Bobby Roode was briefly advertised for the NXT UK tour by the WWE’s Twitter this morning, but the tweet was later pulled.
While not official, the belief is that both Roode and Eric Young will be signed and officially part of the NXT roster soon.
Roode and Young were TNA stars from the very beginning as part of Team Canada. Both left the company earlier this year. Roode appeared in the crowd and was shown on-screen at the NXT Takeover Dallas event. Young wrestled Samoa Joe on this week’s NXT TV show, losing clean in the middle to Joe’s choke sleeper. He hadn’t signed a deal but the feeling was it was a tryout of sorts, and he did well enough in the match and on the microphone that it was expected he’d end up with a deal.
Young had done an interview with Niagara This Week claiming that he was working on a deal, but that it wasn’t signed and sealed yet.
In a day of housecleaning not seen in years, there are a few more WWE departures to report after the three that were made public earlier this morning. The most notable would be Stu Bennett (Wade Barrett), who posted this on Twitter at 12:40 pm eastern:
After almost 9 years, today was my final day with WWE. I made a decision back in August last year not to re-sign once my current contract expired in June 2016, and I’ve now reached an agreement with management to dissolve the contract a few weeks early. Thank you to everyone who has supported me over the years, especially the guys I’ve shared a ring & locker room with. I will miss them tremendously.
As planned, I am now taking a well-earned break from the wrestling industry in order to expand my horizons, but I’ll be back in the ring when the time is right.
Thanks for the support everyone, I’l see you all down the road.
Barrett was the first-ever winner of the NXT reality to earn a main roster spot. He and the other cast members of that show debuted in a memorable angle in a 2010 edition of Monday Night RAW where they laid out John Cena and destroyed the ring. Barrett had several stop and start pushes over the year and injuries derailed him on several occasions when it appeared he was ready to break through. He had expressed interest in the past in an acting career and had a role in the 2013 film “Dead Man Down”
El Torito (aka Mascarita Dorada) has been with WWE since 2013, debuting as the costumed bull mascot of Los Matadores, after a long career in Mexico with CMLL and AAA. After feuding with Hornswoggle (who was also released today) for a couple of years, he broke off with Los Matadores in September of last year after being put through a table by the Dudleyz. Aside from a few comedy backstage segments he had not been seen on TV since then.
Arianne Andrew (Cameron) was a cast member in the 2011 version of Tough Enough, hosted by Steve Austin. She was the first elimination on the show but was the only cast member to make it to the main roster. She started as a “Funkadactyl” with partner Naomi as they accomponied Brodus Clay and later Tensai (Matt Bloom) to the ring. She was also an original cast member of E’s “Total Divas“. She and Naomi competed as a tag team off and on after Clay was released and Tensai transitioned into a commentary roll on NXT. She did a mini-feud with then champion Paige, losing three consecutive title matches in early 2015. Later that year she surfaced on NXT, facing Asuka in one of the current NXT women’s champion’s first bouts with the company. She has made a couple of appearances since then but was not featured prominently and her release was announced today. It was figured she was on the chopping block after Ryback posted a message on Tumblr essentially demanding equal pay for everyone on the roster and Cameron tweeted out that she was in support of Ryback before quickly pulling it. She later posted a long tirade about cyberbullying.
UPDATES:
Also just announced was the release of Aaron Haddad (Damien Sandow). Sandow was a popular undercard wrestler who always got bigger crowd reactions than his push. He competed on RAW just this past Monday and his elimination was one of the louder reactions in the match. He is a former Money in the Bank winner with the distinction of being one of only two wrestlers to not cash in his briefcace successfully (the other being, of all people, John Cena). He’d started with the company in 2002, starting as Aaron “The Idol” Stevens in OVW and was later called up to Smackdown as Idol Stevens, teaming with KC James as Michelle McCool’s “Teacher’s Pets”. That run was short-lived and he was released in 2007 after a return to OVW. He was re-signed in 2010 and assigned to FCW, the WWE’s developmental territory at the time, and made his return to the main roster in 2012 as Sandow. He teamed with Cody Rhodes as the “Rhodes Scholars” as they feuded with Team Hell No over the WWE Tag Team titles. He later did a gimmick where he impersonated characters from both inside and outside wrestling, such as Bruce Springsteen, Abraham Lincoln, Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon. That morphed into a memorable sting where he played Macho Sandow, along with Curtis Axel’s character of “Axel Mania”, a Hulk Hogan parody. The two feuded and then teams for several months before Hulk Hogan’s falling out with the company led to the dissolution of the team. Sandow had been used sparingly since then, usually in an enhancement role or in battle royals.
WWE just announced the release of Santino. He had underwent neck surgery and the belief was he probably wasn’t ever wrestling again. He had made occasional appearances here and there on WWE TV. Of late, he has been running his own mixed martial arts school, the BattleArts Academy, in Ontario. He started out in Ohio Valley Wrestling in the mid-2000s as Johnny Geo Basco and Boris Alexiev, basically your standard Rusev foreign heel character. An incident occured at a TV taping where the Boogeyman came down to the ring and the idea what that he was supposed to be a terrifying character, but Santino (real name Anthony Carelli) was sitting in the crowd and started laughing. Jim Cornette was furious and slapped him around, which snowballed into the deparature of Cornette from WWE developmental. He debuted on the main roster in April of 2007 on a show in Milan, Italy. His new gimmick was that he was an Italian babyface, so he was signed to face Umaga for the Intercontinental Title and he won it his first night in. He lost the belt back to Umaga a few months later and soon began to morph into a full-fledged comedy figure. The irony is that he was so great at the character that they ran with it full-bore, probably to the detriment of his career since they never really pushed him as a serious character afterwards.
WWE today confirmed the releases of Kevin Kiley Jr (Alex Riley), Dylan Postl (Hornswoggle) and Wayne Keown (Zeb Colter).
