There’s nothing like a new 2K trailer on Raw to get the blood pumping, is there?
On an otherwise lackluster episode of the flagship show Memorial Day evening, the eyes had to widen a bit when 2K aired a spot for the upcoming WWE 2K17 video game featuring none other than Bill Goldberg.
Video game chatter aside, this is notable for a few reasons. One is that Goldberg is going to be in a WWE video game for the first time since WWE 2K14, and was on their airwaves in a new capacity for the first time in over a decade. Two is that in recent memory, two past stars that did similar spots — Ultimate Warrior and Sting — later found their way in the McMahon fold in memorable ways.
At 49 years old and with a long list of projects, the prospect of Goldberg returning to the ring for a regular schedule is obviously slim to none. But after years of saying there was no interest in going back, perhaps there’s a chance of at least one more match on a major event?
Dave & Bryan will have more on this tonight on Wrestling Observer Radio.
Huge pop for Enzo and Cass when the music hit. They were one of the most over acts of the night. Lots of crowd interaction with the Dudleys and fans as well as with Enzo & Cass and the fans. Several hot tags with Enzo & Cass. Lots of “Oh Enzo Amore,” “How You Doin” chants. Enzo was in really good form, excellent selling. Big Cass was also really over with the crowd. Enzo’s charisma is magnified in person, easily one of the most charismatic people on the roster.
– Titus O Neil def. Viktor
A pop for Titus when he came out. Viktor was also interacting with the crowd at ringside, which was something I did not expect. It was a good match, seemed to be shorter than the others.
– Goldust def. Tyler Breeze
Big pop for Goldust when he came out. Tyler was booed. It was a solid match. Fandango attempted to interfere which led to R-Truth coming out as well. Huge pop for R-Truth. Following the match, R-Truth did his rap, and several tried to throw Truth off by saying he was in Milwaukee or Green Bay. It was a really fun segment.
– Anderson & Gallows def. The Hype Bros
Good match. Mojo got a big pop from the crowd and there was a “Let’s Go Packers” chant that started. (Mojo was with the Packers pre-WWE for a short time). Anderson & Gallows were booed, but also got a good mix of cheering for them as well.
– Sami Zayn def. Kevin Owens
This was an excellent match match. Great promo by Owens who played off of the crowd and how he wanted to “get out of this town” Zayn and Owens both had some incredible selling during the match and kept the crowd engaged and going for the match.
– Apollo Crews def. Sheamus
Sheamus got a big pop, and cut a really good promo before the match. Apollo is super agile, had a near fall on Sheamus with a standing moonsault that got a huge pop. There was a CM Punk chant that started to which Sheamus responded with the “go to sleep” gesture which was funny.
– WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte def. Natalya
Charlotte is really good at interacting with the crowd. There was a “Charlotte sucks” chant again, which she played off of perfectly. Lots of submission work by both, which got huge pops. atalya had excellent selling, really great technical work. Charlotte won by pinfall by putting her foot on the ropes for stability
– WWE Champion Roman Reigns def. AJ Styles
Odd thing is that Reigns and Styles both had a mixture of being booed and cheered for. The match spilled out to ringside where Roman was thrown into the steel steps by AJ. This match kept the crowd really engaged, great selling by Reigns and Styles.
After sitting on the sidelines since January recovering from shoulder surgery, the Memorial Day edition of Raw from Green Bay, WI, will feature the return of former WWE Champion and top draw John Cena to action.
Unlike the return of Seth Rollins last week, Cena’s reemergence has been hyped for weeks with vignettes and an appearance on the Today show this morning. (Also, remember that we just saw him do a run-it at Wrestlemania.) With the brand split coming up in July, it will be interesting to see if they will start the buildup to the July 11th draft show tonight, or give it time to build and wait after the Money in the Bank PPV.
If this show does a poor rating, expect blame to be placed on Game 7 of the Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder NBA playoff series. There is also Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals between San Jose and Pittsburgh that kicks off tonight — more of a regional ratings hit.
Our coverage starts at 8 ET. Join us!
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The Big Takeaway: A.J. Styles reunited with Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson in what may be the angle of the year. It happened during John Cena’s return. Styles came out to put over Cena and welcome him back to Raw. Anderson and Gallows came out to accuse Styles of kissing Cena’s ass. Just when it seemed they were gearing up for a tag team match, Styles jumped Cena, and the Club joined together for a collective beatdown. Styles repeatedly left the ring, then ran back in to beat up Cena some more. Only other news of note was Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon acknowledging Smackdown’s move to Tuesdays starting in July and the upcoming brand extension.
Shane & Steph Open The Show
They opened with a 10-bell salute in tribute to the soldiers for Memorial Day with all of the roster’s superstars lined up on the ramp. Vince, Stephanie and Shane McMahon were out there, but there was no HHH. They replayed a speech that Ronald Reagan gave on Memorial Day in 1982 with various personalities reciting the address.
Shane came out, but was cut off by Stephanie. They were more antagonistic towards each other this week. Stephanie was wearing shorts so brief, they wouldn’t have been able to wipe up a small amount of milk spilled on your kitchen floor. Shane announced that Smackdown would go live every Tuesday in July. Stephanie announced John Cena’s return, which got mostly cheers.
The New Day showed up. They all put over Smackdown going live. Then they mentioned the brand extension, showing mainstream news publications about the looming split. Kofi Kingston said he was new era, which Big E. and Xavier Woods laughed at. Woods said Kingston was his favorite wrestler in middle school. Kingston asked where is the New Era going?
Stephanie said they didn’t know yet. Kofi accused her of dodging the question. New Day asked to not be split up. Shane said nothing is off the table. Big E. was worried. Woods didn’t want Francesca the Trombone to be raised without her three fathers, and said trombones raised without a father don’t have as good a track record.
Kingston said Shane and Stephanie hadn’t decided who will run which brand, but Big E. sensed there was a sibling rivalry brewing. So Big E. called for a dance contest. Shane started dancing to the New Day’s music while Stephanie stood back in the corner and laughed at him. Stephanie acted like she was going to dance, which she did to the New Day’s music last year with HHH watching on. Before she could begin, the Vaudevillains came out for a match with the New Day. Michael Cole said going into the break that Smackdown live would return. JBL busted his chops over later.
WWE Tag Champs The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E.) defeated the Vaudevillains by DQ in a non-title match (8:50)
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows came through the crowd and jumped New Day for the DQ. Gallows threw Woods into the dasherboards, then Anderson gave Kingston a Yakuza Kick. While this was going on, Simon Gotch kicked Big E. from behind. Vaudevillains left Big E laying so Gallows and Anderson could deliver the Magic Killer on him. Crowd is already dead and we’re only 35 minutes in.
Anderson and Gallows were backstage. Renee Young asked them what that was all about. Anderson said that was to show they could inflict as much damage without A.J. Styles than with him. He said they were just getting started.
Apollo Crews met with Big Show backstage. Show said he liked Crews and told him Sheamus was a bully. Show said he didn’t mind the New Era because he’s been knocking out guys since the Jurassic Era and it didn’t matter to him. Show said Sheamus is in desperation mode and he jumped Crews last week because he wanted to see if Crews would back down. Show told Crews the question is whether Crews will back down.
