This year’s WWE Money In The Bank Men’s and Women’s Match participants will have an even more unique challenge ahead of them than usual.
The match begins on the ground floor of WWE Headquarters, but the briefcases – containing contracts for a championship match anytime, anyplace – will be hanging all the way up on the roof of the corporate tower.
Catch the historic, groundbreaking matches when WWE Money In The Bank streams live on the award-winning WWE Network on Sunday, May 10, at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
Since 2006
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April 17, 2020
WWE Superstars will climb the corporate ladder at WWE Money In The Bank
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
9:41 PM
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Labels: Raw, SmackDown, WWE, WWE Network, WWE NXT, WWE Womens Division
April 15, 2020
WWE PC Coach And Others Released, WWE To Cut Hundreds Of Employees, More On Today's Departures
WWE NXT Superstar MJ Jenkins, Performance Center coach Norman Smiley, Spanish announcer Jerry Soto and on-air talent Josiah Williams to the list of wrestlers, creative writers, producers, referees and other talent released today by WWE.
Regarding the releases, @Wrestlevotes noted that the number of staff and talent releases will be "well into the hundreds" when everything has been finalized. Casey of Squared Circle Sirens also noted on Twitter that staff from the WWE Performance Center are being let go.
Below is the updated lists of confirmed cuts made today by the company, along with the tweets from Jenkins, Smiley, Soto and Williams:
* MJ Jenkins
* Deonna Purrazzo
* Aleksandar Jaksic
* Rusev
* No Way Jose
* Mike Kanellis
* Maria Kanellis
* Primo
* Epico
* Rowan
* Sarah Logan
* Karl Anderson
* Luke Gallows
* EC3
* Drake Maverick
* Curt Hawkins
* Heath Slater
* Eric Young
* Lio Rush
PRODUCERS (Furloughed or released):
* WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle (Released)
* Billy Kidman
* Mike Rotunda
* Pat Buck
* Fit Finlay
* Shawn Daivari
* Scott Armstrong
* Sarah Stock
* Shane Helms
* Lance Storm
ANNOUNCERS:
* Aiden English
* Jerry Soto
REFEREES:
* Mike Chioda
CREATIVE:
* Andrea Listenberger
COACHES:
* Norman Smiley
OTHER ON-AIR TALENT:
* Josiah Williams
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
8:23 PM
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Labels: Raw, SmackDown, WWE, WWE NXT, WWE Performance Center, WWE Womens Division
April 13, 2020
WWE Considered An Essential Business By Florida Governor's Office
"I think initially there was a review that was done and they were not initially deemed an essential business. With some conversation with the Governor's office regarding he Governor's [stay-at-home] order, they were deemed an essential business. Therefore they were allowed to remain open."
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
7:38 PM
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Labels: Raw, SmackDown, WWE, WWE NXT, WWE Performance Center
April 11, 2020
WWE To Celebrate 25 Years Of Triple H
It was announced during tonight's SmackDown on FOX that the celebration for 25 years of Triple H will begin on SmackDown in two weeks, on April 24.
Triple H debuted with WWE on April 30, 1995 with a win over Buck Zumhofe on Wrestling Challenge.
There's no word yet on what WWE has planned for the celebration, but the commercial indicated that the festivities will go on past SmackDown that night.
Stay tuned for updates on the Triple H 25th anniversary celebration from WWE.
Below is a promo from the WWE On FOX Twitter account:
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
7:59 AM
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Labels: Levesque Family News, SmackDown, Triple H, Wrestling History, Wrestling News, WWE
March 16, 2020
Triple H Brings Sense of Normalcy, Fun at Time of Great Uncertainty
There was an eery sense of reality that fell over Friday night's show.
The relocation of the show and absence of audience hammered home just how surreal a world we are living in right now. Just when discomfort set in, though, the WWE Universe's dad rushed to its aid and provided a night of unexpected fun and entertainment.
Triple H welcomed the viewing audience to his baby, the WWE Performance Center, and proceeded to join Michael Cole on the headsets for one of the most refreshingly fun and light-hearted commentary performances in recent memory.