Riley has had the most prominent role of the three recently, as he had an interview on NXT TV this week to promote an upcoming (already taped) match with Nakamura. He had recently returned from a long-term injury layoff and had been doing a bitter veteran gimmick where he would lash out against recent NXT signings that he didn’t feel were the calibre of athlete he is. He had gained a lot of muscle mass in his time off. He had been with the company since 2007 and was most prominently the sidekick of The Miz when he had his World title run and headlined WrestleMania 27 against John Cena. He won season 2 of the NXT reality show after being mentored by Miz on that show. After floundering on the main roster following his breakup with Miz, he resurfaced as a color commentator on NXT in 2013 before leaving the booth for a short-term feud with Kevin Owens in early 2015. He was injured shortly after and just recently returned to NXT TV.
Hornswoggle has been virtually non-existent on TV since a 30 day wellness violation on September 28th of last year. He’s been with the company almost exactly 10 years, having debuted in May of 2006. After starting out as Fit Finley’s sidekick (later revealed to be his “son”), he had featured roles as Mr McMahon’s illegitimate son and later as a sidekick to the DX team of Triple H and Shawn Michaels. He was also revealed to be the person behind the “anonymous GM” when WWE wanted a quick way out of that storyline. His last featured role was a feud with Torito, the costumed bull mascot of The Matadores (Primo and Epico Colon) tag team. The two had a WeeLC match at Payback in 2014 that was an entertaining spectacle but after that feud fizzled out, it was clear there were no plans for him.
Colter, also known for many years as Dutch Mantel, had been with WWE since 2013, which was second stint with the company. In the mid-90’s he managed the Blu Brothers (Ron and Don Harris) and Justin “Hawk” Bradshaw (JBL) as Uncle Zedekiah. He returned in 2013 to manage Jack Swagger. He received a lot of press as an outspoken pro-American xenophobic mouthpiece, even getting mentions from mainstream sources such as Glenn Beck and FOX News. WWE toned down the character after a couple of months while of course led to the Swagger character cooling off as well. He later added Cesaro to his stable as “The Ream Americans”. That pairing was short-lived as Cesaro broke off from the team to align with Paul Heyman. Shortly after that, Colter and Swagger turned face to feud with Rusev and Lana in Rusev’s first main roster feud. Colter was written out of WWE storylines after Rusev broke his leg in a backstage segment. He resurfaced last year in a short-lived run as Alberto Del Rio’s manager and feuding with his former protégé Swagger. After just a few weeks, Del Rio “fired” Colter on RAW and he had not been seen since.
The Octagon makes a stop for the first time in The Netherlands for a fight card on Mothers’ Day as UFC Fight Night 87 rolls into Rotterdam, airing on FOX Sports 1 as an afternoon event in the United States. Headlining the event is a heavyweight bout as Alistair Overeem puts his three-fight win streak on the line against former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski. Below are our studs, value plays and fighters to avoid when setting your line-ups for Sunday’s event.
STUDS
Magnus Cedenblad ($10,600)
Magnus Cedenblad hasn’t fought since October 2014 yet he remains one of our top plays on this slate of fighters for UFC Fight Night 87 on Sunday. He has won three straight fights, and eleven of his thirteen professional wins have come by stoppage. He is a huge middleweight and has some real good talent. He is a solid grappler, and that is the area his opponent, Garreth McLellan, has some trouble. McLellan has a tendency of getting taken down, and with a bigger opponent in Cedenblad who has excellent grappling, it is going to be hard for McLellan to avoid getting taken down. Cedenblad should be looking to utilize his size and grappling advantages, and a finish early should be in line. He has good hands, but a submission early seems more likely. Cedenblad is an excellent pick to start your roster off with.
Alistair Overeem ($10,300)
I am honestly surprised that Alistair Overeem is coming as cheap as he is for his main event bout against Andrei Arlovski. Overeem has won three straight and has looked excellent in doing so, and his last win over Junior Dos Santos was arguably his most impressive inside the Octagon, making Dos Santos look like a finished fighter, which is amazing considering how impressive Dos Santos looked in his last fight a month ago. He also faces an opponent known for a glass jaw in Arlovski, who is coming off being knocked out in 54 seconds in his last fight against Stipe Miocic. Yes, Overeem has suffered nine knockout losses of his own, but his style should be able to keep Arlovski from getting on the inside. Arlovski did look like a rejuvenated fighter up until his smashing at the hands of Miocic, and I expect to see more of that Arlovski than the one who had an impressive win streak leading into the Miocic bout. Overeem’s salary makes him an easy play for your roster, and I expect him to be widely owned.
VALUE PLAYS
Chris Wade ($9,000)
Chris Wade is an interesting play for a $9,000 salary. He is undefeated inside the Octagon, but he takes on his stiffest test to date when he meets Rustam Khabliov on Saturday night. Khabilov is an injury replacement, but he had a good amount of notice for the bout and likely got as close to a full training camp as you can get. Khabilov hasn’t looked the same in his most recent fights, and while he got the win over Norman Parke in his last fight, he didn’t look overly impressive, and Wade is a sneaky rising prospect. Wade has good wrestling and some solid submissions, and he may overpower Khabilov to the mat. Khabliov had shown some great throws and takedowns, but that has seemingly gone out the window lately. I’m not sure if he regressed or if the having to stay overseas to train due to visa issues have hurt him, but he just hasn’t looked the same. Wade is a sneaky play to score a lot of takedowns and grind out a decision win.
Gunnar Nelson ($8,900)
Gunnar Nelson is going to be the most debated fighter on the card at his $8,900 salary. It’s hard to predict what is going to happen when he takes on Albert Tumenov on Sunday. Tumenov has shown to be an explosive striker so Nelson will be looking to take it to the mat. If Nelson can get the fight down, Tumenov is going to be in a lot of trouble on the ground. Nelson is still world class on the mat, but he did get embarassed by Demian Maia in his last fight. He needs a big rebound if he is ever going to be in the title picture at 170 pounds, and Tumenov is a beast with a five-fight win streak and has explosive finishes. Nelson has yet to be finished, and he could grind the fight out for three rounds and find a submission on the mat. He has good value if he can turn the fight with Tumenov into his kind of fight. It may be a challenge, but I see Nelson having some very good value.
