Jimmy Snuka, one of the most popular pro wrestlers of the 1980s, was charged Tuesday with third degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the 1983 death of mistress Nancy Argentino, someone he traveled the Northeast with during the last year of WWF as a Northeast territory.
Snuka surrendered himself into custody in Pennsylvania, was booked, and is being held on $100,000 bond.
The case was reopened last year after the Allentown Morning Call (PA) published a story about all the questions that were not answered involving the case. Here’s the paper’s updated story.
Argentino passed away on May 11, 1983, from traumatic brain injuries. Her body had a number of cuts and bruises.
Snuka had told police that while driving to Allentown, Argentino got out of the car, slipped when going to urinate on the side of the road, and hit her head. However, there were inconsistencies in his story from other stories reported by those who had spoken to him at the time.
The WWE made a statement regarding today’s legal proceedings:
“WWE expresses its continued sympathy to the Argentino family for their loss. Ultimately this legal matter will be decided by our judicial system.”
We’re looking for reports from Raw in Tampa tonight with dark matches, Superstars matches and anything else not evident from the live show to Dave Meltzerdave@wrestlingobserver.com”> Announced for tonight’s show includes Sting opening the show talking about his upcoming title match with Seth Rollins, a Beat the Clock challenge with Charlotte, Paige and Becky Lynch where the winner gets a shot at Nikki Bella’s Divas title, as well as a Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev match.
We’re also looking for reports on these weekend shows:
*Sunday WWE in Daytona Beach
*Saturday Global Force Wrestling in Richmond, VA
*Saturday NXT in Fort Pierce, FL
*Thursday NXT in Tampa, FL.
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday in Miami.
Wrestling Observer Newsletter:
A complete rundown of the WWE’s weekend in Brooklyn, with all the business notes, surprises and what is known about the future direction is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. We also cover the decision to have Holly Holm replace Miesha Tate as Ronda Rousey’s opponent next, a UFC business year-in-review story, ROH big weekend, New Japan next tour, 2017 Mania and Daniel Bryan future note.
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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.
We have rundowns of NXT Takeover, SummerSlam and Raw from Brooklyn. We look at the Night of Champions card and what is and isn’t confirmed, the unique aspect of that weekend no PPV, the returns of Sting and the Dudleys, Dudleys tag title reigns, Jushin Liger’s WWE future, New Japan stars at SummerSlam, Bray Wyatt’s new Wyatt family member and his booking, Jon Stewart, Lesnar and Undertaker’s finish, business notes, NXT in the U.K., Wrestlers complaining about fans at Raw, as well as more on the problems in the WWE Diva Division and what isn’t working.
We look at UFC’s 2015 business numbers and what they show about the UFC audience, the appeal of the audience to advertisers, how it compares with the audience at other sports, how much of this year’s increases have to do with Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey and what their effects are on business as a whole. We also look at who the new fans UFC has brought in this year are.
We also have full coverage of UFC from Saskatoon, with match-by-match coverage and business notes on the show.
We look at two major stars returning to a major promotion after seven years and their first programs, the CMLL Anniversary show main event, notes from the Arena Mexico shows from the past weekend Ultimo Dragon taping TV in Mexico City.
We also have notes on a top woman star being injured, a booker getting bad pub from television, a promotion so hot that their sold out events are going to be broadcast in movie theaters as well as upcoming tournaments in Japan.
We also have a look at the New Japan business and how it has increased over recent years, More on A.J. Styles challenging for the IWGP title, New wrestlers debuting in Japan including names not announced yet, lineups for the New Japan World shows in September, Hiroshi Tanahashi talks neck problem, Tanahashi talks theories of wrestling and Ricochet in New Japan.
We also look at WrestleMania in 2017, the Madison Square Garden network special the 2K 16 launch party, the next Stone Cold podcast, an update on Daniel Bryan and well as some of his own philosophies of wrestling, Dolph Ziggler talks contract, the end of Tough Enough, more on NXT talent and pay, stars with new deals, the WWE Divas title, HHH talks NXT, other stars talk who they’d like to see in WWE, Jericho talks Hogan and more.
We also note an indie show in Japan that outdrew Brock Lesnar and WWE at Sumo Hall, as well as the 40th anniversary of the pro debut of one of this era’s biggest stars.
We note the death of Duke Myers, his career highlights, GFW’s latest TV taping and everything that happened, Taz getting a new gig, Wale and pro wrestling, Terry Funk wrestling again in a few months, Jim Ross talk show, Leroy McGuirk into NWA Hall of Fame, Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. Red, Alberto El Patron in Europe, promoter critical of Sabu and an update on Len Rossi.
We also look at the future of Lucha Underground, ROH/New Japan relationship update, next ROH PPV show, ROH weekend shows in Philadelphia and Brooklyn notes as well as the upcoming show.
We also update TNA.
We look at UFC’s marketing its fall and winter shows, what main events all UFC ‘s upcoming dates, Plans for the debut in Melbourne, Australia, and more notes on drug testing UFC athletes.
We also look at the next FOX show, lots of new fights, Ronda Rousey T-shirt sales, Anthony Johnson situation, Two UFC women fighters pregnant and new Fight Pass series.
We also look at a major wrestler signing, Alberto Del Rio in negotiations to be an announcer, early UFC promoter back running live shows and huge One championship bout.
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
MONDAY’S NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I will be back tonight talking all of the craziness that has taken place today, as well as Raw. You can ask questions for tonight’s show to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com
Some more notes on the shooting in front of the Performance Center. The guy who was shot, 29-year-old Armando Montalvo, was a real weirdo that area officers knew well as did WWE staffers. This was the third time he had come to the Performance Center this month. Before that, he urinated on the building. He even posted a video of him mixing his own feces with low fat milk to put in a bucket to pour it on he building. He had posted videos where he was obsessed with A.J. Lee (Lee was not the person he was fixated on during the past month). On more than one occasion he dressed up like a wrestler, banged on windows, and said he would kick everyone’s ass because they wouldn’t hire him. At one point, he carried a chain to the Performance Center and police had to draw their guns to subdue him. Five days ago, he did another video of himself outside the building saying he was going to ask for a job. There were two deputies in the area when someone from the Performance Center called police and everyone involved was well aware of Montalvo, who has a long record for various crimes including assault on an officer and violation of a restraining order. He looked like he was going to attack Cpl. Steve Wahl and there was fear he had a knife, and Wahl backed off 75 to 100 feet before shooting the man in the stomach. He underwent emergency surgery and his injuries may be life threatening.
Man shot at WWE Performance Center (updated)
Police Press conference
WFTV Report
ClickOrlando.com Article
All 3 days of BOLA:PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 1 (8/28) results: Young Bucks, Roderick Strong, Zack Sabre Jr.
PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 2 (8/29) results:
PWG Battle of Los Angeles day three notes
Jax Dane beat Hiroyoshi Tenzan on Saturday night in San Antonio to win the NWA heavyweight title.
Trainwreck was No. 4 at the box office in Australia this past week. (thanks to James Stanios)
This comes from someone in WWE and is good advice: To all indy talent wanting to get into WWE, delete your social media profiles now if you have any questionable comments. For women, delete all sexually themed photos as soon as possible.
Michelle Waterson vs Tecia Torres was added to the loaded 12/12 UFC show in Las Vegas.
WWE stock closed today at $20.06 per share, up 57 cents per share from Friday.
ROH announced that in upgrading its web site, some television shows have been temporarily been taken down. Because of those problems, all Ringside Members are getting 25 percent off all merchandise starting today.
Pro Wrestling Phoenix from Saturday night in Council Bluffs, IA: Hype Gotti & Tony Cortez b Killer City Kings, Michael Ray b Adrian Alexander, Mark Sterling b Bodie Van Zandt, Dalton Lee Roth b Pat Powers, Marek Brave b Ryan Slade, Darren Russell b Connor Braxton, Joey Daniels b Zicky Dice, Paul Daniels b Zac James, Mark Sterling won gauntlet Battle Royal. Next show is 9/16 in Omaha at The Waiting Room Lounge.
