Tag: headline

  • UFC Fight Night 84: Silva vs. Bisping weigh-in results and live video

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jQyCP_R398

    Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of the UFC Fight Night 84: Silva vs. Bisping weigh-ins from the indigo at The O2 Arena in London, England. The fighters will hit the scale at 11 AM eastern time. The entire card airs on Saturday on UFC Fight Pass. Preliminary card action kicks off at 12:45 PM eastern time leading into the main card, which kicks off at 4 PM eastern time. This will be the Octagon’s first trip to London since UFC Fight Night 38 in March 2013.

    The event is headlined by the biggest fight in the history of UFC Fight Pass as former long-time UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva makes his long-awaited return in his quest to regain the championship when he takes on former TUF winner and long-time contending superstar Michael Bisping in a much-anticipated and heated battle that could determine a potential next challenger at 185 pounds. Also on the card, in the co-main event slot, it will be another middleweight bout between top-ten ranked contenders as Gegard Mousasi takes on Thales Leites, and additional bouts will feature rising prospects that include welterweight Tom Breese and featherweight Makwan Amirkhani, known to fight fans as “Mr. Finland”.

    MAIN CARD (UFC FIGHT PASS- 4 PM ET/1 PM PT):
    Anderson Silva (186) vs. Michael Bisping (185)
    Gegard Mousasi (185) vs. Thales Leites (186)
    Tom Breese (171) vs. Keita Nakamura (170)
    Francisco Rivera (136) vs. Brad Pickett (136)

    PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC FIGHT PASS- 12:45 PM ET/9:45 AM PT):
    Mike Wilkinson (145) vs. Makwan Amirkhani (145)
    Davey Grant (136) vs. Marlon Vera (135)
    Scott Askham (185) vs. Chris Dempsey (185)
    Arnold Allen (145) vs. Yaotzin Meza (144)
    Brad Scott (186) vs. Krzysztof Jotko (184)
    Norman Parke (155) vs. Rustam Khabilov (155)
    Daniel Omielanczuk (254) vs. Jarjis Danho (261)
    Teemu Packalen (156) vs. Thibault Gouti (155)
    David Teymur (155) vs. Martin Svensson (154)

  • NXT Orlando, FL, live results: Finn Balor & Bayley vs. Samoa Joe & Nia Jax

    NXT is at the Orlando National Guard Armory tonight in front of a sell out crowd of approximately 400.

    Apollo Crews beat Manny Andrade

    Good match, Manny was the heel tonight and tried to work holds. Traded some athletic rope running and Apollo hit a big dropkick. Manny appeared at Apollo’s level even in defeat. Apollo hit the big spinning slam for the win.

    Liv Morgan and Aliyah beat Peyton Royce and Billie Kay

    The heels got the heat on Aliyah to build the Liv hot tag. She was fired up, hit a lot of running offense of her own, got Aliyah involved and suplexed Aliyah on to the fallen opponent before positioning herself for a standing moonsault for the win. Good showing for Liv Morgan tonight.

    Levis Valenzuela beat Chris Girard

    Girard wore down Levis with his intense and aggressive style. Plenty of holds and growls. Levis wound up and nailed Chris with a Fiesta Fireball punch.

    – In-ring promo with Hugo Knox who was heelish tonight in a stylish suit. Was not dancing tonight.

    American Alpha beat BAMF, The Vaudevillains, and Enzo & Cass

    This was a fatal four way elimination match for the right to face The Revival tomorrow night in Largo. Simon Gotch got the pin Enzo Amore for fall one. Fall two saw Jason Jordan run wild after a hot tag and defeated Alden English to eliminate The Vaudevillains. About a minute later, American Alpha hit the assisted German Suplex on Murphy for the win and the right to face the champions tomorrow night.

    Emma beat Daria

    A couple MMA style comebacks with Daria shooting the legs for takedowns yet this was mostly Emma. She won it with the Emma Lock. After the win re-applied the hold until Asuka made the save. Asuka took care of Emma then checked on Daria.

