Though she departed the company in August, Renee Paquette (formerly known as Renee Young in WWE) will be making an appearance on WWE-related programming this month.
Fox Sports announced today that Paquette and Booker T will host a pre-show for the Friday, October 16 episode of SmackDown. The special pre-show will be 30 minutes long and will air on Fox starting at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time.
The pre-show ties in with the October 16 episode of SmackDown being called the start of the second season of SmackDown on Fox. It will also be the first episode of SmackDown following this year’s WWE Draft.
“In celebration of the second season of FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN on FOX, FOX Sports’ WWE personalities come together for a special FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN KICKOFF SHOW on Friday, Oct. 16,” Fox Sports announced. “Longtime broadcaster Renee Paquette and WWE Hall of Famer Booker T host a bevy of WWE Superstars and special guests live from the brand new ‘WWE ThunderDome’ in Orlando.
“The FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN KICKOFF SHOW begins at 7:30 PM ET/PT and 6:30 PM CT/MT, leading into the season premiere of FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN on FOX at 8:00 PM ET/PT and 7:00 PM CT/MT.”
This year’s WWE Draft will begin on SmackDown this Friday and conclude on Monday’s episode of Raw.
Fox Sports has also announced that a WWE’s Best Moments of 2020 special will air on Fox this Sunday (October 11). The special “airs adjacent to Sunday’s regional NFL broadcasts airing in-market at 1:00 PM ET and 4:05 PM ET. Viewers with an NFL matchup airing at 1:00 PM ET can watch WWE: THE BEST MOMENTS OF 2020 at 4:30 PM ET; viewers with an NFL matchup airing at 4:05 PM ET can watch the special at 3:00 PM ET.”
The return of major shows in the U.S. and how the different companies are dong them is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We look at UFC’s plans, how the PBR handled their first event which was the first sports event back, what UFC’s plans are for May 23, lineups for the UFC shows, Dana White, doctors and others talk about UFC going back, the shows AEW and WWE is putting on, how the fighters are preparing differently, how UFC is handling backstage, how all three companies are handling testing, plus comments from other promoters.
The new issue also covers:
Preview Money in the bank, AEW Double or Nothing II, and update New Japan’s plans and cancellations. We also look at the AEW PPV scene, Big Japan needing crowd funding and going through all of the WWE released talent and look at their future prospects.
How COVID-19 has affected the ratings of every show, the variations and what lessons can be learned by the ratings drops.
Risks involving Roman Reigns, FOX airing a special head-to-head with UFC PPV, update on how WWE financials look with new information and stock value, Becky Lynch acting, New WWE TV show, WWE injury updates, wrestler who left the promotion apologizes for behavior, U.K. ratings, Matt Riddle talks heat and his meeting with Vince McMahon, Mike Bennett talks leaving WWE, When WWE tried to work with CMLL, Orlando Colon talks leaving and certain naievete, most watched sports on television, Paul Levesque selling stock, Next week’s TV, and most watched shows of the past week on WWE Network.
Supreme, the Southern California indie star who was one of the top stars of XPW, including looking back at his career, his FMW tag title run, and the famous ECW/XPW brawl at a PPV show.
Maryland commission ruling regarding the Kenny Omega match with Jon Moxley in Baltimore.
What happened to Hiroshi Hase.
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.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
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.
MONDAY NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I will be back tonight with all the news from Raw. You can also send questions for tonight’s show to [email protected]. We’re looking for your thoughts on UFC 249 and WWE Money in the Bank, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]
Becky Lynch’s announcement on Raw tonight will include vacating the women’s title and Asuka will be announced as the new champion based on her winning Money in the bank last night. Or that is at least what was being talked about earlier today. PWInsider had this earlier and we’ve gotten that as well.
TMZ had additional details on the Alberto Rodriguez arrest and sexual assault charge against a woman he was in a relationship with. The woman claimed the beating and sexual assault lasted 4 1/2 hours from 10 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. late Sunday and early Monday of last week. She alleged he beat and choked her and she was left feeling woozy and dizzy and police had photographed evidence of bruising on her face, arms, legs and neck.
The rating is expected to be way up tonight between an expected bump from the PPV, the curiosity over Lynch and the return to Raw of both Edge and Randy Orton.
FOX announced its fall television season with Smackdown renewed for a second season. Smackdown is under contract in that Friday at 8 p.m. slot through late 2024 so this was expected.
Post Wrestling reported earlier today that a limited amount of crossover between Raw and Smackdown (wild card rule) will be back and announced on tonight’s show. It was a lock a move that was significant would be announced after the drop in both the Raw and Smackdown ratings of a week ago. They also announced a decision would be made regarding the IC title. Sami Zayn is the champion and due to the pandemic had made the decision not to wrestle. While the story is that nobody would lose standing if they didn’t come, it looks like the decision has been made to change the title.
WWE
Raw and Smackdown for this week are both being taped today at the Performance Center. Next week’s Raw and next week’s Smackdown will be taped tomorrow. NXT will go live-to-tape Wednesday and also tape the 5/20 show on Wednesday.
