00:00Fear over WWE releases DOS, Money in the Bank cash-in fails
00:05An ex-WWE star returning for one last John Cena match
00:09And more.
00:10I'm Oli Davis, acknowledging math greater than pipe bomb, and this is the WrestleTalk
00:19News.
00:27After almost letting everyone's contract expire, WWE have gone into signing and re-signing
00:32Overdrive in the last few months.
00:33Chad Gable, Finn Balor, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre and Damien Priest all re-signed with
00:38the promotion, and Stephanie Vecchia and Julia have been added to the roster.
00:42But as Dijak discovered, it can sometimes be one in, one out.
00:47Also released this year was WWE's once next biggest thing, the Olympic gold medalist Gabe
00:51Steveson.
00:52It wasn't that shocking, as he never progressed to the extent he needed to be in the ring.
00:56What did surprise people both inside and outside the company, however, was WWE's release
01:02of Gable's real-life brother Bobby Steveson, who wrestled under the name Damon Kemp, which
01:07Kemp revealed himself on X on the 8th July.
01:11As of today, I am no longer under contract with WWE, forever grateful for the people
01:16I met and the experiences I've had.
01:19Fightful reported Kemp's contract simply wasn't renewed, just like how Donovan Dijak
01:23departed WWE, and that this wasn't part of a new round of talent cuts.
01:27The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, however, has reported WWE letting Kemp's contract
01:32expire has surprised people in the company, as he was always praised for his work ethic
01:37and, unlike his brother, was much better in the ring.
01:40His exit has reportedly created a lot of anxiety backstage in NXT for those who have contracts
01:46expiring soon.
01:47As if Kemp can get cut, anyone can.
01:50Of course, if any NXT wrestlers are really worried about their position, there is one
01:54guaranteed surefire way to make WWE want them.
01:57Wrestle at Forbidden Door and have Tony Khan try and sign you afterwards.
02:01Just 11 days after losing to Mercedes Monet at Forbidden Door, and just a month after
02:05debuting at all for AEW, Stephanie The Cure was announced to be joining WWE, with head
02:11NXT booker Shawn Michaels revealing the news himself on X.
02:15In that time, she got big offers from both AEW and WWE, with WWE reportedly going higher
02:21than usual because they knew Tony Khan also wanted her.
02:24If I'm Tony, this should really change how I showcase talent on my product going forward.
02:28I now think it's naive to showcase a wrestler without any multi-month deal locked in, with
02:33WWE always ready to pounce.
02:35The Cure, a lifelong fan of WWE, chose both the money and fame, and also reportedly got
02:39heat from CMLL for refusing to lose on the way out, causing her to get stripped of the
02:44two titles she had there, and from New Japan and Revolution Pro Wrestling for cancelling
02:49future dates.
02:50I don't think we can rule out this being a WWE influence decision, as they're constantly
02:54looking for ways to undermine any of AEW's partner promotions.
02:58And then she debuted at WWE's Mexico live events over the weekend.
03:02Boy, things really escalated quickly.
03:05The Cure defeated Isla Dawn in her WWE debut on Saturday, after which the Chilean told
03:10the Mexican crowd that this was a dream come true, especially to debut in front of her
03:14people.
03:15On the following day, she beat Dawn again, this time in Monterey, while getting a lot
03:19of focus on from WWE's social channels.
03:22With her debuting against main roster stars, there was some speculation she could actually
03:26be going directly to Raw or SmackDown.
03:29It seems WWE were just taking advantage of that weekend's house shows being in Mexico,
03:33though, as The Cure confirmed herself on a WWE Instagram video, NXT, see you soon.
03:40The Cure's WWE debut wasn't the only notable thing to happen at the Mexican live
03:44events, though, as Tiffany Stratton attempted to cash in her Money in the Bank contract
03:48just one week after winning the briefcase.
03:51Following Friday's SmackDown angle, where Nia Jax stopped Stratton from cashing in on
03:54Bayley to protect her own SummerSlam title match against her, Stratton tried again after
03:59Bayley beat Bianca Belair at the 13th July show in Mexico City.
04:03This time, however, Belair chased her off.
04:05Now here's a message from Turbo Jake!
04:13Turbo Jake ain't here today, cuz he's handling business.
04:16You know, his little crafting business he's got, where he makes some cute little things
04:20with the bows.
04:21Anyway, I'm here to say thank you to the pledgehammers over at patreon.com forward slash WrestleTalk.
04:25They get a bunch of exclusive content every month, and they get shoutouts on this show,
04:30so thank you too!
04:31Hitman Belt, Baldin Brummie, Brent Linford, Turbo Jake Knows Nothing About Baldin, Big
04:36Jiggy, Josh Martin, Double L, Liam Leonard, The Pinnacle of Success Luke Kelly, Abominable
04:43Michael Abbott, King of the Kong Quest, Stephen Mullenix, Where There's a Will, There's a
04:49Will Campbell, The Machine Gun, Alex Anderson, and The Rollercoaster, Robert Acosta.
