“I was in the mindset of doing things away and outside the company,” Kai said. “That’s a big deal to try and fall into that space of being mentally out of there and then Hunter sent a message, I think it was the day before, basically confirming that he loved her idea and that it was going to be Bayley, IYO and myself. Holy s***, I need to pack, because it’s the day before, and get my hair done, there’s too much to do. The day of is very chaotic, just hiding in a bus. I’ve never been in that position where I’ve had to be hidden before. I thought that was so cool, because you always see it happen with others, where they have a surprise and they’ve been hiding in the bus or wherever during the day.”

During their period of hiding, Kai recalled the group eventually being brought to Gorilla position by way of a golf cart covered by black curtains. In their official reveal, Bayley firstly confronted Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair, then introduced Kai and SKY as her new stablemates. For Bayley, it marked her first appearance since July 2021, when she sustained an ACL injury. For “The Genius of the SKY,” it marked a transformation from Io Shirai into IYO SKY.

Together, all three Damage CTRL members marched into the ring, with Belair locked as their first target. No physical action ensued, however, as Belair’s SummerSlam opponent, Becky Lynch, stepped in to even the odds.

In the months following, Kai and SKY captured the Women’s Tag Team Championships on two occasions. In 2023, Damage CTRL expanded to five member as Asuka and Kairi Sane came aboard.

As of May 2026, Damage CTRL has been disbanded, with Kai leaving WWE again in 2025 and Sane following suit last weekend.

The doom and gloom of WWE’s recent list of releases still has the community reeling. With reports this weekend still coming in over The New Day’s (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) and The MFT’s (Tonga Loa and JC Mateo) departures, it wasn’t just main event Superstars and developmental talents that were let go recently. Even those behind the camera were laid off, too.

Spending a quarter-century with WWE, former television producer and director Gavin O’Shea announced on his LinkedIn page that he is no longer with the Stamford-based promotion. Like many, O’Shea mentioned that a long-standing piece of his identity is gone and shattered. However, despite this unfortunate and life-changing news, he’s learning how to turn a bad situation into something good, as he provided an insightful message about his release.

“Here’s what I’m learning in real time: Your job is something you do — not who you are. Setbacks can create space for better opportunities. Resilience isn’t a buzzword — it’s a skill you build through moments like this,” he wrote.

While it might take some time for him to get back on the horse that bucked him , O’Shea is looking forward towards what the future will bring, as he asked anyone reading his post to reach out with future opportunities. According to his page, O’Shea graduated with his communications degree in 2001 at University of Connecticut. From there, he went on to intern for the “Today Show” on NBC for four months before joining WWE as its production manager.

Over the last five years or so, it’s become more common to compare professional wrestling to “cinema,” with Paul Heyman previously using the term to describe WWE’s Bloodline saga. According to AEW President Tony Khan, another storyline that hits a little closer to home has a similar pedigree. Appearing on “Marking Out with MVP,” Khan said that the matches between Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada in New Japan Pro-Wrestling remind him of a classic pair of films.

“It is something to me like when I watch ‘The Godfather,’ and I think that, ‘This is so perfect and I could watch this over and over and over again,'” Khan said. “And then they actually went out and managed to make a movie with ‘Godfather 2’ of the same standard and that complements the original – they go together so well. That’s the rivalry between Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada.”

To date, Omega and Okada have wrestled five singles matches. The first four took place in NJPW in 2017 and 2018, and the two then followed it up in AEW last year, wrestling their fifth singles bout at All In Texas. As of right now, they are tied at two wins a piece and one time-limit draw. According to Khan, each match was as exciting as the original.

“They made this incredible, incredible match that, to me, is like ‘The Godfather.’ It’s the perfect match,” he continued. “And then they’ve gone out and with their rivalry, they’ve managed to maintain that level of perfection and do something that is not repetitive, it’s complementary. And that is the standard of Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit X and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Two weeks ago at WrestleMania, Seth Rollins failed to defeat GUNTHER due to interference from a returning Bron Breakker, who speared “The Visionary” outside of the squared circle, allowing “The Ring General” to capitalize and eventually win with a sleeper hold. Going into the match, Rollins had just underwent surgery after hurting his shoulder last October, but it seems like Breakker’s involvement caused him to pick up another injury.

Speaking on “The Rich Eisen Show,” Rollins shared that he somehow sustained a black eye when Breakker speared him at WrestleMania, and claimed that the 28-year-old is unaware of is own speed when performing his finishing move.

“Through the morning makeup, the shining might be coming through,” Rollins said. “Bron Breakker, yeah, it was his foot. His foot gave it to me when he speared me. Figure that out … This lunatic came so fast down the ramp when he flipped as he speared me. His foot hit me in the eye. I was on the ground writhing in pain because I couldn’t breathe, wondering why my eye was also swelling. That man has a real problem. He does not know his own speed, his own strength. He’s on autopilot in the scariest way.”

In nine days, Rollins and Breakker will go one-on-one for the second time in history at WWE Backlash. Unless Breakker has a match on this Monday’s “WWE Raw,” Backlash will mark his first match since the Royal Rumble this past January, as he was out of action for three months in order to have surgery for a serious hernia.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “The Rich Eisen Show” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

The guns were up and blazing in Peoria, Illinois, this past Saturday on “AEW Collision,” when Colten Gunn made his long-awaited return to AEW moments after Juice Robinson and Ace Austin were victorious in their tag team match against The Death Riders’ Daniel Garcia and Wheeler Yuta.

Upset that they came up short compared to the rest of their Death Rider cohorts earlier Saturday evening, the group led a vicious attack on The Bang Bang Gang, until The Gunns (Austin and Colten) ran down to even the odds. After clearing most of the Death Riders out of the ring, the former AEW World Tag Team Champions were left standing across the ring from Jon Moxley. Just as they were about to provide Moxley with a receipt, Marina Shafir came in and made the save. All four members of the Bang Bang Gang celebrated in the ring, as this was the first time they’ve all been together collectively since Colten ripped his patella in half last July.

GUNNS UP! Former AEW World Tag Team Champions @ColtenGunn + @TheAustinGunn are back! 👆👆

Watch #AEWCollision LIVE on TNT + HBO Max pic.twitter.com/3t7t72L9qH

— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) May 3, 2026

Post-match, the “Collision Cowboys” continued partying. Colten spoke of his injury, stating that doctors told him it would take nine months to a year before he could get in a ring. He proudly noted, “No chance!” Meanwhile, Robinson was hyperfocused on the announcement made after his match that he’ll square off with Jon Moxley in a Continental Championship Eliminator Match this Wednesday, as part of AEW’s three-hour block of television programming. This will be the second time these two have faced one another in singles competition in AEW. Their decorated rivalry spans back seven years ago, where in his first New Japan Pro Wrestling match, Moxley dethroned Robinson from the now defunct IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship on June 5, 2019, as part of the Best of the Super Junior 26 finals.

While the gang is running wild after Colten’s return, there’s still one missing piece: “Switchblade” Jay White. As of this report, White still hasn’t been cleared, and won’t be “imminently.” The first-ever and former NJPW Grand Slam Champion paid his respects to Hiroshi Tanahashi this past January as part of “The Ace’s” retirement match at Wrestle Kingdom 20. It was his first public appearance since announcing he’d be out of action to repair his hand and undergo shoulder surgery in April of 2025.