He was hilarious, using insider references to break up the monotony that sometimes engulfs the announce position and played off Cole extremely well. He was engaging, took nothing too seriously and even jumped behind a camera while referencing the short-handed nature of the production.
And best of all, he did it all without taking away any attention from the Superstars on the show.
There are fans who will point to the NXT brand as proof that Triple H can run WWE and do so to great success, but there may be no greater example of that than what he was able to accomplish Friday night on short notice and with a skeleton crew to work with.
Without him, the broadcast would most certainly have been an uncomfortable viewing experience for an audience already shell-shocked by what is going on in the world.
source: bleacherreport.com
March 12, 2020
WWE Issues Statement Saying SmackDown In Detroit Is Still Scheduled
WWE has issued a statement debunking a report that SmackDown in Detroit has been cancelled.
WWE statement:
“WWE has not cancelled Friday Night SmackDown in Detroit, however, based on the current situation, we are putting contingency plans in place in the event that upcoming WWE shows are cancelled by government officials, civil authorities and/or local venues.”
It should be noted however, WWE is working on several contingency plans should events have to be canceled due to government intervention.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
6:24 AM
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March 11, 2020
Rumor Mill - WWE Reportedly Moving This Week's SmackDown To The Performance Center Due To Coronavirus
The coronavirus continues to have an impact on the world of professional wrestling.
WWE has reportedly nixed Friday's SmackDown on FOX and WWE 205 Live episodes from the Little Caesar's Arena in Detroit, Michigan due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to PWInsider.
WWE will now broadcast Friday's two shows from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, where they aired tonight's WWE NXT episode on the USA Network from.
Tonight's NXT episode aired from the Performance Center due to a previously scheduled non-WWE event at Full Sail University, and not because of the virus.
WWE officials reportedly made the decision to make the drastic changes to SmackDown earlier this afternoon due to the outbreak. An official announcement will be coming soon.
There's no word yet on if Monday's RAW will still air from the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA, but we will keep you updated.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
11:57 PM
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Labels: Rumor Mill, SmackDown, WWE, WWE Performance Center
February 6, 2020
Despite Costs Of Launching WWE SmackDown, Fox Corp.’s Revenue Up 5% To End 2019
“Our results reaffirm that Fox Corporation is delivering on the operational and financial objectives that we established less than twelve months ago,” Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch said. “Our brands are exhibiting strength in a competitive marketplace and delivering healthy top-line growth as we continue to invest strategically to expand the reach of our portfolio and further diversify our revenue streams. Meanwhile, we are taking a balanced approach to capital allocation, including the return of $500 million to shareholders in the form of share repurchases since our last earnings release. Coming off an incredibly successful Super Bowl LIV and with the buildup to the November Presidential Election ahead of us, we look forward to continuing our momentum through calendar 2020.”
January 21, 2020
WWE SmackDown Draws Fourth-Highest Viewership Since Moving To FOX, Takes #1 In All Demos
Friday's WWE SmackDown episode, featuring Roman Reigns defeating Robert Roode in a Tables Match main event, drew an average of 2.562 million viewers on FOX, according to Showbuzz Daily.
This final number is down from the overnight viewership that was released on Saturday morning, which was an average of 2.58 million viewers. This number is up 2.6% from last week's final SmackDown viewership of 2.497 million viewers.
This is also the fourth-best SmackDown viewership since the show premiered on FOX back on October 4. This is also the best blue brand viewership since the taped November 8 episode from England, which drew 2.610 million viewers.
Friday's SmackDown drew a 0.8 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, a 0.9 rating in the 25-54 demo, and a 0.5 rating in the 18-34 demographic. Last week's episode also drew a 0.8 rating in the 18-49 demo, a 0.9 rating in the 25-54 demo, and a 0.5 rating in the 18-34 demographic.
SmackDown ranked #1 in the 18-49 demographic on network TV this week, for the fifth week in a row. SmackDown also came in at #1 in the 18-34 demo this week, for the fifth week in a row. SmackDown tied for #1 in the 25-54 demo, with Hawaii Five-O and Magnum PI.
