NEWS

It’s the last big stop on the Road To Wrestlemania and for a five match card, four of them are big and the fifth includes some Hall of Famers. This show is pretty much stacked with either big matches or the awesome sounding main event. While the show is called Elimination Chamber, the whole thing is about Roman Reigns defending the World Title against hometown boy Sami Zayn. Let’s get to it.
Edge/Beth Phoenix vs. Finn Balor/Rhea Ripley Somehow this is the least important match on the show as Edge’s war against the Judgment Day continues. In this case, he is bringing in the wife to go after Ripley, who is on her way to WrestleMania. This should be a good, long tag match as all four can do well in a spot like this one. That being said, it doesn’t help that this feels like it is only there to set up something at Wrestlemania.
I’ll take Judgment Day here, as Ripley pinning Phoenix would make her look like a bigger deal on what could be her path to the main event of the first night of Wre..

Rampage
Date: February 17, 2023
Location: Saves Auto Arena, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Chris Jericho, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur
It’s a special show this week with the show on at 7pm instead of the usual 10pm due to the NBA coverage. Therefore the show is call Slam Dunk as AEW stacks the card because it might be able to draw a good bit more fans this week. Hopefully that is the case as Rampage hasn’t felt important in a few weeks now. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Trios Titles: Elite vs. AR Fox/Top Flight The Elite is defending and since this is Slam Dunk, there are a lot basketballs as props. Dante and Nick start things off by throwing a basketball at each other. Nick hits Matt in the face with the ball by mistake though and the champs are kicked out to the floor early on. Fox dives onto all of them in a pair of dives and then adds a third with a basketball. Back in and Omega grabs a headlock before running Fox over with a shoulder.
The basketball comes back in and ..

He isn’t a fan. Over the last few years, AEW owner Tony Khan has gone from little more than a fan to one of the more important players in the wrestling world. Khan not only helped found AEW but has also purchased Ring Of Honor. That is the kind of move that almost never takes place in wrestling but Khan made it work. Khan also maintains quite the Twitter presence and it came up again this week.
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This week on SmackDown, combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani made an appearance in the crowd, hyping up Sami Zayn’s speech later in the show. Khan mentioned the appearance on Twitter, calling Helwani “a fraud” and saying he was as legitimate of a reporter as AEW’s Tony Schiavone. Helwani responded later in the night, thanking Khan for watching and saying he “can’t wait for our next chat”. Helwani also told Schiavone not to listen to Khan. This comes after Khan appeared on Helwani’s show last year and refused ..

Smackdown
Date: February 17, 2023
Location: Bell Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett
We are a day away from Elimination Chamber and that means this is likely to be the Sami Zayn show. Tomorrow night the hometown boy Zayn gets his shot at Roman Reigns and I think the people might be a bit interested. Other than that we have Gunther defending the Intercontinental Title against Madcap Moss. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last week’s Usos/Bloodline drama, with Jimmy Uso getting caught lying about Jey Uso and Sami Zayn. Hence Roman Reigns telling the Usos to stay home this week.
Natalya/Shotzi vs. Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler Fallout from Rousey and Baszler hurting both of them. Baszler cranks on Natalya’s arm to start and it’s quickly off to Rousey for another battle over arm control. Shotzi comes in to actually take Rousey down, setting up Cattle Mutilation of all things. Rousey powers out but gets sent outside, allowing Shotzi to hit a pr..

Yeah he’s big. AEW has accomplished a lot of things over its short history, but the biggest might be bringing so many new names to a much higher level. Fans have been exposed to various wrestlers who might never have gotten a chance otherwise and that has shaken up the wrestling world a bit. WWE has seen them as well, and now it seems that they have their eye on a top AEW name.
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Jay White seems to be on his way out of New Japan Pro Wrestling, having lost a Loser Leaves Japan match and being set for a match where he cannot wrestle for the promotion again should he loser. However, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE is reportedly interested in bringing in an even bigger name.
According to Wrestlingnews.co, that name would be former AEW World Champion Kenny Omega, whose AEW contract is reportedly set to expire soon. However, according to Fightful Select, there is the chance that A..