Money in the Bank was the sixth most searched term on Google yesterday with 200,000 searches, the exact figure we predicted yesterday and what would be considered normal level for such a show. UFC 249 was at 2.65 million.
The janitor mopping the floor in the MITB presentation last night was Kane Prichard, Bruce’s son, who in fact, was named after Glenn Jacobs.
WrestleMania III airs from 8-11 p.m. tomorrow night on FS1.
UFC
Conor McGregor was all over Twitter, name-calling Justin Gaethje and Khabib Nurmagomedov. He indicated he expects to face Gaethje next.
Kelvin Gastelum had accepted a nine month suspension which was shortened to five months after a positive test for marijuana taken on the 11/1 show in New York. he suspension, announced today, would already be over. The sentence was reduced after he completed a drug treatment program. It was his second marijuana positive. USADA tests for significant quantities only as the threshold is high and also only tests at fight time as marijuana is not tested for out of competition.
AEW
Wednesday’s Dynamite currently has Brodie Lee vs. Christopher Daniels, MJF vs. ?, Chris Jericho vs. Suge D, Penelope Ford vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Britt Baker vs. Kris Statlander with the winner likely facing Nyla Rose for the title at Double or Nothing II, Best Friends vs. Jurassic Express and Lance Archer appears. AEW, UFC and NXT go head-to-head Wednesday night.
MISCELLANEOUS
Impact will start its No. 1 contenders tournament on tomorrow night’s show on AXS TV.
Prestige Wrestling has announced it will be shutting down for the rest of the year and into early 2021.
Mick Foley announced dates for his speaking tours for May and June. The dates are:
10/14 in Springfield, MO
10/15 in Little Rock, AR
10/16 in Cape Girardeau,. MO
11/8 in Tampa, FL
An article on Bronson Rechsteiner, the son of Rick Steiner, who has signed a free agent contract with the Baltimore Ravens. He has talked about getting into pro wrestling down the line.
On the night before Money in the Bank, FOX is airing a special looking back at WWE’s greatest ladder matches.
WWE’s Greatest Ladder Matches will air on FOX at 8 p.m. Eastern time/Pacific time this Saturday (May 9). FOX hyped that The Rock, John Cena, The Undertaker, Steve Austin, Edge, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and many more will be featured on the special.
The special is listed as being two hours long. It will be hosted by Michael Cole and Corey Graves.
This year’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view will then air on the WWE Network on Sunday (May 10). The men’s and women’s Money in the Bank ladder matches are being held at WWE headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut and are taking place simultaneously. The wrestlers will begin on the ground floor of the building, with the briefcases hanging on the roof of Titan Towers.
Aleister Black, Rey Mysterio, Daniel Bryan, Baron Corbin, Otis, and the winner of the last chance gauntlet match on tonight’s Raw will be the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match participants for Sunday. Shayna Baszler, Asuka, Nia Jax, Dana Brooke, Lacey Evans, and Carmella are the participants for the women’s ladder match.
With days to go before their first-ever fully taped WrestleMania, WWE and Fox Sports have signed a deal that will see this year’s big event available via their pay-per-view outlets in addition to more WWE content coming to FS1.
Both FoxSports.com and their Fox Sports/Fox Now apps will offer a WWE PPV for the first time as WrestleMania will come with a $59.99 price tag which includes both nights. FS1 will also produce a WrestleMania pre-show for both nights.
WrestleMania will still be available on WWE network and other PPV providers where available.
Additionally, FS1 will air 22 hours of archived and new WWE programming which begins Tuesday with the 2020 Royal Rumble. Additional one hour shows include WrestleMania 31, 33, and 34, and episodes of WWE 24 and Ruthless Aggression.
As part of that 22 hours, Fox announced a new one-hour show called ‘Best of WWE’ that will feature Steve Austin, HHH, John Cena, Ric Flair, Brock Lesnar, Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Shawn Michaels, Roman Reigns, and the Undertaker.
WWE Backstage also remains on the schedule and will return live in its current remote format Tuesday.
A match between Roman Reigns and Dolph Ziggler has been made for FOX’s New Year’s Eve show next Tuesday.
WWE made the announcement tonight during SmackDown. They had previously announced that Roman Reigns would be in a match that would air during the special, but his opponent had yet to be named.
Ziggler has associated himself with King Corbin in recent weeks and has helped him beat down Roman Reigns in previous encounters. He helped Corbin pour dog food all over Roman Reigns during an episode of SmackDown three weeks ago.
FOX’s New Year’s Eve special will start at 8 p.m. ET. Steve Harvey will be hosting the show along with Maria Menounos and Rob Gronkowski, both who have been on WWE television in the past. The special will feature a number of celebrity guests, as well as performances from the likes of The Backstreet Boys and The Village People.
There will be some involvement from WWE when FOX rings in the new year.