    Sami Zayn beat Elias Samson

    Crowd was vicious towards The Drifter tonight. Causing him to think on the fly being heckled during his song. Sami got the reaction of the night. Long match, a lot of Drifter rest holds until Sami’s big comeback and win via exploder suplex and jellies kick.

    NXT Champion Finn Balor and NXT Women’s Champion Bayley beat Samoa Joe and Nia Jax

    Some crisp action from Joe and Finn in spurts to tune up for Dallas. These two are great together, Nia tries to wear down Bayley yet could never quite keep her grounded. At one point in a brilliant spot Nia Jax set up for the People’s Elbow then stopped short and just pulled Bayley up by her hair. Finn got the hot tag and nailed the Bloody Sunday on Joe for the win.

    During the post match celebration Bayley took the mic and asked what “Finn 3:16” means? Finn responded by talking in a shy child voice with “… Finn 3:16 means… May I have this dance?” the lights went low, and Time Of Our Lives started playing, they slow danced at a distance like a middle school prom. Then Bayley went in to the corner, ran towards Finn who lifted her up in the air then back down in to a hug. Everyone was going wild.

  • WON Preview: The return of Shane McMahon

    The return to WWE of Shane McMahon, his history, and how the deal to bring him back was put together and why it happened now, is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

    Feb 29, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Shane McMahon to face Undertaker at Wrestlemania
    Details on Shane McMahon’s return to WWE and how it could affect the future of the company, Dos Anjos/McGregor off due to injury, plus tons more.

    McMahon’s background, what about the TV angle is based on real life and what is based on fiction, where the idea for this year’s WrestleMania first came from and what year it was first planned for, the story on Roman Reigns, the blood, and why that angle took  place.  We also look at what the current deal is for McMahon, various possible scenarios and the situation with Roman Reigns.  Shane McMahon’s career in WWE, his attempts to run businesses in the past, high profile deals he attempted to put together that his father shot down, deals he tried to put together away from his father, and his latest venture and how changes in that company have changed his power.

    A look at the deal for Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz on 3/5, including who was called, who was available, why Diaz got the shot and what his chances are.

    Updated WrestleMania plans, where the Roman Reigns angle is headed, current card, scheduled guests and what key role is really not determined.

    FastLane, with business notes, match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.

    The ramifications and lessons of Bellator’s last big show, what it says about what the public interest in the Kimbo vs. Dada and Shamrock vs. Gracie fights, what led to Dada’s hospitalization, ratings and business notes on the show and coverage of the event.

    More WWE business, where the network stands, why a lot of the analysis of the network is shallow and missing key points, how much people really watch of the network, what can be learned from the success of it, how the company is doing in every division, the value of house show, how this affects UFC, aall the other revenue streams and an update on PPV numbers and the company’s profits and losses for the last 21 year.

    Shinsuke Nakamura in WWE, reason he came to WWE that isn’t going to happen, John Cena update, 2017 WrestleMania news, new major shows, and how much new stock do the key power brokers in the company have.

    Update injuries, what city do more WWE stars live in than any other, more on the next WWE network special, injury updates, how “This is awesome” got started, WWE TV in Japan, next week’s Raw notes, notes, plus a rundown of all the arena events over the past week.

    Kota Ibushi leaving New Japan, including an update on his plans, will he work for New Japan again, as well as WWE.

    ROH/New Japan joint shows over the weekend,the booking of the shows, the next major New Japan shows including the 2016 New Japan Cup, and match-by-match rundowns with star ratings.

    Update on B.J. Penn after UFC has decided to temporarily not use him.

    UFC Fight Night in Pittsburgh with business notes and match-by-match coverage.

    A lengthy piece on The Godfather, looking at his wrestling career, his pre-wrestling days, how he got into wrestling, why he was so popular with wrestlers, his different gimmicks and what he’s doing now.

    Feb 29, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Shane McMahon to face Undertaker at Wrestlemania
    Details on Shane McMahon’s return to WWE and how it could affect the future of the company, Dos Anjos/McGregor off due to injury, plus tons more.

    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 print issues 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.

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    Click here for the most requested Wrestling Observer back issues.

