Liger plans retirement, NJPW honors Bundy, WM36 location and press conference, bizarre AWA hidden gem, Fastlane to have watch party, Cornette-MLW update, former world champion joins WWE Creative, new Double or Nothing battle royal participant, The Destroyer passes, original DIY plans, next Takeover special shifting around, MLW expanding, Lucha Bros-Mexico update, Jungle Boy pulls off shows, Japanese talent set for Impact show, LU contract update, Roman's schedule update, Cody discusses AEW, unreleased NES wrestling game found, Undertaker and Kane pulled from charity event, more Total Divas names, new Supercard match, Liger booked for WM weekend, NXT live event notes including debut and surprise appearances, and Questions on Prichard's WWE role, JR leaving WWE, and Liger's retirement

Jushin "Thunder" Liger has announced he will retire at Wrestle Kingdom 14 in January, when he will be 55. Liger intends to wrestle all over the world for NJPW before that date. That will definitely be a significant career coming to an end. He's contributed decades worth of memories to the business inside and outside Japan.

King Kong Bundy had a NJPW match released in memoriam. I'm glad they tributed him.

WrestleMania 36 was officially announced for Tampa, Florida on April 5, 2020. I expect WWE has shied away from running the area in the past since they have run Orlando and Miami. Florida really has a lot going for them for holding wrestling events.

- WWE followed this with a press release.

WWE Network's Hidden Gems has added an AWA special from May 1, 1989 focusing on cereal mascots. That's one of the most bizarre things I've ever seen.

WWE live-streamed their WrestleMania 36 press conference:
- Hogan being involved here is big.

- Hahahahaha Hogan pitching about beating Rock. I love it. I wish he would have teased facing Cena or something, too.

- Cool acknowledgment of the FCW days.

- Haha I love Roman pointing out his big wins.

- It's notable Vince McMahon didn't speak.

Fastlane will feature a live watch party with Pat McAfee and a slew of WWE guests on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. That's pretty cool!

Jim Cornette discussed rejoining MLW on his latest podcast, saying he has not signed a contract and is currently only working through WrestleMania weekend. Sounds like MLW is just trying him out at the desk. That's for the best.

Jeff Jarrett has joined WWE's Creative team as a full-time executive. He's really become an important part of the company very quickly. I'm curious how his role changes the culture of the company.

Double or Nothing's Over the Budget Battle Royal has added MLW's Ace Romero. What's at stake in that match has yet to be announced.

WWN has already announced WrestleMania 36 weekend plans in Tampa from April 2 through April 4. Amazing!

"The Destroyer" Dick Beyer passed away at 88. PWInsider.com covered his career. He made a measurable impact on the business for many years.

- WWE.com also remembered him.

DIY was originally going to be in the Raw tag team championship match at Fastlane. Aleister Black and Ricochet have taken that spot.

NXT is considering a June Takeover special. However, it could be moved to a different date between WrestleMania and Summerslam.

MLW is adding more producers as they expect to have more programming soon with additional TV deals.

The Lucha Bros are not scheduled to work CMLL going forward due to the pair appearing on AAA's TV show. CMLL is worried AAA will have issues with them being used on CMLL's TV as well. That definitely hurts CMLL.

Jungle Boy has pulled out of bookings on March 13 and March 29 following his father's death. He's obviously going through a lot right now.

Impact has added Dragon Gate's Yamato to United We Stand, challenging Rich Swann for the X-Division Championship. Impact is working with a lot of people from a lot of companies on that show. It should be special.

LU is allowing XO Licious/Sonny Kiss to work AEW while under contract to them. He is still part of the project as it hypothetically plans a fifth season.

Roman Reigns is expected to have a full-time WWE schedule once the company tours Europe in May. Right now, he's just set for TV tapings and PPVs.

Cody discussed AEW and more with the New York Post:
- I continue to think there are current and former names worth pursuing on top of names we haven't seen before. Of course it should come down to what they can bring to the table long-term in each case.

- Honestly Impact is focusing on a number of key talents these days and building around that, too. It's had its pros and cons.

- I definitely don't think The Elite are pushing themselves beyond their abilities. Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks are very big stars.

- Interesting idea to go back to squash matches. Will fans be OK with that on TV in the years to come?

- I'm very glad AEW isn't just trying to take shots at WWE.

- Interesting thoughts about not running WM weekend. We'll see if that changes in 2020.

- I'll be very interested to see how Jericho fares. Jericho very much wants to do his own thing, which he's earned the right to do, but he's signed a long-term AEW deal and he's not going to be able to work WWE for a number of years.

- I like AEW being able to change the wrestling business in a lot of ways.

An unreleased NES wrestling game was uncovered, featuring a number of wrestling legends.

The Undertaker and Kane will no longer appear at an April charity event. That was a MASSIVE expense the promoter took on without being able to deliver.

"Total Divas" will feature Liv Morgan and The IIconics, as they joined previously announced stars in recent filming.

G1 Supercard has added Taiji Ishimori vs. Bandido vs. Dragon Lee for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. That's definitely massive.

Jushin "Thunder" Liger has been announced for WrestleCon's Supershow.

At NXT's March 7 Florida live event:
- ACH debuted as Albert Hardie, losing to Raul Mendoza
- Brennan Williams and Stacey Ervin Jr. teamed in a loss to The Forgotten Sons' Steve Cutler and Wesley Blake. So, Williams and Ervin could end up becoming a more regular team.
- Sasha Banks and Bayley cut a promo about their tag team championship. They would then save the Sky Pirates (Kairi Sane and Io Shirai) from a beatdown by Rhea Ripley, Reina Gonzales, Aliyah, and Vanessa Borne as a triple threat tag match became a no contest when those four ganged up on the faces.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I'm under the impression he started as a consultant but is now a full-time important figure in Creative.

2. Jim Ross wants to be in a more prominent role than WWE is using him in. I agree with their decision to focus on younger people. I hope AEW does the same in the commentary both. As someone with a ton of respect for all Ross has accomplished, it's time to focus on a newer generation. I understand wanting to use him for documentaries and the like, but I don't see a need to keep him under contract for occasional sound bites.

3. I'm pleasantly surprised he has lasted as long as he has and continued to be such a presence in wrestling for decades. If he thinks it's time to wrap things up at 55, I can't fault him! He'll leave behind an amazing legacy few can come close to.

4. Oh God now people are going to try to find him at that airport. I don't have any further information.

Nothing to add to 5.

More wrestling tomorrow.