One thing that is really a shame from last night is that the Michael Bisping story of capturing the title walking off a movie set on two weeks notice was trumped so badly by the other big stories that took place.
It’s created an interesting dynamic because Bisping has always been the guy in the middleweight division everyone wanted to fight with the idea he’s good, but beatable. In a fight with top guys, anything can happen and how history changes based on luck, flukes, and inches. It also makes truly dominant fighters like Anderson Silva, Demetrious Johnson, Jon Jones and GSP in their primes even more remarkable. St-Pierre and Silva each may have fallen victim to the bad luck of inches, but they compiled long sets of wins before that happened. Johnson and Jones have not, and Johnson hasn’t even been tested in a long time.
We talked extensively about the Brock Lesnar story last night on the show. Lesnar’s opponent is expected to be announced tomorrownight on ESPN. OfficiallyUFC said there would be more on his fight in the next 48 or more hours. The thing is, he can get hurt, even if they put him against an opponent everyone feels he can beat. It’s a weird dynamic for UFC using somebody not under contract for a one-off.
Clearly Lesnar isn’t doing this for anything less than a ton of money. I don’t know when the deal was put together and finalized, but Lesnar has been training consistently since April. Josh Barnett has pushed for the fight but I can’t see him facing someone at that level. Still, in the past, Lesnar always had wanted to face the top guys and not waste time facing secondary guys. Of course, everything is different now.
He’s not about chasing the title, or at least there’s no indication he is. Frank Mir, the most logical opponent, is on a drug suspension. Cain Velasquez, who at one point he was interested in facing again, is against Travis Browne. Fedor Emelianenko, who Lesnar had agreed to face a few years ago, is fighting on the 17th.
We’re looking for your thoughts on last night’s UFC 199, as well as today’s Lucha World Cup and tomorrow morning and Tuesday morning’s New Japan shows, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to Dave@WrestlingObserver.com.
*WWE today in Amarillo (Roman Reigns, A.J. Styles, Seth Rollins, Alberto Del Rio, Charlotte, Rusev, Usos, Kalisto, Dolph Ziggler, Baron Corbin, Cesaro)
*WWE today in Lawton, OK (Kane, Big Show, Dean Ambrose, Kevin Owens, Paige, Enzo, Cass, Dudleys, Apollo, Crews, Sheamus, New Day, Erick Rowan, Braun Strowman)
*ROH today in Columbus, OH at the Ohio Expo Building (Jay Briscoe vs. Roderick Strong, Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian defend the tag title against War Machine, Adam Cole vs. Lio Rush, Dalton Castle vs. Kamaitachi)
NEW JAPAN WORLD MONDAY AT 5:30 A.M. EASTERN TIME FROM SENDAI (English language commentary)
Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi vs. Tetsuya Naito & Seiya Sanada & Evil
Volador Jr. vs. Will Ospreay
Ricochet vs. Chase Owens
Bobby Fish vs. Tiger Mask
Jushin Liger vs. Trent Baretta
Matt Sydal vs. David Finlay
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Rocky Romero
Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Gedo
Kushida vs. Bushi
Raw will be Monday in Oklahoma City. John Cena, Seth Rollins and Chris Jericho are all booked on the show along with the usual regulars.
NEW JAPAN WORLD TUESDAY AT 5:30 A.M. EASTERN TIME FROM SENDAI (English language commentary)
Best of the Super Juniors championship match
NXT TAKEOVER THE END ON WEDNESDAY AT 8 P.M. FROM FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY IN WINTER PARK, FL
Andrade Cien Almas vs. Tye Dillinger
Asuka vs. Nia Jax for women’s title
Jason Jordan & Chad Gable vs. Scott Dawson & Dash Wilder for tag titles
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Austin Aries
Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor cage match for the NXT title
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday in Wichita. John Cena is not scheduled but Seth Rollins and Chris Jericho are scheduled.
If you’ve ever wanted to WATCH our radio shows here on the site, check out our Youtube page! No full video shows, but lots of video clips, full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come! Make sure you subscribe today!
Figure Four Weekly 5/30/2016: Big Vito’s deposition – If you thought Evan Singleton’s deposition went badly for the plaintiffs in the WWE concussion lawsuit, then that appears to be nothing compared to what happened a week later during Vito LoGrasso’s deposition on May 18th. Given the back and forth over LoGrasso claiming that head injuries caused partial deafness when, in the past, he had spoken of having a hearing impairment since birth, the deposition promised to be interesting. It over-delivered.
A huge double issue of the Observer is out this week, including the real catalyst behind the WWE brand split, a breakdown of the roster, justice denied again in the Jimmy Snuka case, Ricochet vs. Will Ospreay and the Super Juniors tournament plus a full rundown, the story behind Bill Goldberg and the WWE video game and the Brock Lesnar tease, famous boxer vs. pro wrestler fights, WWE schedule and injury rates, business rundowns from the past two months for WWE & TNA, updates on cable stations that carry wrestling and MMA, and one of the greatest territorial business runs in history in the life and career of Cowboy Frankie Laine.
