The ongoing battle between Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment and Sasha Banks continues. According to reports, Banks has been released from WWE effective immediately. She had been suspended by WWE since May 20 following a walkout with fellow wrestler Naomi on the May 16 episode of WWE Raw. Naomi and Banks reportedly walked into WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis’ office with their suitcases in hand and placed their tag team championship belts on his desk.

The reports of her release come from Wrestle Inc’s Raj Girl, although Girl reported that it is unclear whether her release was granted at her request or if it was initiated by WWE. Following their walkout, WWE had put out a string of press statements condemning their actions, calling them “unprofessional” and claiming that they disappointed millions of fans. The two were also stripped of their Tag Team Championship titles. Many pundits within wrestling media are claiming that Banks’ release was ordered by the WWE brass.

This news comes just hours after the Wall Street Journal released a report on an investigation regarding WWE head Vince McMahon and alleged settlements related to sexual misconduct. The report also implicated Laurinaitis in the settlements.

Banks had been with WWE since 2012. She has collected a number of title belts whole at the company including the SmackDown Women’s Championships, Raw Women’s Championships, NXT Women’s Championship and Women’s Tag Team Championship. She also has headlined Wrestlemania as well as multiple pay-per-view events.

Banks had previously starred as Koska Reeves in Disney’s The Mandalorian and has recently appeared on Kevin Hart’s Show Cold As Balls.

As for Naomi, there has been no indication on whether or not she will be released.

There’s tension between the WWE and two of their biggest stars. Sasha Banks and Naomi were indefinitely suspended by the WWE while their merchandise and official social media sites have been pulled. This comes after a long-standing feud between the two women’s tag team champions and WWE leadership. 

This all began during a live taping of Monday Night Raw when the pair was noticeably absent from their event. Color commentator Corey Graves had announced that the pair had “unprofessionally left the arena.” In a statement afterward, the WWE detailed the reason for their absence, “They claimed they weren’t respected enough as tag team champions,” the statement read. “And even though they had eight hours to rehearse and construct their match, they claimed they were uncomfortable in the ring with two of their opponents even though they’d had matches with those individuals in the past with no consequence. Monday Night Raw is a scripted live TV show, whose characters are expected to perform the requirements of their contract.” 

According to the WWE, Sasha and Naomi “walked into WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis‘s office with their suitcases in hand, placed their tag team championship belts on his desk, and walked out.”

The severity of the punishment is surprising with many publications as well as former wrestling legends coming out and supporting the two rappers. Wrestler CM Punk shared a post seemingly in support of the two, writing, “Doesn’t matter if your opinion of your coworker is positive or negative. Stand with them,” he said. “Because they’ll do the same thing to you and you’ll wish someone helped. Trust me. You’re expendable. Together you’re unstoppable.”

Rapper Snoop Dogg has also shown his solidarity with his cousin Banks, posting a picture of the two with the caption “Bloodline.”

Since then the WWE has also revoked the pairs tag team championship and plans to name a new championship in the near future. Neither Naomi nor Sasha have said anything regarding the incident.

Wrestlemania 37 wrapped up on Sunday night with its final seven matches to conclude the pay-per-view special. The event marked the first time that fans were allowed at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida since the COVID-19 lockdown. The organization of the event was divided into two nights. Saturday featured night one matches for the Smackdown brand. Sunday was night two and for the Raw brand.

Night 2:

Match one: Randy Orton vs “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt with Alexa Bliss

Orton faced off with the “The Fiend” after months of building up their feud. The fiend arrived at the stage via a jack-in-the-box entrance to showcase that he is still whole. In building up their feud, Orton had set the fiend on fire before their Wrestlemania match. However, the fiend arrived unburned and ready to settle their feud.

The match started with The Fiend diving off the box, nailing Orton with a clothesline, and then hitting a suplex. The match then went outside the ring as Orton hit the fiend with a backdrop suplex onto the announcer’s table with no effect. Instead, The Fiend came right back up to give Orton the mandible claw. The match continued as Orton started to gain momentum but, the turning point arrived when fire shot from the post as The Fiend tried to end the match with sister Abigail. As fire shot from the posts, the fiend looked to Bliss who had black goo running down her face. the distraction allowed Orton to hit the RKO for the pinfall victory.

