Before Dynamite, AEW President Tony Khan announced on Twitter that the much-anticipated match between PAC and Andrade El Idolo scheduled for All Out is off due to travel issues. Instead, the match will take place at a later date on Rampage, and the women’s Casino Battle Royale will now be on the main show.

Since then, Andrade has taken to social media and teased he will face a mystery opponent by posting a photo of himself with the caption “@AndradeElIdolo vs ?  #AllOut #Chicago.” With the news being so new, there isn’t any information on who Andrade could be facing. Although, both Daniel Bryan and Adam Cole’s names have been suggested as potential replacements on social media.

The belief was Bryan would debut for AEW on the September 22nd episode of Dynamite, which takes place at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York. However, it has been rumored that the date could be brought forward. With regards to Cole, following weeks of speculation regarding his future, it is now known he is no longer with WWE and has no non-compete clause, so he would be available to appear if a deal can be agreed in time.

In what was a huge surprise, WWE released Braun Strowman on June 2. Vince McMahon believed his $1.2 million a year contract was too much money for where he saw Strowman on the card. Since then, there has been a lot of speculation on his future, and it has now been confirmed one of his first non-WWE appearances will be on an upcoming Free The Narrative show being put on by EC3.

The first Free The Narrative show was a pre-taped event that aired earlier this year and featured EC3 using a Tyler Durden type gimmick wrestling Matt Cardona in the main event. The show was set in a cinematic environment similar to that of Raw Underground, and the upcoming version is titled The Monster In Us All, with Strowman being billed under his real name of Adam Scherr. It’s set to begin streaming from October 1 on Vimeo for $10, and the teaser trailer can be viewed below.

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Strowman’s agent is currently asking promoters circa $20,000 per appearance, however, EC3 was likely given a significant discount due to the pair’s friendship. While this appearance would be considered an indie event, the belief is Strowman’s future is with Impact Wrestling. Rumors had been circulating in recent weeks, but picked up momentum after Scott D’Amore, the promotions Executive Vice President, referred to their upcoming pay-per-view Bound For Glory as “Braun For Glory” on a Twitch stream.

WWE failed in its attempt to use NXT to stop AEW from establishing itself, and it is speculated Triple H, who was in charge of the brand, has found himself in the doghouse for this. A complete brand overhaul is currently underway, and a new logo has begun being exhibited across social media and on WWE television. Now in news that has caused “RIP NXT” to trend on Twitter, Bryan Alvarez has reported that Vince McMahon and his right-hand man Bruce Prichard are now running the show.

For those not aware of Prichard’s influence in WWE, he is the Executive Director of Raw & SmackDown and oversees both sets of writing teams. Based on this report, it appears his workload is about to increase significantly with a third team. The show will resume being live from  September 14, with a wedding between Dexter Lumis and Indi Hartwell. In the longer term, it remains to be seen whether the brand will continue to be booked as an alternative to Raw and SmackDown, but the use of Karrion Kross on the Raw compared to NXT will undoubtedly have longtime fans ánd likely some wrestlers concerned.

NXT launched in 2010 as a faux reality show featuring rookies allocated to established WWE stars striving to make it to the main roster. This version ran for five seasons and featured talents including Daniel Bryan, Naomi, Wade Barrett, Bray Wyatt (as Husky Harris), and Heath Slater. Then in 2012, NXT would replace Florida Championship Wrestling as WWE’s developmental territory, with their weekly show becoming one of the prominent selling points of the WWE Network when it launched in 2014. With AEW Dynamite premiering on TNT, NXT would move to the USA Network in September 2018 to be counterprogramming. However, what would be known as the Wednesday Night Wars were very one-sided, with Dynamite winning 63 times, NXT 10 times, and there being two ties.

As soon as CM Punk returned to the wrestling ring, fans began speculating whether his wife AJ Lee would eventually join him in AEW. When he name-dropped her during Dynamite, she would start to trend on Twitter, and it appeared there was a real possibility she may be making her own comeback. However, while speaking to NYPost.com, Punk has shot down any chances of that happening, revealing her neck issues make a return impracticable.

Lee hasn’t wrestled since 2015, with her last match being a six-women tag match on Raw the night after WrestleMania 31. In her autobiography, she would reveal that permanent damage to her vertebrae combined with the fact he had achieved her goals in wrestling led to her decision to leave the wrestling business. She has since built a new career and is a successful writer, having co-written a comic book version of GLOW based on the Netflix series and four issues of a Dungeons & Dragons limited series. Currently, she is working on the film script for a Netflix sequel to the 2013 film 47 Ronin, which starred Keanu Reeves.

Before joining AEW, there had been some speculation that CM Punk may return to the world of MMA as he was still part of UFC’s anti-doping program. He had been tested six times in 2020, and a fight with Logan Paul was even suggested after the controversial YouTuber said he could beat Punk in a fight. Now though, MMAFighting.com has reported that Punk has told UFC management he has officially retired from the sport, having not fought since 2018.

