Though he wasn’t even originally supposed to challenge for the title, Brock Lesnar walked out of Day 1 as the new WWE Champion.
Lesnar won the WWE Championship by defeating Big E, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal five-way match in the main event of Day 1. Lesnar had been scheduled to challenge for Roman Reigns’ Universal Championship at the pay-per-view, but he was instead added to the WWE Championship match after Reigns tested positive for COVID-19. WWE announced the change just hours before the Day 1 main card began.
Lesnar pinned Big E to win the WWE title after hitting an F-5. Lashley had Lesnar in the Hurt Lock near the finish of the match, but Big E broke it up. Big E gave Lashley the Big Ending and then went to hit the move on Lesnar, but Lesnar slipped out and hit the F-5 to get the win.
Lashley stared down Lesnar from outside the ring after the match.
During the match, there was a moment where Lashley speared Lesnar through the barricade. Lashley also got a near fall at one point after hitting a spear on Lesnar in the ring.
In storyline, Lesnar is a free agent and is able to appear on both Raw and SmackDown.
Big E was WWE Champion going into tonight’s PPV. He cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase on an episode of Raw last September to win the title from Lashley.
Beth Phoenix made her WWE return tonight at Day 1, aiding husband Edge during his match with The Miz.
Miz throughout the match had plenty of help with wife Maryse at ringside. Towards the end of the match, Maryse hit Edge with a bag that allowed Miz to score a close pinfall following a skull crushing finale. As Maryse was arguing with the referee on the apron, Phoenix appeared on the entrance ramp and headed toward the ring, driving Maryse away. Miz and Phoenix exchanged words as Edge recovered. When Miz turned around, Edge hit the spear and pinned Miz to win the match.
Phoenix had been an NXT commentator from 2019 until last month, when she announced that she would be stepping away from announcer duties. Her last appearance was at NXT War Games.
Edge has been feuding with Miz since he was traded to Raw as part of the 2021 WWE Draft. When The Miz returned to WWE television, Maryse returned as well, with the current feud revolving around Miz & Maryse’s relationship.
Ridge Holland had to be removed from the pre-show match at WWE Day 1 tonight due to injury.
Holland suffered a broken nose while teaming with Sheamus against Cesaro & Ricochet on the pre-show for Day 1. Shortly after the match began, Ricochet hit an assisted standing 450 splash onto Holland. Ricochet’s foot accidentally landed on Holland’s face, and it immediately busted Holland open. Holland tagged out to Sheamus before going to the floor to receive assistance from the medical staff.
It was announced during the match that Holland had suffered a broken nose and was taken back to the locker room for further attention.
Sheamus still got the win despite facing Cesaro & Ricochet on his own for most of the match. After taking Ricochet out by hitting White Noise on the outside, Sheamus avoided a charge by Cesaro in the ring and then gave Cesaro a Brogue Kick to get the victory.
Holland was called up from NXT in October’s WWE Draft. He aligned with Sheamus after joining SmackDown, with the two of them feuding with Sheamus’ former tag team partner Cesaro.
WWE is ringing in the new year with Day 1 taking place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta tonight.
The card for WWE’s first-ever New Year’s Day pay-per-view has undergone some significant last-minute changes. Due to Roman Reigns testing positive for COVID-19, his Universal Championship match against Brock Lesnar that was supposed to headline tonight’s show is now off.
Lesnar has instead been added to tonight’s WWE Championship match. Big E will defend his title against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley, and Lesnar in a fatal five-way.
Also on tonight’s show, Liv Morgan challenges Becky Lynch for the Raw Women’s Championship, Edge faces The Miz, The Usos defend their SmackDown Tag Team titles against The New Day, RK-Bro take on The Street Profits with the Raw Tag Team titles on the line, Drew McIntyre faces Madcap Moss, and Cesaro & Ricochet team up against Sheamus & Ridge Holland.
Cesaro & Ricochet vs. Sheamus & Holland will be tonight’s pre-show match. The pre-show begins at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the main card starting an hour later.
**********
Pre-Show
Kayla Braxton wasted no time and addressed the changes to the lineup tonight. She announced that Brock Lesnar’s added to the WWE Championship match, making it a fatal five-way. She noted that Reigns announced testing positive for Covid on social media an hour ago.
