Category: Post Type article

By dave@wrestlingobserver.com”>Dave Meltzer, WrestlingObserver.com

We’re looking for your thoughts on today’s New Japan Best of the Super Junior finals from Tokyo, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com”>dave@wrestlingobserver.com

We’re also looking for reports on these shows:

• NXT Friday night in Fort Pierce, FL
• ROH Friday night in Collinsville, IL
• WWE Saturday night in Baton Rouge
• WWE today in Lake Charles, LA (John Cena, Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt, Ryback, King Barrett)
• WWE today in Pensacola, FL (Roman Reigns, Big Show, Dean Ambrose, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus)
• Raw is Monday in New Orleans.

New Japan World has another show that will be up Wednesday (not live as the show is on Tuesday from Korakuen Hall), but it’s unique because it’s the Suzuki-gun show, which means it’s more a NOAH show, although a lot of New Japan stars are on it:

• Genba Hirayanagi & Hitoshi Kumano vs. Jack Gamble & Jon Webb
• Zack Sabre Jr. & Gedo vs. Captain New Japan & Captain NOAH
• Jushin Liger & Yoshinari Ogawa vs. Taichi & Desperado
• Takashi Sugiura & Daisuke Harada vs. Shelton Benjamin & Taka Michinoku
• Naomichi Marufuji vs. Yuji Nagata
• Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. vs. Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan for NWA tag tiles
• Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka vs. Maybach Taniguchi & Yoshihiro Takayama

Smackdown and Main Event will be taped Tuesday in Lafayette, LA.

***** 

In a busy news week, we’ve got full coverage of all of UFC’s changes when it comes to drug testing, as well as other things the company is doing for fighters, looking at the pluses, the minuses, and the loopholes in the new system of drug testing.  We also look at Brock Lesnar vs. Steve Austin, Samoa Joe in WWE and how it’s changed, Destination America and wrestling, we’ve got a look at Money in the Bank, Elimination Chamber, the death of Tommy Rogers, UFC in Brazil, Dwayne Johnson’s latest projects and the retirement of Masashi Aoyagi.

The new issue is up on the site at http://www.f4wonline.com/component/content/article/110-wrestling-observer-newsletter/42867-june-8-2015-wrestling-observer-newsletter-tommy-rogers-bio-austin-lesnar-notes-wwe-signs-samoa-joe-full-time-more

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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 lead story looks at the UFC’s new drug testing program, the keys to the program, questions that still need to be answered, loopholes, how often fighters will be tested, ability to beat the system and more.

We look at Brock Lesnar vs. Steve Austin, Austin’s promo on the WWE Network, Austin vs Lesnar history, and the value of next year’s WrestleMania on PPV and the Network.

We look at the new deal Samoa Joe is talking with WWE about, how the deal has changed, Joe’s future on the indies, Joe’s ROH future, what led to the change, as well as an update on the Tyson Kidd injury situation in the match with Joe.

We also preview and update Destination America and wrestling, as well as the competition on Wednesday nights.  We update Destination America on TNA and ROH, comparisons, how TNA hurt itself if it needs to shop for a new outlet by his actions this past two weeks, DA promotion of the two shows and why ROH on DA is only good for TNA.

We’ve got full coverage of the Elimination Chamber show, as well as a look at Money in the Bank, burning out programs, plus match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.

We have a look at the life of Tommy Rogers, looking at the highlights of his career, how he achieved stardom, the last years of his life, how he got into wrestling, how The Fantastics were formed, the feuds with the Midnight Express and The Sheepherders, the first Clash of Champions, the first Crockett Cup, and time in Japan.

We also look at Brock Lesnar’s return to WWE, the 7/4 show in Tokyo, Sami Zayn injury update, Rusev injury update, Kevin Owens new changes, Lots of Dwayne Johnson career notes, why WWE won’t tape TV in Kentucky, Lots of WWE acting notes, WWE hiring, NXT updates, Stephanie McMahon looking at selling more stock, Finn Balor talks career, lots of notes about people at the training camp, Nelson Frazier lawsuit and annual income for Mabel and Viscera.

We also note Kevin Owens talking his career, Ric Flair talk show,who Flair wants to manage, WWE stock updates, notes on all the WWE and NXT house shows plus business notes from the past week.

We also look at how the Brazilian economy affects UFC in different ways, how it is similar to situations with pro wrestling in the past, as well as a look at Saturday’s show with match-by-match coverage and business notes.

We also look at the pro wrestling career of Masashi Aoyagi, and how he got into wrestling, what promotion he kicked off and how that changed the wrestling business and more.

