Pro Wrestling Updates

[Stash]

A CM Punk/AEW reunion was reportedly looking good prior to deleted Instagram

So did Punk sabotage his own return? Possible. Like him or hate him, he seems like an opinionated guy who is unafraid to say what he thinks out loud. That can be good. It can also be bad.

OR

The Instagram post & delete was done on purpose to generate buzz. If that is the case, it certainly accomplished the goal. Though I do lean towards if it was to generate buzz, he would have left it up.

His outspoken nature has been both a blessing and a curse for his career. And while I can appreciate people standing up for what they believe in, Punk is quick to insult those with a different opinion far too often.

If AEW was considering bringing him back after all of the problems he was involved in, it smacks of desperation. And the negatives will far outweigh the positives.

But I hope they do, let him come back, complain, get hurt again, and cause more problems. The Elite will leave and join WWE and I’ll get to see a Kenny Omega run in the big leagues.

 

[Stash]

Did anyone else happen to watch the Battle Royal on Smackdown last night? I thought it was booked great. Better than the Royal Rumble in my opinion.

 

[rags]

Any predictions on Night 1 of WM or NXT's PPV Stand and Deliver?

 

[DanteEXT]

His outspoken nature has been both a blessing and a curse for his career. And while I can appreciate people standing up for what they believe in, Punk is quick to insult those with a different opinion far too often.

If AEW was considering bringing him back after all of the problems he was involved in, it smacks of desperation. And the negatives will far outweigh the positives.

But I hope they do, let him come back, complain, get hurt again, and cause more problems. The Elite will leave and join WWE and I’ll get to see a Kenny Omega run in the big leagues.

He could probably use a bit of tact.

If TK is/was bringing Punk back, two possible scenarios come to mind. Either the Elite are OK with it, or TK already knows the Elite are leaving.

Dynamite ratings, on average, are down a bit since Brawl Out but still above pre-Punk. The demo is back down to pre-Punk. Though not sure what the difference is between .31/.32 vs .36 means when it comes to advertising dollars. A Punk return would likely juice the ratings in the short term I would guess. Long term? Who knows.

​

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[big dog cowboy]

Did anyone else happen to watch the Battle Royal on Smackdown last night? I thought it was booked great. Better than the Royal Rumble in my opinion.

It was. I was pleasantly surprised. Good point.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Any predictions on Night 1 of WM

1 Austin Theory (c) vs. John Cena Singles match for the WWE United States Championship
2 Braun Strowman and Ricochet vs. The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford) vs. Alpha Academy (Chad Gable and Otis) vs. The Viking Raiders (Erik and Ivar) (with Valhalla) Men's WrestleMania Showcase fatal four-way tag team match
3 Trish Stratus, Lita, and Becky Lynch vs. Damage CTRL (Bayley, Dakota Kai, and Iyo Sky) Six-woman tag team match
4 Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio Singles match
5 Seth "Freakin" Rollins vs. Logan Paul Singles match
6 The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) (c) vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn Tag team match for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship
7 Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Rhea Ripley Singles match for the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship

1. No way Cena wins the belt.
2. Who cares?
3. Damage Control wins. Why not. Geez.
4. Ugh. Guessing the drama isn't over so Dom wins via interference.
5. Rollins can't lose to a non-wrestler, can he?
6. For the love of everything holy PLEASE let the Usos drop the belts.
7. Best match of WM. Should be a classic. Charlotte is likely to stay queen.

 

[Stash]

Any predictions on Night 1 of WM or NXT's PPV Stand and Deliver?

I have more if a ‘post-prediction’. I think we’re going to see sweeping changes after this weekend.

The Bloodline’s dominance over everything will be over and I think everything will open up as a result.

I think we’ll see many more people and teams being involved in the title picture as well as several returns, reboots, and new arrivals.

I feel there are major shakeups on the way and I mean that in a good way.

 

[big dog cowboy]

I feel there are major shakeups on the way and I mean that in a good way.

There better be. Very overdue. VERY.

I sure hope your right stash because I'm almost done.

 

[Stash]

I thought night 1 of Wrestlemania was amazing! The match quality and workdays were off the charts. The tag team Showcase match that I expected to be a throwaway turned out to be my favorite of the night.

The Smackdown Women’s Championship match was outstanding and a start of Rhea Ripley’s ascension to the top. Both women were great.

I thought the weakest match was the opener of Cena vs Theory. It was very ho-hum, likely to protect the now Hollywood actor from getting injured. The McAfee appearance was fine, but the ‘match’ I could have done without.

Overall, a great show and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

[rags]

I have more if a ‘post-prediction’. I think we’re going to see sweeping changes after this weekend.

The Bloodline’s dominance over everything will be over and I think everything will open up as a result.

I think we’ll see many more people and teams being involved in the title picture as well as several returns, reboots, and new arrivals.

I feel there are major shakeups on the way and I mean that in a good way.

Looks like you're right. New tag champs and new woman's champ.

 

[timb2]

 

[DanteEXT]

I didn't watch Wrestlemania, but I did wake up to a Twitter notification highlighting a tweet from Dave LaGreca of Busted Open Radio saying "***curse word edited out*** that #WrestleMania". Pretty sure yesterday he was praising night one on Twitter. So I guess something on night two made him mad.

 

[Stash]

Looks like you're right. New tag champs and new woman's champ.

Not quite as ‘right’ as I had hoped for. They had the perfect opportunity to start totally fresh, and somebody decided not to.

That’s my one big complaint about what was otherwise a nearly perfect Wrestlemania.

 

[Stash]

I didn't watch Wrestlemania, but I did wake up to a Twitter notification highlighting a tweet from Dave LaGreca of Busted Open Radio saying "***curse word edited out*** that #WrestleMania". Pretty sure yesterday he was praising night one on Twitter. So I guess something on night two made him mad.

It had to be the decision not to pull the trigger on the ‘big change’.

I can only guess that it had something to do with what’s rumored to be an impending sale of the company.

 

[Stash]

WWE has been sold to Endeavor:

https://www.wrestlinginc.com/1246610/wwe-sells-to-endeavor-announces-merger-with-ufc/

 

[DanteEXT]

It had to be the decision not to pull the trigger on the ‘big change’.

I can only guess that it had something to do with what’s rumored to be an impending sale of the company.

Just read a recap. Yeah, you are likely right about what he was upset about.

 

[Stash]

Just read a recap. Yeah, you are likely right about what he was upset about.

It was a bad ending to an otherwise awesome match and truly an epic Wrestlemania.

 

[DanteEXT]

It was a bad ending to an otherwise awesome match and truly an epic Wrestlemania.

Read like a lot of shenanigans went on. I probably would have been annoyed too if I had watched it.

 

[Stash]

Read like a lot of shenanigans went on. I probably would have been annoyed too if I had watched it.

Up until the final spot, the rest of it - including the run-ins - was perfect. The match was a 10, ruined by a bad decision and ending.

 

[DanteEXT]

WWE has been sold to Endeavor:

https://www.wrestlinginc.com/1246610/wwe-sells-to-endeavor-announces-merger-with-ufc/

Does this mean that when talent gets released they will say "Endeavor wishes you good luck on your future endeavors?"

I wonder what, if anything, this means for the future.