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Category: News

  • UFC responds to Brock Lesnar USADA queries

    One of the big questions regarding the Brock Lesnar vs. Mark Hunt fight at UFC 200 is the USADA drug testing procedure.

    When the procedure was first announced, a policy to avoid a fighter announcing his retirement, going on PEDs, only to then come out of retirement was addressed with this passage in the policy:

    “An athlete who gives notice of retirement to UFC, or has otherwise ceased to have a contractual relationship with UFC, may not resume competing in UFC bouts until he/she has given UFC written notice of his/her intent to resume competing and has made him/herself available for testing for a period of four moths before returning to competition.  UFC may grant an exemption to the four-month written notice rule in exceptional circumstances or where the strict application of that rule would be manifestly unfair to an athlete.”

    While Lesnar has said he’s talked about returning for three months, he was not on the active roster and has not been drug tested. Zuffa stated Tuesday that because Lesnar last competed in 2011, long before the USADA policy was in place, he’s being treated as a new athlete just signed to the promotion for the purpose of the policy and not as a fighter who retired, was no longer being tested, and then decided to return.

    Lesnar only signed to face Hunt on Friday, the day before the announcement. There had been a delay in finalizing the deal because Lesnar required permission from WWE to do the show.

    In response to our question on this subject, UFC said the following:

    “On June 6, 2016, UFC heavyweight Brock Lesnar was registered by USADA into the UFC Anti-Doping Policy testing pool. As part of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, UFC may grant a former athlete an exemption to the four-month written notice rules in exceptional circumstances or where the strict application of that rule would be manifestly unfair to an athlete. Given Lesnar last competed in UFC on December 30, 2011, long before the UFC Anti-Doping Policy went into effect, for purposes of the Anti-Doping Policy, he is being treated similarly to a new athlete coming into the organization. 

    “While conversations with the heavyweight have been ongoing for some time, Lesnar required permission from WWE to compete in UFC 200 and only agreed to terms and signed a bout agreement last Friday. He was therefore unable to officially start the Anti-Doping Policy process any earlier. UFC, however, did notify Lesnar in the early stages of discussions that if he were to sign with the UFC, he would be subject to all of the anti-doping rules. Lesnar and his management have now been formally educated by USADA on the policy, procedures, and expectations. 

    “UFC Anti-Doping Policy testing statistics are publicly available at ufc.usada.org and are updated on a weekly basis.” 

  • Daily Update: Kimbo Slice dead, Ospreay wins, Helwani back, Van Zant to WWE

    The death of youtube fighting sensation Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson at age 42 has shocked the MMA world. Ferguson, who most recently KO’d Dada 5000 on a Bellator show a few months back, was scheduled to face James Thompson on July 16, in a rematch of their Elite XC fight from 2008. The cause of death for Ferguson was heart failure, although there is some question about that, as Slice had failed a drug test after his Dada 5000 match for elevated Testosterone and Nandrolone. More on this story can be read here.

    Will Ospreay surprised no one by winning this year’s New Japan Super Juniors tournament. The 16 man tournament was really a star studded event, especially on the gaijin side which included Matt Sydal, Trent Baretta, Bobby Fish, Kyle O’Reilly, David Finlay, Rocky Romero, and of course, Ricochet. Ospreay went on to defeat Ryusuke Taguchi in the finals to win the entire tournament. More on that here.

    [Dan Velten]

    NXT TAKEOVER THE END ON WEDNESDAY AT 8 P.M. FROM FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY IN WINTER PARK, FL

    • Andrade Cien Almas vs. Tye Dillinger
    • Asuka vs. Nia Jax for women’s title
    • Jason Jordan & Chad Gable vs. Scott Dawson & Dash Wilder for tag titles
    • Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Austin Aries
    • Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor cage match for the NXT title

    Smackdown and Main Event will be taped today in Wichita. John Cena is not scheduled but Seth Rollins and Chris Jericho are scheduled.

    THE ROUND-UP

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    Figure Four Weekly 6/9/2016: Will Christopher Nowinski testify in WWE concussion lawsuit? – The latest battleground in the WWE concussion litigation is whether or not Christopher Nowinski can be compelled to testify. Issues cited in a WWE opposition to the plaintiffs’ effort are included in the lawsuit.

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter

    READ IT HERE: June 6, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: More details on WWE brand split, Jimmy Snuka found incompetent, more

    A huge double issue of the Observer is out this week, including the real catalyst behind the WWE brand split, a breakdown of the roster, justice denied again in the Jimmy Snuka case, Ricochet vs. Will Ospreay and the Super Juniors tournament plus a full rundown, the story behind Bill Goldberg and the WWE video game and the Brock Lesnar tease, famous boxer vs. pro wrestler fights, WWE schedule and injury rates, business rundowns from the past two months for WWE & TNA, updates on cable stations that carry wrestling and MMA, and one of the greatest territorial business runs in history in the life and career of Cowboy Frankie Laine.

    Our lead story looks at the WWE brand split, why it happened, what is known that isn’t a secret, ads out post brand split, plans for the split two months ago and what the ad department was told then, what different arenas have been told this week, thoughts behind decisions having too be made, plus a roster rundown on what positions WWE is strong and weak in, and where NXT talent should fit in and who is ready, or who can fill a slot.