We also have our monthly WWE & TNA business breakdowns.

The Observer is the world’s most detailed weekly pro wrestling publication, in its 32nd year of publication, and is read by the biggest names in the pro wrestling, industry, MMA industry, sports world and on Wall Street.

We also have our regular features such as the most complete look at ratings, plus results of the major house show events each week in pro wrestling and MMA, and complete inside rundowns of all the TV shows.

Also in this week’s issue:

–Update on this year’s Busca de un Idolo tournament

–Latest big matches from Arena Mexico

–Former star from more than 20 years ago returns to Arena Mexico for the first time in decades

–More on the AAA World Cup show

–Notes from the last two sets of AAA TV tapings

–Wrestle-1 world tour notes

–Road to Keiji Muto tournament

–Dragon Gate King of Gate tournament

–Next big Dragon Gate matches

–Cryptic tweet by an American who wrestles in Japan

–An interesting what if regarding New Japan bookings

–Politics of wrestling regarding New Japan

–What New Japan may have to change

–Notes on the Super Juniors tournament and all the results

–Benefit show for cancer-striken star

–Genichiro Tenryu’s final match in Osaka

–Update on GFW

–Mid Atlantic wrestling reunion

–Update on Terry Funk

–Update on Lucha Underground and Alberto Del Rio

–More on NESN deal

–What wrestling star has a 3.83 GPA in collage right now

–ROH notes from the weekend shows

–Really weird stuff in TNA

–Contract singing announcements

–Notes from a second TNA conference call with talent

–What happened with Tyrus and GFW

–GFW reaction

–TNA 2015 Hall of Fame plan that fell through

–Notes on TNA arena events

–Update on legislation to get UFC in Madison Square Garden

–Looking at Sara McMann’s complaints about he Reebok deal

–The business and income of Ronda Rousey

–UFC boosts minimum

–UFC lawsuit update

–Upcoming UFC title matches

–What happened with the Leslie Smith street fight on Saturday night

–UFC makes a number of cuts

–Update on T.J. Grant

–Update on Rashad Evans

–Lots 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.

Our most requested issues in our history are:

*November 17, 1997 (full details of everything leading to the most famous wrestling match finish of modern times at the Survivor Series plus a history of in-ring double-crosses)

*December 21, 1998 (the complete Vince McMahon-Bret Hart conversation right before the Survivor Series match so you’ll know exactly what was said–the conversation played in edited form both on the inaugural broadcast of Confidential as well as in Wrestling with Shadows, but everything that was said between the two about the match that was going to take place that same night)

*August 1, 1994 (the most detailed coverage anywhere of the Vince McMahon steroid trial, an issue praised in numerous newspaper article and Sex, Lies and Headlocks)

*March 26, 2001 (death of WCW and history of pro wrestling on the Turner networks)a

*October 22, 2001 (why the adult audience has left pro wrestling in such great numbers and what needed to have been done to save them)

*July 8, 1991 (Ric Flair leaves WCW as world champion/Zahorian steroid trial)

*February 8, 1993 (the life and times of Andre the Giant)

*May 13, 2002 (the life story of the most incredible pro wrestling career ever, a look at Lou Thesz, in one of the largest issues of our history)

*January 27, 2003 (part one of the two-part series covering the career and life of The Sheik)

*February 3, 2003 (Part two on The Sheik including thoughts from people who worked with him and where he stands historically)

*March 24, 2003 (history of the WWWF title, inside behind the Sammartino, Backlund and Backlund era)

*April 21, 2003 (history of WWF continues with the expansion nationally, the death of the regional territories and the rise of Hulk Hogan)

*May 12, 2003 (The life and death of Elizabeth and the rise of fall of Lex Luger)

*June 9, 2003 (Part 1 of history of WWF vs. WCW wars and what many say was the greatest year in U.S. wrestling; plus a look at Fred Blassie)

*June 16, 2003 (Freddie Blassie through the eyes of his biggest rivals and friends)

*July 28, 2003 (Part 2 of the history of the WWF vs. WCW war and the plans to make new superstars in the early 90s, what happened, and the night where the three biggest wrestling companies in the world combined for a joint show and what happened)

*August 25, 2003 (2003 Hall of Fame issue with huge profiles on the controversial career of Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit as well as historical features on Earl Caddock and Francisco Flores)

*September 22, 2003 (Part 3 of the history of the WWF vs WCW war with the seeds that caused the collapse of the industry in the 90s, Zahorian trial, Gulf War controversy, Flair leaves WCW while holding world title and much more)

