The clumsy conclusion to the Undisputed WWE Championship match between Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens on last week&#8217;s SmackDown was far from what was written, with backstage personnel describing the planned finish as &#8220;absolutely blundered.&#8221;
WWE&#8217;s scripted direction called for CM Punk to strike Owens with the WWE Title, allowing Zayn to hook the leg for a decisive three-count and immediately draw the curtains on the bout.
Instead, Owens had to kick out when the bell didn&#8217;t ring, which forced Zayn to quickly improvise by delivering a Helluva Kick to secure the win.
According to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select, the chaotic mistake caused significant frustration behind the scenes, with several figures feeling the accidental ad-lib blunted the impact of Punk&#8217;s outside interference, which was supposed to be the central takeaway of the entire storyline.

WWE Officials Upset After What Happened On SmackDown

WWE is rolling out a massive behind-the-scenes upgrade by replacing its long-running fleet of television production trucks after relying on the same vehicles for well over 10 years.
Manufactured in Pennsylvania by N.E.P. Integration, three state-of-the-art mobile units are set to hit the road from city to city each week, carrying an eye-popping price tag estimated between $12 million and $15 million per truck, according to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select.
These traveling studios act as the true nerve center for every live WWE broadcast, housing the crew and cutting-edge tech responsible for piecing together live camera angles, instant replays, on-screen graphics, and entrance videos that fans see on their screens.

Massive Production Upgrade Underway In WWE

A growing wave of concern is sweeping through both the backstage locker room and WWE’s corporate headquarters in Stamford, with employees asking management whether Crown Jewel on November 7 in Riyadh will be changed, moved, or delayed.
According to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select, many regulars who consistently make the long overseas trip to Saudi Arabia are actively questioning the trip behind closed doors due to regional conflicts and mounting travel risks.
Despite the widespread worry from staff and talent wondering what precautions are being taken, company executives have not yet sent out any official updates or directly addressed the situation with the traveling crew.

Rising Internal Concern In WWE Over Saudi Arabia Trip For Crown Jewel 2026

Drawing over 3 million views for the September 14th episode of RAW from Mexico City left both WWE and Netflix executives thrilled, especially since the show went head-to-head against the typically brutal ratings competition of opening week for NFL Monday Night Football.
The impressive turnout proved that high-stakes, international broadcasts can easily hold their own against major sports programming.
Driven by that huge success, Netflix is now pushing WWE to load up its weekly broadcasts with even bigger main events and marquee superstars more often to keep that momentum rolling on the streaming platform, according to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select.

What Netflix Wants WWE To Do After RAW’s Success In Mexico City

WWE is keeping Seth Rollins on the sidelines for now simply so creative can wait for the ideal moment to reintroduce him.
Fans should not have to wait too long to see him back on TV, but his short-term schedule has seen some adjustments after original ideas for him to appear at Money In The Bank were taken off the table, according to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select.
A similar cloud of doubt hangs over CM Punk as well, with internal discussions initially pointing toward him wrestling on the October 10th PLE before those plans became far less certain, leaving the exact roles for both marquee names up in the air as the event approaches.

Money In The Bank Plans Possibly Changed For 2 WWE Stars

The positive fan reaction to Penta&#8217;s clash with Roman Reigns on RAW in Mexico City has caused WWE writers to completely rethink their upcoming storylines.
While their recent World Heavyweight Championship main event was originally treated backstage as a one-time encounter, creative team members now feel a second bout makes total sense from both a storytelling and business perspective.
According to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select, that sudden shift has directly changed the landscape for the upcoming Money In The Bank Ladder Match as well.
Heading out of SummerSlam, WWE had an entirely different path mapped out for the briefcase, but WWE officials now view Penta as a leading candidate to win the match, which would hand him the perfect storytelling tool to go right back after The OTC for a high-stakes title rematch.

Current Favorite To Win Men’s Money In The Bank 2026

AEW star MJF has been ranked No. 1 on Pro Wrestling Illustrated&#8217;s annual Top 500 list for 2026.
Here&#8217;s what he said about this accomplishment during an interview with PWI&#8217;s Lyric Swinton:
&#8220;My first thought was, &#8216;What took so long?&#8217; And then my second thought was, &#8216;Some people are slow learners.&#8217; But we got there. We got to where we needed to be. We got MJF to the No.1 spot. Is there an argument it should have happened a long time ago? Sure. People are talking about it, but that&#8217;s fine.
I think the biggest thing for me is when you think about all the people who have won the No.1 spot, how many people have won the No.1 spot not just under the AEW banner, but under a banner that isn&#8217;t WWE? The list is really, really small.
So to me, it&#8217;s a very high honor and I feel that the only reason professional wrestlers will ever claim they don&#8217;t care is because deep down, they know they&#8217;re not good enough to win it.
I don&#8217;t want to give anything away, but just know, whenever I come back, because I&#8217;m waiting for the right time and the right moment, whenever I come back, just know that the PWI cover is not going to be far behind. I&#8217;m going to be shoving this down everybody&#8217;s throats for as long as humanly possible.&#8221;
MJF also tweeted: &#8220;The best professional wrestler in the world.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="525" data-dnt="true">
The best professional wrestler in the world. <a href="https://t.co/mZze7wMay2">https://t.co/mZze7wMay2</a>
&mdash; Maxwell Jacob Friedman™️ (@The_MJF) <a href="https://x.com/The_MJF/status/2103119333354328443?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The top 10 is as follows:
1. MJF
2. Cody Rhodes
3. CM Punk
4. Mistico
5. Konosuke Takeshita
6. &#8220;Hangman&#8221; Adam Page
7. Yota Tsuji
8. Trick Williams
9. Oba Femi
10. Gunther
PWI ranks wrestlers based on in-ring achievement, influence, technical ability, competition faced, and activity level:
In-Ring Achievement: Win-Loss records, championships held or defended, and tournament victories.
Competition: Success against the highest grade and most diverse pool of opponents.
Technical Ability: In-ring skill, quality of moves, match performance, and storytelling prowess.
Influence: Star power, visibility, prominence, and overall prestige within a promotion and the industry.
Activity: A wrestler must compete in a minimum of 10 singles (non-tag) matches during the evaluation period, or alternatively, wrestle at least one singles match in six separate months. Wrestlers who fail to meet this baseline are automatically disqualified.

WWE Officials Upset After What Happened On SmackDown

Massive Production Upgrade Underway In WWE

Rising Internal Concern In WWE Over Saudi Arabia Trip For Crown Jewel 2026

What Netflix Wants WWE To Do After RAW’s Success In Mexico City

Money In The Bank Plans Possibly Changed For 2 WWE Stars

Current Favorite To Win Men’s Money In The Bank 2026

MJF Comments On Ranking No.1 On PWI 500