Our lead story looks at the WWE brand split, why it happened, what is known that isn’t a secret, ads out post brand split, plans for the split two months ago and what the ad department was told then, what different arenas have been told this week, thoughts behind decisions having too be made, plus a roster rundown on what positions WWE is strong and weak in, and where NXT talent should fit in and who is ready, or who can fill a slot.
There is also an update on the Jimmy Snuka situation, with a realistic view if there will be a trial and what the time frame is and what happens next.
This issue also looks at the Will Ospreay vs. Ricochet match, Vader’s reaction, Super Juniors standings and rundowns of the shows plus looking at where things are going.
Updates on Money in the Bank, stars returning to television soon, how the NBA & NHL playoffs coincide with wrestling the next two weeks, an update on NXT, lots of WWE performers off TV for the next several weeks, notes from lawsuit depositions that are eye opening, Cena getting a gigantic endorsement deal, Rollins return news, injury updates, lots of Dwayne Johnson news, WrestleMania in the future notes, notes on how little talent gets told in advance about things, who watches what on WWE network, plus we’ve got rundowns of every WWE & NXT events over the past week and business notes on the shows, all included in in this issue.
You can also order the print Observer right now and get it delivered to your door via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer.
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Sorry this is late but I had a later than usual flight out of Los Angeles and it’s just been a crazy weekend. Our weekend show talking Brock Lesnar, UFC 199, McGregor vs. Diaz and some more Ali is up on the site. We did a special Friday night show on Ali as well.
Here are the standings going into tomorrow’s final day of the Super Junior tournament:
A block
Ryusuke Taguchi 4-2
Kushida 4-2
Matt Sydal 4-2
Kyle O’Reilly 4-2
Rocky Romero 3-3
Bushi 3-3
David Finlay 1-5
Gedo 1-5
B block
Volador Jr. 4-2
Ricochet 4-2
Will Ospreay 3-3
Jushin Liger 3-3
Bobby Fish 3-3
Tiger Mask 3-3
Chase Owens 2-4
Trent Baretta 2-4
In the Lucha Libre World Cup at Palacio de Los Deportes, today’s show has:
*Team USA of Cheerleader Melissa & Santana Garrett & Sienna vs. Team Canada of Allie & Taya & K.C. Spinelli in a third place match
*Team Mexico of Lady Apache & Mari Apache & Fabi Apache vs. Team Japan of Aja Kong & Yuki Miyazaki & Sumire Natsu for the championship
*A four-team elimination match with Team Zero One-Oudou of Masato Tanaka & Ikuto Hidaka & Akebono vs. Team Mexico legends of Canek & Blue Demon Jr. & La Parka vs. Team International of Mil Muertes & Apolo & Rockstar Spud vs. Team TNA of Eli Drake & Ethan Carter III & Tyrus which is essentially for fifth place
*Team Mexico of Pentagon Jr. & Psycho Clown & El Texano Jr. vs. Team NOAH of Naomichi Marufuji & Taiji Ishimori & Maybach Taniguchi in a semifinal match
*Team Mexico Lucha Underground of Rey Mysterio Jr. & Dragon Azteca Jr. & Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Team USA Lucha Underground of Brian Cage & Johnny Mundo & Chavo Guerrero Jr. in a semifinal
*The two losers of the semifinals battle for third place
*The two winners of the semifinals meet for the championship
In the weekend Google searches, UFC 199 did 500,000 plus searches which is the same level as the previous two shows did. It beat the NHL game for the top searched thing in the U.S. on Saturday. Brock Lesnar was No. 5 at 200,000. Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz did not rank. Dan Henderson was No. 20 with 20,000. Muhammad Ali was by far the most searched term of the weekend with well over 10 million searches, which is the top number listed.
WWE
Congratulations to former WWE stars Adam “Edge” Copeland and Beth (formerly Phoenix) on the birth of a daughter, Ruby, on Tuesday.
WWE is going to start pushing Bill Goldberg with the video game deal as the WWE network will be releasing a Bill Goldberg collection of matches tomorrow. It’ll feature his biggest matches from WCW against Hugh Morrus, Steve McMichael, William Regal (the famous match that was made out to be something it wasn’t as it was not a shoot, just a match that fell apart), Raven, Hulk Hogan, DDP, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Bret Hart, The Rock and HHH.
The Network has also released three famous AWA shows, the April 23, 1983 Super Sunday show with Hulk Hogan vs. Nick Bockwinkel for the AWA title and Mad Dog Vachon & Verne Gagne vs. Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissie & Jerry Blackwell (an interesting match is a pre-Brutus Beefcake called Eddie Boulder facing Wahoo McDaniel), the April 20, 19806 Wrestlerock show from the Metrodome in Minneapolis with The Road Warriors vs. Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin, Greg Gagne & Jimmy Snuka vs. Bruiser Brody & Nord the Barbarian, leading to Verne Gagne vs. Kaissie, Stan Hansen vs. Nick Bockwinkel for the AWA title, Harley Race vs. Rick Martel, Barry Windham & Mike Rotunda vs. Fabulous Ones; and the December 13, 1988 Superclash show headlined by Jerry Lawler vs. Kerry Von Erich for the AWA title vs. World Class title.