SmackDown came in at #8 for the night in viewership on network TV, for the third week in a row, behind Hawaii Five-O, Magnum PI, Blue Bloods, 20/20, American Housewife, Lincoln Rhyme, and Dateline. Blue Bloods topped the night with 5.499 million viewers.
November 28, 2019
NXT Referee Jessika Carr Moving Over To WWE SmackDown
Jessika Carr isn’t moving “up” to SmackDown—the NXT referee is making a lateral move over to Friday nights.
Last night’s NXT taping saw Carr work her final matches for the yellow brand, and she was given an in-ring sendoff by Tommaso Ciampa.
Ciampa closed the show by saying they are a family, and they were losing a family member in Carr because she’s moving over to SmackDown Live as of this Friday. Ciampa asked Carr to deliver a farewell speech, and Carr talked about hearing she’s the “worst referee ever” by someone in her first night of training. She says she’s glad she didn’t listen to that person who told her to quit the business, and says standing in front of them now is an amazing feeling. Carr said she hopes women see this as a sign that they can be whatever they want, then she left and was greeted by Triple H and the team of referees on the ramp.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
1:40 PM
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Labels: Jessika Carr, MD/DC/VA, SmackDown, WWE NXT, WWE Womens Division
October 31, 2019
NXT Will Be Part Of Survivor Series This Year For The First Time
During tonight's WWE Crown Jewel event an advertisement confirmed Survivor Series this year will include Superstars from Raw, SmackDown and NXT. This is also an indication that NXT is being adopted more as a main brand, rather than a "developmental" one as it has been since inception. Survivor Series takes place on November 24 at the Allstate Arena in Illinois.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
6:47 PM
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October 15, 2019
Eric Bischoff Replaced By Bruce Prichard As Executive Director Of WWE Friday Night SmackDown
WWE announced that Bruce Prichard will replace Eric Bischoff as the Executive Director of WWE Friday Night SmackDown. Prichard will report directly to WWEChairman & CEO Vince McMahon.
Prichard will oversee the creative development of Friday Night SmackDown on FOX and ensure integration across all platforms and lines of business.
WWE had named Bischoff as the Executive Director of WWE SmackDown this past June, while also appointing Paul Heyman as the Executive Director of WWE RAW. There had been reports over recent months about Bischoff not being heavily involved with the SmackDown creative process.
October 5, 2019
Triple H And FOX Sports President Talk WWE Ratings Drop And Potential Increase After This Week
The Associated Press took a look at WWE TV ahead of the SmackDown FOX premiere and the 20th anniversary celebration from Los Angeles.
FOX Sports President Eric Shanks spoke with The AP for the piece and said SmackDown has potential to do big things for Friday night TV.
"It has the potential to rejuvenate Friday nights," Shanks said.
Triple H was also interviewed. He said FOX is looking to help WWE increase the value of SmackDown, and make it something more. He also said we will see changes right away.
"I think the opportunity to go to a broadcast platform with partners like Fox that not only want to take what you do and embrace it, but help you to make it something more, increases the value," Triple H said. "You'll see changes right away."
Triple H downplayed the drop in WWE TV ratings that we've seen over the past several years.
"I think any show that has been on the air as long as RAW and SmackDown have, you're going to have moments in time where things ebb and flow," Triple H said. "When you look back over it, you hope that as you look back 10 years from now, you go, 'oh, there was a little dip there but it wasn't for long and they corrected course and got right.'"
It was noted how FOX has publicly been nonplussed about the drop in viewership. Shanks pointed to how WWE will now have the FOX promotional machine behind them, and they expect viewership to increase after this week.
"They haven't had the programming and awareness that they will have on Fox," Shanks said. "We're hoping it will grow after the anniversary show."
The piece noted how how WWE has leaned on Hall of Famers like Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan as of late, perhaps as a way to get the lapsed fan, and how RAW and SmackDown are expected to have their own rosters moving forward. Triple H commented on how they want to put stars out that people are engaged with.
