After defeating Bobby Lashley at Crown Jewel, Goldberg has expressed satisfaction with his performance.
Goldberg reflected on his trip to Saudi Arabia for Crown Jewel on the latest episode of the CarCast podcast. While discussing his match against Lashley, Goldberg said that, while he’s not happy with his performance, he’s satisfied enough with it after not having the best track record in Saudi Arabia previously. Goldberg said he thinks the performance “shut all these f*ckers up finally.”
“I don’t have the best track record in Saudi Arabia,” Goldberg said. I’ve knocked myself out in a match, I’ve dropped The Undertaker on his head, and this and that. I needed to redeem myself. I’m not happy with my performance, but I’m satisfied with it to a point where I think it’s shut all these f*ckers up finally.”
Goldberg vs. Lashley at Crown Jewel was a no holds barred, falls count anywhere match. Goldberg won when he speared Lashley off the stage and onto a crash pad on the floor.
Also on the CarCast, Goldberg addressed how his injured knee is feeling and spoke about what his relationship with Lashley is like behind the scenes.
“The knee, I mean it hurts. It is what it is. The fact is I hurt every day of my life. It’s all relative, you know? And my brace held up well, fortunately. He went after my knee again. But, it is what it is, man. I dropped the hammer on his ass in the end and you know, if you want to know about me and Bobby behind the scenes, let’s just say that Gage Goldberg is Wanda and I’s son and there is no frickin’ way I would let anyone on this planet touch him if I didn’t love and trust them,” Goldberg said.
“So, Bobby’s a great individual and I’ve wanted for years to be able to have a program with him. And you know, I’m just honored that he let me do it. You know, it was fun. And getting some payback and kicking his ass in the end was just icing on top of the cake.”
WWE returns to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Thursday for Crown Jewel: the company’s first event in the country since early 2020.
Roman Reigns will defend the Universal title against Brock Lesnar. Their story revolves around the role of Paul Heyman. While Heyman insists that he no longer has ties to Lesnar, Lesnar’s own statements saying otherwise has Reigns questioning Heyman’s loyalty.
The WWE Championship will be on the line as Big E defends against Drew McIntyre. After Big E accepted the former champion’s challenge, the two have teamed in recent weeks, ultimately proving that they were able to co-exist.
The SmackDown Women’s title will also be on the line as Becky Lynch will defend against both Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks in a triple threat match. At Extreme Rules, Banks returned and attacked both women, setting this match in motion.
Other matches include Edge vs. Seth Rollins in a Hell in a Cell match; Goldberg vs. Bobby Lashley; Xavier Woods vs. Finn Balor in the King of the Ring finals; Doudrop vs. Zelina Vega in the Queen’s Crown finals; Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro vs. AJ Styles and Omos in a title match; and Mansoor vs. Mustafa Ali.
On the pre-show, SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos will face Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander in a non-title match. Join us for live coverage starting at 11 AM Eastern.
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Kevin Patrick asked Paul Heyman backstage if he went over the Crown Jewel contract with Brock Lesnar. Heyman deflected the question and said he would enter the ring with Roman Reigns and would leave with the WWE Universal Champion. It wasn’t that subtle, but the talking heads made sure to point it out anyway.
The Usos defeated The Hurt Business (Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander)
This was good while it lasted. The Hurt Business were in control for 90% of this until the last few minutes of the match, which is definitely a new WWE trope.
Hurt Business got the heat early, isolating Jey from Jimmy as Alexander and Benjamin worked over Jey’s arm. Jey fought away from the corner he was being worked on, but was immediately taken down again. Jey finally made the hot tag to Jimmy. Alexander regained control after Benjamin hit a knee to Jimmy in the ropes.
Jey broke a pinfall attempt by Benjamin as everyone entered the ring, with Benjamin hitting paydirt on Jimmy for a nearfall. The Usos started laying out superkicks, then Jey connected with a splash on Alexander, pinning him for the win.
Edge defeated Seth Rollins in a Hell in a Cell match
This was excellent. Seth Rollins and Edge have the weirdest chemistry where the story of their feud isn’t interesting at all, but the matches are all great. This was no different and felt like the big blowoff match to end their feud.
Edge immediately took Rollins to the corner. Rollins connected with a springboard knee that took Edge to the floor. Edge cut Rollins off and threw him into the cage, then into the steps at ringside. Edge introduced two chairs then planted Rollins with the Edgecution DDT for a nearfall. Edge took out a piece of the chair and went for a crossface. Rollins grabbed the piece away from Edge, but Edge was able to get it out of Rollins’ hands.
Rollins gained control and threw Edge around the cell. He went to get weapons under the ring, but Edge came back with a baseball slide. Seth cut off Edge and started to set up for a conchairto but Edge locked in a crossface. Seth crawled over, grabbed the piece of chair introduced earlier, and stabbed it in Edge’s eye. Rollins then landed a frog splash for a two count.
Rollins introduced a table into the match, then planted Edge with a unprettier/killswitch for a nearfall. Rollins went for something on the top rope, but Edge shoved him off. Rollins somehow bounced off the cage then fell through the table in a really cool spot. Rollins brought in steel steps, but Edge cut Rollins off with the Edgeomatic. Edge flew off the top rope with a chair, sending it crashing into Rollins’ abdomen.
Edge went for the spear but Rollins hit a superkick then a pedigree for a nearfall. Edge hit a buckle bomb then a spear, but Rollins kicked out. Edge brought in a table, but also finds a ladder. Edge went to whip Rollins into the ladder, but Rollins reversed and sent Edge into the ladder. Seth set Edge on the table and went up on the ladder. Edge recovered and climbed the ladder as well. Edge went for a suplex, but Rollins cut him off and connected with a sunset flip off the ladder and through the table for another nearfall.
