Network episode update, Matt Hardy's status, UK channel dropping wrestling, ultraviolent wrestler retiring, and Questions on TNA's expenses in the Hogan/Bischoff era, future Thunderdomes, Brock-AEW, and announcers leaving WWE

WWE Day Of Summerslam 2020 will air September 13.

Matt Hardy was released from the hospital after a number of scans. Tony Khan reported he did not have a concussion, though Reby tweeted that he did. I hope lessons were learned here about wrestler safety. 

- Matt will be on Dynamite. 

UK's Showcase TV is no longer airing Impact or ROH. That's unfortunate for them. 

Matt Tremont has announced retiring on October 30 following a final tour of matches. Tremont has been champion for CZW and GCW.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:

1. They also increased the number of tapings, toured the product a lot more, and had live episodes, on top of increased advertising. They spent a hefty sum trying to make the company a major player in a short amount of time. 

2. Long story short, I'm sure it's a very complex and costly endeavor on top of having to police what fans are wearing and doing. I really, REALLY don't see them doing it voluntarily. 

3. With such a low number of fans paying for tickets, I don't think there's any justification for anyone using Brock right now. 

4. No. I think it would be viewed as a desperate move that alienates the existing fans rather than a way for them to turn the corner and be as big as Raw or Smackdown. With the money they would spend on Brock, I would think it would be much more difficult to invest in other important talents. 

5. Cathy wanted to pursue other endeavors. Renee was a combination of that and the pandemic. Mauro is prioritizing his family's health and wants a different schedule. So maybe WWE could have been more flexible, but I think some of this was going to be inevitable. It wouldn't shock me to see others branch out more, too, as I don't know who in the current group sees wrestling as a long-term career option. 

More wrestling tomorrow. 

OVW back home, wrestling press and match updates, WWE edict fallout, Smackdown audience, indie Network additions, WWE trademark, NXT addition, All Out press, Matt Hardy update, Dynamite preview, next AEW PPV, All Out post-show notes, and a Question on WM37

OVW has been cleared to return to their usual venue on September 15.

Dan Severn has been announced for a November 6 match under UWFI rules. Severn is 62.

Bruno Sammartino and Kurt Angle got press in Pittsburgh. 

Collective lineup notes:

- Fred Rosser, the former Darren Young, will team with Nexus partner Heath against Filthy "Tom" Lawlor and Erick Stevens.

- Alex Shelley will face Tony Deppen

- ACH will face AJ Gray

WWE stars are changing user names on outside channels in an attempt to satisfy the new edict on third party outlets. 

- Pro Wrestling Tees could be affected by this as well. This would be a great time for talent to get together and hold a meeting with management about how this affects them.

- Mick Foley and Kevin Nash weighed in. 

Smackdown drew 2.07 million viewers this week. Interestingly, no boost for Reigns' title win.

WWE Network has added:

- ICW Fear and Loathing XI

- wXw We Love Wrestling Kutenholz

- EVOLVE 124

- PROGRESS Chapter 83

WWE has trademarked "Wobbly Walrus," which would be a natural name for a new Firefly Funhouse friend. Bray Wyatt getting that concept over is amazing. 

NXT has added Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory.

Chris Jericho spoke to Sports Illustrated before All Out:

- Interesting for him to just focus on his own match on the card. Probably wise in some aspects.

- Jericho really has a habit of latching onto things other people are doing that are working. He would argue that enhances and elevates those talents. 

- I like the idea of taking a long-term approach and showing a talent can be multidimensional. 

- Interesting remarks about Tyson.

- Hmmmmm interesting remarks about Brock. It's no secret there was some friction between those two in WWE. 

- Very glad to see plans put together for months at a time. 

- I really like the variety of rivalries in AEW instead of doing a lot of things with one person for two months of episodes and then moving on and doing the same song and dance with a different opponent. 

Chris Jericho also spoke to TalkSport before All Out:

- I think he's right about this side of Roman allowing him to connect with fans more than the previous gimmick that was seen as very by-the-numbers babyface.

- NXT was already on Wednesdays! 

- Jericho really craves a certain level of relevancy. Beating WWE's C Show and main eventing in a company with few other mainstream stars works great in that regard.

- This man is obsessed with taking shots at WWE. Again the fact he never made it to being at the level of someone like Triple H really gets at him.

- Oh yeah Sammy's a natural heel.

Brodie Lee spoke to ESPN before All Out:

- The Luke Harper character didn't really lend itself to typical wrestling promos. They could have done something with him "breaking free" and sounding less like he did as a member of the Wyatts, but the Harper character worked well with less articulate promos.