NWA Smoky Mountain Wrestling on 9/5 in Kingsport, TN headlined by Steve Anthony defending his NWA jr. title against Vince Brent. Anthony is scheduled to go to New Japan later this month to defend the title against Tiger Mask. Also Jason Kincaid faces Shawn Schultz for the Southeastern title.
The CHIKARA King of Trios tournament starts on Friday night and goes through Sunday in Easton PA at the Palmer Center. Among the first round matches include Drago & Fenix & Aero Star vs,. Chuck Taylor & Drew Gulak & Swamp Monster and Hallowicked & Frightmare & Silver Ant vs. Eddie Kingston & Ophidian & Shynron.
The season finale of Swerved will be airing tonight after Raw on the WWE Network.
CWE on Saturday night in Calgary: Shane Sabre b Chase Owens, Carter Mason b Bobby Collins Anderson Tyson Moore won three-way over Jason Kincaid and Shelton Benjamin, Silas Young b Travis Cole, Dynamite Dan & Pistol Pete b Johnny Devine & Danny Duggan. Next tour is 9/25 to 10/3.
CWE on Friday night in Red Deer, Alberta: Silas Young b Shane Sabre, Bobby Collins b Carter Mason, Shelton Benjamin b Tommy Lee Curtis, Anderson Tyson Moore b Travis Cole, Johnny Devine & Danny Duggan b Chase Owens & Jason Kincaid.
Some new 2K 16 names revealed for the video game this year include Undertaker, The Vaudevillains, Ryback, Andre the Giant, Batista, Chris Jericho, Curtis Axel, Dean Ambrose, Edge, Erick Rowan, Fandango, John Bradshaw Layfield, Luke Harper, Randy Savage, Natalya, Rick Rude, R-Truth, Santino Marella, Sgt. Slaughter, Stephanie McMahon, and The Rock.
ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY INTERNATIONAL (thanks to Graeme Cameron)
1985 – Tiger Mask (Mitsuharu Misawa) beat Kuniaki Kobayashi in Tokyo to win the NWA Int. jr. title in one of the best matches of that decade
1991 – Kyoko Inoue beat Debbie Malenko in Mita to win the IWA title
1993 – Crypt Keeper (Jose Estrada Jr.) beat Crash the Terminator (Bill DeMott) in Akita to win the WING title
1997 – Kensuke Sasaki beat Shinya Hashimoto in Yokohama to win the IWGP title
1997 – Hayabusa & Masato Tanaka & Koji Nakagawa beat The Gladiator (Mike Awesome) & Hisakatsu Oya & Mr. Gannosuke in Yokohama to with he FMW Street fight trios title
2002 – Dandy beat Perro Aguayo Jr. in Tamaulipas to win the Mexican national light heavyweight title
2005 – Katsuhiko Nakajima beat Osamu Namiguchi in Hiroshima to win the Zero-One light heavyweight title
We’re looking for your thoughts on both SummerSlam as well as NXT for the weekend polls, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to Dave Meltzer
We’re looking for reports from Raw tonight in Brooklyn as far as dark matches, Superstars matches or anything else not evident from the live show.
We’re also looking for reports on the Friday night GFW tapings in Las Vegas and the Saturday GFW show in Reno.
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday night in Providence, RI
****
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 issue is on the site right now at 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
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 Lou Thesz vs. Verne Gagne series and why it abruptly ended and why Gagne was never considered for the NWA title even though he’d have likely made a better champion than those chosen ahead of him.
We’ve got a complete history of the career of Gagne and his various honors.
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’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 the CMLL anniversary show main event and how quickly it came to be, a guy said to be returning in two weeks after tearing his pec, and at 54 years old, the next AAA TV taping, updates on U.S. stars returning to Mexico and a top indie star and top CMLL star feuding.
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.
We also have notes on Bellator business and Scott Coker’s predictions for the biggest live event in company history as well as bringing legends of the sport to San Jose, as well as Coker’s long-term goals for the promotion, Was there really a chance for a Frank Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz fight, the final Bellator major event of the year and the lineup, the debut of Josh Thomson and Thomson talks leaving UFC and how badly hurt he was by the Reebok deal.
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.
MONDAY’S NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw and the latest pro wrestling news. You can send e-mail questions to tonight’s show to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com
Undertaker was banged up last night in his match with Brock Lesnar. There was footage of him collapsing once he got backstage that made its way around. We don’t believe there was a serious injury and he wasn’t hospitalized. But he did go home and is not expected at Raw. There are reports of Sting and Ric Flair on Raw tonight. Flair has been in town and Sting came back to town after leaving. Flair would make sense to be used as an explanation in the Jon Stewart angle.
WWE got a ridiculous amount of mainstream for SummerSlam, a combination of the New York market, and Jon Stewart’s involvement in the main event. Last night’s show got 1 million Google searches making it No. 2 for the day, which is a level usually reserved for WrestleMania and the top tier UFC events. It was also listed as the most social show on television with 575,000 mentions.
Among the media outlets that covered SummerSlam for Stewart, and some would have anyway, included all the major New York papers including the Times, and the CBS Morning News, Good Morning America, The Today Show and lots of talk radio. The New York Times story
Tonight’s Raw is expected to be the highest rated episode of the show since the day after WrestleMania.
Regarding last night’s audio show where we speculated that Paul Heyman may have come up with the finish of last night’s Brock Lesnar match. That was not the case. The finish did change and was tweaked from whatever the original idea was, but it didn’t come from Heyman.
The idea that the cameras missed the tap originally by Undertaker was the idea. Nobody was supposed to understand what was going on and then it would be revealed after that Lesnar really should have won, but only after Undertaker won first.
The storyline is that Charles Robinson now recognizes that he blew the call in the main event. That will be addressed most likely on the show.
Michelle Runnels, the wife of Dusty Rhodes, was at the show yesterday.
Vince McMahon turns 70 today. He may get to sleep on Wednesday.
Linda McMahon attended SummerSlam and is at Raw today.
We’ve got an interview on the front page of the site with A.J. Styles talking the G-1 Climax tournament. Styles meets Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP title in the main event of the King of Pro Wrestling show on 10/12 at Sumo Hall in Tokyo.
Besides Kazuchika Okada, also backstage from New Japan at SummerSlam included Jushin Liger, Gedo, Tiger Hattori and Naoki Sugabayashi.
NXT Takeover was the No. 2 trending topic in Japan on Twitter at one point. The Hardcore fans were really unhappy they couldn’t see Finn Balor in the main event, since the show didn’t air on TV in Japan and WWE network isn’t legally available there. (thanks to Jose Gonzalez)
Charles Oliveira’s injury that caused a stoppage to his main event fight with Max Holloway on last night’s UFC show just 1:39 into the fight, was reported by MMAJunkie.com, citing a UFC P.R. source, as being a torn esophagus, which can be life threatening.
CBS Radio announced The Taz Show: Bodyslams and Beyond, will air for audio and video streaming from 7-9 a.m. every Monday through Friday starting on 9/14, from the CBS radio headquarters in New York. It will be available on-line starting at 10 a.m. daily. It will be a call-in show on news from around the world focusing on pro wrestling. This daily show will take the place of his weekly podcasts. Seth Neiman will co-host and produce the show.
Brian Cage will be a guest on the season premiere of From Dawn Till Dusk that airs at 9 p.m. tomorrow night on the El Rey Network.
Screen shots of the game and the WWE SuperCard game HERE and HERE
The season finale of Tough Enough is tomorrow night. It’s fan voting with ZZ vs. Josh and Amanda vs. Sara Lee, with each winner getting a one year contract for $250,000. As noted, Cesaro will be doing live matches with Josh and ZZ on the show.
