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  • WED. UPDATE: Tough Enough rating, New UFC main event, and more

    by David Bixenspan | davidbix@wrestlingobserver.com | Follow @davidbix

    Show notes for tonight:

    NXT at 8:00 p.m. ET on WWE Network is the 90 minute special of the preliminary matches from Barclays Center that took place Saturday night before the live broadcast NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn. The show features Enzo Amore, Colin Cassady, Zack Ryder, & Mojo Rawley. vs. The Mechanics, Jason Jordan, & Chad Gable, Eva Marie vs. Carmella, Bull Dempsey vs. Elias Sampson, and Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Dana Brooke vs. Emma in a Fatal Four-Way.

    UFC Tonight airs at 8:00 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.

    Impact Wrestling at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on Destination America is built around if Dixie Carter will make Jeff Harrett the permanent authority figure now that his predessor is on WWE’s main roster.

    UFC Ultimate Answers has a new episode at 9:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.

    UFC Main Event at 10:00 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1 has a new episode of UFC Main Event about the first Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson flywight title fight from 2013.

    ROH at 11:00 p.m. ET on Destination America has a main event of The Addiction (c) vs. Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly for the ROH World Tag Tag Titles.

    We still have polls on both NXT Takeover and SummerSlam, so you can send a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to Dave Meltzer

    Looking for reports on the following, which you can send to newstips@wrestlingobserver.com:

    ****

    Figure Four Weekly:

    The new issue of Figure Four Weekly is now up for subscribers (subscribe to the site here and get access to Figure Four, the Observer, tons of audio, and more) featuring a hands-on look at WWE 2K16 from the 2K/WWE media event last week. There are also notes on WWE’s lawsuit against their Thai TV partner, including how this type of litigation is familiar territory for WWE and one past suit is exceptionally bizaree. On top of that, we have all the usual stuff like Vinny’s reviews and international news from Dr. Lucha Steve Sims and and Alan”4L” Counihan.

    Last week’s FREE Figure Four Weekly is still up with a look at the crazy story of why Gawker thinks the FBI may have helped Hulk Hogan cover up his racist and homophobic comments. A judge has ordered the FBI to turn over the records of their investigation, and what Gawker is saying in court about what has and hasn’t been turned over paints a very interesting picture.

    Also, now available for the first time on Kindle (meaning Kindle devices and anything with the Kindle app) is Fall Guys, the seminal 1937 book that has been described as being like the 1930s version of the Wrestling Observer. It was surprisingly not on Kindle already, so we put together a nice version with a full table of contents w/ chapter marks, proper formatting on everything, etc. Right now it’s available from the American, Canadian, and Australian Amazon/Kindle stores OR you can also buy it from anywhere in the world on PayHip, who will provide you with both Kindle and ePub (every other e-reader) format files, and you can either sideload them to your device or have them email it to your Kindle.

    ****

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter:

    We’ve got a new double issue of the Observer up on the site which, on the 55th anniversary of the birth of the AWA, features a look at the history of the AWA and the career of Verne Gagne.  The issue also covers the buildup to SummerSlam, the most detailed look at this year’s G-1 Climax tournament, the History of G-1, Anderson Silva’s hearing and suspension, UFC’s stadium event in Australia, the death of Roller Games heel Mizz Georgia Hase, as well as the monthly WWE & TNA business rundown.

    The latest WON: August 24, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Summerslam preview, G1 Tournament and finals review, Silva trial details

    Web site subscriptions, which include access to both current and older newsletters as well as every audio show in the history of the site are at Sign up here for as low as $9.99 per month!

    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

    You can also order at www.paypal.com directing funds to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

    Rates are:

    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.

    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.

    Our big feature looks back at the career of Verne Gagne and the history of the most famous version of the AWA.

    We look at the beginnings of the Gagne legend in wrestling and the start of his pro career.  We look back at his football offers, his world junior heavyweight title win, the period that Gagne was one of the highest paid athletes in the country and how politics changed the course of his career.

    We look at the war in Chicago in the 50s, the most controversial NWA title match of its era, and both the real reason and storyline reason for the formation of the AWA.  We look at the first-ever AWA show, the first-ever AWA title match, the first feuds that put the AWA on the map as a significant organization and its first attempt at doing a stadium show.

    We look at some of the AWA’s biggest money feuds in history, and the role the AWA played in getting two of the biggest promotions in the country at the time to join the NWA.  We also look at the ironies about Gagne with his own actions and with his complaints about the actions of Vince McMahon.

    We look at the era when the AWA title was one of the big three belts.  We also look at the first big heyday of the AWA in the late 60s and early 70s, including a look back at a number of stadium shows in Chicago.