Rollins was looking for more weapons as Edge got back to his feet. Rollins hit multiple superkicks and came across a chain, wrapping it around his foot. Edge escaped, using a chair to low blow Rollins. Edge used the chain to choke Rollins, then used a wrench for a crossface. Rollins was about to submit when Edge stopped and got up. He grabbed a chair, placed it under Rollins’ head and hit the curb stomp, pinning Rollins.
Edge slowly got up after the match as the crowd cheered and pyro went off.
Mansoor defeated Mustafa Ali
This was pretty good. Ali is one of the more underrated workers on the roster and Mansoor’s always shown the ability to go. It helped a lot that Mansoor was obviously super over.
Crowd was super into Mansoor. The two traded offense early. Mansoor hit a standing moonsault and dropkick that sent Ali to the floor. Ali came back to the ring but was met with chops by Mansoor that sent him back to the floor. Ali gained control after using the ring apron to trip Mansoor as he was on the apron.
Back in the ring, Ali used a camel clutch on Mansoor in the middle of the ring. Mansoor powered out but Ali connected with a tornado DDT. Mansoor then started to make a comeback but Ali begged off in the cornet. Mansoor ignored him, hitting a big lariat that sent him out of the ring. Mansoor went for a dive, but Ali hit a dropkick. He missed a 450 splash in the ring as Mansoor connected with a moonsault. Ali locked his legs over Mansoor’s neck for a submission attempt, but he made it to the ropes.
Ali went for another 450, but this time Mansoor went to the apron. He then landed a springboard neckbreaker and pinned Ali.
Ali jumped Mansoor after the match. A mystery guy then came out and took a long time getting to the ring. He eventually revealed himself to be Tarek Hamdi, silver medalist in taekwondo at this year’s Olympics. Ali tried to get him out of the ring, but Hamdi instead knocked him out.
Natalya, Titus O’Neil, and four women who are introduced as breast cancer survivors were in the ring to promote the Zahra Breast Cancer Association. Then they showed footage of the Saudi Royal Air Force flying over the arena. This must be the propaganda portion of the show.
RK-Bro (Riddle and Randy Orton) defeated AJ Styles and Omos to retain the Raw Tag Team titles
This was fine when Omos wasn’t in the ring, but nothing special. Probably the best match you can do under these circumstances I guess.
As Orton and Riddle made their entrance, Riddle left, confusing Orton. He then reappeared riding a camel to the ring.
Orton and Riddle started off in control. Orton went for the RKO, but AJ escaped. AJ was able to tag in Omos, who quickly cut off Riddle. Orton was tagged in but Omos also took him down. Omos did some big guy spots, including walking over Orton before tagging Styles back in briefly before Omos came in and applied a claw to the shoulder.
Riddle and Styles came in and went 100 miles an hour compared to this Omos offense. Styles hit Riddle with a pele kick, but Riddle soon connected with a knee. Orton shoved Styles into Omos, but Omos quickly recovered. Riddle grabbed Omos’ knee and took him to the floor as Styles went for the phenomenal forearm. Orton cut him off with the RKO, then Riddle landed the floating bro for the win.
Kevin Patrick interviewed Becky Lynch. She said tonight was the night to remind people just who she was.
Zelina Vega defeated Doudrop to win the Queen’s Crown tournament
Not much to write about, wasn’t awful. This tournament was underwhelming to say the least. This was the longest match at nearly SIX MINUTES. What a disservice to this division.
Vega got in Doudrop’s face early. She went for a dive, then tried to counter with a sunset flip, but Doudrop easily cut her off, landing an elbow. She went for something off the top rope, but Vega cut her off and hit a tornado DDT for a nearfall. Vega locked in a dragon sleeper but Doudrop got back on her feet and connected with a clothesline.
Doudrop went for a cannonball but Vega dodged, then connected with a codebreaker. Doudrop came back with a spinning side slam. Doudrop followed with a senton but missed a splash. Vega then came back and hit a silly-looking Code Red for the win.
After she won, Zelina went to the throne, placed her crown on her head, grabbed her sceptre and sat down. The announcer said “ALL HAIL QUEEN ZELINA”. Damn, why unionize when you can just come back and become queen of the WWE.
They showed footage from the Riyadh opening season.
Goldberg defeated Bobby Lashley
This felt long, but overall it wasn’t bad. I feel like the shorter the Goldberg match, the better, and probably should have ended after Goldberg hit the jackhammer.
As the bell rang, Laslhey revealed he had brought a chain to the ring. He immediately used it to gain control early in the match. Lashley took out a chair and struck Goldberg with it. Lashley then took out a table while also working on Goldberg’s knee, chop blocking it.
Lashley wrapped Golderg’s leg around a chair and stomped on it. Goldberg crawled near the table that was propped up in the corner. Lashley went for a spear, but Goldberg dodged as Lashley ran into the table.
Goldberg hit the spear, then despite having his leg worked over, hit the jackhammer anyway. But instead of the pin, Goldberg simply got up and let Lashley recover. Goldberg hit a spear that sent Lashley through the barricade on the outside. He took Lashley, put him on steel steps, and went to use one part of the steps to I guess squish Lashley’s head, but Lashley escaped.
Lashley started to leave as Goldberg stalked him, but The Hurt Business then arrived with kendo sticks. Goldberg quickly took care of the Hurt Business and grabbed a kendo stick. Goldberg laid out Lashley with kendo stick shots. Goldberg then speared Lashley off the stage and into a platform below, pinning Lashley.
