Welcome to the September 1st Inside The Ropes Live blog, bringing you the latest news from WWE, AEW, NJPW, IMPACT Wrestling and more.
Today’s biggest stories:
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In between all the controversy surrounding CM Punk and his AEW future, ‘The Second City Saint’ has been advertised for an upcoming episode of AEW Collision.
AEW is going to Wichita, Kansas, debut in late October and despite being currently suspended by the company and reports emerging that he acted physically aggressive towards Tony Khan, CM Punk is still advertised for the show.
You can check out the initial post below!
Join Corey Graves as he sits down with Seth Rollins on the latest episode of After The Bell premiering live now!
Check it out below!
Paul Wight, FKA The Big Show, has started a war online with the people of Scotland after calling iconic Scottish drink Irn-Bru “terrible.”
Check it out!
Fans who are still expecting to see CM Punk in Chicago for the upcoming pay-per-view will likely be disappointed.
As reported by Haus of Wrestling, Punk and Khan have not spoken to each other directly since All In on August 27th, with information being relayed having to go through legal teams and other third parties. Therefore, the chances of hearing “Cult of Personality” at All Out remain very low. The report does state that there is a possibility that everything could be resolved by the time that the show is due to air, but the chances are incredibly slim.
Orange Cassidy talks exclusively to Inside The Ropes at the AEW All In presser about his thoughts on Jim Cornette. Prior to the All In event at Wembley, Kenny McIntosh asked Cassidy about Cornette’s controversial views on his work!
Check it out below!
Ahead of this Saturday’s Payback PLE let’s take a look at everything currently announced for the show.
As of Friday September 1st at 3:45pm, the following matches have been announced for Payback 2023:
John Cena’s extended return to the WWE ahead of the companies Superstar Spectacle event in India is set to feature an appearance at this Sunday’s Payback PLE.
According to a new report from Wrestle Votes, Cena will be heading to Payback.
It had already been announced that the 16-time World Champion would be back on the blue brand for seven weeks from September 1st, as well as wrestling at Superstar Spectacle.
You can read the full details of this report, here.
Are you excited to see John Cena back in WWE? Let us know by hitting the thumbs below!
It’s been reported that AR Fox was removed from Mogul Embassy as a punishment.
Back in July, Fox joined forces with Swerve Strickland and the Mogul Embassy Affiliates. From here, Fox fought side by side with Strickland against Sting and Darby Allin. The rivalry set up a Tag Team Coffin Match between the four men at All In.
Since then it’s been revealed that Fox was pulled from the match because he’s unable to enter the UK. However, the star had led AEW to believe that he could, something that reportedly hasn’t gone down well.
Writing in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer noted that Fox being kicked out of the Mogul Embassy was a punishment for causing the match to be changed.
Austin Gunn may be best known for scissoring other men live on AEW on a weekly basis but did you know the second generation star has also tried his hand as a rap star?
Check out this 2021 track from Gunn and SaifLove titled NEED MORE.
Does Gunn have a future in hip hop? Let us know by hitting the thumbs below!
Although AEW’s locker room appears to be in tatters following All In, one man has been heralded as a “true leader” by the AEW locker room – none other than the ROH World TV Champion, Samoa Joe.
Writing in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer would note the reception to Samoa Joe behind the scenes in AEW after The Samoan Submission Machine was revealed to have broken up the fight between CM Punk & Jack Perry backstage at All In.
Meltzer writes:
“Another person said that many of the wrestlers think both Perry and Punk were at fault, and when the talent found out, they got more motivated to put on great matches.
“It kind of brought everyone together and Samoa Joe was a real leader” was one comment made.”
AEW All In is on target to become the second most purchased pay-per-view in company history.
The event is also on course to be a pay-per-view success with Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter noting that estimates sit between 168,000 to 184,000 buys. This would be an increase of between 20 and 30 percent on recent events, and the biggest number since Double or Nothing 2022.
You can read a full breakdown of these numbers, here.
What did you make of AEW All In? Let us know by hitting the thumbs below!
Tonight the WWE Universe will be treated to the return of John Cena to Friday Night SmackDown.
Taking to social media ahead of the event, Cena would note how he will be treasuring every moment of this run as he continues to wind down his WWE career.
Writing on Twitter, Cena would state:
“Less than 12 hours until #Smackdown! I cherish every minute, now more than ever, I am allowed to spend with at “home” with the @WWE family. C U in Hershey or U can C Me on @WWEonFOX tonight!!
We will have a SmackDown preview for you later today so stay tuned for that!
Writing in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer has revealed that, despite reports to the contrary, Ronda Rousey currently has zero interest in returning to the WWE or the UFC.
Meltzer would note that Rousey’s current sole focus is on spending time with and expanding her family and that this was one of the primary drivers behind Rousey’s departure from the WWE in the first place.
“At that point rumors about her fighting came out, but we were told she’s wanting a larger family and there are no plans for her to either fight or do pro wrestling in the foreseeable future.
The belief is that she has no interest in fighting ever again.”
Meltzer would dismiss reports that Rousey is set for or considering a UFC return, something that UFC Chairman Dana White also called out earlier this week.