    We look at the Hulk Hogan-fueled second AWA heyday, how the heel Hulk Hogan from the WWF became the babyface Hulk Hogan in the AWA.  We look at Gagne’s role in creating Hulkamania, the first Verne Gagne retirement show, and many coming out of retirement shows.  We look at the Gagne-Hogan relationship including the time Gagne tried to shoot on Hogan and what happened.

    We looked at why the stories about Gagne being stupid in not putting the AWA title on Hogan show a lack of understanding of the time, and why it would have been the worst thing long-term for him.  We look at the business reason why it wasn’t done.

    We look at Hogan’s departure for the WWF, and why it had to happen.

    We look at the AWA after Hogan, including Jesse Ventura’s departure, Gagne’s business practices that started killing his company, how competition exposed the AWA, and the hard fall at the end.  We also look at the deal that kept the AWA alive a little longer, new stars who got early breaks at the end, and the end of the company.

    We’ve also got a look at all the news leading into WWE’s second biggest week of the year.  We look at the ESPN coverage and why, Lesnar talking Vince McMahon vs. Dana White, the irony of Lesnar calling wrestling fake and the lack of reaction from within wrestling, Jon Stewart, Learn vs. Undertaker reaction, weekend schedule, talk about next year’s SummerSlam and much more.

    We also have a look at the finals of this year’s G-1 Climax tournament.

    We look at how G-1 started, whose idea it was and what was its original goal.  We look at the first G-1 tournament and how it related to the 25th tournament this past week.

    We look at the big matches on the last three days, what appears to be the Tokyo Dome plans and the storyline behind it.  We look at what will probably be New Japan’s biggest matches of the fall before the Dome, including who Kazuchika Okada will likely headline PPVs against as well as who Hiroshi Tanahashi is also likely to face in big matches this fall.

    We compare the New Japan top stars to the All Japan stars of the 90s, as well as look at the G-1 business.  We look at how four different shows in Tokyo did going against each other.

    We also update the business of New Japan World and talk about next year’s G-1 tournament including who can go, who has to stay and who can be brought in to make the tournament even more interesting.

    We update the injuries and the final standings, character changes, the ROH relationship, the real story behind Jushin Liger working for WWE this weekend, and the build for Tenryu’s retirement match.

    We also have complete rundowns of all three nights at Sumo Hall, including match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.

    We also have the complete history of the New Japan annual heavyweight tournament dating back to 1974.

    We also look at Minneapolis and WrestleMania and the last stadium show in that market 29 years ago, we look at the future of NXT, Roman Reigns talks about when he found out he wasn’t winning the title ad his reaction, when Seth Rollins found out he was winning, as well as Reigns talks about the briefcase hitting him in the head in Victoria.

    We’ve got notes on two Dwayne Johnson movies, WWE filing suit against its television partner, the tenure of The Authority storyline, NXT star says he doesn’t want to move up to the main roster, and notes about pay so far for the major NXT shows.

    We also have more on what happened between Paul Levesque and Chyna at  Roddy Piper’s first funeral, as well as notes no who attended Piper’s second funeral.  We debunk a claim made by Chyna about her WWE tenure.

    We look at how a WWE PPV is going against one of the biggest television events of the year.

    We update on who has worked the most matches this year, have more on the Owen Hart DVD project, an update on Tough Enough leading to the final show of the season, notes on the Nikki Bella vs. Sasha Banks champion vs. champion match, and WWE and Evolve.

    We also look at all the NXT and WWE events over this past week, business notes on the show and highlights from every event.

    We also look at the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s hearing on Anderson Silva’s drug test failures.  We look at the comedy provided from Silva, why he was so lucky this didn’t happen after July, his excuses, evidence, penalties and commission reaction.

    We also look at the UFC’s attempt at its biggest live event ever at Etihad Stadium, in Melbourne, Australia.  We look at the decision the company had been considering all year and why it went the way it did.

    We look at the death of Georgia Hase, the 80s Roller Games heel manager from the ESPN ear and before that.  We look at her unique role during that period when Roller Games tried to build itself around pretty girls.

    We’ve got our monthly business rundown of WWE and TNA, looking at house shows, ratings DVDs and merchandise.  We also look at the cord cutting and how that affects cable TV, as well as the number of homes the cable networks that have wrestling, boxing and MMA are currently in.

    We also look at Dragon Gate’s last major show and the upcoming tag team tournament.  We look at All Japan’s latest Triple Crown title match.  We at talks of New Japan putting the G-1 finals on PPV as well as notes on the next New Japan tour.  We also note that both of New Japan’s tag team champions are entering a European tournament.

    We update on Global Force Wrestling, the debut of the Minnesota pro wrestling Hall of Fame, update on where Lucha Underground stare are working, and update wrestling in Puerto Rico.