- I do think WWE could have gotten more out of him, and it's awful he had such a miserable time at the end of his run.

- No way would Dark Order have been fired, as close as they are with the Bucks.

- I'm glad Dark Order did change.

- I've really enjoyed his matches in AEW. 

- I appreciate BTE as a way for these names to blow off steam and connect beyond their TNT portrayals. 

Eddie Kingston is on the most recent "Talk is Jericho."

Matt Hardy went to a hospital after All Out. That was a VERY scary moment. 

Dynamite has announced:

- Brodie Lee vs. Dustin Rhodes for the TNT Championship

- Kip Sabian naming the best man for his wedding, which will take place on a future episode of Dynamite. 

Full Gear is set for November 7.

All Out had a post-show media scrum, covered here:

- I have not missed fans trying to cross barricades.

- Very scary situation with Hardy. Really weird that he was cleared when it's obvious he was really out of it. Clearly he was at least well enough to quickly finish the match. If it weren't for the integrity of the stipulation, they probably should have called it right there as a precaution. 

- VERY interesting to mention CMLL when he has a relationship with AAA. I hope that was the right move. 

- Good that people pressed Khan on the Hardy situation.

- Rosa was great. I hope we see her again. 

- Man, they're really looking to expand and grow rapidly. It's ambitious to say the least. 

Jon Moxley cut a promo after All Out, telling fans to make themselves heard in Stamford (home of WWE HQ) and Orlando (home of NXT). There's a recurring theme of obsession with their former workplace among a lot of AEW names that frankly at times makes the company feel more of a reaction to WWE than its own entity, overshadowing the good work they do. 

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:

Nothing to add to 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, or 7.

4. I don't expect a major stadium WrestleMania in March 2021.

All Out Reax

 Read on for my thoughts on last night's AEW pay-per-view.

Former WWE Champion joins Creative, more on Roman turn, assorted wrestling press, Rey cartoon coming, RETRIBUTION update, wrestling content updates, Clash gets subtitle, Dynamite replay, WWE team released, WWE cracks down on third party endeavors, Pure Championship updates, Universal Title match set, and Questions on All Out booking, contractors having drug tests, and names missing from ECW DVD

Daniel Bryan is on Smackdown's creative team. That's very interesting! I'm curious how long that's intended for. I think he can be a valuable voice for emerging stars.

Roman Reigns turning heel was something he personally pushed for. That's cool!

Mick Foley raised money for Cauliflower Alley Club by doing virtual meet and greets. Cool to see.

RevPro will run another iPPV on September 13.

Paige's family has opened a new wrestling school, which will run Saturday events each week.

Rey Mysterio will be the subject of a Cartoon Network Latin America cartoon. That goes to show how over he is.

RETRIBUTION is being considered to be Raw exclusive. Odd direction to suddenly change things like that. 

Dark's Friday episode featured:

- Allie vs. Red Velvet

- Colt Cabana vs. Zack Clayton

- Natural Nightmares vs. Dark Order's Five and Ten

- Dark Order's Three and Four vs. Shawn Dean and Brandon Bullock

- The Butcher and The Blade vs. Faboo Andre and D3

- Ivelisse vs. KiLynn King

- Darby Allin vs. Luther

- Lucha Bros vs. Angel Perez and Ryzin

United Wrestling Network's Primetime Live has added Kamille vs. Heather Monroe. 

Clash of Champions has been subtitled Gold Rush. 

"Miz & Mrs" will return in November.

TNT replayed Dynamite Friday at 10:00 p.m. They have been very supportive of AEW.

WWE released AOP, Akam and Rezar. I'm surprised to see that. You would think if any talents would be tailor-made for WWE, it would be those two behemoths. I really hope they get snatched up somewhere else and go on a tear. 

WWE has introduced a policy barring talents from using their names and likenesses for outside endeavors if those projects are detrimental to WWE. Failure to do so can lead to fines, suspensions, or termination. This policy goes into effect October 2. There will be further clarification of this in days ahead. The initial belief is this is targeting WWE talents holding their own streams on Twitch or YouTube, fulfilling requests on Cameo, and similar avenues. Talents have been using those platforms to get extra revenue for themselves at a time when they aren't performing in front of live crowds. As you might expect, that has been received very negatively by talent. I hope WWE realizes they're making other alternative working places more attractive by such moves.

- Paige has changed her Twitch name to SarayaOfficial. 

