– Don Leo Jonathan & Roy McClarty defeated The Fabulous Kangaroos (Al Costello & Roy Heffernan) for the NWA Canadian Tag Team Titles
1967
Sioux Falls, South Dakota:
– AWA Champion Verne Gagne beat Mike DiBiase in 2 out of 3 falls
– Doug Gilbert & Reggie Parks beat Krusher Kowalski & Chris Markoff in 2 out of 3 falls
– Bob Orton beat Rene Goulet
1972
Tampa, Florida:
– Tim Woods defeated Jack Brisco in a tournament final by default to win the NWA Florida Television Title
1977
Honolulu, Hawaii:
– Bill Francis beat AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel dq
– AWA Tag Team Champions Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Jesse Ventura & Steve Strong
– Sam Steamboat beat John Tolos to win North American title
– Missing Link Pampero Firpo beat Steve Lawler
1979
Shreveport, Louisiana:
– Mike George & Bob Sweetan become the first ever Mid-South Tag Team Champions. (A battle royal was held with the final two coming down to George and Buck Robley. George and Robley wrestled a singles match, with George winning, and getting the belts for his team. If Robley had won, he and Bill Watts would have been the champions)
1980
Charlotte, North Carolina:
– The Sheepherders (Butch Miller & Luke Williams) defeated Matt Borne & Buzz Sawyer to win the NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles
Green Bay, Wisconsin:
– Lights Out match; The Crusher beat Jerry Blackwell
– Dino Bravo beat Jesse Ventura
– Adrian Adonis beat Tito Santana
– Handicap Match; John Studd beat Juan Valez & Ben DeLeon
– Steve Regal drew Buck Zumhofe
1981
Augusta, Georgia:
– Tommy Rich defeated the Masked Superstar for the NWA National Heavyweight Title
1982
Kansas City, Kansas:
– Terry Funk defeated Billy Howard
– Danny Little Bear & The Viking & Steve Bolus defeated Chati Yokouchi & Yasu Fuji & Juan Sebastian
– Harley Race defeated Les Thornton via DQ
– Rufus R. Jones & The Stomper defeated Roger Kirby & Black Angus via DQ
1985
Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois:
– The AWA held their first ever “SuperClash” event; attendance was 20,347
– NWA Champion Ric Flair beat Magnum TA
– Fabulous Freebirds Michael Hayes & Terry Gordy beat AWA Tag Team Champions Road Warriors to win title (Decision reversed by video replay)
– Stan Hansen no contest AWA Champion Rick Martel
– Kerry Von Erich beat Jimmy Garvin
– Ivan Koloff & Nikita Koloff & Khrusher Khrushchev beat Dick The Bruiser & The Crusher & Baron Von Raschke
– Greg Gagne & Curt Hennig & Scott Hall beat Nick Bockwinkel & Ray Stevens & Larry Zbyszko
– Sgt Slaughter beat Boris Zhukov dq
– Jumbo Tsuruta & Giant Baba & Genichiro Tenyru beat Bill Irwin & Scott Irwin & Harley Race
– Bodyslam match; Jerry Blackwell beat Kamala
– Mil Mascaras beat Buddy Roberts
– Sherri Martel beat Candi Divine to win the AWA Women’s title
– Steve Regal beat Brad Rheingans
1986
Atlanta, Georgia:
– Jim Crockett Promotions crowned their first ever NWA United States Tag Team Champions in a tournament as Ivan Koloff & Krusher Kruschev defeated Dutch Mantell & Bobby Jaggers to win the tournament
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma:
– Buddy Roberts defeated Terry Taylor to win the UWF Television Title
1990
Hanover, Germany:
– Steve Wright beat Dave “Fit” Finlay in Hannover, Germany to win the CWA Middleweight championship
1995
– Psicosis beat Rey Misterio, Jr. in Mexicali to win the WWA Welterweight championship
1997
Kawasaki, Japan:
– Masato Tanaka defeated Mike Awesome to win the FMW World Brass Knuckles and the FMW World Independent Heavyweight Titles
The Big Takeaway: Jack Swagger beat Adam Rose and his ever-terrible new gimmick while R-Truth dismissed Heath Slater in a quick, entertaining bout. Xavier Woods is still the best thing about this show.
R-Truth beat Heath Slater (3:34)
They opened things up by exchanging wristlocks. Things quickly break down, however, in to an impromptu dance off. This is pretty much the formula for the 4-minute R-Truth match on Superstars. A quick hip toss from Truth sees him then mount Slater in the corner for punches on the second rope, but he is crotched. Slater takes over with his own punches, until a slap from Truth throws him off his balance. Truth kicks him in the guts but then runs into a scissor kick, which floors him. After stomps from Slater, he slaps on a chin lock and then covers Truth for two.
Truth then gets the heat with clotheslines and a heel kick, followed by the Lie Detector for the win. All through Slater’s offense section Woods was putting over the fact that Slater was a one-time beat the clock winner against Seth Rollins on Raw and so should be in for a title shot. When Rich Brennan was incredulous at one stage in the match, Woods just quietly remarked in mock-disgust, “there’s so much you need to learn about this industry”. He’s fast becoming very good in the role.