Andy Hug, the legendary kickboxer who was the biggest star in that sport, passed away on this day in 2000
The former C.J. Parker in NXT debuts with New Japan Pro Wrestling on 9/4 under the name Juice Robinson.
We had a ton of complaints about streaming issues early in the show for SummerSlam, but nothing after the start of the show.
It will be interesting to see how the NXT four-way women’s match with Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Dana Brooke and Emma airs and how much gets edited on Wednesday. It was taped on Friday and the first part of the show before the live special aired was for Wednesday’s NXT show. The finish was botched as Lynch was not supposed to be pinned, but she didn’t kick out. The impression we were given is that she was supposed to be saved by one of the heels and the person who was to save her wasn’t there. The ref, doing his job, counted the pin as that is WWE rules is you can’t as a shoot and if it’s a botch, then so be it.
I Believe in Wrestling from Saturday night in Orlando: Josh Parker b Josh Hess, Mark Silva b Ace Andrews, Brandon Scherer b Derrick Jordan, Tyranus b Chico Adams, Mike Patrick & Leo Brien b Jody Kristofferson & Gabriel Black, Rhett Giddins b Aaron Epic. Next show is 9/5.
NWA Florida Underground on Tuesday in Brandon, FL at the Yucatan Bar and Grill.
CWE has a TV taping on Friday night in Vero Beach at the Indian River Fairgrounds Expo Center.
Kissimmee Pro Wrestling on 8/29 at the Wandaliz Arena with formerly known as Ricardo Rodriguez and Santana Garrett.
Trainwreck was No. 3 at the box office this weekend in Australia.
Legacy Wrestling from Saturday night in Palmyra, PA for a Legacy vs. CZW show: Laszlo Arpad b Sean Carr, Tim Donst b Mark Angel, Jason Raditz & Eddie Page b TH Mathis & Malek, Matt Cross b David Starr, JT Dunn b Jon Gresham, Eddie Smooth b Lio Rush and Facade, Kimber Lee b Solo Darling, AR Fox b Shane Strickland.
Jay Skillet of wXw, who wrestled last on 8/8, woke up the next morning in great pain and was diagnosed with a bulging disc in his lumbar spine and a cracked disc in his tailbone. he was advised to retire from the ring, but he is wanting to return after physical therapy.
Great Canadian Wrestling on 10/3 in Oshawa, ONT at the Harmony Creek Community Hall.
NEW from Friday night in El Paso before 250 to 300 fans: Piranita b Super Mario, Pierre Montero b The American, Super Can & Zodiaco b Aydan Colt & Minotauro, Steampunk b Tirano. The main event will be rematched on 9/4 (thanks to Albert Cerda)
CIW from Saturday night in Jackson, MI: Jack Thriller b Mojo McQueen, Princess Tensai b Shayla Hyde, Bane b Baku, Chuck Wagon b Renzo Lavell, Andy Chene DCOR Grizzly House Jones, Shane Douglas & Apocalypse b Mike Knox & Malice, Phil Nitro Monohan b Greg Valentine in a dog collar match (thanks to Leonard Brand)
CTWE on 9/19 in Stratford, CT a the Baldwin Center with Rhyno vs. Antonio Thomas, plus Johnny Gargano Shane Strickland, Brian Fury and Slyck Wagner Brown.
Chaotic Wrestling Breaking Point on 10/17 in Stoneham, MA at the Stoneham High School They also have shows on 9/11 in Woburn, MA at the Elks Lodge and 9/19 in Waltham, MA at the Waltham American Legion at 3 p.m.
Lucha Toronto from yesterday in Toronto: Mr. 450 (Puerto Rico star) & Lince Dorado & Rich Swann b Angel Ortiz & Mike Draztik & Amasis, John Greed b Aiden Prince, Shelly Martinez & Movado b Idris Abraham & Alexia Nicole, Jay Cruz & Eddie Rios b Vaughan Vertigo & Gabriel Fuerza, Carter Mason b Pinkie Sanchez, Ricky Reyes b JAKA (thanks to Steven Ashe)
An interview with CMLL luchador Marco Corleone, talking Anniversario, Los Ingobernables vs El Bufete del Amor, working vs Undertaker, his whiplash injury from 2015, CMLL mascot violence, his entrance music, his new clothing line (gongut.com) and more. Also, thecubsfan talks Atlantis vs Sombra, the return of Dr Wagner and LA Park, En Busca de un Idolo final, Lucha Underground, the Cubs’ wild card chances and more.
ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY INTERNATIONAL (thanks to Graeme Cameron)
1986 – Dandy beat Javier Cruz to win the NWA welterweight title
1986 – Fishman beat Villano III in Mexico City to win the WWF light heavyweight title
1989 – Reuben Amada beat Erika Shishedo, who later became Aja Kong, to win the Japanese jr. title, while Mitsuko Nishiwaki beat Madusa in the finals of the Grand Prix singles tournament
1991 – Mark Starr beat Ricky Fuji to win the AWA light heavyweight title
1993 – Super Delfin beat Great Sasuke in Tokyo to win the UWA welterweight title
1994 – Manami Toyota beat Kyoko Inoue in Tokyo to win the WWWA title
2011 – Demus 3:16 beat Pierrothito in Mexico City to win a CMLL minis tournament
Tonight’s is one of the biggest pro wrestling events of the year, WWE SummerSlam from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn:
*Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker – The rematch of what is likely to go down in history of one of the most famous pro wrestling matches of all-time. A ton of different scenarios have been speculated on. In the end, the decision on the finish has to do with a few things, but the key being the direction they are going at WrestleMania. Based on that, Lesnar winning and Undertaker putting his career on the line at Mania makes sense. But they could also have Undertaker, since he’s teased the heel turn, win with help of a returning Kane and using Mania as the final conflict. Whatever it is, tonight and tomorrow’s TV are likely to tell the story of Undertaker’s role at Mania.
*Seth Rollins vs. John Cena for the WWE and U.S. title – This one has been debated heavily. Cena is going for his so-called record tying 16th world title (I guess you could say pro wrestling records are fake anyway, but 16 is hardly the record as Lou Thesz and Ric Flair, among others, have had far more). Rollins having the U.S. belt doesn’t make sense right now. The role of Sheamus and Money in the Bank was teased, but Sheamus as world champion feels like a major come down.
*Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper – The faces have been winning most of the TV matches. It feels like they are going to keep Reigns occupied with Wyatt for a while.
*Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens – With Owens losing so much lately, he’s kind of due a win. However, Cesaro has momentum and should be fed. Given the New York crowd, if these two are given time, they could steal the show and will probably get a bigger reaction here than in most cities.
*Randy Orton vs. Sheamus – Orton won their last meeting. If Sheamus is getting the title soon, it makes sense for Orton to win again, combined with his win via DQ over Seth Rollins which in theory should have him in the title picture. On paper this should be very good.
*Dolph Ziggler vs. Rusev – One would think the women would get involved and lead to the finish. Ziggler is usually really popular to the New York Hardcore crowd. Whatever they do is likely building to a rematch and perhaps a mixed tag or some sort of direction leading to more involvement of Lana and Summer Rae.
*Ryback vs. The Miz vs. Big Show for the IC title – The way Miz has been booked, it almost seems like he’s being buried as a joke to somehow sneak over between the monsters in the same way Daniel Bryan got his first world title with Show and Mark Henry.
*Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores for the tag team title – New Day should win. The Prime Time Players needed credibility when they took the spot of the injured Tyson Kidd & Cesaro as the New Day’s rivals, so that would explain them getting the titles in the first place. But it should be New Day’s time now.
*Team PCB (Paige & Charlotte & Becky Lynch) vs. Team Bella (Bella Twins & Alicia Fox) vs. Team Bad (Naomi & Sasha Banks & Tamina Snuka – It will be very interesting how the crowd reacts here, particularly coming off Banks’ great match last night in the same building. This is an elimination match so it’ll go two falls, and with all the push of the women, it’ll get time. Team PCB has been put over the most on television of the three squads. What would make sense is Nikki Bella getting pinned in the second fall by either Banks or Charlotte and that leads to a title match.
