A delay in leaving has kept a large number of WWE talent stuck in Saudi Arabia after Crown Jewel.
It isn’t known what is causing the delay. Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio this morning that it has nothing to do with mechanical problems with the plane, nor is this regarding weather in Buffalo, New York, which is where the SmackDown roster is flying to for tonight’s television.
Meltzer also reported that around 12 wrestlers have been able to leave Saudi Arabia. Vince McMahon is believed to have already traveled home.
At this point, it seems unlikely that those who are still stuck in Saudi Arabia will be able to make it to SmackDown. The flight takes roughly 14 hours to travel from Riyadh to Buffalo.
Roman Reigns vs. Baron Corbin, The Revival vs. The New Day for the SmackDown Tag Team titles, Nikki Cross, Carmella & Dana Brooke vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley, Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville in a six-woman tag match, and new Universal Champion Bray Wyatt appearing on Miz TV have been advertised for tonight’s SmackDown.
Crown Jewel 2019 was the second WWE show to take place in Saudi Arabia this year and the fourth event in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi government. The deal began with the Greatest Royal Rumble in April 2018.
We’ll have a more detailed look next week, but the WWE financial numbers, while beating profit estimates, indicated far more core business declines.
Still, it was more a combination of uncertainty regarding what were expected to be lucrative new contracts in the U.K., India and Middle East as that were talked about more when it came to the huge stock decline after the numbers came out.
WWE stock fell $10,40 per share to $56.04, leaving the company with a market value of $4.408 billion.
The key area of concern to me would be the WWE Network and really all business metrics that involve actual consumer spending.
For the third quarter, the WWE grossed $186,383,000 in revenue and turned a $5,862,000 profit. During the same period last year the company grossed $188,391,000 and turned a $33,691,000 profit. The gross was down even though all the television deals were up. Wall Street was not expecting any profit, but was expecting $192 million in revenue.
A new Universal Champion was crowned in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this afternoon.
In the main event of Crown Jewel, “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt defeated Seth Rollins in a falls count anywhere match to win the Universal title.
Rollins hit several curb stomps on the stage near the finish. He then superkicked The Fiend off the stage and into an area with electrical equipment. A pyro explosion went off and officials sprayed the area with fire extinguishers. Rollins tried to get to The Fiend, but more pyro went off. The Fiend then emerged, put Rollins in the Mandible Claw, and hit Sister Abigail to win the title.
After the crowd rejected the finish to Rollins and The Fiend’s Hell in a Cell match earlier this month, today’s match had a stipulation where it couldn’t end in a stoppage.
Today’s match again had the dark red lighting that WWE used for Rollins vs. The Fiend at Hell in a Cell.
The Fiend defeating Rollins means that the Universal and WWE titles are both currently on SmackDown. Brock Lesnar holds the WWE Championship, and he and The Fiend were picked by SmackDown in the WWE Draft.
This is the second time that Wyatt has held a World title. He won the WWE Championship in February 2017 and dropped it at that year’s WrestleMania.
WWE will follow up on The Fiend’s title win on tomorrow’s episode of SmackDown. A Miz TV segment with Wyatt is set for the show.
The fourth event in WWE’s 10-year deal with Saudi Arabia takes place today as King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh hosts Crown Jewel.
Former UFC champion Cain Velasquez will have his first match for WWE, and boxing star Tyson Fury will make his pro wrestling in-ring debut.
Brock Lesnar will defend the WWE title against Velasquez, who beat Lesnar for the UFC Heavyweight title ten years ago.
Fury, the lineal heavyweight boxing champion, will face Braun Strowman. The two had a confrontation on the first episode of SmackDown on FOX, and the feud has since escalated, including Strowman attacking Fury’s leg at the WWE Performance Center.
Another high-profile match will feature Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan coaching teams in a five-on-five tag match. Flair’s team will consist of Randy Orton, Bobby Lashley, King Corbin, Shinsuke Nakamura & Drew McIntyre. Hogan’s team will feature Roman Reigns, Shorty G, Ali, Rusev & Ricochet.
The pre-show begins at noon Eastern time, with the main card starting an hour later.
**********
Humberto Carrillo won a battle royal to face AJ Styles for the United States title later in the show
A bunch of people, mostly the 24/7 geek squad, came out first. R-Truth, Buddy Murphy, Erick Rowan and Andrade came out and got entrances.
