Here's your wrestling news for June 11th 2022
And your headlines for today include
Undisputed WWE Universal Title match announced for SmackDown: Change of plans confirmed for Money in the Bank
First competitor confirmed for Money in the Bank Ladder match: Who’s heading up the ladder?
Paige is leaving WWE! Veteran Superstar announces departure next month
Speculation already spreading of Paige joining AEW
Top WWE Raw Superstar announces nose job surgery
Virgil hits out at legendary wrestler for not checking up on him
WWE announces how long Cody Rhodes will be out of action, but are they telling the truth?
“He’s a judgemental prick!” AEW star isn’t pleased working with Bryan Danielson
Chris Jericho gets in fight with WWE Star at Houston hotel
Stephanie McMahon resurfaces in first photo after taking WWE leave of absence And more
We’re kicking off today with SmackDown, as WWE all but confirmed last night that Roman Reigns won’t be at Money in the Bank.
When the show was meant to happen at Allegiant Stadium, it was reported that Reigns would face Riddle, but that certainly won’t be the case now.
On last night’s show, Riddle confronted the Bloodline, and a match was made between Sami Zayn, with a shot at the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship on the line for the Original Bro.
Another stipulation was that if Riddle lost, he would be barred from SmackDown, but in an entertaining bout, it was the former Raw Tag Team Champion who got the win, earning a match with the Tribal Chief.
Now typically, such a match would happen at a Premium Live Event, but instead, the Reigns-Riddle match will take place on next week’s SmackDown.
While having a Premium Live Event quality match on SmackDown will be a sight to see, it all but guarantees that Riddle won’t be winning the gold.
Even when the match was slated for Money in the Bank, the odds of Riddle winning were close to non-existent, but expect the Head of the Table to once again be on top next week.
SmackDown also saw Lacey Evans at long last make her in- ring return, 16 months after her last match for WWE.
Defeating Xia Li in a short bout, Evans became the first name to qualify for Money in the Bank, and while the match was big for her, it was bad for Li.
This loss once again reiterates that WWE has no plans for Xia Li on the main roster, and she’s already had a difficult time since being called up.
Evans will play a crucial role in the upcoming Women’s Ladder match, and is already being considered a favourite, given that she was reported for a women’s title run before her pregnancy.
As for Li, expect her to continue to do little on the main roster, and a return to NXT or a release may be likely in her future.
In 2018, Paige was forced to retire due to a series of injuries, but insisted at the time that she would wrestle again.
With the likes of Edge and Daniel Bryan coming out of retirement, it’s no wonder why Paige believes she could be back in the ring one day, but if she does wrestle, it won’t be for WWE.
On social media, the first-ever NXT Women’s Champion and former Divas Champion announced that she will be wrapping up her career with WWE, and July 7th will be her last day with the company.
In her statement, Paige thanked WWE for giving an 18-year-old British pale emo girl as she called herself, a chance, and said she appreciated the company keeping her around after her neck injury.
Addressing her future, Paige said that quote “the day will most cert ainly come again” when she wrestles once more, but will be competing under her real name Saraya from now on.
Paige has had quite a ride with WWE, with her journey to the company being made into a movie by The Rock’s Seven Bucks Productions, but whatever she does next, it won’t be as an employee for Vince McMahon.
Other than saying she will wrestle again, Paige gave no indication about her future plans, but fans are already convinced that Tony Khan is ready to make a deal.
Almost immediately after her statement was shared, fans responded by saying AEW will sign the former Divas Champion.
The idea of Paige in the All-Elite promotion got a mixed response though, with some saying that the company’s women’s division is quote “dangerous” and another saying that AEW won’t care if she
has a bad neck
It’s no secret that AEW is home to several former WWE Superstars, with Ruby Soho, Athena and Tay Conti all having worked for McMahon at some point of time.
Given that Paige is leaving on her own terms, rather than being released, it seems like she won’t have to deal with a non-compete clause, which would speed up the process for an AEW debut.
Whether Paige is the next to make the leap, only time will tell, but the former Champion will no doubt have big plans wherever she goes next.
Now, at Elimination Chamber, after months away, Alexa Bliss returned to the ring, but had another lengthy hiatus immediately after.
At the time, fans were annoyed that Bliss was once again missing, especially on the road to WrestleMania 38, but we now know more about her second hiatus.
While speaking on Wichita’s T95 The Rock Station, Bliss explained that after her first break, in which she had sinus surgery, her second hiatus was because she needed more work done on her nose.
“I had surgery, I had to get my nose all handled because, after six broken noses, it finally collapsed.” Fortunately, Alexa Bliss is now all healed up, and while she
didn’t succeed in the Raw Women’s Championship number one contenders match on this week’s Raw, expect to see plenty more of the Goddess on TV.
