Matt Taven and ROH have come to terms on a new agreement. The deal was made official two days before Death Before Dishonor. So I'd think he'll continue to be an important player even after losing the title.
NXT's Watch Along has added Ricochet, Apollo Crews. Bianca Belair, Jordan Myles, Chelsea Green, Deonna Purrazzo, Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, Rik Bugez, Jordan Omogbehin (surely he won't keep that name), Mansoor, Malcom Bivens, and Brendan Vink. Yeah they're really loading that party up.
Carmella and R-Truth appeared on Fox Sports' Manning Hour.
Big E delivered a New Day style entrance on FOX Sports' boxing PPV.
John Cena visited a recovering Colorado police officer.
Titus O'Neil was part of backstage footage for the Tamron Hall Show.
WWE has disputed pulling NXT UK talents from the Southside Wrestling Entertainment event being a result of Revolution Pro's alliance with NJPW. Instead, WWE says the issue was the recent incident at RevPro involving a referee being assaulted. WWE understandably didn't want its talents in a situation WWE wouldn't approve of, and further didn't want talent to be unable to appear at upcoming WWE shows.
Charlotte Flair narrated a NASCAR video package.
The Rock is still being worked with by WWE in regard to appearing at Friday Night Smackdown this week. It will come down to Rock's availability.
Cain Velasquez recently met with WWE. He's very much in demand.
Bandido's knee injury happened before Battle of Los Angeles, but he worked through that and Death Before Dishonor before taking time off. He has pulled out of the wXw tag team tournament as he recovers. I hope he's back in action soon.
Rush should be back in the ring shortly after his recent ankle injury; ROH just took precautions not having him work Saturday's TV taping.
NJPW ran their New York show past local regulations at an added cost. Honestly given the headache with the ambulances they should have gotten some leeway there. The show ended up being rushed to come close to the mandated deadline.
WWE got Chinese press for the recent live event there.
Rey Mysterio discussed wanting to wrestle with Dominic and more. Dominic has been training for a while now. I'd love to see them have that opportunity. As for changing roles, heroic and villainous characters still exist. It's just that fans are more apt to associate "oppositely" than they were in decades past.
Kota Ibushi had a tooth knocked out during a match Saturday night. He's taken a LOT of physical abuse.
C.M. Punk and Colt Cabana have dropped their lawsuits against each other, and the case has been dismissed with prejudice, meaning neither side can file anything further against the other. Glad something was worked out between them. More on this tomorrow.
Erick Rowan worked his first live event since July 13 Sunday night, losing to Roman Reigns in a street fight.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1.a. If you're watching wrestling just to see who has the better won-loss record, you're going about it in a very different way than most fans!
1.b. Wins and losses matter, but they aren't everything. Losing a big match is more important than winning 20 live event matches that aren't even mentioned on TV, for instance.
2. Um no a lot of us are definitely watching for the storytelling and outside the ring elements rather than win-loss records.
3. He's auditioned for WWE Backstage, so that could be where we see him again. I'm curious how his podcast, radio show, etc. would be affected by WWE hiring him back. I'd think WWE would want their projects to be a priority, and he wouldn't give up what he's got going on right now without a great deal from them.
4. Honestly I'd think the best way to use him would be a fairly quick match where he can bust out the hits and it doesn't matter who wins, because his opponent is either beating or losing to a 54-year-old. Austin vs. Orton or Austin vs. Cena could work, as both men have shown longevity worthy of being in the ring with him.
5. It depends on who's making the title and what they're using. AEW's world title was valued at $30,000. They would have made a new one if they had to, but it takes time to make something of that quality and they obviously wanted to show it off again as soon as possible.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, September 30, 2019
Taven decides future, more Watch Along guests, assorted WWE press, more on NXT UK names being pulled from shoe, Rock-WWE update, Velasquez meeting, Bandido injury note, Rush injury update, more NJPW NY notes, Interview with Rey, Punk-Cabana suit dropped, live event note, and Questions on wins and losses (again), Taz in WWE, Austin back in the ring, and the cost of title belts
Sunday, September 29, 2019
New WWE trademark, CMLL releases top names, Impact producer's farewell, Hulu moves SD, Samu update, Total Divas moves nights, new Raw theme, WWF name passes, new Network content coming, Dunn on production changes, FOX special audience, SD hype, NJPW show delayed and other show notes, ROH names injured, and Questions on Buck getting heat for Cass incident, Cass returning full-time, animals in wrestling, Stallone in the HoF, and wrestlers on Fox News
WWE has trademarked "The Phenom" in reference to The Undertaker.
CMLL has released Rush and Dragon Lee for "failing to follow programming and company guidelines." There was heat on Dragon Lee for working Battle of Los Angeles without approval. I'm not sure what the story is on Rush unless he wasn't given permission to work Death Before Dishonor, which was the same night as CMLL's 86th anniversary event. This puts ROH in a pretty interesting position given their relationship with CMLL and the level of prominence Rush and Dragon Lee have there. We'll see if there's any heat between the two companies over booking the brothers.
- Rush announced he will be independent going forward. CMLL probably made some other bookers pretty happy with the move.
- Dragon Lee thanked former president Paco Alonso for his time in the company. It sounds like the release surprised him.
- CMLL owns the names Rush and Dragon Lee, so both men will be getting new identities. Rush is already being booked as El Toro Blanco.
Kevin Sullivan said goodbye to Impact. Glad it was an amicable split.
Hulu has moved Smackdown's archives to the Hulu Live part of the service.
Samu's family has launched a GoFundMe to assist in liver transplant expenses.
"Total Divas" has moved its season debut to Tuesday. Wrestling's going through a lot of schedule changes this fall!
Raw will have a new theme song. That will be good to give the show a new energy.
Rick Bognar, best known as the second Razor Ramon, passed away recently at 49. PWInsider and The Wrestling Observer ran down his career.
Goldberg will be the subject of WWE Chronicle airing after Hell in a Cell.
NXT this week will have a Watch Along with Kayla Braxton, Kassius Ohno, Keith Lee, and Rachael Evers.
Eric Bischoff, Kurt Angle, and Vickie Guerrero will have a general managers themed "Table for 3" airing after tomorrow's Raw. That's a pretty cool combination.
Kevin Dunn discussed WWE's production upgrades:
- I think this might be the first interview I've seen from Dunn.
- They've got the money for pyro, etc. with the new deals.
- Ouch. Is a nearly thirty year old song the right move for SmackDown's theme? Can't help but think that's a Bischoff move.
- Interesting framing of the creative process. There have been separate brand writing teams before, but of course no roles like Heyman and Bischoff have now.
FOX's "SmackDown's Greatest Hits" special drew 1.39 million viewers. I'm curious how it would have done on USA.
Fine Brothers Entertainment did a video with WWE stars reacting to top SmackDown moments. Good promotion.
NJPW's New York show was significantly delayed due to the mandated ambulance being late to the venue, as the ambulance company as erroneously told the event was canceled. The local athletic commission wouldn't let them begin the show without it there. Pretty serious problem for the show.
- Northeast Wrestling and PWX helped put the show together. The former group did logistics, while the latter did production. Again, very notable they didn't use ROH.
Rush/El Toro Blanco missed ROH's September 28 taping due to an unspecified injury. I hope they don't have to change course after his big coronation.
- Bandido missed the show due to a knee injury. He'd be missed if out a while, too.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There was nothing for him to get in trouble for. He acted in self-defense. Heck, it probably earned him some points with Vince and company to take out a guy that much bigger than he is.
2. He has that opportunity. He's only 33. I wish him the best.
3. It's probably not something they want to deal with. I'm sure it was quite the hassle.
4. He's one of the better celebrity options.
5. Funny you should mention that! They'll appear on "Fox & Friends" this week. I don't expect them to say anything political, which is wise given how divisive that could be.
More wrestling tomorrow.
CMLL has released Rush and Dragon Lee for "failing to follow programming and company guidelines." There was heat on Dragon Lee for working Battle of Los Angeles without approval. I'm not sure what the story is on Rush unless he wasn't given permission to work Death Before Dishonor, which was the same night as CMLL's 86th anniversary event. This puts ROH in a pretty interesting position given their relationship with CMLL and the level of prominence Rush and Dragon Lee have there. We'll see if there's any heat between the two companies over booking the brothers.
- Rush announced he will be independent going forward. CMLL probably made some other bookers pretty happy with the move.
- Dragon Lee thanked former president Paco Alonso for his time in the company. It sounds like the release surprised him.
- CMLL owns the names Rush and Dragon Lee, so both men will be getting new identities. Rush is already being booked as El Toro Blanco.
Kevin Sullivan said goodbye to Impact. Glad it was an amicable split.
Hulu has moved Smackdown's archives to the Hulu Live part of the service.
Samu's family has launched a GoFundMe to assist in liver transplant expenses.
"Total Divas" has moved its season debut to Tuesday. Wrestling's going through a lot of schedule changes this fall!
Raw will have a new theme song. That will be good to give the show a new energy.
Rick Bognar, best known as the second Razor Ramon, passed away recently at 49. PWInsider and The Wrestling Observer ran down his career.
Goldberg will be the subject of WWE Chronicle airing after Hell in a Cell.
NXT this week will have a Watch Along with Kayla Braxton, Kassius Ohno, Keith Lee, and Rachael Evers.
Eric Bischoff, Kurt Angle, and Vickie Guerrero will have a general managers themed "Table for 3" airing after tomorrow's Raw. That's a pretty cool combination.
Kevin Dunn discussed WWE's production upgrades:
- I think this might be the first interview I've seen from Dunn.
- They've got the money for pyro, etc. with the new deals.
- Ouch. Is a nearly thirty year old song the right move for SmackDown's theme? Can't help but think that's a Bischoff move.
- Interesting framing of the creative process. There have been separate brand writing teams before, but of course no roles like Heyman and Bischoff have now.
FOX's "SmackDown's Greatest Hits" special drew 1.39 million viewers. I'm curious how it would have done on USA.
Fine Brothers Entertainment did a video with WWE stars reacting to top SmackDown moments. Good promotion.
NJPW's New York show was significantly delayed due to the mandated ambulance being late to the venue, as the ambulance company as erroneously told the event was canceled. The local athletic commission wouldn't let them begin the show without it there. Pretty serious problem for the show.
- Northeast Wrestling and PWX helped put the show together. The former group did logistics, while the latter did production. Again, very notable they didn't use ROH.
Rush/El Toro Blanco missed ROH's September 28 taping due to an unspecified injury. I hope they don't have to change course after his big coronation.
- Bandido missed the show due to a knee injury. He'd be missed if out a while, too.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There was nothing for him to get in trouble for. He acted in self-defense. Heck, it probably earned him some points with Vince and company to take out a guy that much bigger than he is.
2. He has that opportunity. He's only 33. I wish him the best.
3. It's probably not something they want to deal with. I'm sure it was quite the hassle.
4. He's one of the better celebrity options.
5. Funny you should mention that! They'll appear on "Fox & Friends" this week. I don't expect them to say anything political, which is wise given how divisive that could be.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Raw+NXT live event notes, FNSD debut sold out, more on WWE commentary change, 205 Live update, AEW-Canada TV update, more on AEW UK TV situation, AEW Plus update, more Dynamite on FITE, Dynamite replays, AEW dark match set, AEW taping milestone, FNSD streaming, FNSD sponsors, Impact TV update, AEW president at BOLA, CMLL drastically changing financial structure, CMLL pulls top name from dates, AAA event airing on El Rey, NJPW announces New Year's Dash, former WWE stars battle in Israel, Sullivan-AEW note, more AEW B/R content, MMA star-wrestling update, more on Dish-FOX feud, WWE cereal including Network coupons, Lana update, more on NXT UK names being pulled, Goldberg-Ziggler future, Finn return set, how TV is changing NXT, Elias return update, Titan Games winner at WWE, WWE-FOX press, Edge leaving podcast, new WWE TV matches, assorted wrestling press, Interviews with Cody+Brandi/Koff/Lawler/Bucks, Robocop at Starrcast, Punk and others try out for WWE-FS1 show, NXT pre-show set, more on The Bump, Wild Card match filled, Paige-WWE update, Rusev officially a citizen, Crown Jewel names advertised, Rollins deletes Twitter, top NXT name out of action, EVOLVE adds meet and greets, and Questions on state commissions, AEW's first tag champs, wrestling on Broadway, and showing No Holds Barred
Santana Garrett made her NXT live event debut on September 26, teaming with Jessi Kamea in a loss to Chelsea Green and Deonna Purrazzo.
- Also on that show, Mohamed Fahim worked his first live event since August 24, losing to Arturo Ruas.
- Austin Theory was bloodied on this show, wrestling Tehuti Miles.
Tuesday's Smackdown has sold out, with 14,000 fans. That's very, very impressive considering a lot of PPVs don't hit that number.
Raw's announce team change was a Paul Heyman call to give the show a new look and voice. Jerry Lawler's role is set to be a temporary one. I'm interested to see who will take his spot, and if Taz was considered for the role. I do admire Heyman changing things up.
205 Live's Friday timeslot is a temporary move as WWE figures out the future of the show and the division. We've seen it cross over with NXT so that could become the full destination for cruiserweights.
AEW's Canadian TV deal is said to be very, very close to being completed.
AEW's UK TV deal was announced earlier than AEW or ITV had approved the news' release. It sounds like an eager ITV employee got the word out before things had been settled.
- ITV 4 won't air Dynamite live due to disputes with TNT regarding commercial breaks. ITV 4 faces government limitations on the amount of commercials it can have in an hour, and the TNT will have more commercial breaks than permitted. The two sides couldn't come to an agreement on how to make the timing work for both parties. It's also important to note a live show would air from 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. local time, so it's not a huge priority.
- ITV 4 is looking at airing the show closer to its Wednesday debut following a backlash to the initial decision.
- The Sunday morning version of Dynamite will need to be edited for its TV-14 content.
- As AEW runs PPVs on Saturdays, on those weeks the show will air before its usual Sunday morning timeslot to prevent things from being out of date. This is quite the complicated arrangement!
FITE's airing of Dynamite may show what's going on during commercial breaks. That would be a good bonus for the people paying extra to see it.
Tony Khan is handling TV negotiations, rather than using an outside agency as WWE does. That's dedication.
TNT will air a one-hour version of Dynamite on Saturdays, sometimes following NBA games. That could really expose the show to a bigger audience.
AEW's October 2 taping will feature SCU vs. The Jurassic Express in a match that won't air on TV. This will likely appear online in some way.
AEW's October 2 taping will have the largest number of paid tickets for any non-WWE taping in North America since a July 1999 episode of Nitro. That's really, really notable.
Friday Night Smackdown will air live on a FOX streaming service on the West Coast in addition to the 8:00 p.m. local time version.
FOX has attracted 20 sponsors for WWE who have not previously advertised with wrestling. That's quite the accomplishment.
Impact's October 22 episode will cover Bound For Glory and cover the company's top stars ahead of the next week's debut.
Tony Khan attended the third night of Battle of Los Angeles.
CMLL is changing its financial structure. The company is taking a bigger cut of booking fees, charging American promoters more to use their talents, and cutting back drastically on a lot of talents' guaranteed contracts. Wow, those moves could really hurt them at a time when the new president is looking to expand the company's working relationships.
Dragon Lee was pulled from CMLL dates after working PWG without approval. More on this tomorrow.
AAA Invading New York will air on El Rey Network on October 6. I wouldn't expect that to mean anything regarding Lucha Underground's status.
NJPW has announced New Year's Dash for January 6. There was a question of whether the event would be held after two days of Wrestle Kingdom. The venue for the event seats around 4,000.
Matt Sydal vs. Billy Gunn is set for Israel on December 13. Sydal isn't wrestling much these days.
Kevin Sullivan's AEW title will be vice president of post-production.
AEW Dynamite could have a post-show on B/R Live in some form.
Cris Cyborg has again expressed interest in wrestling, noting her current Bellator contract will allow her to take wrestling dates.
Dish Network made the call to drop FOX stations while the two sides negotiate their next rights deals.
WWE's Post cereal box appearances will include WWE Network free trial coupons for three months. WWE is REALLY trying to boost Network subscriptions.
Lana is part of WWE Creative plans, just not linked to Rusev right now. She could definitely do something fresh. I don't think WWE "needs" her on TV, but maybe they have a good use for her.
WWE pulled NXT UK stars from Southside Wrestling due to that promotion being taken over by RevPro, which has a relationship with NJPW. Very political!
- AEW smartly jumped on this. Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Shawn Spears, and MJF are now booked for the group's final show. AEW has a knack for acting quickly in favorable ways.
Goldberg and Dolph Ziggler's angle was apparently something they did on their own for publicity rather than something WWE is building a rematch for. We'll see if Goldberg ends up in Saudi Arabia again, as this would be an easy match to do there.
Finn Balor is being advertised for upcoming live events, so his return is likely in the works. Demon Balor vs. The Fiend would of course make all the sense in the world.
NXT is now doing full rehearsals at Full Sail the night before TV. Yikes. That's a lot to ask.
NXT tapings how have WWE catering.
Elias is expected to be cleared in late October. The Chad Gable feud makes a lot of sense after Elias pulled out of KOTR.