    We also look at a major pro wrestling star who has never competed who is talking about entering the over-40 world Jiu Jitsu championships.  We also look at an indie promoter issues with Davey Richards, and a third generation wrestler starting out.

    We also update TNA including talks of an overseas television show, Jeff Jarrett reconnecting with his father, Mike Tenay’s new podcast, TNA shows and direction.

    We also look at what could be UFC’s biggest show of the year, Chris Weidman wants Jon Jones, Fabricio Werdum’s next title defense against Cain Velasquez and a look at the heavyweight division, this week’s show, return of Anthony Pettis, next year’s attempt to run in Madison Square Garden, update on all the championships, a look at UFC fighter pay, a UFC fighter gets in a bar fight and tons of new UFC fights.

    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.

    Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues.

    ***

    Wednesday Daily Update

    — Charles Oliveira has been released from the hospital and cleared of major injuries stemming from his odd fight with Max Holloway at Sunday night’s UFC card.

    — All UFC 190 drug tests came back clean.

    — Per ShowBuzzDaily.com, Tough Enough’s finale last night had 981,000 viewers (down 1.7%) while Total Divas had 920,000 viewers (down 11%). Tough Enough getting renewed looks less likely than ever.

    — Jim Ross is going to have a weekly segment on “The Taz Show”, Taz’s new live internet radio show that will air weekdays on CBS’s Play.it network.

    — Frankie Edgar vs. Chad Mendes official as TUF 22 Finale main event. This means Max Holloway isn’t getting the Edgar fight he wanted just yet.

    — News from Kris Zellner’s Lucha Report (fully illustrated version here):

    Konnan got into some hot water recently where he touched Nahima Choura who is a presenter on “Mas Deporte” on Televisa on her back and she wasn’t too pleased with it letting him know immediately. Konnan then laughed and said that you’re not that good looking and she got even more upset. This is making all the rounds in the Mexican gossip sections.

    Mistico II yet again injured his shoulder on Sunday at Arena Mexico during the 1st fall of his match and will be out of action this week.

    Sexy Star tweeted out that she fractured her clavicle while working a match at Arena Coliseo de Reynosa on Sunday and she is out of action indefinitely.

    — Sydnie Joes has an extensive article on Anthony Johnson’s issues with women and the law at Bleacher Report.

    — Former UFC head Campbell McLaren is debuting a new Hispanic themed MMA company as his Combate Americas reality show is becoming a new promotion on NBC Universo, the network formerly known as mun2. He also has an article about Sunday’s disappointing UFC ratings.

    —  WWE Smackdown August 27 spoilers: Dudleys return to action, Dean Ambrose vs. Sheamus.

    — We’re starting to get more publicity materials for Bob Backlund’s book, which is out on September 15th after several delays.

    — Brian Fritz talks to various WWE stars about WWE 2K16.

    — Dave Doyle profiles Marloes Coenen at MMAFighting.

  • On this day in pro wrestling history (August 26): Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect SummerSlam classic, Harley Race beats Dusty Rhodes for NWA title

    By Brian Hoops, WrestlingObserver.com

    1955 – Don McIntyre defeated Freddie Blassie to win the Southern Heavyweight Title in Atlanta, Georgia

    1965 – Memorial Hall in Kansas City; Bobo Brazil beat Dick the Bruiser 2 falls to 1 on a dq, Bob Geigel and Bob Brown drew Sonny Myers and Jerry Miller, Mongolian Stomper beat Bob Rader, The Ox (Ox Baker) beat Johnny Raminez and Thor Hagen beat Frank Hickey

    1966 – Chicago, Illinois; AWA Champion Mad Dog Vachon beat the Crusher, Verne Gagne beat the Alaskan dq, Wilbur Snyder beat Moose Cholak and Killer Kowalski drew Doug Gilbert

    1975 – Blackjack Lanza & Blackjack Mulligan defeated Irish Pat Barrett & Dominic DeNucci for the WWWF Tag Team Title in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

    1976 – Kansas City, Kansas; Bob Brown & Ox Baker defeated Chief Thundercloud & The Super Intern(Tom Andrews), Skip Young & Rick Gibson defeated Black Gordman & Great Goliath, Harley Race defeated Abdullah the Butcher via DQ

    1979 – Harley Race defeated Dusty Rhodes for the NWA World Heavyweight Wrestling Title in Orlando, Florida; In Minneapolis, Minnesota; AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat Greg Gagne dq, Billy Robinson & Mad Dog Vachon beat Stan Hansen & Bobby Duncum, Steve Olsonoski & Paul Ellering beat Ray Stevens & Jesse Ventura, Super Destroyer Mark II beat Dr. X and Jesse Ventura beat Ron Ritchie