*October 27, 2003 (The fascinating life of Stu Hart plus the story of Road Warrior Hawk)

*January 19, 2004 (2003 Awards issue)

*February 2, 2004 (History of Toronto wrestling, Jack Tunney life story, Royal Rumble and Battle Royal history)

*February 23, 2004 (History of Guerrero family with Eddy’s win over Brock Lesnar)

*March 1, 2004 (History of WWF continues with the period that brought the company down in early 1992, the mistakes, the real stories and how the business changed)

*March 8, 2004 (History of Wrestlemania, its greatest matches and best and worst shows as voted both by wrestlers and non-wrestlers and Wrestlemania history books)

*July 5, 2004 (A look behind the scenes and Ric Flair’s book and his background with Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan)

*July 12, 2004 (A look at more on Ric Flair’s book and his comments on Bruno Sammartino, Bret Hart and Mick Foley)

*August 16, 2004 (History of the Olympians in pro wrestling)

*August 23, 2004 (2004 Hall of Fame issue and biggest issue of the year with huge profiles on Kazushi Sakuraba, Undertaker, Bob Backlund, Masahiro Chono, Ultimo Dragon, Kurt Angle and Tarzan Lopez–this counts as one issue if you are asking for a free issue, but ordered separately, due to size, is $6 in North America and $7 overseas)

*October 4, 2004 (the life and times of Big Bossman; as well as details of the life and times of one of the most influential men world wide in pro wrestling history, Jim Barnett)

*November 15, 2004 (the full story of what happened between Kurt Angle and Daniel Puder, plus coverage of the most important week in the history of TNA)

*January 24, 2005 (2004 Awards issue, Rock and WWE part company)

*March 14, 2005 (the 50 biggest money players in the history of WWF and a look at their Hall of Fame)

*May 9, 2005 (the life and times of Chris Candido)

*June 20, 2005 (The full story behind Paul Heyman and the death of ECW, as well as coverage of One Night Stand, Hardcore Homecoming and behind the scenes of both shows)

*July 18, 2005 (death of Shinya Hashimoto and his records with a look at the fall of New Japan, the Matt Hardy angle, tons of WWE firings, Cornette firing in detail as well as problems of a WWE developmental territory in our biggest news issue of the year which is a double-sized issue and would be $6 on its own and $7 overseas)

*August 24, 2005 (2005 Hall of Fame issue with career profiles of Paul Heyman, HHH and Freebirds plus debut of MMA Hall of Fame)

*September 12, 2005 (History of Mid South Wrestling)

*October 10, 2005 (Life and Times of the Ultimate Warrior)

*November 21, 2005 (Life and Times of Eddy Guerrero and Crusher, double issue $6 on its own and $7 overseas)

*December 5, 2005 (The Eddy Guerrero special issue, double issue $6 on its own, $7 overseas)

*January 9, 2006 (The life and times of Superstar Billy Graham, plus New Year’s Eve 2005 coverage)

*January 16, 2006 (2005 Awards double issue, $6 or $7 overseas)

*April 3, 2006 (Story of Ann Calvello and the history of Roller Derby–many called this the best issue of the Observer ever)

*April 10, 2006 (Behind the scenes at the 2006 Wrestlemania/Hall of Fame week)

*July 24, 2006 (The History of the Von Erichs and World Class Championship Wrestling–the most unreal story ever in wrestling)

*September 4, 2006 (The Rise and Fall of Kurt Angle; 2006 Hall of Fame inductions of Eddie Guerrero, Paul Bowser, Masakatsu Funaki, Aja Kong and Hiroshi Hase including tons of wrestling history around the world from the 20s through the 60s, the evolution of working to not working in Japan, and a look at Guerrero in hindsight, double issue $6 or $7 overseas)

*October 9, 2006 (A look back nine years later at the life and legacy of Brian Pillman with tons of inside information about what made him tick as his real objectives)

*November 15, 2006 (History of WCW part one, Eric Bischoff’s book and how the industry was changed forever)

*November 20, 2006 (History of WCW part two, Why Jim Ross left WCW, How Bischoff changed the company, signing of Hulk Hogan, Beginning of Nitro, Jesse Ventura, Brian Pillman, Chris Jericho and signing Wrestlemania planned celebrity away)

*November 27, 2006 (History of WCW part three, When Bischoff challenged McMahon to fight; Truth and fiction around Bret Hart signing with WCW and why it didn’t click)

