WWE appears to have shifted gears with some heavy television heat lately between John Cena and Dean Ambrose over who can first get their hands on Seth Rollins, with whom both have even more major heat for different reasons.
Meanwhile, WWE heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar seems to be content to relax on the sidelines while waiting for the smoke to clear before returning to the scene, with no current indication that it will necessarily be for the upcoming Hell In A Cell pay-per-view.
With faces Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns recovering from surgery, the popular C.M. Punk remaining in self-imposed exile and no heavyweight champ on the card due to his limited appearance contract, Raw limped into the Windy City this past Monday a little short on star power. There were the traditional chants for Punk during the protracted opening segment, expected and recognized by the Authority with the assertion made that Chicago is a city of quitters.
Steph and Hunter emphasized that the recent actions of Ambrose running amok, as shown in a video recap, were disrespectful and would not be tolerated. Lesnar advocate Paul Heyman made a cameo to say his client felt disrespected at NOC, but Rollins apologized and pacified Heyman by saying he simply wanted a chance to challenge the best (Lesnar). Ambrose then appeared on the big screen to display the MITB briefcase he took from Rollins and challenged the Authority to come and get the briefcase if they wanted it. John Cena then rolled into the ring to chase Rollins and get a few token shots in on him, before the segment finally concluded.
Hunter then set up a main event with Ambrose and Cena facing Orton and Kane. Naturally, that ended with Rollins running in to interfere. With the advantage, Rollins curb-stomped a held-down Ambrose and then Cena onto the MITB briefcase to end the show.
Earlier in the evening, Rusev and Big Show had an encounter that saw Show pull down a large Russian flag. At Smackdown, the angle continued with Rusev using the flag on a pole as a weapon to attack the giant and lead to a bout between the two for tomorrow on Raw. Another highlight of Smackdown was the ringside introduction of baseball legend Bob Uecker, who received a lengthy standing ovation from an appreciative Milwaukee crowd. Uecker is in the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame.
Hulk Hogan made a token appearance at Raw to promote WWE's support of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Awareness efforts for the month of October. Dolph Ziggler survived a three-way to retain the IC belt over the Miz and Cesaro and Bo Dallas upset Mark Henry. Tomorrow's Raw will include celebrity appearances by Kathy Lee Gifford and Joan Lunden to support the same cause. Roman Reigns is also scheduled to be on the show, obviously in a non-wrestling role. It will be live from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Smackdown will be taped in Philly on Tuesday evening, marking the 15th anniversary of that program. Time really does seem to fly and there will be a special effort to celebrate that milestone for the Friday airing next week.
Hall of Famer Jim Ross was scheduled to broadcast his first MMA fight this weekend. His podcast this past week with former wrestling star Terry Allen, aka Magnum TA, was a very interesting segment. TA was well on his way to a huge career and a run as NWA champion when a serious car accident crippled the rising sensation before he had the chance to live that dream, but his recuperative efforts remain one of the more inspirational stories of pro wrestling history.
(Shamokin's Bill Gilger "arranges" the interview each week with The Insider.)