– AJ Styles b The Miz by submission with the calf crusher. AJ was super over.
– Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady (w/ Carmella) b The Ascension. Seemed like most of the crowd knew Enzo and Cass.
– Jack Swagger b Curtis Axel by submission with the Patriot Lock.
– The Lucha Dragons b Los Matadores. I guess Sin Cara is healthy again.
– Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) b Rusev (w/ Lana) in a short match.
– Divas Champion Charlotte b Becky Lynch to retain in the only title match on the card. Solid work from these two. With the referee distracted, Charlotte poked Becky in the eye and pinned her with a handful of tights. Daddy would be proud.
– Ryback & The Usos b WWE Tag Champions The New Day (w/ Francesca II) in a six-man.
– Roman Reigns b Alberto del Rio. Pretty good, easily the longest match of the night. Del Rio pulled out a table during the match but they never used it.
The Dudleys and Titus O’Neil vs. The Social Outcasts (Rose and Slater) and Fandango
Bubba worked the crowd hard and had a fine 10 minute 6 man tag to get the crowd going. Dudleys and Titus went over with a 3D.
Goldust vs. Darren Young
This match was very quick with Young working heel. There wasn’t very much offense going on. Goldust won with a quick rollup.
Team B.A.D. (Tamina and Naomi) vs. Paige and Natalya with Alica Fox as the special guest ref
Natalya, notably, got a huge pop. B.A.D. was on the offense the entirety of the match, until Nattie got the hot tag and threw on a sharpshooter onto Naomi. Fox then kicked Nattie in the back of the head to end the match in a no contest. B.A.D. and Fox gave a beatdown on both Natalya and Paige before Sasha Banks came in with the save. She helped even the odds, and put on the Banks Statement on one of them while Paige and Natalya put on sharpshooters in stereo.
Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler
This was the match of the night. Breeze came out first with the biggest pop of the night. People went ballistic because hometown boy. Ziggler also got a huge pop, but had a lot more boos. Five minutes into the match, Ziggler realized that the fans were cheering hard for Breeze and started playing heel. He started to show mannerisms of his Show Off character, including more hip shaking and mocking Breeze resting on the turnbuckle. It was a very fast pace finish with Ziggler going for a Sweet Chin Music, blocked by an Unprettier, then countered by a backslide pin, which was then followed by a back and forth of pinning combinations.
People were freaking out at every nearfall, which chants of “This is Awesome” filling the SOEC. Ziggler finally won with a Zig Zag, to a huge applause. At the end of the match, Ziggler helped Breeze’s up and was trying to shake his hand. After hesitation, he finally did but then immediately super kicked Ziggler. Breeze got a huge cheer and knocked Ziggler out. The ref came and did the arm raise thing, then on the third arm raise it stayed up. Ziggler spaghetti legged to his feet and walked to the back.
Intermission
R-Truth vs. Stardust
It started with a flurry of ‘CODY’ chants. R-Truth would play to this. He got a microphone and was doing a “remix” where half the crowd was saying Wassup, the other one screaming Cody. It was a fine back and forth, Stardust took of a glove and was whipping Truth with it. Truth took it and started whipping back. Truth won after his flatliner maneuver that I cannot remember the name of. For some reason, a fellow hated Stardust. Like, truly despised him. He would come from his seat in the middle of the floor, run up to the rail and throw up double birds. I did not see what happened or what caused it to happen, but he was tackled and forcefully escorted away.
The Wyatts (Harper and Rowan) vs. Kane and Big Show
I will be honest, I haven’t been paying complete attention to WWE programming, but Harper was flexing on everyone and everything.After hitting a move, he would flex on Kane or Big Show. Kane was in the ring and getting beatdown most of the match, Show hot tagged in and threw the Wyatts around. it ended with Kane chokeslamming Rowan, and Show chokeslamming Harper.
WWE Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt
People went nuts for Ambrose. It was a fine back and forth match, but I and a quarter of the audience was checked out. There was a little bit of frustration before them because Owens, who was advertised before, was not there. The rumour was that he was bumped for Breeze. Anyway, after an Sister Abigal attempt, Ambrose spun around and hit a double underhook DDT for the win and retained the belt.
Submitted by Thomas Green from Indianapolis, IN – Old National Centre Egyptian Room
Asuka def. Emma via submission with the Asukalock (crossface chicken wing)
This wasn’t as good as the Takeover: London match, but it was a pretty good opening match. They did a lot without having to do a lot, if that makes sense. No big bumps, no nearfalls, but lots of action. Asuka is so much fun to watch when it comes to finding unique ways to transition from spot to spot, and Emma’s no slouch. Can’t complain.
Blake & Murphy def. Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa via pinfall with their running suplex/frog splash combo
Blake & Murphy often get overshadowed due to the immense talent in NXT, but seeing them live on shows like this, you can tell how good they are. It’s like going to a WWE main roster live event and noticing how much more polished someone like a Kofi Kingston is than all but the top level indie guys. Blake & Murphy are always in the right place, everything they do looks good, and they’re good at interacting with the front row fans. Ciampa & Gargano showed so much poise and as technically good as they are on indie shows, they felt like WWE-level workers in the stuff between the moves. They worked the match in a way where, even with Blake & Murphy winning, it was designed to build to Gargano & Ciampa getting a big reaction doing their bow post-match. This wouldn’t blow anyone’s mind on a TV show, but you couldn’t ask for a more fun undercard house show match.