- Politician Andrew Yang responded to this change on Twitter, indicating he intends to take action against WWE through the department of labor if Joe Biden becomes president. Batista expressed his support for such reforms. 

Squared Circle Sirens founder Casey has a GoFundMe to cover funeral costs.  

ROH Pure Championship notes:

- Dak Draper and Brian Johnson have been named as alternates.

- Sumie Sakai and Will Ferrara have been added as judges.

- A number of competitors will hold Reddit Ask Me Anything sessions this week.

Silas Young will be on ROH Strong this week.

Clash of Champions has added Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso for the Universal Championship. I'm interested to see what this means for Braun Strowman in particular. 

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:

1. That feels like a TV finish, not one for one of AEW's biggest shows of the year. 

2. Basically they signed the deal agreeing to those terms.

Nothing to add to 3, 4, or 5.

6. WWE didn't really go to huge lengths for something they thought would appeal to a smaller audience than it ended up drawing. 

More wrestling tomorrow. 

Main Event and 205 Live Reax - 9/4/20

 Read on for my thoughts on yesterday's Main Event and 205 Live.

Friday Night Smackdown Reax - 9/4/20

 Read on for my take on last night's Smackdown.

Japanese promotion debuts on FITE, wrestling content update, more COVID confessions, more on Tooth and Nail match, Interview with Jake Roberts, MLW signing, Nigel-WWE update, All Out hype, United price update, more Takeover shows, Dynamite+NXT replay audiences, cease and desist dropped, WWE trademark, and Questions on HOH, Network ideas, books, and Roman's turn

Pro Wrestling NOAH will broadcast on FITE.TV on September 22 for the first time with N-1 Victory. Good to see them branch out.

Championship Wrestling from Hollywood debuts on Tampa TV this weekend. United Wrestling Network's tag team and television champions will be in action.

Kevin Nash disclosed COVID-19 diagnoses in his family. I imagine we'll see more such disclosures before the year's out.

- AJ Styles also disclosed having the virus earlier in the year on Twitch. 

WWE's Ruthless Aggression series will release on DVD beginning November 10.

"Impact in 60" on September 15 will focus on two-out-of-three-falls matches. Interesting subject choice.

Tony Khan previewed All Out on AEW Unrestricted this week.

All Out's "Tooth and Nail" match will be falls count anywhere inside of Britt Baker's dental office. That will be memorable, though I hope they change things up for Britt afterward. This has gone about as far as it can go.

Jake Roberts spoke to Chris Van Vliet about AEW and more. Very glad to see him doing well.

MLW has signed Kevin Ku.

Nigel McGuinness has returned as an NXT UK commentator. Fitting!

NXT UK's tapings featured some personnel teleworking from the United States.

Tony Khan did a conference call to promote All Out. Here are highlights:
- I'm curious about this FTW pitch. Khan is a planner. I like that.

- Cinematic matches have really been a thing in 2020.

- Khan is very well connected, which really puts AEW in an advantageous position.

- I admire Khan admitting when he feels he hasn't done his best.

- I also really admire him putting his crew over.

- Cool to see a variety of female talents. 

- I'm excited to see what's next. 

- He lost me with the MJF praise. I think he has grown, but has still been very overly hyped.

- Oh wow. Four hours of AEW a week between Dynamite, Dark, and the new show. That's brave, but brave is how they got where they are now. 

- Very humble guy who gives a lot of credit. I like it.

United Wrestling Network's Primetime Live will be $7.00 a week on FITE, or $23.00 for a month. On traditional PPV, each week will be $11.99. We'll see if that's an effective price point.

Takeover events are set for October 4 and December 6. There will be no Takeover on Survivor Series weekend. Very interesting direction. 

Dynamite drew 928,000 viewers Wednesday. That's a solid number, for sure. 

Paul Roma is no longer facing a cease and desist order due to the mayor getting involved. The local zoning ordinance listed "wrestling studios" under adult entertainment. This will be amended to avoid confusion. Glad to see that resolved easily.

WWE has trademarked "SHOW UP AND WIN," so expect someone to use that in every promo for the next three months.

NXT drew 183,000 viewers on SyFy Wednesday for a replay of the previous night's episode.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:

1. It also feels like Dreamer's been focusing on Impact. 

2. That's a cool idea, though I don't know how many new subscribers it would bring in. The WWE Network could use that kind of vision and direction. Heck, the WWE product could as well. 

3. Seemingly the agreement was for one print run.

4. I can only imagine the stories it contained!

5. How it took too long/he's being shoved down their throats, etc. 

Nothing to add to 6 or 7. 

More wrestling tomorrow.