Ric Flair has been cleared to take bumps for WWE. That's amazing at 70. I hope WWE doesn't abuse that.
Stephanie McMahon discussed Crown Jewel's women's match and more. It is interesting those two were picked for the match.
Full Gear on FITE will have German commentary. That's pretty cool; the company continues to grow and expand.
The Mid-South Coliseum was viewed via a drone flythrough. Memphis is still deciding what to do next with the venue.
Edge will continue to appear on "Vikings" final season.
Corey Graves is doing an AMA on Reddit on November 5 to promote "After The Bell."
WWE has trademarked "UUDD" for clothing. I'm curious what happens to that show if Xavier Woods ever leaves.
Finn Balor discussed returning to NXT with Sports Illustrated and The Orlando Sentinel. I liked the comparisons of Broadway vs. Hollywood. As for a Balor Club with AOP, I'm intrigued.
Dynamite and NXT both had immediate replays last night, almost certainly as a way to get fans who watched the World Series championship game. Both shows had very tough competition there!
The Boogeyman had a live stream for Halloween.
Impact's Turning Point special on November 9 will feature Sami Callihan vs. Brian Cage for the Impact World Championship.
Jordan Myles has made an anti-racism T-shirt to benefit the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Weird flex, but OK. I wish him the best.
EVOLVE 139 will feature NXT signing Shotzi Blackheart vs. Reina Gonzalez.
WWE held a Halloween contest with New Day, Nikki Cross, Dana Brooke, and Heath Slater.
MJF did commentary with Excalibur for AEW Dark this week. We're seeing some interesting variety on that show.
Tommaso Ciampa commented on Sami Callihan winning the Impact World Championship. I'm curious if their paths will ever cross again.
Before NXT, Reina Gonzalez defeated Monique Jenkins and Breezango defeated the team of Austin Theory and Raul Mendoza.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There's definitely an audience WWE has disappointed over the years that's willing to give AEW a try. The key for AEW will be keeping that audience beyond sending a message to WWE.
2. I would be surprised if WWE and AEW don't make her good offers whenever her contract comes due; she's really proving her worth in Impact.
3. If you skipped watching WWE before February and started watching again, you'd be forgiven for disbelieving that Kofi had a six-month run as champion. If Kofi isn't that concerned about his historic title run ending, why should fans be?
4. So, it wasn't a DQ, it was a referee stoppage. That said, it was a clunky finish, for sure, and WWE has no one but themselves to blame for making it happen in the first place.
5. Only if he goes online and defends it... oh wait. They probably would have turned on "SuperSeth" winning if he had stayed off Twitter, though. Fans wanted The Fiend to stand tall.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Ric Flair update, Interviews with Stephanie/Finn, another Full Gear language, Mid-South Coliseum view, Edge back on History show, Corey on Reddit, WWE trademarks Woods channel name, AEW+NXT replays, Boogeyman live for Halloween, Impact world title rematch set, Myles selling anti-racism shirt, NXT match set for EVOLVE 139, WWE Halloween costumes, Dark guest commentary, Ciampa on Callihan win, NXT dark matches, and Questions on WWE missteps boosting AEW, Tessa's future, Kofi moving on from Brock loss, and HIAC fallout
Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Interviews with IIconics/Mero/Zayn/Rey/Graves/Dashwood, Orlando seeking top WWE event, Sting set for WWE date, MLW hires LU creator, ROH postpones November shows, Cena makes big donation, partial NXT replay, more from Myles, Saudi travel trouble, AEW looking for trademark, judges at AEW main event, Raw audience, HHH-Saudi update, NXT concert, Raw cameos, and Questions on AEW's booking vs. WWE's, AEW WarGames, AEW's success helping other companies, AEW Dark changing Main Event, and AEW at Jericho's cruise
The IIconics did a Q&A before Raw.
Marc Mero is on Stone Cold's latest podcast.
Sami Zayn promoted WWE coming to Ireland.
Rey Mysterio discussed Cain Velasquez, his son, and more. Dominick will join the WWE Performance Center in 2020. I look forward to seeing how he does.
Corey Graves discussed his new podcast with Newsweek and CBS New York. I'm all for him having freedom there.
- Graves also spoke to CBS in New York.
Orlando is looking to host a major WWE PPV in the upcoming years.
Dynamite's Friday replay drew 255,000 viewers. We'll see if the show gets any further replays in the future.
Sting is set for WWE's Survivor Series weekend meet and greets.
MLW has hired WWE and Lucha Underground alum Chris DeJoseph as an executive producer. Notably the article refers to LU in the past tense. There wasn't any real expectation of it returning, but it also hasn't been officially mentioned as canceled.
ROH has postponed Survival of the Fittest 2019, with those Texas events now taking place on June 5 and June 6. Meet and greets are still set for those dates. Fans can get refunds or use the tickets for the June events.
John Cena has made a $500,000 donation to California first responders as they battle wildfires in the state. That's awesome news.
NXT will have a one-hour replay of last week's episode before this week's episode. We'll see how that affects viewership numbers.
Jordan Myles clarified his recent tweets, calling them "disrespectful" and "unprofessional" while expressing his frustrations and motivation to improve his standing. Hopefully something is worked out where he can channel this energy without burning bridges.
Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, and Jimmy Hart's private plane had a tough landing in Iceland that almost delayed their arrival in Saudi Arabia. Brock Lesnar allowed Hogan, Flair, and Hart to use his own private plane as he was also in the country refueling. That could have really been a bad situation if Brock wasn't on hand.
AEW is looking to trademark The Inner Circle logo. This follows Chris Jericho looking to trademark the faction name.
Full Gear's main event will have three judges to declare a winner in the event of a time limit draw. That adds some serious legitimacy to the match; I like it.
Raw drew 2.13 million viewers Monday. Yikes. Not a strong number.
Triple H and Shane McMahon are not expected to go to Saudi Arabia, with Triple H being at NXT.
Poppy is set for tonight's NXT. NXT used one of her songs for a Takeover recently. We'll see if her appearance affects ratings; it's telling NXT is adding her to the show.
The Viking Raiders' Raw opponents were Mike Sydal and Kyle Roberts, both of whom are local to the area.
Tenille Dashwood spoke about AEW, Impact, and more. It wouldn't shock me to see more of her in AEW.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. AEW is certainly benefiting from its novelty in a lot of ways, and they're also not booking things the way WWE patterns usually go. I do think at some point they'll establish a certain identity and philosophy fans can expect they'll follow, but I also think they're aware of how their audience views WWE's predictability and they want to make a contrast to that.
2. I don't think I would have made that comparison. There's certainly an option for a WarGames style match if AEW wants to go that route, though they can't use that name. As for it being rushed, I don't feel that way. It seems like a logical enough continuation from All Out's victories.
3. It's possible, though AEW's success could also means fans don't need to follow those other promotions for an alternative. It's probably fair to say AEW's rise has negatively affected ROH already.
4. In theory, but NXT, NXT UK, and 205 Live are going to be bigger priorities as far as match quality goes.
5. I'll be surprised if AEW doesn't tape anything there!
More wrestling tomorrow.
Marc Mero is on Stone Cold's latest podcast.
Sami Zayn promoted WWE coming to Ireland.
Rey Mysterio discussed Cain Velasquez, his son, and more. Dominick will join the WWE Performance Center in 2020. I look forward to seeing how he does.
Corey Graves discussed his new podcast with Newsweek and CBS New York. I'm all for him having freedom there.
- Graves also spoke to CBS in New York.
Orlando is looking to host a major WWE PPV in the upcoming years.
Dynamite's Friday replay drew 255,000 viewers. We'll see if the show gets any further replays in the future.
Sting is set for WWE's Survivor Series weekend meet and greets.
MLW has hired WWE and Lucha Underground alum Chris DeJoseph as an executive producer. Notably the article refers to LU in the past tense. There wasn't any real expectation of it returning, but it also hasn't been officially mentioned as canceled.
ROH has postponed Survival of the Fittest 2019, with those Texas events now taking place on June 5 and June 6. Meet and greets are still set for those dates. Fans can get refunds or use the tickets for the June events.
John Cena has made a $500,000 donation to California first responders as they battle wildfires in the state. That's awesome news.
NXT will have a one-hour replay of last week's episode before this week's episode. We'll see how that affects viewership numbers.
Jordan Myles clarified his recent tweets, calling them "disrespectful" and "unprofessional" while expressing his frustrations and motivation to improve his standing. Hopefully something is worked out where he can channel this energy without burning bridges.
Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, and Jimmy Hart's private plane had a tough landing in Iceland that almost delayed their arrival in Saudi Arabia. Brock Lesnar allowed Hogan, Flair, and Hart to use his own private plane as he was also in the country refueling. That could have really been a bad situation if Brock wasn't on hand.
AEW is looking to trademark The Inner Circle logo. This follows Chris Jericho looking to trademark the faction name.
Full Gear's main event will have three judges to declare a winner in the event of a time limit draw. That adds some serious legitimacy to the match; I like it.
Raw drew 2.13 million viewers Monday. Yikes. Not a strong number.
Triple H and Shane McMahon are not expected to go to Saudi Arabia, with Triple H being at NXT.
Poppy is set for tonight's NXT. NXT used one of her songs for a Takeover recently. We'll see if her appearance affects ratings; it's telling NXT is adding her to the show.
The Viking Raiders' Raw opponents were Mike Sydal and Kyle Roberts, both of whom are local to the area.
Tenille Dashwood spoke about AEW, Impact, and more. It wouldn't shock me to see more of her in AEW.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. AEW is certainly benefiting from its novelty in a lot of ways, and they're also not booking things the way WWE patterns usually go. I do think at some point they'll establish a certain identity and philosophy fans can expect they'll follow, but I also think they're aware of how their audience views WWE's predictability and they want to make a contrast to that.
2. I don't think I would have made that comparison. There's certainly an option for a WarGames style match if AEW wants to go that route, though they can't use that name. As for it being rushed, I don't feel that way. It seems like a logical enough continuation from All Out's victories.
3. It's possible, though AEW's success could also means fans don't need to follow those other promotions for an alternative. It's probably fair to say AEW's rise has negatively affected ROH already.
4. In theory, but NXT, NXT UK, and 205 Live are going to be bigger priorities as far as match quality goes.
5. I'll be surprised if AEW doesn't tape anything there!
More wrestling tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Starrcast schedule, Dynamite New Year's taping set, more on Myles vs. WWE, Bourne's first EVOLVE opponents, more on Stone Cold-WWE Network, Network episode update, Bray gym box, Byron update, Interviews with Lawler/Cain+Rey/Jinder/OC, NXT tour set, Luchasaurus update, OVW streaming TV show, identity of Raw star, Raw dark match, and Questions on Impact leaving Universal Studios, fans loving the Horsewomen more than past women, comparing AEW vs. NXT to WCW vs. WWF, Vince's XFL involvement, and Dynamite's younger audience compared to Raw
Starrcast IV has announced its live schedule. Jimmy's Famous Seafood will be on hand.
Dynamite's January 1 episode will come from Florida, at the site of Fight For The Fallen. This is being presented as a "Homecoming" episode, since the town is AEW's headquarters.
Jordan Myles continued his criticism of WWE on Twitter in regard to his T-shirt design, responding to reports he had approved the design and attacking WWE for the Hulk Hogan situation. Notably, Myles has not been at the WWE Performance Center in recent weeks. I wish him the best.
- Titus O'Neil responded to Myles' situation after Myles took a (now-deleted) shot at Jay Lethal's ROH push.
Evan Bourne's EVOLVE opponents have been decided via fan vote on Twitter. Bourne will face Leon Ruff at EVOLVE 139 on November 9, and AR Fox at EVOLVE 140 on November 10. It remains to be seen if he'll end up facing WWE-contracted talents.
Stone Cold is believed to be returning to the WWE Network soon with "Steve Austin's Broken Skull Sessions."
"WWE Day Of" for Smackdown's 20th anniversary will air after Crown Jewel.
Bray Wyatt has a special collector's edition "gym box."
Byron Saxton was at Raw. I'm curious what's next for him.
Jerry Lawler was recently on Cerrito Live.
Cain Velasquez and Rey Mysterio are on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
Jay Lethal suffered a broken arm during his match with PCO. That's unfortunate with the big Final Battle build.
Brody King suffered a knee injury on the Honor United tour. We'll see what that means for the six-man tag team championship.
Smackdown Live on FS1 drew 888,000 viewers. Yeah it definitely benefits them to be on FOX!
WWE Backstage drew 426,000 viewers for its second preview episode, down from 597,000 for the previous episode. We'll see how the show does once it's a regular occurrence.
Jinder Mahal updated his injury status in an interview. It sounds like we can pencil him in for the Royal Rumble.
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows promoted Raw.
NXT has announced California live events for December 12 through December 15.
Luchasaurus appeared at an indie show in Michigan this weekend, interfering in a match but not wrestling due to his hamstring injury.
Impact taped a "Throwback Throwdown" special for Thanksgiving featuring their wrestlers competing as if it were a previous generation. Think Southpaw Regional Wrestling but with actual matches. That could be fun.
OVW will stream its TV show on YouTube each Tuesday beginning tonight.
Sin Cara's partner on Raw was NXT's Catalina Garcia, who had wrestled in Chile as Jessy.
Crown Jewel's Kickoff battle royal to determine AJ Styles' United States Championship challenger will feature Akira Tozawa, Andrade, Apollo Crews, Brian Kendrick, Buddy Murphy, Cedric Alexander, Drake Maverick, Eric Young, Erick Rowan, Heath Slater, Humberto Carrillo, Luke Harper, Mojo Rawley, No Way Jose, R-Truth, Shelton Benjamin, Sin Cara, the Singh brothers, Titus O'Neil, and Tony Nese. So, yes, a Smackdown talent could challenge for a Raw championship.
After Raw, Seth Rollins retained the Universal Championship against The Fiend in a steel cage match. Bray's got a tough road ahead of him, since he's not going to take the title at Crown Jewel.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I believe this is a conscious decision to distance the current regime's shows from "TNA" events in Orlando. They could do some shows here and there down the line, but Impact is focusing on other markets now.
2. I think a lot of the appeal of these names is seeing them all come up at once, and fans got to see a lot of their formative work in NXT, so there's the connection of seeing how much things have changed. I wouldn't assume there's the same level of love as there is for the other names mentioned, though. We'll see who fans are into five years from now.
3. Interesting! I don't know if I'd make the same connection. As for NXT taking over AEW in the ratings, that's certainly WWE's goal, and they're going to give it a major effort.
4. I fully believe Vince will more or less let the football people do their thing. He'll be handling a lot of duties there, but I really don't see him managing things at the same level he does at WWE. WWE will remain his priority, and his stamp will still be on it, even when he tries to balance the two companies.
5. No, but of course Raw draws a significantly larger audience overall, so that's to be expected. I do believe AEW's average audience is younger than Raw's, though.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Dynamite's January 1 episode will come from Florida, at the site of Fight For The Fallen. This is being presented as a "Homecoming" episode, since the town is AEW's headquarters.
Jordan Myles continued his criticism of WWE on Twitter in regard to his T-shirt design, responding to reports he had approved the design and attacking WWE for the Hulk Hogan situation. Notably, Myles has not been at the WWE Performance Center in recent weeks. I wish him the best.
- Titus O'Neil responded to Myles' situation after Myles took a (now-deleted) shot at Jay Lethal's ROH push.
Evan Bourne's EVOLVE opponents have been decided via fan vote on Twitter. Bourne will face Leon Ruff at EVOLVE 139 on November 9, and AR Fox at EVOLVE 140 on November 10. It remains to be seen if he'll end up facing WWE-contracted talents.
Stone Cold is believed to be returning to the WWE Network soon with "Steve Austin's Broken Skull Sessions."
"WWE Day Of" for Smackdown's 20th anniversary will air after Crown Jewel.
Bray Wyatt has a special collector's edition "gym box."
Byron Saxton was at Raw. I'm curious what's next for him.
Jerry Lawler was recently on Cerrito Live.
Cain Velasquez and Rey Mysterio are on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
Jay Lethal suffered a broken arm during his match with PCO. That's unfortunate with the big Final Battle build.
Brody King suffered a knee injury on the Honor United tour. We'll see what that means for the six-man tag team championship.
Smackdown Live on FS1 drew 888,000 viewers. Yeah it definitely benefits them to be on FOX!
WWE Backstage drew 426,000 viewers for its second preview episode, down from 597,000 for the previous episode. We'll see how the show does once it's a regular occurrence.
Jinder Mahal updated his injury status in an interview. It sounds like we can pencil him in for the Royal Rumble.
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows promoted Raw.
NXT has announced California live events for December 12 through December 15.
Luchasaurus appeared at an indie show in Michigan this weekend, interfering in a match but not wrestling due to his hamstring injury.
Impact taped a "Throwback Throwdown" special for Thanksgiving featuring their wrestlers competing as if it were a previous generation. Think Southpaw Regional Wrestling but with actual matches. That could be fun.
OVW will stream its TV show on YouTube each Tuesday beginning tonight.
Sin Cara's partner on Raw was NXT's Catalina Garcia, who had wrestled in Chile as Jessy.
Crown Jewel's Kickoff battle royal to determine AJ Styles' United States Championship challenger will feature Akira Tozawa, Andrade, Apollo Crews, Brian Kendrick, Buddy Murphy, Cedric Alexander, Drake Maverick, Eric Young, Erick Rowan, Heath Slater, Humberto Carrillo, Luke Harper, Mojo Rawley, No Way Jose, R-Truth, Shelton Benjamin, Sin Cara, the Singh brothers, Titus O'Neil, and Tony Nese. So, yes, a Smackdown talent could challenge for a Raw championship.