Tonight’s pre-show panel consists of Braxton, Kevin Patrick, JBL, Booker T, and Pete Rosenberg. They ran down the lineup for tonight’s card with the changes.
They recapped the Edge and Miz feud. After the video recap, Braxton was laughing about Miz and Maryse’s blood bath on Raw. The Miz interrupted and was furious that Braxton was laughing. Miz mentioned appearing on Dancing with the Stars, and Rosenberg pointed out that he lost. Miz blamed the fans for not voting for him. He promised to defeat Edge tonight and gain the respect that he deserves.
Sonya Deville joined the panel to discuss the Raw Women’s title match. Deville believes that Morgan’s ready to move up and win the title. Braxton mentioned Deville’s problems with Naomi. Deville noted she’s an official, and Naomi can’t put her hands on her.
In the back, Megan Morant interviewed New Day. King Xavier Woods read a proclamation and promised to win the tag titles tonight. He declared New Year’s Day is now New Day Day. Kingston noted they defeated The Usos before.
The panel then discussed Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss and Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro defending against The Street Profits.
Sheamus & Ridge Holland defeated Cesaro & Ricochet (9:43)
Holland suffered a legit injury within the first few moments of the match. They immediately took him to the back, and it became Sheamus against Cesaro & Ricochet. They had a good match considering they had to change it on the fly.
The faces had the early advantage when Cesaro caught Holland and slammed him down. Ricochet tagged in, and the fans popped. Cesaro assisted Ricochet in hitting a standing shooting star press for a near fall. Ricochet’s knee connected with Holland’s face on the landing. The fans broke into a loud “Ricochet” chant.
Michael Cole noted that Holland had a broken nose and was taken to the back by medical staff. Sheamus is now fighting both guys on his own.
Sheamus slowed the pace down with a chin lock. Ricochet tried fighting back, but Sheamus hit the Irish Curse backbreaker for a near fall. Sheamus dominated Ricochet until Cesaro got the hot tag. Cesaro ran wild and hit a running uppercut against the barricade at ringside.
Cesaro hit a flying crossbody for a close near fall. He then gave Sheamus the giant swing into the sharpshooter. Sheamus fought back and made it to the bottom rope. Sheamus caught Cesaro with a knee, but Ricochet broke up the pin attempt.
Ricochet sent Sheamus to the floor and attempted a plancha. Sheamus caught Ricochet and hit white noise. Sheamus jumped off the top rope, but Cesaro caught him with an uppercut. The finish came when Cesaro missed a tackle in the corner, and Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick to win.
The panel ran down the lineup again and took a closer look at the fatal five-way main event.
Main Show
The opening video featured Quavo of Migos.
Michael Cole recapped the changes to the card tonight and showed Roman Reigns’ tweet announcing he tested positive for Covid.
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos defeated The New Day to retain the titles (17:02)
New Day and The Usos had a great hard-hitting, fast-paced opener. The fans were into it and reacted big for the finish.
They recapped the Usos and New Day feud. They did the special ring introductions for the tag title match.
The faces had the early advantage as they isolated Jimmy on their side of the ring. Kofi Kingston when after Jey on the apron, but it allowed Jimmy to hit a superkick. Jey then rocked Kingston with a clothesline at ringside. The Usos took over and beat down Kingston.
Jey mimicked Reigns’ superman punch and hit the Rikishi splash in the corner. He missed a second splash, and Kingston briefly fought back. The Usos regained control after knocking Woods off the apron. Jey and Kingston fought on the top rope. Kingston knocked Jey off and hit a DDT.
Woods got the hot tag and ran wild on Jimmy. He hit a rolling clothesline on Jimmy and a dropkick to the back of Jey’s neck. Woods then hit a side Russian leg sweep on Jimmy. Jey jumped in the way of a dropkick to save his brother. Jimmy then slammed Woods on the announce table.
Jimmy and Jey gave Woods an assisted Samoan Drop for a close near fall. Kingston tagged in and hit a double foot stomp for a near fall. He followed up with the boom drop and set up for trouble in paradise, but Jey countered with a superkick. Jimmy hit the splash for another close near fall. The fans broke into a loud “This is awesome” chant.