It was announced yesterday that “FOX’s New Year’s Eve with Steve Harvey: Live from Times Square” will include an “exclusive WWE matchup” featuring Roman Reigns. It was also noted that numerous WWE wrestlers will be in attendance.
Further details about the match haven’t been revealed.
The New Year’s Eve special will be hosted by Harvey and co-hosted by Maria Menounos and former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. Both Menounos and Gronkowski have appeared for WWE in the past.
The special will air in two parts on New Year’s Eve:
Part 1 airs Tuesday, Dec. 31 (8-10 p.m. ET/CT live MT/PT tape-delayed)
Part 2 airs Tuesday, Dec. 31 (11 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. ET live CT/MT/PT tape-delayed)
Musical performances by LL Cool J featuring DJ Z-Trip, The Chainsmokers, The Lumineers, Florida Georgia Line, The Backstreet Boys, Tyga, and The Killers are advertised, along with appearances by Gordon Ramsay, Will Arnett, and Jenna Dewan. The Village People will also attempt to break the record for the world’s largest “YMCA” dance.
After a five-year absence from WWE programing, CM Punk resurfaced on tonight’s episode of WWE Backstage.
Renee Young introduced Punk towards the end of tonight’s show. Punk entered the studio to “Cult of Personality,” walked to the camera, and said “It’s as simple as this: just when they think they have the answers, I change the culture.” He then said he would be on next week’s episode of Backstage.
In a press release, it was noted that Punk would be joining WWE Backstage as a special contributor and analyst. He will be making select appearances in the studio with regular hosts Young and Booker T.
It was reported previously in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Punk’s agents contacted FOX about being part of WWE Backstage. He took part in a screen test but no information on his status had been revealed until now.
Punk walked out of WWE in January 2014, the day after that year’s Royal Rumble.
WWE Backstage airs on Tuesdays at 11 p.m. Eastern time on FS1. It’s a FOX Sports production, which means that Punk will be working for FOX rather than WWE.
WWE has officially confirmed a planned channel shift for next week’s SmackDown.
With game three of the World Series taking place next Friday (October 25), SmackDown will air live on FS1 instead of FOX. WWE made the announcement of the one-time only change during SmackDown tonight.
The Washington Nationals will play either the Houston Astros or New York Yankees in the World Series. NXT and AEW will face competition from game two of the World Series next Wednesday (October 23). If necessary, game seven of the series would take place the Wednesday after that (October 30).
Raw isn’t scheduled to go against the World Series this year. All of the World Series games will air on FOX.
Next week’s SmackDown is taking place at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
Starting on November 5, WWE’s Backstage studio show will air weekly on FS1 at 11 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesdays. A preview episode of Backstage was shown last week.
Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt in a Hell in a Cell match. All of their matches have been short up to this point. I think for the gimmick that Wyatt has to win and it should be shorter than a usual main event, with more horror movie spots than pro wrestling spots. I don’t expect a classic match, but we’ll see. Wyatt is a -400 favorite to take the title.
Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks for the Raw women’s title. This is only the second women’s Hell in a Cell match in history. It should be good. Banks is a -310 favorite to take the title which are pretty strong odds.
Daniel Bryan & Roman Reigns vs. Luke Harper & Erick Rowan. On paper, this match should be very good. Bryan & Reigns are -150 favorite. Harper’s role in this feels like the guy who is losing the fall. This has been changed to a tornado match
Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair for the Smackdown women’s title. Flair is a -145 favorite to win the title. Since she lost last time and it’s in Northern California,where Bayley is from, the geographical logic says Bayley should win, but with WWE, they seem to view things the opposite. The last match these two had was nothing, so given so few matches are advertised an the main event should be short, this should be given time and they’ll be out to make up for the last one.
Viking Warriors & Mystery partner vs. A.J. Styles & Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson. Based on recent storylines, Cedric Alexander fits into this spot, as would Ricochet. But one would think if it’s a mystery, it would be someone more out of the box.
Chad Gable vs. King Corbin – They’ve had good matches in the past. Gable is one of the best in the company, even with a low tier gimmick. Gable is the -163 favorite.
Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross vs. Asuka & Kairi Sane – Bliss & Cross are the -138 favorites.
Natalya vs. Lacey Evans pre-show match – On Monday they pretty much told us the feud was over. So now it’s back. By usual WWE 50/50 booking, this week should be Natalya’s turn. But Heyman’s isn’t a 50/50 booker and the odds have Evans at -200.
NEW JAPAN AT TOKYO KORAKUEN HALL AT 5:30 A.M. EASTERN ON NEW JAPAN WORLD
Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Yuya Uemura vs. Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi & Yota Tsuji
Togi Makabe & Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tomoaki Honma & Yoshi-Hashi for Never trios titles
Kazuchika Okada & Kota Ibushi vs. Evil & Sanada
Raw is Monday in Bakersfield. Tyson Fury will be there.
F4W NEWSLETTER: Looking at SmackDown’s move to FOX Joseph Currier looks ahead to SmackDown’s FOX premiere and what the move will mean. Plus, Bryan Rose’s Japan notes and Vinny V’s TV reviews.