The Usos defeated Breezango (1:43)
Jey Uso pinned Fandango with a crucifix. Goldust and R-Truth were at ringside. Truth was all the place, calling Byron Saxton “Coach.” To which JBL shouted “Byron’s not Coach. Coach has talent!” Tyler Breeze and Fandango started jawing off to the Golden Truth and the two sides brawled. Truth threw Fandango into the barricade. Goldust gave Breeze a powerslam on the floor. The gimmick with the Golden Truth is they’ve lost both matches to Breezango so far, and JBL makes fun of them for being a babyface tag team that loses.
Roman Reigns came out before the Warriors-Thunder game could tip off.
He got his usual reception. He talked about how Seth Rollins sold out two years ago when he broke up the Shield. Rolins said he was calling himself “The Man”, but how can he be The Man when he’s running from The Guy? He challenged Rollins to come out.
Rollins came out to noticeably more cheers, even after his heel promo last week. He teased getting into the ring, came down the ramp, then went back up the ramp. He acted like he was going to speak for about a minute, but stopped before he could utter a word. He threw the mic down like he was going to fight, but then held up. He kept starting and stopping. I was getting flashbacks to the Sheamus-Reigns angle from last December. Some fans chanted “boring.” Then he picked up the microphone again, threw it down and left. Reigns music played. Rollins ran down again, but stopped when Reigns turned his back and caught his eye. Not a great segment.
The most newsworthy thing of the night happened during the commercial after this for 2K17. In an ad you can see here, Goldberg appeared walking with security to his WCW theme music, looking in great shape for a 49-year-old. The setting, scenery and placement after that abysmal Reigns-Rollins angle made him look like more of a star than anyone so far tonight.
U.S. Champion Rusev defeated Zack Ryder via submission in a non-title match (2:33)
Rusev won with the Accolade, which looks more like a rear naked choke now than a Camel Clutch. Ryder had just hit the Broski Boot and went for the Rough Ryder, but Rusev tossed him over and Ryder landed on his ass. Lana’s outfits get skimpier by the week. She’s now relegated to just introducing Rusev, but didn’t even get in the ring for his postmatch promo.
Rusev cut an anti-American interview afterwards where he called the Green Bay fans “Cheese gobbling cheese…whatever you call yourselves.” Titus O’Neal walked out and did a robotic promo about the nerve of Rusev running down America on Memorial Day. O’Neal said he comes from America, where they fight. O’Neal decked Rusev with one forearm to send him out of the ring.
Primo and Epico did another interview putting over Puerto Rico.
There was a piece reviewing the Charlotte-Ric Flair breakup from last week. Various wrestlers weighed in on Charlotte. Dean Ambrose said he felt Charlotte wanted to humiliate her father. Dolph Ziggler said he felt Charlotte kind of told the truth. What? Becky Lynch said Ric always wanted the best for him. Ambrose got another quip saying Flair may have taught Charlotte everything she knows, but not everything he knows. Cole, JBL and Saxton read off various tweets. Then they showed an angle from earlier today where Stephanie dressed down Charlotte, saying she was embarrassed to have her as champion and screamed how Charlotte was spoiled and privileged. Basically, the entire segment was to get Charlotte over as a heel. Then in the last minute of said angle, they made the entire thing moot by having Stephanie berate her and she came off as another wounded pup under the Authority’s rule.
Enzo Amore and Big Cass came out to the biggest pop of the show. Enzo said since they were in Green Bay, they reeled off a list of cheeses. Cass scrolled them off one by one while making a double entendre about you know what.
Enzo and Cass defeated The Dudley Boyz (9:16)
Third tag team match in two hours. I thought the Jim Crockett Cup had broken out. Enzo pinned Devon Dudley after the Rocket Launcher. Just a month after suffering the concussion at Payback, Enzo got the heat after falling off the top rope. Bubba Ray got slammed off the top rope by Cass, but had to wait forever for him to get up. Match had the most heat of the night.
The main event will be a six-man tag involving the known participants in the Money in the Bank match, with Ambrose, Cesaro and Sami Zayn facing Alberto Del Rio, Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho. Ambrose, Cesaro and Zayn talked privately backstage. Ambrose said you couldn’t trust Owens because he was a Canadian. Zayn started to point out he was a Canadian, then Cesaro said Jericho was also dangerous. Ambrose derided Jericho as also being Canadian. Zayn spoke up and asked Ambrose if he knew he was Canadian. Ambrose looked like that was a revelation and said “That explains everything.” Zayn looked confused.
John Cena Returns
John Cena returned to a nice pop. He got a short “welcome back” chant, but it was surprisingly very brief. Of course, he got his usual share of boos. He started very serious reciting the Ronald Reagan speech earlier, then said there were many brave heroes who had fallen. Memorial Day was a celebration of that sacrifice and he was very thankful to be back home. On this day, it was with the utmost respect that he honored the heroes who helped keep liberty intact. Cena said liberty was freedom, and freedom was our lifeblood. It enabled pople to dress how you want, listen to whatever music you wanted, stand on your chair and scream at the top of your lungs.
Now, the question was whether he still belonged on Monday Night Raw? Cena said a new era arrived in his absence. That means new names and new faces. All of those people had the same thought: that Cena’s best days were over. Cena said he wouldn’t go quietly into the night. And if the future is upon us, then the future must go through him.
Styles came out. Cole put over seeing Styles and Cena in the same building was something many thought we would never see. At first, the crowd seemed quiet. Then it turned into a lengthy battle of dueling chants. Styles and Cena just let the fans take over the show for a few minutes. It built and built to where it was really loud and made this potential program feel like something special.
Styles said he had been waiting for this moment for a long time. Cena said, judging by this crowd, so has everyone else. Styles said Cena has kind of a bad rep. Styles said he always heard Cena was the first guy to get to the building and the last to leave. Styles said they have been in two different worlds, but he respected Cena’s hard work. Styles said he wanted to be the first one to say “Welcome back.” They shook hands.
Gallows and Anderson then walked out. Gallows told Styles they agreed to go their separate ways, and he saw what they did with the New Day. He accused Styles of sucking up to Cena. Anderson said he thought that was beneath Styles, but apparently not. Anderson said, unlike Styles, they were not there to kiss ass, but to kick it. That included Styles.
Just as Anderson and Gallows were ready to square off and an impromptu tag match was about to take place, Styles jumped Cena. Anderson and Gallows then jumped in and they all put the boots to Cena. Styles, Gallows and Anderson stood over Cena and gave each other Clique signs to some real heat. A fantastic angle to turn Styles heel. Styles ran back in to pound on Cena some more while Anderson said that’s the A.J. they love. Styles left, then ran back in again to lay the punches in some more. Crowd was incensed. After the referees came in, Styles came back in to pummel Cena some more. Styles screamed he was doing the world a favor and “You’re welcome, world.”
Dana Brooke defeated Natalya (1:20)
Brooke won after Charlotte distracted Natalya, which led to Brooke winning with a Samoan Driver. Cole called it a Michinoku Driver. Charlotte and Brooke put the boots to Natalya. Lynch ran down for the save. For someone who was supposed to be a heavy heel after last week, Charlotte got a disappointing response, probably because the star of the show stole her heat last hour.
