Jungle Boy spoke to Entertainment Tonight about honoring his father.
Big Show is starring in a Netflix series that begins filming right before Summerslam. Interestingly the show's synopsis refers to him as retired. He is still under WWE contract.
Santino Marella will work DDT's August 25 event. That will be interesting.
Ember Moon was at Gen Con in Indiana.
Hulk Hogan is on Stone Cold's latest podcast. The two of them discussed why a match between them never happened. It's really cool to see them look back and make amends.
Jungle Boy has been added to Battle of Los Angeles. I really wonder what the series looks like next year if there's no AEW involvement.
AEW's October 2 TV taping will feature Cody vs. Sammy Guevara.
Monday's Raw drew 2.32 million viewers. So, if you're wondering how many casual viewers stuck around after Raw Reunion, the answer is none.
Smackdown Live was completely rewritten Tuesday. WWE had initially advertised Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville vs. The IIconics, as well as Big E and Xavier Woods vs. Drew McIntyre and Elias. The latter match was changed to an announced six-man tag between New Day and all three members of The O.C., which was also dropped. I don't think it's a stretch to say constant changes are part of the reason the audience level is down.
ROH and CMLL have announced Global Wars Espectacular for the following dates:
- September 6 in Michigan
- September 7 in Illinois
- September 8 in Wisconsin
-- CMLL talent booked for the tour include:
- Caristico (only for September 7 and September 8)
- Volador, Jr.
- Stuka, Jr.
- Triton
- Barbaro Cavernario
- Hechicero
- Rey Bucanero
- Okumura
-- It looks like the ROH/CMLL partnership is strengthening, which is good with NJPW doing their own U.S. tours without ROH.
Becky Lynch discussed working with Seth Rollins and more:
- It's definitely tougher to do Evolution without the draw of Ronda being there.
- I also think they've gone a little heavy on the "these two are dating" thing, although I've generally liked the pairing.
Killer Kross has been booked for Bloodsport II. He'll fit right in there.
AEW has signed Marko Stunt. Not especially surprising given his appearances there. The company has definitely built up a notable roster.
Heavy Machinery defeated The B-Team before Smackdown Live for the third straight week.
Bayley defeated Charlotte Flair after Smackdown Live to retain the Smackdown Women's Championship for the second straight week.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Previously the MYC has been used to sign new women's wrestlers. I'd say they've already got quite a few under contract now and don't really need to do another one unless it's largely made of people they've already signed and are just looking to give an opportunity to.
2. There's nothing to indicate AAA is pulling out of the show; it's been something they've wanted to do for decades. And yes, that could definitely be a match that sells tickets, but AEW wants to sell tickets for their own upcoming TV tapings more importantly than AAA's event. AEW wisely wouldn't run Madison Square Garden the same night WWE has a PPV in a different market, so they're staying out of this one.
3. I wouldn't be surprised to see Maria continue to appear for a while; Paul Heyman is strongly in her corner. She almost certainly won't be taking bumps, though.
4. As I've said, the show is ALL ELITE WRESTLING. It makes sense for The Elite to be front-and-center, since they're the ones who drew interest for the product to come together in the first place. And it's not like Omega, Cody, and the Bucks weren't prominent stars in other promotions before making their own. That said, we definitely are going to need to see other stars developed in the months and years to come. I expect that will happen.
5. Honestly even before that win he was HoF-worthy as something of a lifetime achievement award. That win should solidify it, though.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Interviews with Jungle/Hogan/Becky, Show gets Netflix show, Santino working Japan, Ember appearance, another AEW star in BOLA, AEW TV match, Raw rating, SDL rewritten, ROH+CMLL tour, Impact star working Bloodsport, AEW signing, SDL dark matches, and Questions on the MYC returning, AEW helping AAA, AEW pushing the BTE crew, and Kofi in the HoF
Smackdown Live and 205 Live Reax - 7/30/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Smackdown Live and 205 Live.
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
MLW name working NOAH tournament, Supercard adds title match, Renee addresses critics, more Lacey vs. Alundra, more Twitter angles, Rock shares Roman filming story, AEW taping perk, Lawler suing for wrongful death, WWE names at Sammartino fundraiser, NXT announcer hired at ESPN, AEW signs interviewer, new NXT tour, former Impact+ROH name at WWEPC, Interviews with Natalya/Cedric, NXT name wants to use Tazmission, HHH birthday press, Blink-182 in Janela video, another company coming to WWE Network, Impact signs former WWE star, and Questions on WWE's response to DUIs, WWE helping others with live events, Bray being face while The Fiend is heel, and Punk's relationship with AEW
MLW's Alex Hammerstone has entered Pro Wrestling NOAH's N-1 Victory Tournament, formerly known as the Global League.
Summer Supercard has added Shane Taylor vs. Tracy Williams for the ROH Television Championship. That could be really enjoyable.
Renee Young tweeted about her current commentary skills. I'm glad she was frank about where she is right now, although of course she doesn't "need" to respond to any online criticism.
Lacey Evans continued to feud with Alundra Blayze on Twitter. If this isn't leading to anything, I hope I don't have to keep hearing about it.
Kofi Kingston continued his worked shoot with Randy Orton. For anyone who doesn't get the context, years back in a match, Orton was setting up for a punt on Kofi and Kofi prepared to take an RKO. Orton kept trying to push him down into punt position, but Kofi continued to set up to take an RKO. Orton wasn't pleased the match ended that way. Here's a clip of a lot of it.
Natalya did a worked shoot of her own against Becky Lynch. It's insane they're doing "hey I had to fart with Hornswoggle but I'm also using your TV name." Although of course using Becky's real name would be even dumber. This whole direction is terrible and, again, if it wasn't a Paul Heyman thing everyone would be up in arms about it.
The Rock shared a story of Roman Reigns knocking out a cameraman during filming "Hobbs & Shaw." That could have really ended badly.
AEW's first TV taping will feature special take-home chairs for the first three rows. That's pretty cool.
Jerry Lawler is suing for the alleged wrongful death of his son. Note this article features details of suicide: Link to more details of lawsuit.
Bruno Sammartino's fundraiser this weekend will feature Mick Foley, Jerry Lawler, Corey Graves, Billy Gunn, Darby Allin, Brian Pillman, Jr., and more.
Pat McAfee has been signed by ESPN for Thursday Night College Football. It looks like he will continue on in WWE.
AEW has signed Chris Van Vliet as a backstage interviewer. That's great! He's worked hard to get there.
NXT has announced live events for:
- September 26 in Iowa
- September 27 and September 28 in Missouri
- September 29 in Mississippi
Chris Sabin is at the WWE Performance Center this week as a guest coach. He last wrestled in January for ROH; his contract has since expired and he is recovering from injury.
Natalya promoted Raw locally.
Taz and NXT's Dominik Dijakovic discussed the latter using The Tazmission. Yeah, this definitely should be handled privately rather than through public tweets.
Triple H's 50th birthday bash got press in Yahoo. That's definitely pretty cool.
Cedric Alexander is on the latest Swerve City Podcast.
Blink-182 appeared in an AEW video of Joey Janela fighting Jimmy Havoc and Darby Allin. OK, that's hilarious to play off the Janela-Enzo incident.
ICW's weekly show is believed to be coming to WWE Network, as it appears as a search term on the updated version. Fans are sharp at finding that kind of thing.
Tenille Dashwood has signed with Impact Wrestling. I'm a little surprised AEW didn't pick her up.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It's not "we don't care" as much as "we can't control what our independent contracts do when they're not at work." They should definitely help talents who are having issues with that kind of thing, although there's only so much WWE can do for adults in their private lives.
2. They've got plenty of live events to do on their own right now! I doubt they have staff and time to spare.
3. I see it as a case of Bray more or less wanting to have reformed from his dark side, but it's still there and comes out in certain moments. Either that or the whole nice guy thing is an act to recruit new followers (kids) after the sheep mask thing stopped working.
4. Things have definitely gotten to a point where some expect Punk to appear, and AEW's going to try to get him to do so. That puts the ball in Punk's court as to what it will take for him to work that night and return to wrestling.
5. It's 100% not a work. Punk's telling his side of the story. He is absolutely a difficult person to be on good terms with, and this situation isn't helping AEW win his favor. In AEW's defense, they're being asked a lot of questions about him and they're giving people frank answers.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Summer Supercard has added Shane Taylor vs. Tracy Williams for the ROH Television Championship. That could be really enjoyable.
Renee Young tweeted about her current commentary skills. I'm glad she was frank about where she is right now, although of course she doesn't "need" to respond to any online criticism.
Lacey Evans continued to feud with Alundra Blayze on Twitter. If this isn't leading to anything, I hope I don't have to keep hearing about it.
Kofi Kingston continued his worked shoot with Randy Orton. For anyone who doesn't get the context, years back in a match, Orton was setting up for a punt on Kofi and Kofi prepared to take an RKO. Orton kept trying to push him down into punt position, but Kofi continued to set up to take an RKO. Orton wasn't pleased the match ended that way. Here's a clip of a lot of it.
Natalya did a worked shoot of her own against Becky Lynch. It's insane they're doing "hey I had to fart with Hornswoggle but I'm also using your TV name." Although of course using Becky's real name would be even dumber. This whole direction is terrible and, again, if it wasn't a Paul Heyman thing everyone would be up in arms about it.
The Rock shared a story of Roman Reigns knocking out a cameraman during filming "Hobbs & Shaw." That could have really ended badly.
AEW's first TV taping will feature special take-home chairs for the first three rows. That's pretty cool.
Jerry Lawler is suing for the alleged wrongful death of his son. Note this article features details of suicide: Link to more details of lawsuit.
Bruno Sammartino's fundraiser this weekend will feature Mick Foley, Jerry Lawler, Corey Graves, Billy Gunn, Darby Allin, Brian Pillman, Jr., and more.
Pat McAfee has been signed by ESPN for Thursday Night College Football. It looks like he will continue on in WWE.
AEW has signed Chris Van Vliet as a backstage interviewer. That's great! He's worked hard to get there.
NXT has announced live events for:
- September 26 in Iowa
- September 27 and September 28 in Missouri
- September 29 in Mississippi
Chris Sabin is at the WWE Performance Center this week as a guest coach. He last wrestled in January for ROH; his contract has since expired and he is recovering from injury.
Natalya promoted Raw locally.
Taz and NXT's Dominik Dijakovic discussed the latter using The Tazmission. Yeah, this definitely should be handled privately rather than through public tweets.
Triple H's 50th birthday bash got press in Yahoo. That's definitely pretty cool.
Cedric Alexander is on the latest Swerve City Podcast.
Blink-182 appeared in an AEW video of Joey Janela fighting Jimmy Havoc and Darby Allin. OK, that's hilarious to play off the Janela-Enzo incident.
ICW's weekly show is believed to be coming to WWE Network, as it appears as a search term on the updated version. Fans are sharp at finding that kind of thing.
Tenille Dashwood has signed with Impact Wrestling. I'm a little surprised AEW didn't pick her up.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It's not "we don't care" as much as "we can't control what our independent contracts do when they're not at work." They should definitely help talents who are having issues with that kind of thing, although there's only so much WWE can do for adults in their private lives.
2. They've got plenty of live events to do on their own right now! I doubt they have staff and time to spare.
3. I see it as a case of Bray more or less wanting to have reformed from his dark side, but it's still there and comes out in certain moments. Either that or the whole nice guy thing is an act to recruit new followers (kids) after the sheep mask thing stopped working.
4. Things have definitely gotten to a point where some expect Punk to appear, and AEW's going to try to get him to do so. That puts the ball in Punk's court as to what it will take for him to work that night and return to wrestling.
5. It's 100% not a work. Punk's telling his side of the story. He is absolutely a difficult person to be on good terms with, and this situation isn't helping AEW win his favor. In AEW's defense, they're being asked a lot of questions about him and they're giving people frank answers.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, July 29, 2019
Another Network platform updated, Bayley challenges HoFer, assorted wrestling press, Mundo recovering, NXT injuries, Finn update, Quackenbush coaching Down Under, NXT UK Women's title defense in ICW, and Questions on Khan letting others speak to Punk, criticicizing AEW, AEW catering to BTE fans, what AEW won't do on TNT, and why WWE's stock didn't drop
WWE Network has been updated on Amazon Fire.
Bayley asked Trish Stratus if she wants a title match. Ember Moon better chime in and remind Bayley she already has a challenger!
Randy Orton went on vacation this weekend. I wonder if Kofi will point out he was wrestling while Orton was vacationing, since hating people for taking time off is the new thing.
RetroMania will be available on Nintendo Switch. That's a weird combination of stars.
Natalya and Beth Phoenix attended the Dan Gable Wrestling Museum this weekend.
Johnny Mundo is receiving stem cell treatment to recover from nagging injuries. It definitely looks like he's shifting focus away from wrestling.
NXT's Karen Q broke her leg at Saturday night's Georgia live event. OUCH. Those were her first live events outside of Florida, too. Hopefully she can rebound and get momentum going again.
Finn Balor went to a hospital as he deals with an unspecified illness. It will be good for him to get time off the road.
NXT's Rachael Ellering got a knee injury of some kind at Saturday's NXT Florida live event. It's unknown how much time she'll miss. She's just getting started, it looks like.
Riddick Moss recently suffered a broken nose. He's expected to continue wrestling. That's tough!
Shayna Baszler was banged up after Thursday's NXT live event in South Carolina, but returned to Saturday's live event in Georgia.
Raw Reunion's success got press.
Mike Quackenbush is holding seminars in Australia from August 13 through August 15.
Toni Storm successfully defended the NXT UK Women's Championship against Piper Niven at ICW's Sunday night event.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I really get the feeling Khan is defaulting to letting the other names handle things, since it was their vision that put AEW together, etc. It was definitely not a case of Khan telling someone to text a vague offer, but rather people with an established relationship with Punk trying to set something up. Cody is adamant it hasn't just been a case of texting, and frankly I think Punk's really taking sleight at things that aren't intended in that way. I wouldn't be surprised in the least if he's not telling us the whole story.
2. Criticism is often interpreted in a negative light as bias or what have you. There's really a feeling that AEW has a chance to do something great and people don't want it to be buried right out of the gate. If someone was saying a company sucks and they want it to go out of business, that's one thing, but that's hardly the case here.
3. AEW is 100% building their current shows around their YouTube series, for the obvious reason that they don't have a TV show yet. I definitely hope they show more background of what the product is all about and whom the key players are with their TV slot. They're obviously going to have a lot more screen time to do so, and I expect they'll use it.
4. AEW doesn't intend to have blood or intense hardcore elements on TNT. They don't have as many restrictions with online shows.
5. Some people are convinced things will be turning around soon with the new executive hires, the ratings boost for Raw Reunion, and those massive TV deals coming. Shareholders aren't necessarily following things as closely as people reading insider sites.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Bayley asked Trish Stratus if she wants a title match. Ember Moon better chime in and remind Bayley she already has a challenger!
Randy Orton went on vacation this weekend. I wonder if Kofi will point out he was wrestling while Orton was vacationing, since hating people for taking time off is the new thing.
RetroMania will be available on Nintendo Switch. That's a weird combination of stars.
Natalya and Beth Phoenix attended the Dan Gable Wrestling Museum this weekend.
Johnny Mundo is receiving stem cell treatment to recover from nagging injuries. It definitely looks like he's shifting focus away from wrestling.
NXT's Karen Q broke her leg at Saturday night's Georgia live event. OUCH. Those were her first live events outside of Florida, too. Hopefully she can rebound and get momentum going again.
Finn Balor went to a hospital as he deals with an unspecified illness. It will be good for him to get time off the road.
NXT's Rachael Ellering got a knee injury of some kind at Saturday's NXT Florida live event. It's unknown how much time she'll miss. She's just getting started, it looks like.
Riddick Moss recently suffered a broken nose. He's expected to continue wrestling. That's tough!
Shayna Baszler was banged up after Thursday's NXT live event in South Carolina, but returned to Saturday's live event in Georgia.
Raw Reunion's success got press.
Mike Quackenbush is holding seminars in Australia from August 13 through August 15.
Toni Storm successfully defended the NXT UK Women's Championship against Piper Niven at ICW's Sunday night event.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I really get the feeling Khan is defaulting to letting the other names handle things, since it was their vision that put AEW together, etc. It was definitely not a case of Khan telling someone to text a vague offer, but rather people with an established relationship with Punk trying to set something up. Cody is adamant it hasn't just been a case of texting, and frankly I think Punk's really taking sleight at things that aren't intended in that way. I wouldn't be surprised in the least if he's not telling us the whole story.
2. Criticism is often interpreted in a negative light as bias or what have you. There's really a feeling that AEW has a chance to do something great and people don't want it to be buried right out of the gate. If someone was saying a company sucks and they want it to go out of business, that's one thing, but that's hardly the case here.
3. AEW is 100% building their current shows around their YouTube series, for the obvious reason that they don't have a TV show yet. I definitely hope they show more background of what the product is all about and whom the key players are with their TV slot. They're obviously going to have a lot more screen time to do so, and I expect they'll use it.
4. AEW doesn't intend to have blood or intense hardcore elements on TNT. They don't have as many restrictions with online shows.
5. Some people are convinced things will be turning around soon with the new executive hires, the ratings boost for Raw Reunion, and those massive TV deals coming. Shareholders aren't necessarily following things as closely as people reading insider sites.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Sunday, July 28, 2019
Lio music video, HHH+Stephanie on Showtime, Variety covers conference call, HoFers on SDL, SDL matches, Impact sets more tapings, Interviews with with Paige/Mandy, more on Punk-Cody situation, Janela's last GCW show set, women's promotion working with union, why Finn missed Smackville, Raw live event note, and Questions on AEW stars at AAA-MSG, next HoF headliner, Ring Warriors' status, the Hollys at Raw Reunion, and an evil mailman gimmick
Lio Rush released a music video. He remains under WWE contract, but there doesn't seem to be any movement toward using him again.