NXT Women’s Champion Bayley def. Alexa Bliss with the Bayley-to-Belly Suplex
You can’t really put into words how special Bayley feels in front of the NXT crowd. After years and years of awful dudes catcalling even the best of female wrestlers on WWE shows, it’s refreshing to see an entire audience so emotionally invested in a female character. There were no rude comments that I could hear, nothing remotely sexual from any of the drunkards in the audience. Other than a couple of guys shouting that Bayley was “adorable”, this was a crowd that wanted to boo the bad guy and cheer their favorite on. Bayley’s work is something to behold live.
You don’t really notice it on TV, but she works in this way where she kind of moves like an ungraceful, awkward child at times (in a way that fits the character where you can tell it’s something she’s trying; not trying to bash her), but can kick it up to where she’s a credible champion wrestler. That probably reads really dumb to most people, but that is about the best way I can express that thought. Alexa Bliss isn’t technically on the level of most of the NXT roster of either gender, but she has absolutely stellar heel facials and is great at getting boos without having to do a thing.
After the match, Bayley called out Finn Balor to come in front of the audience, which led to Bayley doing Finn’s entrance (the video of which is all over the place online right now). It was interesting in that it kind of felt like a parody of those lame ECW angles where the valet would offer her “services” and the male wrestler would have to act like he was going to get some right in the middle of the ring, but it ended in a funny moment and a hug – and the audience LOVED it. I thought this was the evolution of wrestling on this level in a nutshell – an audience who, fifteen years ago, would’ve been chanting for the woman to do lewd things to the man, now going crazy because they’re doing goofy stuff and displaying genuine friendship. It was a really cool moment.
NXT Tag Team Champions Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson defeated American Alpha in a 2/3 falls match
Holy cow – I absolutely LOVED this match. I’m not a stranger to good live wrestling, but this might have been the single best tag team match I’ve ever seen live (and up extremely high on the best matches I’ve ever seen live). This felt like top-level 80’s teams with 2016-level athleticism, where they weren’t afraid to break from the formula and tell a different type of tag team story, but they didn’t have to do a million false finishes or do anything intelligence-insulting.
As graceful as Chad Gable looks on TV, he really is incredible to watch live. He’s at a different level from even the big name indie/Japanese stars when it comes to quickness and movement. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a pro wrestler be able to work as fast as he does with the quality of his wrestling. Saying all of that, Scott Dawson was the best overall wrestler in the match. He was able to keep up with Gable so all of his acrobatic and fast wrestling looked perfect, but also was a lot of fun to watch stooging from the babyfaces and filling the time between the stuff. This might be hyperbole, but watching these two at the beginning of the match felt like Satoru Sayama hooking up with Dynamite Kid in one of their earlier matches. As good as Gable is, Dawson is the heel he’s needed. There’s no one that Gable has worked that has been able to be on the receiving end of his stuff and make it look that good, while also providing the dimensions to the match that Gable is still learning how to perform. Gable & Dawson are absolutely perfect opponents and I hope eventually get a long singles run against each other.
Dawson gets the Arn Anderson comparison often, but I see a lot of Dennis Condrey in him too. It was like watching one of those old vets on nostalgia shows who still blows away most guys in wrestling with his basics, but with the athleticism of a young wrestler who almost never is at that level at the little stuff. Dawson also has the best-looking punches I’ve seen on a WWE show in a long time. He punches like Bobby Eaton; it’s crazy.
This was likely the only town NXT will run where Jordan is the more popular American Alpha member, as he wrestled for Indiana University and this is a crowd that is knowledgeable about stuff like that. He got “Hoo-Hoo-Hoosiers” and “IU” chants the entire match. Jordan reminds me of 1989 Rick Steiner, but with the charisma of a way more “with it” Sonny Siaki – in that he has a lot of Rock-like tendencies, but without that over-the-top next-level presence. I mean all of this as a compliment, but I can’t think of anyone other than Siaki to bring up.
I didn’t time it, but it felt like they went 30 minutes, with each fall timed out well (not the usual “two quick falls and a regular one-fall match” style that WWE does often). I don’t know how else to put it, but it really felt like a top-level 80’s top heel tag team wrestling a more athletic and more charismatic Steiner Brothers-type team, but with a few 2016 moves sprinkled in. Jordan & Gable are maybe the most natural and advanced WWE developmental homegrown guys out of developmental (meaning that most homegrown guys out of developmental don’t get this good until they hit the main roster and work with the top guys).
Even on Raw/Smackdown/PPV, most matches feel like someone put them together and they’re often going “step A, step B, step C…”. This didn’t at all, but they also did a lot of dynamic offense and innovative stuff. This was a house show in front of “smart” fans that knew this wasn’t even being taped for a video package for TV, and most of the crowd seemed to be biting on the American Alpha nearfalls. They did such a great job of building the drama. It was the absolute best of every single world with something to make most wrestling fans happy and a really hot crowd.