Ziggler did a promo saying he was going to outwrestle Baron Corbin tonight. He brought up Jericho’s 1004 holds promo from 1998 Nitro. To show how badly it bombed, Ziggler bragged he had 1006 holds and starting naming them just like Jericho did 18 years ago. He listed armbar 3 times. He stopped after seven and said “He’s Dolph Ziggler and Corbin isn’t.”
Baron Corbin defeated Dolph Ziggler by DQ (:33)
The announcers built up Ziggler’s amateur record, including a school record 121 wins at Kent State University. When the bell sounded, Ziggler put on amateur wrestling headgear. So the first thing he did was kick Corbin in the balls for an immediate DQ. Ziggler announced he had been disqualified, but the loser of the match was still Corbin. JBL mentioned the original man of “1,000 holds” was Earl Caddock, who wrestled Joe Stecher in 1920 in the oldest known pro wrestling match that has footage.
Maryse introduced the Miz, who is on location shooting the Marine 5. He talked about how he’ll return soon to his adoring public to defend his Intercontinental Championship.
Jericho, Del Rio and Owens argued in the back over who should start their match tonight. Jericho finally got them to agree they should make sure Zayn, Ambrose and Cesaro don’t make it to Money in the Bank. After they left, Jericho called his teammates “idiots.”
Cesaro, Dean Ambrose & Sami Zayn defeated Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens and Alberto Del Rio (17:51)
Good match with an excellent finishing sequence ending with Ambrose pinning Owens after Dirty Deeds. Jericho hit a codebreaker on Ambrose, but Owens made a blind tag trying to get the pin. That led to Owens and Jericho arguing, which they had done throughout the match. Zayn hit the Helluva Kick on Del Rio, moments after Del Rio caught Cesaro with the Back Stabber.
Earlier, Ambrose hit a tope as the heels bickered with each other some more. Felt like a house show match just thrown out on live TV because the company knew they were going to get creamed by the NBA Finals, but the main event slot hasn’t felt like the true main event of the show lately.
SUMMARY:
It says a lot for Cena’s presence that frequently has memorable swerve angles. Mark Henry’s career highlight was the angle in 2013 where he teased a retirement speech, but jumped Cena instead. Styles’ heel turn tonight could be every bit as memorable. It was extremely well done and the only thing worthwhile in an otherwise forgettable 3 hours.
While there is a lot of talk about Raw ratings, which, unless John Cena’s drawing power is really strong for his return, they would hit seasonal record lows going against both the Warriors vs. Thunder game seven and the Sharks vs. Penguins game one in the NHL finals, another story has started to surface: TicketMaster and the WWE’s web site have pulled the planned SummerSlam weekend NXT show off their schedule.
Decisions and schedule changes happen all the time though. If you remember, last year’s show in Brooklyn was NXT’s biggest success in history, drawing a legit sellout with the Bayley vs. Sasha Banks match that may have been the best women’s match in company history. Even internally, people have been asking questions and right now there are no answers other than the show is no longer on the schedule. At least some in NXT are very concerned about that and the billing of the 6/8 show as “The End.”
We’re looking for live reports from Raw tonight in Green Bay, featuring the return of John Cena to Dave@WrestlingObserver.com.
NEW JAPAN BEST OF THE SUPER JUNIORS FROM HIROSHIMA ON TUESDAY (taped for New Japan World available later in the day)
Bushi vs. David Finlay
Matt Sydal vs. Rocky Romero
Kushida vs. Gedo
Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Kyle O’Reilly
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday in Rockford, IL We’re also looking for reports on this show.
NEW JAPAN BEST OF THE SUPER JUNIORS FROM NAGOYA ON THURSDAY (taped for New Japan World, available later in the day)
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With two of the biggest news stories of the year, the WWE brand split and the UFC sale both in play, we’ve got a new issue of the Observer packed with news.
Our lead story looks at the brand split, with what we do know, what has and hasn’t been decided and the background of how it went down. There’s also more info on the UFC sale talks. Plus there is coverage of the return of Seth Rollins, the build to Money in the Bank and have coverage of Extreme Rules, the negotiations for a Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz fight and look more at the Floyd Mayweather vs. McGregor rumors. Take an in-depth look at the departure of Cody Runnels (Rhodes) from WWE and his future prospects, plus look at his complaints regarding people in the company. All this plus a look at the New Japan Super Juniors tournament, the funding of the Hulk Hogan lawsuit, the World Cup trios tournament coming up and a feature on the last PWG show.
The lead story looks at every aspect of the brand split. It looks at the original goals and reasons for it and what did and didn’t work, plus how it’ll be different this time, how the touring will work, and an examination of what talent knows and tentative plans in place. Vince McMahon’ reaction is a big part of this, and this issue explains how the deal went down, the story behind the story and other aspects to be considered. There’s also a look at Smackdown going live, the affect on the fan base, the affect on TNA and why it was important to get Smackdown away from Thursday.
Another big story in this issues is Extreme Rules, the decision to make Seth Rollins a heel and current plans for Money in the Bank, and also match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.
Details about what’s going on with Conor McGregor, including Colin Cowherd’s claim that Mayweather vs. McGregor is happening, as well as a look at the Nate Diaz negotiations last week and what McGregor has said publicly.
Finally, this issue looks at Cody Runnels leaving WWE, what he said was the reason why, and a look into those reasons, and a look at the realities of WWE business decisions and his background.
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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Before starting, I just want everyone to spend a moment thinking of & honoring those who Memorial Day was named for: people who lost their lives in service to this country. That is the supreme sacrifice, and hopefully we all recognize that because of their efforts, we are able to live the type of lives we are able to right now.
NXT is booking shows outside Florida going forward. In fact, they just announced a tour in July with shows on 7/14 in Indianapolis, 7/15 in Cincinnati and 7/16 in Louisville.
The record low Raw number for non-football season would be 3,116,000 viewers on April 25. Without Cena’s return, I don’t think there’s a chance they get that number.
Tonight’s Raw show should not only introduce the seventh person in the Money in the Bank match but also start some build for the key matches on the undercard. Enzo & Cass vs. The Dudleys and a technical match with Dolph Ziggler vs Baron Corbin were scheduled as of earlier today. Another tease is The Hatch happens tonight and lots more social media activity from Bray Wyatt, who should be back any week now if not tonight.
Bryan and I will be back tonight with Wrestling Observer radio covering all the news on the brand split, Raw and take email questions that can be sent to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com.
Today’s Super Juniors results from Yonago:
Chase Owens (2-2) beat Trent Baretta (2-2)
Tiger Mask (2-2) beat Will Ospreay (1-3)
Bobby Fish (2-2) beat Volador Jr. (2-2)
Ricochet (3-1) beat Jushin Liger (2-2)
WWE
John Cena said he would be wearing shorts that were given to him by Ellen Degeneres.
Seth Rollins will be headlining “the Reigns tour” this coming weekend with multiple person title matches, usually with A.J. Styles, on dates in Odessa, Lubbock and Amarillo.
The Marine 5 starts production tomorrow in Vancouver and will include The Miz, Maryse, Naomi, Heath Slater, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel. In theory, some or all of those names should be out for several weeks. If Miz loses the title tonight, that would be why. If he doesn’t, the title may be on ice for a little while.
Dwayne Johnson officially announced he was going to star in the Sony Pictures adaption of “Doc Savage” as well as produce the movie through his Seven Bucks Entertainment company. Savage is a DC superhero comic book character with super strength and intelligence.
