THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• AUDIO: HHH on NXT TakeOver, WWE UK talent restrictions & Matt Riddle
• Daniel Cormier vs. Rumble Johnson rematch set for UFC 210
• WWE bringing the Royal Rumble back to Philadelphia in 2018
• WWE NXT results: Women’s fatal four-way face off
• SmackDown ratings drop a bit for Royal Rumble go-home show

AUDIO

• WOR: Kenny Omega talks the decision he has made on his wrestling future 1/26
• FREE WOL: Royal Rumble favorite, WrestleMania card, Dave Meltzer interview, more! 1/26
• WOR: Tons of news, Irv Muchnick talks Jimmy Snuka, more! 1/26
• F4D: Smackdown go-home show, Impact, Geek of the Week, more! 1/25

TNA IMPACT TONIGHT AT 8 P.M. ON POP TV

• Drew Galloway vs. Moose for the Grand championship
• Hardys vs. DCC vs. Decay for the TNA tag team titles
• Rosemary vs. Jade in a Monster’s Ball match for the Knockouts title
• Eddie Edwards vs. Bobby Lashley for the TNA title in a 30:00 Iron man match

NEW JAPAN AT TOKYO KORAKUEN HALL AT 4:30 A.M. EASTERN TIME ON NEW JAPAN WORLD

• Yuji Nagata vs. Takayuki Oka
• Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask & Yoshitatsu vs. David Finlay & Hirai Kawato & Henare
• Gedo & Jado & Yoshi-Hashi vs. Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Takashi Iizuka
• Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Archer
• Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma & Juice Robinson & Katsuyori Shibata vs. Will Ospreay & Hirooki Goto & Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii
• Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin & Manabu Nakanishi & Kushida & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Tetsuya Naito & Seiya Sanada & Evil & Bushi & Hiromu Takahashi
• Kazuchika Okada & Rocky Romero & Baretta vs. Minoru Suzuki & Taka Michinoku & Taichi

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/23/2017: Previewing the unpredictable Royal Rumble

Whatever your feelings are on WWE inevitably using part-timers to boost another WrestleMania season, it’s undeniable that their inclusion has added intrigue to the 2017 Royal Rumble. Suggesting otherwise would be presenting alternative facts. Even with their limited presence on television, Goldberg, Brock Lesnar, and The Undertaker have added a level of unpredictably — even if it’s only perceived — to next Sunday’s show at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas that hasn’t been matched in recent years… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 30, 2017 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Royal Rumble preview, part 2 of Jimmy Snuka bio, plus tons of news

The WWE has what may be its most intriguing Royal Rumble in years coming up on 1/29 in San Antonio at the Alamodome. Usually, the winner of the Rumble is either fairly well known, or common sense breaks it down into only a few possibilities. And in some years, because of depth, the match feels like a lot of guys biding their time and fans waiting for the few key guys and pick up when they arrive…

While everyone has been focused the past few weeks on the changes in the U.K. scene, and how that would affect the worldwide business, another significant change, Mexico-based, which has major implications on the U.S. scene, was this week’s shake-up. On 1/21, Pentagon Jr., Garza Jr. and Daga showed up on The Crash promotion show in Tijuana, just one day after all three had worked AAA’s Guerrera de Titanes show in Mexico City…

Examining the life of Jimmy Snuka was always going to leave people, particularly those who grew up in the Northeast and were fans from early 1982 until early 1984, when he was at his hottest, with contradictory and confused feelings. Even though he lived to be 73 years old, almost everything he is best remembered for came in that two year period. Before that, he was an extremely talented pro wrestler who appeared in a number of territories and was a headliner almost from the start. But he was just one of dozens of great wrestlers working around the country, although he had unique… 

Click here to continue.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: January 3, 2000 Goldberg injured after car window stunt goes wrong, tons of news

It appears that Bill Goldberg will be out of the ring somewhere in the neighborhood of ten to 15 weeks as the word going around within the company but others are optimistically saying it’ll be closer to six weeks. The actual blow which cut up Goldberg’s arm did air on television which was an elbow shot into the window of the limo that didn’t break the first few times… Subscribers click here to continue.

THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE

Kenny Omega spoke to us on Wrestling Observer Radio about why he’s probably staying with New Japan.

Very busy weekend coming with Bellator tomorrow night, a somewhat loaded Arena Mexico show as well, plus UFC on FOX and NXT Takeover Saturday and the Royal Rumble on Sunday. The UFC main card and NXT Takeover will be going head-to-head.

There will be an NXT Awards show on WWE Network prior to Takeover at 7 p.m. Saturday night.

Paul Levesque did a conference call today which was to talk about Takeover, but most of the talk was about the U.K. There was nothing definitive said past they are looking at doing a weekly TV show from the U.K., but that’s been known.

He said that all talent knew ahead of time what the stipulations were regarding what they could and couldn’t do before they were signed, and said if there were any issues, it was not the WWE’s fault since they spelled everything out first. He also gave the indication that almost everyone who comes in will have to spend a stint in NXT due to the intense learning curve necessary.

The Tito Ortiz vs. Chael Sonnen fight had a 19% increase with DVR viewers figured in, doing 2.2 million viewers, while the Paul Daley vs. Brennan Ward fight with the great knockout had an 18% increase to 2 million viewers.

Ortiz spoke to Submission Radio about the fight: 

“The neck crank he got me on was really what made me sore. I mean, I’m having a lot of problems with my neck right now cause of it. I may have to get surgery, I’m not sure. I gotta get an MRI the other morning, but I’ve been having some numbness going down my left arm. That’s never happened before.”

“The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” was quick to slam any claims of the fight being fixed: “For people to say that the fight was fixed, f*ckin… it’s just ridiculous. Are you kidding me right now? I’m gonna give 14 weeks of my life, I’m gonna miss out on a Thanksgiving, miss out on a Christmas, miss out on a New Year’s to have a fixed fight? I’ve never been a part of that. If I wanted to do a fixed fight, I’d be doing WWE. For people to say that, that’s just really disrespectful. For any fighters to say that, that’s disrespectful –especially fighters that I helped out through their career. It’s just a disrespect.”

After such a successful and storied career, despite his current momentum, Ortiz explained why he’s in no rush to ride the wave or return to fighting: “You’ve got to understand right now, that my left arm is going in and out from being numb and not numb. That scares me. I don’t want to risk a chance of my going paralyzed for more fights. In 20 years, I’ve done everything I’ve wanted to do in MMA. It’s not hard because I push myself to the maximum. I’ve done as much as I possibly can do with my body, and my body can’t do anymore.”

Despite the ongoing bad blood between himself and Sonnen, Tito was optimistic about Chael’s future in Bellator despite the uninspiring loss: “They’ll get a lot out of him. The guy’s willing to step up and fight. He wants to fight. Him and Wanderlei Silva, that’s an amazing match. He said he’ll fight Rampage (Jackson), he said he’ll fight Fedor. If he can keep getting in the mat time. That’s what it is, getting in the mat time. You can’t take three years off and compete against guys on my level. No way”

WWE

• CBS Sports has a story on the first Royal Rumble in St. Louis.

Miscellaneous

• The big Eddie Edwards vs. Bobby Lashley TNA title match under Iron man rules for 30:00 airs as the main event of tonight’s Impact show. 
• Bellator has signed Jenn Brown, an Emmy award winning sports broadcaster and television personality. She started this past Saturday night at the show at the Forum doing interviews. She will also host Bellator’s on-line fight coverage and conduct interviews during the show, and do on-air features as well as features for the Bellator.com site. She spent eight years as a sideline reporter with ESPN and for American Ninja Warrior.
• UFC’s George Sullivan, who is already under suspension, but was scheduled to fight Randy Brown on 2/11 (his suspension ends on 1/31), is back to being provisionally suspended due to results of an out of competition test on 1/14. Sullivan has since claimed he started taking fertility pills three weeks ago to have a baby and all the paperwork is being sent in to clear this up. There still may be an issue if the substance is banned if he didn’t declare it on his forms.
• Tim Marchman of Deadspin got into a Twitter war with Ted Cruz and then challenged any Cruz supporters to face him in an MMA fight. So this happened.
• Edge, Christian, Rikishi, Great Khali and Saraya Knight have been added to the Wrestlecon lineup for WrestleMania weekend.
• FITE TV has announced a Saturday night show called Fight for the Mind 2 featuring Tommy Dreamer, Chase Stevens, Tracy Smothers and Tom Prichard, with Jim Cornette on commentary. It’s to battle Alzheimer’s. They also have an MMA show from Alberta tomorrow night, and another from Australia on Saturday.  There is also a new SoCal Val interview with Adam Cole.
• The Hardys vs The Ecktourage headlines Saturday night for MCW in Joppa, MD. There will be a 5 p.m. meet and greet with Matt & Jeff Hardy, Queen Rebecca & King Maxel. The main event has the Hardys defending their TNA tag team titles in a title vs. title match with MCW champions Dirty Money & Eric Chapel, managed by Kevin Eck. Melina defends the women’s title against Brittany Blake and Lio Rush faces Anthony Henry.
• Big Time Wrestling on 2/10 in Raleigh at Dorton Arena and 2/11 in Spartanburg at the Memorial Auditorium, but Crockett hot spots, will have Meet & Greet and matches with Sting, Great Khali, Matt Hardy, Teddy Long, Billy Gunn, Carlito, Tony Atlas, Buff Bagwell and C.W. Anderson.
• There is a new main event for the 2/17 Legacy Fighting Alliance show in Bossier City, LA at the Horeshoe Casino on AXS. Legacy featherweight champion Kevin Aguilar faces Damon Jackson. RFA featherweight champion Raoni Barcelos had to pull out due to injury for what was originally scheduled to be a title unification match.
• SoCal Uncensored announced its 2016 awards
  Wrestler of the Year — Tyler Bateman
  Women’s Wrestler of the Year — Thunder Rosa (Lucha Underground character Kobra Moon)
  Tag Team — Andy Brown & Adrian Quest
  Most Outstanding — Eli Everfly
  Rookie of the Year — Brocy King
  Best promotion — PWG
  Match of the year — Ricochet & Will Ospreay & Matt Sydal vs. Young Bucks & Adam Cole
• AAW on 2/4 in LaSalle, IL at the Knights of Columbus with Sami Callihan vs. Kongo Kong for the AAW title, ACH vs. Trevor Lee for the Heritage championship, Dave & Jake Crist vs. Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz, Jessicka Havok & Allysin Kay vs. Candice LeRae & Samantha Heights, Aldo Rose (Adam Rose) vs. DJZ and more. Plus AR Fox, Arik Cannon, David Starr, Davey Vega, Mat Fitchett and more. They also run 2/17 in Merrionette Park, IL with Sami Callihan, ACH, Trevor Lee, El Hijo del Fantasma, Dave & Jake Crist, Rey Fenix, Low Ki, Michael Elgin, Matt Riddle, Matt Sydal, Jack Evans, Chuck Taylor, Trent Baretta, Eddie Kingston, Abyss, Brian Cage, and more.
• The Taz show on CBS Sports Radio will have a three-hour Royal Rumble post-game show starting at 11 p.m. on Sunday night. airing on more than 200 stations around the country including WFAN in New York, The Score in Chicago, The Fan in Dallas, and SportsRadio 610 in Houston.
• NWA Smoky Mountain Wrestling on 2/11 in Kingsport, TN at the Civic Center with Chase Owens vs. Jason Kincaid for the Southeastern championship in what is billed as their last match in the promotion, with anything goes, must be a winner stipulations.
• Dotty Curtis, the wife of Don Curtis, who is well known among the wrestlers in Florida, fell on Christmas Eve and fractured her L-1 vertebrae and has been in almost unbearable pain. She’s still in intense pain and can barely stand up. Scott Teal reported this and best of luck to her in a recovery.
• IWF Loud and Proud with Tommy Dreamer and Tito Santana on 4/8 in Nutley, NJ at the Rec Center.
• ECWA announced Zombiie King in the Super 8 tournament on 4/29 in Woodbury Heights, NJ.
• There are two new wrestling books out at www.crowbarpress.com. They are “Wrestling in the Garden: The Battle for New York – Works, Shoots & Double-Crosses by Scott Teal & J. Michael Kenyon, the history and record of pro wrestling in the world’s most famous arena, and “Breaking Kayfabe: Shooting with the Legends of Wrestling” by Jeff Bowdren, with interview with 24 major wrestling stars of the past.
• NWL Kansas City from last Saturday night: Max Edwards b Gil Rogers, Howlets b The Union, Jeremy Wyatt b Thor Theirot, Mancini Brothers b Kyle Mars & Luke Holiday, Red Cloud b Devlin, Blaine Meeks b Chad Barstow, Dak Draper b Ray Briggs, Royal Blood b Ken Dharma (Matt Sydal) & Niles Plonk (thanks to Brian Hoops)

F4W / WO EMPIRE WRESTLEMANIA GROUP INFO

BUS INFO:

• The Empire bus to WrestleMania will cost $50.00 and will be round trip from Rosen Inn at 9000 International Drive 32819 (a few blocks away from Wrestlcon).
• The bus will leave at 4pm (time subject to change) for WrestleMania and will leave WrestleMania no later then one hour after the show. If you would like a seat email Ed at [email protected] or message him on the BOARD~! for Paypal payment instructions

DINNER INFO:

• WHAT: Dinner at Texas de Brazil
• WHEN: Friday March 31st
• WHERE: 5259 International Dr Ste F1, Orlando, FL 32819 at 5 p.m. (they may open at 4:30 for us)
• WHO: All your best empire buddies
• DETAILS: The cost of the dinner will be $68.00 which includes the dinner, salad bar, soft drinks and tea, and dessert, tax and tip. This is a pre pay dinner and you can send payment to paypal at [email protected] (please send as a gift to a friend). Payments must be made by March 24th (if you wait until after that, Ed will charge an extra $5.00 for being a pain).