While much of the focus has been on the AEW vs. NXT Wednesday Night War, WWE main roster television materially changes this week with SmackDown’s FOX premiere.
The magnitude of WWE airing live on network television every week has been apparent since news of the FOX move broke, but it didn’t fully set in until FOX started promoting the show. WWE personalities have been featured on FOX’s most valuable sports properties, with them appearing on NFL, college football, and MLB coverage. The promotion WWE would get on FOX was said to be one of the selling points of the deal, and FOX has already been as great of a partner as WWE could have hoped for. The promotional opportunities that FOX affords have the potential to make a real difference for WWE. Not every appearance will go perfectly (FOX’s Mark Schlereth saying Rey Mysterio was “like Nacho Libre” was pretty lame), but wrestlers being positioned as on the same level as other professional sports stars in FOX’s portfolio is gigantic for WWE.
WWE is also officially being given its own studio show on FS1. Renee Young and Booker T will host WWE Backstage, which premieres at 11 p.m. Eastern time/8 p.m. Pacific on Tuesday, November 5. There will also be a preview show after game three of Major League Baseball’s American League Championship Series on October 15. Young and Booker T will “weigh in on the biggest stories in WWE, and are joined by a rotating cast of guests and personalities, including current and former WWE Superstars.” The show is a FOX production, and it was reported last week that CM Punk has tried out for it.
WWE and FOX have worked in unison to make SmackDown’s FOX premiere as big as it could possibly be. Brock Lesnar will have his first match on either Raw or SmackDown since 2004 as he challenges for Kofi Kingston’s WWE Championship. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will also make his first televised WWE appearance in over three years.
The Wednesday night war has started, and there’s no more detailed rundown than in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer.
We’ve got every aspect of the business covered, including:
How every match on both shows did when it comes to viewers, head-to-head, and how different demos fared.
What things WWE tried that worked, what didn’t work, and what failed.
The money demo, baseball competition, analyze where NXT gained and lost and what it says about AEW and competition, who had the advantage when it came to replays, was it a TNT nostalgia wrestling rating, average age for WWE and AEW shows, what audiences AEW beats WWE shows in, what AEW’s success under 35 showed, comments from key people about the ratings, and we also look at Canada ratings, the UK deal and what time slot is actually the key one for AEW in the UK.
Also:
Different tricks both companies took, who did the best job of hype, what comes next week and the non-wrestling aspects of the show.
Match-by-match coverage for both shows with star ratings.
Turmoil in CMLL, the departure of Rush and Dragon Lee, how Lee found out, the future of Mistico, Rush talks his future, as does Dragon Lee, the changes in CMLL that led to this, and all kinds of new policies that changes the world’s oldest wrestling promotion.
C.M. Punk, noting his lawsuit with Colt Cabana being settled, his screen test for a new WWE show, the latest on if he will wrestle, while Cody talks his thoughts about Punk in AEW.
Cain Velasquez in pro wrestling. We look at the Forum card being postponed, WWE’s meeting with him, what angles on Raw this week related to him, update on who has signed the most key guys of late and why Velasquez’s situation is so unique.
Smackdown premier on FOX and ticket interest, Hell in a Cell, the next Saudi Arabia show, Steve Austin, Ric Flair’s title reigns, update on a WWE Hall of Famer who may get cleared, Fourth generation McMahon may become a wrestler, how much Cena affected business, Dana White exchanges words with Matt Riddle, Braun Strowman’s new deal, Upcoming Evolve bouts with WWE stars, WWE market value declines and why, most-watched shows on the WWE Network plus a look at all the WWE & NXT arena events of the past week with results, highlights and business notes.
Coverage of CMLL’s biggest show of the year, the anniversary card, with match-by-match coverage and star ratings.
Coverage of ROH Death Before Dishonor, with match-by-match coverage, business notes, star ratings PPV numbers and more on Matt Taven’s new landmark ROH deal.
Coverage on this past weekend’s UFC show in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The death of Rick Bogner, look at his days as Big Tytan in Japan, the story behind the fake Razor Ramon in WWF, why his career ended, who got him into WWF but some of the guys he started out with talk about him.
Coverage of all the WWE television shows from the past week, in-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos for the WWE shows and what can be learned from them.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
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.
SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE
The issues with FOX and Dish Network and Sling were settled as both sides agreed to a new contract. So FOX is back available everywhere and FS1 is back on Dish.
Two notes on the New Japan show tomorrow early morning at Korakuen Hall. The Togi Makabe & Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tomoaki Honma & Yoshi-Hashi match is for the Never trios titles. There will also be a contract signing angle at the show for the Kazuchika Okada vs. Sanada IWGP title match next Monday at Sumo Hall in the King of Pro Wrestling main event.