Drake Maverick was eliminated first, with Rowan press slamming him to the floor. Heath Slater followed quickly, then Tony Nese, Brian Kendrick and Eric Young.For whatever reason Sunil, but not Samir Singh, was in the match.
Titus O’Neil eliminated Mojo Rawley, followed by Sin Cara. In case you can’t tell, there’s not much to this match. Titus O’Neil was dumped by Apollo Crews. Remember when they were part of a stable? The commentary team sure didn’t. Now there’s an inset commercial for a show I’m already watching.
Erik Rowan and Luke Harper had a staredown, because I guess they are now enemies, but then No Way Jose came in and tried to break it up with dance. Harper killed him with a discus clothesline and Rowan dumped him. Akira Tozawa, who probably should be on the list of people who should leave, tried to intervene and got dumped quickly as well.
A bunch of eliminations followed, including R-Truth, Apollo Crews, Sunil Singh and Buddy Murphy. Harper and Rowan, Humberto Carillo and Cedric Alexander were the last four remaining. Harper and Rowan beat up both of the smaller men. Cedric tried a comeback but was quickly eliminated.
The Bollywood Boyz started to walk away as R-Truth was still recovering on the outside.He suddenly recovers, shoves Samir and rolls up Sunil to win the 24/7 title. All the geek wrestlers that just got dumped came back out again to chase everyone away.
Harper and Rowan continued to work on Carrillo. Harper went to eliminate Carrillo, but Rowan took the opportunity to dump out Harper as Carrillo fought elimination on the apron. Carrillo quickly got back into the ring and eliminated Rowan to win the match. Not much to this at all.
There was an interview with The New Day on the pre-show. They said that despite setbacks in recent weeks, including Xavier Woods being taken down by a torn Achilles tendon, they’ll win the tag team turmoil match tonight. Robert Roode & Dolph Ziggler and Heavy Machinery said the same.
Brock Lesnar defeated Cain Velasquez to retain the WWE title
Yes, it’s kicking off the show.
They started by exchanging some strikes. Lesnar tried or a takedown but instead took Cain to the corner. Cain with some strikes. Lesnar takes him back to the corner. Cain strikes Lesnar with a big kick and takes him down. Cain starts striking Lesnar, but Lesnar puts Cain in the kimura and Cain…submits. Yes, that quickly. I am guessing this was booked to be like an MMA match. Not much of anything.
Lesnar wouldn’t let go of the kimura lock after the match. Mysterio broke it up with a chairshot, but Lesnar immediately dumped him out of the ring and laid out Cain with an F5 on the chair. Rey Mysterio came back with a chair and hit him enough times that Lesnar retreated. My feeling is they’ll do a rubber match but Cain came off like such a nothing here.
The Revival and The Viking Raiders said words about the tag team match.
Anderson & Gallows won a tag team turmoil match
Lucha House Party and Roode & Ziggler starts things off. Heels get the heat on Lince Dorado. Dorado cuts off Roode and tags in Metalik. Dorado tried to take out Ziggler on the outside, but eats a superkick. Ziggler superkicked Metalik and Roode planted him with the Glorious DDT for the elimination.
Hawkins & Ryder came next and cleared house, but Ryder was quickly taken down and pinned with a spinebuster/zig zag combo.
Heavy Machinery came next. Tucker got the better of Ziggler, but Roode quickly cut him off when tagged in. They get the heat on Tucker until Ziggler misses a splash in the corner and tags in Otis, who clears house. He went for the caterpillar on Roode.
Tucker laid out Ziggler on the outside as Otis caught Roode, allowing both of them to hit the compactor for the elimination.
New Day were next. Tucker and Big E had a nice exchange where they looked pretty agile. Heavy Machinery got the heat, but Kofi made a comeback and laid out Otis with the Trouble in Paradise. Big E is tagged back, then tags back Kofi after Tucker missed a crossbody. They hit the Midnight Hour to eliminate them.
B-Team are next. Astonishingly this didn’t last long, but at the same time it lasted long enough for a Bo Dallas resthold sequence. Kofi took out Bo Dallas with a trust fall then Big E pinned Axel with the Big Ending.
Revival were next and isolated Kofi, working him over. Kofi hit the SOS but still couldn’t tag in. Kofi then pinned Dawson with a cradle out of nowhere. Dash and Dawson were not happy about that and beat up both men, laying out Kofi with the shatter machine.
Gallows & Anderson came out next and went for the magic killer but Kofi escaped. He tried to tag in Big E, but Big E was taken out and Kofi ended up getting pinned with the magic killer.