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/26): CM Punk’s final match at Royal Rumble 2014

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• ROH TV results: Cody the American Nightmare vs. Steve Corino
• WWE pulls more UK talent from appearances
• NJPW/CMLL Fantastica Mania results: Dragon Lee vs. Cavernario
• TNA Impact Wrestling results: Race for the Case
• WWE pulls contracted UK talents from FloSlam broadcast
• The Hardys vs. Young Bucks set for ROH’s WrestleMania weekend show
• SmackDown ratings up a bit for Women’s title steel cage main event

AUDIO

• JNPO: Sean Grande on Tito vs. Chael, Superfly Snuka, and the last 18 months 1/20
• Bryan & Vinny: NXT, Lucha Underground mid-season finale, Granny, more! 1/20
• WOR: Kenny Omega talks Tokyo Dome, G-1, more! 1/19
• WOL: WWE business with Dave Meltzer, Raw and Smackdown, weekend schedule, more! 1/19

We’re looking for reports on tonight’s WWE Raw show in Birmingham, AL (Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens) and NXT show in Jacksonville, FL to [email protected].

We’re also going to do a poll only on the Sunday Fantastica Mania show, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected].

NEW JAPAN WORLD PRO WRESTLING ON AXS TV TONIGHT AT 8 P.M. EASTERN FROM THE TOKYO DOME SHOW

• Tama Tonga & Tanga Roa vs. Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii for the IWGP tag team titles
• Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP heavyweight title

LEGACY FIGHTING ALLIANCE TONIGHT AT 9 P.M. EASTERN ON AXS TV FROM THE MYSTIC LAKE CASINO HOTEL IN PRIOR LAKE, MINNESOTA

• Gabby Romero (0-1, 121.2) vs. Linsey Williams (0-0, 116)
• Lloyd McKinney (9-4, 135) vs. Mitch White (2-1, 135.8)
• Billy Christianson (12-6, 158.2) vs. Brandon Jenkins (9-4, 155.8)
• Matthew Marsh (4-1, 155.2) vs. Bobby Lee (5-0, 155.6)
• Damion Hill (12-5, 168.4) vs. Ben Neumann (11-4, 170.6)
• Darrick Minner (17-5, 136.2) vs. Chico Camus (16-7, 134.8)
• Lazar Stojadinovic (11-5, 145.6) vs. Mike Richman (18-6, 145.2)

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

• Flyer & Oro Jr. vs. Akuma & Inquisidor
• Fuego & Pegasso & The Panther vs. Disturbio & Sangre Azteca & Skandalo
• Triton vs. Misterioso Jr.
• Guerrero Maya Jr. & Johnny Idol & Rey Cometa vs. Bobby Z & Dragon Rojo Jr. & Polvora
• Angel de Oro & Blue Panther & Marco Corleone vs. Felino & Negro Casas & Sam Adonis
• Caristico & Diamante Azul & Rayo de Jalisco Jr. vs. Mephisto & Rey Bucanero & El Terrible

FANTASTICA MANIA AT 4:30 A.M. LATE FRIDAY/EARLY SATURDAY ON NEW JAPAN WORLD FROM KORAKUEN HALL

• Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask & Henare vs. Raziel & Gedo & Ephesto
• Stuka Jr. vs. Okumura
• Soberano Jr. & Kushida & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Kazuchika Okada & Will Ospreay & Cavernario Barbaro
• Hiroshi Tanahashi & Dragon Lee & Titan & Juice Robinson & David Finlay vs. Tetsuya Naito & Evil & Seiya Sanada & Bushi & Hiromu Takahashi
• Mistico & Volador Jr. vs. Ultimo Guerrero & Euforia
• Atlantis vs. Rush
• Maximo Sexy vs. Hechicero for CMLL heavyweight title

Saturday has WWE Raw in Indiana, PA, Smackdown in Dayton, OH and NXT in Fort Pierce, FL. We’re looking for reports on those shows to [email protected]. 

REVOLUTION PRO WRESTLING FROM YORK HALL IN LONDON ON SATURDAY (up on their streaming service on Monday)

• War Machine vs. Charlie Sterling & Joel Redman
• Jay White vs. Martin Stone
• Yoshi-Hashi vs. Pete Dunne
• Trevor Lee vs. Trent Seven
• Marty Scurll vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
• Katsuyori Shibata vs. Matt Riddle for British heavyweight title

BELLATOR ON SPIKE ON SATURDAY NIGHT AT 9 P.M. ON SPIKE TV FROM THE FORUM IN LOS ANGELES

• Derek Anderson (14-2, 160.1) vs. Derek Campos (17-6, 154.2) – Anderson only missed weight by 4.1 pounds
• Georgi Karakhanyan (26-6-1, 145.9) vs. Emmanuel Sanchez (13-3, 145.6)
• Ralek Gracie (3-0, 183.9) vs. Hisaki Kato (7-2, 185)
• Paul Daley (38-14-2, 170.8) vs. Brennan Ward (14-4, 170.9)
• Tito Ortiz (18-12-1, 204.8) vs. Chael Sonnen (28-14-1, 205.8)

FANTASTICA MANIA AT 4:30 A.M. LATE SATURDAY/EARLY SUNDAY ON NEW JAPAN WORLD

• Blue Panther Jr. & Henare & Soberano Jr. vs. Gedo & Jado & Cavernario Barbaro
• Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask & Stuka Jr. vs. Hechicero & Okumura & Raziel
• Dragon Lee & Titan vs. Hiromu Takahashi & Bushi
• Maximo Sexy & Juice Robinson & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Kazuchika Okada & Will Ospreay & Ephesto
• Hiroshi Tanahashi & Atlantis & Kushida & David Finlay vs. Tetsuya Naito & Rush & Seiya Sanada & Evil
• Mistico vs. Euforia
• Volador Jr. vs. Ultimo Guerrero 

Sunday has WWE Raw in Canton, OH and Smackdown in Fort Wayne, IN.

Raw will be the Royal Rumble go-home show in Cleveland. Brock Lesnar and Bill Goldberg are both on the show. There will also be a Smackdown show in Saginaw, MI.

Smackdown and 205 Live take place on Tuesday night in Toledo. Randy Orton vs. Luke Harper has been announced for the show. 

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/16/2017 WWE’s path forward in the United Kingdom

While the specifics of what’s to come remain uncertain, it was clear as Tyler Bate stood in the ring alongside Triple H, William Regal, Finn Balor, and Fit Finlay at the conclusion of the United Kingdom Championship tournament that WWE has a legitimate path forward in the country… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 23, 2017 Death of Jimmy Snuka, WWE UK tournament review, more

With WWE and New Japan gearing up for what is an inevitable battle in 2018, have a look at the long-term of the modern pro wrestling scene with both WWE’s latest international moves and what’s coming next, as well as New Japan’s plans in the new double-issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

It’s the first part of a story on the career of Jimmy Snuka, talking about his background, how he got into pro wrestling, how his popularity exploded in the WWF, his pre-WWF days, the death of Nancy Argentino, how the plight of Snuka shows how much pro wrestling and celebrity culture has changed, as well as Snuka’s time as a headliner in Japan and the resurrection of the Argentino case, in this issue.

Have a look at the WWE’s U.K. tournament, how this is laying the groundwork for bigger things not just in the U.K. but worldwide, independent promotions being talked about for the WWE Network, WWE going into competition with a business they partially own, a look at the U.K. scene, a look at how this affects certain talent with U.S. companies, and WWE sending out questions regarding expansion into a new part of the world.

Read about New Japan owner Takaaki Kidani’s talk regarding expanding into the U.S. market, his thoughts on WWE, our thoughts on a New Japan expansion, the AXS deal, the U.S. scene, how to handle the U.S. market and why the territories went out of business.

This issue has a look at the amateur and pro career of Kurt Angle and the 2017 WWE Hall of Fame class.

An update on the health of Vince McMahon, McMahon gives his thoughts on certain things in history and what actually happened, latest WWE network offers and why, Brock Lesnar’s schedule, will Brock do another UFC fight, Paul Levesque talks a women’s tournament, Levesque on Kenny Omega, Levesque on Zack Sabre Jr., Levesque on a U.K. PPV, changes to WrestleMania week, lots of WWE injury updates, WWE stock news, most watched shows on WWE Network, next week’s WWE television plus a look at all the WWE arena events from the past week with highlights and business notes.

Examine the prospects of a Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather fight, why it will be under boxing rules if it happens, what would happen under any other rules, PPV prospects and the difference between boxing and MMA when it comes to headliner pay. 

Click here for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 27, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WCW Starrcade review, NWO reforms, tons more

The idea to turn WCW around is–the same idea Eric Bischoff came up with that helped turn WCW around three-and-a-half years ago. The most important thing about the revival of the NWO with Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Bret Hart and Jeff Jarrett, all holding the major WCW title belts, as the final act of the 12/20 Nitro in Baltimore is not whether it was just copying something from the past. Of course it was nothing original, but the object of wrestling is not originality… Subscribers click here to continue.

FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE

Kurt Angle has been pulled from Five Star Wrestling for the show next weekend in Dundee, Scotland. He was going to be a television announcer for the live Spike U.K. broadcast. I figured that was almost a lock to happen for all the obvious reasons.

As noted earlier today, Pete Dunne, Mark Andrews and Trent Seven were pulled by WWE from a live podcast taping in London next weekend. The booking of the guests were made months ago, long before there were any plans by WWE to sign U.K. talent or do the tournament. Eddie Dennis, Chris Brookes, Doug Williams, Jonny Storm and Jody Fleisch will replace them.

IPW UK announced for its Sunday show in Rochester, England, that Pete Dunne would do a dark match against Tom Dawkins since he can’t air on Flo Sports, and Ryan Smile will replace Dunne in the main event against Matt Riddle. Joseph Conners is also off the show and will be replaced by Adam Maxted.

WWE did not pull talent (Trent Seven and Pete Dunne) from Saturday’s Revolution Pro show. Seven faces TNA’s Trevor Lee while Dunne faces NJPW’s Yoshi-Hashi. The show isn’t on FloSlam nor will it air live, but there are some basic parameters:

WWE contracted talent will be permitted to perform for certain promotions, but the events cannot be distributed (televised, streamed, transmitted or taped) unless authorized. It is said that all talent was told this before signing deals, and is in all of their contracts.

Some of the WWE U.K. contracted talent is being brought next week to San Antonio.

WWE

• For the WWE shows this weekend, Chris Jericho won’t be on tonight’s show in Birmingham but is booked for the rest of the weekend. John Cena and Randy Orton are only advertised for Tuesday night this week. 
• “The Ressurection of Gavin Stone” opens tonight. Variety wrote about Shawn Michaels that he “makes a winning impression as a born-again biker-turned-mechanic and is fairly solid across the board.”
• The company has released a Jimmy Snuka Collection today on the WWE Network and promoted it hard today in an e-mail blast. “Celebrate the Life of Jimmy Snuka” is more than a bit too much. Doing charity work and having class are hardly the same thing.
• The company also sent out another e-mail blast about three months free, saying this is the last chance to order it (which would include Rumble, Fast Lane, Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania) to all the people who got the first blast but haven’t ordered yet.
• Howard Stern yesterday aired a brief interview from a convention with Ric Flair, who was asked about blood capsules and Fair said that he never used a blood capsule and “Don’t insult me.” Stern talked about how tough Flair was and they were very respectful toward him. (thanks to Richard Orloski)
• A funny 15-year-old video of Bill Goldberg discus throwing a human into a lake.

UFC

• Eric Winter, who has hired by UFC to run Fight Pass, is finishing up today. He’s been with the company for 18 months and came to UFC from Yahoo! Sports. His family was living in Southern California and he was commuting to Las Vegas every week, and said that with a fourth grader and first grader that he wanted to be home.
• Steve Cheung went from being a spokesperson for the UFC to the Assistant White House Communications Director in less than six months.