FIGHTERS TO AVOID
Yan Cabral ($10,200)
Yan Cabral has a decently high salary on Sunday’s event, but he is an easy pass for me. He is just 2-2 in his UFC career and hasn’t been overly impressive in his bouts. He has one finish in the two wins, but that was over Naoyuki Kotani, who was 0-5 inside the Octagon. He has a tough match-up against Reza Madadi, a fighter who is very tough to finish, and one that has a good shot at scoring an upset win. Madadi lost his last bout to Norman Parke, but it was his first fight in two-and-a-half years, and the ring rust was certainly evident. Madadi has a very good chance in finishing Cabral, but this looks to be a fight that will go the distance. I don’t expect much from either man, and I actually think Madadi picks up the victory. It makes Cabral an easy fighter for me to avoid.
Ulka Sasaki ($9,100)
Ulka Sasaki is the other fighter on my avoid list. He is coming into his bout against Willie Gates as a late replacement for the now-retired Paddy Holohan and enters the fight on a two-fight losing skid. He is in a must-win situation if he intends on having a UFC future, but Gates is a tough foe to go against, especially when he has a full camp. Gates is just 1-2 in his UFC tenure, like Sasaki, but both of his losses came in short-notice situations. When he had a full camp, he won in 96 seconds. Sasaki’s last two losses have come by finish, and Gates is a finisher himself. Sasaki is an easy fighter to avoid, even though his low salary is tempting if you are looking for cheap options.
OUR LINE-UPS
RYAN FREDERICK- Magnus Cedenblad ($10,600), Alistair Overeem ($10,300), Nikita Krylov ($10,100), Willie Gates ($9,600), Chris Wade ($9,000)
I have Magnus Cedenblad and Alistair Overeem as my top plays for this week, and thus they will be on my roster this week. I love Cedenblad’s chances against an overmatched Garreth McLellan and Cedenblad’s grappling will be the big difference. Overeem is on a roll and has looked good-to-great in his three-fight win streak. Andrei Arlovski has a real suspect chin, and against a heavy kickboxer like Overeem, it is looking good for Overeem to get an early win. I like Nikita Krylov against Francimar Barroso. Barroso does just enough to win fights by decision, but he hasn’t been overly impressive, and Krylov has against lesser competition. I like Krylov to win by submission. Willie Gates gets a short-notice opponent who has been finished in his last two, and Gates is impressive with a full camp. I’m taking a chance on him. I’m also taking a chance on Chris Wade. I think he wins and he is cheap and of great value. Takedowns and significant strikes will lead him to the win.
“Reem” is fighting in his home country and is on the verge of a title shot. He’s my lock of the week. A must for any DK team and at a reasonable salary. Nikita Krylov has the best nickname in MMA, “Al Capone” and his last 5 wins have been first round finishes. KK is unbeaten and that shouldn’t change against TUF 20 alumnus Heather Clark. The women on that show have not faired well in UFC competition for the most part against fighters that weren’t on the show. I expect KK to get her UFC finish here as the biggest favorite on the card. Garreth McLellan is a darkhorse for sure but when he wins, he finishes. Magnus Cedenblad was finished by Francis Carmont. ’nuff said. I’m going with Willie Gates for my last pick. KO power in the flyweight division is rare but Gates has it. Yuta Sasaki has been finished in two straight fights and Willie is going to make it three on Sunday morning.
PEACH MACHINE- Kyoji Horiguchi ($10,700), Albert Tumenov ($10,500), Yan Cabral ($10,200), Anna Elmose ($9,400), Chris Wade ($9,000)
I will always take Kyoji. He will be a champion someday and I’ll always put him on my team. He’ll get the finish, or a ton of points. Tumenov has a really tough opponent across the cage but he’s game as hell and maybe he saw the blueprint for beating Nelson. Wade is as tough as Khabilov. I’m sure Wade is there to lose, but I don’t think he cares what UFC has planned. Nor should he. Yan Cabral is going against Madadi who I’ve never liked. Elmose is a newcomer but looks tough and de Randamie has been out of action for a while. I like the upset here. I’m not as confident in these picks as I’ve been in the last couple but as usual, my advice is to never play it safe.
Crowd loved chanting with Jose and popped for his antics. Match itself was tame, with lots of stalling and wristlocks. Jose won with a half nelson slam.
– Chris Girard vs Manny Andrade
Crowd didn’t react at all to their entrances, but got into it as it went along. Manny faked a moonsault from the top, then immediately hit a standing moonsault as Girard tried to roll out of the way for a huge reaction. Manny won with a running double knees to a sitting Girard in the corner.
– Tye Dillinger vs Austin Aries
Crowd was hot for both guys, with lots of dueling “Austin Aries/Perfect 10!” chants. They did a lot of mat wrestling, with a bunch of counters. The match was really good, and Austin eventually won with a roaring elbow.
– Triple Threat NXT Women’s Championship: Alexa Bliss vs Bayley vs Asuka (c)
This was a change from the online card, as it was supposed to be Bliss vs Asuka and Bayley vs Eva Marie. Pretty standard triple threat match, with one girl out of the ring most the time. Bayley hit Asuka with the Bayley to Belly, but Bliss threw her out, and got caught by the Asuka Lock for the finish.
– There was an intermission, where Tom Phillips came back out and pronounced the name of the town wrong. There was much booing.
– Tyler Breeze vs Shinsuke Nakamura
Before the match, Tyler cut a promo, essentially reminding us of his status as NXT gatekeeper. He’s fought everyone in NXT, and any new faces have to get through him. Cue the Nakamura chants. Nakamura got a huge reaction for everything he did, but the crowd loved both guys. They did pure comedy at first, with Nakamura trying to mock Breeze’s corner pose, and unable to get to the top rope, doing it on the bottom rope instead. Breeze tried to do Nakamura’s entrance pose on the rope, but couldn’t lean back far enough, so Nakamura gave him a hand. Later, Nakamura got a hold of Breeze’s camera and took a selfie. Nakamura kicked out of the Beauty Shot, and Tyler went for a chair. When the ref took it from him, Nakamura threw Breeze with the reverse powerslam and hit the Kinshasha for the win.