    There is also an update on the Jimmy Snuka situation, with a realistic view if there will be a trial and what the time frame is and what happens next.

    This issue also looks at the Will Ospreay vs. Ricochet match, Vader’s reaction, Super Juniors standings and rundowns of the shows plus looking at where things are going.

    Updates on Money in the Bank, stars returning to television soon, how the NBA & NHL playoffs coincide with wrestling the next two weeks, an update on NXT, lots of WWE performers off TV for the next several weeks, notes from lawsuit depositions that are eye opening, Cena getting a gigantic endorsement deal, Rollins return news, injury updates, lots of Dwayne Johnson news, WrestleMania in the future notes, notes on how little talent gets told in advance about things, who watches what on WWE network, plus we’ve got rundowns of every WWE & NXT events over the past week and business notes on the shows, all included in in this issue.

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    Check out the latest online Wrestling Observer BACK ISSUE: May 3, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Death of Rick Rude, WWF Backlash review, more  A look at the life and career of Rick Rude, a review of WWF Backlash, plus tons more.

    TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE

    Ariel Helwani and MMAFighting have been reinstated. After much to-do about the untimely departures of Helwani and his crew from this past weekend at UFC 199, it appears Dana and the Fertitas have changed their mind. 

    In whatever deal was made to get Brock Lesnar to UFC for 200, we now know what WWE wants in return: Paige Van Zant. They want her for SummerSlam, I guess to fight the Undertaker if Lesnar is KO’d by Hunt. Seems fair. 

    Also earlier today, Paul Heyman conducted an exclusive sit-down interview with Brock Lesnar to discuss his upcoming fight at UFC 200. You can find out more at HeymanHustle.com.

    2K will be announcing this year’s WWE roster shortly. The game is not scheduled to be released until October 2016, but consumers who pre-order WWE 2K17 at any participating retailer will receive two playable characters of legendary WCW and WWE star Bill Goldberg, well as playable WCW Monday Nitro and Halloween Havoc arenas, at no extra cost on launch day. For more information on WWE 2K17 and 2K, visit wwe.2k.com, become a fan on Facebook, follow the game on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #WWE2K17 or subscribe on YouTube.

    WWE.com posted an article on former German national soccer team goalkeeper Tim Wiese accepting a deal to start training at the Performance Center.It has also been posted to WWE’s German website and has gotten a good amount of media buzz in Germany today. Wiese, who bulked up big the past few years as he picked up bodybuilding is a charismatic and impressive looking guy at around 6’4″ and about 285 lbs. His contract with his former soccer club of TSG 1899 Hoffenheim is set to expire on 6/30, even though he was cut from the team long before that, in January of 2014. Wiese had publically talked about getting into wrestling, as the media had made comparisons of his physique to those of wrestlers. He appeared in person at a WWE house show in Frankfurt, Germany on November 15, 2014, taking part in a red carpet event before the show and later that night appearing in the ring to celebrate with the Usos after they won their match. He also had a one-day tryout at the Performance Center at some point last year. (Thanks to Marcus Gronemann)

    WWE and Pro Wrestling

    UFC and other MMA

    • This is an interesting read regarding the Ariel Helwani and MMAFighting.com banning, which was quickly overturned. Columnist Ed Graney accuses the UFC of bullying.
    • The UFC 199 prelims did 798,000 viewers on FS 1 Saturday night slightly up from last month and right in line with what regular shows have been doing this year. There is usually an uptick for shows where Conor McGregor or Ronda Rousey is fighting on the main card, especially in the case of Rousey.
    • Bellator 158, originally scheduled to be headlined by the late Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson, has lost its co-main event as well as Josh Koscheck pulled out of his scheduled fight with Paul Daley due to injury. Douglas Lima will step in to face Daley in a fight that won’t have a fraction of the interest, although it could be a better fight.
    • A top strawweight fight has been added to UFC 201, as Rose Namajunas will face Karolina Kowalkewicz. That fight would make sense as either the FS 1 or Fight Pass featured prelim, as the winner would be in line for a title shot.
    • Emil Meek, fresh off his KO win over Rousimar Palhares in Italy last month, has signed with UFC and will debut on the show in Hamburg on September 3rd. He’ll face another debuting fighter, Jessin Ayari. Ayari is coming off a win over former UFC fighter Mickael Lebou in April.