MISCELLANEOUS

• New Japan also has a Jimmy Snuka special, not any kind of a tribute but they have put up a free match from 1985 with Bruiser Brody & Jimmy Snuka vs. Dick Murdoch & Masked Superstar from Sumo Hall. The finish is bad, as were most of the big match finishes of that era, but you really see how great Brody was at his character and what a phenomenal worker Murdoch is in this match.
• Chris Daughtry will be singing the national anthem before tomorrow night’s Bellator show at The Forum in Los Angeles.
• Regarding yesterday’s daily update and the mention of Matt Cross. Cross may not have wrestled in Austin, TX (he was at the show) for Wrestle Circus because he injured his knee the night before for Defy Wrestling in Seattle. Cross wrestled King Khash and hurt his knee on a moonsault. Cross, Shane Strickland and Jeff Cobb all worked in Seattle that night and flew to Austin, and Cross wasn’t able to wrestle because of the knee injury.
• Chris Dickinson & Jaka vs. Sammy Guevera & Jason Kincaid was added to the 1/28 Evolve show in San Antonio.
• Style Battle on 2/10 in Ybor City, FL at the Orpheum will be a one-night eight-man tournament on Flo Sports featuring Sami Callihan, Dan Barry, Anthony Henry and Tracer X.
• Mid States Wrestling has Fight for Kaitlyn tomorrow night in North Little Rock, AR at the Maumelle Event Center. It’s a fund raiser for Kaitlyn Ison, who is battling leukemia. Buff Bagwell & Tim Storm vs. Matt Riviera & Greg Anthony headline. All seats are $12.
• Lucha Slam on 1/28 in Brantford, ONT at 183 Erie Avenue.
• The NWL promotion run by Major Baisden opened with 510 fans on 1/7 in Kansas City and 450 on 1/12 in St. Louis. The next shows are Saturday in Kansas City and 1/26 in St. Louis. They are also offering season ticket packages.
• wXw from Saturday night in Oberhausen, Germany: Chris Brookes & Travis Banks b Da Mack & Hakuto, Marius Al-Ani b Absolute Andy, Emil Sitoci b Francis Kaspin, Axel Dieter Jr. b Jurn Simmons-DQ, Alpha Female b Melanie Gray, Dirty Dragon & Julian Nero & Robert Dreissker b Chris Colen & John Klinger
• Absolute Intense Wrestling Gauntlet for the Gold no 3/234 in Cleveland at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel featuring Scott Norton

Chael Sonnen’s Submission Underground runs 1/29 at the Roseland Theater in Portland, OR on Flo Sports with these submission grappling bouts announced:

• Jeff Glover vs. Chad Mendes
• Gordon Ryan vs. Jeff Monson
• Garry Toon vs. Hector Lombard
• Dillon Danis vs. A.J. Agazarm

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/20): WWF Royal Rumble 2002

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Lastest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• WWE pulls contracted UK talents from FloSlam broadcast
• The Hardys vs. Young Bucks set for ROH’s WrestleMania weekend show
• SmackDown ratings up a bit for Women’s title steel cage main event
• January 23, 2017 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Death of Jimmy Snuka, WWE UK tournament review, more
• Two more matches set for NXT TakeOver: San Antonio
• WWE NXT results: Nakamura & Roode make their TakeOver match official
• Raw ratings bounce back strong without football competition
• HHH confirms WWE women’s tournament, not a fan of intergender matches

AUDIO

• WOR: Kenny Omega talks Tokyo Dome, G-1, more! 1/19
• WOL: WWE business with Dave Meltzer, Raw and Smackdown, weekend schedule, more! 1/19
• WOR: New Japan and WWE Network plans, Smackdown, Chael vs. Tito, more! 1/19
• F4D: BJ Penn’s doom, Smackdown, Impact, Geek of the Week, more! 1/18

There will be an NXT tour show tonight in Orlando.

TNA IMPACT AT 8 P.M. ON POP TV

• Race for the Case match
• Moose vs. Drew Galloway for the Grand championship

FANSTASTICA MANIA AT 4:30 A.M. EASTERN TIME FRIDAY MORNING/THURSDAY NIGHT FROM KORAKUEN HALL IN TOKYO

• Ephesto & Will Ospreay vs. Blue Panther Jr. & Henare
• Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask & Soberano Jr. vs. Raziel & Gedo & Jado
• Maximo Sexy & Stuka Jr. vs. Hechicero & Okumura
• Hiroshi Tanahashi & Atlantis & Kushida & Ryusuke Taguchi & David Finlay vs. Tetsuya Naito & Rush & Seiya Sanada & Evil & Bushi
• Mistico & Volador Jr. & Juice Robinson vs. Kazuchika Okada & Ultimo Guerrero & Euforia
• Hiromu Takahashi vs. Titan
• Dragon Lee vs. Cavernario Barbaro for CMLL lightweight title

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/16/2017 WWE’s path forward in the United Kingdom

While the specifics of what’s to come remain uncertain, it was clear as Tyler Bate stood in the ring alongside Triple H, William Regal, Finn Balor, and Fit Finlay at the conclusion of the United Kingdom Championship tournament that WWE has a legitimate path forward in the country… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 23, 2017 Death of Jimmy Snuka, WWE UK tournament review, more

Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, who was the WWF’s biggest star in 1982-83 and the supreme American high flyer of his era, but whose names brings up a number of different connotations and emotions, passed away on 1/15 at the age of 73, just 12 days after third degree murder and involuntary manslaughter charges were dropped against him. The charges were dropped due to Judge Kelly Banach ruling that dementia had set in to the point he was not mentally competent to stand trial. This came one month after his attorneys stated he was in hospice care, battling stomach cancer and infections, and was not likely to live another six months.

We may look back at the WWE’s United Kingdom championship tournament, held on 1/14 and 1/15 in Blackpool, as the start of an interesting chapter in a new era of pro wrestling. This was far more than a tournament to create a remake of the formerly comedic European title. This constituted the beginnings of ideas to test market localized promotions running an area. It constituted very publicly opening the door to work with other promotions, which, historically has happened in the past but this is also 33 years away from the first inception.

New Japan owner Takaaki Kidani gave an interview to Weekly Pro Wrestling which emphasized an expansion into the U.S. market in 2018, with a regional territory based in Southern California. The interview, translated by Chris Charlton, included these key notes: “We’re preparing a lot of steps to ensure that 2017 is a big year for us. Firstly, Wrestle Kingdom was a great success. For the first time this millennium, TV-Asahi gave us access to a two-and-a-half hour time slot, the same day, to show a version of the event.

Click here for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 27, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WCW Starrcade review, NWO reforms, tons more

The idea to turn WCW around is–the same idea Eric Bischoff came up with that helped turn WCW around three-and-a-half years ago. The most important thing about the revival of the NWO with Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Bret Hart and Jeff Jarrett, all holding the major WCW title belts, as the final act of the 12/20 Nitro in Baltimore is not whether it was just copying something from the past. Of course it was nothing original, but the object of wrestling is not originality… Subscribers click here to continue.

THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE

We have a tremendous interview with Kenny Omega up on the site today.

Linda McMahon’s confirmation hearing for her position as the administrator of the Small Business Administration in Donald Trump’s cabinet takes place on Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. 

Congratulations to Trish Status on the birth of her baby girl, Madison Patricia today.

UFC announced Chris Weidman vs. Gegard Mousasi in a major middleweight fight for the 4/8 show in Buffalo, which will be the UFC 210 PPV show.

A.J. Styles was robbed on Monday while wrestling in Jonesboro, AR. Police at Arkansas State University are investigating a theft case as Allan Jones (A.J. Styles) reported a bag with $1,000 in U.S. cash and 700,000 yen, as well as an iPhone, a set of Beats headphones, a small screen TV an Xbox 360 and six Xbox 360 games were stolen from him.

WWE

• Even though the claim up until yesterday is that this wouldn’t happen, WWE has started to tell its UK talent that there are more promotions they can’t work for. Pete Dunne was pulled from the FloSlam broadcast of the 4/17 Lucha Forever UK show in Birmingham, England because it will air on Flo Sports. Yes, they are pulling talent from a company they own a percentage of. And I’m not surprised in the least. Dunne has also been moved to a dark match on Sunday’s IPW UK show and Joseph Conners, who was headlining, was pulled from the card.
• There is a pre-sale for the 3/27 Raw show in Philadelphia, the last Raw before WrestleMania, at the Wells Fargo Center, ending tomorrow at 11 p.m. Brock Lesnar will be featured on the show.
• The WWE website had an interview with Seth Rollins saying he wished Kenny Omega would be in the Royal Rumble. It was taken down from the site, and then put back up.
• The Huffington Post has a note on Kurt Angle.

UFC/MMA

• Amanda Nunes appeared this morning on Live with Kelly. Among the things she did was put Christian Slater in a rear naked choke.
• Tickets for UFC 209 on 3/4 at the T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas go on sale to the public tomorrow. Tickets are $600 down to $75. This is the current lineup for the show:
  Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Wonderboy Thompson for welterweight title
  Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson for interim lightweight title (I know)
  Alistair Overeem vs. Mark Hunt
  Darren Elkins vs. Mirsad Bektic
  Lando Vannata vs. David Teymur
  Todd Duffee vs. Mark Godbeer
  Ed Herman vs. Igor Pokrajac
• Added to the 3/18 show in London at the O2 Arena is Jimi Manuwa vs. Corey Anderson, Joseph Duffy vs. Raza Madadi, Lina Landsberg vs. Veronica Macedo and Daniel Omielanczyk vs. Timothy Johnson.
• James Kimball was promoted to Vice President of Operations of the new 30,000 square foot Performance Institute that is being built in Las Vegas. He will be involved in the planning, strategy and day-to-day operations of the new facility.
• Bellator has video of the press conference from today in Los Angeles. The line where Sonnen said the only person who used their mouth to make money was Tito’s ex-wife has been repeated throughout the day.
• Former Strikeforce heavyweight Brett Rogers is now facing sex crimes charges.

 MISCELLANEOUS

• Dwayne Johnson has signed on to play Black Adam is a movie that will be come out in 2019.
• We’re sorry to report that Paul Jackiewicz, known as The Jackal, the television announcer for the Century Wrestling Alliance and NW New England from 1993 to 1999, passed away this past Thursday at the age of 51. His funeral will be this coming Saturday at 10 a.m. at St. Anthony’s Church in Revere, MA. He also worked with Dan Mirade in building the Millennium Wrestling Federation with John Cena Sr., and did commentary that promotion from 2001 to the present.
• Matt & Jeff Hardy appear for Broken Anniversary on 1/28 in Joppa, MD at the MCW Arena, facing The Ecktourage, Dirty Money & Eric Chapel. Melina also faces Brittany Blake on that show.
• Revolution Pro, which has a big show on Saturday night, will return to York Hall in London on 4/13 for a show featuring IWGP jr. champion Hiromu Takahashi.
• Flo Sports announced a deal with the Northern California based Pro Wrestling Revolucion promotion, which features Caristico as their current champion and uses wrestlers from Mexico and California. 
• Hangman Adam Page has signed a new deal with ROH. 
• Northeast Wrestling on Saturday night in Waterbury, CT at the PAL Building with TK O’Ryan defending the NEW title against Sami Callihan, Ricochet vs. Travis Gordon, Keith Lee vs. Dijak plus Michael Bennett, Matt Traven, Vinny Marseglia and Mandy Leon appear.
• Evolve announced the signing of Austin Theory, who will debut on the 2/24 Evolve show in Joppa, MD.
• PWX on 2/19 in Concord, NC at the Cabarrus Arena.
• AIW Girls Night Out on 3/11 in Cleveland at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel with Shayna Baszler, Veda Scott, Ray Lyn, Faye Jackson, Britt Baker, Alexia Nicole, Keira Hogan and Solo Darling.
• Alexander Shlemenko will headline for M-1 on 3/3 in Moscow, Russia. Shlemenko is still under contract to Bellator but he’s been allowed to fight for M-1 on this show.
• ECWA on 1/21 in Woodbury Heights, NJ at the Community Center.
• Regarding an item in the new Observer on Matt Cross being advertised for the WrestleCircus show in Austin, TX last weekend and not wrestling, Cross was there but with his opponent not being there, he didn’t wrestle, but he was at the building. (thanks to Pete Schirmacher)
• Best in the West TV taping on Sunday in Fresno, CA at the VFW Hall at 3585 N. Blythe featuring Jeff Cobb vs. Joey Ryan and Mustafa a Saed vs. JR Kratos. They also have an iPPV show on 3/12 featuring Lio Rush from ROH. (thanks to Jon Southerland)
• The Legacy Fighting Alliance announced that Legacy Fighting featherweight champion Kevin Aguilar will face Resurrection Fighting featherweight champion Raoni Barcelos to unify the championships, and Legacy women’s flyweight champoin Andrea Lee defends against Heather Bassett to create the first LFA champion on a show on 2/17 in Bossier City, LA at the Horseshoe Casino and Hotel. The card will be airing live on AXS TV.
• AAW tomorrow night in Merrionette Park, IL at 115 Bourbon Street has Dave & Jake Crist vs. Eddie Kingston & Homicide in a cage match, Sami Callihan defends the AAW heavyweight title, ACH & Rey Fenix vs. Brian Cage & Michael Elgin, Andrew Everett &Jack Evans vs. Davey Vega & Mat Fitchett for the AAW tag titles, Mercedes Martinez vs. Angelina Love, Drew Galloway vs. Silas Young, Abyss vs. Colt Cabana, Matt Sydal vs. Davey Richards and Moose vs. AR Fox vs. Dezmond Xavier vs. DJZ.
• Glen Jeffries has an interesting article on Perry Saturn.
• A former GLOW wrestler has made her living doing wrestling in hotel rooms.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/19): Ric Flair wins the 1992 Royal Rumble

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• Raw ratings bounce back strong without football competition
• HHH confirms WWE women’s tournament, not a fan of intergender matches
• UFC’s first show of 2017 battles the NFL, still cracks 1 million viewers
• WWE SmackDown video highlights: The reveal of La Luchadora
• WWE 205 Live results: Gallagher vs. Daivari in an ‘I forfeit’ match
• Mickie James returns to WWE TV on SmackDown
• WWE title main event set for the Elimination Chamber

AUDIO

• WOL: Smackdown, Royal Rumble, Triple H talks WAVEMANIA DVD, more! 1/18
• DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: A look at the Frank Gotch era 1/18
• B&V&C: Mike Tyson vs. Steve Austin Raw, more from 19 years ago this week! 1/17
• WOL: Don Callis talks WWF and New Japan gig, Raw, more! 1/17
• WOL Retro: Kurt Angle talks Rey Mysterio match, career updates 1/17
• WOR: Raw, Snuka video, Kurt Angle Hall of Fame, ICW on WWE Network, more! 1/17

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/16/2017 WWE’s path forward in the United Kingdom

While the specifics of what’s to come remain uncertain, it was clear as Tyler Bate stood in the ring alongside Triple H, William Regal, Finn Balor, and Fit Finlay at the conclusion of the United Kingdom Championship tournament that WWE has a legitimate path forward in the country… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

A look at the lessons learned of what worked and didn’t work in 2016, and each major company’s prospects for 2017 is the biggest story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Next, check out the situation with Kenny Omega, look at the updated plans for WrestleMania, plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the Mark Hunt lawsuit against Brock Lesnar and the UFC.

Comparisons of the UFC and WWE business in 2016 and how each company looks going into next year, plus a look at the lessons regarding television ratings of MMA, loading up PPV shows, why GSP isn’t fighting, what’s on the horizon in 2017 for future UFC fights and some experimental ideas for UFC and FOX, all in this issue.