    Check out the latest Online Wrestling Observer BACK ISSUE: February 15, 1988 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: A Tale of Two Hebners
    All the details on Hulk Hogan losing the WWF title to Andre the Giant in a historic angle, plus tons of news and notes.

    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’ve also got the weekly coverage of all the ratings of the major shows, results from the major league events held around the world, and the major TV show rundowns.

    Also in this issue:

    –Split up of Los Ingobernables in Mexico

    –A look at one of the best Arena Mexico shows in a while

    –Change in the Elite plans

    –Elite’s first big stipulation match coming

    –Likely main event for CMLL’s first major show of 2016

    –Elite finally brings in the biggest living Lucha Libre star on an international basis of the last 50 years

    –Update on AAA plans

    –AAA star no-shows title match

    –Great Muta returns

    –All Japan Champion Carnival plans

    –Upcoming All Japan title matches

    –Wrestlers headed to WWE finishing up in Japan this week

    –A look at the NOAH big shows

    –Shakeup in the Presidents position in one of the world’s biggest promotions

    –Match-up of legends set for late March

    –70-year-old former gimmick wrestler returns

    –Hulk Hogan/Gawker update

    –Evolve’s WrestleMania weekend plans

    –More on Jim Ross’ boxing deal

    –AAA stars coming for WrestleMania weekend

    –House of Hardcore notes for the next three shows

    –Update on Jarrett’s Global Force Wrestling

    –Return of Kiyoshi Tamura on a big show

    –Update on Thesz Hall of fame

    –Former NFL player make pro wrestling debut

    –More on the Mongolian Stomper

    –Preston City Wrestling update

    –Southern California wrestling Half of Fame update

    –Legendary wrestling building torn down

    –Lucha Underground first house show

    –Joey Ryan engagement notes

    –Update on ROH anniversary show and TV the next night

    –Update on Davey Richards ad his injury

    –UFC and BBC 3 deal

    –Business notes on the last UFC Las Vegas show

    –Lots of new UFC fights that have been made

    –Notes on this coming week’s UFC show

    –New companies on UFC Fight Pass

    –UFC star gets same testing as Daniel Bryan

    –Scott Coker adds kickboxing promotion and more details

    –Bellator star unhappy with Coker and his bookings

    –Bellator star cites on misdemeanor battery charge

    –Herschel Walker talks whether he’ll fight again or not

    –More on weight cutting

    –New MMA promotion looking at a weekly prime time television format

    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.

    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.

    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. 

  • WWE Smackdown results: Triple H promo, Styles/Jericho/Henry vs. New Day

    – Air Date: February 25, 2016 (Feb 24 in Canada)
    – Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

    – The Big News:

    Unless Chris Jericho is swerving us, he and AJ Styles appear to be headed for a tag title match at WrestleMania. Also, Triple H had some words for Roman Reigns.

    – Show Recap:

    Triple H came out wearing a suit, holding the WWE Title, to plenty of fake booing. The ring was covered in black carpet and there was a podium for WWE Title so the champion doesn’t have to hold the belt for too long. He quoted the Rolling Stones’ “Sympathy For The Devil,” saying he stole many a man’s soul. (Don’t give me any credit for picking up on the song – he proudly told us the reference.)

    Triple H called his beat down of Roman Reigns retribution for Reigns’ attack months ago, and they replayed the video from Raw. He mentioned Reigns’ surgery and showed the “post-surgery” photo on the screen. Triple H called himself the law and rambled on about bowing to authority.

    He said he had to step over a lot of people to get where he is, spilling a lot of blood, sweat and tears. He said Reigns has the sweat part of that down, because he does work hard. Triple H then pulled out his wrist tape which was covered in Roman’s blood, so he’s got the blood part down too. Finally, he said he would get Reigns’ tears at WrestleMania, because he’s the king of kings, game of games, etc.

    This was pretty boring and the crowd didn’t seem to care. He’s also forgetting that we’ve seen Roman’s tears before. More than once. Mauro Ranallo said there was no timetable for Reigns’ recovery. For a busted nose?

