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  • FRI UPDATE: Floyd Mayweather, Orton, Ambrose, UFC 194, NXT, Greatest female athlete of all-time

    By Dave Meltzer

    We’re looking for reports on tonight’s WWE show in Edmonton (Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns plus Sheamus and Kevin Owens) and ROH show in Dearborn, MI (Jay Lethal  vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Dalton Castle vs. Cedric Alexander, Matt Taven & Michael Bennett vs. Young Bucks, ACH vs. Matt Sydal, Jay Briscoe vs. Takaaki Watanabe, Kyle O’Reilly vs. Silas Young) at Dave Meltzerdave@wrestlingobserver.com”>

    Invicta FC live on UFC Fight Pass tomorrow at 8 p.m. Eastern time

    Amanda Cooper vs. Aspen Ladd

    J.J. Aldrich vs. Daniela Kortmann

    Jinh Yu Frey vs. Liz McCarthy

    Sharon Jacobson vs. Jamie Moyle

    Cindy Dandois vs. Megan Anderson

    Andrea Lee vs. Rachel Ostovich

    Roxanne Modafferi vs. Mariana Morais

    DeAnna Bennett vs. Katja Kankaanpaa

    Tonya Evinger vs. Pannie Kianzad for the bantamweight title

    CMLL live at 9:30 p.m. Eastern from Arena Mexico with free streaming at www.clarosports.com/en-vivo/

    Flyer & Robin vs. Artillero & Super Comando

    Electrico & Shockercito & Ultimo Dragoncito vs. Demus 3:16 & Pequeno Violencia & Pierrothito

    Angel de Oro & Blue Panther & Rey Cometa vs. Dragon Rojo & Polvora & Virus

    La Mascara & Stuka Jr. & Titan vs. Barbaro Cavernario & Negro Casas & Rey Hechicero

    Super Parka & Valiente & Volador Jr. vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. & Rush & Marco Corleone

    Atlantis & Euforia & Ultimo Guerrero vs. La Sombra & Rey Escorpion & Thunder

    New Japan on AXS at 9 p.m.

    A.J. Styles vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi from last year’s Seibu Dome show

    Legacy Fighting Championships at 10 p.m. on AXS

    Emmanuel Rivera vs. Wes Sharp

    Kathian Catron vs. Kaline Medeiros

    Canaan Grigsby vs. Bilal Williams

    Derrick Adkins vs. Jesse Chaffin

    Caio Rocha vs. James Warren

    J.C. Cottrell vs Ed Cline

    We’re looking for reports on WWE shows Saturday in Calgary (Rollins vs. Ambrose, Wyatt vs. Reigns, Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens) and Huntsville, AL (Randy Orton vs. Sheamus, Ryback vs. Big Show plus Dolph Ziggler and Neville), NXT in Gainesville, FL and ROH in Chicago (Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Young Bucks, Roderick Strong vs. Bobby Fish, Jay Briscoe vs. Cedric Alexander, Dalton Castle vs. Beer City Bruiser, Mark Briscoe vs. Adam Page, ACH vs,. Matt Sydal).

    Sunday has WWE in Jonesboro, AR (Rollins vs. Ambrose, Wyatt vs. Reigns) and Tupelo, MS (Orton vs. Sheamus, Ryback vs. Show).

    The World wrestling championship finals from Las Vegas will be airing Sunday at 8:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN 2.  

    Raw will be live on Monday from Memphis

    Smackdown and Main Event will be taped Tuesday in Little Rock.

    A look at next weekend, which is one of the biggest weekends of the year with Bellator and CMLL having their biggest shows, plus a WWE PPV show and an ROH PPV, is one of the lead stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.  We also have a look at the 2015 Hall of Fame ballot, tons more on the Jimmy Snuka case, An update on TNA and the future of Kurt Angle, a letter UFC sent to all its fighters about unionization, plus full coverage of UFC 191 and Battle of Los Angeles, and thoughts behind Raw & Smackdown doing record low numbers.

    The latest issue of the Wrestling Observer: September 14, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Huge Weekend Preview, WWE/CMLL/ROH/Bellator

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

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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.

    We look at next week’s big shows, including a preview of  CMLL’s main event, why L.A. Park is already gone from the promotion, and a preview of  both Raw and Night of Champions.

