WEEKLY OVERVIEW – WWE (thru 4/24): Top stories of week, major show lineups, live event results, schedule of live events, noteworthy social media posts, more

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PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.

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The following is the latest in a new series of weekly in-depth articles exclusive to PWTorch which will help put in perspective major wrestling promotions with a weekly overview, looking at news and roster developments, results, future line-ups, social media activity, key interviews, plus a timely commentary at the end. We will be featuring similar features on other promotions each week and each will be updated weekly.

•Top Stories of the Week

More changes to the rosters this week. Samoa Joe (with the United States Championship) and Cesaro are now members of Raw. Aleister Black, Andrade, Zelina Vega, Jinder Mahal, and the Singh Brothers are all now members of Smackdown.
WWE had two name changes this week. First, The Viking Experience had their name changed again. They are now The Viking Raiders, but they are still individually known as Erik and Ivar. Bobby Roode is now going by the name Robert Roode.
Bray Wyatt appeared on Raw and Smackdown this week in a pre-taped segment. The segment seemed to play off the idea that he was the host of a children’s show, similar to that of Blues Clues or Pee Wee’s Playhouse, called “Firefly Fun House” and included the buzzard puppet and witch doll from the vignettes that have aired previously. Check out the Social Media Highlights section for the full clip of this segment posted on YouTube by WWE.
WWE announced that they will be having another international tryout, this time in China this July. The article posted on WWE.com says it will be a four day tryout for up to 50 men and women. The article also notes that the Performance Center website is now also available in Mandarin so interested people can apply. SOURCE
Alexander Wolfe appeared at the latest NXT UK tapings as the newest member of the roster. This comes after saying his “goodbye” to WWE last week. He posted a tweet after his appearance that that said “I never said I’ll leave this company. I said goodbye to the WWE (Raw/SD Live) because I am now a part of NXT UK…”
Dustin Rhodes AKA Goldust has announced he is leaving WWE. This week he was also announced as his brother Cody’s opponent at AEW’s upcoming Double or Nothing show next month.

•WWE Weekly Event Results

WWE Live Event – Raw Roster (St. Louis, Mo.) 4/19/19

(1) Finn Balor (c) beat Elias to retain the Intercontinental Championship
(2) Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder (c) defeated The Revival to retain the Raw Tag Team Championships
(3) Lucha House Party beat The Singh Brothers
(4) Aleister Black & Ricochet beat The Singh Brothers
(5) Becky Lynch defeated Alexa Bliss to retain the Raw & Smackdown Women’s Championships
(6) The Riott Squad & Lacey Evans beat Bayley, Ember Moon, Dana Brooke, & Nikki Cross
(7) Tony Nese (c) defeated Buddy Murphy to retain the Intercontinental Championship
(8) The Shield beat Jinder Mahal, Baron Corbin, & Bobby Lashley

SOURCE

WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster (Madison, Wis.) 4/20/19

(1) The Hardy Boyz beat The Usos
(2) Rowan defeated Ali
(3) R-Truth vs. Samoa Joe was scheduled, but Joe attacked Truth before the bell
(4) Kevin Owens beat Andrade (w/ Zelina Vega)
(5) Becky Lynch defeated Charlotte Flair
(6) The IIconics (c) beat Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville and Carmella & Naomi to retain the Women’s Tag Team Championships
(7) Samoa Joe beat R-Truth
(8) Kofi Kingston defeated Randy Orton

SOURCE

WWE Live Event – Raw Roster (Springfield, Ill.) 4/20/19

(1) Aleister Black & Ricochet beat The Revival
(2) Tony Nese (c) defeated Buddy Murphy to retain the Cruiserweight Championship
(3) Lucha House Party beat Jinder Mahal & The Singh Brothers
(4) Finn Balor (c) beat Elias to retain the Intercontinental Championship
(5) Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder (c) beat Aleister Black & Ricochet via Disqualification to retain the Raw Tag Team Championships. The Revival would interfere and attack Black & Ricochet for the DQ
(6) Lacey Evans & Alexa Bliss defeated Ember Moon & Dana Brooke
(7) The Shield beat Bobby Lashley, Drew McIntyre, & Baron Corbin