The Viking Raiders are the last team in. Anderson clips the leg of Erik as Gallows gets the heat in the ring. Both tag out as Ivar does his hot comeback. The two work over Anderson and go for a double team, but Gallows cuts them off. They went for the magic killer on Ivar but Erik breaks it up. Erik went to suplex Gallows but Anderson clipped Erik’s leg then landed the magic killer on him for the win. They are the best tag team in the world despite being in a very long, nothing happening match.
Mansoor defeated Cesaro
Mansoor went for a handshake, but Cesaro refused. Mansoor hit a standing moonsault for a two count. Cesaro punched Mansoor as they went for a clean break. Mansoor dropkicked Cesaro out of the ring and went for a suicide dive, but Cesaro hit an uppercut as he left the ropes. Mansoor is clearly very athletic and knows where he needs to be for everything.
Cesaro wore down Mansoor in the ring with a chinlock, then went for a sleeper. Mansoor countered with one of his own, but Cesaro countered with a back suplex. Cesaro went for something on the top rope, but Mansoor cut him off with a big dropkick.
Mansoor made his comeback, taking Cesaro out of the ring with a hurricanrana and wiping him out on the outside with a tope con hilo. He follows that up with a tornado DDT. Cesaro shoved Mansoor into the ref, attacked Mansoor’s throat and rolled him up but only got a two count.
Mansoor hit a springboard neckbreaker but Cesaro put his foot on the rope. Mansoor tried to follow with something on the top rope, but Cesaro cut him off, grabbed him on the apron and hit a gutwrench suplex. Cesaro planted him with an uppercut and a crossface, but Mansoor countered with a pin attempt.
Cesaro cut off Mansoor on the top rope and went to gutwrench Mansoor off there, but Mansoor countered with a sunset flip powerbomb. Mansoor then hit the moonsault for the win. Honestly this was one of the best matches WWE has put out in this country. Cesaro is consistently one of the better wrestlers WWE has and Mansoor showed a ton in this match, he definitely has something.
Mansoor after the match says he woke up this morning and looked in the mirror, saying that this was his most important match. He admitted he was scared, but then he stepped into the ring in front of this crowded and remembered anything is possible. This was the most important victory in his life. He cannot wait what we do next. We dreamed that one day there would be a Saudi star in WWE.
Seth Rollins backstage says this ends tonight. The Fiend brought out the worst of him. There has always been mind games, but this is different. It is uncomfortable and unsettling. No matter what happens tonight, he didn’t pick this fight. He didn’t start it but he will finish it. He will be Universal champion after tonight, no matter what it takes.
Tyson Fury defeated Braun Strowman by count out
Tyson Fury got an incredible entrance, with tons of pyro and “It’s Your Thing” by the Isley Brothers playing in the background. Fury came out in a Saudi outfit. It was here where I felt Braun’s chances of winning evaporated.
They locked up, with Braun getting the advantage with a wrist lock. Fury did the slowest kip up I’ve seen in some time. Braun quickly got the advantage, but missed a charge in the corner after Fury dodged and posted himself. Braun tackled Fury on the outside and went for a running pounce but Fury cut him off with a boot to the chest.
Braun went for a powerslam but Fury escaped, did a drop toe hold into the ropes then followed with a boot for a two count. Braun tackled Fury into the corner then punched him in the chest. Fury sat up like the Undertaker but Braun tackled him back down. Fury cut off Strowman with a boot, but Strowman came right back with the world’s strongest slam.
Strowman hit the running shoulder tackle on the outside and then hit another one. He threw Fury into the ring, but Fury punched him as he was coming back to the ring. Braun sold it like was knocked out as the referee counted to ten. This looked bad in a few spots, but otherwise this was harmless and not really much of note.
After the match, Strowman was unhappy and laid out Fury with his powerslam finish. Fury got up immediately after and no sold it. Oops.
They aired a WWE 2K20 commercial. I wrote about that here.
All the 24/7 geeks are running around backstage. R-Truth avoids them, but runs into both Bollywood Boyz. R-Truth said he had an escape plan. His escape plan was running into the door he came out of. Ha ha ha. Samir Singh covered him and won the title again.
AJ Styles defeated Humberto Carrillo to retain the United States title
Styles immediately jumped Carrillo at the bell and got the heat on him pretty quickly. Carrillo came back with a handspring elbow, but AJ plants him and hits a big brainbuster for a two count.