    We’ve got more on the Jimmy Snuka case, with a background of WWE in 1983, Vince McMahon purchasing the company from his father, what was and wasn’t known in wrestling at the time, the first Snuka arrest, the decision made on Hulk Hogan being the face of the company’s expansion, the role Snuka’s autobiography played in his indictment, the corner saying why he felt there was no indictment and his quotes on the subject, new evidence, Buddy Rogers before his death talks about the subject, another coroner weighs in, a lawyer who investigated the case in 1983 weighs in, how Snuka handled his finances fro that point on, Snuka’s run in New Japan, the famous Brody & Snuka walking out on the tag tournament finals, what Vince McMahon was doing to protect Snuka, key Allentown officials talk cover-up rumors, WWE talks those rumors and more.

    We also update the Kurt Angle TNA situation and why Angle said he was leaving the company when his contract expires in January.  We look at the situation with Destination America, what talent knows and how WWE fits into all this right now.

    We look at the letter sent by UFC to all of its fighters regarding unionization and our thoughts on the subject.

    We’ve got a look at the 2005 Hall of Fame ballot, a look at the new candidates and their credentials, candidates for the future, understanding of the process, as well as how everyone on this year’s ballot fared last year.

    We also look back at research into the biggest draws of all-time on the ballot, as well how the candidates have done in various awards, in drawing power for their era, as well as match quality, how difficult it is to be voted in, and notes on a lot of this year’s modern candidates.

    We have an update on Ronda Rousey and WrestleMania, an upcoming WWE wedding, John Cena injury notes, WWE asks fans about PPV start times and thoughts, update on Amanda from Tough Enough and what appears to be her new deal, WWE pulling out all stops for next months tour of Mexico and why, Dean Ambrose talks acting, Nikki Bella as Divas champion, Eric Bischoff appearing on WWE Network, Undertaker’s future, the signing of Kana and she talks coming to WWE, Zahra Schreiber talks her firing, some NXT matches, a WWE wrestler on a sabbatical, as well as the WWE business notes from the past week and highlights from all the house hows.

    We also look at Hulk Hogan’s overseas talk shows, the death of Tommy Rogers of The Fantastics, Dave Brown retires from WMC TV and how it was celebrated locally, Axl Rotten’s future goals, CHIKARA King of Trios, Jeff Jarrett TV talks and the final GFW ballpark shows of the year and what is left on the schedule, Bob Backlund’s autobiography, update on Batista, the death of Jerry Prater, an instrumental figure in Florida wrestling in the 70s and the heyday of wrestling programs and magazines, the Carlos Maynez tribute show this past week featuring legends from the past, a Roddy Piper movie not released and the Darrell Dawkins connection with pro wrestling.

    We also update things on Lucha Underground.

    We look at next week’s ROH matches.

    We look at a TNA wedding, lineups for the upcoming TNA shows, U.K. TNA ratings and updating Impact.

    We also have Conor McGregor talking his future, McGregor vs. Faber and why it didn’t happen, key UFC announcements over the pat week including new shows, new main events and new title matches, the retirement of Sam Stout, Rousey doing “Road House,” next UFC TV events, update on Charles Oliveira, UFC’s most popular markets, how much Rousey and McGregor are carrying things right now and former UFC star buys $2.75 million mansion from a rock star.

    We also look at Alexander Shlemenko’s attempt to get his steroid punishment over turned and his arguments, plus a new Bellator show was announced.

    We also update Fedor Emelianenko and his situation, as well as a former WWE star debuts this week as an MMA announcer and top pro wrestling stars attending.  We also look at the results of the latest medical study on injuries suffered in boxing vs. MMA and where each is more and less dangerous than the other.  

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    Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues

    FRIDAY’S NEWS UPDATE

    • Somewhat quiet weekend with no major PPV shows, although next week more than makes up for it.  The biggest event is the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Andre Berto fight, which Mayweather is claiming is his retirement fight, but nobody is buying it.  Right now, things aren’t looking good as there were more than 2,000 tickets unsold, all the closed-circuit airings in Las Vegas were quietly canceled and there is a lot of question regarding how the PPV will do.
    • For what it’s worth, I was doing an economics class this morning at Kansas State University and when instructor Daniel Kuester asked the class, and this is not a sports class at all, how many people saw Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, about half the class raised their hand.  When he asked how many people are watching Mayweather vs. Berto tomorrow, not one person raised their hand.  He also asked how many people knew who Conor McGregor was and about one-third raised their hand.
    • PW Insider is reporting that Monday’s Randy Orton angle was not for him to be on the Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose team at Night of Champions, but it was to write him off for a few weeks with an injury.  For what that is worth, Orton is advertised as the top star on one of the weekend tours, as well as for both Raw on Monday and Smackdown on Tuesday.  It’s not like WWE doesn’t regularly change its minds, nor that its advertising isn’t always accurate either, however WWE did officially tell us that Orton would be working the weekend shows and the Memphis and Little Rock tapings Monday and Tuesday.  It is possible he could only be working dark matches.
    • The public ticket sale for UFC 194, the Conor McGregor vs. Jose Aldo, Chris Weidman vs. Luke Rockhold, Yoel Romero vs. Jacare Souza, Max Holloway vs. Jeremy Stephens,. Urijah Faber vs. Frankie Saenz, Demian Maia vs. Gunner Nelson, Tecia Torres vs. Michelle Waterson and more show in Las Vegas started today.  Most of the tickets were already sold in pre-sale.  Tickets are priced at $178, $278, $403, $603, $853 and $1.253, so they are looking for another gate record out of this.     
    • FanPicks.com, a Fantasy League sports site, has signed an endorsement deal with Hulk Hogan to be the site’s official spokesperson and Brand Ambassador.  The site said, “We all make mistakes and deserve second chances.  Hulk Hogan is an admired athlete and Global Icon.  For 3-plus decade, he has been inspiring fans around the world.  He spends a good amount of his time doing so much for numerous charities and causes.  He’s a perfect partner for us and together we will be making contributions to the Make-A-Wish Foundation on behalf of Hulk Hogan.”
    • For NXT Takeover on 10/7, after last night’s show, they put tickets on sale to the fans in the building, and with only 400 seats, most were sold in a line that was about two hours long.  the remaining tickets were put on the Internet and sold out in six minutes.  The TV tapings the next night are also sold out.
    • Spike will be airing two shows tonight building next Saturday’s Belllator show.  Spike airs PBC boxing in prime time.  After boxing, at about 11:15 p.m., they will air “Road to Dynamite.”  It’s possible I’ll be on that show because I spent an afternoon filming with Scott Coker a few weeks back going through his history.  At 12:15 a.m., they will air a Tito Ortiz special showing his training for his fight with Liam McGeary.
    • 12 Rounds 3: Lockdown starts its very limited theatrical release this weekend.  I saw the trailer and Dean Ambrose came across real good.  looked
    • So this is scary.  The ESPN poll for the greatest female athlete of all-time is coming down to Ronda Rousey vs. Serena Williams.  Williams in the bracketing of fan voting beat Cheryl Miller (86-14), Kerri Walsh & Misty May-Treanor (74-26), Babe Didrikson (67-33) and Steffi Graf (63-37).  Rousey beat Missy Franklin (63-37), Jackie JoyneKersee (53-47), Diana Taurasi (55-45) and Florence Griffith Joyner (57-43).
    • Andrei Arlovski told Submission radio today that his right hand was not broken in Saturday’s fight with Frank Mir, only bruised.  He said he would be ready to fight again in December or January.
    • Coming to the Evolve shows on 10/17 and 10/18 in New York are Rocky Romero, Willie Mack and Peter Kassa.  Romero will be teaming with Trent Baretta as Roppongi Vice.  Also on the shows are Timothy Thatcher, Caleb Konley, Tony Nese, Drew Gulak, Tracy Williams, TJ Perkins, Trevor Lee, Andrew Everett, Ethan Page and Matt Cage.
    • Northeast Wrestling announced that its show scheduled for tomorrow at Susquehanna Bank Park in Williamsport, PA has been moveed to 9/27 at 4 p.m. due to weather issues. The meet and greet has been moved to 4 p.m.   For more info you can go to NortheastWrestling.com
    • John Cena will be appearing as a guset host on the Today Show on Wednesday for the third time in recent weeks.
    • Grand Slam Wrestling on Saturday night in Moosic, PA at the Youth Center.
    • Bellator announced that Kimbo Slice will be coming to Saturday’s show.  Slice will be at the SAP Center at 3 p.m. for autographs and photos.
    • Aggression Wrestling tonight in Lenoir, NC at the Caldwell County Fairgrounds with Mikal Judas, Washington Bullets, Slim J and more.
    • My friend Jeff Bukantz related to me that he loved Bob Backlund’s autobiography.  He said it was great to relive the history of his title run in exact order, and it was interesting to read his constant paranoia over being double-crossed in the ring when it never happened and was never going to happen. 
    • CMLL on Tuesday night in Guadalajara:  Jocker & Sadico b Frezzer & Nautilus, Omar Brunetti & Magnus & Molotov b Arkangel de la Muerte & El Hijo del Signo & Metalico, Dark Angel & Marcela & Silueta b Amapola & Dallys & Zeuxis, Angel de Oro & Blue Panther & Brazo de Plata b Euforia & Gran Guerrero & Niebla Roja, Negro Casas & Shocker & Ultimo Guerrero b Atlantis & La Mascara & Volador Jr., Marco Corleone b Mr. Niebla
    • AAA talent on Tuesday night in Pachuca:  Diosa Atenea & Zuzu Divine b Princesa Mohicana & Xena, Bart & Homero Simpson (yes, really) b Los Minion Morada I & II, Gotita de Plata & Nino Hamburguesa & Goya Kong b Concord & Machine Rocker & Taya Valkyrie-DQ, Psycho Circus b Electroshock & El Hijo de Pirata Morgan & Parka Negra, Averno & Pentagon Jr. b Fenix & Myzteziz.  Myzteziz turned on Fenix and hit him with a chair shot to cause him to get pinned for the finish.
    • Elegido & Laredo Kid vs. Difunto I & Psicosis headlines 10/8 in Laredo at the Coliseum.
    • Lucha Libre VIP on Sunday in Pico Rivera, CA at the Sports Arena with Dragon Lee & Valiente & Zokre vs. Dr. Maldad & Misterioso Jr. & Shumu Jr. (thanks to Kris Zellner)
    • What is billed as Blue Demon Jr’s 30th anniversary match, and didn’t they just do that at TripleMania, takes place on Wednesday night at Arena Lopez Mateos in Tlalnepantla with Demon Jr. & Canek vs. Pirata Morgan & Villano IV.
    • All Pro Wrestling tonight in Daly City, CA at the Bayshore Community Center at 450 Martin St. (right near the Cow Palace) has JR Kratos vs. Chris Masters for the Universal title, Boyce LeGrande vs. Will Cuevas for the TV title, Reno Scum vs. The Freaks for the tag title, MVP vs. Dylan Drake, Timothy Thatcher vs Gangrel, Joey Ryan vs. Marcus Lewis vs. Juventud Guerrera, Idris Jackson vs. Sione Finau and more including Jeff Cobb and Joey Kristofferson.
    • Big West Wrestling tomorrow night at the Lake City Cowling & Billiards in Kelowna, BC. 
    • All Star Wrestling on 9/25 in Surrey, BC at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds with Gangrel vs. Adam Ryder as the main event.
    • Maryland Championship Wrestling tonight in White Marsh, MD with Fan Appreciation tonight at Della Rose’s Avenue Tavern with The Bruiser & Jim Duggan & Patrick Clark (from Tough Enough) & Lio Rush vs. Ryan McBride & Ken Dixon & Dixon Line Security, plus Mickie James defends the MCW womens’ title against Amber Rodriguez.
    • Jake Roberts vs. Steve Casey is the new match on today’s NWAClassics.com web site, with Jim Ross and Paul Boesch doing the announcing.

