The 2021 Survivor Series was a show built around non-title matches that had little storyline build-up and traditional matches with no interaction between brands.
It was a paradox. The show, on 11/21 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, was, from a television standpoint, one of the weakest builds to a PPV to date. Because the name Survivor Series is traditional and it’s supposed to be an A show, no doubt viewership was higher than most B shows. But aside from Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair building a match based on a legit disagreement during the belt trading angle on Smackdown and their former friendship, and a minor situation where Big E vowed revenge for Roman Reigns and the Usos feuding on Smackdown with Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston, there was little to build the matches.
On the flip side, there was more mainstream media done related to the show than just about any show other than WrestleMania. The main characters, Lynch, Flair, Paul Heyman, and Roman Reigns in particular, were visible all over the place promoting the show and the brand.
Today on Mat Men, Andrew and Rich are back on this Thanksgiving eve.
The guys go into detail on this past Sunday’s WWE Survivor Series and what happened with the show, how good the Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch match was, and Roman Reigns beating Big E clean. Andrew has some more information on why The Rock wasn’t involved and why they never pivoted from their plan to feature him.
We also discuss former AEW World Champion Kenny Omega taking time off to heal and when he should return.
NXT War Games is just over a week away, so we take a look at the card and discuss the build to the show.
Also, the guys go into all this week’s pro wrestling news results and rumors along with your mailbag questions
SmackDown’s roster will appear on Raw tomorrow following a storyline that took place throughout tonight’s Survivor Series pay-per-view.
A segment on tonight’s show had McMahon upset that a golden egg he brought had gone missing. He ordered Adam Pearce to interview every superstar and told Peace that if he was unable to find out who did it, McMahon would personally get to the bottom of it tomorrow on Raw. After the segment, Michael Cole mentioned that every star from both Raw and SmackDown would be on tomorrow’s show.
On the kickoff show, Vince McMahon arrived with a golden egg, which is also seen in The Rock’s new Netflix movie Red Notice. Later, in a segment with Roman Reigns, McMahon noted that it was Cleopatra’s golden egg and that it was a gift from The Rock.
Raw tomorrow night will be the second of two WWE shows held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
The stars of Raw and SmackDown will face off as Survivor Series takes place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York tonight.
The pay-per-view will feature four non-title matches pitting the champions of Raw and SmackDown against each other. There will also be two traditional Survivor Series five-on-five elimination tag matches, along with a 25-man battle royal.
WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns, Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos, and United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura are the champion vs. champion matches.
Priest vs. Nakamura is set for tonight’s pre-show
The men’s elimination match will be Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin & Sheamus). Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya & Toni Storm) is the women’s elimination match.
Tonight’s pre-show begins at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the main card starting an hour later.
**********
Pre-Show
Kayla Braxton introduced Jerry “The King” Lawler, Booker T, Kevin Patrick, and Pete Rosenberg to start the kickoff show. The fans broke into a brief “Jerry” and “Booker” chant. The fans popped for Rosenberg in his hometown.
The panel then ran down the line-up for tonight’s card.
They showed Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch arriving at the building. The panel discussed the Lynch and Flair feud with the same video from Friday night.
Lawler and Booker discussed their biggest rivals. Lawler mentioned Andy Kaufman, and Booker brought up Batista.
They recapped the Sasha Banks and Shotzi feud, including Banks giving Shotzi the backstabber after shaking her hand.
In the back, Sasha Banks gave a pep talk to her team members Toni Storm, Natayla, Shayna Baszler, and Shotzi. Banks praised Storm, Natalya, and Baszler. She couldn’t remember Shotzi’s name and got it wrong. Shotzi tried to correct her, but Banks told her it doesn’t matter what her name is. Banks and Shotzi got into an argument, and the other team members tried to break it up.
The panel talked about the SmackDown team not being able to co-exist. They turned their attention to Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos. The panel mentioned that Randy Orton sets the record for most PPV matches tonight and could set a record for most matches on Raw tomorrow.
They showed highlights of The Rock’s debut at the Survivor Series in 1996. The panel discussed Rock’s debut and his career.
Non-title Match: Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura (w/Rick Boogs) defeated United States Champion Damien Priest via DQ (9:24)
Preist and Nakamura had a good pre-show match until the weak finish.
Jimmy Smith, Pat McAfee, and Byron Saxton are the commentators.
Priest had the early advantage and worked over Nakamura’s arm. Boogs started playing his guitar to distract Priest. McAfee danced in the background.
Nakamura rocked Priest with a knee, but Priest fired back. Priest then missed a splash in the corner, and Nakamura briefly took over. Priest fought back and slowed the pace down with a chin lock.
Boogs played the guitar again, which annoyed Priest. Priest knocked down Nakamura and gave Boogs a final warning not to play the guitar again. Nakamura took advantage and hit a sliding German suplex for a two-count.
Nakamura went for a knee off the second turnbuckle, but Priest countered with a spinning heel kick. Priest hit a splash in the corner and followed up with a brutal clothesline. Priest and Nakamura traded kicks in the middle of the ring.
Nakamura took over and hit a sliding knee for a close near fall. The fans broke into “Nakamura” and “Priest” chants. Nakamura went for the Kinshasa, but Priest countered with the south of heaven chokeslam for a very close near fall.
Priest went for Reckoning, but Nakamura broke free. Nakamura went for the armbar, but Priest countered into the Gogoplata. Suddenly, Boogs started playing his guitar, and Priest let go of the hold.
Priest jumped out of the ring, grabbed the guitar, and smashed it to pieces. The fans reacted big to this moment. He then took a piece of the guitar and hit Boogs in the face. Nakamura went after Priest, but Priest hit him with the guitar for the disqualification.
The fans erupted in boos for the finish. McAfee was shocked that Priest broke the guitar.
The panel discussed the men’s Survivor Series match. They showed Bobby Lashley and MVP arriving at the building. Suddenly, Kevin Owens walked up to the panel. He discussed the last few weeks and promised to show who he really is in the main event.