The short version: Gable pinned Dawson with a small package in the first fall, Dash/Dawson cheat to win the second fall, and then Dawson pinned Gable clean after a series of reversed cradles to win the third fall.
Nia Jax def. Billie Kay
The crowd needed a breather and they got it. This was the only thing on the entire show that felt like a “developmental” match. I feel bad saying this since I know how inexperienced Nia Jax is, but while the in-ring inexperience is obvious to anyone, she doesn’t even have the presence that you’d expect her to have with her look and the WWE presentation machine behind her. This might raise the ire of fans of women’s wrestling who have seen her for years, but Billie Kay looked just as green as Jax, with awful stutter-step kicks and awkward bumping. Even as an obvious breather match, this got way too much time. The crowd didn’t turn on it in unison like an Eva Marie match, but you could hear scattered “TAKE IT HOME” and “STOP THE MATCH” chants among the silence. This would’ve been the worst thing on an OVW or FCW show, let alone a card with all of these top workers and super-indie names.
Sami Zayn def. Baron Corbin and Samoa Joe in a three-way dance
A step above their TV match a few weeks ago, but mostly because they got to do a lot more with the finish here. As much as Bayley and American Alpha felt like huge stars on the NXT level, it felt like the audience saw Sami Zayn as a superstar on the level above everyone else (like when The Rock comes back on Raw and interacts with current roster members). All night, you could hear people all over the building only talking about how excited they were to see him in between the frequent “OLE!” chants, and the only person who could come close to the pre-match audience buzz before their music was Bayley. As great as he was on the indies (and even in NXT during the first chunk of his run), he really carries himself like a top superstar now coming out of the curtain. He has SO much confidence and poise. There were a lot of great wrestlers on this show, but he was the best at being a “star”.
Baron Corbin was a pleasant surprise watching work in-person. He’s not the best wrestler in the world, but the Corbin of a year ago (or even six months ago) wouldn’t have been able to hang on this level. His work was air-tight and he carried himself like a top guy. You can see why the WWE brass has high hopes for him. This is such a small thing, but even the way Corbin grabbed and worked a wristlock early in the match felt like you were watching an experienced good worker and not the bland factory-made developmental guy that everyone dumped on when he debuted. I’m not saying he’s anywhere near him on any level, but he kind of reminds me of a young Undertaker in how he moves and carries himself.
Samoa Joe was the weird one here. It was almost like the TNA house shows of yesteryear, where the audience would react to guys based on past glory and had no clue about the TV show. Despite the crowd knowing every other performer and their characters, Joe felt like they were reacting to the Joe of 10 years ago and not an “NXT Superstar”. It wasn’t good or bad, in that he did get a nice reaction coming to the ring. But it wasn’t overwhelming like you would expect it to be. Joe was moving a lot quicker and seemed more agile than he has in years, so clearly the fire has been lit underneath him.
They did a really creative finish, where everyone hit each other with rapid fire big boots before Joe dodged one from Corbin into the Kokina Clutch. Corbin backed Joe up into a corner for a rope break and Zayn hit them both with the Helluva Kick before covering Corbin for the win. Zayn gave a really nice “rah rah” speech after the match about NXT and definitely used language that felt like he was doing a farewell speech without giving away the big farewell (assumedly for Dallas). It was reminiscent of when they would do the goodbye speeches at the end of early Dragon Gate USA shows.
Notes:
The general admission situation was a complete nightmare. GA was standing room only across the back of the room, behind the back row of seats across from the entrance. GA was full enough that there were issues with people trying to get to their seats having to shove through the GA audience because the aisle gap to get to the seating was non-existent, as well as stationed security being in bad spots that blocked off some fans’ views. It didn’t ruin the night, but if NXT ever runs the Egyptian Room again, I hope something is figured out (whether it be bleachers, extra seating, etc.).
In terms of an overall show, it was at least an 8.5/10. Other than the bad seating situation, the NXT live experience is highly recommended. Again, great pacing and timing with a roster full of stars that the audience is invested in, and solid-to-excellent work up-and-down the card. I kind of feel like the show would have benefited from American Alpha/Dash & Dawson going on last, but the crowd probably would have felt ripped off if the biggest star (Zayn) went on in the middle and wouldn’t have reacted as well to the tag match. I just can’t emphasize enough how stellar Dash & Dawson vs. Gable & Jordan was. On a show of top-level wrestlers, they stole the show and ran away with it. I really hope they eventually get to do the 2/3 falls format on TV in some way. Even if they don’t, I’d have no problem seeing them work with each other a hundred times.
Also, this was probably the most well-timed wrestling show I have ever been to. I’ve been to plenty of Raw & Smackdown tapings with the mandatory commercial breaks and running times that didn’t run as smoothly as this. They started at 7:30 on the dot, and crossfaded the show intro music right into Asuka’s song so the high energy stayed up from the start. The main event ended at 10:00 PM on the dot. They gave a lot in two and a half hours, but it wasn’t like an indie show where everyone felt the need to do the biggest match possible and you’re tired after a marathon session.
Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez, Dave Meltzer and Filthy Tom is back tonight with tons to talk about! UFC on FS1, CM Punk’s first fight is set, the MMA Awards Dave attended before skipping town, WWE cuts, Awesome Kong, Finn Balor, tons of questions, all the news from the weekend and more! A fun show as always so check it out~!
– They are expecting about 150 here tonight at the Bartow Armory in Bartow, FL.
Josh Woods beat Steve Cutler with a spinning kick.
A lot of heel work and jaw jacking by Cutler as he wore down Woods with head locks and holds. Woods took control, fighting back with strikes and hit a nice spinning kick for the win.
– Tom Phillips introduced King Constantine and Tom Kingdon for an interview. They proclaimed to be what real men should look like and they push the most weights in the gym. They even said the tag titles would not fit on them. They jokingly slapped Tom on the back which he sold with a face plant and the crowd followed up with a “You killed Tom!” chant. They were interrupted by Kenneth Crawford and Caesar who challenged them to a match.
King Constantine and Tom Kingdon beat Caesar and Kenneth Crawford via submission in a short match.
Kingdon got Crawford on his shoulder for a rack type submission.
Alex Riley beat Angelo Dawkins in a hard hitting match
They had dueling crowd reactions with Riley getting much larger cheers when he stood on the turnbuckles. Dawkins did a lot of crowd taunting and Riley shut him up and scored the pin.
Manny Andrade beat Chris Girard with the running knees
A lot of violent and aggressive action from Girard to try and keep Manny grounded. Big finish saw Manny armdrag Chris in to the corner and follow up with the running knees. Good match, Manny is winning over the local crowds.
Apollo Crews beat Elias Samson with the Too Easy standing moonsault
This was a tune up for Takeover Dallas. Elias put down Bartow, and did a lot of headlocks to wear down Crews. Samson was able to counter the moonsault once but not the second time.
– Tom Phillips announced that our main event would be a 2/3 Falls tag match between The Hype Bros and The Vaudevillains.
Hugo Knox, Tucker Knight, and Aliyah beat Tino Sabbateli, Riddick Moss, and Mandy in what was billed as an intergender match
Tino and Moss worked over Knight most of the match with some limited and safe interaction between the two women. Knox took the hot tag and scored the win for his team.
Peyton Royce beat Liv Morgan via submission
Royce won with some sort of hold from behind with her legs and arms involved. Haven’t seen it before and looked good.
The Hype Bros beat The Vaudevillains two falls to one
The crowd was very in to the Hype Bros and the Vauds were acting completely heelish tonight even using their old ominous music from the last time they were heels. Hypes took fall one, Vauds fall two, then had a good final fall of Mojo getting a hot tag, running wild and nailing the Hype Ryder for the win with Zack off the top for the pin.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 82: Hendricks vs. Thompson from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event is headlined by a five-round bout in the UFC’s welterweight division as former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks takes on Stephen Thompson, winner of five straight fights. In the co-main event, it will be heavyweight action as Roy Nelson squares off against Jared Rosholt. Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 PM eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
They just announced the next FOX show is 4/16 from the Amalie Arena in Tampa with at least a four hour show on FOX itself.
Cub Swanson vs. Hacran Dias
Bethe Correia vs. Raquel Pennington
Michael Chiesa vs. Beneil Dariush
Tecia Torres vs. Rose Namajunas
Lyoto Machida vs. Dan Henderson
Rashad Evans vs. Shogun Rua
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson in a five round main event
The 4/23 PPV will be in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones for the light heavyweight title
Demetrious Johnson vs. Henry Cejudo for the flyweight title
Coverage provided by Dave Meltzer
The show opened with a Mickey Gall video, followed by a C.M. Punk interview with Ariel Helwani.
Punk said his focus will be different after today. Said he knows Mickey Gall drives a bread truck, he’s hungry, he’s a purple belt in Jiu Jitsu, but doesn’t have a lot to go on. He said we’re both a bit of a mystery so the fight makes sense. “He’s got hands, he knocked the guy down and he choked the guy out. I think Jiu Jitsu is his strong suit.”
He said if hey fight it’ll be a matter of who wants it jore and who trains hardest beween now and he fight.
“I’m gonna watch, excited to see it, I’m gonna watch like a fan,”
Said hopes Gall wins so he’ll know his opponent. He said that he’s creating jobs, and he’s created two. He said that if Mike (Jackson) wins, he doesn’t get him. “I don’t get it and I don’t think anyone else does either.”
Punk made a joke about not being any good at promos but in time he hopes he can improve.
FEATHERWEIGHTS- ARTEM LOBOV (11-11-1 1 NC, 0-1 UFC) VS. ALEX WHITE (10-2, 1-2 UFC)
First round: Lobov is a Russian who lives in Dublin and trains with Conor McGregor. White with a body kick. Hard body kick by White. Lobov with a body kick. Lobov has him against the fence. White landed a punch and took him down. Punches and knees by White. White 10-9.
Second round: Lobov’s coaches told him he probably lost the round because he got wobbled. Low kick by White. Left to the body by White. Kick to the body by White. Traded punches. White landing more. White still landing. Both trading. Lobov bleeding under the left eye. White took him down. White 20-18.