– Alexander Wolfe & Sawyer Fulton vs. NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha (Chad Gable & Jason Jordan)
Wolfe and Fulton look like Mad Max characters. They overpowered Gable until he finally got the hot tag to Jordan. Alphas are fun to watch, but the crowd was a bit out of it after the Nakamura match, and Wolfe/Fulton didn’t do much interesting to get us back. American Alpha won with their assisted suplex.
– NXT Champion Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor
Another split crowd here. Finn got a huge “Bullet Club” chant before the match. The match itself was good, with a lot of their signature stuff being countered by each other. Joe won with the muscle buster.
After he recovered from the match, Balor had Phillips come back out and apologize for pronouncing “Salina” wrong, doing his best Stone Cold and The Rock impersonations to send Phillips packing, then finished with the “We Are NXT” slogan.
New Japan announced on Friday the top three matches for the next major PPV event, a 6/19 show at Osaka Jo Hall. This is one of the company’s big three events of the year.
The big matches are all as expected, with Kazuchika Okada as the challenger for IWGP champion Tetsuya Naito in a rematch from Invasion Attack where Naito won the title. Hiroshi Tanahashi will challenge for the IC title in a ladder match against Kenny Omega. The third main match has Katsuyori Shibata getting a rematch for the Never title against new champion Yuji Nagata.
New Japan World will have a NOAH vs. New Japan themed show on 5/19.
The next Korakuen Hall show live on New Japan World will be 5/21 at 5:30 a.m. Eastern time, the first night of the 2016 Best of the Super Juniors tournament:
Satoshi Kojima & Volador Jr. & Bobby Fish vs. Tomohiro Ishii & Will Ospreay & Trent Baretta
Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi & Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask vs. Katsuyori Shibata & Juice Robinson & Jay White & David Finlay
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Yoshitatsu & Captain New Japan & Ricochet vs. Kenny Omega & Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi & Nick Jackson
– Air Date: May 5, 2016 – Location: Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO
– The Big News:
Roman Reigns and the Usos got some revenge over AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Also, The Vaudevillains vs. The New Day was made official for Extreme Rules.
– Show Recap:
Chris Jericho came out for the Highlight Reel. He said Dean Ambrose thought he could be funny and zany when tangling with him, but it got serious when Jericho smashed the 20-pound pot over Ambrose. Jericho claimed that Ambrose spent the night in a St. Louis hospital with contusions, whiplash and bulging discs.
Jericho said Ambrose wasn’t here tonight, wasn’t going to run out to make a surprise appearance, and he should stay home for good. Jericho said it is a new era in WWE – his era. The crowd chanted “You suck” at Jericho, who introduced his guest Sami Zayn.
Jericho said his good friend Kevin Owens beat Zayn fair and square but Zayn continues to attack him, which makes him a sore loser. He also called Zayn a thief for posing with The Miz’s Intercontinental title. Jericho asked Zayn what kind of human being he is, and Zayn responded, “Actually, I think I’m a pretty good human being, honestly.” Zayn thought people would agree, just like they would agree that Jericho’s scarf makes him look stupid.
Zayn said he didn’t have a problem with Owens beating him, he had a problem with Owens slapping him in the face after the match and tossing him out of the ring like garbage. He also wasn’t trying to steal the IC Title. Miz interrupted.
Miz said he’s the only one who’s earned the right to hold the IC title belt and called Zayn a serial coattail rider. Miz warned Zayn not to lay a finger on the title again, so Zayn repeatedly touched the title with his finger, which was funny. The crowd chanted for Zayn. Jericho said if someone laid a hand on his $15,000 jacket, he would do something about it, and told Miz he should do something about it.
Zayn couldn’t believe Jericho spent $15,000 on his jacket. Jericho started raging, tossed his stools down and left. Zayn called them jackasses. Miz said Zayn has no respect and called himself the biggest, baddest shark in WWE. Zayn touched the title again and challenged Miz to a fight, but Maryse got in his face. Zayn challenged him to a fight again but Miz bailed.
This segment was good enough. The biggest positive was that Sami Zayn, surprise surprise, came off very likable.
Non-title: Sami Zayn beat IC Champion The Miz (w/Maryse) via DQ
Miz tried tossing Zayn into the barricade, but Zayn leapt onto the barricade and nailed a moonsault. The highlight of that spot was the reaction of a girl in the front row. Kevin Owens came out (to his music) and joined commentary after a break.
Mauro Ranallo asked Owens what brought him to ringside and Jerry Lawler responded, “Obviously his legs brought him down here Mauro, don’t be an idiot!” Owens enjoyed that. Owens then mocked Miz for hitting an axe-handle off the top, calling him a great “athlete.” Zayn hit a dive to Miz on the outside, then got in Owens’ face.
Zayn went back after Miz, but Owens jumped Zayn from behind for the DQ. Miz and Owens double teamed him but Cesaro made the save (he stripped off his suit as he ran to the ring). Cesaro did the uppercut parade to both Miz and Owens, while still wearing sunglasses. Cesaro also caught Zayn with one by accident, which knocked him out of the ring. Cesaro tried to swing Miz but both Maryse and Owens got in the way and all the heels bailed. Cesaro posed with the title.
They showed a replay of the main event angle from Raw. Backstage, AJ Styles asked Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson if they were ready for round two. Anderson said Styles would have broken the chair over Roman Reigns if this was back in the day. Styles said it wasn’t, and reminded them he beat Reigns twice at Payback before Reigns beat him.
Styles said he would become champion, but would do it his way. Gallows and Anderson said Reigns may not see it that way after he put Styles through a table. Styles decided to go have a chat with Reigns. Anderson and Gallows were happy to hear it.
Promo for Primo and Epico. They also replayed the footage of Enzo Amore being knocked out, and announced The Vaudevillains vs. The New Day at Extreme Rules for the Tag-Team titles.