Earlier this month, we reported on Virgil, who is undergoing a series of serious health issues.
In April, Virgil announced he suffered two strokes and has dementia, and followed up by announcing that he’s fighting Stage 2 Colon Cancer last month.
Now, the former WWF Superstar has taken issue with his old partner/rival Ted DiBiase, who Virgil worked for on screen for years before turning on the Million Dollar Man.
On social media, Virgil said that DiBiase hasn’t even called to ask how he is doing, and shared a copy of an article discussing the Million Dollar Man ongoing legal troubles.
DiBiase, and his family, are facing accusations of receiving $2.1 million in fraudulent welfare from Mississippi, in what’s being called the biggest fraud operation in the state’s history.
It’s worth stating that DiBiase and Virgil have had something of a tense relationship for a while, with the former bodyguard often using DiBiase’s name at fan events without any plans for Ted to show,
so we’ll have to see if Virgil ever gets his call from the Million Dollar Man.
At Hell in a Cell, Cody Rhodes fought through a torn pectoral muscle to defeat Seth Rollins, earning the respect of the fans and wrestlers alike.
On this week’s Raw, Rhodes declared his intention to compete at Money in the Bank, but was attacked by Rollins, writing the American Nightmare off TV.
There’s been tons of speculation about when Cody will wrestle again, but now WWE have given their own update on the three- time former AEW TNT Champion.
During last night’s SmackDown, Michael Cole announced that Cody is expected to be out of action for nine months after having succ essful surgery this week, which puts his return around mid-March 2023.
This means that Cody should in theory be back for WrestleMania 39, but that the window of opportunity to set up a feud for him for the show will be incredibly small.
We can’t rule out a surprise return at WrestleMania 39, akin to this year, and we also can’t rule out WWE inflating just how long Cody will be out of action for.
Ex-WWE Surgeon Dr Chao said Cody will realisitically be out of action for four months, making a surprise Rumble return possible, but whatever the case, we wish Cody the best on his road back to the ring.
Over to AEW now, as the Blackpool Combat Club has made waves since debuting earlier this year, and has been recently feuding with the Jericho Appreciation Society.
To even up the numbers, the BCC has worked alongside Eddie Kingston, but there’s one big issue for the former Death Match wrestler.
Speaking to Joe Roderick this week, Kingston spoke about his relationship with the Blackpool Combat Club members, and made it clear that he’s no fan of working with Bryan Danielson:
“I’ve known Bryan, and Bryan’s been a piece of sh*t since I met h im. I’m not gonna lie to you guys and be like, ‘Oh yeah, we’re best buds.’ Bryan, I think he’s a judgmental prick. He judges people,
so I don’t like Bryan. There it is.”
Danielson is hardly the first wrestler to rub Kingston up the wrong way, as the AEW star has been badmouthing former WWE Superstar Cesaro for years.
Kingston’s one-sided beef with Bryan hasn’t affected their professional work, as the two have fought valiantly against the JAS, but Kingston wouldn’t be teaming with the former
WWE World Champion if he could help it.
Now, Chris Jericho has been with AEW since the first days of the company, and has faced plenty of top stars in the promotion, but recently, the former World Champion had a bone to pick with a
current WWE Superstar.
For the May 18th episode of Dynamite, AEW came to Houston, Texas, which is the hometown of Raw’s MVP.
In the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, it’s reported that Jericho and MVP ran into each other around 1am in a hotel Y2J was staying at, and things quickly turned sour.
The two engaged in a huge argument that had others in the hotel concerned, and while it’s not reported why the argument happened, it stems from a falling out they had 18 months ago.
Things didn’t get violent, but at one point, Jericho reportedly told MVP “I don’t fight jobbers,” enraging the two-time WWE United States Champion.
Fortunately, the pair didn’t come to blows, but this was hardly professional from either man, so don’t expect either to be jumping at the chance to work with the other, should they be in the same
same company again one day.
And we’re ending today with Stephanie McMahon, who last month announced her leave of absence from WWE.
After literally decades working non stop for WWE, the ex-Chief Brand Officer and former Women’s Champion has earned a break from the business, and is enjoying her time away.
This week, the first public photo of Stephanie post-announce ment emerged, as she congratulated the Oklahoma softball team on winning the College Softball world Series.
Stephanie may be on a break from WWE, but it seems you can’t take the work out of her, as she also tagged her husband in the tweet, saying that there’s some prospects for WWE to consider at the game.
This is in reference to WWE’s Next in Line program, which sees the company look to hire amateur athletes with no wrestling experience, who they can train in their own style.
As for Stephanie, it’s still uncertain what’s next in line for the Billion Dollar Princess, but the third-generation McMahon is enjoying her time away from the office.