Jimmy attacked Kingston’s leg and locked on a half-crab, but Kingston made it to the ropes. Woods then dragged Jimmy out of the ring, and Kingston scored several near falls on Jey.
Kingston hit the SOS for another close near fall. New Day then hit the backbreaker/foot stomp combo for a near fall. The fans broke into another loud “This is awesome” chant.
The Usos fought back and hit a double superkick on Kingston. They followed up with a double diving splash on Kingston, but Woods broke up the pin attempt.
The fans broke into a “New Day rocks” chant. Both teams faced off in the middle of the ring and traded shots. The finish came when The Usos caught Kingston with superkicks and then hit the 3-D for the win. McAfee called it the 1-D.
The recapped Big E winning the WWE title. Kevin Patrick interviewed Big E in the back. Big E knows tonight’s main event isn’t going to be easy, but he’s going to figure out a way to leave tonight as the WWE Champion.
In the back, Kayla Braxton interviewed Migos. The fans popped and gave them a good reaction. They’re excited to be at Day 1 tonight. They’re big fans and teased a surprise for later.
McIntrye and Moss had a fine match that dragged at times. It picked up towards the end, but the crowd seemed dead for most of it.
Before the match, Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss told some bad jokes and made fun of Atlanta. Moss made fun of McIntyre and said some more lame jokes.
McIntrye rocked Moss with a shoulder tackle for the early advantage. Moss briefly fought back and laughed at McIntrye. McIntyre recovered and backed Moss into the corner. He rocked Moss with a clothesline and hit an impressive suplex for a near fall.
Moss caught McIntrye with a boot to the face, but McIntrye sent Moss to the floor. Corbin tried to interfere, but McIntrye hit a belly-to-belly suplex. Corbin distracted McIntyre and Moss took over.
Moss hit a shoulder tackle for a near fall and slowed the pace down with a chin lock. McIntrye fought back after Moss missed a tackle in the corner and hit the middle turnbuckle. McIntrye hit a neck breaker and went for the future shock DDT. Moss fought back, but McIntyre hit a pop-up powerbomb for a near fall.
McIntrye went for a crossbody, but Moss caught him. Moss fumbled around a bit but recovered and hit a fallaway slam. McIntrye fought back and hit a future shock DDT. Moss caught McIntrye in the tree of woe, but McIntrye countered with a suplex.
McIntrye went for the Claymore, but Moss countered with a kick to the face. McIntrye recovered and hit the Claymore to win.
In the back, Megan Morant interviewed Kevin Owens. He wasn’t happy that they added Brock Lesnar to the main event. He said Rollins and Owens would work together until it’s just them. He promised to take out Lesnar. He’s been paying attention to how Lesnar treated his soul mate, Sami Zayn.
Raw Team Team Champions RK-Bro (w/Migos) defeated The Street Profits to retain the titles (11:13)
RK-Bro and the Street Profits had a good match.
The fans popped when Migos came out with RK-Bro. Migos sat at ringside to watch the title match.
The Street Profits had the early advantage after Angelo Dawkins rocked Riddle with a shoulder tackle. Dawkins looked over at Migos. Orton tagged in, and the fans broke into loud “Randy” and “RKO” chants. Dawkins mocked Orton’s pose.
Montez Ford danced into the ring as Orton just watched. Ford backed Orton into the corner, but Orton fought back with a standing dropkick. Riddle went for a suplex, but Ford slipped out and tagged in Dawkins.
The Street Profits isolated Riddle in their corner and cut him off from Orton. Ford then rocked Riddle with a penalty kick and hit a standing moonsault. He followed up with a splash for a near fall. The announcers noted the Street Profits are being more aggressive.
Riddle fought back, and Orton got the hot tag. He ran wild on Ford and hit a power slam. Orton looked over at Migos and hit a double draping DDT on the Street Profits. Orton went for the RKO, but Ford countered with a cradle for a near fall. Riddle knocked Dawkins off the apron with a jumping knee. Ford then shoved Riddle off the ropes, and he landed on Dawkins.
Ford then hit a huge running dive over the corner onto RK-Bro at ringside. The finish came when Orton avoided the frog splash. Riddle then threw Ford in the air, and Orton hit the RKO to win.