2) Women’s Tag Team Championship: Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler (c) defeated Natalya and Tamina. 

The match started with Natalya and Baszler matching one another in the ring. The odd duo of Natalya and Tamina managed to stay in and build momentum to the cheers of the crowd. Unfortunately, it did not end well for them as Baszler managed to make the tag to Jax while Natalya had Jax in the sharpshooter. Baszler locked in the Kirifuda Clutch to score the submission victory for her and Jax. It was the tag team’s first successful title defense.

3) Kevin Owens defeated Sami Zyan (with Logan Paul).

The match between the long-time rivals started slowly before developing into a more fast-paced match. The fast pace match showed off the chemistry the two have from working with one another from the independent scene to the WWE. From Owen’s pop-up powerbomb to Zayn’s counters and cannonballs. The fans were amazed at the spectacular match they saw. The two wrestlers shined as they both had their big moments and big moves. The match ended with a stunner from Owens to win the match.

4) Sheamus defeated (c) Riddle for WWE United States Championship

Sheamus’s career resurgence continued now that he had an opportunity to face Riddle for a championship opportunity. The match was filled with a mix of acrobatic and physical moves. Riddle dazzled fans with his abilities. An example is his top rope Spanish Fly to Sheamus or his twisting senton from the top rope. Despite the high flying offense from Riddle, Sheamus was able to take control of the latter half of the match. The end came when Sheamus hit the brogue kick on Riddle, who was in the midst of a springboard to win the United States title.

5) Apollo Crews defeated Big E (c) for Intercontinental Championship.

This title match was a no holds barred scuffle between the two. This meant that there is no disqualification in the match and outside weapons are legal for the match. As soon as the match began, kendo sticks were quickly pulled out from under the ring. The two quickly battered one another before using the outside environment to their advantage. Such examples were the steel steps in which Crews attempted to squish Big E between, but he managed to escape in time. However, Big E used the steps to his advantage by delivering a Uranage suplex to Crews onto the stairs.

Crews won the match with the help of Dabba-Kato, who came into the ring and choke slammed Big E before placing Crews on top of Big E for the three-count win and the title win.

6) Rhea Ripley defeated Asuka (c) for WWE Raw Women’s Championship.

Ripley and Asuka faced off for the first time in a single match. The match started with Ripley showcasing her dominant attitude and style. For the first few minutes, it was just Ripley dominating Asuka. As the match went on, Asuka started to pick up as counters started to continue. Ripley ended the match by snatching Asuka up into the air and did her signature Riptide slam.

7) Roman Reigns (c) defeated Edge and Daniel Bryan for WWE Universal Championship

A triple threat match that features top stars in the wrestling business. The three wrestlers put on a show for fans. Reigns were mostly defensive throughout the match and Edge provided fierce attacks to his two other opponents. Bryan eventually, built momentum and used the crowd’s energy to fight back. Nearing the end of the match, and a chair was used in the match. A distraction allowed Reigns to retain the Universal Championship.

Night 1 Results:

1) Bobby Lashley (c) defeated Drew McIntyre for WWE Championship/

2) Natalya and Tamina defeated The Riott Squad, the winner’s receive a WWE Women’s Tag Team title shot on night two.

3) Cesaro defeated Seth Rollins.

4) A.J. Styles and Omos defeated The New Day (c) for the WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship.

5) Braun Strowman defeated Shane McMahon.

6) Bad Bunny and Damian Priest defeated The Miz and John Morrison. 

7) Bianca Belair defeated Sasha Banks (c) for the WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship.

WWE WrestleMania 37 is almost here! Considering the ups and downs of the last year, this should be one of the most memorable events in wrestling history. WrestleMania 36 was forced to take place at an empty WWE Performance Center due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, fans will be allowed at a limited capacity. 

WWE WrestleMania 37 will kick off on Saturday, April 10 and Sunday, April 11 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Florida. Let’s take a look at the confirmed matches.

-> GET THE BEST WRESTLEMANIA 37 TICKET DEALS HERE!

Night 1, April 10

WWE Championship — Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Drew McIntyre

McIntyre defended the WWE championship inside the Elimination Chamber, however, his celebration was cut short when Lashley suddenly unleashed a post-match beatdown that allowed Miz to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase and win the title. 