*December 6, 2006 (details behind Pride’s offers to sell promotion and Part four of History of WCW part four, Hogan-Goldberg match and why there was no rematch, WCW loses NBC network deal in 1999 and the real reasons the company fell apart)

*January 22, 2007 (2006 Awards issue, double issue $7 on its own, $8 overseas)

*February 14, 2007 (Life and Times of Bam Bigelow)

*March 5, 2007 (WWE begins plans that will change the business)

*March 12, 2007 (Life and Times of Mike Awesome)

*March 19, 2007 (Life and Times of Ernie Ladd)

*April 4, 2007 (Life and Times of Badnews Allen Coage–which many are calling one of the best issues in history)

*July 2, 2007 (Part one of the Benoit double murder-suicide)

*July 5, 2007 (Part two of the Benoit double murder-suicide)

*July 10, 2007 (Part three of the Benoit double murder-suicide)

*July 19, 2007 (Part four of the Benoit double murder-suicide)

*July 23, 2007 (Part five of Benoit double murder-suicide)

*July 25, 2007 (Part six of Benoit double murder-suicide)

*August 15, 2007 (The legend of the God of Japanese wrestling and his influence on MMA, Karl Gotch)

*October 15 (2007 Hall of Fame double issue, $7 on its own, $8 overseas including inductions of The Rock, Tom Packs and the original Strangler Lewis)

*November 12, 2007 (Life and times of Fabulous Moolah and history of U.S. women’s wrestling) .

*December 31, 2007 (History of Ric Flair and the heyday of wrestling at the Greensboro Coliseum)

*January 21, 2008 (2007 Awards issue, double issue $7 on its own, $8 overseas)

*March 17, 2008 (Life and times of Johnny Weaver)

*March 24, 2008 (Life and times of Gary Hart)

*April 10, 2008 (Farewell to Ric Flair; My thoughts, Shawn Michaels talks of Flair’s meaning to him; Hall of Fame; Wrestlemania double issue, $7 on its own, $8 overseas)

*August 11, 2008 (Ric Flair leaves WWE; Updated history of pro wrestlers and MMA fighters who went to the Olympics)

* September 8, 2008 (2008 Hall of Fame double issue, $7 on its own, $8 overseas; part one of Killer Kowalski bio)

* September 15, 2008 (Life and Times of Evan Tanner)

* September 22, 2008 (The amazing career of Killer Kowalski, one of our most in-depth bios)

You can also order any of these issues on their own for $4 in North America or $5 overseas.

We now have available personally autographed copies of Tributes II, our latest book, as well as a DVD that comes with it talking more about the subjects in the book. The book covers the life stories of Lou Thesz, Wahoo McDaniel, Elizabeth, Fred Blassie, Road Warrior Hawk, Andre the Giant, Curt Hennig, Johnny Valentine, Davey Boy Smith, Terry Gordy, Owen Hart, Stu Hart, Gorilla Monsoon, The Sheik and Tim Woods..

To get all of those biographies as back issues of the Observer would be a $60 value today. This is a collection of some of the best Observer articles of the past several years in a hardcover, full-color format that is 239 pages. There is also a foreword by Bret Hart. The book price is $12.95 plus $3.50 for shipping costs in the U.S., $20 for shipping costs to Canada and $25 for shipping costs outside North America. You can order the book the same way you order the newsletter.

SUNDAY’S NEWS UPDATE

– The Kyle O’Reilly vs. Kushida match today is one you should go out of your way to see as well as the Thiago Tavares vs. Brian Ortega UFC fight. Yesterday had two really strong shows. 

– Chris Hero will be wrestling for three straight hours today in Waterloo, IA, since donations topped $3,000 for ALS.  He was going to do 30 minutes for every $500 donated.

– WWE acknowledged the Tyson Kidd injury from Tuesday in a match with Samoa Joe, although the website only had vague details, saying he “sustained an injury.”  It also noted that it was, as expected, a dark match even though the Superstars logo was in the background when it was taped Tuesday night in San Antonio.  WWE’s policy is now to be vague on all injuries.  We were told it was a spinal cord injury and that he was hopeful of making a full recovery.

– Weekend sports searches were Belmont Stakes 5,200,000; Champions League 1,000,000; Women’s World Cup 400,000; Stephon Curry 200,000; Red Sox 200,000; Serena Williams 200,000; Stan Wawrinka 200,000. The only thing combat sports related was Miguel Cotto with 100,000, making it the No. 8 searched term in the U.S. yesterday.

– San Andreas was No. 2 at the box office this weekend, estimated at $26.44 million, trailing the opening week of Spy at $30 million.  Entourage, which features Ronda Rousey, opened at No. 4 with $10.42 million.  Pitch Perfect 2, with Lana, did $7.7 million in its fourth week out.

