Welcome to an all new edition of Blogs Count Anywhere, the complementary pro wrestling blog to the ODPH Podcast and 607TWS. The wrestling world is buzzing for two different reasons on Friday, September 23rd. One is the rumored return of Bray Wyatt to Smackdown (and I do stress RUMORED). The other is part 2 of AEW Grand Slam with a 2hr AEW Rampage starting at 10pm EST on TNT. It has a lot of pressure to be as good as night 1 was, because the headlines coming out of AEW Dynamite that night has the IWC talking. Let’s take a quick look at the results from Night 1 of AEW Grand Slam, shall we?
Photo Credit: All Elite Wreslting
The biggest shock of Wednesday was the return to wrestling of SARAYA (fka Paige in the WWE). No one, and I mean NO ONE saw this coming. For some who might not know, Saraya was one of the ground breakers for the women’s division revolution in WWE when she was in NXT. You should remember the absolute classic match between her and Emma on the first hyped NXT special. On her debut to the WWE main roster, Saraya defeated AJ Lee to win the Divas Championship night after Wrestlemania. First night as champion makes aloud and deserved statement. From when you saw her in the ring, there is no question of how great Saraya was. Her story was chronicled in the 2019 movie “Fighting With My Family”
Unfortunately, due to a neck injury, she was forced to step down from in ring competition. Saraya made a successful transition to Smackdown GM and WWE broadcasting work, along with becoming quite successful on Twitch streaming. It was announced that Saraya was parting ways with WWE this past July. Seeing her emerge on AEW has the wrestling world definitely talking.
If she is 100% healthy and can wrestle, this is a HUGE win for AEW. Saraya is a bonifide superstar. She can elevate the division and just wait for the matches vs. Serena Deeb and Britt Baker. However, before getting hopes up, we don’t know the status of her neck and what Saraya we will see. Anytime dealing with an injury like she had raises cause for concern. I really want to see her succeed and hoping this will be a comeback ala Edge because she’s an amazing talent and deserves the chance to write her own ending to her wrestling career. Fingers crossed Saraya and fans get to see that chapter made.
Photo Credit: All Elite Wreslting
Another big moment was Chris Jericho winning the Ring Of Honor world title. This is his 8th world championship. The question now is where do we go from here? Taking the belt from Claudio Castangoli so soon after he debuted in AEW/ROH might raise some eyebrows. IMO, I see why this went down. IF (and stressing IF) ROH is getting some TV time, Jericho has star power to his name and will bring in viewers more than Claudio at this stage. Plus, this is another notch on the “G.O.A.T.” Championship talk surrounding “The Wizard".” Long term, I don’t see him holding it past an inevitable match with Daniel Garcia and their stroyline’s conclusion. Either way, fans will be watching the next moves regardless.
Photo Credit: All Elite Wreslting
Not to be outdone, Jon Moxley defeated Bryan Danielson to become AEW champion for a record 3rd time. With all the drama surrounding CM Punk, phasing his name out of the record books and adding one of he most passionate AEW wrestlers in its place spoke volumes. The only question now is: How soon before MJF cashes in and will this happen before he faces Nick Gage in GCW in the title vs. career match October 8th? those are the two most important questions coming from the epic main event.
Photo Credit: All Elite Wreslting
Last but certainly not least, The Acclaimed became AEW world tag team champions defeating Swerve Strickland and Keith Lee. The fan movement has been strong for Caster and Bowens and maybe this move was too telegraphed after AEW All Out’s fallout, but take nothing away from the team. They cashed in at the biggest points in their careers. The “Scissor Me” movement is going strong. The only thing that looks to derail their run is the long awaited title shot for FTR. Guessing that could main event AEW Full Gear.
Photo Credit: Impact Wreslting
Photo Credit: Glory Pro Wreslting
There is some great indie action to close the weekend out on. Impact Wrestling has “Victory Road” taking place on September 23rd. The main event: “Barbed Wire Massacre” with Moose vs. Steve Maclin vs. Sami Callihan (Live on Fite TV)! You don’t want to miss that!
On September 25th, Glory Pro Wrestling returns to the Pageant in St. Louis for a star-studded show. Make sure you’re following their YouTube page if you can’t make it live to the event. They always have a great card & banking on this to be one fans will be talking about!
That’s it for this week, but hit me up on Twitter and let me know what pro-wrestling you’re checking out and make sure to listen to the latest ODPH and 607TWS for more wrestling content. Thanks for reading!