The Vaudevillains beat Curtis Axel & Bo Dallas via pinfall
The Vaudevillains did an inset promo, calling the New Day clowns and called themselves real men. They won in under two minutes with the Whirling Dervish.
Afterwards, Big Cass came out to tell the Vaudevillains they look like they came off the set of Sherlock Holmes. He said he was going to give them a whooping and called them soft. He knocked both guys out of the ring, when Axel jumped in and called them soft too. He tried to buddy up to Cass, but Cass hit him with the swinging side slam. Axel was pretty amusing here.
Natalya & Becky Lynch beat Emma & Women’s Champion Charlotte (w/Ric Flair) via submission
They worked over Natalya until she made the hot tag to Lynch, who ran wild on Emma until she was pulled out of the ring by Charlotte. They double teamed Lynch to gain control and worked her over until she made the hot tag to Natalya, who hit Charlotte with clotheslines, a low dropkick, and discus clothesline.
Natalya applied the Sharpshooter but Charlotte crawled to her corner and Emma tagged in. Emma knocked down Natalya and hit a running crossbody. Lynch broke up the cover and knocked Charlotte off the ring. Natalya applied the Sharpshooter to Emma who tapped. Average match that went about 10 minutes. Emma didn’t need to be in this match.
Backstage, Reigns and the Usos were chatting when they were interrupted by AJ Styles. Reigns told Styles he had guts coming in there. Styles told Reigns he had him dead to rights on Raw. He took the high road, but he won’t next time. Styles asked if Reigns was going to be in the Usos’ corner in the main event. Reigns called himself the champ, called the Usos family, and he would be wherever he wanted to be. Styles said he would see them out there.
There was a really bizarre vignette with Darren Young. Young spoke about searching for a life coach. He said the answer was right in front of him, when the screen split and Bob Backlund appeared. Young asked Backlund if he would be his life coach.
Backlund said yes, he would be his “wrestling coach.” Young was glad, but he wanted a life coach, not a wrestling coach. Backlund screamed that the first lesson was “wrestling is life.” The segment ended with the words “Make Darren Young Great Again” on the screen. No idea what to make of this.
Rusev (w/Lana) beat Zack Ryder via submission
Ryder didn’t get an entrance. Also, Charles Robinson was the referee. Ranallo said Rusev claimed he would eat Kalisto’s big heart, and Rusev beat Ryder in just over a minute with the Accolade. The only thing to note was Rusev developed a hematoma after being sent face-first into the steel post. Lana wasn’t happy about that.
Afterwards, Kalisto ran in and attacked Rusev for basically no reason. They claimed it was because Lana was mocking the Lucha chants. He hit Rusev with a few kicks, springboard corkscrew crossbody, and then he left to pose with his title on the stage. Rusev vs. Kalisto should be pretty great.
The announcers plugged Camp WWE by reading the same script the announcers did on Raw.
Backstage, Fandango taught Goldust some new dance moves. After some “comedy,” Fandango challenged Truth and Tyler Breeze to a tag match next week. This is so dumb.
Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson (w/AJ Styles) beat The Usos (w/Roman Reigns) via DQ
As Gallows and Anderson made their entrance, Ranallo put them over as one of the best teams in Japan and Lawler responded, “Who cares about Japanese wrestling?” After Jey Uso was sent outside a couple minutes into the match, Reigns went to check on him, at which point Anderson used his boot to face-wash Reigns. Reigns jumped in the ring and attacked Anderson for the DQ, which led to a big brawl.
A bunch of officials ran down to break it up. Styles grabbed a mic and said, “I thought this was a new era – or his that just for Raw? This is Smackdown, and we’re going to finish what we started, now!” Normally these setups to turn a singles match into a tag match (or a tag match into a six-man in this case) feels really phony, but this was done well and the crowd was into it. It was chaotic and the fans just wanted to see them fight.
WWE Champion Roman Reigns & The Usos beat AJ Styles, Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson via pinfall
Reigns and Styles started as they did on Raw, and there were dueling chants from the crowd. Reigns seemed to be getting the better of it until Styles backed him into the corner for Anderson to make a tag. Reigns and the Usos triple-teamed Anderson but he eventually backed Jey Uso into the corner for Gallows to make a tag. The Usos double teamed him, but Gallows gained control with a big boot on Jimmy Uso.
Reigns made a hot tag and hit Anderson with a jumping clothesline and clotheslines in the corner. He knocked Styles off the apron with a right hand as well. Reigns superman punched Gallows off the apron. He tried to hit Styles with one as well, but Styles hung him over the top rope, and Anderson followed with a school boy for a near fall.
An Uso hit Gallows with a suicide dive and Reigns hit Anderson with a superman punch. Reigns went for a spear but Styles cut him off with forearm. An Uso dragged Styles out of the ring and Anderson made a cover on Reigns for a close near fall. Anderson followed with a spinebuster for another near fall, but Reigns popped back with a spear for the pinfall win.
Styles tried to make the save before the pinfall, but was held back by an Uso. As soon as Reigns got the 3 count, he and Styles stared at each other, perhaps acknowledging how close this was. After they showed a replay of the finish, Styles and Reigns were still in a staredown. Styles pointed at the title saying “That’s mine” and Reigns held it up to end the show.
– Final Thoughts:
This was a mostly mundane show again until the main event stuff, which I thought was really good. Not a fan of Gallows/Anderson losing already, but at least it was to the champ.
The claimed new era with Shane and Stephanie McMahon on Raw, fallout of Payback, lineup for Extreme Rules and current WWE situation is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer. There is also a detailed story on Hulk Hogan’s latest lawsuit and his claims of how the sex tape went from Bubba the Love Sponge to the National Enquirer, including details of Hogan being blackmailed by people with the tape and the FBI sting operation regarding the tape and why it didn’t end there.
Next there is a detailed look at Ryback’s situation with WWE, New Japan’s Dontaku show and the Super Juniors tournament, the economic value of Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor to a show, and plans for a new PPV show next month.