After the match, RK-Bro and the Street Profits shook hands and celebrated with Migos.
Megan Morant interviewed Drew McIntrye backstage. Madcap Moss and Happy Corbin jumped McIntrye. He briefly fought back, but the heels beat him down with a chair. They put his head in the chair and gave him the Pillmanizer.
Kayla Braxton interviewed Brock Lesnar backstage. Lensar imitated Paul Heyman’s introduction. He noted he could do whatever he wanted because he’s a free agent and thanked his advocate Paul Heyman. He promised to win the WWE title and said that’s a spoiler.
Edge defeated The Miz (w/Maryse) (20:00)
Edge and Miz had a good match that started slowly but picked up towards the end. The fans popped for Beth Phoenix appearance at the end of the match.
They recapped the Edge and Miz feud. Edge did the old Brood entrance and came out to the Broods music before changing to his theme music. The fans broke into a loud “Let’s go Edge” chant.
Miz took Edge down with a hip toss and celebrated on the corner. Miz went for the hip toss again, but Edge reversed. He went for the cross face, but Miz broke free. Miz sent Edge to the floor but missed a dropkick through the ropes. Maryse distracted Edge, which allowed Miz to push him into the ring post.
Miz slowed the pace down and worked over Edge’s leg. Edge fought back and hit an inverted draping DDT for a two-count. Miz tried to fight back, but Edge hit a sidewalk slam for a near fall. Miz took advantage by kicking the knee and hitting a DDT for two-count. The fans broke into a “Miz you suck” chant.
Miz hit the It kicks on Edge, but he avoided and rolled him up for a near fall. Edge fought back and dropped Miz on the apron. Edge then hit an impaler DDT off the apron for a near fall. Miz regained control and slammed Edge’s head on the announce table. Miz went for the Skull Crushing Finale on the announce table, but Edge countered and dropped him face-first on the desk.
Edge then hit a flying crossbody for another near fall. Miz went for the Skull Crushing Finale again, but Edge rolled him up for a two-count. Miz sent Edge into the ring post and attacked the leg. He followed up with the figure four leg lock, but Edge reversed.
Miz gave Edge a slingshot into the corner and rolled him up with his feet on the ropes. The referee caught Miz trying to cheat. Edge got the cross face on Miz, but Maryse put his foot on the bottom rope to break the hold. Miz hung Edge on the top rope and went for the inverted DDT. Edge countered with a backslide, but Miz broke free. They rocked each other with a boot at the same time.
Edge gave Miz a hip toss off the top rope. Edge went for the spear, but Miz jumped out of the way. Edge hit the ring post, and Maryse hit him in the face with her bag. Miz then hit the Skull Crushing Finale for a very close near fall.
Maryse jumped on the apron and yelled at the referee. Suddenly, Beth Phoenix appeared on the stage. She stood there for several moments before her music hit. Phoenix ran down to ringside, so Maryse took off. Miz yelled at Phoenix. Edge then hit the spear for the win. Edge and Phoenix posed in the ring after the match.
In the back, Kevin Patrick interviewed Bobby Lashley and MVP. MVP promised that Lashley would win the title. Lashley added that he would put the Hurt Lock on Brock Lesnar.
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defeated Liv Morgan to retain the title (16:56)
Lynch and Morgan worked hard and had a good match.
They recapped the Becky Lynch and Liv Morgan feud. The fans gave Morgan a big reaction during the special ring introductions. Lynch got a mixed response from the fans.
Morgan slammed Lynch’s head on the announce table for the early advantage. She went for the dis-arm-her, but Lynch broke free.
Morgan went for a hurricanrana, but Lynch held on and swung her into the corner. Lynch beat down Morgan and hit a leg drop off the second turnbuckle for a near fall. Byron Saxton claimed that Lynch is losing confidence because she can’t put Morgan away. Lynch followed up with an exploder suplex for a two-count. She became frustrated and yelled at Morgan to stay down.
Morgan fought back and sent Lynch face-first into the turnbuckle. She missed a tackle in the corner but hit a dropkick off the second turnbuckle. Lynch fought back with a suplex and locked on an armbar, but Morgan broke free. Morgan climbed to the top rope, but Lynch cut her off.