Have a look at the positives and negatives of WWE going into 2017 including how the women’s and cruiserweight divisions are doing. Find out what big star returns, how NXT has changed the WWE business, the good and the bad of using top stars in NXT, as well as both UFC and WWE struggling with creating a long-term fan base.

The plight of the independent scene, the future of ROH and TNA, how New Japan and AXS can work together to build a stronger product, the role of Flo Slam in the 2017 wrestling world, and the lessons of Bellator’s ratings regarding who does and doesn’t move numbers, inside this issue.

Read a big story on Kenny Omega coming out of Wrestle Kingdom 11, including John Cena’s reaction, Omega’s and Okada talk about their match, the new top program in New Japan and why Omega is in such a unique position right now.

An update on the WrestleMania card as things stand including what talked about match is off, and what matches are official, and also look at why WrestleMania in 2018 is coming to New Orleans and the schedule of events, can be read.

Finally, take a look at the ticket demand and sales for Royal Rumble and NXT in San Antonio, the NXT Takeover lineup, more on the WWE Hall of Fame, the remarketing of XFL nostalgia, the return of Chris Hero to WWE and a new John Cena movie. 

Click here for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 27, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WCW Starrcade review, NWO reforms, tons more

The idea to turn WCW around is–the same idea Eric Bischoff came up with that helped turn WCW around three-and-a-half years ago. The most important thing about the revival of the NWO with Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Bret Hart and Jeff Jarrett, all holding the major WCW title belts, as the final act of the 12/20 Nitro in Baltimore is not whether it was just copying something from the past. Of course it was nothing original, but the object of wrestling is not originality… Subscribers click here to continue.

WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

• It was announced on Talking Smack last night that Jerry Lawler would be calling the Royal Rumble match alongside Michael Cole and Corey Graves. Lawler will also be part of the pre-show in San Antonio. Both Lawler and Lita were pulled from their regular pre-show duties at the end of last year.
• Randy Orton vs. Luke Harper in a singles match was announced last night for next week’s SmackDown.
• All three Wyatt Family members will be in the Royal Rumble. Cesaro and Sheamus were also announced as participants in the match on Monday.
• Orton posted a series of tweets in response to an article about a recent altercation he had with a fan at a gym in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Orton tweeted: “Apparently I hurt a fans feelings when I told him to F off at the gym yesterday. That’s news? Been happening for 15 years. #getalife”
• Tonight’s episode of NXT features a contract signing with Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode for their upcoming title match at TakeOver: San Antonio.
• Darren Young tweeted an update about the injury that he suffered at the Main Event taping before Raw on Monday: “Hyperextension which resulted in a traumatic dislocation & fracture of the coronoid process of the right elbow. #blockthehate #standby”

Pro Wrestling

• Chris Charlton translated an interview from NJPW owner Takaaki Kidani where he talked about the company’s plans for expansion into the United States. Kidani said, “When you ask what it is we can do (with New Japan), it is to create an American based subsidiary and run shows there. In addition, it is to produce television in line with our Japanese content that can be sold cheaply to American cable networks. While we currently sell television content to AXS TV, the most popular and visible networks have a high demand for volume of content available cheaply.”
• What Culture Pro Wrestling will host the 2017 Pro Wrestling World Cup, which will be a 64 wrestler tournament that spans 10 nights and takes place in the spring.
• The Hardys are set to face Pentagon Jr. & Fenix on the March 31st WrestleCon show over WrestleMania weekend.
• Matt Jackson of The Young Bucks tweeted a photo of them and the Hardys along with a message agreeing to their challenge to a match. The teams are scheduled to face each other at ROH’s Supercard of Honor show in Lakeland, Florida on April 1st.
• ROH announced CMLL’s Volador Jr. and NJPW’s YOSHI-HASHI as the latest additions to that show.
• PROGRESS Wrestling has confirmed that Tyler Bate, Pete Dunne, Trent Seven, and Mark Andrews will be wrestling for the company over WrestleMania weekend in Florida. PROGRESS is part of WWN’s weekend of events and will be putting on a supershow with EVOLVE in addition to a show of their own.
• 4FW announced that Kenny Omega would be appearing at their show this Saturday in Swindon.

UFC/MMA

• Amanda Nunes said in an interview with Fox Sports that Miesha Tate is a better fighter than Ronda Rousey.
• Johny Hendricks is reportedly moving to middleweight to face Hector Lombard at UFC Fight Night in Halifax on February 19th.
• Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson appeared on ESPN’s First Take today in advance of their UFC 209 main event.
• Nate Diaz is in the process of applying for a boxing license in Nevada.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/18): Steve Austin wins the 1998 Royal Rumble

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• Mickie James backstage at tonight’s SmackDown
• Tajiri not cleared to wrestle after suffering a knee injury
• NJPW World finds its new lead English color commentary voice
• Darren Young suffers an injury on Main Event; other Raw off-air notes
• WWE Raw video highlights: Brawls open and close the show
• WWE Raw live results: Brock Lesnar returns
• Kurt Angle to headline 2017 WWE Hall of Fame class

AUDIO

• WOL: Don Callis talks WWF and New Japan gig, Raw, more! 1/17
• WOR: Raw, Snuka video, Kurt Angle Hall of Fame, ICW on WWE Network, more! 1/17
• WOL: More free WWE Network months, Raw, WrestleMania, more! 1/16
• WOR: Death of Jimmy Snuka, UK tournament, UFC BJ Penn, more! 1/16
• B&V: NWA World Championship Wrestling, UK tournament, more! 1/15

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/16/2017 WWE’s path forward in the United Kingdom

While the specifics of what’s to come remain uncertain, it was clear as Tyler Bate stood in the ring alongside Triple H, William Regal, Finn Balor, and Fit Finlay at the conclusion of the United Kingdom Championship tournament that WWE has a legitimate path forward in the country… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

A look at the lessons learned of what worked and didn’t work in 2016, and each major company’s prospects for 2017 is the biggest story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Next, check out the situation with Kenny Omega, look at the updated plans for WrestleMania, plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the Mark Hunt lawsuit against Brock Lesnar and the UFC.

Comparisons of the UFC and WWE business in 2016 and how each company looks going into next year, plus a look at the lessons regarding television ratings of MMA, loading up PPV shows, why GSP isn’t fighting, what’s on the horizon in 2017 for future UFC fights and some experimental ideas for UFC and FOX, all in this issue.

Have a look at the positives and negatives of WWE going into 2017 including how the women’s and cruiserweight divisions are doing. Find out what big star returns, how NXT has changed the WWE business, the good and the bad of using top stars in NXT, as well as both UFC and WWE struggling with creating a long-term fan base.

The plight of the independent scene, the future of ROH and TNA, how New Japan and AXS can work together to build a stronger product, the role of Flo Slam in the 2017 wrestling world, and the lessons of Bellator’s ratings regarding who does and doesn’t move numbers, inside this issue.

Read a big story on Kenny Omega coming out of Wrestle Kingdom 11, including John Cena’s reaction, Omega’s and Okada talk about their match, the new top program in New Japan and why Omega is in such a unique position right now.

An update on the WrestleMania card as things stand including what talked about match is off, and what matches are official, and also look at why WrestleMania in 2018 is coming to New Orleans and the schedule of events, can be read.

Finally, take a look at the ticket demand and sales for Royal Rumble and NXT in San Antonio, the NXT Takeover lineup, more on the WWE Hall of Fame, the remarketing of XFL nostalgia, the return of Chris Hero to WWE and a new John Cena movie. 

Click here for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 27, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WCW Starrcade review, NWO reforms, tons more – The idea to turn WCW around is–the same idea Eric Bischoff came up with that helped turn WCW around three-and-a-half years ago. The most important thing about the revival of the NWO with Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Bret Hart and Jeff Jarrett, all holding the major WCW title belts, as the final act of the 12/20 Nitro in Baltimore is not whether it was just copying something from the past. Of course it was nothing original, but the object of wrestling is not originality… Subscribers click here to continue.

TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

• Kurt Angle spoke to Sports Illustrated about his upcoming WWE Hall of Fame induction. Angle said that Steve Austin is at the top of his list to induct him and called the decision a “no-brainer.”
• Angle will appear on WWE’s weekly SportsCenter segment with Jonathan Coachman tomorrow night.
• WWE is advertising that Shane McMahon making a “huge announcement” will open tonight’s episode of SmackDown. The show will also feature Alexa Bliss defending her Women’s Championship against Becky Lynch in a steel cage match and Dolph Ziggler appearing on a King’s Court segment with Jerry Lawler. Mickie James is backstage at the show.
• The “I forfeit” match between Jack Gallagher and Ariya Daivari that was agreed to on last week’s show will take place on tonight’s 205 Live.
• Tajiri tweeted about his knee injury that was announced by WWE.com today: “Now Im getting much much better!! Sorry for 12 billion of TAJIRI fans in the world.I`ll come back to the ring soon.”
• WWE is holding 2016 year-end awards for NXT that will be announced on the one-hour pre-show prior to TakeOver: San Antonio. The categories are performer of the year, male of the year, female of the year, breakout of the year, tag team of the year, and TakeOver of the year.
• ESPN spoke to William Regal about Chris Hero returning to NXT as Kassius Ohno.
• Howard Finkel debuted with WWE 40 years ago today at Madison Square Garden.
• AL.com has an article about John Cena interacting with young fans at WWE’s house show in Birmingham.
• WWE 2K17 has released its “future stars” pack with Austin Aries, Tye Dillinger, Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows, and Mojo Rawley now available as downloadable content for the game.

Pro Wrestling

• Keith Lee will make his EVOLVE debut against Chris Hero over Royal Rumble weekend at EVOLVE 76. Hero will then have his final match for the company against Zack Sabre Jr. at EVOLVE 77.
• Ring of Honor has announced that Dragon Lee and Jushin Thunder Liger will appear at their Supercard of Honor show during WrestleMania weekend in Lakeland.
• Dixie Carter tweeted congratulations to Kurt Angle on his Hall of Fame induction.
• Kenny Omega will be a guest on The Taz Show via Skype tomorrow morning.

UFC/MMA

• Tim Kennedy announced his retirement from MMA in a post on Facebook. His last fight was a loss to Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 206.
• Kennedy spoke to the Luke Thomas show on SiriusXM about his decision.
• Gegard Mousasi spoke out against the rest of the UFC’s middleweight division.
• Angela Hill will face Jessica Andrade at UFC Fight Night in Houston on February 4th after Hill was granted an exception from having to undergo the mandatory four months of USADA testing before fighting.
• Chael Sonnen and Tito Ortiz will participate in an open workout at the courtyard at Viacom headquarters in Hollywood, California tomorrow at noon PT.
• Combate Americas has agreed to a deal with ESPN Latin America to air their Thursday night event that takes place in Mexico City.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/17): Vader wins the IWGP title

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Lastest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• Kurt Angle to headline 2017 WWE Hall of Fame class
• World title match set for ROH’s first PPV of 2017
• Cody Garbrandt & TJ Dillashaw to coach TUF: Redemption
• ROH announces War of the Worlds tour dates with NJPW
• UFC Fight Night 103 live results: Yair Rodriguez vs. BJ Penn
• Jimmy Snuka dead at 73 years old
• WWE UK tournament night two live results: The first champion is crowned

AUDIO

• WOR: Death of Jimmy Snuka, UK tournament, UFC BJ Penn, more! 1/16
• B&V: NWA World Championship Wrestling, UK tournament, more! 1/15
• WOL: WWE UK tournament finals, Jimmy Snuka death, more! 1/15
• DR. KEITH PRESENTS: The 2016 Capsule Comp, pt. 1! 1/15

Raw is tonight in Little Rock with the return of Brock Lesnar, who is going to be a regular character from now until WrestleMania. Bill Goldberg is not scheduled for tonight’s show. We’re looking for reports as far as dark matches, Main Event matches and anything else that doesn’t air live to [email protected].

We’re also looking for your reports on these shows:

• WWE Saturday night in Wichita
• ROH Saturday night in Atlanta
• WWE Sunday in Jackson, MS

We’re also looking for your thoughts on both days of the WWE U.K. tournament, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle for each show along with a best and worst match from each show to[email protected]

Smackdown and 205 Live will be taped on Tuesday in Memphis featuring Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss in a cage match for the women’s title plus the return of Jerry Lawler. There will also be a music video with WWE stars for a song by Sophia Grace. Grace did a cameo on Smackdown a few weeks ago with Nikki Bella on the show.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

A look at the lessons learned of what worked and didn’t work in 2016, and each major company’s prospects for 2017 is the biggest story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Next, check out the situation with Kenny Omega, look at the updated plans for WrestleMania, plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the Mark Hunt lawsuit against Brock Lesnar and the UFC.

Comparisons of the UFC and WWE business in 2016 and how each company looks going into next year, plus a look at the lessons regarding television ratings of MMA, loading up PPV shows, why GSP isn’t fighting, what’s on the horizon in 2017 for future UFC fights and some experimental ideas for UFC and FOX, all in this issue.

Have a look at the positives and negatives of WWE going into 2017 including how the women’s and cruiserweight divisions are doing. Find out what big star returns, how NXT has changed the WWE business, the good and the bad of using top stars in NXT, as well as both UFC and WWE struggling with creating a long-term fan base.

The plight of the independent scene, the future of ROH and TNA, how New Japan and AXS can work together to build a stronger product, the role of Flo Slam in the 2017 wrestling world, and the lessons of Bellator’s ratings regarding who does and doesn’t move numbers, inside this issue.

Read a big story on Kenny Omega coming out of Wrestle Kingdom 11, including John Cena’s reaction, Omega’s and Okada talk about their match, the new top program in New Japan and why Omega is in such a unique position right now.