Jack Swagger beat Adam Rose (7:57)
My god, this Adam Rose gimmick. He came out for his usual pre-match promo, looking like he’d actually make a pretty good third wheel in The Vaudevillians on NXT, moaning about how he was going to “poop” all over the WWE Universe’s party. It would have been terrible on a really bad Indy card that had no TV. It really has no place here.
They lock up but Rose immediately goes to ropes to break off and Swagger then grabs him and hits him with a belly to back suplex. Swagger then runs into Rose’s elbow, and he slaps on a headlock. When Swagger gets out, he uses a side headlock takedown and then runs through Rose with shoulder barges and uses a huge lariat to send him over the top rope. Swagger leads the crowd in a “We the people!” as we head to a break.
Swagger is dominating as we return, punching Rose in the corner. He then tosses Rose over the top rope, but he lands on the apron, and Swagger turns round to find Rose using the top rope to choke him. Rose then takes over and lands elbows, steps on his throat and applies a sleeper hold. When Swagger gets out, Rose grabs his hair and throws him to the mat.
Rose continues to work over Swagger with kicks and punches. He lands a double knee drop and then goes back to a rear chin lock. He turns this into a sleeper and Swagger manages to use the turnbuckle to force Rose off. Swagger then gets the heat with huge clotheslines, a Swagger Bomb and then covers Rose for two. He then double legs and goes for the Patriot Lock, but gets posted.
Rose stomps his foot a la Shawn Michaels as if to set up for Sweet Chin Music. Instead of a super kick, it sets up a fairly meager low kick to take out Swagger’s left leg. Rose uses a DDT, and comes off the top rope with a big flying double axe handle to Swagger’s back. Swagger kicks out of the cover at two. Woods makes this infinitely more fun by throwing himself into the drama of it all, going crazy on commentary. Rose goes up top again but this time is caught in the Patriot Lock and he taps instantly.
Rich Franklin, one of the key building blocks of the UFC organization when it first got on Spike TV, announced his retirement today on Twitter.
Franklin, 40, had not fought for nearly three years, since a knockout loss to Cung Le on November 10, 2012 in Macau, China.
During that period he had talked about wanting to do a retirement fight. He had one fight left on his UFC contract and Dana White, who had maintained good relations with him, had said he would be able to have it.
But he had not asked for that fight. He is the current Vice President of One Championship, an Asian-based MMA company.
Franklin won the UFC middleweight title on June 4, 2005, from the late Evan Tanner. UFC had just gotten on Spike TV. As a former math teacher, Franklin broke the fighter stereotype and UFC pushed him as one of its key players in the early years, including a coaching stint on the second season of Ultimate Fighter. He retained the title with wins over Nate Quarry and David Loiseau, before losing on October 14, 2006, to Anderson Silva. He remained a headliner on major shows until his last UFC fight more than six years later.
Franklin will be addressing his retirement on the MMA Hour at 3:25 p.m. Eastern time. Dave Meltzer will be on the same show at 1 PM EST.
Here are this morning’s results of the second Destruction show, which took place at Kobe World Hall.
Yohei Komatsu and Sho Tanaka vs. Jay White and David Finlay
This was a pretty short match, but was good while it lasted with some good back and forth offense. Komatsu and Tanaka had both of their opponents in the Boston crab. Finlay made it to the ropes, but White was the legal man and submitted, with Tanaka getting the win for his team.
Jushin Liger, Tiger Mask and Yuji Nagata vs. Captain New Japan, Manabu Nakanishi and Juice Robinson
Nagata worked a lot of this match, first against Nakanishi then against Robinson. He and Nakanishi were fine, though I thought Nagata selling for Nakanishi’s weak offense was kind of jarring. Robinson came in and got the heat for a bit but Nagata cut him off with the white eyes armbar then pinned him with the backdrop hold. Typical New Japan multi man tag you’d see on any show.
Roppongi Vice, Yoshi-Hashi and Tomohiro Ishii vs. Mascara Dorada, Tomoaki Honma, Togi Makabe and Ryusuke Taguchi
Good six man action. It had the usual NJPW multi man tag tropes but everyone worked hard. Focus was on IShii and Makabe which seems like the next NEVER title program. Mascara Dorada did a great tornillo dive on the outside, wiping out his opponents, but he’s the one pinned as Beretta cuts him off and RPG Vice do their Omori Driver/dropkick finish for the win. They focused on Makabe and Ishii again after the match. Not that they’ll have a bad match, but they started this program a year ago and it feels like they’re going nowhere by doing the same match repeatedly.
Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima and Matt Sydal vs. Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows and Kenny Omega
Another good tag team match. Tenkoji and Anderson/Gallows mostly worked with one another and Sydal and Omega did as well. Sydal looked good and the crowd were into him. Sydal gave Omega a great looking reverse rana then pinned him with a shooting star press. So it’s clear this is leading to their title match, probably at King of Pro Wrestling.