    1982 – San Francisco, California at the Cow Palace; AWA Tag Team Champions Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Tito Santana & Rick Martel, Ken Patera & Bobby Duncum & Jesse Ventura beat Baron Von Raschke & Otto Wanz & Buck Zumhofe, Pat Patterson & Ray Stevens beat Bobby Heenan & Sheik Adnan and Adrian Adonis & Jacques Goulet beat Brad Rheingans & Jerry Monti

    1985 – Boston, Mass at Northeastern University; AWA Tag Team Champions Road Warriors beat Bill Irwin & Scott Irwin, AWA Champion Rick Martel drew Nick Bockwinkel, Sgt. Slaughter beat Boris Zhukov, Bob Backlund beat Larry Zbyszko dq, Greg Gagne beat Steve Regal and Brad Rheingans beat Billy Robinson. This was a benefit show called “Wrestle for a Cure” and shown on local television.

    1989 – Rochester, Minnesota; AWA Champion Larry Zbyszko beat Sgt. Slaughter dq, Wayne Bloom & Mike Enos & Johnny Valiant beat Tommy Jammer & Derrick Dukes & Russian Brute, Paul Diamond ddq Colonel Debeers, AWA Women’s Champion Wendi Richter beat Judy Martin, Russian Brute beat Jerry Lynn and Kokina Maximus (Yokozuna) beat Butler Stevens

    1991 – The Legion Of Doom (Road Warriors) defeated The Nasty Boys to win the WWF World Tag Team Titles in Madison Square Garden and Bret Hart defeated Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig to win the WWF Intercontinental Title at SummerSlam; The Dragon Master defeated Jerry Lawler for the USWA Unified Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee,

    1999 – Bubba Ray & D-Von Dudley defeated Spike Dudley & Balls Mahoney to win the ECW World Tag Team Championship in Queens, New York.

    2000 – Tony Marmaluke & Little Guido defeated Yoshihiro Tajiri & Mikey Whipwreck for the ECW World Tag Team Title in Manhattan, New York. Also on the card, Kid Kash defeated Rhino for the ECW World Television Title.

    2007 – At SummerSlam, ECW Champion John Morrison retained the title over CM Punk and WWE Champion John Cena retained the title over Randy Orton.

  • DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Audio Show: Follow up on Ken Patera, interesting questions, more!

    DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Audio Show: Follow up topics and questions today on Ken Patera, apparently I hate Gene Kiniski, and one of the greatest most though provoking quirky questions we’ve ever done which leads to either Jim Ross, Mr. Hughes, or Bill Alphonso being the answer. (Try figuring out THAT question!)

    If you are interested in ordering a Super Stern Stick Flash Drive please visit http://www.dragonkingkarl.com

    Right click save

  • Smackdown spoilers from Providence – Sheamus vs. Ambrose and Dudleys return to the ring

    Notes for this week’s show:

    The new Wyatt Family opened with a promo.  Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose came out and the Wyatts backed off.

    The Ascension did an anti-Dudleys promo.

    Dudleys b Ascension using a 3-D on Viktor. After the match they put Konnor through a table while The New Day came out.

    Kevin Owens talked about his match upcoming with Neville.

    Kevin Owens b Neville with the power bomb

    Becky & Charlotte were backstage with the Bellas.  The Bellas wanted them to turn on Paige but they refused.

    Charlotte & Lynch b Bella Twins when Charlotte pinned Brie.

    Seth Rollins promised to end Sting’s career at Night of Champions.

    Dolph Ziggler & Ryback b Rusev & Big Show.  Rusev and Show didn’t get along.  Show knocked out Rusev when Rusev had the match won for their team with the Accolade on Ziggler.  Ziggler pinned Rusev for the win.

    Sheamus b Dean Ambrose.  The Wyatt family distracted Amborse and Sheamus won with the Brougue kick.  Reigns came out for the save, but Braun Stroman destroyed Reigns again.

  • WWE Tough Enough season finale results & recap: Josh vs. ZZ, Amanda vs. Sara Lee

    By Kenneth Nida, Wrestlingobserver.com

    Tonight is the final episode of Tough Enough season 6. Either Sara Lee or Amanda, and ZZ or Josh will be awarded a $250,000 developmental contract with WWE. Amanda seemingly has no chance, as the one time she was in the bottom 3, she was the contestant with the lowest votes by a wide margin. She was saved because Miz thinks she’s attractive. Sara Lee on the other hand has dominated when it comes to getting fans votes. Between Josh and ZZ it could go either way, but Josh did surpass ZZ in votes last week. As the season went on it felt like ZZ gradually lost the support of the fans with his general laziness.

