G1 Supercard has added Sumie Sakai, Hana Kimura, and Stella Grey vs. Jenny Rose and Oedo Tai. This is expected to air on ROH TV.
G1 Supercard's gate will be the largest for any non-WWE North American show in history. I'm curious if/when AEW will be able to top it.
Lars Sullivan is expected back in WWE soon. That's good to hear. I hope he's in a good place in ready to do something big.
Once Smackdown Live moves to Fridays, the brand will tour Thursdays through Sundays, while Raw will continue to run Friday through Monday.
WWE's Saudi Arabian show for May 3 has been moved. It's now expected on June 7. This is believed to be a logistical move. Notably June 8 is Takeover: San Jose, so two separate production crews will be needed that weekend.
- The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar were scheduled for the May 3 event. We'll see if either or both compete if the show is in June.
- Raw and Smackdown Live do not have any live events set from April 30 through May 5 due to this planned trip, so WWE will either put together a tour on short notice or talent will get a rare week off after WrestleMania.
- A November 1 show is also advertised for Saudi Arabia.
WWE is planning international tours for:
- South America from August 22 through September 8
- The Philippines on September 20
- China on September 21
- Australia from October 21 through October 23
- Mexico on November 30 and December 1
Royal Rumble 2020 will not have Raw and Smackdown Live in the same market, as has been the norm for "Big Four" PPVs lately. Takeover, however, will also be in Houston.
AAA is planning a Colombian tour for later this year. They drew 8,000 fans there in November, so I see why they're looking to repeat the success.
The Lucha Bros have canceled CMLL dates going forward. They might be AAA-exclusive in Mexico from now on. The pair had definitely helped CMLL attendance, so that could be a blow.
Cain Velasquez will likely work a tag match at TripleMania. AAA recruited him to attract an outside audience, as the show could air on Mexican TV in primetime. This could be a big moment for AAA.
Michael Elgin has spoken with WWE, so that could be his next career move. It was his call to not remain with NJPW; they're open to him returning.
Tetsuya Naito competed in Costa Rica recently. The show's expected to air on New Japan World.
Viceland has four more episodes of "Dark Side of the Ring" for a potential second season, including one on Chris Benoit. I'd think that one would be pretty big.
Jody Kristofferson has returned to the ring following a broken neck.
Jungle Boy is scheduled for an April 27 event. I'm glad he's able to get back to work.
In a correction from a recent story, AEW is not using Impact's Ace Austin in the Over the Budget battle royal. They're using Ace Romero. Obviously those two should work together as a pair of Aces, though.
Arkansas is looking to deregulate wrestling in rural towns in order to get more shows in smaller markets. The House of Representatives passed a bill 92-0 to do that, and it will now move to their Senate.
ECW alum Ulf Hermann is coming out of retirement for a UK match on June 7.
G1 Supercard's Bully Ray vs. Juice Robinson match could be turned into a tag match in order to get more people on the card.
Chris Jericho will no longer have WWE-contracted talent on his podcast, for the obvious reason.
Kurt Angle and Brutus Beefcake have been added to Starrcast, fresh off appearing WrestleMania weekend. We'll see if that means a Baron Corbin win.
WWE's Middle Eastern TV partner has shut down, so WWE is looking at other homes there.
John Cena is scheduled for a one-man show on April 25.
Canadian football player James Wilder, Jr. is getting a WWE tryout.
A WWE Hall of Fame special will air on USA Network after Raw. It's set for one hour.
Wrestling's TV and streaming future was covered by New York Post. It's pretty fascinating, with a lot of significant names weighing in.
Paul Heyman is set for Monday's Raw. We could see his client there, too, regardless of WM35's outcome. It's possible Heyman remains in the company without Brock should Lesnar go to UFC.
NXT will tape its 500th episode before Takeover, with Candice LeRae vs. Aliyah and the Street Proftis vs. Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel.
Big Show is also in the vicinity of WrestleMania 35, so he could end up back in the ring soon, as well. His last match was in November.