In the back, a limo pulled up, and Vince McMahon stepped out. Adam Pearce, Sonya Deville, and roster members greeted him and chanted. McMahon was holding a gold egg, which is a reference to Red Notice.
The panel discussed the Roman Reigns and Big E feud and mentioned Mariah Carey acknowledging Reigns on social media.
Main Show
The opening video included scenes from Red Notice.
Non-title Match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defeated SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair (18:13)
Flair and Lynch had a really good hard-hitting match.
They recapped the Lynch and Flair feud. Michael Cole, Pat McAfee, and Corey Graves are the commentators.
Lynch got a big pop from the crowd for her entrance.
Lynch was so furious before the bell the referee had to hold her back. Flair rocked Lynch with a right hand at the bell. Lynch fired back with kicks, but Flair went after the leg.
Lynch gained control, and the fans broke into a loud “Becky” chant. Flair recovered and slammed Lynch’s head on the mat. Flair posed in the ring, and the fans erupted in boos.
Lynch tried to fight back, but Flair slammed her into the ring post. Flair climbed to the top rope for the moonsault, but Lynch recovered and shoved her off into the barricade. Flair recovered quickly and slammed Lynch on the barricade.
They jumped in the ring and started trash-talking. Flair and Lynch then traded brutal slaps back and forth until Flair hit a clothesline. Flair followed up with a hard chop and forearms in the corner. Flair went back to the leg, but Lynch counted with a kick to the head.
Lynch went for the dis-arm-her, but Flair reversed. Lynch went for an armbar, but Flair countered with a powerbomb for a close near fall. Flair went for a moonsault, but Lynch rolled out of the way. Flair landed on her feet and hit a standing moonsault for another near fall.
Flair and Lynch did more trash talking. Lynch fired up and caught Flair with a leg drop to the back of the neck for a close two-count. The fans broke into a loud “This is awesome” chant.
Lynch was firmly in control and rocked Flair with uppercuts. Flair went for a big boot but hit a back elbow instead for a near fall. Flair tried to roll up Lynch, but she held onto the top rope. Flair then rocked Lynch with a big boot for another close two-count.
Flair went for a slam, but Lynch slipped out and hit an inverted DDT for a near fall. Lynch missed a leg drop off the top rope. Lynch recovered and hit the manhandle slam, but Flair got her foot on the bottom rope.
Lynch locked on the figure four leg lock to a huge reaction. Flair and Lynch traded slaps while still in the hold. Flair reversed the figure four to break it. The fans broke into another loud “This is awesome” chant.
Flair knocked Lynch off the apron and went for the moonsault, but she barely hit Lynch. Flair took over and locked on the dis-arm-her, but Lynch made it to the ropes. The finish came when Flair rolled up Lynch and held onto the top rope. The referees caught Flair, and Lynch reversed the roll-up for the win. Lynch held onto the top rope, but the referee didn’t catch her.
They recapped Rock’s debut in Madison Square Garden at the 1996 Survivor Series.
They aired a video looking a Drew McIntrye’s career.
Survivor Series Elimination Match: Team Raw (Bobby Lashley, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Austin Theory & Seth Rollins) (w/MVP) defeated Team SmackDown (Drew McIntrye, Jeff Hardy, Sheamus, Happy Corbin & King Woods) (w/Madcap Moss) (29:54)
Sole Survivor: Seth Rollins
This was a good Survivor Series match that got a lot of time.
Jimmy Smith, Pat McAfee, and Byron Saxton are the commentators.
They recapped all the changes in the teams over the last few weeks. The fans broke into faint “Raw” and “SmackDown” chants.
Kevin Owens argued with the Raw team that he wanted to start. He yelled at Rollins that he had something to prove. Owens teased starting but rolled out of the ring and walked off for the first elimination. He mocked his team members from the entrance.
Woods took advantage and dragged Austin Theory to his corner. Team SmackDown isolated Theory and cut him off from his team. Rollins got the tag, but Corbin rocked him with a clothesline. Hardy tagged in, and the fans broke into a loud “Hardy” chant.
SmackDown continued to dominate as they isolated Balor on their side of the ring. McIntrye hit a delayed vertical suplex on Balor for a near fall. Balor fought back, but Corbin hit deep six for a near fall. Lashley jumped in, but McIntrye caught him with a belly-to-belly suplex.
Balor took advantage and hit the coup de grace on Corbin to eliminate him from the match.
Hardy and Balor faced off, and the fans broke into a “Hardy” chant. Hardy rolled up Balor with a sunset flip, but Balor rolled through and hit a basement dropkick. Rollins backed Hardy into his corner. Raw isolated Hardy and cut him off from his corner.
Balor slowed the pace down with a chin lock on Hardy. Balor placed Hardy on the top rope, but Hardy fought back. Hardy knocked Balor and Rollins off the top rope and hit the whisper in the wind.
Lashley then pulled McIntrye off the apron and slammed him into the ring post. Woods got the hot tag and ran wild. He hit a rolling DDT on Rollins and rocked Theory with a forearm. Woods climbed to the top rope, but Lashley knocked him off. Lashley tagged in and hit the spear on Woods. He then locked on the Hurt Lock for the submission to eliminate Woods.
Lashley wouldn’t break the hold, which allowed SmackDown to jump him. McIntyre and Lashley went face to face in the middle of the ring. Lashley gained control and hit a shoulder tackle in the corner.
McIntrye fired back with a clothesline and sent him to the floor.
Lashley and McIntrye brawled around ringside and over the barricade. Eventually, the referee counted out both Lashley and McIntrye, which eliminated both from the match. The fans erupted in boos for the double count-out. Lashley jumped McIntrye, but McIntrye fought back and hit the Claymore kick.
Rollins taunted McIntyre that he got eliminated. McIntrye then hit the Glasgow Kiss on Rollins. Sheamus tried to take advantage but only scored a two-count.
Balor was firmly in control and went for the coup de grace. Sheamus moved out of the way and hit the Brogue kick to eliminate Balor. It came down to Rollins and Theory against Sheamus and Hardy.
