We've got some sad news now to report now as
WWE Hall of Famer Billy Graham is back in hospital.
According to Graham's wife, the Superstar is being treated
for congestive heart failure, though doctors didn't find
any blood clots in his lungs, which is certainly a good sign.
The current belief is that the legend suffered a heart attack,
though nothing has been confirmed by his medical team
Though he's a former WWF Superstar and Hall of Famer,
Graham is a known critic of the company, and after WrestleMania 35 this year
lambasted the choice to have a women's main event
and encouraged new WWE Champion Kofi Kingston
to take steroids to keep a spot in the main event
Despite this, we at Slat Rock would like to send our very
best wishes to the 76-year-old legend, and we'll keep you
updated on his condition as more information is made known.
We're starting today with some news from RAW, as a number
one contender's match for the Universal title will take place tonight.
In just a few hours, Rey Mysterio, Shinsuke Nakamura, Ricochet, AJ Styles and Robert Roode
will face off, with the winner getting a shot at Seth Rollins
on next week's Season Premiere of RAW.
Though the Architect is scheduled to face Bray Wyatt at Hell in a Cell
the card is always subject to change, though the Fiend will also premiere
a new edition of the Firefly Fun House on tonight's show.
Other matches announced include Sasha Banks Vs. Nikki Cross, with the Boss having
Bayley in her corner, and Cross having Alexa Bliss, as well as King
Baron Corbin Vs. Chad Gable, a rematch from last week's King of the Ring finals, and a follow-up
from Gable attacking the Lone Wolf on the latest SmackDown Live.
Fans should enjoy these cross- promotional matches whilst they can, as the WWE Draft
is set to take place next month, and will reportedly spill the end of the Wild Card rule.
Though nothing has been confirmed about what Brand Brock Lesnar will end up on
fans do know that the Beast will challenge for the WWE Championship on
SmackDown's debut on FOX, and it seems a title change is imminent.
In addition to the title match with Kofi Kingston Lesnar is now being advertised
for the October 11, October 25 and November 15 editions of the Blue brand.
Though the Beast is also scheduled to appear on next week's season premiere of RAW
that could be the last time fans see Lesnar on the red brand in quite a while.
There have been hints for a while of Lesnar moving brands, with advertisement
during FOX's Nascar shows in March teasing Lesnar moving to Friday Nights.
It's interesting to see Lesnar have so many TV appearances scheduled, as his previous
contracts only called for Pay Per View appearances and limited live events,
with his live matches going less than five minutes.
It's clear that WWE are putting a lot of focus on SmackDown ahead of the Fox launch,
and this could mean fans see a new WWE Champion crowned very soon.
Speaking of live events, the WWE will be returning to Australia on October 21st through 23rd,
and PW Insider have reported the card for the shows, which could indicate upcoming storylines.
Of note, Roman Reigns and Erick Rowan are set to lock horns again, as it seems
seems their feud will continue, and the show also has Finn Balor on the card, despite the Demon
taking a hiatus after SummerSlam in August, as separate reports have suggested the Irisihman
will feud with Shinsuke Nakamura upon his return.
Kofi Kingston is set to defend the WWE Championship against Randy Orton,
though this could all change after the Kingston Vs. Lesnar match at SmackDown's debut on FOX.
Buddy Murphy and The IIconics are both booked for the shows, which makes sense
given they're Australians, and the WWE want to give the fans some homegrown heroes.
One Superstar who isn't scheduled to appear down under is Dolph Ziggler
though that didn't stop the RAW Tag Team Champion from making a scene
the other night in Las Vegas, with Hall of Famer Goldberg.
A video of a heated altercation between the two emerged online, and unsurprisingly
the IWC has already come up with some theories.
On Twitter, Ziggler wasn't in the mood to explain his actions, even calling Goldberg
Goldberg a dips**t, and though this isn't PG, many believe this could be
leading to a rematch between the two.
It'll be interesting to see what WWE have planned though, as Ziggler is currently
part of the RAW Tag Team Champions, but is obviously still bitter about his loss
at SummerSlam, and is looking to get revenge.
Over to AEW news now and though he may be a heel on-screen, Chris Jericho
has saved the day yet again, for another professional wrestler.
In a prior video, we noted that Nasty Boy Brian Knobbs needed help to cover medical costs,
and though the $10,000 target on his GoFundMe seemed difficult, it was no problem for Y2J.
In a truly generous act, Jericho donated a cool 1 and a half grade to the cause
and this isn't the only time he's given to help his fellow wrestlers.
Over the years, Jericho has donated close to $30,000 to help wrestlers,
including paying for medical costs for stars like Rico and Jerry Lynn, helping save
the home of Kamala, and paying to the funeral costs of ECW's Balls Mahoney.
Though he may be on SOB on AEW TV, it's clear that Jericho
has a heart of gold, beneath his scarves.
Back to WWE now, and Lacey Evans has a knack for staying in character, a talent that
has caused many fans to want to meet the Sassy Southern Belle at Meet and greet events.
