This Week In Wrestling
It was a really tough week in the wrestling world. First, sexual assault allegations were made against numerous superstars in almost every wrestling organization in the world. Due to not having all the facts, I will not go into more detail here as it would mostly be speculation. That’s not to say any of it is untrue. If you want more information on these events, it is not hard to find.
The other thing to rock the wrestling industry was COVID-19. With the number of positive tests sky rocketing in Florida, the state has become the new epicenter for the virus in the US. So it was only a matter of time WWE and AEW were affected as they film their shows in Florida. This week, dozens of superstars tested positive for the coronavirus. The official numbers have not been made available but there’s speculation the number of positive tests in the WWE is over 30. WWE’s lackadaisical approach towards COVID-19 testing is a dark shadow for the company and will be for years to come.
WWE Raw – Monday June 22, 2020
Asuka FINALLY beat Charlotte in a one on one match on Raw this past Monday. This was the right move here as Asuka’s title reign is fairly new and Charlotte does not lose any momentum in the loss. Being the top female wrestler in the company and wrestling in general has that effect. Charlotte looks to be entering a feud with Nia Jax after Jax attacked Charlotte backstage before her match with Asuka. The attack was used to set up Asuka’s big win.
While Charlotte will be moving on to Jax, Asuka will be heading into a program with Sasha Banks. Banks challenged the Raw Women’s Champion to a match at Backlash which Asuka accepted. Banks and her partner, Smackdown Women’s Champion Bayley, are trying to hold all the women’s titles on Raw and Smackdown. They are currently the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. This will interesting feud to pay attention to.
Another top item from Raw is that WWE Champion, Drew McIntyre, will be defending the title against newly acquired Dolph Ziggler. Also, Randy Orton looks to now be headed into a program with The Big Show. Speaking of new programs, Raw Tag Team Champions, The Street Profits, look to be moving into a feud with Andrade and Angel Garza. Andrade & Garza attacked the Profits after their match against the War Raiders. Lastly, Bobby Lashley now has his sights on the United States Championship. Lashley unsuccessfully challenged for the WWE Championship a couple of weeks ago at Backlash and Raw.
All Elite Wrestling Dynamite – Wednesday June 24, 2020
AEW Dynamite had to be changed last minute this week due to the coronavirus. QT Marshall and Jon Moxley were exposed to the virus so they were pulled from the show and their matches were replaced. The best match of the show was Luchasaurus against Wardlow. It was a battle of two of the biggest men in AEW and it did not disappoint. The ending of the match also set up a match between Jurassic Express and MJF & Wardlow at Fyter Fest.
Dynamite was the go home show for Fyter Fest. The two night wrestling event boasts a strong card for both nights. But with COVID-19 spreading throughout Florida, it would tough to assume all of these matches will take place as scheduled. As for the other stars of AEW, Brian Cage, Matt Hardy, and Hikaru Shida were all successful in their respective singles matches on Dynamite. Brodie Lee & Colt Cabana won their tag team match as did FTR.
WWE Smackdown – Friday June 26, 2020
As for the wrestling show that was affected the most by COVID-19, it was Smackdown. Smackdown had advertised AJ Styles versus Drew Gulak for the Intercontinental Championship as well as other segments that did not happen due to the virus outbreak backstage. So the show was turned into a tribute program for the recently “retired” Undertaker. They replayed his famous Boneyard Match against Styles from this year’s Wrestlemania. There were also testimonials from numerous WWE stars, past and present, showing their admiration for “The Deadman.”
One segment that did take place to further a main Smackdown storyline was Braun Strowman challenging Bray Wyatt to a match at Extreme Rules. Strowman didn’t challenge Wyatt to just any match either. He wants the match to take place at the infamous Wyatt’s swamp. Now that this match is official, Extreme Rules is now named “Extreme Rules: The Horror Show.” That means this match will be shot in the cinematic style WWE has been using lately during the pandemic and that the match will have horror elements to it. The match however is not for the Universal Championship.