Here's more wrestling news for August 16th 2021
And your headlines for Afternoon include
Current WWE Wrestler Recalls How A Bank Robbery Shattered His Olympic Dreams!
WWE Changing Up NXT Television Taping Schedule!
Chris Jericho Talks About His Retirement Match!
Randy Orton Match Added To WWE RAW!
WWE Gives Foreign Superstars Additional Time To Sort Out Visa Issues After Release!
Current WWE Wrestler’s Online Dating Profile ‘Uncovered’
Kenny Omega Blasts Andrade El Idolo For Bringing Ric Flair To TripleMania!
Enzo Amore Loses Casket Match To WWE Hall Of Famer And more!
We’re starting today with Bobby Lashley, the unquestionable top star of RAW, who’s expected to retain his WWE Championship
against Goldberg at Summerslam. Lashley’s win on the March 1st RAW came over 15 years after his initial WWE
debut, but before he stepped in the squared -circle, the Almighty had plans on getting to the Olympics
Speaking on the Broken Skull Sessions, Lashley explained how a freak incident derailed all his Olympic dreams, saying:
“I was going to the bank, do some bank stuff… three guys were standing at the side, they had like bandanas kinda on their necks. You
wouldn’t think they were coming here robbing the bank. As soon as I get into the like it’s like ‘bam, bam’… when I later
looked down, my knee was like as big as like a huge softball at the end. I went and had surgery… that basically ended
my whole, well not ended by amateur wrestling career but I would not have been able to go to the Olympic trials, it was just
too close.” Who knows what Lashley could’ve done had that terrible event not happened
but we’re certainly glad that Lashley was able to leave with his life, and follow a career in professional wrestling.
Over to NXT next, as the Gold Brand has been going through some changes, which included a dozen Superstars and a referee losing their
jobs last week. NXT is having a complete overhaul, which’ll include a new logo and a focus on younger
bigger guys, rather than smaller veterans, and their filming schedule is also changing. On Twitter, Bryan Alverez reported that NXT
will go back to taping shows in advance, starting next Monday and Tuesday nights, the first shows after this Sunday’s TakeOver 36.
Alverez added that this taping schedule may be temporary, but it’s what’s in place for the indefinite future.
We’ll have to see what the future holds for NXT, as Triple H is slowly being pushed out of power by his father-in-law, but right now,
shows will be taped in advance and aired at a later date.
AEW news now, as Chris Jericho was one of the company’s first signings, joining nearly 20 years after he debuted for the WWF.
Last year, Jericho celebrated his 30th anniversary in the wrestling industry, and over that time, his body has taken a lot of
damage. Speaking on the Bubba Show on 100.7 Star, the 50-year-old wrestler discussed his
career, and how his last match is fast approaching, even if the fans can’t feel it. He said:
Whenever I have the last match, who knows when that might be? It all depends on what the storyline is and what’s going on at the time
but I don’t think I’m going to be one of those guys that has like, ‘this is the last match, and it’s the big brouhaha’ and then cry at
the end of it as Jericho wipes the tears away and goes thank you for the memories — I’m not that type of guy… when I have
my last match, you might not even know it. Jericho has had a career most wrestlers could only dream of, and is a sure-fire
Hall of Famer one day, but the former Undisputed and AEW World Champion is keeping quiet about when his last match
will be.
Back to WWE, and for the past year, the company has released countless stars, with many names originating from outside the U.S.
Losing your job is never easy, but it’s especially difficult in a different country, as for many wrestlers, their work visas are dependent
on their jobs at WWE, and that’s something the company takes into consideration. According to Fightful Select, when WWE
releases a non-US citizen, that Superstar is given an additional 60 days on top of their 90-day non-compete clause, to allow them to
work out any issues with their visas. That means that Superstars are given about five months from being released to get things
in order, and if they haven’t been able to find work in that time, only then are they sent back to their native countries.
Some ex-Superstars, such as the IIconics, haven’t been able to make any money since being released, due to issues with their visa
but they’ve been given more time to get everything in order thanks to WWE.
Speaking of working overseas, WWE hasn’t been able to compete in Saudi Arabia for over a year now, and these missed dates have
been added to the end of their current ten- year contract. A lot has been reported about WWE’s return
to Saudi Arabia, such as that the King and Queenof the Ring finals will happen at the next overseas show, which has now been
announced for October. On social media, Wrestling Club, an Arabic pro-wrestling Twitter page, revealed that
Advisor to the Royal Court and Chairman of General Authority for Entertainment, Turki Al Sheikh, has now confirmed that WWE’s next
event in the country will take place in October. WWE’s original deal with Saudi Arabia was meant to end in 2028, but the shows
missed over the past year have been tacked on to the end of their existing deal, and we’ll have to see how long it takes for WWE to
announce their next trek to Saudi Arabia, now that the news is already out there.
For the past few months, fans have been enjoying the budding romance of Indi Hartwell and Dexter Lumis in NXT, better known on TV
as Team InDex. The odd couple have had some detractors, and now, Robert Stone is trying to put a wedge
between the happy lovebirds. On Twitter, Stone shared a picture of a match. com dating profile, seemingly from Lumis
himself, and said: I hate to be the bearer of bad news to you Indi, but I had my eyebrow threader’s good friend
who is an investigator) do a little research on your MAN and… #DexLummy is a PLAYA!!! The profile in question, says that Lumis is quote
“Very single!” that his hobbies are magnets, and his favourite food is Milksteak and Jelly Beans, a reference to the comedy
phenomenon ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.’ We’ll have to see how this story plays out, as Candice LeRae has said that she won’t leave
the angle because of her real-life pregnancy, saying that Hartwell needs her at this time.
Both she and Johnny Gargano have made it clear that they want to split the couple up, and now another person is on their side
trying to separate InDex.
Over to AAA next, as AAA Mega Champion Kenny Omega retained his title last weekend against Andrade El Idolo, who had a very
special guest in his corner. Before the match, Andrade was accompanied by his future father-in-law Ric Flair, mere days
after the Nature Boy left WWE. Despite Flair’s appearance, Omega retained his title, and after the match, the Cleaner put
Andrade on blast for involving the dirtiest player in the game. He said:
Hey @AndradeElIdolo , I’ll admit it. You’re tough, you came close. But that stunt with @RicFlairNatrBoy ? Not in 2021, and not in
my ring, pal. You made it personal. The stunt in question, saw Flair get in the ring, as Omega was looking to hit Andrade
with the title, and together, Flair and El Idolo delivered some vicious chops to the Champion.
Now, Omega’s attention turns to All Out on September 5th, where he’ll defend the AEW World title against Christian Cage, the man
who took the Impact world title from him last week, but the Cleaner hasn’t forgotten about Andrade, or the Nature Boy.
And we’re ending today with Jerry ‘The King Lawler, who’s faced all manner of opponents in his legendary career, but he recently had
possibly his strangest match to date. At WrestleFest 25 in Poughkeepsie, New York, Lawler took on former WWE Superstar Enzo
Amore, now going by just nZo, and for some reason, it was a casket match. Typically, casket matches are the final
encounter in the blood feud between opponents, but this one occurred with no build.
It was a strange match to say the least, which started with nZo coming out to Dean Martin’s That’s Amore, and he avoided saying the
name Amore himself, as WWE owns that name It was ultimately the King who got the win,
thanks to a big assist from some brass knuckles, in a strange, but fun match that the fans definitely enjoyed.