Regarding Google searches for the weekend, even with college football in full swing, the No. 1 searched topic yesterday was UFC 243 with 1 million searches. So that indicates, if we were still doing PPV, that the show would have at least done decently. Gennady Golovkin was No. 14 with 100,000. On Friday, three WWE searches made the top 20. Cain Velasquez was No. 5 with 200,000. WWE Smackdown was No. 6 with 100,000. Tyson Fury was No. 18 with 50,000. Really surprising to me that Dwayne Johnson, who to me drew the rating, wasn’t in the top 20.
Kambi has released odds for TV ratings this week. So these are the over and under lines:
Raw 2.45 million viewers
NXT 825,000 viewers
AEW 1.30 million viewers
Smackdown 3.60 million viewers
WWE
They are advertising Brock Lesnar vs. Kofi Kingston for the 12/27 Smackdown tapings in Detroit. They also announced the Detroit Red Wings will have a WWE Night on 10/29 (thanks to Shannon Walsh and wrestlingwithdemons.net).
Sasha Banks took seven stitches in her hip in the tag team match on Friday night.
AEW
Chris Jericho will be on Lights Out with David Spade on Tuesday night at 11:35 p.m. on Comedy Central.
MISCELLANEOUS
Pro Wrestling Revolver from Friday night in Des Moines before a sellout 250 fans: Jake Crist won over Daga, Ace Austin and Arik Cannon to keep the Impact X title, Manders b Darin Corbin to keep the Iowa title, Rich Swann & Jason Cade b Tyler Matrix & Logan James, Clayton Gainz b Manscout Jake Manning, Jimmy Jacobs, Dave Crist, Yellow Dog and Jessicka Havok to win the Scramble title, Brian Cage b JT Dunn to keep the Impact title, Lance Archer b Ace Romero, Caleb Konley & Zane Riley b Andy Dalton & Moonshine Mantell, Tessa Blanchard b Sami Callihan in a street fight, Killer Kross won three way over champion Larry D and Madman Fulton to win the Revolver title. Swann & Cade match was said to be the show stealer. Manning was the Scramble champion. Dunn bled badly. Archer vs. Romero was said to be like an Archer G-1 match. (thanks to Parker Klyn)
wXw from yesterday in Oberhausen, Germany as part of the tag team tournament: Jonathan Gresham b Lucky Kid, Avalanche b Alexander James to keep the Shotgun title, Prince Ahura & Maggot b David Starr & Norman Harass, Arrows of Hungary b Ivan Kiev & Pete Bouncer, Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch b JD Drake & Anthony Henry, Flamita won over Ryan Taylor, Kyle Fletcher and The Rotation to get a shot at the Shotgun title, Jay Skillet & Absolute Andy b Anti-Fun Police, Timothy Thatcher b Bobby Gunns to win the wXw title (thanks to Marcus Werner and Shannon Walsh)
wXw Femmes Fatales from yesterday on Oberhausen, Germany: Session Moth Martina b Wesna, Leyla Hirsch b Sammii Jayne, Lana Austin b Baby Allison, LuFisto b Vicious Vivien, Leyla Hirsch b Session Moth Martina, LuFisto b Lana Austin, Amale b Faye Jackson to keep the wXw women’s title, LuFisto b Leyla Hirsch.
wXw Ambition tournament from today in Oberhausen,Germany: Daniel Makabe b James Runyan,. Dominic Garrini b Alexander Dean, Ryan Taylor & Russ Taylor b Kevin Lloyd, A-Kid b Scotty Davis, Daniel Makabe b Dominic Garrini, A-Kid b Russ Taylor, Timothy Thatcher b Oney Lorcan, A-Kid b Daniel Makabe to win tournament
I Believe in Wrestling from Friday night in Orlando: Jarrett Diaz b Jimmy Taylor, Jake Shadows & Owen Mitchell b Remi Danillo & Ricky Anderson, Chasyn Rance & Jerrelle Clark b Ali Hohammed & Faris Hakeem, Amber Nova & Gia Roman b Blake Banks & Christian Mills, Kwane Nas d JD Amazing, Andrew Merlin & Carlos Gabriel b Caius Wolfe & Chris Ramirez, Josh Dawkins b Djokovic Rabbit, Aaron Epic & Kaci Lennox won Orlando Intergender title over Jay Sky &Lexi Gomez, Mike Reed & Layne Rosari and Cisco Sucio & Kiah Dream.
Kris Wolf makes her first appearance since retirement on the 10/12 Pro Wrestling Eve show at the Resistance Gallery in London.
Glory Pro Wrestling from last night in Affton, MO: Mike Outlaw won six-way over Gregory Iron, Barackus, PB Smooth, Camaro Jackson and Reilly MaGuise, Hakim Zain b Seishi, Halal Beefckae b The Riegel Twins, Matt Kenway b Steve Manders, Kevin Lee Davidson & Danny Adams b Matt Knicks & Nick Brubaker in a street fight to win the title, Curt Stallion won three-way over Daga and Jake Lander, Tyler Colton b Josh Briggs, Tessa Blanchard won four-way over Laynie Luck, Elayna Black and Savanna Stone, A.J. Gray b Paco Gonzalez to keep Glory title (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
Hoosier Pro Wrestling from last night in Columbus, IN featuring Jimmy Valiant: Buck Sexton b Cole County Crusher, Corvus b Ace Jackson, Dodo Brown b Guy Lombardo with Jimmy Valiant as referee, Dynamite Dillen b Kevo, Shiloh Jonze b Randall Floyd, Drax O’Bren b Bubbie James, Cooter DDQ Scarecrow. Next show is 11/2 for the 16tht annual Fireman’s Cheer Fund Toy Drive and the company’s 21st anniversary show.