Theory rocked Sheamus with a knee for a close near fall. Rollins slowed the pace down with a chin lock on Sheamus. Hardy tagged in and ran wild on Rollins. He hit a splash off the second turnbuckle for a two-count. Hardy jumped off of Sheamus’ back and hit a splash on Rollins and Theory.
Rollins went for the stomp, but Sheamus countered with white noise. Sheamus went for the Brogue kick, but Theory caused a distraction, and Rollins hit the superkick for a near fall.
Rollins pulled Hardy off the apron, so Sheamus had nobody to tag. Theory took advantage and rolled up Sheamus for the next elimination. Sheamus rocked Theory with a clothesline. Sheamus got in Hardy’s face and rocked him with a clothesline too.
Rollins tagged in and hit a frog splash on Hardy for a close near fall. Rollins and Theory tried to give Hardy a double suplex. Hardy knocked the heels off and hit Swanton Bomb on Theory to eliminate him.
Hardy and Rollins were the last two in the match. The fans broke into a loud “Hardy” chant. Rollins got in Hardy’s face, but Hardy kicked him in the gut. Hardy went for the twist of fate, but Rollins countered. Hardy then rolled up Rollins for a close two-count. The fans broke into a “This is awesome” chant.
Rollins went for the stomp, but Hardy caught his foot. Hardy recovered and hit the twist of fate to a huge pop. He went for the Swanton Bomb, but Rollins got his knees up and hit the stomp for the win.
The commentators noted this is the second year in a row that the men’s Raw team beat the SmackDown team.
They recapped Rock defeating Mankind at the 1998 Survivor Series to win the WWE Championship.
They showed Vince McMahon arriving earlier tonight.
In the back, Roman Reigns walked into McMahon’s office. McMahon showed off Cleopatra’s gold egg and claimed the Rock gave it to him. McMahon bragged about the egg and said it cost $100 million. Reigns said that’s how much his next contract will cost.
Omos Won The 25 Man Battle Royal (10:37)
Participants: AJ Styles, Apollo Crews, Cedric Alexander, Cesaro, Chad Gable, Otis, Commander Azeez, Dolph Ziggler, Drew Gulak, The Viking Raiders, Los Lotharios, Jinder Mahal, R-Truth, Ricochet, Robert Roode, Dolph Ziggler, Sami Zayn, Shanky, T-Bar, and The Street Profits
This was a typical battle royal that dragged in the middle. The entire match was built around Omos dominating.
The Street Profits grabbed a Pizza Hut box as they walked to the ring. There were also boxes near the ring as well. They gave their pizza to Michael Cole and Corey Graves but not Byron Saxton.
The bell rang, and AJ Styles jumped from the ring onto the announce table. Omos quickly eliminated Drew Gulak from the match. R-Truth got a slice of pizza and tried to give it to Omos. Otis approached and ate the slice instead. Otis then grabbed Truth and tossed him out. Omos took advantage and knocked Otis out of the ring.
Cesaro rocked Gable with an uppercut to eliminate him. The fans broke into a “We want pizza” chant. Ricochet caught T-Bar with a dropkick in the corner and tossed him out of the ring. Shanky then eliminated several SmackDown wrestlers, including Ivar.
Omos and Shanky went face to face. Omos then grabbed Shanky and threw him out. Mansoor tried to eliminate Roode and Ziggler, but they hit a spinebuster/Zig Zag combo.
Roode challenged Omos, but Omos easily dumped him out of the ring. Ziggler told Omos that he wanted to be his friend. Suddenly, Styles hit the Phenomenal forearm on Ziggler and tossed him out.
Sami Zayn tried to get Cesaro and Ricochet to work together. Zayn got upset, so they attacked him. The Street Profits took advantage and threw Zayn out. Omos and Commander Azeez had a brief staredown. Omos hit him with a clothesline for another elimination.
Azeez tried to pull out Styles but Omos wouldn’t let him. They both pulled on Styles until he fell out of the ring. Omos then tossed out Apollo Crews.
It came down to Omos, Ricochet, Cesaro, and Street Profits. The faces tried working together, but Omos eliminated Cesaro and Dawkins for his ninth and tenth eliminations. Montez Ford tried to fight back, but Omos dumped out Ford.
It came down to Ricochet and Omos. The fans got behind Ricochet. He hit Omos with a dropkick, but Omos quickly recovered and threw out Ricochet for the win.
After the match, Styles went over to the pizza, but Ford knocked him down. Ford and Dawkins ran off and threw pizza slices in the crowd.
Non-Title Match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro defeated SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (14:45)
RK-Bro and The Usos had a good and fun match.
The commentators pushed that Randy Orton sets the record for the most matches on PPV.
RK-Bro had the early advantage until the Usos regrouped on the floor. Orton fought back and caught Jey with a right hand. Orton then helped Riddle hit a splash on Jey. Riddle sent Jimmy to the floor and hit a dive. Jey took advantage and knocked Riddle off the apron. Jimmy followed up with a suicide dive.
The Usos took over and isolated Riddle on their side of the ring. Jey charged at Riddle, but Riddle caught him with a kick to the head. Jimmy stopped Riddle from making a tag and slowed the pace down with a chin lock.
Riddle tried to make a tag, but Jimmy dragged him to his corner. Jey slowed the pace back down with another chin lock. Riddle fought back and hit a bad-looking GTS. Orton got the hot tag and ran wild on the Usos. He went for the draping DDT, but Jey pulled him out of the ring.
Orton recovered and slammed Jey on the announce table. He then slammed Jimmy on the announce table as well. Orton set up for the RKO on Jey, but he escaped. Jey rocked Orton with a superkick, but he fell into his corner. Riddle tagged himself in and ran wild on the heels.
Riddle hit a senton on Jimmy and went for one on Jey, but Jey got his knees up. Riddle fought back and hit a German suplex for a two-count. The Usos hit a pop-up Samoan Drop on Riddle for a near fall.