The Seth Rollins documentary starts right after Raw on the WWE Network.
The TakeOver go-home show featuring the contract signing for Asuka vs. Nia Jax will be on NXT on Wednesday night. The big show featuring Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe in a cage match and Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Austin Aries will be a week from Wednesday from Full Sail University.
Summer Rae threw out the first pitch at the Chicago Cubs game on Friday.
UFC
Lots of surprises last night so this is how the picks went
3-2 – Mike Sawyer, John Pollock, Paul Fontaine
2-3 – Josh Nason, David Bixenspan, Front Row Brian
1-4 – Steve Juon, me, Ryan Frederick
0-5 – Mike Sempervive
UFC Bad Blood TV special at 9 p.m. Eastern tomorrow night on FS 1 runs down the nine year long feud between Urijah Faber and Dominick Cruz which comes to a head on Saturday night.
MISCELLANEOUS
Lineup for tomorrow night’s Impact is:
Mike Bennett vs. James Storm
Gail Kim & Jade vs. Sienna & Allie
Robbie E & Jessie Godderz vs. Rockstar Spud & Tyrus with Mike Bennett as referee
Bram vs. Bobby Lashley for the King of the Mountain title
Drew Galloway vs. Abyss & Crazzy Steve in a handicap match.
This is also the next to last episode of Impact before the 6/12 Slammiversary PPV show.
TNA announced a VIP experience for Slammiversary for $129 with priority seating at the show and the tapings over the next few days, as well as a post-show party with the wrestlers a poster, and nighty meet and greets and autograph sessions.
A.J. Brooks, the former A.J. Lee, on Twitter wrote, “Just finished my book. No co-writer. No ghost writer. Just me, lots of carbs and an adorably evil mind.”
Progress Wrestling from yesterday in London, England at the Electric Ballroom for the Strong Style 16 tournament: Mark Haskins b Pete Dunne, Mikey Whiplash b Damon Moser, Zack Gibson b Kenny Williams, Jack Gallagher b TK Cooper, Big Daddy Walter b Dave Mastiff, Chris Hero b Mark Andrews, Sami Callihan b Matt Cross (Son of Havoc in Lucha Underground), Tommy End b Rampage Brown, James Davis & Rob Lynch b Nathan Cruz & El Ligero
Smash Wrestling vs. Progress Wrestling takes place in Toronto on 9/17 and 9/18 at the Franklin Horner Community Centre. Nothing has been announced but the push is the stars of Progress like Zack Sabre Jr., Will Ospreay, Mark Andrews, Jimmy Havoc and Marty Scurll and the stars of Smash like Courtney Rush (Rosemary in TNA), Pepper Parks (TNA), Cherry Bomb (TNA), Matt Cross and Johnny Gargano.
A story on Cowboy Frankie Laine, who passed way last week, can be read here, from his hometown newspaper.
World Series of Fighting on NBC Sports has this show scheduled for 7/30 in Everett, WA at the Xfinity Arena:
Marlon Morales vs. Josh Hill for the bantamweight title
Alexandre Almeida vs. Lance Palmer for the featherweight title
Phoenix Jones vs. Caros Fodor in the battle of adopted brothers from Seattle
In Your Face Wrestling on 6/11 in Delanson, NY at the Duanesburg YMCA features Brutal Bob Evans and HC Loc.
I Believe in Wrestling from Saturday night in Orlando for the Florida J Cup: Jonny Vandal b Jay Rios, Kota Sekifuda b CT Brown, Aaron Epic b Slade Porter, Jon Cruz b Xander Vargas, JD Amazing & Brandon Scherer & Chico Adams b Braydon Knight & Tyranus & Josh Parker, Jonny Vandal b Kota Sekifuda, Aaron Epic b Jon Cruz, Santana Garrett & MJ Knight & Nova Girl b Queen Raquel (TNA) & Dominique Fabiano & Jenson Fratelli, Jonny Vandal b Aaron Epic to win tournament. Next show is 6/18 with Rhett Giddins vs. JD Amazing and Santana Garrett vs. Thea Trinidad (Rosita in TNA).
CWF presents a free wrestling show at Tim Horton’s on 145 Hazel Rd. in St. Catherines, ONT on Wednesday at 6 p.m. to support Tim Horton’s Camp Day 2016.
Another free event takes place tonight in the parking lot of Tim Horton’s at 1495 Regent Ave. in Winnipeg with donations accepted for Tim Horton’s Children Foundation to send underprivileged children to camp put on by Canadian Wrestling Elite..
Conflict Wrestling on 6/12 in Kitchener, ONT features a tribute show for Edith Marie Marsh, headlined by Will White vs. John Atlas and Kaitlin Diemond vs. Jennifer Blake.
CZW Tournament of Death on 6/11 in Townsend, DE at 2 p.m. at 179 Ebenzer Church Rd. features these tournament matches
Alex Colon vs. Danny Havoc in a light tube death match
Masada vs. Conor Claxton in a barbed wire madness match
Tim Donst vs. Rickey Shane Page in a stipulation of Donst’s choice match
Jeff Cannonball vs. Matt Tremont in a Home Run Derby match.
There will also be non-tournament matches including:
Devon Moore vs. Dale Patricks in a scaffold match
DJ Hyde vs. Josh Crane in a panes of glass match
Maryland Championship Wrestling on 6/10 in Joppa, MD at the MCW Arena feature Jimmy’s Seafood Slamboree with Kevin Nash, Scott Hall and Damien Sandow appearing at 6 p.m. for a meet and greet. Sandow will also wrestle on the show.
CWE from last night in Fort William, ONT: Jason Kincaid b Joe Keys, Silas Young b Robby Royce, Anderson Tyson Moore b Travis Cole to keep the CWE title, Lio Rush b Tyler Colton-DQ so Colton keeps the TV title, Danny Duggan b Wildman Firpo, Lio Rush & Jason Kincaid & Anderson Tyson Moore b Silas Young & Tyler Colton & Travis Cole. Next tour is 9/22 to 10/2 featuring Ethan Carter III.