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon appeared on a Showtime episode discussing Rick Rubin's love of pro wrestling. Rubin of course was involved with SMW.
Variety covered Vince McMahon's conference call remarks.
Jerry Lawler and Trish Stratus will be on Smackdown Live for an edition of The King's Court. I expect Charlotte Flair to make an appearance there.
Smackdown Live has announced:
- Finn Balor vs. Dolph Ziggler (this was before Finn was pulled from Smackville)
- Big E and Xavier Woods vs. Drew McIntyre and Elias
Impact has set TV tapings for New York on November 7 and November 8.
Ronda Rousey interviewed Paige. That's an interesting combination!
Mandy Rose talked about working with Sonya Deville and more. Glad to see Mandy put over the IIconics for helping her in NXT.
C.M. Punk's recent interviewer responded to Cody's speculation that Punk was misquoted. I think Cody was trying to be diplomatic rather than saying Punk lied about the extent of communication between Punk and AEW.
Joey Janela's final GCW appearance is set for September 30. Janela will then be a full-time AEW star.
Pro Wrestling EVE announced its stars entering a trade union. That's great!
Finn Balor missed Smackville due to dealing with an illness. It's unknown if he will still appear on this week's Smackdown Live.
Eric Young worked his first Raw live event since June 2 Saturday night, teaming with Robert Roode, EC3, and Mojo Rawley in a loss to The Lucha House Party and No Way Jose. I can see EY transitioning into being a producer or coach at some point.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I don't expect it to happen. AEW would rather hold out until they run the market on their own in front of hopefully a larger crowd than tag their brand to an less-successful joint event. There's also the feeling that AEW is willing to help other companies out in markets they aren't currently running (Mexico, for instance), but not in the U.S. where AEW is looking to run its own shows.
2. Batista would make a lot of sense if he's available. The Rock is also an option, but they'll probably wait until the next WrestleMania in Miami to try to induct him.
3. They teased a return in April, but obviously nothing has come of it.
4. I expect the show was put together pretty quickly and they went with easily available talents. I don't know if there's interest in using Bob Holly again.
5. I swear someone did the gimmick of an angry former postal worker in the '90s after the infamous "going postal" shooting, but obviously it didn't stick around.
More wrestling coming up.
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon appeared on a Showtime episode discussing Rick Rubin's love of pro wrestling. Rubin of course was involved with SMW.
Variety covered Vince McMahon's conference call remarks.
Jerry Lawler and Trish Stratus will be on Smackdown Live for an edition of The King's Court. I expect Charlotte Flair to make an appearance there.
Smackdown Live has announced:
- Finn Balor vs. Dolph Ziggler (this was before Finn was pulled from Smackville)
- Big E and Xavier Woods vs. Drew McIntyre and Elias
Impact has set TV tapings for New York on November 7 and November 8.
Ronda Rousey interviewed Paige. That's an interesting combination!
Mandy Rose talked about working with Sonya Deville and more. Glad to see Mandy put over the IIconics for helping her in NXT.
C.M. Punk's recent interviewer responded to Cody's speculation that Punk was misquoted. I think Cody was trying to be diplomatic rather than saying Punk lied about the extent of communication between Punk and AEW.
Joey Janela's final GCW appearance is set for September 30. Janela will then be a full-time AEW star.
Pro Wrestling EVE announced its stars entering a trade union. That's great!
Finn Balor missed Smackville due to dealing with an illness. It's unknown if he will still appear on this week's Smackdown Live.
Eric Young worked his first Raw live event since June 2 Saturday night, teaming with Robert Roode, EC3, and Mojo Rawley in a loss to The Lucha House Party and No Way Jose. I can see EY transitioning into being a producer or coach at some point.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I don't expect it to happen. AEW would rather hold out until they run the market on their own in front of hopefully a larger crowd than tag their brand to an less-successful joint event. There's also the feeling that AEW is willing to help other companies out in markets they aren't currently running (Mexico, for instance), but not in the U.S. where AEW is looking to run its own shows.
2. Batista would make a lot of sense if he's available. The Rock is also an option, but they'll probably wait until the next WrestleMania in Miami to try to induct him.
3. They teased a return in April, but obviously nothing has come of it.
4. I expect the show was put together pretty quickly and they went with easily available talents. I don't know if there's interest in using Bob Holly again.
5. I swear someone did the gimmick of an angry former postal worker in the '90s after the infamous "going postal" shooting, but obviously it didn't stick around.
More wrestling coming up.
Saturday, July 27, 2019
Interviews with MJF/Seth/Miz+Maryse/Sydal/HHH, more NXT names at WWN camp, WWE star in the ER, Network updated, WWE names China ambassador, WWE signs backstage ROH name, AEW names on Y2J cruise, new Supercard matches, announced for Raw, Cody responds to Punk, NJPW events sell out, WrestleCircus future confirmed, ROH adds international stars to shows, ROH Champions vs. All-Stars and Unauthorized returning, AEW names working OWE in Canada, and Questions on statistics in wrestling, what Vince will and won't do to change WWE, Konnan never coming to WWE, and being paid to cover shows
MJF is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast.
WWN's next recruitment camp will feature Tommaso Ciampa, Shayna Baszler, William Regal, and Robbie Brookside. WWE is REALLY going heavy with talent recruitment and investing in EVOLVE.
Maria Kanellis went to the emergency room due to dehydration Tuesday, which is why 205 Live didn't have the advertised contract signing between Drake Maverick and Mike Kanellis.
WWE Network has updated on AppleTV, PlayStation 4, and Android.
Seth Rollins promoted Summerslam with an Indian outlet. Interesting comments regarding social media.
The Miz and Maryse spoke to Newsweek as their show returns.
Matt Sydal is on Edge and Christian's latest podcast.
WWE has named a Chinese ambassador, martial arts movie star Jacky Heung. That's pretty cool.
ROH director and producer Chris Resnick has been signed by WWE to work on WWE Network programming. Resnick was a key figure in directing PPVs and putting graphics and packages together for ROH, working there for eight years. That's a big signing and shows WWE's commitment to upcoming Network content.
Chris Jericho's cruise has added AEW's Kenny Omega, Young Bucks, Cody, Hangman Page, MJF, Jungle Boy, Brandi Rhodes, Britt Baker, and Nyla Rose. It was expected AEW would be a big part of the cruise, as ROH was last time.
Summer Supercard has officially added:
- Rush vs. Dalton Castle in a no disqualification match
- Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham vs. Bandido and Mark Haskins
Raw has announced:
- Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler
- Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss in a non-title match
- Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns in a "Samoan Summit"
Triple H spoke to The Sun to promote NXT UK's October TV tapings.
The Singh Brothers got press in the Toronto Sun.
Cody responded to C.M. Punk's recent interview. I would definitely be surprised to see Punk go back to WWE after the Amann lawsuit!
Jimmy Uso's arrest was covered locally, with more details added. That was incredibly dangerous. WWE needs to intervene.
NJPW's September events in New York and Pennsylvania sold out the same day tickets went on sale. They're running the same New York venue ROH drew 1,000 fans in recently, so selling 1,800 tickets instantly shows where each company is right now in terms of demand.
WrestleCircus confirmed it's closing down. It's a shame they didn't do their final show, but if that wasn't a good business move, I see why they decided not to.
ROH has added NJPW's Chase Owens and CMLL's Okumura and Felino to their August 24 TV taping in Georgia and August 25 HonorClub event in Tennessee. I see why they're looking to use their partner promotions to boost attendance. It will be good to see some fresh names in the mix.
ROH's August 24 TV taping will be headlined by Champions vs. All-Stars.
ROH Unauthorized will return later this year. The show's presented as a departure from what ROH usually does.
Dragon Lee will work more ROH shows later this year.
OWE's August 7 Canadian event will feature CIMA and Christopher Daniels vs. Private Party, obviously as part of the relationship with AEW.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly it sounds like it will bog things down and get in the way, as similar endeavors did for Impact and Smackdown Live. I watch wrestling for stories, not statistics and standings. That said, it would definitely be different from what WWE does, and that's something AEW is keen on.
Nothing to add to 2.
3. Nope! If anything the success of Raw Reunion will reinforce the notion that we need to see more people who aren't wrestling every week. As for bikini matches or what have you, I don't think that would go over as well as it did before the women's revolution.
4. He probably got more freedom and a bigger offer working Mexico.
5. The only thing I have to add here is that if he did get financially compensated by promotions for covering them, there would be accusations he was being paid for positive reviews, etc.
More wrestling tomorrow.
WWN's next recruitment camp will feature Tommaso Ciampa, Shayna Baszler, William Regal, and Robbie Brookside. WWE is REALLY going heavy with talent recruitment and investing in EVOLVE.
Maria Kanellis went to the emergency room due to dehydration Tuesday, which is why 205 Live didn't have the advertised contract signing between Drake Maverick and Mike Kanellis.
WWE Network has updated on AppleTV, PlayStation 4, and Android.
Seth Rollins promoted Summerslam with an Indian outlet. Interesting comments regarding social media.
The Miz and Maryse spoke to Newsweek as their show returns.
Matt Sydal is on Edge and Christian's latest podcast.
WWE has named a Chinese ambassador, martial arts movie star Jacky Heung. That's pretty cool.
ROH director and producer Chris Resnick has been signed by WWE to work on WWE Network programming. Resnick was a key figure in directing PPVs and putting graphics and packages together for ROH, working there for eight years. That's a big signing and shows WWE's commitment to upcoming Network content.
Chris Jericho's cruise has added AEW's Kenny Omega, Young Bucks, Cody, Hangman Page, MJF, Jungle Boy, Brandi Rhodes, Britt Baker, and Nyla Rose. It was expected AEW would be a big part of the cruise, as ROH was last time.
Summer Supercard has officially added:
- Rush vs. Dalton Castle in a no disqualification match
- Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham vs. Bandido and Mark Haskins
Raw has announced:
- Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler
- Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss in a non-title match
- Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns in a "Samoan Summit"
Triple H spoke to The Sun to promote NXT UK's October TV tapings.
The Singh Brothers got press in the Toronto Sun.
Cody responded to C.M. Punk's recent interview. I would definitely be surprised to see Punk go back to WWE after the Amann lawsuit!
Jimmy Uso's arrest was covered locally, with more details added. That was incredibly dangerous. WWE needs to intervene.
NJPW's September events in New York and Pennsylvania sold out the same day tickets went on sale. They're running the same New York venue ROH drew 1,000 fans in recently, so selling 1,800 tickets instantly shows where each company is right now in terms of demand.
WrestleCircus confirmed it's closing down. It's a shame they didn't do their final show, but if that wasn't a good business move, I see why they decided not to.
ROH has added NJPW's Chase Owens and CMLL's Okumura and Felino to their August 24 TV taping in Georgia and August 25 HonorClub event in Tennessee. I see why they're looking to use their partner promotions to boost attendance. It will be good to see some fresh names in the mix.
ROH's August 24 TV taping will be headlined by Champions vs. All-Stars.
ROH Unauthorized will return later this year. The show's presented as a departure from what ROH usually does.
Dragon Lee will work more ROH shows later this year.
OWE's August 7 Canadian event will feature CIMA and Christopher Daniels vs. Private Party, obviously as part of the relationship with AEW.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly it sounds like it will bog things down and get in the way, as similar endeavors did for Impact and Smackdown Live. I watch wrestling for stories, not statistics and standings. That said, it would definitely be different from what WWE does, and that's something AEW is keen on.
Nothing to add to 2.
3. Nope! If anything the success of Raw Reunion will reinforce the notion that we need to see more people who aren't wrestling every week. As for bikini matches or what have you, I don't think that would go over as well as it did before the women's revolution.
4. He probably got more freedom and a bigger offer working Mexico.
5. The only thing I have to add here is that if he did get financially compensated by promotions for covering them, there would be accusations he was being paid for positive reviews, etc.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday, July 26, 2019
AEW pre-emption note, another AEW TV deal in the works, NXT-FS1 updates, Omega documentary in the U.S.?, AEW star has backstage roles, Taker update, PAC update, ROH name to work CMLL, Liger retirement note, Takayama benefit show coming, NLL taping set, Scottish venue closes, ROH attendance, ROH security adjustments, Impact-AXS update, Impact staff returns, AEW live event updates, AEW hires top doctor, Cody scouts in Mexico, WWE Saudi date moved, more on Heyman+Bischoff roles, WWE execs meet Japanese execs, Raw event canceled, why Bret+JR didn't do Raw Reunion, WWE tryouts Summerslam weekend, why Ricochet wasn't on Raw, more Raw changes, Profits-Raw update, Cena movie update, new Hidden Gem, Network tiers in the works, Network changes, HIAC matches advertised, WWE star arrested again, Punk discusses AEW, Riddle's EVOLVE matches, why Graves missed SDL, WWE star backstage, Texas indie closes, Ladder War in Toronto, more WWE cancelations, Amell-AEW note, MLW pairs with Japanese promotion, TJP booked for NJPW, NXT injury return, and NXT live event notes
AEW's TV show will not air on Christmas Day, which isn't particularly a surprise.
AEW is looking at a German TV deal on top of the other international deals in the works. The level of interest in a company this new is unheard of.
WWE and FS1 are considering an NXT show to run against AEW. So WWE is taking the new company very seriously.
- Should this come to pass, more Raw and Smackdown Live talents will appear on NXT. That will be an interesting balance.
TNT is considering airing Kenny Omega's TSN documentary to promote AEW. Notably a lot of that footage focuses on Omega's work with Kota Ibushi, who is committed to NJPW.
Michael Nakazawa is working in AEW on international affairs as well as being a producer for women's matches. That's interesting to see.
The Undertaker is not currently booked for Summerslam despite initially being advertised. No idea what's going on there given the incredibly obvious followup to Extreme Rules.
PAC has lost Dragon Gate's top championship. He was refusing to be pinned while champion, so this removes that barrier and is expected to lead to him joining AEW.
Kenny King is going to work CMLL on behalf of ROH. I'm curious how he'll fit in there.
Jushin Liger's retirement match is set for January 5. WrestleKingdom 2020 is a two-day event, so it wasn't known which show he'd work.
Yoshihiro Takayama is having a benefit show on August 26.
Alberto El Patron's NLL has announced a TV taping on August 4.
Scotland's Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference has closed. The venue had WWE and WCW events since opening in 1985.
ROH's July 20 TV taping drew 1,000 fans, which is the lowest they've drawn in that venue since 2013. They drew 1,800 there in December for Final Battle.
ROH's July 21 HonorClub event drew 800 fans, which is similarly notably down from how they usually do in the market. NXT drew 2,000 fans to the same venue in February. That's a pretty telling gap.
ROH has established a new security policy in the wake of the Bully Ray situation. ROH is now explicit that issues should be reported to ROH executives in the venue immediately and no one should be brought backstage for any reason.
Impact is believed to have been passed upon by AXS, as that channel already has NJPW and WOW and is apparently not looking to expand beyond that.
Impact has brought back David Sahadi on the production end. He will continue to work with MLW.
AEW is looking at weekly live events once they get going regularly, but rarely more than one a week. They could quickly become a force, but the key question is how much interest there will be when they do so many events.
AEW has hired longtime former WWE physician Dr. Michael Sampson to head up their medical department. He's got great qualifications for that; I'm glad they're taking that seriously.
Cody scouted AAA talent while working that event, so we'll likely see more crossover there.
WWE's next Saudi Arabian show is now expected for November 1, after it had been previously moved around to the point where WWE canceled European events. We'll see if they make changes to that schedule in the wake of this move. The Saudi deal has been massively profitable, but has disrupted things quite a bit.
Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff will be in charge of the merchandise and publicity of their respective brands, so there's greater interaction with other departments than head writers have had.
WWE executives met with Dragon Gate and Stardom executives during WWE's last tour in Japan. That's very intriguing! I expect NXT Japan is something they're thinking of at some point.
Raw canceled their July 26 live event three days in advance. Yikes!
Bret Hart missed Raw Reunion because he isn't taking any bookings until August.
WWE is doing tryouts in Ontario from August 7 through August 9, with Santino Marella possibly involved. WWE is actively considering NXT Canada. Man, things are moving fast with developmental when they're struggling to utilize their current stars.
Ricochet missed Raw action due to an infection in his elbow. Seth Rollins essentially took his spot.
- Rikishi, Pat Patterson, and Scott Hall were also barred from physicality by WWE's doctors. I can't say the show needed The Revival and D-Von taking a stinkface as originally planned.
The Street Profits aren't currently planned to wrestle on Raw. Paul Heyman just wants them as hype characters for the time being. I'm sure they'll be promoted at some point, but it's not in the works right now.
John Cena was only at Raw briefly due to filming. I'm surprised he was able to be there at all.
Jim Ross noted on his most recent podcast that he didn't attend Raw Reunion so as not to send mixed messages to the AEW locker room as they prepare for their TV debut. That's fair.
WWE Network's latest Hidden Gem is Pro Wrestling USA's April 1985 event headlined by Kamala vs. Sgt. Slaughter in a Ugandan Death Match.
WWE Network's tiered system will begin with a free tier in a few months before a VIP tier later on adds more content in line with EVOLVE's 10th anniversary event.
WWE Network now has "chapter points" for PPVs, Raw, Smackdown Live, and NXT where subscribers can immediately go to a certain match or segment on a show. Archived content will also have this feature at some point.
Hell in a Cell is locally advertising Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship and Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre. These are the standard matches being advertised at events.