  • Wednesday Night Wars (9/9): TNA has big night on Destination America

    Ratings for Wednesday on Destination America:

    – Impact at 9 p.m. drew 353,000 viewers, its best number in two months, which is a positive sign for the GFW turn angle

    – Despite two title matches, ROH at 11 p.m. did 138,000 viewers, its lowest number since switching to the new time slot.

    – Impact at midnight did 96,000 viewers, also its best total in two months.

  • UFC News: Eddie Alvarez confirms Anthony Pettis fight, date TBD

    Former Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez officially confirmed on Twitter Friday that his rumored fight with Anthony Pettis is a go, and will be taking place in Boston.

    While not announced officially, the belief is that the fight will be on the UFC Fox Sports 1 show set for January 17th at Boston’s TD GArden, headlined by Bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw vs. Dominick Cruz.

    One can make the case that with just those two fights alone, it is the biggest show the company has put on FS1 in their history.

  • TNA may be airing on Oct. 7 on Destination America

    While nothing has been stated to talent and employees regarding the future of TNA on Destination America as of yesterday, TNA is still listing the show for 9 p.m. and midnight on Wednesday, 10/7.

    The last taped episode of Impact was scheduled for 9/30. The Discovery Network had sent a memo to employees in May stating that they were going to exercise their option to cancel the show at the end of September.

    According to one company source, the belief is that a lot of matches that were taped during the early part of the tapings that were not taped as part of an Impact show will be able to be put together for international programming to fill the commitments, and that could be done for domestic commitments as well.

    Right now, the company has not scheduled any future television tapings, but there is a deal being negotiated for tapings to be done in late November in India.