    EVENTS

    • TODAY – New Japan Best of the Super Juniors finals from Sendai live on New Japan World
    • TOMORROW – NXT Takeover from Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL featuring Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor in a cage match plus a loaded lineup that includes American Alpha vs. The Revival and probably Shinsuke Nakamura vs Austin Aries, which could be WWE’s match of the month.
    • June 11 – ECCW Port Coquitlam, BC at the Elks Hall #49.
    • June 11 – NECW presents the 2016 IRON 8 Championship, Saturday Night, June 11 in Wakefield, MA
    • June 11 – Lex Luger will appear  in Gray, TN at the Daniel Boone High School for the Fountain of Life Bible Church’s Car and Bike show at 6 p.m.  The show is free.  There will be a wrestling card in conjunction with the show.
    • June 11 – The UWC returns to Kelly’s Bar/Banquet Hall, 14 Railroad Avenue, Wrightstown, NJ 08562. For more information, call 609-792-9328 or like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/UWCFanCave.
    • June 12 – TNA Slammiversary headlined by Drew Galloway vs. Bobby Lashley for the TNA title from Orlando
    • June 12 – Revolution Pro Wrestling in London, England headlined by Kurt Angle vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
    • June 17 – Absolute Intense Wrestling at Mentor-on-the-Lake, OH at Tequila Jaxx with Joey Janela vs. Facade, Shayna Baszler vs. Veda Scott, Laredo Kid, B.J. Whitmer and more.
    • June 17 – AAW “Killers Among Us” features Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Johnny Gargano, Drago vs. Chris Hero, and more at 115 Bourbon Street (3359 w 115th Street Merrionette Park, IL) All Ages Event – Tickets available.
    • June 18 – UFC in Ottawa: Rory McDonald vs. Stephen Thompson
    • June 18 – New England Fights (NEF) returns to the Androscoggin Bank Colisée in Lewiston, Maine with “NEF 24: PROMISED LAND.” Tickets for “NEF 24” are on sale now.
    • June 19 – New Japan Dominion, one of the company’s biggest events of the year, featuring Tetsuya Naito vs. Kazuchika Okada in an IWGP title match and Kenny Omega vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi in a ladder match for the IC title
    • June 19 – WWE Money in the Bank from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas 
    • June 24 – ROH Best in the World from Concord, NC with Jay Lethal vs. Jay Briscoe for the ROH title 
    • June 24 – Isao Kobayashi vs. Justin Lawrence will appear on Spike.com as the top prelim fight Bellator Dynamite show in St. Louis.  This will be a combination MMA and kickboxing show.
    • June 25 – Great North Wrestling returns to the Pembroke Memorial Centre, featuring Nicolai Volkoff. Tickets available here.
    • June 25 – The UWC returns to Kelly’s Bar/Banquet Hall, 14 Railroad Avenue, Wrightstown, NJ 08562. More information here.
    • June 25 – Ultima Lucha tapings in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles at The Temple
    • June 26 – Ultima Lucha tapings in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles at The Temple
    • July 2 – Stars of Wrestling from Alameda, CA at the Alameda Point Gym  has Bobby Lashley, Carlito and The Boogeyman appearing.
    • July 2 – NWA Cajun Heat in Morgan City, LA at the Municipal Auditorium with Jax Dane vs. Mustang Mike for the NWA title, Rob Conway vs. Rodney Mack and an appearance by Kevin Nash.
    • July 7-11 The 10th annual Wrestling Observer/F4W convention in Las Vegas, EdinSanAntonio has all the information up on Facebook, or email him at F4Wfan@hotmail.com.
    • July 9 – Smash Wrestling in Fort Erie, ONT at the Native Friendship Center.  Chris Hero will headline this fund raising event to raise money for the Godson of Jeremy Elliott, who Hero will wrestle.  Elliott’s Godson is a patient at the CPRI Treatment Center.
    • July 17 – Premier Wrestling at the IFDES Lodge and Portuguese Hall in Gilroy, CA with Joe Graves (5-1-1) vs. Gabriel Gallo (5-0-1) for the Premier title plus the Premier Women Athletes title with Raze (3-2) vs. Shayna Baszler (1-0), Jeff Cobb (6-6-1) vs. JR Kratos (9-3-1), Nicole Savoy (3-3) vs Desi de Rata (0-0) and Alexander Hammerstone (2-0) vs. Douglas James (1-0).  Tickets are available at www.premierwrestle.com.
    • July 22 – Rachel Ellering appears for Ignite Wrestling in Fort Pierce, FL at the National Guard Armory on a show with Lince Dorado, Mr. 450 Hammet, Lio Rush, Martin Stone, Los Ben Dejos, and more.
    • July 24 – Fenix vs. Pentagon Jr. headlines for Lucha Libre New York at Club LaBoom in Queens, NY.
    • August 13 – Rey Mysterio Jr. will headline a show at Montgomery High School in San Diego, his alma mater, for Viva La Lucha promotions.  Also appearing are Konnan, Psicosis, Johnny Mundo, Teddy Hart and TJ Perkins.

    Today in Professional Wrestling History: Taz, CM Punk, and Batista wins individual gold

  • WWE Raw ratings slightly up from last week

    The Monday, June 6th Raw did 3.24 million viewers, up slightly from last week’s 3.22 million.

    Last week had far tougher competition with a monster NBA game, but it was helped by being John Cena’s return to the show. This week has the Stanley Cup playoff game (Pittsburgh vs. San Jose) that did 4.23 million viewers on NBC, but The Bachelorette, in the spot of Dancing With The Stars, is doing just over half of what DWTS was doing.

    Raw’s second hour was the high point, leading to a big third hour fade of 587,000 viewers. The second hour featured the Cena-A.J. Styles confrontation while the big things pushed in the third hour were Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens and the New Day vs. Club six-man tag match.