The Usos took over and hit a double superkick on Orton. They then hit a double superkick on Riddle for a close near fall. Riddle fought back and knocked Jey to the floor. Riddle tagged in Orton, but Jimmy didn’t see. Jimmy knocked Orton to the floor and went for the splash on Riddle. Orton jumped in and hit the RKO on Jimmy in mid-air for the win.
Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville met with Vince McMahon in his office. McMahon realized his gold egg was missing. He demanded that Deville and Pearce find his egg. McMahon added that if Pearce can’t find it, he’ll find it on Raw tomorrow night. Michael Cole mentioned that the SmackDown roster will be at Raw tomorrow night. This is an odd storyline.
They showed the creative Xia Li comic book promo from SmackDown.
Survivor Series Elimination Match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Carmella, Liv Morgan, Queen Zelina & Rhea Ripley) defeated Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Toni Storm, Shayna Baszler, Natalya & Shotzi) (23:44)
Sole Survivor: Bianca Belair
This was an okay match with some rough spots that dragged. The fans were dead for most of the match and started doing the wave at one point. The storyline of Team SmackDown not getting along took away from the match. Raw won every match tonight so far except for the pre-show, which they lost by disqualification.
Carmella and Toni Storm started the match. Carmella rocked Storm with a forearm and demanded her mask to protect her face. Vega briefly took over on Storm, and Carmella tagged back in. Vega tried putting the mask on Carmella, but Rhea Ripley knocked it out of her hands.
Carmella yelled at Ripley, but Storm rolled her up for the first elimination. The fans broke into a brief “Toni” chant. Banks tagged in to take on Bianca Belair, but Shotzi tagged herself in the match.
Shotzi backed Morgan into their corner. Natalya took over and hit a suplex on Morgan for a near fall. Raw regained control and isolated Natalya on their side of the ring. Ripley rocked Natalya with a dropkick to the head for a near fall.
Natalya recovered and caught Ripley with a German suplex. Baszler and Natalya gave Ripley a double-delayed vertical suplex.
Baszler tried to stomp on Ripley’s arm, but Ripley fought back. Ripley went for the riptide, but Baszler escaped. Banks tried to make the tag, but Shotzi pulled her off the apron.
Baszler recovered and locked on an armbar on Ripley. Baszler transitioned into the Kirifuda clutch, but Ripley broke free. Ripley went for the riptide, but Shotzi jumped in the ring.
Baszler locked on the Kirfuda clutch, but Ripley broke free. The fans were dead for the first part of the match and started doing the wave. Belair and Banks went face to face, and the fans came alive. The fans broke into “Let’s go Sasha” and “EST” chants.
Belair was firmly in control and hit a fallaway slam. Banks recovered and hit a tornado DDT for a near fall. Belair recovered and hit a huge spinebuster for a two-count. Belair went for the KOD, but Banks landed on her feet. Belair regained control and dropped Vega on Banks for a near fall. The fans broke into a brief and faint “CM Punk” chant.
Storm then pinned Vega for the next elimination. Morgan rolled up Storm for a near fall, but Baszler jumped in the ring. Morgan tossed Baszler to the floor and hit the oblivion on Storm to eliminate her from the match. The fans booed Storm’s elimination.
Baszler locked on the Kirfuda clutch on Morgan, but she backed her into the corner. Shotzi tagged in and climbed to the top, but Banks tagged herself in the match. Banks then eliminated Morgan.
Shotzi and Baszler worked together and eliminated Ripley. It came down to Banks, Shotzi, Baszler, and Natalya against Belair on her own. Belair knocked SmackDown off the apron and backed Natalya into her corner. Banks tagged in the match, but Shotzi tried stopping her. Shotzi and Banks argued at ringside.
Banks pushed Shotzi into Baszler. Natalya, Shotzi, and Baszler kept pulling Banks out of the ring until she was counted out. The fans booed Banks’ count-out elimination.
Natalya went for the sharpshooter on Belair but broke free and knocked her into Baszler. Belair then used a small package to eliminate Natalya. Belair then quickly eliminated Baszler from the match.
It came down to Shotzi and Belair. Shotzi hit a crossbody on Belair, but Belair rolled through. Shotzi regained control and scored a close near fall. Belair then rammed Shotzi into the corner and hit the KOD for the win.
They showed highlights of Rock’s career throughout the night.
In the back, Kayla Braxton approached Paul Heyman. Heyman doesn’t know what happened to Vince McMahon’s gold egg. Braxton informed Heyman that Brock Lesnar’s suspension is no longer indefinite.
Non-Title Match: Universal Champion Roman Reigns (w/Paul Heyman) defeated WWE Champion Big E (21:52)
Reigns and Big E had a good match. They started at a slow pace, but it picked up towards the end. Reigns victory is SmackDown’s only pinfall win of the night.
Big E and Reigns locked up, with Big E gaining the advantage. Reigns rolled out of the ring, and Heyman gave him a pep talk. Reigns jumped in the ring and quickly took over. He backed Big E in the corner and hit a series of clotheslines.
Big E avoided Reigns with a leapfrog and hit a back elbow for a near fall. Big E dragged Reigns to the apron but missed a splash. He appeared to injure his knee on the splash.
Reigns slowed the pace down with a chin lock. Big E broke free, but Reigns cut him off with a back elbow. The fans broke into a brief “New Day Rocks” chant. Reigns rocked Big E with a big boot for a near fall. He started yelling at the fans and threw Big E into the ring post.
Reigns continued to dominate and threw Big E into the ring post again. Reigns tried throwing Big E into the steps, but he reversed. Big E then hit a series of belly-to-belly suplexes. He followed up with a splash but Reigns recovered with a Samoan Drop for a near fall.
Reigns hit a series of clotheslines in the corner, but Big E fought back with a uranage for a two-count. Big E then locked on the stretch muffler, but Reigns broke free and hit a sit-out powerbomb for a near fall.
Reigns went for the superman punch, but Big E avoided it. Reigns then hit the Rock Bottom for a near fall. The fans broke into a loud “Rocky” chant. Reigns hit the superman punch again, but Big E didn’t go down.