  • On this day in pro wrestling history: Wahoo beats Flair for NWA gold, Funk Wrestlefest, Roddy Strong wins ROH title

    By Brian Hoops, WrestlingObserver.com

    1959

    Guadalajara, Mexico:

    – Rey Mendoza defeated Dory Dixon for the EMLL NWA Light Heavyweight Title

    1965

    Minneapolis, Minnesota (5018 attendance): 

    – AWA Champion The Crusher beat Larry Hennig
    – Harley Race beat Tex McKenzie
    – Chris Markoff beat Santiago Acosta
    – Reggie Parks beat Guy Taylor

    1967

    Fort Worth, Texas:

    – Fritz & Waldo Von Erich defeated Brute Bernard & Mike Paidousis to win the NWA American Tag Team Title

    1968

    Duluth, Minnesota:

    – The Crusher beat Dr X in a Saloon Match
    – Larry Hennig & Harley Race beat Luke Brown & Bill Watts
    – Chris Markoff beat Mike Boyer
    – Billy Red Lyons beat Blackjack Daniels

    1969

    Kansas City, Kansas: 
    – The Viking defeated Masao Komura
    – Joe Scarpello defeated Jack Armstrong
    – K.O. Cox defeated Ronnie Paul
    – Stan the Mad Russian defeated Big Luke via DQ
    – Tarzan Tyler defeated Dick the Bruiser in three falls

    1973

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 
    – Professor Toru Tanaka & Mr. Fuji defeated Tony Garea & Haystacks Calhoun for the WWWF World Tag Team Title

    Honolulu, Hawaii: 

    – The Crusher beat Superstar Billy Graham
    – Ed Francis beat Sam Steamboat to win Hawaiian Title
    – Neff Maiava & Tosh Togo beat Tony Borne & Ripper Collins
    – Nick Bockwinkel beat Ken Patera

    1975

    Kansas City, Kansas: 
    – Prince Tapu & Don Wayt defeated Dan Burdick & Jesse Ventura
    – Jerry Oates fought Terry Funk to a no contest
    – Central States Heavyweight Champion Ed Wiskowski (Colonel DeBeers) fought Dick the Bruiser to a double-DQ in three falls

    1976

    Greenville, North Carolina:
    – Wahoo McDaniel defeated Ric Flair to win the NWA Mid Atlantic Heavyweight Title

    1977

    Orlando, Florida:
    Dusty Rhodes & Don Muraco defeated WWWF World Champion Superstar Billy Graham & Ivan Koloff

    1981

    Denver, Colorado:
    – AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel ddq Tito Santana
    – Hulk Hogan beat Jerry Blackwell by countout
    – Greg Gagne & Buck Zumhofe beat Ray Stevens & Bobby Heenan
    – Adrian Adonis beat Ed Boulder (Ed Leslie/Brutus Beefcake)

    1988

    Greensboro, North Carolina:
    – Sting defeated NWA US Champion Barry Windham by dq
    – NWA World & U.S. Tag Team Champions The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane) defeated The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton & Tommy Rogers)
    – Lex Luger defeated NWA World Champion Ric Flair by dq

    1990

    Dayton, Ohio:
    – NWA US Tag Team Champions Rick & Scott Steiner defeated the Samoan Swat Team.
    – Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane) defeated Brian Pillman & Tom Zenk.
    – NWA World Champion Sting pinned Ric Flair.

    1992

    Chicago, Illinois:
    – Brad Armstrong pinned Brian Pillman
    – WCW World TV Champion Ricky Steamboat defeated Steve Austin.
    – Sting & Nikita Koloff defeated Jake Roberts & the Super Invader.
    – WCW World Champion Ron Simmons defeated WCW U.S. Champion Rick Rude.

    1993

    Morristown, Tennessee:
    – Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson defeated SMW Tag Team Champions the Bruise Brothers to win the titles

    1995

    Memphis, Tennessee:
    – Brian Christopher defeated Billy Jack Haynes for the USWA Southern Heavyweight Title

    1997

    Louisville, Kentucky:
    – Tracy Smothers defeated Bull Pain for the IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Title.

    1997

    Wrestlefest – 50 Years Of Funk – a card put together by Terry Funk in Amarillo, Texas to celebrate fifty years of the Funk family wrestling in Texas, was held at the Amarillo Fairgrounds Coliseum, drawing almost
    4,000 fans.  

    – WWF World Heavyweight Champion Bret Hart defeated Terry Funk in the main event.
    – ECW World Television Champion Taz defeated Chris Candido
    – ECW World Heavyweight Champion Shane Douglas defeated Tommy Dreamer.
    – Dory Funk Jr. defeated Rob Van Dam

    2004

    Elizabeth, New Jersey:
    – Bryan Danielson defeated Alex Shelley
    – ROH champion Samoa Joe pinned Doug Williams

    2005

    – Austin Aries defeated Roderick Strong
    – AJ Styles defeated Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe to win the TNA X Division Title.