    8-Man Tag Match: League of Nations beat Lucha Dragons, Neville & Dolph Ziggler via pinfall

    This was only about 8 minutes and was almost all action. Neville really shined here, but Sheamus hit him with a Brogue kick for the win. Wade Barrett finally worked and looked fine.

    Renee Young had Kevin Owens backstage because he asked for the time to speak. Owens told her to stop rambling so he could talk. Owens was inspired by Dean Ambrose on Raw and wanted to give Ambrose his rematch for the Intercontinental title. Renee told Owens that Ambrose wasn’t there.

    Owens acted surprised, but figured he has the night off since Ambrose is the only one who deserves a title shot since he’s defeated everyone else. Big Show appeared and said Owens hasn’t beaten him. Owens said he’s on the road to KO-Mania, but Show was on the road to retirement. Show grabbed Owens and said maybe he would “K.O. K.O.” (knockout Kevin Owens). This was good.

    D-Von Dudley (w/Bubba Ray Dudley) beat Jimmy Uso (w/Jey Uso) via pinfall

    Bubba repeated, again, that the Dudleys are not a nostalgia act. D-Von said they’re the best tag-team ever, and Bubba told the fans to shove it. Jimmy Uso hit a superkick almost immediately and went to the top rope. Bubba grabbed a table so Jey chased after him. As the referee stopped Jey, Bubba tripped Jimmy off the top rope. D-Von clumsily picked Jimmy up to his feet just so he could pull him back down with a school boy for the very quick win. This was lame.

    They aired a video package for the Shane McMahon angle, and announced the return of Undertaker to Raw in Nashville.

    Backstage, Chris Jericho (wearing an Usos t-shirt) told AJ Styles, again, that he didn’t like him at first, but he does now, and they even became a team on Raw. Jericho said he’s been WWE Tag-Team champion five times with five different guys. He called the New Day clowns and said beating them tonight could get them a title shot and lead to a WrestleMania moment for Styles.

    Styles said that’s why he came here, to be in a meaningless match the best. Styles said they needed a partner tonight for the six-man. Jericho asked if he got Funaki’s number while he was in Japan. Mark Henry showed up and thought WSM should join Y2AJ. That’s what he said.

    Henry doesn’t like New Day either and firmly shook Jericho’s hand. Jericho was in pain and comically asked him to lighten up on the handshake. Henry didn’t like Jericho joking around like New Day. Jericho got in his face and said it would be an honour to have a former world champion on their team. Henry agreed, let go of Jericho’s hand, smacked Styles on the chest, and left. The stuff with Jericho and Henry was good, but Styles felt a little out of place.

    Non-title: I.C. Champion Kevin Owens beat Big Show via countout

    Owens looked small next to Big Show, which was quite a visual. Owens got some offense but it didn’t have much of an effect on Show, who followed with a chokeslam. Show tried to do a chokeslam off the top, but Owens slipped out and crotched him on the rope. Show fell to the outside and referee Mike Chioda did the fastest 10-count ever for the countout. The match was only 4 minutes long. Regardless of how Owens won, this should eliminate Show from title contention. (It won’t.)

    Becky Lynch NC Natalya

    Ranallo and Byron Saxton talked about Natalya and Lynch, but Jerry Lawler wanted to talk about Charlotte, to which Ranallo responded, “She’s not involved in the match, King. I like to focus on the action in the ring.” After about 2 minutes, Natalya hit a German suplex, sending Lynch to the outside. At this point, Naomi and Tamina ran out and attacked Natalya for the DQ/no contest.

    Sasha Banks made the save, and she cleared the ring with help from Lynch. Charlotte came out and announced that the Lynch vs. Banks match for the number one contendership will be this Monday, and she will be at ringside. Natalya disappeared and was totally forgotten about. This sucked.

    R-Truth beat Heath Slater (w/Social Outcasts) via pinfall

    Truth came out alone, but Goldust came out as soon as the bell rang. He told Truth he just wanted to watch from ringside, and fans chanted “Golden Truth.” The Social Outcasts tried to interfere, but the distraction allowed Goldust to smack Slater, allowing Truth to use a backslide for the win. Truth was pleased and was smiling until Goldust winked at him. This was… fine, but it was another crap finish and another short match.

