Author: Dave Meltzer

THE ROUND-UP

The latest from the F4W Staff

ROH Field of Honor live results: Cole vs. Lethal vs. Tanahashi vs. Naito – Did Adam Cole continue his title reign or did the four-way prove fatal for the newest ROH World Champion? 

UFC Vancover Observer Picks: Carlos Condit, Paige VanZant, Anthony Pettis, more! – See who was a prognosticator and who was a fool! Spoiler alert, only one of us didn’t pick PVZ (it was Ace.)

WOR: Exciting UFC on FOX, Lesnar and Orton fallout, developmental questions, more! 8/28 – Dave and Bryan break down all the action from UFC Vancouver with some very exciting finishes, notes on CM Punk and his fight coming up in two weeks, Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton update, WWE developmental questions with no good answers and tons more!

Cody Rhodes pins Kurt Angle under the stars – Cody Rhodes defeats 1996 Olympic gold medalist Kurt Angle in a dream match-up that wouldn’t have been possible had Rhodes stayed in WWE. 

UFC On FOX 21 Vancouver live results: Demian Maia vs. Carlos Condit – Ace my have not prognoticated well this weekend, but his coverage is always hot!

WWE Abilene, TX, live results: Dean Ambrose vs. AJ Styles vs. Bray Wyatt – Ambrose survives a three-way dance and remains the WWE World Champion, and Natalya teams with Dana Brooke against Alicia Fox and Bekcy Lynch.  

NXT Jacksonville, FL, live results: Itami vs. Aries, Revival vs. Ciampa & Gargano – Bobby Roode, Ember Moon, and Hideo Itami pick up big wins. 

The Headbangers scheduled for SmackDown tag tournament – Mosh and Thrasher get the call from the way back machine to re-debut in the up-coming Smackdown tournament for the nickel belts.

WEEKEND LINE UP

AAA TRIPLEMANIA FROM ARENA CIUDAD IN MEXICO CITY ON SUNDAY AT 7 P.M. EASTERN

• Faby & Mary Apache vs. Averno & Chessman
• AAA Cup elimination match:  La Parka vs. Elegido vs. Taurus vs. Hernandez vs. Pimpinela Escarlata vs. El Hijo de Pirata Morgan vs. Daga vs. Super Fly vs. Zorro vs. Australian Suicide vs. Mamba vs. ?
• Jack Evans & Angelico defend AAA tag team titles against Paul London & Matt Cross, El Hijo del Fantasma & Fenix and Drago & Aerostar
• Rey Mysterio Jr. & Prince Puma & Dragon Azteca Jr. vs. Matanza Cueto & Mil Muertes & Marty the Moth Martinez
• Pentagon Jr. vs. Johnny Mundo for the Latin American heavyweight title
• El Texano Jr. vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Brian Cage for the AAA Mega heavyweight title
• Psycho Clown vs. Pagano mask vs. hair

We’re doing one poll for the weekend: [email protected].

•  Sunday’s TripleMania show from AAA

We’re looking for reports from these shows on Friday: [email protected]

• WWE in Abilene, TX (Smackdown crew plus Enzo, Cass, Sheamus, Darren Young and Neville) 
• NXT in Citrus Springs, FL
• Northeast Wrestling in Pittsfield, MA at Waconia Park (Cody Rhodes vs. Mike Bennett plus Jerry Lawler, Jeff Hardy, Jushin Liger, Matt Hardy and Mick Foley)

We’re looking for reports from these shows on Saturday: [email protected].

• WWE in San Angelo, TX (Smackdown crew plus Enzo, Cass, Sheamus, Darren Young and Neville)
• WWE in Puebla, Mexico (Raw crew plus Usos–Bayley is in this tour as well)
• NXT in Jacksonville, FL 
• Northeast Wrestling in Wappingers Falls, NY at Dutchess Stadium in what is traditionally the best attended indie show of the year (Kurt Angle vs. Cody Rhodes, Jeff Hardy vs. Jushin Liger, Jerry Lawler vs. Brooklyn Brawler, Sami Callihan vs. Matt Hardy, plus Maria Kanellis, Mike Bennett, Sami Callihan, Ryback, Jim Neidhart. Hornswoggle, Kamaitachi, Matt Taven and Velvet Sky

We’re looking for reports from these shows tonight: [email protected]

• WWE in San Antonio, TX (Smackdown crew plus Enzo, Cass, Chris Jericho, Sheamus, Darren Young and Neville)
• WWE in Leon, Guanajuato (Raw crew plus Usos)
• ROH at MCU Park in Brooklyn (Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito for ROH title, Michael Elgin vs. Donovan Dijak for IWGP IC title, Kyle O’Reilly vs. Katsuyori Shibata, Young Bucks & Yujiro Takahashi & Hangman Page vs. Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley & Lio Rush & ACH, Bobby Fish vs. Evil, Kushida vs. Dalton Castle, gauntlet match for tag team titles with Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian vs. Mark & Jay Briscoe vs. War Machine vs. All Night Express vs. Toru Yano & Gedo vs Cheeseburger & Will Ferrara)
• Northeast Wrestling on 8/28 in Bethany, CT at the NEW Arena (Cody Rhodes vs. Sami Callihan, Jushin Liger vs. Travis Gordon, Hanson vs. Kamaitachi) 

Raw will be Monday night from the Toyota Center in Houston. This will be the first week with a Smackdown Monday night house show, which takes place in Texarkana, TX.  The regular Smackdown crew will be there and John Cena is headlining the show.

Tuesday night will be Smackdown from Dallas. John Cena, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins are all advertised, but Reigns and Rollins are likely to be in dark matches and Cena may be as well.   

Figure Four Weekly: Figure Four Weekly 8/22/2016: Gawker destroyed by Hulk Hogan – While there had been hints that it could happen, it still came as a shock last week that, thanks to the series of events stemming from Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker Media, the flagship Gawker blog would be shutting down operations a few days later. It all stemmed from the bankruptcy auction for Gawker Media’s assets, where the bidders ended up being Ziff Davis and Unimodia, the subsidiary of Univision that oversees Fusion and its sister sites like The Onion, AV Club, and The Root… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

F4W YouTube Page: Tons of clips and full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come! Make sure you subscribe today!

Wrestling Observer Newsletter: August 29, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: UFC sale final, Summerslam results and fallout, more – Lorenzo Fertitta, the CEO and person who historically should be remembered as perhaps the most important figure in making MMA into a worldwide sport left the office for the final time on 8/17.

The UFC staff was all told to come for a meeting, and as it turned out, the guest of honor was busy at first and they had to regroup and come back later. Fertitta, 48, took a $2 million investment in 2001 to a $4 billion sale 15 years later. Aside from making a killing in business, he saved a sport that was on its deathbed in the U.S. The sale was officially completed with the money changing hands this past week, a similar letter to the one above was sent to all company employees, and the new era of UFC began with UFC 202… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected]. 

Rates for the United States are $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 [email protected]. 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 choose one free classic issue, or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.

WON BACK ISSUE: July 26, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Governor Jesse Ventura to referee SummerSlam main event, NSAC to evaluate UFC, tons more – With the official announcement of Jesse Ventura’s participation in SummerSlam as the referee for the main event came the expected debate over his involvement… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE

Harry Fujiwara, better known as Mr. Fuji and the Great Fuji passed away this morning at the age of 82. Fujiwara had a long run with WWF as a manager, playing a stereotypical Japanese role after many runs in the promotion as part of heel Japanese tag teams with either Professor Toru Tanaka and later Masa Saito. He was a solid headliner who worked virtually everywhere at one time or another and held both the U.S. and Canadian heavyweight titles. He had been living in Tennessee since his retirement from WWE in the mid-90s. Fujiwara began his career with 50th State Wrestling in Hawaii in 1962, and first came to the mainland in 1964 in California. He was best known for his role as a manager of Don Muraco, Demolition, Powers of Pain, Yokozuna, and Killer Khan, as well as endless matches on WWWF major arena midcards and small town main events with the likes of Chief Jay Strongbow and Tony Garea.

Matt Striker & Hugo Savinovich are doing the English language announcing for the TripleMania iPPV tonight, which says they weren’t permanently scarred by the atrocity that was the show last year. This year’s show actually looks quite good, and I know a lot of the Americans who have never done TripleMania are pretty excited as it’ll be either the largest or one of the largest crowds several of them have ever worked in front of.

Today is the 14th anniversary of a monumental MMA event, the Pride show at Tokyo National Stadium that drew 71,000 fans, still the all-time attendance record for MMA, headlined by Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Mirko Cro Cop, and also featuring Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Bob Sapp and Royce Gracie vs. Hidehiko Yoshida.