    2010

    New York City: 
    – Colt Cabana & El Generico defeated Steve Corino & Kevin Steen in a double chain match
    – ROH Tag Team champions The Kings of Wrestling defeated Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin
    – ROH TV champion Eddie Edwards defeated Shawn Daivari
    – Christopher Daniels defeated Austin Aries
    – Roderick Strong defeated Tyler Black to win the ROH championship

    2011

    Orlando, Florida:
    – Winter defeated Mickie James to win the TNA Knockouts Title
    – Austin Aries defeated Brian Kendrick to win the TNA X Division Title
    – Matt Morgan defeated Samoa Joe
    – Kurt Angle defeated Sting and Mr. Anderson to retain the TNA World Title

    2014

    Winter Park, Florida:
    – Kalisto and Sin Cara defeated Konnor and Viktor for the NXT Tag Team Titles
    – Charlotte defeated Bayley to retain the NXT Womens’ Title
    – Adrian Neville defeated Tyler Breeze, Tyson Kidd and Sami Zayn to retain the NXT Title

  • NJPW Road to Destruction live results 9-11-15: Goto and Honma vs. Nakamura and Ishii

    by Bryan Rose, WrestlingObserver.com

    Yohei Komatsu vs. David Finlay

    This only lasted roughly around ten minutes, but this was a fine back and forth match. They traded offense and submissions, including Finlay’s stretch muffler which is always a fun move to see in pro wrestling. Komatsu made a comeback and put him in the half crab, and Finlay submitted.

    Tiger Mask & Jushin Liger vs. Jay White & Sho Tanaka

    It was what you’d expect out of a veterans vs. young lions match. Lions made a comeback at one point and Tanaka nearly had Tiger Mask submitted with an awesome looking figure four. Liger was able to make the comeback for his team, then Tiger Mask isolated Tanaka with what looked like a half chickenwing.

    Liger cut a promo after the match mentioning how Tiger Mask has a NWA Jr. Heavyweight title match coming at at Destruction. He goes with the Mick Foley routine, telling him to win it so he can challenge him at Korakuen. That got a pop, of course.

    Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi & Ryusuke Taguchi & Mascara Dorada & Juice Robinson vs. Toru Yano & Yoshi-Hashi & Gedo & Rocky Romero & Baretta

    Toru Yano came out with a new song from the CHAOS album. It was…rather interesting. He was introduced as the producer of the album. Typical ten man tag with some good moments. Taguchi and RPG Vice were in there for a while and did some comedy spots. Nagata was in there briefly and beat both of RPG Vice up. It boiled down to Juice Robinson and Yoshi-Hashi. He looked better here than last week, but still feels like he’s a step below the other heavyweights. We’ll find out how he does in time. They had some fine back and forth with Yoshi-Hashi hitting his neckbreaker and pinning Robinson with the swanton bomb.

    Kazuchika Okada & Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Tama Tonga & Cody Hall

    Another simple match. Not bad, but there was a familiar story. Tonga and Hall had the heat on Sakuraba for a long time. Okada made the hot tag and cleared house. Hall made a comeback and soon both heels were on Okada. Sakuraba came in for the save and took Tonga down as Hall was submitted with the Red Ink by Okada. That’s the first time in a long while someone submitted to that; would be a good idea to use it on guys like Hall in the future to get it over as a finish.

    Hiroshi Tanahashi & Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima & Kushida vs. Bad Luck Fale & Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows & Kenny Omega

    Good match. This wasn’t like a typical ten man tag where everyone just works against their future opponent; they all worked with one another (though there was focus on their opponents during certian points of the mtach) and the action was good. At one point Doc Gallows had Kojima choked out with a chair and was dragging him backstage. The crowd was also getting into it near the end. Kojima was making his comeback on Anderson but Gallows was involved and was able to take him out with the magic killer, allowing Anderson to score the win for his team. 

    Togi Makabe & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Kota Ibushi & Tetsuya Naito

    Of course the stories here are between Shibata/Naito and Makabe/Ibushi. Shibata did the spot he’s done in other tags against Naito by giving him a huge boot to the face that sends him to the floor. Fans were super into the interactions between Naito and Shibata. Naito’s heel mannerisms are top notch and it’s getting big reactions from the fans. Shibata actually submitted him with a sleeper, which seems to be the theme of the night with getting a lot of submissions over. Shibata destroyed Naito’s Los Ingobernales hat to boot. Ibushi and Makabe brawled after the match and had to be separated a few times before doing so. 