St. Louis, Missouri: – Joe Stecher defeated Stanislaus Zbyszko for the World’s Heavyweight Wrestling Title
1943 Mexico City, Mexico: – Joe Silva defeated Adolfo Bonales to win the Mexico National Lightweight Title
1945 Toronto, Iowa: – Marshall Estep defeated Ken Fenelon for the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title
1956 Montreal, Quebec, Canada: – Killer Kowalski defeated Yvon Robert for the Montreal World Heavyweight Title
1963 Amarillo, Texas: – AWA Champion Verne Gagne drew with Amarillo World Champion Dory Funk Jr when the 60 minute time limit expired in the 3rd fall – Tokyo Tom beat Dory Funk Sr in 2 out of 3 falls – Bob Ellis & Wahoo McDaniel & Ricky Romero beat Killer Karl Kox & Mike DiBiase & Sputnik Monroe
Kansas City; Kansas: – In a Lumberjack match, Masked Medic #1 and Masked Medic #2 beat Steve Bolus and Steve Kovacs – Bob Geigel beat Sonny Myers – Larry Hamilton beat Roy Collins – Joe Scarpello beat Rock Hunter via dq
1964 Manchester, England: – Bobby Steele defeated Chick Purvey to win the European Middleweight Title
Mexico City, Mexico: – Benny Galant defeated El Rayo de Jalisco to win the NWA World Middleweight Title
1966 Memphis, Tennessee: – Herb Welch and Al Costello defeated Karl and Eric von Brauner in a tournament final to win the vacant Mid-America version of the NWA World Tag Team Titles
1970 Minneapolis, Minnesota: – AWA Champion Verne Gagne beat Dr. X on a reverse decision 3rd fall dq – Blackjack Lanza & Lars Anderson beat Red Bastien & Pepper Gomez
Memphis, Tennessee: – Bobby Hart defeated Johnny Valentine for the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Title
1973 Hamburg, Pennsylvania: – Tony Garea & Haystacks Calhoun defeated Professor Tanaka & Mr. Fuji for the WWWF World Tag Team Titles
1974 Kansas City; Kansas: – The Interns (w/ Dr. Ken Ramey) defeated Omar Atlas & The Viking – Bob Geigel & Rufus R. Jones defeated Bob Brown & Lord Alfred Hayes – Don Fargo defeated Mike George
1978 Osaka, Japan: – Antonio Inoki defeated Andre the Giant by countout to win the first-annual New Japan Pro Wrestling MSG League
1980 Denver, Colorado: – The Crusher beat AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel in a non Title Cage Match – Adrian Adonis & Jesse Ventura beat Greg Gagne & Wahoo McDaniel – Jerry Blackwell went to a no contest with Dino Bravo
1981 San Juan, Puerto Rico: – Jack Brisco defeated Kim Song for the WWC Caribbean Heavyweight Title
Charlotte, North Carolina – Sweet Ebony Diamond defeated Greg Valentine to win the NWA Television Title
1983 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: – Little Tokyo defeated Cowboy Lang for the NWA World Midgets Title
1984 Tampa, Florida: – Angelo Mosca defeated Mike Rotundo to win the Florida version of the NWA Southern Heavyweight Title
1986 Houston, Texas: – Terry Gordy defeated Hacksaw Duggan in a tournament final to win the UWF title
1986 Des Moines, Iowa: – The Shadow (Jaymie Knight) won a 13-man battle royal to win the vacant NWA Central States Heavyweight Title
Oakland, California: – Jerry Blackwell won a battle royal – Nick Bockwinkel beat Larry Zbyszko – in a non title match, Midnight Rockers beat AWA Tag Team Champions Buddy Rose & Doug Somers
1996 Caguas, Puerto Rico: – Sean Morley (Val Venis) defeated El Bronco for the WWC Television Title
1998 – Hysteria defeated Vance Nevada to win the Canadian Wrestling Federation Junior Heavyweight Title
2000 Nampa, Idaho: – Sean Stasiak and Chuck Palumbo defeated Kronik (Brian Adams and Brian Clark) for the WCW World Tag Team Titles
2001 Santa Ana, California: – Evolution (Nova and Frankie Kazarian) won a tournament for the vacant UPW Tag Team Title
A battle of former UFC heavyweight champions was announced as the main event for UFC’s return to Germany.
Andrei Arlovski (25-12) will face Josh Barnett (34-8) in the main event on 9/3 in Hamburg, Germany at the Barclaycard Arena. The event will be broadcast on UFC Fight Pass with a 2 pm eastern main card start time.
While both are long-term veterans of the sport, they have never faced each other in the past. Arlovski was back in title contention with a six-fight winning streak until losing his last two fights via knockout, a quick loss to new champion Stipe Miocic, and a knockout loss to next title contender Alistair Overeem.
Barnett suffered a shocking loss to Ben Rothwell on the January FOX show. While losing to Rothwell isn’t shocking, Barnett lost via submission, and Barnett was considered one of the best submission heavyweights in the world, having never lost via submission in MMA competition (he submitted once due to shoulder injury against Mirko Cro Cop, but never to an actually submission move), and, when facing some of the best grapplers in the world in grappling matches, he hadn’t lost via submission in more than 15 year, since a 2000 match with Ricardo Almeida, and from a skill standpoint, that wasn’t even the same guy.
Barnett is also a pro wrestler in Japan, although has not done pro wrestling in 17 months.
Byron Saxon was the host, ring announcer and bell ringer.
1. Kane & Big Show defeated Eric Rowan & Braun Strowman clean pinfall.
2. Sasha Banks defeated Summer Rae with the bank statement.
3. Baron Corbin defeated Cesaro via pinfall.
4. Rusev w/Lana defeated Sin Cara with the camel clutch.
5. Paige & Becky Lynch defeated Lana & Dana Brooks.
6. Vaudevillians vs. Shining Stars vs. New Day in an elimination match: Vaudevillians first to be eliminated by Shining Stars and then New Day defeated Shining Stars.
7. Alberto Del Rio vs. Dean Ambrose: Dean Ambrose won via pinfall.
Best spots of the night were in the Ambrose match also. (Dean superplexed ADR off the top rope. Also Dean flew threw the middle ropes onto ADR on the floor.)
Overall a very entertaining show and the crowd seemed very pleased with the talent’s efforts.
WWE is not taking its somewhat perilous competition situation lying down.
John Cena was on NBC’s The Today Show Monday in New York, a mainstream promo stop before he was to head to Green Bay, WI, to return on Raw later Monday night. The appearance was to promote his return as a special thing.
But is a hot dog a sandwich?
Given the second and third hours are going head-to-head with the seventh game of the Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder NBA playoff semifinal, and the game one of the Stanley Cup finals, this will be the toughest competition Raw will face from other programming in 2016 until the Olympics later this year.
The question becomes where to place Cena on the show. The first hour is the only one not against the game, but the first hour on Memorial Day weekend is often low. But if Cena is on early and he’s not in the main event segment as well, it could lead to a big falloff late in the show due to the competition.
The NBA finals, which will affect ratings far more than the Stanley Cup, open on Thursday against Smackdown. Games five and six will be on June 13 and June 16, so if needed, they would go against Raw and Smackdown that week. The expectation is a Golden State vs. Cleveland finals rematch will do monstrous numbers because of the stars involved (LeBron James, Steph Curry, etc).
If there is a game seven needed, it would go head-to-head with Money in the Bank, but that’s not as big a deal with the network economy as it would be with the PPV economy.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 88: Almeida vs. Garbrandt from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The UFC’s annual Memorial Day Weekend event in Las Vegas is headlined by a bout between undefeated bantamweight prospects as 21-0 Thomas Almeida takes on 8-0 Cody Garbrandt. The co-main event features former UFC Bantamweight Champion Renan Barao moving up to the featherweight division as he takes on Jeremy Stephens. Also on the card, in a pivotal bout on UFC Fight Pass, it will be undefeated Aljamain Sterling taking on Bryan Caraway in bantamweight action. Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6 PM eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
HEAVYWEIGHTS- CHRIS DE LA ROCHA (4-1, 0-1 UFC) VS. ADAM MILSTEAD (7-1, 0-0 UFC)
ROUND 1- Milstead is making his UFC debut. They start swinging wildly to start. Milstead with a big right hand and de la Rocha pulls guard. They scramble up and Milstead lands a knee. They trade right hands. Milsread with another big right hand. de la Rocha lands one and then gets a takedown but they scramble up against the cage. Milstead with an elbow against the fence. Not much happening in the clinch. They break. de la Rocha is cut. They trade big punches and both are starting to tire early. Milstead with a big right hand and then two more. Milstead with a combo and a big right hand. Milstead landing punches and de la Rocha initiates a clinch against the fence. They break and Milstead with a solid left hand. de la Rocha scores a sloppy takedown but they get to their feet. Milstead with a big elbow in the clinch. They break. Milstead with a big left hook and a right hand and misses a head kick. 10-9 Milstead.