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tetsuya Naito
Naito took his sweet time getting to the ring, complete with a new mask. When Shibata came down, he quickly kicked him in his face and started work on him. Naito cut him off and threw him into the barricades, taking his suit off. He had the offense for a while, but Shibata came back and beat him up unmercifully, making everything look as unpleasant as possible He repeatedly threw him in the barricades on all sides of the area, eventually laying him out with a boot that sent him into the crowd. Shibata took a lot of the match.
He had Naito in the sleeper, but Naito grabbed the ref and gave Shibata two low blows, then pinned him with the Destino for the win. Makes sense given his new character. I wouldn’t say this was a blow away match, but it was a pretty good match. Naito destroyed Jay White after the match, then a cameraman as he was walking to the back. He was about to beat up the cameraman some more when Shibata came flying out of nowhere and jumped him, sending them both brawling to the back. Seems like that feud isn’t over.
Tama Tonga, Cody Hall and AJ Styles vs. Kazushi Sakuraba, Kazuchika Okada and Toru Yano
This was a good bout. It was clear this crowd were into Kazuchika Okada far more than anyone else on this show so far. At one point he dropkicked Styles and the place erupted. A lot of the match was Yano doing his antics with Tama Tonga, who he is afraid of. Tonga smacked Yano with the turnbuckle pad at one point to get the heat. Hall was working on Sakuraba when Yano low blowed him and Sakuraba put him in a sleeper. AJ broke it up but Okada dropkicked him to the floor and Sakuraba tapped out Hall with the kimura. Another decent tag team match.
IWGP Jr. Tag Team Championship: reDragon vs. Time Splitters
This was a good match, but it just felt like something was missing. It was never bad and there was action throughout but the crowd was just kind of there, only reacting for big spots, and the action was just there, never bad, pretty good, but nothing that would blow people away. Both teams have had better matches on other shows. reDragon retained the titles with Fish pinning Shelley after hitting Chasing the Dragon.
reDragon extended their hands to Time Splitters after the match and they shook hands and put the titles on them in a sign of good sportsmanship. Roppongi Vice came out and acted like they were going to be all chummy with the two teams, then jumped them and left them all lying. Rocky Romero then grabbed the mic and said he and Beretta would be the next champions. This should be a good match, but the title situation in this division feels like a revolving door of challengers that doesn’t change all that much.
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bad Luck Fale for the IWGP title shot at WrestleKingdom
Tanahashi worked his butt off, including doing a high fly flow from the top rope to the floor. Fale at one point just sat on Hiroshi Tanahashi to a big pop for a nearfall. It looks like he uses his full weight on that move and it just seems so not fun to take. Crowd was into Tanahashi big time which helped this match. Tanahashi went for the high fly flow but Fale countered with a grenade. He went to the top rope, teasing the high fly flow that pinned Tanahashi a few months ago but Tanahashi countered with a superplex then pinned him with the high fly flow. Good finish to a match that was pretty solid overall thanks to Tanahashi.
After the match Tanahashi told Naito to come out as he wants to fight him. Naito comes out and sits on a chair, acting uninterested before eventually just leaving. This makes sense since Naito beat Tanahashi during the G1, and probably would be his last stop before facing whoever is champion at WrestleKingdom.
IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hirooki Goto vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Turned out to be the best match of either show, a typically great New Japan main event. Most of it was just solid work for most of the match. Nothing out of this world, but good offense by both. Nakamura hit a sliding boma ye at one point and the people exploded. Goto hit the code red from the top rope but Nakamura came back. He was going for the boma ye from the middle rope but Goto came back and hit his knee neckbreaker, then another one from the top rope for a near fall. Nakamura did his jumping clothesline but Goto came back immediately and tried to do one of his own.
Finally Nakamura escaped and hit a boma ye, went for another but Goto blocked him, only for Nakamura to come back with another boma ye and pin him to win the title. Not really sure what Nakamura benefits from having another run with the title when Goto probably needed it more than him. Still, turned out to be a really great match. Not match of the year but a great New Japan main event.
Nakamura celebrates as Karl Anderson comes to the ring to challenge him for the title. He says that since he beat Nakamura and Goto in the G1, he deserves a shot and wants to be a double champion. Nakamura’s response to this is YEAOH, so looks like that’s the next title program.
Final Thoughts:
Overall I felt most of the show was just okay until the main event. NJPW’s booking right now feels stagnant with the same people in the same positions wrestling each other over and over. Not that it’s a bad thing, because most of the build towards King of Pro Wrestling appears to be pretty good (Styles/Okada, Anderson/Nakamura, Ishii/Makabe, Sydal/Omega, RPG Vice/reDragon, maybe Tanahashi/Naito). The repetitive nature of New Japan’s booking however is starting to become the white elephant in the room, and becoming more noticeable as the year draws to a close.
We’re looking for your thoughts on today’s New Japan Destruction in Kobe show, 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 last night’s WWE show in Rochester, NY, NXT in Fort Pierce, FL and today’s WWE shows in Syracuse, NY (John Cena vs. Seth Rollins, Ryback vs. Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho vs. Luke Harper) and Erie PA (Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt & Braun Strowman; Randy Orton vs. Sheamus). Send to NEWSTIPS
Shooto Brazil live on UFC Fight Pass Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern time
Raw will be live from Buffalo on Monday night. Even though Brock Lesnar is headlining both the MSG special the following Saturday and the next PPV, at this point he is not advertised for the show. That would make sense to change but we haven’t heard that it is.