Carrillo came back with a cool springboard armdrag and a moonsault. Styles cut him off with the pele kick. Both men wind up on the apron. Humberto hit a kick and a palm strike and followed with a dropkick. Big corkscrew moonsault to the floor by Carrillo. Carrillo went for a hurricane but Styles went for the Styles Clash, but Carrillo escaped.
Styles went for the Styles Clash again but Carrillo made it to the ropes. Carrillo tweaked his knee and Styles immediately honed in on it, landing the calf crusher. Carrillo escapes and takes down Styles with a kick. He went for a moonsault, but Styles avoids it. Carrillo lands on his feet, but tweaks his leg. This gives Styles the opportunity to get the advantage and lay out Carrillo with the phenomenal forearm for the win. Pretty fun match. Carrillo is great, but so are many others who have been put in this position.
Hulk Hogan says that after 35 years he’s going to put this thing with Ric Flair to rest. He says he made his team train and drink sand when they were thirsty. That’s not very healthy.
Natalya defeated Lacey Evans
Both women were covered head to toe, including wearing t-shirts over their gear.
The crowd was into this from the start. Lots of camera shots to women in the crowd. They chain wrestled for a bit. Natalya went for a sharpshooter but Evans escaped. Nattie threw Lacey to the outside but Lacey clipped her leg. She landed a springboard elbow for a two count.
Lacey hits a springboard moonsault, then posed on the top rope, but Nattie suddenly sprung to life, took her down and started a comeback. She went for the sharpshooter and sure enough that was it. Perfectly fine.
Nattie and Lacey shook hands after the match and posed with women in the crowd. Both were emotional in a moment that clearly was important to them.
Michael Cole and Corey Graves pushed hard how special this moment was, with Cole saying “if you push and push and push enough, change is going to happen”. Maybe the Saudi government will be so moved by this they’ll free the women they’ve imprisoned for protesting the right to drive.
Team Hogan (Roman Reigns, Shorty G, Ali, Rusev and Ricochet) defeated Team Flair (Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinskue Nakamura, Randy Orton and Drew McIntyre)
Nakamura and Shorty G start things off. They start what was a pretty fun exchange before Nakamura tags in Corbin. Ali and Corbin exchange some stuff before Bobby Lashley and Rusev are tagged in. Lashley quickly tags out to McIntyre.
Corbin shoved Ali, who was going to the top rope, all the way to the floor and into the barricade. All of Team Flair got the heat on Ali for a very long period of time until he hit a DDT on McIntyre. He finally tags out to Ricochet, wearing new Liger-esque attire, who made a comeback. Corbin distracted Ricochet long enough for McIntyre to cut him off. He tagged in Orton, who continued to work him over.
After also being worked on for a long time, Ricochet cuts off Orton and tags in Reigns, who makes the hot comeback. Everyone came in the ring to do their thing. Ricochet got backen out by the claymore kick. Rusev cleared everyone and cornered Lashley. The two went to blows.
Lashley dumped Rusev to the floor but walked into a superman punch by Reigns. He sent Lashley to the outside and did a big flying splash, taking out all of Team Flair. Reigns went to finish Orton but walked into an RKO for a two count. Orton motions for the punt kick, but Shorty G and Ali distracted him. Ricochet and Gable took out a lot of Team Flair and Reigns hit the spear on Orton for the win. This felt like an okay Raw match but it wasn’t anything you needed to go out of your way to see.
The Fiend Bray Wyatt defeated Seth Rollins to win the WWE Universal title
The red lighting is still here. Talk about not getting it.
They start off with some back and forth. Seth already goes for the stomp but the fiend avoids it. Wyatt threw Rollins into the crowd and they both wind up on top of equipment boxes. I can barely see what anything is because of this stupid lighting.
They went back outside of the ring where Rollins stomped on Wyatt, who proceeded to no sell it and laid out Rollins on the apron. Wyatt tried to do a running charge into the barricade but Seth dodged, sending Wyatt into the barricade himself. Seth took out a table and attacked Wyatt with the cowl of the announce table.
Rollins sets up multiple tables on the outside as he pelted Wyatt with steel chair shots. He then took out the sledgehammer. He set up Wyatt on the chair and was about to hit Wyatt with the sledgehammer but Wyatt came back to life and attacked him, throwing Rollins over the Arabic announce table.