They showed Lashley walking away under his own power as Goldberg celebrated his win.
Commercials have been airing for Survivor Series, using the usual tagline of how this is the one time of the year where Raw and SmackDown go head-to-head. Nevermind that the shows in recent weeks have featured matches between Raw and SmackDown stars.
Xavier Woods defeated Finn Balor to win the King of the Ring tournament
Good, fast-paced match. I did not expect Xavier Woods to win this at all, so it was a nice surprise to see a babyface win the tournament for a change.
The two went back and forth early. Woods started to build momentum, sending Balor into the ropes and connecting with a dropkick. Balor countered a tornado DDT and hit a double foot stomp. Balor hit a slingblade but Woods connected with a superkick for a nearfall.
Balor hammered Woods with elbow strikes but Woods followed with a roll-up for a nearfall. Balor kicked Woods and went to the top rope, but Woods met him there and hit a superplex. Woods followed with a springboard elbow, but Balor countered, hit a slingblade, and went for the coup de grace. Woods escaped and rolled up Balor again for a nearfall. Woods hit an enziguri and a gutbuster for another nearfall. Woods then hit the springboard elbow to win the King of the Ring tournament.
Big E defeated Drew McIntyre to retain the WWE Championship
Very good match. The crowd, which has gotten into everything tonight, was into this and both worked hard.
McIntyre started off with the early advantage, grabbing the shoulder of Big E. E regained control and connected with hits to the chest. McIntyre rolled out of the ring. Big E went after him, but McIntyre hit a giant belly to belly suplex on the floor. He soon followed that with a spinebuster.
Big E fought back with suplexes but McIntyre fired back with some of his own, hitting a reverse cutter. Big E countered the future shock DDT with another belly-to-belly suplex. Big E went for the big ending but McIntyre fought back, hitting a Michinoku driver for a nearfall.
Big E hit a uranage, but Drew countered with a future shock DDT that connected. McIntyre went for the claymore, but Big E countered with a powerbomb then locked in a stretch muffler. McIntyre escaped, but walked into the big ending for a two count. He went to go for the big ending off the top rope, but McIntyre countered with a bulldog off the top for a nearfall.
After avoiding another claymore kick, Big E in fact walked right into a claymore kick for a big nearfall spot. McIntyre went for the big ending, but Big E countered and hit a second big ending for the win.
They showed footage from a Be a Star rally that was held in Riyadh. Yes, stand up to bullying kids. Unless the government is the one that bullies and attempts to cover up the bullying with lots of sports.
Becky Lynch defeated Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair to retain the SmackDown Women’s title
Another good match. Finish was surprising, but I guess they are going to tell a story about these titles being on different brands. Can’t wait!
Belair was taken out early as Lynch and Banks went back and forth. Bianca came back and got the torture back on Banks, but Lynch hit a missle drop kick that sent both to the floor. Lynch hit an exploder on Banks and continued to work on both until Lynch was caught by both Banks and Belair, who teamed together to buckle bomb Lynch into the ring post.
Banks and Belair then competed, with Banks hitting the three amigos. Lynch came back and took out Banks. Belair hit a big delayed vertical suplex, sending Lynch crashing to the mat. Lynch and Banks somehow teamed up to take Belair out with a double Banks statement/disarmher as the two went at it.
Banks had Lynch locked in with the Banks statement as Belair crashed into them with a springboard, covering both for a nearfall.Lynch broke up a pin attempt by Belair and hit the manhandle slam on Banks, but Belair broke up the pin. Lynch went for the manhandle slam on Belair, but Belair made it to the apron. Banks took Belair to the floor as the two wrestled for control, but Lynch took out both and put Belair back in the ring.
Lynch went for the disarmher, then put Banks in it as well when she tried to break it up. Belair powered out, Belair hit the KOD on Lynch, but Banks and Belair fought over who would pin Lynch. Banks entered the ring, but Lynch rolled up Banks and held the ropes to retain the title.
Announcers pushed that the Raw Women’s Champion was on SmackDown and vice versa. I hope they just don’t trade titles like they did with the Tag titles last year.
Roman Reigns defeated Brock Lesnar to retain the Universal Championship
This match was really great until the ref bump, just constant explosive action. The finish was weak, but I guess the idea is that this is only the start of their feud, and we’ll see more matches down the line. Don’t see anyone else but Lesnar as Reigns’ WrestleMania opponent.
The two exchanged strikes early. Lesnar went for a German suplex but Reigns grabbed the turnbuckle. Lesnar got it after a second attempt. Lesnar took Reigns to the outside but Reigns threw him into the ring post. Reigns entered the ring, then laid out Lesnar with a Superman punch when Lesnar attempted to re-enter the ring. Reigns then hit a giant plancha, jumping over the top rope to the floor.
Reigns hit a spear but Lesnar kicked out at two. Lesnar hit another Superman punch, then a third. Lesnar leapfrogged over Reigns as Reigns went for a spear attempt and crashed into the turnbuckle. Lesnar came back with a German suplex, then another. Lesnar went for the F5 and connected, but Reigns kicked out at two.
Lesnar went for a second F5 but Lesnar countered with a guillotine. Lesnar fought out of it, hitting a spinebuster. Lesnar hit another F5, but the referee was too close and was laid out. Lesnar covered for a visual pinfall. Lesnar was distracted trying to get the referee to wake up long enough for Reigns to hit another spear.
Heyman, holding the Universal title, was unsure what to do. He threw the title belt in the ring in between both Lesnar and Reigns. Lesnar grabbed the title, but talked into superkicks by the Usos. Reigns then used the title belt and a second referee came down to cover Lesnar for the win.