This week, Evans continued her heel ways on the road, being pulled over for speeding
whilst in Canada, but didn't take too kindly to the Police officer.
Keeping in character, Evans lambasted the officer, before uploading the video
with the caption "Canada is terrible", though it was the Canadian
Natalya Neidhart who got the last laugh.
Though the officer claimed he didn't know who Evans was, Natalya said that officer
GM Brettell was a cousin of hers, claiming the Hart's run Canada.
After the story was picked up by the Calgary Sun, Evans
responded with her usual sassy self, claiming the only thing that
Hart family run is quote "Classless Canadian Mouths."
It seems that the feud between these two is getting more intense with each passing day
as Evans even threatened to retire the third-generation Superstar
when she returns home to the United States.
Even if Natalya and the cop aren't related, this was still a pretty fun segment,
and has shown Natalya at her most professional,
and Evans to be someone always ready to advance a storyline.
We're looking at more news from WWE's Women's Division today, as the company recently
posted footage from tonight's new WWE Ride Along featuring Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss.
In the clip, the two recall their teased romance angle from the Mixed Match Challenge,
as Strowman says he was hoping for the "Get these Lips" movement with Bliss.
The Monster Among Men also accuses Bliss of playing hard to get
though the Petite Powerhouse would defend herself,
saying she couldn't go around kissing everyone
Though the pair aren't working on screen together any more, someone may want to tell
them both, as a recent video by the WWE Women's Tag Team Champion
seems to have got Braun's motor running.
In a video with captions from Britney Spears' Toxic, Bliss got plenty of positive feedback
as well as a "gulp" from the Monster Among Men.
Fans quickly latched on to this, encouraging the Greatest Royal Rumble winner
to ask Bliss out, as it seems we'll have to wait and see whether Team Little Big reunite in the not so distant future.
We all know that WWE is moving SmackDown to Fox on Fridays starting October 4th
and the company is still trying to get as much buzz for the big move as possible.
Though Superstars have started appearing regularly on FOX shows to promote the blue brand,
one Superstar who didn't quite have the best time recently was Rey Mysterio.
Mysterio, who captured two World titles whilst part of SmackDown, recently attended
a Vikings game and was spotted in the crowd.
While this could have been a fun moment for both Mysterio and the fans
the announcer clearly hadn't done his homework, saying:
“Rey — he’s here! Look at him! He’s in his mask he’s like a luchador like Nacho Libre.”
The announcer obviously didn't understand the history of Mysterio's mask
and its symbolism in lucha libre wrestling, and presumably didn't quite get the fact
that the master of the 619 will often wear the mask in public,
especially if there's a chance he'll be on camera.
Whilst Mysterio is a luchador, and does wear a mask, that's
pretty much all he has in common with Nacho Libre, the priest turned
wrestler character played in the Jack Black film of the same
name in 2006.
Needless to say, this probably wasn't the best way to feature
Mysterio at an NFL game, and hopefully folks will have done
their research before they bring him up again on Live TV.
And finally today we're ending with some news from Angelina Love
who has been a major focal point of ROH's Women's division.
Since debut in in the promotion, Love has worked alongside long-time friend Velvet Sky
and Mandy Leon to form 'The Allure', a group that debuted
at the GQ Supercard inside Madison Square Garden.
Unfortunately for the former Impact Knockouts Champion, things haven't been easy
for Love, as she recenly spoke about experiencing a stalker in the UK,
during a recent 10 Questions series on ROH's website. She said:
"Unfortunately, I had a stalker in the UK give me some of the most uncomfortable experiences ever
One experience was when he flew from London to Las Vegas to watch one of my fitness
competitions and somehow knew what hotel we were staying in and where we would be
at every moment. Came to break fast buffet and sat at our table and also walked
10 steps behind us on the strip the following day," she began. "He recorded me on stage in
my bikini. Bought me diamond earrings and left them at the front desk of my hotel.
Got on my Facebook page and started asking me about family members in my photos
(my page is now private). Waited by a slot machine by the front doors of the hotel at 4 a.m.
when I was leaving to almost knock me over with hugs before I flew home
There were more encounters with him but that was definitely one of the worst."
Now back in the States, it seems Love has finally been able to lose her stalker, and is now
focusing on challenging Kelly Klein for the Women of Honor World Championship.
The two fill face off on September 27th at ROH's Death before Dishonour Pay Per View
and Love also spoke about the importance
of getting a title opportunity at this stage of her career.
"It would mean a lot to me. I worked a few shows for Ring of Honor back in 2004
and now being back here again with so much more time and experience under my belt
gives me a tremendous hunger to show everyone here, and continue to show
the entire world, why I am one of the best women’s wrestlers ever. I am champion material,
always have been and always will be," She began. “I think The Allüre have sent enough
messages to Kelly over the past five months, but in case it’s still not crystal clear to her yet,
your time is winding down, Kelly. Shine that championship belt up for me
because it’s coming home to mama.”
Despite being in wrestling for nearly 20 years, the six-time Knockouts Champion has
never held gold in ROH, though that may all change later this week at Death Before Dishonor.