After Raw, Seth Rollins retained the Universal Championship against The Fiend in a steel cage match. Bray's got a tough road ahead of him, since he's not going to take the title at Crown Jewel.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I believe this is a conscious decision to distance the current regime's shows from "TNA" events in Orlando. They could do some shows here and there down the line, but Impact is focusing on other markets now.
2. I think a lot of the appeal of these names is seeing them all come up at once, and fans got to see a lot of their formative work in NXT, so there's the connection of seeing how much things have changed. I wouldn't assume there's the same level of love as there is for the other names mentioned, though. We'll see who fans are into five years from now.
3. Interesting! I don't know if I'd make the same connection. As for NXT taking over AEW in the ratings, that's certainly WWE's goal, and they're going to give it a major effort.
4. I fully believe Vince will more or less let the football people do their thing. He'll be handling a lot of duties there, but I really don't see him managing things at the same level he does at WWE. WWE will remain his priority, and his stamp will still be on it, even when he tries to balance the two companies.
5. No, but of course Raw draws a significantly larger audience overall, so that's to be expected. I do believe AEW's average audience is younger than Raw's, though.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, October 28, 2019
NXT star shoots on WWE shirt design, Interviews with Dangerous Davis/Punk, Graves seeks input, Ali makes cameo, new Raw and Dynamite segments, MLW's first women's match set, WWE on-screen return set, and Questions on FOX+USA's draft picks, New Day's future, historic moments, Sami's PWT design, and XFL pay
NXT's Jordan Myles criticized his shirt design in a series of tweets, including here and here. Ooooooh. Yeah. I can see how he's not pleased. Notably the shirt was pulled shortly after being listed.
- WWE issued a statement regarding the controversy. More on this tomorrow as the issue continues to play out. Myles is putting himself in an unenviable position by speaking out here; I don't expect WWE to get behind pushing him in the near future. For whatever it's worth, he hasn't competed since September 21.
"Dangerous" Danny Davis is on the latest "Wrestling with History" podcast.
Corey Graves asked for questions for "After The Bell." Talk about opening the floodgates. We'll see what makes it on air.
C.M. Punk discussed returning to WWE and more. Wow, yeah, that's definitely a major price tag.
Ali appeared at Dream Wave Wrestling in Illinois Saturday night.
Dynamite has added:
- AEW World Championship contract signing with Chris Jericho and Cody
- Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks vs. Kip Sabian and TheHybrid2
- Hangman Page vs. Sammy Guevara
MLW's first women's match will be Zeda Zhang vs. The Spider Lady. That's a clever reference to wrestling's past.
Raw has added Drew McIntyre vs. Ricochet.
JoJo is scheduled for Raw tonight, so her on-screen return is likely imminent.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. FOX and USA were absolutely consulted and had input into the draft picks. As for FOX and USA being more involved with creative, I don't know if that's a great idea since, by and large, they aren't "wrestling people." I could see them pushing for more nostalgia, guests, and silliness, which are the last things WWE needs more of.
2. I don't think WWE "has" to split them, but it could be good for Kofi and Big E to do some things on their own for a while.
3. Easy ones that come to mind are WrestleMania 3 and Bruno Sammartino losing the WWF Championship.
4. There have been a few instances of WWE talents having Pro Wrestling Tees merchandise, but it's definitely a rarity.
5. This isn't wrestling related, but it does make me question the XFL's chances of success.
More wrestling coming up.
- WWE issued a statement regarding the controversy. More on this tomorrow as the issue continues to play out. Myles is putting himself in an unenviable position by speaking out here; I don't expect WWE to get behind pushing him in the near future. For whatever it's worth, he hasn't competed since September 21.
"Dangerous" Danny Davis is on the latest "Wrestling with History" podcast.
Corey Graves asked for questions for "After The Bell." Talk about opening the floodgates. We'll see what makes it on air.
C.M. Punk discussed returning to WWE and more. Wow, yeah, that's definitely a major price tag.
Ali appeared at Dream Wave Wrestling in Illinois Saturday night.
Dynamite has added:
- AEW World Championship contract signing with Chris Jericho and Cody
- Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks vs. Kip Sabian and TheHybrid2
- Hangman Page vs. Sammy Guevara
MLW's first women's match will be Zeda Zhang vs. The Spider Lady. That's a clever reference to wrestling's past.
Raw has added Drew McIntyre vs. Ricochet.
JoJo is scheduled for Raw tonight, so her on-screen return is likely imminent.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. FOX and USA were absolutely consulted and had input into the draft picks. As for FOX and USA being more involved with creative, I don't know if that's a great idea since, by and large, they aren't "wrestling people." I could see them pushing for more nostalgia, guests, and silliness, which are the last things WWE needs more of.
2. I don't think WWE "has" to split them, but it could be good for Kofi and Big E to do some things on their own for a while.
3. Easy ones that come to mind are WrestleMania 3 and Bruno Sammartino losing the WWF Championship.
4. There have been a few instances of WWE talents having Pro Wrestling Tees merchandise, but it's definitely a rarity.
5. This isn't wrestling related, but it does make me question the XFL's chances of success.
More wrestling coming up.
Sunday, October 27, 2019
2K responds to game critics, Interviews with Shorty/Tyson/Finn/Punk/Friends/Bauer, more After The Bell guests, AEW signs boxer, NXT doing all women's live event, new FNSD match, new Table for 3 set, Becky tweets about AEW women, Owens says goodbye to father in law, more on Express in AEW, Impact pay raise, OTT lineup change,Batista supports Hager, WWE live event notes, and Questions on JBL vs. Meanie, WWE DVDs, and Cena's hand symbol
WWE 2K20's designers responded to the heavy criticism the game has faced. It's getting hammered in reviews.
Shorty G discussed his new ring name and more.
Tyson Fury discussed WWE.
Finn Balor spoke to TMZ Sports about attacking Johnny Gargano.
"After The Bell" will feature Seth Rollins, Ric Flair, and Bayley in addition to Triple H.
AEW announced the signing of Olympic boxer Anthony Ogogo, who had an angle with MJF at Southside Wrestling. He sounds like a unique addition to the roster.
NXT's December 5 Florida live event will exclusively feature female talent. That's an interesting direction!
Friday Night Smackdown has added Bayley, Mandy Rose, and Sonya Deville vs. Nikki Cross, Carmella, and Dana Brooke.
"Table for 3" after Raw will feature JBL, Ron Simmons, and Teddy Long.
Becky Lynch called out AEW's women's roster. Social media angles and all the "war" talk are really making wrestling less appealing to me.
Kevin Owens said goodbye to his father-in-law. That's tough.
The Rock N Roll Express appearing on Dynamite is a Young Bucks move. Great to see them hold such a prominent past team in high regard.
Impact has given pay raises to a number of performers due to the AXS move. That's great!
C.M. Punk discussed AEW in an interview about his new movie. I'd also like their WWE references to be fewer and further between, but of course there's an audience that loves that aspect of the company.
Killer Kross and Tyler Bate were unable to make a OTT Wrestling event.
The Best Friends are on the Young Bucks' latest Wrestlers on the Road episode.
MLW's Court Bauer is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast.
Batista was also at Jake Hager's third MMA bout. That's really cool.
At WWE's Supershow in Puerto Rico Saturday night:
- Drew McIntyre worked his first live event since August 18, losing to Ricochet
- Nikki Cross worked her first live event since September 21, teaming with Natalya to defeat Sarah Logan and Tamina. This was also Sarah Logan's first live event since August 18.
- Rey Mysterio worked his first live event since August 25, defeating King Corbin by countout
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. JBL and Blue Meanie come from two very different backgrounds and styles. I think JBL resented someone of Meanie's build and look being booked. JBL saw himself as protecting the seriousness of the business, etc., and felt that he had to prove himself physically to show his spot was justified, etc. Thankfully that mentality is a rarity today.
2. They're not doing much in the DVD area period. Digital outlets are their priority.
3. They might be conscious about whether he does the symbol going forward. I don't know how much they'll do regarding past material, though.
Nothing to add to 4.
5. I believe it was an October 24, 1998 WWF live event at the Greensboro Coliseum.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Shorty G discussed his new ring name and more.
Tyson Fury discussed WWE.
Finn Balor spoke to TMZ Sports about attacking Johnny Gargano.
"After The Bell" will feature Seth Rollins, Ric Flair, and Bayley in addition to Triple H.
AEW announced the signing of Olympic boxer Anthony Ogogo, who had an angle with MJF at Southside Wrestling. He sounds like a unique addition to the roster.
NXT's December 5 Florida live event will exclusively feature female talent. That's an interesting direction!
Friday Night Smackdown has added Bayley, Mandy Rose, and Sonya Deville vs. Nikki Cross, Carmella, and Dana Brooke.
"Table for 3" after Raw will feature JBL, Ron Simmons, and Teddy Long.
Becky Lynch called out AEW's women's roster. Social media angles and all the "war" talk are really making wrestling less appealing to me.
Kevin Owens said goodbye to his father-in-law. That's tough.
The Rock N Roll Express appearing on Dynamite is a Young Bucks move. Great to see them hold such a prominent past team in high regard.
Impact has given pay raises to a number of performers due to the AXS move. That's great!
C.M. Punk discussed AEW in an interview about his new movie. I'd also like their WWE references to be fewer and further between, but of course there's an audience that loves that aspect of the company.
Killer Kross and Tyler Bate were unable to make a OTT Wrestling event.
The Best Friends are on the Young Bucks' latest Wrestlers on the Road episode.
MLW's Court Bauer is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast.
Batista was also at Jake Hager's third MMA bout. That's really cool.
At WWE's Supershow in Puerto Rico Saturday night:
- Drew McIntyre worked his first live event since August 18, losing to Ricochet
- Nikki Cross worked her first live event since September 21, teaming with Natalya to defeat Sarah Logan and Tamina. This was also Sarah Logan's first live event since August 18.
- Rey Mysterio worked his first live event since August 25, defeating King Corbin by countout
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. JBL and Blue Meanie come from two very different backgrounds and styles. I think JBL resented someone of Meanie's build and look being booked. JBL saw himself as protecting the seriousness of the business, etc., and felt that he had to prove himself physically to show his spot was justified, etc. Thankfully that mentality is a rarity today.
2. They're not doing much in the DVD area period. Digital outlets are their priority.
3. They might be conscious about whether he does the symbol going forward. I don't know how much they'll do regarding past material, though.
Nothing to add to 4.
5. I believe it was an October 24, 1998 WWF live event at the Greensboro Coliseum.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
NXT live event note, FNSD and Dynamite replays, holiday Dynamite, Jericho trademarks, Interviews with Sensation/White/Holliday/Nash, special Starrcast sale, NWA taping sells out, Uso arrest video, ROH announces post-Final Battle TV, new Unauthorized matches, Xavier surgery, Tyson-WWE update, WWE star headed to EVOLVE, Cena appearance, Guevara to Israel, MLW releases more tickets, Wolfe to Germany, Vampiro school on hiatus, Hager MMA result, new WWE matches, Backstage guests, FNSD dark match, and Questions on Pettengill's status, if Andre had won at WM3, and where Private Party has been
NXT's Xia Li returned to live events at the October 24 Florida show, for her first match since China on September 21. Her last NXT live event was January 6.
Friday Night Smackdown had an immediate replay on FS1 last night, and will have a one-hour version air on FOX Sunday. With the show being bumped from FOX due to the World Series, they're doing their best to keep momentum.
Dynamite will have a Halloween theme this week. We'll see how that goes over.
Chris Jericho has trademarked "The Painmaker" and "The Inner Circle," for obvious reasons. This would mean he could use the latter stable name outside of AEW.
Jason Sensation is on Jerry Lawler's latest podcast. There's a name I haven't seen in a while!
Don West did a flash sale for Starrcast. He's a legend.
Friday Night Smackdown had an immediate replay on FS1 last night, and will have a one-hour version air on FOX Sunday. With the show being bumped from FOX due to the World Series, they're doing their best to keep momentum.
Dynamite will have a Halloween theme this week. We'll see how that goes over.
Chris Jericho has trademarked "The Painmaker" and "The Inner Circle," for obvious reasons. This would mean he could use the latter stable name outside of AEW.
Jason Sensation is on Jerry Lawler's latest podcast. There's a name I haven't seen in a while!
Don West did a flash sale for Starrcast. He's a legend.
NWA's December 15 TV taping has sold out.
Jimmy Uso's July 25 arrest video was publicly released.
ROH has announced a December 15 Honorclub event in Pennsylvania following Final Battle.
ROH Unauthorized has added:
- Ultimo Guerrero vs. Jonathan Gresham
- Shane Taylor and a mystery partner vs. Marty Scurll and Brody King. Maybe Taylor's former partner Fuego?
- Angelina Love and Mandy Leon vs. Sumie Sakai and Jenny Rose in a no disqualification match
Xavier Woods recently had surgery for his torn Achilles tendon. He is expected to miss at least six months.
Tyson Fury is open to working further with WWE, but is currently not signed past Crown Jewel.
- WWE has a new Tyson Fury shirt.
Evan Bourne(!) is working EVOLVE 139 and EVOLVE 140 as well as EVOLVE 141 on December 6 in Michigan, and EVOLVE 142 on December 7 in Illinois. He hasn't performed under that name since 2013, but the WWE/EVOLVE connection means he'll be able to wrestle as Bourne again. The obvious question is whether this means he'll then leap to NXT. I'd think that would depend on the Wellness Policy and if he can abide by it.
- It sounds like Bourne will be regular in the company going forward.
John Cena is appearing on Jimmy Fallon's show Sunday.
AEW aired an "extended" episode of Dynamite Friday night featuring the footage taped after the show went off the air with Kenny Omega, Jon Moxley, PAC, and Hangman Page.
Sammy Guevara is set for a December 15 show in Israel.
MLW has released more tickets for Saturday Night Superfight as a result of production changes.
NJPW's Jay White was interviewed on New Zealand TV.
Alexander Wolfe is working wXw's November 29 event in Germany.
Vampiro is putting his wrestling promotion and school on hold after canceling an event.
MLW's Richard Holliday was interviewed.
Kevin Nash was interviewed before Wizard World Comic Con.
Jake Hager had a no contest in his third MMA bout after landing two accidental knees to the groin. Sammy Guevara, Ortiz, and Santana accompanied Hager to the cage for his match.
Friday Night Smackdown's November 1 episode has added:
- Roman Reigns vs. King Corbin
- Miz TV with Bray Wyatt
Raw has announced:
- Becky Lynch vs. Kairi Sane in a non-title match
- Seth Rollins vs. Erick Rowan in a non-title falls count anywhere match
- "Divorce Court" with Rusev and Lana, hosted by Jerry "The King" Lawler
John Cena and Rob Gronkowski will be on WWE Backstage on November 5.
Before Friday Night Smackdown, Apollo Crews defeated Drake Maverick.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I assume there hasn't been any pitch to bring him back that the two parties were interested in pursuing.
2. I'm under the impression that match was always about putting Hogan over. They didn't really have heels win Mania main events back then.
Nothing to add to 3 or 5.
4. They debuted as a team in 2015, so they haven't been out there that long without being noticed at this scale.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Jimmy Uso's July 25 arrest video was publicly released.
ROH has announced a December 15 Honorclub event in Pennsylvania following Final Battle.
ROH Unauthorized has added:
- Ultimo Guerrero vs. Jonathan Gresham
- Shane Taylor and a mystery partner vs. Marty Scurll and Brody King. Maybe Taylor's former partner Fuego?
- Angelina Love and Mandy Leon vs. Sumie Sakai and Jenny Rose in a no disqualification match
Xavier Woods recently had surgery for his torn Achilles tendon. He is expected to miss at least six months.
Tyson Fury is open to working further with WWE, but is currently not signed past Crown Jewel.
- WWE has a new Tyson Fury shirt.
Evan Bourne(!) is working EVOLVE 139 and EVOLVE 140 as well as EVOLVE 141 on December 6 in Michigan, and EVOLVE 142 on December 7 in Illinois. He hasn't performed under that name since 2013, but the WWE/EVOLVE connection means he'll be able to wrestle as Bourne again. The obvious question is whether this means he'll then leap to NXT. I'd think that would depend on the Wellness Policy and if he can abide by it.
- It sounds like Bourne will be regular in the company going forward.
John Cena is appearing on Jimmy Fallon's show Sunday.
AEW aired an "extended" episode of Dynamite Friday night featuring the footage taped after the show went off the air with Kenny Omega, Jon Moxley, PAC, and Hangman Page.
Sammy Guevara is set for a December 15 show in Israel.
MLW has released more tickets for Saturday Night Superfight as a result of production changes.
NJPW's Jay White was interviewed on New Zealand TV.
Alexander Wolfe is working wXw's November 29 event in Germany.
Vampiro is putting his wrestling promotion and school on hold after canceling an event.
MLW's Richard Holliday was interviewed.
Kevin Nash was interviewed before Wizard World Comic Con.
Jake Hager had a no contest in his third MMA bout after landing two accidental knees to the groin. Sammy Guevara, Ortiz, and Santana accompanied Hager to the cage for his match.
Friday Night Smackdown's November 1 episode has added:
- Roman Reigns vs. King Corbin
- Miz TV with Bray Wyatt
Raw has announced:
- Becky Lynch vs. Kairi Sane in a non-title match
- Seth Rollins vs. Erick Rowan in a non-title falls count anywhere match
- "Divorce Court" with Rusev and Lana, hosted by Jerry "The King" Lawler
John Cena and Rob Gronkowski will be on WWE Backstage on November 5.