ROUND 2- They trade punches to start to second. Milstead with a big uppercut followed by a right hand. They trade punches in a scramble. de la Rocha with a right hand. They trade big punches. de la Rocha has a large cheering section in the arena. de la Rocha shoots for a takedown against the fence. He’s working for it but eats a big elbow from Milstead. They are broken up with not much going on in the clinch. de la Rocha goes for a kick but Milstead catches the leg and lands a big right hand. Milstead starting to tee off and has de la Rocha in trouble. de la Rocha is bleeding very badly. Milstead with two big right hands. Two more big right hands and another couple shots and the referee steps in and stops this fight. Milstead with a big TKO win in his UFC debut.
Official Result: Adam Milstead def. Chris de la Rocha by TKO (punches) at 4:01 of Round 2
ROUND 1- This is a big fight in the bantamweight division. Sterling with a quick front kick and another. They trade punches. Sterling with a jumping kick that misses but lands a spin kick. Sterling grabs a single leg but Caraway defends. They trade punches in the clinch. Sterling grabs the back and drags Caraway to the ground and has the hooks in and is looking for the choke. Sterling with punches from the back. Sterling has an arm over the neck. Caraway escapes but Sterling with big punches from the back and he tries to set up the choke again. Sterling still has the back and landing big punches from the back. Sterling has a modified choke in looking for the finish. Caraway survives. Big round for Sterling. 10-8 Sterling.
ROUND 2- Caraway looks to land a right hand quickly. Sterling shoots for a takedown but Caraway sprawls and has the neck of Sterling looking for a choke. Sterling escapes to his feet. Sterling with a body kick and then another. Sterling lands a big right hand and a big leg kick. Caraway lands a right hand. Sterling with a leg kick. They trade strikes and clinch against the fence. Not much happening but they break the clinch. Sterling just misses a spinning back fist. Caraway shoots for the takedown but Sterling defends against the cage. Caraway gets him down though. Caraway with punches from the top. Caraway looking for the back. Caraway transitions to the back and is landing punches. Caraway gets into half-guard. Caraway looking for a choke but the round ends. 10-9 Caraway, 19-18 Sterling.
ROUND 3- This round will decide it and its interesting how the judges scored the first. Sterling with a leg kick. Caraway looks the fresher of the two. They trade and Caraway misses a takedown. Sterling with a front kick followed by a right hand. Caraway gets a takedown but Sterling has the neck. Not much happening on the ground. They scramble to the feet but Caraway looking for another takedown. He gets it after Sterling lands a big knee. Caraway in the half-guard. Sterling has an inverted triangle locked in but Caraway escapes. Caraway not doing much and Sterling looking for the ref to stand them up. Caraway gets to the back of Sterling and looking for a choke. Sterling stands up and Caraway is on his back. Caraway with punches from the back. They go back to the mat and the fight ends. Real interesting decision coming up. 10-9 Caraway, 28-28.
Official Result: Bryan Caraway def. Aljamain Sterling by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 7 PM ET/4 PM PT)
LIGHTWEIGHTS- ERIK KOCH (14-4, 3-3 UFC) VS. SHANE CAMPBELL (12-4, 1-2 UFC)
ROUND 1- Campbell with two leg kicks to start and he slips on a third. Koch with a left hand. They trade leg kicks. Koch lands a left hand and then another. Koch with a head kick followed by a left hand. They trade punches. Koch with a head kick that stuns Campbell and they trade against the fence before a clinch. Koch with some knees in the tie-up. They trade knees. Both still battling in the clunch and landing knees and they finally break. Koch with a high kick. They trade and Campbell goes for a takedown but it is defended against the fence. Koch gets a takedown after eating an elbow. Koch takes the back and transitions to another takedown. Koch gets the back again. 10-9 Koch.
ROUND 2- Campbell lands a big punch and Koch immediately scores a takedown and is in the half-guard. Koch working to get into the mount but Campbell defending well on the bottom. Koch still working from the top and is setting up position but transitions to the back. Koch has the back and is looking to get the arm under the neck. Koch landing punches from the back and he locks a choke in and Campbell taps out! Big win for Koch in his first fight in over two years.
Official Result: Erik Koch def. Shane Campbell by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:02 of Round 2
MIDDLEWEIGHTS- JAKE COLLIER (9-3, 1-2 UFC) VS. ALBERTO UDA (9-0, 0-0 UFC)
ROUND 1- Uda makes his UFC debut. They clinch right away and Uda looks to land the knees. They break and Collier lands a left hook. They clinch again and trade knees and push the fight against the fence. Uda with a big knee as they break. Collier with a body kick. Uda with a big knee and a head kick and he has Collier in trouble. Uda grabs the back and lands punches and they go to the mat for a moment but scramble right back up. Uda has the body locked but misses a takedown and gives his back up to Collier.They clinch and land knees. They break and Collier with a spinning back fist. They clinch again. Each with a knee. They trade knees again. Collier scores a takedown. Collier in the full guard of Uda and lands a big left hand. Collier gets to his feet and it allows Uda to take his back and Uda looks for a choke. Uda ends on top landing punches as the round ends. 10-9 Uda.
ROUND 2- They come out punching and clinch right up. Collier grabs the body looking for a takedown but Uda is defending. Collier with some solid punches as they break. They trade body kicks and Collier seemed to hurt Uda with his. Collier with some big punches and a spin kick and Uda goes down and Collier finishes him off with a couple more punches from the top. Big win for Collier as he hands Uda his first career loss.
Official Result: Jake Collier def. Alberto Uda by TKO (strikes) at 1:06 of Round 2
LIGHTWEIGHTS- ABEL TRUJILLO (14-6 1 NC, 5-2 1 NC UFC) VS. JORDAN RINALDI (12-4, 0-0 UFC)
ROUND 1- Rinaldi is making his UFC debut on short notice against a tough opponent in Trujillo. Rinaldi with a leg kick. Trujillo lands a big right hand. Trujillo gets a takedown and is in the full guard of Rinaldi. Trujillo with a body punch from the top. Trujillo gets to his feet and Rinaldi stays on the mat until ordered up by Herb Dean. Trujillo with a big right hand and then stuffs a takedown attempt from Rinaldi. Rinaldi ducks under a left hand from Trujillo and they clinch against the fence. They trade punches and Trujillo lands big with a right hand. Left hook by Trujillo. Front kick by Trujillo. Trujillo lands a big right hand as they exchange punches. They trade left hands as the round ends. 10-9 Trujillo.