Titan Games winner Emily Andzulis was at Raw. She's training to wrestle at Kane and Tom Prichard's wrestling school, and WWE has shown interest. She's got a great background for it.
Local FOX reporters from around the country were brought to the WWE Performance Center and Full Sail University for media tours. That's a great idea.
Edge is leaving his podcast to focus on his family. Christian will continue the podcast in some fashion.
Raw has added Sasha Banks vs. Alexa Bliss.
Natalya, Carmella, and Sonya Deville promoted "Total Divas" on Good Day New York.
Booker T. discussed WWE Backstage, WWE's commentary changes, and John Morrison returning to WWE.
Luchasaurus is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast.
Cody and Brandi Rhodes discussed AEW on Collider Live. I fully believe they did more than "text Punk an offer." Punk has a tendency to exaggerate circumstances.
Robocop (!!!!!!) has been announced for Starrcast IV. Now that's a unique selling point. It was also announced Sting will be in there in his classic USA look.
C.M. Punk has auditioned for WWE Backstage, including doing test material with Renee Young. He would be working with FOX if hired, rather than WWE, so there's no reason to expect it will lead to an in-ring return. Amazing to think that's in the realm of possibility regardless.
- Taz has also been tried out multiple times, which would make all the sense of the world given his current work. The question would be what it would mean for his radio show, and could it lead to other WWE work (commentary?).
- Rey Mysterio, Paige, and Sean Waltman have been tried out, too. The latter would make a good deal of sense. Rey doing that while still an active superstar I'm split on.
NXT will have a pre-show on WWE Network and social media Wednesday night, with Charly Caruso, Pat McAfee, and Sam Roberts hosting. It sounds like just a one-week thing to get the jump on that other show debuting at the same time as NXT.
The Bump will also feature McKenzie Mitchell. The series will start Wednesday on WWE's digital platforms.
ROH COO Joe Koff spoke before Death Before Dishonor:
- WWE has absolutely greatly benefited from using ROH alumni.
- I'm curious what form ROH content on other sports networks will take, and if that will be a positive boost for the company given its roster exoduses and attendance drops.
- NJPW's U.S. expansion is understandably a bigger priority than helping ROH. Certainly some ROH names could add to NJPW's U.S. shows, though.
- Scurll's not the only prominent talent whose contract's coming due before 2020. ROH has of course rebounded from many departures, but now there's much more competition for talents with AEW and NXT's growth.
- Marty staying with ROH would be a shock given obvious opportunities elsewhere.
- Wow Koff is really behind Taven. There's putting your champion over and then there's saying unbelievable things.
- In theory, yes, there's significant crossover in the fans that would watch AEW, ROH, and/or NXT.
- If he's not worried about AEW or NXT, ROH is in trouble because those are real threats with deep pockets.
- Again, match of the year? Come on. There's way too much competition for that to be an option. Honestly I don't know if it will be match of the month, and that's not a knock on Rush or Taven. There are just a lot of really good wrestlers out there right now.
ROH's Wild Card tag match has added Silas Young to Jay Briscoe, Joe Hendry, and Cheeseburger's team. Brian Johnson will join Marty Scurll, Jeff Cobb, and Josh Woods. So one of the stories will be Silas Young vs. Josh Woods.
Aussie Open will face The Briscoes on ROH's October 26 event and Marty Scurll and Flip Gordon on ROH's October 27 event.
Paige is set to return to WWE TV regularly soon after her Friday Night Smackdown debut appearance.
Rusev has become a naturalized U.S. citizen. That's quite the long process!
Crown Jewel is advertising Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, The Fiend, Braun Strowman, Rey Mysterio, New Day, and Mansoor. Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are also set for the show.
Friday Night Smackdown's FOX debut has added Roman Reigns vs. Erick Rowan.
"FOX & Friends" will feature WWE stars next week for appearances and meet-and-greets:
- Kofi Kingston on Monday
- Stephanie McMahon on Tuesday
- Charlotte Flair on Wednesday
- Roman Reigns on Thursday
Jerry Lawler spoke about returning to Raw commentary. I'm curious how long that move will last.
Seth Rollins deleted his Twitter account after a feud with Sasha Banks. I'm guessing he got bombarded with negative tweets from Sasha (st)ans.
Adam Cole has been pulled from the current NXT tour due to an unspecified wrist injury. It would be a surprise to have a title change this soon in UE's combined reign; we'll see if NXT pulls something big on this week's TV.
EVOLVE has added Cameron Grimes to meet and greets at EVOLVE 137 and EVOLVE 138. William Regal has been added to a meet and greet at EVOLVE 137.
The Young Bucks discussed All Out and more:
- There were some legitimately scary moments in that ladder match.
- Good point about fans' connection to the team.
- It's a double-edged sword to push The Elite. Their appeal is what got the promotion launched in the first place, after all.
- Impact trying to do things in the WWE/WCW style definitely turned off a lot of fans looking for an alternative.
- Thank God they're not going to make Dynamite a longer version of BTE.
At NXT's September 27 Missouri live event:
- Candice LeRae worked her first live event since August 8, defeating Shayna Baszler by DQ when Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir got involved. Rhea Ripley and Reina Gonzalez then got involved to turn the situation into a six-woman tag, which Candice, Rhea, and Reina won.
- Dominik Dijakovic worked his first live event since August 23, losing to Matt Riddle.
- Pete Dunne worked his first live event since August 9, teaming with the Street Profits to defeat Undisputed Era's Roderick Strong, Kyle O'Reilly, and Bobby Fish.
At Raw's September 27 Texas live event:
- WWE paid tribute to victims of the August 3 mass shooting. Local police accompanied Sin Cara to the ring. He's from the area.
- Sin Cara worked his first live event since August 8, 2018 and his first WWE date since Super ShowDown in June. He teamed with Lucha House Party to defeat EC3, Eric Young, Drew Gulak, and Tony Nese. This was Gulak and Nese's first live event since August 18, and Young's first live event since July 28.
At NXT's September 27 Florida live event:
- Isaiah Scott worked his first live event since August 17, losing to Austin Theory
- Dakota Kai worked her first live event since December 7, teaming with Tegan Nox to defeat Chelsea Green and Deonna Purrazzo.
- The Forgotten Sons won a shot at the NXT Tag Team Championship as Steve Cutler won a four-way match over Fabian Aichner, Fandango, and Rinku Singh.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
Nothing to add to 1 or 2, other than the commissions getting in the way of enjoyable hardcore stuff. I understand not wanting someone potentially bleeding out, but no tables? Come on.
3. Honestly I'm not emotionally invested in any team there. The whole division has been a blur of flashy highspots to me. I can see the idea of establishing a new team, though, since it's not like the Bucks, Luchas, or SCU really "need" the title to be credible.
4. It sounds like a pretty odd mix, but I think it could work if handled well.
5. Johnson didn't bring up the Cabana lawsuit, but has stated that's because he knew Punk wasn't likely to talk about ongoing litigation.
6. I assume everything's fine legally or WWE would have issued a cease and desist.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- Also on that show, Mohamed Fahim worked his first live event since August 24, losing to Arturo Ruas.
- Austin Theory was bloodied on this show, wrestling Tehuti Miles.
Tuesday's Smackdown has sold out, with 14,000 fans. That's very, very impressive considering a lot of PPVs don't hit that number.
Raw's announce team change was a Paul Heyman call to give the show a new look and voice. Jerry Lawler's role is set to be a temporary one. I'm interested to see who will take his spot, and if Taz was considered for the role. I do admire Heyman changing things up.
205 Live's Friday timeslot is a temporary move as WWE figures out the future of the show and the division. We've seen it cross over with NXT so that could become the full destination for cruiserweights.
AEW's Canadian TV deal is said to be very, very close to being completed.
AEW's UK TV deal was announced earlier than AEW or ITV had approved the news' release. It sounds like an eager ITV employee got the word out before things had been settled.
- ITV 4 won't air Dynamite live due to disputes with TNT regarding commercial breaks. ITV 4 faces government limitations on the amount of commercials it can have in an hour, and the TNT will have more commercial breaks than permitted. The two sides couldn't come to an agreement on how to make the timing work for both parties. It's also important to note a live show would air from 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. local time, so it's not a huge priority.
- ITV 4 is looking at airing the show closer to its Wednesday debut following a backlash to the initial decision.
- The Sunday morning version of Dynamite will need to be edited for its TV-14 content.
- As AEW runs PPVs on Saturdays, on those weeks the show will air before its usual Sunday morning timeslot to prevent things from being out of date. This is quite the complicated arrangement!
FITE's airing of Dynamite may show what's going on during commercial breaks. That would be a good bonus for the people paying extra to see it.
Tony Khan is handling TV negotiations, rather than using an outside agency as WWE does. That's dedication.
TNT will air a one-hour version of Dynamite on Saturdays, sometimes following NBA games. That could really expose the show to a bigger audience.
AEW's October 2 taping will feature SCU vs. The Jurassic Express in a match that won't air on TV. This will likely appear online in some way.
AEW's October 2 taping will have the largest number of paid tickets for any non-WWE taping in North America since a July 1999 episode of Nitro. That's really, really notable.
Friday Night Smackdown will air live on a FOX streaming service on the West Coast in addition to the 8:00 p.m. local time version.
FOX has attracted 20 sponsors for WWE who have not previously advertised with wrestling. That's quite the accomplishment.
Impact's October 22 episode will cover Bound For Glory and cover the company's top stars ahead of the next week's debut.
Tony Khan attended the third night of Battle of Los Angeles.
CMLL is changing its financial structure. The company is taking a bigger cut of booking fees, charging American promoters more to use their talents, and cutting back drastically on a lot of talents' guaranteed contracts. Wow, those moves could really hurt them at a time when the new president is looking to expand the company's working relationships.
Dragon Lee was pulled from CMLL dates after working PWG without approval. More on this tomorrow.
AAA Invading New York will air on El Rey Network on October 6. I wouldn't expect that to mean anything regarding Lucha Underground's status.
NJPW has announced New Year's Dash for January 6. There was a question of whether the event would be held after two days of Wrestle Kingdom. The venue for the event seats around 4,000.
Matt Sydal vs. Billy Gunn is set for Israel on December 13. Sydal isn't wrestling much these days.
Kevin Sullivan's AEW title will be vice president of post-production.
AEW Dynamite could have a post-show on B/R Live in some form.
Cris Cyborg has again expressed interest in wrestling, noting her current Bellator contract will allow her to take wrestling dates.
Dish Network made the call to drop FOX stations while the two sides negotiate their next rights deals.
WWE's Post cereal box appearances will include WWE Network free trial coupons for three months. WWE is REALLY trying to boost Network subscriptions.
Lana is part of WWE Creative plans, just not linked to Rusev right now. She could definitely do something fresh. I don't think WWE "needs" her on TV, but maybe they have a good use for her.
WWE pulled NXT UK stars from Southside Wrestling due to that promotion being taken over by RevPro, which has a relationship with NJPW. Very political!
- AEW smartly jumped on this. Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Shawn Spears, and MJF are now booked for the group's final show. AEW has a knack for acting quickly in favorable ways.
Goldberg and Dolph Ziggler's angle was apparently something they did on their own for publicity rather than something WWE is building a rematch for. We'll see if Goldberg ends up in Saudi Arabia again, as this would be an easy match to do there.
Finn Balor is being advertised for upcoming live events, so his return is likely in the works. Demon Balor vs. The Fiend would of course make all the sense in the world.
NXT is now doing full rehearsals at Full Sail the night before TV. Yikes. That's a lot to ask.
NXT tapings how have WWE catering.
Elias is expected to be cleared in late October. The Chad Gable feud makes a lot of sense after Elias pulled out of KOTR.
Titan Games winner Emily Andzulis was at Raw. She's training to wrestle at Kane and Tom Prichard's wrestling school, and WWE has shown interest. She's got a great background for it.
Local FOX reporters from around the country were brought to the WWE Performance Center and Full Sail University for media tours. That's a great idea.
Edge is leaving his podcast to focus on his family. Christian will continue the podcast in some fashion.
Raw has added Sasha Banks vs. Alexa Bliss.
Natalya, Carmella, and Sonya Deville promoted "Total Divas" on Good Day New York.
Booker T. discussed WWE Backstage, WWE's commentary changes, and John Morrison returning to WWE.
Luchasaurus is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast.
Cody and Brandi Rhodes discussed AEW on Collider Live. I fully believe they did more than "text Punk an offer." Punk has a tendency to exaggerate circumstances.
Robocop (!!!!!!) has been announced for Starrcast IV. Now that's a unique selling point. It was also announced Sting will be in there in his classic USA look.
C.M. Punk has auditioned for WWE Backstage, including doing test material with Renee Young. He would be working with FOX if hired, rather than WWE, so there's no reason to expect it will lead to an in-ring return. Amazing to think that's in the realm of possibility regardless.
- Taz has also been tried out multiple times, which would make all the sense of the world given his current work. The question would be what it would mean for his radio show, and could it lead to other WWE work (commentary?).
- Rey Mysterio, Paige, and Sean Waltman have been tried out, too. The latter would make a good deal of sense. Rey doing that while still an active superstar I'm split on.
NXT will have a pre-show on WWE Network and social media Wednesday night, with Charly Caruso, Pat McAfee, and Sam Roberts hosting. It sounds like just a one-week thing to get the jump on that other show debuting at the same time as NXT.
The Bump will also feature McKenzie Mitchell. The series will start Wednesday on WWE's digital platforms.
ROH COO Joe Koff spoke before Death Before Dishonor:
- WWE has absolutely greatly benefited from using ROH alumni.
- I'm curious what form ROH content on other sports networks will take, and if that will be a positive boost for the company given its roster exoduses and attendance drops.
- NJPW's U.S. expansion is understandably a bigger priority than helping ROH. Certainly some ROH names could add to NJPW's U.S. shows, though.
- Scurll's not the only prominent talent whose contract's coming due before 2020. ROH has of course rebounded from many departures, but now there's much more competition for talents with AEW and NXT's growth.
- Marty staying with ROH would be a shock given obvious opportunities elsewhere.
- Wow Koff is really behind Taven. There's putting your champion over and then there's saying unbelievable things.
- In theory, yes, there's significant crossover in the fans that would watch AEW, ROH, and/or NXT.
- If he's not worried about AEW or NXT, ROH is in trouble because those are real threats with deep pockets.
- Again, match of the year? Come on. There's way too much competition for that to be an option. Honestly I don't know if it will be match of the month, and that's not a knock on Rush or Taven. There are just a lot of really good wrestlers out there right now.
ROH's Wild Card tag match has added Silas Young to Jay Briscoe, Joe Hendry, and Cheeseburger's team. Brian Johnson will join Marty Scurll, Jeff Cobb, and Josh Woods. So one of the stories will be Silas Young vs. Josh Woods.
Aussie Open will face The Briscoes on ROH's October 26 event and Marty Scurll and Flip Gordon on ROH's October 27 event.
Paige is set to return to WWE TV regularly soon after her Friday Night Smackdown debut appearance.
Rusev has become a naturalized U.S. citizen. That's quite the long process!
Crown Jewel is advertising Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, AJ Styles, Randy Orton, The Fiend, Braun Strowman, Rey Mysterio, New Day, and Mansoor. Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are also set for the show.
Friday Night Smackdown's FOX debut has added Roman Reigns vs. Erick Rowan.
"FOX & Friends" will feature WWE stars next week for appearances and meet-and-greets:
- Kofi Kingston on Monday
- Stephanie McMahon on Tuesday
- Charlotte Flair on Wednesday
- Roman Reigns on Thursday
Jerry Lawler spoke about returning to Raw commentary. I'm curious how long that move will last.
Seth Rollins deleted his Twitter account after a feud with Sasha Banks. I'm guessing he got bombarded with negative tweets from Sasha (st)ans.
Adam Cole has been pulled from the current NXT tour due to an unspecified wrist injury. It would be a surprise to have a title change this soon in UE's combined reign; we'll see if NXT pulls something big on this week's TV.
EVOLVE has added Cameron Grimes to meet and greets at EVOLVE 137 and EVOLVE 138. William Regal has been added to a meet and greet at EVOLVE 137.
The Young Bucks discussed All Out and more:
- There were some legitimately scary moments in that ladder match.
- Good point about fans' connection to the team.
- It's a double-edged sword to push The Elite. Their appeal is what got the promotion launched in the first place, after all.
- Impact trying to do things in the WWE/WCW style definitely turned off a lot of fans looking for an alternative.
- Thank God they're not going to make Dynamite a longer version of BTE.
At NXT's September 27 Missouri live event:
- Candice LeRae worked her first live event since August 8, defeating Shayna Baszler by DQ when Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir got involved. Rhea Ripley and Reina Gonzalez then got involved to turn the situation into a six-woman tag, which Candice, Rhea, and Reina won.
- Dominik Dijakovic worked his first live event since August 23, losing to Matt Riddle.
- Pete Dunne worked his first live event since August 9, teaming with the Street Profits to defeat Undisputed Era's Roderick Strong, Kyle O'Reilly, and Bobby Fish.
At Raw's September 27 Texas live event:
- WWE paid tribute to victims of the August 3 mass shooting. Local police accompanied Sin Cara to the ring. He's from the area.