An update on the WrestleMania card as things stand including what talked about match is off, and what matches are official, and also look at why WrestleMania in 2018 is coming to New Orleans and the schedule of events, can be read.

Finally, take a look at the ticket demand and sales for Royal Rumble and NXT in San Antonio, the NXT Takeover lineup, more on the WWE Hall of Fame, the remarketing of XFL nostalgia, the return of Chris Hero to WWE and a new John Cena movie. 

Click here for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general… Subscribers click here to continue.

MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

Bryan and I will be back for our third straight night of coverage, talking Raw and all the rest of the news. You can send e-mail questions for tonight’s show to [email protected].

Kurt Angle will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and this will be announced on Raw tonight. So that is his official return to the company that has been speculated on. 

WWE Hall of Fame tickets go on sale with a pre-sale moved to Wednesday and public on sale to Friday. This was the third time in recent weeks they’ve changed the date.

Most media outlets covered the Jimmy Snuka death, noting both key things, his popularity in pro wrestling in the 80s in WWF and the Nancy Argentino case. Snuka was also one of the plaintiffs in the concussions lawsuit against WWE. Most stories focused on Tweets sent by name wrestlers. The cause of death has not come out but he was suffering from cancer and some serious infections and had been moved to hospice care in Florida on 12/17. I would expect something on Raw tonight as WWE did a ten bell salute yesterday at its house show in Jackson, MS. As noted, there was no mention of Snuka on its live broadcast from Blackpool, England.

For tonight’s Raw, this is the first week with no football so in theory the rating should be way up. It’s it’s above 3.3 million, that would be good but any number at 3.3 million or less would be normal for what should be expected. Under 3.2 million would be bad. There is significant competition with the Warriors vs. Cavs, the rematch of the NBA championship, going head-to-head against most of the show, on TNT. Next Monday is supposed to be a loaded show as the Rumble go-home Raw so that’ll be the real test as far as how much of the audience is coming back.

It was quite sad seeing B.J. Penn go out the way he did last night in the main event with Yair Rodriguez. That’s the cycle of life in real combat sports, that if you don’t recognize when it’s time to get out, the ending is usually not pretty. There were a ton of people watching sports yesterday, with the Packers-Cowboys game based on prelim numbers doing 48,520,000 viewers, which is more than the seventh game of either the World Series or NBA playoffs did. It was the best overnight rating for a divisional playoff game in more than 20 years. That wasn’t the game that went against UFC, as they went against the Chiefs-Steelers game, which looks to have done more than 37 million viewers. Fox was promoting the UFC show during the Packers game, so that should help, but with a head-to-head game, that’s tough, specially with the lack of marquee stars on last night’s show.

WWE

• Regarding questions I’m getting asked a lot, all of the wrestlers who appeared in the WWE tournament have been signed. They are also able to work U.K. independent dates until or unless WWE starts running a full-time circuit.
• The WWE sent out an e-mail blast to former network subscribers and others on their mailing list offering them three free months of the WWE Network starting today. The promotion is that they would get Royal Rumble, Fast Lane and WrestleMania for free.
• There will almost surely be something on Martin Luther King on Raw, since Vince McMahon legitimately is a big MLK fan. 
• The movie Shawn Michaels is in, “The Education of Gavin Stone,” comes out Friday and will be getting a major release. 
• A contract signing with Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode will be on Wednesday’s NXT show, plus Roderick Strong wrestles Steve Cutler on the show.
• The movie “Countdown,” a WWE Studios release with Dolph Ziggler as the star and Kane as a costar has been added to Netflix.
• Another WWE movie, called “Surf’s Up 2,” will be released on DVD tomorrow which features anime with a number of major stars incluiding Vince McMahon.
• The movie “The Wall,” which John Cena is one of the stars in, will be test marketed this month before its 3/10 release.
• WWE on 3/10 has a Raw house show at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, the same site UFC just announced a PPV in. There will be a presale starting tomorrow at 10 a.m. through Thursday at 11 p.m. with the code WWEKBC. 
• Moana was No. 3 at the box office in Australia this past weekend. It was No. 12 in the U.S. (thanks to James Stanios)
• A John Cena Make a Wish story is here.

UFC

• Floyd Mayweather burns Dana White.
• The situation last night where Joe Lauzon got a decision win over Marcin Held, and then said that he didn’t deserve it and Held clearly won (it was overwhelming among both media and fans that Held won that fight) was not the first time a winner outright said he lost. In 2010, when Rampage Jackson won a decision over Lyoto Machida, he went to the press conference and said he thought he had lost the fight.
• Me picking Lauzon before the fight means I backdoored into a 5-0 record last night in picks:
  5-0: Myself, David Bixenspan and Mike Sawyer
  4-1: Paul Fontaine, John Pollock, Mike Sempervive, Ryan Frederick, Steve Juon
  3-2: Josh Nason, Frontrow Brian

MISCELLANEOUS

• Evolve and FloSlam have signed Keith Lee and he will be leaving ROH for a better financial offer than ROH put on the table. He’s expected to get a major push in Evolve as one of their signature stars. Shane Taylor is remaining with ROH.
• There are a number of shows to watch out for this coming week with no PPV event from WWE and no shows from UFC, including three Fantastica Mania shows from Korakuen Hall on New Japan World, a 1/21 Revolution Pro show in London with Katsuyori Shibata vs. Matt Riddle for the British heavyweight title as the main event, and Bellator runs at The Forum in Los Angeles with Tito Ortiz vs. Chael Sonnen.
• As of this morning, there were only 64 tickets left for the Revolution Pro show.
• Progress Wrestling ran a show on Saturday and Finn Balor was at the show, as was Tommy End. Balor did a game of musical chairs. End lost to Jimmy Havoc. Rockstar Spud from TNA also returned on the show which featured Matt Riddle winning the Atlas championship from Rampage Brown.
• Kevin Eck did a video for a show coming up for MCW where his Ecktourage will face the Hardys, doing a Hardy spoof. The idea was for it to be so bad it’s good and you can judge if they succeeded.
• This week’s pro wrestling quiz is here.
• A story on The Pope from TNA helping feed the needy in his home of Jacksonville is here. (thanks to Mike Kuzmuk)
• Politco.com has another story connecting Donald Trump to pro wrestling. (thanks to Chris Cruise)
• AAW on Friday night in Merrionette Park, IL at 115 Bourbon Street has Dave & Jake Crist vs. Eddie Kingston & Homicide in a cage match, Andrew Everett & Jack Evans vs. Davey Vega & Mat Fitchett in a tag team title match, Mercedes Martinez vs. Angelina Love, Drew Galloway vs. Silas Young, Abyss vs. Colt Cabana plus Sami Callihan, ACH, Moose, Matt Sydal, Brian Cage, AR Fox, Davey Richards, Rey Fenix, Dezmond Xavier and DJZ.
• AAW also announced these matches for 2/4 in LaSalle, IL at the Knights of Columbus with ACH vs. Trevor Lee, Dave & Jake Crist vs Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz, Jessicka Havok & Allysin Kay vs. Candice LeRae & Samantha Heights plus Sami Callihan and AR Fox.
• Glory kickboxing has a big show at LA Live in Los Angeles on Friday night. They also have a 2/24 show in Chicago with a light heavyweight title match with Artem Vakhitov vs Saulo Cavalari.
• An evening with Shane Douglas was announced for 2/17 in Toronto at Cherry Cola’s Cabaret at 200 Bathurst Street. This will be a talk show and a Q&A session. You have to be 19 or older to attend and must bring ID. Seats are $25 in advance and $35 at the door and it is limited to 75 people attending.
• Pro Wrestling Eclipse from yesterday in Oshawa, ONT: Carter Mason b John Atlas, Randy Reign b Rip Impact, Tony Cage d Shelton Jean, Johnny Devine NC Buck Gunderson, Cody Deaner won Rumble style Battle Royal. (thanks to Steven Ashe)
• ICW from yesterday in Glasgow, Scotland. Wolfgang is this group’s champion but obviously he wasn’t at the show, nor was regular headliner Trent Seven. DCT b Davey Blace, James Scott b Christopher Saynt, Charlie Sterling b Chris Ridgeway, Iestyn Rees b Jackie Polo, Joe Hendry b Lionheart, Kasey won over Martina, Debbie Sharpe and Samil Jayne, Joe Coffey b Wild Boar, Andy Wild NC Lewis Girvan (Wild tapped out while pinning Girvan at the same time), Kenny Williams won three-way over Aaron Echo and Zack Gibson, Stevie Boy b Chris Renfrew.
• United Wrestling Coalition on 1/28 in Wrightstown, NJ at Kelly’s Banquet Hall.
• The NHL’s Florida Panthers announced Pro Wrestling Night on 2/9 for their home game with the Los Angeles Kings. Appearing will be Tommy Dreamer, Christian and Ricky Steamboat. There will be an autograph session with the wrestlers. You can get tickets using the code WRESTLING

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/16): AJ Styles wins the TNA X Division title

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Lastest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• UFC Fight Night 103 live results: Yair Rodriguez vs. BJ Penn
• Jimmy Snuka dead at 73 years old
• WWE UK tournament night two live results: The first champion is crowned
• WWE UK tournament night one live results: First round matches
• Another promotion trying out live TV in the UK
• Anderson Silva returning to the Octagon at UFC 208
• NJPW announces English commentary broadcast schedule

AUDIO

• WOL: WWE UK tournament finals, Jimmy Snuka death, more! 1/15
• DR. KEITH PRESENTS: The 2016 Capsule Comp, pt. 1! 1/15
• DragonKing Dark: The Satanic Panic 1/15
• WOR: UK Tournament night one, Lucha Underground, UFC news, more! 1/15

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

• WWE last night in Wichita
• ROH last night in Atlanta
• WWE today in Tulsa (Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens)
• WWE today in Jackson, MS (A.J. Styles vs. John Cena vs. Baron Corbin)

We’re also looking for your thoughts on both days of the WWE U.K. tournament, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle for each show along with a best and worst match from each show to [email protected].

UFC FIGHT NIGHT FROM PHOENIX

Fight Pass at 6:15 p.m. Eastern time (free this weekend)

• Cyril Akser (7-2) vs. Dmitri Smuliakov (8-1)
• Jaochim Christensen (13-4) vs. Bojan Mihaljovic (10-4)
• Walt Harris (8-5) vs. Chase Sherman (9-2)
• Nina Ansaroff (6-5) vs. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger (6-3)

FS 1 at 8 p.m. Eastern time

• Drakkar Klose (6-0-1) vs. Devon Powell (8-1)
• Tony Martin (10-3) vs. Alex White (11-2)
• Viktor Pesta (10-3) vs. Aleksei Olenik (50-10-1)
• Frankie Suarez (11-4) vs. Augusto Mendes (5-1)
• Sergio Pettis (14-2) vs. John Moraga (16-5)
• Ben Saunders (20-7-2) vs. Court McGee (18-5)
• Marcin Held (22-4) vs. Joe Lauzon (26-12)
• B.J. Penn (16-10-20 vs. Yair Rodriguez (9-1)

Raw will be Monday night in Little Rock featuring the return of Brock Lesnar. There is also a Smackdown brand house show on Monday night in Jonesboro, AR.

Smackdown and 205 Live will be taped on Tuesday in Memphis featuring Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss in a cage match for the women’s title.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

The lessons learned of what worked and didn’t work in 2016. Each major company’s prospects for 2017 is the biggest story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.  We also look at the situation with Kenny Omega, look at the updated plans for WrestleMania, plans for the 2018 WrestleMania in New Orleans and the Mark Hunt lawsuit against Brock Lesnar and the UFC. Comparisons of UFC and WWE business in 2016 and how each company looks going into 2017.  The lessons regarding television ratings of MMA, loading up PPVs, why GSP isn’t fighting, what’s on the horizon in 2017 for future UFC fights and some experimental ideas for UFC and FOX. 

Positives and negatives of WWE going into 2017, women’s and cruiserweight divisions.  Big star returns, how NXT has changed the WWE business, the good and the bad of using top stars in NXT, as well as both UFC and WWE struggling with creating a long-term fan base.

The plight of the independent scene, the future of ROH and TNA, how New Japan and AXS can work together to build a stronger product, and the role of Flo Slam in the 2017 wrestling world.

A big story on Kenny Omega coming out of Wrestle Kingdom 11, including John Cena’s reaction, Omega and Okada talk their match, the new top program in New Japan and why Omega is in such a unique position right now.

Update on the WrestleMania card as things stand including what talked about match is off, and what matches are official.  

Ticket demand for Royal Rumble and NXT in San Antonio, the NXT Takeover lineup, more on the WWE Hall of Fame, the re-marketing of XFL nostalgia, Chris Hero’s WWE  return. New names for talent and another wrestler doing a gimmick takeover.  The U.K. tournament, what NXT talent is of the highest priority for the main roster.  WWE announcing hire.

New Year’s Dash and New Japan’s big matches coming out of the show.  Update on Wrestle Kingdom subscriptions, the changing popularity of the product, the Fantastica Mania tour and the early February shows on New Japan World including two PPV events.  Click here for full preview…

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general… Subscribers click here to continue.

SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE

We will be back tonight with Wrestling Observer Radio covering the Snuka story, as well a the rest of the news including the WWE U.K. tournament and UFC show today.  You can send in questions for tonight and tomorrownight’s shows to [email protected].

Jimmy Snuka passed away today, a story that will no doubt get a ton of mainstream news coverage both because he was such a major star in his heyday and because of the death of Nancy Argentino in 1983 that became a major story due to local newspaper coverage, the persistence of Nancy’s sisters and reporter Irv Muchnick, over the past three plus years.  Obviously there is a lot to talk about and write on this subject.

WWE made a statement about the passing of Snuka, talking about his match with Don Muraco in Madison Square Garden and calling it one of the most memorable moments in WWE history. It was not acknowledged on the U.K. show today.

