#WheresOurNetwork

Calling all UK WWE fans - Let's get this trending tonight and let WWE know exactly how we feel about the WWE Network shambles in Britain.

RAW is being RECORDED in Liverpool tonight, which means WWE have time to edit the episode before it goes out around the world.

But if the #WheresOurNetwork chant is loud enough and long enough then WWE will have no choice but to run with it.

So, come on people. We've been screwed about far too often and for far too long. Let's make our voices heard;

#WheresOurNetwork

RAW Rundown - 01/09

Picture: WWE.com

Whilst this wasn't the greatest RAW in WWE history, it was a huge improvement on last week's episode which we covered in our previous blog post.


The show was scheduled to begin with Chris Jericho's Highlight Reel starring special guest Randy Orton.
Orton did make his way to ringside, but with Triple H, Kane & Seth Rollins in tow - suited and booted!

Picture: WWE.com

Apparently Triple H had decided that it might not be best for business for John Cena to face Brock Lesnar at Night Of Champions, and he is considering naming a new #1 contender for a title shot at Lesnar.

Cue everyone who's everyone try and claim their place as the new #1 contender including all of the men in the ring (bar Triple H) before John Cena came stomping out to ringside to make his point.

Cena claimed that it is his legal right to rematch against Lesnar and if he doesn't get it then he will sue!

Then Roman Reigns made his way (through the crowd - obviously) to ringside to stake his claim for being the #1 contender. What? You didn't think they'd leave him out did you!?

In the end Triple H decides that all of the men in the ring will get a chance to prove themselves in the main event of RAW - Cena, Reigns & Jericho vs Orton, Kane & Rollins - Six-Man Tag.

That's more like it, WWE!

Picture: WWE.com

The first match of the evening was Dolph Ziggler & Sheamus vs The Miz & Cesaro - accompanied by Damien San(Miz)dow and a makeup artist!

The Miz & Cesaro picked up the win following some interference from Mizdow and then a Skull-Crushing Finale from the real, proper, actual Miz on Ziggler;

Next up, another tag team match in the form of Mark Henry & Big Show vs Luke Harper & Erick Rowan - As we were reminded by Michael Cole - That's 1,400 pounds of human meat/Mark Henry's copious amounts of sweat.

Everything was going just fine until big, bad Rusev (accompanied by the lovely Lana) made his way way out to "observe" the match. Absolutely nothing to do with his ongoing rivalry with Mark Henry, nothing at all. He just LOVES watching wrestling...

...Oh.

Mark Henry had Harper in his arms ready for the 'World's Strongest Slam' but Rusev entered the ring and kicked Henry square in the jaw - And there was us thinking he was just innocently interested in watching the match!

Meanwhile, Rusev's old foe Jack Swagger was in singles action against Curtis Axel, forced into singles action due to the fact Ryback is out of action.

Incredibly, Swagger managed to pick up the win! Not due to the quality of his opponent, more the fact he hasn't won in about 2 years! Ok. Slight exaggeration there - but it did feel a bit like he was just being used as Rusev's punchbag for a couple of months.

These days Swagger has himself a new rival in the form of Bo Dallas. We imagine Swagger is absolutely THRILLED by this - But heck. At least he may now win the odd match on a PPV!

So anyway. Swagger picks up the win and then Bo Dallas makes his post-match appearance; 

We really didn't know how to call this next one. One of those kind of matches where there is so little between the superstars, it's just easier to sit on the fence...

...Rusev vs Zack Ryder

Rusev won - Mark Henry made his way to the ring - Rusev retreated. What a chicken! (although we wouldn't call him that to his face).

The Diva's division has just been given a brand new lease of life as Stephanie McMahon revealed that she was going to hand Nikki Bella a shot at Paige and her Diva's title.

Brie Bella was next out from behind the tron to exactly the same music as her rival twin sister. This was referenced by Steph who proclaimed that from now on the Bella's music is only to be exclusively used by Nikki Bella.
Nikki was generally horrible to her, about her and her troll-like husband Daniel Bryan - Her words, not ours. 

Then AJ came to the ring claiming that she was owed her title rematch against Paige.

Then Paige herself entered the fray as they couldn't have this conversation without the champion herself being present.

Nikki then took the microphone to suggest that her twin sister leave the WWE as a kind of sacrifice - Basically in the same kind of way she did for her husband, Daniel Bryan.
As she continued screaming at her sister to "leave", Brie finally snapped and pushed Nikki over into Paige who then dropped the Divas title, giving AJ the chance to seize the belt and skip around with it in circles!