- Sin Cara worked his first live event since August 8, 2018 and his first WWE date since Super ShowDown in June. He teamed with Lucha House Party to defeat EC3, Eric Young, Drew Gulak, and Tony Nese. This was Gulak and Nese's first live event since August 18, and Young's first live event since July 28.
At NXT's September 27 Florida live event:
- Isaiah Scott worked his first live event since August 17, losing to Austin Theory
- Dakota Kai worked her first live event since December 7, teaming with Tegan Nox to defeat Chelsea Green and Deonna Purrazzo.
- The Forgotten Sons won a shot at the NXT Tag Team Championship as Steve Cutler won a four-way match over Fabian Aichner, Fandango, and Rinku Singh.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
Nothing to add to 1 or 2, other than the commissions getting in the way of enjoyable hardcore stuff. I understand not wanting someone potentially bleeding out, but no tables? Come on.
3. Honestly I'm not emotionally invested in any team there. The whole division has been a blur of flashy highspots to me. I can see the idea of establishing a new team, though, since it's not like the Bucks, Luchas, or SCU really "need" the title to be credible.
4. It sounds like a pretty odd mix, but I think it could work if handled well.
5. Johnson didn't bring up the Cabana lawsuit, but has stated that's because he knew Punk wasn't likely to talk about ongoing litigation.
6. I assume everything's fine legally or WWE would have issued a cease and desist.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday, September 27, 2019
NWA commentary update, new Network episode, Interviews with Sonya/Mandy/Cody, Titus appearance, WWE FS1 show official, WWE nominated for social awards, WWE commentary teams changing, WWE signs former world champion, NWA press event announced, big indie show coming to Louisiana, WWE stars on cereal boxes, new Raw+NXT matches, ROH uses famed composer, HoFer health problems, WWE honors Hispanic Heritage Month, NXT audience, Fox networks gone from Dish, another WWE Network update, and Questions on ROH returning to New York, Kross vs. Impact, NJPW's U.S. tour, missing HoFers, Hogan wrestling again, and NXT TV on the road
NWA will have Joe Galli joining Jim Cornette on commentary, while Dave Marquez and Kyle Durden will be correspondents.
"WWE Day Of" focusing on Clash of Champions has been added to WWE Network.
Sonya Deville spoke to Buzzfeed News about coming out and more.
Titus O'Neil appeared at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Youth of the Year gala.
WWE's FS1 show, WWE Backstage, has been announced as beginning November 5 with Renee Young and Booker T. as hosts. Interesting time to air it. I understand not following Smackdown with it since 205 Live be then, but putting it by itself feels a little off.
WWE has been nominated for the following Cynopsis Awards:
- Best Over-The-Top Content Service (WWE Network)
- Best Use of Augmented Reality Technology (WrestleMania Kickoff in NextVR and Oculus)
- Best Host in a Web Series or Channel (Cathy Kelley)
- Best Social Media Marketing Campaign: Use of Facebook or Twitter
- Best Documentary (My Son/Daughter is a WWE Superstar)
- Best Sports Web Video or Series (WWE Now)
- Best Web Series (My Son/Daughter is a WWE Superstar, WWE Game Night)
- Best Web Video (This WWE Fan Has Been To Every WrestleMania, WWE Day Of: Behind The Scenes of WrestleMania 35)
- Most Fan Engaged Channel (WWE on YouTube)
Raw and Friday Night Smackdown will have new announce teams beginning next week:
- Raw will be called by Jerry Lawler, Vic Joseph, and Dio Maddin. That's quite the shift. It will be good to have some new faces on the show, as much as I really, really question having Lawler back.
- Friday Night Smackdown will be called by Michael Cole, Corey Graves, and Renee Young.
John Morrison has signed with WWE. That's surprising. I expected him to focus on acting going forward. I'm curious where and how he'll be used; I hope he can have a memorable run.
NWA will hold a press event Monday before its TV taping.
Louisiana's Wildkat Wrestling's November 3 event will feature Harlem Heat, Rob Van Dam, MVP, Psicosis, Stevie Richards, Honky Tonk Man, and Bestia 666. This event is intended to be the biggest in company history, as the venue seats 4,600 people. That's a very lofty goal!
Becky Lynch and Big Show will be featured on Post Cereal boxes from October through the end of February. Becky will be on Golden Crisp, while Big Show will be on Honeycomb.
NXT will feature Johnny Gargano vs. Shane Thorne.
Jim Johnston has composed a new theme for PCO to use in ROH. It will debut on tonight's Death Before Dishonor event. That's great! I'd love to see him utilized more.
WWE put out an official press release for next week's shows.
"Superstar" Billy Graham reported recently having a heart attack. He's going through a tough time.
Raw has added Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode vs. Heavy Machinery for the Raw Tag Team Championship. I'm glad to see Heavy Machinery in action on TV again.
Mandy Rose discussed her path to WWE. She's definitely motivated to build a brand for herself.
WWE stars acknowledged Hispanic Heritage Month.
NXT drew 1.01 million viewers Wednesday night. Of course, it faces much stiffer competition next week.
Samu Anoa'i has undergone a liver transplant. The WWE Hall of Famer has greatly benefited generations of wrestling fans.
Cody discussed AEW and more on The Rich Eisen Show.
Fox channels have been dropped from Dish Network. Of course that can be a big problem for WWE if something isn't resolved soon.
WWE Network on Roku has received another update.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I would be surprised to see ROH return to Hammerstein in the near future given how few tickets were sold for the last show. We'll see about smaller venues in the area.
2. I definitely don't see it as hating Impact. He's perhaps frustrated with their management and how it's handled things, but that's not hate.
3. That would make sense.
4. Not In Hall of Fame has it covered, I think. I want to see more backstage names honored, including Jim Johnston and Mark Yeaton.
5. I'd be surprised to see WWE clear him for anything physical. So I'm leaning toward no.
6. WWE is committed to Full Sail, but there's obviously a big opportunity there.
More wrestling tomorrow.
"WWE Day Of" focusing on Clash of Champions has been added to WWE Network.
Sonya Deville spoke to Buzzfeed News about coming out and more.
Titus O'Neil appeared at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Youth of the Year gala.
WWE's FS1 show, WWE Backstage, has been announced as beginning November 5 with Renee Young and Booker T. as hosts. Interesting time to air it. I understand not following Smackdown with it since 205 Live be then, but putting it by itself feels a little off.
WWE has been nominated for the following Cynopsis Awards:
- Best Over-The-Top Content Service (WWE Network)
- Best Use of Augmented Reality Technology (WrestleMania Kickoff in NextVR and Oculus)
- Best Host in a Web Series or Channel (Cathy Kelley)
- Best Social Media Marketing Campaign: Use of Facebook or Twitter
- Best Social Media Marketing Campaign: Use of Instagram
- Best Category-Specific YouTube Channel (The Bella Twins)- Best Documentary (My Son/Daughter is a WWE Superstar)
- Best Sports Web Video or Series (WWE Now)
- Best Web Series (My Son/Daughter is a WWE Superstar, WWE Game Night)
- Best Web Video (This WWE Fan Has Been To Every WrestleMania, WWE Day Of: Behind The Scenes of WrestleMania 35)
- Most Fan Engaged Channel (WWE on YouTube)
Raw and Friday Night Smackdown will have new announce teams beginning next week:
- Raw will be called by Jerry Lawler, Vic Joseph, and Dio Maddin. That's quite the shift. It will be good to have some new faces on the show, as much as I really, really question having Lawler back.
- Friday Night Smackdown will be called by Michael Cole, Corey Graves, and Renee Young.
John Morrison has signed with WWE. That's surprising. I expected him to focus on acting going forward. I'm curious where and how he'll be used; I hope he can have a memorable run.
NWA will hold a press event Monday before its TV taping.
Louisiana's Wildkat Wrestling's November 3 event will feature Harlem Heat, Rob Van Dam, MVP, Psicosis, Stevie Richards, Honky Tonk Man, and Bestia 666. This event is intended to be the biggest in company history, as the venue seats 4,600 people. That's a very lofty goal!
Becky Lynch and Big Show will be featured on Post Cereal boxes from October through the end of February. Becky will be on Golden Crisp, while Big Show will be on Honeycomb.
NXT will feature Johnny Gargano vs. Shane Thorne.
Jim Johnston has composed a new theme for PCO to use in ROH. It will debut on tonight's Death Before Dishonor event. That's great! I'd love to see him utilized more.
WWE put out an official press release for next week's shows.
"Superstar" Billy Graham reported recently having a heart attack. He's going through a tough time.
Raw has added Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode vs. Heavy Machinery for the Raw Tag Team Championship. I'm glad to see Heavy Machinery in action on TV again.
Mandy Rose discussed her path to WWE. She's definitely motivated to build a brand for herself.
WWE stars acknowledged Hispanic Heritage Month.
NXT drew 1.01 million viewers Wednesday night. Of course, it faces much stiffer competition next week.
Samu Anoa'i has undergone a liver transplant. The WWE Hall of Famer has greatly benefited generations of wrestling fans.
Cody discussed AEW and more on The Rich Eisen Show.
Fox channels have been dropped from Dish Network. Of course that can be a big problem for WWE if something isn't resolved soon.
WWE Network on Roku has received another update.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I would be surprised to see ROH return to Hammerstein in the near future given how few tickets were sold for the last show. We'll see about smaller venues in the area.
2. I definitely don't see it as hating Impact. He's perhaps frustrated with their management and how it's handled things, but that's not hate.
3. That would make sense.
4. Not In Hall of Fame has it covered, I think. I want to see more backstage names honored, including Jim Johnston and Mark Yeaton.
5. I'd be surprised to see WWE clear him for anything physical. So I'm leaning toward no.
6. WWE is committed to Full Sail, but there's obviously a big opportunity there.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Thursday, September 26, 2019
Bubbly trademark, AEW merch trademark, AEW dark match plans, Interviews with Cody+Brandi/Taven, Omega speaking tour set, 205 Live change, how NXT change affects other broadcasters, more on Big Show Show guests, WWE names at ad conference, NXT UK names pulled from event, FNSD replays set, WWE promotes new series, new AEW match, Dynamite-UK plans, NXT UK moving, Raw title match, another legend on FNSD, Impact names get bonuses, another RVD treatment, SDL audience, Austin in-ring update, how to watch AEW outside of U.S.+Canada, AWA Hidden Gem, Walter missing wXw show, WWE star robbed, AEW name apologizes for tweet, former WWE/Impact women's champion retires, MLW vs. Crash title match, more Wild Card competitors, BTE guests, NXT dark matches, NXT to air with limited commercials, and Questions on the lack of Russo in 2019, AEW seasons, wins and losses, and Cena winning another world title
Chris Jericho and AEW have both attempted to trademark "A Little Bit of the Bubbly" in reference to Jericho's post-All Out celebration. Jericho made the first claim. Amazing how much traction that phrase got. I'm curious where ownership would fall and if this will be an issue between the two sides.
- AEW has also trademarked "All Elite Fleet" for goods and services.
AEW Dynamite tapings will have dark matches before and after what's taped for TNT. That's good!
Cody and Brandi Rhodes promoted AEW Dynamite on a California news channel.
Kenny Omega is doing a speaking tour of the UK in April.
Tuesday's Smackdown Live saw a dark match before 205 Live matches began. WWE Network viewers got backstage promos while this was going on. Interesting strategy.
NXT will have a one-hour version on Hulu and Canadian TV going forward.
The Big Show Show will have segments with Mick Foley, Mark Henry, and Rikishi, as expected based on them recently being on set with Big Show.
Stephanie McMahon, Kofi Kingston, and Becky Lynch represented WWE at Advertising Week in New York. Obviously WWE wants more ad partners for their new TV seasons!
NXT UK talents have been pulled from Southside Wrestling Entertainment's final event. That's really unfortunate for that event and fans of those talents.
Friday Night Smackdown will air live in Spanish on FOX Deportes. There are also replays scheduled for FOX Sports 2 on Saturdays and Tuesdays, at least for the October 4 episode. That's good to expand the show's reach and audience, and I expect FOX will push for a Latin presence on the show.
WWE promoted The Bump, an upcoming show of some sort. We'll see how that plays out.
AEW's October 2 episode has added PAC vs. Hangman Page. Ooooooh. That's intriguing.
AEW Dynamite will air on ITV 4 Sundays at 8:20 a.m., with a one-hour version airing on ITV on Mondays at 11:45 p.m. OUCH. That's certainly better than no TV deal, but it's far from ideal.
NXT UK is moving to Thursdays at 3 p.m. EST on WWE Network. So a lot of content is shifting in October!
Raw has added AJ Styles vs. Cedric Alexander for the United States Championship. We'll see if Cedric can get it done this time.
Stone Cold Steve Austin has been added to Friday Night Smackdown's FOX debut.
Impact talents have been paid bonuses for the long "wedding" taping day from Nevada, which talents had been less than thrilled by. Good to see Impact listening to their employees' concerns there.
Rob Van Dam recently had another stem cell treatment in Colombia.
Smackdown Live drew 2.10 million viewers Tuesday night. FOX numbers are expected to be significantly higher, since the channel is in far more homes than USA is.
Stone Cold Steve Austin recently indicated he'd be physically able to have another match. Well that will get speculation going! The obvious route is using him to sell tickets to a big stadium show.
AEW and FITE are collaborating for a subscription service where Dynamite will be available live weekly outside of U.S. and Canada for $4.99 a month. AEW Plus will include footage exclusive to the platform, including behind-the-scenes footage. With no international deals imminent, this is a fine way to get the weekly show out there.
WWE Network's latest Hidden Gem is AWA Superclash IV.
Walter won't be at wXw's World Tag Team Festival on Sunday due to a scheduling conflict. Not sure what that is.
Heavy Machinery's Tucker lost his gear at Smackdown Live when his car was broken into. That sucks.
Nyla Rose apologized for a recent tweet making light of molestation as a response to someone who had insulted her. Anyone in the public eye needs to be very careful of what they say and do.
The former Victoria/Tara has announced her retirement. It's a shame she didn't have one last WWE match. She could really be an asset behind-the-scenes somewhere.
MLW and The Crash have announced a title vs. title match for their joint October 5 event. Alex Hammerstone vs. Rey Horus will be for both the MLW National Championship and Crash Heavyweight Championship. That could be a big move for both sides.
Matt Taven spoke before Death Before Dishonor. I'm curious what's next for him with his contract coming due.
ROH's Wild Card match has added Cheeseburger to the Jeff Cobb/Marty Scurll team, while Josh Woods will join Jay Briscoe and Tracy Williams. The final competitors will be revealed for tomorrow's news post.
Joey Ryan and Masa appeared on The Young Bucks' most recent Wrestlers on The Road Ordering Room Service video, which will surely fuel speculation of them appearing in AEW. Obviously Joey Ryan has said he won't sign anywhere, but he could still appear like he just did for Impact.
Before NXT:
- Reina Gonzalez defeated Santana Garrett
- Austin Theory defeated Ridge Holland
NXT's October 2 episode will have "limited commercial interruptions." WWE can afford to make moves like that a lot more easily than AEW can right now, and that could be the key to the upcoming competition.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Russo is a lightning rod for negative attention, that's for sure. I'd be surprised to see someone use him given the current generation being told since Day One he's the worst thing to ever happen to wrestling, etc.
2. Yes, but I don't spend much time on it. It's just a way to get this post out.
3. They could do that if they want, with the season resetting at the annual Memorial Day show in Chicago. I continue to think the records overcomplicate things, but they can try it if they want to. That group has continually broken the rules of what "shouldn't" and "won't" work in wrestling, so I wouldn't put it past them to pull that idea off, too!
4. It makes booking more difficult if you keep reminding people of win-loss records. New fans will buy someone a certain way based on their record. If Omega gets a title shot at 15-15 or what have you, fans who just see that stat will shake their heads.
5. I could see a surprise 17th win. Or 18th, 19th, etc. for that matter. I don't know if Cena's really that torn about the fictional record if it makes sense for everyone involved for him to be champion again.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- AEW has also trademarked "All Elite Fleet" for goods and services.
AEW Dynamite tapings will have dark matches before and after what's taped for TNT. That's good!
Cody and Brandi Rhodes promoted AEW Dynamite on a California news channel.
Kenny Omega is doing a speaking tour of the UK in April.
Tuesday's Smackdown Live saw a dark match before 205 Live matches began. WWE Network viewers got backstage promos while this was going on. Interesting strategy.
NXT will have a one-hour version on Hulu and Canadian TV going forward.
The Big Show Show will have segments with Mick Foley, Mark Henry, and Rikishi, as expected based on them recently being on set with Big Show.
Stephanie McMahon, Kofi Kingston, and Becky Lynch represented WWE at Advertising Week in New York. Obviously WWE wants more ad partners for their new TV seasons!
NXT UK talents have been pulled from Southside Wrestling Entertainment's final event. That's really unfortunate for that event and fans of those talents.
Friday Night Smackdown will air live in Spanish on FOX Deportes. There are also replays scheduled for FOX Sports 2 on Saturdays and Tuesdays, at least for the October 4 episode. That's good to expand the show's reach and audience, and I expect FOX will push for a Latin presence on the show.
WWE promoted The Bump, an upcoming show of some sort. We'll see how that plays out.
AEW's October 2 episode has added PAC vs. Hangman Page. Ooooooh. That's intriguing.