    They aired a long video package for the Brock Lesnar/Dean Ambrose stuff from Raw, and officially announced their No Holds Barred match at WrestleMania.

    New Day came out. Big E questioned Mark Henry’s claim as world’s strongest man, and Kofi Kingston wondered how he can still call himself that. They cackled like hyenas. And then they kept cackling. Kingston said there was someone in the ring who was stronger than Henry – Xavier Woods.

    Woods said Jericho and Styles aren’t a real team. New Day travel together, they eat together, they take baths together. Big E and Kingston acted alarmed, and then they quickly chanted New Day rocks. Like most New Day segments, there was some funny stuff in here, but a lot of unfunny stuff too.

    6-Man Tag Match: AJ Styles, Chris Jericho & Mark Henry beat The New Day via submission

    Mark Henry came out last, if that sort of thing matters to you. The good guys sent New Day to the outside, so Mark Henry did Big E’s hip swivel dance. Jericho decided to join him and did a dance of his own… and so did AJ Styles. Yes, Styles danced. It was something else.

    After a break, New Day gained the heat on Jericho. There was a nice spot where Kingston hit a seated Jericho with a kick, Woods followed with a low dropkick, then he and Big E hit a combination leg drop and splash. Jericho came back with an enziguri and made the hot tag to Styles, who hit Woods with a clothesline, forearm and springboard moonsault inverted DDT.

    Kingston took out Mark Henry with a Trouble in Paradise. He almost got Styles with one too, but Jericho pushed Styles out of the way and ate Kingston’s kick instead. Styles clotheslined Kingston and applied the Calf Crusher on Woods, who tapped out immediately. Good match. The announcers played up Jericho saving Styles from Kingston’s kick.

    – Final Thoughts:

    Despite a fun opener and main event, this was probably the worst Smackdown since they switched networks. The Triple H promo was terribly uninteresting, and the middle of the show was pretty dreadful, full of short matches and bad finishes. Sometimes when they shoot a big angle on Raw, they seem to have no immediate plan beyond that show, and Smackdown tends to suffer as a result.

  • TNA ratings drop for all-cage Lockdown special

    Despite being the heavily promoted Lockdown episode of Impact last night, the TNA audience dropped 23 percent from last week to 210,000 for the first run episode, easily the lowest in the modern history of the show.

    The replay did 87,000, identical to the previous week, but still tied for second to the lowest number since moving to Pop TV with first-run shows.

    The 297,000 total was the lowest as well, by a significant margin as the previous low was 345,000 on the debut show.

    Matt Hardy retained the TNA World Heavyweight Title over former champion EC3 in the main event after Spud turned on EC3 and cost him the match.

    EC3 was a guest on Wrestling Observer Live yesterday talking Lockdown, his babyface turn, his dive on Impact last week that went horribly awry, and more.  

    The Doll House also beat Gail Kim and Velvet Sky in the first-ever women’s Lethal Lockdown match (essentially War Games), which ended up being two-on-three after Maria teased teaming up with Kim and Sky but then walked out on them.

    You can read our full TNA Impact TV report here.

  • TNA Impact Wrestling results: Lockdown: Hardy vs. EC3, Knockouts Lethal Lockdown

    Last Week on Impact:

    On last week’s episode of TNA Impact, Ethan Carter III and Rockstar Spud reunited to defeat the team of TNA World Champion Matt Hardy & Tyrus.

    Tonight on Impact:

    Tonight is a special edition of Impact! It features a Pay-Per-View caliber line-up. The one, the only… TNA Impact Wrestling: Lockdown! All the matches are taking place inside the infernal and devilish Six Sides of Steel Cage.

    In the huge main event, TNA World Champion Matt Hardy will defend his title against the deadly, Ethan Carter III. For the first time in TNA history, the Knockouts will compete in Lethal Lockdown when The Dollhouse battles it out with The Beautiful People and Knockouts Champion, Gail Kim. Additionally, X Division Champion, Trevor Lee puts his title on the line against Tigre Uno. In tag action, Beer Money takes on Eric Young and Bram.

