NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn IV happened yesterday night with its load of twists and turns (read the review here). But around the matches, WWE made 3 major announcements that really deserved to be talked about.
We, at SteelChair Mag, are against the fact of spreading rumours. Even if the news of Matt Riddle signing with WWE has been running rampant, we’ve stayed quiet. Until Riddle appeared yesterday night on TV. And WWE made it official on its website.
“The King of Bros” Matt Riddle was at first an MMA fighter. After losing his wrestling scholarship in University, Riddle transitioned into MMA. During his amateur career, he was noticed by UFC President Dana White and MMA Champion Quinton Rampage Jackson, when he knocked out his opponent of the night in the opening seconds of the second round.
Riddle made his debut with MMC at The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale held on June 21, 2008, where he defeated Dante Rivera in his first match. From 2008 to 2013, Riddle had worked 12 matches, with 7 wins, 3 losses and 2 no-contests. After failing his second drug test within a year, Riddle was released by UFC.
He signed with Bellator shortly after his release, but never fought for them. He then worked a match for Titan FC, winning against Michael Kuiper on February 28, 2014. His second match, in August 2014, was cancelled as his opponent was forced out of the bout due to visa issues and Riddle due to injury.
On October 29, 2014, it was reported that Riddle was training for a career in professional wrestling. He made his professional wrestling debut on February 7, 2015, at the Monster Factory in New Jersey and quickly won the Monster Factory Heavyweight Championship a few months later. In October 2015, Riddle signed to work Evolve events.
From 2015 to 2018, Riddle had worked for many indy promotions in the USA, like House of Glory, CZW, PWG, CHIKARA, Evolve, House of Hardcore, among others, but had also been a steady presence in the British wrestling scene, working for PROGRESS, RevPro, WCPW, Pro Wrestling Chaos, Discovery Wrestling, 3CW, Fight Club: PRO, IPW:UK, OTT in Ireland, and many more. Riddle also appeared in wXw in Germany, The Crash in Mexico, WSW in Australia, and Smash Wrestling in Canada.
Everywhere he wrestled, he worked with the very best, Zack Sabre Jr., Sami Callihan, Shane Strickland, Jeff Cobb, Tyler Bate, Trent Seven, Will Ospreay, WALTER, Lio Rush, Pentagon Junior and Fénix, among many others. Riddle has never been afraid to work intergender matches, as he squared off with Mia Yim, Tessa Blanchard or Kimber Lee.
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss has always quoted WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus as one of her inspirations and a wrestler she would love to compete with. She was stating it earlier this week in a recent interview we had the chance to share with you.
Dreams are meant to come through, as WWE announced the first WWE Evolution match would be Alexa Bliss vs. Trish Stratus. The 5-time Champion and current RAW Women’s Champion will face off Stratus, a 7-time former Women’s Champion and WWE Hall of Famer. But before, The Goddess is set to defend her Raw Women’s Championship against Ronda Rousey at SummerSlam tonight.
WWE Evolution will take place on October 28, 2018, at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, in Uniondale, New York. Female wrestlers from RAW, SmackDown Live, NXT and NXT UK are set to appear, as every WWE and NXT Women’s titles will be defended. The PPV will also feature the finals of the 2018 Mae Young Classic tournament.
Over 50 women are expected to appear at WWE Evolution. Many retired wrestlers and Hall of Famers are expected to be a part of this unique event. WWE Hall of Famers Lita and Beth Phoenix were confirmed by the company, other names will be announced very soon. We’ll keep you updated, of course.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZmiDSAGfOk]
As a new set of tapings will be recorded on August 25 and 26 in Birmingham, WWE made official NXT UK is coming soon on WWE Network. No date for the moment, no time slot too. Stay tuned on SteelChair Mag website.