Just eight days later, Lashley dominated Miz, and two weeks later, it was announced that McIntyre would challenge Lashley for the title on the card. McIntyre hopes to become a three-time WWE Champion on The Grandest Stage of Them All.

SmackDown Women’s Championship — Sasha Banks (c) vs. Bianca Belair

Sasha Banks will put her title on the line when she goes up against Bianca Belair in WrestleMania 37. Banks and Belair teamed at Elimination Chamber to challenge for the women’s tag titles but lost when Reginald interfered in an attempt to give Banks the edge. They will again team together to challenge for the titles at Fastlane, but after that, we’ll be gearing up for what has the potential to be one of the best matches on the biggest card of the year. 

Belair may be oozing confidence after her herculean Royal Rumble Match victory, but don’t forget that she yet to earn championship gold in WWE. Will she finally earn that ever so elusive victory at WrestleMania 37, or will Banks continue to prove exactly why she is the champ?

Other Night 1 Matchups:

• Bad Bunny vs. The Miz
• Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins
• Raw Tag Team Championship — The New Day (c) vs. AJ Styles & Omos
• Shane McMahon vs. Braun Strowman (Steel Cage Match)

Night 2, April 11

• Universal Championship — Roman Reigns (c) vs. Edge vs. Daniel Bryan
• Raw Women’s Championship — Asuka (c)_vs. Rhea Ripley
• “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton
• Intercontinental Championship — Big E (c) vs. Apollo Crews
• Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn
• United State Championship — Riddle (c) vs. Sheamus

WrestleMania 37 is going to be a great event, and a much needed turn to somewhat normal sporting events, as fans will finally be able to watch the mayhem live!

-> GET THE BEST WRESTLEMANIA 37 TICKET DEALS HERE!

In a statement released on Twitter, All Elite Wrestling announced that they would be suspending wrestler Sammy Guevara, without pay, after comments he made back in 2016 about WWE superstar Sasha Banks.

While appearing on a podcast, Guevara said of Banks that he “wanted to just go f***ing rape that woman.”

Both Banks and Guevara issued statements on Twitter addressing the incident. Banks mentioned that she reached out to Guevara about what was said. Guevard issued a two-part apology on Twitter for his actions.

Banks’ Tweet:

Guevara’s Tweets:

https://twitter.com/sammyguevara/status/1275130818353135617

https://twitter.com/sammyguevara/status/1275140689068687375

It is unclear as to how long Guevara’s suspension will last but it is expected that we won’t see Guevara in the ring in the foreseeable future.

Royal Rumble has been one of wrestling’s greatest annual events since the first competition aired on the USA Network in 1988, and next year’s event will be historic.

WWE First Women’s Royal Rumble 2018 News

On Monday night, WWE announced that the first-ever women’s Royal Rumble will take place on Jan. 28, 2018 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The company has yet to announce how many women will compete in the match.

“I think that it’s long overdue. There’s been an incredible movement that’s been happening in our business that started nearly three years ago,” Stephanie McMahon, chief brand officer of WWE, proudly told ESPN.com on Monday.

The women’s rosters on Raw, SmackDown and NXT have grown in both size and stature over the last four years, achieving several milestones along the way.

“They’ve been regularly headlining television and pay-per-view events, including their first-ever Hell in a Cell match and first-ever women’s Money in the Bank match,” McMahon said of the big steps forward. “Now, for the first time ever, we’re going to have a women’s Royal Rumble match.”

“Every time our women have had the chance to perform and headline, they have over-delivered, and I have absolutely every confidence that they will do the same thing at the Royal Rumble on Jan. 28. I think that it will be incredibly memorable, I think that they will over-deliver, and I think that fans will get more than their money’s worth.”

The first-ever Mae Young Classic in September featured 32 women from all over the world.

See several famous women’s reactions to the news about the women’s Royal Rumble:

LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 18: Sasha Banks arrives for WWE RAW at 02 Brooklyn Bowl on April 18, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images)

Roman Reigns delivered a stellar performance on Monday’s episode of WWE RAW, the last before this coming Sunday’s No Mercy pay-per-view competition.