*Neville & Stephen Amell vs. Stardust & King Barrett – Usual protocol is the celebrity goes over, in this case Stardust losing.
Lesnar vs. Undertaker was not good the last time they did it, although Undertaker got a concussion early. I think that puts pressure on them, since one would think they’re going on last and there will be great matches underneath, to put on a killer match. I’m sure it’ll be set up for that.
There is some pressure after last night’s strong show, but if last night’s crowd is any indication, they can make average matches seem good, and good matches seem great.
Feedback, polls and show report requests:
We’re looking for your thoughts on SummerSlam as well as NXT for the weekend polls, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to Dave Meltzer
We’re also looking for reports on the Friday night GFW tapings in Las Vegas and last night’s GFW tapings in Reno.
UFC tonight as well on FS 1
Fight Pass at 6 p.m. Eastern/3 p.m. Pacific
Misha Cirkunov (205) vs. Daniel Jolly (204)
Shane Campbell (155) vs. Elias Silverio (154.5)
FS 1 from 7 p.m. Eastern until around midnight
Chris Kelades (125.5) vs. Chris Beal (126)
Marcos Rogerio de Lima (205) vs. Nikita Krylov (205.5)
Yves Jabouin (135.5) vs. Felipe Arantes (135.5)
Sam Stout (155) vs. Frankie Perez (155.5)
Maryna Moroz (115) vs. Valerie Letourneau (116)
Olivier Aubin-Mercier (155) vs. Tony Sims (155.5)
Chad Laprise (155.5) vs. Francisco Trinaldo (155.5)
Patrick Cote (170) vs. Josh Burkman (170)
Neil Magny (170.5) vs. Erick Silva (171)
Max Holloway (145) vs. Charles Oliveira (145.5)
Raw will be tomorrow night, before the third straight sellout crowd at the Barclays Center. It’s expected to be the highest rated episode of the show since the day after WrestleMania. Brock Lesnar and Undertaker are both scheduled for the show.
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday night in Providence, RI
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.
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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.
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WWE’s weekend in Brooklyn is the main story in this weeks Wrestling Observer Newsletter now available. This includes both Summerslam on Sunday as well as NXT Takeover on Saturday. We also have full coverage of the now finished G1 Climax and what the results mean for NJPW in the near future. In addition we look at UFC teamsters looking at options of unionization and the morale issues that spawned it. We also have a look at the AAA TripleMania PPV show, UFC ratings increases, the brawl at the WSOF show, UFC suing Wanderlei Silva and Layla retiring.
The issue is on the site right now at 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
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 Lou Thesz vs. Verne Gagne series and why it abruptly ended and why Gagne was never considered for the NWA title even though he’d have likely made a better champion than those chosen ahead of him.
We’ve got a complete history of the career of Gagne and his various honors.
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 look at how a WWE PPV is going against one of the biggest television events of the year.
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 also look at the CMLL anniversary show main event and how quickly it came to be, a guy said to be returning in two weeks after tearing his pec, and at 54 years old, the next AAA TV taping, updates on U.S. stars returning to Mexico and a top indie star and top CMLL star feuding.
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 also look at one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all-time, whose wife is having the couple’s first child, as well as a UWFI nostalgia show this past week.
We look at the retirement from television of legendary wrestling announcer Dave Brown, talking about his career both in and out of wrestling. We’ve got a lot more details on the Jake Roberts redemption DVD and who will be at the debut including an MMA star.
We look at a new TV series featuring Edge, as well as look at what is and isn’t real between Jim Cornette and the Young Bucks. We also look at the background of their issues.
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.
We also have notes on Bellator business and Scott Coker’s predictions for the biggest live event in company history as well as bringing legends of the sport to San Jose, as well as Coker’s long-term goals for the promotion, Was there really a chance for a Frank Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz fight, the final Bellator major event of the year and the lineup, the debut of Josh Thomson and Thomson talks leaving UFC and how badly hurt he was by the Reebok deal.
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.
SUNDAY’S NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I will be back tonight covering SummerSlam as well as tonight’s UFC show, and covering the rest of the news. You can send e-mail questions for tonight or tomorrow night’s show to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com
We’ve got a show up right now talking NXT Takeover, ROH weekend, Kana, Rousey vs. Holm, and live feedback from Pat Laprade who was at the ROH & NXT shows up right now. Wrestling Observer Radio 8/23: WWE NXT Takeover, ROH TV tapings, Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm, more!
While this is not official, there are those in WWE who believe Kana has signed largely because it makes no sense to have pushed her, plus they are looking for some good working women to fill the void by the call-ups of Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch, to continue the NXT women’s momentum. If you didn’t see last night’s special (and it was a great show), she was shown in the crowd with Ric Flair and Sgt. Slaughter. There is a report from Enuhito in Japan that she has already signed.
Most of the “stars” shown only came out for a brief period of time, were shown on camera, and then other people sat in their seats.
Cesaro was taped earlier this week doing matches with both ZZ and Josh that were to be edited for Tough Enough on Tuesday.
Nothing from pro wrestling or MMA made top Google searches yesterday. I’m figuring SummerSlam is near the top today and cracks the 500,000 barrier. Holly Holm ended up being No. 4 on Friday with 100,000.
On twitter, there were 192,000 mentions of NXT, 58,400 for SummerSlam, 7,705 for Sasha Banks and 4,120 for Samoa Joe.
As noted on our audio earlier in the week, Gabe Sapolsky and Sal Houmai of Evolve were at ringside as WWE’s guests at last night’s show.
After the success of this past week, WWE is already making plans for a similarly big SummerSlam weekend next year, in whatever city it ends up being in.
From Jim Ross’ show last night in New York, which drew a much smaller crowd than the last time he played at the Gramercy Theater due to NXT & ROH, from Jim Maugeri, he said Ross was funny and a terrific story teller and gave good life experience advice. He did about two hours with 30 minutes of Q&A and plugged his autobiography. Because of his long meet and greet, the actual show didn’t start until 9 p.m.. He also laid out his booking ideas for Lesnar and Undertaker going to Mania and told stories of flying with Jim Cornette, who hates to fly, and did his usual stories about starting in wrestling under Leroy McGuirk. This was said to be a different show than when he played the venue a few years ago.
Alex Shelley suffered shattered front teeth last night after getting a knee to the face from Mark Briscoe. It was Mark’s kneebrace that caught him. Even wearing a mouthpiece didn’t save him. Shelly said that he saw spots and that his mouthpiece was also broken.
ROH Final Battle tickets for 12/18, which is the last PPV of the year, and 12/19, the last TV taping of the year, are currently on sale.
The UFC will be sponsoring the 2015 world wrestling championships that take place 9/7 to 9/12 at The Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. This will be the first time the U.S. has hosted the world championships since 2003 and first time ever in Las Vegas..
APW on 9/11 in Daly City, CA features the Bayshore Bash with JR Kratos vs. Chris Masters for the APW title, MVP vs. Dylan Drake, Juventud Guerrera vs. Joey Ryan vs. Marcus Lewis, Reno Scum vs. The Freaks, Timothy Thatcher vs. Gangrel and more.
GWN on 9/27 in Hamilton, ONT at the Ukranian Cultural Center.
Patrick Clark will be in Boston on Monday at the MWF Studios at 7 p.m. at 360 Main St. in Melrose, MA doing a sit down interview talking about Tough Enough.
Lone Star Wrestling on 9/26 in Cypress, TX at the VFW
Mecca Pro Wrestling on 9/26 in Kingston, ONT at Legion 560.
-Acclaim Pro Wrestling on 9/12 in Ottawa and 379 Waverly St.
ECCW on 9/11 in Port Coquitlam, BC at Elks Hall #49 and 9/19 in Vancouver, BC at the Russian Community Center with a three-way TLC match.