Lynch went for a superplex, but Morgan slipped out. Morgan then ran up the ropes and hit a sunset bomb for a very close near fall.
Morgan hesitated, which allowed Lynch to lock on the dis-arm-her. Morgan made it to the ropes, but Lynch wouldn’t break the hold. Lynch was firmly in control and slammed Morgan face-first for another near fall. Lynch missed a leg drop, and Morgan hit a missile dropkick. Lynch rolled to the floor, but Morgan hit a suicide dive. Morgan threw Lynch back in the ring, but Lynch rolled out the other side.
Lynch slammed Morgan’s head on the announce table and tried to win by count-out. Morgan beat the count, but Lynch threw her back out. Morgan fought back and trapped Lynch in the steps. Morgan stomped on Lynch and put her back in the ring. Morgan locked on the rings of Saturn, but Lynch reversed for a near fall. The finish came when Morgan went for the Oblivion. Lynch countered and hit the Manhandle slam for the win. Lynch tried to put her feet on the bottom rope but was too far.
In the back, Kevin Patrick interviewed Seth Rollins. Rollins promised to stomp heads and win the title.
They recapped the pre-show match and Ridge Holland’s injury.
Johnny Knoxville announced he’s entering the Royal Rumble on Instagram.
Fatal Five-Way: Brock Lesnar defeated Big E, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Bobby Lashley to win the WWE Championship (8:19)
This was a good hard-hitting and wild fatal-five-way main event. It was also the shortest match on the main card.
Owens and Rollins jumped Lesnar as he entered the ring. Lesnar fought back and gave them both German suplexes. Lashley knocked Big E to the floor, but he recovered and jumped back in the ring. Big E rocked Lesnar with a clothesline and sent him to the floor. Lashley took over. He put Big E on his shoulders and drove him into the ring post.
Lashley then speared Lesnar through the barricade to a huge pop. Lashley was firmly in control, but Owens and Rollins worked together. They rocked Lashley with double superkicks. Rollins then took out Lesnar with a suicide dive. Owens followed up with a frog splash off the apron on Lesnar. The fans broke into a “This is awesome” chant.
Owens and Rollins picked up the steps and hit Lensar. They then hit Lashley with the steps. Owens and Rollins tried to put Lashley through the announce table, but he fought back. Big E recovered and gave Lashley the uranage through the table instead. Owens and Rollins then gave Lensar a double DDT on the stairs. In the ring, Owens hit a pop-up powerbomb on Big E for a close near fall.
Owens went for the Swanton, but Big E got his knees up. Rollins immediately hit the phoenix splash on Big E for a close two count. Rollins set up for the stomp on Big E, but Lesnar caught him in mid-air and hit the F-5. He also hit the F-5 on Owens and then Big E. Suddenly, Lashley speared Lesnar for a close near fall.
Lashley got the hurt lock on Lesnar. Lesnar couldn’t break free until Big E made the save and broke up the submission. Big E went for the Big Ending on Lesnar, but he slipped out and hit the F-5 on Big E to win the WWE Championship. Lashley and Lesnar had a brief staredown as Lashley walked off.
After the match, Lesnar celebrated in the ring and posed with the WWE title to end Day 1.
COVID-19 has forced tonight’s WWE Day 1 pay-per-view to undergo a significant shakeup.
Universal Champion Roman Reigns, who was scheduled to defend his title against Brock Lesnar tonight, is off Day 1 due to testing positive for COVID-19. Lesnar has instead been added to the WWE Championship match at Day 1, making it a fatal five-way with Big E defending against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley, and Lesnar.
“I yearn to perform tonight at #WWEDay1 to defend my Universal Championship. However, unfortunately, earlier today I tested positive for COVID-19,” Reigns tweeted. “Due to the proper protocols I am unable to compete as originally scheduled. I look forward to returning to action as soon as possible.”
Reigns, who is a leukemia survivor, had been held off of WWE’s holiday tour house shows ahead of Day 1. Dave Meltzer reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE was taking every precaution possible with Reigns, Lesnar, and Paul Heyman:
In particular we were told that due to its effect in some form on WrestleMania plans and because it is considered a very big main event, that every precaution possible would be taken for Reigns, Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman to perform at Day 1. It was also noted that in a weird way they considered it fortunate for that match that there were no Smackdown tapings on 12/24 or 12/31, lessening the need for the three to go on the road for television.