WWE Raw Higlights

Reigns took advantage of John Cena’s absence to roast the wrestler-turned-actor, calling Cena the best talker. “But the thing is, sometimes he says stupid shit,” Reigns said. He even went so far as referencing the real-life backstage heat Cena had with former WWE superstar Alex Riley.”

Then, Reigns called Cena “the biggest hypocrite to ever set foot into a WWE ring.” Reigns then presented a video of a promo delivered by Cena in 2012 during his feud with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson ahead of WrestleMania XXVIII. Cena mocked Johnson for his desire to become a Hollywood actor and predicted he would never return to wrestling full-time. “On Sunday it’s going to be just like that WrestleMania, only this time he’s going to be beaten by a different Samoan,” Reigns said. He then dropped the mic, mouthed an insult in which he called Cena a bitch and walked away.

Otherwise on Monday, Nia Jax defeated Alexa Bliss via pinfall. An early appearance from Sasha Banks stopped Bliss from running away. Jax finished the non-title matchup with a Samoan drop. Bayley then made a surprise return to the Bay Area stage:

Furthermore, Sheamus and Cesaro defeated Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson via pinfall in a match that lasted nearly 20 minutes.

Neville also defeated Gran Metalik via submission. Neville ripped off Metalik’s mask and briefly exposed his face. Metalik made a moonsault attempt, but Neville hit him with two feet to the face.

Finally, Braun Strowman flattened Enzo Amore after interrupting Amore’s promo by steamrolling him on the ramp. Strowman won the match with a massive choke-slam and running power-slam.

Jason Jordan, meanwhile, got his title shot by defeating the Hardy Boyz, Matt and Jeff, as well as The Miztourage and Elias to secure a shot at the Intercontinental title against The Miz at No Mercy.

The Miz recently passed Honky Tonk Man, who holds the single longest reign as Intercontinental champion in WWE history, for the third-most combined days as IC champ. He’s also second to Chris Jericho with seven runs with that title.

NEW YORK, NY – AUGUST 23: Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns celebrate their victory at the WWE SummerSlam 2015 at Barclays Center of Brooklyn on August 23, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by JP Yim/Getty Images)

Former WWE Women’s Champion Sasha Banks has not wrestled since her stinging loss to Charlotte at SummerSlam 2016 on August 21, where Banks seemed to suffer a serious injury when her opponent dropped her from the middle rope.

WWE’s Sasha Banks Addresses SummerSlam 2016 Back Injury On Raw

The 24-year-old fought on and continued the match, although she evidently looked very weak. She managed to pull a thunderous Hurricanrana reversal on Charlotte, but was eventually unable to retain her title and needed to be helped out of the ring.

Banks’ status has remained unknown since that match, although she sent an ambiguous tweet on Labor Day (Monday) to say she would deliver some “bad news” on Monday night’s episode of Raw. 

Banks, who is nicknamed ‘The Boss,’ entered the ring in the third hour of the show and delivered an emotional speech regarding the Women’s Revolution in WWE and her role in helping the organization move on from the shameful content of the Attitude Era and the “stupid butterfly” belt.

“We did it. We finally became what we deserved all along – to be called ‘Superstars,'” Banks said. “Every time I step in this ring, I do it for every little girl, every little girl who has a dream of being something bigger. I do it for every single person who dreams of being more, that had nothing and was told they couldn’t be anything that was great in life.”

Clearly, Banks hopes to serve as a role model for young girls everywhere. Hopefully, her intended audience will take the message to heart.

Many WWE fans immediately took to social media to express their fear that the wrestler was so severely injured that they were concerned she would retire.

Fortunately for wrestling fans, it was (mostly) all a work. Dana Brooke interrupted Banks and threatened to finish her for good, but Banks responded by hitting Brooke and promising that she’d reclaim her Women’s Championship at the upcoming Clash of Champions pay-per-view event.

Finn Balor emerged as the champion of this year’s SummerSlam, which was held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 18: Sasha Banks arrives for WWE RAW at 02 Brooklyn Bowl on April 18, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images)

WWE SummerSlam 2016 took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, in front of a sold out crowd Sunday night. The excitement of the fights weren’t as high as anticipated and the two-hour pre-show before the four-hour event made it hard for the show to keep pace and continue to entertain the fans. As fans entered Barclays Center during pre-show festivities, they bought t-shirts outside and took photos with their WWE championship belts, filled with enthusiasm, but as the show wore on some of that enthusiasm turned to boredom. If you didn’t pay the $120 to get inside, you didn’t miss anything. That being said there were some twists and new titles to be fought for as Finn Bálor became the first WWE universal champion.