AEW Dynamite will air on ITV 4 Sundays at 8:20 a.m., with a one-hour version airing on ITV on Mondays at 11:45 p.m. OUCH. That's certainly better than no TV deal, but it's far from ideal.
NXT UK is moving to Thursdays at 3 p.m. EST on WWE Network. So a lot of content is shifting in October!
Raw has added AJ Styles vs. Cedric Alexander for the United States Championship. We'll see if Cedric can get it done this time.
Stone Cold Steve Austin has been added to Friday Night Smackdown's FOX debut.
Impact talents have been paid bonuses for the long "wedding" taping day from Nevada, which talents had been less than thrilled by. Good to see Impact listening to their employees' concerns there.
Rob Van Dam recently had another stem cell treatment in Colombia.
Smackdown Live drew 2.10 million viewers Tuesday night. FOX numbers are expected to be significantly higher, since the channel is in far more homes than USA is.
Stone Cold Steve Austin recently indicated he'd be physically able to have another match. Well that will get speculation going! The obvious route is using him to sell tickets to a big stadium show.
AEW and FITE are collaborating for a subscription service where Dynamite will be available live weekly outside of U.S. and Canada for $4.99 a month. AEW Plus will include footage exclusive to the platform, including behind-the-scenes footage. With no international deals imminent, this is a fine way to get the weekly show out there.
WWE Network's latest Hidden Gem is AWA Superclash IV.
Walter won't be at wXw's World Tag Team Festival on Sunday due to a scheduling conflict. Not sure what that is.
Heavy Machinery's Tucker lost his gear at Smackdown Live when his car was broken into. That sucks.
Nyla Rose apologized for a recent tweet making light of molestation as a response to someone who had insulted her. Anyone in the public eye needs to be very careful of what they say and do.
The former Victoria/Tara has announced her retirement. It's a shame she didn't have one last WWE match. She could really be an asset behind-the-scenes somewhere.
MLW and The Crash have announced a title vs. title match for their joint October 5 event. Alex Hammerstone vs. Rey Horus will be for both the MLW National Championship and Crash Heavyweight Championship. That could be a big move for both sides.
Matt Taven spoke before Death Before Dishonor. I'm curious what's next for him with his contract coming due.
ROH's Wild Card match has added Cheeseburger to the Jeff Cobb/Marty Scurll team, while Josh Woods will join Jay Briscoe and Tracy Williams. The final competitors will be revealed for tomorrow's news post.
Joey Ryan and Masa appeared on The Young Bucks' most recent Wrestlers on The Road Ordering Room Service video, which will surely fuel speculation of them appearing in AEW. Obviously Joey Ryan has said he won't sign anywhere, but he could still appear like he just did for Impact.
Before NXT:
- Reina Gonzalez defeated Santana Garrett
- Austin Theory defeated Ridge Holland
NXT's October 2 episode will have "limited commercial interruptions." WWE can afford to make moves like that a lot more easily than AEW can right now, and that could be the key to the upcoming competition.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Russo is a lightning rod for negative attention, that's for sure. I'd be surprised to see someone use him given the current generation being told since Day One he's the worst thing to ever happen to wrestling, etc.
2. Yes, but I don't spend much time on it. It's just a way to get this post out.
3. They could do that if they want, with the season resetting at the annual Memorial Day show in Chicago. I continue to think the records overcomplicate things, but they can try it if they want to. That group has continually broken the rules of what "shouldn't" and "won't" work in wrestling, so I wouldn't put it past them to pull that idea off, too!
4. It makes booking more difficult if you keep reminding people of win-loss records. New fans will buy someone a certain way based on their record. If Omega gets a title shot at 15-15 or what have you, fans who just see that stat will shake their heads.
5. I could see a surprise 17th win. Or 18th, 19th, etc. for that matter. I don't know if Cena's really that torn about the fictional record if it makes sense for everyone involved for him to be champion again.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Wednesday, September 25, 2019
AXS' Impact plans, Impact production team changes, MLW sets Fightland, NJPW booking anniversary matches, NJPW names traveling, Interview with Booker, MLB legend wrestling, Arn podcast begins, 3D Academy moves, another RnR date, Impact content on AXS, Interview with Corbin, Bray apologizes to Braun, another title match in NXT, Raw audience, AEW's content rating, 205 Live's future, assorted wrestling press, NWA women division expands, more Wild Card wrestlers, Cody releases Dynamite statement, SDL dark match, and Questions on turning Omega heel, Ronda's future, how Brock will be booked, and Vince missing TV
Impact will be replacing Dan Rather's AXS show on Tuesdays. Rather's show is moving to Wednesdays.
Scott D'Amore and Josh Matthews have been at AXS filming content for Impact.
Impact's vice president of production, Kevin Sullivan, is leaving the company for AEW along with some other members of the production team. The current team will finish out their responsibilities before leaving for AEW, and Impact has a transition team in place.
- Tennessee wrestler Nolan Edwards is joining the production team. A number of former production employees have reached out to the company looking to return.
MLW Fightland will be held in Pennsylvania at the former ECW Arena. It's amazing that that venue continues to hold significant wrestling cards!
NJPW is holding 20th anniversary matches for Hiroshi Tanahashi in October.
NJPW is sending Shota Umino to compete in the UK full-time, while Ren Narita is moving to being in their California dojo. I wouldn't necessarily read anything into neither of them being sent to ROH, though it might be a little surprising if Narita didn't work there at any point. Some of that will depend on how much NJPW runs in the U.S. and how much show experience they want him to get.
Booker T. discussed Kenny Omega's NXT comments. I'm glad Booker got what Omega was going for.
MLB's Jose Canseco will wrestle in Oklahoma on November 3 as part of World Class Revolution's "OklaMania IV." That should be interesting.
Arn Anderson has debuted his podcast with Conrad Thompson. The first episode looks at Anderson's territory era work.
The Team 3D Wrestling Academy has moved. As far as I know, it's still affiliated with ROH.
The Rock 'n' Roll Express are booked for House of Glory's November 16 event. It's wild to see them spotlighted so much in 2019.
AXS has officially announced Impact's debut for October 29. The debut will be preceded by AXS showing the previous Impact PPVs of 2019 in the new timeslot beginning October 1, then a special showcasing the company's history on October 22. That's a great way to lead into a new era for the company.
- Impact intends to still have content on Pursuit, but what exact form that will take is currently undecided.
King Corbin discussed being a heel in 2019 and more. He is getting a level of support for his commitment to his role.
Bray Wyatt reached out to Braun Strowman after The Fiend's actions on Raw.
NXT's October 2 episode has added Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish vs. the Street Profits for the NXT Tag Team Championship. This joins the previously announced Shayna Baszler vs. Candice LeRae for the women's championship.
Raw drew 2.21 million viewers Monday, not a strong number.
AEW Dynamite is set to be TV-14, as had been indicated previously.
205 Live will still follow Smackdown once the series moves to FOX. That's not particularly surprising. I'm curious what they do with it long-term given the limited number of people who fit that brand.
- 205 Live is now being booked by the NXT creative team, which makes sense given the recent integration of cruiserweights into the show.
Boxer Errol Spence, Jr. discussed WWE.
Xavier Woods was on Kinda Funny Games.
WWE 2K20 showed footage of Chyna.
NWA's TV tapings have added Marti Belle, Thunder Rosa, and Ashley Vox.
ROH's Wild Card match has added Marty Scurll to Jeff Cobb's team and Joe Hendry to Jay Briscoe's team. The match will take place September 28.
Cody released a statement before AEW's TV debut. There will definitely be plenty of voices heard about how the shows go.
Before Smackdown Live, Apollo Crews beat Buddy Murphy.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I think the decision to make him an arrogant heel preceded the NXT comments. He cut a pretty heelish promo on Moxley when their All Out match was changed, and followed up with something similar in the same interview as the NXT burial.
2. Her primary goal seems to be having a child. After that, it will be a matter of if she's more interested in Hollywood or wrestling. She's only 32, so she could do plenty more in the ring if she wanted. Heck, she could be winning titles in 2040!
3. I expect Brock to win decisively and stay around fairly regularly through WrestleMania.
Nothing to add to 4.
5. He's still very involved with WWE and intends for that to continue to be the case. He just isn't physically at as many tapings.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Scott D'Amore and Josh Matthews have been at AXS filming content for Impact.
Impact's vice president of production, Kevin Sullivan, is leaving the company for AEW along with some other members of the production team. The current team will finish out their responsibilities before leaving for AEW, and Impact has a transition team in place.
- Tennessee wrestler Nolan Edwards is joining the production team. A number of former production employees have reached out to the company looking to return.
MLW Fightland will be held in Pennsylvania at the former ECW Arena. It's amazing that that venue continues to hold significant wrestling cards!
NJPW is holding 20th anniversary matches for Hiroshi Tanahashi in October.
NJPW is sending Shota Umino to compete in the UK full-time, while Ren Narita is moving to being in their California dojo. I wouldn't necessarily read anything into neither of them being sent to ROH, though it might be a little surprising if Narita didn't work there at any point. Some of that will depend on how much NJPW runs in the U.S. and how much show experience they want him to get.
Booker T. discussed Kenny Omega's NXT comments. I'm glad Booker got what Omega was going for.
MLB's Jose Canseco will wrestle in Oklahoma on November 3 as part of World Class Revolution's "OklaMania IV." That should be interesting.
Arn Anderson has debuted his podcast with Conrad Thompson. The first episode looks at Anderson's territory era work.
The Team 3D Wrestling Academy has moved. As far as I know, it's still affiliated with ROH.
The Rock 'n' Roll Express are booked for House of Glory's November 16 event. It's wild to see them spotlighted so much in 2019.
AXS has officially announced Impact's debut for October 29. The debut will be preceded by AXS showing the previous Impact PPVs of 2019 in the new timeslot beginning October 1, then a special showcasing the company's history on October 22. That's a great way to lead into a new era for the company.
- Impact intends to still have content on Pursuit, but what exact form that will take is currently undecided.
King Corbin discussed being a heel in 2019 and more. He is getting a level of support for his commitment to his role.
Bray Wyatt reached out to Braun Strowman after The Fiend's actions on Raw.
NXT's October 2 episode has added Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish vs. the Street Profits for the NXT Tag Team Championship. This joins the previously announced Shayna Baszler vs. Candice LeRae for the women's championship.
Raw drew 2.21 million viewers Monday, not a strong number.
AEW Dynamite is set to be TV-14, as had been indicated previously.
205 Live will still follow Smackdown once the series moves to FOX. That's not particularly surprising. I'm curious what they do with it long-term given the limited number of people who fit that brand.
- 205 Live is now being booked by the NXT creative team, which makes sense given the recent integration of cruiserweights into the show.
Boxer Errol Spence, Jr. discussed WWE.
Xavier Woods was on Kinda Funny Games.
WWE 2K20 showed footage of Chyna.
NWA's TV tapings have added Marti Belle, Thunder Rosa, and Ashley Vox.
ROH's Wild Card match has added Marty Scurll to Jeff Cobb's team and Joe Hendry to Jay Briscoe's team. The match will take place September 28.
Cody released a statement before AEW's TV debut. There will definitely be plenty of voices heard about how the shows go.
Before Smackdown Live, Apollo Crews beat Buddy Murphy.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I think the decision to make him an arrogant heel preceded the NXT comments. He cut a pretty heelish promo on Moxley when their All Out match was changed, and followed up with something similar in the same interview as the NXT burial.
2. Her primary goal seems to be having a child. After that, it will be a matter of if she's more interested in Hollywood or wrestling. She's only 32, so she could do plenty more in the ring if she wanted. Heck, she could be winning titles in 2040!
3. I expect Brock to win decisively and stay around fairly regularly through WrestleMania.
Nothing to add to 4.
5. He's still very involved with WWE and intends for that to continue to be the case. He just isn't physically at as many tapings.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Smackdown Live and 205 Live Reax - 9/24/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Smackdown Live and 205 Live.
Tuesday, September 24, 2019
Interview with Profits, more on Lacey situation, Maury weighs in, WWE name returning, WWE names at NYCC, new ROH TV match, SDL and 205 Live announcements, Total Divas plot update, Total Divas marathons, Smackdown lookback Network special, Goldberg note, Miz gets press, New Day signing set, ROH shuffles SOTF, Roman in Inked, AEW studio show coming?, Hangman Page note, another name set for NWA, BOLA name works sick, Mickie in new role, Corbin name change, Titus on TV, Raw dark match, and Questions on Omega's NXT comments
The Street Profits are on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
Lacey Evans' Alberta traffic incident was picked up by a number of news outlets, including TMZ. She did a good job with the segment and got plenty of attention for it!
- Evans clarified how much of the traffic stop was in character.
- The local police issued a statement regarding the matter. That had to be a weird day for them.
Maury Povich sent in a video for the Maria Kanellis pregnancy angle. This is pretty wild.
Sin Cara is scheduled to return to WWE live events this weekend. I hope he's able to find a role; he hasn't done anything significant in quite a while.
Kane and Jinder Mahal will be at New York Comic Con next weekend.
ROH's September 28 TV taping has added a Vegas Wild Card Eight-Man Tag match, with participants determined randomly. Jay Briscoe has been announced for one team, with Jeff Cobb announced for the other. More participants will be named in the days to come.
Smackdown Live has announced Bayley and Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte Flair and Carmella. I'm guessing the 24/7 Championship won't be on the line there.
"Total Divas" will cover the Corey Graves/Carmella relationship, which caused controversy when it was first discovered. I popped for the references to it on Raw.
- The show's eighth season will air as a marathon on WWE Network Friday and on E! on October 2.
WWE Network will have a "Where Are They Now?" special for Smackdown's 20th anniversary airing Sunday.
Goldberg is expected to return to WWE TV soon, building off his recent appearance with Dolph Ziggler. I imagine Goldberg will be at the next Saudi show on Halloween.
The Miz got press for a recent signing.
New Day are doing a signing at iPlay America in New Jersey on Sunday.
ROH has moved Survival of the Fittest's San Antonio date to November 10. So, Night 1 will now be in Dallas and this will be Night 2 in a significantly smaller venue from what was originally booked.
Danny Burch will be on tonight's 205 Live, likely teaming with Oney Lorcan.
Roman Reigns is on the cover of the newest "Inked" Magazine.
AEW could be getting a studio show, either on television or B/R Live. AEW couldn't get a much better advocate than Tony Khan.
Hangman Page is set for AEW's TNT premiere. He's really been lost in the shuffle after the Jericho loss.
Eddie Kingston is set for NWA's TV tapings. It's been teased he won't be by himself.
Jonathan Gresham competed at Battle of Los Angeles with a lymph node infection.
Mickie James is a commentator on the next episode of Main Event. WWE is looking at using her as a producer, too.
Baron Corbin is now officially going by King Corbin, as is fitting.
205 Live has added Angel Garza vs. Humberto Carrillo. Ooooooh that should be good.
Titus O'Neil will be on Thursday's Tamron Hall Show, along with his mother.
After Raw, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair defeated Bayley and Sasha Banks.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1.a. I see what Dave means about Omega's position. It's definitely kind of an odd situation where he's trying to be a character and an executive at the same time when appealing to an audience that's hyperfocused on what's a work or not.
1.b.It did get AEW backlash, though I'm curious how many fans will base their decision on watching AEW on that and similar comments vs. how many people are even more excited that AEW is fighting back against WWE.
2. Another fair point. ECW knew some of those WWF and WCW talents could end up working for them, just as some current NXT names could end up working for AEW. I get what Omega was going for as a character, but I also see how it could have done more harm than good.
3. Well, ECW didn't get anything close to the platform AEW is getting, especially not out of the gate. AEW has a much bigger opportunity, and WWE is already going up against them.
4. This was clearly chopped up from another question, so I'm not sure what it means by itself. I see what Dave means about wanting AEW to grow its audience, but I also think part of AEW's appeal is being anti-WWE and this might have fired up the troops. We'll see.
5.a. I think the war started sometime before then. I'd look back at when Cody, Page, and the Bucks crashed the parking lot at a WWE event as one of the first real "battles" so to speak, although obviously that's before AEW existed.
5.b. A lot of people are very excited about the competition. That doesn't mean they love everything AEW does!
More wrestling tomorrow.
Lacey Evans' Alberta traffic incident was picked up by a number of news outlets, including TMZ. She did a good job with the segment and got plenty of attention for it!
- Evans clarified how much of the traffic stop was in character.
- The local police issued a statement regarding the matter. That had to be a weird day for them.
Maury Povich sent in a video for the Maria Kanellis pregnancy angle. This is pretty wild.
Sin Cara is scheduled to return to WWE live events this weekend. I hope he's able to find a role; he hasn't done anything significant in quite a while.
Kane and Jinder Mahal will be at New York Comic Con next weekend.
ROH's September 28 TV taping has added a Vegas Wild Card Eight-Man Tag match, with participants determined randomly. Jay Briscoe has been announced for one team, with Jeff Cobb announced for the other. More participants will be named in the days to come.
Smackdown Live has announced Bayley and Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte Flair and Carmella. I'm guessing the 24/7 Championship won't be on the line there.
"Total Divas" will cover the Corey Graves/Carmella relationship, which caused controversy when it was first discovered. I popped for the references to it on Raw.