The upshot of this being that the Divas division has just got a lot more exciting - And to think some idiots were chanting "Boring" at the beginning of the segment;

Gold & Stardust are now bona fide bad guys. We like this. It adds something to the tag team division.
For the first time in ages we have a feud between two tag teams, who actually look like tag teams! Credit where credit is due - WWE Creative did good when coming up with the 'Stardust' character.

This time round it was Goldust in action against Jimmy Uso (We think.You can never be 100% sure).
Goldust picked up the win after hitting his 'Final Cut' finisher. But despite the win being clean, what happened next was very much the opposite.
Both of the Rhodes Bros went after poor little Jey Uso's bad knee. Firstly issuing a kneebreaker and then wrapping his leg around the ring post and smashing it with a steel chair. Ouch.

Bad guys indeed;

Next up was the main event - Cena, Reigns & Jericho vs Orton, Kane & Rollins.

This match was a VAST improvement on the main event we were served up last week on RAW.
Big names. Fast paced action. Near-falls. Different Superstars finishers being hit in quick succession. This was certainly good enough to pass as a main event on RAW. Much more like it!

Both Reigns and Y2J spent lengthy periods in the ring before Cena was let loose towards the end of the match. As predictable as this is - The crowd erupted.

What wasn't as predictable was the fact that it wasn't Cena who picked up the win for his team. That distinction was left to Roman Reigns. Further proof, if it were needed, that he is being pushed on and up the WWE roster; 

As for what happens with Triple H planning to change the #1 contender - Who knows?
I would imagine that nothing will come of it and the Cena/Lesnar rematch will go ahead, as planned, at Night Of Champions.




FINAL THOUGHT:
Good on the WWE for FINALLY forward selling what is coming up next week on RAW. They always forward sell what is coming up on Smackdown, but let's face it, RAW is their flagship show.
By forward selling, I mean actively advertising what matches are coming up next week on RAW.
By doing this we now know next week will include Reigns vs Orton is a SummerSlam rematch PLUS Jericho vs Wyatt in a steel cage.

If I was a gambling man, I'd wager that by making those simple announcements, they have just added THOUSANDS more viewers onto their ratings for next week's show.

WWE Post-SummerSlam Lull

Last week was not a great one performance-wise from the WWE in our opinion.
RAW was very poor, followed by another very poor edition of SmackDown.

Rumours the original script for RAW on Monday night was changed

Following RAW on Monday night, there has been plenty of internet rumour and speculation regarding the main event of the show.

According to the reports and rumours online over the last few days, this is what we have learned;

RAW Rundown - 25/08

Here is our weekly RAW Rundown with all the best bits from this week's show.

RAW Preview

With just a few hours until RAW gets under way. Here is our brief RAW preview;

Hogan on RAW tonight!

Last night, Hulk Hogan revealed via his Twitter that will be on RAW again tonight, live in Los Angeles.

RAW Rundown 19/08

Following on from a decent SummerSlam PPV the previous night, this was a decent RAW showing.

This episode came complete with the brand new 'Clean' WWE logo which has been much talked about in recent weeks.

I think it is very nice and clear and suits this PG era very much. At the same time I'm sad to see the old Attitude Era one disposed of, but I guess we all have to move with the times.

The new 'Clean' WWE logo: Pic courtesy of WWE.com

A lot of celebrities haven been taking part in the "Ice Bucket Challenge" all in aid of a good cause.

Seth Rollins took part in the challenge, not through choice, but through Dean Ambrose' choosing;

Following on from SummerSlam the previous night, Nikki Bella was invited out to ringside by Stephanie McMahon to explain why she turned on her twin sister, Brie the previous night.

Initially I liked the idea of a feud between Steph and Brie - That was until I realised Brie is truly terrible at acting! Meanwhile, Steph as a character is as good as ever.

So imagine my surprise to discover the only person worse at acting than Brie Bella is...

...Nikki Bella!

The match between Steph and Brie at SummerSlam was decent enough. But I've really struggled to buy into the whole storyline to be honest.

From here we are obviously heading towards a match between the Bella Twins.

I'd be keen to see the match - But not the acting during the build up!

Dolph Ziggler defended his newly-won Intercontinental belt against former champ The Miz. Albeit by default after The Miz won the match by countout.

Since we've now had the title change and rematch, it is definitely time to move on.

 

On paper, the scheduled three-way tag team match looked to be a weird one.

Sheamus, RVD & Roman Reigns vs Rybaxel & Randy Orton.

Luckily the end product was actually quite good and it was nice to see RVD pick up the spoils instead of Roman Reigns for a change.
Let's be honest, a Five Star Frog Splash is more exciting than a Spear any day of the week!