Final thoughts:
So I will say this: this year’s Crown Jewel was easily one of the better WWE shows of the year and absolutely the strongest show held in Saudi Arabia to date. Almost every match was good to great and the crowd, which prior to tonight was usually silent for these shows, was into everything, which helps a ton.
Despite all of this, I can never shake the feeling of feeling dirty for watching these shows, which are a clear attempt, as is the entire Vision 2030 strategic framework, to wash away the idea that Saudi Arabia’s government constantly violates basic human rights. I can never forget the government-mandated murder of Jamal Khashoggi no matter what kind of show WWE puts on and I can also not forget WWE’s collective shrug and holding an event in Saudi Arabia anyway weeks after his murder.
My point is that these shows are always going to be weird for a lot of people. It was weird to cover this while enjoying the in-ring action. In a bubble, this was a good show, a show largely free of WWE’s lame booking tropes they can’t get rid of. But these events are always going to have an odd, odious feeling about them, no matter how good the shows are.
The Raw Tag Team titles will be on the line at Crown Jewel.
It was announced today that RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) will defend their Raw Tag Team titles against AJ Styles & Omos when WWE returns to Saudi Arabia for Crown Jewel later this month. The show is taking place at Mohammed Abdu Arena in Riyadh on Thursday, October 21. It will air live on Peacock/WWE Network starting at noon Eastern time.
At SummerSlam this August, RK-Bro defeated Styles & Omos to win the Raw Tag Team titles. Orton & Riddle have made one title defense since then, retaining against Bobby Lashley & MVP.
Styles defeated Riddle in a singles match on Raw last week.
Orton & Riddle remained on Raw when they were selected in night one of the WWE Draft. Styles & Omos will be eligible to be selected when the draft concludes on Raw tonight.
Here’s the updated card for Crown Jewel:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks in a triple threat match
Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton & Riddle) defend against AJ Styles & Omos
The SmackDown Women’s Championship will be on the line in a triple threat match when WWE returns to Saudi Arabia later this month.
WWE has announced that Becky Lynch will defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks in a triple threat match at Crown Jewel. The show is taking place at Mohammed Abdu Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 21. It will air live on Peacock/WWE Network starting at noon Eastern time.
Lynch won the SmackDown Women’s Championship by defeating Belair in 26 seconds at SummerSlam this August. Banks was originally supposed to challenge for Belair’s title at that pay-per-view, but it was announced that she wouldn’t be able to compete.
At Extreme Rules, Banks made her return by causing Lynch and Belair’s SmackDown Women’s Championship rematch to end in a disqualification. Banks attacked Belair and then beat down Lynch as well. She laid out both Belair and Lynch with backstabbers.
Belair vs. Banks will take place on tonight’s SmackDown.
After women were prohibited from wrestling at the first three events that took place as part of WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority, Natalya vs. Lacey Evans at Crown Jewel 2019 was WWE’s first women’s match in Saudi Arabia. Bayley and Naomi also faced off for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at Super ShowDown 2020.
This year’s Crown Jewel will be the first time WWE has been to Saudi Arabia since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Here’s the updated card for the show:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Brock Lesnar
SmackDown Women’s Champion Becky Lynch defends against Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks in a triple threat match
Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar are officially set to face off when WWE returns to Saudi Arabia next month.
WWE announced today that Reigns vs. Lesnar will take place at Crown Jewel on Thursday, October 21. The show will air on Peacock/WWE Network starting at noon Eastern time.
Reigns’ Universal Championship will be on the line if he’s still champion when Crown Jewel takes place. Reigns is defending the title against “The Demon” Finn Balor at Extreme Rules on Sunday, September 26.
At SummerSlam last month, Lesnar made his return and confronted Reigns after Reigns retained the Universal Championship against John Cena. It was Lesnar’s first appearance on WWE programming since WrestleMania 36 in 2020.
Lesnar also appeared at last Friday’s SmackDown at Madison Square Garden. After Lesnar challenged him to a Universal Championship match, Reigns responded later in the episode and accepted the challenge. Reigns said he’ll smash Lesnar as soon as he’s done smashing Balor.
Crown Jewel will be the first time WWE has been to Saudi Arabia since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Reigns vs. Lesnar is the first match that’s been announced for the show.
It appears that WWE will be holding both King and Queen of the Ring tournaments this year.
Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men Podcast reported on Friday that the King of the Ring tournament will be making its return this October, with the finals set to be held when WWE returns to Saudi Arabia that month. That’s in addition to the first-ever Queen of the Ring tournament that’s also reportedly set for October.
Zarian has reported that the Queen of the Ring finals will also take place in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Arabia show is planned for Thursday, October 21 but hasn’t been officially announced.
October’s show in Saudi Arabia will be the first time WWE has held an event in the country since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. WWE was last in Saudi Arabia for Super ShowDown in February 2020.
WWE’s last King of the Ring tournament prior to this took place in 2019. Baron Corbin defeated Chad Gable in the finals.
Challenging for the Universal Championship is what’s next for Goldberg.
When WWE returns to Saudi Arabia for Super ShowDown later this month, Goldberg will challenge “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt for the Universal Championship. The announcement of the match was made on tonight’s episode of SmackDown.
Goldberg appeared on SmackDown via satellite tonight and issued a challenge to The Fiend. He said watching the Royal Rumble with his son gave him the itch to get back into the ring. He mentioned that WWE Champion Brock Lesnar already had his hands full — but there was also the Universal title.
Goldberg said his reign with the Universal Championship in 2017 was too short and he never got a rematch for the title. He was then interrupted by a Firefly Fun House news report segment that was hosted by Wyatt, who announced that The Fiend accepts Goldberg’s challenge.