- The show's eighth season will air as a marathon on WWE Network Friday and on E! on October 2.
WWE Network will have a "Where Are They Now?" special for Smackdown's 20th anniversary airing Sunday.
Goldberg is expected to return to WWE TV soon, building off his recent appearance with Dolph Ziggler. I imagine Goldberg will be at the next Saudi show on Halloween.
The Miz got press for a recent signing.
New Day are doing a signing at iPlay America in New Jersey on Sunday.
ROH has moved Survival of the Fittest's San Antonio date to November 10. So, Night 1 will now be in Dallas and this will be Night 2 in a significantly smaller venue from what was originally booked.
Danny Burch will be on tonight's 205 Live, likely teaming with Oney Lorcan.
Roman Reigns is on the cover of the newest "Inked" Magazine.
AEW could be getting a studio show, either on television or B/R Live. AEW couldn't get a much better advocate than Tony Khan.
Hangman Page is set for AEW's TNT premiere. He's really been lost in the shuffle after the Jericho loss.
Eddie Kingston is set for NWA's TV tapings. It's been teased he won't be by himself.
Jonathan Gresham competed at Battle of Los Angeles with a lymph node infection.
Mickie James is a commentator on the next episode of Main Event. WWE is looking at using her as a producer, too.
Baron Corbin is now officially going by King Corbin, as is fitting.
205 Live has added Angel Garza vs. Humberto Carrillo. Ooooooh that should be good.
Titus O'Neil will be on Thursday's Tamron Hall Show, along with his mother.
After Raw, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair defeated Bayley and Sasha Banks.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1.a. I see what Dave means about Omega's position. It's definitely kind of an odd situation where he's trying to be a character and an executive at the same time when appealing to an audience that's hyperfocused on what's a work or not.
1.b.It did get AEW backlash, though I'm curious how many fans will base their decision on watching AEW on that and similar comments vs. how many people are even more excited that AEW is fighting back against WWE.
2. Another fair point. ECW knew some of those WWF and WCW talents could end up working for them, just as some current NXT names could end up working for AEW. I get what Omega was going for as a character, but I also see how it could have done more harm than good.
3. Well, ECW didn't get anything close to the platform AEW is getting, especially not out of the gate. AEW has a much bigger opportunity, and WWE is already going up against them.
4. This was clearly chopped up from another question, so I'm not sure what it means by itself. I see what Dave means about wanting AEW to grow its audience, but I also think part of AEW's appeal is being anti-WWE and this might have fired up the troops. We'll see.
5.a. I think the war started sometime before then. I'd look back at when Cody, Page, and the Bucks crashed the parking lot at a WWE event as one of the first real "battles" so to speak, although obviously that's before AEW existed.
5.b. A lot of people are very excited about the competition. That doesn't mean they love everything AEW does!
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, September 23, 2019
More Brock dates, Cena talk show appearance, Interviews with Xavier/Madusa, NJPW U.S. show streaming, NXT preview, Raw matches announced, Rey makes FOX appearance, Impact match set, Savage getting more figures, UFC star competing at indie show, UFC covers Cain-AAA, AEW content set, and Questions on Omega's time in developmental, AEW backlash, NXT's rating, and Omega facing a preteen girl
Brock Lesnar has been added to Friday Night Smackdown on October 11 and October 25. So we're going to be seeing him quite a bit.
John Cena is set for "Ellen" on September 30.
Xavier Woods spoke to TMZ about injuries. That's pretty crazy.
NJPW's New York event on September 28 will air live on New Japan World. Currently no English commentary is set. It's unknown if other tour dates will air on the service.
Walter has challenged Kushida to a six-man tag on NXT.
Announced for Raw:
- AJ Styles vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Robert Roode vs. Ricochet to face Seth Rollins for the Universal Championship next week.
- Sasha Banks vs. Nikki Cross
- Baron Corbin vs. Chad Gable
- Firefly Fun House
Rey Mysterio was at a FOX Sports NFL game.
Impact's October 18 Impact Plus event will feature Taya Valkyrie, Kiera Hogan, and Madison Rayne vs. Tenille Dashwood, Jordynne Grace, and Rosemary.
Randy Savage is getting more Slim Jim figures. Absolutely iconic.
UFC's Stephan Bonnar will compete in a "UWFi rules match" in Indiana on November 15.
Madusa discussed intergender wrestling and more.
Cain Velasquez' AAA matches were covered by UFC.
AEW Dynamite is currently scheduled for a replay Saturday on 10:00 a.m.. It's unknown if this is just a one-time thing or a regular plan.
- TruTV is airing the one-hour preview special before the first episode airs on TV.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1.a. Omega didn't fit in with the developmental system of 15 years ago. They wanted him to be in a certain mold that was very different from what he wanted to do, so he went to Japan and put in a lot of hard work in his chosen style to become who he is today.
1.b. I fully believe they were a work designed to sell the notion of Kenny Omega the delusional, cocky heel on a losing streak. I expect this to continue to play out, with the seeming long-term goal of him turning things around, turning face, and becoming AEW Champion. I 100% think this was a planned promo that will have followup.
2. There are definitely a lot of fans excited about the concept of an alternative to WWE, but much less excited about the concept of "The Elite and friends' vanity promotion" AEW has been criticized as becoming. Anything that gets to the level AEW is at now is going to get a lot of flak for its direction, and of course a lot of people are fully on-board with the anti-WWE bandwagon. AEW being centered on The Elite is something that has a lot of people interested and a lot of other people less thrilled. So far it's going well for them, however.
3. They're paying attention, for sure. And honestly they can credit themselves to a degree for NXT getting that opportunity.
4. I was very impressed! They should all be proud.
5. It's worth noting joshi wrestlers often begin training very young and Omega was used to give her a safe three-minute match. This wasn't world champion Kenny Omega; it was rising junior heavyweight comedy wrestler Kenny Omega. It hardly killed his career, nor that of the promotion he wrestled for.
More wrestling tomorrow.
John Cena is set for "Ellen" on September 30.
Xavier Woods spoke to TMZ about injuries. That's pretty crazy.
NJPW's New York event on September 28 will air live on New Japan World. Currently no English commentary is set. It's unknown if other tour dates will air on the service.
Walter has challenged Kushida to a six-man tag on NXT.
Announced for Raw:
- AJ Styles vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Robert Roode vs. Ricochet to face Seth Rollins for the Universal Championship next week.
- Sasha Banks vs. Nikki Cross
- Baron Corbin vs. Chad Gable
- Firefly Fun House
Rey Mysterio was at a FOX Sports NFL game.
Impact's October 18 Impact Plus event will feature Taya Valkyrie, Kiera Hogan, and Madison Rayne vs. Tenille Dashwood, Jordynne Grace, and Rosemary.
Randy Savage is getting more Slim Jim figures. Absolutely iconic.
UFC's Stephan Bonnar will compete in a "UWFi rules match" in Indiana on November 15.
Madusa discussed intergender wrestling and more.
Cain Velasquez' AAA matches were covered by UFC.
AEW Dynamite is currently scheduled for a replay Saturday on 10:00 a.m.. It's unknown if this is just a one-time thing or a regular plan.
- TruTV is airing the one-hour preview special before the first episode airs on TV.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1.a. Omega didn't fit in with the developmental system of 15 years ago. They wanted him to be in a certain mold that was very different from what he wanted to do, so he went to Japan and put in a lot of hard work in his chosen style to become who he is today.
1.b. I fully believe they were a work designed to sell the notion of Kenny Omega the delusional, cocky heel on a losing streak. I expect this to continue to play out, with the seeming long-term goal of him turning things around, turning face, and becoming AEW Champion. I 100% think this was a planned promo that will have followup.
2. There are definitely a lot of fans excited about the concept of an alternative to WWE, but much less excited about the concept of "The Elite and friends' vanity promotion" AEW has been criticized as becoming. Anything that gets to the level AEW is at now is going to get a lot of flak for its direction, and of course a lot of people are fully on-board with the anti-WWE bandwagon. AEW being centered on The Elite is something that has a lot of people interested and a lot of other people less thrilled. So far it's going well for them, however.
3. They're paying attention, for sure. And honestly they can credit themselves to a degree for NXT getting that opportunity.
4. I was very impressed! They should all be proud.
5. It's worth noting joshi wrestlers often begin training very young and Omega was used to give her a safe three-minute match. This wasn't world champion Kenny Omega; it was rising junior heavyweight comedy wrestler Kenny Omega. It hardly killed his career, nor that of the promotion he wrestled for.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Sunday, September 22, 2019
Duggan hospitalized, EVOLVE results, WWE exec at PWG, Interviews with Adam Cole/Nigel/Kane/Bucks, another Brock date, next Photo Shoot set, Flair appearance, Goldberg and Dolph meet again, Big Show Show to include other stars?, Kylie back in the ring, Bret at Raw live event, Lacey gets a ticket, Titus appearance, Rock set for UFC date, Mandy magazine cover, NWA uploads women's title match, WWE live event results, and Questions on Shera returning to Impact, Brock winning on FOX, WWE TV partners' influence, AEW's show name, and Vince choosing his company name
"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan was hospitalized recently, leading to him pulling out of this weekend's autograph appearances.
- Duggan's wife later confirmed the hospitalization was due to a severe infection, and that Duggan should be fine.
At EVOLVE 135:
- NXT's Arturo Ruas defeated John Silver
- Austin Theory got disqualified against Babatunde in a non-title match as other roster members got involved before Babatunde could pin Theory.
- Kassius Ohno defeated Josh Briggs
- Walter defeated JD Drake in a non-title match
NXT UK/PROGRESS' Jim Smallman was at Battle of Los Angeles, which will surely get people talking about talent being recruited to WWE.
Adam Cole is on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
Brock Lesnar is set for the November 15 Friday Night Smackdown. I'm curious what they do with him if he doesn't take the title.
"WWE Photo Shoot" with Christian will air after Raw.
Ric Flair appeared on ESPN's College GameDay.
Goldberg and Dolph Ziggler had some sort of confrontation at a Nevada party that almost became physical. It looks like an angle of some sort.
- Ziggler commented on Twitter. We'll see if there's any payoff to this.
Big Show sat down with Mick Foley, Mark Henry, and Rikishi as part of preparing for "The Big Show Show." So it looks like we'll see more wrestlers involved with that.
Kylie Rae returned to the ring last night for Freelance Wrestling in Illinois in an impromptu replacement for Shotzi Blackheart, who was set for EVOLVE and SHINE action.
Bret Hart was at WWE's Calgary live event.
Lacey Evans got a ticket before WWE's Calgary live event. Damn, she'll even cut a promo on the police!
Titus O'Neil appeared at a FOX Sports game.
Nigel McGuinness spoke to Bill Apter about NXT's USA debut.
The Rock will be at UFC 244 to present the BMF Championship to the winner of Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal. Hopefully the loser takes a Rock Bottom and People's Elbow.
Xia Li tweeted about wrestling at WWE's China live event. Pretty cool opportunity for her. Her profile in WWE seems to be growing.
Kane spoke about working with The Fiend and more on The Two Man Power Trip. Here are highlights. Kane got to show a lot of different sides of himself on Raw. It was great.
Mandy Rose is on the cover of Maxim Australia's latest issue.
The Young Bucks discussed AEW Dynamite and more:
- This whole "there hasn't been an alternative to WWE in 18 years" thing needs to die. I get what people are saying, as there hasn't been a company with this level of exposure and resources since then, but there have been plenty of alternatives.
- AEW has a BIG challenge ahead of them going against NXT each week. They've had very impressive milestones so far, but they're diving into the deep end in October.
- Running shows before the TV debut has really helped improve production.
- Limiting talent to TV time is going to be a challenge, because everyone's going to want to do everything they like doing.
- Holy shit BTE has nothing on booking long cards with actual matches.
- Yeah it's surreal what all they've been able to put together.
- Following everything on social media has got to be hectic.
- Full Sail burnout is a legitimate concern.
- Classy for them to support the NXT product.
- Yeah, Triple H's comments were unbelievable. Quite frankly, in this business, everyone wants to sign every talent with a buzz.
NWA uploaded their recent women's championship match between Allysin Kay and Heather Monroe. This was taped at Championship Wrestling From Hollywood.
At Raw's September 20 live event in Alberta:
- Kalisto and Lince Dorado worked their first live event since July 28. They were in a triple threat tag team match with the Viking Raiders and the team of Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, which the latter team won.
- Sasha Banks wrestled her first live event since March 24, losing to Becky Lynch via disqualification with the Raw Women's Championship on the line.
- The Fiend made his live event debut, losing to Seth Rollins via disqualification after choking Rollins out on the ropes.
At Smackdown Live's September 21 live event in China:
- EC3 again won the 24/7 Championship from R-Truth, and again lost it right back. Truth is now an 18-time champ!!!
- NXT's Xia Li teamed with Carmella to defeat Fire and Desire.
At EVOLVE 136 in New York:
- NXT's Atruro Ruas defeated Anthony Gutierrez
- Walter defeated Kassius Ohno
- Austin Theory defeated Josh Briggs to retain the EVOLVE Championship.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It's possible their Indian TV partner suggested it. For obvious financial reasons, Impact wants to keep Sony Six happy!
2. I don't know how far back it was planned, but they're definitely purposefully loading up that episode!
3. FOX has definitely told WWE they want certain names on their show. WWE has a real balancing act on their hands keeping each station happy! If ratings do poorly, we'll see more pressure from executives, and some of that could mean roster switches.
4. It lines up perfectly with TNT and Nitro, certainly. They did copyright "Wednesday Night Dynamite" before the TNT deal, though.
5. I guess Genetic Jackhammer, LLC was taken. Vince is clearly attracted to words like Alpha, Mastodon, etc.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- Duggan's wife later confirmed the hospitalization was due to a severe infection, and that Duggan should be fine.
At EVOLVE 135:
- NXT's Arturo Ruas defeated John Silver
- Austin Theory got disqualified against Babatunde in a non-title match as other roster members got involved before Babatunde could pin Theory.
- Kassius Ohno defeated Josh Briggs
- Walter defeated JD Drake in a non-title match
NXT UK/PROGRESS' Jim Smallman was at Battle of Los Angeles, which will surely get people talking about talent being recruited to WWE.
Adam Cole is on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
Brock Lesnar is set for the November 15 Friday Night Smackdown. I'm curious what they do with him if he doesn't take the title.
"WWE Photo Shoot" with Christian will air after Raw.
Ric Flair appeared on ESPN's College GameDay.
Goldberg and Dolph Ziggler had some sort of confrontation at a Nevada party that almost became physical. It looks like an angle of some sort.
- Ziggler commented on Twitter. We'll see if there's any payoff to this.
Big Show sat down with Mick Foley, Mark Henry, and Rikishi as part of preparing for "The Big Show Show." So it looks like we'll see more wrestlers involved with that.
Kylie Rae returned to the ring last night for Freelance Wrestling in Illinois in an impromptu replacement for Shotzi Blackheart, who was set for EVOLVE and SHINE action.
Bret Hart was at WWE's Calgary live event.
Lacey Evans got a ticket before WWE's Calgary live event. Damn, she'll even cut a promo on the police!
Titus O'Neil appeared at a FOX Sports game.
Nigel McGuinness spoke to Bill Apter about NXT's USA debut.
The Rock will be at UFC 244 to present the BMF Championship to the winner of Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal. Hopefully the loser takes a Rock Bottom and People's Elbow.
Xia Li tweeted about wrestling at WWE's China live event. Pretty cool opportunity for her. Her profile in WWE seems to be growing.
Kane spoke about working with The Fiend and more on The Two Man Power Trip. Here are highlights. Kane got to show a lot of different sides of himself on Raw. It was great.
Mandy Rose is on the cover of Maxim Australia's latest issue.
The Young Bucks discussed AEW Dynamite and more:
- This whole "there hasn't been an alternative to WWE in 18 years" thing needs to die. I get what people are saying, as there hasn't been a company with this level of exposure and resources since then, but there have been plenty of alternatives.
- AEW has a BIG challenge ahead of them going against NXT each week. They've had very impressive milestones so far, but they're diving into the deep end in October.
- Running shows before the TV debut has really helped improve production.
- Limiting talent to TV time is going to be a challenge, because everyone's going to want to do everything they like doing.
- Holy shit BTE has nothing on booking long cards with actual matches.
- Yeah it's surreal what all they've been able to put together.
- Following everything on social media has got to be hectic.
- Full Sail burnout is a legitimate concern.
- Classy for them to support the NXT product.
- Yeah, Triple H's comments were unbelievable. Quite frankly, in this business, everyone wants to sign every talent with a buzz.
NWA uploaded their recent women's championship match between Allysin Kay and Heather Monroe. This was taped at Championship Wrestling From Hollywood.
At Raw's September 20 live event in Alberta:
- Kalisto and Lince Dorado worked their first live event since July 28. They were in a triple threat tag team match with the Viking Raiders and the team of Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, which the latter team won.
- Sasha Banks wrestled her first live event since March 24, losing to Becky Lynch via disqualification with the Raw Women's Championship on the line.
- The Fiend made his live event debut, losing to Seth Rollins via disqualification after choking Rollins out on the ropes.
At Smackdown Live's September 21 live event in China:
- EC3 again won the 24/7 Championship from R-Truth, and again lost it right back. Truth is now an 18-time champ!!!