– Biggest MMA and pro wrestling Twitter topics today in the U.S.: Dan Henderson 10,300; Thiago Tavares 7,570; Kushida 5,502; Ben Rothwell 3,651

– The U.S. World Team Trials in wrestling will air at 7 p.m. this coming Sunday night on NBC Sports Network.

– Dwayne Johnson and Spike TV have announced a special called Rock the Troops, basically an entertainment show filmed overseas as a military base that will air on Veterans Day in 2016.  There will announcements upcoming regarding who will be performing.

– This coming weekend has both a WWE Money in the Bank and AAA iPPV going pretty much head-to-head on Sunday, while UFC has a show on Saturday with Cain Velasquez vs. Fabricio Werdum and Eddie Alvarez vs. Gilbert Melendez.  Alvarez vs. Melendez on paper looks to be a can’t miss match.

– What a terrible day for UFC predictions. Front Row Brian and Mike Sawyer went 3-2, with Brian picking Dan Henderson and Anthony Birchak’s upsets.  Jack Encarnacao, David Bixenspan and Steve Juon were 2-3 while me, Josh Nason, Mike Sempervive and John Pollock went 1-4.

– Happy birthday to Mick Foley, who turns 50 today.

– Mecca Wrestling Headlock for Hospice on 6/27 in Cornwall, ONT at the Agora Centre.

– Daniel Puder’s My Life My Power Entertainment has a show on 6/21 in Pasadena, TX headlined by Daniel Puder & Major Mark vs. former TNA star Jesse Sorensen & Alex Chamberlain.

– Future Stars of Wrestling from Friday night in Las Vegas:  Funny Bone NC Mike Dalite, Tito Escondido & Che Cabrerrra b Jarrett 120 & ?, Vegas won three-way over Leon Hater and Jayson Cash, Willie Mack b Jeff Cobb, Vegas Originals b BFFs-DQ, Jakob Austin Young b Ryan Taylor, Reno Scum b PpRay, Brian Cage won four-way over Kenny King, Kevin Kross and Tyshaun Prince (thanks to Mike Trask)

– Full Impact Pro from Friday night in Ybor City, FL:  Alexander Rudolph & Frank Wyatt & Jake Parnell b Chasyn Rance & Deimos & Josh Hess, Jody Kristofferson b Jonny Vandal, Martin Stone b Bolt Brady, Blake Edward Belakus DCOR Rhett Ghiddens, Jason Cade & Aaron Solow b Gary Jay & Jayson Falcone, Santana Garrett b Josh Hess, Aaron Epic b Maxwell Chicago-DQ, Eddie Graves & Teddy Stigma b Devin & Mason Cutter, Rich Swann b Mason Ryan.  Teddy Hart will be wrestling on Tuesday at the Team Vision Dojo in Orlando at 7 p.m. as will Martin Stone, Jody Kristofferson, Mark Silva, Lince Dorado and Santana Garrett.

– Smash Wrestling from last night in Toronto:  Dan O’Hare & George Gattono b Preston Myles & Cecil Nyx, Brent Banks won four-way over Jason Kincaid, Kevin Bennett and Facade, Scotty O’Shea b Pepper Parks, Team Canada (Vanessa Kraven, Xandra Bale, Jewels Malone, Courtney Rush & Portia Perez) b Team USA (Candace LaRae & Cherry Bomb & Jennifer Blake & Feria Azul & Veda Scott)in a women’s elimination match, Super Smash Brothers b Goat Brigade, Matt Cross DDQ Tarik, Rich Swann b Sebastian Suave, Samoa Joe b Chris Hero.  Main event was a very physical 16:00 match.  Tarik distracted Hero at the finish.  Hero challenged Rich Swann for a July Smash show.  (thanks to Steve Khan and Dave Musgrave)

– Fandango’s music played yesterday at the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks vs. Sydney Roosters Rugby League game after a goal by the Sharks.   A fan played it on the trumpet.

– Premier Wrestling today at 5 p.m. at the IFDES Lodge-Portuguese Hall in Gilroy, CA with JR Kratos (7-2) defending his Premier title against Dylan Drake (4-3), Timothy Thatcher (2-2-1) vs. Marcus Lewis (4-3) and Jeff Cobb (5-2-1) vs. Kaimana (1-2) plus three other matches.

– The NWA announced that Circle City Wrestling out of Indiana has joined the alliance.  Rob Kincaid is the promoter of the group that debuted in the 90s under Mike Samples.