"You want to put on something for everybody," Triple H said. "You want to put out stars that people remember, that people are engaged with right now. You want to put something of, this guy's going to be a star in a year or two."
October 3, 2019
AEW Dynamite Tops WWE SmackDown In Major Demo, Most Watched Non-WWE Show In 5 Years
AEW Dynamite premiered on TNT on Wednesday garnering 1.409 million viewers, topping the 891,000 viewers garnered by the season premiere of WWE NXT on the USA Network, which was airing head-to-head, by 58%.
AEW Dynamite was the second highest rated show on cable on Wednesday in the 18-49 demo with a 0.68 rating. It topped WWE NXTin the demo by 112.5%, as NXT did a 0.32 rating and was #10 for the night for the demo.
AEW Dynamite actually narrowly topped last Tuesday's episode of SmackDown Live in the 18-49 demo. While AEW Dynamite scored a 0.68 rating, SmackDown garnered a 0.67 rating in the demo.
AEW Dynamite was also the most watched wrestling show on cable that wasn't RAW or SmackDown in over 5 years, since the April 10, 2014 edition of Impact Wrestling, which did 1.42 million viewers.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
7:36 PM
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Labels: All Elite Wrestling, SmackDown, Television Ratings
September 19, 2019
WWE NXT Draws Strong Audience For USA Network Premiere
Last night's WWE NXT premiere on the USA Network drew 1.179 million viewers, according to Showbuzz Daily.
The show ranked #4 for the night in the Cable Top 150 18-49 demographic, behind American Horror Story, Basketball Wives and Black Ink Crew. NXT ranked #19 for the night in viewership.
These numbers are for the first hour that aired on the USA Network. We do not have viewership for the second hour that aired on the WWE Network. Both hours will begin airing on USA with the Wednesday, October 2 episode.
To compare, Monday's RAW drew an average of 2.272 million viewers, up from last week's 2.130 million viewers. Tuesday's SmackDown drew 2.064 million viewers, barely up from last week's 2.061 million viewers.
USA aired a special NXT episode back on Wednesday, December 13, 2017 and that show drew 841,000 viewers, and ranked #22 on the Cable Top 150.
September 15, 2019
FOX Announces WWE SmackDown Moving Truck Tour
FOX has announced a 'moving truck' tour to promote SmackDown moving to the network on October 4.
WrestlingNews.co is reporting that the moving truck will be going to the following cities:
September 15 – Charlotte, NC
September 17 – Washington, DC
September 18 – Detroit, MI
September 19-20 – Chicago, IL
September 21 – Madison, WI
September 22-23 – Minneapolis, MN
September 25 – Kansas City, MO
September 27 – Dallas, TX
September 29 – Houston, TX
September 30 – Austin, TX
October 2 – Phoenix, AZ
October 3 – San Diego, CA
October 4 – Los Angeles, CA
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
6:04 PM
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WWE Draft Official Announcement, Celebrities From Fox And NBCUniversal To Announce Picks
As noted earlier, the 2019 WWE Draft has been confirmed to begin on the October 11 SmackDown episode, then wrap on the October 14 RAW episode.
WWE has announced that Superstars will be appearing on RAW and SmackDown along with personalities from Fox and NBCUniversal programming, who will announce the picks.
WWE issued the following press release to us this afternoon to confirm the Draft:
WWE® DRAFT SET FOR FOX AND USA NETWORK ON OCTOBER 11 AND 14
STAMFORD, Conn. – September 15, 2019 – The destiny of WWE's Superstars will be determined during a two-night draft taking place live on Friday Night SmackDown® on October 11 at 8 pm ET on the FOX broadcast network and Monday Night Raw® on October 14 at 8 pm ET on USA Network.
On both nights of the draft, Superstars from Raw and SmackDown will appear along with personalities from FOX and NBCUniversal programming who will announce select picks from each brand. The draft will determine the Superstars that compete for Raw and SmackDown, which feature distinct casts, unique storylines and dedicated writing teams.