    Show Recap:

    Josh Matthews and The Pope welcome us to the Wembley Arena in London, England. The Six Sides of Steel is already set up and ready for our first match.

    Beer Money (James Storm & Bobby Roode) vs. Eric Young & Bram

    James Storm rides down to ring on the Boozer Cruiser, with of course his Boozer Cruiser Cam. While Beer Money, EY and Bram brawl on the outside, Storm takes a beer from someone in the crowd and spits it in Bram’s face. This gets a “TNA” chant from this hot crowd in London. EY and Bram took out Storm on the outside and then locked the cage door with Storm on the outside still. They get the advantage on Roode by isolating him with double team moves. James Strom recovers on the outside and climbs the cage to get in, and then takes down both men on his own. EY countered out of the DWI in a cool spot, and then got hit with a violent super kick from Storm. Beer Money hits the DWI on Bram for the pin and the win!

    This was a really strong opening tag team match and a great way to start Lockdown. Beer Money continues to be one of the highlights each week on Impact.

    -Earlier today Matt Hardy, Reby Sky and Tyrus arrived in the arena.

    -Backstage, EC3 meanders around the halls alone before heading to the ring.

    -Back from commercial, we start backstage on Brian Hebner as he frantically runs down the steps and finds an injured Madison Rayne screaming in pain.

    -The Catchiest music in wrestling history hits and EC3 makes his way down to the Six Sides of Steel. He does his promo sitting on the steps and the electric crowd breaks out into a huge “EC3” chant while he talks about his feud with Matt Hardy and his match later. EC3 enters the cage and calls out Rockstar Spud. Josh mentions that last week EC3 wanted to face Hardy and Tyrus alone, but Rockstar Spud came out to be EC3’s partner. EC3 thanks Spud for helping him last week and extends his hand for a handshake. The crowd breaks out into a “shake his hand” chant. Spud shakes his hand and says “handshakes aside, I always does the ring thing.” Matt Hardy, Reby and Tyrus interrupt EC3 and Spud. Hardy says everyone should fear him. The crowd chants “We want Jeff”. For legal reasons Jeff can’t come to the U.K. for this tour, but Matt failed to mention that.

    -Backstage, Jermey Borash interviews Trevor Lee and Shane Helms.

    -Back from commercial, the Unnamed Man from last week (who is identified as Jimmy Havoc) talks about Rosemary of Decay. He mentions that she’s dangerous and he brings that out in her. He’s going to get her back from Crazy Steve and Abyss.

    TNA X Division Champion Trevor Lee w/ Gregory Shane Helms vs. Tigre Uno

    This was a really good match with lots of intense and fast paced action throughout. Lee gains the advantage on Uno and uses his power moves to dominate. Tigre makes a comeback and the pace quickens. In an awesome spot, Uno climbs to the top of the cage, but instead of escaping and winning, he hits a sick cross body onto Lee inside the ring to a massive pop. That might have been a mistake as Lee hits the Fishermen Buster for the win. Trevor Lee retains the X Division Title.

    -Backstage, “The First Lady of Professional Wrestling” Maria Kanellis runs into a stressed out Knockouts Champion, Gail Kim. Maria mentions that it’s bad luck for Gail that Madison got injured. Gail tells Maria to stop criticizing and instead prove herself by taking Madison’s place in the Lethal Lockdown match.

    -Back from commercial, Rosemary is creepily singing alone when the Unnamed Man (Jimmy Havoc) approaches her. He gives her a token of his affection as a way for her to remember him fondly. Crazy Steve enters and that’s when things get weird.

    Lethal Lockdown: TNA Knockouts Champion Gail Kim and Velvet Sky vs. The Dollhouse (Jade, Marti Bell & Rebel)

    The Six Sides of Steel has several chairs, trashcans and various other weapons hanging from the sides. Josh explains the rules for the match: Two knockouts start the match. At intervals, another knockout joins the match, and the match can only end after all participants enter the ring.

    Jade and Gail Kim start the match off. Gail Kim and Velvet are already at a disadvantage because Madison was mysteriously injured earlier.  

