Here's more wrestling news for may 20th 2022
And your headlines for Afternoon include
Roman Reigns TV Schedule Update Heading Into WWE SummerSlam!
Roman Reigns Possibly Joining AEW , Referenced In HBO Max’s ‘Hacks’!
Naomi’s Motivation For WWE Walkout Called Into Question!
Jimmy Uso Sends His Support To Naomi & Sasha Banks After Their WWE RAW Walkout!
Backstage News On Bryan Danielson’s AEW Rampage ‘Injury’!
WWE Superstar Calls Match With Ronda Rousey ‘A Mental Battle’!
Danhausen Shares Backstage Video Of AEW Star Seemingly Faking An Injury, Calls For Punishment!
Released WWE Superstar Says WWE Pitched Charlotte Flair Ripping Her Shirt Off!
Former WWE Writer Reveals Original Plan For Akira Tozawa To Stage His Death!
Sasha Banks’ Walkout Nixed Program With Ronda Rousey!
Jonathan Coachman Returning To Pro Wrestling!
Kevin Nash Set To Launch New Podcast ‘Kliq This’! And More!
We’re kicking off with Roman Reigns, and earlier this month, it was reported that he will be having fewer and fewer matches as part of a new lucrative deal with WWE.
At the time that his new detail was confirmed, Reigns’ schedule looked pretty barron, as he wasn’t set to make any appearances on TV or at house shows for both July and August.
Now though, this schedule has been updated by WWE, and the Tribal Chief won’t be as AWOL as first thought.
In the new schedule, Reigns has been confirmed for both the July 22nd SmackDown and July 25th Raw, which will serve as the build up to Summerslam on the 30th.
In fact, Reigns is booked for almost every SmackDown taping through to Summerslam, with the only exceptions being the July 15th and July 29th episodes of the blue brand.
With Reigns also expected to work WWE’s next three stadium event, Money in the Bank, Summerslam and Clash at the Castle, it seems that the Tribal Chief won’t be missing from his
kingdom, despite the reports from earlier this month.
Reigns is certainly the biggest name in wrestling today, so it should come as no surprise that he was referenced on HBO Max’s ‘Hacks’ but his name was dropped alongside AEW.
On the show, the character of Robin (Angela Elayne Gibbs) can be seen asking her son Marcus (Carl Clemons-Hopkins) if she can DM his ex-boyfriend if Roman Reigns goes to ‘the
AEW,’ a request that Marcus reluctantly agrees to. This is just the latest instance of Reigns getting his name out there, as he was recently
referenced by basketball legend Charles Barkley on TNT’s Inside the NBA.
For what it’s worth, there’s no rumours of Reigns being All Elite, as WWE has built their company around him in recent years, and he recently signed his new contract.
Reigns would send shockwaves around the world if he ever showed up in AEW, but that just won’t be happening, but that didn’t stop Hacks from teasing this massive hypothetical
jump on their latest episode.
During this week’s Raw, Sasha Banks and Naomi walked out of the show, forcing WWE to abandon their planned and advertised six-pack challenge main event.
It’s been reported that Banks was the instigator of this walk-out, and even Naomi’s former tag-team partner Cameron has said the Glow was “manipulated” into leaving by The Boss, but that
may not be the case.
On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer made the case that Naomi is a grown woman, capable of making her own decisions, saying that she made the choice herself to leave.
Meltzer added that while Banks and Naomi didn’t like the idea of feuding and losing to Ronda Rousey and Bianca Belair respectively, it’s not like they were going to get buried, and having
championship matches against the two is something plenty of Superstars would leap at the opportunity.
With Naomi’s contract set to expire soon, it’s impossible to say how exactly her actions this week could influence negotiations, but as far as Meltzer is concerned, the Glow’s walkout with
Banks was entirely her own doing.
Over to AEW next, as during last night’s taping of Rampage, Bryan Danielson suffered some sort of injury when his leg got caught between the ring and the rampway.
Danielson’s leg was stuck for around 10 minutes as medical personnel tried to help, and the former WWE World Champion was seen limping away after he was freed.
Now though, it’s reported that the situation is believed to have been a work, and an idea that Danielson himself came up with.
After being free, Bryan walked away unassisted, albeit with a limp, and gave a thumbs up to Eddie Kingston to make it clear he was okay.
We won’t know for sure whether this injury, work or not, will make it onto Rampage until the show airs tonight, but it now looks like his leg being caught may have been part of a story
more than being a freak accident.
Since joining WWE in 2018, Ronda Rousey has been a dominant force, having lost just two matches during her two stints with the promotion.
Last week, the SmackDown Women’s Champion’s open challenge was answered by Raquel Rodriguez who impressed plenty of people with her performance in the high-stakes match.
Speaking on the Bump, Rodriguez recalled the bout, and explained what it’s like to go toe to toe with the baddest woman on the planet:
“I rank it at the top. If not number one then number two because I’ve had some pretty intense matches. I’ve had brawls with Rhea Ripley, I’ve had high-flying, long, scary matches with the
IO Shirai that were just thrilling and then I’ve had this [against Ronda], which was just a mental battle the entire time. It was no longer about using things outside of the ring. It was
just about me and where I was standing in that moment of time and where she was at in that moment of time, and just getting it done. So it’s definitely one of the top.”
A former NXT Women’s Champion and NXT Women’s Tag Team Champion, Rodriguez has already had an impressive run in WWE, and while she didn’t dethrone Rousey last week,
expect big things from the newest addition to SmackDown.