Day 1 is taking place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta tonight. Here’s the updated card for the show:
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley, and Brock Lesnar in a fatal five-way match
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) defend against The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford)
Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss
Hip-hop group Migos will make a special appearance
Cesaro & Ricochet vs. Sheamus & Ridge Holland (pre-show)
The effects of the rapidly spreading Omicron variant of COVID-19 led to a number of major changes and precautions in WWE.
Among the names advertised who didn’t appear on shows this week were Roman Reigns, Big E, Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins, Bianca Belair, Bobby Lashley, Queen Zelina, Shinsuke Nakamura and King Woods.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.
In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.
For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I will be back tomorrow night covering the WWE Day 1 show, Stardom Dream Queendom and the rest of the news.
I’m more than halfway done on Hall of Fame ballot counting. There are four locks, five very close and a couple of others who probably won’t make it this year but still have a shot.
Our lead article in the new issue which goes through the COVID situation in WWE also looks at Madison Square Garden history, the ups and downs since wrestling returned to MSG in 1949. In particular, we look at history’s lowest crowds in the modern era, as well as look at WWE vs. AEW in the last four months in the marketplace, and the last decade of the post-Christmas tradition in the building.
We’re doing polls on three shows this week, Wednesday’s Stardom show,the NOAH show at Budokan Hall that starts in a few hours and WWE’s Day 1 show. We’re looking for thumbs up, down or middle along with a best and worst match from each show to [email protected]
Smackdown tonight is on FS 1 and it’s a best of show. AEW Rampage tonight at 10 p.m. has Anthony Bowens vs. Jungle Boy, Penelope Ford & The Bunny vs. Tay Conti & Anna Jay in a street fight and Cody Rhodes vs. Ethan Page for the TNT title People were raving about the last two matches, and particularly the women’s match.
The NOAH show starts at 2 a.m. Eastern tonight at 11 p.m. Pacific and will stream on the Wrestle Universe service. It’s the company’s return to Budokan Hall
Junta Miyawaki & Kinya Okada vs. Kai Fujimura & Yasutaka Yano
Akitoshi Saito & Mohammed Yone & King Tani vs. Manabu Soya & Nioh & Tadasuke
Katsuhiko Nakajima vs, Go Shiozaki for the GHC title
For those who like hard hitting wrestling, the main event will be guaranteed to be great. For those who don’t like hard hitting, pretty sure you won’t be happy with the main event.
For Day 1, the tickets out passed 10,000 today. As of this morning they had 10,131 out. They’ve moved a ton of tickets in the last three weeks which is very unusual for modern wrestling to start out so slow and then suddenly move a ton of tickets, which likely has to do with Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar and the storyline in play being a ticket seller.
GCW has its New Year’ Eve show from The Showboat in Atlantic City tonight starting at 8 p.m. Eastern on FITE:
Ninja Mack & Dante Leon vs. Blake Christian & Alex Zayne
Everett Connors vs,. Atticus Cogar
AKIRA vs. G-Raver
Colby Corino vs. Dark Sheik
Jordan Oliver & Charlie Tiger & Ellis Taylor vs. AJ Gray & Effy & Matthew Justice
Ho Ho Lun vs. Jimmy Lloyd
Allie Katch vs. Charlie Evans
A video of the old TV show To Tell the Truth where Betty White was a regular and the panel had to identify which woman was the world champion pro wrestler, which also tells you how unknown Moolah was at the time to the average person. (thanks to Ken Raftery)
The Tragos/Thesz Hall of Fame announced Mike Rotunda as an inductee. Rotunda was a collegiate heavyweight at Syracuse University who was good enough to go to the NCAA tournament and then had a long career under a number of names, including his own name IRS, and VK Wallstreet. Dick Bourne, a Mid Atlantic Wrestling historian who has written books will be getting the Jim Melby award. Jim Ross will be getting the Gordon Solie award. Well, if there is anyone living who deserves the Gordon Solie award, it would be Jim Ross.
