SI.com’s Week in Wrestling is published every week and provides beneath-the-surface coverage of the business of pro wrestling.
Possibilities abound after ‘Night of Champions’
Roman Reigns will hit the 1,000-day mark as world champion at Night of Champions, which will take place in Saudi Arabia on May 27. But he will not defend his undisputed championship on the show, instead teaming with Solo Sikoa to challenge Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the undisputed WWE tag-team championship.
And that is absolutely the right call.
WWE will crown its new world heavyweight champion at Night of Champions in a tournament final bout pitting Seth Rollins against AJ Styles. That is expected to be the main event, which is a great way to close the show. The belt is already viewed as a secondary belt to Reigns’s championship, but it will add purpose and meaning to Raw, especially with a champion like Styles or—more likely—Rollins. Had a Reigns title match gone on last at Night of Champions, it would have further diminished the value of the belt for the new champion before it was even defended.
Reigns’s approaching the 1,000-day mark as champion is a remarkable achievement. Very rarely can a performer stay relevant in the top spot for so long, especially in the modern era. Only Pedro Morales, Bruno Sammartino, Bob Backlund and Hulk Hogan have had longer title reigns. Reigns should pass Morales (1,027 days) before the start of summer, as well as exceed Sammartino’s second title reign (1,237) in the winter. Passing Backlund (1,470) and Hogan (1,474) is not out of the realm of possibility, though it will be nearly impossible to have a run long enough to surpass Sammartino’s first reign (2,803 days).
The move to the tag team ranks also creates a different wrinkle for Reigns. Considering the way that Sikoa has been protected, there is every reason to believe that Reigns will leave Saudi Arabia with another piece of gold. That could also build to a tag title match against The Usos, which would be a fascinating pay-per-view main event.
Reigns’s winning the tag titles would open the possibility of new challengers from both Raw and SmackDown. It is also worth considering whether it could signal the return of Dustin Rhodes to WWE. There would be no better partner for Cody Rhodes as he pursues Reigns’s championship than his own blood, and Dustin’s contract with AEW expires at the end of July. Dustin Rhodes was just part of the WWE/A&E Biography: WWE Legends special on Dusty Rhodes, and, despite having all sorts of mileage at the age of 54 amid a career that has spanned four decades, he is still superb in the ring. While he has discussed the possibility of retirement, perhaps a chance to reunite with Cody would change his mind. A title match pitting Reigns against Dustin Rhodes would be worth watching, as would tag-team bouts between the Rhodes brothers and The Usos.
The story line surrounding The Bloodline remains the most compelling and captivating in the industry. Its next step should be fascinating.
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The (online) week in wrestling
- Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed that AEW will have a new show—Collision—airing Saturday nights from 8 to 10 p.m. ET beginning June 17.
As announced at the Warner Bros. Discovery 2023 Upfront presentation today, TNT will launch a second night of professional wrestling with a new 2-hour series, #AEWCollision, starting on Saturday, June 17th LIVE at 8pm ET/7pm CT on @tntdrama!
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) May 17, 2023
To read the full press release:… pic.twitter.com/roOipqNDD6
- Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley delivered a fantastic cage match last Wednesday, including the great spot where Omega V-triggered Moxley through the cage (“They don’t make cages like they used to,” Moxley told Sports Illustrated). It ended with Don Callis’s turning on Omega, which could lead to a new partnership between Callis and Will Ospreay, who will very likely wrestle Omega at Forbidden Door (first he needs to defeat Hiroshi Tanahashi on Sunday at New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Resurgence show in Long Beach, Calif., then he’d wrestle Lance Archer at Dominion on June 4 with the winner receiving the title shot at Forbidden Door).
- When logic is applied to pro wrestling, it is so much more enjoyable for the viewer. Paul Heyman’s possessing a visitor’s pass to Raw—when he is part of SmackDown—is a simple but effective piece of storytelling.
🤔🤔🤔@HeymanHustle #WWERaw pic.twitter.com/OQj0K7dPyB
— WWE (@WWE) May 16, 2023
- Becky Lynch facing Trish Stratus at Night of Champions feels rushed. But it looks like it will lead to Lynch’s next feud against Rhea Ripley, which should be outstanding. WWE missed an opportunity to have Lynch face off against Ronda Rousey (who returned on Raw) during her brief tag-team run, though.
- A two-part interview with Seth Rollins aired on Raw, with even more running next week. If a similar interview does not run on SmackDown for AJ Styles, it all but guarantees Rollins will win their title match at Night of Champions.
- Demolition is still in a league of its own as one of the greatest WWE tag teams of all time. Barry Darsow, who was Smash, made a salient point on The Wrestling Perspective Podcast. Darsow detailed that what separated Demolition from so many teams—particularly the Road Warriors—was their ability to work a variety of matches with different styles and opponents. And it is true. Demolition could shine (and accentuate their opponents) with Strike Force, the Hart Foundation, the Rockers, the Brain Busters, the Powers of Pain and the Colossal Connection. I disagree with him that the Road Warriors should have been heels upon entering WWE (besides, Demolition had already turned full heel by summer of 1990), but it was fun to hear him reminisce about a golden era in tag-team wrestling.
- John Cena—who also appeared on Busted Open Radio—had a great line on the Today show Monday about his connection with his wife, saying, “She’s the one that can actually see me.”
We’re catching up with WWE superstar and actor @JohnCena!
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) May 15, 2023
He talks about how TODAY has been “instrumental” in his career, his role in the latest installment in #FASTX and reveals how he landed his #BarbieMovie role after a conversation with Margot Robbie. pic.twitter.com/Qk4IzpvgFm
New work visas will bring even more excitement to the indies
Effective immediately, the talent pool for indie wrestling has expanded.
Gabe Ramirez, who owns and operates California-based Pro Wrestling Revolution, has helped nearly three dozen wrestlers acquire their work visas. That allows the performers, who are primarily from Japan, to wrestle in the United States.
Ramirez has relationships with Japanese promotions DragonGate Pro Wrestling, Freedoms and Marvelous, which accounts for the majority of the talent. Those included on the work visa list include Aja Kong and Masato Tanaka, who should both be heavily booked on shows throughout the U.S., potentially even on an AEW broadcast, as well as Tajiri, Unagi Sayaka and Chigusa Nagayo.
Chigusa was part of last weekend’s Queen of Indies show, where emerging talent Masha Slamovich crowned herself queen of the indies. Now the opportunity exists for Ramirez to highlight even more of these stars.
“I look forward to working with all these talents on my shows,” says Ramirez. “And I am sure I'll be working with other promotions to showcase these talent on their shows, as well.”
Tweet of the Week
Howdy! #Smackdown pic.twitter.com/0OTOqgFRDg
— Adam (Edge) Copeland (@EdgeRatedR) May 11, 2023
This video from Edge was spectacular, and it is exactly the type of content that should have aired on SmackDown.
Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.