In recent weeks, Danhausen and Mark Sterling have been at odds, as part of their feud which will see them face off at Double or Nothing 2022.
This will be a tag-team match with Danhausen teaming with HOOK to face Sterling and Tony Nese, but Sterling wants no part of the bout.
After taking a powerbomb from Wardlow last week, Sterling was seen this week in a neck brace and on crutches, but that seems to be all for show.
In a video, Danhausen caught the so-called Smart performer trying to get a doctors note to get out of the match, and didn’t seem as hurt as he’s been pretending.
Danhausen tweeted that as punishment, Sterling’s pay should go to him, with 5% going to Wardlow as a well- done for the powerbomb.
We’ll have to see how Sterling tries to get out of the tag match next, as the wrestling lawyer has been well and truly busted on this occasion.
In July 2021, Toni Storm was called up to SmackDown, but would last mere months before requesting her release in December.
During her brief stint on SmackDown, Storm feuded with then- SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, who on the November 26th episode, doused the New Zealand
Australian star with a Thanksgiving Pie.
Although fans loathed the segment, and have since said that this is what forced Storm to quit, that isn’t the case at all.
As Storm explained on AEW Unrestricted, she was quiet happy with the segment, as the original idea was for Charlotte Storm’s clothes off her body, which made her feel uncomfortable.
Storm didn’t want to be on live TV embarrassed in her underwear, but said that when she was seeing Superstars getting fired on a weekly basis, she felt she couldn’t say no to the idea.
Now, Toni Storm is in AEW, and has so far kept clear of any flying pastries, but while the pie angle last November was cringe-worthy, it could’ve been worse for the young wrestler.
Now, since launching in 2019, the 24/7 Championship division has seen some crazy antics, from a double wedding to a title change happening during a flight thousands of feet in the air.
Akira Tozawa has been a fixture of the division for years now, and he was once part of a shocking plan that didn’t make it to air.
In an interview with the Universal Wrestling Podcast, former WWE writer Matt McCarthy discussed an angle which would’ve seen Tozawa fake his death, all in the name of becoming 24/7 Champion.
Tozawa was eaten by a shark. Not my idea, but, it’s like when you get an idea that’s like out there like that, that’s like so insane, it kind of gives you a certain level of freedom. I was like
Oh, we can do a funeral for Tozawa, where he wins the title back and he staged his death.’ In part of it, you realize that Tozawa had a secret affair with Billie Kay, who we had come
in for it. It would be really emotional.” McCarthy said that the angle ultimately cancelled in September 2020, when Randy Orton was
using night-vision goggles to attack various legends, and WWE decided that there would be too much goofiness on Raw if both angles went ahead.
Instead of faking his own death, Tozawa recently married Tamina Snuka, but has since been handed divorce papers, but at least the former 24/7 Champion is still alive to be served.
Next month, the AOP will launch their own promotion, Wrestling Entertainment Series, with a star-studded roster including several former WWE Superstars.
Now, another WWE alum has come on board, as Jonathan Coachman will be on the commentary team for their inaugural event.
The Coach last did commentary for WWE Raw in 2018, and now works with CBS Sports, and will join Matt Rehwoldt, formerly known as Aiden English.
With big names including Adam Scherr, Nia Jax, and Lana all announced, WES is looking to make a strong first impression, and time will tell if the June 4th event proves to be a hit with fans.
We’ve got news from Kevin Nash next, as the two-time WWE Hall of Famer is about to launch his own podcast.
In July, Nash and Kayfabe Commentaries’ own Sean Oliver will launch ‘Kliq This: The Kevin Nash podcast’ which will air on Mondays in both audio and video form.
As a former WWF Champion and founding member of the New World Order, Nash will have plenty to say about his career, and wrestling as a whole, in what will surely be an interesting listen
from Big Daddy Cool.
Back to WWE, and it was just two years ago that the company launched Raw Underground, a staged shoot-fighting show hosted by Shane McMahon.
The show was short-lived, and was eventually cut because WWE didn’t want people mixing due to COVID, but it turns out Shane wasn’t the only option to host.
While speaking to Fightful Pro Wrestling and MMA Podcast, AJ Francis, formerly Top Dolla said that he was considered to host the show, adding that it was Edge who put his name out there
to be the host.
Ultimately, that plan didn’t work out, as WWE believed Dollar wouldn’t be able to commit to Raw Underground and host WWE Most Wanted Treasures.
Top Dolla was released from WWE in November 2021, mere weeks after his main-roster call up, but perhaps things would’ve been different had he hosted Raw Underground.
And we’re ending like we started with Roman Reigns, who has dominated WWE as the Universal Champion, with his list of opponents reading as a who’s-who of wrestling.
Brock Lesnar, John Cena, Edge, Daniel Bryan and Goldberg are just some names to fall to the Tribal Chief, but now someone big is preparing to step up.
That’s at least according to Reigns’ Special Counsel Paul Heyman, who in a discussion with Sportskeeda, addressed the reports of Drew McIntyre being the next to take on Reigns:
“It appears that Drew McIntyre thinks that he’s next,” Heyman said. “Drew McIntyre is very capable. You’re only as great as the challengers that you turn back.”
Heyman praising his client’s enemies is nothing new, as back in 2015, the ECW magnate had nothing but positive things to say about Reigns when he was a face feuding with Brock Lesnar.
As for when the McIntyre-Reigns match will happen, that’s hard to say, though it’s rumoured that September’s Clash at the Castle will be the show, but whenever it is, WWE has a
very capable opponent in line for the Head of the Table.