Reigns hit another superman punch but Big E tried to get back to his feet. Reigns hit a third superman punch and set up for the spear. Big E got back to his feet and got in Reigns’ face to a big reaction. Big E then hit the spear off the apron to take over.
Reigns immediately hit the spear in the ring for a close near fall. The fans broke into loud “Let’s go Big E” and “Let’s go Roman” chants. Reigns went for the guillotine submission, but Big E broke free. Big E went for a second spear off the apron but Reigns caught him in the guillotine again. Big E powered out and hit the Big Ending, but Reigns got his foot on the bottom rope.
The fans broke into a “This is awesome” chant. Big E slammed Reigns’ head on the announce table and threw him into the ring post. Reigns recovered and threw Big E into the steps knee-first. Reigns then hit a superman punch off the steps.
In the ring, Big E went for the big ending, but his knee gave out. Reigns slipped out and attacked Big E’s knee. He then hit the spear for the win.
Reigns walked to the back with Heyman holding up the Universal title to end Survivor Series. Big E got back to his feet after Reigns left the ring.
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
Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Survivor Series, UFC, New Japan Impact and the rest of the wrestling and MMA news with Wrestling Observer. Radio. You can send questions for the show to [email protected]
Some notes on Survivor Series, which starts at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time on Peacock in the U.S. and WWE Network elsewhere. All individuals over the age of 12 will have to show proof of at least one vaccination dose. There is a vaccination spot at the Barclays Center which is open right at at 140 Flatbush Avenue. The vaccine is free.
The show is a series of brand vs. brand matches, with no titles at stake so no repercussions, past likely shooting some angles within the brands going forward. The winners and losers don’t have a lot of bearing on stuff going forward. From a television buildup standpoint, I’ve never seen a PPV in years with such little build or matches. But in the media, there has been far more non-wrestling media build for this show than any Survivor Series in history. On paper, most of the bouts themselves should be good. Nakamura vs. Priest will be starting the pre-show at 7:30 p.m.
Big E vs. Roman Reigns – Reigns is a heavy favorite at -650 since he hasn’t lost in so long and it’s clear they are building everything around him to main event WrestleMania. Kambi lists the over/under on star ratings for this match at ****1/4
Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair – I think a lot of people are expecting a screw job finish for whatever reason, I guess playing off the angle from several weeks back that got botched with the idea that means they should do a screw job. BetOnLine favors Lynch at -400 while Kambi has her at -250. Kambi lists the over/under on star ratings for this match at ****
Damien Priest vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – It’s notable that Priest is a -1400 favorite at Kambi and you don’t have odds that long unless there is certainty of the result. Keep in mind that can always change. Priest is a -330 favorite at BetOnLine. Kambi lists the over/under no star ratings for this match at ***1/2
Riddle & Randy Orton vs. Usos – RK Bro is a slight favorite at -125 but other odds are -225. Kambi lists the over/under on star ratings for this at ***3/4
Finn Balor & Kevin Owens & Seth Rollins & Austin Theory & Bobby Lashley vs. Drew McIntyre & Jeff Hardy & King Woods & Sheamus & Happy Corbin – Oddsmakers are split on this ne, with Kambi at -108 for Team Raw and BetOnline at -180 for Team Smackdown. Kambi lists the over/under on star ratings at ***3/4
Bianca Belair & Rhea Ripley & Liv Morgan & Carmella & Queen Zelina vs. Sasha Banks & Natalya & Shotzi & Shayna Baszler & Toni Storm – Team Raw is favored at -150. Kambi lists the over/under on star ratings at ***
25 man Battle Royal. It is a WWE Battle Royal. They are usually pretty similar. 5 Dimes’ top favorites are Omos at +160, A.J. Styles at +290, Sami Zayn at +400, Cesaro at +650 and Jinder Mahal at +800. Omos is the favorite across the board.
We’re looking for your thoughts on this show as well as the New Japan show in Nagoya from today, you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match for both shows to [email protected]
For this week only three things combat sports related made the top 20 for the day in Google searches. Yesterday’s UFC show had one listing, for Miesha Tate as No. 18 with 50,000 searches. The Terence Crawford-Shawn Porter fight, which included Big E doing the walkout introduction for Porter, did 500,000 searches and was No. 2 for the day. Crawford won via tenth round stoppage and Porter announced his retirement after the fight. The other was on Tuesday with Mike Tyson at 500,000 for the No. 3 spot talking about almost dying from usage of psychedelics at a drug press conference.
Jim Ross on his podcast talked about this week as he’s getting radiation treatment tomorrow for skin cancer. He said he wants to do the Wednesday night show in Chicago. “Next week’s going to be a touch and go week for me, on Monday morning I’m supposed to get two cancer spots cut out of my back,” he said. “They say it’s only a few stitches but I’ve got to get ready to get on an airplane and they say it’s going to be bandaged. I can’t scratch them, I can’t touch them. Then after that on Monday, I have to go to my oncologist and they make me a boot. And the boot is what you slip on so the radiation machine has a target. I don’t know if it attaches or whatever, but it’s there to not give you any more radiation than you need and only on the spot that isn’t infected. I plan on going to Chicago, and on Wednesday, we’re going to kick ass.”
For last night’s UFC show, 85 percent of the media scores had Ketlen Vieira winning and 15 percent had Miesha Tate. Judge Michael Bell gave rounds one, two and five to Vieira. Judge Sal D’Amoto scored it the same. Judge Junichiro Kamijo had every round but round four for Vieira. in the semi, where Sean Brady beat Michael Chiesa, all three judges were 29-28, giving the first two rounds to Brady and third for Chiesa. 100 percent of media scores were for Brady.