Jimmy Uso was arrested for DUI early Friday morning. He refused to undergo testing for intoxication. I'm pretty concerned about him at this point given his previous arrest.
- WWE released a statement, unsurprisingly distancing themselves from his actions. It's time to examine taking the brothers off the road for a few months to sort things out. They're very talented, but this is an alarm bell.
- Uso was freed after paying $1,000 bond.
C.M. Punk spoke to ESPN about appearing at Starrcast and more:
- I'm glad he doesn't want anyone to be short-changed at the appearance.
- God he seems like he'd be hard to deal with.
- I feel like he thinks a lot of things revolve around him.
- I mean if he can't train for MMA maybe he's not in condition to wrestle, huh?
Matt Riddle is facing Josh Briggs at EVOLVE 133 and teaming with Curt Stallion to challenge AR Fox and Leon Ruff for the EVOLVE Tag Team Championship at EVOLVE 134.
John Cena begins filming "Fast & Furious 9" this weekend.
Corey Graves wasn't at Smackdown Live due to filming at Netflix's WWE movie. Kofi Kingston, Sheamus, The Miz, and Renee Young are also in scenes shooting this week.
Sin Cara was at Raw and Smackdown Live this week. We haven't seen him featured in quite a while!
Texas independent promotion Wrestlecircus is believed to have been shut down. They were set to do a show Sunday but it has been canceled. Talents have been told the promoter is done.
Summer Supercard has added a Ladder War between The Briscoes and Guerrillas of Destiny for the ROH Tag Team Championship. Frankly that should be the headline match. Should be a lot of fun.
WWE has canceled their Italian events on November 3 and November 4. The Saudi show has wreaked havoc on their schedule.
AEW's executives discussed Stephen Amell coming to the company. That's worth considering if he can avoid injury.
MLW and Pro Wrestling NOAH have set a working relationship, so each side will have talent cross over in the future. That's great for both sides to shake things up.
TJP is set for the Super J Cup. That's pretty cool to see. He isn't signed by Impact, obviously, so we'll see if his stay there was just a launching pad to joining NJPW full-time. I don't blame him for taking advantage of his options.
Pete Dunne worked his first live event since May 17 for NXT in South Carolina on July 25. He defeated Cameron Grimes.
Tegan Nox returned at NXT's July 26 Florida live event, teaming with Jessi Kamea to defeat Aliyah and Vanessa Borne. This was Tegan's first match since August 9.
Also at NXT's July 26 Florida event:
- Drew Gulak competed at his first live event since May 19, defeating Jordan Myles to retain the Cruiserweight Championship. Hm, could we see that on 205 Live soon?
More wrestling tomorrow.
AEW is looking at a German TV deal on top of the other international deals in the works. The level of interest in a company this new is unheard of.
WWE and FS1 are considering an NXT show to run against AEW. So WWE is taking the new company very seriously.
- Should this come to pass, more Raw and Smackdown Live talents will appear on NXT. That will be an interesting balance.
TNT is considering airing Kenny Omega's TSN documentary to promote AEW. Notably a lot of that footage focuses on Omega's work with Kota Ibushi, who is committed to NJPW.
Michael Nakazawa is working in AEW on international affairs as well as being a producer for women's matches. That's interesting to see.
The Undertaker is not currently booked for Summerslam despite initially being advertised. No idea what's going on there given the incredibly obvious followup to Extreme Rules.
PAC has lost Dragon Gate's top championship. He was refusing to be pinned while champion, so this removes that barrier and is expected to lead to him joining AEW.
Kenny King is going to work CMLL on behalf of ROH. I'm curious how he'll fit in there.
Jushin Liger's retirement match is set for January 5. WrestleKingdom 2020 is a two-day event, so it wasn't known which show he'd work.
Yoshihiro Takayama is having a benefit show on August 26.
Alberto El Patron's NLL has announced a TV taping on August 4.
Scotland's Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference has closed. The venue had WWE and WCW events since opening in 1985.
ROH's July 20 TV taping drew 1,000 fans, which is the lowest they've drawn in that venue since 2013. They drew 1,800 there in December for Final Battle.
ROH's July 21 HonorClub event drew 800 fans, which is similarly notably down from how they usually do in the market. NXT drew 2,000 fans to the same venue in February. That's a pretty telling gap.
ROH has established a new security policy in the wake of the Bully Ray situation. ROH is now explicit that issues should be reported to ROH executives in the venue immediately and no one should be brought backstage for any reason.
Impact is believed to have been passed upon by AXS, as that channel already has NJPW and WOW and is apparently not looking to expand beyond that.
Impact has brought back David Sahadi on the production end. He will continue to work with MLW.
AEW is looking at weekly live events once they get going regularly, but rarely more than one a week. They could quickly become a force, but the key question is how much interest there will be when they do so many events.
AEW has hired longtime former WWE physician Dr. Michael Sampson to head up their medical department. He's got great qualifications for that; I'm glad they're taking that seriously.
Cody scouted AAA talent while working that event, so we'll likely see more crossover there.
WWE's next Saudi Arabian show is now expected for November 1, after it had been previously moved around to the point where WWE canceled European events. We'll see if they make changes to that schedule in the wake of this move. The Saudi deal has been massively profitable, but has disrupted things quite a bit.
Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff will be in charge of the merchandise and publicity of their respective brands, so there's greater interaction with other departments than head writers have had.
WWE executives met with Dragon Gate and Stardom executives during WWE's last tour in Japan. That's very intriguing! I expect NXT Japan is something they're thinking of at some point.
Raw canceled their July 26 live event three days in advance. Yikes!
Bret Hart missed Raw Reunion because he isn't taking any bookings until August.
WWE is doing tryouts in Ontario from August 7 through August 9, with Santino Marella possibly involved. WWE is actively considering NXT Canada. Man, things are moving fast with developmental when they're struggling to utilize their current stars.
Ricochet missed Raw action due to an infection in his elbow. Seth Rollins essentially took his spot.
- Rikishi, Pat Patterson, and Scott Hall were also barred from physicality by WWE's doctors. I can't say the show needed The Revival and D-Von taking a stinkface as originally planned.
The Street Profits aren't currently planned to wrestle on Raw. Paul Heyman just wants them as hype characters for the time being. I'm sure they'll be promoted at some point, but it's not in the works right now.
John Cena was only at Raw briefly due to filming. I'm surprised he was able to be there at all.
Jim Ross noted on his most recent podcast that he didn't attend Raw Reunion so as not to send mixed messages to the AEW locker room as they prepare for their TV debut. That's fair.
WWE Network's latest Hidden Gem is Pro Wrestling USA's April 1985 event headlined by Kamala vs. Sgt. Slaughter in a Ugandan Death Match.
WWE Network's tiered system will begin with a free tier in a few months before a VIP tier later on adds more content in line with EVOLVE's 10th anniversary event.
WWE Network now has "chapter points" for PPVs, Raw, Smackdown Live, and NXT where subscribers can immediately go to a certain match or segment on a show. Archived content will also have this feature at some point.
Hell in a Cell is locally advertising Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship and Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre. These are the standard matches being advertised at events.
Jimmy Uso was arrested for DUI early Friday morning. He refused to undergo testing for intoxication. I'm pretty concerned about him at this point given his previous arrest.
- WWE released a statement, unsurprisingly distancing themselves from his actions. It's time to examine taking the brothers off the road for a few months to sort things out. They're very talented, but this is an alarm bell.
- Uso was freed after paying $1,000 bond.
C.M. Punk spoke to ESPN about appearing at Starrcast and more:
- I'm glad he doesn't want anyone to be short-changed at the appearance.
- God he seems like he'd be hard to deal with.
- I feel like he thinks a lot of things revolve around him.
- I mean if he can't train for MMA maybe he's not in condition to wrestle, huh?
Matt Riddle is facing Josh Briggs at EVOLVE 133 and teaming with Curt Stallion to challenge AR Fox and Leon Ruff for the EVOLVE Tag Team Championship at EVOLVE 134.
John Cena begins filming "Fast & Furious 9" this weekend.
Corey Graves wasn't at Smackdown Live due to filming at Netflix's WWE movie. Kofi Kingston, Sheamus, The Miz, and Renee Young are also in scenes shooting this week.
Sin Cara was at Raw and Smackdown Live this week. We haven't seen him featured in quite a while!
Texas independent promotion Wrestlecircus is believed to have been shut down. They were set to do a show Sunday but it has been canceled. Talents have been told the promoter is done.
Summer Supercard has added a Ladder War between The Briscoes and Guerrillas of Destiny for the ROH Tag Team Championship. Frankly that should be the headline match. Should be a lot of fun.
WWE has canceled their Italian events on November 3 and November 4. The Saudi show has wreaked havoc on their schedule.
AEW's executives discussed Stephen Amell coming to the company. That's worth considering if he can avoid injury.
MLW and Pro Wrestling NOAH have set a working relationship, so each side will have talent cross over in the future. That's great for both sides to shake things up.
TJP is set for the Super J Cup. That's pretty cool to see. He isn't signed by Impact, obviously, so we'll see if his stay there was just a launching pad to joining NJPW full-time. I don't blame him for taking advantage of his options.
Pete Dunne worked his first live event since May 17 for NXT in South Carolina on July 25. He defeated Cameron Grimes.
Tegan Nox returned at NXT's July 26 Florida live event, teaming with Jessi Kamea to defeat Aliyah and Vanessa Borne. This was Tegan's first match since August 9.
Also at NXT's July 26 Florida event:
- Drew Gulak competed at his first live event since May 19, defeating Jordan Myles to retain the Cruiserweight Championship. Hm, could we see that on 205 Live soon?
More wrestling tomorrow.
WWE Q2 2019 Earnings Reax
Read on for my thoughts on WWE's latest financial release and the fallout from it.
Thursday, July 25, 2019
Trainer releases book, WWE execs sell stock, Interview with Mandy, NXT couple surprises bride and groom, RVD shares meme, WWE raises money for Japanese star, Impact takes shots at self, Impact announcements, Bischoff update, legend misses Raw, WWEPC guest coach talks, Finn DVD in the works, AEW sets first taping, NWA splits from ROH, HoFer wrestling at Summerslam, Network redesign, Impact company looking to purchase TV station, ROH PPV and TV set, SDL audience, Lacey spars with legend, Brock dates, Riddle working EVOLVE, Flip pulled from show, AEW name starting with Stardom, former WWE team in MLW, and Questions on Creative's current structure, wrestling's problems with storytelling, WWE owning developmental footage, Seth as HHH, Owens as Austin, and how bad things are for WWE
Trainer Ron Hutchinson's book was just released.
WWE executives sold significant stock Monday:
- Vince McMahon sold more than 12,500 shares
- George Barrios sold more than 139,000 shares
- Kevin Dunn sold more than 68,500 shares
- Mark Kowal (corporate controller) sold nearly 3,850 shares
- Triple H and Stephanie McMahon each sold more than 17,500 shares
- Michelle Wilson sold more than 65,300 shares
-- That should tell quite a bit about the expected results from WWE's financial release, which will be covered tomorrow. Obviously these top names still own a vast amount of stock and influence, but it's telling they sold so much.
Mandy Rose discussed using WWE to brand herself. That's smart of her.
Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae sent a video to wrestling fans' wedding. That is really incredible!
Rob Van Dam posted a meme circulating about his Raw appearance. HILARIOUS.
WWE raised nearly $1800 to assist paralyzed Japanese star Yoshihiro Takayama during their tour there.
Impact's Twitch channel recently had a segment where The North did commentary on poorly-reviewed Impact matches of the past. That's an interesting concept.
Impact's Unbreakable event has announced:
- Sami Callihan vs. Tessa Blanchard in a no. 1 contendership match
- Scott Steiner, Petey Williams, and Jordynne Grace teaming, a preview of CHIKARA's King of Trios
Eric Bischoff sat in on production meetings and spoke with Creative at Smackdown Live, but there were no notable changes to the show due to his presence.
Sid Vicious pulled out of appearing at Raw Reunion. That's not an uncommon thing for Sid. Very sad to see that's still a problem.
Danny Cage commented on guest coaching at the WWE Performance Center. Very cool to see him return.
Finn Balor is getting a DVD at the end of November. About time, right?
AEW's first TV taping will be Wednesday, October 2 in Washington, DC. They're running The CapitalOne Arena, which seats more than 20,000 fans. Raw was there in April and drew 11,500, so that's a pretty good measuring stick to see where AEW is right out of the gate. It's insane that AEW could get so many fans to attend. They've drastically exceeded expectations.
- Tony Khan, Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Awesome Kong, Nyla Rose, Jungle Boy, and Michael Nakazawa all attended the Television Critics Association press tour to promote the show. TNT is a really strong partner for AEW.
NWA has pulled out of Summer Supercard, as they have officially split from ROH. NWA is looking to begin its own series later this year, so NWA personnel and talent are focusing on that. NWA Vice President Dave Lagana was in charge of taping promos for ROH the past seven months, and he has finished those duties. Despite the abrupt change of plans, NWA and ROH are on good terms and the door is open for them to work together again. I'm flabbergasted they didn't finish up at Summer Supercard, which would have given the NWA a prominent platform to set the stage for their next steps.
Trish Stratus will face Charlotte Flair at Summerslam in Stratus' hometown. That's awesome!
WWE Network promoted its redesign. WOW. They've really made things better. Glad they improved so much.
Impact's parent company is looking to buy AXS, which would then pick up Impact's TV series while keeping NJPW and WOW's shows. The initial hope was for an announcement to come the day after Slammiversary, but a deal has not yet been reached. Anthem is looking at buying other channels if the AXS deal doesn't happen. This could definitely be a big step forward for Impact; I'm glad Anthem is looking to make such a big move.
ROH Death Before Dishonor is set for September 27 in Nevada, with a TV taping following the next night in the same venue. It will be interesting to see how those shows do attendance-wise.
Smackdown Live drew 2.16 million viewers, virtually in line with last week. That's actually surprising given Raw's boost.
Lacey Evans and Alundra Blayze had a back-and-forth on Twitter. Lacey does not back down with the trash talk.
Brock Lesnar is advertised for the next two Raws. I'd be surprised for him to have a short title reign.
Matt Riddle is set for EVOLVE 133 on August 24 in Michigan and EVOLVE 134 on August 25 in Illinois. His opponents will be announced this week.
Flip Gordon has been pulled from Friday's PWG event due to injury. He was set to face Trey Miguel in an ROH vs. Impact match. I hope Flip is back in action soon.
AEW's Riho is joining Stardom beginning August 10. That's interesting with her leaving another Japanese promotion.
The Spirit Squad's Kenny and Mikey have started with MLW and will have an "open workout" tonight. I'm curious how they'll fit in there.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Yes a lot of us are quite confused! Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff are in theory above everyone other than Vince on their respective shows, although it doesn't look like Bischoff will get involved in creative. Michael Hayes is the senior producer, meaning he's in charge of the people who are essentially intermediaries between Creative and talent. In some ways the producers execute the plans laid out by Creative. Triple H's main role is in (theoretically) guiding how NXT talents transition to Raw and Smackdown Live.
2. It definitely precedes Russo! He definitely wasn't booking The Gobbledy Gooker and Damien Demento! A lot of it is the shift toward "sports entertainment" after the steroid trials, and the focus on things being a scripted TV show with characters rather than an athletic competition. Of course many would argue fans are more drawn to things like stunts, special effects, etc. rather than wrestling holds. Anyway, WWE being run by the same person for decades and having to put out so much content each week is a chief culprit to why things are the way they are for them now.
3. That's actually a good question. I certainly think they own all the FCW footage, since that promotion was run in-house while OVW was more of a partnership. I don't know if we'll see those early promotions in their entirety given how green some of their key names are, and frankly the lack of interest in seeing the unknowns from those days, but we'll definitely see more Hidden Gems and the like.
4. I actually did see the Seth/HHH comparisons. The Architect and The Cerebral Assassin share similarities. I certainly wouldn't say either man is "HHH 2.0" or "Stone Cold 2.0" but I see why people make the links they've made. There are differences as far as what's done between the bell, for sure.
5. I definitely think it's fair to say WWE hasn't been in this kind of a business slump in quite some time, and that can have ripple effects where USA and FOX will look to make changes. There are reasons WWE got those deals in the first place, though, and it looks like WWE is set to do very well financially for the next five years even with the audience declines.
More wrestling tomorrow.
WWE executives sold significant stock Monday:
- Vince McMahon sold more than 12,500 shares
- George Barrios sold more than 139,000 shares
- Kevin Dunn sold more than 68,500 shares
- Mark Kowal (corporate controller) sold nearly 3,850 shares
- Triple H and Stephanie McMahon each sold more than 17,500 shares
- Michelle Wilson sold more than 65,300 shares
-- That should tell quite a bit about the expected results from WWE's financial release, which will be covered tomorrow. Obviously these top names still own a vast amount of stock and influence, but it's telling they sold so much.
Mandy Rose discussed using WWE to brand herself. That's smart of her.
Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae sent a video to wrestling fans' wedding. That is really incredible!
Rob Van Dam posted a meme circulating about his Raw appearance. HILARIOUS.
WWE raised nearly $1800 to assist paralyzed Japanese star Yoshihiro Takayama during their tour there.
Impact's Twitch channel recently had a segment where The North did commentary on poorly-reviewed Impact matches of the past. That's an interesting concept.
Impact's Unbreakable event has announced:
- Sami Callihan vs. Tessa Blanchard in a no. 1 contendership match
- Scott Steiner, Petey Williams, and Jordynne Grace teaming, a preview of CHIKARA's King of Trios
Eric Bischoff sat in on production meetings and spoke with Creative at Smackdown Live, but there were no notable changes to the show due to his presence.