Rollins set up the Fiend on the announce table, but once again Wyatt came back to life and pushed Rollins off the turnbuckle into the tables that Rollins had set up earlier. Wyatt removed the ring mats on the outside and went to plant Rollins with the Sister Abigail but Rollins cut him off with an enziguri. He hit a stomp on the concrete, but Wyatt kicked out.
Using a chair, Rollins took Wyatt back into the crowd on top of what I guess was a platform but Wyatt planted him with a STO. Wyatt dragged Rollins to the entrance and yet again. Seth stomped him, only for Wyatt to no sell it. This is so dead as a finish. Another stomp. Another. More. Again. One more time.
Seth superkicked Wyatt, causing him to fall into an electrical area. A bunch of pyro exploded. Officials came out with fire extinguishers. Seth made his way to the area and tried to clear it. But suddenly, Wyatt emerged and latched onto the mandible claw on Seth, taking him to the floor. He then wiped out Rollins with the Sister Abigail and pinned him to win the title.
This was way better than their match last month, but that’s low praise as aside from a few cool bumps, there wasn’t much here. The lighting is a huge distraction and hurt the match as well.
The lights went out. The fiend then appeared on stage with the Universal title, then disappeared. The show ended with a big fireworks display.
This was marginally better than previous shows in the country, with Mansoor vs. Cesaro being a real good match. But other than that and Styles/Carrillo, there wasn’t much here.
The fourth show in WWE’s partnership with Saudi Arabia will include the first women’s match in the country.
At a media event today, WWE announced that Natalya vs. Lacey Evans will take place at Crown Jewel this Thursday (October 31). The show is being held at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh and will air live on the WWE Network. The pre-show begins at noon Eastern time, with the main card starting an hour later.
Natalya tweeted about the announcement: “The world will be watching. I am so incredibly proud to represent our women’s division tomorrow night at #WWECrownJewel. It’s time to bring your best, Lacey.”
Natalya and Evans had been pictured among the talent that traveled to Saudi Arabia for Crown Jewel.
WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority began with the Greatest Royal Rumble in April 2018. After the show, the General Sports Authority apologized for an “indecent” advertisement that aired and included women in their wrestling gear.
A pre-Crown Jewel media event will stream live on the WWE Network and WWE’s YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter accounts early Wednesday morning:
It was announced on Tuesday that “WWE Superstars are set to meet the media in Saudi Arabia one day before they take center stage at WWE Crown Jewel.” The media event will begin at 4:20 a.m. Eastern time.
The Crown Jewel pre-show will begin at noon Eastern this Thursday, with the main card starting an hour later.
This year’s Crown Jewel is the fourth event in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority. The Greatest Royal Rumble took place in April 2018, the first Crown Jewel was held last November, and Super ShowDown took place this June.
The card for Thursday’s show is listed below:
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar defending against Cain Velasquez
Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury
Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against The Fiend in a falls count anywhere match (WWE has announced a stipulation where the match can’t end in a stoppage)
Team Hogan (Roman Reigns, Rusev, Ricochet, Ali & Shorty G) w/ Hulk Hogan vs. Team Flair (Randy Orton, King Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura & Drew McIntyre) w/ Ric Flair
United States Champion AJ Styles defending against battle royal winner
Mansoor vs. Cesaro
World Cup tag team turmoil match (The New Day, The Viking Raiders, Heavy Machinery, The Lucha House Party, Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins, The Revival, The O.C., Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode, and The B-Team)
20-man battle royal to determine AJ Styles’ challenger for later that night (Apollo Crews, Buddy Murphy, Andrade, Drake Maverick, Eric Young, Luke Harper, Cedric Alexander, Heath Slater, Humberto Carrillo, No Way Jose, Sunil Singh, Mojo Rawley, Erick Rowan, R-Truth, Sin Cara, Brian Kendrick, Titus O’Neil, Tony Nese, Akira Tozawa, and Shelton Benjamin) (pre-show)
With both nights of the draft, free agent roster additions, and even a trade now out of the way, the new rosters for Raw and SmackDown look to be set.
WWE’s handling of the draft may have been lackluster, but this is a pivotal time for the company. If WWE is really going to commit to the brand split and making Raw and SmackDown stand out as different from each other, they need to get the roster mix right. They’re also working with two different television partners and will need to make sure FOX and USA Network don’t feel like they’re playing second fiddle to the other.