– Lucha Xtreme TV show from last night on Fresno TV:  Buddy Royal b Manny Mars, Prince Nagi b Levi Shapiro-DQ, Levi Shapiro & Buddy Royal b Manny Mars & Prince Nagi.  The next show is 6/21 in Selma, CA at the Taco Festival at the Selma Pioneer Village Shopping Center at 1880 Gonzalez Pkway from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.. (thanks to Jon Southerland)

– Jim Ross, Edge and Beth Phoenix appear Wednesday at Ingles Store #7 on Tunnel Rd. in Asheville, NC for Headlock on Hunger and the local food drive.

– Kevin Matthews will be replacing George Murdoch (Tyrus) on Friday’s GFW debut show in Jackson, TN, facing Moose.  Kongo Kong will replace Murdoch against Moose on the Saturday show in Knoxville.

– Brutus Beefcake is shocked Ric Flair doesn’t think he was a good wrestler

– 2015 G-1 Climax tournament announcement video by New Japan

ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY INTERNATIONAL (thanks to Graeme Cameron)

• 1960 – Rikidozan & Toyonobori beat Frank Valois & Dan Miller in Nagoya to win the All-Asia tag tiles
• 1976 – Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan beat Great Kusatsu & Mighty Inoue in Fukuyama to win the IWE tag title
• 1979 – Antonio Inoki beat Stan Hansen in Tokyo to win the Madison Square Garden tournament
• 1983 – Marty Jones beat Fit Finlay in Croydon to win the world mid heavyweight title
• 1990 – El Hijo del Santo beat Fuerza Guerrera in Tokyo to win the WWA welterweight title
• 1996 – Gedo & Jado & Hiromichi Fuyuki beat Yoji Anjo & Yoshihiro Takayama & Kenichi Yamamoto in Sapporo to win the WAR six-man tag tiles
• 1998 – Perro Aguayo & Perro Aguayo Jr. beat Fuerza Guerrera & Mosco de la Merced in Chihuahua to win the Mexican national tag titles
• 2009 – Masato Yoshino & BxB Hulk & Pac (Neville) beat Cima & Gamma & Kagetora in Nagoya
• 2011 – Virus beat Guerrero Maya in Mexico City to win the vacant CMLL super lightweight title

A thumbs up show. The best match was Kushida vs O’Reilly. The worst match was the opening tag.

Opening tag

That was a great camera shot with Liger going for the surfboard. Taguchi is going to buried in the Observer awards this year. Tanaka’s delayed German was awesome. Pretty nothing match though. 1 1/2*

Owens vs Tiger Mask

I thought Tiger Mask was the wrestler who did the least in the tourney.Owens should get away from the Tyson Kidd look since Tyson smokes him as a wrestler. Tiger Mask going after the leg was solid stuff. Overall another match that was just there. 2*

Cavenario vs Dorada

I’m hoping for a potential show stealer here. Already loving the comedy with the ref. Both guys worked hard all tourney. These guys are working their asses off here. they’re cutting a hot pace. Dorada runs off 2 amazing spots including an ACH dive. They’re busting out highspots, but they’re selling . Man Dorada blows that spot at the finish and takes the sails out of a killer match. 3 1/4*

Fish vs Baretta

Baretta’s opening sequence was fun. Fish’s heat has a snugness to it. It’s very crisp. Loving fish attacking the leg. Baretta’s selling of the double stomp. Great counter of the heel hook by Baretta. A really great match. 3 1/2*

Nick Jackson vs Rocky Romero

Some shenanigans to start. Nick heeling it up. Romero with a rana to start a comeback that is shut down momentarily with a superkick. Rocky with a top rope Fujiwara. Some back and forth. Jackson takes control with a swanton. Back and forth again. Romereo’s Sliced Bread #2 on the floor was cool. This just isn’t resonating. Both guys are being a little too cute for my taste. Lack of structure hurt it in my eyes. Way too many teases of control segments that never happened. 2*

YUJI NAGATA & MANABU NAKANISHI & DAVID FINLAY VS. SATOSHI KOJIMA & HIROYOSHI TENZAN & TOMOAKI HONMA

I haven’t missed Nakanishi at all. Though Honma can work the headbutt spot with a broom. They isolate Finlay and work him over. Now the other side isolate Tenzan and work over his knee. A Nagata and Tenzan fight for a bit. Kojima is in and lights Nagata up. Kojima is a good hot tag here. Nagata with an Exploder into the dead man’s arm bar. It’s broken up. Honma is in control for a sec. Kind of what you expect. Finlay showed he belonged here. 2 1/2