Interesting to note that the day after Muhammad Ali passed away, that Gorilla Monsoon, who did the angle with him in 1976 to build up the Inoki match for the U.S. audiences, would have turned 79.
3-2: John Pollock, Josh Nason, me, David Bixenspan, Steve Juon, Front Row Brian
2-3: Mike Sempervive, Mike Sawyer
During the UFC show on BT Sport last night in the U.K., they are advertising the Bellator show with Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson from the O2 Arena and that tickets are on sale. (thanks to Matthew Singh-Dosanjh)
MISCELLANEOUS
Brandi Runnels (Eden Stiles) at this point is going to be working outside wrestling while Cody will be working indies. The one announced show with Cody vs. Mike Bennett with Brandi Rhodes, as she’s being called, is more to do a story of counteracting Maria Kanellis. But it’s not going to be a regular thing at this point.
Pro Wrestling Sheet is reporting that Adam Rose will use his party boy gimmick on the Indies using the name Aldo Rose and will be taking indie bookings. Right now he can’t appear on TV or iPPV until the late summer. He said, “Ain’t no more PG in this party.”
Casting Networks Inc. has a listing for anyone who has worked in WWE before as a wrestler or a Diva for a television commercial. It is listed as an Amazon series commercial with a pay rate of $100 per hour. They are looking for men and women 18-45 and they want talent to submit using their old WWE wrestling names.
New European Championship Wrestling, which is Alex Wright’s group in Germany has signed a new international TV deal that began on Friday night with HD Fightbox as we noted eariler in the week. It’s a monthly airing of a show in a minor station in Germany that also airs in Austria and Switzerland mostly as part of an on-line television providers package. The station also airs ROH but only the most hardcore of fans would get the station because it’s not a regular TV station that everyone gets. There was a minor buzz when they announced a TV deal but this I’m told ended up viewed as a disappointment as it’s an obscure online only channel and fans could already get the shows on VOD on Vimeo, so it wasn’t breaking new ground.
wXw ran its Shortcut to the Top, a Royal Rumble for a world title shot last night in Oberhausen, Germany before 575 fans. The big news was Tommy End announcing his final sow on 8/13 in Cologne and that End would also produce a matinee show that day at 2 p.m. Karesten Beck won the match but there was a surprise return of Chris Hero unannoucned. Hero has been in Europe. Beck had retired in March. They also announced a streaming service called wXw Now that will launch on 8/13. They also announced a world tag team tournament from 9/30 to 10/2 with David Starr & Shane Strickland (Killshot from Lucha Underground) appearing. Full results: Kim Ray b Francis Kaspin, Absolute Andy & Marius Al-Ani b Emil Sitoci & Marty Scurrll, Melanie Gray b Kim Lee Ray, Da Mack b Sasa Keel, Dirty Dragon & Ilja Dragunov & Julian Negro b Michael Dante & Mikey Whiplash & Tommy End, Jurn Simmons b John Klinger in 27:40 to retain their title, Beck won the 30 man Rumble. (thanks to John Carey & Markus Gronemann)
Preston City Wrestling yesterday in Preston, England: Roy & Zak Knight & Alex Boylan b Joey Hayes & Martin Kirby & Jimmy J, Dave Mastiff b Charlie Garrett, Dave Rayne b Iestyn Rees, Drew Galloway b Lionheart, El Ligero b Speedball Mike Bailey, Rob Lynch & James Davis & Sammy Smooth b Bubblegum & T-Bone & Rampage Brown, Noam Dar b Sha Samuels, Drew Galloway won gauntlet match over Roy Knight, Zak Night, Alex Boylan, Dave Mastiff and El Ligero to earn a title shot. Galloway will face Sha Samuels on 6/25, a free Tribute to the Troops show at the 3,000-seat Guild Hall. Ligero vs. Bailey said to be great. (thanks to Jan Buxton)
Revolution Pro from today in London: Rob Lias won a three-way, Noam Dar b Sha Samuels, Chris Garrett & Joel Redman b Hunter Brothers, Josh Bodom b Speedball Mike Bailey, Trent 7 b Anarchist James, Marty Scurll b Big Damo, Jinny b Addy Starr, Pete Dunne b Matt Cross. Scurll vs. Damo said to be great. Zack Sabre Jr. attacked Damo after the match.
CCW on 6/10 in Chatham, ONT at the Chatham Kinsmen Fair at 6:30 p.m.
Conquer Pro Wrestling from last night in Orlando: Monster b Leo Gold, Chuckles & Haitian Sensation b Kodi & Koko, Queen Raquel b Thea Trinidad to win women’s title, Chris Melendez b Irish Jack, Short n Sweet b Jason Static. They have a show on Friday at the Giraffas Brazilian Grill in Orlando with Santana Garrett, Raquel and Thea Trinidad.
Lucha Xtreme TV taping tonight in Hanford, CA at the Long Field Center with Homicide vs. Mortal plus Eddie Kingston debuts.
EVENTS
TONIGHT – AAA’s Victoria World Cup men and women’s trio tournament finals at Los Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City which will be a live iPPV show
TONIGHT – Silver Star Promotions at the 4 Ever Arena in Fort Worth has Caristico & El Hijo del Fishman vs. Silver Star & Psicosis Jr.