ROUND 2- Trujillo gets a takedown to start the second round. Rinaldi grabs the arm looking for the armbar but Trujillo defends it well. Trujillo now in the full guard of Rinaldi. Trujillo stands up and Rinaldi gets to his feet. They trade punches and Rinaldi grabs the back of Trujillo and scores a takedown along the fence. Rinaldi has the back and the hooks in and is looking for the choke. Rinaldi with punches from the back. Rinaldi has an arm under the neck. Trujillo escapes the attack and they start to each land punches on the mat. Rinaldi still working for the choke. He has Trujillo flattened out but no choke in. Trujillo staying out of the choke but eating punches from Rinaldi. Trujillo scrambes out to the top but the round ends before he is able to do anything. 10-9 Rinaldi, 19-19.
ROUND 3- Trujillo quickly goes for a takedown and lands a big right hand. They trade punches and each man connects. They scramble on the mat and to the feet and Rinaldi lands a knee. They trade and Trujillo defends a takedown and they clinch against the fence. They break. Rinaldi goes for a takedown but eats a knee from Trujillo. Trujillo with a big right hand. Rinaldi with a head kick. Trujillo with a right hand and he looks the fresher of the two with two minutes left. Trujillo throwing bombs at Rinaldi and some are landing. Trujillo with a left hook and another and he has Rinaldi rocked. Trujillo gets a takedown in what will probably guarantee him the win. Trujillo with punches from inside the guard. Neither man doing much on the mat. Rinaldi tries to scramble but eats a hammerfist from Trujillo, who gets to his feet. Herb Dean orders Rinaldi up. Trujillo with a left hook. 10-9 Trujillo, 29-28 Trujillo.
Official Result: Abel Trujillo def. Jordan Rinaldi by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHTS- (#6) SARA MCMANN (8-3, 2-3 UFC) VS. (#7) JESSICA EYE (11-4 1 NC, 1-3 1 NC UFC)
ROUND 1- Both women are in desperate need of a win here. Eye with a right hand. They trade and McMann goes for a takedown and they clinch against the fence. McMann with a couple of knees. McMann just holding on and not doing much. McMann with a knee. Another knee by McMann. They trade right hands. McMann misses a right hand. Eye lands a right hand. Both miss punche attempts. Eye with a missed body kick. Not much happened. 10-9 McMann.
ROUND 2- They trade punches. Eye with a right hand. McMann slips after getting hit by Eye. They trade punches and Eye lands as she circles away. McMann goes for a takedown but it is defended by Eye who lands a punch. They trade punches and McMann goes for a takedown and gets it. McMann with some hammerfists from the top. Eye throws up the leg to defend. McMann moves to side control and scrambles to the back. McMann with punches from the back and a knee to the body. 10-9 McMann, 20-18 McMann.
ROUND 3- McMann with a leg kick and Eye fires back with a combo and a leg kick. Eye with a leg kick and a right hand. McMann gets a takedown and is in side control. Eye looking to scramble out. McMann lands punches from the back. McMann has the back. Back elbow from Eye. McMann still has the back. McMann with punches from the back. Eye tries to scramble out but McMann still has the back and is landing punches. McMann looking for a north-south choke. She gets into the half-guard of Eye. McMann with some punches from the top and Eye starts to land from bottom but the fight ends. 10-9 McMann, 30-27 McMann.
Official Result: Sara McMann def. Jessica Eye by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
MAIN CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 9 PM ET/6 PM PT)
LIGHTWEIGHTS- JOSH BURKMAN (28-12 1 NC, 6-7 1 NC UFC) VS. PAUL FELDER (11-2, 3-2 UFC)
ROUND 1- Burkman going for side kicks. Each land leg kicks. Burkman with a head kick. Burkman with a leg kick. Felder with a head kick. Felder with a body kick. Burkman misses a right hand. They trade punches. Felder with a head kick. They trade punches and Burkman lands a right hand. Burkman with a leg kick. Each mand lands big and they are throwing bombs at each other. Burkman gets the takedown and is in side control. They get to the fence and Felder wall walks up. Burkman with a leg trip and they go down for a moment but get right back up. Burkman with a knee to the body. 10-9 Burkman.
ROUND 2- Burkman with a body kick and Felder fires back a leg kick. Burkman with a right hand. Felder with a leg kick. They trade punches. Felder with a leg kick.They trade and Felder lands a right hand. Felder with a combo. Burkman with a body kick. Felder with a hard both kick. They trade and then clinch. Burkman with a knee to the body and switches position. They break the clinch with just over a minute left in the round. Felder with a right hand. Felder rocks Burkman with a left and they trade against the fence. Felder clinches and lands a knee. Felder with an elbow. Felder gets the back of Burkman and lands a knee. 10-9 Felder, 19-19.
ROUND 3- They trade nice combinations to start the final round as this one likely decides it.Felder with a spin kick and slips for a moment. Felder with a big right hand. Felder lands a right hand. Burkman just misses a right hand. Felder with a leg kick and then another. Burkman with a knee kick and Felder counters with a leg kick. Felder just misses a head kick. Burkman with a left hand. They clinch and Felder lands a big knee as Burkman pushes the fight against the fence. Burkman has the body lock looking for a takedown and he gets it, Felder gets right back to his feet. They battle for position. They battle for underhooks. Burkman is bleeding pretty good right now. They are broken up from the clinch. Burkman with a late takedown as the fight ends. 10-9 Felder, 29-28 Felder.
Official Result: Paul Felder def. Josh Burkman by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
ROUND 1- Larkin with a left hand. They trade punches and Larkin lands a leg kick. Larkin with a big body kick. They trade punches and Larkin lands a leg kick and then a right hand. Masvidal lands a right hand following a leg kick. Larkin with the jab and then a leg kick. Masvidal with a leg kick. They each fire off punches at the other. They clinch against the fence. Each with some knees in the clinch. Larkin lands on the break and lands a leg kick. They trade punches and Larkin just misses an uppercut. Masvidal gets poked in the eye and is in a lot of pain. This could end the fight. Replay shows it was a bad eye poke and the doctor is checking on Masvidal. Masvidal is able to continue and lands a leg kick. 10-9 Larkin.
ROUND 2- Larkin with a huge leg kick in the opening minute of the round. Masvidal with a leg kick of his own. They trade leg kicks. Larkin just misses an uppercut. They trade punches and Larkin clinches with Masvidal against the fence. They battle for underhooks but break. Masvidal with a soft head kick. Larkin with a body punch. Larkin with a leg kick. Masvidal lands a right hand. They clinch against the fence. Larkin lands a big punch. They are firing away at each other. Masvidal with a leg kick but Larkin counters with a solid combo. They trade punches and Larkin with a knee. Larkin gets a late takedown at the end of the round. 10-9 Larkin, 20-18 Larkin.
ROUND 3- Larkin with a huge leg kick. Larkin with a big uppercut and they clinch. Both men throwing bombs at each other against the fence. Masvidal just misses a flying knee. Masvidal grabs the neck and pulls Larkin to the ground and they scramble back to their feet. Masvidal is deep on a takedown attempt against the fence. Masvidal gets a brief takedown as Larkin bounces right back to his feet. They thrown wild punches at each other and then clinch again. Larkin with some short punches as Masvidal is in on a takedown and then lets go. Masvidal going for another takedown but it is again defended. Larkin going for the takedown and lands a spinning elbow as the fight ends. 10-9 Larkin, 30-27 Larkin.