Before Friday Night Smackdown, Apollo Crews defeated Drake Maverick.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I assume there hasn't been any pitch to bring him back that the two parties were interested in pursuing.
2. I'm under the impression that match was always about putting Hogan over. They didn't really have heels win Mania main events back then.
Nothing to add to 3 or 5.
4. They debuted as a team in 2015, so they haven't been out there that long without being noticed at this scale.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday Night Smackdown and 205 Live Reax - 10/25/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Friday Night Smackdown and 205 Live Reax.
Friday, October 25, 2019
Interview with Madusa, Lucha Bros getting action figures, AEW+Impact European TV updates, AEW team substituting for NXT UK team, Dippin Dots responds to Dynamite brawl (seriously), legendary team on Dynamite next week, new Full Gear match, FNSD preview, NXT UK time change, popular cartoon on Dynamite, new Unauthorized matches, AEW+NXT ratings, Impact conference call, NJPW America note, BFG attendance, Dynamite attendance, La Parka update, AAA name out due to pregnancy, AAA cancels international event, joint Japanese event set, Stardom name on popular reality show, NWA broadcast updates, Rush working NLL, ROH TV show hitting new markets, ROH to use Stardom name?, Dynamite match in the works, Mega Championship update, WWE+AAA injury updates, more on Dynamite match change, TNT drops replay, NXT-Full Sail update, Punk movie project, WWEPC name removed from NXT roster, another company turns down NXT Japan, former NXT name has tryout, Shelley-WWE update, WWE YouTube hits big number, and Questions on AEW producers, AEW renaming the Gorilla position, Lio's return, and Nailz's whereabouts
Madusa is on Vickie Guerrero's latest podcast.
The Lucha Bros have officially licensed action figures on the way.
Impact will air in the UK on Fight Network beginning October 30, in addition to its current deal of airing on 5Star at Friday nights.
Dynamite was set to end with Kenny Omega hitting the ring, but he didn't make it in time. The ending we got was good, but it would have made sense to have Omega there to continue the feud with Moxley.
AEW is sending Private Party to replace NXT UK's Mustache Mountain on International Wrestling Syndicate's November 8 Quebec event. Clever!
Dippin Dots responded to being used in an AEW brawl, which Cody appreciated. AEW has really been able to get relevant associations very early in its existence.
The Rock 'N' Roll Express will be on Dynamite to present the AEW Tag Team Championship to the winners of the tournament next week. That's really prestigious. AEW's doing a good job making its titles matter; I'm glad they weren't in a rush to declare champions.
Dynamite will air in France on Toonami beginning November 5. They're on a roll with international deals.
Full Gear has added PAC vs. Hangman Page. This was set up after Dynamite went off the air.
Friday Night Smackdown has announced:
- Miz TV with Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair
- Kofi Kingston and Big E vs. Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler
- Mandy Rose vs. Nikki Cross
NXT UK will air October 31 at 11:00 a.m. due to Crown Jewel. Fans starting at the usual time will be quite confused!
"Rick & Morty" will cross over with Dynamite next week, as fans attending the taping will get masks featuring the characters. We're in some really interesting times.
ROH Unauthorized has announced:
- Mark Briscoe vs. Josh Woods in a "Partner Kicks Out, Take A Shot Match." Jay Briscoe and Silas Young will be on commentary, and have to take a drink every time their tag team partner kicks out of a pinfall attempt.
- El Lethal and Jefe Cobbo vs. Delirious and Mini Delirious. The loser of the fall must unmask. It would be a little odd for the latter team to get the win, so I wonder if this is a write-off of the Delirious gimmick.
- Dalton White Castle, Burger Flip Gordon, and Kenny Burger King vs. Cheeseburger, Double Cheeseburger (Beer City Bruiser), and Triple Cheeseburger (Brawler Milonas). This is definitely different from standard ROH fare.
- Swoggle is also booked for the show.
Dynamite drew 963,000 viewers this week, pretty close to last week's number. It looks like it's more or less found its niche.
NXT drew 698,000 viewers this week, also only a slight drop from last week. So I'd think this is about where both shows will stay for now.
Impact did a conference call to promote the AXS move with Scott D'Amore, Brian Cage, and Taya Valkyrie. Here are some highlights:
- A "TNA" show WrestleMania weekend is in the early stages. That could be pretty unique.
- Kylie Rae isn't signed to a deal, but the door is open for her to work with the company more.
A new WWE Backstage will air after Smackdown tonight. Finn Balor will be interviewed.
NJPW America will be run by the Japanese branch of the company in order to combat the notion the spinoff won't be the authentic product.
Bound For Glory was a legitimate sellout of nearly 1,500 fans.
Dynamite on October 23 drew 6,000 fans. Monday's Raw drew 6,500, for comparison.
La Parka suffered a fractured vertebra in his recent AAA accident.
AAA's Chik Tormenta is out due to pregnancy. She recently worked for Impact.
AAA has canceled its November 16 Colombia event. AAA could make that show up in early 2020.
Japan's Dragon Gate, AJPW, and Wrestle-1 will do a joint New Year's Eve show.
Stardom's Hana Kimura is on a Japanese reality show, Terrace House. I expect her profile to continue to grow.
NWA will likely not have full-time weekly TV going into Into The Fire, instead doing "10 Pounds of Gold" specials to lead to the show.
NWA is looking at doing four PPVs a year, as well as a number of live YouTube specials.
Rush is working NLL on October 31, teaming with Los Ingobernables members Bestia del Ring and La Mascara against Alberto El Patron, El Hijo de Dos Caras, and L.A. Park. The taping will also feature the debuts of Mesias and Jack Evans.
ROH's weekly show will air on Fox Sports North, Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Midwest, and Fox Sports Wisconsin beginning November 8, and on Sun Sports beginning November 15, as part of the Sinclair purchase. We'll see what effect that has on the company's footprints.
ROH is looking to use Stardom's Tam Nakano. YES PLEASE DO.
Dynamite's November 6 episode will have a match determining the tag team champions' Full Gear opponents.
Dynamite's UK airings have changed. The Sunday morning show has been dropped, while the Friday evening show has been moved up to 10:00 p.m.
AEW's German commentators will be the team who did Lucha Underground when it aired there.
Kenny Omega could defend the AAA Mega Championship on AEW Dark. That would be really cool. AEW doesn't want to have two world championships on TV or PPV, so that championship likely won't appear beyond that.
Luchasaurus has a strained hamstring rather than a tear as originally feared. So he won't be missing too much time.
Tony Khan made the call to add Kenny Omega vs. Joey Janela to Dynamite after their previous match on Dark. That's a good sign for Janela!
Dynamite didn't have an immediate TNT replay this week as it did in the first three weeks.
Xavier Woods' injury is a torn Achilles tendon. He's expected to miss substantial time. We'll see how Kofi and Big E get along without him.
NXT is looking to cycle tapings in and out of Full Sail starting in January, with some shows outside of Florida.
C.M. Punk is planning to write a movie loosely based on his wrestling career. That could be interesting.
Kacy Catanzaro has been removed from NXT's roster page, which generally signals an end to someone's tenure with the company. I wish her the best going forward.
WWE sought to turn Dragon Gate into part of NXT Japan earlier this year, but Dragon Gate wasn't interested in being bought.
Ivelisse Velez recently had a WWE tryout, so she could end up in NXT's women's division. I wonder how she's fit there.
Alex Shelley had previously been sought as a WWE Performance Center guest coach, but declined. He wants to remain a free agent despite his time as a guest coach this week.
WWE's YouTube has passed 50 million subscribers, an incredible achievement.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Obviously things aren't gone over to the detail they are in WWE, but there are people backstage who organize matches and give advice.
2. I don't see it that way. It's natural for them to want to honor Dusty.
3. I'd think NXT expanding to two hours had a lot to do with it. More people are able to get TV time, and that includes Lio.
4 is specific to them, so I don't have any insight.
5. I'm sure he'd be able to get bookings if he wanted them given his altercation with Vince McMahon.
More wrestling coming up.
The Lucha Bros have officially licensed action figures on the way.
Impact will air in the UK on Fight Network beginning October 30, in addition to its current deal of airing on 5Star at Friday nights.
Dynamite was set to end with Kenny Omega hitting the ring, but he didn't make it in time. The ending we got was good, but it would have made sense to have Omega there to continue the feud with Moxley.
AEW is sending Private Party to replace NXT UK's Mustache Mountain on International Wrestling Syndicate's November 8 Quebec event. Clever!
Dippin Dots responded to being used in an AEW brawl, which Cody appreciated. AEW has really been able to get relevant associations very early in its existence.
The Rock 'N' Roll Express will be on Dynamite to present the AEW Tag Team Championship to the winners of the tournament next week. That's really prestigious. AEW's doing a good job making its titles matter; I'm glad they weren't in a rush to declare champions.
Dynamite will air in France on Toonami beginning November 5. They're on a roll with international deals.
Full Gear has added PAC vs. Hangman Page. This was set up after Dynamite went off the air.
Friday Night Smackdown has announced:
- Miz TV with Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair
- Kofi Kingston and Big E vs. Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler
- Mandy Rose vs. Nikki Cross
NXT UK will air October 31 at 11:00 a.m. due to Crown Jewel. Fans starting at the usual time will be quite confused!
"Rick & Morty" will cross over with Dynamite next week, as fans attending the taping will get masks featuring the characters. We're in some really interesting times.
ROH Unauthorized has announced:
- Mark Briscoe vs. Josh Woods in a "Partner Kicks Out, Take A Shot Match." Jay Briscoe and Silas Young will be on commentary, and have to take a drink every time their tag team partner kicks out of a pinfall attempt.
- El Lethal and Jefe Cobbo vs. Delirious and Mini Delirious. The loser of the fall must unmask. It would be a little odd for the latter team to get the win, so I wonder if this is a write-off of the Delirious gimmick.
- Dalton White Castle, Burger Flip Gordon, and Kenny Burger King vs. Cheeseburger, Double Cheeseburger (Beer City Bruiser), and Triple Cheeseburger (Brawler Milonas). This is definitely different from standard ROH fare.
- Swoggle is also booked for the show.
Dynamite drew 963,000 viewers this week, pretty close to last week's number. It looks like it's more or less found its niche.
NXT drew 698,000 viewers this week, also only a slight drop from last week. So I'd think this is about where both shows will stay for now.
Impact did a conference call to promote the AXS move with Scott D'Amore, Brian Cage, and Taya Valkyrie. Here are some highlights:
- A "TNA" show WrestleMania weekend is in the early stages. That could be pretty unique.
- Kylie Rae isn't signed to a deal, but the door is open for her to work with the company more.
A new WWE Backstage will air after Smackdown tonight. Finn Balor will be interviewed.
NJPW America will be run by the Japanese branch of the company in order to combat the notion the spinoff won't be the authentic product.
Bound For Glory was a legitimate sellout of nearly 1,500 fans.
Dynamite on October 23 drew 6,000 fans. Monday's Raw drew 6,500, for comparison.
La Parka suffered a fractured vertebra in his recent AAA accident.
AAA's Chik Tormenta is out due to pregnancy. She recently worked for Impact.
AAA has canceled its November 16 Colombia event. AAA could make that show up in early 2020.
Japan's Dragon Gate, AJPW, and Wrestle-1 will do a joint New Year's Eve show.
Stardom's Hana Kimura is on a Japanese reality show, Terrace House. I expect her profile to continue to grow.
NWA will likely not have full-time weekly TV going into Into The Fire, instead doing "10 Pounds of Gold" specials to lead to the show.
NWA is looking at doing four PPVs a year, as well as a number of live YouTube specials.
Rush is working NLL on October 31, teaming with Los Ingobernables members Bestia del Ring and La Mascara against Alberto El Patron, El Hijo de Dos Caras, and L.A. Park. The taping will also feature the debuts of Mesias and Jack Evans.
ROH's weekly show will air on Fox Sports North, Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Midwest, and Fox Sports Wisconsin beginning November 8, and on Sun Sports beginning November 15, as part of the Sinclair purchase. We'll see what effect that has on the company's footprints.
ROH is looking to use Stardom's Tam Nakano. YES PLEASE DO.
Dynamite's November 6 episode will have a match determining the tag team champions' Full Gear opponents.
Dynamite's UK airings have changed. The Sunday morning show has been dropped, while the Friday evening show has been moved up to 10:00 p.m.
AEW's German commentators will be the team who did Lucha Underground when it aired there.
Kenny Omega could defend the AAA Mega Championship on AEW Dark. That would be really cool. AEW doesn't want to have two world championships on TV or PPV, so that championship likely won't appear beyond that.
Luchasaurus has a strained hamstring rather than a tear as originally feared. So he won't be missing too much time.
Tony Khan made the call to add Kenny Omega vs. Joey Janela to Dynamite after their previous match on Dark. That's a good sign for Janela!
Dynamite didn't have an immediate TNT replay this week as it did in the first three weeks.
Xavier Woods' injury is a torn Achilles tendon. He's expected to miss substantial time. We'll see how Kofi and Big E get along without him.
NXT is looking to cycle tapings in and out of Full Sail starting in January, with some shows outside of Florida.
C.M. Punk is planning to write a movie loosely based on his wrestling career. That could be interesting.
Kacy Catanzaro has been removed from NXT's roster page, which generally signals an end to someone's tenure with the company. I wish her the best going forward.
WWE sought to turn Dragon Gate into part of NXT Japan earlier this year, but Dragon Gate wasn't interested in being bought.
Ivelisse Velez recently had a WWE tryout, so she could end up in NXT's women's division. I wonder how she's fit there.
Alex Shelley had previously been sought as a WWE Performance Center guest coach, but declined. He wants to remain a free agent despite his time as a guest coach this week.
WWE's YouTube has passed 50 million subscribers, an incredible achievement.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Obviously things aren't gone over to the detail they are in WWE, but there are people backstage who organize matches and give advice.
2. I don't see it that way. It's natural for them to want to honor Dusty.
3. I'd think NXT expanding to two hours had a lot to do with it. More people are able to get TV time, and that includes Lio.
4 is specific to them, so I don't have any insight.
5. I'm sure he'd be able to get bookings if he wanted them given his altercation with Vince McMahon.
More wrestling coming up.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
NJPW injury, WWE wins more digital awards, another Network update, Truth documentary coming, new Crown Jewel matches, Interviews with Keith/HHH/Tessa/Hager/Avalon, Velasquez documentary out, CNN looks at WWE stock, WWE execs present at Harvard, NJPW referee gets final CMLL show, what happened after NXT, and Questions on draft criticisms, a Raw or FNSD name giving a NXT star the rub, and Vince getting involved in NXT
NJPW's EVIL has a left ankle injury, and will miss the remainder of the Super Junior Tag League. BUSHI will be replacing him for scheduled appearances.
WWE won four Cablefax awards: Digital Team of the Year, Best Use of Snapchat, Best Use of Instagram, and Best In Live Streaming for Mixed Match Challenge.
WWE Network has added the list feature to desktop computers, PS4, and Xbox One.
R-Truth will be the subject of "WWE 24" soon. Fitting given his championship pursuits.
WWE Crown Jewel will feature AJ Styles defending the United States Championship (awkward) against the winner of a 20-man battle royal held earlier in the night. That's a good way to get more people on the card.
Keith Lee spoke with Sports Illustrated and Pro Wrestling Sheet before NXT:
- Respect to Keith for not getting involved in the Omega-Dijakovic battle.
- Keith has a variety of attributes and styles to pull from. It's great.
- I don't see a reason to have to choose AEW or NXT in 2019. Watch both!
- There are definitely some names who could benefit from being shuffled into NXT.
Triple H spoke to TMZ Sports about Ronda Rousey and more.
Cain Velasquez's Fight Network documentary was released.
Tessa Blanchard spoke with Chris Van Vliet:
- Honestly I think the Chyna comparisons are reductive. Fans are too focused on the concepts of past stars.
- Tessa can really measure up with a lot of guys.
CNN criticized WWE's stock performance and the state of its business. There's a valid concern that those big TV deals are where WWE peaks given soft performance in other departments. As for a boost from FOX, it looks like that's already been burned out through no fault of FOX's.
Stephanie McMahon and Michelle Wilson presented a Harvard Business School case study. Very prestigious!
Jake Hager spoke to Sports Illustrated before Dynamite:
- I'm very glad he's getting another opportunity to show what he can do.
- This insane selling of Chris Jericho is a result of clever positioning from Chris. He knows he can be "the" rockstar/legend in AEW and NJPW instead of being one of many prominent names in WWE.
NJPW referee Tiger Hattori will have his final Mexican appearance on November 15 for CMLL. Very cool to see him get such a thorough farewell.
Peter Avalon is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast. The Librarian(s) gimmick has thankfully been absent from Dynamite.
After NXT, Johnny Gargano was stretchered out and loaded into an ambulance to sell Finn Balor's attack. That can be a really big feud.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Ohhhhhh boy. Here we go.
1.a. I don't think anyone at WWE.com was told it was the draft order. That's definitely an oversight.
1.b. Actors were hired to sell the notion that USA and FOX were the ones making the picks and how each side wants something distinct.
1.c. Clearly FOX wanted Alexa and Nikki more than USA did!
1.d. All of the Night 1 names were free agents from then on out. Heavy Machinery got picked up right after the free agenthood.
1.e. Obviously those names were so valuable USA and FOX picked them up pretty quickly!
1.f. Both shows needed a full card, not just main eventers, so they used some picks to fill things up after getting their top picks early.