Sid Vicious pulled out of appearing at Raw Reunion. That's not an uncommon thing for Sid. Very sad to see that's still a problem.
Danny Cage commented on guest coaching at the WWE Performance Center. Very cool to see him return.
Finn Balor is getting a DVD at the end of November. About time, right?
AEW's first TV taping will be Wednesday, October 2 in Washington, DC. They're running The CapitalOne Arena, which seats more than 20,000 fans. Raw was there in April and drew 11,500, so that's a pretty good measuring stick to see where AEW is right out of the gate. It's insane that AEW could get so many fans to attend. They've drastically exceeded expectations.
- Tony Khan, Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Awesome Kong, Nyla Rose, Jungle Boy, and Michael Nakazawa all attended the Television Critics Association press tour to promote the show. TNT is a really strong partner for AEW.
NWA has pulled out of Summer Supercard, as they have officially split from ROH. NWA is looking to begin its own series later this year, so NWA personnel and talent are focusing on that. NWA Vice President Dave Lagana was in charge of taping promos for ROH the past seven months, and he has finished those duties. Despite the abrupt change of plans, NWA and ROH are on good terms and the door is open for them to work together again. I'm flabbergasted they didn't finish up at Summer Supercard, which would have given the NWA a prominent platform to set the stage for their next steps.
Trish Stratus will face Charlotte Flair at Summerslam in Stratus' hometown. That's awesome!
WWE Network promoted its redesign. WOW. They've really made things better. Glad they improved so much.
Impact's parent company is looking to buy AXS, which would then pick up Impact's TV series while keeping NJPW and WOW's shows. The initial hope was for an announcement to come the day after Slammiversary, but a deal has not yet been reached. Anthem is looking at buying other channels if the AXS deal doesn't happen. This could definitely be a big step forward for Impact; I'm glad Anthem is looking to make such a big move.
ROH Death Before Dishonor is set for September 27 in Nevada, with a TV taping following the next night in the same venue. It will be interesting to see how those shows do attendance-wise.
Smackdown Live drew 2.16 million viewers, virtually in line with last week. That's actually surprising given Raw's boost.
Lacey Evans and Alundra Blayze had a back-and-forth on Twitter. Lacey does not back down with the trash talk.
Brock Lesnar is advertised for the next two Raws. I'd be surprised for him to have a short title reign.
Matt Riddle is set for EVOLVE 133 on August 24 in Michigan and EVOLVE 134 on August 25 in Illinois. His opponents will be announced this week.
Flip Gordon has been pulled from Friday's PWG event due to injury. He was set to face Trey Miguel in an ROH vs. Impact match. I hope Flip is back in action soon.
AEW's Riho is joining Stardom beginning August 10. That's interesting with her leaving another Japanese promotion.
The Spirit Squad's Kenny and Mikey have started with MLW and will have an "open workout" tonight. I'm curious how they'll fit in there.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Yes a lot of us are quite confused! Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff are in theory above everyone other than Vince on their respective shows, although it doesn't look like Bischoff will get involved in creative. Michael Hayes is the senior producer, meaning he's in charge of the people who are essentially intermediaries between Creative and talent. In some ways the producers execute the plans laid out by Creative. Triple H's main role is in (theoretically) guiding how NXT talents transition to Raw and Smackdown Live.
2. It definitely precedes Russo! He definitely wasn't booking The Gobbledy Gooker and Damien Demento! A lot of it is the shift toward "sports entertainment" after the steroid trials, and the focus on things being a scripted TV show with characters rather than an athletic competition. Of course many would argue fans are more drawn to things like stunts, special effects, etc. rather than wrestling holds. Anyway, WWE being run by the same person for decades and having to put out so much content each week is a chief culprit to why things are the way they are for them now.
3. That's actually a good question. I certainly think they own all the FCW footage, since that promotion was run in-house while OVW was more of a partnership. I don't know if we'll see those early promotions in their entirety given how green some of their key names are, and frankly the lack of interest in seeing the unknowns from those days, but we'll definitely see more Hidden Gems and the like.
4. I actually did see the Seth/HHH comparisons. The Architect and The Cerebral Assassin share similarities. I certainly wouldn't say either man is "HHH 2.0" or "Stone Cold 2.0" but I see why people make the links they've made. There are differences as far as what's done between the bell, for sure.
5. I definitely think it's fair to say WWE hasn't been in this kind of a business slump in quite some time, and that can have ripple effects where USA and FOX will look to make changes. There are reasons WWE got those deals in the first place, though, and it looks like WWE is set to do very well financially for the next five years even with the audience declines.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Liger competing at NJPW events, where AAA U.S. shows will air, Interviews with Chavo/HBK/Batista/Austin/Kofi, notable Raw trends, possible WWE show name, WWEPC guest hosts, why one name missed Raw toast, Raw plans changed, Raw guests, Patterson milestone, Impact signs big Twitch deal, AEW stars working NEW, DSOTR episode plans, Raw audience, ROH title match official, new All Out match, ROH challenge, Jungle Boy tribute, SDL dark match, and Questions on banning finishers, WWE's roster size, AEW chasing lapsed fans, tags in no-DQ matches, and Matt Hardy's changes
Jushin "Thunder" Liger will compete at the Super J Cup events in non-tournament matches. I'm glad he'll be in action on those shows.
AAA's U.S. events will stream live on FITE. I hope those shows are successful for both sides.
Chavo Guerrero is on Stone Cold's latest podcast, discussing Alberto El Patron's new project, GLOW, and more.
"Stone Cold" "Steve Austin" and "Give WWE Women A Chance" all trended in the U.S. on Twitter during Raw. The first two aren't surprising; I'm curious what the response will be to the latter.
Shawn Michaels spoke before Raw Reunion.
WWE has trademarked "WWE After the Bell," which could easily be the FS1 studio show.
Batista discussed whom he'd like to Batista Bomb and more. That's technically wrestling-related despite the political answer.
Stone Cold put Ric Flair over to TMZ Sports. That's pretty cool to see.
- Austin also spoke to ESPN about Raw Reunion and Summerslam.
Kofi Kingston spoke to a French outlet about WWE's new executive directors and more.
The WWE Performance Center has Pat Buck of WrestlePro/Create-A-Pro and Danny Cage of The Monster Factory as guest coaches this week. Cool to see them helping out.
Scott Hall did not enter the ring during the Raw Reunion beer bash due to his history with alcohol. I hope he's doing well in that regard.
Ricochet was originally going to be in the DX/OC segment. I can see how that would have been overkill.
The Bella Twins were invited to Raw Reunion, but Nikki was already scheduled to be out of the U.S.
NXT stars were backstage at Raw Reunion, as the WWE Performance Center is close by.
Former Raw Tag Team Champion Nicholas was backstage at Raw. He could have been 24/7 Champion!!!!!!!
WOW's Chloe Hurtz was backstage at Raw with Rob Van Dam.
Pat Patterson is now the oldest person to hold a championship in WWE at 78.
Raw Reunion got local press.
Impact and Twitch have renewed their agreement, which will see more Impact content on the platform going forward. That's obviously great for both sides.
Jon Moxley vs. Pentagon, Jr. is set for Northeast Wrestling's August 16 show. Rey Fenix, Darby Allin, Penelope Ford, and Private Party are also booked there before AEW's TV debut.
- Jerry Lawler and David Arquette will be in a mixed tag at that show. Lawler is teaming with Keith Youngblood against Arquette and King Brian.
"Dark Side of the Ring's" second season is set to have ten episodes. Dino Bravo and Brawl For All will be the subjects of episodes, with Jim Cornette and Butterbean interviewed for the latter.
- There are also plans for a Chris Benoit episode.
Raw Reunion drew 3.09 million viewers Monday night, a big jump from 2.45 million the previous week. That's the biggest audience since August, and shows a decent level of lapsed fans were curious about the special episode.
Summer Supercard has officially announced Matt Taven vs. Alex Shelley for the ROH Championship. That's a fresh match; I'm curious what level of interest there will be in it.
All Out has added Joey Janela vs. Jimmy Havoc vs. Darby Allin. It's smart to do the crazy hardcore stuff there since they won't be doing it on TNT.
MMA's Kayla Harrison was at Raw Reunion.
Rush has challenged Dalton Castle to a no disqualification match at Summer Supercard. Rush is a star in the making.
Jungle Boy paid tribute to his father. Glad to see it.
Before Smackdown Live, Heavy Machinery beat the B-Team. I miss Bo and Curtis!!
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Banned, no, but I definitely see the idea that a talent should have the previous talent's blessing to use a finish that was strongly associated with them. It has been long enough since Stone Cold's heyday for someone else to use the stunner, and it fits Owens well enough.
2. Some of them are there to fill out live event spots and get practice in case other names go down to injury. Other times there's kind of a feeling that maybe their time will come at some point. And of course there's also the fact WWE's making so much money that they can keep a bunch of people under contract and not use them!
3. What separates AEW from NJPW, ROH, and MLW is having a much bigger budget and a much bigger TV deal to showcase their product. That said, I think there are lapsed fans of different varieties. Some want to see more great in-ring wrestling on weekly TV and others want to see angles like what were mentioned here. AEW's got a lot of former and potential future fans to potentially attract, and many want different things. There could need to be some serious experimentation in the months and years ahead to see what mix of which elements brings in the most people.
4. The referee would try to send them back to the tag rope. I suppose it could be ruled a no contest? Yeah I see the criticism of that being a logic hole!
5. I've also lost track! He seems to be trying to go back to Big Money Matt/Iconic Matt, whatever version that was. He does like to keep reinventing himself!
More wrestling tomorrow.
AAA's U.S. events will stream live on FITE. I hope those shows are successful for both sides.
Chavo Guerrero is on Stone Cold's latest podcast, discussing Alberto El Patron's new project, GLOW, and more.
"Stone Cold" "Steve Austin" and "Give WWE Women A Chance" all trended in the U.S. on Twitter during Raw. The first two aren't surprising; I'm curious what the response will be to the latter.
Shawn Michaels spoke before Raw Reunion.
WWE has trademarked "WWE After the Bell," which could easily be the FS1 studio show.
Batista discussed whom he'd like to Batista Bomb and more. That's technically wrestling-related despite the political answer.
Stone Cold put Ric Flair over to TMZ Sports. That's pretty cool to see.
- Austin also spoke to ESPN about Raw Reunion and Summerslam.
Kofi Kingston spoke to a French outlet about WWE's new executive directors and more.
The WWE Performance Center has Pat Buck of WrestlePro/Create-A-Pro and Danny Cage of The Monster Factory as guest coaches this week. Cool to see them helping out.
Scott Hall did not enter the ring during the Raw Reunion beer bash due to his history with alcohol. I hope he's doing well in that regard.
Ricochet was originally going to be in the DX/OC segment. I can see how that would have been overkill.
The Bella Twins were invited to Raw Reunion, but Nikki was already scheduled to be out of the U.S.
NXT stars were backstage at Raw Reunion, as the WWE Performance Center is close by.
Former Raw Tag Team Champion Nicholas was backstage at Raw. He could have been 24/7 Champion!!!!!!!
WOW's Chloe Hurtz was backstage at Raw with Rob Van Dam.
Pat Patterson is now the oldest person to hold a championship in WWE at 78.
Raw Reunion got local press.
Impact and Twitch have renewed their agreement, which will see more Impact content on the platform going forward. That's obviously great for both sides.
Jon Moxley vs. Pentagon, Jr. is set for Northeast Wrestling's August 16 show. Rey Fenix, Darby Allin, Penelope Ford, and Private Party are also booked there before AEW's TV debut.
- Jerry Lawler and David Arquette will be in a mixed tag at that show. Lawler is teaming with Keith Youngblood against Arquette and King Brian.
"Dark Side of the Ring's" second season is set to have ten episodes. Dino Bravo and Brawl For All will be the subjects of episodes, with Jim Cornette and Butterbean interviewed for the latter.
- There are also plans for a Chris Benoit episode.
Raw Reunion drew 3.09 million viewers Monday night, a big jump from 2.45 million the previous week. That's the biggest audience since August, and shows a decent level of lapsed fans were curious about the special episode.
Summer Supercard has officially announced Matt Taven vs. Alex Shelley for the ROH Championship. That's a fresh match; I'm curious what level of interest there will be in it.
All Out has added Joey Janela vs. Jimmy Havoc vs. Darby Allin. It's smart to do the crazy hardcore stuff there since they won't be doing it on TNT.
MMA's Kayla Harrison was at Raw Reunion.
Rush has challenged Dalton Castle to a no disqualification match at Summer Supercard. Rush is a star in the making.
Jungle Boy paid tribute to his father. Glad to see it.
Before Smackdown Live, Heavy Machinery beat the B-Team. I miss Bo and Curtis!!
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Banned, no, but I definitely see the idea that a talent should have the previous talent's blessing to use a finish that was strongly associated with them. It has been long enough since Stone Cold's heyday for someone else to use the stunner, and it fits Owens well enough.
2. Some of them are there to fill out live event spots and get practice in case other names go down to injury. Other times there's kind of a feeling that maybe their time will come at some point. And of course there's also the fact WWE's making so much money that they can keep a bunch of people under contract and not use them!
3. What separates AEW from NJPW, ROH, and MLW is having a much bigger budget and a much bigger TV deal to showcase their product. That said, I think there are lapsed fans of different varieties. Some want to see more great in-ring wrestling on weekly TV and others want to see angles like what were mentioned here. AEW's got a lot of former and potential future fans to potentially attract, and many want different things. There could need to be some serious experimentation in the months and years ahead to see what mix of which elements brings in the most people.
4. The referee would try to send them back to the tag rope. I suppose it could be ruled a no contest? Yeah I see the criticism of that being a logic hole!
5. I've also lost track! He seems to be trying to go back to Big Money Matt/Iconic Matt, whatever version that was. He does like to keep reinventing himself!
More wrestling tomorrow.
Smackdown Live and 205 Live Reax - 7/23/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Smackdown Live and 205 Live.
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Orton teases wrestling NJPW star, Interviews with Kofi/Hornswoggle/Miz/Natalya/Alexa/Kabukis/AJ Styles/Davey Boy, Bayley signing (with a special guest?), announcers tease going for 24/7 title, Starrcast programming announced, All Out VIP raffle, TNT launches AEW social media accounts, Variety calls Vince out, All Out match official, Takeover match official, NXT star working ICW, Stone Cold convention appearance, more on RVD on Raw, WWE releases writers, WWE shifts producers, Raw Reunion runs into issues, Moxley set for Bloodsport, and Questions on Shane vs. Owens, Brock's backstage reputation, Austin passing the torch to Owens, AEW insurance, and Finn joining The OC
Randy Orton and Will Ospreay teased a future match on Twitter: Tweet 1 Tweet 2 Tweet 3 Tweet 4
Either that or Randy's bored and stirring up Internet drama. It sounds like Orton's contract runs through June 2020, though, so maybe this time next year he is looking at other options.
Kofi Kingston is on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
- Marvel uploaded a Kofi interview from San Diego Comic Con, as well.
Bayley is doing a signing before Smackdown Live. Sasha Banks teased attending.
Corey Graves and Taz teased going for the 24/7 Championship: Tweet 1 Tweet 2 I mean it wouldn't be out of place after Raw Reunion.
Hornswoggle discussed being Vince McMahon's son and more. He could also easily become 24/7 Champion!
Starrcast III has announced the following notable programming:
- Tony Schiavone hosting a Cody Q&A
- The Art of Wrestling with Colt Cabana live
- "Cock of the Talk" with Joey Ryan
- Mick Foley live
- C.M. Punk live
All Out is doing a raffle for VIP experiences through KultureCity. That's great!
TNT has launched AEW social media platforms on Twitter and Instagram, which is a little surprising since they don't have a show name yet. It does show the hype has begun, though.
Variety wrote a critical WWE piece before this week's conference call, examining key metrics declining. It's one thing when the wrestling media is criticizing WWE's direction. This is a much more notable warning signal.
The Miz discussed Baron Corbin and more. We'll see if Corbin can get things together like Miz has.
All Out has officially added the Lucha Bros vs. Young Bucks in a ladder match for the AAA Tag Team Championship. I'm curious what each team does on TNT since presumably that feud will wrap up in Chicago.
Takeover: Toronto has officially added the Street Profits vs. Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish for the NXT Tag Team Championship.
Kushida will compete at ICW Shug's Hoose Party 6 on July 27, facing Jackie Polo. Jeff Jarrett was originally scheduled to be Polo's opponent. It's unknown why the change occurred.
Natalya and Alexa Bliss promoted Raw Reunion. There are no current plans for Evolution 2019, as WWE is looking to have a women's match in Saudi Arabia in the fall.
Stone Cold is booked for Silicon Valley Comic Con on August 17.
The Kabuki Warriors did a tag team chemistry test in Singapore. Kawaii!
AJ Styles discussed The Club now going by The O.C. and more.
Rob Van Dam merchandise was available at Raw, so obviously the two sides worked something out a good deal in advance (or had a lot of foam hands in stock).
- Impact approved RVD's appearance as a one-time deal. He is under contract there through Bound For Glory. Very interesting to see Impact let him appear, but I guess they figured it would boost them to have a top star appear on a much more visible broadcast.
WWE has released two longtime writers as part of a long-planned move to shake things up creatively:
- Stephen Guerrieri was in charge of Smackdown Live's Connecticut branch. He had been a lead writer since 2014, and part of creative since 2012.
- Steve Oppenheim was one of the lead writers since 2011, working on Raw, Smackdown Live, and Main Event.
-- Both releases were Vince McMahon decisions.
WWE producers are now being assigned specifically to Raw or Smackdown Live. Previously producers had been shifted around brands, which would at times mean some of those names were sent home from live event loops then asked to return for TV tapings. Now, each producer will stay on their brand's whole tour.