WWE ran in Syracuse, NY last night: Riddle & Randy Orton & Street Profits b Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode & Omos & A.J. Styles, Liv Morgan b Carmella, Bobby Lashley b Rey & Dominik Mysterio in a handicap match, Charlotte Flair b Sasha Banks – one regular at the matches in Syracuse going for 30 years said this was atop five house show match during that period but several raved about it to us, Drew McIntyre & Viking Raiders b Roman Reigns & Usos, Shinsuke Nakamura b Jinder Mahal-DQ when Shanky interfered, Nakamura & Rick Boogs b Mahal & Shanky, Damien Priest won a four-way over Kevin Owens Finn Balor and Seth Rollins to keep the U.S. title, Becky Lynch Bianca Belair to keep the Raw women’s title.
Regarding the article in the new issue on WrestleMania ticket sales, it should be noted that the high ticket prices we mentioned were for both nights, not one night individually. Also, individual show ticket prices in a lot of the building are lower than past years due to it being two nights.
The New York Post has a story on Dwayne Johnson wanting to succeed Daniel Craig as the new James Bond. He said he wanted to play Bond, not be a Bond villain. The story noted that Peter Maivia, Dwayne’s grandfather, played a Bond villain in the 1967 movie “You Only Live Twice.” This was when Maivia was wrestling in the U.K. Maivia had a fight scene in that movie with Sean Connery.
On Friday night’s Freelance Wrestling show in Chicago, Kylie Rae, unadvertised or unannounced, showed up to wrestle in a five-way women’s match. She had been out of wrestling a few months due to a mental health issue.
Kenny Omega should be announcing that he is vacating the AAA Mega heavyweight title due to upcoming surgery and not knowing a firm date when he will be back. People have been called as replacements but the final decision is still being worked on as far as the main event title match for the 12/4 show in Monterrey at the baseball stadium.
Dalton Castle beat Dragon Lee on the weekend TV to win the ROH TV title. They have been getting the belts off Lee with the idea he’s probably done with the promotion once the year is over.
We’re looking for reports on today’s RevPro show at York Hall to [email protected] Will Ospreay defends the British heavyweight title against Shota Umino in the main event and Aussie Open defends the tag titles against Ricky Knight Jr.& Roy Knight, plus Michael Oku vs. Mike Bailey for the cruiserweight title and Alex Windsor vs. Debbie Keitel for the women’s title.
WWE
Natalya noted that her win on Smackdown was the 500th win of her WWE career, the most of any WWE woman wrestler in history.
AEW
The 2021 movie “Queenpins” that aired on Showtime Monday night had a brief clip of a character watching the start of “Dynamite and there was an AEW graphic late in the movie. There is no mention of AEW in the end credits (thanks to Harold Kruger)
The 1/12 advance for Dynamite in Raleigh is one of the weaker ones for a new market they’ve had. The last number we had was 2,507 seats out.
Eddie Kingston is booked for the 12/9 New Japan show in Los Angeles.
OTHER NOTES
Defy Wrestling from last night in Seattle before a sellout of nearly 800 fans: Lio Rush b Titus Alexander, Ricky Gibson & Eddie Pearl b Kaimana & Ativalu to keep the tag titles,Yuya Uemura b Sonico, Rebel Kel b Vertvixen, Nick Wayne b Joey Janela (people were raving about this match, Wayne is the 16-year-old son of the late Buddy Wayne and the match went 33:00), Mark & Jay Briscoe b Schaff & Ethan HD, Brody King b Tom Lawlor. Janela called this match the best bout of his career. Next show is 12/16 in Highland Park, CA at the Lodge Room with Brody King, Christopher Daniels and Nick Wayne and 12/18 in Seattle at Washington Hall with Eddie Kingston.
Northeast Wrestling from last night in Waterbury, CT: Eddie Kingston won over Brian Anthony & Vito in a handicap match street fight, Dan Maff & Wrecking Ball Legurski b Bear Country, Vincent b Chris Battle, Jaylen Brandyn & Traevon Jordan b Elijah Dean & Zach Nystrom, Channing Thomas b Gio Galvano, Brian Pillman Jr & Griff Garrison b Cam Zagami & Antonio Zambrano-DQ so the local tag champs retained, Zane Bernardo & RJ Rude b Tommy & PJ Grayson, Cole Karter b Brett Ryan Gosselin (thanks to Nick Mahmood)
St. Louis Anarchy from last night in Granite City, IL: Anakin Murphy b Solomon Tupu, Kody Lane b JDX, Camaro Jackson & Campbell Myers & SK Bishop b Christian Rose & Manders & Gnaris Garvin, Warhorse b Kevin Lee Davidson, Kenny Alfonso b Ace Perry, Billie Starks won four-way over Everett Connors, Thomas Shire and Greg Jovi, Victor Analog b Alice Crowley, Derek Neal b Craig Mitchell, Jake Dirden b Dak Draper, Aaron Williams b Kevin Ku, Gary Jay b Jeremy Wyatt in a street fight to win the Heritage title. Wyatt had been champion for 37 months. (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
Mission Pro Wrestling from last night in Conroe,TX: Amber Rodriguez b Ki Vibez, Rache Chanel b Zeda Zhang, JP Harlow b Matt Vandagriff, KiLynn King b WOAD, JennaCide b Ashley D’Amboise, Charlette Renegade & Robyn Renegade b Big Mama & Riley Matthews, Jazmin Allure b Skye Blue, Holidead b Madi Wrenkowski, Thunder Rosa b Layne Luck in a falls count anywhere match. Rosa and Dave LaGreca have been doing a feud with LaGreca was in Luck’s corner. Viletta LeGreca, Dave’s wife, was in Rosa’s corner. If Rosa won, LeGreca had to get a tattoo on his ass. If Luck won, then Rosa would have to get a tattoo on her ass. At one point Rosa speared LeGreca into a wall with hundreds of beer cans that all fell down. Rosa wrote something in magic marker on his ass after the match and then thanked him for all his coverage of Mission Pro Wrestling and they hugged in the ring. The next show in 12/11 in San Antonio. It will be a Salvation Army benefit to collect toys. Thunder Rosa & teenage son Anakin Rosa face Ashley D’Amboise & JP Harlow. (thanks to Shannon Walsh)
RevPro had two shows in Huntingdon, UK yesterday
Show one: Karl Fredericks b Chuck Mambo, Yota Tsuji b Doug Williams, Aussie Open b Robbie X & Callum Newman, Alex Coughlin b TK Cooper, Luke Jacobs b JJ Gate, Mike Bailey b Connor Mills
Show two: Robbie X b Luke Jacobs, Chuck Mambo & TK Cooper b Doug Williams & Brendan White, Mike Bailey b Callum Newman, Alex Coughlin & Karl Fredericks b Kenneth Halfpenny & Shaun Jackson, Ricky Knight Jr. b Lucas Phillips, Michael Oku & Connor Mills & Shota Umino b Will Ospreay & Aussie Open
Game Changer Wrestling announced they would be doing an independent wrestling Hall of Fame event on 1/22. The first names announced were Jerry Lynn, who will be inducted by longtime friend Sean Waltman, and Homicide.