The kickoff show featured American Alpha, Usos, and Hype Brothers vs. Breezango, Ascension and Vaudevillans, and Sami Zayn and Neville vs. The Dudley Boyz and Cesaro vs. Sheamus. Sheamus defeated Cesaro, Sami Zayn and Neville defeated The Dudley Boz, and American Alpha, Usos, and Hype Brothers defeated Breezango, Ascension and Vaudedillans all via pinfall.

Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens defeated Enzo Amore and Big Cass via pinfall. Enzo, the New Jersey native, and Cass, the Queens native entered the arena Enzo wore Yankees pinstripes and pictures of Notorious B.I.G. on his jacket. The two quoted Frank Sinatra lyrics talked about being from the New York, even though Enzo is from just across the river. According to CBS Sports Owens and Jericho used a Pop-up Codebreaker for the pinfall.

For the women’s championship Charlotte defeated Sasha Banks via pinfall. This fight looked a little amateur and scary as Banks nearly landed head-first in the ring and could have broken her neck. Banks maneuvered a top-rope Razor’s Edge by Charlotte into a hurricanrana and on the second lock in she was able to roll Banks over and keep her shoulders pinned for a three count to take the title as new women’s champ.

Nikki Bella, returned to the ring as a surprise and was hungry for a win. Bella had neck surgery seven months ago.

Bella, Natalya and Alexa Bliss defeated Carmella, Becky Lynch & Naomi via pinfall. Lynch took control of the ring at one point in the fight and cleared it, but that was as much as she would do the rest of the fight. Bella went one-on-one with Carmella, gave her a forearm and put her in a new age Rack Attack to finish the fight.

The main event saw Brock Lesnar defeat Randy Orton via TKO. Lensar was up early, he threw Orton into the announce table on two accounts. Orton looked limp and lifeless when Lesnar was setting him up on top of an announce table and suddenly Orton hit an RKO with a crazed look in his eye. Orton and Lesnar traded an RKO and F5 but neither resulted in a three count. Lesnar jumped on Orton and used his MMA fighting style to mercilessly punch Orton. Orton started bleeding from his head from all the jabs. The referee announced a decision for Lesnar by TKO after Orton was being tended to by doctors in the ring.

AJ Styles defeated John Cena via pinfall. Styles countered an Cena Attitude Adjustment into a Pele kick and the Styles Clash for the two count. Cena gave the AA for a two count of his own, Styles missed a springboard 450 off the top rope, Cena hit a flipping pin combination, Styles gave a German suplex that translated to a facebuster. A tornado DDT and top-rope leg drop by Cena did not give him the ‘W’. Styles hit a Frankensteiner from the corner and tried to finish with his Phenomenal Forearm finisher but no dice. Cena hit his AA from the middle rope but couldn’t keep Styles down for three. Styles finally converted an AA into a Styles Clash and Phenomenal Forearm for the three count.

The Universal championship featured Finn Bálor and Seth Rollins. Bálor won via pinfall but it was a back and forth fight with some classic maneuvers. Bálor missed three straight Coup de Grace attempts and on the third attempt Rollins switched it to a Pedigree but only got a two count. Rollins climbed to the top rope to eliminate Bálor, but he missed and Bálor dropkicked him into the corner. Rollins hit a superplex, but Balor reversed another Pedigree into a stomp and dropkick landing Rollins in the corner again and hit a Coup de Grace to win.

Jon Stewart took part in his second SummerSlam in a row. He was caught talking about RAW commissioner, Stephanie McMahon, in a backstage huddle that she confronted him on, of course and got in the ring later in the show and referenced how he leveled Cena with a chair.

NEW YORK, NY – AUGUST 23: John Cena recovers from a blow during his fight against Seth Rollins at the WWE SummerSlam 2015 at Barclays Center of Brooklyn on August 23, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by JP Yim/Getty Images)