June 7 – New Japan Best of the Super Juniors finals from Sendai live on New Japan World
June 8 – NXT Takeover from Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL featuring Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor in a cage match plus a loaded lineup that includes American Alpha vs. The Revival and probably Shinsuke Nakamura vs Austin Aries, which could be WWE’s match of the month.
June 11 – ECCW Port Coquitlam, BC at the Elks Hall #49.
June 12 – TNA Slammiversary headlined by Drew Galloway vs. Bobby Lashley for the TNA title from Orlando
June 12 – Revolution Pro Wrestling in London, England headlined by Kurt Angle vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
June 17 – AAW “Killers Among Us” features Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Johnny Gargano, Drago vs. Chris Hero, and more at 115 Bourbon Street (3359 w 115th Street Merrionette Park, IL) All Ages Event – Tickets available.
June 18 – UFC in Ottawa: Rory McDonald vs. Stephen Thompson
June 19 – New Japan Dominion, one of the company’s biggest events of the year, featuring Tetsuya Naito vs. Kazuchika Okada in an IWGP title match and Kenny Omega vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi in a ladder match for the IC title
June 19 – WWE Money in the Bank from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas
June 24 – ROH Best in the World from Concord, NC with Jay Lethal vs. Jay Briscoe for the ROH title
June 24 – Isao Kobayashi vs. Justin Lawrence will appear on Spike.com as the top prelim fight Bellator Dynamite show in St. Louis. This will be a combination MMA and kickboxing show.
June 25 – Ultima Lucha tapings in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles at The Temple
June 26 – Ultima Lucha tapings in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles at The Temple
July 2 – Stars of Wrestling from Alameda, CA at the Alameda Point Gym has Bobby Lashley, Carlito and The Boogeyman appearing.
July 2 – NWA Cajun Heat in Morgan City, LA at the Municipal Auditorium with Jax Dane vs. Mustang Mike for the NWA title, Rob Conway vs. Rodney Mack and an appearance by Kevin Nash.
July 9 – Smash Wrestling in Fort Erie, ONT at the Native Friendship Center. Chris Hero will headline this fund raising event to raise money for the Godson of Jeremy Elliott, who Hero will wrestle. Elliott’s Godson is a patient at the CPRI Treatment Center.
July 24 – Fenix vs. Pentagon Jr. headlines for Lucha Libre New York at Club LaBoom in Queens, NY.
August 13 – Rey Mysterio Jr. will headline a show at Montgomery High School in San Diego, his alma mater, for Viva La Lucha promotions. Also appearing are Konnan, Psicosis, Johnny Mundo, Teddy Hart and TJ Perkins.
St. Louis, Missouri – Sandor Szabo defeated Bronko Nagurski for the NWA World Heavyweight Wrestling Title
1947
Kansas City, Kansas: – MWA World Heavyweight Champion Orville Brown beat The Swedish Angel in 2 out of 3 falls – Ralph Garibaldi Jack McDonald by third fall DQ – Tug Carlson beat Dan O’Connor – Jack Hader beat Jack Page
1952
Kansas City, Kansas: – The Duseks (Dick, Ernie and Joe Dusek) beat Steve Gob, Sonny Myers and Bob Orton Sr. in 2 out of 3 falls – Ronnie Etchison beat Tony Galento 2 out of 3 falls – Joe Dusek and Bob Orton Sr. went to a time limit draw
1958
Kansas City, Kansas: – Sonny Myers went to a no contest with Otto Von Krupp – Thor Hagen and Joe Scarpa beat Bob Orton and Rip Hawk
1967
Davenport, Iowa: – Johnny Powers beat the Crusher in a Texas Death Match – AWA Tag Team Champions Larry Hennig & Harley Race beat Rene Goulet & Earl Maynard – Jack Lanza beat Big K (Stan Kowalski)
1971
Milwaukee, Wisconsin: – AWA Tag Team Champions Red Bastien & Hercules Cortez beat Mad Dog Vachon & Butcher Vachon – Strong Kobayashi beat Bull Bullinski – Nick Bockwinkel beat Paul Diamond
1976
St. Paul, Minnesota: – Larry Hennig & Jos Leduc beat Mad Dog Vachon & Baron Von Raschke dq – Russ Francis & Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Bobby Heenan & Blackjack Lanza & Bobby Duncum – Buddy Wolff beat Scott Irwin
1977
Green Bay, Wisconsin: – Ray Stevens beat AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel by DQ – Jim Brunzell & Billy Francis beat Angelo Mosca & Roger Kirby – Super Destroyer beat Pedro Morales – Bob Backlund wrestled to a draw with Billy Robinson
1982
Rockford, Illinois: – Jerry Blackwell & Sheik Adnan beat Hulk Hogan & Baron Von Raschke – Rick Martel beat Bobby Heenan – Ken Patera beat Brad Rheingans – Buck Zumhofe beat Sgt Goulet
1989
Tokyo, Japan: – Yoshinari Ogawa pinned Tsuyoshi Kikuchi – Kenta Kobashi pinned Johnny Smith – Mighty Inoue pinned Goro Tsurumi – Shinichi Nakano, Isao Takagi, & Akira Taue beat Dick Slater, Don Muraco, & Mitch Snow – PWF Junior Heavyweight Champ Mitsuo Momota pinned Isamu Teranishi – Giant Baba, Rusher Kimura, & The Great Kabuki beat Motoshi Okuma, Haruka Eigen, & Masanobu Fuchi – Danny Kroffat & Doug Furnas beat Toshiaki Kawada & Samson Fuyuki to win the All Asian Tag Title – Yoshiaki Yatsu pinned Shunji Takano – Dan Spivey pinned Sting – Stan Hansen & Terry Gordy beat Dynamite Kid & Davey Boy Smith – Genichiro Tenryu pinned Jumbo Tsuruta to win the All Japan Triple Crown