Two of the biggest pro wrestling events ever in Los Angeles, and as far as people wanting to buy tickets, the biggest of the last 50 years, had anniversaries over the weekend.

• On August 27, 1971, the Fred Blassie vs. John Tolos headlined show at the Los Angeles Coliseum drew 25,781 fans and set the all-time record live gate for U.S. pro wrestling as the culmination of one of the greatest angles in wrestling history, started when Tolos blinded Blassie with Monsel’s Powder on KCOP television a few months earlier. Bill Watts essentially copied that idea nine years later with Junkyard Dog vs. Michael Hayes and set the all-time indoor gate record at the Superdome. 
• On August 28, 1993, Konnan, suspended from wrestling in Mexico after losing a retirement match to Cien Caras due to the interference of Jake Roberts, headlined a three-way called La Revancha with Konnan vs. Caras vs. Roberts at the Los Angeles Sports Arena which drew the all-time record crowd for the building of 17,500 with 8,000 turned away at the door in what is still the most heated pro wrestling event I’ve ever been to live, and actually by a wide margin.  A music video from the show, the guy in the purple outfit who is really small is an 18-year-old Rey Misterio Jr.  Lots of an amazing Eddy Guerrero, the father of Volador Jr., (Volador), Santo, Octagon, Love Machine and the other stars of that era.

Thanks for all the nice comments on this week’s Observer. Our weekend Wrestling Observer Radio show is up with coverage of last night’s UFC show, more on Randy Orton having a job for life, C.M. Punk’s quest to become a UFC fighter and NXT.  

WWE

• The Headbangers are scheduled as the eighth team in the Smackdown tag team tournament and will most likely face Rhino & Heath Slater, although they could also face The Vaudevillains or Hype Bros. 
• For whatever this is worth, the cable guide for tomorrow on some places listed Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens for the Universal title as the main event. Probably a miscommunication regarding the four-way match which also includes Big Cass and Roman Reigns for the title that headlines tomorrow’s show.
• There’s a WrestleMania reference in this presidential election story here. (thanks to Chris Cruise)

UFC

• Carlos Condit certainly talked like a man who had one foot out the door at the post-show press conference after last night’s UFC show in Vancouver where he lost to Demian Maia in 1:52.
• Last night’s UFC on FOX did 2.22 million viewers based on the fast nationals. The number is normal range for a UFC summer show, but it’s a very misleading number.  It won’t the show the usual growth most likely because for UFC on FOX, the biggest audience is always drawn after 10 p.m., and the show ended at 10 p.m.  The short main event is never good for ratings.  Plus, several markets pre-empted the UFC for NFL preseason football, so the 2.22 million number is an NFL number in a few markets which inflates the number.  Even though it’s preseason, NFL competition is going to hurt a UFC TV event, probably significantly.  The show was second in the 18-49 demo but of the four networks, based on the overnights, FOX finished last with total viewers. 

In picks from last night:

• 4-1:  Mike Sempervive, Josh Nation, Ryan Frederick, Frontrow Brian
• 3-2:  Dave Meltzer, John Pollock, Mike Sawyer, David Bixenspan
• 2-3:  Steve Juon, Paul Fontaine

MISCELLANEOUS

• Paul Orndorff was announced for the 2/18 Legends of Wrestling event at the Holy Cross Gym in Winnipeg.
• Insane Championship Wrestling announced that The Dudley Boyz (billed as Team 3D) will appear at their November 20th show in Glasgow, Scotland. It’s the first announced appearance for the team after leaving WWE.
• This is the Dragon Lee vs. Flamita match that aired last night on TV Azteca in Mexico. 
• Jack Gallagher vs. Evil Uno takes place on the 9/16 Smash vs. Progress show in Oshawa, ONT, which also includes Mark Haskins vs. Maybach Beta.
• Ephesto & Mephisto & Luciferno defend the Mexica national trios titles aginast Angel de Oro & Atlantis & Stuka Jr. tonight at Arena Mexico.
• Promociones EMW on 9/2 at the Auditorio in Tijuana has The Psycho Circus vs. Damian 666 & Nicho & Pagano, so either Pagano is bald or Psycho Clown will be there without his mask. Pretty good bet which one of those will be the case. 
• AWS from Friday night in Los Angeles: Espiritu b Ryan Taylor, Eli Everfly b Legacy, Holidead & Thunder Rosa b Raze & Sage Sin Supreme, SoCal Crazy b Scorpio Sky to win the light heavyweight title, Ray Rosas over Mariachia Loco, Jacob Diez, Lil Cholo, Rico Dynamite and Tito Escondido, Hudson Enzy b Shayna Baszler to retain the women’s title, Principe Indu Jr. & Super Boy Jr. b Acero Dorado & Shamu Jr., Tyler Bateman won three-way over champion Willie Mack and Brian Cage to win the AWS title (thanks to Robbie Grill)
• Revolution Pro results from Friday night in Portsmouth, UK: Jake McCluskey & The Bruce b Dan Magee & Rob Lias, Jay White b Mark Haskins, Marty Scurll b Moose, Big Damo b Psycho Phillips, Cole Lucas b Bea Pristley, Will Ospreay b Pete Dunne to retain the cruiserweight title
• Freelance Wrestling from Friday night in Chicago before 250 fans: Jake Something won six way over Suge D, Alex Ohlson, Russian Beast, Peter Avalon and Chivas Regal, JJ Garrett b Andras Vidal, Robert Ego Anthony & Space Monkey b Ethan Page & Kobe Durst, Isaias Velazquez b Chase Owens (said to be a  great match), Chris Castro b Matt Knicks, Mr. 450 Hammet b Joey Lynch, Prince Mustafa Ali b GPA in 30 minutes in a tremendous match, The N Words b Beauty & the Beast in a TLC match to win the tag title.  This match didn’t start until midnight. (thanks to Lance LeVine)
• MCW has a convention on 9/24 in Joppa, MD with Bret Hart, Jimmy Hart, Howard Finkel, Honky Tonk Man, Greg Valentine, Jim Ross, Paul Orndorff, Koko B Ware, Brutus Beefcake, Tito Santana, Jim Cornette, Jim Neidhart, Bob Orton, Nikolai Volkoff, Dennis Stamp, Hornswoggle, Tammy Sytch, Fred Ottman, Magnum T.A. Terri Runnels and Rikishi.
• Pro Wrestling Eclipse on 9/23 in Oshawa, ONT at the Masonic Temple with Tyler Tirva vs. Josh Alexander for the Fusion title.
• St. Louis Anarchy Wrestling from Saturday night in Alton, IL: Luke Langley & Graham Bell & Tyler Colton b Jeff Gant & Tank Engine Tommy & Kody Krash, Stephen Wolf b Jason Roberts, Matt Kenway b Slade Porter, Aaron Solow b Jojo Bravo Dangerous Deveroux & Orange Lazarus b Nick Iggy & Kerry Awful, Aaron Epic b Curt Stallion, Gary Jay b Chip Day, Ricky Starks b Slade Sludge, Zakk Sawyers & Mikey McFinnegan & Austin Blackburn b Evan Gelistico & Danny Adams & Everett Connors, Martin Stone b Davey Vega, Mat Fitchett b Paco Gonzalez (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
• Best in the West on 9/24 in Fresno, CA at Fresno City college featuring Brian Cage, Mustafa Saed, Joey Ryan and Christina Von Eeerie.
• Lucha Xtreme TV from  last night in Fresno: Manny Fernandez b Chris Mira, Homicide b Dan Joseph, Brandon Groom b Anthony Idol. Next TV taping is 9/10 in Coalinga, CA at West Hills College with Brandon Groom vs. Homicide in match two of the best of three. (thanks to Jon Southerland)  
• Premier Championship Wrestling from Friday night in Winnipeg: Trent Nash b Rob Mass, Jay Walker DCOR Shao Ming, Kenny Omega & Chris Stevens & Donny DiCaprio b Mike Angels & Chad Tatum & Alix Vanna, Antonio Scorpio b Zack Mercury, London Dynasty b Adrien Burton & James Beaver, Dick Blood & Billy Blaze b Jeremy Joseph & Ray Dragneel, Jackie Lee b Mentallo. Next show is 10/1 at the Doubles Bar with Kenny Omega and Jimmy Hart. (thanks to Andrew Shallcross)​

Daily Pro Wrestling History (08/28): WWF SummerSlam 1989

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THE ROUND-UP

WWE Main Event results: Rhyno vs. Erick Rowan – Main Event recapper Kevin Timothy brings you all the action, including the Hype Bros challenging the Vaudvillains and the return of Erick Rowan.

UFC On FOX 21 DFS Playbook: who to target & who to avoid – Interested in cashing in on UFC? R-Fred, Ace Fontaine, and PeachMachine give you their fairy tale prediction line-ups in hopes of cashing in on UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Condit.

NXT TV taping spoilers: TakeOver fallout – NXT had a huge weekend, selling out the Barclays Center for Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Samoa Joe. Nakamura walked away with NXT gold around his waist. Now, find out where each man goes from here with our man JJ Williams.

The Week In British Wrestling: Confusion reigns over IPW:UK title – A new champion emerged from a chaotic scene, as Dylan Roberts maneuvers his way to the Grand-Pro title, plus some fun surprises. BritWres columnist Alan Boon brings you all the action.

TNA Impact Wrestling results: EC3 vs. Drew Galloway – Our Dave Bath reports on TNA’s newest money infusion, as Billy Corgan has shaken up the Impact world. What’s next for Broken Matt Hardy, Drew Galloway, and EC3? 

The Week In Japanese Wrestling: Despite talent, Super J Cup was disapponting – Our resident Japanese Pro Wrestling reporter Alan4L breaks down what he calls a “disappointing” Super J Cup that never really amounted to the blow-away shows of Super J’s past.

WEEKEND LINE UP

We’re doing one poll for the weekend, which will be on Sunday’s TripleMania show from AAA. You can send your rating of thumbs up, down or middle, along with best and worst match to [email protected].

We’re looking for reports on these shows tonight:[email protected]

• WWE in Abilene, TX (Smackdown crew plus Enzo, Cass, Sheamus, Darren Young and Neville) 
• NXT in Citrus Springs, FL
• Northeast Wrestling in Pittsfield, MA at Waconia Park (Cody Rhodes vs. Mike Bennett plus Jerry Lawler, Jeff Hardy, Jushin Liger, Matt Hardy and Mick Foley)

NEW JAPAN WORLD PRO WRESTLING RETURNS AT 9 P.M. EASTERN ON AXS TV

• Tomohiro Ishii vs. Tomoaki Honma for the Never Open weight title
• Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Karl Anderson for IC title

CMLL FROM ARENA MEXICO AT 9:30 P.M. EASTERN TIME

• Starman & Sensei vs. Disturbio & Sangre Azteca
• Blue Panther Jr. & Fuego & The Panther vs. Okumura & Fujin & Raijin
• Soberano vs. Hechicero
• Rey Bucanero & Euforia & Gran Guerrero vs. Super Crazy & Sharlie Rockstar & Golden Magic
• Rush & Pierroth & Rey Escorpion vs. Shocker & El Terrible & Maximo Sexy
• Mistico & Caristico & Dragon Lee vs. La Mascara & Ultimo Guerrero & Negro Casas

BELLATOR FROM THE HONDA CENTER IN ANAHEIM, CALIF. AT 10 P.M. EASTERN TIME

• A.J. McKee (145.6) vs. Cody Walker (145.3)
• Bubba Jenkins (145.8) vs. Georgi Karakhanyan (149) – Karakhanyan missed weight and will be fined 20 percent of his purse   
• Derek Anderson (155.6) vs. Saad Awad (155.5)
• Benson Henderson (156) vs. Patricio Pitbull Freire (155.4) 

We’re looking for reports on these shows on Saturday:[email protected].

• WWE in San Angelo, TX (Smackdown crew plus Enzo, Cass, Sheamus, Darren Young and Neville)
• WWE in Puebla, Mexico (Raw crew plus Usos–Bayley is in this tour as well)
• NXT in Jacksonville, FL 
• Northeast Wrestling in Wappingers Falls, NY at Dutchess Stadium in what is traditionally the best attended indie show of the year (Kurt Angle vs. Cody Rhodes, Jeff Hardy vs. Jushin Liger, Jerry Lawler vs. Brooklyn Brawler, Sami Callihan vs. Matt Hardy, plus Maria Kanellis, Mike Bennett, Sami Callihan, Ryback, Jim Neidhart. Hornswoggle, Kamaitachi, Matt Taven and Velvet Sky

We’re looking for reports on these shows on Sunday:[email protected]

• WWE in San Antonio, TX (Smackdown crew plus Enzo, Cass, Chris Jericho, Sheamus, Darren Young and Neville)
• WWE in Leon, Guanajuato (Raw crew plus Usos)
• ROH at MCU Park in Brooklyn (Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito for ROH title, Michael Elgin vs. Donovan Dijak for IWGP IC title, Kyle O’Reilly vs. Katsuyori Shibata, Young Bucks & Yujiro Takahashi & Hangman Page vs. Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley & Lio Rush & ACH, Bobby Fish vs. Evil, Kushida vs. Dalton Castle, gauntlet match for tag team titles with Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian vs. Mark & Jay Briscoe vs. War Machine vs. All Night Express vs. Toru Yano & Gedo vs Cheeseburger & Will Ferrara)
• Northeast Wrestling on 8/28 in Bethany, CT at the NEW Arena (Cody Rhodes vs. Sami Callihan, Jushin Liger vs. Travis Gordon, Hanson vs. Kamaitachi) 

UFC ON FOX SATURDAY FROM THE ROGERS ARENA IN VANCOUVER

Fight Pass at 5 p.m. Eastern time

• James Kennedy (155.5) vs. Alessandro Ricci (156)
• Thibault Gouti (155) vs. Chad Laprise (159) – Laprise was fined 20 percent of his purse for missing weight

FOX at 6 p.m. Eastern time

• Shane Campbell (156) vs. Felipe Silva (154.5)
• Alessio DeChirico (185) vs. Garreth McLellan (184)
• Enrique Barzaola (145.5) vs. Kyle Bochniak (145.5)
• Sam Alvey (186) vs. Kevin Casey (185)
• Joe Lauzon (156) vs. Jim Miller (154.5)
• Bec Rawlings (115.5) vs. Paige VanZant (115.5)
• Charles Oliveira (143) vs. Anthony Pettis (146)
• Carlos Condit (170.5) vs. Demian Maia (171)

AAA TRIPLEMANIA FROM ARENA CIUDAD IN MEXICO CITY ON SUNDAY AT 7 P.M. EASTERN

• Faby & Mary Apache vs. Averno & Chessman
• AAA Cup elimination match:  La Parka vs. Elegido vs. Taurus vs. Hernandez vs. Pimpinela Escarlata vs. El Hijo de Pirata Morgan vs. Daga vs. Super Fly vs. Zorro vs. Australian Suicide vs. Mamba vs. ?
• Jack Evans & Angelico defend AAA tag team titles against Paul London & Matt Cross, El Hijo del Fantasma & Fenix and Drago & Aerostar
• Rey Mysterio Jr. & Prince Puma & Dragon Azteca Jr. vs. Matanza Cueto & Mil Muertes & Marty the Moth Martinez
• Pentagon Jr. vs. Johnny Mundo for the Latin American heavyweight title
• El Texano Jr. vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Brian Cage for the AAA Mega heavyweight title
• Psycho Clown vs. Pagano mask vs. hair

Raw will be Monday night from the Toyota Center in Houston. This will be the first week with a Smackdown Monday night house show, which takes place in Texarkana, TX.  The regular Smackdown crew will be there and John Cena is headlining the show.

Tuesday night will be Smackdown from Dallas. John Cena, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins are all advertised, but Reigns and Rollins are likely to be in dark matches and Cena may be as well.   

Figure Four Weekly: Figure Four Weekly 8/22/2016: Gawker destroyed by Hulk Hogan – While there had been hints that it could happen, it still came as a shock last week that, thanks to the series of events stemming from Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against Gawker Media, the flagship Gawker blog would be shutting down operations a few days later. It all stemmed from the bankruptcy auction for Gawker Media’s assets, where the bidders ended up being Ziff Davis and Unimodia, the subsidiary of Univision that oversees Fusion and its sister sites like The Onion, AV Club, and The Root… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

F4W YouTube Page: Tons of clips and full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come! Make sure you subscribe today!

Wrestling Observer Newsletter: August 29, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: UFC sale final, Summerslam results and fallout, more – Lorenzo Fertitta, the CEO and person who historically should be remembered as perhaps the most important figure in making MMA into a worldwide sport left the office for the final time on 8/17.

The UFC staff was all told to come for a meeting, and as it turned out, the guest of honor was busy at first and they had to regroup and come back later. Fertitta, 48, took a $2 million investment in 2001 to a $4 billion sale 15 years later. Aside from making a killing in business, he saved a sport that was on its deathbed in the U.S. The sale was officially completed with the money changing hands this past week, a similar letter to the one above was sent to all company employees, and the new era of UFC began with UFC 202… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected]. 

Rates for the United States are $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 [email protected]. 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 choose one free classic issue, or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.

WON BACK ISSUE: July 26,1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Governor Jesse Ventura to referee SummerSlam main event, NSAC to evaluate UFC, tons more – With the official announcement of Jesse Ventura’s participation in SummerSlam as the referee for the main event came the expected debate over his involvement… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE

Two first cousins will be both be putting up their masks on the two biggest shows in Mexico this year for rival promotions. On Sunday, Psycho Clown, the son of Brazo de Plata (Super Porky) puts his mask up against the hair of Pagano at TripleMania. A week from tonight, La Mascara, the son of Brazo de Oro (Porky’s brother) puts his mask up against the mask of Dragon Lee on the CMLL anniversary show.

Tonight’s show at Arena Mexico is the final Friday night before next week’s Anniversary show, so it’ll be the last angles. The show returns to Claro Sports after being on YouTube the last two weeks. 

World Wrestling Entertainment

• An interview with A.J. Styles is here.
• The Cruiserweight Classic continues tonight as they will get the field down to four wrestlers with tapings in Winter Park, FL. ​
• Tickets for the Hell in a Cell PPV in Boston on 10/30 are on sale today. 

​UFC

• Mike Perry, coming off his debut win on Saturday against Hung Gyu Lim, will face Danny Roberts at UFC 204 on 10/8 in Manchester, England.
• Tickets for the 10/1 UFC show at the Moda Center in Portland, OR went on sale today. The top fights are John Dodson vs. John Lineker, Will Brooks vs Alex Oliveira, Brian Ortega vs. Hacran Dias, Sergio Pettis vs. Louis Smolka and Josh Burkman vs. Bobby Green. Tickets are priced from $150 down to $50.
• A weird story claiming UFC has turned its back on Latinos is here.

MISCELLANEOUS

• Paste Magazine talks to Cody Rhodes.
• Pro Wrestling Phoenix from last night in Omaha: Con Artiest b Everett Connors, Cuco Santiago & Robert Storm b Purple & Dalton Lee Roth, Pat Powers b Paco, Paul & Joey Daniels b Darren Russell & Duke Cornell, Kevin Lee Davidson b Tyler Colton, Devin Carter b Zac James, Branden Juarez won three-way over Michael Elgin and Hype Gotti.  Next show is 10/1 in Omaha at the Waiting Room Lounge headlined by Al Snow.
• Glory 33 takes place on 9/9 at the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton, NJ.
• Lucha Libre with Lince Dorado, plus appearances by Davey Richards and Angelina Love takes place tomorrow in Toronto at Benelife Wellness at 6:30 p.m.
• UCW on 9/24 in Bay City, MI features MVP, Ron Simmons and Fred Ottman (Tugboat).
• Chris Hahn, who wrestled as Johnny Paradise in the WWF, is in a horror movie, “Clowntown” which will be released in a limited theatrical release on 9/30 and on VOD on 10/4.

SUMMER EVENTS CALENDAR

AUGUST

• 27 – ROH: Field of Honor; Brooklyn, NY, MCU Park, ROH World Championship 4 Corner Survival: Jay Lethal (c) vs. Adam Cole vs. Tetsuya naito vs. Hiroshi. Tickets.
• 27 – Northeast Wrestling: FREE show on 8/27 at 11 a.m. New Windsor Community Day, Kristi Babcock Memorial Park (660 Mt. Airy Road, New Windsor, NY 12553).
• 27 – Northeast Wrestling “Wrestling Under the Stars 5″: Dutchess Stadium, Wappingers Falls, NY. Bell time is 7 p.m. with an autograph session at 4 p.m. Kurt Angle vs. Cody Rhodes and Jushin “Thunder” Liger vs. Jeff Hardy, Jerry “The King” Lawler vs. Brooklyn Brawler. Tickets.
• 27 – Battlearts: Summer Heat; 4880 Tomken Road, Mississauga, Ontario L4W 1J8
• 27 – LuchaTO at the Benelife Wellness Centre, 68 Tycos Drive, Toronto, Ontario, M6B 1V9, with Lince Dorado and a grappling exhibition.
• 27 – UFC FIGHT NIGHT, Maia vs. Condit: Vancouver, BC.
• 28 – Northeast Wrestling “Thunder”: The NEW Arena (40 Peck Road) in Bethany, CT at 4 p.m. Cody Rhodes vs. Sami Callihan. Jushin “Thunder” Liger vs. Travis Gordon. War King Hanson vs. Kamaitachi. TK ‘O Ryan versus Brian Anthony. Northeast Wrestling Tag Team Champions The Battles versus So Over. DIJAK and more. Tickets.
• 28 – Steel City Pro Wrestling: End Game; 222 Queenston Rd, Hamilton, ON L8K 1G6, Canada
• 28 – Destiny wrestling: Summer Heat; Battlearts Wrestling Academy. Featuring MOOSE!

SEPTEMBER

• 1 – AAW; Berwyn Eagles Club, 6309 W 26th St Berwyn, IL, 7:30pm Bell Time
• 2 – MOONSHINE BRANDED WRESTLING: Italo-Canadian Hall, 1101 DiPietro Street, Fort  Erie, Ontario, Canada. Doors at 6:00pm bell time 7:00pm. Tickets.
• 2 – 559 Fights has its 50th show in Visalia, CA at the Convention Center.
• 2 – Rockstar Pro Wrestling iPPV on 9/2 From Dayton, OH at the Rockstar Pro Arena with Sami Callihan vs. Dave Crist, Dezmond Xavier vs. Zachary Wentz vs. Matt Cross and more.
• 3 – UFC Fight Night: Arlovski vs. Barnett; Hamburg, Germany
• 3 – UIPW: Los Angels at the Clela Arena at 826 Clela Ave. in East Los Angeles with Teddy Hart & Coa Azul vs. Psicosis & Mariachi Loco
• 3 – ACE Collision Course: Morgan Jr. Arena, Wallington, NJ, MAIN EVENT: ACE Heavyweight Championship: TJ Marconi (c) vs Archadia
• 3 – Hoosier Pro Wrestling in Columbus, IN at the 4-H Arena
• 6 – SMASH-WRESTLING, Oshawa Music Hall, 39 King St E, Oshawa, Ontario L1H 1B2. Tickets.
• 9 – Chaotic Wrestling & The Lowell Spinners present “A Night of Grand Slams,”Edward A. LeLacheur Park, 450 Aiken St. – Lowell, MA
• 10 – CZW in Voorhees, NJ at Flyers Skate Zone with a doubleheader with a WSU Women’s show at 4 p.m. that day and the men’s show at 8 p.m.
• 10 – Pure Wrestling Association: COWEX – Duncan, British Columbia
• 10 – New England Fights 25: HEROES & VILLAINS; Lewiston, MA. Tickets.
• 10 – Barrie Wrestling: Back to School 3; 49 Ferris Lane, Barrie, Ontario, Canada
• 10 – UFC 203: Miocic vs. Overeem; Cleveland, Ohio
• 10 – Evolve in Deer Park, NY has Gargano vs. Sabre Jr., Galloway vs. Gulak, Dustin vs. Tracy Williams, Jigsaw vs. Fred Yehi, Riddle vs. Tony Nese, Perkins vs. Allin and Page vs. Dan Barry.    
• 11 – Evolve in Woodside, NY at La Boom has Johnny Gargano & Cody Rhodes vs. Drew Galloway & Chris Hero in Gargano’s last Evolve match, Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ricochet, Matt Riddle vs. TJ Perkins, Dustin vs. Drew Gulak, Tony Nese vs. Darby Allin and Ethan Page vs David Starr. Joey Styles will also be appearing.
• 15 – CCW Parkhill Fall Fair Pro Wrestling, 5:30pm doors, 6:30pm bell time. Cody Deaner vs. Jake O’Reilly for the CCW title.
• 16 – ROH: Reloaded Tour; Pittsburgh, PA, Stage AE, 7:30 pm. Tickets.
• 16 – AAW: 115 Bourbon Street (3359 w 115th Street Merrionette Park, IL). Tickets.
• 16 – Pure Wrestling Association: Lake Cowichan, British Columbia
• 16 – Smash vs Progress: Uncensored; Oshawa Music Hall, Oshawa, Ontario. Must be 19+ to attend.
• 16 – Pure Wrestling Association: Private Event in Ontario
• 16 – SuperKickd’d Pro Wrestling at 7:30 PM – 10 PM, The Great Hall Toronto, 1087 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario M6J 1H3
• 16 – All Pro Wrestling on 9/16 in Daly City, CA at the Bayshore Community Center features Sabu vs. The Almighty Sheik, Willie Mack & B-Boy vs Reno Scrum, plus Jody Kristofferson, JR Kratos, Marcus Lewis and Dylan Drake in a four way for the Universal title.
• 17 – ROH: Reloaded Tour; Lockport (Buffalo), NY, 7:00 pm. Tickets.
• 17 – NWA Smoky Mountain Wrestling on in Kingsport, TN at the Civic Auditorium
• 17 – Pure Wrestling Association: Alpine Club, Kitchener, Ontario
• 17 – Pure Wrestling Association: Courtenay, British Columbia
• 17 – UFC Fight Night, Poirier vs. Johnson: Hidalgo, Texas, State Farm Arena
• 17 & 18 – SMASH VS PROGRESS: Smash Wrestling welcomes our friends from Progress Wrestling. Mark Haskins and Jack Gallagher (Cruiserweight Classic), Zack Sabre Jr. Mark Andrews and more will be part of the Progress Wrestling team in a Smash vs. Progress Canada vs. UK show in Toronto at the Franklin Horner Community Center.
• 18 – Pure Wrestling Association: Gold River, British Columbia
• 18 – Alpha-1 Wrestling presents #‎Matrats2
• 22 – NXT; Toronto, Ontario at the Mattamy Athletic Center (the former Maple Leaf Gardens)
• 22 – All-Star Wrestling: 7:30 PM, Abbotsford Arts Center, 2329 Crescent Way, Abbotsford, BC V2S 3M2, Canada, tickets.
• 22- Big Time Wrestling in Morganton, NC at the Collette Rec Center features a meet & greet at 6 p.m. before the live show. Appearing are Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat, Cody Rhodes, Magnum T.A. and Trevor Lee.
• 23 – Big Time Wrestling in Raleigh, NC at Dorton Arena features Flair and Steamboat together at Dorton Arena for the first time in 28 years, plus Jeff & Matt Hardy, Cody Rhodes, Nasty Boys, Sabu, Magnum T.A., Ivan Koloff, Jimmy Valiant, Gangrel and Shane Helms with the meet & greet at 6 and show at 8.
• 23 – Invicta FC: Live from Scottish Rite Temple in Kansas City, Mo. Interim Flyweight Champion Jennifer Maia Defends Against Roxanne Modafferi
• 23 – NXT; St. Catherines, Ontario at The Meridian Centre
• 23 – Absolute Intense Wrestling: A Farewell to Johnny Gargano – 1355 West 70th St. Cleveland, OH – Tickets.
• 23 – Pure Wrestling Association: Parksville, British Columbia
• 23 – Pro Wrestling Eclipse takes a short trip to downtown Oshawa and visits the Oshawa Mason Temple. All tickets purchased on July 24 that list the venue as the Oshawa Legion will be honoured.
• 24 – Ignite Wrestling in Vero Beach, FL at the IG Center features Dave Crist.
• 24 – UCW, September 24th 7:30 PMBay City,MI UCW Champion Hakim Zane vs MVP, plus appearances by Ron Simmons and Fred Ottman
• 24 – Big Time Wrestling in Spartanburg, SC at the Memorial Auditorium with the meet and greet at 5:30 and show at 7:30 with Flair, Steamboat, Hardys, Rhodes, Nasty Boys, Sabu, Magnum T.A., Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, Gangrel and Trevor Lee.
• 24 – MCW Legends Convention at the MCW Arena in Joppa, MD at 10 a.m. featuring Bret Hart, Jimmy Hart, Howard Finkel, Honky Tonk Man, Hillbilly Jim, Paul Orndorff, Greg Valentine, Jim Ross, Bill Apter, Brutus Beefcake, Bob Orton, Tito Santana, Jim Neidhart, Tammy Sytch, Magnum T.A. and even Dennis Stamp.
• 24 – Rock Solid: Anarchy in Angus 14: A Nightmare on Mill Street, 7pm – 10pm, Angus Recreation Centre, 8527 County Rd. 10, Angus, Ontario. Tickets.
• 24 – Pure Wrestling Association: Campbell River, British Columbia
• 24 – ROH: Reloaded Tour; Duluth (Atlanta), GA 7:00 pm, tickets.
• 24 – NXT in Kitchener, Ontario at The Air
• 24 – Elite Canada Championship Wrestling: New Westminster, Sapperton Pensioners Hall, 318 Keary St, New Westminster, BC, 7:30pm Bell Time, doors at 7pm. Tickets.
• 25 – CWE: Nick “Magnus” Aldis defends the GFW title against Matt Hart of the Hart Family in Calgary.
• 25 – Rizin: Former K-1 kickboxer Minoru Kimura will make his MMA debut against former Pride fighter Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett (29-30-2)
• 25 – Pure Wrestling Association – TBA – British Columbia
• 30 – ROH: All-Star Extravaganza Weekend Day 1; Lowell (Boston), MA, Lowell Memorial Auditorium, 9:00 pm (PPV)

Daily Pro Wrestling History (08/26): Harley Race beats Dusty Rhodes for NWA Title​

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THE ROUND-UP 

• Why NXT should have taken over SmackDown – According to Will Cooling, a better idea than making SmackDown into a second brand, WWE should have used the second brand they already have.
• Brock Lesnar and Jon Jones get potentially good news from USADA – Because Clomiphene is a “specified substance” under the World Anti-Doping Association (WADA) code, a reduced sentence could be in the future for both men.
• Bret Hart hopes Seth Rollins will improve ‘before someone gets killed’ – Hart speaks out against Seth Rollins’ reckless wrestling style, having now injured both Sting and Finn Balor with a similar move.
• Daniel Bryan & The Miz get into heated exchange on Talking Smack – It’s definitely worth watching as it gets very heated and Daniel Bryan walks off. Some are speculating that Miz went off script and that this was a shoot. That seems unlikely, but it certainly seemed like Miz was getting some frustrations out. As is true in all of wrestling, stories based on a kernel of truth tend to garner the greatest fan response. This appeared to have more than a kernel’s worth in it.
• WWE SmackDown live results: AJ Styles vs. Dolph Ziggler, new belts introduced – Polarizing new championships belts have some people scratching their heads as to why WWE needs a second set of tag-team champions.

Figure Four Weekly: August 17, 2016; Buff Bagwell sues WWE for unpaid Network royalties – When Rene Dupree’s lawsuit against WWE over WWE Network royalties was quickly dropped a few months ago, the question coming out of it was not if there would be another such lawsuit, but when and with whom as the next plaintiff would be. The answers? August 9th and Marcus “Buff” Bagwell… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

F4W YouTube Page: Tons of clips and full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come! Make sure you subscribe today!

Wrestling Observer Newsletter: August 29, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: UFC sale final, Summerslam results and fallout, more – Lorenzo Fertitta, the CEO and person who historically should be remembered as perhaps the most important figure in making MMA into a worldwide sport left the office for the final time on 8/17.

The UFC staff was all told to come for a meeting, and as it turned out, the guest of honor was busy at first and they had to regroup and come back later. Fertitta, 48, took a $2 million investment in 2001 to a $4 billion sale 15 years later. Aside from making a killing in business, he saved a sport that was on its deathbed in the U.S. The sale was officially completed with the money changing hands this past week, a similar letter to the one above was sent to all company employees, and the new era of UFC began with UFC 202… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected]. 

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WON BACK ISSUE: July 26, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Governor Jesse Ventura to referee SummerSlam main event, NSAC to evaluate UFC, tons more – With the official announcement of Jesse Ventura’s participation in SummerSlam as the referee for the main event came the expected debate over his involvement… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE

Forbes.com listed Dwayne Johnson as the highest paid actor in the world, saying between his cut of Fast & Furious 7 and San Andreas, he earned $64.5 million between June 2015 and June 2016.   

Donald Cerrone’s free agency ended before it started as he signed a new eight fight deal with UFC. Cerrone had one fight left on his contract after his win on Saturday night over Rick Story. MMA Junkie first reported the news. 

Dana White and Kurt Angle were the guests on today’s Ric Flair show at www.MLWRadio.com. White talks Ronda Rousey, CM Punk an Brock Lesnar.

In the new Observer, in the note on the taking down of gifs from SummerSlam by WWE, this is technically how it was explained to me. WWE hired a third party vendor, SMTS, to remove any streaming video from the show and SMTS was able to match any WWE copyrighted content that was on Twitter and the accounts were suspended.

Impact airs tonight at 8 p.m. on Pop TV with Ethan Carter III vs. Drew Galloway with Aron Rex as referee and a Battle Royal for a shot at the X Division title.

Here are a few notes regarding recent questions fromWrestling Observer Radio:

• At WrestleMania 14, the Shawn Michaels reference to Earl was because Earl Hebner was hospitalized at the time with a brain aneurysm. 
• Another question asked about whether wrestlers get any royalties if people by their entrance music, that would be not the case as the royalties would go to the writer.

WWE

• NXT is being taped tonight in Winter Park, FL. The Cruiserweight Classic matches up through the finals will be taped tomorrow night also at Full Sail University.
• A major story on Stephanie McMahon is here.
• An interview with Bill Goldberg is here.
• NXT tickets went on presale today for shows on 10/6 in Norfolk, 10/7 in Richmond, VA and 10/8 in Baltimore with the password: NXTLIVE

UFC

• Dominick Cruz was on the Dan LeBatard show in ESPN radio talking about UFC 202. When guest host Izzy Gutierrez put over how McGregor was the first guy to go up two weight classes and said “it’s not something you’ve done,” Cruz said, “If you do the research, I actually have done it” noting the first three fights of his career were at 155. Cruz went on to bury Cody Garbrandt. (thanks to Jeff Parker)
• The Alaska Fighting Championships have signed a deal to air their shows live on UFC Fight Pass. The first show will be on 9/28. UFC has also acquired the AFC Fight Library, which includes early fights of Demetrious Johnson and Rich Franklin.  
• Mirsad Bektic vs. Arnold Allen has been added to the 10/8 UFC 204 show in Manchester, England.

MISCELLANEOUS

• Shawne Merriman was working with Spike and Bellator today for the media day at the Honda Center in Anaheim to promote tomorrownight’s show headlined by Benson Henderson vs. Patricio Pitbull Freire.
• Pro Wrestling Phoenix tonight in Omaha at the Waiting Room Lounge headlined by Branden Juarez vs. Michael Elgin vs. Hype Gotti for the PWP championship.
• Jimmy Yang comes out of retirement tomorrow night at the AIW show in Cleveland at Our Lady of Mt Carmel. Yang will replace the injured Chris Hero. It will be Yang’s first match in more than three years. Also on the show is Nate Webb vs. Josh Prohibition, Tommy End vs. Ray Rowe, Facade vs. Teddy Hart, Shigehiro Irie vs. Eddie Kingston, Alex Daniels vs. Matt Cross vs. Laredo Kid vs Triton (CMLL), Tracy Williams vs. Michael Elgin, B.J. Whitmer vs. Shawn Schultz, Britt Baker vs. Crazy Mary Dobson and more.
• Evolve on 9/10 in Deer Park, NY has Gargano vs. Sabre Jr., Galloway vs. Gulak, Dustin vs. Tracy Williams, Jigsaw vs. Fred Yehi, Riddle vs. Tony Nese, Perkins vs. Allin and Page vs. Dan Barry.    
• Evolve on 9/11 in Woodside, NY at La Boom has Johnny Gargano & Cody Rhodes vs. Drew Galloway & Chris Hero in Gargano’s last Evolve match, Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ricochet, Matt Riddle vs. TJ Perkins, Dustin vs. Drew Gulak, Tony Nese vs. Darby Allin and Ethan Page vs David Starr.  Joey Styles will also be appearing.
• Travis Allen, who fought for United Combat League in Chicago, was fatally shot yesterday before 11 a.m. in Englewood, IL. Allen, who was 28, was with two other people when someone opened fire at his car. He and his two friends got out of the car and started running, but the shooter followed Allen into an alley and shot him several times. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Allen was in training for a fight on 9/24 at the Civic Center in Hammond, IN.   
• A story on how the University of Virginia football team is using DDP Yoga for conditioning is here.
• A story on Ted DiBiase becoming a minister is here.
• Zack Sabre Jr. talks his future.
• Kevin Eck interviews Matt Hardy.
• Here is a preview of an interview with Santino Marella.
• Ignite Wrestling on 9/24 in Vero Beach, FL at the IG Center features Dave Crist.
• Superkick’d Wrestling on 9/16 at The Great Hall in Toronto.
• Rockstar Pro Wrestling iPPV on 9/2 From Dayton, OH at the Rockstar Pro Arena with Sami Callihan vs. Dave Crist, Dezmond Xavier vs. Zachary Wentz vs. Matt Cross and more.
• All Pro Wrestling on 9/16 in Daly City, CA at the Bayshore Community Center features Sabu vs. The Almighty Sheik, Willie Mack & B-Boy vs Reno Scrum, plus Jody Kristofferson, JR Kratos, Marcus Lewis and Dylan Drake in a four way for the Universal title.
• Smash Wrestling on 8/21 in Pickering, ONT: The Muscle b Sebastian Suave, Brent Banks b Scotty O’Shea, Kevin Bennett b Tyson Dux, Rosemary b Allie, Jesse Amato b John Greed, Chavo Guerrero Jr. & Gabriel Fuerza won three-way over Pepper Parks & Mike Rollins and The Fraternity, Mark Haskins b Tarik. Next show is 9/17 with Haskins vs. Banks. 9/18 has Banks vs O’Shea in a fans bring the keyboards match plus Mark Andrews vs. Kevin Bennett. 
• The BBC conducted a poll on film critics around the world on the best movies of this century.  Of the top 100, two featured pro wrestlers.  No. 19 was Mad Max:  Fury Road that had Nathan Jones, and No. 33 was The Dark Knight which featured Tiny Lister (thanks to James Stanios)
• 559 Fights has its 50th show on 9/2 in Visalia, CA at the Convention Center.
• AAW on 9/1 in Berwyn, IL at the Eagles Club with Pentagon Jr. vs. Tommaso Ciampa for the AAW title and Chris Hero vs. Tommy End, plus Drew Galloway, Zack Sabre Jr., Fenix, Cedric Alexander, Sami Callihan, Michael Elgin, Silas Young and Colt Cabana.
• AAW on 10/7 in Merrionette Park, IL at 115 Bourbon Street and 10/8 in Berwyn, IL a the Eagles Club has the Jim Lyman tournament with Drew Gulak, Chuck Taylor, Silas Young, Kamaitachi, Josh Alexander and Brian Cage announced.
• ChuteVerks LLC announced it will be promoting live shows aimed at the English and Spanish markets with the debut on 10/12 in Yakima, WA at the Sundome.  Rey Mysterio Jr., MVP and Konnan will appear on the first show.
• Orlando Pro Wrestling last night in Orlando:  CT Brown b Sean Harley, Russell Payne & Ricky Anderson b Miguel Mason & Rob Van Achen, Chico Adams b Li Bryan, Aaron Epic b Aaron Bradley, Mike Reed b Braydon Knight, Santana Garrett & Raquel b Raegen Fire & Mila Naniki (thanks to Al Haft)
• Cross Body Wrestling on 10/1 in Kitchener, ONT at the Cross Body Pro Wrestling Academy with Mike Rollins vs. Alessandro Del Bruno.
• CCW on 9/15 at 6:30 PM. a the Parkhill Fall Fair Opening has Cody Deaner vs. Jake O’Reilly for the CCW title.
• There will be a Legends of Wrestling and sports convention on 2/18 in Winnipeg. Announced so far are Howard Finkel and former Blue Bombers star Troy Westwood, who has done pro wrestling in the past. 
• A new Jim Cornette project is here.

SUMMER EVENTS CALENDAR

AUGUST

• 26 – Northeast Wrestling, “Wrestling Under the Stars”: Wahconah Park in Pittsfield, MA Bell time is 7 p.m. Autograph session at 4 p.m. Plus, Cody Rhodes with Brandi Rhodes vs. Michael Bennett, Mick Foley, Jeff and Matt Hardy, Jushin “Thunder” Liger, Jerry “The King” Lawler, Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart, Mandy Leon, and more.
• 26 – We Watch Wrestling, LIVE podcast recording: The Wythe Hotel 80 Wythe Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11249. Tickets.
• 26 – All Star Wrestling; Cloverdale, BC at the Cloverdale Fairgrounds Alice McKay Building. Doors at 630pm, Cloverdale Fair Grounds. Alice McKay Building, 6050 A, 176 St. Surrey, British Columbia V3S 4E7
• 26 – Absolute Intense Wrestling; Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, 1355 W. 70th St. Cleveland, OH
• 26 – Conflict Wrestling, Black or White; 7 PM – 10 PM, Moose Lodge, 655 Wabanaki Dr, Kitchener, Ontario N2C 2G3. Tickets.
• 26 – Bellator 160; The Pond in Anaheim, live on Spike TV, Benson Henderson vs Patricio Pitbull Freire
• 27 – ROH: Field of Honor; Brooklyn, NY, MCU Park, ROH World Championship 4 Corner Survival: Jay Lethal (c) vs. Adam Cole vs. Tetsuya naito vs. Hiroshi. Tickets.
• 27 – Northeast Wrestling: FREE show on 8/27 at 11 a.m. New Windsor Community Day, Kristi Babcock Memorial Park (660 Mt. Airy Road, New Windsor, NY 12553).
• 27 – Northeast Wrestling “Wrestling Under the Stars 5″: Dutchess Stadium, Wappingers Falls, NY. Bell time is 7 p.m. with an autograph session at 4 p.m. Kurt Angle vs. Cody Rhodes and Jushin “Thunder” Liger vs. Jeff Hardy, Jerry “The King” Lawler vs. Brooklyn Brawler. Tickets.
• 27 – Battlearts: Summer Heat; 4880 Tomken Road, Mississauga, Ontario L4W 1J8
• 27 – LuchaTO at the Benelife Wellness Centre, 68 Tycos Drive, Toronto, Ontario, M6B 1V9, with Lince Dorado and a grappling exhibition.
• 27 – UFC FIGHT NIGHT, Maia vs. Condit: Vancouver, BC.
• 28 – Northeast Wrestling “Thunder”: The NEW Arena (40 Peck Road) in Bethany, CT at 4 p.m. Cody Rhodes vs. Sami Callihan. Jushin “Thunder” Liger vs. Travis Gordon. War King Hanson vs. Kamaitachi. TK ‘O Ryan versus Brian Anthony. Northeast Wrestling Tag Team Champions The Battles versus So Over. DIJAK and more. Tickets.
• 28 – Steel City Pro Wrestling: End Game; 222 Queenston Rd, Hamilton, ON L8K 1G6, Canada
• 28 – Destiny wrestling: Summer Heat; Battlearts Wrestling Academy. Featuring MOOSE!

SEPTEMBER

• 1 – AAW; Berwyn Eagles Club, 6309 W 26th St Berwyn, IL, 7:30pm Bell Time
• 2 – MOONSHINE BRANDED WRESTLING: Italo-Canadian Hall, 1101 DiPietro Street, Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada. Doors at 6:00pm bell time 7:00pm. Tickets.
• 3 – UFC Fight Night: Arlovski vs. Barnett; Hamburg, Germany
• 3 – UIPW: Los Angels at the Clela Arena at 826 Clela Ave. in East Los Angeles with Teddy Hart & Coa Azul vs. Psicosis & Mariachi Loco
• 3 – ACE Collision Course: Morgan Jr. Arena, Wallington, NJ, MAIN EVENT: ACE Heavyweight Championship: TJ Marconi (c) vs Archadia
• 3 – Hoosier Pro Wrestling in Columbus, IN at the 4-H Arena
• 6 – SMASH-WRESTLING, Oshawa Music Hall, 39 King St E, Oshawa, Ontario L1H 1B2. Tickets.
• 10 – CZW in Voorhees, NJ at Flyers Skate Zone with a doubleheader with a WSU Women’s show at 4 p.m. that day and the men’s show at 8 p.m.
• 10 – Pure Wrestling Association: COWEX – Duncan, British Columbia
• 10 – New England Fights 25: HEROES & VILLAINS; Lewiston, MA. Tickets.
• 10 – Barrie Wrestling: Back to School 3; 49 Ferris Lane, Barrie, Ontario, Canada
• 10 – UFC 203: Miocic vs. Overeem; Cleveland, Ohio
• 16 – ROH: Reloaded Tour; Pittsburgh, PA, Stage AE, 7:30 pm. Tickets.
• 16 – Pure Wrestling Association: Lake Cowichan, British Columbia
• 16 – Smash vs Progress: Uncensored; Oshawa Music Hall, Oshawa, Ontario. Must be 19+ to attend.
• 16 – Pure Wrestling Association: Private Event in Ontario
• 16 – SuperKickd’d Pro Wrestling at 7:30 PM – 10 PM, The Great Hall Toronto, 1087 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario M6J 1H3
• 17 – ROH: Reloaded Tour; Lockport (Buffalo), NY, 7:00 pm. Tickets.
• 17 – NWA Smoky Mountain Wrestling on in Kingsport, TN at the Civic Auditorium
• 17 – Pure Wrestling Association: Alpine Club, Kitchener, Ontario
• 17 – Pure Wrestling Association: Courtenay, British Columbia
• 17 – UFC Fight Night, Poirier vs. Johnson: Hidalgo, Texas, State Farm Arena
• 17 & 18 – SMASH VS PROGRESS: Smash Wrestling welcomes our friends from Progress Wrestling. Mark Haskins and Jack Gallagher (Cruiserweight Classic), Zack Sabre Jr. Mark Andrews and more will be part of the Progress Wrestling team in a Smash vs. Progress Canada vs. UK show in Toronto at the Franklin Horner Community Center.
• 18 – Pure Wrestling Association: Gold River, British Columbia
• 18 – Alpha-1 Wrestling presents #‎Matrats2
• 22 – NXT; Toronto, Ontario at the Mattamy Athletic Center (the former Maple Leaf Gardens)
• 22 – All-Star Wrestling: 7:30 PM, Abbotsford Arts Center, 2329 Crescent Way, Abbotsford, BC V2S 3M2, Canada, tickets.
• 22- Big Time Wrestling in Morganton, NC at the Collette Rec Center features a meet & greet at 6 p.m. before the live show. Appearing are Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat, Cody Rhodes, Magnum T.A. and Trevor Lee.
• 23 – Big Time Wrestling in Raleigh, NC at Dorton Arena features Flair and Steamboat together at Dorton Arena for the first time in 28 years, plus Jeff & Matt Hardy, Cody Rhodes, Nasty Boys, Sabu, Magnum T.A., Ivan Koloff, Jimmy Valiant, Gangrel and Shane Helms with the meet & greet at 6 and show at 8.
• 23 – Invicta FC: Live from Scottish Rite Temple in Kansas City, Mo. Interim Flyweight Champion Jennifer Maia Defends Against Roxanne Modafferi
• 23 – NXT; St. Catherines, Ontario at The Meridian Centre
• 23 – Absolute Intense Wrestling: A Farewell to Johnny Gargano – 1355 West 70th St. Cleveland, OH – Tickets.
• 23 – Pure Wrestling Association: Parksville, British Columbia
• 23 – Pro Wrestling Eclipse takes a short trip to downtown Oshawa and visits the Oshawa Mason Temple. All tickets purchased on July 24 that list the venue as the Oshawa Legion will be honoured.
• 24 – Big Time Wrestling in Spartanburg, SC at the Memorial Auditorium with the meet and greet at 5:30 and show at 7:30 with Flair, Steamboat, Hardys, Rhodes, Nasty Boys, Sabu, Magnum T.A., Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, Gangrel and Trevor Lee.
• 24 – MCW Legends Convention at the MCW Arena in Joppa, MD at 10 a.m. featuring Bret Hart, Jimmy Hart, Howard Finkel, Honky Tonk Man, Hillbilly Jim, Paul Orndorff, Greg Valentine, Jim Ross, Bill Apter, Brutus Beefcake, Bob Orton, Tito Santana, Jim Neidhart, Tammy Sytch, Magnum T.A. and even Dennis Stamp.
• 24 – Rock Solid: Anarchy in Angus 14: A Nightmare on Mill Street, 7pm – 10pm, Angus Recreation Centre, 8527 County Rd. 10, Angus, Ontario. Tickets.
• 24 – Pure Wrestling Association: Campbell River, British Columbia
• 24 – ROH: Reloaded Tour; Duluth (Atlanta), GA 7:00 pm, tickets.
• 24 – NXT in Kitchener, Ontario at The Air
• 24 – Elite Canada Championship Wrestling: New Westminster, Sapperton Pensioners Hall
• 318 Keary St, New Westminster, BC, 7:30pm Bell Time, doors at 7pm. Tickets.
• 25 – CWE: Nick “Magnus” Aldis defends the GFW title against Matt Hart of the Hart Family in Calgary.
• 25 – Rizin: Former K-1 kickboxer Minoru Kimura will make his MMA debut against former Pride fighter Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett (29-30-2)
• 25 – Pure Wrestling Association – TBA – British Columbia
• 30 – ROH: All-Star Extravaganza Weekend Day 1; Lowell (Boston), MA, Lowell Memorial Auditorium, 9:00 pm (PPV)

Daily Pro Wrestling History (08/25): WWE SummerSlam 2002

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Injuries Play Havoc at WWE’s SummerSlam

Finn Balor’s injury to his right arm may have been serious as the WWE stated he possibly suffered a torn labrum, in his right shoulder taking the power bomb into the barricade. That injury often requires surgery which would put him out of action for around six months. He did appear on Good Morning America without his arm in a sling or a brace. He was examined today and the first word is that it wasn’t good news. Because Balor is Universal champion, if the injury is significant enough for him to miss a few weeks, it’ll have to be addressed on television.

The finish of the main event last night was exactly as planned. They were not looking for so much blood, but the idea was definitely to do a hardway on Orton and stop the match due to the brutality. Orton needed 10 staples to close the cut. He is fine, or as fine as someone would be who just got elbows hard enough in the forehead to bust him open like that.

Sasha Banks has a back injury and will be off for at least the short term. The title change was due to the injury. The early injury news today wasn’t bad, as compared to Balor, as far as potential time off.

We’re looking for live reports from Brooklyn tonight with dark matches, Superstars matches and anything else that wouldn’t be evident for the live show. Brock Lesnar wasn’t scheduled to appear on tonight’s show. 

Smackdown will be Tuesday night from the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT.  

THE ROUND-UP

• Super J-Cup 2016 finals live results: Will Ospreay vs. Matt Sydal
• WWE SummerSlam live results: Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton
• NXT heading to Australia & New Zealand for 10-day tour
• Nikki Bella returns to the ring at WWE SummerSlam
• Kyle Snyder wins Olympic gold in wrestling

Figure Four Weekly: August 17, 2016; Buff Bagwell sues WWE for unpaid Network royalties – When Rene Dupree’s lawsuit against WWE over WWE Network royalties was quickly dropped a few months ago, the question coming out of it was not if there would be another such lawsuit, but when and with whom as the next plaintiff would be. The answers? August 9th and Marcus “Buff” Bagwell… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

F4W YouTube Page: Tons of clips and full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come! Make sure you subscribe today!

Wrestling Observer Newsletter: August 22, 2016; WWE Summerslam/UFC 202/NXT Takeover previews, G1 Climax review, tons more – The biggest weekend of the summer, featuring one of UFC’s biggest fights in history, WWE’s third biggest show of the year, what theoretically is NXT’s biggest show of the year (although in reality it is its second biggest), as well as the sixth Super J Cup in history, runs from 8/19 to 8/21.

The big event is UFC 202 on 8/20 at the T Mobile Arena, featuring a rematch of the biggest money fight in company history–Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz. Their first fight, held on 3/5 in Las Vegas, did 1.6 million buys on PPV, the largest non-boxing PPV event in history. With Diaz winning, the feeling is a rematch would only be bigger. But for a number of reasons, there didn’t appear to be the excitement level expected… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected]. 

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Wrestling Observer Newsletter BACK ISSUE: July 12, 1999; Chris Jericho signs with WWF, ECW to air on TNN, tons more – Details on Chris Jericho signing with WWF, ECW programming to air on TNN, plus tons more… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

There was a confrontation last night after the Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton match involving Lesnar and Chris Jericho. There was shoving involved and Vince McMahon and Paul Levesque had to break it up twice. We’ll have an article on the story up on the site shortly.

There will be a farewell to the Dudleys angle tonight on Raw. Given the storyline, I presume it ends up with Bubba turning on Devon but they are playing it up now like it’s the farewell to the promotion. 

There were a lot of major WWE references coming out of the show big on Google yesterday. SummerSlam had 1 million searches, which is as big as any show I can recall other than WrestleManias. Finn Balor had 200,000; Kyle Snyder had 50,000; Sasha Banks had 50,000, Kevin Ferguson Jr. (Kimbo Slice’s son who suffered a knee injury) and Nikki Bella had 20,000. Claressa Shields also had 20,000.

The Bellator debut of Baby Slice, or Kevin Ferguson Jr., the son of Kimbo Slice, scheduled for Friday’s Bellator show at the Honda Center in Anaheim,has been postponed due to an MCL injury according to Ariel Helwani at MMA Fighting. The injury will not require surgery. 

Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw and all the latest news. We’ve got audio shows up covering every big show of the weekend.  We will almost assuredly have time for questions tonight so you can send them to [email protected].

WWE

• Kazuchika Okada was backstage at SummerSlam last night. He’s in New York for the week since he’s working the ROH show on Saturday night in Brooklyn. 
• At the show last night, the WWE announced a 12/28 show at the Barclays Center and there is a presale going on. Use code term: HOLIDAYBK (thanks to Mike Omansky)
• A story on Big Cass is here.

UFC

• A major press conference is scheduled for September to announce the 11/12 show in Madison Square Garden. The UFC is looking at ending the year with two major events, the MSG show as well as the annual New Year’s show in Las Vegas. Tickets sound like they will be priced through the roof as UFC is looking at setting the all-time MSG gate record.

MISCELLANEOUS

• Velvet Sky is taking indie bookings at [email protected].
• The first live CHIKARA Network special from yesterday: Ophidian b Hermit Crab, Dustin b Zack Sabre Jr., Moustache Mountain won over Los Ice Creams, Devastation  Corporation and NRG in a double elimination four corners match, Big Deal (Hornswoggle) & Rick Roland & Sloan Caprice b Juan Francisco de Coronado & Prakash Sabar & Proletariat Bear of Moldova, Jakob Hammerstein b Eddie Kingston-DQ, Team Hallowicked b Team fire Ant, Heidi Lovelace b Kimber Lee to win the Grand championship. Told the main event was super and an overall fun show. (thanks to Annette Boyer)
• The New York State Athletic Commission shut down an inter gender match at a show in Brooklyn promoted by Tier 1 Wrestling and Warriors of Wrestling. The match involved Jessie Brooks and Marc Hauss. Brooks regularly works matches against men in New York. But on Friday, as soon as the match started, the New York State Athletic Commission representative shut the match down claiming that men and women cannot compete in a wrestling match against each other in New York. Fans thought it was all part of the show but it wasn’t. There is a law on the books as it relates to combat sports that men and women can’t box against each other but there is no such law as it relates to pro wrestling. Apparently the New York State Athletic Commission has since said the rule was misinterpreted and it was a law regarding boxing. So they got that cleared up as the main event between Jeff Cobb and Daruis Carter was in the ring. The two were told to go longer than they had planned in order to give Brooks and Hauss more time to redo their match, which was put on last. Brooks won and all the wrestlers came out and banged on the mat when it was over. The promotion claimed the match was booked weeks in advance and the commission was told about it and they had time to review or make a ruling against the match. 
• A story on Moose from TNA is here.
• Here is a story on WWE going after twitter gifs.
• Border City Wrestling from Saturday night in Tecumseh, ONT: Playboy Johnny b Jake O’Reilly, Joe Coleman b Mysterious Movado, Randy Reign b Mike Rollins, Phil Atlas & Brent Banks b Idris Abraham & Hakim Zane, Al & Bobby Sharp b John E. Bravo & Ray Steele, Aiden Prince won over Muscles Marinera, Tariq, Sebastian Suave, Toro Acero and N8 Mattson, Jennifer Blake b  Rosemary (TNA), Johnny Devine & Jon Bolen b Cody Deaner & Tyson Dux (managed by Dutch Mantell). (thanks to Steven Ashe)
• Legacy on 10/14 on AXS from the Bomb Factory in Dallas features bantamweight champion Steven Peterson (14-4) vs. Mark De LA Rosa (7-0) and a featherweight title match with Kevin Aguilar (11-1) facing former champion Damon Jackson (9-1-1).
• TNA wrestlers Allie vs. Rosemary in a cage match takes place on the Smash Wrestling show on 10/22 in Toronto at the Franklin Horner Community Centre.
• The incident with the Mongolian wrestling coaches furious about the Dusty finish that cost them a match at the Olympics and then they channeled Ric Flair is here.
• In honor of the stuff last night, here is a quiz of famous backstage brawls.

Big Time Wrestling has these upcoming dates:

• 9/22 in Morganton, NC at the Collette Rec Center features a meet & greet at 6 p.m. before the live show. Appearing are Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat, Cody Rhodes, Magnum T.A. and Trevor Lee.
• 9/23 in Raleigh, NC at  Dorton Arena features Flair and Steamboat together at Dorton Arena for the first time in 28 years, plus Jeff & Matt Hardy, Cody Rhodes, Nasty Boys, Sabu, Magnum T.A., Ivan Koloff, Jimmy Valiant, Gangrel and Shane Helms with the meet & greet at 6 and show at 8.
• 9/24 in Spartanburg, SC at the Memorial  Auditorium with the meet and greet at 5:30 and show at 7:30 with Flair, Steamboat, Hardys, Rhodes, Nasty Boys, Sabu, Magnum T.A., Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, Gangrel and Trevor Lee.

• ​Please send feedback to F[email protected]
• Please send show results and news tips to N[email protected]
• Please send Wrestling Observer Radio questions to [email protected]

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