PPV鈥檚, deaths headline wrestling news
There is plenty to get into this week in the world of pro wrestling, so let鈥檚 get going without any further ado.
AEW v. NJPW PPV
AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) present Forbidden Door on PPV Sunday night.
Jon Moxley faces Hiroshi Tanahashi to determine the Interim AEW champion, with the winner facing AEW champion CM Punk once he recovers from surgery.
IWGP champion Jay White takes on Kazuchika Okaka, Adam Cole and Hangman Pierce, Thunder Rosa defends the AEW women鈥檚 title against Toni Storm, Will Ospreay defends the IWGP United States championship against Orange Cassidy, Eddie Kingston teams with Shota Umino and Wheeler Yuta to take on Chris Jericho, Minoru and TNT champion Sammy Guevara, Ring of Honor tag champs FTR take on IWGP tag champs Great-O-Khan and Jeff Cobb and Toppongi Vice with all titles on the line and Shane Strickland teams with Keith Lee to take on El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and Pac, Miro, Clark Connors and Malaki Black face off to determine the first-ever AEW All-Atlantic champion.
Bryan Danielson was to take on Zack Sabre Jr. on the show but has not been cleared by doctors. Instead, Danielson has promised someone he can trust to take his place. Don鈥檛 be surprised if it is Claudio Castagnoli, known in WWE as Cesaro, or Johnny Gargano.
WWE Money in the Bank next weekend
While the card is not officially set, WWE presents Money in the Bank (MitB) Saturday, July 2, on Peacock.
Announced so far the men鈥檚 MitB match features Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, Omos and Sheamus while Alexa Bliss, Lacey Evans, Liv Morgan, Asuka and Raquel Rodriguez have been announced for the women鈥檚 match.
The Usos defend the Undisputed WWE tag title against the Street Profits, United States champion Theory takes on Bobby Lashley, Ronda Rousey defends the Smackdown women鈥檚 title againt Natalya and Bianca Belair defends the Raw women鈥檚 title against Carmella.
Originally, Belair was to face Rhea Ripley, but she is out after surgery.
Ex-WWE refs pass away
Last weekend was not a good stretch for former legendary WWE referees.
On June 17, it was announced that Dave Hebner passed away.
Hebner鈥檚 greatest moment in pro wrestling took place on The Main Event on Feb. 5, 1988.
In a rematch from the WrestleMania III main event, Andre the Giant 鈥渄efeated鈥� WWF champion Hulk Hogan to end his four-plus years as champion.
Hebner was the assigned referee, but his 鈥渆vil鈥� twin brother Earl was hired by 鈥淢illion Dollar Man鈥� Ted DiBiase to referee as part of a storyline 鈥渟crewjob.鈥�
Earl counted Hogan鈥檚 shoulders as down even though he kicked out before the count of two, let alone three.
Andre was named the new champion, and he surrendered the championship to DiBiase.
The title was held up and a single-elimination tourney was held at WrestleMania IV to crown a new champion, with 鈥淢acho Man鈥� Randy Savage winning.
Dave Hebner transitioned into a roll behind the scenes a short time later while Earl would referee until 2005.
Dave also refereed the legendary classic between Savage, then the Intercontinental champion, and Ricky 鈥淭he Dragon鈥� Steamboat at WrestleMania III.
Airing on Friday night on NBC, the live broadcast drew a 15.2 Nielsen rating and had 33 million viewers, both records for American televised wrestling which still stand today.
Then last Sunday afternoon, it was announced that Tim White passed away.
White was one of Andre鈥檚 closest confidants and was his handler on the road.
White鈥檚 most famous match was the brutal Hell in a Cell bout between The Undertaker and Mick Foley here in Pittsburgh in 1998.
He was injured in a Hell in a Cell match in 2002 between Triple H and Chris Jericho, and the injury all but ended White鈥檚 in-ring career.
White鈥檚 Bar, The Friendly Tap, would be the site of several skits over the years on WWE TV where fights would break out.
WWE鈥檚 creative mess catching up to itself
There is no doubt WWE is wringing the well dry.
Last Friday on Smackdown, Brock Lesnar returned and was named Roman Reigns鈥� challenger for SummerSlam in Nashville.
It will be the ninth time the pair have faced off at a WWE Special Event.
Originally, Reigns was to face Randy Orton, but he is out recovering from an injury.
So, what does WWE do?
It goes back to what feels like the only marquee match it can keep putting out.
WWE has no one to blame but itself for not having top stars to face Reigns.
For well over a decade now, WWE has looked to make its wrestlers equal and has not built up many new stars, if any.
WWE legal update
No less than seven law firms are now involved with the legal mess going on with WWE, and it will be interesting to see how it all plays out.
Also, WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis has been placed on administrative leave until further notice.
This Week in History鈥�
In 2001, A-Train (Albert) defeated Kane to win the Intercontinental title.
In 2005 at vengeance, Shawn Michaels defeated Kurt Angle in a rematch of their WrestleMania 21 classic.
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