Louisville’s CBS outlet profiles former OVW regular Trailer Park Trash’s (real name Frank Smith) new career as a horse trainer. (thanks to Joel Zakem)
Some more notes the preliminary Smackdown ratings. As noted earlier today, the final ratings will be out on Monday or Tuesday. Unlike with UFC, because UFC aired live on the West Coast and had overruns, there shouldn’t be major changes in this and the final numbers.
Smackdown did a 2.4 rating and 3,888,000 viewers for an average minute. It was down five percent from what FOX did in the same time slot one year ago for its Friday season openers of Last Man Standing, The Cool Kids and Hell’s Kitchen. But all things considered, that isn’t bad, and did triple of what FOX was doing in September with rerun programming in the time slot.
The peak quarter hour was the opener with The Rock, Becky Lynch and Baron Corbin, at 4.22 million viewers. That was to be expected as Dwayne Johnson was clearly the major draw on the show. The No. 2 draw on the show was Steve Austin, most likely, given Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair were just on Raw on Monday. But Austin, Undertaker and Sting were not there and Flair and Hogan were just shown in the crowd. It’s impossible to know if the idea of seeing those wrestlers later kept the ratings up in hour two. One would think so.
From there:
Becky Lynch & Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks & Bayley lost 360,000 viewers, which sounds bad but really isn’t. About 600,000 people turned off Raw on Monday after Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair’s segment.
Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura and the angle with The Fiend lost 133,000 viewers.
The Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon ladder match gained 235,000 viewers.
The eight-man tag match and Tyson Fury angle lost 222,000 viewers.
The Roman Reigns vs. Erick Rowan match lost 3,000 viewers.
The Brock Lesnar vs. Kofi Kingston match and Cain Velasquez angle gained 105,000 viewers.
The debut of SmackDown on FOX last night averaged 3.87 million viewers in the fast nationals, which measure the top metered markets. SmackDown easily won the night in the key 18-49 demos and finished second to CBS overall.
The number was lower than most industry predictions of 4.0 million to 4.5 million, but on its own is a tremendous rating for pro wrestling.
The show did a 1.35 in the key demo, well ahead of second place Magnum P.I. on CBS that did a 0.7.
The goal of SmackDown is to average a 1.0 in that demo, and this first week with all the hotshotting and a 1.35 says that average is very far from a given.
Based on preliminary numbers, SmackDown will finish sixth for the week in the 18-49 demo.
Early indications are the show did about 70 percent male viewers, a far higher skew than WWE programming has done in years. In the male 18-49 demo, it more than tripled everything else on network television.
The actual ratings will be released on Tuesday morning.
You won’t have to wait long for the Brock Lesnar WWE title match with Cain Velasquez that was teased Friday night on SmackDown.
Lesnar vs. Velasquez is scheduled as the main event for the Oct. 31 Crown Jewel show in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The match was set up on tonight’s edition of SmackDown when Rey Mysterio brought in Velasquez after Lesnar had beaten Kofi Kingston for the WWE title in seven seconds. Velasquez confronted Lesnar, taking him to the ground briefly before Lesnar escaped.
As noted since Monday, the Mysterio angle and Paul Heyman interview on Monday’s Raw was to foreshadow a Velasquez vs. Lesnar match, although there were snags during the week, including Velasquez also negotiating with Tony Khan and AEW.
WWE offered a huge money deal for the match. It is unclear how long Velasquez has signed for, which would obviously make a difference in the match result.
Kofi Kingston’s WWE Championship reign ended with one F-5 on tonight’s SmackDown on FOX premiere.
In the main event of tonight’s SmackDown, Brock Lesnar won the WWE title by defeating Kingston in seconds. There was then an angle where former UFC Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez made his WWE debut, coming out with Rey Mysterio to get revenge on Lesnar for Lesnar attacking Rey and Dominik on this week’s Raw.
Prior to losing the title to Lesnar, Kingston had held the WWE Championship since winning it from Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35 this April.
Tonight was the first time Lesnar has wrestled on weekly WWE television since 2004.
Lesnar becoming WWE Champion comes in advance of the WWE Draft starting next week. It will begin on next Friday’s SmackDown at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The draft will then continue on the Monday, October 14 edition of Raw at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado.
Friday Night SmackDown debuts on the FOX network from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California tonight. WWE will celebrate the show’s 20th anniversary with a loaded lineup.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson returns to the blue brand after announcing on Twitter earlier this week that he’d be appearing on the debut show.