Raw Reunion had some segments changed due to talents from the past not being medically cleared to be physical. That's not really surprising given how long it's been since they've been active.
Davey Boy Smith, Jr. discussed leaving NJPW. I hope he's able to do more now that he's free from there.
Jon Moxley vs. Josh Barnett is set for GCW's Bloodsport II on September 14. That should be a lot of fun. This will air on iPPV and FITE.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It definitely looks like we're in for Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon at Summerslam. It's entirely possible they stretch the feud to Hell in a Cell, if not longer. I don't think Shane's going away anytime soon.
2. Brock definitely isn't there to hang out and make friends! He's basically only in WWE because the company will spend an awful lot of money for him to be there. Understandably, there's not a shortage of wrestlers who would rather get a share of the screen time and accolades Brock gets.
3. I have the feeling Austin might have been barred from doing anything physical by WWE doctors. I can't say I disagree with that. That could have been a fun moment, though.
4. It was insurance in case his career did end then. Obviously those big stadium show paydays changed his mind!
5.a. It sounds like a case of the top names and executives getting benefits, but not necessarily every single person who steps into an AEW ring has a contract with extensive insurance. AEW has said they'll cover in-ring injuries for everyone, though.
5.b. Those costs would eat into revenues, which obviously isn't an incentive to those pushing to make companies as profitable as possible!
6. It could happen if they want to turn Finn, but he dropped the title to take a break. Any plans will have to wait until he's back from that. And, honestly, Finn could say Bray's attack made him realize he needed to embrace his dark side and that could lead to him working with AJ, Karl, and Luke.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Either that or Randy's bored and stirring up Internet drama. It sounds like Orton's contract runs through June 2020, though, so maybe this time next year he is looking at other options.
Kofi Kingston is on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
- Marvel uploaded a Kofi interview from San Diego Comic Con, as well.
Bayley is doing a signing before Smackdown Live. Sasha Banks teased attending.
Corey Graves and Taz teased going for the 24/7 Championship: Tweet 1 Tweet 2 I mean it wouldn't be out of place after Raw Reunion.
Hornswoggle discussed being Vince McMahon's son and more. He could also easily become 24/7 Champion!
Starrcast III has announced the following notable programming:
- Tony Schiavone hosting a Cody Q&A
- The Art of Wrestling with Colt Cabana live
- "Cock of the Talk" with Joey Ryan
- Mick Foley live
- C.M. Punk live
All Out is doing a raffle for VIP experiences through KultureCity. That's great!
TNT has launched AEW social media platforms on Twitter and Instagram, which is a little surprising since they don't have a show name yet. It does show the hype has begun, though.
Variety wrote a critical WWE piece before this week's conference call, examining key metrics declining. It's one thing when the wrestling media is criticizing WWE's direction. This is a much more notable warning signal.
The Miz discussed Baron Corbin and more. We'll see if Corbin can get things together like Miz has.
All Out has officially added the Lucha Bros vs. Young Bucks in a ladder match for the AAA Tag Team Championship. I'm curious what each team does on TNT since presumably that feud will wrap up in Chicago.
Takeover: Toronto has officially added the Street Profits vs. Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish for the NXT Tag Team Championship.
Kushida will compete at ICW Shug's Hoose Party 6 on July 27, facing Jackie Polo. Jeff Jarrett was originally scheduled to be Polo's opponent. It's unknown why the change occurred.
Natalya and Alexa Bliss promoted Raw Reunion. There are no current plans for Evolution 2019, as WWE is looking to have a women's match in Saudi Arabia in the fall.
Stone Cold is booked for Silicon Valley Comic Con on August 17.
The Kabuki Warriors did a tag team chemistry test in Singapore. Kawaii!
AJ Styles discussed The Club now going by The O.C. and more.
Rob Van Dam merchandise was available at Raw, so obviously the two sides worked something out a good deal in advance (or had a lot of foam hands in stock).
- Impact approved RVD's appearance as a one-time deal. He is under contract there through Bound For Glory. Very interesting to see Impact let him appear, but I guess they figured it would boost them to have a top star appear on a much more visible broadcast.
WWE has released two longtime writers as part of a long-planned move to shake things up creatively:
- Stephen Guerrieri was in charge of Smackdown Live's Connecticut branch. He had been a lead writer since 2014, and part of creative since 2012.
- Steve Oppenheim was one of the lead writers since 2011, working on Raw, Smackdown Live, and Main Event.
-- Both releases were Vince McMahon decisions.
WWE producers are now being assigned specifically to Raw or Smackdown Live. Previously producers had been shifted around brands, which would at times mean some of those names were sent home from live event loops then asked to return for TV tapings. Now, each producer will stay on their brand's whole tour.
Raw Reunion had some segments changed due to talents from the past not being medically cleared to be physical. That's not really surprising given how long it's been since they've been active.
Davey Boy Smith, Jr. discussed leaving NJPW. I hope he's able to do more now that he's free from there.
Jon Moxley vs. Josh Barnett is set for GCW's Bloodsport II on September 14. That should be a lot of fun. This will air on iPPV and FITE.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It definitely looks like we're in for Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon at Summerslam. It's entirely possible they stretch the feud to Hell in a Cell, if not longer. I don't think Shane's going away anytime soon.
2. Brock definitely isn't there to hang out and make friends! He's basically only in WWE because the company will spend an awful lot of money for him to be there. Understandably, there's not a shortage of wrestlers who would rather get a share of the screen time and accolades Brock gets.
3. I have the feeling Austin might have been barred from doing anything physical by WWE doctors. I can't say I disagree with that. That could have been a fun moment, though.
4. It was insurance in case his career did end then. Obviously those big stadium show paydays changed his mind!
5.a. It sounds like a case of the top names and executives getting benefits, but not necessarily every single person who steps into an AEW ring has a contract with extensive insurance. AEW has said they'll cover in-ring injuries for everyone, though.
5.b. Those costs would eat into revenues, which obviously isn't an incentive to those pushing to make companies as profitable as possible!
6. It could happen if they want to turn Finn, but he dropped the title to take a break. Any plans will have to wait until he's back from that. And, honestly, Finn could say Bray's attack made him realize he needed to embrace his dark side and that could lead to him working with AJ, Karl, and Luke.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, July 22, 2019
Kofi challenge set, Interview with Becky, more Raw Reunion names, Batista set for con, Saxton's father passes, ROH dark match, WWE live event note, Impact roster updates, and Questions on who should be AEW Champion, Raw Reunion names, Konnan in the WWE HoF, and Schiavone in AEW or WWE
Kofi Kingston will "issue a Summerslam challenge" on Smackdown Live this week. I'm curious what he has in mind. It's expected he'll face Randy Orton at that show.
Becky Lynch spoke to Marvel at San Diego Comic Con.
Maryse has been added to Raw Reunion, perfectly timed for the return of "Miz & Mrs."
Batista is set for Rhode Island Comic Con in November.
Byron Saxton's father passed away at 82. I wish him the best in this tough time.
John Cena will be at Raw Reunion. He's currently busy filming "Suicide Squad 2," so it's pretty big that he'll be on WWE TV. It looks like it will just be a cameo.
Before Mass Hysteria, The Boys defeated Cheeseburger and Ryan Nova. ROH also taped the first Top Prospect Tournament match.
Roman Reigns worked his first live event since June 16 Sunday night, defeating Drew McIntyre.
Daga worked Impact's Saturday TV taping, teaming with LAX's Ortiz to challenge The North for the Impact World Tag Team Championship. I'm curious what that means for both challengers' Impact futures given the talk of LAX leaving.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly, yes, Chris Jericho is the most visible name to current and lapsed fans, and it makes sense to give that championship credibility to start things off.
Nothing to add to 2, other than Sabu not really being someone I'd expect on a Raw Reunion show. Technically he has appeared on the show, but I don't really see him coming back for the heck of it.
3. I believe Damien has moved on from that stage of his life. It would be fun in some ways to see some of those old names. They could be in a 24/7 backstage segment.
4. Definitely, but I don't see it happening as long as he works for competition!
5. Yes. MLW is open to him appearing in AEW while under contract to them, but it's something AEW needs to work out with MLW.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Becky Lynch spoke to Marvel at San Diego Comic Con.
Maryse has been added to Raw Reunion, perfectly timed for the return of "Miz & Mrs."
Batista is set for Rhode Island Comic Con in November.
Byron Saxton's father passed away at 82. I wish him the best in this tough time.
John Cena will be at Raw Reunion. He's currently busy filming "Suicide Squad 2," so it's pretty big that he'll be on WWE TV. It looks like it will just be a cameo.
Before Mass Hysteria, The Boys defeated Cheeseburger and Ryan Nova. ROH also taped the first Top Prospect Tournament match.
Roman Reigns worked his first live event since June 16 Sunday night, defeating Drew McIntyre.
Daga worked Impact's Saturday TV taping, teaming with LAX's Ortiz to challenge The North for the Impact World Tag Team Championship. I'm curious what that means for both challengers' Impact futures given the talk of LAX leaving.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly, yes, Chris Jericho is the most visible name to current and lapsed fans, and it makes sense to give that championship credibility to start things off.
Nothing to add to 2, other than Sabu not really being someone I'd expect on a Raw Reunion show. Technically he has appeared on the show, but I don't really see him coming back for the heck of it.
3. I believe Damien has moved on from that stage of his life. It would be fun in some ways to see some of those old names. They could be in a 24/7 backstage segment.
4. Definitely, but I don't see it happening as long as he works for competition!
5. Yes. MLW is open to him appearing in AEW while under contract to them, but it's something AEW needs to work out with MLW.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Sunday, July 21, 2019
Main Event Reax - 7/20/19, Network documentaries coming, Smackville length, Interviews with Ryan/Lacey/Seth/Pillman/Mercedes/Kong, New Day comic coming, 205 contract signing, Impact promotes return, next Impact tapings, Impact uses ref without legs, Impact TV preview, SDL match set, Liger CMLL farewell online, ROH TV guests, ROH re-signs top names, NXT returns, and Questions on Punk getting a Brock deal in AEW, a NJPW app, the ECW brand as a precursor to NXT, WWE not using the name Bullet Club, and Hulu edits
-- Main Event:
- Dana vs. Logan:
I like how these two contrast.
Not bad at all!
- NWJ/Titus vs. EC3/EY:
Two former Impact world champions teaming on Main Event.
Fine so far.
Yeah this was pretty much just there to fill time.
Shane McMahon will be on WWE Photo Shoot after Raw.
Smackville is listed as lasting one hour.
Big Show is the subject of a WWE Network special Saturday night focusing on recovering from surgery. His last WWE match was in November. I'm not sure if he's gearing up for a return or not.
Joey Ryan is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast, as well as Sam Roberts'.
New Day is getting a graphic novel from BOOM! I'm interested to see that.
205 Live will feature a contract signing between Drake Maverick and Mike Kanellis.
Lacey Evans promoted a Raw live event. I'm not shocked the former Marina ran a tough tryout camp!
Impact is promoting Rhino's return on this week's episode. I hope they don't sacrifice Elgin to push him.
Impact's next TV tapings are August 15 and August 16 in Mexico, then September 5 and September 6 in Nevada.
Impact got local press for using a referee born without legs. I'll pop if Sami Callihan or someone beats him up.
Impact's Friday episode is advertising:
- Brian Cage vs. Michael Elgin in a street fight
- Rich Swann vs. Jake Crist for the X-Division Championship
- Jordynne Grace vs. Kiera Hogan
- Moose in action
Smackdown Live has announced Charlotte Flair vs. Ember Moon, which would go a long way to establishing Ember as a credible opponent for Bayley.
Impact's Saturday TV taping was affected by a power blackout.
Seth Rollins promoted Raw Reunion. Interesting thoughts about the Wild Card Rule and it potentially not lasting through October.
CMLL uploaded Friday's show to YouTube, featuring Jushin "Thunder" Liger's final match with the promotion.
Brian Pillman, Jr. discussed memories of his father and more.
Mercedes Martinez was profiled for her efforts supporting women in wrestling.
Awesome Kong discussed AEW and GLOW. It is cool to see her back in the ring "for real."
NWA President Dave Lagana and former NXT talent Bull James were backstage at ROH's Saturday TV taping. Of course, the NWA World Championship will be defended at Summer Supercard.
The Briscoes have signed new ROH contracts. That's got to be a big relief for ROH, as they'd be ideal to join AEW. It's possible ROH's schedule made the difference; the duo also run a farm in Delaware.
Dominik Dijakovic returned to NXT at July 20's Florida live event, defeating Cezar Bononi. I hope he's able to build some momentum again. This was Dominik's first match since April 19.
- Also on that show, Kavita Devi returned to lose to Bianca Belair. This was Kavita's first match since April 27.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I could see him getting a special deal like that. I'm under the impression Chris Jericho has something of a part-time deal, and Punk could certainly justify getting something as good or better than what he has. Of course, that all comes down to Punk wanting to wrestle again in the first place!
2. I haven't seen anything to suggest a NJPW app is coming, but obviously it would be welcome to a lot of fans in similar situations.
3. The ECW brand was absolutely a way for people to get a chance they weren't getting on Raw or Smackdown, and to get a step up from developmental. It presented talents with a chance to get a first shot or a needed reboot. Honestly WWE could use something like that now for some of their lower-level stars. It'd be worth revamping Main Event for that purpose, or they could replace 205 Live once the FOX deal happens. As for it being a precursor to NXT, the key difference is the ECW brand didn't get to spend millions of dollars on talent recruitment to sign top outside names. They pretty much got the talents Raw and Smackdown weren't going to use and who had outgrown developmental.
4. NJPW owns that name and has an active group using it, so WWE doesn't want to potentially end up in legal trouble. They also don't want to shout out the competition like that.
5. That's the impression I have.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- Dana vs. Logan:
I like how these two contrast.
Not bad at all!
- NWJ/Titus vs. EC3/EY:
Two former Impact world champions teaming on Main Event.
Fine so far.
Yeah this was pretty much just there to fill time.
Shane McMahon will be on WWE Photo Shoot after Raw.
Smackville is listed as lasting one hour.
Big Show is the subject of a WWE Network special Saturday night focusing on recovering from surgery. His last WWE match was in November. I'm not sure if he's gearing up for a return or not.
Joey Ryan is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast, as well as Sam Roberts'.
New Day is getting a graphic novel from BOOM! I'm interested to see that.
205 Live will feature a contract signing between Drake Maverick and Mike Kanellis.
Lacey Evans promoted a Raw live event. I'm not shocked the former Marina ran a tough tryout camp!
Impact is promoting Rhino's return on this week's episode. I hope they don't sacrifice Elgin to push him.
Impact's next TV tapings are August 15 and August 16 in Mexico, then September 5 and September 6 in Nevada.
Impact got local press for using a referee born without legs. I'll pop if Sami Callihan or someone beats him up.
Impact's Friday episode is advertising:
- Brian Cage vs. Michael Elgin in a street fight
- Rich Swann vs. Jake Crist for the X-Division Championship
- Jordynne Grace vs. Kiera Hogan
- Moose in action
Smackdown Live has announced Charlotte Flair vs. Ember Moon, which would go a long way to establishing Ember as a credible opponent for Bayley.
Impact's Saturday TV taping was affected by a power blackout.
Seth Rollins promoted Raw Reunion. Interesting thoughts about the Wild Card Rule and it potentially not lasting through October.
CMLL uploaded Friday's show to YouTube, featuring Jushin "Thunder" Liger's final match with the promotion.
Brian Pillman, Jr. discussed memories of his father and more.
Mercedes Martinez was profiled for her efforts supporting women in wrestling.
Awesome Kong discussed AEW and GLOW. It is cool to see her back in the ring "for real."
NWA President Dave Lagana and former NXT talent Bull James were backstage at ROH's Saturday TV taping. Of course, the NWA World Championship will be defended at Summer Supercard.
The Briscoes have signed new ROH contracts. That's got to be a big relief for ROH, as they'd be ideal to join AEW. It's possible ROH's schedule made the difference; the duo also run a farm in Delaware.
Dominik Dijakovic returned to NXT at July 20's Florida live event, defeating Cezar Bononi. I hope he's able to build some momentum again. This was Dominik's first match since April 19.
- Also on that show, Kavita Devi returned to lose to Bianca Belair. This was Kavita's first match since April 27.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I could see him getting a special deal like that. I'm under the impression Chris Jericho has something of a part-time deal, and Punk could certainly justify getting something as good or better than what he has. Of course, that all comes down to Punk wanting to wrestle again in the first place!
2. I haven't seen anything to suggest a NJPW app is coming, but obviously it would be welcome to a lot of fans in similar situations.
3. The ECW brand was absolutely a way for people to get a chance they weren't getting on Raw or Smackdown, and to get a step up from developmental. It presented talents with a chance to get a first shot or a needed reboot. Honestly WWE could use something like that now for some of their lower-level stars. It'd be worth revamping Main Event for that purpose, or they could replace 205 Live once the FOX deal happens. As for it being a precursor to NXT, the key difference is the ECW brand didn't get to spend millions of dollars on talent recruitment to sign top outside names. They pretty much got the talents Raw and Smackdown weren't going to use and who had outgrown developmental.
4. NJPW owns that name and has an active group using it, so WWE doesn't want to potentially end up in legal trouble. They also don't want to shout out the competition like that.