- NXT's Xia Li teamed with Carmella to defeat Fire and Desire.
At EVOLVE 136 in New York:
- NXT's Atruro Ruas defeated Anthony Gutierrez
- Walter defeated Kassius Ohno
- Austin Theory defeated Josh Briggs to retain the EVOLVE Championship.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It's possible their Indian TV partner suggested it. For obvious financial reasons, Impact wants to keep Sony Six happy!
2. I don't know how far back it was planned, but they're definitely purposefully loading up that episode!
3. FOX has definitely told WWE they want certain names on their show. WWE has a real balancing act on their hands keeping each station happy! If ratings do poorly, we'll see more pressure from executives, and some of that could mean roster switches.
4. It lines up perfectly with TNT and Nitro, certainly. They did copyright "Wednesday Night Dynamite" before the TNT deal, though.
5. I guess Genetic Jackhammer, LLC was taken. Vince is clearly attracted to words like Alpha, Mastodon, etc.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Saturday, September 21, 2019
EVOLVE champion debuts in NXT, NXT+WWE live event notes, Interviews with Hassan/Deville/Becky/Kross, assorted wrestling press, possible NXT injury, WWE show name trademark, GLOW renewed, Maria angle update, another Crusher arrest, NXT trademarks, new HonorClub event matches, Von Erichs visit Sportatorium site, Wilde comments on surgery, Tessa heading to RevPro, and Questions on Omega vs. NXT, NXT's USA debut, Scurll and Taven's contracts, and Rock 'n' Roll in NJPW
Austin Theory debuted at Friday's NXT live event, losing to Bronson Reed. Austin is still EVOLVE Champion and will compete there until he loses the championship.
- Io Shirai also worked her first live event since August 9, defeating Mia Yim.
The former Muhammad Hassan got press for being a principal now. He seems like a pretty good guy.
Kurt Angle attended Hyundai's Hope on Wheels event in Washington, DC.
Braun Strowman appeared on a Fox Sports MLB game.
Velveteen Dream is said to have lumbar pain after NXT, with him not being cleared to get back in the ring. This is believed to be a storyline to explain him missing time following his championship loss.
MLB's Anthony Rizzo used The Undertaker's theme before he went to bat Friday night.
WWE has trademarked the name "WWE's The Bump" for a show title. Interesting. I'm curious where we'll see that name used.
"GLOW" has been renewed for a final season. I'm curious how it will do.
Maury Povich weighed in on Maria Kanellis' paternity angle. WWE has pitched to use him as part of it. Hey, if they're going to crazy with it, they might as well go all the way!
The "Da Crusher" statue vandalization has added a second arrest.
WWE has trademarked NXT names Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, Riddick Moss, Fabian Aichner, and Marcel Barthel.
ROH's October 25 HonorClub event has announced Aussie Open vs. PCO and Brody King. Their October 27 HonorClub event has announced "Speedball" Mike Bailey vs. Bandido. Smart move to have fresh lineups for the unique market.
Kevin Von Erich, Marshall Von Erich, and Ross Von Erich visited the former site of Texas' Sportatorium.
At WWE's Philippines event on September 20:
- Chad Gable defeated EC3 in Gable's first live event since July 22 and EC3's first live event since August 18. R-Truth was the guest ring announcer, which led to...
- EC3 won the 24/7 Championship from R-Truth before losing it back. These were Truth's first live event matches since August 17.
- Carmella returned to the ring for the first time since July 29, defeating Mandy Rose.
- Big E and Xavier Woods worked their first live event since August 18, losing to The Revival.
ROH's October 12 HonorClub event has added The Briscoes vs. Luke Hawx and PJ Hawx in a special challenge from WildKat Sports. I can't help but think, like using Aussie Open in the UK, this is a way to boost attendance with the local crowd.
Joaquin Wilde commented on his recent injury. I hope he does good things when he comes back.
Sonya Deville spoke to Sports Illustrated about representing her community and more.
Becky Lynch promoted the Global Citizen Festival.
Tessa Blanchard will debut for RevPro on November 24, facing Kanji.
Killer Kross spoke to Chris Van Vliet. I hope he's able to show what he's capable of soon.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It was heel promo bait, and pretty successful! It almost got me before I listened to the rest of the interview and it became clear it was a work.
2. Everyone delivered at a high level. I was quite impressed!
3. That's the most specific answer I've heard. There's no word on what's next for him beyond there being obvious places for him to go.
4. We should know pretty soon with Death Before Dishonor a few days away.
5. For a special attraction for fans who wouldn't otherwise have NJPW on their radar. They've been a unique draw and seemingly NJPW wants in on that.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- Io Shirai also worked her first live event since August 9, defeating Mia Yim.
The former Muhammad Hassan got press for being a principal now. He seems like a pretty good guy.
Kurt Angle attended Hyundai's Hope on Wheels event in Washington, DC.
Braun Strowman appeared on a Fox Sports MLB game.
Velveteen Dream is said to have lumbar pain after NXT, with him not being cleared to get back in the ring. This is believed to be a storyline to explain him missing time following his championship loss.
MLB's Anthony Rizzo used The Undertaker's theme before he went to bat Friday night.
WWE has trademarked the name "WWE's The Bump" for a show title. Interesting. I'm curious where we'll see that name used.
"GLOW" has been renewed for a final season. I'm curious how it will do.
Maury Povich weighed in on Maria Kanellis' paternity angle. WWE has pitched to use him as part of it. Hey, if they're going to crazy with it, they might as well go all the way!
The "Da Crusher" statue vandalization has added a second arrest.
WWE has trademarked NXT names Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, Riddick Moss, Fabian Aichner, and Marcel Barthel.
ROH's October 25 HonorClub event has announced Aussie Open vs. PCO and Brody King. Their October 27 HonorClub event has announced "Speedball" Mike Bailey vs. Bandido. Smart move to have fresh lineups for the unique market.
Kevin Von Erich, Marshall Von Erich, and Ross Von Erich visited the former site of Texas' Sportatorium.
At WWE's Philippines event on September 20:
- Chad Gable defeated EC3 in Gable's first live event since July 22 and EC3's first live event since August 18. R-Truth was the guest ring announcer, which led to...
- EC3 won the 24/7 Championship from R-Truth before losing it back. These were Truth's first live event matches since August 17.
- Carmella returned to the ring for the first time since July 29, defeating Mandy Rose.
- Big E and Xavier Woods worked their first live event since August 18, losing to The Revival.
ROH's October 12 HonorClub event has added The Briscoes vs. Luke Hawx and PJ Hawx in a special challenge from WildKat Sports. I can't help but think, like using Aussie Open in the UK, this is a way to boost attendance with the local crowd.
Joaquin Wilde commented on his recent injury. I hope he does good things when he comes back.
Sonya Deville spoke to Sports Illustrated about representing her community and more.
Becky Lynch promoted the Global Citizen Festival.
Tessa Blanchard will debut for RevPro on November 24, facing Kanji.
Killer Kross spoke to Chris Van Vliet. I hope he's able to show what he's capable of soon.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. It was heel promo bait, and pretty successful! It almost got me before I listened to the rest of the interview and it became clear it was a work.
2. Everyone delivered at a high level. I was quite impressed!
3. That's the most specific answer I've heard. There's no word on what's next for him beyond there being obvious places for him to go.
4. We should know pretty soon with Death Before Dishonor a few days away.
5. For a special attraction for fans who wouldn't otherwise have NJPW on their radar. They've been a unique draw and seemingly NJPW wants in on that.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday, September 20, 2019
AEW runs ads during WWE, WWE and AAA attendance, AAA plans, Rhino working NOAH and OVW, NJPW releases financial info, Japanese name coming to U.S., Liger tour continues, Spanish name coming to WWE, Cornette update, AEW and SD airing updates, Jericho appearance, more on FS1 show, WWE name cleared, Kacy update, WWE staff note, WWE press, MLW host note, MLW announces big event, MLW expanding, more backstage NXT names, Omega buries NXT roster, WWE animated movie coming, NXT audience, NXT injuries, Raw attendee arrested, NXT hiring writer, and Questions on Terry Funk's whereabouts, jobber names, who made XFL's IP, XFL's offices, and XFL on the Network
AEW ran ads during Smackdown Live and NXT this week. I'm surprised USA let that happen. We'll see how effective they are shortly.
Clash of Champions drew 8,000 fans.
AAA Invading New York drew 3,000 fans, due in part to a strong walkup crowd. They were unable to have blood or weapons on the show, nor could they have wrestlers fight into the crowd, due to the New York Athletic Commission. This really hampered plans for the main event.
- Amazing Red, Homicide, and Dezmond Xavier were all planned for the show at various points.
AAA talents are expected to get their visas in time for the promotion's California show. That will greatly boost the lineup.
AAA has moved its Colombia shows from October 5 and October 6 to November 16 and November 17. They're running a 2,800 seat building the first night and a 700 seat building the second night.
Rhino recently debuted in NOAH as part of the working agreement between NOAH and Impact. He will likely return.
NJPW recently released its annual financial report:
- Company revenue was up almost 11% from the last fiscal year, ending up at $50 million. WOW. Great job!
- Company revenue was up almost 11% from the last fiscal year, ending up at $50 million. WOW. Great job!
- Live event attendance grew for a sixth straight year, another impressive note.
- Profits were down from the previous fiscal year, due to increased investments in video content and international expansion. Some of that should pay off in future years if they're smart.
- Live event revenue saw a nice increase. The company is running fewer shows, but in larger buildings.
- Merchandise sales outside of Japan were significantly down, due to the loss of key Western talents. Obviously this news will lead to fans asking NJPW to work with those AEW names again. There's been no movement on that front.
- NJPW is looking to make New Japan World more friendly for English-speakers. That could definitely help add subscriptions!
Japan's Jiro Kuroshio is moving to the U.S. He had a WWE tryout recently, so it's possible that's where he's headed.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger worked his final match for Zero-1 Wednesday as a he teamed with Shinjiro Otani and Tatsuhito Takaiwa to defeat Daichi Hashimoto, Kazuki Hashimoto, and Sean Guinness.
Spain's A-Kid is said to be WWE-bound after Battle of Los Angeles. I'm curious how he fits in there given the shifts NXT's USA move is bringing about.
Jim Cornette is believed to be done with MLW due to signing with NWA.
Rhino is now OVW TV Champion.
AEW Dynamite will air live on the West Coast. There are currently no plans for replays.
Chris Jericho appeared on "America's Got Talent," coaching a comedian.
Friday Night Smackdown's West Coast airings will be 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., rather than live as other sports are. FOX affiliates didn't want to be pre-empted every week for WWE. The ratings will be better this way.
Booker T. is expected to co-host FS1's WWE studio show. That would certainly make sense.
Sheamus is cleared to wrestle again should WWE come up with a way to use him. It would be fresh to have him back on TV.
Kacy Catanzaro is considered to be on leave. She has not been released and is still making a decision regarding her wrestling future.
Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn weren't at Raw due to FOX meetings. Kevin Dunn was at Smackdown Live.
WWE stars got press for visiting Children's Healthcare of Atlanta before Raw.
New MLW host Alessandra Bonte previously worked for sky Italia and England's ATP Media.
MLW has announced Fightland 2020 for February 1.
MLW is looking at adding more announcers.
Alexa Bliss was backstage at NXT.
New NXT signing Indi Hartwell was backstage at NXT. I wonder when we'll see her on TV.
Mickie James will appear on NBC Sports Network Saturday before the NASCAR race.
Kenny Omega buried NXT's roster in an interview with Sportskeeda. Honestly this came across as him being in-character as a heel, but people ran with it.
- Dominic Dijakovic responded to the promo.
- Kenny Omega later indicated Matt Riddle isn't included in his statement.
WWE and Paramount are working on an animated movie starring Roman Reigns and Becky Lynch.
AEW released a promo for Dynamite. This felt pretty big league. Good for them.
NXT drew 1.18 million viewers Wednesday night. Wow. That's pretty impressive.
Kona Reeves underwent an MRI after Wednesday's dark match. I'm curious how much we'll see of him on USA.
Joaquin Wilde is getting surgery for a broken eye socket sustained during training. When he's 100%, I expect him in the Cruiserweight Championship picture.
A Raw attendee was arrested for allegedly videoing an officer urinating. Ummmm... WHAT???
Booker T. and Matt Hardy attended a Texas MLB game to promote Royal Rumble. That's going to be a really big night.
NXT is hiring a writer.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. He's staying close to West Texas for the most part. It's been a rough ride for him.
1. He's staying close to West Texas for the most part. It's been a rough ride for him.
2. I'm surprised there's no overlap! They burn through a LOT of names.
3. Generally the talent do pitch names, but as always it's Creative's call.
4. The names and logos were WWE creations as part of that company assisting XFL in getting off the ground.
5. As indicated, XFL is owned by a separate company now.
6. WWE has the option to do that if they want to. I don't think they will, though, at least not while the league is reviving. They'd rather it air on streaming services that will pay them to air it.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Thursday, September 19, 2019
NXT UK stars challenging for ICW titles, assorted wrestling press, Impact roles at WOW, Impact Plus event match, lots of NXT debut press, NXT releases a lot of merch, Orton retracts Corbin praise, Moxley-NJPW update, AEW stars feud over D&D, Crusher statue vandalized, MLW signs debuting star to deal, NXT-related trademarks, RingsideFest guests announced, another Brock date, Owens update, AEW-TNT notes, FOX content coming, SDL audience, new ROH TV match, ROH events set, NXT backstage notes, Rock 'n' Roll returning to NWA, new NWA logo, more from CaZXL, NXT dark matches, WWE Network issues, what happened after NXT, Swagger back in the cage, HHH conference call, and Questions on
ICW's November 2 show will be headlined by NXT UK's Wolfgang challenging Liam Thomson for the Zero-G Championship in a Good Housekeeping match. ICW's November 3 show will be headlined by NXT UK's Joe Coffey challenging Stevie Boy for the ICW World Heavyweight Championship.
Roman Reigns will guest star on Disney's "Elena of Avalor" for its third season.
WWE stars will appear on tomorrow night's "25 Words or Less" on FOX.
Kane winning the 24/7 Championship got local press.
Impact's Scott D'Amore was in the production truck at WOW's Tuesday taping. Ed Nordholm was in the crowd.
Impact is waiting to move to AXS because they had commitments in place with Pursuit through Bound For Glory. Honestly, the timing works out well for them to have a fresh start when they will.
Ken Shamrock will be the subject of a Fight Network documentary.
Impact's October 18 Impact Plus event in Indiana will feature Rob Van Dam, Rhino, and Naomichi Marufuji vs. Michael Elgin and The North.
CBS Sports covered NXT's move to USA, with Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano, and Shayna Baszler quoted.
NXT has released a substantial number of new talent T-shirts in conjunction with the USA debut. Frankly a lot of them look generic and uninspired; they would have been better off doing a few at a time as those names appeared on TV instead of rushing them out.
Titus O'Neil got press for wearing a University of Tennessee shirt designed by a bullied fan. That's pretty cool.
Randy Orton retracted his Baron Corbin praise. Vintage Twitter Orton.
Jon Moxley intends to work Wrestle Kingdom 14.
MJF and Brandon Cutler feuding over Dungeons & Dragons got press with Comicbook.com and Muscle & Fitness. I guess this is the kind of thing you have to do to get attention now.
Da Crusher's Wisconsin statue was vandalized. Well that didn't take long! It sounds like it was just a way to get attention rather than an act against Da Crusher specifically.
MLW has signed jiujitsu competitor Dominic Garrini to a multi-year contract.
WWE has trademarked "Follow That My Friend" and "FTMF" as a show name as well as for merchandise purposes. Triple H made the remark after NXT UK: Takeover Cardiff.
Seth Rollins, Jeff Hardy, Sasha Banks, and Ricochet will appear at Ringside Fest 2019 in New York on November 3.
Brock Lesnar is advertised for the September 30 Raw. So there will be a Beast, a Monster, and a Fiend there!!
Kevin Owens will work this weekend's Smackdown Live live events as Shane McMahon "considers Owens' lawsuit." It was expected Owens would appear on NXT as part of the angle, but he needed to travel for this international tour.
Adam Cole spoke to Fox News and Sports Illustrated before NXT's USA debut.
Bianca Belair spoke to Channel Guide Magazine and Newsweek before NXT's USA debut. Interesting story about the braid!
Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville were at the Olympia 2019 Fitness & Performance Weekend.
"All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite" has been confirmed as the title of AEW's TV show. TNT will have a two-hour countdown special on October 1 before that show debuts the next night.
FOX has announced the following WWE related content:
- Smackdown's Greatest Hits on September 27
- WrestleMania's Legendary Moments, narrated by John Cena, on September 29
- Friday Night Smackdown Kickoff Show on October 4 half an hour before the series debut. This will feature celebrities, athletes, and past WWE stars as part of the "blue carpet" festivities.
Smackdown Live drew 2.06 million viewers Tuesday night, almost identical to last week.
ROH's September 28 TV taping has added PCO and Brody King vs. Rush and Dragon Lee.
ROH has announced:
- The Experience in Pennsylvania on November 2. This event will have fans choosing stipulations and opponents.