04:56You can get your own shoutout and loads of exclusive content at patreon.com forward slash
04:59WrestleTalk!
05:00Go over there today!
05:01Right now!
05:02Link in the description!
05:03Go!
05:04Why are you still here?
05:06Back to all the wrestling contracts news, after months of speculation over whether she
05:09was leaving the company, Natalya has reportedly re-signed with WWE.
05:15Fightful have reported that Natalya, who has been wrestling for WWE since 1937, was genuinely
05:19considering leaving the promotion, as she was gathering interest from other companies.
05:24This apparently included those other companies being interested in Natalya's husband, the
05:29wrestler turned backstage producer Tyson Kidd.
05:32After being in negotiations since May, though, Natalya and WWE signed an extension in late
05:36June for a multi-year deal.
05:39One potential clause Natalya was negotiating for was a possible film based on the Hart
05:43Family, which could be in the same vein of last December's Iron Claw movie.
05:48Meanwhile veteran tag team the Motor City Machine Guns appeared to bid farewell to the
05:54independent wrestling scene at Prestige Wrestling's Combat Class show on the 12th July, where Chris
05:59Saban defeated Alex Shelley.
06:01After the match, they both hugged and waved goodbye to the fans, with commentary putting
06:05over how this might be the last time they appear in Prestige.
06:10Saban and Shelley have been free agents since the 1st April, after leaving TNA.
06:14Initially, Bodyslam.net reported they were close to signing with AEW, where they could
06:18face their long-time rivals the Young Bucks.
06:20But now PWN is reporting they're in talks with WWE, after which current WWE Tag Team
06:26Champion Tommaso Ciampa posted a photo of the Machine Guns on his Instagram stories.
06:32And almost lost in all the contract news, Fightful is reporting former WWE wrestler
06:36Rachel Ellering has actually been signed with AEW and Ring of Honor for quite some time,
06:42where she was recently added to the official Ring of Honor roster page.
06:45She first appeared on ROH in June last year.
06:48Another big free agent name is Matt Cardona, and he, along with everyone else in the industry,
06:53wants one last match against John Cena.
06:57After shockingly answering Adam Copeland's open challenge for the TNT title back in March,
07:01Cardona tore his pectoral muscle.
07:03He underwent surgery, and has been made the General Manager of GCW while he recovers.
07:07Where he's also been tweeting about John Cena, posting…
07:11People talk about long-term storytelling.
07:14I want John Cena.
07:15Referencing the terrible Zack Ryder, Cena and Kane storyline from over a decade ago.
07:20Yeah.
07:21Makes you feel old, doesn't it?
07:23But Cardona has told SE Scoops he's not joking, he's actually campaigning to make
07:28it happen.
07:29Those posts I've been making on social media, they're not BS.
07:32I would love to wrestle John Cena one last time.
07:35I think with the way WWE is now, I think it's something that could happen, where I could
07:39just walk in, whether it be for one day, or make a return.
07:43I think Zack Ryder vs John Cena, those matches were fine, they were what they were.
07:48But John Cena vs Matt Cardona, that's where the story is.
07:52Because you could play it so many different ways.
07:55Matt Cardona could say, John, you're the reason my WWE career didn't take off.
08:00Where else do you want to see John Cena wrestle on his retirement tour?
08:03Let me know in the comments down below, because I'll be replying to people FROM OUTTA THAT
08:07CURT ANGLE MEME.
08:10WWE wasn't just in Mexico over the weekend.
08:14They also had a significant presence in Japan, as AJ Styles won in his pro-wrestling NOAH
08:20debut in a match against Marafuji, where he even wore his mask entrance attire from New
08:25Japan.
08:26Styles put over Marafuji in the interview afterwards, and the working relationship between
08:30WWE and pro-wrestling NOAH, particularly how younger talent wrestling in Japan can improve
08:35their craft.
08:36The way you become a great wrestler is by experience, and if you want to do it the best
08:41way, you come to Japan and you go to America.
08:44That's how you get good.
08:46It was likely a pre-prepared soundbite to get in there, as NOAH subsequently revealed
08:50NXT wrestlers Josh Briggs and Tavian Heights will compete in its version of the G1 tournament,
08:56the M-1 Victory Tournament, next month.
08:58It's an incredibly smart strategy from WWE, modelled on New Japan's successful Excursion
09:04method where they send promising young wrestlers to their partner promotions around the world
09:08to learn how to work in different environments.
09:11By sending developmental talent to wrestle in TNA or Japan, NXT's star creation process
09:17should be supercharged.
09:19And it's not just the men they're doing this for, as Io Sky was also in Japan over
09:22the weekend, wrestling at the new all-women's promotion Marigold, where she beat Tami Hayashishita
09:27and the recently WWE signed Julia lost to Sarray in the main event.
09:31Like I said earlier, Tiffany Stratham failed to cash in her Money in the Bank, so how should
09:35it be done?
09:36Here's a clip of me, Luke and Pete predicting Money in the Bank 2025 way too far in advance,
09:42which you can watch now.
Comments