1.g. Cesaro was drafted to Smackdown on the same show with the Alexa/Nikki trade. Someone's not paying attention!
1.h. This was a deliberate move to sell them as "too dangerous to draft," which fit what they were doing beforehand.
2. Yeah I'm not crazy about throwing the WWE Champion so far down the card. Also, those titles are the property of Raw and Smackdown. What's in it for them to send their champions to a different brand? Save the big names for the shows drawing big TV deals.
3. "The Avengers didn't really beat Thanos! It was all Marvel's decision! How can they expect anyone to watch their movies?"
4. If I'm USA, I'm definitely wondering why the people running the shows drawing millions of viewers aren't in charge of the show drawing under 800,000 fans, and why WWE thinks it's a good idea to target a niche of wrestling fans instead of the larger audiences of other shows.
5. I'm under the impression this is still the case.
More wrestling tomorrow.
WWE won four Cablefax awards: Digital Team of the Year, Best Use of Snapchat, Best Use of Instagram, and Best In Live Streaming for Mixed Match Challenge.
WWE Network has added the list feature to desktop computers, PS4, and Xbox One.
R-Truth will be the subject of "WWE 24" soon. Fitting given his championship pursuits.
WWE Crown Jewel will feature AJ Styles defending the United States Championship (awkward) against the winner of a 20-man battle royal held earlier in the night. That's a good way to get more people on the card.
Keith Lee spoke with Sports Illustrated and Pro Wrestling Sheet before NXT:
- Respect to Keith for not getting involved in the Omega-Dijakovic battle.
- Keith has a variety of attributes and styles to pull from. It's great.
- I don't see a reason to have to choose AEW or NXT in 2019. Watch both!
- There are definitely some names who could benefit from being shuffled into NXT.
Triple H spoke to TMZ Sports about Ronda Rousey and more.
Cain Velasquez's Fight Network documentary was released.
Tessa Blanchard spoke with Chris Van Vliet:
- Honestly I think the Chyna comparisons are reductive. Fans are too focused on the concepts of past stars.
- Tessa can really measure up with a lot of guys.
CNN criticized WWE's stock performance and the state of its business. There's a valid concern that those big TV deals are where WWE peaks given soft performance in other departments. As for a boost from FOX, it looks like that's already been burned out through no fault of FOX's.
Stephanie McMahon and Michelle Wilson presented a Harvard Business School case study. Very prestigious!
Jake Hager spoke to Sports Illustrated before Dynamite:
- I'm very glad he's getting another opportunity to show what he can do.
- This insane selling of Chris Jericho is a result of clever positioning from Chris. He knows he can be "the" rockstar/legend in AEW and NJPW instead of being one of many prominent names in WWE.
NJPW referee Tiger Hattori will have his final Mexican appearance on November 15 for CMLL. Very cool to see him get such a thorough farewell.
Peter Avalon is on Chris Jericho's latest podcast. The Librarian(s) gimmick has thankfully been absent from Dynamite.
After NXT, Johnny Gargano was stretchered out and loaded into an ambulance to sell Finn Balor's attack. That can be a really big feud.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Ohhhhhh boy. Here we go.
1.a. I don't think anyone at WWE.com was told it was the draft order. That's definitely an oversight.
1.b. Actors were hired to sell the notion that USA and FOX were the ones making the picks and how each side wants something distinct.
1.c. Clearly FOX wanted Alexa and Nikki more than USA did!
1.d. All of the Night 1 names were free agents from then on out. Heavy Machinery got picked up right after the free agenthood.
1.e. Obviously those names were so valuable USA and FOX picked them up pretty quickly!
1.f. Both shows needed a full card, not just main eventers, so they used some picks to fill things up after getting their top picks early.
1.g. Cesaro was drafted to Smackdown on the same show with the Alexa/Nikki trade. Someone's not paying attention!
1.h. This was a deliberate move to sell them as "too dangerous to draft," which fit what they were doing beforehand.
2. Yeah I'm not crazy about throwing the WWE Champion so far down the card. Also, those titles are the property of Raw and Smackdown. What's in it for them to send their champions to a different brand? Save the big names for the shows drawing big TV deals.
3. "The Avengers didn't really beat Thanos! It was all Marvel's decision! How can they expect anyone to watch their movies?"
4. If I'm USA, I'm definitely wondering why the people running the shows drawing millions of viewers aren't in charge of the show drawing under 800,000 fans, and why WWE thinks it's a good idea to target a niche of wrestling fans instead of the larger audiences of other shows.
5. I'm under the impression this is still the case.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Interviews with Big Show/Booker/HHH+Fury/Vic/Punk/Bucks/Corgan, AEW announces German TV deal, Edge signing WWE 2K20 merch, Raw audience, Dana White discusses Cain jump, Sami/Generico chairty shirt, former Impact and ROH star at WWEPC, Cody on AEW ratings, new ROH matches, Ember's new job, Rey honored by CAC, Braun and Fury get physical, and Questions on Marko's size, Damian as Undertaker, making HIAC matter, NWA's rings, and draft figures
Big Show discussed Cain Velasquez vs. Brock Lesnar. I'm surprised we haven't seen him in a big Saudi match yet.
Booker T. discussed his two Hall of Fame inductions. Hopefully before too long he'll be a five-time, five-time...
Triple H and Tyson Fury appeared on Ariel Helwani's show. Fury's got a lot going for him.
Vic Joseph is on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
AEW Dynamite will air on TNT Germany Friday nights. Glad those fans are getting the product.
Edge is signing special edition WWE 2K20 cards that weren't signed as advertised. Very good of him to make up for something that shouldn't have been shipped out as it was.
Raw drew 2.34 million viewers Monday night, a slight increase from last week.
C.M. Punk is on the My Mom's Basement podcast and 31 Thoughts podcast. He indicated nothing is currently set for WWE Backstage.
Dana White discussed Cain Velasquez's jump to WWE. Glad to see Cain has Dana's blessing, since it looked like his MMA career was winding down and it was time for him to pursue something else.
Sami Zayn and El Generico are partnering for a charity shirt through Pro Wrestling Tees. That's awesome. I'm glad Sami's able to do that.
Alex Shelley is working at the WWE Performance Center as a guest coach this week. He continues to wrestle as a free agent.
Cody responded to AEW rating concerns. If WarnerMedia's happy and the ad partners are happy, that's what matters.
The Young Bucks discussed AEW's creative structure and more. The company is absolutely presenting a lot of opportunities for talents.
Honor United London has added a six-man scramble with Matt Taven, Dalton Castle, Kenny King, Silas Young, Hikuleo, and Rampage Brown.
ROH Unauthorized has announced:
- Rush and Dragon Lee vs. Mark Haskins and Tracy Williams
- PCO vs. Dan Maff
Ember Moon is now a head trainer for Texas' XCW. Cool to see.
Rey Mysterio will receive Cauliflower Alley Club's Lucha Libre award in 2020.
Billy Corgan had a long interview on NWA.
Tyson Fury and Braun Strowman got physical at the WWE Performance Center. You'd think that would happen more often given how many wrestlers train there! It's not exactly a secret location.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I can see where both sides are coming from. The critique is well-rationalized. And yes, realism often goes out the window for the sake of cool moves, etc.
2. I don't really see a need for him to have an Undertaker-like character, and I would think trying to force a meeting between the two would backfire. Let's see how far he can get as Damian Priest.
3. I'd like to see them shelve the majority of gimmick matches until there's a reason to use them beyond "it's that time of the year." HIAC, Elimination Chamber, WarGames, etc. used to be saved for major feuds that were worthy of that level of a blowoff.
4. Yeah I can't speak to that. It could be what the rings are made of.
5. It all made sense to me, and I agree they should generally save authority figures for only really meaningful moments that affect the company as a whole (like the draft did). If WWE moved a lot of people around without plans for them just to have big names switch sides, fans would rightly criticize the short-sighted booking.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Booker T. discussed his two Hall of Fame inductions. Hopefully before too long he'll be a five-time, five-time...
Triple H and Tyson Fury appeared on Ariel Helwani's show. Fury's got a lot going for him.
Vic Joseph is on Sam Roberts' latest podcast.
AEW Dynamite will air on TNT Germany Friday nights. Glad those fans are getting the product.
Edge is signing special edition WWE 2K20 cards that weren't signed as advertised. Very good of him to make up for something that shouldn't have been shipped out as it was.
Raw drew 2.34 million viewers Monday night, a slight increase from last week.
C.M. Punk is on the My Mom's Basement podcast and 31 Thoughts podcast. He indicated nothing is currently set for WWE Backstage.
Dana White discussed Cain Velasquez's jump to WWE. Glad to see Cain has Dana's blessing, since it looked like his MMA career was winding down and it was time for him to pursue something else.
Sami Zayn and El Generico are partnering for a charity shirt through Pro Wrestling Tees. That's awesome. I'm glad Sami's able to do that.
Alex Shelley is working at the WWE Performance Center as a guest coach this week. He continues to wrestle as a free agent.
Cody responded to AEW rating concerns. If WarnerMedia's happy and the ad partners are happy, that's what matters.
The Young Bucks discussed AEW's creative structure and more. The company is absolutely presenting a lot of opportunities for talents.
Honor United London has added a six-man scramble with Matt Taven, Dalton Castle, Kenny King, Silas Young, Hikuleo, and Rampage Brown.
ROH Unauthorized has announced:
- Rush and Dragon Lee vs. Mark Haskins and Tracy Williams
- PCO vs. Dan Maff
Ember Moon is now a head trainer for Texas' XCW. Cool to see.
Rey Mysterio will receive Cauliflower Alley Club's Lucha Libre award in 2020.
Billy Corgan had a long interview on NWA.
Tyson Fury and Braun Strowman got physical at the WWE Performance Center. You'd think that would happen more often given how many wrestlers train there! It's not exactly a secret location.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I can see where both sides are coming from. The critique is well-rationalized. And yes, realism often goes out the window for the sake of cool moves, etc.
2. I don't really see a need for him to have an Undertaker-like character, and I would think trying to force a meeting between the two would backfire. Let's see how far he can get as Damian Priest.
3. I'd like to see them shelve the majority of gimmick matches until there's a reason to use them beyond "it's that time of the year." HIAC, Elimination Chamber, WarGames, etc. used to be saved for major feuds that were worthy of that level of a blowoff.
4. Yeah I can't speak to that. It could be what the rings are made of.
5. It all made sense to me, and I agree they should generally save authority figures for only really meaningful moments that affect the company as a whole (like the draft did). If WWE moved a lot of people around without plans for them just to have big names switch sides, fans would rightly criticize the short-sighted booking.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
NJPW America announced, Interviews with Kelly Kelly/Steamboat/Awesome Kong, Xavier injured, WWE in Australia notes, Bischoff discusses departure, MLW TV meetings, Impact signs tag team, Undertaker championship design, Omega AAA promo, Cena in VIP sweepstakes, AAA injury, ECW name helps produce BFG, Becky at ESPN summit, Jeff Hardy pulled from convention, WWE FOX special coming, Cain+Rey opponents, Raw dark match, and Questions on outside fighters beating wrestlers, spoilers, how the draft ended up, and where Bray goes from here
NJPW has announced "New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America," a U.S. subsidiary:
- This will mean more U.S. live events, as was expected.
- The company is focusing on a number of key markets in the U.S.
- The California dojo will have office staff added.
- More tryouts and training camps are coming in the U.S.
- U.S. tours are to take place between Japanese tours, although if there's enough demand, tours could run in both countries simultaneously.
- The current plan is to focus on 2,000-seat venues and smaller to establish the brand before moving to larger venues down the line.
- There could be more than 20 U.S. events in 2020.
- NJPW World will air U.S. events when possible.
- NJPWA's establishment won't mean fewer NJPW events in Japan.
Kelly Kelly is on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
Ricky Steamboat spoke to VOC Nation. Here are highlights:
- I agree that the "high spots for the sake of high spots" style contrasts with presenting a believable match, but there's clearly a big audience for it.
- Yes, matches should have a logic to them, but now everyone just wants to show off what they can do. And, again, there's an audience that loves that in a day where everyone has a smartphone.
- I'm curious how Austin's career would have differed if WCW had pushed him. Leaving WCW fired him up to become Stone Cold.
Xavier Woods suffered an Achilles tendon injury at Smackdown's October 21 live event in Australia. I hope he doesn't have to miss long.
- WWE has pulled him from the remainder of the tour.
Also at Smackdown's Australian show:
- Buddy Murphy worked his first live event since July 28, defeating Sami Zayn.
- The Kabuki Warriors worked their first live event since September 6, retaining their tag team championship against Fire & Desire and The IIconics. This was Fire & Desire's first live event since September 21, and The IIconics' first live event since August 8. The IIconics were last in a WWE ring on September 9. Fortunately WWE was in Australia!
- NXT's Daniel Vidot was guest ring announcer for Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Ali. Vidot played rugby in Australia before joining WWE.
Eric Bischoff discussed his recent WWE tenure on his latest podcast, mentioning not fitting into the established culture WWE has.
MLW's Court Bauer is set for distribution meetings this week, as he looks to make additional content past Fusion.
Impact has officially signed Reno Scum, so we'll be seeing them as regulars going forward.
WWE has an Undertaker "legacy" championship on sale at WWE.com. I assume more of these are coming.
Kenny Omega spoke after his AAA Championship win. He really comes across as a big deal after winning that title.
John Cena is part of a VIP sweepstakes with GNC, as part of their donation to the FitOps Foundation. That's really, really cool.
AAA's La Parka had a neck and spine fracture from a dive. He underwent surgery as a result. That's a very scary situation.
ECW's Ron Buffone helped produce Bound For Glory. He goes way back.
Becky Lynch was at ESPNW's Women's + Sports Summit in California Monday.
Jeff Hardy has been pulled from Ringside Fest. Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross will replace him. So, his outside-the-ring life just cost him a payday. I hope he recovers.
FOX is airing a WWE special Sunday at 5:00, profiling the company and its stars.
Cain Velasquez and Rey Mysterio are advertised as wrestling Drew McIntyre and Andrade in Mexico. We'll see if that sticks, since the show is also advertising Seth Rollins vs. The Fiend in a cage match for the WWE Championship.
Awesome Kong discussed AEW, GLOW, and more on Collider Live. I'm glad she's still contributing to wrestling.
After Raw, Seth Rollins beat The Fiend in a cage match to retain the Universal Championship.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There's definitely a feeling of the "real" fighters being able to beat the "superstars." MMA stars and boxers have instant credibility, and bookers sell that big.
2. Nothing to add other than I can see why they want to get news out as quickly as possible.
3. WWE has a really large roster, and didn't name every single move on the TV shows. Others were saved for later. And it made sense to do it as they did, stretching things out on the two shows and announcing moves between matches. As for the lack of huge moves, clearly NBCU and FOX were largely happy with the brands as they were!
4. Pretty much! They rushed him to the main event and didn't pull the trigger. I don't expect him to be WWE Champion, so it's pretty much nowhere to go but down for The Fiend.
5. Considering the HIAC ending, The Fiend is owed another match. That was determined before the draft, and if Bray wins, he takes the Universal Title to Smackdown.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- This will mean more U.S. live events, as was expected.
- The company is focusing on a number of key markets in the U.S.
- The California dojo will have office staff added.
- More tryouts and training camps are coming in the U.S.
- U.S. tours are to take place between Japanese tours, although if there's enough demand, tours could run in both countries simultaneously.
- The current plan is to focus on 2,000-seat venues and smaller to establish the brand before moving to larger venues down the line.
- There could be more than 20 U.S. events in 2020.
- NJPW World will air U.S. events when possible.
- NJPWA's establishment won't mean fewer NJPW events in Japan.
Kelly Kelly is on Lilian Garcia's latest podcast.
Ricky Steamboat spoke to VOC Nation. Here are highlights:
- I agree that the "high spots for the sake of high spots" style contrasts with presenting a believable match, but there's clearly a big audience for it.
- Yes, matches should have a logic to them, but now everyone just wants to show off what they can do. And, again, there's an audience that loves that in a day where everyone has a smartphone.
- I'm curious how Austin's career would have differed if WCW had pushed him. Leaving WCW fired him up to become Stone Cold.
Xavier Woods suffered an Achilles tendon injury at Smackdown's October 21 live event in Australia. I hope he doesn't have to miss long.
- WWE has pulled him from the remainder of the tour.
Also at Smackdown's Australian show:
- Buddy Murphy worked his first live event since July 28, defeating Sami Zayn.
- The Kabuki Warriors worked their first live event since September 6, retaining their tag team championship against Fire & Desire and The IIconics. This was Fire & Desire's first live event since September 21, and The IIconics' first live event since August 8. The IIconics were last in a WWE ring on September 9. Fortunately WWE was in Australia!
- NXT's Daniel Vidot was guest ring announcer for Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Ali. Vidot played rugby in Australia before joining WWE.
Eric Bischoff discussed his recent WWE tenure on his latest podcast, mentioning not fitting into the established culture WWE has.
MLW's Court Bauer is set for distribution meetings this week, as he looks to make additional content past Fusion.
Impact has officially signed Reno Scum, so we'll be seeing them as regulars going forward.
WWE has an Undertaker "legacy" championship on sale at WWE.com. I assume more of these are coming.
Kenny Omega spoke after his AAA Championship win. He really comes across as a big deal after winning that title.
John Cena is part of a VIP sweepstakes with GNC, as part of their donation to the FitOps Foundation. That's really, really cool.
AAA's La Parka had a neck and spine fracture from a dive. He underwent surgery as a result. That's a very scary situation.