- ROH Unauthorized in Ohio on November 3. This event is presented as ROH booking matches and talents they don't normally book.
- Survival of the Fittest in Texas on November 8 and November 9.
Braun Strowman, Tomasso Ciampa, Kalisto, and Sarah Logan were all backstage at NXT.
NXT coaches Matt Bloom (Albert) and Sarah Amato spoke to The Orlando Sentinel before NXT's USA debut.
The Rock 'n' Roll Express will compete on NWA's October 1 TV taping.
Billy Corgan unveiled NWA's logo for their TV tapings. Pretty cool, although of course just featuring one state kind of goes against the "National" part of the name.
CaZXL released another brief apology.
NXT sold a "Live From Full Sail" shirt at Wednesday's taping.
Before NXT:
- Angel Garza defeated Raul Mendoza
- Damian Priest defeated Kona Reeves. Reeves was busted open during the match and helped to the back by referees and a doctor. He ended up needing stitches.
WWE Network experienced issues with so many people logging in to see the second hour of NXT. That's impressive in a sense.
After NXT, Triple H cut another promo before posing in the crowd for a photo. This was a big moment for him.
The former Jack Swagger will compete at Bellator 231 on October 25 in Connecticut.
Triple H did a conference call after NXT, recapped here:
- Everyone definitely delivered.
- TV is a whole different animal.
- There really needs to be a balance of in-ring action and character progression.
- Yikes. "Developmental" and "midcard" are dirty words to HHH. I see his point, though, about developing.
- I'll be quite surprised if they stay at Full Sail long-term given the growth potential.
- Vince is very often painted as someone who only wants one kind of wrestling. He's put tens of millions of dollars, if not more, into NXT.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I'm under the impression AEW did tone down what was proposed for the Cracker Barrel Brawl. There's an understanding that a lot of his appeal is pushing boundaries the way he does, just as the appeal of the Young Bucks is seeing what crazy stuff they'll come up with next.
2. He doesn't need it, and it would be weird in some ways for him to have it, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be a big moment for him.
3. Essentially he's cleared for a small amount of physicality, but for obvious reasons he wants to keep such impacts few and far between!
4. Right now it's just on WWE Network, but it's possible that expands.
5. AEW is working on TV deals for Canada and the UK. I believe others are in the works, too.
More wrestling coming up.
Roman Reigns will guest star on Disney's "Elena of Avalor" for its third season.
WWE stars will appear on tomorrow night's "25 Words or Less" on FOX.
Kane winning the 24/7 Championship got local press.
Impact's Scott D'Amore was in the production truck at WOW's Tuesday taping. Ed Nordholm was in the crowd.
Impact is waiting to move to AXS because they had commitments in place with Pursuit through Bound For Glory. Honestly, the timing works out well for them to have a fresh start when they will.
Ken Shamrock will be the subject of a Fight Network documentary.
Impact's October 18 Impact Plus event in Indiana will feature Rob Van Dam, Rhino, and Naomichi Marufuji vs. Michael Elgin and The North.
CBS Sports covered NXT's move to USA, with Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano, and Shayna Baszler quoted.
NXT has released a substantial number of new talent T-shirts in conjunction with the USA debut. Frankly a lot of them look generic and uninspired; they would have been better off doing a few at a time as those names appeared on TV instead of rushing them out.
Titus O'Neil got press for wearing a University of Tennessee shirt designed by a bullied fan. That's pretty cool.
Randy Orton retracted his Baron Corbin praise. Vintage Twitter Orton.
Jon Moxley intends to work Wrestle Kingdom 14.
MJF and Brandon Cutler feuding over Dungeons & Dragons got press with Comicbook.com and Muscle & Fitness. I guess this is the kind of thing you have to do to get attention now.
Da Crusher's Wisconsin statue was vandalized. Well that didn't take long! It sounds like it was just a way to get attention rather than an act against Da Crusher specifically.
MLW has signed jiujitsu competitor Dominic Garrini to a multi-year contract.
WWE has trademarked "Follow That My Friend" and "FTMF" as a show name as well as for merchandise purposes. Triple H made the remark after NXT UK: Takeover Cardiff.
Seth Rollins, Jeff Hardy, Sasha Banks, and Ricochet will appear at Ringside Fest 2019 in New York on November 3.
Brock Lesnar is advertised for the September 30 Raw. So there will be a Beast, a Monster, and a Fiend there!!
Kevin Owens will work this weekend's Smackdown Live live events as Shane McMahon "considers Owens' lawsuit." It was expected Owens would appear on NXT as part of the angle, but he needed to travel for this international tour.
Adam Cole spoke to Fox News and Sports Illustrated before NXT's USA debut.
Bianca Belair spoke to Channel Guide Magazine and Newsweek before NXT's USA debut. Interesting story about the braid!
Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville were at the Olympia 2019 Fitness & Performance Weekend.
"All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite" has been confirmed as the title of AEW's TV show. TNT will have a two-hour countdown special on October 1 before that show debuts the next night.
FOX has announced the following WWE related content:
- Smackdown's Greatest Hits on September 27
- WrestleMania's Legendary Moments, narrated by John Cena, on September 29
- Friday Night Smackdown Kickoff Show on October 4 half an hour before the series debut. This will feature celebrities, athletes, and past WWE stars as part of the "blue carpet" festivities.
Smackdown Live drew 2.06 million viewers Tuesday night, almost identical to last week.
ROH's September 28 TV taping has added PCO and Brody King vs. Rush and Dragon Lee.
ROH has announced:
- The Experience in Pennsylvania on November 2. This event will have fans choosing stipulations and opponents.
- ROH Unauthorized in Ohio on November 3. This event is presented as ROH booking matches and talents they don't normally book.
- Survival of the Fittest in Texas on November 8 and November 9.
Braun Strowman, Tomasso Ciampa, Kalisto, and Sarah Logan were all backstage at NXT.
NXT coaches Matt Bloom (Albert) and Sarah Amato spoke to The Orlando Sentinel before NXT's USA debut.
The Rock 'n' Roll Express will compete on NWA's October 1 TV taping.
Billy Corgan unveiled NWA's logo for their TV tapings. Pretty cool, although of course just featuring one state kind of goes against the "National" part of the name.
CaZXL released another brief apology.
NXT sold a "Live From Full Sail" shirt at Wednesday's taping.
Before NXT:
- Angel Garza defeated Raul Mendoza
- Damian Priest defeated Kona Reeves. Reeves was busted open during the match and helped to the back by referees and a doctor. He ended up needing stitches.
WWE Network experienced issues with so many people logging in to see the second hour of NXT. That's impressive in a sense.
After NXT, Triple H cut another promo before posing in the crowd for a photo. This was a big moment for him.
The former Jack Swagger will compete at Bellator 231 on October 25 in Connecticut.
Triple H did a conference call after NXT, recapped here:
- Everyone definitely delivered.
- TV is a whole different animal.
- There really needs to be a balance of in-ring action and character progression.
- Yikes. "Developmental" and "midcard" are dirty words to HHH. I see his point, though, about developing.
- I'll be quite surprised if they stay at Full Sail long-term given the growth potential.
- Vince is very often painted as someone who only wants one kind of wrestling. He's put tens of millions of dollars, if not more, into NXT.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I'm under the impression AEW did tone down what was proposed for the Cracker Barrel Brawl. There's an understanding that a lot of his appeal is pushing boundaries the way he does, just as the appeal of the Young Bucks is seeing what crazy stuff they'll come up with next.
2. He doesn't need it, and it would be weird in some ways for him to have it, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't be a big moment for him.
3. Essentially he's cleared for a small amount of physicality, but for obvious reasons he wants to keep such impacts few and far between!
4. Right now it's just on WWE Network, but it's possible that expands.
5. AEW is working on TV deals for Canada and the UK. I believe others are in the works, too.
More wrestling coming up.
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
AEW trademarks possible show name, TV Guide on NXT vs. AEW, MJF's last indie show, new WWE and Stone Cold trademarks, Rock show returning, Orton praises KOTR, Booker praises WWE team, MLW PPV main event, Andre book update, DBD pre-show match, CaZXL statement and reactions, Vince and HHH miss TV, former trainer at Raw, WWE-FOX press, Gulak discusses title care, NXT name teases battle with Raw name, WWE-FS1 staff and likely show name, EVOLVE update, NWA main event, note on Raw's graphics, Kane's referee, Taz in discussions to return to business, Raw name moving to NXT UK?, SDL names visit children's hospital, Raw audience, Becky appearance, Interviews with Ciampa/Abbott, NFG match official, MLW profiled, ex-announcer gets podcast, AEW tournament bracket, Starrcade return announced, SDL dark matches, and Questions on women being in bigger matches, AEW statistics, WWE's huge roster, and who owns All In
AEW has trademarked "All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite," almost certainly for the name of their upcoming TV series.
TV Guide covered NXT going against AEW. WWE treating AEW as a threat is probably getting the latter company publicity and hype it wouldn't have otherwise gotten.
MJF's final independent appearance is Sunday in Rhode Island.
WWE has trademarked "The Disrespected" and "Boa." I'm curious who the first will apply to.
Stone Cold has trademarked "King of Professional Wrestling," "King of Attitude," "Queen of Attitude," "Broken Skull Ranch," and "Skullaflage" for merchandise purposes.
The Rock's "Titan Games" is returning for a second season.
Randy Orton praised Baron Corbin, subtly taking shots at the rest of the roster. It definitely often feels like the fundamentals aren't treated as importantly as flashy moves, etc.
Booker T. discussed wanting to manage the Street Profits. I'm not sure if that would help them or draw attention away from them onto the Hall of Famer.
MLW Saturday Night Superfight will be headlined by Jacob Fatu vs. LA Park for the MLW Championship in a no disqualification match.
Andre the Giant will have an official biography released in April 2020.
Death Before Dishonor's pre-show will feature Jeff Cobb vs. Brody King. That could really be good.
CaZXL released a statement after the recent WrestlePro situation. That was a very mature approach, and I hope he comes out of this in a better place.
- Kevin Matthews and nZo tweeted out support.
Paul Heyman ran Raw Monday, as neither Vince McMahon nor Triple H were in attendance.
- Vince McMahon was also not at Smackdown Live. Bruce Prichard, Eric Bischoff, and Michael P.S. Hayes took over his duties.
Dr. Tom Prichard was at Raw.
WWE had "moving trucks" at Clash of Champions and Raw to promote Smackdown going to FOX.
Drew Gulak discussed taking care of championship belts.
Kacy Catanzaro teased going after Maria Kanellis for her Raw comments. Funny!
WWE's FS1 talk show will be taped weekly in California. Renee Young and Cathy Kelley will be involved, and a number of WWE personalities and Hall of Famers have tried out to be added to the panel.
- There series is currently expected to be called "WWE Backstage."
EVOLVE's events this weekend in New York will feature meet and greets with everyone on the card.
NWA's upcoming TV tapings will be headlined by Nick Aldis vs. Tim Storm for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
Raw's upside down graphics were a deliberate direction to tie into The Fiend. I'm enjoying WWE's creepypasta.
Kane's referee on Raw was former WWE developmental star Micah Taylor. Amazing that he finally got his chance on Raw more than a decade after being done there!
Taz has recently had discussions to return to wrestling commentary. I'm curious who was interested in using him again.
Ember Moon teased going to NXT UK to face Kay Lee Ray. She might as well at this point.
Kofi Kingston, Ali, Mandy Rose, and Sonya Deville visited Children's Healthcare of Atlanta before Smackdown Live.
Raw drew 2.27 million viewers Monday night, only seeing a slight increase from last week.
Becky Lynch spoke at Sports Business Journal's Game Changers event.
FOX had NASCAR's Jeff Gordon promote SmackDown's move.
Tommaso Ciampa spoke to NXT's Izzy. I'm glad his recovery is going well.
Bound For Glory has officially added Michael Elgin vs. Naomichi Marufuji.
MLW got press with The Ringer. Jim Ross, Court Bauer, Dave Lagana, and Jacob Fatu were quoted.
Former WWE/AWA announcer Ken Resnick is joining VOC Nation Radio's Wrestling With History show beginning October 2.
Tank Abbott discussed Goldberg and more.
AEW has released the brackets for their tag team championship tournament:
- The Young Bucks vs. Private Party on October 9 in Massachusetts
- The Lucha Bros vs. The Jurassic Express on October 16 in Pennsylvania
- Best Friends vs. SCU on October 16 in Pennsylvania
- Dark Order vs. the winners of Best Friends vs. SCU on October 23 in Pennsylvania
- The other semifinal match on October 23 in Pennsylvania
- The champions will be crowned on October 30 in West Virginia
WWE Starrcade will return on December 1 in Georgia as a one-hour WWE Network broadcast. Raw and Friday Night Smackdown stars are advertised for the show.
Before Smackdown Live, Aleister Black defeated Buddy Murphy.
After Smackdown Live, Bayley defeated Charlotte Flair to retain the Smackdown Live Women's Championship.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I'm under the impression Triple H and Stephanie McMahon pushed for those events to happen given the ability and prominence of the women featured in them.
2. I agree it would be an alternative, but I definitely enjoy angles more than statistics.
Nothing to add to 3.
4. WWE would rather have talent and not want to use them than want to use talent and not have them. Lio at least is being benched to send him a message in humility. I'm not sure what the story is with Lana. As for names like The Ascension, there's always the possibility WWE wants to do something with them before their contracts run out. If not, WWE will just let the contracts expire naturally. They've got more than enough money to do pretty much whatever they want now.
5. The show was produced by ROH, so it's theirs.
More wrestling tomorrow.
TV Guide covered NXT going against AEW. WWE treating AEW as a threat is probably getting the latter company publicity and hype it wouldn't have otherwise gotten.
MJF's final independent appearance is Sunday in Rhode Island.
WWE has trademarked "The Disrespected" and "Boa." I'm curious who the first will apply to.
Stone Cold has trademarked "King of Professional Wrestling," "King of Attitude," "Queen of Attitude," "Broken Skull Ranch," and "Skullaflage" for merchandise purposes.
The Rock's "Titan Games" is returning for a second season.
Randy Orton praised Baron Corbin, subtly taking shots at the rest of the roster. It definitely often feels like the fundamentals aren't treated as importantly as flashy moves, etc.
Booker T. discussed wanting to manage the Street Profits. I'm not sure if that would help them or draw attention away from them onto the Hall of Famer.
MLW Saturday Night Superfight will be headlined by Jacob Fatu vs. LA Park for the MLW Championship in a no disqualification match.
Andre the Giant will have an official biography released in April 2020.
Death Before Dishonor's pre-show will feature Jeff Cobb vs. Brody King. That could really be good.
CaZXL released a statement after the recent WrestlePro situation. That was a very mature approach, and I hope he comes out of this in a better place.
- Kevin Matthews and nZo tweeted out support.
Paul Heyman ran Raw Monday, as neither Vince McMahon nor Triple H were in attendance.
- Vince McMahon was also not at Smackdown Live. Bruce Prichard, Eric Bischoff, and Michael P.S. Hayes took over his duties.
Dr. Tom Prichard was at Raw.
WWE had "moving trucks" at Clash of Champions and Raw to promote Smackdown going to FOX.
Drew Gulak discussed taking care of championship belts.
Kacy Catanzaro teased going after Maria Kanellis for her Raw comments. Funny!
WWE's FS1 talk show will be taped weekly in California. Renee Young and Cathy Kelley will be involved, and a number of WWE personalities and Hall of Famers have tried out to be added to the panel.
- There series is currently expected to be called "WWE Backstage."
EVOLVE's events this weekend in New York will feature meet and greets with everyone on the card.
NWA's upcoming TV tapings will be headlined by Nick Aldis vs. Tim Storm for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
Raw's upside down graphics were a deliberate direction to tie into The Fiend. I'm enjoying WWE's creepypasta.
Kane's referee on Raw was former WWE developmental star Micah Taylor. Amazing that he finally got his chance on Raw more than a decade after being done there!
Taz has recently had discussions to return to wrestling commentary. I'm curious who was interested in using him again.
Ember Moon teased going to NXT UK to face Kay Lee Ray. She might as well at this point.
Kofi Kingston, Ali, Mandy Rose, and Sonya Deville visited Children's Healthcare of Atlanta before Smackdown Live.
Raw drew 2.27 million viewers Monday night, only seeing a slight increase from last week.
Becky Lynch spoke at Sports Business Journal's Game Changers event.
FOX had NASCAR's Jeff Gordon promote SmackDown's move.
Tommaso Ciampa spoke to NXT's Izzy. I'm glad his recovery is going well.
Bound For Glory has officially added Michael Elgin vs. Naomichi Marufuji.
MLW got press with The Ringer. Jim Ross, Court Bauer, Dave Lagana, and Jacob Fatu were quoted.
Former WWE/AWA announcer Ken Resnick is joining VOC Nation Radio's Wrestling With History show beginning October 2.
Tank Abbott discussed Goldberg and more.
AEW has released the brackets for their tag team championship tournament:
- The Young Bucks vs. Private Party on October 9 in Massachusetts
- The Lucha Bros vs. The Jurassic Express on October 16 in Pennsylvania
- Best Friends vs. SCU on October 16 in Pennsylvania
- Dark Order vs. the winners of Best Friends vs. SCU on October 23 in Pennsylvania
- The other semifinal match on October 23 in Pennsylvania
- The champions will be crowned on October 30 in West Virginia
WWE Starrcade will return on December 1 in Georgia as a one-hour WWE Network broadcast. Raw and Friday Night Smackdown stars are advertised for the show.