1992
Knoxville, Tennessee: – Dixie Dynamite defeated Dutch Mantell – Dirty White Boy Tony Anthony defeated Joey Maggs – Robert Gibson defeated Killer Kyle – Buddy Landel defeated Tim Horner – The Heavenly Bodies (Stan Lane and Tom Prichard) defeated Johnny and Davey Rich – Brian Lee defeated Paul Orndorff by disqualification
Rock Hill, South Carolina: – Johnny B. Badd pinned Scotty Flamingo – Super Invader (Hercules Hernandez) pinned Tom Zenk – Larry Zbyszko pinned Marcus Alexander Bagwell – WCW Light Heavyweight Champion, Brian Pillman pinned Richard Morton – WCW Tag Team Champions Rick & Scott Steiner defeated Terry Taylor & Greg Valentine – Barry Windham pinned Bobby Eaton – Sting, Ricky Steamboat & Nikita Koloff beat Rick Rude, Arn Anderson & Steve Austin
2000
Atlanta, Georgia: – Eric Bischoff defeated Terry Funk for the WCW Hardcore Title
2001
Grand Forks, North Dakota: – Jeff Hardy defeated Jerry Lynn for the WWF Light Heavyweight Title
Considering the amount of professional wrestlers there are (and have been) in the world, very few make it to WWE. Of those who make it to WWE, very few win titles. Of those who do, there aren’t very many who win titles on their first day in the company.
One of those who did was Santino Marella.
Many WWE fans remember the “Milan Miracle” and the subsequent years that Santino spent in WWE (mostly as a joke cracking midcard act) and many will have their favourite Santino moment.
In this Wrestling Observer exclusive interview, we meet Anthony Carelli, the man behind the Santino persona.
During the interview, we discussed:
– His recent release by WWE and how it blindsided him
– How close he came to being the SmackDown GM in the upcoming brand split
– Whether he got any heat for winning the IC title on his first night in the job
– Almost winning the WWE Heavyweight Championship
– Jim Cornette slapping him in OVW and why he decided against retaliating against an “old man”
– Setting up the BattleArts Academy and training kids and adults in wrestling and judo
We got two hours to cover this week of G1 2015 coverage, so let’s not waste any time!
July 26, 2015 in Hiroshima:
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Togi Makabe
This, of course, was super stiff, but nothing out of the ordinary. Good, not great. Shibata got the win with the penalty kick.
AJ Styles vs. Kota Ibushi
This was good stuff. I loved the sequence near the end where Kota tried a hurricanrana off the top rope, but AJ blocked hit and hit a hurricanrana just for Ibushi to counter with a rollup, but AJ countered with a Styles Clash attempt. I keep saying this like a broken record, but Ibushi is so great; the last place he needs to be is in IGF where there’s like zero buzz. The burnout is totally understandable, but at the same time I feel like his eccentricities are getting the best of his career. Kota wins with the phoenix splash in a really great match.
Tetsuya Naito is interviewed. He went to Mexico in May (2015) and mentioned how he met people like La Sombra and Rush and how they wrestled freely; he was jealous. As he teamed with them in matches he felt a sense of joy, so he wanted to bring that to Japan. He felt that he needed to stick to his own style. But after wrestling in Mexico, he realized he needed to branch out. He could say he has no feelings regarding Tanahashi, but that would be a lie. He doesn’t have much more to be say regarding him.
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito
A great showcase for the new Naito here. He took his time taking off his suit (he’s replaced that with just taking a very long time getting to the ring and harassing Milano Collection AT), posed during matches and even took his time brawling around the ring, including a neckbreaker onto a table. In fact, a lot of this match was the two just brawling around, with Naito getting the upper hand. They eventually make their way back to the ring and bust out a ton of great offense.
I really liked the work on Naito’s knee (he was out for a long period of time a couple of years prior due to a blown out knee) including the two high fly flows on it. Naito got the somewhat surprising win with his new finisher, Destino (a standing sliced bread).
In a post match promo, he told the Japanese people to calm down. No one can stop him now, He finished off his short promo saying LOS INGOBERNABLES!
Tanahashi says this was one of his top 5 disappointing matches as he’s helped out backstage. He said the match was what it was – it was destiny. At first, no one could even pronounce los Ingobernables, but as the tournament went on he gained more confidence. He wants Los Ingobernables to gain strength in New Japan.