The other highlight of the match was Ryback perfroming in front of his hometown, Vegas crowd.
He was comfortably the most over out of all six men, without having to do very much!

Along with a brand new look WWE logo and RAW graphics - A new WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt was presented to Brock Lesnar.
It features the new look WWE logo and does away with the need to carry two championship belts. 

The new WWE champ - With the new belt: Pic courtesy of WWE.com

With the formalities out of the way, Paul Heyman took the microphone to address the WWE Universe as only he can;

WWE seem keen to grow and develop the tag team division recently and who can blame them?
Tag teams have become a neglected commodity in recent years and for a long time The Usos have been the only real tag team.
So it was nice to see recent competition from the Wyatt's, who appear to have slipped in the pecking order having lost both of their recent title challenges.
Recently, Mark Henry & Big Show have had a push as a tag team - Which is an interesting (and big!) proposition.

On RAW things just got much more interesting as the reigning champs The Usos lost to Goldust & Stardust.
I had a feeling that it was going to happen and it puts them right at the front of the queue for a title shot.

Seeing as the Rhodes brothers are so over with pretty much every WWE crowd, along with their brilliant, synchronised new look, I think you could well be looking at the next tag team champs!

Looks like WWE are moving on from the Rusev/Jack Swagger feud.

Last night Swagger lost clean to Cesaro; Interesting, given Cesaro hasn't been able to buy a win of late;

Meanwhile Rusev looks as if he could be heading into a new feud with Mark Henry after the World's Strongest Man came out to confront him on RAW.

Has Rusev finally met his match? 

The main event of the evening followed on from the epic Lumberjack match at Summerslam between Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose.
This was a rematch, with the stipulation chosen by WWE fans, who were given the chance to vote via the WWE app.
The choices were either No Disqualification, Falls Count Anywhere or No Holds Barred - We chose Falls Count Anywhere - But basically all three of the options added up to same damn thing anyway!

This match was on a par quality-wise with the Lumberjack match at SummerSlam the previous evening, which is especially encouraging to see on an episode of RAW.
There were some brilliant high spots featuring a Powerbomb onto a stack of steel chairs and a Superplex through a table.
After such an entertaining match it was a real shame to see it all ruined by such an unrealistic gimmicky end, involving Seth Rollins Kerb-Stomping Ambrose' head through a pile of concrete blocks...

Concrete blocks. A gimmick too far: Pic courtesy of WWE.com

I mean, seriously? Come on WWE! It's supposed to be CONCRETE!!!

If it was the real thing I would imagine Ambrose would probably be dead now - Seriously injured at the very least.

Look. We all know that wrestling is, for want of a better word in this instance, "fake". But there really is no need for these gimmicky incidents. It's way too over the top. It's unrealistic. It just makes a mockery of the product and, what was up until that point, a great match.

That aside, the good news is that this feud is going to run and run. Brilliant news for the fans and I'm sure they've got plenty of great matches to come.

Who knows - Maybe they could be fighting for the WWE World Title soon enough?

SummerSlam Review

SummerSlam 2014 got underway with a surprise appearance from the immortal Hulk Hogan. 

Nothing all that exciting about his appearance though, he was basically there to sell the WWE Network.
 

I understand that the WWE have a product to sell, but I do find the way they advertise it to be cringeworthy most of the time.
 

(By the way the WWE Network is just 9.99!)

The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler
(Intercontinental Title Match)

Decent match to kick off SummerSlam and the first of three title changes during the evening.
 

After some nice exchanges in a fast-paced match, Ziggler picked up the win with the Zigg-Zag.
 

For me, this was a surprise title change. But at the same time Ziggler is so over with the WWE Universe that it can't really go wrong!
 

Who knows what's next for The Miz - Are they doing a new Marine movie?

AJ Lee vs Paige (Divas Title Match)

Second title match of the evening and the second title change. Again, for me this was a surprise title change, but an enjoyable one.
 

Paige's recent heel turn added some spice to the rivalry in the build up to this match. But in the end she won clean to regain the Divas title.
 

Where this rivalry goes from here, who knows?
 

Maybe AJ will win the title back tonight on RAW! The Divas belt is seemingly becoming a hot potato between the two of them, so why not!?

Rusev vs Jack Swagger 

Flag Match

We never thought for one second that Rusev's winning run would be broken at SummerSlam by Jack Swagger. It is clear that WWE are lining him up for a push and have been for some time. 

That said, this was his biggest test to date and for once he had take part in a fairly even match where he had to sell and take bumps. 