If you didn’t see the U.K. show, it’s worth watching. The Tyler Bate title win over Pete Dunne in the finals was an excellent match, really the best match on any WWE show in a while. It was textbook making a superstar booking. Just outstanding.

Tonight’s UFC rating will be hurt by the NFL game, although the last two matches should take place after the game ends. Still, there is post-game and this is not a very good card as far as star power.  The only thing it has going for it is however much interest and curiosity there is at this point regarding the comeback of B.J. Penn. Fox is promoting the hell out of the show on tonight’s NFL broadcast that will be doing a huge number, so that will help the number.

Wrestlecon has announced a Kliq reunion with Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall and Sean Waltman for 4/1 in Orlando as part of WrestleMania including a 90 minute Q&A session at 5 PM. that day. For $999, you can get front of the line privileges, a front row seat, a 30 minute limo ride with the four, a group photo with yourself in front of the limo, a poster signed by all four members and more.  There are other price structures but to get a photo with all four the lowest price is $299. 

WWE

• The WWE’s XFL Hall of Fame thing took place yesterday with a screening of the 30 for 30 documentary that airs on ESPN early next month. They screened it three times at Cooper Union in New York. About 50 people were there according to reader Jim Maugeri who said that it was worth seeing.
• Regarding the always asked question about a U.K. PPV show, Paul Levesque said to “Inside the Ropes”: “I think that is a goal of WWE to be here in that way. It’s a very difficult process with PPV schedules and coming to the UK or globally to perform live with a live TV component, following that up with Raw and Smackdown. It’s a massive undertaking, trying to co-ordinate all that. There were 5 shows going on tonight under WWE. We have somewhere between 18 to 21 trailer trucks that come to our events, it’s tough to get them over the ocean. Is it a goal? Yes and I think tonight was one step closer to that goal becoming a reality.”
• A story on Chad Allegra aka Karl Anderson and how he got his start in pro wrestling and came to Japan and WWE is here.

MISCELLANEOUS

• WrestleCircus, the group using a ton of major indie stars, drew another sellout of 502 fans last night in Austin, TX: Ethan Carter III wasn’t there so his title match with Michael Elgin was changed to Elgin vs. Brian Cage for the title which turned out to be a great match that Cage won. How they did it was announce on Twitter a few days ago with Josh Matthews and EC 3 doing a video together that EC 3 had a gall bladder infection but laughed about it to make everyone know they just made it up, but that allowed the company to strip him of his title. They also announced a 2/19 return date with Ricochet vs. Sammy Guevara. Trevor Lee also missed the show. He was announced as having the flu. Lights Out b Zorakis, Space Monkey b Jervis Cottonbelly, Ricky Stars & Aaron Solow (the fiancee of WWE’s Bayley) b Fenix & Laredo Kid, Christi Jaynes b Alley Cat, Moose b Jeff Cobb (said to be the best match on the show), Scorpio Sky won elimination match over Willie Mack, Ethan Page, Jordan Len-X and Gregory James, Jax Dane b Texas Lion Carson in a bullrope match, Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Archer b Tama Tonga & Tanga Roa (very good match with great heat), Sammy Guevera b Shane Strickland (also very good), Rachael Ellering won over Jessicka Havok, Delilah Doom and Leva Bates (who pretended to be Kenny Omega), Brian Cage b Michael Elgin in 21:00 to win the vacant Ringmaster championship. (thanks to Nicholas K and Paul Matyasovsky)
• CWF Mid Atlantic will be hosting a unique show on 1/29 in Gibsonville, NC at the Mid Atlantic Sportatorium. There will be a tag team Apocalypto match on 1/21 and the winner of that match will face Matt & Jeff Hardy on 1/29. The Hardys match will be taped for TNA Impact. (thanks to Brad Stutts)
• Pro Wrestling All-Stars from Friday night in Melvindale, MI: N8 Mattson NC Zach Gowen, N8 Mattson & Buddy Hanlon b Zach Gowen & Atlas Hytower, Justin Pilgrim b Unknown Dougie the Creep & Jay Maynard b Zachary Main & Alex Bradslee, Great Akuma won gauntlet match, Soul Shooters b Movado & Ridiculoso, Heidi Katrina b Thunder Kitty (who was the woman on Smackdown against Carmella this past week as CJ Lunde), Great Akuma b Breyer Wellington. (thanks to Leonard Brand)
• Lucha Xtreme TV tapings on 1/28 in Hanford, CA at the Civic Center is a free admission fan appreciation night show. Anyone can show up, as many people as you want, at 7 p.m.
• Border City Wresting from Wednesday night in Windsor, ONT: N8 Mattson & Movado & Sheldon Jean b Idris Abraham & Karou & Dustin Quicksilver, Randy Reign & Muscles Marinera b Kurt Hendrix & Matrox, Jon E Bravo b Benjamin Boone, Phil Atlas & Brent Banks b Sebastian Suave & Tarik, A-1 b Joe Coleman, Johnny Devine & Jon Bolen b Tyson Dux & Aiden Prince, Cody Deaner b Joe Doering to retain heavyweight title. (thanks to Leonard Brand)
• Amazon Prime has added a lot of classic wrestling to its catalogue, with lots of footage from the old Memphis territory as well as the May 12, 1988 UWF show in Japan which features Akira Maeda, Nobuhiko Takada and Kazuo Yamazaki. (thanks to Larry Huber Jr.)
• I Believe in Wrestling from Friday night in Orlando: Aaron Epic b Axx Clover Daniel Drennen b Leo O’Farrell, Jesse Neal b Jason Dugan, Raegan fire & Kaci Lennox b Amber Nova & Mila Naniki, Jonny Vandal & Tyranus b JD Amazing & Chico Adams, Michael Patrick & Leo Brien & Josh Hess b Rhett Giddins & Seth Petruzelli & Chasyn Rance. Next show is 1/27.
• Shine on Flo Slam from Ybor City on Friday night: Su Yung won four-way over Jayme Jameson, Jessie Belle Smothers and Angel Rose, Malia Hosaka b Brandi Lauren, Xandra Bale b Ariel Monroe, Candy Cartwright b Leva Bates, Rachael Ellering b Chelsea Green (Laurel Van Ness in TNA), Santana Garrett & Raquel retained tag titlesover Thea Trinidad & Amanda Carolina Rodriguez and Kennadi Brink & Amber O’Neal, LuFisto won three-way over Mercedes Martinez and Allysin Kay (Sienna in TNA) to win vacant Shine title was was vacated by Ivelisse. Next show is 3/10 (thanks to Al Haft)
• CZW from last night in Voorhees, NJ before a smaller than usual crowd: David Starr retained wXw (German) Shotgun title over Alexander James, Anthony Henry b Sean Carr, Jimmy Lloyd NC Ace Austin, Tony Deppen b Tom Donst, Scarlet & raves b Dub Boys to retain CZW tag titles, Dave Crist b Sami Callihan (said to be very good), Jeff Cannonball b Mike Dell, Conor Claxton NC Drew Blood, Joe Gacy b Rickey Shane Page to retain the CZW world title. Next show is the 18th anniversary show on 2/11 in Voorhees, NJ at Flyers Skate Zone. Danny Havoc & Claxton vs. Devon Moore & Drew Blood in a fans bring the weapons match is the main event.  There will also be a 10th anniversary show for WSU at 4 p.m. with Mercedes Martinez vs. Allie from TNA for the WSU title. (thanks to Bob Magee)
• Baja Stars USA on 1/21 in San Diego has Rey Fenix & Misterioso vs. Pentagon Jr. & Rayden.
• Robles Promotions on 1/29 in McAllen, TX at Famoso Club Fuego has Mistico & Dragon Rojo Jr. vs. Maximo Sexy & Shocker.
• Johnny Mundo and Teddy Hart headline a show in Los Angeles today at the Clela Arena.
• Shocker and Chris Masters headline a show today in El Paso at the Boys & Girls Club.
• A story on Shannon Moore returning to wrestling is here. (thanks to Mike Kuzmuk)
• A story on an indie group in Arkansas is here.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/15): WWF Royal Rumble 1989

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

NEWS

• WWE UK tournament night one live results: First round matches
• Another promotion trying out live TV in the UK
• Anderson Silva returning to the Octagon at UFC 208
• NJPW announces English commentary broadcast schedule
• TNA Impact Wrestling results: The Broken Hardys vs. The Wolves 
• TNA Impact TV taping results: Josh Barnett vs. Bobby Lashley
• UFC’s Josh Barnett debuting at tonight’s TNA TV tapings

AUDIO

• WOL: WWE UK tournament, WrestleMania, Dr. Lucha talks wrestling in Argentina, more! 1/13
• Wrestling Weekly: Revisiting Misawa vs. Kawada, getting over/going over 1/13
• B&V&G: NXT, Lucha Underground, Raw, Granny Q&A and Weekly Wrestling Report, more! 1/13

We’re looking for reports on today’s WWE events to [email protected]:

• Raw show in Wichita, KS (Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens)
• SmackDown show in Birmingham, AL (A.J. Styles vs. John Cena vs. Baron Corbin),
• NXT in Nashville (Shinsuke Nakamura, Samoa Joe and Bobby Roode as headliners)
• NXT in Cocoa Beach, FL
• ROH television tapings at Center Stage in Atlanta (Cody Rhodes & Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal & Bobby Fish, Marty Scurll vs. Juice Robinson for TV title, Young Bucks vs. Team of their Choice, Jay Lethal vs. Jay Briscoe, Lethal-Briscoe winner vs. Christopher Daniels for a PPV title shot at Adam Cole, Bull James vs. Silas Young, Colt Cabana vs. Bobby Fish, Briscoes vs. Keith Lee & Shane Taylor, War Machine vs. Punisher Martinez & B.J. Whitmer, Kennadi Brink & Kelly Klein vs. Sumie Sakai & Faye Jackson)

INVICTA ON UFC FIGHT PASS FROM THE SCOTTISH RITE TEMPLE IN KANSAS CITY AT 8 P.M. ET ON UFC FIGHT PASS

• Christine Ferea vs. Rachael Ostovich
• Celine Haga vs. Amy Montenegeero
• Andrea Lee vs. Jenny Liou
• Sijara Eubanks vs. Aspen Ladd
• Leah Letson vs. Elizabeth Phillips
• Jodie Esquibel vs. Kali Robbins
• Pannie Kianzad vs. Raquel Pa’aluhi
• Megan Anderson vs. Charmaine Tweet for the interim featherweight title

Sunday has WWE shows with Raw in Tulsa (Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens) and SmackDown in Jackson, MS (A.J. Styles vs. John Cena vs. Baron Corbin).

WWE UNITED KINGDOM CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT FINAL EIGHT AT 3 P.M. ET SUNDAY FROM BLACKPOOL, ENGLAND ON WWE NETWORK

UFC FIGHT NIGHT FROM PHOENIX

Fight Pass at 6:15 p.m. ET (free this weekend)

• Cyril Akser (7-2) vs. Dmitri Smuliakov (8-1)
• Jaochim Christensen (13-4) vs. Bojan Mihaljovic (10-4)
• Walt Harris (8-5) vs. Chase Sherman (9-2)
• Nina Ansaroff (6-5) vs. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger (6-3)

FS1 at 8 p.m. ET

• Drakkar Klose (6-0-1) vs. Devon Powell (8-1)
• Tony Martin (10-3) vs. Alex White (11-2)
• Viktor Pesta (10-3) vs. Aleksei Olenik (50-10-1)
• Frankie Suarez (11-4) vs. Augusto Mendes (5-1)
• Sergio Pettis (14-2) vs. John Moraga (16-5)
• Ben Saunders (20-7-2) vs. Court McGee (18-5)
• Marcin Held (22-4) vs. Joe Lauzon (26-12)
• B.J. Penn (16-10-20 vs. Yair Rodriguez (9-1)

Raw will be Monday night in Little Rock featuring the return of Brock Lesnar. There is also a SmackDown brand house show on Monday night in Jonesboro, AR.

SmackDown and 205 Live will be taped on Tuesday in Memphis featuring Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss in a cage match for the women’s title.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

The lessons learned of what worked and didn’t work in 2016. Each major company’s prospects for 2017 is the biggest story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.  We also look at the situation with Kenny Omega, look at the updated plans for WrestleMania, plans for the 2018 WrestleMania in New Orleans and the Mark Hunt lawsuit against Brock Lesnar and the UFC. Comparisons of UFC and WWE business in 2016 and how each company looks going into 2017.  The lessons regarding television ratings of MMA, loading up PPVs, why GSP isn’t fighting, what’s on the horizon in 2017 for future UFC fights and some experimental ideas for UFC and FOX. 

Positives and negatives of WWE going into 2017, women’s and cruiserweight divisions.  Big star returns, how NXT has changed the WWE business, the good and the bad of using top stars in NXT, as well as both UFC and WWE struggling with creating a long-term fan base.

The plight of the independent scene, the future of ROH and TNA, how New Japan and AXS can work together to build a stronger product, and the role of Flo Slam in the 2017 wrestling world.

A big story on Kenny Omega coming out of Wrestle Kingdom 11, including John Cena’s reaction, Omega’s and Okada talk about their match, the new top program in New Japan and why Omega is in such a unique position right now.

Update on the WrestleMania card as things stand including what talked about match is off, and what matches are official.  

Ticket demand for Royal Rumble and NXT in San Antonio, the NXT Takeover lineup, more on the WWE Hall of Fame, the re-marketing of XFL nostalgia, Chris Hero’s WWE  return. New names for talent and another wrestler doing a gimmick takeover.  The U.K. tournament, what NXT talent is of the highest priority for the main roster.  WWE announcing hire.

New Year’s Dash and New Japan’s big matches coming out of the show.  We’ve got an update on Wrestle Kingdom subscriptions, the changing popularity of the product, the Fantastica Mania tour and the early February shows on New Japan World including two PPV events.