5. That's the impression I have.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Saturday, July 20, 2019
WWE awards another custom title, Interviews with Gulak/Slaughter/A1/Jose/Mercedes, Impact names miss AAA event, Steiner set for Impact shows, Rhino begins Impact tenure, more Impact Twitch content, ROH name working BOLA, Anthem continues Jarrett lawsuit, ROH UK tour set, MJF signs long-term deal, new Smackville matches, October WWE PPV official, Raw Reunion merch, NXT name working 205 Live, MLW pulls Schiavone from AEW, WWE names help teacher, HoFer turns down Raw Reunion, OVW manager seeking help, wrestling series trailer, ROH concludes Bully investigation, new WWE trademarks, 24/7 defenses at SDCC, NXT live event notes, and Questions on the Colons, WWE crossover figures, and Liger working WWE again
WWE presented the Cricket World Cup winners with a custom championship.
Drew Gulak is on Edge and Christian's latest podcast.
Sgt. Slaughter promoted Raw Reunion.
Impact's Brian Cage and Killer Kross didn't appear at AAA's Thursday event as advertised. Tessa Blanchard and Taya Valkyrie were on the show, so I'm not quite sure what happened there.
Scott Steiner and Rhino are advertised for Impact's August 2 through August 4 California tour. I'm curious what they'll do with Steiner; I wouldn't think he'd be a regular again. Rhino's clearly going to be a top player, though.
oVe appeared on Impact's Twitch stream during commercial breaks, playing Fortnite. I mean I guess if that's something that gets viewers, it's worth experimenting with.
Impact interviewed former Team Canada member A1.
ROH's Brody King has been added to Battle of Los Angeles. Pretty cool to see PWG able to match up people we normally wouldn't get to see work together.
Anthem's latest response to Jeff Jarrett's GFW lawsuit alleges that:
- Anthem has made no money off GFW content, so Jarrett isn't entitled to any financial damages
- Jeff Jarrett signed an agreement when joining Anthem that waived his right to a jury trial.
- Jeff Jarrett did not have custody of the GFW content when signing with Anthem, as it had been sent to producer Kevin Sullivan for agreed upon work and Sullivan held onto it because Jarrett hadn't made payments toward the work he had been hired for.
- Anthem paid $40,000 to Kevin Sullivan as partial payment on the above-mentioned agreement in order for Sullivan to release the footage to them. Anthem alleges they expected to be reimbursed for that amount by Jarrett and were not, so they are now counter-suing Jarrett for that amount plus interest.
-- Sounds like things are getting worse for Jarrett in this matter.
ROH has announced a UK tour from October 25 through October 27, known as Honor United 2019. For whatever it's worth, this tour isn't in conjunction with any partner promotion, just as Honor United 2018 wasn't.
No Way Jose spoke to Sports Illustrated. He seems pretty content to be where he is on the card.
MJF has signed a multi-year contract extension with AEW. Both sides are clearly confident in the relationship!
WWE Smackville has added:
- Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Alexa Bliss for the Smackdown Women's Championship
- Big E and Xavier Woods in action
-- Good to see all of the brand's titles represented.
Hell in a Cell has been announced for October 6 in California. Local advertising currently has Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship and Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre.
Raw Reunion unsurprisingly has special merchandise on sale for Ric Flair, Stone Cold, and DX.
NXT's Isaiah "Swerve" Scott will face Drew Gulak on 205 Live this week. That's a good sign for the former Shane Strickland!
Tony Schiavone appearing for AEW surprised MLW. If he's going to appear again, it will have to be worked out between the two companies. Yikes. Someone should have communicated better.
Ali and Ricochet got press for helping an Arizona kindergarten teacher buy school supplies. That's really cool of them.
Bret Hart turned down appearing on Raw Reunion. He would have been obvious addition to the Becky/Natalya feud.
OVW manager Kenny Bolin is doing a GoFundMe to help pay for knee replacement surgery.
Canadian comedy series Paper Champions got a trailer. Fun in its own way, like Southpaw Regional Wrestling.
Mercedes Martinez was interviewed. I'm surprised she isn't signed somewhere bigger.
ROH has "taken appropriate action" in regards to the Bully Ray fan incident in June, according to a statement provided to PWInsider.com. Looks like they've moved past it, for whatever that means.
WWE has trademarked the names "Shorty G" and "The O.C." for future character names. I REALLY hope those names aren't for the Street Profits.
- WWE has also trademarked the name "Smackville."
R-Truth defended the 24/7 Championship against The Hurricane and Drake Maverick at San Diego Comic Con. AMAZING. THIS IS WHAT WWE NEEDED.
At NXT's July 18 Florida live event:
- Rinku Singh worked his first live event since May 25, teaming with Saurav Gurjar in a loss to Isaiah Scott and Dio Maddin
- 3.0 worked their first live event since June 15, losing to the debuting Jordan Omogbehin. I'm starting to think they're predominantly around to be experienced names working with WWEPC recruits.
At NXT's July 19 Florida live event:
- Humberto Carrillo worked his first live event since May 24, defeating Dexter Lumis. Humberto has of course appeared on 205 Live since then.
- Marina Shafir teamed with Taynara Conti in a loss to Kacy Catanzaro and Lacey Lane. Interesting to have Marina team with someone other than Shayna or Jessamyn.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. They haven't worked a WWE match since February. They clearly have job security, though! It's always possible they end up being utilized again before their contracts expire.
Nothing to add to 2.
3. It's something Mattel put together. They did WWE TMNT figures as well.
4. It's possible WWE considers using him in another one-off appearance, but I don't expect they want to use someone still under NJPW contract.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Drew Gulak is on Edge and Christian's latest podcast.
Sgt. Slaughter promoted Raw Reunion.
Impact's Brian Cage and Killer Kross didn't appear at AAA's Thursday event as advertised. Tessa Blanchard and Taya Valkyrie were on the show, so I'm not quite sure what happened there.
Scott Steiner and Rhino are advertised for Impact's August 2 through August 4 California tour. I'm curious what they'll do with Steiner; I wouldn't think he'd be a regular again. Rhino's clearly going to be a top player, though.
oVe appeared on Impact's Twitch stream during commercial breaks, playing Fortnite. I mean I guess if that's something that gets viewers, it's worth experimenting with.
Impact interviewed former Team Canada member A1.
ROH's Brody King has been added to Battle of Los Angeles. Pretty cool to see PWG able to match up people we normally wouldn't get to see work together.
Anthem's latest response to Jeff Jarrett's GFW lawsuit alleges that:
- Anthem has made no money off GFW content, so Jarrett isn't entitled to any financial damages
- Jeff Jarrett signed an agreement when joining Anthem that waived his right to a jury trial.
- Jeff Jarrett did not have custody of the GFW content when signing with Anthem, as it had been sent to producer Kevin Sullivan for agreed upon work and Sullivan held onto it because Jarrett hadn't made payments toward the work he had been hired for.
- Anthem paid $40,000 to Kevin Sullivan as partial payment on the above-mentioned agreement in order for Sullivan to release the footage to them. Anthem alleges they expected to be reimbursed for that amount by Jarrett and were not, so they are now counter-suing Jarrett for that amount plus interest.
-- Sounds like things are getting worse for Jarrett in this matter.
ROH has announced a UK tour from October 25 through October 27, known as Honor United 2019. For whatever it's worth, this tour isn't in conjunction with any partner promotion, just as Honor United 2018 wasn't.
No Way Jose spoke to Sports Illustrated. He seems pretty content to be where he is on the card.
MJF has signed a multi-year contract extension with AEW. Both sides are clearly confident in the relationship!
WWE Smackville has added:
- Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Alexa Bliss for the Smackdown Women's Championship
- Big E and Xavier Woods in action
-- Good to see all of the brand's titles represented.
Hell in a Cell has been announced for October 6 in California. Local advertising currently has Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship and Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre.
Raw Reunion unsurprisingly has special merchandise on sale for Ric Flair, Stone Cold, and DX.
NXT's Isaiah "Swerve" Scott will face Drew Gulak on 205 Live this week. That's a good sign for the former Shane Strickland!
Tony Schiavone appearing for AEW surprised MLW. If he's going to appear again, it will have to be worked out between the two companies. Yikes. Someone should have communicated better.
Ali and Ricochet got press for helping an Arizona kindergarten teacher buy school supplies. That's really cool of them.
Bret Hart turned down appearing on Raw Reunion. He would have been obvious addition to the Becky/Natalya feud.
OVW manager Kenny Bolin is doing a GoFundMe to help pay for knee replacement surgery.
Canadian comedy series Paper Champions got a trailer. Fun in its own way, like Southpaw Regional Wrestling.
Mercedes Martinez was interviewed. I'm surprised she isn't signed somewhere bigger.
ROH has "taken appropriate action" in regards to the Bully Ray fan incident in June, according to a statement provided to PWInsider.com. Looks like they've moved past it, for whatever that means.
WWE has trademarked the names "Shorty G" and "The O.C." for future character names. I REALLY hope those names aren't for the Street Profits.
- WWE has also trademarked the name "Smackville."
R-Truth defended the 24/7 Championship against The Hurricane and Drake Maverick at San Diego Comic Con. AMAZING. THIS IS WHAT WWE NEEDED.
At NXT's July 18 Florida live event:
- Rinku Singh worked his first live event since May 25, teaming with Saurav Gurjar in a loss to Isaiah Scott and Dio Maddin
- 3.0 worked their first live event since June 15, losing to the debuting Jordan Omogbehin. I'm starting to think they're predominantly around to be experienced names working with WWEPC recruits.
At NXT's July 19 Florida live event:
- Humberto Carrillo worked his first live event since May 24, defeating Dexter Lumis. Humberto has of course appeared on 205 Live since then.
- Marina Shafir teamed with Taynara Conti in a loss to Kacy Catanzaro and Lacey Lane. Interesting to have Marina team with someone other than Shayna or Jessamyn.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. They haven't worked a WWE match since February. They clearly have job security, though! It's always possible they end up being utilized again before their contracts expire.
Nothing to add to 2.
3. It's something Mattel put together. They did WWE TMNT figures as well.
4. It's possible WWE considers using him in another one-off appearance, but I don't expect they want to use someone still under NJPW contract.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday, July 19, 2019
Genesis of Raw Reunion, more Raw Reunion names, Raw Reunion invite turned down, ER attendance, Baker update, FFTF attendance, B/R pleased with AEW, WWE October PPV update, Aoki tribute show set, UK magazine shutting down, DSOTR season two coming, another AEW name in BOLA, new ROH and Impact TV matches, AEW name set to return soon, FOX pre-emption plans, WWE FOX special coming, NXT brought up in FOX discussion, FOX promotion notes, more on Bischoff's role, SDL name in for reboot, Mickie injury update, assorted wrestling press, WWE action figure crossover, HoFer at WWEPC, HoFer doing guest commentary, more on Tully-AEW, Punk set for Starrcast, AEW auctions, WWE Network special coming, Seth promotes Raw Reunion, 24/7 Title hits Comic Con, WWE tryout attendee praised, Colt winding down podcast, ROH uploads TV match, NJPW action figures licensed, and Questions on surprise pins in WWE, Moxley's post-WWE videos, Schiavone-WWE, how TNT will differ from BTE, when to judge AEW's merits, and AEW's success lifting other promotions
Raw Reunion was a USA Network idea to boost ratings. That's not a shock, given past suggestions from them revolving around stars from years past.
-- Raw Reunion has added:
- Alundra Blayze
- Candice Michelle
- D Generation X of Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Road Dogg, and X-Pac. It doesn't look like Billy Gunn was invited to the show.
- Eve Torres
- Gerald Brisco
- The Godfather
- The Hurricane
- Jillian Hall
- Jonathan Coachman
- Kaitlyn
- Kelly Kelly
- Mark Henry
- Melina
- Mick Foley
- Pat Patterson
- Rikishi
- Sid Vicious
-- It will be interesting to see some of those names again.
Bully Ray was invited to Raw Reunion as Bubba Ray Dudley, but turned down the role. That's surprising. I guess he didn't want to break from his current character.
Extreme Rules drew 12,800 fans. It was not a legitimate sellout as announced, which would have been 14,000 fans.
Britt Baker's concussion is said to be serious.
Fight For The Fallen had just under 5,000 paid fans.
Bleacher Report is said to be pleasantly surprised with how well AEW's shows have done on B/R Live, as far as them bringing in so many new subscribers to the service.
WWE is expected to have an October 6 PPV event in California. Previous reports listed an October 13 date running against AAA's show in the area. Nothing has been announced officially.
AJPW is holding an Atsushi Aoki memorial show on August 11, with NOAH contributing wrestlers. Good to see them working together for that.
UK's Fighting Spirit magazine is publishing its final issue soon. WWE's declining popularity, and it moving to a less-watched network, was the key factor.
"Dark Side of the Ring" will get a second season.
Joey Janela has been added to Battle of Los Angeles.
ROH's Saturday TV taping has added The Bouncers vs. The Soldiers of Savagery vs. Coast 2 Coast.
Kylie Rae is expected back in the ring soon. I look forward to seeing her again.
Smackdown Live is only expected to be pre-empted on FOX for the World Series. That week the show could air on FS1.
Smackdown Live will have a one-hour FOX show in late September ahead of Smackdown Live's move to the network, as something of an introduction of current stars. I'm curious how that will work out.
NXT is being discussed to air on a FOX network. There is no current indication of when and where, although of course the speculation is it will run against AEW in some way. The obvious question is if having NXT move to TV will hurt WWE Network, and how much of an audience there is for the show on TV. That could definitely be a big change for the show, as I'm curious if any changes would be made to it in order to fit in with WWE's other shows.
FOX is planning promotional moves for Smackdown Live, including WWE stars going to different towns and digital videos looking behind-the-scenes at WWE. It will be good to have such an enthusiastic partner channel.
Eric Bischoff is not expected to be part of WWE Creative. His role will largely be as a liaison among different WWE departments, as well as between WWE and FOX. So, his role will differ from Heyman's. It will be interesting to see how that all plays out.
Liv Morgan is in for a new character and look. She could use a reboot if they're going to utilize her.
Mickie James is not expected back until WrestleMania or afterward. That's a really serious surgery!
WWE is working with Special Olympics today.
WWE has Ghostbusters-themed action figures coming, with Stone Cold, The Rock, Shawn Michaels, and John Cena as the Busters and Undertaker as the ghost. That's amazing.
- "Masters of the Universe" themed figures are also coming, with Ultimate Warrior, Sting, Triple H, Finn Balor, John Cena, Randy Savage, Rey Mysterio, and Roman Reigns all represented. Also pretty cool.
Roman Reigns promoted Sunday's Raw live event.
Scott Hall was recently at the WWE Performance Center, presumably helping out in some way.
Shawn Michaels will do commentary on Tuesday's Smackdown Live. It's unknown if that's for the whole night. Hopefully that doesn't feel shoehorned and doesn't take away from current stars. I'm curious if that's a tryout for a more regular role there in an attempt to boost ratings.
Tully Blanchard has signed a multiple-show deal with AEW. I'm curious what else he'll do there.
C.M. Punk is set for Starrcast III, which will undoubtedly get people talking about him appearing at All Out. He can definitely be a major player right out of the gate if he does go to AEW.
AEW is auctioning Jon Moxley's Double or Nothing jacket as well as Earl Hebner's referee jersey from the same event.
WWE Network is live-streaming part of July 27's Smackdown Live live event as a special event called Smackville. The show will feature Kofi Kingston vs. Samoa Joe vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE Championship as well as Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Finn Balor for the Intercontinental Championship. This looks to be in line with The Shield's Last Stand length-wise. We'll see how successful it is and if it leads to similar specials.
Becky Lynch got a special Mattel action figure.
The IIconics designed ring gear suggested by a fan.
The former Stokely Hathaway is on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
"Dangerous" Danny Davis is getting his first action figure from Mattel.
Seth Rollins promoted Raw Reunion:
- I'm very curious what current names will be in reunion episodes years from now.
- I REALLY wonder how previous generations' stars would have done with social media.
- There are definitely people working incredibly hard in WWE. I don't think anyone's disputing that.
- I'm curious how Seth vs. Brock will go.
- Seth does a good job putting a lot of things over.
Drake Maverick "crashed" WWE and Mattel's San Diego Comic Con panel Thursday, looking for R-Truth and the 24/7 Championship.
NXT head coach Matt Bloom put over Jiro Kuroshio from the recent tryout, so I expect he'll be joining the WWE Performance Center.
Colt Cabana is winding down The Art of Wrestling podcast for the time being. He gave more information in a tweet. I hope he's in for other good things going forward.
Impact Wrestling's Saturday TV taping has added:
- Brian Cage, Tessa Blanchard, and Tommy Dreamer vs. Sami Callihan, Madman Fulton, and Dave Crist
- Taya Valkyrie vs. Havok
- Moose vs. Fallah Bahh
-- They're going all in on Tessa facing men.
ROH has uploaded The Briscoes vs. RUSH and Dragon Lee from their recent TV taping. I'll save my reaction for when the episode airs. That definitely sounds awesome.
NJPW is getting a U.S. action figure line through Super 7. This is the same group making Legends of Lucha Libre figures. That could really boost NJPW's appeal.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I mostly pin that (pardon the pun) on WWE needing to book so many characters at once and so many matches each week. They have a tendency to want to book finishes that keep people more or less at the same place they were before going into the match.
2. I think Mike might have confused Moxley's "jail" video (produced by Mondo) with the "Time's Up" video, which could have been made by NJPW. I could be wrong, however. Either way, I hope we see similar cool videos in AEW.
3. I'm not sure how that one got started, since he just appeared in a video for AEW! MLW has him signed for a significant amount of time. It would be wild to see him in WWE, though.
4. I do think it will be VERY interesting to see how the BTE crew balances their executive positions on-screen at TNT, as well as the silly insider stuff they enjoy doing that may or may not be something a larger audience on TV will appreciate. I sympathize with the idea of not judging AEW too harshly in the early going as they figure themselves out, and that honestly extends to the TV show for a while given their inexperience there.