    We start off with the remaining contestants discussing last week’s elimination. Amanda brings up the discussion from last week’s Tough Talk where she confronted Sara Lee about her sleeping with a wrestler. The contestants work with Chris Jericho to come up with their character and entrances. The men have built in characters already, with ZZ channeling his background as an alligator wrestler, and Josh being “The Yeti.” They reveal to the contestants that they will be wrestling Cesaro and Alicia Fox live during the finale.

    Amanda vs. Alicia Fox is first. Amanda uses the character “Mandy Rose”. She says if she wins, she’s going to throw a giant party and everyone is invited. It’s a bit bizarre to watch a WWE match without commentary. Alicia ends up winning in a few minutes. The judges find the match a bit sloppy but are impressed with where she’s at with it being her first live match.

    Next is Sara Lee who uses the name “Hope”. She says after their match Alicia Fox will only be a footnote in Hope’s career. Alicia Fox wins again, the judges thought she did well, but her entrance was dull. They open up the voting, which lasts through a commercial break, but the winner will be revealed at the end of the show.

    ZZ vs. Cesaro is first for the men. His character is “the King of the Bayou” and he comes out wearing an alligator skin cape, with the head as a helmet. He said he’d gotten too good at wrestling alligator’s, so he was going to try his hand at wrestling people. Cesaro wins a very short match with a Crossface. The judges take issue with his entrance, and don’t think he could handle matches longer than 2 minutes.

    Josh is introduced as “The Yeti”. He’s wearing some very interesting shorts, and doesn’t cut a very good promo. Miz calls him out on his outfit, but all the judges are impressed with his performance.

    HHH is introduced to give the winners their contracts. Sara Lee wins with 64% of the vote with Amanda getting 36% of the vote. For the men, Josh wins with 70% of the vote with ZZ getting 30% of the vote.

    It will be interesting to see which of the contestants are offered developmental contracts in the future. Chris Jericho stated that it won’t be the last we see of ZZ and Amanda, and I could certainly see them signing people like Patrick and Megan. What will be made out of Sara Lee and Josh will also be interesting to follow, considering the track record of past winners of the show.

  • WWE News: Disappointing Raw numbers (August 24) after big SummerSlam weekend

    By Dave Meltzer, WrestlingObserver.com

    Monday’s August 24th edition of WWE Monday Night Raw did what had to be considered disappointing numbers coming off a big SummerSlam weekend, down slightly from last week, doing 3.72 million viewers, not much above the summer average.

    The unadvertised surprises of Sting, Ric Flair, and the Dudleys probably helped minimally, if at all, since few knew ahead of time they would be there.

    Raw finished second for the night on cable behind NFL preseason football.

    The three hours were:

    – 8 p.m. 3.61 million viewers

    – 9 p.m. 3.79 million viewers

    – 10 p.m. 3.76 million viewers

  • TUES UPDATE: UFC Issues statement on Anthony Johnson, Dallas Wrestling photo exhibit

    by David Bixenspan | davidbix@wrestlingobserver.com | Follow @davidbix

    Show notes for tonight:

    Tough Enough’s live finale airs tonight on USA Network at 8:00 p.m. ET including Josh and ZZ in matches. Against Cesaro. After weeks of competition on WWE Tough Enough, it all comes down to tonight when the four finalists, Josh, ZZ, Sara and Amanda, take on WWE Superstar Cesaro® and WWE Diva Alicia Fox™ live at 8/7C on USA Network.  One male contestant and one female contestant will each earn a one-year, $250,000 WWE contract.  Click here for a sneak peek at tonight’s episode.

    Tough Talk airs live at 9;00 p.m. ET on WWE Network with the fallout.

    Total Divas airs at 9:00 p.m. ET on E! with The Bella Twins trying to sing their entrance music. Really.

    ****

    Figure Four Weekly:

    The new issue of Figure Four Weekly is now up for subscribers (subscribe to the site here and get access to Figure Four, the Observer, tons of audio, and more) featuring a chat with Konnan about the state of AAA heading into TripleMania XXIII. We discuss the company’s improvements in production, advantages over WWE and differences in philosophy, how to listen to fans, and much more. Plus, as always, we have  all of the usual reviews and international news, including Dr. Lucha’s TripleMania preview.

    Last week’s FREE Figure Four Weekly is still up with a look at the crazy story of why Gawker thinks the FBI may have helped Hulk Hogan cover up his racist and homophobic comments. A judge has ordered the FBI to turn over the records of their investigation, and what Gawker is saying in court about what has and hasn’t been turned over paints a very interesting picture.

