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Plans called for WWE to tape two episodes of Raw today (Mon., July 20) - one for tonight, and one for next week. The were supposed to start at 1 p.m. Eastern. But according to PWInsider, they are at least an hour behind schedule.
Why?
The site reports their sources say “the company is deep into re-working their original plans for today’s taping.” Reasons for that aren’t as clear. Insider’s Mike Johnson writes that some of the folks they’ve talked to say “the re-writes are due to talents originally written into the show no longer being available to perform,” but he hasn’t been able “100% verify” that.
Johnson speculates another possible reason could be a negative reaction to last night’s PPV. Which is weird, because I personally found Extreme Rules to be the same mixed bag as most WWE productions of late. There was a lot of stuff I liked, and some decisions that left me frustrated and/or confused. Not sure why it would prompt ripping up plans and starting from scratch, though.
However, a follow-up report from Dave Meltzer at Wrestling Observer indicates a top-to-bottom re-write is one of the reasons for the delay (Melzer says that talent not being available is also a factor). He specifically points to the Asuka/Sasha Banks angle, which he reported on Observer Radio was a last-minute change from Asuka retaining the Raw Women’s title via her submission finisher. WWE is said to have three options for The Empress at SummerSlam, and the first is out and the second uncertain. Seems that whatever we’ll end up getting will be based on who’s available more than anything else.
The only thing announced in advance for tonight was Randy Orton & Big Show’s Unsanctioned Match, and Meltzer says that & a SummerSlam angle that will spin out of it are still planned. But everything else has changed since last night.
Sometimes these written on the fly shows turn out great... hey, I’m trying to be optimistic!
Join us in our live blog at 8 p.m. Eastern and we’ll see what they come up with together.