That’s a big one. NXT is in a unique place as the television show is designed to be entertaining, but the wrestlers are there to develop well enough to be moved up to the main roster. It can be a career making moment for someone to get the call and it often comes after a huge match takes place. Now we might be ready to see what could be a huge promotion for someone.
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Starting at Vengeance Day, Carmelo Hayes has targeted Bron Breakker and the NXT Title. While no match has been confirmed, Breakker has mentioned that it is the match people want to see. According to Wrestling Observer Live, WWE is planning to bring the loser of a Breakker vs. Hayes match up to the main roster. There is no word on if Trick Williams would be called up with Hayes.
It’s a special one. Check out what might be coming up from NXT, and some of the best NXT appearances on the main roster:
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That’s a lot. The biggest wrestling story of the year thus far is Vince McMahon returning to WWE to steer the company towards a sale. That is the kind of move that can change the wrestling world forever as the new owners could completely reshape WWE into something very different. Now we know another detail that could change the entire sale process by eliminating some competitors.
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According to Bloomberg, McMahon has targeted $9 billion as the selling price for WWE. This is reportedly 37% higher than the market value of $6.5 billion. The main potential buyer is said to be Endeavor Group Holdings, which owns the UFC, though they would likely need a third party to help them reach the purchase price. WWE has made no comments on potential buyers.
WWE has done some money related things before. Check out some of their best:
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It might work for her. Wrestlers have a long history with acting as the theory goes that wrestlers are already acting so they might be able to act on screen. That theory has only worked on occasion though as many wrestlers have tried and failed to start acting careers. It hasn’t stopped anyone though and now another wrestler might be in line for a huge movie role.

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According to Giant Freakin Robot, WWE star Ronda Rousey is up for the role of Thundra in the upcoming “Captain America: New World Order” film. The film, the fourth in the Captain America film, is expected to be released on May 3, 2024. There is no word on how close Rousey is to accepting the role or how big of a role it would be. Rousey has dabbled in acting over the years, including in the Fast And The Furious and Expendables franchises.
Rousey is already successful in the wrestling world. Check out some of her time there:
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There he is again. There are all kinds of reasons for wrestlers to take some time away from the ring, some of which have nothing to do with someone being unable to wrestle. Sometimes the departures are merely ways to advance a storyline and set up something down the road. That was the case this week, when a wrestler returned after a two month hiatus to set up a showdown.
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The main event of this week’s edition of AEW Rampage saw Dustin Rhodes defeat Swerve Strickland via DQ when Parker Boudreaux attacked Rhodes. After the match, Keith Lee made his return to save Rhodes and end the show. This was the first time that Lee had appeared since December, when Strickland and Mogul Affiliates had crushed a cinder block over Lee’s chest. Lee also appeared clean shaven and his hair was gray instead of black.
It was a big deal. Check out Lee’s return, plus what is back:
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That’s a different way to go. Late last year, Bray Wyatt returned to WWE television after a year and a half absence. Since then, he has developed a still somewhat confusing relationship with a masked man named Uncle Howdy and defeated LA Knight in a match at the Royal Rumble. That still feels like a warmup for Wyatt, and now we might have an idea of where he is going next.
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This week on SmackDown, Wyatt and Howdy interrupted a Hit Row promo and took out the team. After, Wyatt said that he was back in control of his mind before bringing up Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley at Elimination Chamber. Wyatt said that whoever won the match should be ready to run, suggesting that the winner would be facing Wyatt at some point in the future. Neither Lashley nor Lesnar have ever faced Wyatt in a singles match.
This could be interesting. Check out the comments, plus who Wyatt is comi..

Impact Wrestling
Date: February 16, 2023
Location: Osceola Heritage Park, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt
We are some amount of days away from No Surrender and that means it is time for some other qualifying match for the #1 contenders match. Other than that, hopefully we get more build towards Josh Alexander defending the World Title against Rich Swann. Also hopefully, we get less build towards the eventual Tommy Dreamer vs. Bully Ray showdown. Let’s get to it.
In Memory Of Jerry Jarrett.
Opening recap.
Chris Bey vs. Kushida Ace Austin/the Motor City Machine Guns are the seconds. Kushida takes him down without much trouble to start with Bey having to bail to the ropes. Bey picks up the speed and sweeps out the leg before hitting a kick to the head. They head outside with Kushida getting sent into the apron, only to kick the arm out on the way back inside.
The arm is slammed into the mat and Kushida twists it around for a bonus. Bey heads outside and ..

Yeah she’ll do. With WrestleMania 39 just over a month away, WWE is starting to put together some of its plans for the biggest show of the year. That can include a variety of changes, including bringing in some names from the past for special appearances. It seems that WWE had to scrap such a plan for one reason or another, but now we know more of what they had in mind.
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According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE Hall Of Famer Trish Stratus was scheduled to appear on the February 13 Monday Night Raw but the plan was canceled. While not confirmed, the change was rumored to be due to Dakota Kai’s injury. Stratus is still expected to return, though the planned match for WrestleMania 39 still calls for Damage Ctrl to defend the Women’s Tag Team Titles against Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler. There is no word on how Stratus might be used.
Stratus has done a lot at Wrest..