    Hirooki Goto & Tomoaki Honma vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii

    This was a match where the crowd made it better than it was. This was actually a very good match but the crowd made it seem like this awesome main event. I wouldn’t put it at that level but it was very fun. It was what you’d expect, with the four rivals pairing off with one another. Good offense, but it just felt familiar. The fans ate it up regardless . Finish had Honma and Ishii dishing out punishment. Ishii pelted Honma with headbutts but he was no selling them until Ishii headbutted him in the throat and got a nearfall with a lariat. My least favorite place to be headbutted would probably in fact be the throat, ouch. Ishii hit a brainbuster and pinned him.

    I’d say watch the two top matches as they built up Destruction really well with those. Overall, a pretty solid card that served its purpose. 

  • WWE NXT News: Kana takes ring name of Hall of Famer

    Recent signee Kana was at the WWE NXT TV tapings Thursday for her debut, and was given the new ring name “Asuka”.

    Lioness Asuka was probably the second most popular woman pro wrestler ever in Japan, part of the 80s tag team The Crush Gals during the era when women’s pro wrestling did television ratings equivalent to what the NFL was doing at the same time in the United States.

  • WWE Smackdown 9/10 TV results & recap: Seth Rollins vs. Ryback lumberjack match

    By Steve Khan, WrestlingObserver.com

    – Air Date: September 10, 2015 (Sept 9 in Canada)
    – Location: Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre, PA

    The Big News:

    The Wyatts took out another friend of Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins got his win back over Ryback.

    Show Recap:

    They announced the two main events for tonight, including a Seth Rollins vs. Ryback lumberjack match. They pushed this with a graphic reading “Champion vs. Champion” in big, gold lettering as if the titles are at stake, but they’re not.

    Bray Wyatt and his friends came out for a promo. Bray said Roman Reigns is sick—infected with the desire to become “the one.” Bray claimed that Roman didn’t care about the fans because he’s a smart man.

    Bray said Dean Ambrose is cursed, cursed by his loyalty to Reigns who doesn’t care about him. Bray warned anyone who wanted to join their team that they are the modern day Hatfields and McCoys, destined to fight forever.

    He reminded us what they did to Randy Orton and showed a clip. Bray warned Jimmy Uso not to make the wrong decision, “and you can believe that.” Braun Strowman finished off by saying, “They all fall down.” This was nothing special and the crowd didn’t care.

    The new commentary team is Rich Brennan, Booker T and Jerry Lawler.

    Cesaro beat The Miz via submission

    The Miz got an entrance. Cesaro did not. Cesaro’s ribs were taped so Miz took control working them over. Miz applied a weak leg scissor and Cesaro impressively countered into a vertical suplex. Miz regained control briefly, but after trying a running kick, Cesaro caught his leg and again did an impressive counter, this time into a Sharpshooter for the tap-out win. Short match.

    Backstage, Renee Young asked Ambrose and Reigns about Jimmy Uso. Reigns said it was Ambrose’s idea to bring in Jimmy Uso, but Reigns was hesitant to involve more of his family. Ambrose thought he was the perfect fit and said Jimmy got him so excited he almost painted his face. Jimmy showed up, excited to return to action. He and Ambrose did the “Uce-O” routine and Reigns looked at them like they were nuts.

    Paige NC Sasha Banks

    They showed a replay of the finish from Raw and said the shoulders of both women might have been down. In an in-set promo, Paige told Sasha it was time to tap. Sasha responded, saying she was the boss of this house. The teams almost got into a brawl before the match so the referee kicked out the peripherals.

    Booker and Brennan reminded us that Stephanie McMahon started this revolution and that women have taken the centre stage all over the sports world. Banks had control for a while and Paige started selling an eye injury. As the referee checked on her and backed off Banks, Paige shot out of the corner with a spear and attacked her wildly. The two of them brawled to the outside, ramming each other into the barricade.

    Eventually, Team BAD and Team PCB ran out to pull them apart. As with every wrestling brawl, Paige and Banks each broke through a couple of time until this was finally settled when referees ran out and Team BAD left. The crowd was into the brawl and we even got a “P-C-B” chant. I did like the angle, especially if Paige is turning heel.

    Backstage, Seth Rollins told Byron Saxton that Sting caused him to have, perhaps, the worst night of his career. Rollins screamed about the statue before calming down to explain that Sting is burying himself into a bigger hole. Rollins said he would crush Sting the way his statue was crushed.

