WWE Has Completed TV & WrestleMania Tapings Through April 6

In spite of the COVID-19 epidemic, WWE has been taking precautions. Television and WrestleMania tapings were completed this week on a closed set. As a result, this leaves WWE with enough content to last through the Raw broadcast on April 6.

Tapings were already underway when the Orange County government declared a ‘shelter in place’ order. Additionally, that order went into effect Thursday night and runs through April 9.

Two shows without live coverage are the April 8 broadcast of NXT and the April 10 broadcast of SmackDown.

WrestleMania and TV tapings

Most of the matches for WrestleMania were taped Wednesday and Thursday at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando. Television filming also took place between the Performance Center and Full Sail University in Winter Park, according to the recent edition of Dave Meltzer’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter (subscription required).

Some bouts will be done live

Meltzer reports that a few bouts will be done on location. One of these matches includes a ‘boneyard match’ between The Undertaker and AJ Styles. In addition, match stipulations have been under wraps, but it’s possible it could be taped in a mock cemetery setting.

WrestleMania card subject to change…talent off the card

At least two WWE talents are not on the WrestleMania card as a result of possible COVID-19 symptoms.

Dana Brooke was to fight in a six-pack match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship against defending champion Bayley. She was under examination by medical staff during the March 20 taping at the Performance Center. As a result, Brooke was requested to return home and quarantine herself. Additionally, the match has been modified to be a fatal five-way match for the title.

Rey Mysterio cited he thought he was experiencing some symptoms and chose to remain under quarantine at home in California as a result.

Sources close to the situation state that Roman Reigns may be off the card, but has not been confirmed at publication.

Above all, no one on the roster currently has tested positive.

Confidential sources reported to Meltzer that multiple people stating they were sick, who weren’t sick but had fevers over 100.4 or just didn’t feel comfortable flying in.

Jerry “The King” Lawler was told to stay home. However, WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon, who is four years older, was presiding over the shows.

WWE had told people that if they don’t want to come, they don’t have to come. Additionally, opting not to come would not be affect pushes or future bookings.

Matches scratched, not happening

The men’s and women’s battle royals are no longer on the card. The key reason for the decision: it would involve too many people together all at once in the ring.

If Reigns is out, the WWE Universal Championship match between Reigns and Bill Goldberg will not be happening as a result.

Matches still slated

WWE Raw currently still has the following matches on the card:

WWE Championship: Brock Lesnar (c) v. Drew McIntyre
Last Man Standing: Edge v. Randy Orton
Raw Women’s Championship: Becky Lynch (c) v. Shayna Baszler
NXT Women’s Championship: Rhea Ripley (c) v. Charlotte Flair
Boneyard Match: The Undertaker v. AJ Styles
Kevin Owens v. Seth Rollins
Raw Tag Team Championship: Street Profits (c) v. Andrade Almas & Angel Garza
Aleister Black v. Bobby Lashley

WWE SmackDown currently has the following matches on the card:

John Cena v. Bray Wyatt
SmackDown Women’s Championship: Bayley (c) v. Lacey Evans v. Tamina v. Naomi v. Sasha Banks
SmackDown Tag Team Championship: The Miz & John Morrison (c) v. winner of Friday’s match between The New Day and The Usos
Elias v. Baron Corbin

Matches scheduled, but not announced

There are currently three additional matches pending booking:

Otis v. Dolph Ziggler (rumored stipulation surrounding Mandy Rose)
Kabuki Warriors v. Nikki Cross & Alexa Bliss v. Natalya Neidhart & Beth Phoenix
Intercontinental Championship: Sami Zayn (c) v. Daniel Bryan (rumored, not confirmed)
- Rumored stipulation: Drew Gulak would need to win against Shinsuke Nakamura on Friday’s Smackdown for Bryan to get a title shot as a result

Confusion regarding PPV pricing

Meltzer reports there’s advertising in some places listing the price for the April 4 night one show at $9.99 and the April 5 main show at $59.99. In other words, it is uncertain if this is a mistake.

NXT plans for April 1 & 8 shows

WWE was able to tape multiple NXT episodes at Full Sail University, allowing for several weeks of content to be available.

Planned matches for TakeOver will air on April 1, with the following card:

NXT North American Championship: Keith Lee (c) v. Dominik Dijakovic v. Damien Priest
Gauntlet Match: Xia Li v. Deonna Purrazzo v. Dakota Kai v. Aliyah v. Kayden Carter v. Shotzi Blackheart
- Stipulation: winner of the match will be the final entry of the ladder match the following week as a result

After that, these are the matches for the April 8 show:

Johnny Gargano v. Tommaso Ciampa
Women’s Ladder Match: Chelsea Green v. Mia Yim v. Tegan Nox v. Io Shirai v. Candice LeRae v. TBD (gauntlet winner)

As a result of the programming shuffle, the April 26 NXT TakeOver show has been rescheduled. Therefore, the event scheduled to take place at the 3A Arena in Dublin, Ireland will now take place on October 25.