrestleMania Backlash event. The photos show Fury and his son posing with Rey Mysterio and Vince McMahon. There is no word on if Fury was backstage at the event for any specific reason or if he and his son were simply there visiting.
Fury has a history in WWE, having appeared on the debut episode of SmackDown on FOX. He began a feud with Braun Strowman, ultimately defeating him via countout at Crown Jewel 2019. Drew McIntyre has mentioned wanting to face Fury in a match in the UK at some point, tho..

I don’t think this needs an explanation. There are some things that happen in wrestling where you know that things are going to be a little less than serious. Certain moments only take place in wrestling or in a movie and every now and then you see those things taking place at the same time. That was the case at WWE’s latest pay per view and it will likely get people talking.
This weekend’s WWE WrestleMania Backlash event was sponsored by Netflix’s Army Of The Dead movie, which stars WWE Hall of Famer Batista. The show featured an introduction video with clips from the movie and Batista narrating the clips. However, later in the night there was something else involving the movie, which features zombies. It turns out that the show had some guest stars.
WrestleMania Backlash featured a lumberjack match between Miz and Damian Priest, with a group of zombies serving as the lumberjacks. The zombies interfered in the match with Priest and Miz fighting them off. Late in the match, John Morr..

That’s why you do it. Titles are such an easy concept in wrestling and that is why you keep seeing them used over and over. WWE certainly uses them as much as, if not more than, any other promotion in the world and it makes sense to have them around. A title change can make things feel that much more important and that was the case during WWE’s most recent pay per view.
Sunday at WWE’s WrestleMania Backlash, Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio defeated Dolph Ziggler and John Morrison to become the new SmackDown Tag Team Champions. Rey began the match on his own due to Dominik being attacked earlier in the night, though Dominik did join in later and scored the winning pin. This was Dominik’s first title in WWE and Rey’s fifth Tag Team Title reign in the company. It also marks the first time that a father and son have become Tag Team Champions in WWE.
That really is history. Check out how the match went:
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Opinion: This is the kind of title chan..

Sometimes change can send you to hell. Money in the Bank is typically the pay-per-view event that we see in June, in which competitors attempt to climb a ladder and retrieve a briefcase that guarantees them a shot at a world title. However, that will not be the case this year.
Tonight at the WrestleMania Backlash pay-per-view event, WWE aired a promo announcing that their next event will in fact be Hell in a Cell, which will stream exclusively on Peacock on Sunday, June 20. This was originally when Money in the Bank would have aired.
Check out the promo video for the show:
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It is unknown the reason for the change or when Money in the Bank will now be held.
Editor’s Opinion:
The more that I think about this, the more it makes sense. Money in the Bank is an event that needs to be held in front of fans and with the CDC updating their guidelines, this may happen sooner than we think. Plus, with the results of the main event of WrestleMania Ba..

Wrestlemania Backlash
Date: May 16, 2021
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Adnan Virk, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves, Pat McAfee, Michael Cole
It’s time for the Wrestlemania fallout pay per view and this time WWE isn’t exactly being subtle with the concept. The Raw side is mainly consisting of Wrestlemania rematches with another name added in, while the Smackdown side actually feels like some fresh matches. Hopefully that mixes together for a good show. Let’s get to it.
Here’s Sheamus to issue the open challenge, non-title of course.
Kickoff Show: Sheamus vs. Ricochet Ricochet hammers away to start but gets taken down with a heck of a clothesline. Sheamus takes him into the corner and pounds him down, setting up the forearms to the chest. The fishhooking (dubbed the Dublin Smile) has Ricochet in even more trouble but Ricochet gets in some kicks to the chest.
The springboard clothesline into the standing shooting star into the Lionsault gives Ricochet two. Sheamu..

It’s time for the followup to Wrestlemania and this time they are making that as obvious as possible by calling the show Wrestlemania Backlash. WWE has run Backlash for years but this time around, WWE does not exactly seem to be putting much effort into the Raw side of things. Smackdown is a different story, but egads Raw is not exactly inspiring me here. Maybe the show can wind up going a bit better in action. Let’s get to it.
Raw Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley(c) vs. Asuka vs. Charlotte There is no word on if WWE is going to do what they want to do and bill this as Charlotte vs. the world, as Asuka and Ripley, the champion, have felt like afterthoughts in the whole thing. That is not exactly a shock but unfortunately it is reality, as Ripley already beat Asuka at Wrestlemania so now it is time to bring Charlotte in. Why? Well because it’s always time to bring Charlotte in.
I’ll take Ripley to retain here though, as I think WWE knows they can’t just put the title right back on Charlotte..

Now for the reaction. Every now and then, the wrestling world gets some pretty bad news as a wrestler or former wrestler passes away. That is never a good thing to hear and that was the case again this week, as former ECW star New Jack passed away from a heart attack at 58 years old. New Jack certainly left his mark on wrestling and now the industry is reacting.
Various wrestlers have reacted to New Jack’s passing, including names from WWE, AEW, ECW, the independent circuit and more. Several wrestlers have commented on New Jack’s unique personality and the energy he brought to his matches. In addition, former ECW owner Paul Heyman commented on New Jack’s passing during this week’s edition of Talking Smack.
Here are some of the many reactions, including New Jack’s wife’s and Heyman’s, plus a look at some of his time in the ring:
WWE is saddened to learn that Jerome Young, known in ECW as New Jack, passed away today at the age of 58.
WWE extends its condolences to Young’s family and ..

Someone has to be next. One of the more interesting stories in wrestling is Kenny Omega as the belt collector. Omega currently holds three different World Titles, including the AAA Mega Title, the Impact Wrestling World Title and of course the AEW World Title. That is quite the collection of gold, but at some point he has to defend the belts. Now we know who is up next for one of them.
This weekend at Impact Wrestling’s Under Siege event, Moose won a six way match to earn the next shot at Omega’s Impact Wrestling World Title. The title match will take place at Against All Odds, an Impact Plus monthly special, on June 12. Moose defeated Chris Bey, Matt Cardona, Sami Callihan, Chris Sabin and Trey Miguel to win the match, pinning Sabin to earn the shot. However, there might be a little something to make the match more interesting.
Earlier this month, Moose revealed on Twitter that his Impact Wrestling contract expires at some point in June. It is not clear when that will be the case, m..