Swagger got Rusev in the Patriot Lock before the match had even started and so the Bulgarian Brute had to nurse his ankle through the entire contest - Which he sold well and convincingly.

Rusev's ankle made it difficult for him to put Swagger in his finishing hold 'The Accolade', but once he finally did (fighting through the pain barrier) Jack Swagger eventually passed out.

Rusev wins - But Swagger didn't tap. 

We've got a feeling this one may rumble on.

Seth Rollins vs Dean Ambrose

(Lumberjack Match)

This was easily the match of the night and given all the hype and build-up it certainly delivered.

I think we all groaned a bit when Ambrose chose a Lumberjack Match for his stipulation, but last night the groaning stopped.

The lumberjacks all played their part and there was some brilliant brawling through the crowd between the two former 'brothers'.

The best high spot of the night went to Ambrose who dived onto the lumberjacks carrying Rollins back to the ring. In one motion he took out half of the WWE roster - Incredible!

Rollins was always going to win this one and always going to win unclean and so that proved to be the case, with a little bit of help from Kane and his MITB briefcase! 

The good news is that this feud is FAR from over and we've got a feeling Ambrose will get his revenge.

Bray Wyatt vs Chris Jericho

We haven't really been won over by this feud. 

Y2J was brought back to the WWE specifically to feud with Wyatt and to get him over even more. 

Not sure it's been entirely successful and Wyatt was certainly getting over more during his feud with John Cena. Not to mention that the Cena/Wyatt matches were better in general. 

Wyatt was always going to win this one after losing to Jericho at Battleground and so that proved to be the case, with Jericho putting him over clean as well.

With the scores now at 1-1 will we get a decider next month? Maybe we will. Either way I'm not sure the WWE Universe are sold on this feud and it will be interesting to see what happens after, particularly for Wyatt.

Stephanie McMahon vs Brie Bella

The spoilers did what they do best and spoiled the ending to this one weeks ago.

It was practically common knowledge that Nikki Bella was going to turn on her sister Brie and I found myself just waiting for it to happen.

This distracted from the match somewhat, which wasn't actually all that bad! 

Most impressive was the in-ring prowess of Steph. With the crowd chanting "You've still got it" throughout the match.

Steph picked up the win with a LOT of help from her husband and Nikki Bella. 

We fully expect this one to rumble on for a while to come.

 

Roman Reigns vs Randy Orton

Roman Reigns is the golden boy, make no mistake about it. He is being primed to become a WWE champion in the not to distant future. 

Which is exactly why he was always going to go over against the Apex Predator, Randy Orton. 

In all honesty, I'd completely forgotten about this match on the card! What with all the excitement that went before it, I was just waiting for the main event between Cena and Lesnar. 

The match itself was neat and tidy without ever really setting the world alight. It would've been nice to have seen Orton in the mood he was in a few weeks ago on RAW when he destroyed Reigns.

The most impressive spot was Reigns launching into his trademark 'Superman Punch', only to be caught by a mid-air RKO - This led directly to the best near-fall of the night.

Reigns eventually picked up the win with a Spear, and his WWE mega-push continues.

I do worry for him slightly for a few reasons. Mainly that he is still a little bit green and rough around the edges in my opinion. It does feel a bit like his push is as a direct result of his stature and looks.

But more importantly I worry for his sequence of trademark moves becoming too predictable and repetitive. I think it could end up being as boring as Cena building up to his 'Five-Knuckle Shuffle' and we all know what kind of response that gets!

Was I the only one who heard a few moans and groans directed at Reigns last night? If so, that doesn't bode well.

John Cena vs Brock Lesnar

(WWE World Heavyweight Title Match)

Wow.

We all thought that Lesnar might win this one - But I don't think ANYONE could have predicted the manner in which he won the belts.

In short, Cena was annihilated by Lesnar. I would go as far as to say that this was just an extended squash match. 

Cena received SIXTEEN brutal suplexes and two F5's before losing clean to the Beast. 

With Cena losing in this manner it does make you wonder - Is he off for a break? Or is the unthinkable about to happen? 

Is he about to turn heel?

I mean, how DO you come back from a main event defeat like that? 

For Lesnar, this sets him up for a long run as WWE champion. He looked every bit 'The Beast' last night and it does pose the question - Who could realistically beat him?

Time will tell, but one thing is for sure - Get used to seeing those two golden belts a lot less on the TV - We now have a part-time World Champ.

 

 

  

 

 

 

RAW Rundown 11/08

If you missed last night's RAW, or you just fancy watching the highlights all over again, here are the best bits from last night's show;

Paul Heyman and his client Brock Lesnar opened the show. With Lesnar sporting a new, modified version of his trademark vest;

Heyman once again reiterated that Cena is in for the "beating of a lifetime" at SummerSlam on Sunday.