This will be the first time Goldberg has wrestled since defeating Dolph Ziggler at last year’s SummerSlam. Goldberg also wrestled at Super ShowDown in Saudi Arabia last year, with his match against The Undertaker falling apart after Goldberg was knocked out during it.
Super ShowDown is taking place in Riyadh on Thursday, February 27 and will air live on the WWE Network. Lesnar defending his WWE title against Ricochet has also been confirmed for the show, along with The New Day (Kofi Kingston & Big E) defending their SmackDown Tag Team titles against The Miz & John Morrison.
A video that aired during tonight’s Royal Rumble broadcast announced that this year’s Super ShowDown in Saudi Arabia will take place on Thursday, February 27. The show will air live on the WWE Network starting at noon Eastern time.
On commentary, Tom Phillips said the show will be held in Riyadh.
This will be the first time WWE has returned to Saudi Arabia since their post-Crown Jewel travel delays. Crown Jewel 2019 was held at Riyadh’s King Fahd International Stadium on October 31.
Following Crown Jewel and those travel delays, WWE announced an “expanded” partnership with the Saudi General Entertainment Authority. It officially guarantees that WWE will hold two large-scale events in Saudi Arabia through 2027.
WWE’s 10-year partnership with Saudi Arabia began with the Greatest Royal Rumble in April 2018. This year’s Super ShowDown will be the fifth event in the deal.
Last year’s Super ShowDown took place in Jeddah on June 7 and was headlined by The Undertaker vs. Goldberg.
In the aftermath of their delays getting out of the country following Crown Jewel, WWE has announced that they’ve “expanded” their partnership with Saudi Arabia.
Following the historic Crown Jewel event in Riyadh, WWE (NYSE: WWE) and the Saudi General Entertainment Authority (GEA) have expanded their live event partnership through 2027 to include a second annual large-scale event. WWE and GEA also continue to work towards the completion of a media agreement in the MENA region.
This long-term partnership demonstrates WWE and GEA’s commitment to bring sports entertainment to the region and supports Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.
Prior to the expanded agreement, WWE’s partnership with Saudi Arabia had already been set to run through 2027. There had also already been two events in Saudi Arabia per year in 2018 and 2019, but WWE co-president George Barrios noted on last Thursday’s earnings call that having two shows per year couldn’t be guaranteed going forward.
The 10-year deal began with the Greatest Royal Rumble in April 2018. The first Crown Jewel also took place last year, with Super ShowDown and Crown Jewel 2019 being this year’s events.
When asked by Forbes about issues with Crown Jewel airing live on television in Saudi Arabia, WWE denied that the issues had anything to do with a lack of payment: “WWE was reached for comment and swiftly denied these allegations, confirming to me its strong relationship with its partners in Saudi Arabia. WWE tells me the feed issues were entirely unrelated to any issues with payment. They reinforced that mechanical issues were a cause of the flight delay and Atlas Air, the charter company, issued an apology in that regard as well.”
Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed the post-Crown Jewel travel delays on Sunday’s edition of Wrestling Observer Radio:
WWE’s return to Saudi Arabia is set for Halloween.
WWE’s Arabic website announced today that Crown Jewel 2019 will take place at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 31. Tickets will go on sale on Monday (September 30) at 6 p.m. local time.
Seth Rollins, Kofi Kingston, Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt, Braun Strowman, The New Day, Randy Orton, AJ Styles, Rey Mysterio, and NXT’s Mansoor are advertised for Crown Jewel, along with Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair making special appearances.
With SmackDown moving to Friday nights on FOX, SmackDown will take place the day after Crown Jewel.
WWE’s first Crown Jewel event was held in Riyadh last November, with WWE going ahead with the show despite the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Crown Jewel 2019 will be the fourth event in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority.
The third show in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority takes place today as Jeddah hosts Super ShowDown.
The Undertaker and Goldberg are set to face off in their first singles match against each other ever. And a rivalry will be renewed as Triple H takes on Randy Orton.
Seth Rollins will defend the Universal Championship against Baron Corbin, though Brock Lesnar has said he’ll cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase today. The WWE Championship will also be on the line in Saudi Arabia, with Kofi Kingston defending against Dolph Ziggler.
Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon, Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley, “The Demon” Finn Balor defending the Intercontinental title against Andrade, and The Lucha House Party (Kalisto, Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado) vs. Lars Sullivan are set for the main card.
The pre-show begins at 1 p.m. Eastern time and will feature The Usos vs. The Revival. The main card will then begin at 2 p.m. Eastern.
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Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Renee Young are doing commentary for tonight’s show. They noted that those at ringside tonight are going to have to endure what feels like 100 degree weather.
The Usos defeated The Revival
The Usos controlled early, sending both of the Revival to the floor. Revival blind tagged and took out Jimmy. Jey made the hot tag and took out Dawson. They mentioned on commentary that both teams are gunning for Raw tag team champions Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder, who have not been on television in weeks.
Jey had a inside cradle on Dawson but Dash distracted the referee. Jey took out Dash but Dawson took advantage with a spinebuster. Both teams tagged in as the Usos started to go on the offense, hitting superkicks. Dawson was laid out with a double superkick then was pinned. That was anticlimactic. Pretty basic, but the crowd was into it.
Seth Rollins defeated Baron Corbin to retain the WWE Universal title
This was alright. Exactly the type of title match you’d see at a house show.
Seth Rollins gained control early with a dropkick, but Corbin shoves Rollins as he climbs to the top rope and immediately focuses on Rollins’ ribs, which are injured in storyline due to Lesnar’s assault on Monday.