Third round: White took him down again. He moved to side control Lobov started to land after he got up. He scored a nice right hook. White came back with punches when Lobov missed wild punches. White landing punches and Lobov look tired. White took him down again. Lobov bleeding from a number of cuts. 30-27 White
Scores: All three have this 30-27 for White
WELTERWEIGHTS- MICKEY GALL (1-0, 0-0 UFC) VS. MIKE JACKSON (0-0, 0-0 UFC)
First round: Jackson is only the sixth guy to make his pro debut in UFC in the post-2001 era. He’s an MMA media guy but is 2-0 as a pro boxer. Gall dropped him with a right to the jaw and after a few punchds on the ground, Gall got his back and is working for a choke. He got the choke and Jackson tapped out immediately. :45
He cut a promo on Punk. Punk came to the cage. They shook hands Punk. Punk looked taller than Gall but he was wearing shoes. They posed together. Punk said nothing on the mic but will do an interview backstage.
Punk did a backstage interview. Punk said he looked very impressive, that’s the way I want to win a fight. Punk said he thought both men looked relax, both came out to good music, he seemed to be having fun. Punk asked him if he was having fan and Gall said “I’m having a blast.” Punk said he’s indifferent that it was a short fight, “I don’t care about how hard he hits. I try not to get hit.” He said he wants to talk to his wife, said she’s in her room writing a book.
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 8 PM ET/5 PM PT)
FEATHERWEIGHTS- NOAD LAHAT (9-1, 2-1 UFC) VS. DIEGO RIVAS (6-0, 1-0 UFC)
First round: Rivas poked him in the eye right away. Lahat with a low kick. Lahat took him down. Lahat working for a guillotine. Rivas seems to have it blocked. Lahat gave up on it. Lahat stayed on top. Lahat has his back. Now he’s working for a head and arm choke. Rivas got up slammed him down but Lahat reversed to the top. Lahat 10-9.
Second round: Rivas landed a jumping knee and blocked Lahat out. Crazy finish. Lahat was out cold.
FLYWEIGHTS- (#12) RAY BORG (9-1, 3-1 UFC) VS. JUSTIN SCOGGINS (10-2, 3-2 UFC)
First round: Borg took him down but Scoggins right back up. Body kick by Scoggins. Left and body shot by Scoggins. Scoggins with lefts. Borg went for a takedown but Scoggins blocked it. Borg has a bloody nose. Body kick by Scoggins. 10-9 Scoggins
Second round: Spin kick by Scoggins. Scoggins slammed him down, although it was more Borg pulling guard. Borg up. Body kick by Scoggins. Head kick by Scoggins. Borg bleeding from the nose. Scoggins took him down. Borg went for a reverse but Scoggins reversed back to the top. Scoggins landing a lot of punches but Borg threw a big punch back. Spin kick by Scoggins. Right by Borg. Scoggins missed a spinning backfist. Borg went for the takedown but didn’t get it. Scoggins tried a takedown by Borg defended. Scoggins 20-18.
Third round: Borg got the takedown. Scoggins up and slammed him down. Borg back up. Scoggigns took him down again. Scoggins just holding him down and trying to burn out the clock since he’s winning the decision here. Scoggins 30-27.
Scores: 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26 for Scoggins.
Scoggins did a great promo, telling UFC to not put him on the shelf, and vowed he would win the title by the end of 2016.
HEAVYWEIGHTS- DERRICK LEWIS (13-4 1 NC, 4-2 UFC) VS. DAMIAN GRABOWSKI (20-2, 0-0 UFC)
First round: Lewis ran in but got taken down. Lewis then threw him down and is on top. Lewis landing big punches. Grabowski bleeding. Lewis threw punches from the back. Lewis hammering him with punches from the top. Lewis landed more punches and it was stopped. Impressive win.
First round: Body kick by Burkman. Low kick by Burkman and two more. More low kicks by Burkman. Body kick by Burkman. Low kick by Burkamn. Burkman with a spin kick. Burkman with a body kick. Crowd booing. Body kick by Burkman. Noons did nothing this round until the end when he finally started throwing punches. 10-9 Burkman
Second round: Burkman took him down with a high slam but Noons back up. Big left by Noons. Burkman still with low kicks. Crowd booing again. Both trading punches. Noons lands a nice left hook. Burkamn landed a good punch. Closer round. 20-18 Burkman.
Third round: John McCarthy pretty much told them to do something. Burkman took him down. Noons back up. Noons landed several punches. Noons landing more. Burkman looks tired. Noons landing a good left hook. Knee by Burkman. Hard right by Noons. Burkman working for a takedown. Burkman with a left. Burkman working for a takedown and Noons was landing elbows. Burkman took him down. Noons but still have it 29-28 for Burkman.
Scores: All three have it 30-27 for Burkman.
MAIN CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 10 PM ET/7 PM PT)
WELTERWEIGHTS- MIKE PYLE (26-11-1, 9-6 UFC) VS. SEAN SPENCER (12-4, 3-3 UFC)
First round: Pyle with a body kick. Pyle with a low kick. Spencer dropped him with a right. Spencer landed a left. Spencer with lefts. Pyle back with punches late. Spencer 10-9.