ECW's Ron Buffone helped produce Bound For Glory. He goes way back.
Becky Lynch was at ESPNW's Women's + Sports Summit in California Monday.
Jeff Hardy has been pulled from Ringside Fest. Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross will replace him. So, his outside-the-ring life just cost him a payday. I hope he recovers.
FOX is airing a WWE special Sunday at 5:00, profiling the company and its stars.
Cain Velasquez and Rey Mysterio are advertised as wrestling Drew McIntyre and Andrade in Mexico. We'll see if that sticks, since the show is also advertising Seth Rollins vs. The Fiend in a cage match for the WWE Championship.
Awesome Kong discussed AEW, GLOW, and more on Collider Live. I'm glad she's still contributing to wrestling.
After Raw, Seth Rollins beat The Fiend in a cage match to retain the Universal Championship.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There's definitely a feeling of the "real" fighters being able to beat the "superstars." MMA stars and boxers have instant credibility, and bookers sell that big.
2. Nothing to add other than I can see why they want to get news out as quickly as possible.
3. WWE has a really large roster, and didn't name every single move on the TV shows. Others were saved for later. And it made sense to do it as they did, stretching things out on the two shows and announcing moves between matches. As for the lack of huge moves, clearly NBCU and FOX were largely happy with the brands as they were!
4. Pretty much! They rushed him to the main event and didn't pull the trigger. I don't expect him to be WWE Champion, so it's pretty much nowhere to go but down for The Fiend.
5. Considering the HIAC ending, The Fiend is owed another match. That was determined before the draft, and if Bray wins, he takes the Universal Title to Smackdown.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, October 21, 2019
Impact signings, Rock movie production, new Honor United matches, another Experience vote, new Dynamite match, Bucks at Impact show?, Lacey vs. The Rock, Ali helps fan for Halloween, WWE signs top indie name, assorted wrestling press, BFG guests, WWE scouting this weekend, BFG match taped for TV, next Impact PPV, WWE live event note, and Questions on Bischoff leaving, AEW rules, Russo returning to WWE, and rollups winning matches
Impact has signed Ace Romero to a three-year contract. That's a good opportunity for him to show what he's made of.
The Rock's "Black Adam" will begin production in July.
Honor United's October 26 event has added:
- Kenny King vs. Mark Haskins
- Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham vs. Silas Young and Rampage Brown
- Dalton Castle vs. NJPW's Hikuleo.
Honor United's October 27 event has added:
- Matt Taven vs. Mark Haskins
- Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham vs. PCO and Brody King
- The Briscoes vs. Kenny King and NJPW's Hikuleo.
ROH The Experience will also have fans choosing who will be at the meet and greet. That's a good way to gauge interest I suppose.
Dynamite has added the Young Bucks vs. Best Friends.
Impact is doing a "TNA" show for WrestleMania weekend. I'm guessing that's something of a reunion show; it's a clever idea.
- The Young Bucks teased getting involved, leading to a pitch of them facing the Motor City Machine Guns. That could be very, very interesting. I hope for Impact's sake it happens, because now fans are talking about it.
Lacey Evans and The Rock had a back and forth on Twitter: Tweet 1 Tweet 2 Tweet 3. Good exposure for Evans.
Ali got a WWE fan some of his gear for a Halloween. That is really, really cool.
Jake Atlas has signed with WWE. It's believed he'll report to the WWE Performance Center in January after completing dates he's already signed for. This is notable since he just appeared for ROH and was set to do more with them; I'm guessing their interest got WWE to make a move.
Cathy Kelley discussed The Undertaker on ESPN.
Ric Flair cut a promo ahead of Raw.
At Bound For Glory were Chris Sabin, Jay Bradley, and OVW's Tony Gunn and Tyler Matrix.
Jinder Mahal appeared at a Canadian political rally ahead of the Prime Minister election.
WWE's Canyon Ceman was scouting talent in Australia recently.
Seth Rollins spoke before a convention appearance.
Bruno Sammartino's first match was discussed ahead of its 60th anniversary.
Terry Funk spoke on The Two Man Power Trip. Glad he's still appearing.
Rick Steiner's son was profiled.
Joey Ryan has officially signed with Impact, in a deal that will allow him to continue his independent appearances. I'm curious how that will work for him long-term.
Impact taped The Rascalz vs. Team AAA before Bound For Glory. It will air on this week's Impact special. Good idea to have some fresh content to anchor that show.
Impact's next pay-per-view "Hard To Kill" will be in January. No further information has been released at this time.
Shelton Benjamin worked his first live event since July 22 Sunday night, teaming with Mojo Rawley in a loss to Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Considering Bischoff hadn't been in an executive capacity at a wrestling company in quite some time, and wasn't really familiar with WWE roster coming in, he was at a severe disadvantage from the get-go. I hope Prichard's better able to adapt.
2. I think there's something of a schism in AEW, where different parties want completely different directions. So, when one party says something like rules matter, the result is that rules only matter if they don't get in the way of what another executive wants to do. Fortunately for AEW, the product is so hot there aren't many people nitpicking.
3. Is it possible to have a dirty finish in a street fight? I personally don't care about "clean" finishes most of the time, but AEW has said rules matter, wins and losses matter, it's a sports-like product, etc., so we'll see if things change.
4. NO WAY. His services have been available for a long, long time, and WWE hasn't considered bringing him in. I don't see that changing.
5. It's one thing to win that way in surprise fashion when someone has to be on guard 24/7. It's different to win that way in a really important match against a top competitor.
More wrestling tomorrow.
The Rock's "Black Adam" will begin production in July.
Honor United's October 26 event has added:
- Kenny King vs. Mark Haskins
- Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham vs. Silas Young and Rampage Brown
- Dalton Castle vs. NJPW's Hikuleo.
Honor United's October 27 event has added:
- Matt Taven vs. Mark Haskins
- Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham vs. PCO and Brody King
- The Briscoes vs. Kenny King and NJPW's Hikuleo.
ROH The Experience will also have fans choosing who will be at the meet and greet. That's a good way to gauge interest I suppose.
Dynamite has added the Young Bucks vs. Best Friends.
Impact is doing a "TNA" show for WrestleMania weekend. I'm guessing that's something of a reunion show; it's a clever idea.
- The Young Bucks teased getting involved, leading to a pitch of them facing the Motor City Machine Guns. That could be very, very interesting. I hope for Impact's sake it happens, because now fans are talking about it.
Lacey Evans and The Rock had a back and forth on Twitter: Tweet 1 Tweet 2 Tweet 3. Good exposure for Evans.
Ali got a WWE fan some of his gear for a Halloween. That is really, really cool.
Jake Atlas has signed with WWE. It's believed he'll report to the WWE Performance Center in January after completing dates he's already signed for. This is notable since he just appeared for ROH and was set to do more with them; I'm guessing their interest got WWE to make a move.
Cathy Kelley discussed The Undertaker on ESPN.
Ric Flair cut a promo ahead of Raw.
At Bound For Glory were Chris Sabin, Jay Bradley, and OVW's Tony Gunn and Tyler Matrix.
Jinder Mahal appeared at a Canadian political rally ahead of the Prime Minister election.
WWE's Canyon Ceman was scouting talent in Australia recently.
Seth Rollins spoke before a convention appearance.
Bruno Sammartino's first match was discussed ahead of its 60th anniversary.
Terry Funk spoke on The Two Man Power Trip. Glad he's still appearing.
Rick Steiner's son was profiled.
Joey Ryan has officially signed with Impact, in a deal that will allow him to continue his independent appearances. I'm curious how that will work for him long-term.
Impact taped The Rascalz vs. Team AAA before Bound For Glory. It will air on this week's Impact special. Good idea to have some fresh content to anchor that show.
Impact's next pay-per-view "Hard To Kill" will be in January. No further information has been released at this time.
Shelton Benjamin worked his first live event since July 22 Sunday night, teaming with Mojo Rawley in a loss to Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Considering Bischoff hadn't been in an executive capacity at a wrestling company in quite some time, and wasn't really familiar with WWE roster coming in, he was at a severe disadvantage from the get-go. I hope Prichard's better able to adapt.
2. I think there's something of a schism in AEW, where different parties want completely different directions. So, when one party says something like rules matter, the result is that rules only matter if they don't get in the way of what another executive wants to do. Fortunately for AEW, the product is so hot there aren't many people nitpicking.
3. Is it possible to have a dirty finish in a street fight? I personally don't care about "clean" finishes most of the time, but AEW has said rules matter, wins and losses matter, it's a sports-like product, etc., so we'll see if things change.
4. NO WAY. His services have been available for a long, long time, and WWE hasn't considered bringing him in. I don't see that changing.
5. It's one thing to win that way in surprise fashion when someone has to be on guard 24/7. It's different to win that way in a really important match against a top competitor.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Sunday, October 20, 2019
New Network episodes, NXT charity appearance, WWE catches up with Kelly Kelly, Flair appearances, FNSD audience, more from HHH and Tyson, Ali donating Crown Jewel pay, Southpaw content coming to 2K20, AEW name signs deal, upcoming Raw and Impact matches, Omega and Impact name win AAA titles, Raw live event notes, and Questions on filling Team Hogan, Super Genie, the Hardys' status, and Kane's upcoming book
WWE's "Day Of" series has added an episode covering Hell in a Cell on WWE Network.
- An episode on Smackdown's 20th anniversary show is coming.
DIY and Reina Gonzalez helped an Orlando children's hospital with Halloween.
Kelly Kelly is on the latest "Where Are They Now" from WWE.
Ric Flair introduced Swae Lee at a concert, and appeared at an Atlanta soccer playoff game. That's really cool.
Smackdown drew 2.44 million viewers Friday night, a sizable drop from the draft show. They're in significantly more homes than USA, but this number doesn't reflect that. We'll see what Bruce Prichard can do as executive director; I hope WWE has a backup plan because this is a concerning number for the third week of the show.
"WWE Photo Shoot" after Raw will feature Kane. That's pretty cool.
Triple H and Tyson Fury were on ESPN. Fury has been a great addition to WWE.
Ali will donate his Crown Jewel pay to Charity Water. Big support for Ali for that move.
WWE 2K20 will feature Southpaw Regional Wrestling content. That could be amazing if done right.
Justin Roberts has signed an AEW contract. Glad to see it.
Impact's October 25 taping has announced Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin.
Raw has announced:
- Andrade vs. Sin Cara
- The OC vs. Street Profits and a partner of their choosing
Kenny Omega won AAA's Mega Championship from Rey Fenix at Saturday's Heroes Inmortales XIII. This makes him the first man to have been world champion in both AAA and NJPW. That's a very impressive milestone.
- Also on the show, Daga defeated Drago to become AAA Latin American Champion. That's cool for Impact.
At Raw's October 19 live event in New Jersey:
- Aleister Black defeated Cesaro in Black's first live event match since September 6.
- No Way Jose defeated Mojo Rawley in Jose's first live event match since August 4.
- Dolph Ziggler worked his first live event since September 1, teaming with Robert Roode in a Raw Tag Team Championship match against The Viking Raiders and The OC's Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows. The Raiders won.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly I kind of wanted to see Undertaker and Goldberg on opposite teams there. It's Saudi Arabia after all.
2. Not a bad idea to include her in his crazy antics.
3. As far as WWE goes, nothing. They likely won't take any action while he's injured. The Hardys' contracts expire at WrestleMania, so WWE can just let them expire if they don't want to re-sign the duo.
4. That, and they haven't really been using him since Jeff got injured anyway. It makes sense to save his move for when WWE can use both Hardys.
5. Oh yeah, definitely. This isn't a WWE book.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- An episode on Smackdown's 20th anniversary show is coming.
DIY and Reina Gonzalez helped an Orlando children's hospital with Halloween.
Kelly Kelly is on the latest "Where Are They Now" from WWE.
Ric Flair introduced Swae Lee at a concert, and appeared at an Atlanta soccer playoff game. That's really cool.
Smackdown drew 2.44 million viewers Friday night, a sizable drop from the draft show. They're in significantly more homes than USA, but this number doesn't reflect that. We'll see what Bruce Prichard can do as executive director; I hope WWE has a backup plan because this is a concerning number for the third week of the show.
"WWE Photo Shoot" after Raw will feature Kane. That's pretty cool.
Triple H and Tyson Fury were on ESPN. Fury has been a great addition to WWE.
Ali will donate his Crown Jewel pay to Charity Water. Big support for Ali for that move.
WWE 2K20 will feature Southpaw Regional Wrestling content. That could be amazing if done right.
Justin Roberts has signed an AEW contract. Glad to see it.
Impact's October 25 taping has announced Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin.
Raw has announced:
- Andrade vs. Sin Cara
- The OC vs. Street Profits and a partner of their choosing
Kenny Omega won AAA's Mega Championship from Rey Fenix at Saturday's Heroes Inmortales XIII. This makes him the first man to have been world champion in both AAA and NJPW. That's a very impressive milestone.
- Also on the show, Daga defeated Drago to become AAA Latin American Champion. That's cool for Impact.
At Raw's October 19 live event in New Jersey:
- Aleister Black defeated Cesaro in Black's first live event match since September 6.
- No Way Jose defeated Mojo Rawley in Jose's first live event match since August 4.
- Dolph Ziggler worked his first live event since September 1, teaming with Robert Roode in a Raw Tag Team Championship match against The Viking Raiders and The OC's Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows. The Raiders won.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly I kind of wanted to see Undertaker and Goldberg on opposite teams there. It's Saudi Arabia after all.
2. Not a bad idea to include her in his crazy antics.
3. As far as WWE goes, nothing. They likely won't take any action while he's injured. The Hardys' contracts expire at WrestleMania, so WWE can just let them expire if they don't want to re-sign the duo.
4. That, and they haven't really been using him since Jeff got injured anyway. It makes sense to save his move for when WWE can use both Hardys.
5. Oh yeah, definitely. This isn't a WWE book.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Saturday, October 19, 2019
When roster changes will take affect, top names set for FNSD, Interviews with Miz/Fury/Keira, MLW women debut match, Cain set for Mexico date, NWA PPV distribution, Foley coloring book, TTTT set, ROH tour replacement, more Honor United matches, Survival of the Fittest update, ROH Unauthorized host, another CMLL name booked for ROH, Dynamite match, NXT signee set for more EVOLVE shows, NXT name profiled, Kross+Scarlett appearance, FNSD dark matches, NXT live event note, and Questions on WWE names endorsing NWA, Stardom's ROH relationship after the sale, AEW ratings drops, and a Baby Shark gimmick
Smackdown's UK tour lineups set for November 7 and November 8 don't reflect the recent draft, so those shows will likely use the rosters as they were when travel arrangements and such were booked.
Friday Night Smackdown next week is advertising:
- Cain Velasquez, Brock Lesnar, Hulk Hogan, and Ric Flair appearing
- Roman Reigns vs. King Corbin
The Miz discussed fatherhood in the UK.
Tyson Fury spoke to TMZ Sports about WWE and more. He looks like he's having a lot of fun. I like it.
MLW's first women's match will take place November 9.
Cain Velasquez will team with Rey Mysterio at WWE's November 30 Mexico City event. That makes plenty of sense.
NWA Into The Fire will air on FITE. The event has already sold out the studio they're running.
Kofi Kingston appeared on Minnesota's Bob & Tom Show.
Mick Foley is getting an adult coloring book "Cactus Jack and the Beanstalk," sales of which will benefit Connor's Cure. More wrestling themed bedtime stories are coming. That's funny.
Tribute to the Troops will be taped December 6 in North Carolina before that night's live Friday Night Smackdown.
Aussie Open's Mark Davis is being replaced by Germany's Lucky Kid on the Honor United tour. Lucky recently competed in Battle of Los Angeles.
Honor United: London on October 25 has added:
- Shane Taylor vs. Joe Hendry for the Television Championship
- Kelly Klein vs. Mandy Leon for the WOH Championship
- Lifeblood's Tracy Williams and Mark Haskins vs. Australia's Brat Pack.
ROH Survival of the Fittest will be a tag team tournament this year. The first two teams set are Rush and Dragon Lee and Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham.
ROH Unauthorized will be hosted by Colt Cabana and have a Hanukkah theme of "eight crazy matches." I have mixed levels of anticipation of that.
ROH The Experience has added CMLL's Ultimo Guerrero, who will be a four way match with the three competitors not chosen to face Dragon Lee. That's a good use of the names not in the Lee match, and another collaboration with CMLL. I'm glad to see the two sides will still work together.
Dynamite has added Jon Moxley vs. PAC. That should really be exciting.
NXT signee Shotzi Blackheart is set for EVOLVE 139 and EVOLVE 140 on November 9 and November 10 in New York.
An Australian news station profiled NXT's Daniel Vidot ahead of Smackdown's Australian tour.
Killer Kross and Scarlett Bordeaux are at this weekend's Baltimore Comic Con.
Kiera Hogan spoke before Bound For Glory. The AXS move gives her and others a good chance of exposure.
Before Friday Night Smackdown, Apollo defeated Kalisto. After 205 Live, Cesaro defeated The Miz by DQ.
NXT's Brendan Vink worked his first live event since August 24 Friday night, losing to Angel Garza in Florida.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Essentially they're allowed to do such things at their discretion. It'd be different if they were promoting, say, AEW or NJPW, but NWA's pretty safe right now.
2. That would be great! The WOH division could badly use a boost.
3. "Concern" might not be the right word, since they're beating even optimistic expectations and most shows lose audience after their debut, but there has been a substantial decrease and it's something to note.