5. It's definitely possible in such a scenario! If wrestling is seen as hot, others are going to want that success on their own channels.
More wrestling tomorrow.
-- Raw Reunion has added:
- Alundra Blayze
- Candice Michelle
- D Generation X of Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Road Dogg, and X-Pac. It doesn't look like Billy Gunn was invited to the show.
- Eve Torres
- Gerald Brisco
- The Godfather
- The Hurricane
- Jillian Hall
- Jonathan Coachman
- Kaitlyn
- Kelly Kelly
- Mark Henry
- Melina
- Mick Foley
- Pat Patterson
- Rikishi
- Sid Vicious
-- It will be interesting to see some of those names again.
Bully Ray was invited to Raw Reunion as Bubba Ray Dudley, but turned down the role. That's surprising. I guess he didn't want to break from his current character.
Extreme Rules drew 12,800 fans. It was not a legitimate sellout as announced, which would have been 14,000 fans.
Britt Baker's concussion is said to be serious.
Fight For The Fallen had just under 5,000 paid fans.
Bleacher Report is said to be pleasantly surprised with how well AEW's shows have done on B/R Live, as far as them bringing in so many new subscribers to the service.
WWE is expected to have an October 6 PPV event in California. Previous reports listed an October 13 date running against AAA's show in the area. Nothing has been announced officially.
AJPW is holding an Atsushi Aoki memorial show on August 11, with NOAH contributing wrestlers. Good to see them working together for that.
UK's Fighting Spirit magazine is publishing its final issue soon. WWE's declining popularity, and it moving to a less-watched network, was the key factor.
"Dark Side of the Ring" will get a second season.
Joey Janela has been added to Battle of Los Angeles.
ROH's Saturday TV taping has added The Bouncers vs. The Soldiers of Savagery vs. Coast 2 Coast.
Kylie Rae is expected back in the ring soon. I look forward to seeing her again.
Smackdown Live is only expected to be pre-empted on FOX for the World Series. That week the show could air on FS1.
Smackdown Live will have a one-hour FOX show in late September ahead of Smackdown Live's move to the network, as something of an introduction of current stars. I'm curious how that will work out.
NXT is being discussed to air on a FOX network. There is no current indication of when and where, although of course the speculation is it will run against AEW in some way. The obvious question is if having NXT move to TV will hurt WWE Network, and how much of an audience there is for the show on TV. That could definitely be a big change for the show, as I'm curious if any changes would be made to it in order to fit in with WWE's other shows.
FOX is planning promotional moves for Smackdown Live, including WWE stars going to different towns and digital videos looking behind-the-scenes at WWE. It will be good to have such an enthusiastic partner channel.
Eric Bischoff is not expected to be part of WWE Creative. His role will largely be as a liaison among different WWE departments, as well as between WWE and FOX. So, his role will differ from Heyman's. It will be interesting to see how that all plays out.
Liv Morgan is in for a new character and look. She could use a reboot if they're going to utilize her.
Mickie James is not expected back until WrestleMania or afterward. That's a really serious surgery!
WWE is working with Special Olympics today.
WWE has Ghostbusters-themed action figures coming, with Stone Cold, The Rock, Shawn Michaels, and John Cena as the Busters and Undertaker as the ghost. That's amazing.
- "Masters of the Universe" themed figures are also coming, with Ultimate Warrior, Sting, Triple H, Finn Balor, John Cena, Randy Savage, Rey Mysterio, and Roman Reigns all represented. Also pretty cool.
Roman Reigns promoted Sunday's Raw live event.
Scott Hall was recently at the WWE Performance Center, presumably helping out in some way.
Shawn Michaels will do commentary on Tuesday's Smackdown Live. It's unknown if that's for the whole night. Hopefully that doesn't feel shoehorned and doesn't take away from current stars. I'm curious if that's a tryout for a more regular role there in an attempt to boost ratings.
Tully Blanchard has signed a multiple-show deal with AEW. I'm curious what else he'll do there.
C.M. Punk is set for Starrcast III, which will undoubtedly get people talking about him appearing at All Out. He can definitely be a major player right out of the gate if he does go to AEW.
AEW is auctioning Jon Moxley's Double or Nothing jacket as well as Earl Hebner's referee jersey from the same event.
WWE Network is live-streaming part of July 27's Smackdown Live live event as a special event called Smackville. The show will feature Kofi Kingston vs. Samoa Joe vs. Dolph Ziggler for the WWE Championship as well as Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Finn Balor for the Intercontinental Championship. This looks to be in line with The Shield's Last Stand length-wise. We'll see how successful it is and if it leads to similar specials.
Becky Lynch got a special Mattel action figure.
The IIconics designed ring gear suggested by a fan.
The former Stokely Hathaway is on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
"Dangerous" Danny Davis is getting his first action figure from Mattel.
Seth Rollins promoted Raw Reunion:
- I'm very curious what current names will be in reunion episodes years from now.
- I REALLY wonder how previous generations' stars would have done with social media.
- There are definitely people working incredibly hard in WWE. I don't think anyone's disputing that.
- I'm curious how Seth vs. Brock will go.
- Seth does a good job putting a lot of things over.
Drake Maverick "crashed" WWE and Mattel's San Diego Comic Con panel Thursday, looking for R-Truth and the 24/7 Championship.
NXT head coach Matt Bloom put over Jiro Kuroshio from the recent tryout, so I expect he'll be joining the WWE Performance Center.
Colt Cabana is winding down The Art of Wrestling podcast for the time being. He gave more information in a tweet. I hope he's in for other good things going forward.
Impact Wrestling's Saturday TV taping has added:
- Brian Cage, Tessa Blanchard, and Tommy Dreamer vs. Sami Callihan, Madman Fulton, and Dave Crist
- Taya Valkyrie vs. Havok
- Moose vs. Fallah Bahh
-- They're going all in on Tessa facing men.
ROH has uploaded The Briscoes vs. RUSH and Dragon Lee from their recent TV taping. I'll save my reaction for when the episode airs. That definitely sounds awesome.
NJPW is getting a U.S. action figure line through Super 7. This is the same group making Legends of Lucha Libre figures. That could really boost NJPW's appeal.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I mostly pin that (pardon the pun) on WWE needing to book so many characters at once and so many matches each week. They have a tendency to want to book finishes that keep people more or less at the same place they were before going into the match.
2. I think Mike might have confused Moxley's "jail" video (produced by Mondo) with the "Time's Up" video, which could have been made by NJPW. I could be wrong, however. Either way, I hope we see similar cool videos in AEW.
3. I'm not sure how that one got started, since he just appeared in a video for AEW! MLW has him signed for a significant amount of time. It would be wild to see him in WWE, though.
4. I do think it will be VERY interesting to see how the BTE crew balances their executive positions on-screen at TNT, as well as the silly insider stuff they enjoy doing that may or may not be something a larger audience on TV will appreciate. I sympathize with the idea of not judging AEW too harshly in the early going as they figure themselves out, and that honestly extends to the TV show for a while given their inexperience there.
5. It's definitely possible in such a scenario! If wrestling is seen as hot, others are going to want that success on their own channels.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Thursday, July 18, 2019
Ospreay returns, Race update, new Raw live event, Cedric hits milestone, top WWE name re-signs, Bischoff begins, Balor update, Rock at WWEPC, Zayn recovering, Interviews with Seth/D-Von, SDL audience, new ROH+Impact+205 Live matches, ECW Hidden Gems, Liger set for U.S. indie show, WWE seeking execs for new department, All Out match teased, and Questions on champs coming out last and the 2300 Arena
Will Ospreay has returned to the ring following being held off a recent show. It's believed he suffered a stinger.
Harley Race has canceled all upcoming appearances as he continues to recover in the hospital. A fundraiser has been set up to help him deal with medical expenses.
Raw has announced a live event for September 14 in Georgia. This is the night before Night of Champions. The show is currently advertising Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin and Becky Lynch vs. Lacey Evans, but I suspect both matches will be changed given the Extreme Rules match stipulation.
Cedric Alexander celebrated ten years as a wrestler. Hopefully he has quite a few more!
Braun Strowman has signed with WWE for another four years. We'll see if he can take the Universal and/or WWE Championships in that time.
Eric Bischoff has officially begun his job at WWE's office in Connecticut. He will be on the road at next week's TV.
Finn Balor has returned to Ireland, so it looks like his time off has begun. I'm curious what The Fiend does next.
The Rock was recently at the WWE Performance Center. It's unknown what he was doing there.
- Sami Zayn worked out at the WWE Performance Center recently.
Seth Rollins promoted Raw Reunion:
- Good to see him give Corbin props like that.
- Seth heeling his critics was based.
- Poor FCW! It didn't get nearly the resources NXT is getting.
Smackdown Live drew 2.12 million viewers, significantly up from last week's 1.85 million. Good to see.
ROH's Sunday TV taping has added Kenny King vs. Dragon Lee. That should be very interesting!
Summer Supercard has added Kelly Klein vs. Tasha Steelz for the WOH Championship. I suspect Maria Manic will have an eye on that one.
Drake Maverick vs. Mike Kanellis has been set for 205 Live. Glad to see that happening.
WWE Network's next Hidden Gems are the Best of ECW 1992 videos and an ECW TV pilot from November 1992. Wow, that's really going way back!
Ronda Rousey interviewed D-Von Dudley.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger is set for Defy's August 23 event in Washington. More NJPW stars will be added. This show is during a day off from the Super J Cup.
Impact's Friday TV taping has added:
- Jordynne Grace vs. Keira Hogan
- Rob Van Dam vs. Willie Mack
- Rich Swann vs. Jake Crist for the X-Division Championship
- The North vs. The Rascalz' Dez and Wentz for the Impact Tag Team Championship
WWE is seeking both a vice president and a director for its talent brand management department. That's a great idea for part of the company!
Shawn Spears has challenged Cody to a match at All Out. Tully Blanchard is managing Spears, which adds some historical significance to the match. Cody has really paid homage to the past with his contributions to AEW.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I decided not to watch/cover EVOLVE's show, as I don't want to stretch myself too thin, nor do I want to dilute the blog with it covering promotions that aren't on a big enough platform. If EVOLVE becomes a regular WWE Network fixture, I'll reevaluate.
2 was specific to PWInsider, so I don't have anything to add.
3. I see why people think that, and I also see why companies would want the babyface to come out after the heel or something else specific.
4. I haven't seen her, but hopefully she'll pop up on a bigger stage and I can see what she's made of.
5. There's a reason the venue was shaded as a bingo hall, etc.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Harley Race has canceled all upcoming appearances as he continues to recover in the hospital. A fundraiser has been set up to help him deal with medical expenses.
Raw has announced a live event for September 14 in Georgia. This is the night before Night of Champions. The show is currently advertising Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin and Becky Lynch vs. Lacey Evans, but I suspect both matches will be changed given the Extreme Rules match stipulation.
Cedric Alexander celebrated ten years as a wrestler. Hopefully he has quite a few more!
Braun Strowman has signed with WWE for another four years. We'll see if he can take the Universal and/or WWE Championships in that time.
Eric Bischoff has officially begun his job at WWE's office in Connecticut. He will be on the road at next week's TV.
Finn Balor has returned to Ireland, so it looks like his time off has begun. I'm curious what The Fiend does next.
The Rock was recently at the WWE Performance Center. It's unknown what he was doing there.
- Sami Zayn worked out at the WWE Performance Center recently.
Seth Rollins promoted Raw Reunion:
- Good to see him give Corbin props like that.
- Seth heeling his critics was based.
- Poor FCW! It didn't get nearly the resources NXT is getting.
Smackdown Live drew 2.12 million viewers, significantly up from last week's 1.85 million. Good to see.
ROH's Sunday TV taping has added Kenny King vs. Dragon Lee. That should be very interesting!
Summer Supercard has added Kelly Klein vs. Tasha Steelz for the WOH Championship. I suspect Maria Manic will have an eye on that one.
Drake Maverick vs. Mike Kanellis has been set for 205 Live. Glad to see that happening.
WWE Network's next Hidden Gems are the Best of ECW 1992 videos and an ECW TV pilot from November 1992. Wow, that's really going way back!
Ronda Rousey interviewed D-Von Dudley.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger is set for Defy's August 23 event in Washington. More NJPW stars will be added. This show is during a day off from the Super J Cup.
Impact's Friday TV taping has added:
- Jordynne Grace vs. Keira Hogan
- Rob Van Dam vs. Willie Mack
- Rich Swann vs. Jake Crist for the X-Division Championship
- The North vs. The Rascalz' Dez and Wentz for the Impact Tag Team Championship
WWE is seeking both a vice president and a director for its talent brand management department. That's a great idea for part of the company!
Shawn Spears has challenged Cody to a match at All Out. Tully Blanchard is managing Spears, which adds some historical significance to the match. Cody has really paid homage to the past with his contributions to AEW.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I decided not to watch/cover EVOLVE's show, as I don't want to stretch myself too thin, nor do I want to dilute the blog with it covering promotions that aren't on a big enough platform. If EVOLVE becomes a regular WWE Network fixture, I'll reevaluate.
2 was specific to PWInsider, so I don't have anything to add.
3. I see why people think that, and I also see why companies would want the babyface to come out after the heel or something else specific.
4. I haven't seen her, but hopefully she'll pop up on a bigger stage and I can see what she's made of.
5. There's a reason the venue was shaded as a bingo hall, etc.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Wednesday, July 17, 2019
JR-Raw update, assorted wrestling press, Taven DVD released, new ROH prospect, injured WWE star gets surgery, SDL dark matches, another PWG name, WWF star on probation, more on Hardy arrest, MLW gets international deal, Raw audience, Omega signing set, WWE profiles Chinese tryouts, Bischoff-WWE update, former Universal Champion taking time off, Miz show return date, GLOW Emmy nominations, more NXT name changes, AAA U.S. shows on PPVs, and Questions on AEW's changes, making titles meaningful, gimmicking chairs, and why the U.S. Title means more than the 24/7 Title
Jim Ross was invited to Raw Reunion, with AEW allowing him to attend, but he ultimately turned down the offer. I'm glad he was considered and that all parties were willing to have him appear.
Pat McAfee taking a kendo stick shot was picked up by TMZ. At least WWE got press out of it.
- McAfee discussed the experience on his podcast.
Stephanie McMahon appeared on SportsCenter to promote a "Make A Wish" visit to the WWE Performance Center. That's pretty cool.
Eric Bischoff discussed CTE. I'm glad it's being taken seriously.
ROH has released a Matt Taven compilation DVD. I'm curious how well that will do.
ROH's top prospect tournament has added Austin Gunn, Billy Gunn's son. Interesting he's not going to AEW, but obviously people would call that move nepotism.
Mickie James has undergone ACL surgery. She's expected to be out until early 2020.
Drew McIntyre was scheduled for Smackdown Live, but not used on-screen. He lost to Roman Reigns after Smackdown Live.
Fenix has been added to PWG's Battle of Los Angeles. I'm curious if AEW talent will be able to work the event next year.
The Berzerker, John Nord, was given five years of probation after being arrested seven times for driving under the influence of painkillers. He is to remain in restrictive housing and no longer drive. It took seven arrests to make that happen?
Jeff Hardy's recent arrest was a result of being found unconscious in a stairwell after becoming intoxicated. That's a disappointing incident.
MLW Fusion will air in Africa on StarTimes. Good to see them expand in that way.
Raw drew 2.45 million viewers Monday night following Extreme Rules, getting a bit of a boost from last week. WWE looks to continue that boost with Raw Reunion.
Kenny Omega is set for a Pro Wrestling Tees signing during All Out weekend.
WWE's Chinese tryouts featured the following names:
- Jiang Zhu, who has wrestled for NOAH
- Peng Qu, a boxer
- Jiro Kuroshio of Japan
- Alexis Lee of Singapore
- Yuan Gao of China
- Andruew Tang of Singapore
- Vernice Crystal Gabriel of the Phillipines
- Qing Xia, who has experience with judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and kung fu.
- Golem Thai of Singapore Pro Wrestling
- P-Nutz of Singapore Pro Wrestling
- Xin Xu, who played in NFL Europe
- Deng Xingbo, track-and-field star
-- NXT/NXT UK staff and performers were on hand, including Jeremy Borash, Matt Bloom, Serena Deeb, Robbie Brookside, Johnny Moss, Reina Gonzalez, Kona Reeves, Xia Li, Boa, and Rocky. It looks like they scouted some experienced stars, so maybe some of them can acclimate to WWE well.
Eric Bischoff was not at Smackdown Live and had no impact on the episode. I'm under the impression he'll begin being integrated with next week's show. Again, Heyman was already part of the company and just moving to a bigger role. Bischoff is having to completely change what he was doing.
Finn Balor is set to take time off after Summerslam, said to be about two months. He could probably use a break; I'm glad he's able to get one.
"Miz & Mrs" is returning for new episodes on July 23.
GLOW was nominated for Emmys in the following categories:
- Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Betty Gilpin)
- Outstanding Stunt Coordination for a Comedy or Variety Program
- Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic)
- Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series
- Outstanding Period Costumes
NXT talents have received the following new names:
- Nick Comoroto is now Nick Ogarelli
- Robbie E/Robert Strauss is now Robert Stone
- Rachael Evers is now Rachael Ellering again
AAA's Madison Square Garden show and Los Angeles show will air on PPV on September 15 and October 13 respectively. The first show will air at the same time as Clash of Champions, and the second show is likely to run against a different WWE PPV. It will be interesting to see which providers will run the AAA shows and when: they really chose their dates and times poorly if they're hoping to get the WWE audience.
- AAA has hired Tupelo-Honey Productions for PPV production for the events. These will be important presentations for the company.