Punk moved to Milwaukee at the age of 35 to begin training under Duke Roufus at Roufusport MMA Academy. After twenty months of training, which was interrupted by an injury, he stepped into the Octagon for the first time losing to Mickey Gall. Then a year and a half later, Punk would face 0-1 fighter Mike Jackson and lose via unanimous decision. However, it was later revealed via a Freedom of Information Act request that Punk’s record is not 0-2 as believed, but actually 0-1. This is because his fight against Jackson was overturned and was officially ruled a no contest. The reason for this is that on the night Jackson tested positive for an illegal substance.

Punk is now preparing to wrestle his first match in seven years when he faces Darby Allin at All Out on Sunday night, having made his return to pro-wrestling on their second-ever episode of AEW’s Rampage show. His appearance was watched by an average of 1.1 million viewers on TNT, which was a massive 52.6% increase from the previous week’s premiere episode. Additionally, in the key 18-49 demo, Rampage delivered a 0.53 rating, which was an increase of 71% week on week, and the highest demo AEW has produced since the first-ever episode of Dynamite back in October 2019. This shows that not only do fans remember him from his time in WWE, but eager for his return.

Kurt Angle is retired from in-ring competition following a match against Baron Corbin at WrestleMania 35. Still, with WWE veterans Paul Wight, Christian, and Mark Henry having joined AEW, fans have wondered if the Olympic gold medalist might eventually join them. In addition, it’s known that Angle was unhappy with his final match being an afterthought, so a run in AEW would allow him to go out on his own terms.

Now speaking on Wrestling Inc Daily, Angle was asked whether that was a possibility, and he confirmed he has previously held talks with AEW. However, even an attempt to have him as just an on-screen character failed.

Recently, Angle stated that his wife of nine years, Giovanna Yannotti, would kick his ass if he ever came out of retirement. Given this and the fact Angle has turned AEw down three times, it appears there is minimal chance fans will see Angle in AEW anytime soon.

It should, though, be noted this may be for the best. He has broken his neck five times throughout his amateur and professional wrestling careers and has suffered numerous other injuries. Plus, it’s known he requires further neck surgery, which will keep him bedbound for up to six months. So perhaps it’s for the best for Angle to focus on other projects like his podcast and health food snacks.

Ric Flair is no longer with WWE due to him being unhappy with how Charlotte was being booked. He said he requested his release, while other reports have said he was let go, but regardless he is now a free agent and taking his own bookings. His first non-WWE appearance took place earlier this month at TripleMania, where he accompanied his future son-in-law Andrade in his match against Kenny Omega, and while she didn’t appear in front of fans, Charlotte was backstage. This resulted in speculation that perhaps down the line, the current Raw Women’s Champion may decide to leave WWE to work with Andrade. However, speaking on Rene Paquette’s podcast where Flair discussed his WWE departure, he revealed that his daughter would never leave WWE.

While Charlotte has prepared for her post-WWE career by trademarking the name “Ashley Flair” to ensure she can continue to use her legendary surname, it sounds like she has no intention of using it if she doesn’t have to. Considering that WWE management regards her so highly, and he is always prominently featured and usually involved in the title picture, it is surprising that her father was unhappy with her booking. Although as far as WWE is concerned, Charlotte’s opinion is the only one they’re interested in, and she appears to be fine repeatedly winning championships.

Goldberg lost to Bobby Lashley at SummerSlam via a referee stoppage. Lashley had chop blocked Goldberg, and after going to the outside, he drove him leg-first into the post. Lashley would go on to pick up a chair and appeared set to put an end to Goldberg. However, at this point, Goldberg’s 15-year-old son Gage would enter the ring in an attempt to save his father but would be put into The Hurt Lock and left laying. MVP would take the mic and say Lashley didn’t realize it was Goldberg’s son, but that didn’t help the situation, and Goldberg crawled over to check on Gage and vowed revenge.

Now while appearing on his CarCast podcast, Goldberg has spoken about his match with Lashley and Gage’s involvement. He would reveal that he had to choke him because he was smiling when he was supposed to be selling The Hurt Lock.

Goldberg has previously been asked about Gage following in his footsteps and becoming a wrestler, and while he said he would support him, he put him over for his baseball and football abilities. As far as Goldberg goes, while he has wrestled both of his contracted matches this year, it appears look he will be facing Lashley at WWE’s upcoming Crown Jewel event on October 21st. While Goldberg often receives boos in front of live crowds in the US, in Saudi Arabia, he gets a much better reaction, as was seen when he defeated The Fiend there in 2020.

Over the past few weeks, there has been what feels like endless speculation about Adam Cole due to his WWE contract expiring. He signed an extension to conclude his program with Kyle O’Reilly and personally met with Vince McMahon before a live SmackDown to discuss his future. It had appeared he’d re-signed after WWE promoted Cole for a virtual streaming event for Mattel. However, it has now been reported that WWE issued an internal memo this morning announcing to employees that Cole was no longer with the company.