    The three hours were:

    • 8 p.m. 3.37 million viewers
    • 9 p.m. 3.49 million viewers
    • 10 p.m. 2.90 million viewers

    We discussed the show in full on last night’s Wrestling Observer Radio, available for subscribers.

  • Daily Pro Wrestling History (6/7): Taz, CM Punk, and Batista wins individual gold

    1933 

    Kansas City, Missouri:
    – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jim Londos beat Everette Marshall by a third fall DQ
    – Charlie Fischer beat Joe Wilson
    – Johnny Shoop defeated Joe Ferguson

    1951

    Kansas City, Kansas:
    – Gorgeous George beat Heart of America Heavyweight Champion Dennis Clary by DQ 
    – Ray Eckert and Ronnie Etchison went to a 45 minute time limit draw 

    1956 

    Amarillo, Texas:
    – Dizzy Davs and Sonny Myers defeated Art Nelson and Rip Rogers for the NWA Southwest Tag Team Titles

    1960 

    Osaka, Japan:
    – Rikidozan and Toyonobori defeated Dan Miller and Frank Valois to win the JWA All Asia Tag Team Titles

    1962 

    Amarillo, Texas:
    – Dory Funk, Sr. won the NWA North American Heavyweight Title (Amarillo version) by defeating Fritz Von Erich 

    Chattanooga, Tennessee:
    – Joe Lanza defeated Taro Sakuro for the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Title

    1966 

    Quebec City, Quebec, Canada:
    – Edouard Carpentier defeated Hans Schmidt to win the International Wrestling Association International Heavyweight Title

    1969

    San Antonio, Texas:
    – Jose Lothario defeated Johnny Valentine to win the WCCW Texas Heavyweight Title 

    San Francisco, California: 
    – Ray Stevens defeated King Curtis Iaukea for the San Francisco version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Title 

    1972

    Mobile, Alabama:
    – Gorgeous George, Jr. defeated Bob Kelly to win the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Title 

    1976

    Fukuyama, Japan:
    – Rip Tyler and Eddie Sullivan defeated The Great Kusatsu and Mighty Inoue to win the International Wrestling Enterprise (International Wrestling Alliance) World Tag Team Titles

    1978

    Raleigh, North Carolina:
    – Paul Jones defeated Baron Von Raschke for the NWA TV Title

    1979

    Tokyo, Japan:
    – Antonio Inoki pinned Stan Hansen in the finals of the New Japan MSG League

    1980 

    San Francisco, California:
    – Ed Wiskoski defeated George Wells for the San Francisco version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Title 

    1981 

    Roanoke, Virginia:
    – Terry Taylor defeated Les Thornton for the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title 

    Kansas City, Kansas:
    – Bob Sweetan defeated Buzz Tyler to win the NWA Central States Heavyweight Title

    1982 

    Greenville, South Carolina:
    – Sgt. Slaughter defeated Wahoo McDaniel to win the NWA United States Heavyweight Title

    1983

    Croydon, England:
    – Marty Jones defeated Dave Finlay to win the World Mid-Heavyweight Title

    1984

    Bayamon, Puerto Rico:
    – The Medics defeated Invader III and Toru Tanaka for the vacant WWC North American Tag Team Titles

    1987 

    Orlando, Florida:
    – Mike Rotunda defeated Dory Funk, Jr. to win the held up NWA Florida Heavyweight Title

    1990

    Tokyo, Japan:
    – El Hijo del Santo defeated Fuerza Guerrera for the World Wrestling Association World Welterweight Title 

    1991

    Dallas, Texas:
    – Tom Prichard defeated Bill Dundee to win the WCWA Texas Heavyweight Title

    1993 

    Cumberland, Kentucky:
    – Bobby Blaze defeated Tony Anthony for the vacant SMW Television Title 

    1994

    Loudon, Tennessee:
    – Tracy Smothers defeated Kendo the Samurai to win the SMW Television Title 

    1996

    Sapporo, Japan:
    – Hiromichi Fuyuki, Gedo and Jado won the WAR World Six-Man Tag Team Titles by defeating Youji Anjoh, Yoshihiro Takayama and Kenichi Yamamoto

    1997

    ECW Wrestlepalooza: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
    – Taz defeated Shane Douglas to win the ECW Television Title

    1998

    Chihuahua, Mexico:
    – Perro Aguayo, Sr. and Perro Aguayo, Jr. defeated Fuerza Guerrera and Mosco de la Merced for the Mexico National Tag Team Titles 

    2003 

    Cayey, Puerto Rico:
    – Chris Candido defeated Fidel Sierra to win the WWC Television Title
    – Dominican Boy defeated Eddie Colon for the WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Title
    – Broncos II and III won the WWC World Tag Team Title by defeating Thunder and Lightning

    2009 

    WWE Extreme Rules | New Orleans, Louisiana:
    – Chris Jericho defeated Rey Mysterio to win the WWE Intercontinental Title 
    – Tommy Dreamer won the ECW Title by defeating Jack Swagger and Christian in an extreme rules match
    – Batista defeated Randy Orton to win the WWE Championship in a steel cage match 
    – Jeff Hardy defeated World Champion Edge in a Ladder Match to win the title 
    – CM Punk cashed in the Money in the Bank briefcase and defeated Jeff Hardy to win the World title

  • WWE RAW Hits & Misses: After promising open, meaningless matches & repetition disappoint

    Despite a promising opening half hour, Monday night’s edition of RAW ultimately flattered to deceive. Here are the weekly sparse hits and myriad misses from this week’s Money in the Bank build-up show:

    — The Hits —

    The comedy-laden opening segment

    Given the scriptwriting standard we’re accustomed to, six men reciting lines at each other in the ring should have been a disaster. Instead, highlighted by Owens’ interruptions and Jericho’s obnoxiousness, Monday night’s opening segment was consistently amusing.