The lead story updates the status of Shane McMahon, the story behind Payback and how it leads to Extreme rules, the injury to Enzo Amore, the booking that gets almost nobody over and the match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.
As it regards the Hogan story, this issue examines all the players involved, his latest lawsuit and more details on the FBI sting operation regarding the sex tape.
Ryback’s complaints about WWE, how things went down in his meeting with Vince McMahon, notes about WWE contracts, how wrestlers are paid in WWE and why that isn’t the case anywhere else, his philosophy about everyone being paid the same and more, all in the latest Observer issue.
Finally, more on the Adam Rose situation, changes to the WWE Network, notes on a WWE network survey, notes on Camp WWE, how the show changed and why, notes on some WWE firings this past week, as well as new hirings, update on WrestleMania 2018, Paul Heyman reality show update, Bruno Sammartino honored, notes on contract situation with different talent, DVD plans for the next 18 months, injury updates and returns, fallout of Ric Flair TMZ as well as notes regarding his podcast and other future Flair projects, notes on the next Takeover lineup, update on Bryan Danielson, More on the cruiserweight tournament, lots of WWE business updates and a former giant Olympian talks about his WWE offer and plans of eventually going there. All this and much more in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
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.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can get one free classic issue of your choice sent to you today. With a 40 issue subscription, you can get two free classic issues sent to you today.
The Wrestling Observer ranges weekly from 35,000 to 50,000 words covering pro wrestling and MMA internationally. Each issue has coverage and analysis of all the major news, plus every issue breaks major news stories before the Internet sties and has the most complete look at the pro wrestling and MMA business anywhere, plus history pieces available nowhere else.
Also in this issue:
Notes on the 60th anniversary of wrestling at Arena Mexico
Notes on what may have been a new record for most shows at a huge arena in a one week period and how it did
Highlights of a number of big shows at Arena Mexico
Octagon Jr. quits AAA and story behind it
What happened with Flamita and Lucha Underground
Another major star quits AAA
Notes from the last AAA TV tapings
NOAH’s tag team tournament rundown
New Japan makes major signing
Complete details of the 2015 G-1 tournament on AXS, including a number of two hour shows
What days the biggest matches will air
Tremendous Yoshitatsu interview about his time in WWE, Nakamura, A.J. Styles and more
Battle of legends from different promotions announced for summer
FMW starts the hardcore vs. shooters program
More on the death of Joanie Laurer
More on the MysterioMania shows
Notes on the next PWG show
Two major summer events with Dave Meltzer
New season of a TV show featuring ex-WWE star
Strange death of a Mexico City wrestler
Former WWE star talks about wanting to do MMA
Major stars work Germany
New Batista movie notes
Stars in England for a tour
Hall of Famer undergoes spinal surgery
A look back when Gordon Solie was running for public office and why he had to drop out of the race
A look back at when wrestling was criticized because it’s hottest feud was charging more in ticket prices than 50 yard line seats for the Super Bowl
Lots more on the career of Geoff Portz
70s and 80s star out of retirement last week
Update on injury to Angelico
Notes on a reality TV star who had a pro wrestling tryout last week
Details on all the ROH shows with New Japan talent and updated lineups
Notes on the ROH September PPV show
Notes on a pro wrestler who is a school teacher in a small town while also being under contract to ROH
Notes on ROH’s weekend event
Why TNA is trying to sign some wrestlers already under contract to new deals
More moves TNA is making
What these moves indicate
Update on Conor McGregor
UFC fires fighter after bar brawl
A look at this week’s UFC card
Tons of new UFC fights signed
How close Dada 5000 came to death
More issues with Kimbo Slice
What this says about Bellator
More on the sentencing of Lavar Johnson
Brothers set to fight on TV show
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can get one free classic issue of your choice sent to you today. With a 40 issue subscription, you can get two free classic
issues sent to you today.
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can get one free classic issue of your choice sent to you today. With a 40 issue subscription, you can get two free classic issues sent to you today.
New subscribers ordering 24 or 40 issues have to let us know what major stories of the past 11 years you are most interested in and we’ll send the issue with the best coverage of that story. We’ve got coverage of every major PPV event and world wide spectacular, every major star switching promotions, histories of companies like FMW, Rings and New Japan, retirement and obit issues of every major star who fits into those descriptions over the past 11 years, as well as our biggest issue every year, the annual awards issue, and our most controversial issue of every year, the Hall of Fame issue.
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.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.