    Rollins wanted the locker room to watch him beat Ryback to prove he only lost because of a distraction. He said he would beat Cena and Sting at Night of Champions when Sheamus showed up. Sheamus said something uninteresting and then wished Rollins luck. Same old.

    The New Day NC Jimmy Uso, Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns

    The crowd was pretty quiet to this point but there were loud “New Day sucks” chants here. Ambrose had control until he was cut off by a Big E clothesline. Kingston knocked Reigns off the apron so Ambrose tagged in Uso who hit Kingston with a superkick and Samoan drop.

    Ambrose took out Woods with a suicide dive and Uso took out Kingston and Woods with an Uso dive. With the referee distracted, Big E hip tossed Uso to the outside to regain control.

    After a break, New Day stomped a mudhole in Jimmy and Woods stopped in the middle of it to grab his trombone to play a few notes. Crowd popped for that. Xavier ran at Uso but ate a superkick and Reigns made the hot tag.

    Reigns hit Woods with ten clotheslines and an apron dropkick, clotheslining Kingston along the way. Big E tried to interfere so Reigns gave him a Samoan drop. Woods hit a spinning DDT on Reigns and presumably had him beat but Ambrose broke it up.

    Ambrose hit Dirty Deeds on Kingston, and a rebound clothesline to Big E on the outside. Reigns hit Woods with a superman punch and tagged in Jimmy Uso who went up for the big splash but the lights went out.

    When the lights came on, Strowman had Uso in his hugging maneuver on the stage (with Bray and Harper looking on). Ambrose and Reigns went after them but the lights went out and the Wyatts disappeared. Ambrose and Reigns checked on Jimmy as the phrase “They all fall down” played over the speakers.

    The Ascension (w/Stardust) beat The Lucha Dragons via pinfall

    Ascension came out with Stardust to their own music. Viktor gave Kalisto an STO and they used Fall of Man for the win. Ascension and Stardust attacked Lucha Dragons after the match so Neville ran out to make the save. He tossed out Konnor and Viktor and chased away Stardust. If they’re going to do a six-man they shouldn’t have killed the Dragons so easily.

    Backstage, Nikki Bella told Renee that Charlotte is jealous and afraid of her. Charlotte showed up and said none of those things are true. Charlotte asked if Nikki was excited because Nikki was about to become the woman who was almost the longest reigning champion ever. Charlotte said Nikki would be calling her champion after Monday. This is all they did to build the title match on Raw and it wasn’t good.

    Non-Title Lumberjack Match: WWE & US Champion Seth Rollins beat IC Champion Ryback via pinfall

    After Stardust and Ascension just ran away from Neville and the Lucha Dragons, they were all out here together as lumberjacks. Ziggler, Show, Henry, Dudleys and Owens were among the bigger names out there.

    Ryback was tossed to the outside and the heel lumberjacks jumped him for no reason. The good guys backed them off and they went to commercial.

    In the middle of his comeback, Show blatantly pulled Ryback out of the ring and tossed him into the barricade. This was not a DQ. Show knocked out Mark Henry for good measure. The good guys backed off Show and he left.

    Ryback knocked away some lumberjacks and nailed Rollins with a forearm to counter a suicide dive. Ryback gave him a spinebuster and sent him flying onto the babyface lumberjacks on the outside.

    The heel lumberjacks jumped Ryback again, this time in the ring, until the faces made the save. The Dragons hit suicide dives and Neville took out a bunch of them with a moonsault off the top.

    With everything presumably clear, Rollins and Ryback traded counters. Ryback had Rollins up for the shell shocked but Kevin Owens hooked Ryback’s leg (ref happened to be distracted) and Seth countered into a pedigree for the win.

    This match was nonsense. Booker called this a clean win.

    Final Thoughts:

    I was almost going to call this show a positive. I like that Paige is slowly losing it and the six-man tag was really good. But two non-finishes and a crappy, overbooked main event sure made the show feel like a waste.

  • TNA announces Kurt Angle’s return to wrestling

    After Kurt Angle announced earlier this week that he would not sign a new TNA contract after his deal ran out at the end of the year, TNA announced Thursday that Angle would be wrestling on a TNA house show on 10/3 in Salem, VA, as well as Bound for Glory on 10/4 in Concord, NC.

  • WWE NXT: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks IronWoman match to headline TakeOver

    NXT Women’s Champion Bayley will face former champion Sasha Banks in a 30 minute IronWoman match as the main event for the next NXT TakeOver special on October 7th at Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL.

    The two faced off at WWE TakeOver: Brooklyn in a match that was hailed as one of the best, if not THE best, of WWE’s SummerSlam weekend in NYC.