Rollins comes back with an enziguri and hits a slingblade, then hits a pair of suicide dives on both sides of the ring. Corbin went for a chokeslam but Rollins floated over and went for a pinfall, getting two. Corbin cut him off with an elbow then landed a release rotation side slam for a nearfall.
Corbin hit the deep six, then screamed at the referee when he only got a two count. Rollins hit an elbow that sent Corbin out of the ring. He grabbed a chair, which the referee told him to get rid of. Corbin got into it with the referee again, which led Rollins to roll up a distracted Corbin for the win.
After the match, Corbin hit the End of Days on Rollins, which was the cue for Brock Lesnar to come out with a steel chair. Rollins low blowed Lesnar, however, and grabbed the steel chair, striking Lesnar. Lesnar grabbed the briefcase as he was being assaulted, which led to Rollins stomping Lesnar into the briefcase. Lesnar never cashed in, so Rollins left with the title.
Finn Balor defeated Andrade to retain the Intercontinental title
Technically this was a step above the other matches, pretty good. The crowd here weren’t into this like they were into the first match and that hurt it a bit.
Things were pretty even early. Andrade went for the hammerlock DDT, but Balor escaped and hit a dropkick. Andrade was sent out of the ring, but he ended up tripping Balor on the apron, giving him his opening.
Balor came back alive with a dropkick as he clotheslined Andrade to the floor and hit a giant tope con hilo. They went back and forth. Andrade went for a reverse tornado DDT but Balor escaped, took out Andrade and hit 1916. Andrade countered with a springboard knee and knees to the corner.
Andrade went for the double moonsault but Balor got the knees up Andrade went for the second moonsault. They went to the apron where Andrade went for a sunset flip bomb on Balor, but instead Balor took control, sending him back to the ring and hitting a foot stomp.
Andrade cut off Balor and hit the hammerlock DDT, but Balor kicked out. He hit the running dropkick and started to go for the coup de grace but instead Andrade met him on the top rope. Balor instead hit a DDT off the top rope then hit the coup de grace for the win.
Shane McMahon defeated Roman Reigns
This was such a weird match. It was short, so it wasn’t bad, but just silly in a lot of ways. I can never buy Shane McMahon being a competitive wrestler, but yet here he was getting heat on Roman Reigns in an actual wrestling match. Despite having McIntyre in his corner and establishing him as backup, he really didn’t get involved until the end.
Shane, already sweating bullets, attacked Reigns at the bell. He immediately gained control, but Shane cut him off and posted him, sending Reigns to the floor. Shane worked over Reigns putting him down with a long chinlock. Shane getting control for this long feels so weak psychologically.
Roman made a comeback, hitting short-arm clotheslines in the corner then took down Shane with a kick. Roman went for the Superman punch but Shane clipped Roman’s knee then went for a triangle submission. He escaped the hold as Shane exited the ring. McIntyre jumped Roman as he entered the ring, but Reigns posted him then laid him out with the Superman punch.
Back in the ring, Shane hit a spear of his own for a nearfall. But Reigns started to make a comeback, going for a spear Shane countered by kicking Reigns, but Reigns immediately took him down with a punch. McIntyre entered the ring, however, and laid out Roman with the claymore kick, allowing Shane to pin him.
Lars Sullivan defeated Lucha House Party by DQ
This was real bad, to the point of just sheer incoherence. I don’t know what the goal was of this match, but this is the best example of WWE taking something pretty easy (a squash match) and overthinking it to a ridiculous degree.
Dorado got some brief offense on Sullivan, but he quickly pushed him to the floor, took him back to the ring and hit a giant shoulder block. He sent both Dorado and Kalisto to the floor. Metallik tried for some offense, but it was to no avail. Same thing for Kallisto, who was quickly swatted down after an attempt for some top rope offense.
Sullivan took down Kallisto with a one-armed powerbomb and went to the top rope, but Dorado and Metallik pushed him down to the mat and beat him up for the DQ. Yes, this match ended in a disqualification.
All three Lucha House party members beat up on Lars after the match, to the point that it actually looked like they laid him out. They tried to leave, but Sullivan stalked them. Metallik attacked him, but he ended up laying all three out on the floor. Dorado went for a crossbody off the ring, but instead was slammed on the apron. And that was it.
Randy Orton defeated Triple H
This was a painfully boring, plodding match that went about 25 minutes. To their credit, once finishers were starting to get dished out the crowd got into this more than anything on the show so far. But the bulk of this match felt like it lasted forever, in a bad way. Exactly the kind of match neither man needs at this point in their career, but it got the job done by the end at least.
Triple H came out on a motorcycle. Michael Cole noted that it had to be a Wrestlemania caliber event if Triple H came out with an entrance like that. Nice try.
They start off slow. They exchange holds until Orton cheap shots Triple H and goes on offense. Triple H posts him and starts working on Orton’s shoulder. Orton came back in a big way by giving Triple H a big side slam on the announcer’s table.
Orton stomps on Hunter back in the ring. Orton had a headlock on for what felt like ages. Triple H finally cut him off and tried for the pedigree but Orton slingshotted him into the corner. Triple H still managed to take down Orton with a clothesline.
Triple H went for the pedigree again but Orton dropped him on the apron, then hit a dropkick. Orton hit him with punches in the corner then went for the RKO but Triple H escaped and struck Orton, sending him down. Triple H cross chopped Orton but Orton promptly replied with a powerslam.
Triple H hit a spinebuster, then the two traded nearfalls. Triple H put Orton in a crossface. Orton struggled until finally reaching the rope. Triple H went for the pedigree but Orton countered with the RKO but Triple H kicked out. Orton went to the corner and went for the punt. Triple H caught him and pedigreed him instead, but only hit two.