4. It probably wouldn't last long, like a fidget spinner gimmick wouldn't have.
5. Nothing yet.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday Night Smackdown next week is advertising:
- Cain Velasquez, Brock Lesnar, Hulk Hogan, and Ric Flair appearing
- Roman Reigns vs. King Corbin
The Miz discussed fatherhood in the UK.
Tyson Fury spoke to TMZ Sports about WWE and more. He looks like he's having a lot of fun. I like it.
MLW's first women's match will take place November 9.
Cain Velasquez will team with Rey Mysterio at WWE's November 30 Mexico City event. That makes plenty of sense.
NWA Into The Fire will air on FITE. The event has already sold out the studio they're running.
Kofi Kingston appeared on Minnesota's Bob & Tom Show.
Mick Foley is getting an adult coloring book "Cactus Jack and the Beanstalk," sales of which will benefit Connor's Cure. More wrestling themed bedtime stories are coming. That's funny.
Tribute to the Troops will be taped December 6 in North Carolina before that night's live Friday Night Smackdown.
Aussie Open's Mark Davis is being replaced by Germany's Lucky Kid on the Honor United tour. Lucky recently competed in Battle of Los Angeles.
Honor United: London on October 25 has added:
- Shane Taylor vs. Joe Hendry for the Television Championship
- Kelly Klein vs. Mandy Leon for the WOH Championship
- Lifeblood's Tracy Williams and Mark Haskins vs. Australia's Brat Pack.
ROH Survival of the Fittest will be a tag team tournament this year. The first two teams set are Rush and Dragon Lee and Jay Lethal and Jonathan Gresham.
ROH Unauthorized will be hosted by Colt Cabana and have a Hanukkah theme of "eight crazy matches." I have mixed levels of anticipation of that.
ROH The Experience has added CMLL's Ultimo Guerrero, who will be a four way match with the three competitors not chosen to face Dragon Lee. That's a good use of the names not in the Lee match, and another collaboration with CMLL. I'm glad to see the two sides will still work together.
Dynamite has added Jon Moxley vs. PAC. That should really be exciting.
NXT signee Shotzi Blackheart is set for EVOLVE 139 and EVOLVE 140 on November 9 and November 10 in New York.
An Australian news station profiled NXT's Daniel Vidot ahead of Smackdown's Australian tour.
Killer Kross and Scarlett Bordeaux are at this weekend's Baltimore Comic Con.
Kiera Hogan spoke before Bound For Glory. The AXS move gives her and others a good chance of exposure.
Before Friday Night Smackdown, Apollo defeated Kalisto. After 205 Live, Cesaro defeated The Miz by DQ.
NXT's Brendan Vink worked his first live event since August 24 Friday night, losing to Angel Garza in Florida.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Essentially they're allowed to do such things at their discretion. It'd be different if they were promoting, say, AEW or NJPW, but NWA's pretty safe right now.
2. That would be great! The WOH division could badly use a boost.
3. "Concern" might not be the right word, since they're beating even optimistic expectations and most shows lose audience after their debut, but there has been a substantial decrease and it's something to note.
4. It probably wouldn't last long, like a fidget spinner gimmick wouldn't have.
5. Nothing yet.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Friday Night Smackdown and 205 Live Reax - 10/18/19
Read on for my thoughts on last night's Friday Night Smackdown.
Friday, October 18, 2019
HoFers at Raw, WWE names removed from roster, new Hidden Gems, WWE slot machines, Interviews with Flairs/Fury, Silver King passing investigation complete, Impact opening, Lawler appearance, Sasha booked for shows, WWE podcast launch set, Raw signs free agents, NXT UK signing official, AEW+NXT ratings, FNSD preview, draft note, Cain updates, Liger retirememnt plans, more on Stardom purchase, WWE attempts to buy Japanese companies, AAA cancels California return, more on Japanese talent situation, ODB benefit show set, MLW shifting digital distribution, more on MLW departure, another top ROH contract coming up, Hager in-ring update, international AEW name finishes outside shows, another Performance Center in the works, NXT injury notes, Ember update, Rocky Johnson press, WWE signs OVW name, NXT live event updates, and Questions on Cornette in NWA, Atout-AEW, Joey Styles' whereabouts, wrestling visitors, and a missing HoFer
Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are set for the October 28 Raw, which will of course lead to Crown Jewel. Their angle started hot and disappeared.
Alicia Fox is now listed on WWE.com's alumni section, marking an official end to her in-ring career. I expect she'll still pop up here and there for appearances.
- The Bella Twins have also been moved there, but that's much less surprising given how long it's been since either wrestled.
WWE Network's latest Hidden Gems are:
- Harley Race v. Dick Murdoch from NWA Tri-State in 1977
- Kerry Von Erich vs. Gino Hernandez for the Texas Heavyweight Championship from Houston Wrestling in 1985
- Mid-South Wrestling from November 11, 1985
WWE is creating slot machines featuring past and present superstars. John Cena, Triple H, Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch, Ronda Rousey, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, and Shawn Michaels will all be featured in some way.
Ric Flair and Charlotte Flair discussed WWE 2K20.
Silver King's passing was covered in England's Camden New Journal, with the publication strongly criticizing the circumstances that led to his death at 51. As indicated, there were a lot of failures there that wouldn't have happened at, say, a WWE show. This needs to lead to some real changes.
Impact released the opening to tonight's show. It's easy to forget their show this weekend with WWE and AEW doing such major things.
Jerry Lawler will appear at this weekend's Memphis Comic Con, bringing along his Batmobile.
Sasha Banks is booked for this weekend's live events. Glad she's healthy.
Tyson Fury promoted his WWE work on ESPN. I'm glad he has such a passion for it.
- Fury apparently approached WWE years ago to work with them, but it didn't end up happening until now, where he has an opening in his schedule and WWE can spend big on him with what the Saudi government is paying to make Crown Jewel happen.
- Fury has been training regularly at the Performance Center.
WWE's After The Bell podcast with Corey Graves will debut October 30. Graves is a very busy man!
- Triple H will be his first guest. That's definitely newsworthy.
Raw has added AOP to their roster. I've really enjoyed their reinvention.
NXT UK officially announced signing A-Kid. He's getting lauded at only 22. There are a LOT of opportunities for wrestlers in 2019.
Dynamite drew 1.01 million viewers this week. It's a shame to see them taper off after that really strong first night. This is still a strong number, however.
NXT drew 712,000 viewers this week. They're also slumping. I wonder how each show would do if not against the other. Is the competition actually hurting both brands? It's a real shame WWE is prioritizing sabotaging AEW at any expense.
Friday Night Smackdown announced Thursday:
- A Smackdown Women's Championship contendership match with Lacey Evans vs. Nikki Cross vs. Carmella vs. Sonya Deville vs. Mandy Rose vs. Dana Brooke
- New Day and Heavy Machinery vs. Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, and The Revival
WWE made draft moves to keep couples on the same brand, as with last time.
Cain Velasquez is looking to avoid knee surgery, likely underdoing stem cell treatment to do so. I hope he doesn't have to pull out after such a big debut.
- Cain has been training with Rey Mysterio and will work more at the WWE Performance Center soon.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger's January 5 retirement match will be a singles match. He wants to face someone he's never wrestled before.
- His final U.S. match will be November 9 in California. Amazing to see his career finally winding down.
WWE attempted to buy Japan's Stardom promotion as part of an NXT Japan project. However, Stardom's CEO wanted to continue to run the company himself, as he will be able to do under the new deal with NJPW's parent company Bushiroad. Stardom becoming part of NXT Japan would have been a massive change for both sides. That would have been intriguing.
- WWE would have signed the entire Stardom roster and inducted the company's CEO in their Hall of Fame as part of the deal, but they didn't have concrete plans for NXT Japan that would justify shuttering a company that runs as regularly as Stardom does.
- Bushiroad wants to run Stardom in larger venues occasionally, and is looking at hiring a coach/producer to enhance characters in the company.
- Bushiroad stock saw a jump of more than four percent after this announcement.
AAA will not run a California show at the venue they initially booked. Fans have been refunded.
Japan's Giulia was apparently not under written contract to Ice Ribbon when she abruptly appeared for Stardom, but had been announced for Ice Ribbon events through the end of the year. Her tag team partner Tequila Saya will fill those bookings before retiring at the end of the year. Saya had originally intended to retire on the October 12 show that was canceled due to Typhoon Hagibis.
Mick Foley is doing a benefit show for ODB on November 10. ODB recently lost her food truck to a fire. Foley is a very giving man.
MLW looks to be dropping YouTube as a platform due to a lack of revenue from the site. It seems they have another streaming option in mind.
MLW dropped Alex Greenfield due to him trying to get to AEW. Interesting. We'll see if he ends up there.
PCO's ROH contract expires before Final Battle, but the two sides are expected to come to terms on another contract. It would really be a mess if they had to change their world title match for a major show like that.
Jake Hager won't wrestle for AEW until after his October 25 MMA fight. It was smart to hold off his debut for TNT, then.
AEW's Hikaru Shida has finished her Japanese commitments.
WWE attempted to buy Pro Wrestling NOAH as part of NXT Japan, but the company didn't want to sell to a non-Japanese company. That's very, very big and shows how serious WWE's global expansion plans are.
WWE is looking to start a Japanese Performance Center in conjunction with a planned NXT Japan. Meiko Satomura is set to be a key trainer there. They've got their work cut out for them breaking into that market given how the Stardom and NOAH deals fell apart. We'll see if they're able to get any other companies on board.
Velveteen Dream has a legitimate back injury. It's unknown how long he'll be out.
Kushida's hairline fracture is legitimate. He will miss about a month, which may or may not mean he'll be out of Takeover:WarGames.
Ember Moon is working as a trainer in Texas while recovering. Glad to see her giving back.
Rocky Johnson got press before his autobiography released. Good look at his background.
WWE has signed OVW's Stephon Smith as a referee. Cool to see.
NXT's Jordan Omogbehin worked his first live event since August 24 Friday night, defeating Cezar Bononi in Florida.
Finn Balor returned to the ring for the first time since Summerslam Friday night, defeating Kassius Ohno in Oregon.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. They're seemingly confident he won't cause issues in that role. His commentary style fits well with the style of product they want to deliver; he's definitely a great historian.
2. I've wondered the same thing! They've gone with others in the role she served, so she's a free agent.
3. Living life as Joseph Bonsignore, essentially. He completely distanced himself from wrestling after the EVOLVE incident.
4. It's definitely a regular thing for wrestlers to visit at prominent events to connect for personal and/or professional reasons.
5. Jess McMahon deserves a big, big honor for getting the ball rolling.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Alicia Fox is now listed on WWE.com's alumni section, marking an official end to her in-ring career. I expect she'll still pop up here and there for appearances.
- The Bella Twins have also been moved there, but that's much less surprising given how long it's been since either wrestled.
WWE Network's latest Hidden Gems are:
- Harley Race v. Dick Murdoch from NWA Tri-State in 1977
- Kerry Von Erich vs. Gino Hernandez for the Texas Heavyweight Championship from Houston Wrestling in 1985
- Mid-South Wrestling from November 11, 1985
WWE is creating slot machines featuring past and present superstars. John Cena, Triple H, Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch, Ronda Rousey, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, and Shawn Michaels will all be featured in some way.
Ric Flair and Charlotte Flair discussed WWE 2K20.
Silver King's passing was covered in England's Camden New Journal, with the publication strongly criticizing the circumstances that led to his death at 51. As indicated, there were a lot of failures there that wouldn't have happened at, say, a WWE show. This needs to lead to some real changes.
Impact released the opening to tonight's show. It's easy to forget their show this weekend with WWE and AEW doing such major things.
Jerry Lawler will appear at this weekend's Memphis Comic Con, bringing along his Batmobile.
Sasha Banks is booked for this weekend's live events. Glad she's healthy.
Tyson Fury promoted his WWE work on ESPN. I'm glad he has such a passion for it.
- Fury apparently approached WWE years ago to work with them, but it didn't end up happening until now, where he has an opening in his schedule and WWE can spend big on him with what the Saudi government is paying to make Crown Jewel happen.
- Fury has been training regularly at the Performance Center.
WWE's After The Bell podcast with Corey Graves will debut October 30. Graves is a very busy man!
- Triple H will be his first guest. That's definitely newsworthy.
Raw has added AOP to their roster. I've really enjoyed their reinvention.
NXT UK officially announced signing A-Kid. He's getting lauded at only 22. There are a LOT of opportunities for wrestlers in 2019.
Dynamite drew 1.01 million viewers this week. It's a shame to see them taper off after that really strong first night. This is still a strong number, however.
NXT drew 712,000 viewers this week. They're also slumping. I wonder how each show would do if not against the other. Is the competition actually hurting both brands? It's a real shame WWE is prioritizing sabotaging AEW at any expense.
Friday Night Smackdown announced Thursday:
- A Smackdown Women's Championship contendership match with Lacey Evans vs. Nikki Cross vs. Carmella vs. Sonya Deville vs. Mandy Rose vs. Dana Brooke
- New Day and Heavy Machinery vs. Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, and The Revival
WWE made draft moves to keep couples on the same brand, as with last time.
Cain Velasquez is looking to avoid knee surgery, likely underdoing stem cell treatment to do so. I hope he doesn't have to pull out after such a big debut.
- Cain has been training with Rey Mysterio and will work more at the WWE Performance Center soon.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger's January 5 retirement match will be a singles match. He wants to face someone he's never wrestled before.
- His final U.S. match will be November 9 in California. Amazing to see his career finally winding down.
WWE attempted to buy Japan's Stardom promotion as part of an NXT Japan project. However, Stardom's CEO wanted to continue to run the company himself, as he will be able to do under the new deal with NJPW's parent company Bushiroad. Stardom becoming part of NXT Japan would have been a massive change for both sides. That would have been intriguing.
- WWE would have signed the entire Stardom roster and inducted the company's CEO in their Hall of Fame as part of the deal, but they didn't have concrete plans for NXT Japan that would justify shuttering a company that runs as regularly as Stardom does.
- Bushiroad wants to run Stardom in larger venues occasionally, and is looking at hiring a coach/producer to enhance characters in the company.
- Bushiroad stock saw a jump of more than four percent after this announcement.
AAA will not run a California show at the venue they initially booked. Fans have been refunded.
Japan's Giulia was apparently not under written contract to Ice Ribbon when she abruptly appeared for Stardom, but had been announced for Ice Ribbon events through the end of the year. Her tag team partner Tequila Saya will fill those bookings before retiring at the end of the year. Saya had originally intended to retire on the October 12 show that was canceled due to Typhoon Hagibis.
Mick Foley is doing a benefit show for ODB on November 10. ODB recently lost her food truck to a fire. Foley is a very giving man.
MLW looks to be dropping YouTube as a platform due to a lack of revenue from the site. It seems they have another streaming option in mind.
MLW dropped Alex Greenfield due to him trying to get to AEW. Interesting. We'll see if he ends up there.
PCO's ROH contract expires before Final Battle, but the two sides are expected to come to terms on another contract. It would really be a mess if they had to change their world title match for a major show like that.
Jake Hager won't wrestle for AEW until after his October 25 MMA fight. It was smart to hold off his debut for TNT, then.
AEW's Hikaru Shida has finished her Japanese commitments.
WWE attempted to buy Pro Wrestling NOAH as part of NXT Japan, but the company didn't want to sell to a non-Japanese company. That's very, very big and shows how serious WWE's global expansion plans are.
WWE is looking to start a Japanese Performance Center in conjunction with a planned NXT Japan. Meiko Satomura is set to be a key trainer there. They've got their work cut out for them breaking into that market given how the Stardom and NOAH deals fell apart. We'll see if they're able to get any other companies on board.
Velveteen Dream has a legitimate back injury. It's unknown how long he'll be out.
Kushida's hairline fracture is legitimate. He will miss about a month, which may or may not mean he'll be out of Takeover:WarGames.
Ember Moon is working as a trainer in Texas while recovering. Glad to see her giving back.
Rocky Johnson got press before his autobiography released. Good look at his background.
WWE has signed OVW's Stephon Smith as a referee. Cool to see.
NXT's Jordan Omogbehin worked his first live event since August 24 Friday night, defeating Cezar Bononi in Florida.
Finn Balor returned to the ring for the first time since Summerslam Friday night, defeating Kassius Ohno in Oregon.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. They're seemingly confident he won't cause issues in that role. His commentary style fits well with the style of product they want to deliver; he's definitely a great historian.
2. I've wondered the same thing! They've gone with others in the role she served, so she's a free agent.
3. Living life as Joseph Bonsignore, essentially. He completely distanced himself from wrestling after the EVOLVE incident.
4. It's definitely a regular thing for wrestlers to visit at prominent events to connect for personal and/or professional reasons.
5. Jess McMahon deserves a big, big honor for getting the ball rolling.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Network gets more classic content, assorted wrestling press, more draft moves, Bischoff set for Starrcast, Interviews with Ruby/Becky/Cody/Cody+Brandi, CZW booking live PPV, FNSD vs. MLB update, Backstage audience, ROH name at WWEPC, AEW injury, NWA PPV set, new Knockout signing, AWA podcast launches, NJPW parent company buys another promotion, Dynamite notes, Full Gear match official, NXT dark matches, and Questions on NWA's PPV schedule, WWE brand trades, the HIAC gimmick hampering Seth vs. Bray, the fourth wall, and why WWE won't change
WWE Network will add more Mid-South Wrestling episodes on October 21.
John Cena is in the latest Good Housekeeping, promoting first responders.