We can only assume that Lesnar has very sensitive vocal chords or a very small vocabulary. Heyman certainly suffers from no such problem.


Roman Reigns then faced the world's most boring tag team Rybaxel, as per the orders of corporate Kane.

Rybaxel were disqualified. Reigns picked up the win and then proceeded to go through his usual routine against both members of Rybaxel. Superman Punch, Spear etc...You know it by now!

Mr. Money In The Bank Seth Rollins took on Mr. Monday Night Rob Van Dam. Rollins predictably picked up the victory with a vicious Kerb-Stomp.

However on his way back up the ramp, there was a little surprise lurking for poor old Seth; 

In an ever so slightly ridiculous angle, Stephanie McMahon revealed that Daniel Bryan has been having an "Affair" with his Physical Therapist. CRINGE.

The whole angle was made worth it however, due to the facial expressions of Steph when Brie Bella put her in the 'Yes Lock'. Enjoy;

Sticking with the ladies for the time being - "She can't wrestle" but Eva Marie managed to pick up a surprise win over Divas Champ AJ Lee - With a little help from crazy Paige;

Regardless of what you think of John Cena, I think we can all admit his promos of late have been brilliant. This one was no different;

Then, following on from the ridiculous Daniel Bryan/Brie Bella/Physical Therapist love triangle, Brie Bella got herself arrested for the 'assault' earlier in the evening.

Haven't we been here before?

For the record - We'd also add a charge of 'Crimes against acting' to the Brie Bella charge-sheet.

After all that nonsense, it was time for the WWE superstars to gather at the top of the ramp to celebrate the 61st Birthday of The Hulkster. Who was joined in the ring by some very special guests.

Everything was going well until Heyman and Lesnar pooped the proverbial party;

We were kind of hoping that Hulk Hogan was going to receive an 'F5' as a Birthday present from Brock, but no such luck.
Instead John Cena sprinted in to save the day;

FINAL THOUGHT: If you think Brock Lesnar really is the "Beast Incarnate", then think about this - Cena called him out TWICE in the space of an hour, but the "Beast" politely declined. Just something to consider.

FINAL FINAL THOUGHT;

This.

New matches confirmed for SummerSlam

A few days ago we listed the matches that have been confirmed for SummerSlam and last night on RAW more matches were added to the card.
We predicted all of these a few days ago anyway, but here is a full list of the most recent confirmed matches;


AJ Lee vs Paige - For the Diva's Title;

Roman Reigns vs Randy Orton;

The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler - For the Intercontinental Title

Seth Rollins vs Dean Ambrose - (With a stipulation of Ambrose' choosing TBC);

Let's all hope Ambrose chooses one of these as his stipulation...

 

Raw Rumour: No Cena or Lesnar on tonight's show

We are hearing rumours that neither World Heavyweight Champion John Cena, or his Summerslam opponent Brock Lesnar, will be appearing on RAW tonight.

It's no surprise that Lesnar isn't appearing and perhaps therefore it shouldn't come as a shock that Cena isn't either.

I mean, if Cena's main rival isn't going to be in the building, then why should he be?
What's the point?

With Lesnar's reported contract only including PPV's and a few RAW appearances - Is this going to become the norm?

If he does beat Cena and win the titles at Summerslam, we will be seeing those two golden belts on television a LOT less often.

For me, that would be a real shame.

That's why at Summerslam - I'm team Cena.

RAW Rundown 28/07/2014

If you missed out on RAW last night, here is all you need to know;

John Cena got very emotional about his impending doom at Summerslam. After a war of words with Paul Heyman he was confronted by Heyman's ex 'client' Cesaro;

Y2J interrupted The Authority, and as predicted, was given a match against Bray Wyatt at SummerSlam;

SHOCK OF THE NIGHT - Went to R-Truth ending Bo Dallas' streak;

Which in turn, gave us the excuse to make this meme;

Randy Orton SNAPPED on Roman Reigns;

But the grand finale was saved for Stephanie & Brie;

We make the score 2-1 to Stephanie in terms of slaps. So Brie certainly owes her one by our reckoning. 

We'll see you there ladies!

I don't BOlieve it!

The streak is over for Bo Dallas. R-Truth was the man to break the streak. Yep, you heard me right. I said R-Truth.

This is how it went down on Raw last night;

 

So what next for Bo?

Maybe he could grow a beard and join his real life brother Bray in the Wyatt family?

Chin up Bo.