Back on the outside, Triple H hit a side slam on the table, but it didn’t break. He did this three more times, but the table still didn’t break. Oops. Triple H threw Orton back the ring and paused for a bit before re-entering. Orton then hit the RKO and pinned Triple H, just like that.
They did a recap of the YouTube video where Jinder Mahal won the WWE 24/7 just before everyone got on the airplane. R-Truth then won the title while the flight was going on and Jinder was sleeping. He then ran to the airplane bathroom where he barricaded himself.
Baron Corbin came up to Byron Saxton, mad. He said the referee cost him the biggest match of his career. He said heads will roll.
Braun Strowman defeated Bobby Lashley
This was better than I thought it would be. It wasn’t super great, but they did work hard and ended up having a pretty good big guy match.
Lashley came out and posted on a platform. When Strowman came out, he grabbed the platform and threw it off the stage, smashing it.
They actually did some agile stuff at the start, with leapfrogs and everything. Lashley grabbed him and hit a powerslam but Strowman kicked out. Lashley took him down with a headlock, but Strowman powered out and splashed Lashley to the corner, sending him to the floor. Strowman ran around the ring, shoulder blocking Lashley to the floor not once but twice.
Lashley got control, taking him outside of the ring and hitting a big suplex on the stage. He went to the top rope, but Strowman threw him off the top rope then eventually hit the powerslam for the win.
Kofi Kingston defeated Dolph Ziggler to retain the WWE title
This was okay, but pretty flat. Just something missing that didn’t get me into the match. The crowd were into Kofi Kingston, but I don’t think they were into the actual match.
Dolph was in control early, stomping and elbowing Kingston. Kingston finally whipped Dolph into the corner hard, giving him some breathing room. Ziggler went for the zig zag, but Kofi cut him off in order to start building momentum.
Dolph came back with a DDT and posted Kofi. He went for a famouser, but Kofi blocked it as they exchanged nearfalls. Kofi hit the SOS, then took out Dolph with a trust fall off the top rope to the floor below. Dolph shoved Kofi into the barricade, then shoved him into the nearby steps.
Kofi immediately fought back, sending Dolph back into the ring but Ziggler blocked a trouble in paradise attempt. Ziggler countered with a roll-up, but Kingston kicked out. Kingston shoved Ziggler into the ropes where Woods smacked Ziggler with a kick, then Kingston followed with the trouble in paradise for the win.
Byron Saxton asked Ziggler backstage if his break was too long. Ziggler said he thought Kofi was a hero, a fighting champion, but actually he was nothing but a coward. Saxton said some say he deserved it. Ziggler said he outperformed everyone. Ziggler called out Xavier Woods’ interference and demanded another match, this time one on one in a steel cage.
Mansoor won the 50 man battle royal
This was, for the most part, dreadfully boring. There were parts of this match where literally nothing was going on. At least by the time they whittled it down to six people business picked up.
Most of the participants came out like geeks. A few, like Cesaro, Samoa Joe and the Miz got entrances. Elias came out last, running down some of the participants in the match. The match featured a lot of guys who aren’t on TV or even worse, 205 Live.
People were being thrown out pretty quickly, I think Robert Roode was the first one. Authors of Pain, who are now back, faced off against the Viking Raiders and Heavy Machinery. AOP threw out Tucker while the Viking Raiders sent out AOP. Titus, meanwhile, came out from under the ring after hiding. Why didn’t he wait until there were no more people left? He then threw out both Viking Raiders, which tells you their future.
More eliminations followed. Shelton Benjamin threw out Titus O“Neil. Samoa Joe eliminated Hawkins and Ryder. There was literally nothing going on the point that the announce team was talking about how hot it still was. Otit hit the caterpillar but was immediately eliminated by Rowan after. He took out Xavier Woods with the iron claw and sloppily threw him out to Otis. This brought in a lot of eliminations, including the Revival throwing out the Usos.
It boiled down to Ricochet, Samoa Joe, Cesaro, Ali, Elias and Mansoor, the NXT star who is from Saudi Arabia. Ali and Ricochet worked to eliminate Joe. Cesaro eliminated them both from behind, then Elias threw out Cesaro, leaving Elias and Mansoor. The latter superkicked Elias and went to throw him out, but Elias countered and threw him out of the ring. Mansoor countered by backdropping Elias out of the ring and to the floor for the win.
Saxton interviewed Mansoor, mentioning he was born in Riyadh. Mansoor said he doesn’t have the words to describe how important it is to him or to us. He said he was a WWE prospect last year. He was just a rookie with a dream to represent his country all across the world. He said he won the biggest WWE battle royal in history and his dream came true. He then finished his promo by speaking in Arabic.
The Undertaker defeated Goldberg
This was sad more than anything. The layout of the match was designed for it to be as simple as possible, but it was clear, especially in the closing moments of the match, that both men can’t even do this type of match anymore, and I don’t know if that is because of Undertaker or Goldberg because both looked bad.
Both men got long entrances. Goldberg busted himself open hitting his head on the door before exiting for his entrance, which brought back the pyro. Undertaker got an elaborate entrance with druids, pyro, smoke, the whole nine yards.
Goldberg did the cut throat gesture, then hit two spears but the Undertaker kicked out. The Undertaker sat up. Undertaker ducked a clothesline and tried for a chokeslam but Goldberg countered and transitioned into a kneebar. Goldberg whipped Undertaker into the ropes but Undertaker missed a spear attempt, sending Golberg into the post hard. Goldberg was bleeding heavily, his head busted wide open.