    The other members of the MITB ladder match finally challenging Jericho on his record in the match he created was wonderful. Jericho maintaining that he won “the first one….the sixth one!” in “Apple…..Appleton…..Stupididiotville!” was hilarious, as was Chris responding to Cesaro’s “your hometown?” rejoindre with: I’m from Winnipeg, idiot!”. That of course led to the crowd chanting “stupid idiot” for the second consecutive week, to which Jericho delightfully responded: “I know you are, but what am I?”.

    While I could do without wacky Dean Ambrose talking about fighting polar bears, at least we also had Owens’ “Ooh, Spanish!” as soon as Alberto Del Rio opened his mouth. It was nice to see Teddy Long too, despite his flubs, if only to hear the on-fire Jericho insult him. Great stuff.

    Backstage segments

    Further credit must be directed towards the writing staff for the quality of this week’s backstage segments. From Del Rio cutting a strong heel promo on Zayn in the locker room to Long dancing along to his theme on his smartphone to Ambrose finally getting serious in response to Owens, they all worked really well.

    Big Cass’ intensity

    I wasn’t crazy about Enzo & Cass’ Ali-laden tribute promo, but I really liked the idea of using Aiden English’s attempt to repeat the events of Payback to fire up Cass. Cass showed signs of being able to exhibit believable aggression during his short-lived recent singles run, and that was on display here again as he dismantled the Vaudevillains. I didn’t even mind the cheap DQ finish for not responding to the referee’s instructions.

    — The Misses —

    Meaningless matches

    It was very difficult to care about any of the seven matches on this show, particularly the three matches involving the MITB participants. All six men are already in a key match at the PPV, and nothing is going to change regardless of the results of their singles bouts. Why, therefore, am I supposed to get invested? At least all three matches were fine, with those who most needed credibility picking up the victories.

    Repetition, repetition, repetition

    There was so much on this show that I’ve seen before, with much of it as recent as last week. Rusev’s match against Swagger was a repeat from last week’s Smackdown as was the Life Lessons promo. Enzo & Cass fought the Vaudevillains on last week’s Main Event too, while Ambrose vs. Owens is a match that I really never need to see again for a very long time. News of another Ambrose vs. Jericho bout on this week’s Smackdown only increases my jadedness.

    Reigns/Rollins “History Revisited”

    Although last week’s WWE 24 documentary on the returning Seth Rollins was a fantastic piece of television, airing clips of it here only underlines how utterly boneheaded it was to bring “The Future of the WWE” back as a heel. If this two-part video package was intended to get the crowd to boo him and cheer Roman, it failed as anyone who saw it would surely be inclined to get behind Seth.

    Getting Rollins to call Reigns a “placeholder” and reminding us of his Wrestlemania cash-in is unlikely to build sympathy for a champion that few like.

    The Cena/Styles follow-up

    The feud that the company is billing as a “Wrestlemania match” did not have a great sophomore outing this week. Their promo was as meta as a bad episode of Community with Cena’s jorts self-awareness and AJ’s talk of getting the shovels. The explanation that Styles recruited the Club to help him best Cena out of fear of getting “buried” is weak sauce in the extreme. Very disappointing.

    Stephanie’s characterisation

    So apparently Stephanie McMahon is an all-out heel this week, in Shane’s absence, abusing the doddery Long and stealing his ideas. She did deliver one piece of big news however, informing us that she will be the head honcho of Smackdown when it goes live on Tuesday nights. Hands up who laughed heartily at the laundry list of the qualities she supposedly possesses: “intelligent, young, vivacious, smart, has business acumen, and can usher in the New Era!” That’s a no-hitter for you there Steph, I’m afraid.

    The Golden Truth follow-up

    One Smackdown repeat I would have liked to see was the karaoke version of R-Truth’s new song, complete with a bobbing Goldust head to help you sing along. If the company was willing to spend months filming vignettes for these two, it might be an idea to get out of the way and let them get themselves over. Not only were the lyrics not on-screen, but Michael Cole talked over the song for the second week running too!

  • NJPW Best of the Super Juniors finals results: Will Ospreay vs. Ryusuke Taguchi

    Here are the results for the Best of the Super Juniors 2016 finals, held live this morning in Sendai. A lot of tags fill this card, but there was also some pretty good build towards Dominion, plus we had a stellar main event. Here are the results:

    Jay White vs. David Finlay

    This was different than their other matches as it had an air of intensity that’s sometimes has lacked in their other bouts. Went by pretty fast. Finlay laid out White with a European uppercut and went to grab him but White caught him in a small package and pinned him.