Tyron Woodley is in several scenes in the movie Straight Outta Compton. He doesn’t have a speaking part, but he plays a member of the rap group Da Lench Mob. (thanks to Jeff Parker)
Jason High and Mike Ricci have signed with World Series of Fighting. High has fought in Dream and Strikeforce, while Ricci was a finalist in Ultimate Fighter many years back. WSOF is back on NBC Sports on 9/18 at 10 p.m. Eastern with Justin Gaethje, their lightweight champion, who is 14-0, defending against Luis Palomino.
Shelton Benjamin vs. Silas Young headlines a CWE show in Sherwood, Park, Alberta, just outside of Edmonton.
NFC MMA on 9/18 and 10/16 at Center Stage in Atlanta.
Vampiro headlines for Superkick’d on 9/11 in Toronto at The Great Hall. There will be eight matches live music and alcohol.
Spike TV will be debuting in The Netherlands between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m. on the Nickelodeon channel, and will be airing Bellator in that country. (thanks to Bronco Groen)
GLORY on 10/9 in Denver is headlined by Artem Levin (50-4-2) defending the middleweight title against Bellator’s Joe Schilling (19-6 as a kickboxer). The two split their first two fights and Glory is pushing it as the bout to decide the world’s best middleweight kickboxer.
Border City Wrestling on 10/17 in Windsor, ONT at St. Clair College as the Doug Chevalier Memorial show.
On Jeopardy Kids week, there a question answer, “Kevin Nash and CM Punk became famous for doing this.” The answer they were looking for is “What is wrestling.” None of the kids on the show knew it. (thanks to Ken Raftery and Grant Zwarych)
Hoosier Pro Wrestling on 9/5 in Columbus, IN at the 4-H Fairgrounds with Trailer Park Trash & Flash Flanagan vs. Cowboy Marc Houston & TJ Kemp. Jimmy Valiant will be coming for the company’s 10/3 show.
Victory Commonwealth Wrestling on 9/13 in Toronto at Lee’s Palace.
WWE is advertising a 9/12 house show in Huntsville, AL around Randy Orton vs. Sheamus and Ryback vs. Big Show for the IC title. (thanks to Ivan Adams)
St. Louis Anarchy Wrestling from last night in Alton, IL: Zakk Sawyers b Matt Cage, Alex Castle won six-way over Ricky Starks, Justin D’Air, Mike Outlaw, Mikey McFinnegan and Donovan Danhausen, Angelus Layne b Andy Dalton, Alexandre Rudolph & Jake Parnell b Danny Adams & Everett Connors, Christian Rose b Tommaso Ciampa, Steve O Reno b Sugar Dunkerton, Jeremy Wyatt b Jojo Bravo, Mat Fitchett b Paco Gonzalez, Adam Caster & Evan Gelistico b Devin & Mason Cutter, Gerald James b Davey Vega (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
Len Rossi, a big Memphis star in the 60s and 70s, who has had a Health Food Store in Brentwood, TN for 42 years, is having that his store, being close to the road, has been condemned as the city is looking at widening the road the store is on. Rossi doesn’t own the building the store is in, so he won’t be getting any money for it. It is believed to be the oldest still surviving retail business in the city.
GOUGE from last night in Raleigh, NC: No Direction b Hangtyme & Victor Andrews, Otto Schwanz b Waylon Maze, Seymour Snott b Priest, Juan Jeremi b Mikey Gambino, Timmy Lou Retton b Jimmy Jack Funk Jr. Next shows are 9/19 and 9/20 in Raleigh outside Fayetteville St. and Martin St. for Spark CON.
Chuck Liddell was at the RockBar last night in San Jose for the wedding reception of Sebastian Bach. That’s the same venue Jim Ross performed at before WrestleMania. Liddell posed for tons of pictures. Several other rock celebrities were there but I’m told Liddell got by far the most attention. The reception was open to the public for $175 per ticket.
Lucha Xtreme TV from last night in Fresno: Marcus Eriks b Prince Nagi, Kevin El Devino b Jesse Poole-DQ, Prince Nagi & Kevin El Devino b Jesse Poole & Markus Eriks (thanks to Jon Southerland)
WWE SummerSlam 2015 live results: Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker, John Cena vs. Seth Rollins
WWE SummerSlam 2015: The casual fan’s guide to Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar, Seth Rollins vs. John Cena
70s & 80s era wrestler Duke Myers passes away
UFC Fight Night Saskatoon live results: Max Holloway vs. Charles Oliveira
UFC Fight Night Saskatoon main card picks & preview, plus Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker
UFC Fight Night 74 Picks And Betting Game From The Secret Psychic Spy~!
WWE NXT TakeOver live results & main card: Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens, Sasha Banks vs. Bayley, Samoa Joe, Jushin “Thunder” Liger
UFC Fight Night 74 Preview: 5 storylines to watch, betting odds & predictions
ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY INTERNATIONAL (thanks to Graeme Cameron)
1983 – Marty Jones & Clive Myers beat David Finlay & Skull Murphy (Peter Northey) to win the World of Sports tag team tournament
1986 – Yukari Omori beat Devil Masami in Kawasaki to win the WWWA title and Dump Matsumoto & Bull Nakano beat Chigusa Nagayo & Kazue Nagahori to win the WWWA tag titles
1993 – Masa Fuchi beat Dan Kroffat in Shizuoka to win the All Japan jr. title
1998 – Chigusa Nagayo beat Devil Masami in Tokyo to win the AAAW title and Aja Kong & Mayumi Ozaki beat Chikayo Nagashima & Sugar Sato to win the tag titles
1998 – AAA Psicosis & AAA Histeria & AAA Mosco & Maniaco beat Los Villanos III &* IV & V & Pierroth Jr. to win the Mexican national atomicos titles
1999 – Hayabusa beat Yukihiro Kanemaru in Tokyo to win the FMW Brass Knux title and Tetsuhiro Kuroda & Hisakatsu Oya beat Koji Nakagawa & Gedo to win the tag titles
2000 – Kensuke Sasaki beat Manabu Nakanishi in Tokyo to win the G-1 Climax tournament
2009 – Kota Ibushi beat Harashima in Tokyo to win the KOD Open weight title.
All eyes are on WWE as they host three sold out shows this weekend, the main attraction being a four hour Summerslam on Sunday. We will have full coverage of all the events over the weekend including live results and post show audio with Dave and Bryan. ROH is also hosting a New Japan Crossover event tonight featuring Jay Leathal, Shinsuke Nakamura, Okata and others. In addition to wrestling action UFC fight night is headlined sunday with a bout between Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira.
Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive will give a preview NXT takeover, UFC and SummerSlam, speak about Rondas next oppenent and your calls on Wrestling Observer Live available here or through the iHeart Radio App. Here is today’s show: Wrestling Observer Live 8/21: SummerSlam weekend, Ronda Rousey’s next fight, open line Fridays, more!
Tonight:
Ring of Honor Presents: Aftershock FRIDAY, AUGUST 21ST, 2015 7:30PM BELL TIME
ROH World Championship: Jay Lethal w/ Truth Martini vs “Mr ROH” Roderick Strong
Adam Cole vs Shinsuke Nakamura
KUSHIDA vs Matt Sydal
ROH World Tag Team Championship: The Addiction (c) vs The Young Bucks
Kazuchika Okada & RPG Vice (Rocky Romero & Beretta) vs The Briscoes & Hirooki Goto
Dalton Castle vs Cedric Alexander w/ Veda Scott
“Unbreakable” Michael Elgin vs “The Last Real Man” Silas Youn
The Kingdom w/Maria Kanellis vs War Machine (Raymond Rowe & Hanson)
reDRagon vs The House of Truth
Adam Page w/ BJ Whitmer vs Will Ferrara vs Takaaki Watanabe vs Moose w/ Stokely Hathaway
New Japan on AXS
Description: “Hiroshi Tanahashi vs rival Katsuyori Shibata in a brutal five-star classic encounter. Togi Makabe meets Hirooki Goto.”