SOURCE

WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster (Rochester, Minn.) 4/21/19

(1) Matt Hardy beat Jimmy Uso
(2) R-Truth vs. Samoa Joe was scheduled, but Joe attacked Truth before the bell
(3) Rowan defeated Ali
(4) Xavier Woods beat Andrade & Cesaro
(5) Becky Lynch (c) defeated Charlotte to retain the Smackdown Women’s Championship
(6) IIconics (c) beat Carmella & Naomi and Mandy Rose & Sonya Devile to retain the Women’s Tag Team Championship
(7) Samoa Joe (c) defeated R-Truth to retain the United States Championship
(8) Kofi Kingston (c) beat Randy Orton to retain the WWE Championship

SOURCE

WWE Live Event – Raw Roster (Moline, Ill.) 4/21/19

(1) Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder (c) beat Aleister Black & Ricochet and The Revival to retain the Raw Tag Team Championships
(2) Tony Nese (c) beat Buddy Murphy
(3) Lucha House Party defeated Jinder Mahal & The Singh Brothers
(4) Alexa Bliss & Lacey Evans beat Nikki Cross & Dana Brooke
The last three matches of this show aired on WWE Network as “The Sheild’s Final Chapter”

SOURCE

WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster (Sioux City, Iowa) 4/22/19

(1) Carmella beat Sonya Deville
(2) R-Truth & Matt Hardy defeated Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows
(3) Charlotte Flair beat Bayley
(4) Roman Reigns defeated Elias
(5) Ember Moon beat Mandy Rose
(6) Finn Balor beat Ali
(7) Kofi Kingston (w/ Xavier Woods) defeated Randy Orton

SOURCE

If you attend a live event, please send results to [email protected]. Thanks!

•WWE TV Match Results

The Shield’s Final Chapter (Aired on WWE Network) 4/21/19

(1) Finn Balor defeated Elias to retain the Intercontinental Championship
(2) Bayley & Ember Moon beat Ruby Riott & Sarah Logan (w/ Liv Morgan) when Ember pinned Ruby
(3) The Shield beat Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, & Drew McIntyre when Seth Rollins pinned Corbin

Monday Night Raw TV Results 4/22/19

(1) A.J. Styles beat Samoa Joe & Rey Mysterio to qualify for the main event match to determine the No. 1 Contender for the Universal Championship
(2) Naomi defeated Billie Kaye (w/ Peyton Royce)
(3) Baron Corbin beat Drew McIntyre & The Miz to qualify for the main event match to determine the No. 1 Contender for the Universal Championship
(4) Cesaro beat Cedric Alexander
(5) Becky Lynch defeated Alicia Fox
(6) Robert Roode beat Ricochet
(7) A.J. Styles beat Baron Corbin to become the No. 1 Contender for the Universal Championship

Smackdown Live TV Results 4/23/19

(1) Finn Balor beat Andrade (w/ Zelina Vega)
(2) Kairi Sane (w/ Asuka & Paige) defeated Peyton Royce (w/ Billie Kaye)
(3) Charlotte beat Bayley to become No. 1 Contender for the Smackdown Women’s Championship
(4) Kofi Kingston (w/ Kevin Owens & Xavier Woods) beat Shinsuke Nakamura (w/ Rusev & Lana) via Disqualification

205 Live Results (Aired on WWE Network) 4/23/19

(1) Humberto Carillo beat Drew Gulak
(2) Ariya Daivari defeated Oney Lorcan

WWE Main Event (Aired on Hulu and WWE Network) 4/25/19

(1) Dana Brooke defeated Ruby Riott
(2) EC3 beat No Way Jose

Source: WKPWP Post-Raw On-Site Correspondent

•Upcoming Lineups for Stadium/PPV Events

WWE Money in the Bank on May 19 from Hartford, Conn.