Shinsuke Nakamura welcomes us to the second hour of New Japan on AXS.
This footage is from August 1 in Osaka.
Karl Anderson vs. Yuji Nagata
Pretty decent match. I liked the work in the beginning where Anderson worked on Nagata’s ribs while Nagata worked on the arm. Anderson got the win after a gun stun out of nowhere.
Anderson told Nagata in a very rude manner to make him some food and do his laundry. Nagata didn’t have much response.
Tomoaki Honma vs. Michael Elgin
Elgin was such a fresh face in this tournament -literally everyone else was in the tournament a year prior, so seeing some new match ups here was pretty great. Elgin proved just how great a talent he really is by doing some of the best work of his career in this tournament, and prove a lot of his haters wrong with some terrific offense that really got Elgin over.
This was a great match. People were super into both guys and wanted Honma to get the big win. My favorite spot was the deadlift falcon arrow onto the apron to the mat – such a great spot! Elgin gets the win with the buckle bomb and a sitout powerbomb. Great match.
Elgin says he’s back on track and how he’s on his way to the finals, because that’s just how good he is. Honma was amazed by Elgin’s power; he really wanted to win, but he will be happy with a win next time.
Nakamura mentions his elbow injury that kept him off some of the G1 shows and mentions how he wanted to get back in the ring very quickly. He stayed on tour during his injury, saying he would go to different hospitals to get the treatment he needed. It was tough for him to get his way back, and wasn’t until Osaka where he was finally able to return.
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Tomohiro Ishii
This was really great. Just built up really well from start to finish and the crowd was totally into it from start to finish. Both guys worked super hard. I loved the spot near the end where Nakamura went for another boma ye, Ishii stopped him but countered with the flying armbar scissors. Is that not the coolest move in pro wrestling? Both guys are awesome and they had, in fact, a really tremendous match. Nakamura got the win after a boma ye.
Nakamura says he had to give his all against Ishii, and glad he was able to face him. He was also happy he only missed one G1 match due to injury so he’s still in the game. In his reflective interview, he says he was very eager to face Ishii. Each one of their hits was full of passion. He appreciated that Ishii never tried to attack his elbow. He had to bring out everything he had, or he wouldn’t be able to stand. He felt that, even though saying this was weird, that it was a great comeback story.
Lots of great action on these shows; be sure to check them out!
Here we go with more Super Juniors tournament action! Today, the B block begins to take shape as we continue on in Gunma.
Yoshi-Hashi and Rocky Romero vs. Jay White and Ryusuke Taguchi
Solid match. White and Yoshi-Hashi had a pretty good sequence towards the end of the match, and White even kicked out of YH’s flipping neckbreaker. Yoshi-Hashi applied an arm scissors, however, and picked up the submission instead.
Romero mentioned post-match that Yoshi-Hashi is looking to kick Sanada’s ass down the line. They’ve been building a program together during this tour.
Captain New Japan, Matt Sydal, Juice Robinson, Kushida and Katsuyori Shibata vs. Yuji Nagata, Kyle O’Reilly, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Manabu Nakanishi and David Finlay
Pretty good match as the juniors busted out some cool offense. Shibata and Nagata zeroed in on one another throughout the match. Towards the end there were a lot of back and forth between Captain New Japan and Tenzan – CNJ even did the Mongolian chops, always a big no no. Tenzan got the last laugh, pinning CNJ with a moonsault.
Tiger Mask vs. Baretta
Nice match, though the crowd were quiet most of the time and it felt pretty long for what it was – solid work, just didn’t feel like a hot match at the end. Just okay back and forth. Baretta kicked out of a tiger bomb, but Tiger Mask sinked in the double arm scissors and got the win. The loss cuts Baretta from the finals, and Tiger Mask is already eliminated.
Will Ospreay vs. Jushin Thunder Liger
Another pretty solid match. Liger’s good at being the springboard for all of Ospreay’s offense. Ospreay looked pretty good and together they had a very nice match, though nothing too special. The win keeps Ospreay alive but eliminates Liger.
Chase Owens vs. Bobby Fish
Nicely worked match. They traded submissions and targeted each other’s legs. The problem was the crowd again as they just didn’t seem to care and just sat there. Fish submits Owens with a leglock. This puts out Owens, but Fish is still in, though it’s a longshot.
Ricochet vs. Volador Jr.
This was full of high flying moves, as you’d expect. Volador went for the hurricanrana off the top rope but Ricochet landed on his feel. Volador did an inverted code red. Ricochet went for what looked like an Alabama slam but Volador countered with a hurricanrana and SPIKED him right on the mat for the win. Very cool match, especially towards the end.
Both are still in the tournament – if Volador beats Ospreay, he wins the block, simple as that. If Ospreay beats Volador, it boils down to how Ricochet vs. Owens goes. Owens pinning Ricochet eliminates him as he’d tie with a winning Ospreay and Ospreay has the tie over him. If Ricochet wins, however, he’d get 12 and beat Ospreay. So still a lot of variables heading into tomorrow.