WWE revealed additional draft picks on The Bump. Raw received Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder as a team, The IIconics as a team, Mojo Rawley, No Way Jose, and Sarah Logan. Smackdown received Cesaro, Dana Brooke, Drake Maverick, Fire & Desire as a team, and Luke Harper. Analysis of these moves is in the full draft post.
WWE has been dominated for Streamy Awards for:
- Social Good, Company or Brand (Connor's Cure, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh)
- Emerging Platform (WrestleMania 35 Kickoff with NextVR and Oculus)
Eric Bischoff has been announced for Starrcast IV. Well, that happened pretty quickly!
Raw's November 4 taping is advertising Seth Rollins vs. The Fiend in a steel cage. Obviously Wyatt was drafted to Smackdown, so this likely won't end up happening. That could be for the best.
Ruby Riott is on Vickie Guerrero's latest podcast.
WWE congratulated MLB's Washington Nationals on going to the World Series.
CZW will have a live PPV in summer 2020, distributed by Stonecutter Media as part of a new deal. Stonecutter Media is the group behind the Urban Wrestling Federation.
Friday Night Smackdown will not be pre-empted due to baseball playoffs this week, as MLB coverage will take place on FS1, replacing a scheduled college football game that will move to The Big Ten Network. It's telling what level of priority WWE is being given there.
WWE Backstage drew 597,000 viewers. The show will replay Friday at midnight EST.
Recent ROH star Maria Manic is at the WWE Performance Center for a tryout. Her six-month deal with ROH has expired without the two sides coming to terms, so there's a chance she doesn't end up wrestling there after four months of angles. ROH had big plans for her that may or may not be realized, including setting up an intergender bout. Honestly it might be time for ROH to drop the women's division; it's struggling right now.
Luchasaurus didn't wrestle on Dynamite due to a legitimate hamstring injury.
Becky Lynch spoke about WWE 2K20 and more. I always like when current talents put over talents who aren't getting as much attention.
Cody discussed a number of AEW topics:
- Wow are some of those divisions even deep enough for a Top 5? This feels overly statistical, but it's certainly something we don't see much of.
- AEW's heads definitely have distinct ideas for the company. Things would be very different with either Cody or the Bucks out of the picture pushing different visions.
- Yeah combining JR and Excalibur is an interesting experiment, but I like that AEW tries to have all its bases covered.
Cody and Brandi Rhodes promoted Dynamite.
NWA will hold a PPV on December 4, called Into The Fire. I'm curious how that will go compared to the ROH-produced shows.
ROH has booked UK's Rampage Brown for all three nights of Honor United.
ROH has opened voting for The Experience. The show has added:
- The Briscoes vs. fans' choice of Silas Young and Josh Woods, Soldiers of Savagery, Master & Machine, or the Tate Twins for the ROH Tag Team Championship
- Jonathan Gresham vs. Mark Haskins in fans' choice of Pure Rules, European Rounds, or two out of three falls match
- Tracy Williams vs. Flip Gordon in fans' choice of Last Man Standing, Singapore Cane match, or Strap match
- Rush vs. Matt Taven in a tag team match. Fans will choose which man teams with Dalton Castle and which man teams with Jay Lethal.
Impact has signed Katie Forbes. I'm thinking she'll do an angle with Rob Van Dam.
AWA broadcaster Ken Resnick has launched a podcast on VOC Nation. Here are highlights from his first show.
NJPW's parent company has purchased Stardom, the top women's promotion in Japan. There is a lot of excitement about growing the latter company. It should be noted this isn't a case of NJPW buying Stardom or the two companies merging, but rather the two promotions being owned by the same parent company. There are currently no plans for the two promotions to cross over in any way, although there is consideration of adding Stardom talent to international shows if there's sufficient demand.
- Bushiroad will add staff to Stardom's office but the current staff will stay in place. There will be an increase in advertisement for the promotion, including in other Bushiroad properties.
- Talents will be signed to full-time contracts, which is a big plus for them.
- Stardom will also get a TV show as part of the deal, beginning in January. It will be interesting to see how that changes their schedule.
- Stardom talent will compete at CharaExpo 2019, with Mayu Iwatani and Tam Nakano facing Sumie Sakai and Nicole Savoy. That's great exposure for the group.
After Dynamite, Cody had a "match" with a fan dressed as Orange Cassidy. AEW's workers are having a lot of fun so far.
- Cody legitimately had a 102 degree fever. That sucks. I wish him well.
Full Gear has officially added The Young Bucks vs. Ortiz and Santana. That will be newsworthy.
At Dynamite were Mike Quackenbush, Mikey Whipwreck, Bull James, Nick Mondo, Austin Gunn, and David Starr among others. Tommy Dreamer worked as a producer.
Before NXT:
- Lio Rush defeated Austin Theory in a non-title match
- Sanatana Garrett and Xia Li defeated Deonna Purrazzo and Chelsea Green
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I think they're still figuring out how often they'll run. I would think the success or lack thereof of the first PPV would go a long way to determining how frequently NWA does them.
2. Yes, as we've already seen with Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross. It wouldn't surprise me if that move was just done to get people talking about Backstage in its debut week. Maybe more will come in that regard.
3. I make this point frequently. Gimmick matches feel way too arbitrary these days with themed PPV events.
4. It depends on who's booking and what they want to accomplish, basically.
5. As long as they continue to make insane amounts of money from Saudi Arabia, NBCU, and FOX, they feel they can pretty much do whatever they want. They're in no danger of any serious business declines.
More wrestling tomorrow.
John Cena is in the latest Good Housekeeping, promoting first responders.
WWE revealed additional draft picks on The Bump. Raw received Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder as a team, The IIconics as a team, Mojo Rawley, No Way Jose, and Sarah Logan. Smackdown received Cesaro, Dana Brooke, Drake Maverick, Fire & Desire as a team, and Luke Harper. Analysis of these moves is in the full draft post.
WWE has been dominated for Streamy Awards for:
- Social Good, Company or Brand (Connor's Cure, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh)
- Emerging Platform (WrestleMania 35 Kickoff with NextVR and Oculus)
Eric Bischoff has been announced for Starrcast IV. Well, that happened pretty quickly!
Raw's November 4 taping is advertising Seth Rollins vs. The Fiend in a steel cage. Obviously Wyatt was drafted to Smackdown, so this likely won't end up happening. That could be for the best.
Ruby Riott is on Vickie Guerrero's latest podcast.
WWE congratulated MLB's Washington Nationals on going to the World Series.
CZW will have a live PPV in summer 2020, distributed by Stonecutter Media as part of a new deal. Stonecutter Media is the group behind the Urban Wrestling Federation.
Friday Night Smackdown will not be pre-empted due to baseball playoffs this week, as MLB coverage will take place on FS1, replacing a scheduled college football game that will move to The Big Ten Network. It's telling what level of priority WWE is being given there.
WWE Backstage drew 597,000 viewers. The show will replay Friday at midnight EST.
Recent ROH star Maria Manic is at the WWE Performance Center for a tryout. Her six-month deal with ROH has expired without the two sides coming to terms, so there's a chance she doesn't end up wrestling there after four months of angles. ROH had big plans for her that may or may not be realized, including setting up an intergender bout. Honestly it might be time for ROH to drop the women's division; it's struggling right now.
Luchasaurus didn't wrestle on Dynamite due to a legitimate hamstring injury.
Becky Lynch spoke about WWE 2K20 and more. I always like when current talents put over talents who aren't getting as much attention.
Cody discussed a number of AEW topics:
- Wow are some of those divisions even deep enough for a Top 5? This feels overly statistical, but it's certainly something we don't see much of.
- AEW's heads definitely have distinct ideas for the company. Things would be very different with either Cody or the Bucks out of the picture pushing different visions.
- Yeah combining JR and Excalibur is an interesting experiment, but I like that AEW tries to have all its bases covered.
Cody and Brandi Rhodes promoted Dynamite.
NWA will hold a PPV on December 4, called Into The Fire. I'm curious how that will go compared to the ROH-produced shows.
ROH has booked UK's Rampage Brown for all three nights of Honor United.
ROH has opened voting for The Experience. The show has added:
- The Briscoes vs. fans' choice of Silas Young and Josh Woods, Soldiers of Savagery, Master & Machine, or the Tate Twins for the ROH Tag Team Championship
- Jonathan Gresham vs. Mark Haskins in fans' choice of Pure Rules, European Rounds, or two out of three falls match
- Tracy Williams vs. Flip Gordon in fans' choice of Last Man Standing, Singapore Cane match, or Strap match
- Rush vs. Matt Taven in a tag team match. Fans will choose which man teams with Dalton Castle and which man teams with Jay Lethal.
Impact has signed Katie Forbes. I'm thinking she'll do an angle with Rob Van Dam.
AWA broadcaster Ken Resnick has launched a podcast on VOC Nation. Here are highlights from his first show.
NJPW's parent company has purchased Stardom, the top women's promotion in Japan. There is a lot of excitement about growing the latter company. It should be noted this isn't a case of NJPW buying Stardom or the two companies merging, but rather the two promotions being owned by the same parent company. There are currently no plans for the two promotions to cross over in any way, although there is consideration of adding Stardom talent to international shows if there's sufficient demand.
- Bushiroad will add staff to Stardom's office but the current staff will stay in place. There will be an increase in advertisement for the promotion, including in other Bushiroad properties.
- Talents will be signed to full-time contracts, which is a big plus for them.
- Stardom will also get a TV show as part of the deal, beginning in January. It will be interesting to see how that changes their schedule.
- Stardom talent will compete at CharaExpo 2019, with Mayu Iwatani and Tam Nakano facing Sumie Sakai and Nicole Savoy. That's great exposure for the group.
After Dynamite, Cody had a "match" with a fan dressed as Orange Cassidy. AEW's workers are having a lot of fun so far.
- Cody legitimately had a 102 degree fever. That sucks. I wish him well.
Full Gear has officially added The Young Bucks vs. Ortiz and Santana. That will be newsworthy.
At Dynamite were Mike Quackenbush, Mikey Whipwreck, Bull James, Nick Mondo, Austin Gunn, and David Starr among others. Tommy Dreamer worked as a producer.
Before NXT:
- Lio Rush defeated Austin Theory in a non-title match
- Sanatana Garrett and Xia Li defeated Deonna Purrazzo and Chelsea Green
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I think they're still figuring out how often they'll run. I would think the success or lack thereof of the first PPV would go a long way to determining how frequently NWA does them.
2. Yes, as we've already seen with Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross. It wouldn't surprise me if that move was just done to get people talking about Backstage in its debut week. Maybe more will come in that regard.
3. I make this point frequently. Gimmick matches feel way too arbitrary these days with themed PPV events.
4. It depends on who's booking and what they want to accomplish, basically.
5. As long as they continue to make insane amounts of money from Saudi Arabia, NBCU, and FOX, they feel they can pretty much do whatever they want. They're in no danger of any serious business declines.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Joshi wrestler jumps without a release, Liger retirement match announced, special edition Roman cards, Interview with IIconics, another Network app update, NXT name gets first merch, Shelton meets Mr. Olympia, MLW producer leaves, Jericho appearance set, New Jack book delayed, Bischoff out as FNSD ED, Seth out of CJ tag match, Raw audience, CWFH to air in Spanish, MLW setting live broadcast, MLW to international conference, ROH signing, Cain working in AAA again, Maria comments on her status, WWE stars discuss HIAC ending, AOP cut post-draft promo, NJPW cancels event, Aussie Open injury update, AEW roster update, AEW match given Spanish commentary, legendary wrestling exec at Starrcast, WWE roster "trade," Backstage schedule update, Finn live event update, and Questions on WWE's FOX deal, Gable's new name, AEW on Hulu, Brock vs. Kofi, and Rey not facing Brock himself
Japanese joshi wrestler Giulia abruptly left Ice Ribbon for Stardom, with the former promotion claiming she had not formally received her release before doing so. Ice Ribbon had advertised her for further dates, and she was set to have a farewell at a show that ended up being canceled due to Typhoon Hagibis. It remains to be seen what will be worked out among the parties.
- Stardom issued a statement on the situation, seemingly indicating Stardom is working on a solution.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger will have two retirement matches at Wrestle Kingdom 14, one for each night of the event. The January 4 match will have Liger team with Tatsumi Fujinami (who last wrestled in NJPW in 2008), The Great Sasuke, and Tiger Mask against Ryusuke Taguchi, Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, and Tastsuhito Takaiwa. Liger's team will have El Samurai in its corner, while Kuniaki Kobayashi will be in the opposing team's corner.
Topps has special Roman Reigns cards to promote the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
The IIconics spoke before WWE comes to Australia. Cool to see them put Dakota Kai over. A little surprised they didn't mention Buddy Murphy or Rhea Ripley.
WWE Network's Roku app has gotten an update.
NXT's Jeet Rama has gotten his first T-shirt. Was there a demand for this??
Shelton Benjamin met Mr. Olympia winner Phil Heath.
MLW Fusion producer Alex Greenfield has left the company. No word on his next move.
Chris Jericho will be on this weekend's "Talking Dead."
New Jack's autobiography has been pushed back to an April 2020 release.
Eric Bischoff has been removed as executive director of Smackdown, with Bruce Prichard replacing him. Prichard had been handling important duties on the brand alongside Bischoff as the latter was caught up to speed on company happenings, so he'll seemingly just pick up other responsibilities Bischoff was overseeing.
- Bischoff's WWE contract has been terminated, so this isn't a case of him taking on a different role. I'm really curious what happened here.
- Bischoff praised Prichard's promotion. He has not yet commented on him leaving.
Seth Rollins has been removed from Crown Jewel's Team Hogan vs. Team Flair match due to his Universal Championship match that night. I'm curious how that changes the tag match.
Raw drew 2.28 million viewers Monday night, slightly down from last week.
Championship Wrestling From Hollywood will air in Spanish on LATV beginning October 26. That can certainly expand its reach.
MLW will have a live broadcast leading into Saturday Night Super Fight, essentially replacing that week's Fusion.
MLW is attending an international TV conference in Monaco shortly.
ROH has signed Tyler Bateman, who recently worked a TV taping for them.
Cain Velasquez will compete for AAA one more time, as the two sides had agreed for him to work for a third date before the California show was canceled. AAA will choose when to utilize his services; they've got an ace up their sleeve with being able to use someone currently in a WWE Championship match!
Maria Kanellis commented on her husband asking for his WWE release, emphasizing that she intends to remain in the company. I wish all parties the best there.
Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch, Drew McIntyre, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows discussed fan response to the Hell in a Cell ending. Unsurprisingly, they went to bat for WWE to a degree.
AOP cut a promo after not being drafted. I really hope this makes TV.
NJPW has canceled their October 18 event as a result of Typhoon Hagibis.
Aussie Open's Mark Davis suffered a ruptured MCL and torn ACL. That sounds BAD.
AEW's roster website now includes win and loss records for each wrestler. That's a good utilization of the concept.
AEW has uploaded Dark's Lucha Bros and Hybrid 2 vs. Private Party and Best Friends match with Spanish commentary, featuring former WWE announcer Dasha Fuentes.
Jim Crockett is set for Starrcast IV in his very first convention appearance. That's a really special opportunity.
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross have been "traded" to Friday Night Smackdown. It's currently unknown what Raw gets in return. I hope that's a good move for them.
WWE Backstage begins running weekly on November 5.
Finn Balor will work NXT's "road trip" live events this weekend in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. The belief is that WWE is all but cancel-proof. There's no reason to think USA or FOX will cancel any WWE programming.
2. I think there's a good chance it was either this angle or him not being in angle at all. I'd like to think there's a good payoff set, but I'm not 100% confident in that.
3. I wouldn't think it's coming, given Hulu's owners not being aligned with Turner Media.
4.a. The goal was to make Brock dominant ahead of facing Cain. They achieved that at Kofi's expense. Kofi's been in the company long enough to know how things work, so he couldn't have been surprised.
4.b. Murphy is on Raw now, so maybe things will improve for him.
5. That's part of the sell of how tough Brock is. Rey's not 100%, and Dominick's recovering, too, so the family reached out to someone who's had Brock's number in the past.
More wrestling tomorrow.
- Stardom issued a statement on the situation, seemingly indicating Stardom is working on a solution.
Jushin "Thunder" Liger will have two retirement matches at Wrestle Kingdom 14, one for each night of the event. The January 4 match will have Liger team with Tatsumi Fujinami (who last wrestled in NJPW in 2008), The Great Sasuke, and Tiger Mask against Ryusuke Taguchi, Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, and Tastsuhito Takaiwa. Liger's team will have El Samurai in its corner, while Kuniaki Kobayashi will be in the opposing team's corner.
Topps has special Roman Reigns cards to promote the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
The IIconics spoke before WWE comes to Australia. Cool to see them put Dakota Kai over. A little surprised they didn't mention Buddy Murphy or Rhea Ripley.
WWE Network's Roku app has gotten an update.
NXT's Jeet Rama has gotten his first T-shirt. Was there a demand for this??
Shelton Benjamin met Mr. Olympia winner Phil Heath.
MLW Fusion producer Alex Greenfield has left the company. No word on his next move.
Chris Jericho will be on this weekend's "Talking Dead."
New Jack's autobiography has been pushed back to an April 2020 release.
Eric Bischoff has been removed as executive director of Smackdown, with Bruce Prichard replacing him. Prichard had been handling important duties on the brand alongside Bischoff as the latter was caught up to speed on company happenings, so he'll seemingly just pick up other responsibilities Bischoff was overseeing.
- Bischoff's WWE contract has been terminated, so this isn't a case of him taking on a different role. I'm really curious what happened here.