    Yoshitatsu and Captain New Japan vs. Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi

    Match was better than you’d think considering who was in here. The crowd helped a lot. Yujiro picked up the win with the Miami Shine. I’m pretty sure this is the first win for Yujiro in 2016. 

    Katsuyori Shibata and Juice Robinson vs. Manabu Nakanishi and Yuji Nagata

    Of course, the focus here was on Nagata and Shibata. Pretty solid action from everyone. Nakanishi actually moved pretty well for once, all things considering. He’s even been doing a crossbody off the top rope as of late. Didn’t do wonders for him here though as he was pinned with the penalty kick.

    reDragon and Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Roppongi Vice and Tomohiro Ishii

    Crowd popped whenever Ishii and Tenzan were in the ring. RPG Vice tried to help out Ishii but Tenzan is still a bit too strong for them. Solid, quick match with reDragon getting the win with the Chasing the Dragon.

    Jushin Thunder Liger, Tiger Mask and Volador Jr vs. Matt Sydal, Ricochet and Kushida

    This was really great towards the end. Lots of high flying and cool dives by everyone. Kushida did a dive that wiped out people on the floor, and even Liger and Tiger Mask did crossbodies off the top rope to the floor. Volador and Ricochet did some great looking back and forth in the ring. Ricochet laid him out with a kick and hit the 630 for the win. Quite the spectacle in the last few minutes.

    reDragon came to the ring. Fish mentions they never lost the Jr. tag team titles. O’Reilly said they want to challenge for the belts. Roppongi Vice follow suit and challenge. Beretta has a contract and mentions that the contract states that they get a rematch. Ricochet says that they’ll accept both challenges for Dominion in a triple threat match. I guess it’s a newer version of the triple threat tag matches they like to do, so why not? Everything seemed to be settled when RPG Vice jump the champions to boos. reDragon make the save, but the champions come back and do stereo moonsaults that wipe out both challengers.

    Satoshi Kojima and Michael Elgin vs. Bad Luck Fale and Kenny Omega

    Omega brought the broom but discarded it quickly and worked on Elgin for the heat, with Fale working the match as well to keep control. Omega did a great tope con hilo to wipe out Elgin and introduced a ladder for…well, I don’t know what reason but both her and Elgin climbed it. Elgin have Omega a suplex off the ladder. Chase Owens was also out there to distract, and while he did Omega smashed Elgin with the ladder.

    Omega tried to go for the One Winged Angel but Elgin countered and powerbombed him through the ladder. The referee saw this but just stood here, no DQ as Elgin gave him another powerbomb for the win. Fun match but mostly just an angle to build towards the Dominion show.

    Elgin grabbed the title after the match and motioned for Omega to come get it. Omega got a mic and said the challenge Elgin issue has been accepted. Elgin said the belt would be his as he made his exit.

    Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto, Yoshi-Hashi and Gedo vs. Tetsuya Naito, Evil, Sanada and Bushi

    Another wild brawl to start things off. Sanada bring a bat to the ring, which he used here while they brawled on the outside. Mostly a pretty good back and forth match, not as long as the other matches on this tour. Bushi scored another win with the codebreaker off the top rope.

    Los Ingobernables try and clear house after the match but Ishii comes for the save. If fails as Bushi mists him. Okada attacks him and tombstones him, pointing at Naito.

    Best of the Super Junior Finals: Will Ospreay vs. Ryusuke Taguchi

    This was of course awesome, one of the best matches in the tournament in terms of drama and selling. Taguchi has a dumb gimmick but is also a very good big match guy and excelled here. Ospreay is already awesome at this stage of the game and will really be something in a few years as he gains more in ring experience.The first few minutes had them feeling things out, a few taunts between one another, etc. Taguchi starts working over Ospreay’s leg to ground him.Ospreay tried for a rainmaker but Taguchi countered into an ankle lock.

    Taguchi remained in control, giving Ospreay hip attacks and a giant flying senton to the floor. It’s funny because even though Taguchi is a hometown guy and even carried a flag to the ring representing his hometown a lot of people were rooting for Ospreay. He made a comeback with a hurricanrana and was going for the springboard stunner when Taguchi countered with an ankle lock. They did a long, great sell here and it even included a dodon nearfall. Ospreay finally back back and superkicked Taguchi to the floor. He hit an inverted 450 splash and followed that with the springboard stunner to win the tournament.

    After being given the trophy, Ospreay called out Kushida, who was doing commentary. He made it clear he wanted a title match and challenged Kushida for the title. Kushida says sure, he is a champion and wants to see who is the strongest between them. He exits the ring as Ospreay thanks his family and his fans as the streamers go off and he celebrates.

    At 23, Will Ospreay becomes the youngest Best of the Super Juniors winner, the first English winner and the fifth gaijin to win the tournament. He has a very bright future ahead of him, that’s for sure!

  • WWE interested in UFC’s Paige VanZant for SummerSlam

    As part of the business relationship with UFC and WWE, the WWE is interested in bringing in Paige VanZant to SummerSlam.