    Back from commercial, Jade and Gail Kim are trading shots. The first entrant out is from the Dollhouse, Marti Bell. The Dollhouse work over Gail with double team moves. The Next entrant is Velvet Sky who runs wild on The Dollhouse. Josh and Pope mention that Gail and Velvet don’t have a partner unless Maria steps up. Rebel comes out next and The Dollhouse has a three on two advantage. Weapons are introduced to the match with all the Knockouts taking each other out. The final entrant comes out and it’s Maria Kanellis. She teases entering the match and teaming with Gail and Velvet but doesn’t. Maria locks the door and walks away leaving Gail and Velvet to fight on their own, Gail and Velvet hit a double flapjack from the top rope on Jade to huge pop. Gail hits eat defeat on Rebel, but Jade breaks up the pin. Jade hits the package piledriver on Gail onto the steel chair and pins Knockouts Champion, Gail Kim. The Dollhouse wins Lethal Lockdown! 

    -Backstage, EC3 meets Kurt Angle, who wishes him good luck in his match later.

    -Next we see a creepy music video of Decay (Crazy Steve, Abyss & Rosemary). It ends with them spitting into the camera.

    -Back from commercial, we get a video for the Kurt Angle and Lashley match. They show clips from their second meeting where Kurt was victorious.

    -Back in the arena, The Olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle makes his way down to the ring. Josh mentions that Kurt as two matches left in his career (In TNA). In two weeks, Kurt faces Lashley and next week Kurt takes on Bobby Roode. Kurt talks about the Farewell Tour. Lashley interrupts and comes down to the ring. Lashley mentions that he’s been waiting a year to get revenge on Kurt. This enrages Kurt, prompting him to tell Lashley he wants to fight, and he wants to do it right now. Lashley teases fighting, but doesn’t and leaves the ring. Lashley was really good here playing a very subtle heel. TNA is doing a decent job building up to this Kurt Angle vs. Lashley match.

    -Back from commercial, Eli Drake is in the ring talking about Odarg The Great and how it’s Grado. Eli points out that Grado was fired from TNA. Eli promises to take Odarg’s mask off.

    Eli Drake vs. Odarg The Great

    Total comedy match. Eli dominates Odarg. Eli tries to escape through the door and Odarg pulls Eli’s tights nearly off trying to keep him in the ring. Eli wrestles for a bit with his tights half way down. Odarg climbs to the top of the cage to escape. Odarg is hanging off the side of the cage. Eli pulls the mask off and Odarg falls to the ground, and wins the match. Odarg is revealed as Grado and Jeremy Borash was very surprised that it was Grado. He was the only one.

    -Backstage, Decay approaches Jimmy Havoc and they tell him that Rosemary is with them. Decay beats down Jimmy Havoc and leaves him there to rot.

    -Back from commercial, Grado is trying to plead his case to Billy Corgan, but security throws him out.

    -Next we get a cool video from “Miracle” Mike Bennett and Maria Kanellis.

    TNA World Heavyweight Champion Matt Hardy w/ Tyrus vs. Ethan Carter III

    We get the ring introductions for EC3 and TNA World Champion Matt Hardy. Both are shown walking backstage and out to the ring. The crowd is buzzing in anticipation of this match. The crowd sings along with EC3’s theme music.

    Josh tells us that there are no more commercial breaks and we’ll get this match without interruption. Tyrus throws two steel chairs in the ring. Hardy sets the chairs up in the corner, but gets sent head first into the chairs instead of EC3. Matt takes the lock and chain off the cage door and tries to use it. EC3 takes Matt down. EC3 tries to walk out the door, however Tyrus blocks the way. EC3 flips off Tyrus and says something that is bleeped out. Tyrus enters the cage and beats down EC3. Tyrus tries to use the chain and lock to tie EC3 to the rope, instead EC3 ends up tying Tyrus up. Matt hits the twist of fate with EC3 trapped in the chair, but only gets a near fall. Both EC3 and Hardy crawl towards the door. Reby comes down to ringside and teases using a hammer. Rockstar Spud comes out to stop Reby. Shockingly, Rockstar Spud turns on EC3 by slamming the cage door on EC3’s head. Spud helps Matt escape and win the match.

