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The Top Ten Wrestling Stories of the Week 5/12: WWE Title Tournaments, Huge Returns, More

By Matthew Fowler • Published 12th May 2023
Seth Rollins Cody Rhodes WWE World Title

Welcome back, TJR readers! Did you spend all day Friday showing your Puerto Rican pride, and missed WWE Smackdown? Perhaps you spent all day Monday fighting with hotel security, and missed Raw.

Worry not for I have returned with another edition of the Top Ten Wrestling Stories of the Week.

10. Chris Jericho Claims he was Assaulted “Physically and Mentally” by Hotel Security

It is safe to say that Chris Jericho will not be returning to Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. This week on Twitter, Jericho claimed that he was “Physically and Mentally” assaulted by hotel security while trying to get his bags from the concierge. Jericho claimed that he was ignored for 30mins, and when he “made some noise” was assaulted and laughed at. Jericho then demanded restitution from Mandalay Bay immediately. (TJRWrestling)

Chris Jericho

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9. NXT Women’s Championship Tournament Begins

The tournament to crown a new NXT Women’s Champion began this week. This past Tuesday on NXT, Tiffany Stratton defeated Gigi Dolin while Valkyria took out Kiana James in the first round of the tournament. Stratton and Valkyria will now face off in the semifinals of the tournament to see who goes on to the finals at NXT Battleground on May 28th. This coming Tuesday on NXT it will be Cora Jade facing Fallon Henley while Roxanne Perez battles Jacy Jayne in the other first round matches. The title was vacated last week due to former champion Indi Hartwell vacated the title after being drafted to the main roster. This of course was much different than when Mandy Rose was forced to drop the title, for making John Canton the happiest man in the world. (TJRWrestling)

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8. Becky Lynch Returns on Raw

A month after shockingly getting attacked by her tag partner Trish Stratus, Becky Lynch returned to Raw this past Monday. Lynch came out and attacked Stratus, who was giving a promo, hitting her with a punch and a suplex before Stratus escaped. Lynch then attempted to cut a promo on Stratus but was mistakenly cut off by the production truck. Lynch later posted a video of herself confronting the production guy, before laying him out. (TJRWrestling)

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7. Miro Returns to AEW

Tony Khan finally remembered that Miro is on his roster this week. This past Wednesday on Dynamite, Miro was shown walking backstage. AEW backstage interviewer Renee Paquette attempted to ask Miro if he was back in AEW, but Miro just ignored her before walking into Tony Khan’s office. Miro has not been seen since last September at AEW All Out, when he teamed with Darby Allin and Sting to defeat the House of Black. (TJRWrestling)

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6. Thunder Rosa Returns to AEW

Miro was not the only wrestler to return to AEW this week. This past Wednesday on Dynamite, Thunder Rosa was also seen walking backstage. Rosa walked by AEW backstage interviewer Renee Paquette, telling her “It seems tonight it’s a good night to talk to Papi Khan.” Rosa then also went into Khan’s office. Rosa has not competed in a match for AEW since last August, and had to vacate the AEW Women’s Championship due to injury last November. Rosa also reportedly had issues with a lot of the women’s roster and recently had a meeting to mend fences with much of the women’s locker room. (TJRWrestling)

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5. Don Callis Turns on Kenny Omega

This past Wednesday on Dynamite, Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley faced off in a Steel Cage Match. As to be expected, the match ended up being a bloody brutal battle with barbed wire and broken glass both being utilized. The finish of the match saw Moxley attempt to use a screwdriver on Omega, but Omega’s longtime friend and manager Don Callis was able to take the screwdriver from Moxley before he could use it. Omega then hit Moxley with the One-Winged Angel, and appeared to be on his way to the win. Shockingly however, Callis then stabbed Omega in the head with the screwdriver, allowing Moxley to pick up the win. (TJRWrestling)

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4. Tony Khan Set to Make a Huge Announcement on AEW Dynamite

Death, Taxes, Jon Moxley bleeding and Tony Khan making huge announcements are the only sure things in life. This past Wednesday on Dynamite, Tony Khan appeared and stated that he was going to give another huge announcement this coming Wednesday on Dynamite. Khan also said it was “more clear than ever that AEW can produce even more content”, spiking speculation that the announcement will be about the new Saturday show AEW Collision. It was also rumored this week that AEW and Warners Bros Discovery are close to closing a long term big money exclusive deal. (TJRWrestling)

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3. Brock Lesnar and Cody Rhodes to Have Rematch at WWE Night of Champions

This past Saturday at WWE Backlash, Cody Rhodes faced Brock Lesnar in the main event of the evening. The finish of the match saw Rhodes get a quick pin on a very bloody Lesnar, after countering Lesnar’s Kimora lock. This past Monday on Raw, Lesnar got revenge on Rhodes by attacking him during Rhodes’s championship qualifying match. Lesnar then challenged Rhodes to a fight at Night of Champions, which Rhodes later accepted. We will have to see if the rematch will be as bloody as Rhodes and Lesnar’s first bout. (TJRWrestling)

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2. Carlito and Savio Vega Appear at WWE Backlash

Backlash ended up being pretty “Cool”. This past Saturday at WWE Backlash, Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny faced off against Damien Priest in a San Juan Street Fight. During the match, Judgement Day members Finn Balor and Dominik Mysterio attempted to interfere on the behalf of Priest. Rey Mysterio then attempted to help out Bunny, but was overwhelmed by Judgement Day. Suddenly, fellow Puerto Rican and former WWE superstar Carlito appeared, and assisted Bunny. They were soon joined by Puerto Rican legend Savio Vega and the rest of the LWO, who all fought off Judgement Day. As of now, Carlito’s appearance seems to be a one off, but I am sure he would love to get another bite of the apple in the WWE. (TJRWrestling)

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1. WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament Begins

In a little over two weeks, a new WWE World Heavyweight Champion will be crowned. This past Monday on Raw, two triple threat matches were held. In the first match of the evening, Seth “Freakin” Rollins defeated Shinsuke Nakamura and Damian Priest. The second triple threat matches then saw Finn Balor defeat The Miz and Cody Rhodes. Rollins then defeated Balor in the main event of the evening, to go on to the finals tournament at WWE Night of Champions on May 27th. Rollins’s opponent at Night of Champions will be decided tonight on Smackdown. Two more triple threat matches will be held, with the winners facing each other to see who goes on to face Rollins. AJ Styles, Edge and Rey Mysterio will face off on the first match, while Sheamus, Bobby Lashley and Austin Theory face off in the second. It seems weird that Smackdown wrestlers are competing for a Raw-exclusive championship, but I am sure that WWE will stick to the brand split exclusively after this. (TJRWrestling)

That concludes another edition of The Top Ten Wrestling Stories of the Week. Although I often joke, I have recently started refereeing with GroundZero, Immortal Championship Wrestling and training at the Institute of Professional Wrestling, and now respect more than ever what wrestlers do every week. If you like what I do, despite my jokes being almost as bad as showing up at your old place of work, then follow me on Twitter @Fowlerwrestlin1 and listen to my Podcast The Smark and the Noob. Thank you to all of those who read this every week.