WWE
HBO Max will debut The Peacemaker with John Cena on 1/13. They will put the first three episodes up.
Michael Bisping on his YouTube channel said things were very bloody miserable this week because he and his entire family got COVID. He said since Monday he'[s been mostly laying in bed feeling bad, hurting all over,.
Irene Aldana vs. Aspen Ladd is earmarked for a 4/9 show at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Ryan Spann vs. Ion Cutelaba is set for a 2/26 show
Malakai Black will be the headliner for West Coast Pro on 3/11 in South San Francisco, CA at The State Room.
Bellator announced Benson Henderson (28-11) vs. Islam Mamedov (20-1-1 ) at lightweight for its 1/29 show in Phoenix. The show is headlined by the heavyweight title unification match between champion Ryan Bader (28-7, 1 no contest) and interim champion ValentinMoldavsky (11-1).
Aaron McKenzie (10-2-1) vs. Joshua Jones (11-5) in a lightweight fight will headline LFA on 1/14 at The Factory in Dallas on UFC Fight Pass. They also run 1/21 at The Factory in St. Louis headlined by Charles Johnson (10-2) vs. Carlos Mota (6-0) in a flyweight main event.
Lio Rush makes his debut with Prestige Wrestling on 3/13 in Sacramento, CA.
Kurt Angle has been added to the WrestleCon lineup for WrestleMania weekend.
Insane Wrestling Revolution from Wednesday night in Monroe, MI: Sam Beale b Kenny Urban, Rod Lee b Ace Evans, Malcolm Monroe III b N8 Mattson, Hornswoggle & The DBA & Mysterious Movado b Aaron Orion & Jack Price & Ben Boone, Konnor b Tanner Nix & Chris Clontz & Clucky, Trey Miguel b Chris Sabin to win the U.S. title, Madman Fulton b Dread King Logan, Tommy Dreamer & Rhino b Nate Bock & Kyle Barrett, John E. Bravo b Tommy Dreamer. The next show is 2/17 at the FOP Hall in Monroe, MI. (thanks to Leonard Brand)
UWFI Rules Contender series from Paradigm Pro Wrestling takes place on 1/5 at 10 p.m. and will air for seven straight Wednesday nights featuring Tom Lawlor, Gnaris Garvin and Tang Soo do competitor Alex Weir. Lawlor faces Jordan Blade in an intergender super fight in the main event on Wednesday.
PWA Black Label on 1/14 features Aussie Open vs. The Velocities in a rematch of Australia’s most talked about match of the year plus the return of Robbie Eagles. It will air live on FITE.
Harashima & Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo beat Konosuke Takeshita & Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen to win a New Year’s Eve trios tournament at Korakuen Hall. It has become an indie tradition to do a tag team tournament on New Year’s Eve at Korakuen Hall. Takeshita was also announced as Japan’s independent MVP.
WWE has revealed the pre-show match for this Saturday’s New Year’s Day pay-per-view.
Cesaro & Ricochet will team up against Sheamus & Ridge Holland on the pre-show for WWE Day 1 this Saturday night. The pre-show begins at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the main card then starting an hour later.
Cesaro has been feuding with Sheamus and Holland since Holland was called up from NXT in October’s WWE Draft. In the “12 Days of Christmas” gauntlet match on SmackDown last week, a distraction by Holland led to Sheamus eliminating Cesaro. But Ricochet eliminated Sheamus after Sheamus was distracted by Cesaro taking out Holland at ringside.
Sheamus gave Ricochet a Brogue Kick after being eliminated from the gauntlet match. Ricochet was able to defeat Humberto and Jinder Mahal but lost to Sami Zayn at the end of the match.
Day 1 is being held at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Here’s the updated card for the show:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal four-way match
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) defend against The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford)
Hip-hop group Migos will make a special appearance
Cesaro & Ricochet vs. Sheamus & Ridge Holland (pre-show)
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro have their next challengers.
The Street Profits will challenge for Randy Orton & Riddle’s Raw Tag Team titles at WWE Day 1 this Saturday. The Street Profits got the title shot by defeating Rey & Dominik Mysterio in the finals of the RK-Bro-nament on Raw tonight.
Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford defeated The Mysterios after Rey & Dominik weren’t on the same page leading into the finish.