Does Ronda Rousey belong in the WWE Hall of Fame? Let us know by hitting the thumbs below!
WWE Unified Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn sat down together for the latest episode of WWE’s “Playback” YouTube series.
On the episode Owens and Zayn sit down to rewatch their classic singles match from WWE’s 2016 Payback PPV.
It’s a fantastic, insightful and hilarious was so check it out in full below!
According to a new report from Dave Meltzer in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Bray Wyatt was set to debut in AEW prior to his WWE return with a date even agreed for the huge moment.
Meltzer would note that prior to Wyatt’s WWE return he looked set to make the jump to All Elite Wrestling with a debut date/location agreed, however, money related issues caused the deal to fall through before the former WWE Champion eventually ended up returning home to the WWE.
“He never wrestled for the next year even with great demand for him from other companies.
At one point TNT was told of a date for him to debut in AEW, but it fell through, believed to be money related. Impact was interested as was AAA and Japanese groups.
He did nothing and then pushed the idea of him returning using the name Windham6. He pushed the name in social media but before ever using it, he went back to the old character, signifying a return to WWE upcoming.”
Would you have liked to see Bray Wyatt in AEW? Let us know by hitting the thumbs below!
International wrestling legend Keiji Muto is flying out to Chicago ahead of this weekend’s AEW All Out PPV.
Taking to Twitter Keiji Muto, known best as the legendary Great Muta, would reveal that he is heading to America whilst sharing a photo of himself at the departure gate of a flight from Japan to Chicago.
ちょっくらアメリカに行ってきます。 pic.twitter.com/nGUQrBLqWM
— 武藤 敬司 (@muto_keiji) September 1, 2023
The timing of this post is interesting as, as speculated by Dave Meltzer in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, this is just days before AEW is set to present AEW Collision and AEW All Out from Chicago.
“Not sure if this is AEW related but Keiji Muto is flying to Chicago for this week.”
Muto has previously appeared in AEW on two occasions, the first in 2019 as a judge at AEW Full Gear and the second saving legendary rival Sting from an attack at the hands of the House of Black in 2022 at Grand Slam.
With Ricky Starks currently without an opponent for AEW All Out, following CM Punk’s suspension, and teasing a match against WWE Hall of Famer Ricky Steamboat – could we see Steamboat’s former rival make an appearance this Saturday on AEW Collision?
Prior to AEW All In it was revealed that Jack Perry and CM Punk had got into a heated confrontation backstage at a recent taping of AEW Collision after the former Jungle Boy planned on using real glass in order to “get out” of working a later AEW date.
A new report has clarified certain claims made during the heated confrontation as well as revealing what Jack Perry’s initial plans actually were.
Writing in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer would reveal that Jack Perry had planned to have himself taken out via the glass windshield of a car in order to write himself off TV for a week whilst he went on a pre-approved holiday.
The report goes on to note that Punk objected to the spot and although those backstage agree as a veteran he should be acting on spots such as this, many disagreed with how Punk handled the situation suggesting he should have gone to Tony Khan or AEW’s production team instead of acting on it himself.
Additionally, the report clarifies that Jack Perry’s holiday was already agreed and approved by Tony Khan and AEW management and therefore he was not using the spot to try ensure he missed the following weeks shows despite “being rejected” the holiday request – as had been initially claimed by Punk.
Although the spot ended up being scrapped from AEW Collision, Jack Perry & Hook would go on to use the glass windshield during their match at AEW All In.
You can read the full breakdown of this report and original plans, here.
AEW All In has been and gone and amidst all the incredible wrestling and record setting attendances it is CM Punk’s backstage antics that once again has stolen headlines.
The now aptly labelled Brawl In show featured a heated confrontation between Jack Perry and CM Punk following the former Jungle Boy’s controversial comments on air during All In.
It was reported that Punk didn’t take kindly to these comments and attempted to “choke” Perry following a heated confrontation.
Breaking down the reports surrounding the confrontation in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer would reveal that CM Punk allegedly “lunged” towards Tony Khan and had also been “screaming” and “swearing” at his boss whilst threatening to quit.
Writing in this morning’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Meltzer would reveal:
“Another version, and this would be a neutral source who was not a wrestler but was there and witnessed it and his version was that right after Perry came to the back, Punk went nose-to-nose with him aggressively and asked him if he had a problem.
That person said Perry said he was just looking to get heat as a heel. Punk shoved him hard, Perry got in his face and in that version Punk sucker punched him and went for a choke.
People immediately broke it up and Khan was yelling at Punk to let him go.
That person said that once they were separated, Punk lunged in Khan’s direction but a number of people got in his way while Punk was yelling “I Quit.” Monitors were knocked down during all this. Joe was very upset and went to calm Punk down.”
Meltzer would also write:
“Security took Punk into his dressing room. Punk was then screaming at Khan and swearing at him.”
Do you think CM Punk is done in AEW? Let us know by hitting the thumbs below!
Good Afternoon!
Hope everyone is doing well and has had an awesome week so far!
I will be with you this afternoon from 12:00 pm to 6 pm BST (8 am – 1 pm EST) with all the latest news and rumours from AEW, WWE and NJPW.
This afternoon we will be kicking things off with some of today’s biggest stories, including:
