The UFC is in the business of selling fights, number one. Anything earned elsewhere is gravy, but too much gravy smothers the turkey. UFC has made a variety of branding decisions that will earn them a ton of money in the short term, but it may hurt the product in the long run. I’m not the first person to point any of these things out, but it begs repeating. Choosing the Reebok brand is bad for business.
Reebok is a weak brand. The Reebok Company is most closely associated with basketball. Their famous Reebok Pump sneaker put them on the map in the 80’s, but it’s a basketball shoe. If UFC couldn’t sign Nike or Adidas, they shouldn’t have bothered with branding. It’s third tier sports apparel at best. Sure, Reebok paid the most, but Nike is number one, and so is UFC. They sold themselves short. Kids don’t want to buy Reebok stuff. It’s not cool.
Reebok created the most boring fighter wear ever. This most recent TUF episode showcased exactly why the Reebok deal is making the product lame duck. The first fight of this show featured two average looking men, both from Team Europe, both sporting crew cuts, both wearing gray trunks, and both executing some pretty average fighting skills. Not to harp on the fight, because fights can be boring, and TUF is essentially a training camp, but the fight was in no way helped by the drab gray trunks. We all know personalities sell fights. How are these guys supposed to display any uniqueness when dressed exactly the same? Not only did the UFC upset almost everyone by eliminating their ability to get sponsors, but they also took away any individuality that a fighter may have displayed via their trunks.
Reebok chose some horrible colors. Black with white, or white with black are your only uniform options as a UFC fighter. These things seriously look like the original “biker” short of the 80s. They are unflattering and worse, the same for everyone. I’m assuming they will start to expand with colors, but so far, six months into the rebranding, it’s terrible. The fighters are generic and hard to tell apart for a casual fan. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of the NASCAR style trunks prior to Reebok, but a fighter’s colors are important. It’s part of the individual fighter’s brand. Fans remember colors. I loved Bret Hart because he wore pink and I thought that made him tough. I hated Cheick Kongo because he wore blue Muay Thai trunks with the silly drawstring. The point is that I remember the fighter because of the specificity of the outfit. I couldn’t pick Marcin Wrzosek out of a line-up and I’ve watched every episode of TUF 22.
The corner men are now wearing pajamas. Have you seen these outfits up close? They’re paper-thin. Remember when Lulu Lemon made those see-through yoga pants? I guess Reebok bought the template. The corner men look like they’re getting ready to go to sleep in the 20’s. All they need is one of those starched up long pointy hats.
Finally, the Reebok emblem looks like a vagina. Am I the only person who has pointed this out? I can’t be. Maybe it’s because I live with a doctor that specializes in women’s health, and thus I have a model of a vagina in my house of which to compare, but it looks exactly like one of those models I’ve seen on my kitchen table. For those of you who don’t know anatomy, it looks specifically like the uterus. The vagina is technically the canal from the external to the internal reproductive organs.
Bonus Bad Branding: NOS Energy Drink. NOS is terrible. The term “nos” was first brought into the nomenclature of Americana with the prestigious Fast and Furious movies. Paul Walker and Vin Diesel spoke the word “nos” a combined total of 457 times in that first movie. It is the energy drink most closely associated with supercharged douche bags. A few episodes ago on TUF, we saw Team USA dousing each other with NOS drinks after a victory, like the KC Royals after winning the World Series. NOS cans are displayed at every opportunity in the UFC. Yes, the UFC and the Fast and Furious franchise have a lot of crossover audience, but again NOS is a bottom of the barrel energy drink behind Monster, Rock Star, and Red Bull (probably not in that order). Not only does NOS taste terrible, but also the only people who actually drink NOS are guys who wear Axe Body Spray, and Danny Bonaduce.
UFC is trying to be the NFL with branding and selling its rights to everything. The replays are brought to you by Harley Davidson, the round is brought to you buy Bud Light, etc. Eventually, the UFC will lose its identity and instead of the NFL it will just be “football.” That’s bad.
The fight industry is based on creating stars with personality. Dressing these guys all the same is counterproductive. Even if the UFC is making big bucks on the fees, it’s not worth it. Selling the naming rights to everything is literally the definition of selling out, and that’s bad for business.
The Monday Night Raw on April 4th in Dallas, Texas, AKA the night after WrestleMania show, officially sold out immediately today. Most tickets were sold yesterday in the pre-sale, as unlike some concert promoters, WWE doesn’t restrict the pre-sale to certain limited blocks of tickets.
Upcoming Event Schedule
NEW JAPAN TAG TOURNAMENT ON NEW JAPAN WORLD FROM KOBE
Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Michael Bennett & Matt Taven
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin vs. Kazushi Sakuraba & Toru Yano
Saturday has WWE house shows in Augusta, GA (Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus, plus Big Show, New Day, Dudleys, Charlotte and Paige), WWE in Fayetteville, NC (Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose, Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler, Rusev vs. Ryback), NXT in Citrus Springs, FL and ROH in Fort Lauderdale at the War Memorial (Jay Lethal & Donovan Dijak vs. Young Bucks, Roderick Strong vs. Delirious for TV title, Matt Sydal vs. Jay Briscoe, Bobby Fish vs. ACH, Adam Cole vs. Kenny King, Moose vs. Dalton Castle vs. Cheeseburger vs. Rhett Titus, Mark Briscoe vs. Will Ferrara plus War Machine and Kyle O’Reilly).
LIVE ON NEW JAPAN WORLD FROM NAGOYA AT 2 A.M. EASTERN AND 11 P.M. PACIFIC LATE TONIGHT
Yuji Nagata & Tiger Mask & Captain New Japan & Sho Tanaka vs. Manabu Nakanishi & Ryuske Taguchi & Mascara Dorada & Yohei Komatsu
Jay White & David Finlay vs. Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian
Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima & Juice Robinson vs. A.J. Styles (who is unlikely to be wrestling due to his back injury) & Cody Hall & Yujiro Takahashi
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin & Kushida vs. Matt Taven & Michael Bennett & Gedo
Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows
Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tetsuya Naito & Evil
Kazushi Sakuraba & Toru Yano vs. Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga
Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Kazuchika Okada & Yoshi-Hashi
Sunday has WWE in Charlotte (Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus, plus New Day, Dudleys, Charlotte and Paige) and in Florence, SC (Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose, Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler, Rusev vs. Ryback).
Raw will be live Monday in North Charleston, SC. Nothing special has been announced for the show.
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday in Jacksonville.
Mick Foley’s talk on WWE creative and a look at all the new moves WWE tried this week on television is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. We look at the changes WWE attempted after a week of record low ratings, as well as the fan questionnaire sent out, what can be learned from it, and why they are asking exactly the wrong people.
We also look at the strengths and weaknesses of the current WWE business, as well as why the ratings may be important, but other factors are probably more important,when it comes to WWE’s next television deal. We look at the different potential changes in the landscape look at what aspects of business are and aren’t improving, as well as WWE’s business in the big picture.
He also update the situation with A.J. Styles, and the New Japan tag team tournament with standings and notes on the tournament matches over the past week.
We also look at the TLC PPV update, more on La Sombra in WWE, questions about all the shoulder injuries, WWE security at live shows, Cena movie release, Brad Maddox firing, Maddox’s WWE history, talents WWE has shown interest in, WWE overseas tour lineup and WWE weekend live event notes and business.
We have a look at the debut of the new Rizin promotion, major announcements for the first weekend of shows, the tournament, just how big Bob Sapp vs Akebono was the first time.
We also have a story on the domestic abuse claims by the girlfriend of Tomoaki Honma, and his response.
We look at the realities of the free agency of Benson Henderson, judging of the key fights, as well as full rundown of UFC’s debut in South Korea this past week.
We’ve got notes of TNA’s canceled tour of India, notes on the death of Tommy Gilbert and El Bello Greco, along with a feature on Stan Holek, a member of two of the most decorated tag teams of the 50s and 60s, the Lisowski Brothers with Crusher and the Neilson Brothers with Art Neilson. We look at the unique reason why all of his success was as a tag team wrestler, his biggest rivals, and his 13 runs as world tag team champion.
We’ve got a feature on the retirement of Act Yasukawa and the sad reason it happened.
We’ve also got the awards ballot for the 2015 awards and information on how well Hell in a Cell did this year on PPV.
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@wrestlingobserver.com” target=”_blank”>dave@wrestlingobserver.com
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If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.
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. 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.
UFC’s YouTube channel has put up a lot of hype videos for next week’s three cards, including episode #1 of UFC Embedded for Thursday’s “Paige and Sage” Fight Pass card, a preview of the Embedded-branded countdown show for UFC 194, Paige Vanzant vs. Alex Chambers from UFC 191 as a free fight to hype the Fight Pass card, Robin Black’s technical breakdown of Aldo vs. McGregor for The Fight Network, and a promo pushing that the winner of Aldo-McGregor joins Ronda Rousey on the EA Sports UFC 2 cover.
WWE
A note on the Stampede Wrestling shows added to WWE Network this week: A number of people have been commenting on just how good they look. The shows were shot on film (presumably 16 millimeter) and it looks as if WWE has the original reels and got those re-scanned in HD instead of converting old transfers to standard definition video tape. That would mean that these are the first older wrestling shows available in HD. 16mm or better film is effectively higher resolution than HD, which is why old movies (as well as TV shows shot on film) look so stunning when released in HD for the first time.
WWE’s “Owen: Hart of Gold” Owen Hart set will be released this Tuesday on DVD and Blu-Ray and can be pre-ordered now. WWE released a teaser of the documentary (and “Owen Tales” rib story special features) on the network during the week.
UFC/MMA
Shooto Brasil airs on UFC Fight Pass starting at 5 pm eastern today. UFC has been pushing the fact that Michael Bisping will be doing commentary far more than any of the fighters on the card who, quite frankly, are virtual unknowns in North America. Main event is a Lightweight title bout between Ronys Torres and Wallace Lopes.
The Fight Network in Canada will air UFC 189, probably the card of the year, tomorrow at 9 pm eastern. They’ll replay it several times over the next week.
Meisha Tate had lots to say since she was shut out of a title shot in favor of Holly Holm, but now believes with Rousey’s loss to Holm it shakes up the division and she may get her title shot anyways.
If you wondered how well, or in this case how little referees are paid to work the UFC matches. Check this article out. Big John’s UFC 194 pay.
On the latest episode of the 6:05 Superpodcast, David Bixenspan and Brian Last talk about Vince Russo’s earliest days in wrestling with his radio show, the most horrifying botched spot they’ve ever seen, Ole Anderson as a Hall of Fame candidate, the real story behind the AWA Team Challenge Series, and much more.
Metro Pro Wrestling returns to the Turner Rec Center on Saturday night, December 5 with “Yoga Monster” Mike Sydal vs. The Math Magician; Tag Team Championship Elimination Match: The King Brothers (c) vs. The American Bulldogs vs. The Commission vs. Kobra Kai Dojo; Kansas Championship Match: Redwing (c) vs. Kraig Keesaman; Central States Championship Match: Ace Steel (c) vs. “Rock ‘n Roll Express’s” Ricky Morton and 60-minute Iron Man Match for the Metro Pro Championship – Jeremy Wyatt (c) vs. Mark Sterling. If Wyatt loses, he is fired!
Tyler Breeze distracts Dolph Ziggler into the ignominy of losing a match to The Miz, thus setting up a presumed rubber match between the two at TLC. Hopefully they’ll remember to give Tyler an entrance this time.
The Miz defeated Dolph Ziggler by pinfall (7:13)
Tyler Breeze and Summer Rae are already at ringside as the show opens to take in this clash of the titans from the comfort of their “VIP Lounge”. Dolph was tasked with confronting the pair upon his entrance to the ring, which consisted of him standing in front of them forever and unconvincingly selling his apparent rage. At one point, he actually held both fists by his sides and shook them in anger. Maybe hit the guy, or something? I know Dolph is dumb, but those VIP ropes do not in fact create an impenetrable velvet forcefield. At least knock over their drinks again. Really lame.
“The Zig Man”, as The Ryback likes to call him, does however throw his hoodie at the gorgeous ones after referee Mike Chioda rings the bell. Summer is not impressed. What a badass.
Perfectly acceptable TV match here, albeit with a weak finish. Miz used a referee-enforced rope break to cut off Dolph’s early shine, before throwing him shoulder-first into the ringpost to start the heat. Miz continued to work the shoulder after a commercial break, prompting one loud and eager Dolph fan in the crowd to try and get a “Let’s Go Ziggler” chant going. I reckon about five people joined in.
Ziggler’s comeback begins with a dropkick to counter a Miz flying nothing. This leads us quickly into a pretty decent near-falls exchange, ending with Dolph hitting a Fame Asser for two, after a second failed Skull Crushing Finale attempt from Miz.
Miz rolls out of the ring after this near-miss to collect himself. Dolph goes to fetch his opponent, but gets distracted by Tyler upon re-entry, allowing Miz to kick him and finally hit the Skull Crushing Finale for the win. Looks like we’re getting the Dolph/Tyler rubber match at TLC.
Sasha Banks w/Naomi and Tamina defeated Alicia Fox w/Brie Bella by submission (2:55)
Continuing the enthrallingly one-sided gang warfare between these two factions. Fox lost to Naomi thanks to a distraction finish a fortnight ago on this very show, while Sasha triumphed over Brie in similar circumstances on RAW. The story, in other words, is that Team BAD is using the numbers game to their advantage, in the absence of the Bellas’ “fearless” leader, Nikki.
Fox, for the record, works babyface again here, as did Brie on Monday night. Naomi distracted Lil’ Naitch early, allowing Tamina to superkick Alicia in the head from the outside – Foxy’s incredible sixhead providing her with a, quite frankly, unmissable target.
Briefest of brief comebacks from the honorary Bella, culminating in a sloppy tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Naomi tries the distraction again, but Sasha’s attempt at the always devastating schoolboy fails.
Alicia then voluntarily distracts herself, booting Tamina off the apron, before attempting a bodyslam and getting backcracked and Bank Statement-ed for the submission. Super-short, awkwardly worked match, that only existed to further drive home the aforementioned storyline. Such as it is.
Ryback defeated Bo Dallas by pinfall (4:11)
Bo gets fatter every time I see him now. Which is mercifully rarely. Tom Phillips makes reference to this in the most awkward way possible, segueing from talking about how poor Bo is at making friends in the WWE with the line: “He’s the type of guy who goes to the Hershey’s Chocolate Factory by himself.” What!?
Byron then goes on to speculate that Bo may have thought there was “inspiration in chocolate”, to which Tom replies “It shows!” I always regret the fleeting moments when I don’t tune these two geeks out.
Ryback misses a big (guy) splash early, allowing Bo to hit a DDT. Although Ryback’s kickout sends Bo flying right out of the ring, he still treats us to a victory lap anyway. So much jiggle.
“Flyback” (thanks, Byron) hits a missile dropkick, followed by a delayed vertical. He signals for the Meathook, but Bo rolls to the ropes to escape. Ryback rushes him and becomes the second of three babyfaces on this show to pay for it with an ensuing heat segment. Top work, road agents.
Bo’s heat is dull and uninspiring as always, which he tries to mask by screaming at the crowd and at his fallen foe. He yells at Ryback: “ARE YOU HUNGRY!?” Ryback promptly responds with a Shellshock for the pinfall victory.
– We get a recap of the main event storyline from RAW, climaxing with the newly-formed League of Nations standing tall at the show’s close.
Titus O’Neil defeated Stardust by pinfall (5:46)
Fortunately, Darren Young is not on commentary for this highly-anticipated rematch of last week’s countout win for The Big Deal. Tom, by the way, refers to this as the night’s “featured contest” on more than one occasion. Okay. I guess calling it the main event would be a bit Russian doll-y.
Shine for Titus to start with, consisting of a slam and – you guessed it – forehand chops in the corner aplenty!
Stardust then becomes heel #3 to take advantage of a rope break to kick off the heat segment of the match. He intersperses some hissing – and a cartwheel, at one point – to interrupt the tedium.
Titus blocks an attempted punch to spur his comeback, which he performs with Stardust’s silver paint all over one side of his bald dome, before hitting the Clash of the Titus for the win.
Final Thoughts
A second “featured contest” in three weeks for Titus. Unfortunately for him, both took place on Main Event. And he’s not getting any better as a worker.
This was an unremarkable show really, capped by a decent Dolph/Miz opener that was unfortunately marred by yet another distraction finish. At least it served a purpose in storyline however, as we look set to get a third singles match between Ziggler and Breeze at the TLC PPV. The result of that match, if it goes down, will tell us a lot about Tyler’s future career trajectory.
St. Louis, Missouri: – Man Mountain Dean beat Ernie Dusek – Gus Sonnenberg beat Tiny Roebuck – Joe Dusek and Paul Jones wrestled to a draw – Ernie Zeller beat Jules Strongbow – Emil Dusek beat Hank Metheny
1940
Kansas City, Kansas: – Orville Brown and Lee Wykoff wrestled to a 1-1 draw – Steve Brody beat Jimmy Coffield in 2 out of 3 falls – Andy Mexiner defeated Jack Hader dq – Ray Schwartz beat Sammy Feeback
1965
Omaha, Nebraska: – AWA Champion Mad Dog Vachon beat Don Jardine (The Spoiler) – Mongolian Stomper beat Harley Race – George Drake beat Frisco Montana – Pampero Firpo beat Ivan Kalmikoff dq
1970
St. Louis, Missouri: – Terry Funk won a 15-man Battle Royal – Rocky Johnson & Dick the Bruiser defeated Nick Bockwinkel & Blackjack Lanza by disqualification – Terry Funk defeated Stan Stasiak – Pat O’Connor pinned Lord Alfred Hayes – Ox Baker pinned Les Thornton – Bob Brown pinned Bob Backlund – Jerry Oates and Khosrow Vaziri defeated Tank Patton & Johnny Starr
1976
Green Bay, Wisconsin: – The Crusher beat Mad Dog Vachon – Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Pierre Poisson & Moose Morowski – Baron Von Raschke beat Billy Francis dq – Peter Maivia beat Blackjack Lanza – Pedro Morales beat Roger Kirby
1977
Memphis, Tennessee: – Bill Dundee & Norvell Austin defeated Dennis Condrey & Phil Hickerson to win the AWA Southern Tag Team Titles – Jerry Lawler defeated Jimmy Valiant for the AWA Southern Heavyweight Title
1984
Osaka, Japan: – Adrian Adonis & Dick Murdock beat Antonio Inoki & Tatsumi Fujinami to win the NJ MSG Tag League tournament
1988
Memphis, Tennessee: – AWA Champion Jerry Lawler beat Jimmy Garvin dq – World Class Light Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett beat Eric Embry – Samoan Swat Team beat Michael Hayes & Ricky Morton – Robert Fuller & Jimmy Golden beat Bill Dundee & Wendell Cooley – Steve Cox beat Texas Champion Iceman King Parsons – CWA Champion Brian Lee beat Don Bass – Sid Vicious beat Scott Steiner – The Beast beat Alan Reynolds – RPMs beat Ken Raper & Todd Morton
1997
Tokyo, Japan: – Toshio Kawada & Akira Taue defeated Mitsuharu Misawa & Jun Akiyama to win the AJ Real World tag tournament
2004
Orlando, Florida: – Chris Harris & James Storm defeated Elix Skipper & Christopher Daniels in a steel cage – Eric Young & Bobby Roode defeated BG James & Ron Killings to win the NWA World Tag Team Championship
2014
Tijuana, Mexico: – Atlantis defeatd Negro Casas to win the WWA Jr Lightheavyweight title – Bestia 666 & Damian 666 defeated Rayman & Rey Horus to win the tag title – Lady Apache beat Datura to win the Women’s title
New Japan Pro Wrestling today reported that A.J. Styles is officially off the rest of the current tour due to his herniated disc in his lower back.
It was reported in Japan that he has returned home to Gainesville, GA. At the show earlier today in Kobe, the company officially announced him as off the rest of the tour, while up until this point they had been acting as through the injury was a day-to-day thing.
ROH officials are hopeful that Styles will be ready on 12/18 for his title match with Jay Lethal on the Final Battle PPV.
New Japan announced today that Styles would return on 1/4 for his Tokyo Dome match with Shinsuke Nakamura.
New Japan likely had to re-book several B block matches to get to the ending that they wanted.
The final night of the round-robin tournament is tonight in Nagoya which airs live on New Japan World starting at 2 a.m. Eastern time. We will have live coverage of the show on the site.
The winner of the A block faces the winner of the B block on 12/9 in Sendai.
Currently, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin are “in the clubhouse” finishing with a 4-2 record and in first place in the A block. Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma face Kazuchika Okada & Yoshi-Hashi with both teams having 3-2 records. If Okada & Yoshi-Hashi win, then Tanahashi & Elgin go to the finals since they won the head-to-head match on 11/21 in Tokyo. If Makabe & Honma win, they go to the finals based on beating Tanahashi & Elgin on 11/27 in Hiroshima.
In the B block, both Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata and Tetsuya Naito & Evil have 4-1 records, and by the strangest of coincidences, they are wrestling tonight. So the winner of that match goes to the finals.
Three more matches in the World Tag League took place early on December 4 in Kagawa. Only a few more days until the World Tag League finals, and two shows away from deciding the finals. Every match is becoming more important as we wind this tournament down!
Block A: Manabu Nakanishi and Yuji Nagata vs. Kazarian and Daniels
There wasn’t a lot to this match, and most of it was just dull. Nagata worked on Daniels for a very long time. Addiction made a brief comeback after Nakanishi was tagged in. Daniels shoved Nakanishi to the floor then used the ropes to pin Nagata.
Block A: Hiroshi Tanahashi and Michael Elgin vs. Tama Tonga and Bad Luck Fale
Fine match but it felt like it dragged on a bit. Elgin and Fale did a lot of big guy power spots. Elgin and Tanahashi made their comeback but Fale and Tonga made a comeback. They isolated Elgin but he made comeback until getting cut off by a Fale lariat. Then in somewhat of a surprise, Fale pinned Elgin after a spear and a lariat combo.
Block B: Tomohiro Ishii and Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Tencozy
A lot of back and forth. Good stuff for the most part, but at this stage of the tournament it’s all been done. Some good double team maneuvers towards the end of the match though by Ishii and Nakamura. Ishii tried to whip Nakamura into Kojima but he dodged and hit a lariat on Ishii. Nakamura rebounded and hit a tope rope boma ye, then followed with another for the win.
More New Begining coverage is on the menu for today’s New Japan on AXS, as we return after two weeks with a match of the year contender. The most interesting thing to remember on this show is that Tomoaki Honma was never scheduled to be on this show – Togi Makabe was set to defend the NEVER title against Ishii, but pulled out the day of the show due to suffering a flu. Fate is a funny thing sometimes.
Today’s bouts are from the February 14, 2015 New Beginnings show in Sendai.
Kota Ibushi and Tetsuya Naito vs. Toru Yano and Kazushi Sakuraba kicks things off. I’ve said this before, but man has Naito totally changed his look and persona in the last few months. This was only about ten months ago, but Naito has changed himself so much in that timespan this looks like a match from years ago, especially when you consider Ibushi’s been gone for a while. Ibushi and Sakuraba had some cool exchanges. It’s unfortunate that Ibushi and Sakuraba’s proposed match at the Toyko Dome isn’t taking place as they had some pretty good chemistry. Considering I’ve seen many World Tag League matches in the last couple of weeks which feature formulaic, solid wrestling, this was refreshing. A really good match with everyone getting some shine, and didn’t feel formulaic in the least bit. Everyone worked hard, even Yano, and that made this an exciting bout. Yano did his shoving opponent into the ref/low blow spot, but Naito transitioned during the execution and pinned Yano in a flash pin. Nice to see Naito beat Yano at his own game.
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto and Katsuyori Shibata took on the Bullet Club, consisting of Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, and Tama Tonga. This was fine, but felt like I’ve seen it before. A better version of a six man tag you’d see on any New Japan house show this year. Tanahashi gave Tama Tonga the slingblade, high fly flow, then pinned him
Main event hype time. Ishii said that he knew that Makabe couldn’t fight him due to getting the flu, but he didn’t know why he was facing Honma since he just lost to Ibushi a few days ago. He hasn’t thought much on Honma as his eyes were only on Makabe heading into this fight.
The match aired, and it hurt. Hurt bad. These two chopped and slapped the crap outta each other, repeatedly dropped each other on their heads and decapitated them with lariats in one hell of a match. Dave gave this ***** when it aired earlier this year, and I would have to agree with his. It’ll be on many people’s top 10 lists this year, and not a bad match to watch this time of year considering the Observer awards coming next month. Just a hellacious battle that proves that you can book a guy to lose all the time, but he can still be over if he’s given the opportunity. Honma very rarely pins a guy, but he gives it his all so much in every match people are into him, and makes his matches that much more special. The near falls in this match were so incredible. Even though you KNEW Honma wasn’t winning, this match was so great in making you believe he might be the next NEVER champion. After Honma kicks out of a sliding D to the side of the head (!), Ishii lays him out with a brainbuster and pins him in an excellent match.
Honma questioned himself why he couldn’t win in a situation like this. He promised a win next time. He’s not going anywhere, and that’s not changing anytime soon. Ishii says it’s only a temporary belt and won’t wear it until he beats Makabe. Prepare yourself.
Ishii, again a man of few words, says he doesn’t have much thoughts on the match. He wants to surpass the IC title with the Never title. He wants to win the belt and wear it in front of Makabe. Deep down, he feels the same with all opponents, and when he faces them he wants them to be fired up just as much as he does.
Excellent show this week, very much recommended if you haven’t seen this match yet. Be warned, however, as it’s not for the weak of heart.
Bellator MMA is back on Spike TV at 9 pm eastern with it’s final event of the year, from San Jose University Events Centre. Former Strikeforce Champion Josh Thomson hopes to get closer to a title shot in Bellator with a win over virtual unknown Villaseca. Also on the card is an interesting Featherweight match between former WSOF Champion Georgi Karakhanyan and perennial Bellator contender Daniel Weichel, coming off a loss to then-champion Patricio Friere. And speaking of the Pitbulls, Patricio’s brother Patricky returns to the Bellator cage in a Lightweight fight with another longtime Bellator competitor Derek Anderson. Brian Rogers makes his Light Heavyweight debut against former Strikeforce fighter Virgil Zwicker. Rounding out the card is a Lightweight fight between unbeaten Adam Piccolotti and Mario Soto, with only one loss on his record.
The prelims start at 7 pm eastern and can be viewed at Spike.com. We’ll have results here after they take place and then full play by play and results of the main card once it starts on Spike.
Light Heavyweights Virgil Zwicker (14-4-1) vs Brian Rogers (11-8)
First round: Zwicker missed weight. He doesn’t look in shape at all. They traded punches. They traded again. Another big trade. Neither is getting the better of it. Hard body kick by Rogers. Rogers slammed him down into side control and kept him down the rest of the round. 10-9 Rogers.
Second round: Rogers kicked him in the groin hard and Zwicker went down. This was a super nasty kick. Zwicker is up and going to be able to continue. Zwicker with a low kick. Nice right by Zwicker. Low kicks by Zwicker. Rogers threw a kick and lost his balance but got back up. Takedown by Rogers. He got his back. Rogers moved to full mount and throwing punch after punch. Zwicker is in trouble. He’s working for a head and arm choke from side control, and got it.
Lightweights Adam Piccolotti (6-0) vs Mario Soto (6-1)
First round: These are two local fighters. Piccolotti has his back in the piggy back position. Now he’ got him down and has his back. Now he’s moved to mount. He’s working for a head and arm choke. Who is the agent tongiht? Trying to steal finishes form the opening match. Soto tried an ankle lock but Piccolotti reversed to his back. Soto out of trouble and back up. Left and right by Piccolotti. Piccolotti with some punches. Piccolotti 10-9.
Second round: Piccolotti took him down off a kick and throwing punches on the ground. Now he’s in full mount. Now he’s got his back. Piccolotti just throwing punches. Piccolotti workihg for a choke. Piccolotti gave it up to throw more punches. Sotob leeding from elbows and Piccolotti working for a choke and looks like he has it. Soto tapped. Soto was busted up pretty bad from the elbows.
Lightweights Patricky Freire (14-6) vs Derek Anderson (12-2)
First round: Glad Coker doesn’t hate Ole Anderson, or else he’d be Derek Kennedy. Trading hard shots. Freire smiled. Anderson landed a good right. High kick by Anderson. Right by Anderson. Anderson got inside and landed some more. Both now missing a lot. Pitbull tried for a takedown, Anderson went for a choke but Pitbull escaped and got his back. He’s in the piggy back position now. Both to their feet. Anderson with a nice slam and Pitbull reversed to the top in side control. Now Pitbull on top with an elbow. Andeson reversed to the top. Pitbull up. Good round. 10-9 Anderson.
Second round: Anderson landing. Pitbull starring to land and hurt him. Pitbull low kicks and a nice uppecut and jumping kick. Body kick by Anderson. Pitbull landed a nice series. Anderson with a body kick. Knee by Pitbull. Pitbull took him down into side control. Pitbull has his back. He’s got a body triangle. Pitbull with punches. Pitbull’s round so 19-19.
Third round: Anderson landing punches. Head kick by Anderson. More punches by Anderson. Pitbull with a takedown. Anderson back up. Pitbull got in and Anderson tied him up. A knee, two punches, and a low kick by Anderson. Knee by Pitbull. Both trading. Pitbull with elbows as Anderson shot for a takedown. Pitbull reversed a takedown to the top but Anderson back up. Anderson going for a takedown and Pitbull switched to the top. Anderson tried a guillotine at the bell. Close round. Anderson 29-28 but this could go either way.
Scores: 29-28 Anderson 29-28 Pitbull 29-28 Anderson
Featherweights Georgi Karakhanyan (24-4-1) vs Daniel Weichel (35-9)
First round: Weichel with a body kick. Weichel kicked him low. Weichel landing good low kicks. Weichel with some punches. Kharakhanyan slapped him in the face. Weichel 10-9.
Second round: Weichel with a front kick. Karakhanyan with a front kick. Weichel landing punches. Weichel with more punches. Karakhanyan wih a spin kick to the head. Body kick had by Weichel. Another body kick by Weichel. Another body kick by Weichel. Body kickj by Weichel. Weichel landed a left. Weichel 20-18.
Third round: Weichel with a punch and body kick. Kharakhanyan with a body kick. Nice spin kick to the head by Kharakhanyan. Right landed by Weichel. Front kick by Weichel. Right by Weichel. Weichel continues to land. A nice exchange . Weichel still landing more. Weichel landing much more. Kharakhanyan’s left leg all bruised up. Kharakanyan tried a spin kick and missed. Weichel 30-27.
Scores: All three have it 30-27 for Weichel
Main Event –
Lightweights Josh Thomson (21-8) vs Pablo Villaseca (10-1)
First round: Thomson obviously is the star of the show. Body kick by Thomson. Takedown by Thomson. Thomson working for a triangle. Now he’s got an armbar. Now an uma plata. Villaseca escaped from all the attempts. Knee by Villaseca. Knee by Thomson. Low kick by Villaseca. Villaseca got a takedown. Thomson back up. Villaseca got him down momentarily agan. Villaseca with a knee to the groin. Thomson with a takedown. Thomson 10-9.
Second round: Thomson with a takedown and landed some blows. Thomson trying to get mount. But Villaseca managed to block the attempt. Thomson with lots of punches. Thomson landing a lot of punches. Thomson is landing punch after punch and it’s about to be stopped. And it’s over. 3:59
After the fight they Jimmy Smith asked Thomson about facing Will Brooks for the title. Interestingly, he kind of blew it off, saying he’ll fight Brooks but right now he said the hype was for a fight with Michael Chandler. That was an interesting response.
We’re looking for reports from tonight’s WWE house show in Johnson City, TN (Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus plus Big Show, New Day, Dudleys, Charlotte and Paige) and NXT in Largo, FL at Dave Meltzer
NEW JAPAN WORLD PRO WRESTLING RETURNS ON AXS TV AT 9 P.M. EASTERN
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Tomoaki Honma for Never Open weight title – This was one of the best matches of 2015
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows & Tama Tonga
BELLATOR TONIGHT ON SPIKE AT 9 P.M. EASTERN FROM THE SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY GYM
Adam Piccolotti (155.8) vs. Mario Soto (155)
Virgil Zwicker (207.2) vs. Brian Rogers (205.8) – Zwicker missed weight and fined 20% of purse
Derek Anderson (155.8) vs. Patricky Pitbull Freire (155.6)
Daniel Weichel (144.8) vs. Georgi Karakhanyan (146)
Josh Thomson (155.4) vs. Pablo Villaseca (155)
CMLL LIVE AT WWW.CLAROSPORTS.COM FROM ARENA MEXICO AT 9:30 P.M. EASTERN (this may be geo-blocked but it hasn’t been the last several week)
Oro Jr. & Soberano vs. Arkangel de la Muerte & Canelo Casas
Angel de Oro & Brazo de Plata & Maximo Sexy vs. Ephesto & Kraneo & Luciferno
Euforia & Niebla Roja & Ultimo Guerrero vs. Barbaro Cavernario & Mephisto & Thunder
Dragon Lee vs. Kamaitachi for CMLL lightweight title
Mistico & Super Parka & Volador Jr. vs. Felino & Negro Casas & Shocker
AXS FIGHTS AT 10 P.M. EASTERN WITH LEGACY FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS FROM BOSSIER CITY, LA AT DIAMOND JACKS HOTEL & CASINO
Kalvin Hackney (146.9) vs. Cody Walker (146.4)
David Bosnick (148.9) vs. Kevin Aguilar (143.9)
Jonathan Martinez (127.9) vs. Matt Schenll (125.9)
Ariel Beck (124.9) vs. Andrea Lee (124.9) for the women’s flyweight title
Alex Morono (169.1) vs. Derrick Krants (169.3) for the welterweight title
NEW JAPAN TAG TOURNAMENT ON NEW JAPAN WORLD TOMORROW FROM KOBE
Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Michael Bennett & Matt Taven
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin vs. Kazushi Sakuraba & Toru Yano
Saturday has WWE house shows in Augusta, GA (Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus, plus Big Show, New Day, Dudleys, Charlotte and Paige), WWE in Fayetteville, NC (Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose, Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler, Rusev vs. Ryback), NXT in Citrus Springs, FL and ROH in Fort Lauderdale at the War Memorial (Jay Lethal & Donovan Dijak vs. Young Bucks, Roderick Strong vs. Delirious for TV title, Matt Sydal vs. Jay Briscoe, Bobby Fish vs. ACH, Adam Cole vs. Kenny King, Moose vs. Dalton Castle vs. Cheeseburger vs. Rhett Titus, Mark Briscoe vs. Will Ferrara plus War Machine and Kyle O’Reilly).
LIVE ON NEW JAPAN WORLD FROM NAGOYA AT 2 A.M. EASTERN AND 11 P.M. PACIFIC LATE TOMORORW NIGHT
Yuji Nagata & Tiger Mask & Captain New Japan & Sho Tanaka vs. Manabu Nakanishi & Ryuske Taguchi & Mascara Dorada & Yohei Komatsu
Jay White & David Finlay vs. Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian
Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima & Juice Robinson vs. A.J. Styles (who is unlikely to be wrestling due to his back injury) & Cody Hall & Yujiro Takahashi
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin & Kushida vs. Matt Taven & Michael Bennett & Gedo
Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows
Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tetsuya Naito & Evil
Kazushi Sakuraba & Toru Yano vs. Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga
Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Kazuchika Okada & Yoshi-Hashi
Sunday has WWE in Charlotte (Roman Reigns vs. Sheamus, plus New Day, Dudleys, Charlotte and Paige) and in Florence, SC (Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose, Tyler Breeze vs. Dolph Ziggler, Rusev vs. Ryback).
Raw will be live Monday in North Charleston, SC. Nothing special has been announced for the show.
Smackdown and Main Event will be taped on Tuesday in Jacksonville.
Mick Foley’s talk on WWE creative and a look at all the new moves WWE tried this week on television is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. We look at the changes WWE attempted after a week of record low ratings, as well as the fan questionnaire sent out, what can be learned from it, and why they are asking exactly the wrong people.
We also look at the strengths and weaknesses of the current WWE business, as well as why the ratings may be important, but other factors are probably more important,when it comes to WWE’s next television deal. We look at the different potential changes in the landscape look at what aspects of business are and aren’t improving, as well as WWE’s business in the big picture.
He also update the situation with A.J. Styles, and the New Japan tag team tournament with standings and notes on the tournament matches over the past week.
We also look at the TLC PPV update, more on La Sombra in WWE, questions about all the shoulder injuries, WWE security at live shows, Cena movie release, Brad Maddox firing, Maddox’s WWE history, talents WWE has shown interest in, WWE overseas tour lineup and WWE weekend live event notes and business.
We have a look at the debut of the new Rizin promotion, major announcements for the first weekend of shows, the tournament, just how big Bob Sapp vs Akebono was the first time.
We also have a story on the domestic abuse claims by the girlfriend of Tomoaki Honma, and his response.
We look at the realities of the free agency of Benson Henderson, judging of the key fights, as well as full rundown of UFC’s debut in South Korea this past week.
We’ve got notes of TNA’s canceled tour of India, notes on the death of Tommy Gilbert and El Bello Greco, along with a feature on Stan Holek, a member of two of the most decorated tag teams of the 50s and 60s, the Lisowski Brothers with Crusher and the Neilson Brothers with Art Neilson. We look at the unique reason why all of his success was as a tag team wrestler, his biggest rivals, and his 13 runs as world tag team champion.
We’ve got a feature on the retirement of Act Yasukawa and the sad reason it happened.
We’ve also got the awards ballot for the 2015 awards and information on how well Hell in a Cell did this year on PPV.
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@wrestlingobserver.com” target=”_blank”>dave@wrestlingobserver.com
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. 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.
Gleison Tibau would be the first drug test failure since the USADA/UFC drug testing program began (Mirko Cro Cop was not a test failure). Tibau has been provisionally suspended based on the results of an out of competition drug test. The nature of the test failure has yet to be announced.
As noted yesterday, the Aldo vs. McGregor Countdown show will be on Saturday at 3 p.m. Eastern on FOX. The Countdown show on FOX means a big audience will be watching.
Joey Ryan has gotten a ridiculous amount of mainstream publicity for a spot in his match with Danshoku Dino in Japan. It’s gotten coverage in ESPN, Maxim, the New York Daily News, The Soup, Fox Sports, SB Nation, Deadspin and Vice. Here is an article on it and here is the video (the article has an old video linked)
The pre-sale for the Raw after WrestleMania on 4/4 in Dallas sold out today. There will be more tickets put on sale to the public tomorrow, but that will also sell out immediately.
I just watched the 3/30/84 episode of Mid South Wrestling on the WWE Network. Granted, that was a few weeks before the most successful period in the history of that company (the last Stampede matches with Bill Watts & Stagger Lee vs. The Midnight Express), but my God, the promos, focus and character development between then and now is like night and day. They are still missing the boat not releasing the shows in a weekly episodic manner because scatter shot shows here and there only give you about 30% of the flavor of the stories and personalities.
UFC/MMA
Dana White has been everywherebuilding up the Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm rematch as well as plugging UFC 194. What they are pushing is that Rousey is bigger than ever due to losing. There are metrics that confirm this but the real metrics that count we won’t know until she fights again. Beyond that everyone expects if Rousey vs. Holm takes place it’ll be the biggest fight in UFC history. They are pushing Holm as the great female combat sports athlete of all-time.
UFC announced a 2/21 FS 1 card in Pittsburgh at the Consol Energy Center.
The UFC show on 2/27 in London sold out the O2 Arena in 27 minutes. So much for the idea that Gegard Mousasi vs. Michael Bisping as a main event fans didn’t want to see.
WWE
Mick Foley did a Facebook post talking about his son being hired by WWE and said that his writings this past week had nothing to do with it. A key factor is that he did his son no favors with the writing team by writing that.
TNA has a taped PPV that starts airing tonight called TNA vs. The World. The main events are Great Muta vs. Ken Anderson, Sonjay Dutt vs. Ethan Carter III and James Storm vs. Magnus.
Bill Apter has a show on 12/19 in Philadelphia at 2 p.m. at PhilaMOCA at 531 N. 12th St. It’s a talk show with tickets $10 on the afternoon after the ROH Final Battle PPV show.
One has a show tomorrow in Phnom Penh, Cambodia headlined by Lowen Tyanes vs. Rasui Yakhyaev
The Fight Network in Canada is now airing Paragon Pro Wrestling.
Live Pro Wrestling on 2/20 in Cornwall, ONT at the Agora Centre.
CMLL from Tuesday night in Guadalajara: Furia Roja & Malefico b Explosivo & Star Black, Flyer & Leono& Starman b Artillero & Super Comando & Okumura, The Panther & Stigma & Triton b Puma King & Sangre Azteca & Tiger, Angel de Oro & Blue Panther & Stuka Jr. b Mephisto & Ephesto & Luciferno, Gran Guerrero & Euforia & Niebla Roja b Maximo Sexy & Mistico & Titan (thanks to Kris Zellner)
Absolute Intense Wrestling tomorrow night in Cleveland at the Dr. Martin Luther Church with Kikutaro vs. Colt Cabana, Tracy Smothers vs. Grado, Cliff Compton vs. Frankie Flynn, Matt Cross vs. Alex Daniels and more. They also run 12/18 in Cleveland at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel with Ethan Carter III vs. Chuck Taylor, plus an appearance by Scott Hall.
Alpha 1 Wrestling on 12/13 in Hamilton, ONT at 166 Green Mountain Rd. with Eric Young vs. Scotty O’Shea, Alessandro Del Bruno vs. TJ Perkins and more.
CHIKARA finishes 2015 tomorrow night at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia with Top Banana headlined by Chuck Taylor & Drew Gulak & Orange Cassidy vs. Kobald & Obariyon & Kodama.
Freelance Wrestling tonight in Chicago at the Bottom Lounge with Colt Cabana, Grado, Kikutaro and Joey Ryan at 10 p.m.
Kansas City, Kansas: – In a MWA Title match, Champion Orville Brown beat Sonny Myers 2 falls to 1 – Al Lovelock beat Yukon Eric (as Eric Holmback) – Ronnie Etchison beat Fred Blassie
1954
Cedar Rapids, Iowa: – Argentina Rocca beat Chest Bernard – Jim Dobie beat Mitsu Arakawa – Great Tor Yamato beat Harry Lewis
1958
Kansas City, Kansas: – no time limit match, Lou Thesz beat Bob Geigel – Cowboy Bob Ellis and Ray Villmer defeated Lee Henning and Bob Orton – Mighty Atlas beat Joe Scarpa
1965
Omaha, Nebraska: – Texas Death Match: AWA Champion Mad Dog Vachon beat Mr. Wrestling dq – Verne Gagne beat Haru Sasaki – Mitsu Arakawa drew Reggie Parks – Billy Red Cloud beat Gene Anderson
1970
Los Angeles, California: – Rey Mendoza defeated John Tolos to win the NWA United National Heavyweight Title
1971
Omaha, Nebraska: – Larry Hennig beat The Crusher – Midwest Champion Great Kusatsu beat Bill Miller – Ray Stevens beat Red Bastien – Jerry Miller drew Mad Russian Stan Pulaski – Ox Baker drew Reggie Parks
1972
Hiroshima, Japan: – Kintaro Oki defeated Bobo Brazil to win the JWA NWA Int. title
1976
Caguas, Puerto Rico: – Hercules Ayala & Victor Jovica defeated Higo Hamaguchi & Gordon Nelson to win the WWC North American Tag Team Title
1978
Memphis, Tennessee: – Jerry Lawler defeated Don Fargo to win the AWA Southern Heavyweight Title
1979
Baton Rouge, Louisiana: – Bill Watts defeated Mike George to win the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Title
1981
Denver, Colorado: – AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat Shiek Adnan – Hulk Hogan beat Jesse Ventura – Bobby Duncum beat Greg Gagne – Jim Brunzell beat Adrian Adonis – Tito Santana beat Bad Boy Brown
1992
Tokyo, Japan: – Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshio Kawada won the AJ Real World tag tournament from Terry Gordy & Steve Williams, thus winning the vacant Unified tag title
1993 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: – Kevin Sullivan & Tazmaniac defeated Tommy Dreamer & Shane Douglas (subbing for Johnny Gunn) to win the ECW Tag Team Titles
1999
Memphis, Tennessee: – Rico Constantino defeated Steve Bradley for the Memphis Power Pro Wrestling Heavyweight Title
2007
Mexico City, Mexico: – Mistico defeated Vangelis to win the National LHW title
2011
Greensboro, North Carolina: – ROH TV champ Jay Lethal defeated Adam Cole in a Proving Ground match – Eddie Edwards, El Generico and ROH Tag Team champions Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin defeated the Briscoes, Roderick Strong and Michael Elgin in an 80 minute Elimination match
Essex, England: – Jimmy Havoc defeated Cell to win the NWA (Hammerlock) UK Junior Heavyweight title
Tokyo, Japan: – KAI & Seiya Sanada defeated Masayuki Kono & Masakatsu Funaki to win the AJ World’s Strongest Tag League tournament
Santiago, Chile: – Super Crazy defeated Katastrofe to win the X-Law Junior Heavyweight title
ON DECEMBER 3 IN FLORIDA WRESTLING HISTORY (thanks to Barry Rose)
1956 – June Byers beat Therese Theis to retain the world women’s title (Tampa)
1956 – Betty Hawkins won five woman Battle Royal (Sarasota)
1958 – Ben & Mike Sharpe beat Enrique Torres & Sammy Berg (Miami)
1958 – Fabulous Moolah beat Kitty Adams to retain world women’s title (St. Petersburg)
1964 – Tarzan & Tim Tyler beat Hiro Matsuda & Bob Orton Sr. (Jacksonville)
1966 – The Infernos & J.C. Dykes beat Eddie Graham & Jose Lothario & Sammy Steamboat (Lakeland)
1968 – Jose Lothario & Wahoo McDaniel beat The Medics (Interns) (Tampa) and the semifinal was Lou Thesz & Joe Louis (Yes, that Joe Louis) & Sailor Art Thomas beat Great Malenko & Louie Tillet & Tarzan Tyler
1973 – Eddie Graham beat Dusty Rhodes via DQ (Orlando)
1974 – Cowboy Bill Watts beat Jerry Brisco to retain the Florida title (Fort Myers
1974 – Bob Roop beat Mike Graham (Tampa)
1975 – King Curtis Iaukea beat Jerry Brisco (Miami Beach)
1977 – Dusty Rhodes & Rocky Johnson double count out Lars Anderson & Killer Karl Kox (Ocala)