Feedback, polls and show report requests:
We’re looking for ROH Philly, GFW Vegas, and sights/sounds/spottings from #SummerSlam. Email Newstips
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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.
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WWE’s weekend in Brooklyn is the main story in this weeks Wrestling Observer Newsletter now available. This includes both Summerslam on Sunday as well as NXT Takeover on Saturday. We also have full coverage of the now finished G1 Climax and what the results mean for NJPW in the near future. In addition we look at UFC teamsters looking at options of unionization and the morale issues that spawned it. We also have a look at the AAA TripleMania PPV show, UFC ratings increases, the brawl at the WSOF show, UFC suing Wanderlei Silva and Layla retiring.
The issue is on the site right now at 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.
We look at the WWE events in Brooklyn with three straight full houses and look historically at the only other promotion that has been able to do it historically and the record, as well as updates on the NXT and SummerSlam shows and more details on the NXT card as well as the probable main event stipulation and ticket demand.
We have a complete look at the G-1 Climax tournament, including updates on the last few days, the standings, the Sumo Hall preview and coverage of all the shows this past week with star ratings.
We’ve got a look at the attempts to unionize UFC fighters, the real story behind the attempt, the letter sent by UFC to all of its fighters and why they probably could have written it better, and a look at UFC business.
We also look at the wealth of Vince McMahon, Rosa Mendes being pregnant, WWE injury updates, lawsuits, weird match, Tough Enough, new names, insider trading, Raw advance, Diva search news plus notes on all the weekend WWE & NXT events.
We look at TripleMania, all the problems with the show, what happened with the Spanish language broadcast, mistakes made in booking, how the card had to change from its original plans, the letter AAA sent out after, the retirements and Hall of Fame ceremony, plus match-by-match coverage with star ratings.
We’ve got notes on the funeral of Roddy Piper, more on the Hulk Hogan tapes story, Hogan’s first public appearance, two Roddy Piper moves that haven’t come out, one of the biggest stars of the last ten years suffering a major health issue, a former star gets his number retired, a U.K. star returns after cancer, a retirement that probably isn’t a retirement, a Japanese promotion running in October in California, a wrestler having his first match in 20 years, the second oldest living wrestler and his background, big shows in Puerto Rico and news no two different wrestling Halls of Fame.
We also have an update on the status of Lucha Underground, what changes have to be made, the audience watching the show, what to look out for, notes on the contracts the performers have, update on Vampiro and coverage of both weeks of Ultima Lucha.
We also look at the ROH show in Brooklyn, TNA Hall of fame ceremony, and upcoming TNA house shows.
We also look at McGregor vs. Aldo, a big show vs. normal show, Las Vegas vs. Cowboys Stadium, Rousey vs. Cyborg update, Lawler vs. McGregor, UFC financials, how much it costs them every year just in interest on their bond, what kind of profits they are making, lots of ratings into, Rousey business notes, the Aldo drug testing fiasco, Overeem vs. Dos Santos, Punk vs. Pendred, fighter already talking about coming out of retirement, and 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.
Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues.
Friday Update:
As noted in this WrestlingObserver.com article: WWE SummerSlam: Steve Austin, Ric Flair & post-SS RAW Steve Austin is leaving NYC before SummerSlam, but Ric Flair is heading into town. It also sounds like something big will be happening on Raw this Monday.
As you have probably already heard, Ronda Rousey’s next opponent will be undefeated Holly Holm. This comes as a bit of a surprise as most believed Meisha Tate was getting the immediate shot. The full story: UFC: Ronda Rousey to fight Holly Holm at January’s UFC 195 Meisha’s reaction at MMAFighting.com: Miesha Tate ‘extremely disappointed’ about news of Ronda Rousey-Holly Holm fight
Brock Lesnar, Divas & celebrities: 5 reasons to be excited for WWE SummerSlam
The top story on Google News concerning SummerSlam this morning was a small blurb on Stephen Amell Check it out here.And another article.
Sports Illustrated SummerSlam Articles:
Every main event of WWE’sSummerSlam ranked
SummerSlam predictions: Jim Ross breaks down the PPV card
Jonathan Coachman connecting WWE, ESPN worlds at SummerSlam
According to Sportcenter WWE’s John Cena will become first celebrity to grant 500 wishes in Make a wish Foundation history.
Here is our Total Divas report: WWE News: Total Divas TV report
WWF Tuesday Night Titans episode 34 review: The original ‘Rock’, Brutus Beefcake, Wendi Richter vs. Peggy Lee
UFC is also targeting Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Claudia Gadelha for UFC 195 co-main. Though, this is not official at this time.
Nate Marquardt vs. C.B. Dollaway, and Samman-McCrory has been added to UFC on FOX 17 Dec. 19 at Amway Center in Orlando, Fla. The Orlando Sentinal on the new fights.
Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov has been added to the TUF 22 Finale scheduled for Dec 11th. It is a potential #1 contenders match for the light weight title.
Here’s a few news & notes items related to WWE SummerSlam as we head into what will be a big weekend of news:
– Despite being in Brooklyn, NY, former WWE Champion and overall mega-star “Stone Cold” Steve Austin will not be sticking around for Saturday’s NXT show or the big event on Sunday. For those that thought he might do an appearance of some sort on the four-hour monolith, that won’t be the case.
– However, another wrestling star will be around as “Nature Boy” Ric Flair is in Brooklyn and should be around for the shows. No word on whether he’ll actually be seen on camera for NXT or SummerSlam, but as they, stay tuned.
– We all know how wrestling rumors go, but we were told to expect something “huge” for Monday’s RAW. There wasn’t any additional info given, but it’s safe to assume that’s not referring to a Big Show vs. Kane main event.
* Tough Enough at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on USA Network has the unveiling of the new judge to replace Hulk Hogan.
* Total Divas at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on E! has a nw episode titled “Divas on Overdrive.” While the Divas are on their way to their next arena, things get out of control when Paige leaves Alicia behind for a new man, Nattie ends up infuriating her husband when she can’t give no for an answer and Nikki accuses Bryan of not liking her.
The newest issue of Figure Four Weekly is up on the site for subscribers (subscribe here) with a feature story looking at WWE’s firing of Hulk Hogan and how it relates to all of the litigation with Gawker including:
* How Hogan’s racist comments and the set of sex tapes his tirade was part of tied into the FBI investigating someone attempting to extort money from Hogan.
* How long it’s been known that something like this could come out.
* Gawker alluding to the idea that the FBI was helping Hogan cover up these statements.
* Where The National Enquirer and Radar Onlne could have sourced the story from.
And much more. Plus, as always, we have all of the usual reviews and international news.
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.
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The return of the Undertaker and build to SummerSlam, Battleground coverage, the rise of NXT and situation with ROH, the G-1 Climax tournament and some major UFC stories are the major stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
The latest Wrestling Observer: July 27, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: The Undertaker returns at Battleground, NXT/ROH insanity with Liger booking
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
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 lead story concerns the build to SummerSlam. We look at advertising that has already been cut for the show, what are the possibilities for Sting, the Lesnar-Undertaker angle, the booking of WWE right now, the situation with the women, plus full coverage of Battleground with match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results on the show.
We also look at the booking of Jushin Liger to NXT on 8/22, ticket sales for the show, plans for the NXT show, how the Liger booking affects ROH and has caused such a political turmoil. We look at the NXT card as well as the competing ROH show. We look at the Liger booking, ROH working with New Japan, ratings with New Japan stars vs. shows without New Japan stars, NXT touring, the next NXT vs. ROH head-to-head in September, the next ROH PPV show and much more.
We also have full coverage of the G-1 Climax tournament, with all of the shows planned for the next week, as well as full coverage of opening night in Sapporo with match-by-match-coverage, star ratings and poll results.