Madison Square Garden: – World Greco-Roman Champion George Hackenschmidt defeated American Heavyweight Champion Tom Jenkins in two straight falls, to become the World Catch-as-Catch Can Heavyweight Champion
1947
Hollywood, California: – Danny McShain defeated Martino Angelo for the World Light Heavyweight Title
1950
Houston, Texas: – Danny McShain defeated Miguel Guzmán for the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title
1958
Tulsa, Oklahoma: – Jim Larock defeated Sandor Kovacs to become the first Tri-State NWA United States Junior Heavyweight Champion
1961
Houston, Texas: – Dory Dixon and Rito Romero defeated The Corsicans (Jean and Joe) to win the Texas NWA World Tag Team Titles
1964
Tampa, Florida: – Don Curtis and Abe Jacobs defeated Duke Keomuka and Hiro Matsuda for the Florida NWA World Tag Team Titles
1966
Kansas City, Kansas: – Terry Funk & Ron Reed fought Oki Shikina & Tor Kamata to a draw – Sonny Myers defeated Bob Brown via DQ – Tiny Smith defeated Lee Henning – The Viking fought Jerry Kozak to a draw – Tiny Smith won a 10-man Battle Royal – The Mongolian Stomper defeated The Butcher in three falls
1967
Milwaukee, Wisconsin: – AWA Tag Team Champions Larry Hennig & Harley Race ddq Lou Thesz & Crusher in the 3rd fall – Johnny Valentine beat Reggie Parks – Danny Hodge beat Bob Boyer – Johnny Powers beat Rene Goulet
1970
Milwaukee, Wisconsin: – AWA Tag Team Champions Mad Dog Vachon & Butcher Vachon beat Verne Gagne & the Crusher – Blackjack Lanza ddq Wilbur Snyder – Angelo Poffo beat Jack Pesek – Billy Red Lyons beat Joe Scarpello – Edouard Carpentier beat Larry Hennig – Pepper Gomez beat Lars Anderson
1971
Miami, Florida: – Dale Lewis defeated The Champion (Tarzan Tyler) for the NWA Florida Brass Knuckles Title
1972
Atlanta, Georgia: – Roberto Soto defeated Buddy Colt to win the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Title
Los Angeles, California: – Raul Mata and Rey Mendoza defeated Killer Kowalski and Kinji Shibuya for the NWA Americas Tag Team Titles
1973
Chicago, Illinois: – AWA Champion Verne Gagne beat Jimmy Valiant in 2 out of 3 falls – Superstar Billy Graham & Ernie Ladd beat Bill Watts & Wahoo McDaniel in 2 out of 3 falls – Bob Ellis no contest Baron Von Raschke – Billy Robinson drew Wilbur Snyder – Rene Goulet beat Bull Bullinski – Ric Flair beat Kenny Dillinger
1976
Raleigh, North Carolina: – Dino Bravo and Mr. Wrestling defeated Gene and Ole Andersno to win the NWA World Tag Team Titles
Davenport, Iowa: – Verne Gagne, Greg Gagne and Jim Brunzell beat Nick Bockwinkel, Blackjack Lanza and Bobby Duncum – Larry Hennig beat Baron Von Raschke – Mad Dog Vachon beat Chris Taylor dq – Russ Francis beat Kim Duk
1977
Toronto, Ontario, Canada: – The Sheik retained the U.S. title beating Tiger Jeet Singh on a disqualification – Ken Patera beat Gorilla Monsoon – The Crusaders retained the International tag team title beating Don Kent and Reginald Love – Chief Jay Strongbow beat Pat Kelly – Carlos Rocha beat Bounty Hunter #1 – The Mongol drew The Beast -Al Costello drew ChrisTolos – Michelle Barone beat Bill Morgan
1978
San Juan, Puerto Rico: – Bruno Sammartino defeated Gorilla Monsoon for the WWC North American Heavyweight Title
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: – Jerry Brown and Bobby Jaggers defeated Ray Candy and Steven Little Bear to win the Tri-State NWA United States Tag Team Titles
1979
San Juan, Puerto Rico: – Hurácan Castillo and Carlos Colón defeated Frankie Laine and Dutch Mantel for the WWC North American Tag Team Titles
1980
Memphis, Tennessee: – Buddy Fuller beat Wayne Farris in a Lights out match – Paul Ellering & Sonny King beat Jackie Fargo & Rocky Johnson – Southern Tag Team Champions Dennis Condrey & David Shults beat Jimmy Valiant & Steve Regal – AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat Bill Dundee dq – CWA Champion Billy Robinson beat Duke Myers by forfeit when Myers failed to show – Ricky Morton & Terry Sawyer beat Larry Latham & Sgt. Danny Davis – Ken Lucas & Ricky Gibson & Robert Gibson beat Ali Hassan & International Superstar & Jimmy Hart
Montreal, Quebec, Canada: – Paul Vachon defeated Dick Van – Pierre Lefebvre defeated Gino Brito – Pat Patterson & Raymond Rougeau defeated Les Anges Blonds – Bob Backlund defeated Bob Steele – Gilles Poisson & Serge Dumont defeated Len Shelley & Tarzan Tyler
1982
Lawton, Oklahoma: – King Kong Bundy defeated Kerry Von Erich for the World Class American Heavyweight Title
Jackson, Mississippi: – The Junkyard Dog and Mr. Olympia (Jerry Stubbs) defeated The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) to win the Mid-South Tag Team Titles
1983
Kansas City, Kansas: – Jerry Brown defeated Roger Kirby for the NWA Central States Television Title
Lexington, Kentucky: – Jerry Lawler beat AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel in a Non Title Match – Fabulous Ones beat The Moondogs – Rock & Roll Express beat Jim Cornette & The Galaxians – Bill Dundee beat Dutch Mantel – Loser Leaves Town: Stagger Lee beat The Lone Ranger – Bobby Eaton won 10 man elimination bout – Terry Taylor beat Bobby Eaton – Steve O beat Porkchop Cash dq
1984
Greensboro, North Carolina: – Wahoo McDaniel and Mark Youngblood defeated Jack and Jerry Brisco for the NWA World Tag Team Titles
St. Petersburg, Florida: – Blackjack Mulligan defeated Black Bart to win the NWA Florida Brass Knuckles Title
1985
WCCW Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions: Dallas, Texas: – In a two-ring no-disqualification match, The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers) defeated The Midnight Express (Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton) to win the WCCW American Tag Team Titles – Johnny Mantell and Skip Young fought to a draw – Brian Adias and WCCW Television Champion Scott Casey defeated Kelly and Nick Kiniski – Terry Gordy defeated Kamala by disqualification – Mike Von Erich defeated Rip Oliver – WCCW American Heavyweight Champion Chris Adams and WCCW Texas Heavyweight Champion Gino Hernandez defeated WCCW Television Champion Scott Casey and The Great Kabuki – Kerry Von Erich defeated One Man Gang in a Kerry’s hair vs. Gary Hart’s hair match – The Freebirds (Terry Gordy, Michael Hayes and Buddy Roberts) and WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Champions Kevin, Kerry and Mike Von Erich defeated Chris Adams, Gino Hernandez, Kamala, Rip Oliver, One Man Gang and Steve Williams in a two-ring best-of-five falls match, 3-2 – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair fought WCCW Six-Man Tag Team Champion Kevin Von Erich to a double-countout to retain the title