WWE Champion Kofi Kingston defends his title against Brock Lesnar. Lesnar challenged Kingston a few weeks ago and delivered a massive F-5 after Kingston accepted.
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch & Charlotte Flair take on SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley & Sasha Banks. Last week, Banks and Bayley beat down Flair until Lynch made the save.
Kevin Owens faces Shane McMahon in a ladder match where both of their careers are on the line. McMahon agreed to the match if Owens would drop his $25 million wrongful termination lawsuit. Roman Reigns also goes one-on-one with Erick Rowan. That comes in advance of Reigns & Daniel Bryan taking on Rowan & Luke Harper at Hell in a Cell this Sunday night.
Plus, appearances by Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, Lita, Mick Foley, Booker T, Hulk Hogan, Trish Stratus, Goldberg, Jerry “The King” Lawler, Mark Henry, Ric Flair, and Sting.
The “blue carpet” special begins on FOX at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time, with SmackDown starting at 8 p.m. Eastern.
**********
Kick-Off Show
The kick-off show started at FOX Studios, with Becky Lynch getting a tour and included appearances by Michael Strahan and Terry Bradshaw.
Charissa Thompson’s outside the Staples Center on the blue carpet. Thompson spoke with Charlotte and Ric Flair.
In the Staples Center, hosts Renee Young and Booker T spoke with Big E and Xavier Woods. They revealed the new set, which is pretty awesome looking. The set includes a new ramp and entrance. It also consists of a giant screen above the entranceway.
They showed several FOX celebs and WWE Personalities on the blue carpet.
SmackDown
Vince and Stephanie McMahon walked out onto the ramp to start SmackDown. The fans gave them a big pop and sang Vince’s theme music. They welcomed the fans to FOX and Friday Night SmackDown.
SmackDown has a brand new theme song and opening credit.
Raw Woman’s Champion Becky Lynch made her way down to the ring. The fans broke into a huge “Becky” chant.
Lynch noted SmackDown has a special place in her heart. She’s happy to be the first to start SmackDown on FOX. She first broke through the glass ceiling on SmackDown.
King Baron Corbin interrupted, and Lynch threatened Corbin. Corbin feels he should be the first person to start SmackDown on FOX
Suddenly, The Rock’s music hit, and the Staples Center erupted. Rock made his way down to the ring. Rock and Lynch faced off but then did a special handshake. The fans broke into a massive “Rocky” chant.
Rock noted he once told a jabroni that he was going to lay the SmackDown, and then it became a show. Rock did his classic catchphrases and said that he has finally come back home. He called Corbin Burger King, and the fans broke into a “Burger King” chant.
Rock mocked Cobrin for dressing like a 35-year-old virgin at comic con. Rock noted Lynch calls herself The Man, but she’s doesn’t walk around with giant testicles. Lynch interjected they’d still be bigger than Corbin’s. The fans broke into a “Becky” chant.
Corbin got in Lynch and Rock’s face. Lynch and The Rock worked together and beat down Corbin. Rock then gave Corbin the People’s Elbow and Rock Bottom to a huge pop. The fans broke into another “Rocky” chant.
Michael Cole and Corey Graves are handling the commentary.
Raw Woman’s Champion Becky Lynch & Charlotte Flair defeated SmackDown Woman’s Champion Bayley & Sasha Banks
Flair jumped Bayley to start the match and had the early advantage. Flair went up for a moonsault, but Bayley shoved her off to the floor.
Back from break, Flair fought off Bayley, and Lynch got the hot tag. Lynch ran wild and hit a leg drop off the second turnbuckle on Bayley for near fall. Flair hit Natural Selection on Bayley for another near fall.
All four women start brawling in the ring. Lynch caught Banks with a missile dropkick and sent Banks to the floor.
Flair then hit a massive moonsault off the top to the floor and locked on the Figure Eight on Bayley for the win.
Erin Andrews interviewed WWE Champion Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods, and Big E. Kingston promised to overcome the odds and defeat Lesnar.
They showed Tyson Fury, Kurt Angle and Mick Foley sitting at ringside.
Seth Rollins made his way to the ring for his match when Bray Wyatt’s The Firefly Funhouse interrupted. Ramblin Rabbit was wearing a Rollins t-shirt and warned him not to get in Hell in a Cell with The Fiend. Mercy The Buzzard killed Ramblin Rabbit as a preview for Hell in a Cell.
The match ended without a winner. Nakamura went for the armbar for the quick win. Rollins fought back and gained the advantage.
Suddenly, the lights went out. When the lights came back on, Nakamura was in the ring alone, and Rollins was on the stage at the entrance.
The Fiend attacked Rollins from behind and applied the mandible claw. He then threw Rollins off the stage.
Kevin Owens defeated Shane McMahon in a Loser is Fired Ladder Match
The match felt somewhat rushed. Owens and McMahon fought up the ramp to start the match. Owens tossed a ladder at McMahon, but he ducked, and the ladder went flying. Owens tried bringing in a ladder, but McMahon hit a sliding dropkick into the ladder.