This would have been done to ensure everyone knows not to promote or produce new merchandise or book him for any appearances. It should be noted that this doesn’t mean Cole couldn’t re-sign with WWE down the line, but right now, he is free to negotiate with any other wrestling promotion. With AEW in acquisition mode, it is strongly believed Tony Khan will make Cole an offer if he hasn’t already done so. With his girlfriend Britt Baker a star for the promotion and many of his friends, it would appear the probable destination for the former NXT Champion.

Cole has been wrestling for 13 years after starting out training at CZW’s Academy in 2008. He would go on to work for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, and New Japan over the years and debuted on NXT at their TakeOver: Brooklyn III event in 2017. Since then, he had been a prominent part of the NXT brand, and many within the company had hoped to see him on the main roster, that though now appears doubtful.

As he is no longer contracted to WWE, Ric Flair is currently keeping busy making special appearances on shows before inevitably signing with AEW. Earlier this month, he would accompany his future son-in-law Andrade at TripleMania, and on Sunday night, he appeared for Billy Corgan’s NWA for their NWA 73 event. Flair would be introduced as the greatest NWA World Heavyweight Champion of all time and cut an emotional promo in front of the live crowd. The living legend would thank his wife Wendy, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker, and Steve Austin before telling Vince McMahon he loves him.

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The whole promo video can be viewed on FITE and is worth watching in its entirety as he would mention names including Harley Race, Terry Funk, Randy Orton, and Tony Khan. Flair would also return following the conclusion of the show’s main event when Trevor Murdoch ended Nick Aldis’ 1043 day NWA Championship reign. He would celebrate with the new champion and hold his hand aloft. This closed a successful weekend for the NWA, having sold out The Chase two nights in a row and receiving a lot of praise for their all-women pay-per-view Empowerrr the previous evening.

During his career, Flair would hold the NWA World Heavyweight Championship a record ten times, for a total of 3116 days combined, only behind Lou Thesz. So it was fitting for him to appear in for the latest incarnation of the historic promotion. It isn’t known if this was a one-off appearance for Flair in the NWA, but even if it was, it was undoubtedly worth whatever Corgan paid Flair to give the new NWA his seal of approval.

Alexa Bliss totally changed as a character after being aligned with Bray Wyatt last year and now carries around a demonic doll from her childhood called Lilly. After pay-per-views victories over Shayna Baszler and Eva Marie, she now appears set to feud with Raw Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair. So to say her career is going well would be an understatement.

However, some fans still harken back to when she was a more serious competitor. One fan would poke fun of Bliss’ new gimmick on a recent video shared by an official WWE Twitter account, by saying “And now she plays w a doll. Great booking,” and Bliss would fire back. She did this by stating that the Lilly replica doll regularly sells out, implying adding Lilly to her act was a success.

Yep! I Sure do! & Lilly is available on @WWEShop !! Well… when she’s back in stock. Keeps selling out… darn 😜 https://t.co/bxu5pk2XMK

— Lexi (Kaufman) Cabrera (@AlexaBliss_WWE) August 28, 2021

Merchandise sales have always played a massive part in WWE’s business, and its known pushes have come and gone based on what the company is selling. Knowing this, it was recently reported that the future of Lilly depended on merchandise sales, and based on how the replica doll of Lilly keeps going out of stock on WWEShop.com, it appears Lilly will be here for the foreseeable future.

Alexa Bliss often has to deal with trolls, haters, and oddballs on social media. Earlier this year, she was forced to make her Twitter account private due to receiving abuse following the release of Bray Wyatt. Fans were accusing her of stealing his gimmick and being responsible for WWE letting him go. Also, more seriously, in the past, she had a stalker who made allegations against her fiancee Ryan Cabrera and pretended to be in a relationship with Bliss. Despite all of that, Bliss hasn’t given up on the platform, seemingly feeling the good of interacting with fans outweighs the bad of her antagonists and stalkers.

Paige hasn’t appeared on WWE television since appearing via video on the March 20, 2020, episode of SmackDown. Since then, the retired wrestler has focused on her store in Anaheim, California, as well as her Twitch channel, which she is believed to be making big money from. However, she is still under contract with WWE and receiving her downside guarantee, and during a recent Twitch stream, she has revealed she still has ten months on her deal.

With WWE releasing so many talents this past year, it seems odd they are keeping Paige under contract when not using her. She has though been teasing on social media making a return to the ring, so perhaps WWE is hoping she gets medically cleared to return to their ring rather than somebody else. With Daniel Bryan, Edge, Sting, and Christian all resuming their careers after being forced to retire, there is hope for Paige. Although with multiple screws in her neck and previously saying she has the neck of a 60-year-old, she will be taking a big risk wrestling for anyone.