WWE is a promotion that’s overloaded with talent. That would seem like the ideal environment for a brand split, but the company’s lack of top-tier stars has been a barrier to the roster split’s long-term sustainability. When there’s a ratings slip, it’s easy to say Becky Lynch or Roman Reigns not being on both shows is the reason for it. And while the Wild Card rule may not have been overly popular, any of its short-term effects were probably a positive for ratings.
Here’s what the new Raw and SmackDown rosters look like coming out of the draft:
Current subscribers click here to continue reading.
We have a huge double issue this week, with a special Hall of Fame feature, some shocking ratings news from overseas, New Japan’s international expansion, Randy Couture’s heart attack and coverage of the major shows.We also cover:
The situation with Nate Diaz and why the UFC 244 main event looks to be in jeopardy.
New Japan Pro Wrestling’s opening up a new U.S. outpost. We look at what the goals of the company are for 2020, who is in charge, why they are in charge, who surprisingly isn’t involved and why. We look at how the U.S. market has changed for New Japan, ticket sales for the upcoming shows, how it would be best served for New Japan in this market and the lessons learned from what they’ve done so far.
The difference between the fans in Japan and the U.S. for New Japan, the type of buildings they are looking at running and the ultimate goals.
Update on the situation with Randy Couture.
WWE Crown Jewel, with the lineup and circumstances of the show.
AAA Heroes Inmortales with the Kenny Omega vs Fenix AAA title change as well as a look at the rest of the show.
Xavier Woods, have all the Canadian TV ratings, 2020 NXT plans, Randy Orton update, Seth Rollins talks Kenny Omega, WWE news regarding lineup for the Mexico City show, major WWE signing, Update on 205 Live, WWE 2K commercial news, former Lucha Underground star talking with WWE, Dana White talks Cain Velasquez in WWE, former New Japan star teaching at performance center, reasons for the stock price decline, most watched shows this past week on the WWE Network, as well as a rundown of all the NXT and WWE shows, with match-by-match coverage and business news.
Impact Bound for Glory, with match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.
A huge feature looking at the 2019 Hall of Fame elections, strongest and weakest candidates with bios on a lot of the different performers. We look at everyone’s strengths ad weaknesses as well as the leading still active candidates.
A complete rundown of the Wednesday night wars over the past two weeks, how both shows are doing in every segment and with every demo group. We look at the median age of viewers, how the World Series affected viewing and more.
Full coverage of all the WWE and AEW television shows from the past week.
In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.
The results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
Current subscribers click here to continue reading.
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TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
Hulk Hogan apparently had trouble getting to Saudi Arabia. In a video, he described a hard landing in Iceland, with tires and brakes suffering serious damage. He then explained that a friend of his from Minnesota had a plane that would take him and Jimmy Hart to Riyadh. PWInsider later reported that Ric Flair was also with them on the plane and they got a ride to Riyadh from Brock Lesnar.
John Cena announced yesterday that he is planning on donating $500,000 to a charity of Paramount Pictures’ choosing as long as it aids first responders. Paramount Pictures responded by saying they would be donating the money to the Los Angeles Fire Department and the California Fire Foundation. Fires have been raging in California in the last week, forcing evacuations.
Seth Rollins did a promo after his match last night talking about his perceived lack of respect, saying “There’s been a lot of disrespect lately, I feel like. The Fiend is cool, fresh, and new and has this cult following. And that just puts a chip on my shoulder. I feel like I’m out here every single week, busting my back, breaking my back, putting this whole company on my back sometimes. And I don’t get the respect I deserve because there’s this new flavor of ice cream.”
The dark match main event from last night’s Raw was Seth Rollins defeating The Fiend Bray Wyatt in a steel cage match after Rollins stomped Wyatt several times then escaped through the cage.
The company will be reporting their third quarter earnings on Thursday.
There has was a livestream on WWE’s YouTube that aired for about three hours featuring The Boogeyman.
Musician Poppy is advertised for tomorrow’s episode of NXT.
The Chicago Cubs jobber team from last night’s Raw were Mike Sydal (brother of Matt) and Kyle Roberts.
Corey Graves spoke to CBS New York about the past year of his life, as well as Crown Jewel and the move to FOX.
Pro Wrestling
Here is the opening to tonight’s Impact premiere on AXS TV.
AEW has filed a trademark for the Inner Circle logo.
It was announced on NWA Powerrr Xtra that Jocephus has been (in storyline) suspended for 45 days following his attack on Colt Cabana on last week’s Powerrr.