Heavy Machinery defeated The B-Team before Smackdown Live.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It's not just about putting on a good show. AEW is changing things with offering competitive contracts, a TV show on the biggest national platform since WCW went out of business, etc. That said, I do think Khan has gone into overdrive with some of his hype. I really appreciate his enthusiasm, and to some degree that's needed to get the project off the ground,
2 is a repeat. Nothing to add.
3. If WWE wanted their titles to be seen like real accomplishments, they'd set the standards for who challenges for them higher. For instance, Seth Rollins had to beat nine other top contenders in a battle royal to get into the main event of Summerslam. It can also be argued they'd drop/unify a number of championships, given the Wild Card Rule. At the very least, they'd make it where only Raw names could challenge for Raw titles, etc. Ultimately WWE doesn't really view its championships as prominently as NJPW does.
4. The idea was to make the chair as thin as something like a cookie sheet, so that it wouldn't be as hard of a hit. Obviously that didn't go as planned, and I hope they don't try it again.
5. It means more to have a championship that's only defended (relatively) prominently and selectively. The fewer people who can conceivably hold a title, theoretically the more elite it is.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Pat McAfee taking a kendo stick shot was picked up by TMZ. At least WWE got press out of it.
- McAfee discussed the experience on his podcast.
Stephanie McMahon appeared on SportsCenter to promote a "Make A Wish" visit to the WWE Performance Center. That's pretty cool.
Eric Bischoff discussed CTE. I'm glad it's being taken seriously.
ROH has released a Matt Taven compilation DVD. I'm curious how well that will do.
ROH's top prospect tournament has added Austin Gunn, Billy Gunn's son. Interesting he's not going to AEW, but obviously people would call that move nepotism.
Mickie James has undergone ACL surgery. She's expected to be out until early 2020.
Drew McIntyre was scheduled for Smackdown Live, but not used on-screen. He lost to Roman Reigns after Smackdown Live.
Fenix has been added to PWG's Battle of Los Angeles. I'm curious if AEW talent will be able to work the event next year.
The Berzerker, John Nord, was given five years of probation after being arrested seven times for driving under the influence of painkillers. He is to remain in restrictive housing and no longer drive. It took seven arrests to make that happen?
Jeff Hardy's recent arrest was a result of being found unconscious in a stairwell after becoming intoxicated. That's a disappointing incident.
MLW Fusion will air in Africa on StarTimes. Good to see them expand in that way.
Raw drew 2.45 million viewers Monday night following Extreme Rules, getting a bit of a boost from last week. WWE looks to continue that boost with Raw Reunion.
Kenny Omega is set for a Pro Wrestling Tees signing during All Out weekend.
WWE's Chinese tryouts featured the following names:
- Jiang Zhu, who has wrestled for NOAH
- Peng Qu, a boxer
- Jiro Kuroshio of Japan
- Alexis Lee of Singapore
- Yuan Gao of China
- Andruew Tang of Singapore
- Vernice Crystal Gabriel of the Phillipines
- Qing Xia, who has experience with judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and kung fu.
- Golem Thai of Singapore Pro Wrestling
- P-Nutz of Singapore Pro Wrestling
- Xin Xu, who played in NFL Europe
- Deng Xingbo, track-and-field star
-- NXT/NXT UK staff and performers were on hand, including Jeremy Borash, Matt Bloom, Serena Deeb, Robbie Brookside, Johnny Moss, Reina Gonzalez, Kona Reeves, Xia Li, Boa, and Rocky. It looks like they scouted some experienced stars, so maybe some of them can acclimate to WWE well.
Eric Bischoff was not at Smackdown Live and had no impact on the episode. I'm under the impression he'll begin being integrated with next week's show. Again, Heyman was already part of the company and just moving to a bigger role. Bischoff is having to completely change what he was doing.
Finn Balor is set to take time off after Summerslam, said to be about two months. He could probably use a break; I'm glad he's able to get one.
"Miz & Mrs" is returning for new episodes on July 23.
GLOW was nominated for Emmys in the following categories:
- Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Betty Gilpin)
- Outstanding Stunt Coordination for a Comedy or Variety Program
- Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic)
- Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series
- Outstanding Period Costumes
NXT talents have received the following new names:
- Nick Comoroto is now Nick Ogarelli
- Robbie E/Robert Strauss is now Robert Stone
- Rachael Evers is now Rachael Ellering again
AAA's Madison Square Garden show and Los Angeles show will air on PPV on September 15 and October 13 respectively. The first show will air at the same time as Clash of Champions, and the second show is likely to run against a different WWE PPV. It will be interesting to see which providers will run the AAA shows and when: they really chose their dates and times poorly if they're hoping to get the WWE audience.
- AAA has hired Tupelo-Honey Productions for PPV production for the events. These will be important presentations for the company.
Heavy Machinery defeated The B-Team before Smackdown Live.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It's not just about putting on a good show. AEW is changing things with offering competitive contracts, a TV show on the biggest national platform since WCW went out of business, etc. That said, I do think Khan has gone into overdrive with some of his hype. I really appreciate his enthusiasm, and to some degree that's needed to get the project off the ground,
2 is a repeat. Nothing to add.
3. If WWE wanted their titles to be seen like real accomplishments, they'd set the standards for who challenges for them higher. For instance, Seth Rollins had to beat nine other top contenders in a battle royal to get into the main event of Summerslam. It can also be argued they'd drop/unify a number of championships, given the Wild Card Rule. At the very least, they'd make it where only Raw names could challenge for Raw titles, etc. Ultimately WWE doesn't really view its championships as prominently as NJPW does.
4. The idea was to make the chair as thin as something like a cookie sheet, so that it wouldn't be as hard of a hit. Obviously that didn't go as planned, and I hope they don't try it again.
5. It means more to have a championship that's only defended (relatively) prominently and selectively. The fewer people who can conceivably hold a title, theoretically the more elite it is.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Smackdown Live and 205 Live Reax - 7/16/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Smackdown Live and 205 Live.
Tuesday, July 16, 2019
Ospreay missing NJPW date, WOW tapings set, FFTF charity updates, MJF note, new ROH prospects, Interview with Charlotte/Bayley, Regal in the UK, Jeff Hardy press, why Ricochet missed signing, WWE appearances, Taven throws pitch, EVOLVE special a success, Flair commercial, James Storm defends his title, new Impact taping match, AEW working with auction group, ROH streaming taping matches, legend in the hospital, WWE name back on the road, Raw match changed, Extreme Rules trends, SDL taping set, MSG main events, and Questions on splitting Otis off, NXT on FS1 against AEW, the 24/7 title, and AEW insurance
Will Ospreay missed the July 15 NJPW event due to experiencing pain. That's pretty serious; I hope he's able to return soon. There's a scary amount of pressure to keep wrestling.
Women of Wrestling has announced TV tapings for September 18 and September 19 to continue taping season two.
Fight For The Fallen raised $150,000 for the Jacksonville Mayor's Victim Assistant Fund, and a number of AEW stars have donated items to auction off to further benefit that cause. That's very impressive!
MJF is expected back in the ring this weekend following reports of his injury.
ROH's top prospect tournament has added Ken Dixon and Makita.
Charlotte Flair and Bayley are on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
William Regal was the UK Performance Center. He's an excellent resource for up-and-coming talent.
Jeff Hardy's arrest made local news.
Ricochet missed a signing this weekend due to a flight delay.
Naomi has an autograph signing set before the July 22 Raw, while Bayley has one set before the July 23 Smackdown Live.
Matt Taven threw out the first pitch for the Boston Red Sox to promote Sunday's HonorClub event nearby. That's pretty cool. His profile is growing.
EVOLVE's 10th anniversary show was well-received by WWE as far as viewership numbers. It's possible more collaborations are coming, but there's nothing being worked on currently.
Ric Flair is in another Cumberland Farms commercial.
James Storm competed on Championship Wrestling From Hollywood's TV taping, defending his National Championship.
Impact's July 20 TV taping has added Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin.
AEW has announced a partnership with live auction app LiveSource.
ROH TV tapings will now be livestreamed on HonorClub, with the exception of a number of matches exclusive to TV. This practice begins Saturday. That's a very interesting move given ROH being owned by a TV company. Since there will still be some matches saved for TV, I'll wait to cover the episodes as they air weekly.
Harley Race has been hospitalized. I wish him the best in recovering.
Harper is on the road with WWE this week, so he could pop up on Smackdown Live tonight. I'd love to see him back in some capacity.
Raw's contendership battle royal originally advertised Daniel Bryan instead of Sami Zayn. Bryan was backstage at Raw but not used. I'm curious what changed there.
Stephanie McMahon, Charlotte Flair, and Sonya Deville attended the Girl Up Leadership Summit.
Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Becky Lynch, and Bayley supported Connor's Cure before Raw.
Extreme Rules was the 7th most searched term on Google Sunday. Pretty cool.
Smackdown Live will tape in Pennsylvania on November 15. Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship is the default advertised main event.
WWE's Madison Square Garden tapings are currently advertising:
- Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre at the September 9 Raw
- Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship at the September 10 Smackdown Live
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It seems like every team eventually splits, but I don't see them rushing to split those two. It feels way too early to do so.
2. Nothing to indicate that's coming, or anything regarding additional in-ring programming on the FOX networks, to counter AEW or otherwise. If it does happen, it would ultimately be FOX's decision, not WWE's.
3. I do think there's inspiration in the 24/7 rule the Hardcore Championship had, but obviously they're not making it a full-on hardcore title. I can say confidently it wasn't anything to do with DDT.
4. The main complaint has been that it's only competed for by lower-level/comedy wrestlers and ignored by top names. Which, you know, makes sense for a lower-level comedy title. It's not for everyone.
5.a. I assume that project is dead, since I haven't seen anything about it in a long, long time.
5.b. I'm under the impression the higher-level names are covered. I don't think everyone working there is at this time, however.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Women of Wrestling has announced TV tapings for September 18 and September 19 to continue taping season two.
Fight For The Fallen raised $150,000 for the Jacksonville Mayor's Victim Assistant Fund, and a number of AEW stars have donated items to auction off to further benefit that cause. That's very impressive!
MJF is expected back in the ring this weekend following reports of his injury.
ROH's top prospect tournament has added Ken Dixon and Makita.
Charlotte Flair and Bayley are on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
William Regal was the UK Performance Center. He's an excellent resource for up-and-coming talent.
Jeff Hardy's arrest made local news.
Ricochet missed a signing this weekend due to a flight delay.
Naomi has an autograph signing set before the July 22 Raw, while Bayley has one set before the July 23 Smackdown Live.
Matt Taven threw out the first pitch for the Boston Red Sox to promote Sunday's HonorClub event nearby. That's pretty cool. His profile is growing.
EVOLVE's 10th anniversary show was well-received by WWE as far as viewership numbers. It's possible more collaborations are coming, but there's nothing being worked on currently.
Ric Flair is in another Cumberland Farms commercial.
James Storm competed on Championship Wrestling From Hollywood's TV taping, defending his National Championship.
Impact's July 20 TV taping has added Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin.
AEW has announced a partnership with live auction app LiveSource.
ROH TV tapings will now be livestreamed on HonorClub, with the exception of a number of matches exclusive to TV. This practice begins Saturday. That's a very interesting move given ROH being owned by a TV company. Since there will still be some matches saved for TV, I'll wait to cover the episodes as they air weekly.
Harley Race has been hospitalized. I wish him the best in recovering.
Harper is on the road with WWE this week, so he could pop up on Smackdown Live tonight. I'd love to see him back in some capacity.
Raw's contendership battle royal originally advertised Daniel Bryan instead of Sami Zayn. Bryan was backstage at Raw but not used. I'm curious what changed there.
Stephanie McMahon, Charlotte Flair, and Sonya Deville attended the Girl Up Leadership Summit.
Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Becky Lynch, and Bayley supported Connor's Cure before Raw.
Extreme Rules was the 7th most searched term on Google Sunday. Pretty cool.
Smackdown Live will tape in Pennsylvania on November 15. Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship is the default advertised main event.
WWE's Madison Square Garden tapings are currently advertising:
- Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre at the September 9 Raw
- Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship at the September 10 Smackdown Live
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It seems like every team eventually splits, but I don't see them rushing to split those two. It feels way too early to do so.
2. Nothing to indicate that's coming, or anything regarding additional in-ring programming on the FOX networks, to counter AEW or otherwise. If it does happen, it would ultimately be FOX's decision, not WWE's.
3. I do think there's inspiration in the 24/7 rule the Hardcore Championship had, but obviously they're not making it a full-on hardcore title. I can say confidently it wasn't anything to do with DDT.
4. The main complaint has been that it's only competed for by lower-level/comedy wrestlers and ignored by top names. Which, you know, makes sense for a lower-level comedy title. It's not for everyone.
5.a. I assume that project is dead, since I haven't seen anything about it in a long, long time.
5.b. I'm under the impression the higher-level names are covered. I don't think everyone working there is at this time, however.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, July 15, 2019
All Out international airings, FFTF stage inspiration, assorted wrestling press, AEW injuries, Raw Reunion set, EVOLVE notes, and Questions on Seth and Becky's chemistry, Luchasaurus' background, HHH's last match, Booker wrestling again, and The Librarians
All Out will air on ITV Box Office in the UK and FITE.TV in other international countries.
Fight For The Fallen's stage was inspired by South Park's wrestling episode. OK.... I didn't hate it. It was a neat change from the usual wrestling crowd setup.
Roman Reigns appeared at the "Hobbs & Shaw" premiere.
Dr. Britt Baker suffered a concussion at Fight For The Fallen. I hope that she recovers soon and this doesn't mean we don't see Bea Priestley again.
The Miz had a special Philadelphia-themed T-shirt for Extreme Rules. I can see this being tried out in different cities.
MJF is believed to have suffered an elbow injury at Fight For The Fallen. Further details are unknown at this time. That would definitely be unfortunate as he just starts getting big exposure in AEW.
The Rock posted a picture of Andre the Giant with "High Chief" Peter Maivia. That's cool!
Rocky Johnson's memoir got press.
"Raw Reunion" is set for July 22's episode and will feature:
- The Boogeyman
- Christian
- D-Von Dudley
- Eric Bischoff
- Hulk Hogan
- Jerry Lawler
- Jimmy Hart
- Kevin Nash
- Kurt Angle
- Ric Flair
- Santino Marella
- Scott Hall
- Sgt. Slaughter
- Shawn Michaels
- Stone Cold Steve Austin
- Ted DiBiase
-- I can't help but think this is a panic button move, along with Brock becoming champion again, to address audience levels.
At EVOLVE 132:
- Babatunde defeated Joe Gacy by DQ
- Arturo Ruas and Austin Theory defeated Josh Briggs and Orange Cassidy
- Johnny Gargano cut a promo endorsing Josh Briggs
- Matt Riddle defeated Curt Stallion
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I could see it being awkward for them to play out their real relationship on-screen. I think they work well as a duo, but I can see the argument that their characters being a couple holds back what made them great individually.
2. He was in FCW and NXT for a bit, then popped back up in Lucha Underground.
3. I don't expect him to retire anytime soon, and I expect it to be against an up-and-comer.
4. He did a match in January for the first time in about three years. Unless there's a really big opportunity for him to do something for his local promotion or Saudi Arabia throws him a bunch of money, I don't expect it to happen.
5. So the "joke" is that The Elite came up with a character they knew would have a hard time getting over and did auditions for it, with Peter Avalon and Leva Bates being selected. It's part of The Elite's webseries.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Fight For The Fallen's stage was inspired by South Park's wrestling episode. OK.... I didn't hate it. It was a neat change from the usual wrestling crowd setup.
Roman Reigns appeared at the "Hobbs & Shaw" premiere.
Dr. Britt Baker suffered a concussion at Fight For The Fallen. I hope that she recovers soon and this doesn't mean we don't see Bea Priestley again.
The Miz had a special Philadelphia-themed T-shirt for Extreme Rules. I can see this being tried out in different cities.
MJF is believed to have suffered an elbow injury at Fight For The Fallen. Further details are unknown at this time. That would definitely be unfortunate as he just starts getting big exposure in AEW.
The Rock posted a picture of Andre the Giant with "High Chief" Peter Maivia. That's cool!
Rocky Johnson's memoir got press.
"Raw Reunion" is set for July 22's episode and will feature:
- The Boogeyman
- Christian
- D-Von Dudley
- Eric Bischoff
- Hulk Hogan
- Jerry Lawler
- Jimmy Hart
- Kevin Nash
- Kurt Angle
- Ric Flair
- Santino Marella
- Scott Hall
- Sgt. Slaughter
- Shawn Michaels
- Stone Cold Steve Austin
- Ted DiBiase
-- I can't help but think this is a panic button move, along with Brock becoming champion again, to address audience levels.
At EVOLVE 132:
- Babatunde defeated Joe Gacy by DQ
- Arturo Ruas and Austin Theory defeated Josh Briggs and Orange Cassidy
- Johnny Gargano cut a promo endorsing Josh Briggs
- Matt Riddle defeated Curt Stallion
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I could see it being awkward for them to play out their real relationship on-screen. I think they work well as a duo, but I can see the argument that their characters being a couple holds back what made them great individually.
2. He was in FCW and NXT for a bit, then popped back up in Lucha Underground.
3. I don't expect him to retire anytime soon, and I expect it to be against an up-and-comer.
4. He did a match in January for the first time in about three years. Unless there's a really big opportunity for him to do something for his local promotion or Saudi Arabia throws him a bunch of money, I don't expect it to happen.
5. So the "joke" is that The Elite came up with a character they knew would have a hard time getting over and did auditions for it, with Peter Avalon and Leva Bates being selected. It's part of The Elite's webseries.
More wrestling tomorrow.
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