Seth Rollins (c) vs. A.J. Styles for the Universal Championship
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Lacey Evans for the Raw Women’s Championship
Becky Lynch (c) vs. Charlotte for the Smackdown Women’s Championship
Roman Reigns vs. Elias
Men’s Money in the Bank match
Women’s Money in the Bank match

•Upcoming Events

Mon. 4/29/19 WWE Raw, Rupp Arena, Lexington, Ky.
Mon. 3/29/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Big Sandy Superstore Arena, Huntington, W.Va.
Tue. 4/30/19 WWE Smackdown, Schottenstein Center, Columbus, Ohio
Sun. 5/5/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Ford Center Evansville, Evansville, Ind.
Mon. 5/6/19 WWE Raw, U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Mon. 5/6/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, The Corbin Arena, Corbin, Ky.
Tue. 5/7/19 WWE Smackdown – KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky.
Wed. 5/8/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, SSE Arena, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Thur. 5/9/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, 3Arena, Dublin, Ireland
Thur. 5/9/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Forest National, Brussels, Belgium
Fri. 5/10/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Helsinki Ice Hall, Helsinki, Finland
Fri. 5/10/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Arena Du Pays D’Aix, Aix-en-Province, France
Sat. 5/11/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Hovet, Stockholm, Sweden
Sat. 5/11/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Utilita Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Sun. 5/12/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Oslo Spektrum, Oslo, Norway
Sun. 5/12/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool, England
Mon. 5/13/19 WWE Raw, The O2, London, England
Mon. 5/13/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Bournemouth International Centre, Bournemouth, England
Tue. 5/14/19 WWE Smackdown, The O2, London, England
Tue. 5/14/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Accorhotels Arena, Paris, France
Wed. 5/15/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Resorts World Arena, Birmingham, England
Wed. 5/15/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Getec Arena, Magdeburg, Germany
Thur. 5/16/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Flydsa Arena, Sheffield, England
Thur. 5/16/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Barclaycard Arena, Hamburg, Germany
Fri. 5/17/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Cardiff Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, Wales
Fri. 5/17/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Mercedes-Benz Arena, Berlin, Germany
Sun. 5/19/19 WWE Money in the Bank, XL Center, Hartford, Conn.
Mon. 5/20/19 WWE Raw, Times Union Center, Albany, N.Y.
Mon. 5/20/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Tsongas Center, Lowell, Mass.
Tue. 5/21/19 WWE Smackdown, Dunkin’ Donuts Center, Providence, R.I.
Mon. 5/27/19 WWE Raw, Sprint Center, Kansas City, Mo.
Mon. 5/27/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Tony’s Pizza Events Center, Salina, Kan.
Tue. 5/28/19 WWE Smackdown, Bok Center, Tulsa, Okla.
Fri. 5/31/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Santa Ana Star Center, Rio Rancho N.M.
Sat. 6/1/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Extraco Events Center, Waco, Texas
Sat. 6/1/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, United Supermarkets Arena, Lubbock, Texas
Sun. 6/2/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Reed Arena, College Station, Texas
Sun. 6/2/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Foster Communications Coliseum, San Angelo, Texas
Mon. 6/3/19 WWE Raw, Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
Mon. 6/3/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
Tue. 6/4/19 WWE Smackdown, Sames Auto Arena, Laredo, Texas
Sun. 6/9/19 WWE Live Event – Raw Roster, Save Mart Center, Fresno, Calif.
Sun. 6/9/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Stockton Arena, Stockton, Calif.
Mon. 6/10/19 WWE Raw, SAP Center, San Jose, Calif.
Mon. 6/10/19 WWE Live Event – Smackdown Roster, Reno-Sparks Convention Center, Reno, Nev.
Tue. 6/11/19 WWE Smackdown, Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, Calif.