    Also, now available for the first time on Kindle (meaning Kindle devices and anything with the Kindle app) is Fall Guys, the seminal 1937 book that has been described as being like the 1930s version of the Wrestling Observer. It was surprisingly not on Kindle already, so we put together a nice version with a full table of contents w/ chapter marks, proper formatting on everything, etc. Right now it’s available from the American, Canadian, and Australian Amazon/Kindle stores OR you can also buy it from anywhere in the world on PayHip, who will provide you with both Kindle and ePub (every other e-reader) format files, and you can either sideload them to your device or have them email it to your Kindle.

    ****

    Wrestling Observer Newsletter:

    We’ve got a new double issue of the Observer up on the site which, on the 55th anniversary of the birth of the AWA, features a look at the history of the AWA and the career of Verne Gagne.  The issue also covers the buildup to SummerSlam, the most detailed look at this year’s G-1 Climax tournament, the History of G-1, Anderson Silva’s hearing and suspension, UFC’s stadium event in Australia, the death of Roller Games heel Mizz Georgia Hase, as well as the monthly WWE & TNA business rundown.

    The latest WON: August 24, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Summerslam preview, G1 Tournament and finals review, Silva trial details

    Web site subscriptions, which include access to both current and older newsletters as well as every audio show in the history of the site are at Sign up here for as low as $9.99 per month!

    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

    You can also order at www.paypal.com directing funds to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

    Rates are:

    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.

    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.

    Our big feature looks back at the career of Verne Gagne and the history of the most famous version of the AWA.

    We look at the beginnings of the Gagne legend in wrestling and the start of his pro career.  We look back at his football offers, his world junior heavyweight title win, the period that Gagne was one of the highest paid athletes in the country and how politics changed the course of his career.

    We look at the war in Chicago in the 50s, the most controversial NWA title match of its era, and both the real reason and storyline reason for the formation of the AWA.  We look at the first-ever AWA show, the first-ever AWA title match, the first feuds that put the AWA on the map as a significant organization and its first attempt at doing a stadium show.

    We look at some of the AWA’s biggest money feuds in history, and the role the AWA played in getting two of the biggest promotions in the country at the time to join the NWA.  We also look at the ironies about Gagne with his own actions and with his complaints about the actions of Vince McMahon.

    We look at the era when the AWA title was one of the big three belts.  We also look at the first big heyday of the AWA in the late 60s and early 70s, including a look back at a number of stadium shows in Chicago.

    We look at the Hulk Hogan-fueled second AWA heyday, how the heel Hulk Hogan from the WWF became the babyface Hulk Hogan in the AWA.  We look at Gagne’s role in creating Hulkamania, the first Verne Gagne retirement show, and many coming out of retirement shows.  We look at the Gagne-Hogan relationship including the time Gagne tried to shoot on Hogan and what happened.

    We looked at why the stories about Gagne being stupid in not putting the AWA title on Hogan show a lack of understanding of the time, and why it would have been the worst thing long-term for him.  We look at the business reason why it wasn’t done.

    We look at Hogan’s departure for the WWF, and why it had to happen.

    We look at the AWA after Hogan, including Jesse Ventura’s departure, Gagne’s business practices that started killing his company, how competition exposed the AWA, and the hard fall at the end.  We also look at the deal that kept the AWA alive a little longer, new stars who got early breaks at the end, and the end of the company.

    We’ve also got a look at all the news leading into WWE’s second biggest week of the year.  We look at the ESPN coverage and why, Lesnar talking Vince McMahon vs. Dana White, the irony of Lesnar calling wrestling fake and the lack of reaction from within wrestling, Jon Stewart, Learn vs. Undertaker reaction, weekend schedule, talk about next year’s SummerSlam and much more.

    We also have a look at the finals of this year’s G-1 Climax tournament.

    We look at how G-1 started, whose idea it was and what was its original goal.  We look at the first G-1 tournament and how it related to the 25th tournament this past week.

    We look at the big matches on the last three days, what appears to be the Tokyo Dome plans and the storyline behind it.  We look at what will probably be New Japan’s biggest matches of the fall before the Dome, including who Kazuchika Okada will likely headline PPVs against as well as who Hiroshi Tanahashi is also likely to face in big matches this fall.

    We compare the New Japan top stars to the All Japan stars of the 90s, as well as look at the G-1 business.  We look at how four different shows in Tokyo did going against each other.

    We also update the business of New Japan World and talk about next year’s G-1 tournament including who can go, who has to stay and who can be brought in to make the tournament even more interesting.

    We update the injuries and the final standings, character changes, the ROH relationship, the real story behind Jushin Liger working for WWE this weekend, and the build for Tenryu’s retirement match.

    We also have complete rundowns of all three nights at Sumo Hall, including match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.