Click here for full preview…

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general… Subscribers click here to continue.

SATURDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

• WWE’s UK tournament kicked off today at the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool, England. The show featured the eight first round matches, with Trent Seven, Jordan Devlin, Sam Gradwell, Pete Dunne, Wolfgang, Joseph Conners, Mark Andrews, and Tyler Bate advancing to the next round.
• The tournament will conclude on the WWE Network tomorrow starting at 3 p.m. ET. The quarterfinal matches are: Bate vs. Devlin, Seven vs. Wolfgang, Andrews vs. Conners, and Dunne vs. Gradwell.
• There was an angle shot at the end of the show where Dunne attacked Gradwell before it went off the air. He continued the attack in a video that WWE streamed on Facebook. WWE posted that Triple H will be reviewing the situation.
• WWE also posted a video of Burch receiving medical attention after his match with Devlin.
• Michael Cole tweeted about working with Nigel McGuinness on today’s show: “And where has @McGuinnessNigel been all my life! Way to kick off ur wwe career. #wweukct”
• Jerry Lawler tweeted that he’ll be appearing on next week’s episode of SmackDown in Memphis, Tennessee. Lawler said that he’ll be hosting a King’s Court segment.
• AJ Styles was interviewed by AL.com earlier this week.
• DIY defending their tag titles against The Authors of Pain and Asuka putting the Women’s Championship on the line against Billie Kay, Peyton Royce, and Nikki Cross in a fatal four-way match have been officially announced for NXT TakeOver: San Antonio.
• Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid paid tribute to Triple H during his entrance at yesterday’s game. The two had exchanged messages on Twitter prior to Embiid’s tribute.

Pro Wrestling

• Several UK independent promotions were referenced on today’s WWE UK tournament broadcast, with officials from ICW, PROGRESS, and OTT specifically shown in the crowd at the show.
• This week’s episode of TNA Impact was watched by 277k viewers on Pop TV, which is down from last week’s 290k.
• CWF Mid-Atlantic will host an OMEGA tag team title match featuring The Hardys on January 29th that will be taped for TNA.
• Bobby Fish will challenge Adam Cole for the ROH World Championship on March 4th at Manhattan Mayhem.

UFC/MMA

• The Herd posted video of Dana White’s appearance yesterday where he made the $25 million offer to Floyd Mayweather for a boxing match against Conor McGregor.
• Ariel Helwani will be hosting a one-hour live sit-down show with Conor McGregor in Manchester on January 28th.
• Joe Rogan said that he doesn’t think Ronda Rousey will fight again after her loss to Amanda Nunes at UFC 207.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/14):Christian Cage wins NWA/TNA gold

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

NEWS

• Anderson Silva returning to the Octagon at UFC 208
• NJPW announces English commentary broadcast schedule
• 2017 annual Las Vegas F4W/Empire Convention set for SummerSlam weekend!
• TNA Impact Wrestling results: The Broken Hardys vs. The Wolves 
• TNA Impact TV taping results: Josh Barnett vs. Bobby Lashley
• UFC’s Josh Barnett debuting at tonight’s TNA TV tapings
• TNA Impact TV taping results: Cody returns; Vanguard 1 gets new powers
• Lucha Underground mid-season finale results: Main event deathmatch
• WWE NXT results: DIY put their titles on the line against The Revival

AUDIO

• WOL: WWE UK tournament, WrestleMania, Dr. Lucha talks wrestling in Argentina, more! 1/13
• Wrestling Weekly: Revisiting Misawa vs. Kawada, getting over/going over 1/13
• B&V&G: NXT, Lucha Underground, Raw, Granny Q&A and Weekly Wrestling Report, more! 1/13

We’re looking for reports on tonight’s WWE show in Topeka, KS (Raw crew headlined by Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens), as well as NXT shows in Louisville, KY (Shinsuke Nakamura, Samoa Joe and Bobby Roode as headliners) and Lakeland, FL to [email protected].

We’re also doing polls this weekend for both U.K. tournament shows from WWE, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected].

NEW JAPAN WORLD ON AXS TV AT 8 P.M. TONIGHT FROM THE TOKYO DOME

• Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega for IWGP heavyweight title

LEGACY FIGHTING ALLIANCE ON AXS TV AT 9 P.M. TONIGHT FROM THE BOMB FACTORY IN DALLAS, TX

• Jessie Vasquez (2-1, 144) vs. Rob Butler (1-0, 145)
• Armando Servin (4-4, 170) vs. Sean Holden (4-2, 168)
• Cameron Miller (2-0, 129) vs. Oscar Ramirez (3-0, 129)
• Cynthia Calvillo (2-0, 115) vs. Montana Stewart (6-3, 115)
• Ulysses Aguila (6-1, 134) vs. Eli Tamez (9-0, 135)
• Charles Cheeks III (11-5, 146.5) vs. Damon Jackson (10-1-1, 145)
• Leandro Higo (16-2, 134) vs. Steven Peterson (14-4, 134) for the bantamweight championship

CMLL AT ARENA MEXICO AT 9:30 P.M.

• Astral & Electrico vs. Demus 3:16 & Pierrothito
• Estrellita & Vaquerita & Silueta vs. Amapola & Tiffany & Comandante
• Blue Panther & The Panther & Johnny Idol vs. Sam Adonis & Ripper & Kraneo
• Sanson & Cuatrero & Mascara Ano 2000 vs. Angel de Oro & Bobby Z & Guerrero Maya Jr
• Rayo de Jalisco Jr. & Caristico & Diamante Azul vs. El Terrible & Rey Bucanero & Mephisto

We’re looking for reports on Saturday’s other WWE events, which are a Raw show in Wichita, KS (Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens), a Smackdown show in Birmingham, AL (A.J. Styles vs. John Cena vs. Baron Corbin), NXT in Nashville (Shinsuke Nakamura, Samoa Joe and Bobby Roode as headliners) and Cocoa Beach, FL as well as ROH television tapings at Center Stage in Atlanta (Cody Rhodes & Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal & Bobby Fish, Marty Scurll vs. Juice Robinson for TV title, Young Bucks vs. Team of their Choice, Jay Lethal vs. Jay Briscoe, Lethal-Briscoe winner vs. Christopher Daniels for a PPV title shot at Adam Cole, Bull James vs. Silas Young, Colt Cabana vs. Bobby Fish, Briscoes vs. Keith Lee & Shane Taylor, War Machine vs. Punisher Martinez & B.J. Whitmer, Kennadi Brink & Kelly Klein vs. Sumie Sakai & Faye Jackson) to [email protected].

WWE UNITED KINGDOM CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND SATURDAY AT 3 P.M. EASTERN TIME FROM BLACKPOOL, ENGLAND ON WWE NETWORK

• Tyler Bate vs. Tucker
• Danny Burch vs. Jordan Devlin
• HC Dyer vs. Trent Seven
• Wolfgang vs. Tyson Bone
• Mark Andrews vs. Dan Moloney
• James Drake vs. Joseph Conners
• Pete Dunne vs. Roy Johnson
• Sam Gradwell vs. Saxon Huxley

INVICTA ON SATURDAY NIGHT ON UFC FIGHT PASS FROM THE SCOTTISH RITE TEMPLE IN KANSAS CITY AT 8 P.M. EASTERN TIME ON UFC FIGHT PASS, WHICH IS FREE THIS WEEKEND

• Christine Ferea vs. Rachael Ostovich
• Celine Haga vs. Amy Montenegeero
• Andrea Lee vs. Jenny Liou
• Sijara Eubanks vs. Aspen Ladd
• Leah Letson vs. Elizabeth Phillips
• Jodie Esquibel vs. Kali Robbins
• Pannie Kianzad vs. Raquel Pa’aluhi
• Megan Anderson vs. Charmaine Tweet for the interim featherweight title

Sunday has WWE shows with Raw in Tulsa (Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens) and Smackdown in Jackson, MS (A.J. Styles vs. John Cena vs. Baron Corbin).

WWE UNITED KINGDOM CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT FINAL EIGHT AT 3 P.M. EASTERN TIME SUNDAY FROM BLACKPOOL, ENGLAND ON WWE NETWORK

UFC FIGHT NIGHT FROM PHOENIX

Fight Pass at 6:15 p.m. Eastern time (free this weekend)

• Cyril Akser (7-2) vs. Dmitri Smuliakov (8-1)
• Jaochim Christensen (13-4) vs. Bojan Mihaljovic (10-4)
• Walt Harris (8-5) vs. Chase Sherman (9-2)
• Nina Ansaroff (6-5) vs. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger (6-3)

FS 1 at 8 p.m. Eastern time

• Drakkar Klose (6-0-1) vs. Devon Powell (8-1)
• Tony Martin (10-3) vs. Alex White (11-2)
• Viktor Pesta (10-3) vs. Aleksei Olenik (50-10-1)
• Frankie Suarez (11-4) vs. Augusto Mendes (5-1)
• Sergio Pettis (14-2) vs. John Moraga (16-5)
• Ben Saunders (20-7-2) vs. Court McGee (18-5)
• Marcin Held (22-4) vs. Joe Lauzon (26-12)
• B.J. Penn (16-10-20 vs. Yair Rodriguez (9-1)

Raw will be Monday night in Little Rock featuring the return of Brock Lesnar. There is also a Smackdown brand house show on Monday night in Jonesboro, AR.

Smackdown and 205 Live will be taped on Tuesday in Memphis featuring Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss in a cage match for the women’s title.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

Tweets by Kenny Omega and an Instagram post by John Cena created a major stir coming off the New Japan Wrestle Kingdom show at the Tokyo Dome. Omega wrote on Twitter that “I will be stepping away from Japan to reassess my future. The path of my journey may change, but my goals will not.” Later he wrote, “There is no plan. My schedule is cleared and I’m weighing all options. I’ve got a lot to consider.”

2016 ended up a monumental year with a number of themes. UFC was sold for $3,995,000,000 and key architects of the company’s success left in the wake of the sale. The company also set a number of PPV records and was, by far, the most successful promotion of its kind in modern history when it came to PPV and profit margin this past year. But with new ownership, and in a business reliant greatly on creating major drawing stars, we’ve already seen cracks in the foundation.

There have been some changes made in WrestleMania plans as noted in recent weeks, with the major thing being that the proposed Undertaker vs. John Cena match is off the boards. Vince McMahon changed his mind on the match, which was to be one of the two biggest matches in 2016, and at one point one of the top matches for the 4/2 show in Orlando. The card will be clearer coming out of the Royal Rumble, on 1/29 in San Antonio… Subscriber click here to continue.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general… Subscribers click here to continue.

FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE

Dana White announced today that he’s offering a $25 million guarantee for both Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor if they would do a boxing match, plus each would get a cut of the PPV money. He claimed that Mayweather has nobody else out there he can make that kind of money with (not true, Pacquiao) and he would be disappointed if it wouldn’t do more than two million buys. He also said they would load up the show like Madison Square Garden with championship fights underneath. Mayweather responded to White, calling him a comedian for the offer.

White said that Ronda Rousey hasn’t told him anything regarding if she does or doesn’t want to fight again.

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson is now official for UFC 209 on 3/4 in Las Vegas and it will be a five round fight for the interim lightweight title. We’ll talk more about this in the days to come. 

Regarding rumors of Kurt Angle in the Royal Rumble, as of this morning, there is nothing to them. That isn’t a cryptic thing. There’s been no discussion as of today. Sometimes they don’t call people until the last minute (which is why they sometimes get turned down because many older guys don’t have time to get in shape).  

It was announced yesterday that Angle will be starring in a movie called “In the Ring” which was described as being a comedy like “Major League” about a group of local misfit wrestlers led by Angle are in a war against a multinational promotion to get a network television contract.  Tommy Dreamer plays the role of Vince McMahon.  A lot of wrestlers are in the movie including Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, John Morrison, Ken Anderson, Jay Lethal, Joey Ryan, Candice LeRae, Chavo Guerrero Jr., Kevin Kelly, Nick Aldis, Chad Lail, Dalton Castle and the Briscoe Brothers.

WWE

• Vince McMahon spoke to the New Orleans Times-Picayune earlier this week and when asked if he was going to retire, said, “No. No. Never. This is not work for me. I never go to work. Ever. Every aspect of the business, whether it’s working with the talent or the writing staff, even on occasion working with the legal guys, it’s all a big family. I never go to work.”  He also said that he doesn’t miss being on television at all. He said he enjoyed it when he did it, but then he couldn’t produce and direct the show, which is what he loves to do. 
• Tickets for the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony in Orlando at the Amway Arena have been move back to a pre-sale on 1/25 and a public on-sale of 1/27. This is the second time they’ve moved back the date.
• Paul Levesque, Scott Armstrong and Marty Miller will be overseeing the production of the U.K. shows this weekend. David Finlay is a producer. There will be no Vince McMahon at the show nor his fingerprints on the show. The talent, if left to their devices, want to do all kinds of blow away high spots so we’ll see how it turns out.
• Brock Lesnar will be at every Raw in February except the show in Las Vegas. He’ll also be on the first Raw in March, on 3/6 in Chicago as well as the 3/20 Raw in Brooklyn and most likely (not confirmed but probable) the 3/27 Raw. .
• “Moana” was No. 2 at the Australian box office this past weekend (thanks to James Stanios)
• Mick Foley appears from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. tomorrow for an autograph signing at the City of Industry, CA at 19649 E. San Jose, Avenue at Frank &  Sons Collectibles.
• Paul Levesque held a press conference today in the U.K. to talk about the tournament this weekend. This was his response when asked about Kenny Omega:
• “As far as Kenny Omega goes, I’m interested in talent period and if someone is talented as a performer and they want to come work for the WWE. If they want to work for the best in the world. If they want to come to the largest platform where they can truly show what they do off on a global basis then WWE is the choice for them. If they want to work for us and they are very talented then I’m interested in talking to them across the board. I hear a lot of speculation sometimes about well this guy who’s been working for a long a time, or they wouldn’t have interest or they would, or they’re going after football players or this and that. I’m interested in talent at every level. Somebody with charisma, someone with the it factor, that is athletic, can do what we do…I’m interested in them. So, to me, anytime anyone questions me on a talent and if I’m interested in them…the fact that you are questioning me on it means that person is pretty talented so yes I’m interested.”