The WWE Performance Center had Ace Steel as a guest coach this week.
Goldust discussed WrestleMania 12's Hollywood Backlot Brawl. I'd love to see The Miz and Shane McMahon do something similar.
Rob Van Dam appeared on Taz's CBS Sports Radio show.
The Usos have signed new WWE contracts. It's currently unknown how long the deals lock them into the company for, but this means they won't be leaving for AEW or elsewhere.
Jim Ross has signed with AEW as expected, for three years as a senior advisor.
AEW has announced the hirings of:
- Alicia Atout as backstage interviewer, which she did at All In and recently did at Impact
- Excalibur and Alex Marvez as commentators
- Justin Roberts as ring announcer
-- Glad to see those names in the mix.
Rob Van Dam has signed with Impact Wrestling to appear on upcoming tapings beginning the day after Rebellion. Van Dam discussed this and more in an interview:
- I could see the deal going through Slammiversary with an option to continue through Bound For Glory. He definitely doesn't want to work full-time for long.
- RVD's shot at people taking his moves was classic Van Dam.
- Yes, WWE would definitely want to use him more than a Brock schedule.
- RVD, like a lot of wrestlers, benefits when he's one of the key "name" talents around instead of swimming around with a lot of other major players.
- Impact doesn't need to worry about competing with anyone. They need to focus on growing their business before even considering a "war."
- Yeah getting car rentals and hotels in your contract is a lot easier when you have the leverage of an RVD and can get booked well elsewhere.
- I'm pleasantly surprised he sees WWE's viewpoint of why they didn't treat him as a centerpiece star.
- RVD being in Impact is definitely a change, but nostalgia has a shelf life. We'll see how things work with him there.
Sasha Banks put over Amazing Red. I'm glad he's had a legacy beyond his own ring work, since we haven't gotten to see him on TV much.
WrestleMania 35 Kickoff will feature both battle royal matches and (you guessed it) the cruiserweight championship match. I'm a little surprised the SNL involvement won't be on the main show.
Smackdown drew 2.14 million viewers Tuesday, notably down from last week's 2.39 million viewers. We'll see how much of a boost the post-WM35 shows get. WWE shows could use an increase.
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon spoke at the CAA World Congress of Sports.
Rhyno revealed his WWE contract expires in mid-July in an interview about his boating business:
- Kind of funny to think about Rhyno owning a boating marina, but I'm glad he's got a venture that (presumably) doesn't revolve around being slammed around.
- Heck it might work out better for him to be independent so he can focus on that company and take bookings when he's available.
- Wow. Wrestling until he's 51 or more is an interesting goal now that he's got this lined up.
- We'll see what WWE thinks they can get out of him going forward as we approach mid-July. Obviously they're not doing much with him now. His last TV appearance was in December.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I don't see Corbin being destroyed by an older Angle, and I don't see Corbin turning the match down, but there's a possibility of an Angle/Cena match. Cena is still expected to have a match on the show, and that one's an obvious move.
2. I wouldn't assume this will be a permanent thing, since he's only 35. Honestly I wouldn't consider him teaming with Nicholas a comedy segment. Braun destroyed The Bar and let Nicholas get the pin. It wasn't like the whole match was lighthearted. We'll see what happens with the SNL duo.
3. My guess is it's a reference to the phrase involved, with there being more than one way to get back in the ring, some of which are much easier than that!
4. The major reason for the brand split is WWE having so many talents and only so many TV spots. I don't think Kofi Kingston would be in a WWE Championship program if Brock held the only title! I think WWE is playing looser with the brand split since "the McMahons are in charge of both shows now" and stars can be moved across brands more easily. The brand split can definitely work, and I don't think it's the core of the problem.
5. I'd say they largely need to focus on making their own identity instead of trying to recreate what worked ten or more years ago. That's definitely been a stumbling block for wrestling companies in recent years. So far they seem to get that idea. I agree with not focusing on creative styles from decades past, but that's hardly just a Russo thing. I'd extend it to Cornette and others, too.
More wrestling tomorrow.
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