KAZUCHKA OKADA & GEDO VS. YUJIRO TAKAHASHI & CODY HALL

The Bullet Club is working over Gedo. Hall working good big man spots. Hall’s punch looked nasty. This is a southern tag with a short shine, heat segment on Gedo, comeback, cut off, small heat segment on Okada,  comeback again. Finish. Really basic stuff.Neither of the Bullet Club members are actively good right now so the heat segments were pretty pedestrian.  2*

SHINSUKE NAKAMURA & TOMOHIRO ISHII & TORU YANO & KAZUSHI SAKURABA & YOSHI-HASHI VS. HIROSHI TANAHASHI & TOGI MAKABE & HIROOKI GOTO & KATSUYORI SHIBATA & CAPTAIN NEW JAPAN

Yano being a total pussy to start. The 10 man tag is such a huge NJPW trope. Nice opening exchange on who the bid dog is between Ishii and Makabe. Same pair offs as usual. It breaks down in Tulsa. Yano takes off the padding. This match is as predictable as a Lethal heat segment. We get a small Tanahashi as FIP segment. The beginning is typical, but then they kick it up a notch. Goto is running wild. The Nakamura/Goto sequence is pretty great. I will say though they’ve done a good job keeping the mediocre workers activity to a minimum. The pairing off segments have some meat to them. Fuck they all feed to Captain NJ like he’s Dusty Rhodes. I loved this match and it built and built into this great dramatic match . How cool would it be to introduce a new new baby face under the Captain NJ mask scoring a pinfall in something like this .Everyone had their working shoes on. Anyways 4*

Kushida vs O’Reilly 

O’Reilly really has an opportunity to show a huge audience what a great worker he is. Kushida  reminds me a lot of Rey Jr. I think besides Nakamura, Kushida is a guy who could get over huge in the States. We’re mat wrestling to start. The struggle here is well done. O’Reilly going after the arm, and he’s bringing new stuff to the dance here. O’Reilly is really torturing him on the mat. Kushida is doing his part selling underneath.  Kushida after the arm. Kushida mounts a comeback. Going after Kyle’s arm, reversal. Front guillotine by Kyle. Kushida reverses. Kyle with a flying arm breaker from the top. Kushida with a German than a Dragon Suplex. Kushida again ripping at the arm. Kyle counters with a sleeper. Flip dive by Kushida. Holy Moly Kushida does a moonsault into a triangle. Everything goes back to the arm. Kyle with a belly to back suplex from the top. A strike exchange that leads to some suplex throw by Kyle. The drama here is off the charts. Both wrestlers are just bringing it. Look at these guys selling the arms. Kushida with a vertical suplex on the apron. Fish has been a great 2nd. What a match. My complaint is they could have wrapped it up between 3-5 earlier. 4 1/4*

Plus the moment with Liger and Kushida post match was touching.

Pete Schirmacher

I thought Tiger Mask vs. Chase Owens was a dud, it was definitely the worst match on the card.

The main event however was spectacular, the match would definitely get a ***** rating from me. It had great pacing, ups, downs, not too fast, not too slow. Not too many high spots, which allowed these young men to really show off their technical wrestling ability. The mat wrestling was great, submissions left and right, armbars, kneebars, kimuras, guillotines etc. My final point was the selling, those guys sold their asses off, I was in a VOIP with some friends watching the match, it was 7am for some of us and 7pm for others, and there were points in the match where the room was silent, not because of boredom, but because we were on the edge of our seats observing the spectacle of these athletes putting it all on the line for our entertainment. It was a 30 minute epic that ended in a payoff of working an arm in Kushida’s favor.

Thanks for reading my email,
Lee Dolin

Thumbs up

Best match: KUSHIDA VS Kyle O’Reilly
Worst match: Chase Owens vs Tiger Mask IV

The first three matches were pure filler. Fish vs Barreta was solid but didn’t really kick into a high gear. Romero vs N. Jackson was fun and entertaining and was a smart choice due to their chemistry and familiarity with each other.

Tenzan, Kojima & Honma vs Nagata, Nakanishi & Finlay was fine and
the multi-man pre-main was the usual set up for upcoming title matches that had a frenetic final five which really got the crowd pumping before the main.

My word, what a main event. It was a great story with a variety of styles used that was worthy of headlining any PPV. KUSHIDA and O’Reilly made winning the BOSJ look like the most important thing on the face of the earth. Go out of your way to see this match.