Friday Night SmackDown on October 11 will emanate from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas while Monday Night Raw on October 14 will take place at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
Raw and SmackDown are the #1 and #2 longest-running weekly episodic television shows in U.S. primetime history. The programs have aired more original episodes than The Simpsons, Gunsmoke, Lassie and Monday Night Football.
Raw will continue airing on USA Network while SmackDown moves to FOX beginning Friday, October 4.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
5:05 PM
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August 8, 2019
Triple H On Why He Was Not Given WWE Executive Director Role, Vince McMahon "Outliving All Of Us"
Paul "Triple H" Levesque took part on a conference call today to hype NXT Takeover Toronto and WWE SummerSlam taking place this weekend.
During the call, the NXT Senior Producer was asked about the new roles of Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff as Executive Directors of RAW and SmackDown, respectively. In particular, Triple H was asked if he was under consideration for one of those roles.
"You have to understand the way it's laid out, the scope of what they're doing is very specific to those shows," Triple H explained. "While I'm still at the shows there are many weeks where due to my schedule and other commitments I can't be at every single RAW or every single SmackDown. The scope of the things that I do are way beyond live events, it also encompasses creative regarding shirts, billboards and the things you don't see they just sort of appear; as well as everything to do with talent.
"There are only so many hours in the day, even though the WWE and Vince [McMahon] are working hard at creating an eighth day, as well as extra hours added onto the 24 hours in a day, so we can get more accomplished.
"I'm thrilled it is those guys and think they'll knock it out of the park. I'm excited to work with both of them. Heyman, I have been working with for a while and Bischoff, it's been a while but this is the first time I've kind of worked with him in this manner. So far it's an exciting process so I'm really happy and already see the positives from it."
Triple H was also asked about if WWE has a plan for who will eventually take over WWE, the COO was quick to stress that succession plans constantly change and that those who think Vince McMahon is stepping away are mistaken - stating that the chairman of the board will probably "outlive all of us".
"In any company of this size and with everything that we do you have to have some succession plans and you have to have a plan for the next level of where you want to go. I think sometimes people get caught up in just the product that gets put out there thinking it's just about RAW or SmackDown and someone is the heir apparent to this, that or whatever. There is no heir apparent.
"There are succession plans to everything, those plans change on the regular because this company changes on the regular. There's a lot of factors involved regarding who goes where, how and what happens - it's a constantly evolving thing.
"But all of us, Vince, myself, Steph, everybody in this company is constantly looking at when things shift, who can take who's place and who does what. You're constantly looking for people who can step up and take things off your plate so you can advance to something different."
Source: Wrestling Inc.
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
9:02 PM
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Labels: Eric Bischoff, Paul Heyman, Raw, SmackDown, Triple H, Vince McMahon, WWE
July 25, 2019
Vince McMahon On WWE Staying PG But Getting Edgier, Why Eric Bischoff & Paul Heyman Were Hired
WWE Second Quarter Finances Revealed, Vince McMahon Comments
The WWE's 2019 Q2 Financial report has been released, with revenue dropping from the previous year.
According to the company's finances, the second quarter of 2019 produced $268.9 million in revenue, down 5% from the 2018 Q2 of $281.6 million.
The WWE Network now boasts 1.69 million paid subscribers, which is consistent with the company's guidelines.
The use of digital outlets like YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram increased drastically, with 324 million hours being consumed, up 22% from the previous quarter.
Digital video views also increased by 17% over the previous quarter to 9 billion.
In a conference call, WWE CEO Vince K McMahon said how this second quarter of the year had been focussed on making major changes to the company, such as recent deals with BT Sport in the UK and the upcoming Fox-SmackDown move.
He said: "We completed content distribution agreements in key international markets, prepared for the next phase of our WWE Network service, and achieved steady improvement in engagement metrics."
More details can be found from the company's official statement here.
source: wwe
~ Kayfabe by
Kaliqo~
at
8:07 PM
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Labels: Raw, SmackDown, Television Ratings, Vince McMahon, WWE, WWE Network