Smackdown will be taped in Albany, NY. No John Cena or Randy Orton scheduled for Albany.
Our lead story covers the Sting injury, the Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar Hell in a Cell match and the interesting back story and questions it brings up, lots of long-term looking at where WWE is headed as well as full coverage of the Night of Champions show. We also cover the second season news for Lucha Underground, the Atlantis vs. La Sombra mask vs. mask match, Akira Hokuto’s announcement about her breast cancer, Bellator’s Dynamite show and what went right and wrong, New Japan’s Destruction in Okayama, ROH’s All-Star Extravaganza, the Pro Wrestling NOAH angle where they tease the end of the company, USADA responds to Thomas Hauser, Josh Gross’ story on the Vitor Belfort drug test and why it’s not nearly as simple as people are making it out to be, AAA’s next major show and record low ratings.
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The Wrestling Observer ranges weekly from 35,000 to 50,000 words covering pro wrestling and MMA internationally. Each issue has coverage and analysis of all the major news, plus every issue breaks major news stories before the Internet sties and has the most complete look at the pro wrestling and MMA business anywhere, plus history pieces available nowhere else
Our lead story covers the WWE weekend, notably the Sting injury and Undertaker-Lesnar announcement.
We go through the injury, including Sting’s interview comments after the fact and his description of Seth Rollins and the injury, as well as his current thoughts on if he will wrestle again. We also talk about what he does and doesn’t know, what he’s said publicly about the injury, why the match wasn’t stopped, and what we can learn from it.
We also look at how the Lesnar vs. Undertaker Hell in a Cell match changes WrestleMania, and look at those potential changes. We look at the different directions they can go with the key talent for next year’s show. We also look at the rest of Hell in a Cell as far as what is on the books and what name isn’t listed yet in the top matches. We look at the problem in the arena at the end of Night of Champions.
We’ve got complete Night of Champions coverage, with records, business, poll results, match-by-match coverage and star ratings.
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SUNDAY’S NEWS UPDATE
Shinsuke Nakamura regained the IC title from Hirooki Goto on today’s New Japan Destruction in Kobe show. The next PPV show for New Japan is King of Pro Wrestling on 10/12 at Sumo Hall, headlined by Kazuchika Okada vs. A.J. Styles for the IWGP title. While not necessary all on the next show, the challenges and such for upcoming title and big matches are Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito for the Tokyo Dome main event spot, Nakamura vs. Karl Anderson for the IC title, Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Rocky Romero & Trent Baretta for the IWGP jr. tag titles, Togi Makabe vs. Tomohiro Ishii for the Never title, Kenny Omega vs. Matt Sydal for the IWGP jr. title and Tiger Mask vs. Jushin Liger for the NWA jr. title. I expect a press conference to announce the show in the next day or two.
Nothing from UFC made the Google searches this weekend, nor from pro wrestling. Deontay Wilder retaining his heavyweight boxing title was No. 14 yesterday.
WWE is looking for a Director of Communications and Operations for the Japan market.
In a trivia note, Seth Rollins, at 184 days, has held the title the longest of anyone in history after cashing in the Money in the Bank. The old record was The Miz, at 160 days. Kane had 154 days. (thanks to Emerson Witner)
La Sombra is headed to Japan for the November/December tag team tournament, likely as the partner for Tetsuya Naito.
Dustin Runnels confirmed that he was going to the 10/7 NXT Takeover show. Dustin & Cody Runnels will be at the show at Full Sail University presenting the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team tournament trophies to the team that wins the finals.\
George O’Brien, the co-author of the book “Wrestling to Rasslin: Ancient Sport to American Spectacle,” passed away earlier today. O’Brien went every year to the Cauliflower Alley Club banquets and would also help young Arizona based talent. He had personally paid for promising Arizona talent to fly to the U.K. and learn the European style of wrestling. John La Rocca noted it’s a sad day for the Arizona wrestling community as well as for Premier Wrestling community. O’Brien was the person who opened the door for Joe Graves to come to Premier and have his bouts with Timothy Thatcher.
Another historical event is that 48 years ago today in Honolulu at the HIC Arena (now the NBC Arena), Handsome Johnny Barend got married in the ring before a sellout crowd. This was one of the most famous events in the history of 50th State Wrestling. Even a few years ago on news shows, well after Barend passed away, I heard hosts talking about the night Barend married the local girl (and they remained married until his death in 2011). That led to a famous interview a week or so later on National All-Star Wrestling out of San Francisco. Ray Stevens & Pat Patterson, who were headliners on that show, and at the time the Cow Palace and HIC Arena were both hot as hell and there was a rivalry which arena would do the biggest house, and Stevens talked about how they put a wedding on in Honolulu as a cheap way to up the gate, and he guaranteed everyone that his partner, Patterson, would never stoop so low as to get married in the ring.
RFA returns to Las Vegas on 10/9 on AXS with Gilbert Smith vs. Bristol Marunde in the main event, plus Zoila Frausto returns to strawweight, a weight she’d never lost at.