Simon Copp

Devon, England

UFC FN 68

Beyond thumbs. All time short list. Amazing. This is the 11th good UFC card in a row. This is as far as quality already the best year in UFC history, regardless of whatever the deal is with ratings and buys.
Best fight: Ortega-Tavares, FotY so far, and also all time short list
Worst fight: nothing even close
Best performance: Ortega and Tavares
Worst performance: Boetsch, unless you count Rothwell’s stupid scripted heel promo
KO: Birchak
Sub: Proctor

Jose Quinones takes a couple of kicks from Leonardo Morales, works his way to a TD and then to RNC for the tap midway through the 1st. Great fight, FotN most nights, between Jake Collier and Ricardo ‘Demente’ Abreu and if I ever saw a draw, this was it. Anything from 30-30 to 30-27 either way is possible. Every round was that close. They slugged it out in the final seconds like the boxers from the ’50s and ’60s used to. It’s 29-28 split Collier.

Another outstanding fight as Justin Edwards dominates the 1st and early 2nd, then Joe Proctor comes on and puts Edwards out with the inverted grip Guillotine, setup by a knee to the body, with 2 seconds left in the fight. Chris Wade dominates Cristos Giagos, who keeps coming even after looking broken. Close 1st, then Wade took over. 29-28 or 30-27, and it’s 2 from Column A, one from Column B. Omari Akhmedov kicks the crap out of Brian Ebersole’s stupid ‘hairrow’ and more importantly his leg and Ebersole quits in the corner after the 1st. In a fight which somewhat amazingly goes into the 2nd, Shawn Jordan takes Derrick Lewis down 3 times in the 1st but gets busted up. Lewis is gassed. Jordan knocks him down with a hook kick to the head (this is a guy who walks around about 300—both of them are) early in the 2nd, takes back and pounds till the ref steps in.

Cisco Rivera, still smarting over the ripoff loss to Faber (funny how Cisco gets poked in the eye and it blinds the referee), flattens Bruce Leroy in a hurry with an overhand right left hook and follows up and that’s that. Major puncher. The left hook was a total arm punch. 21s. Alex sporting a nice ‘fro though. Cisco should get a rematch with Faber.

Anthony Birchak doesn’t take that much longer to drop Joe Soto twice, the second time for the clean KO. Well, 1:16 longer. Birchak vs. Cisco wouldn’t be a bad idea either.

OFF THE CHART fight. Heavily favored Thiago Tavares dominates position but Brian Ortega does far more damage from the bottom and hits the showstopping moves, dropping Tavares early in the 2nd with a spinning up elbow. Very high tech grappling from both. The fight is nearly stopped after the 2nd from cuts Ortega inflicted from the bottom. Warned in his corner that he’s probably two rounds down from being on the bottom, Ortega stands and trades in the 3rd and drops Tavares late in the round and finishes him with mount and G&P. This fight had everything.

Yancy Medeiros missed weight by 3.5. Dustin Poirier getting by far the biggest pop of the night. He blows Medeiros away, dropping him twice early, takes back and body tri but Medeiros fights off the choke and escapes, then Poirier blasts him again for another KD, lands a big liver kick and then traps him on the cage and flurries till the ref steps in.

A couple minutes in, Matt Mitrione shoots in and Ben Rothwell whizzers and grabs a Guillotine on the way up and Mitrione taps in like .05 seconds. Rothwell then proceeds to cut the stupidest promo in MMA history. Matt may be a great athlete but he’s just not a fighter.

Tim Boetsch looks twice Dan Henderson’s size but it doesn’t matter as he walks straight in with his hands down right into a right hand almost immediately and it’s over a knee and a few punches later. 28s. If that’s how he trained to avoid the right hand I’d hate to see if he didn’t. Beyond belief. You’re fighting Dan Henderson and you walk straight in with your hands down in the first 10 seconds. Hendo can win fights till he’s 90 if the other guy does that.
Crimson Mask

I gave the main card a huge thumbs up

Best Fight: Thiago Tavares vs. Brian Ortega

Worst Fight: none on the main card

Best Performances: how do you pick the bonuses tonite? It is a tossup with all those finishes. Dan Henderson, Dustin Poirier, Brian Ortega

Another night of upsets and all of these fights except Tavares vs Ortega were so short what can you say but wow! Dominant performances all around.

Thiago Tavares vs. Brian Ortega was a great war. If Ortega didn’t stop him it would have been interesting to see how the judges scored this. Volume and control vs damage.

Gotta love Hendo!

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Grant Zwarych

Wrestling Observer Index