Ohio Valley Wrestling will now be streaming their broadcast live on Tuesdays each week on YouTube at 8 p.m. EST.
Tenille Dashwood spoke to Chris Van Vliet on her WWE release, AEW and Impact.
Tickets for DEFY Wrestling’s Age of War go on sale this Friday, November 1. More information here.
MMA
Dana White says that Paulo Costa is out for eight months following bicep surgery and is currently looking for a new title defense for Israel Adesanya.
Henry Cejudo is refusing to fight Joseph Benavides and instead is looking at fights against Dominick Cruz or Frankie Edgar.
All 20 participants for this Thursday’s United States title number one contender’s battle royal have been revealed.
The battle royal will take place on the Crown Jewel pre-show, with the winner going on to challenge AJ Styles for the United States Championship on the main card. The one-hour pre-show will begin at noon Eastern time.
The entrants for the battle royal are: Apollo Crews, Buddy Murphy, Andrade, Drake Maverick, Eric Young, Luke Harper, Cedric Alexander, Heath Slater, Humberto Carrillo, No Way Jose, 24/7 Champion Sunil Singh, Mojo Rawley, Erick Rowan, R-Truth, Sin Cara, Brian Kendrick, Titus O’Neil, Tony Nese, Akira Tozawa, and Shelton Benjamin.
Styles defeated Carrillo in a non-title match on tonight’s Raw. The Street Profits then saved Carrillo from The O.C. in a post-match angle.
Crown Jewel is being held at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It’s the fourth event in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority.
Here’s the updated lineup for the show:
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar defending against Cain Velasquez
Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury
Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against The Fiend in a falls count anywhere match (WWE has announced a stipulation where the match can’t end in a stoppage)
Team Hogan (Roman Reigns, Rusev, Ricochet, Ali & Shorty G) w/ Hulk Hogan vs. Team Flair (Randy Orton, King Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura & Drew McIntyre) w/ Ric Flair
United States Champion AJ Styles defending against battle royal winner
Mansoor vs. Cesaro
World Cup tag team turmoil match (The New Day, The Viking Raiders, Heavy Machinery, The Lucha House Party, Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins, The Revival, The O.C., Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode, and The B-Team)
20-man battle royal to determine AJ Styles’ challenger for later that night (pre-show)
The United States Championship will be on the line at Crown Jewel next Thursday (October 31).
WWE announced today that there will be a 20-man battle royal at Crown Jewel. The winner of it will advance to challenge for AJ Styles’ United States title that same night.
WWE hasn’t revealed any of the battle royal participants.
Styles has been United States Champion since defeating Ricochet for the title at Extreme Rules this July.
Crown Jewel is taking place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It will air live on the WWE Network, with the main card starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time.
Here’s the updated lineup for the show
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar defending against Cain Velasquez
Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury
Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt in a falls count anywhere match (WWE has announced a stipulation where the match can’t end in a stoppage)
Team Hogan (Roman Reigns, Rusev, Ricochet, Ali & Chad Gable) w/ Hulk Hogan vs. Team Flair (Randy Orton, Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura & Drew McIntyre) w/ Ric Flair
United States Champion AJ Styles defending against battle royal winner
Mansoor vs. Cesaro
World Cup tag team turmoil match (The New Day, The Viking Raiders, Heavy Machinery, The Lucha House Party, Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins, The Revival, The O.C., Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode, and The B-Team announced)
20-man battle royal to determine AJ Styles’ challenger for that night
The build to Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury at Crown Jewel continued with an angle shot at the WWE Performance Center.
WWE posted a video tonight of Fury training inside of a ring at the Performance Center. The boxing star was practicing shoulder tackles. When he went for a second one, Strowman appeared out of nowhere and blindsided Fury with a shoulder tackle of his own.
In storyline, Fury was favoring his ankle after the tackle. NXT coach Robbie Brookside yelled at Strowman as he left the Performance Center, and Strowman and Fury both said they’d see each other at Crown Jewel.
Video of the angle is available to watch below:
Crown Jewel is taking place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 31. It will air live on the WWE Network, with the main card starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time.
This year’s Crown Jewel is the fourth event in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority. It began with the Greatest Royal Rumble in April 2018.
The final member of Team Flair has been revealed, completing the lineup for next week’s Crown Jewel ten man tag.
Ric Flair revealed tonight on Raw that Drew McIntyre is the final member of Team Flair. He has been gone from WWE for the last couple of months due to injury. He rounds out the team that now consists of himself, Bobby Lashley, Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura and King Corbin.