1986
Fort Worth, Texas: – Rick Rude defeated Lance Von Erich to win the World Class Television Title
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: – Steve DiSalvo defeated Ron Ritchie for the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title
1988
– Canek defeats Perro Aguayo for the UWA World Heavyweight Title
1989
Knoxville, Tennessee: – Kevin Dillinger defeated Danny Davis to win the Southeast NWA United States Junior Heavyweight Title – Masahiro Chono and Mike Davis won the CWF Tag Team Title from Davey and Johnny Rich
1990
Memphis, Tennessee: – Jerry Lawler defeated Jimmy Valiant to win the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Title
Caguas, Puerto Rico: – Invaders I and IV won the WWC Caribbean Tag Team Titles by defeating Leo Burke and Chicky Starr
St. Paul, Minnesota: – NWA Champion Ric Flair beat Brian Pillman (Special Referee: Nick Bockwinkel) – Nikita Koloff beat AWA Champion Larry Zbyszko dq – Brad Rheingans & The Trooper & Bob Lurtsema beat Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom & Tully Blanchard – Yukon John Nord & Flapjack Scott Norton ddq Texas Hangmen – DJ Peterson beat Jonnie Stewart – Tony Denucci beat Todd Becker
2001
Jeffersonville, Indiana: – Randy Orton won the OVW Hardcore Championship by defeating Flash Flanagan
2001
WWF Insurrextion: London, England: – Chris Jericho defeated William Regal to win the Queen’s Cup – Eddie Guerrero pinned Grandmaster Sexay – Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn defeated Crash Holly and Hardcore Holly – Bradshaw pinned The Big Show – Edge and Christian defeated The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von), The Hardy Boyz (Jeff and WWF European Champion Matt) and X-Factor (Justin Credible and X-Pac) in a fatal four-way elimination match – Chris Benoit defeated Kurt Angle in a Two out of three falls match, 2-0 – The Undertaker defeated WWF Tag Team Champions (WWF Champion Steve Austin and WWF Intercontinental Champion Triple H) in a Handicap match
2002
Monterrey, Mexico: – El Zorro defeated Héctor Garza to win the Mexican National Heavyweight Title – Lady Apache won the Mexican National Women’s Title from Tiffany
2003
Sendai, Japan: – Ultimo Dragon defeated The Great Sasuke for the NWA World Middleweight Title
2004
Tokyo, Japan: – Aja Kong and Amazing Kong defeated The Crush Gals (Lioness Asuka and Chigusa Nagayo) for the AAAW Tag Team Titles
This season, both the women’s strawweight division and the men’s light heavyweight division will be competing. At the end of the season, Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Claudia Gadelha fight on the TUF 23 Finale with Joanna Champion defending her strawweight title.
Last week, Gadelha’s team won and picked Tatiana Suarez to face JJ Aldrich, putting the two #1 seeds on a collision course in only the show’s third week!
This Week:
Jedrzejczyk is helping Aldrich work on the “small things” to get better. Helen Harper gets injured as they’re working on submissions. Jedrzejczyk gives her a pep talk but Harper is still feeling bummed and “a bit rubbish” even when she gets to the house. Rountree tells her he’s out and can’t even come back but she’s still in the hunt.
We switch to team Gadelha and Suarez talks about how she had to overcome a cancer diagnosis just to be where she is today. “I don’t really talk about it much with people because it’s something very very personal, but I believe if you continue to persevere you can get through anything.”
Cory Hendricks and Khalil Rountree are having a donut eating contest, and the loser has to get makeup done by the girls in the house, while the winner gets a sparkling golden donut. Joshua Stansbury is the emcee/announcer for the battle. Rountree finishes his pile of donuts first and is declared the winner – not shocking he was able to do it given he’s already out of competition and doesn’t have to worry about making weight. Or does he? You never know if me might come back as an alternate.
Back on team Jedrzejczyk we see Aldrich talk about how nobody who meets her believes she’s a fighter, but (cliche coming) getting in the cage “flips a switch.” She says to beat Suarez she’s going to have all the takedowns and light her up with strikes.
Time for the weigh-in! Aldrich is 115, Suarez is 115.5. Fight’s on! Dana White says that five years ago Suarez was the #1 wrestler in the U.S., but that you can’t count Aldrich out because she trains with Rose Namajunas, so he expects a classic fight.
It’s makeup time for Cory Hendricks. He also has to put on a Reebok sports bra. He says he’s not afraid to do it, but that it’s his own fault for underestimating Rountree’s eating abilities. Lanchana Green is impressed that he went all out. Hendricks says that he can’t figure out whether the guys are attracted or upset.
* Tatiana Suarez (Team Gadelha) vs. JJ Aldrich (Team Jedrzejczyk)
Aldrich is in the red and Suarez is in the black. Suarez shoots for the double, Aldrich sprawls at first, but Suarez gets her with the leg trip. She tries to scoot back to the fence to get up, gives up her head in the process, but ultimately gets to her feet. Suarez single legs her back down at 1:45after a warning not to grab the cage and quickly moves to her back looking for hooks. She goes for a choke with only one in and Aldrich escapes and stands back up. Aldrich tries to widen her stance but is taken down again at 2:58. You can see why Suarez comes so highly touted for her wrestling, and she’s bull strong too, able to just drag Aldrich to the ground when the obvious takedown technique isn’t there. She’s going for a standing guillotine with a minute left but Aldrich escapes and survives to R2.
Suarez got “a tiny little cut” in the first round which was so tiny I didn’t even see it in HD, and Gadelha tells her not to worry. Suarez has another takedown at 40 seconds. She’s quickly moving to side looking for the arm triangle. Aldrich escapes at 1:26 but Suarez is all over her from behind. Aldrich stands at 1:55 but is thrown down head first. Suarez gets the left hook and hammers away looking for the RNC.
She gets the second hook in and at 3:14 of R2 Aldrich taps – TEAM GADELHA WINS AGAIN.
Jedrzejczyk is disappointed that Aldrich didn’t scrap harder. Suarez is happy but knows she has two more fights to go. Jedrzejczyk tells all of her team to fight to the end no matter what. Claudia picks Andrew Sanchez to face Myron Dennis. See you next week!