- Bischoff praised Prichard's promotion. He has not yet commented on him leaving.
Seth Rollins has been removed from Crown Jewel's Team Hogan vs. Team Flair match due to his Universal Championship match that night. I'm curious how that changes the tag match.
Raw drew 2.28 million viewers Monday night, slightly down from last week.
Championship Wrestling From Hollywood will air in Spanish on LATV beginning October 26. That can certainly expand its reach.
MLW will have a live broadcast leading into Saturday Night Super Fight, essentially replacing that week's Fusion.
MLW is attending an international TV conference in Monaco shortly.
ROH has signed Tyler Bateman, who recently worked a TV taping for them.
Cain Velasquez will compete for AAA one more time, as the two sides had agreed for him to work for a third date before the California show was canceled. AAA will choose when to utilize his services; they've got an ace up their sleeve with being able to use someone currently in a WWE Championship match!
Maria Kanellis commented on her husband asking for his WWE release, emphasizing that she intends to remain in the company. I wish all parties the best there.
Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch, Drew McIntyre, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows discussed fan response to the Hell in a Cell ending. Unsurprisingly, they went to bat for WWE to a degree.
AOP cut a promo after not being drafted. I really hope this makes TV.
NJPW has canceled their October 18 event as a result of Typhoon Hagibis.
Aussie Open's Mark Davis suffered a ruptured MCL and torn ACL. That sounds BAD.
AEW's roster website now includes win and loss records for each wrestler. That's a good utilization of the concept.
AEW has uploaded Dark's Lucha Bros and Hybrid 2 vs. Private Party and Best Friends match with Spanish commentary, featuring former WWE announcer Dasha Fuentes.
Jim Crockett is set for Starrcast IV in his very first convention appearance. That's a really special opportunity.
Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross have been "traded" to Friday Night Smackdown. It's currently unknown what Raw gets in return. I hope that's a good move for them.
WWE Backstage begins running weekly on November 5.
Finn Balor will work NXT's "road trip" live events this weekend in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. The belief is that WWE is all but cancel-proof. There's no reason to think USA or FOX will cancel any WWE programming.
2. I think there's a good chance it was either this angle or him not being in angle at all. I'd like to think there's a good payoff set, but I'm not 100% confident in that.
3. I wouldn't think it's coming, given Hulu's owners not being aligned with Turner Media.
4.a. The goal was to make Brock dominant ahead of facing Cain. They achieved that at Kofi's expense. Kofi's been in the company long enough to know how things work, so he couldn't have been surprised.
4.b. Murphy is on Raw now, so maybe things will improve for him.
5. That's part of the sell of how tough Brock is. Rey's not 100%, and Dominick's recovering, too, so the family reached out to someone who's had Brock's number in the past.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Moxley loses NJPW title, MLW special episode, WK14 first main event, Interviews with Wilde+Ricochet, another Dynamite set, new Crown Jewel matches, WWE financial release set, NJPW app launched, FNSD audience, WWE name asks for release, Rise events released, Arn vs. Buff, and Questions on excitement for the wrestling landscape, not focusing on the HIAC ending, who made the draft choices, EC3's status, and Goldberg-Riddle
Jon Moxley is no longer NJPW United States Champion after missing their October 14 as a result of Typhoon Hagibis. NJPW declared Lance Archer the new champion after Archer defeated Juice Robinson on the card. Archer was then attacked by the returning David Finlay.
Jimmy Havoc is "executive producing" MLW's October 19 Fusion episode, which is appropriately being called "Jimmy Havoc's Slaughterhouse." As you might expect, the show will have a hardcore/death match theme.
Wrestle Kingdom 14's first night will be headlined by Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Joaquin Wilde is on the latest Swerve City Podcast.
Dynamite's December 18 episode will be in Texas, at the site of Elimination Chamber 2015. That show drew 7,000 fans, which seems to be the record.
Crown Jewel has added:
- Tag Team Turmoil to declare The Best Tag Team In The World. Teams listed include New Day, the Viking Raiders, Heavy Machinery, the Lucha House Party, Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins, The Revival, The OC, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode, and the B-Team. Notably The Ascension and The Colons are absent.
- Cesaro vs. Mansoor
WWE's third quarter financial results will be released on October 31. That will be a very busy day for the company.
NJPW has launched an app called NJPW Collection, featuring card collection. We'll see how that works out for the company.
Friday Night Smackdown drew 2.90 million viewers this week, down nearly a million from last week. That's a MASSIVE drop. With no Rock or other legends around, they got pounded hard. I don't expect a rebound next weekend, either. They've got a lot of work to do to get part of that fan base back.
Mike Kanellis publicly asked for his WWE release, citing a lack of opportunities in the company. I don't blame him at all for wanting to get more work elsewhere. It's got to be creatively stifling working so seldomly; he doesn't work live events, and at TV at times he's just a character. I hope he can reinvent himself elsewhere, or, if WWE keeps him, he gets moved to a brand that will have him wrestle.
Ricochet discussed his amazing athleticism. He's really, really special.
RISE has released full events on YouTube. That's cool; I hope it gives them exposure.
Arn Anderson hit a spinebuster on Buff Bagwell at an Arkansas indie show. Amazing I'm typing that sentence in 2019.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There are definitely a LOT of options out there for fans of a number of different genres, which is great to see. Wednesday is going to be very significant for obvious reasons.
2. They smartly decided to focus on Crown Jewel and the draft. There was a very negative reaction to the Seth vs. Fiend ending.
3. The story is that key NBCU and FOX figures made the decisions, which was clever. I can't say I miss the authority figures era. It gets pretty played out.
4. I really don't know, and I don't think anyone else seems to. Vince just sees his look and that's about it.
5. Riddle had been taking shots at Goldberg for quite a while, so he shouldn't really be surprised Goldberg had words for him. As for WWE repercussions, if anything they like the attention Riddle gets from his antics, as bizarre as that might sound.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Jimmy Havoc is "executive producing" MLW's October 19 Fusion episode, which is appropriately being called "Jimmy Havoc's Slaughterhouse." As you might expect, the show will have a hardcore/death match theme.
Wrestle Kingdom 14's first night will be headlined by Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Joaquin Wilde is on the latest Swerve City Podcast.
Dynamite's December 18 episode will be in Texas, at the site of Elimination Chamber 2015. That show drew 7,000 fans, which seems to be the record.
Crown Jewel has added:
- Tag Team Turmoil to declare The Best Tag Team In The World. Teams listed include New Day, the Viking Raiders, Heavy Machinery, the Lucha House Party, Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins, The Revival, The OC, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode, and the B-Team. Notably The Ascension and The Colons are absent.
- Cesaro vs. Mansoor
WWE's third quarter financial results will be released on October 31. That will be a very busy day for the company.
NJPW has launched an app called NJPW Collection, featuring card collection. We'll see how that works out for the company.
Friday Night Smackdown drew 2.90 million viewers this week, down nearly a million from last week. That's a MASSIVE drop. With no Rock or other legends around, they got pounded hard. I don't expect a rebound next weekend, either. They've got a lot of work to do to get part of that fan base back.
Mike Kanellis publicly asked for his WWE release, citing a lack of opportunities in the company. I don't blame him at all for wanting to get more work elsewhere. It's got to be creatively stifling working so seldomly; he doesn't work live events, and at TV at times he's just a character. I hope he can reinvent himself elsewhere, or, if WWE keeps him, he gets moved to a brand that will have him wrestle.
Ricochet discussed his amazing athleticism. He's really, really special.
RISE has released full events on YouTube. That's cool; I hope it gives them exposure.
Arn Anderson hit a spinebuster on Buff Bagwell at an Arkansas indie show. Amazing I'm typing that sentence in 2019.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. There are definitely a LOT of options out there for fans of a number of different genres, which is great to see. Wednesday is going to be very significant for obvious reasons.
2. They smartly decided to focus on Crown Jewel and the draft. There was a very negative reaction to the Seth vs. Fiend ending.
3. The story is that key NBCU and FOX figures made the decisions, which was clever. I can't say I miss the authority figures era. It gets pretty played out.
4. I really don't know, and I don't think anyone else seems to. Vince just sees his look and that's about it.
5. Riddle had been taking shots at Goldberg for quite a while, so he shouldn't really be surprised Goldberg had words for him. As for WWE repercussions, if anything they like the attention Riddle gets from his antics, as bizarre as that might sound.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Monday, October 14, 2019
Interviews with Foley/HHH/Severn, the draft continues, EVOLVE results, more on Hardy situation, and Questions on AEW running much larger venues than NXT, WWE hiring models, Edge returning to the ring, what WWE can do for Jeff Hardy, and Vince changing NXT
Mick Foley spoke to TMZ Sports about his partially-missing ear.
Triple H spoke to FOX about the Pedigree being his finisher.
WWE.com announced more draft picks from the first night's pool. These are covered in the main 2019 draft post.
At EVOLVE 137 Friday in Georgia:
- NXT's Arturo Ruas defeated JD Drake
- NXT's Babatunde fought to a no contest with Eddie Kingston
- NXT signing Shotzi Blackheart retained the Shine Nova Championship against Aja Perera.
- NXT's Cameron Grimes defeated Curt Stallion
- NXT's Kassius Ohno lost to Josh Briggs in a Lights Out match
- NXT signing Austin Theory retained the EVOLVE Championship against AR Fox.
Dan Severn discussed a number of wrestling and MMA topics.
Matt Hardy further commented on his brother's situation. Their respective spouses also tweeted about the subject, including profanity from Reby. It's very sad to see the family feuding like this. I really wish them the best.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly I do think it matters that AEW is running significantly larger venues. Of course, any product running the same town over and over is going to have some difficulties there, too. I hope they do run decent-sized venues on the road as the product continues to grow.
2. I had to track down this reference, which is in relationship to perceived attractiveness. Basically what happened was Triple H replacing John Laurinaitis as head of talent relations. Laurinaitis was looking for models who could learn to wrestle decently enough to fill some time between men's matches. Triple H is looking for hard working wrestlers.
3. Of course it largely depends on how much he's cleared to do. He definitely doesn't "need" to add to his Hall of Fame career, but if he gets some good opportunities to add to his legacy and do meaningful things, it's worth looking into. A lot of it's going to be up to WWE Medical either way.
4. I'm under the impression Jeff is still recovering from injury, so I don't know if WWE will release him while that's still in play. I believe Jeff's contract is up around the time of WrestleMania, so if WWE doesn't add time on for the time he's been recovering (which is their decision), they could just let it expire. Of course, the problem with that is the potential for him to sign elsewhere, even in his current state. So right now WWE's hoping he can work things out and return healthy to complete his deal.
5. If I'm Vince and my show's losing as definitively as NXT is, I'm absolutely looking into why that is and what needs to be done differently.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Triple H spoke to FOX about the Pedigree being his finisher.
WWE.com announced more draft picks from the first night's pool. These are covered in the main 2019 draft post.
At EVOLVE 137 Friday in Georgia:
- NXT's Arturo Ruas defeated JD Drake
- NXT's Babatunde fought to a no contest with Eddie Kingston
- NXT signing Shotzi Blackheart retained the Shine Nova Championship against Aja Perera.
- NXT's Cameron Grimes defeated Curt Stallion
- NXT's Kassius Ohno lost to Josh Briggs in a Lights Out match
- NXT signing Austin Theory retained the EVOLVE Championship against AR Fox.
Dan Severn discussed a number of wrestling and MMA topics.
Matt Hardy further commented on his brother's situation. Their respective spouses also tweeted about the subject, including profanity from Reby. It's very sad to see the family feuding like this. I really wish them the best.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. Honestly I do think it matters that AEW is running significantly larger venues. Of course, any product running the same town over and over is going to have some difficulties there, too. I hope they do run decent-sized venues on the road as the product continues to grow.
2. I had to track down this reference, which is in relationship to perceived attractiveness. Basically what happened was Triple H replacing John Laurinaitis as head of talent relations. Laurinaitis was looking for models who could learn to wrestle decently enough to fill some time between men's matches. Triple H is looking for hard working wrestlers.
3. Of course it largely depends on how much he's cleared to do. He definitely doesn't "need" to add to his Hall of Fame career, but if he gets some good opportunities to add to his legacy and do meaningful things, it's worth looking into. A lot of it's going to be up to WWE Medical either way.
4. I'm under the impression Jeff is still recovering from injury, so I don't know if WWE will release him while that's still in play. I believe Jeff's contract is up around the time of WrestleMania, so if WWE doesn't add time on for the time he's been recovering (which is their decision), they could just let it expire. Of course, the problem with that is the potential for him to sign elsewhere, even in his current state. So right now WWE's hoping he can work things out and return healthy to complete his deal.
5. If I'm Vince and my show's losing as definitively as NXT is, I'm absolutely looking into why that is and what needs to be done differently.
More wrestling tomorrow.
Sunday, October 13, 2019
Crown Jewel interviews, new Ride Along set, NXT signing's final indie dates, Rock making Disney show, Taz appearing on AEW Dark, hip hop name buys HOG, BFG luchadores announced, Crown Jewel updates, Draft plan change, NXT injury, Goldberg appears, NJPW deals with flooding, Fiend returns to the ring, and Questions on Angle wrestling again, HOG's purchase, EC3's history, UWF continuing, and action figures that need to happen
Cain Velasquez, Tyson Fury, and Triple H spoke to ESPN at the Crown Jewel press conference. That show will be interesting and newsworthy, one way or another.
WWE Ride Along after Raw will feature Braun Strowman, EC3, and Drake Maverick along with the Kanellises.
NXT signing Shotzi Blackheart advertised her final indie dates. Interestingly she'll be working a show on Impact's Twitch channel Saturday night.
The Rock's production company has a Disney Plus show coming, focusing on the creation of Disney park attractions.
Taz is a guest broadcaster for this week's AEW Dark. That's a great use for him!
Master P has purchased a majority stake in House of Glory. The company will use P's production team, but remain booked by Brian XL. I'm interested to see how that will benefit HOG.
Bound For Glory will feature Dr. Wagner, Jr., Aero Star, and Black Taurus against The Rascalz. The show is taking advantage of partnerships with AAA and NOAH.
Crown Jewel is now listing Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez as being for the WWE Championship, which wasn't mentioned at the press conference. I can't help but think we're in for Cain winning it to set up a WrestleMania rematch.
Crown Jewel will have a Kickoff show of one hour long. That would be a sensible place to have a big battle royal so everyone gets paid.
Heavy Machinery were originally listed as being part of the WWE Draft's second night's pool, but they were drafted on the first night. Hey, with that many people to figure out roles for, it's not a shock so much gets changed!
Kushida is wearing a wrist cast, so he could be missing some ring time. That's unfortunate!
Goldberg appeared on SEC Network ahead of a Georgia college football game.
NJPW's Japanese dojo experienced some flooding during Typhoon Hagibis. That's really a shame.
The Fiend returned to the ring at WWE's Texas live event Saturday night for the first time since Hell in a Cell.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. He's under WWE contract and I REALLY don't see them allowing him to wrestle somewhere else.
2. It's definitely worth a shot!
3. He had a big push in Impact as "Dixie Carter's nephew, Ethan Carter III" including a long undefeated streak and becoming world champion in between WWE runs. You'd think that reinvention would have helped him more than it has.
4. There doesn't seem to be any real movement on it coming back, though one would think strong DVD sales would help.
5. Oh Mr. T NEEDS to happen. And has Nicholas had an action figure yet? He was a tag team champion, after all.
More wrestling tomorrow.
WWE Ride Along after Raw will feature Braun Strowman, EC3, and Drake Maverick along with the Kanellises.
NXT signing Shotzi Blackheart advertised her final indie dates. Interestingly she'll be working a show on Impact's Twitch channel Saturday night.
The Rock's production company has a Disney Plus show coming, focusing on the creation of Disney park attractions.
Taz is a guest broadcaster for this week's AEW Dark. That's a great use for him!
Master P has purchased a majority stake in House of Glory. The company will use P's production team, but remain booked by Brian XL. I'm interested to see how that will benefit HOG.
Bound For Glory will feature Dr. Wagner, Jr., Aero Star, and Black Taurus against The Rascalz. The show is taking advantage of partnerships with AAA and NOAH.
Crown Jewel is now listing Brock Lesnar vs. Cain Velasquez as being for the WWE Championship, which wasn't mentioned at the press conference. I can't help but think we're in for Cain winning it to set up a WrestleMania rematch.
Crown Jewel will have a Kickoff show of one hour long. That would be a sensible place to have a big battle royal so everyone gets paid.
Heavy Machinery were originally listed as being part of the WWE Draft's second night's pool, but they were drafted on the first night. Hey, with that many people to figure out roles for, it's not a shock so much gets changed!
Kushida is wearing a wrist cast, so he could be missing some ring time. That's unfortunate!
Goldberg appeared on SEC Network ahead of a Georgia college football game.
NJPW's Japanese dojo experienced some flooding during Typhoon Hagibis. That's really a shame.
The Fiend returned to the ring at WWE's Texas live event Saturday night for the first time since Hell in a Cell.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. He's under WWE contract and I REALLY don't see them allowing him to wrestle somewhere else.
2. It's definitely worth a shot!
3. He had a big push in Impact as "Dixie Carter's nephew, Ethan Carter III" including a long undefeated streak and becoming world champion in between WWE runs. You'd think that reinvention would have helped him more than it has.
4. There doesn't seem to be any real movement on it coming back, though one would think strong DVD sales would help.
5. Oh Mr. T NEEDS to happen. And has Nicholas had an action figure yet? He was a tag team champion, after all.
More wrestling tomorrow.
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