    We also have the complete history of the New Japan annual heavyweight tournament dating back to 1974.

    We also look at Minneapolis and WrestleMania and the last stadium show in that market 29 years ago, we look at the future of NXT, Roman Reigns talks about when he found out he wasn’t winning the title ad his reaction, when Seth Rollins found out he was winning, as well as Reigns talks about the briefcase hitting him in the head in Victoria.

    We’ve got notes on two Dwayne Johnson movies, WWE filing suit against its television partner, the tenure of The Authority storyline, NXT star says he doesn’t want to move up to the main roster, and notes about pay so far for the major NXT shows.

    We also have more on what happened between Paul Levesque and Chyna at  Roddy Piper’s first funeral, as well as notes no who attended Piper’s second funeral.  We debunk a claim made by Chyna about her WWE tenure.

    We also look at the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s hearing on Anderson Silva’s drug test failures.  We look at the comedy provided from Silva, why he was so lucky this didn’t happen after July, his excuses, evidence, penalties and commission reaction.

    We also look at the UFC’s attempt at its biggest live event ever at Etihad Stadium, in Melbourne, Australia.  We look at the decision the company had been considering all year and why it went the way it did.

    We look at the death of Georgia Hase, the 80s Roller Games heel manager from the ESPN ear and before that.  We look at her unique role during that period when Roller Games tried to build itself around pretty girls.

    We’ve got our monthly business rundown of WWE and TNA, looking at house shows, ratings DVDs and merchandise.  We also look at the cord cutting and how that affects cable TV, as well as the number of homes the cable networks that have wrestling, boxing and MMA are currently in.

    We also look at Dragon Gate’s last major show and the upcoming tag team tournament.  We look at All Japan’s latest Triple Crown title match.  We at talks of New Japan putting the G-1 finals on PPV as well as notes on the next New Japan tour.  We also note that both of New Japan’s tag team champions are entering a European tournament.

    We update on Global Force Wrestling, the debut of the Minnesota pro wrestling Hall of Fame, update on where Lucha Underground stare are working, and update wrestling in Puerto Rico.

    We also update TNA including talks of an overseas television show, Jeff Jarrett reconnecting with his father, Mike Tenay’s new podcast, TNA shows and direction.

    We also look at what could be UFC’s biggest show of the year, Chris Weidman wants Jon Jones, Fabricio Werdum’s next title defense against Cain Velasquez and a look at the heavyweight division, this week’s show, return of Anthony Pettis, next year’s attempt to run in Madison Square Garden, update on all the championships, a look at UFC fighter pay, a UFC fighter gets in a bar fight and tons of new UFC fights.

    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.

    Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues.

    ***

    Tuesday Daily Update

    • UFC released the following statement last night about the Anthony Johnson Facebook post where he claimed to have intimidated a woman and yanked her yoga mat out from under her at a gym:

    Following a thorough investigation by a third-party law firm, UFC® is extremely disappointed with Anthony Johnson’s recent actions, as the organization does not tolerate behavior of this nature from any athletes under contract with the UFC. Johnson personally apologized to the woman he verbally offended at a Florida gym last week and for the insensitive comments he made on social media afterwards. The woman accepted Johnson’s apology and indicated a desire to put this unfortunate matter behind them. In order to ensure these situations do not happen in the future, Johnson has agreed to participate in counseling and UFC will support him through this process. Johnson has also agreed to make a donation to a Florida-based women’s charity.

    Johnson will face Jimi Manuwa at UFC 191®: JOHNSON vs. DODSON 2 on Saturday, September 5 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

    When asked about Johnson’s claim that the incident got physical, UFC said that the statement is “the extent of our comment on the matter.” 

    Anthony Johnson agrees to counseling after gym altercation in Florida

    • UFC announced that the next season of cards (a a “Welcome to the Show” months ago) will b called “Go Big.” It starts with the show next month in Japan.
    • Press of Atlantic City covered all three of WWE’s nights at Barclays Center
    • Mirko Cro Cop vs Anthony Hamilton scheduled for UFC Fight Night 79 

  • UFC On FOX 17: Dos Santos vs. Overeem co-main event announced

    By Ryan Frederick, WrestlingObserver.com

    A long-awaited heavyweight bout between former UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior Dos Santos and former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem will serve as the co-main event of UFC On FOX 17 in Orlando, Florida on December 19. UFC officials announced the bout today on Twitter.

    Dos Santos and Overeem have previously been scheduled to fight before, at UFC 146 in May 2012 when Dos Santos held the UFC Heavyweight Championship. However, Overeem was pulled from the bout after he was avoiding a drug test from the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Dos Santos instead faced Frank Mir, making his only successful title defense when he scored a TKO over Mir in the second round.