AJ Francis, formerly Top Dolla of Hit Row, noted that he collected 15 full shopping carts for canned food for homeless children at Sarah’s House in Fort Meade, MD, this weekend. Francis had noted after being let go on Thursday that this canned food drive was still going to happen.
WWE has revealed which match will be taking place on tonight’s Survivor Series pre-show.
Ahead of tonight’s pay-per-view, WWE announced that Damian Priest vs. Shinsuke Nakamura will be the pre-show match for Survivor Series. It’s a non-title match pitting the United States Champion (Priest) against the Intercontinental Champion (Nakamura).
Priest is a member of the Raw roster, while Nakamura is on SmackDown.
Priest vs. Nakamura is one of four champion vs. champion matches set for Survivor Series. WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns, Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, and Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos will also take place on the show.
Survivor Series is being held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The pre-show begins at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the main card starting at 8 p.m. Eastern.
Here’s the updated card for the show:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya & Toni Storm)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin & Sheamus)
25-man battle royal (Ricochet, T-Bar, Mansoor, Cesaro, Montez Ford, Angelo Dawkins, Erik, Ivar, R-Truth, Drew Gulak, AJ Styles, Omos, Sami Zayn, Humberto, Angel, Apollo Crews, Commander Azeez, Otis, Chad Gable, Shelton Benjamin, Cedric Alexander, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Jinder Mahal, and Shanky)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura (pre-show)
A battle royal has been added to the lineup for Survivor Series.
During tonight’s SmackDown, it was announced that a 25-man battle royal will take place at Survivor Series this Sunday. The number of participants is to commemorate this month being the 25th anniversary of The Rock making his WWE debut at Survivor Series 1996.
The battle royal will be a dual-branded match featuring wrestlers from Raw and SmackDown. The participants are: Ricochet, T-Bar, Mansoor, Cesaro, Montez Ford, Angelo Dawkins, Erik, Ivar, R-Truth, Drew Gulak, AJ Styles, Omos, Sami Zayn, Humberto, Angel, Apollo Crews, Commander Azeez, Otis, Chad Gable, Shelton Benjamin, Cedric Alexander, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Jinder Mahal, and Shanky.
The updated card for Survivor Series is listed below:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya & Toni Storm)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin & Sheamus)
All of WWE’s teams for Survivor Series are now complete.
Sheamus secured the final spot on Team SmackDown for Survivor Series by winning a fatal four-way match on tonight’s SmackDown. The men’s five-on-five elimination match at this Sunday’s pay-per-view will pit SmackDown’s Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin & Sheamus against Raw’s Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory.
Sheamus defeated Cesaro, Ricochet, and Jinder Mahal to win tonight’s fatal four-way match. After a distraction by Ridge Holland, Sheamus hit a Brogue Kick on Cesaro and pinned him to get the win.
Holland was called up from NXT in the WWE Draft last month. He’s recently been doing interviews on SmackDown talking about how Sheamus is his idol.
Tonight was Sheamus’ return to WWE television after undergoing surgery for a broken nose in September. It was the second broken nose that Sheamus has suffered this year.
Sami Zayn was originally announced as one of the members of Team SmackDown, but he lost his spot last Friday. Hardy defeated Zayn in a match where the loser was removed from Survivor Series.
Survivor Series is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya & Toni Storm)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin & Sheamus)
25-man battle royal (Ricochet, T-Bar, Mansoor, Cesaro, Montez Ford, Angelo Dawkins, Erik, Ivar, R-Truth, Drew Gulak, AJ Styles, Omos, Sami Zayn, Humberto, Angel, Apollo Crews, Commander Azeez, Otis, Chad Gable, Shelton Benjamin, Cedric Alexander, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Jinder Mahal, and Shanky)
The final member of SmackDown’s women’s team for Survivor Series has now been revealed.
Toni Storm will be the fifth and final member of Team SmackDown, taking the spot that was opened up when WWE authority figure Sonya Deville removed Aliyah from the team. Storm will team with Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi & Natalya against Raw’s Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega.
“With #SurvivorSeries fast approaching, I want to ensure each brand is represented by the best and brightest Superstars,” Deville tweeted. “Therefore, it’s my pleasure to announce that TONI STORM will be the fifth and final member of the #Smackdown Women’s team. Congrats and good luck on Sunday!”
Aliyah was removed from the team on last week’s SmackDown. With help from an assist by Naomi, Aliyah got the win when she teamed with Banks & Naomi against Baszler, Shotzi & Natalya on the episode. But Deville, who is feuding with Naomi, informed Aliyah after the match that she’s no longer on Team SmackDown.
Storm interrupted SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair last Friday and challenged her to a title match, but Charlotte refused to face her.
Survivor Series is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York this Sunday. Here’s the updated card for the PPV:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya & Toni Storm)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, and a partner to be determined)
Join me as I go through the WWE Survivor Series card and share my predictions on who I believe will be winning and which brand could claim brand supremacy at the end of the night.