Second round: Pyle hurt him with a punch. Pyle landing rights. Spinning back fist by Pyle and Spencer back with a punch. Spencer with a left. Spencer with a left. Pyle with punches. Knee by Pyle. Spin kick by Pyle. Pyle got for a takedown and got it at the last end of the round. Pyle’s round so 19-19.
Third round: Spencer in with punches. Spencer landed some punches. Pyle faked being rocked which is a bad idea because people, as in judges, may believe it. Pyle took him down and has a guillotine. Knee to the body by Pyle. Left by Spencer. Left by Spencer and a knee by Pyle. Pyle hurt him with an elbow. He’s throwing hard knees and another knee. Elbows by Pyle. More knees, Another knee and Yves Lavigne stopped it. This was a hell of a fight.
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS- MISHA CIRKUNOV (10-2, 1-0 UFC) VS. ALEX NICHOLSON (6-1, 0-0 UFC)
First round: Nicholson was giving away a ton of size. He looked like a welterweight, not even a middleweight. Cirkunov with a head kick. Cirkunov is just beating him up. Takedown by Cirkunov. Herb Dean got mad at Nicholson for a low knee. Dean said next time he’s taking away a point. Left by Cirkunov. Cirkunov with punches. Cirkunov took him down again. Hard elbow by Cirkunov. 10-9 Cirkunov.
Second round: Cirkunov took him down. Cirkunov got his back. Cirkunov landing punches from back position. He used a neck crank and got the tap. Screwed up that engagement weekend. Cirkunov just beat him up the entire fight.
FLYWEIGHTS- (#1) JOSEPH BENAVIDEZ (23-4, 10-2 UFC) VS. (#8) ZACH MAKOVSKY (19-6, 3-2 UFC)
First round: Left by Benavidez. Makovksy took him down but Benavidez back up. Low kick by Benavidez. Head kick by Benavidez. Punches by Benavidez. Body kick by Benavidez. Benavidez overwhelmed him but Makovsky took him down again. Another takedown by Makvosky and got his back. 10-9 Benavidez,.
Second round: Makovsky again going for a takedown. Punches and a knee by Benavidez. Body kick by Benavidez. Makovsky got a takedown but Benavidez right back up. The crowd is really into this. Left by Makovsky. He got another takedown but Benavidez back up. Makovsky with another takedown. He jumped on his back. Close round. Makovsky so 19-19.
Third round: Makovsky with a left. Knee by Makovsky. Benavidez with a right. Punch and knee by Benavidez. Benavidez ran in and delivered a right and left and another right. Another right by Benavidez. Left and right by Benavidez. Benavidez knocked him off balance as time ran out. Benavidez 29-28 but he has to win the fight.
Scores: 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 Benavidez
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS- (#6) OVINCE SAINT PREUX (18-7, 6-2 UFC) VS. (#13) RAFAEL CAVALCANTE (12-6 1 NC, 1-3 UFC)
First round: Saint Preux hurt himself throwing a low kick. Saint Preux is in trouble now as he can barely move. Fejiao throwing low kicks. Right by Feijao. Left by OSP and he’s unloading with punches and put Feijao down . Saint Preux with an elbow from the top. Saint Preux with body punches while staying on top. OSP is hurt by I have him winning the round 10-9.
Second round: Feijao with a left. Saint Preux with lefts. Body kick by Saint Preux. Another front kick by Saint Preux. Saint Preuz knocked him down with a left. Saint Preux on top. Saint Preux landing a lot of lefts from the top. 20-18 OSP.
Third round: Saint Preux moving better. Feijao started throwing big punches. Saint Preux went for a takedown. Saint Preux landing more punches and took him down. Saint Preux is mainly just holding him down and the crowd is booing a lot. They really should stand it up from here. Big left dropping down by Saint Preux . Saint Preux throwing a lot of punches late. It was close to being stopped when the time ran out. 30-27 OSP, could be 30-26.
Scores: 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for OSP.
The injury was to OSP’s right ankle.
HEAVYWEIGHTS- (#11) ROY NELSON (20-12, 7-8 UFC) VS. (#12) JARED ROSHOLT (14-2, 6-1 UFC)First round: Nelson missed a punch by a mile. Rosholt landed a few punches. Rosholt with punches. Rosholt with jabs. Front kick by Rosholt. Rosholt 10-9.
Second round: Nelson with a low kick. Nelson is moving forward but not landing anything. Nelson slipped throwing a punch. Body kick by Rosholt. Crowd booing this fight as well. Left by Nelson. Low kick by Rosholt. Nelson landed a right. Nelson landed a couple of punches and Rosholt dancing away. Rosholt landed some punches. Boring fight. Nelson’s round so 19-19.
Third round: Low kick by Nelson. Rosholt dancing away. Nelson throwing big punches and Rosholt ran away. Rosholt landed a left as Nelson came in. Nelson back with a few punches. Right by Nelson. Rosholt went for a takedown but Nelson blocked it. Rosholt anded a right. Left by Rosholt. Crowd booing both men. Nelson 29-28 but either guy could win.