    PW Insider and Fox Sports have both reported the news.

    Mike Roberts, the manager of VanZant, confirmed to Fox Sports earlier today that WWE has reached out to inquire about VanZant to appear “in some capacity” on the 8/21 SummerSlam show.  A WWE source confirmed the news to us that the company was looking for a role for her at the show.

    VanZant gained a good deal of national exposure on “Dancing With The Stars,” where she placed second, after winning the actual dancing end of the competition.  She came off strong throughout the show, which was viewed by 11 to 12 million viewers every Monday night.

    VanZant was originally slated to fight on the undercard of UFC 200, but the decision was made to hold her off because of the limited amount of training time she’d have after DWTS ended.

    VanZant already got a movie role in the “Kickboxer Retaliation” movie with former WWE star Dave Bautista as well as a number of former MMA fighters including Gina Carano and Georges St-Pierre.

  • UFC lifts ban on Ariel Helwani, MMAFighting.com

    In a statement released tonight by UFC, the ban on Ariel Helwani and others at MMAFighting.com is no more.

    “Following a conversation with with the editorial team at SB Nation, UFC willl not prevent MMAFighting.com from receving media credentials to cover live UFC events. We respect the role the media plays in our sport and beyond, including MMAFighting’s ability to report news. However, in our opinion, we believe the recurring tactics used by its lead reporter extended beyond the purpose of journalism.  We feel confident our position has now been adequatly communicated to the SB Nation editorial team.

    UFC’s goal as the world’s leading mixed martial arts promotion is to cultivate interest in its world-class athletes and events, and deliver for the fans. We will continue to introduce this sport and its athletes to new fans across the world, and we will do so by working alongside media across all platforms.”

    UFC had come under fire in the last 24 hours after Helwani took his story to several mainstream media outlets. The wording of the statement is curious as they are still clearly unhappy with Helwani. 

  • Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson passes away from heart failure

    MMA star and YouTube street fighting sensation Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson has passed away at the age of 42 Monday, reportedly due to heart failure.

    TMZ reported on Monday evening that Ferguson had been rushed to the hospital and was in a dire situation, and social media reports started to file in later that he had passed away. American Top Team, where Ferguson trained, confirmed the news on their Twitter account.

    The ATT Family and South Florida community lost a legend today. RIP Kimbo. pic.twitter.com/sjs8ctyJMd

    — American Top Team (@AmericanTopTeam) June 7, 2016

    Ferguson rose to stardom on YouTube as a street fight legend, and parlayed that into an MMA career. He fought on the first-ever MMA event broadcast on network television — EliteXC: Primetime in May 2008 — where he defeated James Thompson. He famously lost to Seth Petruzelli later in 2008 in EliteXC’s final event. He went on to appear on UFC’s The Ultimate Fighter and fought Roy Nelson in the most watched fight aired on cable during that TUF season.

    He went on to have a 1-1 record inside the Octagon, being released following a loss to Matt Mitrione.

    Ferguson moved onto professional boxing and compiled a 7-0 record before returning to MMA with Bellator MMA. He defeated Ken Shamrock at Bellator 138 in June 2015, and followed that up with a second straight win in the infamous February bout against Dhafir “Dada 5000” Harris in February where Harris claimed he died during the fight and was hospitalized for several days following due to renal failure.

    Ferguson failed a drug test afterward failing for nandralone and elevated testosterone levels. He was suspended for 90 days, far from the standard suspensions found in most states. Ferguson was booked to rematch Thompson at the upcoming Bellator 158 event on July 16 in London, England.

    A statement from Bellator’s Scott Coker: 

    We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating and untimely loss of Kimbo Slice, a beloved member of the Bellator family. 

    One of the most popular MMA fighters ever,  Kimbo was a charismatic, larger-than-life personality that transcended the sport.

    Outside of the cage he was a friendly, gentle giant and a devoted family man. His loss leaves us all with extremely heavy hearts, and our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Ferguson family and all of Kimbo’s friends, fans, and teammates.

    A statement from UFC:

    UFC is saddened to learn of the passing of Kevin Ferguson, known to fans around the world as Kimbo Slice.

    Slice will forever be a part of UFC history as a contestant on season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter in 2009, and for having fought twice inside the Octagon at The Ultimate Fighter Finale and UFC 113. He carried himself as a true professional during his time in our organization.

    While he will never be forgotten for his fighting style and transcendent image, Slice will also be remembered for his warm personality and commitment to his family and friends.

    UFC offers its sincere condolences to Slice’s family, friends and teammates at American Top Team.

    Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez have more on this on tonight’s Wrestling Observer Radio.

  • Lucha Libre World Cup Finals: AAA, NOAH, TNA, Lucha Underground & more vie for the prize

    Submitted by Greg Valko

    Women’s 3rd Place match: Team USA vs Team Canada

    Taya pinned Santana after hitting her with a Northern Lights suplex and a kick to the head in about 7 minutes.

    Hugo speculates to Josh about TNA hosting the World Cup next year.