•Latest TV Highlights

Monday Night Raw

Raw featured two triple threat matches, with the winners to face off in the main event and the winner of the main event would become the No. 1 Contender for the Universal Championship. AJ Styles would beat Samoa Joe & Rey Mysterio in the first triple threat match after he hit Rey Mysterio with the Styles Clash onto Joe, then pinned Mysterio for the win. Baron Corbin would then beat Drew McIntyre & The Miz when McIntyre hit The Miz with a Claymore Kick only to have Corbin throw him out of the ring and steal the pinfall. AJ Styles would then beat Corbin in the Main Event with a Phenomenal Forearm. After the match, Seth Rollins came out to face off with his new challenger. Rollins and Styles would shake hands and Seth would pull AJ in close and the two were jawing back and forth as Raw went off the air.
The debut of Bray Wyatt’s new gimmick happened on Raw in a segment called the “Firefly Fun House.” I can’t possibly do this segment justice, check out the Social Media Highlights section to watch the video of the segment that WWE posted on YouTube. The segment also aired on Smackdown, so it’s unclear which show Bray will be a part of at this time.

Smackdown Live

Kevin Owens showed his true colors this week when he turned on Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. Kofi was taking on Shinsuke Nakamura in the main event. Rusev would interfere to cause a disqualification which prompted Xavier Woods and Kevin Owens to come to the aid of Kofi. At one point, Kofi pushed Owens out of the way of a charging Nakamura and Kofi gave him a Trouble in Paradise. Suddenly, Owens hit Kofi with a superkick. Owens grabbed the WWE Championship and yelled at Kofi saying “I hope you and your kids had a good time because I’m coming for this.” Kofi would attempt a comeback, but Owens thwarted the attempt. As Owens went to hit Kofi with a powerbomb to the ring apron, Xavier Woods would stop Owens, but Woods would end up being powerbombed on the apron himself for his trouble.
Charlotte was named No. 1 Contender for the Smackdown Women’s Championship. Charlotte came out to the ring for a promo where she pointed out that she was not pinned at WrestleMania, Ronda Rousey was. Charlotte then called for Becky Lynch to come out and explain why she thinks she’s the rightful Smackdown Women’s Champion. Becky came out and asked Charlotte if she knew what “Winner take all” meant since the WrestleMania match was just that. She said she was too busy beating the baddest woman on the planet, who Charlotte couldn’t beat. Becky also said she beat Ronda because she already knows she can beat Flair. Eventually Bayley would come out and said that the shakeup is about fresh starts, but all she sees in Becky/Charlotte is another rerun. She challenged Charlotte to a match and after Charlotte began to talk down to Bayley, Bayley would smack the mic out of Charlotte’s hand and the match was on. Eventually Charlotte would beat Bayley after a spear to earn a championship match at Money in the Bank.

•Listen to the latest Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Post-Show – Smackdown Post-Show

PWTorch editor Wade Keller is joined by PWTorch columnist Rich Fann, who also hosts “The Deep Dive with Rich Fann” podcast in the PWTorch Dailycast line-up and joins Travis Bryant on the PWTorch East Coast Cast VIP show. They discuss Kevin Owens’ turn on New Day, the Roman Reigns-Shane McMahon/Elias angle, Bray’s Playhouse vignette, Becky Two Belts defending both at Money in the Bank, more Superstar Shake-up fallout and aftershocks, and more.

-On Tune In Radio HERE
-On Apple Podcasts HERE
-Or search “Wade Keller” on your podcast app of choice

•WWE Social Media Highlights

Here is the video of Bray Wyatt’s “Firefly Fun House” segment that aired on Raw.

Big E may not be on Smackdown right now, but he’s still watching. He tweeted after the Owens attack on Tuesday and suddenly Big E vs. Kevin Owens is the big man feud I didn’t know I wanted this badly.

KO is the parasite in the system that desperately clings on to its host for life. Once its sucked all of the nutrients it can out of its host, it seeks another. I only take pleasure in knowing the virus has been detected & @TrueKofi & @XavierWoodsPhD will stomp out the organism.

— Florida Man (@WWEBigE) April 24, 2019

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My greatest joy will be returning in time to stomp the life out of the already lifeless roach myself.

— Florida Man (@WWEBigE) April 24, 2019

.@FightOwensFight is a trash human. Absolute and complete garbage human.