Scores: 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 Nelson
WELTERWEIGHTS- (#2) JOHNY HENDRICKS (17-3, 12-3 UFC) VS. (#8) STEPHEN THOMPSON (11-1, 6-1 UFC)
First round: Hendricks looks so much smaller than usual. Hendricks moved in and working for a takedown. Thompson’s defense is good. Side kick by Thompson. High kick by Thompson. Another head kick and landing big punches and a body kick Thompson is taking him apart. Right by Thompson. Right by Thompson. Head kick by Thompson. Left by Thompson. Knee by Thompson. Left by Hendricks and Thompson back with kicks. Thompson destroying him with punches. He landed a spin kick and finished him with punches. This was a one sided destruction. Hendricks had nothing. He was a different guy. 3:31
Former WWE Champion C.M. Punk’s first opponent in the UFC is now confirmed: Mickey Gall.
The 24-year-old steamrolled through Mike Jackson Saturday on the Fight Pass portion of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas, submitting Jackson in just 45 seconds and taking no damage in the process.
During his post-fight promo, Gall said he was still just thinking about one man, saying “I’m hungry…feed me CM Punk!” Punk then got in the cage, shook hands with Gall, and the two had a conversation. Punk didn’t get on the mic, which was odd, but did square off with Gall.
Punk then did an interview with Ariel Helwani in the back and didn’t add much, other than that he was excited but still doesn’t know a date. He said he’d like to do UFC 200, but that it wasn’t up to him. He did reveal that AJ Lee is writing a book.
Dana White was at cageside for the fight and also did an interview with Helwani backstage. He put over Gall quite a bit and discussed how he’d deal with the pressure. White said they’ll announce something soon, alluding to June and saying that everyone wants to be on UFC 200 in July.
The 37-year-old Punk (real name Phil Brooks) has had quite a week already with media as an interview with Complex went sour quite quickly and has been covered by several outlets already.
The show tonight scheduled for Fox Sports 1 started out as UFC 196 with current heavyweight champ Fabricio Werdum against Cain Valezquez in a PPV. A rematch from a first fight that saw Cain handily beaten by Werdum with a guillotine choke in the 3rd round. They changed to Werdum against Stipe Miocic and then quickly scratched that out completely when Werdum also claimed an injury. After a few days the whole show was switched from a PPV to UFC Fight Night to air on Fox Sports 1.
Which brings us to the current and final main event of Stephen Thompson vs Johny Hendricks. Leading into this fight Hendricks fought current welterweight champ twice, beating him in the first and losing the second, both 5 round decisions. Hendricks then bested Matt Brown in a 3 round decision which was almost a year ago. Thompson is on a 5 fight win streak since losing a decision to Matt Brown. He last fought last July against Jake Ellenburger knocking him out with a spinning hook kick! This should be a good one.
Also, on the card is Roy Nelson vs Jared Rosholt and Ovince Saint Preux vs Rafael Cavalcante. This is also the show that has Mickey Gall, who is the potentional opponent for CM Punk for this June or July. If Gall beats Mike Jackson he will most likely face CM Punk. This is a near PPV level event and features a lot more talent than most Fox Sports 1 UFC Fight Nights. It is definitely worth a look.
UFC TONIGHT ON FS 1 FROM THE MGM GARDEN ARENA IN LAS VEGAS
Fight Pass at 7 p.m. Eastern
Arten Lobov vs. Alex White
Mike Jackson vs. Mickey Gall – winner to face C.M. Punk in June
FS 1 at 8 p.m.
Noad Lahat vs. Diego Rivas
Ray Borg vs. Justin Scoggins
Damian Grabowski vs. Derrick Lewis
K.J. Noons vs. Josh Burkman
Mike Pyle vs. Sean Spencer
Misha Cirkunov vs. Alex Nicholson
Joseph Benavidez vs. Zach Makovsky
Rafael Feijao Cavalcante vs. Ovince Saint Preux
Jared Rosholt vs. Roy Nelson
Johny Hendricks vs. Stephen Thompson
WWE has only one show on Sunday, from Abbotsford, BC (Roman Reigns vs. Rusev).
Raw will be Monday in Seattle. Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman are scheduled on the show.
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday in Portland, OR. Chris Jericho vs. A.J. Styles is on the show.
If you’ve ever wanted to WATCH our radio shows here on the site, check out our new 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!
The new double issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter looks at Bret Hart’s battle with cancer, his discussions about it, and updates on the situation. The most detailed coverage of the last month of Lucha Underground’s second season, backstage news, season three, lots of business notes. Full coverage of all the Ultima Lucha 2 matches and direction. Nakamura’s final day with NJPW, where Nakamura and New Japan go now, his background and building the IC title, the next two New Japan PPV shows to this weekend’s biggest event.