Future Stars of Wrestling on Friday night in Las Vegas: Nick Bugatti b Spyder Warrior, BFFs b Paddy O’Shea & Looney Bin & Dan Joseph, Tomaste b Carlo Cannon, Vegas and Mike Dalite, Vegas Originals b Players Club-DQ, Funny Bone b Damian Drake, Reno Scum NC Pistoleros, Willie Mack b Owen Travers, Ryan Taylor won three-way over Jakob Austin Young and Paul London, Kevin Kross b Bran Cage to win the FSW title. Next show is 10/16 at the Silverton Casino.
Luster the Legend missed the show because his wife was giving birth.
Nick Massie’s wife (Young Bucks) as of this moment hasn’t given birth yet. He missed the weekend because his wife was ready to give birth.
Pro Wrestling Eclipse on 10/4 in Oshawa, ONT at the Royal Canadian Legion #43.
Quintessential Pro Wrestling, which sounds like it was named after Joel Gertner, ran last night in Reno before 130 fans: Nicole Savoy b Laura James, Kenny Lush b Jeff Cobb, Chris Hero and Adam Thornstowe co-won four-way over Scotty Mac and Artemis Spencer, Nicole Matthews b Christina Von Eeerie, JR Kratos b Chupacabra, Cheerleader Melissa b Shayna Baszler (debut), Adam Thornstowe b Chris Hero. Nicole Matthews his Baszler with a chair after her match. Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir of the Four Horsewomen were there for Baszler’s debut.
Lucha Xtreme TV from last night in Fresno: Danny Fernandez (billed as possibly being Manny’s son) b Jesse Poole-DQ, Kevin El Divine b Chad Douglas-DQ, Prince Nagi b Lucero del Mundo, Danny Fernandez & Kevin El Divino b Chad Douglas & Jesse Poole (thanks to Jon Southerland)
ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY INTERNATIONAL (thanks to Graeme Cameron)
1938 – Lofty Bloomfield beat Dean Detton in Auckland too win the New Zealand title
1974 – Lorenzo Parente beat Mario Milano in Sydney to win the WCW Brass Knux title
2002 – Nicho & Damian 666 & Halloween beat El Satanico & Averno & Mephisto in Mexico City to win the Mexican national trios titles
2009 – Shinsuke Nakamura beat Togi Makabe in Kobe to win the vacant IWGP title
– NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ede Virag defeated Wladek Zbyszko in 2 out of 3 falls
1961
Minneapolis, Minnesota:
– In a Death Match; Hard Boiled Haggerty beat Gene Kiniski for rights to AWA Tag Team Title (Haggerty chooses Bob Geigel as his new Championship partner)
– Mr. M beat Tiny Mills
– Karl Krauser beat Frank Marconi
– Dale Lewis drew Bob Geigel
1962
Kansas City, Kansas:
– Bob Geigel & Lee Henning defeated Ralph Bartleman & Thor Hagen
– Red Bastien fought Buddy Austin to a double-CO in two out of three falls
– United States Heavyweight Champion Pat O’Connor defeated Bob Geigel (sub. Bob Orton) in two out of three falls
– Prof. Toru Tanaka & Mr. Fuji (w/ Freddie Blassie) defeated Larry Zbyzsko & Tony Garea to win the titles in a best 2 out of 3 falls match
Memphis, Tennessee:
– Dennis Condrey & Phil Hickerson beat Robert Gibson & Jerry Bryant
– Samoans Tio & Tapu beat Bill Dundee & Jimmy Garvin
– Southern Tag Champs Norvell Austin & Pat Barrett beat Mike Stark & Jerry Novak
– Mr. Wrestling beat Southern Champ Jimmy Valiant via DQ
– Bill Dundee won a “scaffold battle royal”
1981
Roanoke, Virginia:
– Blackjack Mulligan Jr. (Barry Windham) fought Wayne Farris (Honky Tonk Man) to a double disqualification
– Dick the Bruiser defeated Kevin Sullivan
– John Studd and Kevin Sullivan defeated Blackjack Mulligan and Chief Jay Strongbow
Atlanta, Georgia:
– Tommy Rich defeated the Masked Superstar in a Texas Streetfight
– NWA World Champion Ric Flair defeated Mr. Wrestling II
– Michael Hayes & Otis Sistrunk (substituing for Kevin Von Erich) defeated Georgia Tag Team Champions Terry Gordy & Jimmy Snuka to win the championships in a No DQ Steel Cage match
1983
Louisville, Kentucky:
– Dutch Mantell and Koko Ware defeated The Grapplers
– Bill Dundee and Bobby Eaton defeated Dennis Condrey and Buddy Landel by DQ
– The Fabulous Ones defeated the Assassins
– AWA Southern champ Jesse Ventura defeated Terry Taylor
– Austin Idol defeated Stan Hansen
1985
Norfolk, Virginia:
– Bobby Eaton & Dennis Condrey defeated Ron Garvin & Starship Eagle
– NWA U.S. Champion Tully Blanchard defeated Dusty Rhodes via disqualification
– Ivan & Nikita Koloff defeated NWA Tag Team Champions Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson in a non-title steel cage match
– NWA World Champion Ric Flair fought Magnum TA to a 60-minute time-limit draw
1986
Tulsa, Oklahoma:
– The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton & Tommy Rogers) defeated Eddie Gilbert & Sting to win the UWF World Tag Team Championship
Kansas City, Kansas:
– Marty Jannetty defeated Dave Peterson
– Sheik Abdullah defeated Tug Taylor
– Harley Race defeated TG Stone
– Ron Garvin and Bulldog Bob Brown defeated The Animal and Korstia Korchenko
– Central States Champion Buzz Tyler fought Hacksaw Higgins to a time limit draw
1987
Marietta, Georgia:
– In a Lumberjack Match, Bruiser Brody beat Abdullah The Butcher by countout
– Sgt. Slaughter beat Iron Sheik
– Midnight Rockers Marty Jannetty & Shawn Michaels beat Boris Zhukov & Soldat Ustinov to apparently win the AWA Tag Team Title
but the belts were returned to The Russians when it was revealed the wrong man was pinned
– In a Hair vs Mask match; Jerry Oates beat Mr Olympia and unmasked him as Jerry Stubbs
1991
Marion, Ohio:
– Van Hammer pinned Terrence Taylor
– Tom Zenk pinned Oz (Kevin Nash)
– WCW World Tag Team Champions The Enforcers, Arn Anderson & Larry Zbyszko defeated Rick Steiner & Bill Kazmaier
– Brian Pillman pinned Johnny B. Badd
– WCW U.S. Tag Team Champions The Patriots, Todd Champion & Firebreaker Chip defeated Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin
– WCW World TV Champion Steve Austin fought Dustin Rhodes to a draw
– WCW World Champion Lex Luger pinned Barry Windham
1993
– The WWF announced on Monday Night Raw that Shawn Michaels had been stripped of the Intercontinental championship
– Razor Ramon pinned Rick Martel to win the vacant title
1994
Osaka, Japan:
– Norio Honaga defeated Wild Pegasus (Chris Benoit) to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title in a tournament final
1995
– Harlem Heat defeated WCW World Tag Team Champions Marcus Alexander Bagwell & Scotty Riggs to win the titles
1998
– The Rock defeated Ken Shamrock and Mankind in a steel cage match
– Owen Hart pinned Edge
– The Undertaker and Kane defeated WWF World Champion Steve Austin
2012
– Samoa Joe defeated Mr. Anderson to win the TNA TV Title
Fans tuning into Friday’s Eurasia Fight Nights: Dagestan event airing on UFC Fight Pass were treated to an appearance from a special guest in the form of former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. Silva is currently under a year-long suspension following multiple failed drug tests stemming from his fight against Nick Diaz at UFC 183 in January. Many have thought that Silva may never fight again, but he let it be known that he will, perhaps releasing news of his return without any blessing.
Silva stated that he was offered a return to action in April against Michael Bisping in a fight that would serve as the co-main event under UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum vs. Cain Velasquez, II in Curitiba, Brazil. He was quick to retract the statement, though, almost like he knew he let the cat out of the bag. Bisping is currently booked for a fight against Robert Whittaker, scheduled to take place at UFC 193 in November. Win or lose, though, and Bisping could be headed for a bout against Silva, a fight many fans have thought about over the years.
This also seems to stamp down an unofficial confirmation on the booking of the rematch between Werdum and Velasquez. Werdum has expressed past interest in wanting the fight in a soccer stadium in Brazil, and recent statements made by UFC President Dana White indicated Werdum was looking at returning to action in March. Werdum made conflicting statements that he would be ready to return just past the start of the new year, but indications from Silva suggest Werdum may get his wish.
This is all speculation, though, as Silva was quick to recant his statement on the broadcast. We will keep you updated in the coming months concerning both the return of Silva, and the official confirmation of when and where Werdum vs. Velasquez will take place.
Josh Barnett scored a solid unanimous decision win over Roy Nelson in the main event of Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night 75 event in Saitama, Japan. While two scorecards showing scores of 48-47 indicated the fight was close, it was a fight dominated mostly by Barnett. Barnett set a heavyweight record for significant strikes in the bout, scoring 146, with 95 of them coming in the clinch. It was the clinch work where Barnett dominated, landing punches, elbows and knees that weakened Nelson. Nelson gave a hard-fought effort in the loss, and not many expected the two men to go the 25 minutes. After nearly two years off, it showed Barnett has plenty of fight left in him.
In addition to that, Uriah Hall scored a huge upset in the co-main event, landing a spinning back kick to the face followed by a flying knee that put Gegard Mousasi down and out in the second round. It was a huge contrast to the first round, which was dominated by Mousasi controlling on top, and he even came close to putting a stop to the fight. It was the biggest win in the career of Hall, beating a legitmate title contender and top-ten fighter, and he did it on short notice. It was unexpected, but the kind of finish fans were hoping to see from Hall based off his exciting stint on season 17 of The Ultimate Fighter.
With UFC Fight Night 75 now being history, it is time for us to put on the matchmakers’ hat and let’s look at five fights to make for the competitors of the UFC Fight Night 75 event.