The card as of now:
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos
United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Team Raw vs. Team SmackDown (men’s 5-on-5 traditional Survivor Series elimination match)
Team Raw vs. Team SmackDown (women’s 5-on-5 traditional Survivor Series elimination match)
Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
I will return next week for Tuesday night’s NXT 2.0 coverage, followed by AEW Dynamite coverage on Wednesday and will wrap up the week with Smackdown/Rampage coverage on Friday.
A change has been made to another one of the teams for Survivor Series.
Rey Mysterio has been removed from Raw’s men’s team for Survivor Series, with Austin Theory being named as his replacement. The announcement was made after Mysterio lost to Bobby Lashley in the main event of tonight’s Raw.
Lashley submitted Mysterio with the Hurt Lock in their match and then refused to let go of the hold. Lashley stared down Dominik Mysterio, who stayed outside of the ring until Lashley let go of the Hurt Lock. Dominik then got into the ring and checked on his father.
WWE authority figure Adam Pearce came out to the stage after the match and announced that, for the well-being of both Team Raw and for Rey Mysterio, he was removing Rey from Survivor Series. Pearce had said he would name a replacement later, but he instead announced Theory as Rey’s replacement after Theory appeared and laid out Dominik with the ATL. Pearce said he liked Theory’s style after the attack.
Rey and Dominik have now both been removed from Team Raw. Lashley took Dominik’s spot when he defeated Dominik on Raw last week.
Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Lashley & Theory will represent Raw in the men’s traditional Survivor Series elimination match. They’re facing SmackDown’s Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, and a partner to be determined.
SmackDown has one open spot on both its men’s and women’s teams. Sami Zayn and Aliyah were removed from their respective teams last Friday.
The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York is hosting Survivor Series this Sunday. Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya, and a partner)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, and a partner)
All of Survivor Series’ champion vs. champion matches are now official.
WWE has announced that a non-title match between United States Champion Damian Priest and Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura will take place at Survivor Series this Sunday. The pay-per-view is being held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Four non-title matches at Survivor Series will pit champions from Raw and SmackDown against each other. In addition to Priest vs. Nakamura, those matches are: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns, Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, and Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos.
The updated Survivor Series card is listed below:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya, and a partner)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, and a partner)
WWE has confirmed that Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) will face off with SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso) in a non-title match at Survivor Series this Sunday. The pay-per-view is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns and Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair have also been announced for Survivor Series.
Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Non-title match: Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) vs. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jimmy & Jey Uso)
Non-title match: United States Champion Damian Priest vs. Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya, and a partner)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley & Austin Theory) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, and a partner)
Ahead of Survivor Series, a couple of spots have opened up on Team SmackDown.
Aliyah and Sami Zayn were removed from their respective Survivor Series teams on tonight’s episode of SmackDown. Aliyah was removed from the women’s team by Sonya Deville, while Zayn lost his spot on the men’s team when he was defeated by Jeff Hardy.
WWE hasn’t announced who will be replacing Aliyah and Zayn.
Aliyah made her SmackDown in-ring debut tonight, teaming with Sasha Banks & Naomi to defeat Shotzi, Shayna Baszler & Natalya in a six-woman tag match. Aliyah got the win for her team when Naomi helped her reverse the Sharpshooter into a pin. That assist from Naomi came when Natalya grabbed the rope for extra leverage while she had Aliyah in the Sharpshooter.
Despite Aliyah getting the win, Deville informed her that she’s no longer on Team SmackDown. Deville is currently feuding with Naomi.
Hardy and Zayn’s match was made when Zayn went to Adam Pearce and tried to get Pearce to remove Hardy from Team SmackDown. NXT’s Von Wagner was in Pearce’s office when Zayn went to him, but Wagner wasn’t identified by name.
Survivor Series is taking place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Sunday, November 21. Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Non-title match: WWE Champion Big E vs. Universal Champion Roman Reigns
Non-title match: Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair
Women’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Carmella & Zelina Vega) vs. Team SmackDown (Sasha Banks, Shayna Baszler, Shotzi, Natalya, and a partner)
Men’s five-on-five elimination match: Team Raw (Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Rey Mysterio & Bobby Lashley) vs. Team SmackDown (Drew McIntyre, Jeff Hardy, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, and a partner)
During an appearance on the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast, Becky Lynch addressed her real-life issues with Charlotte Flair and built up their match at Survivor Series.
Lynch and Charlotte got into a legitimate backstage confrontation following an awkward title exchange on SmackDown last month. While speaking on the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast, Lynch was asked about that confrontation with Charlotte.
“I don’t know, man. We don’t talk anymore. We don’t talk,” Lynch said. “So all I’ll say is the locker room needs a hero sometimes. And sometimes somebody’s gotta be a hero. I’m all right being that hero. That’s what I’ll say on that matter.”
Lynch, who is the Raw Women’s Champion, is set to face off with SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte in a non-title champion vs. champion match at Survivor Series on Sunday, November 21. In her interview with Sports Illustrated, Lynch was asked if having issues with someone in real life makes things more difficult when they face each other in a match.
“Oh, 100 percent more difficult,” Lynch said. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. That’s the thing. When you’ve got two people that are wanting to work together to make magic, then you make magic. Sometimes when there’s hostility, when you can’t trust the person, then you never know what’s going to happen. You always have to be on guard. It’s like a game of chess. You have to be thinking two steps, three steps, four steps ahead. What are they gonna do? How am I gonna handle it? If they do this, if they do that, whatever.
“This business is built on trust. It’s built on working together. That’s the art of it. That’s the beauty of it. If I make you look good, you make me look good. It’s an art. It’s a beautiful art, it’s an art I love more than anything. If people don’t know how to make that art, then it becomes difficult. It becomes tricky and you never really get the full potential. But there’s intrigue there, too, because we never know, was this meant to happen? Was that not meant to happen? What’s gonna go down? There’s interest in both ways. One way, it’s the beautiful pure art of pro wrestling. The other way it’s a bit of a sh*t show. So we’ll see what happens.”
When asked if she trusts Charlotte, Lynch said no. Lynch said she and Charlotte used to be best friends, but things are difficult between them now.