We also look at a major story concerning fighters for UFC to address which is the banning of IVs for rehydrating after weigh-ins starting October and why the story is far more significant than people realize.
We also look at a potential alliance between ESPN and WWE and the ethical debate regarding the coverage. We also look at the Hogan/Gawker lawsuit and each side’s case, an update on the Dr. Christopher Amann lawsuit against C.M. Punk and Colt Cabana, an update on Dolph Ziggler and what he claims is his contract status, Undertaker working more than just SummerSlam, Stephanie McMahon talks gay characterizations in future WWE creative as well as a look back from former creative members regarding different suggestions on gay characterizations in the past. We look at more WWE banned terms and how some were changed and why. We also look at how the characters are being described for Camp WWE, which is really hilarious.
We’ve also got notes on Chris Jericho working more house shows, Tough Enough notes, John Cena in the movies, how the WWE Network free month has changed, as well as what to look for over the next week in WWE stock.
We also have full coverage of the next month of NXT TV tapings, as well as coverage of all the WWE and NXT house shows this past week and business notes from the shows.
We also have notes on TripleMania being on U.S. PPV for the first time on 8/9, including price point, why it’s happening now, and its history as well as broadcast information.
We also have coverage of both UFC events held over the past week, with the Mir vs. Duffee and Bisping vs. Leites shows. We’ve got business notes and stories behind both events.
We also have notes on the third season of New Japan World on AXS, including highlights of the new season, all the matches airing from 8/14 to 12/11 including when the Wrestle Kingdom 9 matches will air, as well as notes on the schedule for 2016.
We also look at Dragon Gate’s Kobe World Festival show and CMLL’s Sin Salida show, which were two of those two company’s biggest events of the year.
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.
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
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Tuesday Daily Update
— The National Enquirer and Radar Online released more quotes from one of the Hulk Hogan/Heather Cole-Clem sex tapes today, this time focusing on homophoic comments from Hogan:
“VH1 wanted me to do a big thing and go back to the house I grew up in. So we knock on the door, and a big f*g lives there now! […]This half gay was enamored with Linda.”
Later, when Bubba the Love Sponge Clem entered the room, Hogan made an interesting request of Bubba:”Dude, the only thing I will ever ask of you…I don’t know how you will pull this off…is, if I am ever on my death bed, you cannot let Linda come and visit me.” This was at least several months before Linda filed for divorced, something Hogan claimed to be blindisded by at the time.
There’s also an aside about not having to sell their home in Las Vegas if he and Linda get divorced and how “Cecile [Barker, the “black billionaire” he ranted about earlier] will buy it and give it back to me after the divorce!” Barker’s company is Sobe Entertainment, which also backed Paul “Big Show” Wight’s 2007 attempt at a boxing career that he gave up on when he went back to WWE in 2008. Sobe sued in 2009 and the case is still ongoing.
— Thankfully, Hogan has been off Twitter since yesterday.
— WWE announced Alicia Fox as having suffered a mild concussion, which may be the first time they’ve done that since they increased secrecy in light of the various concussion-centered lawsuits.
— Meanwhile, WWE Medical Director and Pittsburgh Steelers neurosurgeon Dr. Joseph Maroon is in hot water for writing a paper downlplaying how big a problem Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy is without disclosing his cnflicts of interest with WWE and the NFL.
— In addition to AAA revealing Hugo Savinovich and Matt Striker as the English announcing team for TripleMania, they announced a new match in the form of Blue Demon and La Parka vs. El Mesias and Electro Shock, with the idea that it celebrates Demon’s 30th year in the business.
— Speaking of Cabana, he’s going to be in Scotland for most of August as part of the Comedy portion of the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh as well as working various indie wrestling dates. See his full schedule on his website.
We’re looking for your thoughts on yesterday’s G-1 Climax show in Hiroshima, Saturday night’s UFC show in Chicago and Friday night’s ROH in Baltimore, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to Dave Meltzerdave@wrestlingobserver.com”>
We’re also looking for reports on yesterday’s WWE house shows in Lawton, OK and Amarillo and tonight’s ROH TV tapings in Orlando at Dave Meltzerdave@wrestlingobserver.com”>.
We’re also looking for report from Raw in Oklahoma City tonight, with dark matches, Superstars matches and anything else not evident from the live show. Brock Lesnar was not being advertised for the show.
The G-1 Climax tournament continues on Tuesday morning at 5:30 a.m in Beppu with Yuji Nagata vs. Yujiro Takahashi, Tomoaki Honma vs. Hirooki Goto, Ken Anderson vs. Tomohiro Ishii and Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Michael Elgin is also listed but we don’t have any updated word on Nakamura’s condition.
Smackdown is Tuesday night in Tulsa. Roman Reign and Seth Rollins are advertised as the top stars on the show. Dolph Ziggler is still being advertised on the show, so in theory he should be returning this week although what is advertised and what happens aren’t necessarily the same thing.
The G-1 Climax tournament has a major show on Wednesday at 5:30 a.m. at the Fukuoka International Center Arena with the A block that is tearing things up with Toru Yano vs. Doc Gallows, Togi Makabe vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Katsuyori Shibata vs. Kota Ibushi, Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bad Luck Fale and Tetsuya Naito vs. A.J. Styles./
The return of the Undertaker and build to SummerSlam, Battleground coverage, the rise of NXT and situation with ROH, the G-1 Climax tournament and some major UFC stories are the major stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
The latest Wrestling Observer: July 27, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: The Undertaker returns at Battleground, NXT/ROH insanity with Liger booking
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
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 lead story concerns the build to SummerSlam. We look at advertising that has already been cut for the show, what are the possibilities for Sting, the Lesnar-Undertaker angle, the booking of WWE right now, the situation with the women, plus full coverage of Battleground with match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results on the show.
We also look at the booking of Jushin Liger to NXT on 8/22, ticket sales for the show, plans for the NXT show, how the Liger booking affects ROH and has caused such a political turmoil. We look at the NXT card as well as the competing ROH show. We look at the Liger booking, ROH working with New Japan, ratings with New Japan stars vs. shows without New Japan stars, NXT touring, the next NXT vs. ROH head-to-head in September, the next ROH PPV show and much more.
We also have full coverage of the G-1 Climax tournament, with all of the shows planned for the next week, as well as full coverage of opening night in Sapporo with match-by-match-coverage, star ratings and poll results.
We also look at a major story concerning fighters for UFC to address which is the banning of IVs for rehydrating after weigh-ins starting October and why the story is far more significant than people realize.
We also look at a potential alliance between ESPN and WWE and the ethical debate regarding the coverage. We also look at the Hogan/Gawker lawsuit and each side’s case, an update on the Dr. Christopher Amann lawsuit against C.M. Punk and Colt Cabana, an update on Dolph Ziggler and what he claims is his contract status, Undertaker working more than just SummerSlam, Stephanie McMahon talks gay characterizations in future WWE creative as well as a look back from former creative members regarding different suggestions on gay characterizations in the past. We look at more WWE banned terms and how some were changed and why. We also look at how the characters are being described for Camp WWE, which is really hilarious.
We’ve also got notes on Chris Jericho working more house shows, Tough Enough notes, John Cena in the movies, how the WWE Network free month has changed, as well as what to look for over the next week in WWE stock.
We also have full coverage of the next month of NXT TV tapings, as well as coverage of all the WWE and NXT house shows this past week and business notes from the shows.
We also have notes on TripleMania being on U.S. PPV for the first time on 8/9, including price point, why it’s happening now, and its history as well as broadcast information.
We also have coverage of both UFC events held over the past week, with the Mir vs. Duffee and Bisping vs. Leites shows. We’ve got business notes and stories behind both events.
We also have notes on the third season of New Japan World on AXS, including highlights of the new season, all the matches airing from 8/14 to 12/11 including when the Wrestle Kingdom 9 matches will air, as well as notes on the schedule for 2016.