Josh Barnett vs. Andrei Arlovski
While Barnett may not be on the winning streak that Andrei Arlovski is enjoying, he is 11-2 in his last 13 fights. Arlovski is 10-2 with a no contest in his last 13 bouts, but he has won six straight fights. Many thought Arlovski may be next in line for a heavyweight title shot, but with the rematch between Fabricio Werdum and Cain Velasquez being delayed until possibly April, the heavyweight contenders will be looking for fights. Arlovski didn’t exactly cement his status as next in line with his lackluster win over Frank Mir at UFC 191 earlier this month, and he will likely need another win to be back in the discussion. Barnett put his name in the discussion, along with Stipe Miocic, Ben Rothwell, Junior Dos Santos and Alistair Overeem, as fighters in line for title contention in a wide-open heavyweight division. Neither Barnett or Arlovski are getting any younger, and if they want a title opportunity, they need to keep getting fights and wins.
Uriah Hall vs. Roan Carneiro
The 31-year-old Hall showed more of that potential in making history by becoming the first man to stop Gegard Mousasi with strikes in Mousasi’s 45-fight career. He withstood a tough first round and showed that dynamic striking skills and excellent finishing power, and he will be shooting up the rankings when they are released this week. After a disappointing start to his UFC career, Hall has gone 5-1 in his last six fights, with the lone loss being a close decision loss to Rafael Natal. Hall most assuredly wants another crack at Natal, but perhaps next for him should be a showdown with the man he replaced in the fight with Mousasi, Roan Carneiro. Carneiro is riding a six-fight win streak and scored an impressive win over Mark Munoz in his return to the UFC. It would be an opportunity for both men to firmly establish themselves as top-ten fighters as well.
Kyoji Horiguchi vs. John Dodson
Kyoji Horiguchi rebounded from a title fight loss to Demetrious Johnson in a solid decision win over Chico Camus on Saturday night. Horiguchi finds himself in a purgatory situtation in the flyweight division. Not only did he just lose to Johnson earlier this year, but he was dominated by Johnson before being finished with just one second left in the fight. Horiguchi needs to get on another winning streak if he wants another crack at the championship, and next for him should be someone in a similar position. That would be John Dodson, who is coming off a loss to Johnson earlier this month at UFC 191. It is a perfect fight to make for both men at this stage.
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Manny Gamburyan
Takeya Mizugaki got back into the win column on Saturday night, scoring a unanimous decision win over George Roop. He had Roop in trouble many times in the fight, but the tough and durable Roop survived. Mizugaki got the win on the scorecards, and it was a very emotional win for him in front of the Japanese crowd. Mizugaki’s post-fight speech made fans think retirement could be in the near future, but he squashed those talks quickly. Coming off a win following a two-fight losing skid, Mizugaki is still a top-ten ranked fighter. He has been booked in the past in bouts against Manny Gamburyan, but injuries have stopped the fight from taking place. With both in a similar position at this stage in their careers, now would be a good opportunity to re-book that fight.
Diego Brandao vs. Brian Ortega
Diego Brandao is an enigma. He either comes out and finishes opponents quick, or he mentally collapses and loses fights. He came out on the good end on Saturday night, finishing Katsunori Kikuno in less than 30 seconds in their fight. It was the kind of performance that makes you think Brandao could be more of a gatekeeper in the featherweight division, but that is where he is right now. He has won two straight fights and still has a chance to become a viable contender if he puts together a streak. He has an exciting style and wants a top opponent. However, he should be matched up with fighters around him right now. Brian Ortega is undefeated and looking to build his resume, and Brandao would be a perfect name to add that. Ortega should be looking for a fight like that, and Brandao should want to test himself against an undefeated prospect.
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UFC Fight Night: Barnett vs. Nelson airs live from Saitama Japan:
Main Card on Fox Sports 1 at 10:00 p.m. ET Josh Barnett (239) vs. Roy Nelson (261) in the five round main event Gegard Mousasi (186) vs. Uriah Hall (186) Kyoji Horiguchi (126) vs. Chico Camus (126) Takeya Mizugaki (136) vs. George Roop (135) Katsunori Kikuno (145) vs. Diego Brandao (146) Mizuto Hirota (146) vs. Teruto Ishihara (146)
Prelims on Fox Sports 2 at 8:00 p.m. ET: Keita Nakamura (170) vs. Li Jingliang (171) Nick Hein (155) vs. Yusuke Kasuya (156) Naoyuki Kotani (156) vs. Kajan Johnson (156) Shinsho Anzai (170) vs. Roger Zapata (171)
No Fight Pass Prelim due to the cancellation of Kid Yamamoto vs. Matt Hobar bumping up Kikuno vs. Brandao to the main card and Anzai vs. Zapata to Fox Sports 2.
While the main card is fun on paper, this feels like a noticeable step from the other recent Japan cards, even last year’s “Fight Pass Mania.” The lack of fighters like Mark Hunt, Takanori Gomi, Yoshihiro Akiyama, and now Kid Yamamoto make it feel like less of a special event.