Undertaker hit old school then went for the chokeslam and after Goldberg paused, got it. He went for the tombstone but Goldberg kicked out. A double clothesline spot followed. Undertaker hit snake eyes, but Goldberg followed with another spear. He hit the sloppiest looking jackhammer you’ll ever see for a nearfall. This was falling apart badly. Goldberg seemed like he was going for a tombstone piledriver and Undertaker was going to reverse, but both fell down. Then Undertaker pinned him with a chokeslam.
The show finished off with a Undertaker pyro celebration.
This was a ridiculously boring show that felt like it lasted ages. I think it will earn votes as one of the worst shows of the year, just because it was so boring in execution and none of the matches, save for Lashley/Strowman (and think about that) would be considered good.
When they said, in their own WWE speak, that this would be “the equivalent to or exceed Wrestlemania”, maybe they meant some of the worst ones of all time, like WrestleMania 2 or IX, because this doesn’t come close to touching this year’s or any recent WrestleMania. There are no highlights here. Move on. Live your life.
Lars Sullivan’s main roster in-ring debut is set for Saudi Arabia.
On tonight’s SmackDown, WWE announced that Sullivan will face The Lucha House Party (Kalisto, Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado) in a three-on-one handicap match at Super ShowDown in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Friday, June 7. The event is taking place at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium and will air live on the WWE Network starting at 2 p.m. Eastern time.
Sullivan has been feuding with the Lucha House Party and has had segments where he’s brawled with and attacked them, but this will be his first official match on the main roster.
WWE put out a statement earlier this month announcing that Sullivan would be fined $100,000 for racist, homophobic, and other offensive posts he had made on Bodybuilding.com’s forum in his past. It was also noted that Sullivan would be required to complete sensitivity training. In his own statement, Sullivan apologized for the posts and said they don’t reflect who he is today.
Here’s the updated card for Super ShowDown:
Goldberg vs. The Undertaker
Triple H vs. Randy Orton
Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against Baron Corbin
WWE Champion Kofi Kingston defending against Dolph Ziggler
Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon
Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Intercontinental Champion Finn Balor (as his Demon character) defending against Andrade
Lars Sullivan vs. The Lucha House Party (Kalisto, Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado) in a three-on-one handicap match
Baron Corbin is now the number one contender to the Universal Championship.
Corbin defeated The Miz, Bobby Lashley, and Braun Strowman in a number one contender’s fatal four-way match on tonight’s Raw and will challenge for Seth Rollins’ Universal title at Super ShowDown in Saudi Arabia.
Corbin pinned The Miz to win the fatal four-way, which was announced as an elimination match. Lashley and Strowman brawled through the crowd and to the back and never returned.
Lashley vs. Strowman had already been confirmed for Super ShowDown before tonight.
The number one contender’s match was originally announced as Miz vs. Lashley vs. Strowman vs. AJ Styles, but it was revealed that Corbin was replacing Styles due to Styles being injured. Corbin also attacked Styles during a backstage segment tonight.
Brock Lesnar still has his Money in the Bank briefcase coming out of tonight’s Raw. He’s advertised for Super ShowDown but doesn’t have a match announced yet.
Super ShowDown is the third show in WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority. It’s taking place at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah on Friday, June 7 and will air live on the WWE Network.
Here’s the updated card for the event:
Goldberg vs. The Undertaker
Triple H vs. Randy Orton
Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against Baron Corbin
WWE Champion Kofi Kingston defending against Dolph Ziggler
Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon
Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Intercontinental Champion Finn Balor (as his Demon character) defending against Andrade
After it was set up on last night’s SmackDown, Kofi Kingston defending his WWE Championship against Dolph Ziggler has officially been announced for Super ShowDown.
WWE uploaded a post-SmackDown video where Kingston accepted Ziggler’s challenge for Saudi Arabia. Ziggler made a surprise return to WWE television last night and attacked Kingston, who was put on a stretcher at the end of the angle. When he got to the stage, Kingston got up and insisted on walking to the back on his own.
Ziggler cut a promo later in the show where he explained his actions. Ziggler talked about the opportunities Kingston has taken advantage of and said that it should have been him.
WWE is hyping that Brock Lesnar will appear on next Monday’s Raw and announce which champion he’s going to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase on. If that match happens at Super ShowDown, it appears that it will be Universal Champion Seth Rollins defending against Lesnar.
Super ShowDown is part of WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority. It’s taking place at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah on Friday, June 7 and will air live on the WWE Network starting at 2 p.m. Eastern time.
Here’s the updated card for Super ShowDown:
Goldberg vs. The Undertaker
Triple H vs. Randy Orton
WWE Champion Kofi Kingston defending against Dolph Ziggler
Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon
Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Intercontinental Champion Finn Balor (as his Demon character) defending against Andrade
The card for WWE’s return to Saudi Arabia is now up to six announced matches.
It was announced on tonight’s Raw that Roman Reigns will face Shane McMahon at Super ShowDown in Jeddah on Friday, June 7. The event is taking place at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium and will air live on the WWE Network starting at 2 p.m. Eastern time.
Shane interrupted Reigns during an in-ring segment on tonight’s Raw. Reigns issued a challenge to Shane for tonight, but Shane instead accepted it for Saudi Arabia. Shane also brought out Drew McIntyre, with them now aligned together and McIntyre serving as protection for Shane.
WWE has begun hyping Super ShowDown by saying it will be as good or better than WrestleMania. The show is part of WWE’s 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority.
Here’s the updated card for Super ShowDown:
Goldberg vs. The Undertaker
Triple H vs. Randy Orton
Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon
Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Intercontinental Champion Finn Balor (as his Demon character) defending against Andrade
