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We publish a whole lot of content here at Cageside Seats. We’re also [looks around and whispers so the bosses can’t hear] not the only place producing wrestling content on the internet. So, as a service to you on the weekdays, we’ll be producing a wrestling newsletter, "Rude Awakening." Well, it will be a newsletter eventually: for now, it’ll just be part of your experience here at Cageside, collecting the news, recaps, and social moments from the greater wrestling universe daily so you won’t fall behind, with a newsletter format to come.
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Adam Cole is a free agent soon. It’s an open secret that WWE is likely his next destination once the Bullet Club member is free to sign wherever he’d like. Maybe some fans will be annoyed if he ends up on NXT instead of on RAW or SmackDown Live if slash when he finally does sign with WWE, but Cole himself? He’s fine with a move to NXT. In fact, given a recent interview with ESPN, he even prefers starting there:
"I would want to [start in NXT] because, first of all, I'm a fan of NXT," Cole said. "I think the brand is cool. I think the Takeover shows are awesome. I think the fans are great. I love the roster of guys. I think it's something that's going to be looked at as a very special time in pro wrestling, so I want to be a part of it. Secondly, of course in a perfect world if I went to NXT, I wouldn't want to be there forever; but I like the idea of going there and performing there and getting accustomed to the WWE audience and them getting accustomed to me and then eventually making the move to Raw or Smackdown.
NXT is just now getting back the kind of characters and performances that caused so many to flock to the brand and label it as the best thing WWE had going. Throwing Adam Cole (and others) into that mix to help avoid a dip in quality the next time there is a wave of promotions would help keep fans happy and WWe’s developmental brand chugging along.
It’s also good to see that Cole makes a point of both embracing NXT and its purpose while also saying wrestling there “forever” isn’t his goal: he still wants to show up on the main roster and make a splash there, but there is value in a stint with NXT and its proximity to the performance center and its resources. Look no further than the difference between, say, NXT graduate Neville and many of the other cruiserweights who were just thrust onto RAW following the Cruiserweight Classic. Even veterans like Cole could use a transitional period to make sure everything is just right before he’s put in front of WWE’s largest audiences.
- Speaking of NXT, Sean Rueter has your recap of this week’s episode, and it’s clear the brand is back on track.
- There is a delightful rumor about the Hardyz in Thursday’s roundup.
- Speaking of the Hardy Menz, the duo are essential to a true resurgence of WWE’s tag scene.
- Charlotte Flair made WWE history again, and since the company didn’t force it upon us by repeatedly telling us how historic it was, it feels pretty cool to see.
- Are promos a lost art? One Cagesider explores what’s missing from today’s mic skills.
- Renee Young and Dean Ambrose had the most Renee Young and Dean Ambrose wedding imaginable.
- We should have known that Breezango would win the number one contender Beat The Clock challenge, given Fandango’s intense hatred of clocks.
- Ric Flair’s fiance was in a car accident, but Flair later tweeted that she was in the hospital and doing okay.
- Shane McMahon suspended Baron Corbin for his attack on a ref during Talking Smack, but something tells me that won’t keep Sami Zayn safe for very long.
- Here are your five questions for this week’s episode of Impact Wrestling, which is about to feature a whole lot more Global Force Wrestling.
- The retro Best and Worst of NXT features Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre, back when Drew was the veteran coming from WWE while Rollins was the one in developmental.
- You won’t hear me disagree that Braun Strowman needs to — and should — beat Roman Reigns this weekend at Payback. And that’s coming from someone who likes Reigns.
- Squared Circle Sirens’ front page is a litany of women who have recently received tryouts with WWE. Siham Kissar, Shadia Bseiso, Gabi Stockler, Mahboube Farasat, and Lana Evanson are all part of the group of WWE tryouts in Dubai.