— Austin Creed @ awesomecon (@XavierWoodsPhD) April 24, 2019

Sometimes you feel compelled believe in someone and give them a chance, even when no one else will. As unpopular a decision as it may seem at the time, you give them the benefit of the doubt…And Then that person proves everyone right. Mark my words, there will be Hell to pay.

— KOFI (@TrueKofi) April 24, 2019

Owens tweeted out a very simple message after Smackdown in response.

Hello.

— Kevin (@FightOwensFight) April 24, 2019

Lana continues to be outspoken on Twitter.

He is the baddest. He marches to the beat of his own drum, he isn’t defined by one billionaires opinion, or by the universe’s thoughts. America has taught him it’s not about loses!It’s what you do with loses that will define your future! Rugged @RusevBUL is the AMERICAN DREAM pic.twitter.com/QSgeALBnTs

— Lana Day (@LanaWWE) April 23, 2019

Dustin Rhodes AKA Goldust posted a goodbye to WWE this week on Twitter.

Official Statement: Done on my own terms. Thank you to the @WWEUniverse @wwe and the world of entertainment. #wrestling #DustinRhodes pic.twitter.com/dEwtjTm3Zg

— Dustin Rhodes (@dustinrhodes) April 21, 2019

It wasn’t so much the paint, but the man beneath the paint. Goldust was an Amazing character. So entertaining. BUT…. Dustin was one of the best and most polished in ring performers that I’ve ever seen. Farewell my friend. #ThankYouGoldust https://t.co/imiHdQrDCi

— Kurt Angle (@RealKurtAngle) April 21, 2019

•Closing Commentary

– The Bray Wyatt segment from Monday may be one of the weirdest, creepiest, and greatest segments I’ve seen on Raw in quite some time. The fun-loving children’s television show host Bray Wyatt along with the bright and uplifting nature of the segment was weird in and of itself. This is such a departure from his previous character that it’s a little off-putting, but I think that’s intentional. His puppets of “Mercy the Buzzard” and “Abby the Witch” are other connection points to the old gimmick as well. His signature catch phrase of “follow the buzzards” as well as his constant talking about “sister Abigail” are unavoidable and very in your face coincidences, for lack of a better term. The puppets are not adorable or child-friendly at all; they’re a little creepy, which makes the added sound effects of kids awing at their reveal just that much more unsettling.

There are some dark and creepy moments in this segment too including one point where Bray bends over out of view of the camera only to have the music dramatically change, the camera start shaking, and him to stand back up wearing two gloves with HURT on one glove and HEAL on the other. Later in the segment when he holds up one hand to his ear (the HURT glove), he suddenly has an electric chainsaw and chops off the head of a cardboard cutout of his old character. That’s not exactly kid-friendly either, yet the sound effects added are of children cheering for him doing this and clapping.

I know some people hated this segment, but for some reason I absolutely loved it. I remember a few months ago where Bray was tweeting out things that appeared to be fragments of doctor’s notes regarding a patient and daily updates. One read “Day 23, Subject is showing signs of progress, at times. Violent outbursts are commonplace, spewing threats at our staff in multiple languages, and reciting passages from Bible and” and immediately after he tweeted “Day 3, Subject believes God as well as several other entities speak to him directly. They give him a scapegoat for 7.” Remembering these cryptic tweets from late last year combined with this new debut of a character has lead me (and many others) to think that this may indicate Bray has undergone some type of therapy to change his mental state. Given the gloves – and the segment in general – it seems like he’s still fighting his old urges, but trying to be over the top different from who he used to be to help him avoid going back to that person.

I’m beyond excited to see the next installment of this. I’d love to know who’s behind this idea and who is helping execute it because one week in and I’m hooked to see where this goes. I’m hoping and praying that Vince just leaves Bray and whoever else is involved here alone and just lets them run with this – because if Vince gets involved, I’m terrified we’re going to end up with Bray Wyatt playing some horribly cheesy wrestling version of Jeff Dunham with way uglier puppets.

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