    After the match, Spud hits EC3 with a vicious chair shot while the crowd chants “You Sold Out” at Spud. As Rockstar Spud leaves he tells an unconscious EC3, “I always do the right thing.”

    Final Thoughts:

    TNA delivered a really good edition of Impact this week. There were several entertaining matches including, Beer Money vs. EY & Bram. The Knockouts Lethal Lockdown was also a jaw dropping event, and the night was capped off by an enticing main event. TNA continues to produce fun and exciting Impact’s since arriving on POP TV.

    Next Week on Impact:

    Next week, we’re still in London for Impact. The Kurt Angle Farewell Tour is nearing its end as Kurt wrestles his second to last match against one half of Beer Money, Bobby Roode.

  • Tomohiro Ishii vs Roderick Strong vs Bobby Fish for the ROH TV Title

    Ring of Honor announced today that the way they are handling Friday’s TV title situation is doing a three-way match with new champion Tomohiro Ishii facing the original two wrestlers who were scheduled to battle, former champion Roderick Strong and Bobby Fish.

    Ishii won the title on Friday at Korakuen Hall.

    There was question as to whether Ishii vs. Hirooki Goto, originally scheduled on the card, would become the title mach, or if Ishii would face Strong, since an angle on the Saturday night show at Korakuen Hall indicated the match with Strong.  Instead they announced a three-way match for the title with Roderick Strong and Bobby Fish.

    Goto will still be on the show against an opponent as not yet named.

    The companies 14th anniversary show will be from a sold out Sam’s Town Casino Arena in Las Vegas on Friday February 26th, headlined by Jay Lethal defending the ROH title in a three-way against Kyle O’Reilly and  Adam Cole.

  • Raw ratings with Shane McMahon return, plus WWE Extreme Rules is back

    The return of Shane McMahon to start the show appears to have impacted the viewership of Raw greatly, or it was that and a combination of the bump caused by coming a day after the PPV.

    Last night show did 3.87 million viewers, the best number since the day after the Royal Rumble doing 4.09 million viewers.

    It’s hard to know how much the McMahon return would mean since it was a shock, but it was also at the beginning of the show, meaning word may have gotten around quickly causing people to tune in.  The show ended up having a huge third hour drop, at a larger levels than most weeks, but the third hour was still ahead of every third hour since the day after Rumble show.

    The show was up 12 percent from last week’s 3.46 million viewers, which was the second lowest number for a non-holiday show outside of football season since 1997.

    The three hours were:

    8 p.m. 4.20 million viewers
    9 p.m. 4.06 million viewers
    10 p.m. 3.40 million viewers

    Tickets went on sale for the Payback PPV on 5/22 in Newark, NJ at the Prudential Center, and then Ticketmaster changed the name of the show to Extreme Rules.

    There will still be a Payback show on 5/1, but the location hasn’t been announced.

    We have three audio shows up talking WWE and Shane McMahon’s return:  Monday’s Wrestling Observer Radio, a breaking news audio Tuesday morning, and Wrestling Observer Live.

  • WWE announces Roman Reigns underwent surgery

    WWE announced that Roman Reigns underwent surgery today in Tampa for a broken nose that was suffered during the brawl with HHH at the end of Raw last night.

    Not many details were listed in the story at WWE.com.

    No time frame was listed for a recovery and the story was far more vague than most stories regarding top talent undergoing surgery are.  Given the timing and nature of the attack, this could be storyline related but we will update shortly.

    HHH destroyed Reigns at the end of Raw, smashing his head repeatedly into the announce table until Reigns came up covered in blood.  There are videos online that appear to show Reigns being handed a blood packet by Byron Saxton during the HHH beating, which if accurate would suggest the injury is storyline.

    Reigns vs. HHH for the WWE World Heavyweight Title is expected to headline this year’s WrestleMania, following Reigns winning a three-way over Brock Lesnar and Dean Ambrose at the WWE Fast Lane pay-per-view on Sunday night.