We also look at Dragon Gate’s Kobe World Festival show and CMLL’s Sin Salida show, which were two of those two company’s biggest events of the year.
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.
Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw, Hulk Hogan, Ronda Rousey, G-1, as well as taking your phone calls to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com
Somebody let Hulk Hogan know that anything he does in public is not going to be good for him today, or any time in the next few days.
Raw will open tonight with The Authority addressing all the wrestlers on the ramp. I love those teachers addressing the kids in assembly segments as they usually just do wonderful things for the star power of the roster.
Nothing is listed in Google searches today or yesterday, so today’s Hogan revelations didn’t hit anything like on Friday. On Twitter, the biggest MMA, wrestling or boxing thing as of press time was the Ronda Rousey vs. Bethe Correia press call with 16,400 and it actually just stated as I’m writing this.
A question to ponder as Hall of Fame season comes close. What current wrestlers that aren’t in belong in? And a more interesting question is the Hall of Fame legit closed to anyone new who hasn’t headlined in WWE or New Japan? Are all other promotions as far as current stars too irrelevant or not strong enough to matter?
It will be very interesting on Raw to see if there is a ratings bump due to all the Hogan publicity, and if WWE will have Vince McMahon or someone else address the story tonight, or just leave it alone.
Big Bill Carr suffered a broken foot on Friday’s PWG show.
It was on this day 15 years ago that Gordon Solie, the iconic voice of 60s, 70s and 80s pro wrestling, passed away at the age of 71.
WWE has posted that it’s looking for a new Senior Vice President of Programming and Development. The person will report to the Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer. Among the jobs is to develop strategy for WWE Network programming to oversee the programming budget, lead development of original programming, and work with the VOD library. They are looking for someone with 10-15 years experience in television or film content management and/or development.
UFC 190 Countdown airs at 9 p.m. Eastern and 6 p.m. Pacific time on FS 1.
Tom Blatter noted that today is also the 53rd anniversary of The Destroyer’s WWA title win over Freddie Blassie in San Diego. That title led to Destroyer becoming a cultural icon in Japan.
WWE stock has continued to fall after the Hogan story (this will be temporary and be corrected relatively shortly) finishing at $16.01 per share today, down 59 cents. However, the stock would have likely had a run-up through Thursday’s investment call.
Stardom from yesterday at Korakuen Hall before 1,350 fans: Kaori Yoneyama & Hatsuhinode Kamen b Momo Watanabe & Azumi, Reo Hazuki b Alex Lee, Starfire b Kris Wolf, Melissa & Chelsea b Nikki Storm & Hudson Envy, Io Shirai & Mio Shirai b Mayu Iwatani & Hiroyo Matsumoto (Mio’s first and last match in the promotion as she’s retiring in September, Io & Mio Shirai started together in 2007), Meiko Satomura b Kairi Hojo to win the World of Stardom title. Satomura is one of the greatest female wrestlers of all-time, but never got the recognition because her heyday came after the glory period of women’s wrestling in Japan (thanks to Sonny Gutierrez)
High Risk Wrestling from yesterday in Cahokia, IL: Justin D’Air won six-way over Jarrod Jaxx, Dale Patricks, Brian Skyline, Thomas Walton III and Jayden Fenix, John E. Rock b Eli Machete, Marek Brave b Adrian Alexander, Silas Young b Mike Outlaw, Tony Kozina b Ace Perry, Sugar Dunkerton b Tripp Cassidy, Nick Iggy & Kerry Awful b Jack Gamble & Jon Webb, Blake Belakis b Bolt Brady (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
Beyond Wrestling from yesterday in Providence, RI: Speedball Mike Bailey b Danny Cannon (coming out of retirement to wrestle this match), Michael Bennett & Matt Taven b Drew Gulak & Biff Busick, Garden City Gods won four-way (Davey Vega was taken to the hospital after cracking his head on the floor doing a top rope huracanrana), David Starr b Johnny Gargano, John Reynolds & Alex Silver b Brian Myers & Ryan Galeone (really good), Matt Tremont b Stockade in a casket match with double juice and tons of weapons, ending with a power bomb on cinder blocks and cinder blocks to the head, Tracy Williams b AR Fox, Chuck Taylor & Trent Baretta b Dan Barry & Dick Justice, Donovan Dijak b Brain Fury, Tea Pazuzu b Da hit Squad, Kimber Lee b Heidi Lovelace, Chris Hero & JT Dunn b Young Bucks in an incredible main event. Show went 4 1/2 hours (thanks to James Brown)
A new documentary movie on Jim Crockett Promotions will be debuting this weekend at the Mid Atlantic Fan Fest. Lots of interviews with the likes of Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, Ole Anderson, Paul Jones and narrated by Jim Ross.
Tickets go on sale on Friday for UFC 191, on 9/5 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, headlined by Demetrious Johnson vs. John Dodson, Anthony Rumble Johnson vs. Jan Blachowicz and Paige VanZant vs. Alex Chambers. Tickets are priced at $603, $403, $303, $203, $103 and $78. The Fight Club pre-sale starts Wednesday at 10 a.m. Pacific time at www.ufcfightclub.com and a newsletter subscribers presale starts Thursday at 1 p.m. Pacific time at www.ufc.com
Randy Savage is the celebrity inductee for this year’s Baseball Hall of Very Good, along with Jim Kaat and Lee Smith.
Pro Wrestling Eclipse on 8/16 in Oshawa, ONT at the Oshawa Legion with Roderick Strong vs. Tarik, plus Jennifer Blake, Cody Deaner and Johnny Devine.
WWN put tickets on sale today at www.MoreThanMania.com for its WrestleMania weekend events in Dallas in 2016.
Trainwreck debuted at No. 2 in Australia this past weekend with Magic Mike XXL at No. 4. (thanks to James Stanios)
CWE on Friday night in Winnipeg: Billy Blaze b Travis Cole, Kevy Chevy b Bobby Collins-DQ, Mike Mission b Adam Race, Danny Duggan b Tod Bullet, Wildman Firpo b Dick Blood, Anderson Tyson Moore b Tommy Lee Curtis.
Congratulations to historian and wrestler Vance Nevada for being named to the All-Star Wrestling Hall of Fame. At 39, he’s the youngest person wh has been honored.
In what could be considered an embarrassing reference to pro wrestling, longtime fan Fred the Elephant Boy, who got Mick Foley on Howard Stern several times, was pitching for Stern to interview his favorite wrestler, Rob Van Dam. He talked about Hulk Hogan and said RVD had worked with Hogan and would be a good guest for the show. Stern blew the idea off and indicated he didn’t want pro wrestlers on the show. Of late, when callers have asked for him to interview Dwayne Johnson, he blows them off as well (thanks to Jeff Cohen)
ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY INTERNATIONAL (thanks to Graeme Cameron)
1986 – Stan Hansen beat Genichiro Tenryu in Nagano to win the United National and PWF titles
1990 – Stan Hansen beat Mitsuharu Misawa in Matsumoto to win the Triple Crown
2001 – Jun Akiyama beat Mitsuharu Misawa in Tokyo to win the GHC heavyweight title
2001 – Tomoko Watanabe & Nanae Takahashi beat Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita in Tokyo to win the WWWA tag titles
2008 – Shingo Takagi beat BxB Hulk in Kobe to win the vacant Open the Dream Gate title and Genki Horiguchi beat Kzy to win the vacant Open the Brave Gate title
2009 – Daisuke Sekimoto & Yuji Okabyashi beat Masashi Takeda & Isami Kodoka in Tokyo to win the Big Japan tag title
2012 – Katsuhiko Nakajima & Satoshi Kajiwara beat Masao Orihara & Black Tiger (Tatsuhito Takaiwa) to win the Int. jr tag title
Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back today with everything you ever wanted to know about the XFL…and we’re talking ever. This is a fun show as always so check it out~!
