Here's more wrestling news for September 8th 2021
And your headlines for Afternoon include
Paige Teases Using ‘This Is My House’ Catchphrase Outside Of WWE!
WWE Not Booking In Direct Response To AEW All Out!
Former WWE Champion Says WWE Has A Problem With AEW!
WWE Replaced Recently Released NXT Superstar With Another Superstar They Later Released!
Why Bryan Danielson Couldn’t Use Europe’s ‘The Final Countdown’ for AEW Debut!
Status Of Tessa Blanchard In WWE!
WWE Star Goes On Profanity-Filled Rant Against Adam Cole! And More!
We’re kicking off today with former Divas Champion Paige, who was forced to retire in 2018 due to severe neck issues, which
according to her are a thing of the past. In the past year, Paige has said how her neck is doing great and has asked about getting
back in the ring, only to be constantly refused by WWE’s higher-ups. Despite this Paige has been adamant that her
in-ring career isn’t over, and judging by her most recent tweet, it seems she may be looking at life after WWE.
On Twitter, Paige asked if she could still use the line “this is my house,” her catchphrase from her in-ring days, and wondered if the line has
been already taken. Paige clearly hopes to use the line that WWE almost-certainly has a trademark on, and we’ll
have to see if Paige does indeed get to call the ring her house once more, and which company she screams her iconic catchphrase for.
Over to RAW next, and just 24 hours after AEW All Out, WWE’s premiere show had a lot of work to do to compete with the competition.
WWE’s President Nick Khan has previously said that WWE doesn’t think about it’s competitors, and that the company only focuses
on their own product, but that may not necessarily be the case.
When Ringside News asked about RAW’s booking, and if it related to AEW, a member of their creative team said:
“WWE books in reaction to big football games. World Series. Olympics. College football. It’s not limited to AEW.”
This deliberately vague answer did not say whether anything on RAW was because of All Out, just that WWE books around various
other shows, including Tony Khan’s company. This is the opposite of what Khan has claimed, but it’s unclear what segments, if any from
RAW were a response to last Sunday. Of course, WWE would never admit to booking in response to AEW, but the company
is paying far more attention to AEW then what Nick Khan would want you to believe.
Whether WWE books in response to AEW or not, it’s clear that the All-Elite promotion has an incredibly loyal fanbase, with many
rejecting WWE’s product which has fallen a lot when it comes to quality. A mix of 50/50 booking, pointless tag-team
break-ups, nonsensical storylines and feuds that don’t go anywhere have severely hurt WWE, as seen by the dwindling ratings
over the past few years. On the other hand, AEW is going from strength to strength, especially after the huge debuts
at All Out, and in a video, WWE Hall of Famer and three-time World Champion gave a warning to Vince McMahon
”WWE is no longer the place for talents to aspire to. Part of it is because AEW is doing a great job of attracting great talent, proving talent, creating
storylines, but part of it is a problem of your own making. I think the younger talents see the way that the development
characters are cut or left by the wayside or by the way of Karrion Kross, greatly watered down or even made a joke of when
they make their debuts on the main roster. It’s not broke, don’t fix it. If I was an aspiring talent now, I’m not sure that I would trust
WWE Creative would do the right thing with my career. Until that changes, WWE – you got a problem.”
We certainly wonder if WWE will listen to Foley, as they need to do something fast to breathe new life in the company, and if they
don’t, then AEW will only keep taking more and more fans away from the Sports Entertainment juggernaut
Over the past year, WWE has been releasing a ton of talent, all part of Nick Khan’s budget cuts, and this has led to some interesting moves
across the dwindling 205 Live roster. In June, Ari Sterling faced Cameron Grimes, but that wasn’t the original match, as Fightful
Select reports that Ariya Daivari was meant to wrestle Grimes as a heel, but was released just before the match took place.
Pressed for time, WWE brought in Sterling to face Grimes, giving the 34-year-old a chance to prove himself to WWE as part of the push to elevate
Grimes as a babyface. Sterling may have been given the opportunity to prove himself, but WWE didn’t see much in
him, as shortly after replacing a released Superstar, he too was let go. Now, Sterling is once again Alex Zayne,
and is looking for prospects post-WWE, as being ready to compete for them at the last minute couldn’t save him for the dreaded cuts.
One of the biggest losses to WWE this year was losing Daniel Bryan, who joined AEW as Bryan Danielson at All Out.
Bryan’s debut was huge, but some fans questioned why he didn’t use Europe’s Final Countdown, the song he used prior to joining
WWE in 2010. After all, Tony Khan has never shied away from using licensed music for wrestlers, but
instead, Bryan used a theme created by Elliot Taylor. On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer
explained that Khan had tried to get The Final Countdown for Danielson, but the rights for the song would’ve been “cost prohibitive,
even for Tony Khan.” Even without the Final Countdown, Bryan Danielson’s first night in AEW was an epic
success, but even Tony Khan couldn’t justify spending the cash for Bryan’s most iconic non-WWE theme.
When Tessa Blanchard was released from Impact despite being their World Champion, the wrestling world was abuzz about where
she’d go next, but in the year since her departure, Blanchard hasn’t competed elsewhere. The NWA has reportedly spoken to her, but there’s
been no word from WWE and AEW, and there’s a very special reason for that. Cassidy Haynes of Bodyslam.net reports that
Blanchard’s name is “nuclear” right now, and no promotion wants to go near her, adding that indie promoters feel the same way
Shortly before her historic World title win, La Rosa Negra accused Blanchard of spitting on her and using the N-Word during a tour of
Japan, leading to several wrestlers accusing Blanchard of many examples of backstage bullying.
Now, those accusations are haunting Blanchard, as she can’t seem to get work, and at All Out, some fans chanted “We want Tessa” during
the Women’s Casino Battle Royale, only to be drowned out by a much louder chant of “No we don’t!”
Blanchard has recently resurfaced, as she was seen training Bayley superfan Izzy in a session, but the former World Champion may have
to keep waiting before she wrestles in front of a crowd again.
More from AEW, as Adam Cole made his debut at All out, siding with the Elite after the main event.
Cole’s debut was a huge moment, and he got a huge ovation by the crowd, but one person who had some harsh words for the former
NXT Champion is Pat McAfee. Before joining SmackDown as a commentator, McAfee feuded with Cole in NXT, and on his
show, the former NFL punter didn’t hold back on his old rival: “That was quite a big moment last night. You know
he's a piece of s**t, that guy. I mean congrats to him and that is a pretty big deal, but f**k that guy. I can't take this guy. You
know dude, like he's terrible scumbag as*hole. Can't say it enough, proved it again last night. Just can't help it, it oozes from his body.”
The McAfee-Cole feuded ended last December, when the Undisputed Era defeated Pat, Pete Dunne, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan in
WarGames, even though McAfee isn’t ready to move on. Their rivalry may be long-over, especially now
that Cole’s in AEW, but the SmackDown commentator isn’t letting their grudge go, despite the former NXT Champion now being
in an entirely different company.
And we’re ending today with Eva Marie, who is reeling from the beating she received from Doudrop on last week’s RAW.
In a video, the former Total Divas star can be seen undergoing a full-body MRI, which she said is to “discover the physical and
emotional damage” from Doudrop’s pre-match attack on her during the August 30th RAW. Doudrop has stated that she wants a rematch,
but Marie has responded that the only statements she see in her former protégé’s future are the ones she’ll give in court over
assault and battery charges. Ending her tweet by calling Doudrop a criminal, Eva isn’t wanting to face her protégé again