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Top 10 Wrestling Stories of the Week 9/26: Wyatt Attacks Strowman, Pyro Returning to WWE, More

By Matthew Fowler • Published 26th September 2019
TJR Wrestling

Are you a wrestling fan, but find it difficult to keep up with all the wrestling shows and news that happen every single week? Do you find the need to eat, sleep, and possibly pay attention to your loved ones, taking away from all the hours you need to dedicate to wrestling these days? Worry no more my friends, I am back with another addition of the “Top 10 Wrestling Stories of the Week” to catch you up.

10. All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite to be rated TV-14

AEW has decided that the best way to differentiate themselves from WWE, is cater themselves to a more mature audience with a TV-14 rating. WWE has already seemingly began to counter AEW, with more adult oriented segments, such as the Maria Kanellis storyline. Are we about to enter a situation similar to the Monday Night Wars, with both companies competing against each other to see who can be more shocking and controversial? I’m sure that Vince Russo is sitting by his phone, with a pole in hand, hoping so. (Wrestlinginc)

9. Pyro to Return to Both RAW and Smackdown

After having both the USA Network and Fox back up the Brink’s trucks for their programming, WWE’s money pinching days are behind them. With the “season premiere” of RAW next week and the debut of Smackdown on FOX eight days away, WWE is doing everything they can to get eyes on their programming. How can a show that runs every single week have a “season premiere”? This is the type of sensible question WWE is hoping people will stop asking and instead just say, “O000h fireworks.” (Rajah)

8. Carmella Wins the 24/7 Title

After winning and losing the title 19 times, including three times over the weekend, R-Truth was pinned for the 24/7 Title, by his best friend Carmella on RAW. After losing, Truth actually celebrated with Carmella, helping her escape from the pursuing woman’s roster. Now, instead of the lower card men’s roster chasing after a meaningless title, it will be the lower card women’s roster. Who says the WWE writers aren’t coming up with fresh ideas? (TJRWrestling)

7. Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair to Appear on Miz TV

The two biggest wrestling stars of the 80’s are returning next week for the “season premiere” of RAW. Why is WWE recalling two wrestlers who’s prime was thirty years ago? Hopefully it is just for a bump in the ratings, and not to be the new general managers of RAW and Smackdown for the upcoming draft. Or, heaven forbid, to have some sort of match at the next Saudi Arabia show. Is it a good sign for WWE that they need to depend on wrestlers with AARP cards to get eyes on their product? Oh look, fireworks! (TJRWrestling)

6. Rey Mysterio to Challenge Seth Rollins for the Universal Title on “Season Premiere” of RAW

After being compared to “Nacho Libre” on Fox TV Sunday (Newsweek), Rey Mysterio won a fatal 5-way to become the number one contender on RAW. The chances of Mysterio walking out of RAW next week as the new Universal Champion; not very high. The odds he’s slated to be the next legend to fall victim to “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt; that is the more likely Mysterio scenerio. Hopefully, if he hits the 619, he won’t be compared to the “Kung Fu Panda.” (TJRWrestling)

5. Impact Wrestling to Debut on Tuesday Nights on AXS TV Starting October 1st

I believe at this point if a nuclear apocalypse happened, Twinkies and Impact Wrestling would be the only things that survived. The fact that Impact will be broadcasting on their sixth different TV station in fourteen years, reiterates their resiliency. Impact Wrestling is once again going to have an uphill battle trying to find viewers in an already oversaturated wrestling market. If any wrestling federation can find a way to survive through the mainstream competition, it’s Impact. (TJRWrestling)

4. NXT will Feature Three Title Matches on the First Night of the Wednesday Night Wars

After having over 1.2 million viewers for their first show on USA, NXT is going “All Out” to make sure they win the ratings war next Wednesday night. The fan favorite Candice LeRae is finally getting a shot at the NXT Women’s Title held by Shayna Baszler, plus the Street Profits are going for the tag titles against the Undisputed Era, would already make this a stacked show. When you then add Matt Riddle going against Adam Cole for the NXT Title, it is clear that NXT is trying to “Takeover” Wednesday nights. The pressure is now on the entire AEW roster to show they can compete with this loaded card. No matter what company ends up popping a “little bit of the bubbly” after the ratings come out Thursday, we as fans are the true winners for getting to watch all of this amazing wrestling. (Rajah)

3. Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan to Face Harper and Rowan at Hell in the Cell

The “Yes!” movement seems to have returned in full force on Smackdown this week. Will this be a permanent face turn for Bryan? Or is the whole thing a set up, and Bryan the mastermind behind the attacks on Roman Reigns from the start? Anytime we, as fans, aren’t sure which way a storyline goes, it’s a good thing. As long as Bryan doesn’t end up carrying a large hammer at the end of this, I think everything will be coming up Milhouse for us.(TJRWrestling)

2. Kevin Owens and Shane McMahon to Compete in a Ladder Match

Kevin Owens decided on Smackdown this week to drop his 25 million dollar lawsuit, instead agreeing to compete in a ladder match with Shane McMahon on Smackdown on October 4. Whoever loses this ladder match will be gone from the WWE forever, or at least till the writers can figure out how to bring them back. Imagine how much quicker and more efficient our court system would be if all legal disputes could be decided with a gimmick wrestling match? A couple is having a custody battle? Someone grab a ladder and suspend that kid from the ceiling! Somewhere Vince Russo is drooling over that idea. (TJRWrestling)

1. “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt takes over RAW

From hacking the opening graphics at the beginning of RAW, to the end of the show when he attacked Braun Strowman, Wyatt has been the main focus of RAW this week. No wrestler has been built better and is more over right now than Wyatt. Similar to the work that Matt Hardy did in Impact a few years ago, Wyatt has taken a strange, unconventional character, and has turned it into must-watch TV. At this point, the only finish that fans will accept at Hell in The Cell is Wyatt leaving with the title. Hopefully WWE won’t “delete” all the positive momentum that they have created, and finally pull the trigger on Wyatt. (TJRWrestling)

That concludes my “Top Ten Wrestling Stories of the Week.” Come back next week, as I will have full coverage of Wednesday Night Wars’ debut, the “season premiere” of RAW, and much more. Check me out on Twitter @BackseatBookers and listen to my podcast, The BackseatBookers. (Full disclosure, my podcast does come with an explicit content warning, but just as many laughs)