    Victoria Trophy

    The 4 losing teams from Night 1 are placed in a modified battle royale. One member of each team enters the ring, and when someone is eliminated by going over the top rope, his teammate enters the match, and the match continues until there are 2 participants at which point it becomes a singles match.

    First entrants are Eli Drake for Team TNA, Blue Demon Jr for Team AAA Legends, Akebono for Team Japan-Odo/Zero-One, and Rockstar Spud for Team Rest of the World

    Drake is eliminated after being knocked over in a superplex attempt. Tyrus throws EC3 into the ring. Rockstar Spud does some comedy sumo spots with Akebono, and then pulls a Mil Mascaras. Apolo replaces him. EC3 knocks Blue Demon Jr off the apron. Canek replaces. Canek eliminates Apolo, Mil Muertes enters as final member of Team Rest of the World.

    Akebono gets eliminated and in a scary moment, has his leg stuck in the ropes and dangles. Doctors were tending to him, and Tanaka replaces him. EC3 calls Tyrus into the ring for extra muscle, and gets thrown out by Tyrus as Hugo wonders “Is this legal?” and Josh replies “No.” After a few more eliminations, the final 2 were Mil Muertes and Tyrus with Muertes pinning Tyrus after a Flatliner. Rockstar Spud celebrates in the ring as Mil and Apolo blow him off.

    Men’s Semifinal 1: Team AAA vs Team Japan-NOAH

    Crowd was pretty hot, Psycho Clown pins Taniguchi with a frog splash in 6 or 7 minutes.

    Men’s Semifinal 2 – Team LU vs Team AAA International

    Dario comes out with Team LU and spends the match standing behind the tournament judges staring and wondering “Why did I put Chavo on my team”. Dr Wagner gets a promo in, but at least this time the clock wasn’t running like on Night 1. Easily the first match worth trying to catch if you missed it. Last 2
    minutes were incredibly intense and ended with Brian Cage pinning Dragon Azteca Jr in 9:58 after reversing a tilt-a-whirl DDT into a Drill Claw.

    Women’s 1st place match- Team Japan vs Team Mexico

    Aja Kong waffles all of the Apaches with a garbage can in the last 25 seconds as the ref is distracted. No pinfall attempts made. First match to meet overtime.
    Aja Kong vs Faby Apache is first OT and goes the limit. Yuki Miyazaki vs Mary Apache is second OT. Josh learns the etymology of Hurricanrana after Miyazaki busts one out on Apache. Close nearfalls with Apache powerbombs and superplexes. Miyzaki kickouts at 2.9 for both moves. Ref was Marty Elias of LU, which drew massive heat. Mary Apache pins Miyazaki after a Michinoku driver. Only the final OT really had some great heat and a good story. Marty might need to have pulled a Hebner if Team Japan won that, but it built heat for the AAA/LU final.

    Men’s 3rd place match – Team Japan-NOAH vs Team AAA International

    They’re skipping the 10 minute regulation and going straight to sudden death.

    OT1 – Marifuji vs Dr. Wagner Jr – No Wagner promo. Submission holds traded, ends with Wagner locking Marifuji in a small package as time expired.

    OT2  – Taniguchi vs Dragon Azteca Jr – Not too many pinfalls, it ends with an Azteca cannonball plancha with 14 seconds left.

    OT3 –  Ishimori vs Rey Mysterio Jr – Rey went for a 619 early but it was caught by Ishimori and reversed into a gutbuster. Eventually Ishimori ended in the ropes again, and ended up eating a 619 and the frog splash for a pin with about 55 seconds left on the clock.

    Men’s 1st place match – Team AAA vs Team LU

    AAA is attacked by LU as they enter. Great action, Chavo appears to be hurt. Pentagon Jr counters an End of the World by Mundo and hits a package piledriver, but runs out of time before he can get a pinfall.

    OT1 – Chavo vs Texano

    Story of this OT is that Chavo is working hurt. Not sure if the injury is legit, but he gets a bit of offense in and is cut off by Texano. Pattern repeats until Chavo tries a Frankensteiner, which is reversed into a top rope power bomb with 15 seconds to go. Texano can’t move after the landing and time expires.

    OT2 – Cage vs Psycho Clown

    In the final minute, Psycho Clown has a pinfall cover but Mundo distracts the ref by grabbing his leg and Cage kicks out. Cage goes for a power bomb, but Clown reverses into a Canadian Destroyer. Visual pinfall, but ref doesn’t get into the ring with less 10 seconds left and time expires.

    OT3 – Mundo vs Pentagon Jr

    With about a minute left, Pentagon cinches in the armbreaker, but Cage pulls the ref out. Chavo blasts Pentagon with a chair, Mundo hits the End of the World and gets the pinfall. Disappointing end and beers start flying.

    Dario gets on the mic as Team LU retreats up the ramp. Dario is pelted with garbage and joins them. Now we know why Mexico hates Chavo. Team AAA cuts a babyface promo against LU’s antics.

    Award ceremony starts

    • Johnny Mundo wins best flying move
    • Best match is awarded to LU vs AAA International.
    • Best female wrestler is Mary Apache
    • Best male wrestler is Pentagon Jr. Pentagon stares at Team LU and slowly backs down the ramp.