Official Result: Lorenz Larkin def. Jorge Masvidal by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
MIDDLEWEIGHTS- CHRIS CAMOZZI (23-10, 8-7 UFC) VS. VITOR MIRANDA (12-4, 3-1 UFC)
ROUND 1- Camozzi with a leg kick. Miranda with a body kick and Camozzi lands a leg kick. They trade kicks again. Miranda with a leg kick. Camozzi with a left hand. Miranda with a leg kick and then a body punch. Camozzi with a nice combo that backs Miranda against the fence. Camozzi with a leg kick. Miranda with a body kick. Camozzi goes for a head kick but Miranda grabs the leg and they scramble to the mat. They each land punches on the mat as they have their legs all tied up. Camozzi with some punches and Moranda isn’t doing much. 10-9 Camozzi.
ROUND 2- Camozzi with a nice combo to start off the second round. Miranda with a body punch. Miranda with a high kick. Miranda with a body kick. Camozzi catches the leg and gets a takedown and is in the guard of Miranda. Camozzi with some body punches from the top. Miranda tries to scramble out and it allows Camozzi to take his back. Camozzi looking to flatten Miranda out but Miranda is working to get to his feet. Camozzi in the half-guard and landing punches from the position. Other than that, not much action. Camozzi with some big elbows as the round ends. 10-9 Camozzi, 20-18 Camozzi.
ROUND 3- Miranda has a cut and it was checked on before the round. They trade punches and Camozzi scores the takedown and is looking to take the back. Camozzi is on top looking to improve position but not much action going on. Miranda scrambles to his feet. Miranda is bleeding pretty badly. Miranda lands a head kick but Camozzi comes back with a combo. They trade punches. They clinch and Camozzi lands a knee. Miranda with a high kick. Miranda lands a right hand. Miranda with a big high kick. Camozzi lands a left hand. Camozzi with a solid combo. Miranda misses a big left hand. Miranda with a leg kick. Camozzi with the short jab. Miranda lands a left uppercut. Camozzi should take this fight pretty easily. 10-9 Camozzi, 30-27 Camozzi.
Official Result: Chris Camozzi def. Vitor Miranda by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
WELTERWEIGHTS- (#10) TAREC SAFFIEDINE (16-4, 2-1 UFC) VS. (#11) RICK STORY (18-8, 11-6 UFC)
ROUND 1- Story with a leg kick to start. Story misses on some left hands. Saffiedine with a leg kick. They trade punches and clinch and Story pushes against the fence. They scramble on the mat for a moment but end up clinched back against the fence. Story with some body punches as Saffiedine has ahold of him. Neither man can separate from the other. Story with a right hand and they clinch against the fence again. Story with some big body punches at the close and Saffiedine lands a knee and a kick that was clearly after the bell. 10-9 Story.
ROUND 2- Saffiedine with a high kick and then a leg kick. Saffiedine with a front kick. Story slips after a leg kick and Saffiedine gets on top but they get right back to their feet. They clinch but notjing happens. Story with a leg kick and Saffiedine fires back with his own leg kick. Saffiedine shoots for a takedown but it is defended. Story pushes Saffiedine against the fence. They try to break but Story again pushes Saffiedine against the fence in a clinch. Story lands some punches against the fence and back to the clinch. They break for a moment and Saffiedine lands a punch and Story goes back in the clinch and lands some short knees. 10-9 Story, 20-18 Story.
ROUND 3- Saffiedine with a leg kick. Story with his own leg kick. Story with some big body punches as he gets in close range and they clinch. They break. Story with a leg kick but Saffiedine counters with a left hand. Story lands a left hand. They clinch again against the fence. Story with some body punches against the fence. They trade punches and Story again with the clinch against the fence. They each land punches as they break. This fight is on repeat with all the clinch, break and clinch again action. Story with a leg kick and Saffiedine fires back his own leg kick. They trade punches. They exchange again. Story with body punches. Story goes for a takedown but it is defended. 10-9 Story, 30-27 Story.
Official Result: Rick Story def. Tarec Saffiedine by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
FEATHERWEIGHTS- (#2 BW) RENAN BARAO (33-3 1 NC, 8-2 UFC) VS. (#9) JEREMY STEPHENS (24-12, 11-11 UFC)
ROUND 1- Barao making his debut at 145 pounds. Barao with a quick leg kick. Barao with a body kick. Stephens with a leg kick. Barao lands a right hand. Stephens with a leg kick but Barao catches it and fires off a combo. Barao with a leg kick. Barao lands a right hand. Stephens with a body kick. Barao with a leg kick. Barao with a leg kick. Barao shoots for a takedown but it is defended against the fence. Barao with a couple of knees. They break the clinch. They trade punches. Barao with a body kick. They clinch and knee lands from Barao. Barao tries a trip and it breaks the clinch. They trade punches and Barao with a spinning back kick. Barao shoots for a takedown but it is defended. Barao has the back but the round ends. 10-9 Barao.
ROUND 2- Stephens lands a big right hand to start. Barao shoots for a takedown but it is stuffed. Stephens with a leg kick. They trade punches and Barao with a quick knee. Stephens with a left hand and then rocks Barao with an uppercut. Barao circling away and Stephens lands two more big uppercuts. Big right hand from Stephens and Barao lands a knee. Big punches from Stephens. Barao is slowing down and he goes for a takedown but it is stuffed. Stephens with a knee to the body and then some foot stomps. They each land short punches in the clinch. They break. Barao with a spinning kick. Stephens with a body kick. Stephens lands a left hand. They trade punches. Barao with a late takedown but Stephens lands a big elbow and is able to get to his feet and reverse position. 10-9 Stephens, 19-19.
ROUND 3- Barao with a leg kick. Barao lands a left hand. Stephens lands a nice combo. Stephens with a left hand. Barao with a leg kick. Barao with a solid combo to the body. Stephens just misses a big left hook. Barao lands a left hand and goes for a takedown against the fence. Stephens with some knees to the legs of Barao. They trade punches. Both men landing big shots. Stephens lands a solid left hand after missing an uppercut. Barao goes for a takedown and gets it. Barao moves to the back of Stephens. They break. Barao just misses the spin kick to the face. Stephens lands a left hand. Stephens lands a big right hand. They trade body kicks. Stephens grabs the body but they break. Stephens lands a big left hand as the fight ends. Close deciding round. 10-9 Stephens, 29-28 Stephens.
Official Result: Jeremy Stephens def. Renan Barao by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
BANTAMWEIGHTS- (#7) THOMAS ALMEIDA (21-0, 4-0 UFC) VS. CODY GARBRANDT (8-0, 3-0 UFC)
ROUND 1- Someone is going to suffer their first career loss. Garbrandt tries a cartwheel kick to start. They trade leg kicks. Garbrandt with a combo and just misses a flying knee. They trade punches. Garbrandt with a right hand. Garbrandt lands some punches and a big right hand. Almeida just misses a right hand. Garbrandt with a leg kick and a combo. Garbrandt with a huge punch and Almeida is in trouble. Almeida fires back though. They trade punches as Almeida looks to have recovered. Both men land big punches. Garbrandt with a big right hand and Almeida is down and out! Garbrandt scores the big knockout win!
Official Result: Cody Garbrandt def. Thomas Almeida by knockout (punches) at 2:53 of Round 1