Fast Lane and WrestleMania, what’s up with Undertaker, WWE injury updates, the next WWE Network special, Licensing issue with new WWE signees, notes on the next NXT Takeover show, a look at all the TV building the next Takeover show, who led to a huge increase in demand for WWE tickets, next WWE show in Madison Square Garden update, Nakamura updates, WWE performer wants to compete in the Olympics and what former pro wrestler went back to the Olympics to medal, Lesnar’s schedule, Tough Enough winner starts out, Other Tough Enough competitors start out, change in Rumble plans, New WWE Network series based on wrestling matches, new WWE movie, WWE’s tour of Germany this coming week, more on The Rock’s segment on Raw.
A detailed look at the Awesome Kong-Reby Hardy situation in Manchester, England. Benson Henderson’s decision to leave UFC for Bellator and take a championship fight, why he made the decision, what both Dana White and Henderson said. We look at Pro Wrestling NOAH’s last major event and where it’s storylines are going.
A huge look at the life and career of Archie “The Stomper” Gouldie, one of the most memorable wrestling characters of his generation, stories about him, his gimmick, how big a star he was in his heyday, his incredibly long career title history, how he was two very different successful characters, and his most famous angles and biggest bouts. We also have a lot of comments from people who knew him, including how he changed the life and career of J.J. Dillon. The life and career of the original Espectrito, the best heel mini of his generation including when he main evented the Los Angeles Sports Arena, a rarity for a mini.
We also look at Saturday’s UFC , what’s next for the winners, thoughts on Sage Northcutt, as well as business notes on the show and match-by-match coverage.
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
For the United States, it is $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to moonsault@mediaplusint.com For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52.
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In case you missed it, former UFC star and the once-retired Chris Leben (22-11) has signed with Bellator, joining fellow TUF 1 cast member Josh Koscheck. No fight or weight class was announced, however. Leben holds the UFC record for most fights in the middleweight division (22) and retired after being KO’d by Uriah Hall in 2013. Fights with Koscheck or even Stephan Bonnar are possibilities. While Leben is now under contract, Bellator reportedly has no interest in free agent and highly ranked UFC bantamweight Aljamain Sterling.
WWE/Pro Wrestling
Mattel, WWE’s action figure licensee, is reportedly in merger talks with Hasbro, who held the license in the first half of the ‘90s. This would be a pretty huge development in the toy world.
AJ Styles confirmed on Chris Jericho’s podcast what was pretty obvious from watching Smackdown, that being that the calf killer will be renamed the calf crusher in WWE, which actually would be the legitimate name for the hold. He also said Vince McMahon’s idea for his character is The Pitbull, a smaller guy who has to fight for everything he gets.
Tough Enough alumnus Patrick Clark made his NXT debut last night in Lakeland.
At Legacy FC 51 Friday in Hinckley, MN, Manny Vasquez submitted Ricardo Ramos to win their 135-pound title while Brock Larson KO’d Travis Coyle in the first round in the 42-year-old Larson’s final pro fight. Also of note, Cody East scored a 1st round KO over Kevin Asplund. East is now 12-1 as a Heavyweight and someone to keep an eye on.
ONE Championship returns to Jakarta, Indonesia two weeks from today with a main event of Luis Santos vs. Rafael Silva
MISC
It looks like ROH has a new lighting grid that they will start using at tonight’s TV taping at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium, which is probably the biggest and nicest arena they’ve shot at to date.
A happy go lucky Jim Cornette is back for the latest episode of 6:05 Superpodcast with David Bixenspan and Brian Last talking about a ton of different old-school topics including Randy Savage’s early years, knowing Eddie Gilbert from their teens and then being the last promoter to book him in the continental United States, Stan Lane’s wig, bad audition videos, and much more. As a preview, you can check out Jim doing commentary on one memorably bad audition video on YouTube.
At Fightland, Jack Slack goes over some of pro wrestling’s most legitimate techniques.
Raymond Rougeau talks about his dealings with the Ultimate Warrior in this video.
– The show was held in The Stampede Coral instead of The Saddledome. Much louder crowd than previous visits.
The Dudleys/Titus O’Neil def Fandango/Adam Rose/Heath Slater
Fun opener. Dudleys won with a 3D
Goldust def. Darren Young
Young attacked Goldust before the bell. Once the bell rang, Goldust pinned Young rather quickly. Match didn’t last longer then 2 minutes if that.
Natalya/Paige def. Tamina/Naomi
Natalya got a good hometown pop. Match was really good. Natalya won with the Sharpshooter. After the match, Tamina and Naomi attacked the faces from behind, but Sasha Banks came out to make the save.
Kane/Big Show/Jericho def The Wyatt Family
Good match. Jericho always gets a good reception here. Jericho won with the Codebreaker, but I’m not sure if it was Rowan or Harper he pinned.
> Intermission
R-Truth def Stardust
Good comedy match. Lots of “Cody” chants.
Dolph Ziggler def Tyler Breeze
Great match. By far, match of the night. Lots of near falls. The crowd was very split lots of Let’s Go Ziggler/ Let’s Go Tyler chants. Ziggler won with the Zigzag by far better then any of the tv matches these two have had.
Dean Ambrose def Bray Wyatt
Not a bad match. Crowd was down a bit from the hot Ziggler/Breeze match. Ambrose reversed the sister Abigail for the win.
Overall, this was a really fun show that worked well in the smaller venue for the house show.