New Japan Destruction in Kobe airs live tonight at 3:00 a.m. ET on New Japan World Sho Tanaka & Yohei Komatsu vs. Jay White & David Finlay Yuji Nagata & Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask vs. Manabu Nakanishi & Captain New Japan & Juice Robinson Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma & Ryusuke Taguchi & Mascara Dorada vs. Tomohiro Ishii & Yoshi-Hashi & Rocky Romero & Baretta Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima & Matt Sydal vs. Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows & Kenny Omega Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tetsuya Naito Kazuchika Okada & Toru Yano & Kazushi Sakuraba vs. A.J. Styles & Tama Tonga & Cody Hall Kyle O’Reilly & Bobby Fish vs. Alex Shelley & Kushida for IWGP jr. tag titles Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bad Luck Fale for the Tokyo Dome title sho Hirooki Goto vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the IC title
Sunday has WWE in Syracuse, NY (John Cena vs. Seth Rollins; Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens) and Erie PA (Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt; Randy Orton vs. Sheamus).
Shooto Brazil airs live on UFC Fight Pass Sunday night at 6 p.m. Eastern time
Raw will be live from Buffalo on Monday night. Brock Lesnar has not been advertised for the show even with th MSG special being next week.
Our lead story covers the Sting injury, the Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar Hell in a Cell match and the interesting back story and questions it brings up, lots of long-term looking at where WWE is headed as well as full coverage of the Night of Champions show. We also cover the second season news for Lucha Underground, the Atlantis vs. La Sombra mask vs. mask match, Akira Hokuto’s announcement about her breast cancer, Bellator’s Dynamite show and what went right and wrong, New Japan’s Destruction in Okayama, ROH’s All-Star Extravaganza, the Pro Wrestling NOAH angle where they tease the end of the company, USADA responds to Thomas Hauser, Josh Gross’ story on the Vitor Belfort drug test and why it’s not nearly as simple as people are making it out to be, AAA’s next major show and record low ratings.
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Our lead story covers the WWE weekend, notably the Sting injury and Undertaker-Lesnar announcement.
We go through the injury, including Sting’s interview comments after the fact and his description of Seth Rollins and the injury, as well as his current thoughts on if he will wrestle again. We also talk about what he does and doesn’t know, what he’s said publicly about the injury, why the match wasn’t stopped, and what we can learn from it.
We also look at how the Lesnar vs. Undertaker Hell in a Cell match changes WrestleMania, and look at those potential changes. We look at the different directions they can go with the key talent for next year’s show. We also look at the rest of Hell in a Cell as far as what is on the books and what name isn’t listed yet in the top matches. We look at the problem in the arena at the end of Night of Champions.
We’ve got complete Night of Champions coverage, with records, business, poll results, match-by-match coverage and star ratings.
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Saturday Daily Update
— Hulk Hogan dodged a bullet yesterday as Judge Pamela Campbell, who’s presiding over his lawsuit against Gawker, denied a third party motion from the Associated Press and other news organizations to unseal the contents of his FBI case file. Gawker had successfully sued the FBI for the release of the case file, but Judge Campbell immediately sealed it all when they filed everything in the Hogan case. The motion had been filed just a day earlier and the ruling wasn’t a surprise given Cambell’s history in the case.
— WWE and 2K Sports have released a trailer for the overhauled My Career mode in WWE 2K16. My Career will only be available in the Playstation 4 and Xbox One versions of the game, which coms out on October 27th and available for pre-order now.
— Two Cold Scorpio has been added to tomorrow LuchaTo card in Whitby, Ontario.
— Preston City Wrestling results for last night from Keith Harris: Bubblegum retained the PCW Cruiserweight title over Xander Cooper, Dean Allmark & Ashton Smith. Ashton growing in confidence. Dean and Bubblegum great as usual. Iestyn Rees pinned Charlie “Good News” Garrett with a powerbomb. T-Bone pinned Dave Rayne with a suplex dropped into a Tombstone piledriver. Quick squash. El Ligero pinned Tomasso Ciampa with a tornado DDT. Sha Samuels choked out Lionheart with a scarf in a no-DQ match. Joey Hayes & Martin Kirby beat The Wards. Joey stole the pin. Drew Galloway pinned Noam Dar after an eye poke and two Tornado DDTs. Wild brawl all over the club before the bell rung. Pull apart brawl after the match. PCW Heavyweight Champion Dave Mastiff pinned Bobby Lashley clean with a cannonball in the corner. After the match, Team Single and Lashley beat down Mastiff. Martin Kirby attempted to cash in his Money In The Bank briefcase, but was stopped by Joey Hayes. In the end, Kirby, Hayes & Mastiff ran off the heels. Show wasn’t sold out, unlike many PCW events. Crowd laughed when Joanna Rose called Lashly a former TNA champio
— The Blu-Ray version of WWE’s “Owen: Hart of Gold” Owen Hart DVD set is now available for pre-order, joining the DVD aftr it had been listed on its own for a week or so. The most recent release is SummerSlam 2015, which came out on Tuesday on DVD and Blu-Ray. The next archival/specialized release is Sting: Into the Light, which comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 13th. They also have a special collectible “coffin edition” of “Undertaker: The Streak” coming out on November 17th.