Hulk Hogan’s team consists of Roman Reigns, Rusev, Ali, Ricochet and Shorty G. Hogan revealed on SmackDown this past Friday night that Reigns would be the final member of his team.
Next week’s card will also feature Mansoor vs. Cesaro, Seth Rollins vs. The Fiend in a Falls Count Anywhere match for the Universal title, Cain Velasquez vs. Brock Lesnar for the WWE title, Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury and a Tag Team turmoil match where the winners will receive the World Cup trophy.
Crown Jewel takes place October 31 at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
After the way Hell in a Cell ended, WWE is advertising that Seth Rollins’ next match against The Fiend “can’t be stopped for any reason.”
Rollins will defend his Universal Championship against The Fiend in a falls count anywhere match at Crown Jewel. The stipulation where the match won’t be able to end in a referee stoppage was announced on tonight’s SmackDown.
Rollins and The Fiend’s Hell in a Cell match appeared to end in a disqualification or no contest after Rollins used a sledgehammer. WWE called the finish a “match-stoppage ruling that led to Rollins retaining the title.”
Rollins was laid out by The Fiend after their match at Hell in a Cell.
Crown Jewel is taking place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 31. Here’s what’s been announced for the show:
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar defending against Cain Velasquez
Braun Strowman vs. Tyson Fury
Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt in a falls count anywhere match (match “can’t be stopped for any reason”)
Team Hogan (Roman Reigns, Rusev, Ricochet, Ali & Chad Gable) w/ Hulk Hogan vs. Team Flair (Randy Orton, Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura, and a partner) w/ Ric Flair
Mansoor vs. Cesaro
World Cup tag team turmoil match (The New Day, The Viking Raiders, Heavy Machinery, The Lucha House Party, Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins, The Revival, The O.C., Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode, and The B-Team announced)
The lineup for the Team Hogan vs. Team Flair match at Crown Jewel is almost fully set.
On tonight’s SmackDown, it was announced that Roman Reigns, Ali, and Shorty G (Chad Gable) will be on Team Hogan. They’ll be teaming with Rusev & Ricochet against Team Flair in the five-on-five tag match.
Randy Orton, King Corbin, Bobby Lashley & Shinsuke Nakamura will be on Team Flair. The last member of their team has yet to be revealed.
Reigns is the captain of Team Hogan, while Orton is the captain of Team Flair. Seth Rollins was originally announced as the captain of Team Hogan, but he was removed from the match after it was announced that he’ll be defending his Universal Championship against The Fiend in a falls count anywhere match at Crown Jewel.
Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair will both be appearing on SmackDown next week, which is airing live on FS1 due to game three of the World Series being on FOX.
Hogan and Flair are the coaches of their teams but won’t be wrestling in the match.
Crown Jewel is taking place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 31. It will air live on the WWE Network, with the main card starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time.
Rollins was originally announced as the captain for Hogan’s team, but Rollins will instead be wrestling in a different match at the show. As was announced on Monday’s Raw, Rollins will defend his Universal Championship against The Fiend in a falls count anywhere match at Crown Jewel.
Rusev, Ricochet, and three partners will be on Team Hogan, while Randy Orton, Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura, and a partner will be on Team Flair. Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are the coaches of the teams and won’t be wrestling in the match.
Crown Jewel is taking place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 31. It will air live on the WWE Network, with the main card starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time.
The firing of Eric Bischoff, which was not a shock to those close to the situation, happened this morning.
Both Bruce Prichard and brand head writer Ed Koskey will be the main people in charge of the show going forward. What was interesting is that Bischoff was brought in partially on the recommendation of Prichard and the two had been working together on the show.
In other WWE news, regarding the Crown Jewel show, Seth Rollins at this point is only scheduled to work one match on the event, his falls count anywhere Universal Championship match with Bray Wyatt. Rollins was originally set to be the captain of Team Hogan in the five vs. five Team Hogan vs. Team Flair match. As of right now, he is no longer scheduled for the match and his removal will likely be addressed on television over the next week.
Regarding The Usos, after Jimmy’s most recent arrest for a DUI in late July, The Usos and Naomi were all taken off the road. While they were at a recent television taping backstage, there is right now no creative for them nor return date, nor a decision regarding which brand they will be with. Because of that, they weren’t involved in the draft.
Also, Luke Harper & Erick Rowan have been broken up as an act.