Before Smackdown Live, Aleister Black defeated Buddy Murphy.
After Smackdown Live, Bayley defeated Charlotte Flair to retain the Smackdown Live Women's Championship.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I'm under the impression Triple H and Stephanie McMahon pushed for those events to happen given the ability and prominence of the women featured in them.
2. I agree it would be an alternative, but I definitely enjoy angles more than statistics.
Nothing to add to 3.
4. WWE would rather have talent and not want to use them than want to use talent and not have them. Lio at least is being benched to send him a message in humility. I'm not sure what the story is with Lana. As for names like The Ascension, there's always the possibility WWE wants to do something with them before their contracts run out. If not, WWE will just let the contracts expire naturally. They've got more than enough money to do pretty much whatever they want now.
5. The show was produced by ROH, so it's theirs.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Smackdown Live and 205 Live Reax - 9/17/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Smackdown Live and 205 Live.
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
Interviews with Gargano/Gable/Austin, October hype, Revival milestone, signing before Smackdown Live, Lawler featuring classic Memphis content, Vickie launches podcast, new ROH matches, WOH action figures coming, top CMLL name to compete for ROH, ROH titleholder's contract bought out, Shamrock promoting fighting tournament, Harper update, BOLA change, another AEW taping set, HHH conference call, AAA show airing on AXS, new AEW TV match, Flair commercials and appearance, Starrcade returning?, and Questions on the WarGames lineup and moving top names to NXT
Johnny Gargano is on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
WWE was pushed on weekend sports events on FOX, FS1, and NBC Sports Network.
The Revival are the first team to be Raw, Smackdown Live, and NXT Tag Team Champions. That's quite the resume!
Becky Lynch did a signing at a Cricket Wireless store before Smackdown Live.
Jerry Lawler is uploading Classic Memphis Wrestling episodes on his YouTube channel.
Vickie Guerrero has launched a podcast. I'm curious how that will go.
ROH's September 28 TV taping has announced:
- Dalton Castle vs. Mark Haskins in the first round of the Final Battle contendership tournament.
- Jay Lethal vs. Bandido in the first round of the Final Battle contendership tournament.
ROH will have action figures for Kelly Klein and all three members of The Allure.
Death Before Dishonor has announced Silas Young and Vincent (Vinny Marseglia) vs. The Bouncers. I'm curious what this means for The Kingdom long-term.
Ultimo Guerrero will compete for ROH later this year. That should be good!
ROH has announced they have bought out Shane Taylor's contract, and that they are negotiating for him to defend his TV Championship at Death Before Dishonor as a final match. Not sure what's going on there; it looks like a storyline as you'd think they'd have him work that date before leaving.
Ken Shamrock is promoting a bare knuckle fighting tournament on FITE Saturday night.
Luke Harper is now back to using that name rather than just his last name. It's very good to see him back. His return was a late decision to set up a tag match with Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan.
PWG's Battle of Los Angeles is seeing a lineup change, as Laredo Kid has been cast in a reality show in the Dominican Republic. Puma King will replace him.
AEW's November 20 TV taping will come from Indiana. The venue seats 6,800 fans.
Triple H did a conference call before NXT's USA Network debut, recapped here:
- People are REALLY going to analyze each and every number they draw.
- So obviously 205 Live isn't going to air Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m. once Smackdown changes nights. It would be nice to know more on that end given how close we are to the FOX move.
- Sounds like we could get the Undisputed Era vs. Imperium War Games match people have asked for.
- Being upset about a championship being defended in the middle of the show being called a midcard championship is kind of silly.
- I like the idea of Worlds Collide specials.
- It will be really interesting to see what happens to NXT touring and the "developmental" wrestlers.
AAA's New York event will air on AXS Friday night. I'm curious how that will do and if it will open the door for more AAA content to air there.
AEW's October 2 TV taping has added MJF vs. Brandon Cutler.
Ric Flair appeared in commercials for Cumberland Farms and Tide.
- Flair was also at an Auburn football game.
Starrcade is expected to return as a WWE Network special on November 30. I assume that will just be a bigger live event rather than a show at the level of Clash of Champions.
TV Guide will have stories on Smackdown, AEW, and NXT in next week's issue. It's about to be a big time for wrestling fans.
Chad Gable spoke before Raw. I'm really curious what's next for him after the KOTR loss.
Stone Cold was on B/R Live's Rich Eisen Show.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. That would all makes sense. I definitely want to see something fresh there so they're not doing WarGames just to do it.
2. I REALLY don't see Bryan moving to 205 Live. That show isn't a priority at all, and it would be a huge waste of Bryan to put him there. Having Owens in NXT to cause a ruckus before finishing his feud with Shane at Survivor Series would make a lot of sense.
3. Partially, but having NXT be a success is also a goal in its own right.
4. I have no idea where this hypothetical came from, but it would depend on what they did with him.
5. Only if it's framed as a demotion instead of a big opportunity to improve the standing of their new brand, have fresh feuds, etc.
6. The more important the talent, the more say they have in such a move.
More wrestling tomorrow.
WWE was pushed on weekend sports events on FOX, FS1, and NBC Sports Network.
The Revival are the first team to be Raw, Smackdown Live, and NXT Tag Team Champions. That's quite the resume!
Becky Lynch did a signing at a Cricket Wireless store before Smackdown Live.
Jerry Lawler is uploading Classic Memphis Wrestling episodes on his YouTube channel.
Vickie Guerrero has launched a podcast. I'm curious how that will go.
ROH's September 28 TV taping has announced:
- Dalton Castle vs. Mark Haskins in the first round of the Final Battle contendership tournament.
- Jay Lethal vs. Bandido in the first round of the Final Battle contendership tournament.
ROH will have action figures for Kelly Klein and all three members of The Allure.
Death Before Dishonor has announced Silas Young and Vincent (Vinny Marseglia) vs. The Bouncers. I'm curious what this means for The Kingdom long-term.
Ultimo Guerrero will compete for ROH later this year. That should be good!
ROH has announced they have bought out Shane Taylor's contract, and that they are negotiating for him to defend his TV Championship at Death Before Dishonor as a final match. Not sure what's going on there; it looks like a storyline as you'd think they'd have him work that date before leaving.
Ken Shamrock is promoting a bare knuckle fighting tournament on FITE Saturday night.
Luke Harper is now back to using that name rather than just his last name. It's very good to see him back. His return was a late decision to set up a tag match with Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan.
PWG's Battle of Los Angeles is seeing a lineup change, as Laredo Kid has been cast in a reality show in the Dominican Republic. Puma King will replace him.
AEW's November 20 TV taping will come from Indiana. The venue seats 6,800 fans.
Triple H did a conference call before NXT's USA Network debut, recapped here:
- People are REALLY going to analyze each and every number they draw.
- So obviously 205 Live isn't going to air Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m. once Smackdown changes nights. It would be nice to know more on that end given how close we are to the FOX move.
- Sounds like we could get the Undisputed Era vs. Imperium War Games match people have asked for.
- Being upset about a championship being defended in the middle of the show being called a midcard championship is kind of silly.
- I like the idea of Worlds Collide specials.
- It will be really interesting to see what happens to NXT touring and the "developmental" wrestlers.
AAA's New York event will air on AXS Friday night. I'm curious how that will do and if it will open the door for more AAA content to air there.
AEW's October 2 TV taping has added MJF vs. Brandon Cutler.
Ric Flair appeared in commercials for Cumberland Farms and Tide.
- Flair was also at an Auburn football game.
Starrcade is expected to return as a WWE Network special on November 30. I assume that will just be a bigger live event rather than a show at the level of Clash of Champions.
TV Guide will have stories on Smackdown, AEW, and NXT in next week's issue. It's about to be a big time for wrestling fans.
Chad Gable spoke before Raw. I'm really curious what's next for him after the KOTR loss.
Stone Cold was on B/R Live's Rich Eisen Show.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. That would all makes sense. I definitely want to see something fresh there so they're not doing WarGames just to do it.
2. I REALLY don't see Bryan moving to 205 Live. That show isn't a priority at all, and it would be a huge waste of Bryan to put him there. Having Owens in NXT to cause a ruckus before finishing his feud with Shane at Survivor Series would make a lot of sense.
3. Partially, but having NXT be a success is also a goal in its own right.
4. I have no idea where this hypothetical came from, but it would depend on what they did with him.
5. Only if it's framed as a demotion instead of a big opportunity to improve the standing of their new brand, have fresh feuds, etc.
6. The more important the talent, the more say they have in such a move.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, September 16, 2019
Main Event Reax - 9/14/19, former Cass ejected after getting physical, no NJPW+WOW this week, more Thunder, joshi star on WWE meeting, WWE draft confirmed, injured female WWE name return, AAA event notes, and Questions on booking the KOTR finals, entrance music, pushing Jazzy, how NXT will change, and if AXS changes Impact
-- Main Event:
- IIconics vs. Dana/Sarah:
Oh wow! I guess there's respect between them now.
I don't dislike this new team at all.
Oh. Well. So much for that alliance bearing fruit.
The former Big Cass was ejected from Saturday's WrestlePro event after having a physical altercation with Pat Buck. Cass had been belligerent to varying degrees to other wrestlers at the show all night, notably Joey Janela following Janela's incident with the former Enzo Amore at a Blink-182 show. Janela and Cass had been in the same locker room the previous night for Northeast Wrestling with no issues between them. In fact, NEW has praised Cass' work with them in the past few months.
- The battle with Buck came after threatening other wrestlers for allegedly stealing his sweater. Cass was moved to a smaller locker room with Buck and SCU to go over their main event for the night due to the issues he was having with others at the show, but Cass continued to accuse those present of stealing his belongings. This led to Cass spitting on Buck and Buck taking Cass down until wrestlers could separate them. Staff then asked local police to escort Cass from the building. He was then taken to a local hospital.
-- Very scary situation, and I hope Cass gets help before things further spiral out of control.
- Joey Janela commented on the altercation. Very professional of him to not name names and give support to a man who could use it right now.
NJPW and WOW will not air on AXS this weekend due to the channel broadcasting Farm Aid. They will return next week. This is unrelated to the Anthem buyout.
WCW Thunder episodes from June 28, 2000 through November 8, 2000 have been added to WWE Network. The show ran through March 2001, so the next batch of episodes will complete the series. It's unknown when those episodes will be added.
Japanese joshi star Sareee discussed recent conversations with WWE. It sounds like she's open to going there. That could definitely shake things up in the NXT women's division.
WWE confirmed a draft for October 11 and October 14, with FOX and NBCUniversal both sending celebrities to the shows as part of the process. We'll see how it all plays out and who will be involved.
Tamina Snuka has returned to the ring after concussion issues. I'm curious where she fits into things given how many other talented women are in WWE.
ESPN released a video on Cain Velasquez wrestling.
At AAA Invading NY:
- Impact's Michael Elgin, Sami Calligan, and Josh Alexander defeated Drago, Faby Apache, and Murder Clown. Impact wanted to use Ethan Page on the show, but he had already booked a date in Washington state and Impact didn't want to pull him from it.
- Taya Valkyrie won AAA's women's championship over Tessa Blanchard.
- Cain Velasquez, Brian Cage, and Psycho Clown defeated Texano,Jr., Taurus and Rey Escorpion. Escorpion was replacing Killer Kross as Impact requested Kross be pulled from the booking.
- Konnan was backstage running things but didn't appear before the crowd. That's surprising given his level of involvement.
- Former WWE/WCW director Craig Leathers was in charge of the FITE broadcast.
- ROH's Flip Gordon was backstage. I hope he doesn't get heat for that, since ROH is aligned with CMLL and of course Impact helped put this show on.
- Ed Nordholm and Scott D'Amore were on hand.
- John E. Bravo was used as a referee. He was involved in a lot of the production setup the night before. El Hijo del Tirantes missed the show due to visa issues, as a lot of talents did.
- AAA used new theme music for a lot of talents due to rights issues. It would have been quite expensive to use licensed music!
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I think he's finding a niche for himself, but Gable could definitely use the momentum. Followup will be key if Chad does take it. Corbin will be at about the same place if he wins; he's already won MITB, retired Kurt Angle, and challenged for the WWE Title. KOTR doesn't really seem to boost him.
2. Very funny that you say that because I was at Clash of Champions and his music got a great reaction. No reason to change it! I do think a fitting theme song helps a wrestler's presentation. No one immediately comes to mind as needing a change, but I agree with the philosophy that it's similar to scoring a movie rather than just pairing someone with a catchy song.
3. I expect with Toni and Rhea being in NXT "US," her importance will grow.
4. I REALLY hope we still get to see a variety of talents, and some names we don't get to see much now. That's really been NXT's strength. WWE really doesn't want to be shown up by AEW, though, so it's entirely possible we do see changes.
5. Presumably Anthem's going to have the same say they have over the product now since it's on another Anthem channel, so unless sponsors aren't pleased and fans don't react negatively to what they're doing, things could stay about the same.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- IIconics vs. Dana/Sarah:
Oh wow! I guess there's respect between them now.
I don't dislike this new team at all.
Oh. Well. So much for that alliance bearing fruit.
The former Big Cass was ejected from Saturday's WrestlePro event after having a physical altercation with Pat Buck. Cass had been belligerent to varying degrees to other wrestlers at the show all night, notably Joey Janela following Janela's incident with the former Enzo Amore at a Blink-182 show. Janela and Cass had been in the same locker room the previous night for Northeast Wrestling with no issues between them. In fact, NEW has praised Cass' work with them in the past few months.
- The battle with Buck came after threatening other wrestlers for allegedly stealing his sweater. Cass was moved to a smaller locker room with Buck and SCU to go over their main event for the night due to the issues he was having with others at the show, but Cass continued to accuse those present of stealing his belongings. This led to Cass spitting on Buck and Buck taking Cass down until wrestlers could separate them. Staff then asked local police to escort Cass from the building. He was then taken to a local hospital.
-- Very scary situation, and I hope Cass gets help before things further spiral out of control.
- Joey Janela commented on the altercation. Very professional of him to not name names and give support to a man who could use it right now.
NJPW and WOW will not air on AXS this weekend due to the channel broadcasting Farm Aid. They will return next week. This is unrelated to the Anthem buyout.
WCW Thunder episodes from June 28, 2000 through November 8, 2000 have been added to WWE Network. The show ran through March 2001, so the next batch of episodes will complete the series. It's unknown when those episodes will be added.
Japanese joshi star Sareee discussed recent conversations with WWE. It sounds like she's open to going there. That could definitely shake things up in the NXT women's division.
WWE confirmed a draft for October 11 and October 14, with FOX and NBCUniversal both sending celebrities to the shows as part of the process. We'll see how it all plays out and who will be involved.
Tamina Snuka has returned to the ring after concussion issues. I'm curious where she fits into things given how many other talented women are in WWE.
ESPN released a video on Cain Velasquez wrestling.
At AAA Invading NY:
- Impact's Michael Elgin, Sami Calligan, and Josh Alexander defeated Drago, Faby Apache, and Murder Clown. Impact wanted to use Ethan Page on the show, but he had already booked a date in Washington state and Impact didn't want to pull him from it.
- Taya Valkyrie won AAA's women's championship over Tessa Blanchard.
- Cain Velasquez, Brian Cage, and Psycho Clown defeated Texano,Jr., Taurus and Rey Escorpion. Escorpion was replacing Killer Kross as Impact requested Kross be pulled from the booking.
- Konnan was backstage running things but didn't appear before the crowd. That's surprising given his level of involvement.
- Former WWE/WCW director Craig Leathers was in charge of the FITE broadcast.
- ROH's Flip Gordon was backstage. I hope he doesn't get heat for that, since ROH is aligned with CMLL and of course Impact helped put this show on.
- Ed Nordholm and Scott D'Amore were on hand.
- John E. Bravo was used as a referee. He was involved in a lot of the production setup the night before. El Hijo del Tirantes missed the show due to visa issues, as a lot of talents did.
- AAA used new theme music for a lot of talents due to rights issues. It would have been quite expensive to use licensed music!
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I think he's finding a niche for himself, but Gable could definitely use the momentum. Followup will be key if Chad does take it. Corbin will be at about the same place if he wins; he's already won MITB, retired Kurt Angle, and challenged for the WWE Title. KOTR doesn't really seem to boost him.
2. Very funny that you say that because I was at Clash of Champions and his music got a great reaction. No reason to change it! I do think a fitting theme song helps a wrestler's presentation. No one immediately comes to mind as needing a change, but I agree with the philosophy that it's similar to scoring a movie rather than just pairing someone with a catchy song.
3. I expect with Toni and Rhea being in NXT "US," her importance will grow.
4. I REALLY hope we still get to see a variety of talents, and some names we don't get to see much now. That's really been NXT's strength. WWE really doesn't want to be shown up by AEW, though, so it's entirely possible we do see changes.
5. Presumably Anthem's going to have the same say they have over the product now since it's on another Anthem channel, so unless sponsors aren't pleased and fans don't react negatively to what they're doing, things could stay about the same.
More wrestling tomorrow.
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