Kenny Omega, Bad Luck Fale, Yujiro Takahashi vs. Yoshitatsu, Satoshi Kojima and Michael Elgin
This got more heat than the other matches for whatever reason. Perfectly fine match, it was all about Elgin looking strong and wanting to get his hands on Omega. Elgin went to use a steel trash can lid on Omega, but he ducked and hit Yujiro instead. He pinned him the sitout powerbomb. He grabbed Omega’s broom after the match and destroyed it, then chased Omega with the trash can lid to the back.
Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii & Gedo vs. Tetsuya Naito, Evil, Sanada and Bushi
Since Milano wasn’t here today, Naito decided to pick on Yoshi-Hashi, who was doing commentary post-intermission. It never got anywhere as Okada jumped him immediately. It was another good back and forth match that these two teams have had for most of this tour. Okada and Naito worked briefly, which the crowd were very much into. Sanada and Gedo were the ones left in the ring after them and Sanada submitted Geod quickly with the skull end.
Ingobernables cleared the ring after the match. Yoshi-Hashi tried to make the save but Naito isolated him from the others and dragged him into the ring, but managed to escape. Naito finished the show cutting a promo.
Not as strong as other shows, but good action overall.
Bubba took a little boy’s sign and threatened to tear it up pre-match. Enzo saved the day and grabbed it, returning it. Fairly basic tag match. Enzo and Cass win with the big splash.
– Viktor vs Jack Swagger
Big pop for the hometown hero. Back and forth standard offensive the whole match. Pretty lengthy. Swagger wins with a Swagger Bomb.
– Darren Young vs Apollo Crews
Only big move Crews hit was the standing moonsault. Darren attempted a somersault pin which Apollo reversed to get the pin and win.
– Video of Kevin Owens backstage trash talking Ambrose saying he’s going to beat him. He gets a call from his mother who says Ambrose will beat him. In a fury, KO says Ambrose doesn’t stand a chance.
– The Wyatt Family vs Kane and Big Show
Rowan and Braun dominated the whole match until they both tried to get involved. Kane tossed out Braun and Show KO Punched Rowan for the win.
– Lana and Dana Brooke vs Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch w/Summer Rae as special ref
Glad to see the ladies getting time. The only thing that didn’t make much sense was Summer Rae as ref. Becky locked in the Disarm-her on Lana for the win while Sasha had Dana in the Bank Statement.
– WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day vs The Vaudevillians
Both sides got in good offense. The Vaudevillians hit the Whirling Dervish but New Day still pulled it off with Big E hitting the big ending with the assist from Xavier.
– Dean Ambrose vs Kevin Owens
Fun match. For a night where not a lot happened outside the ring, both went out a couple of times. KO teased Byron Saxton and even took his chair to use but Dean hit Dirty Deeds for the win.
After UFC announced Saturday night that Brock Lesnar was returning to the Octagon for UFC 200, WWE responded shortly afterward with a post on their own website that gives some insight into the arrangement and when we’ll see him next in a WWE ring.
“Brock Lesnar remains under contract to WWE. However, he has been granted a one-off opportunity to compete at UFC 200. Following this milestone event on July 9, Brock will return to WWE for SummerSlam on Sunday, August 21, live on WWE Network.”
Lesnar has been out of WWE action since downing Dean Ambrose in a street fight at April’s Wrestlemania in Dallas, TX.
The 38-year-old Lesnar had a history of big matches at “the Wrestlemania of the summer”. Last year, he lost to the Undertaker in a rematch of their classic Wrestlemania clash (the infamous ‘call for the bell’ match) while the year prior, he destroyed John Cena to take the WWE title — the birth of Suplex City.
The year prior, he faced and beat CM Punk, and the year prior to that, he faced and submitted Triple H.
Decent showcase of Klein’s strength. James had a nice Black Widow on Klein. Klein wins via tapout choke. Post match, BJ Whitmer berates Scarlett to do a proper winner announcement. Issues open challenge for any woman to face Kelly.
Show Results
– Dalton Castle vs Stevie Richards turns into ANX vs. Dalton Castle & Stevie Richards
ANX (w) come out for a segment called what’s wrong with wrestling. Stevie was blasted for lengthy career and Dalton Castle, Human Trafficker. Castle changes the match to tag match vs the “fatbags”. (Lights keep going out in building during this segment). Kenny King delivers a chairshot to a spinning Richards and capitalized for the pinfall.
– Caprice Coleman def. Cheeseburger
Coleman comes out bearing gifts (protein powder, peanuts) to make Cheeseburger bigger. Caprice wins in a solid match by submission. Cheeseburger over with the crowd.
– Christopher Daniels def. Ray Rowe
Rowe surprisedly booed. Towards end, Kaz comes out followed by Hanson just enough to cause a distraction. Daniels hits BME for the 3 count. Daniels helps Kaz continue the beatdown on Hanson which turns into…
– Warbeard Hanson def. Kazarian
Kaz is over with the crowd and so is Hanson. Very good match. Hanson wins with swinging leg kick. Post match, Kaz comes out followed by Rowe. A brawl ensues and War Machine stands tall with the tag belts. War Machine leaves then Addiction stands up with their belts.