The RK-Bro-nament finals were originally supposed to take place on Raw two weeks ago, but the match was postponed to tonight. WWE claimed that both teams had suffered injuries. Ford was unavailable until making his return at WWE’s house show at Madison Square Garden last night.
The Street Profits defeated AJ Styles & Omos by countout in the first round of the RK-Bro-nament, while The Mysterios defeated Chad Gable & Otis.
Orton and Riddle defeated Otis and Gable in singles matches on Raw tonight. Riddle said he would have a gift for Orton after their matches. Riddle revealed that the gift was a hug — and Orton hugged Riddle after initially hesitating. Orton jokingly went to give Riddle an RKO, and then they laughed and hugged again.
Riddle & Orton have been Raw Tag Team Champions since winning the titles from Styles & Omos at SummerSlam this August.
Day 1 is taking place at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Saturday. Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal four-way match
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Drew McIntyre vs. Madcap Moss
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) defend against The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford)
Hip-hop group Migos will make a special appearance
The WWE Championship match at Day 1 is now a fatal four-way.
Big E will defend his WWE Championship against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal four-way match at Day 1. Lashley was added to the match by defeating Big E, Rollins, and Owens throughout tonight’s Raw.
After Lashley laid out Big E, Rollins, and Owens last week, Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville informed Lashley tonight that he would only be added to the Day 1 title match if he could defeat all three of Big E, Rollins, and Owens in one night. Lashley defeated Owens first, then Rollins, and finally defeated Big E in the main event.
When Lashley went to put him in the Hurt Lock, Owens quickly tapped out to avoid getting injured. Rollins and Owens conspired to have Rollins win by countout in his match against Lashley, but Pearce and Deville restarted the match and made it no disqualification. A no DQ stipulation was also added to Lashley vs. Big E.
Big E didn’t want Rollins and Owens’ help against Lashley, but they got involved anyway. Big E and Lashley fought off Owens and Rollins and sent them through tables. MVP then hit Big E in the knee with his cane and Lashley hit a spear on Big E to get the win.
The State Farm Arena in Atlanta is hosting Day 1 on New Year’s Day (Saturday, January 1). Here’s the updated card for the show:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal four-way match
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Hip-hop group Migos will make a special appearance
Liv Morgan is getting another shot at the Raw Women’s Championship.
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch will put her title on the line against Morgan at WWE’s Day 1 pay-per-view on New Year’s Day (Saturday, January 1). Lynch retained the title against Morgan in the main event of last week’s Raw, but she cheated to get the win. Lynch grabbed the bottom rope for extra leverage while pinning Morgan.
Morgan interrupted Lynch on tonight’s Raw and challenged her to a rematch. Lynch said she didn’t cheat because she had to, she did it because it was easy. Lynch said Morgan should blame herself for not beating Lynch to it and not being ready for what Lynch was going to do.
Lynch said Morgan proved that she doesn’t have the killer instinct. Lynch said Morgan did what she always does: absolutely nothing.
Morgan then ran into the ring and started beating Lynch down. Lynch went to the floor and Morgan chased her there, but Lynch sent Morgan into the ring steps. Lynch trapped Morgan’s arm between the steel steps and the ring post and started stomping on it. Lynch kicked the steps with Morgan’s arm trapped, then started stomping on Morgan’s arm again.
After the attack, Lynch said it looks like Morgan went and injured herself. Lynch said if Morgan still wants that rematch — she’s on.
Day 1 is taking place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Here’s the updated lineup for the PPV:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley in a fatal four-way match
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Liv Morgan
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Hip-hop group Migos will make a special appearance
Star hip-hop group Migos will be involved with WWE’s New Year’s Day pay-per-view.
During SmackDown tonight, it was announced that Migos will be making a “special appearance” at WWE Day 1. The PPV is taking place in Migos’ hometown of Atlanta on New Year’s Day (Saturday, January 1, 2022).
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
WWE Champion Big E defends against Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens in a triple threat match
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) defend against The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston)
Edge vs. The Miz
Migos will make a special appearance
WWE is teasing that Bobby Lashley will be added to the WWE Championship match at Day 1 after laying out Big E, Rollins, and Owens on Raw earlier this week.