McMahon hit Owens with a ladder to the back and placed him on the announce table. McMahon then hit an elbow off the top turnbuckle on to Owens, who was still on the table.
Back from the break, Owens was back in control and hit a frog splash off the top turnbuckle on to McMahon, who was on a ladder between the apron and barricade.
Owens climbed the ladder, but McMahon cut him off with a chair. McMahon placed a ladder across Owens’s face and hit the coast-to-coast. Graves pushed the idea that McMahon’s landing took a lot out of him.
McMahon climbed the ladder, but Owens power bombed McMahon onto another ladder. Owens then climbed up the ladder and grabbed the briefcase for the win.
After the match, Owens grabbed a mic and fired McMahon. He then hit the stunner on McMahon.
Kayla Braxton interviewed Paul Heyman in the back. They recapped Brock Lesnar attacking Rey Mysterio and his son Dominic. Heyman said it’s not a prediction but a spoiler that Lesnar’s going to win the WWE Championship.
Braun Strowman, The Miz & Heavy Machinery defeated AJ Styles, Randy Orton, Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode
Ziggler had an early advantage, but Miz hit a DDT and tagged Strowman. Strowman scored a near fall, but Roode broke it up. Everyone came in a hit a big move, and they all ended up at ringside.
Strowman then ran around ringside, running down the heels. Strowman and Tyson Fury went face to face. Strowman taunted Fury. Ziggler jumped Strowman, but Strowman regained control. Strowman then tossed Ziggler into Fury.
Fury wasn’t happy about this and stood up. Strowman then hit a slam on Ziggler for the win.
After the match, Fury jumped the barricade, and a massive amount of security stopped him from entering. Strowman stood in the ring, smiling. This was a pretty good angle that got a big reaction from the fans.
Roman Reigns defeated Erick Rowan in a Lumberjack Match
The lumberjacks included Ricochet, Andrade, The Viking Raiders, and The Revival. Daniel Bryan joined Graves and Cole on commentary.
Rowan had the early advantage and scored a near fall. Back from the break, Rowan was firmly in control. Reigns fought back and hit a Samoan drop for a close near fall. Reigns went for the Superman Punch, but Rowan caught him.
Luke Harper made his way down to ringside, and Bryan attacked him. All the lumberjacks brawled, and Reigns hit a massive dive onto all the lumberjacks. Rowan then power bombed Ali into Reigns.
Reigns fought back and had the match won when Harper broke up the pin. Graves noted there are no disqualifications in a lumberjack match. Bryan nailed Harper with the running knee. Rowan attempted the Iron Claw, but Reigns hit the spear for the win.
Brock Lesnar (w/Paul Heyman) defeated Kofi Kingston to win the WWE Championship
Kingston sent Xavier Woods and Big E to the back. This was a very short match. Kingston charged Lesnar, but he picked him up in the F-5 for the quick win to become the new WWE Champion.
After the match, Rey Mysterio’s music hit, but he walked out with Cain Velazquez. Mysterio had his arm in a sling selling the attack from Monday. Cole noted that Velazquez defeated Lesnar for the UFC Championship. Velazquez walked to the ring. Lesnar charged at him, but Velazquez took him down. Lesnar ran out of the ring up the ramp.
Lesnar teased entering the ring but walked off instead. Mysterio and Velazquez posed in the ring. This was another good angle involving an outsider and was a good ending to an excellent FOX premiere.
Some more information has been announced for tomorrow’s SmackDown “blue carpet” pre-show.
Ahead of the Friday Night SmackDown premiere, the half-hour kickoff show will air live on FOX starting at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time. FOX issued a press release today announcing that Renee Young and Booker T will anchor the desk for the pre-show, “welcoming special guests and offering insight and analysis on the upcoming matchups.”
Charissa Thompson, the host of FOX NFL Kickoff, will be “on hand for arrivals and interviews outside the Staples Center, while WWE reporter Kayla Braxton provides exclusive backstage access to Superstars just moments before all the action.”
Here’s what’s been confirmed for tomorrow’s SmackDown on FOX premiere:
WWE Champion Kofi Kingston defending against Brock Lesnar
An appearance by The Rock
Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon in a ladder match where both of their careers are on the line
Becky Lynch & Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks & Bayley
Roman Reigns vs. Erick Rowan
More legends appearing as part of SmackDown’s 20th anniversary celebration
SmackDown will air live on FOX in the Eastern and Central time zones and for all authenticated viewers on the FOX Sports App. The show won’t be live on television in the Mountain and Pacific time zones, with it airing at 7 p.m. Mountain and 8 p.m. Pacific.
Last week, Young and Booker T were announced as hosts for the WWE Backstage studio show, which will air weekly on FS1 at 11 p.m. Eastern time/8 p.m. Pacific on Tuesdays starting on November 5. There will also be a WWE Backstage preview show on October 15.