– Kamaitachi vs. Jason Kincaid vs Lio Rush vs Will Ferrara vs ACH vs Roderick Strong
Roddy clears the ring to start and stares at Rush. Match breaks down and Roddy does a sick spot outside the ring where he flings each opponent into the metal barricade. Then begins in the ring with Kamaitachi. ACH and Lio do some cool floppy counter stuff. Kincaid came in with a sick off the ropes bulldog/STO spot. Very fast paced, hard to keep up. Lot of Roddy dominance. Kincaid hits the sunset flip power bomb on Lio Rush to the guys on the floor. Kamaitachi then hits a spinning modification of air raid crash for the 3 on Kincaid in the ring. Great match.
Intermission
– BJ Whitmer tries to get on mic and is booed at every opportunity. He graces us with his presence in a practice match against a guy who may have been announced as Mark Sales, dressed in Corino trunks. Whitmer squashed him quickly.
– Silas Young and Beer City Bruiser vs Shane Taylor and Keith Lee
Taylor hits 2nd rope splash on Beer City Bruiser for the pin.
– Jay Briscoe vs. Moose w/ Stokely Hathaway
Both these guys chants to start. Stiff contest. Nice tope con Hilo by Moose. Briscoe hits a Death Valley Driver on the ring apron to Moose. Jay Driller to Moose for a near fall. Crowd goes nuts thinking it was 3. Moose powerbombs Jay through ringside timekeeper table. Jay gets back in the ring at the count of 19. Jay counters the powerbomb into another Jay Driller for the win. Match of the night!
– ROH Champion Jay Lethal (w/Taeler Hendrix) vs. Mark Briscoe
Back and forth match. Mark kicked out of the second diving forearm from Lethal. Jay hit a top rope elbow drop for a near fall, later locking on a figure four. Lethal blocked a Briscoe Elbow from top, kicks him in the face and dazes him, nailing Lethal Injection for the 3. Solid match.
– Bullet Club (Adam Page & Adam Cole) (w/Young Bucks) vs. Motor City Machine Guns
Match started out of the ring with barricade throws on MCMG. Bucks superkick Sabin before heading to the back. A lot of Too Sweet eye pokes by Cole. Page connects on the shooting star to the outside. MCMG hit tag team combination from the top rope to near fall because Todd Sinclair pulled out of ring. Upon getting back in the ring, MCMG superkicks him.
Bucks return and Superkick Sabin. Cole holds Shelley and Bucks inadvertently hit Cole with superkicks and get superkicked by MCM. Page gets back in the ring, MCMG hit their finish for the 3 count on Page.
After the match, the Addiction comes out to attack MCMG. MCMG clears them to the outside where the Bucks hit Addiction w/superkicks. Sabin gets on the mic and asks the crowd if they want to see Addiction as champs. Boos. They ask if the people want to see MCMG vs YB. They says if they win the YB will be first competitors.
Bucks gets on the mic and say that MCMG is their biggest rivalry. Shelley then puts over the ROH tag division and the fans. Shelley says MCMG + YB equal profits & 5 star classics. They call the Bucks back in the ring for handshakes. Surprisingly, no Superkicks and clean handshakes.
UFC announced during UFC 199 that Don Frye has been named to the Pioneer division of the UFC 2016 Hall of Fame. The event will take place on Sunday, July 10, at 12 p.m. PT at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The ceremony will close out the UFC Fan Expo during the final day of the 5th Annual UFC International Fight Week. The event will also be streamed live and available on-demand exclusively on UFC FIGHT PASS.
“Don Frye is a legend in this sport and one of the toughest guys to ever compete,” UFC President Dana White said. “He was known for putting on incredible fights like his one with Takayama in PRIDE, which is still to this day one of the craziest fights I’ve ever seen. Congratulations to Don Frye for being selected to the 2016 Class of the UFC Hall of Fame!”
Frye notched a 10-1 record during four events over a span of 11 months in 1996. His mixed martial arts career began at UFC 8: DAVID vs. GOLIATH, where he defeated three opponents to capture the tournament title on February 16. He then competed at UFC 9: MOTOR CITY MADNESS on May 17, winning his fight on a non-tournament based card. Following his runner-up finish during UFC 10: THE TOURNAMENT on July 12, he secured his second tournament championship at UFC: THE ULTIMATE ULTIMATE 1996 on December 7.
During his tenure, Frye recorded a number of impressive firsts, becoming the first UFC athlete to finish three opponents in less than one minute, the first athlete to notch both a knockout and a submission in less than one minute, and the first to defeat five consecutive opponents by knockout. Over the course of his 15-year career, Frye also competed in PRIDE Fighting Championships, earning wins over UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock and Yoshihiro Takayama at PRIDE 19 and 21, respectively.
The final inductees of the Class of 2016 will be announced in the coming weeks leading to the landmark UFC 200: CORMIER vs. JONES 2, on Saturday, July 9 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC FIGHT PASS’ original series Fightography: Don Frye can be viewed here.
Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer will be back tonight to talk UFC 199, Brock Lesnar’s return to UFC and how this deal came to pass, the Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz rematch being signed for UFC 202 and more. Sign up today for full access to all of our new and archived shows (8,000 total), new and archived Wrestling Observer Newsletters and more!