    The two have been long-rumored to be fighting, but injuries have slowed the booking of the bout. They were slated to fight at UFC 160 in May 2013, but Overeem pulled out due to an injury. Dos Santos has been out of action since scoring a decision win over Stipe Miocic at UFC On FOX 13 in December. The fight in December will be only Dos Santos’ second fight since losing a trilogy bout with Cain Velasquez for the UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC 166 in October 2013. Meanwhile, Overeem has won two straight bouts and is looking at a potential title shot with a win over Dos Santos.

    UFC On FOX 17 will be headlined by a UFC Lightweight Championship bout as Rafael Dos Anjos makes his first title defense against the top contender, Donald Cerrone. Also on the card is a lightweight bout between Michael Johnson and Nate Diaz, which was announced by the UFC last night.

  • Current WWE card for October 3rd MSG/WWE Network show featuring Brock Lesnar

    By Josh Nason, WrestlingObserver.com

    File this under ‘Card Subject To Change’, but here’s a look at the current Saturday, October 3rd Madison Square Card house show lineup that WWE announced Sunday would air as part of a live WWE Network special. Plainly put, it’s very SummerSlam-esque.

    – WWE Champion/US Champion Seth Rollins vs. John Cena. (Cena is listed as U.S. Champion.)

    – Randy Orton vs. Sheamus

    – Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev

    – Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro

    – Brock Lesnar w/Paul Heyman in his first time in the Garden in over 10 years. No opponent listed.

    – Chris Jericho (no opponent listed) and more of “your favorite WWE superstars”

    Tickets range from $25-$130.

    (H/T: Jerry)

  • On this day in pro wrestling history (August 25): Sting vs. Steve Austin for WCW U.S. title, Brock Lesnar vs. Rock

    By Brian Hoops, WrestlingObserver.com

    1935 – Waterloo, Iowa; Lou Plummer beat Otto Kuss, Louis Thesz beat Frank  (Bull) Topaz and Earl Wampler beat Ed Cook.

    1937 – Kansas City Missouri; For the World Title, Everett Marshall retained the belot over George Zaharias and Lou Thesz beat Juan Humberto

    1970 – Johnny Walker and Tojo Yamamoto defeated the Interns to win the Mid-American Southern Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee; Skandar Akbar and Buddy Colt defeated Bill Dromo and Alberto Torres to win the Macon Tag Team Titles in Macon, Georgia.

    1973 – St Paul, Minnesota at Midway Stadium; Billy Robinson beat AWA Champion Verne Gagne dq, AWA Tag Team Champions Nick Bockwinkel & Ray Stevens beat The Crusher & Red Bastien, Superstar Billy Graham beat Ken Patera by countout, Larry Heiniemi drew Reggie Parks, Buddy Wolff beat Billy Red Cloud, Ivan Koloff beat Bob Bruggers and Greg Gagne beat Vic Rossitani dq. Attendance was 10,000

    1977 – Honolulu, Hawaii at Blaisdell Center; in a Non Title Indian Death Match, Billy Whitewolf (Shiek Adnan El Kassey) beat AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel, Wenona Little Heart & Vicki Williams beat Fabulous Moolah & Terry Shane and Jesse Ventura & Steve Strong beat Bill Francis & Sam Steamboat. Attendance was 5,000.

    1983 – Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat David Shultz (stopped due to excessive blood), Mid Heavyweight Champion Dynamite Kid beat Great Gama dq, Andre the Giant won a 15-man Battle royal, Bret Hart no cotest Archie Gouldie (Mongolian Stomper), Cobra & Hiro Saito beat Bruce Hart & Davey Boy Smith dq, Keith Hart beat Scott Ferris, Jim Neidhart & Mr. Hito beat Cuban Assassin & Cyclon Negro and Coconut Willie beat Wolfman Kevin. Attendance was 9,000.

    1984 – The Road Warriors defeated The Crusher & Baron Von Raschke for the AWA World Tag Team Title in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Showboat. Also on the card, Mr Saito beat Stan Lane, Jim Brunzell beat Sheik Adnan, Tony Atlas beat Larry Zbyszko and Curt Hennig beat Steve Regal

    1991 – Sting defeated Steve Austin in a tournament final for the WCW U.S. Heavyweight Title in Atlanta, Georgia. The US Title was vacated when former champion Lex Luger won the WCW World Title.

    1995 – 2 Cold Scorpio defeated Eddie Guerrero for the ECW Television Title in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania

    2002 – Brock Lesnar defeated The Rock to win the WWE World Title and Rob Van Dam defeated Chris Benoit to win the Intercontinental Title at SummerSlam held in Uniondale, New York.