UFC

• UFC is offering Fight Pass free the next three days, which will include a live show from  the TKO promotion tonight, Invicta tomorrow, and prelims for the show on Sunday.  

MISCELLANEOUS

• AXS TV opens up its 2017 Friday night fights with New Japan at 8 p.m. with Jim Ross and Josh Barnett commentating on the much-talked about Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega main event from 1/4 at the Tokyo Dome.  The ratings over the next month for the Dome shows will play a factor in determining how prominent New Japan may be on the station going forward.  The show is moved up one hour this year and the live MMA fights that follow now start at 9 p.m. instead of 10 p.m.
• The TNA show last night didn’t air until 10 p.m. Eastern on The Fight Network. TNA finished editing late and sent it to Toronto, where they were racing against time to get it ready for air, and then one of the files was corrupted so they didn’t get it done. They aired last week’s show in the normal time slot and then aired the new show in the later time slot.
• Josh Barnett will be appearing on the Impact shows that air from 2/16 to 3/2.  
• Bill Apter spoke to Fred Ottman’s wife show noted that he was in rough shape with four different infections including a kidney infection and had a 104 degree fever, but she said he was doing better.
• PW Insider reported a joint ROH and New Japan show will take place on 5/7 in Toronto. Plans are for at least four shows over eight days in May.
• There will be a press conference tomorrow in Dundee, Scotland to announce a major 5 Star Wrestling show at the Dundee Ice Arena on 1/28. Comedian and announcer Billy Kirkwood will host the press conference with Drew Galloway, who will be one of the headliners. Fans are encouraged to come to the Ice Arena tomorrow and Galloway, Jack Jester, Kid Fight, Lou King Sharp, Irving Garrett and Joe Hendry will be there for photos and autographs. John Morrison, Rey Mysterio, Carlito, Joe Coffey, Jay Lethal, PJ Black, Nick Aldis, Mark Haskins, Henry and Jimmy Havoc are on the show. There is also expected to be another major name confirmed by tomorrow. For information on attending contact [email protected].
• Don West has been hired by TNA to return. He’ll be working for ShopTNA, not as an announcer.
• Tonight’s Arena Mexico show is weak, as will be next week’s show, since most of the top talent is in Japan for Fantastica Mania. The first show was earlier today in Osaka. Nothing of major note other than the Dragon Lee & Titan vs. Hiromu Takahashi & Bushi match only went 7:47.   
• The National Wrestling League debuted last night in St. Louis at the Casa Loma Ballroom. We don’t have much on it a far as how it drew, but there was real money behind this and they did a lot of advertising: Christian Adonis (Elvis Aliaga) b Dominick Butler (Jayden Fenix), Party Crasher Boulder (Mikey McFinnegan) b August Marshall (Austin Blackburn), Marcelus Gaines (Stephen Wolf) b Javy Torres (Paco  Gonzalez), Adam Ryan (Danny Adams) & Jackie Lee Bosch (Jake Parnell) b Dez Wellston (Mike Outlaw) & Neon Iverson (Justin D’Air), Coco Rumble (Suger Dunkerton) b Jay Lutz (Gary Jay), Todd Letterman (Kevin Lee Davidson) b Cal Stark (Chip Day), Cornell Douglass (Murder One) b Skyler Beckett (Everett Connors), Maverick (Moonshine Mantell) & Davey Gibson (Davey Vega) & Matthew Grundy (Mat Fitchett) b Dak Draper (Sammy Six Guns) & Jet & Jax Royal (Logan & Sterling Riegel). (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
• Wrestler Len “Hard Rock” Hamilton filed a suit against Microsoft claiming that the character in Gears of War of Augustus Coel Train Cole was a rip-off of his character, claiming he provided photos and voice recording in 2005 for the character, which is voiced by another former pro wrestler, now actor Lester Speight (Rasta the Voodoomon in pro wrestling). 
• (thanks to Mike Kuzmuk and others)
• Upstate Pro Wrestling tomorrow night in Rochester, NY at the Eagles Club.
• PWP from last night in Omaha, NE: Ajax Adams b Tim Boston, Darren Russell & Duke Cornell b Paul Daniels & Joey Daniels, Con Artiest b Robert Storm, Purple b Dalton Lee Roth in a hair match, Branden Jaurez b Devin Carter, Rory Fox b Hype Gotti in a submission match, Zac James b Pat Powers-DQ. Next show is 2/8 in Omaha at the Waiting Room Lounge.
• Lio Rush is the first wrestler announced for the 2017 Super 8 tournament promoted by ECWA, which takes place on 4/29 in Woodbury Heights, NJ at the Community Center. 

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/13): Thundercage match at Clash of the Champions

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• UFC’s Josh Barnett debuting at tonight’s TNA TV tapings
• TNA Wednesday TV tapings results: Cody returns; Vanguard 1 gets new powers
• Lucha Underground mid-season finale results: Main event deathmatch
• WWE NXT results: DIY put their titles on the line against The Revival
• SmackDown ratings down slightly for this week’s episode
• WWE SmackDown video highlights: John Cena takes on Baron Corbin
• Rich Swann vs. Neville set for the Royal Rumble
• Mark Hunt files lawsuit against the UFC, Brock Lesnar & Dana White

AUDIO

• WOL: Michael Elgin and Dave Meltzer interviews, news, more! 1/12
• WOR: Smackdown, 205 Live, Impact, New Japan, Hunt vs. UFC, more! 1/12
• F4D: Smackdown, Impact, Geek of the Week, tons more! 1/11
• FREE WOL! Smackdown, Royal Rumble, Mark Hunt vs. UFC, more! 1/11

We’re looking for reports from the NXT shows tonight in Indianapolis and Tampa as well as the TNA tapings tonightin Orlando (Josh Barnett appears and they are doing an angle built around a Laurel Van Ness/Braxton Sutter wedding) to [email protected].

IMPACT TONIGHT AT 8 P.M. ON POP TV

• Braxton Sutter vs. Mike Bennett
• Robbie E & Swoggle vs. Aron Rex & Rockstar Spud
• Abyss & Crazzy Steve vs. Bram & Eddie Kingston
• Matt & Jeff Hardy vs. Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards for TNA tag team titles

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 16, 2017 The conundrum of Kenny Omega, 2016 in retrospect, more

Tweets by Kenny Omega and an Instagram post by John Cena created a major stir coming off the New Japan Wrestle Kingdom show at the Tokyo Dome. Omega wrote on Twitter that “I will be stepping away from Japan to reassess my future. The path of my journey may change, but my goals will not.” Later he wrote, “There is no plan. My schedule is cleared and I’m weighing all options. I’ve got a lot to consider.”

2016 ended up a monumental year with a number of themes. UFC was sold for $3,995,000,000 and key architects of the company’s success left in the wake of the sale. The company also set a number of PPV records and was, by far, the most successful promotion of its kind in modern history when it came to PPV and profit margin this past year. But with new ownership, and in a business reliant greatly on creating major drawing stars, we’ve already seen cracks in the foundation.

There have been some changes made in WrestleMania plans as noted in recent weeks, with the major thing being that the proposed Undertaker vs. John Cena match is off the boards. Vince McMahon changed his mind on the match, which was to be one of the two biggest matches in 2016, and at one point one of the top matches for the 4/2 show in Orlando. The card will be clearer coming out of the Royal Rumble, on 1/29 in San Antonio… Subscriber click here to continue.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general… Subscribers click here to continue.

THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE

WrestleCon has a ridiculous list of talent this year with events at both the Hyatt Regency in Orlando and the Wyndham Resort and will include a number of live shows in a 1,400-seat arena including the first Revolution Pro show in the U.S. and CZW’s Best of the Best tournament. Among those appearing are Ric Flair, Sting, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash, Terry Funk, Gene Okerlund, Bobby Heenan, Road Warrior Animal, Paul Orndorff, Barry Windham, Rocky Johnson, Ted DiBiase, Jake Roberts, Abdullah the Butcher, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, Tommy Dreamer, Vickie Guerrero, Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, Eric Bischoff, Bruce Prichard, Honky Tonk Man, Rick Steiner, Scot Steiner, Ken Shamrock, Sandman, Vader, Jacques Rougeau, Billy Gunn, Sabu, Fenix, Rick Martel, Trevor Lee, Joey Ryan, Masato Tanaka, Bob Orton Jr. Lita, Tito Santana, Sexy Star, Maria Kanellis, Tatanka, Jeff Cobb, Eve Marie Torres Gracie, Ryback, Marc Mero, Raven, Ricochet, Pentagon Jr., Taya and tons of others.

Today is the 46th anniversary of the match where Jack Brisco defeated world champion Dory Funk Jr. in a non-title match in Tampa which was the key in really kicking off the Brisco vs Funk Jr. feud that was legendary in wrestling. It was this match, and match on 1/1 in St. Louis that drew an overflow crowd that really established the program and Brisco as a top babyface draw, that resulted in him finally winning the NWA title in 1973.

Michael Cole is already in the U.K. doing promotional work for Saturday & Sunday’s U.K. tournament in Blackpool on the WWE Network.

There is a very sad video message from Perry Saturn regarding his various health issues. He’s attempting to raise money to pay medical bills and keep him from being homeless.

I saw a preview of tomorrow night’s AXS show, which has the Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega match. The show airs the match in its entirety, including the pre-into video, the intros and the Okada post-match promo with subtitles. If you haven’t seen the match, you really should as it will likely be the most talked about match of this year.

WWE

• Shawn Michaels did a TMZ interview where he said what is pretty clear, that he will never wrestle again.
• WWE got a buy recommendation from Guggenheim earlier today, its second in recent weeks, and the stock is starting to grow again, finishing today at $19.14 per share.
• There will be a one-day XFL Exhibition on Saturday at the Cooper Union in New York, which has free admission and some former players are being brought in. This is a promotion for the 30 for 30 special on the XFL that airs on 2/2 . You can see the premiere of the documentary on Saturday at 11 a.m. 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. at Cooper Union.
• Steve Corino has started working for WWE this week at the Performance Center.
• While there are no details Fred Ottman (Typhoon/Tugboat) was hospitalized for several days this past week.
• There is a pre-sale for tickets to the 3/20 Raw show from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn using the code BKRAW. Tickets go on sale to the public on Saturday.
• 2K today announced that WWE 2K17, the latest addition to the flagship video game franchise, will be available worldwide for Windows PC on February 7, 2017. In addition, all WWE 2K17 DLC released to date for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 will be available for PC immediately at launch. Any future DLC released after the February 7 PC launch will be available on PC at a later time. For more announcement details, including links to pre-order retailers, check out the blog post here. Download assets supporting today’s announcement here.

UFC

• A new TV commercial featuring UFC’s Bruce Buffer is here.
• This is a very good article on UFC pay.

MISCELLANEOUS

• Hardcore Lucha Libre on 4/9 at the Rockpile in Toronto.
• CZW Awakening on Saturday night in Voorhees, NJ at Flyers Skate Zone headlined by Joe Gacy vs. Rickey Shane Page for the CZW title plus Dezmond Xavier, Sami Callihan, Dave Crist, Tim Donst, Matt Tremont and David Starr.
• Hardcore Hustle Organization on 2/17 in Williamstown, NJ at 1041 Glassboro Road with a series of Hardcore rules matches.
• Grand Slam Wrestling on Saturday night in Old Forge, PA at 1 Maxson Dr. featuring Chuck Taylor.
• AAW on 1/20 in Merrionette Park, IL at 115 Bourbon Street features Dave & Jake Crist vs. Eddie Kingston & Homicide in a cage match, Mercedes Martinez vs. Angelina Love, plus Andrew Everett, Sami Callihan, ACH, Drew Galloway, Moose, Matt Sydal, Brian Cage, Silas Young, Abyss, Jack Evans, AR Fox, Davey Richards, Colt Cabana, Rey Fenix DJZ and Dezmond Xavier.  They’s also got a 2/4 show in LaSalle, IL at the Knights of Columbus with ACH vs. Trevor Lee announced.
• There will be a fundraiser on Jan. 20 at Foley’s NY sports bar-and-restaurant to raise money for Associated Press hockey writer Ira Podell and MLB Network’s Matt Yalloff as they recover from strokes at
• Sonja Sims, a former Roller Games star, passed away on 1/9. No other details are available.

There will be a Shine show at www.FloSlam.tv live tomorrow night with this lineup:

• Ivelisse vs. LuFisto for the Shine championship
• Santana & Raquel vs. Thea Trinidad & ACR vs. Amber O’Neal & Kennadi Brink for the tag titles
• Allysin Kay vs. Mercedes Martinez
• Rachel Ellering vs Chelsea Green (Laurel Van Ness)
• Leva Bates vs. Candy Cartwright
• Xandra Bale vs. Aerial Monroe
• Malia Hosaka vs. Brandi Lauren
• Su Yung vs. Jayme Jameson vs. Jesse Bell Smothers vs. Angel Rose

Bellator announced the complete TV lineup for its 1/27 show in Mulvane, KS.  The complete TV lineup is

• Melvin Guillard (32-16-2, 3 no contests) vs. Chidi Njokuani (16-4,1 no contest)
• Dave Rickels (17-4, 2 no contests) vs. Aaron Derrow (14-8)
• A.J. McKee (6-0) vs. Brandon Phillips (6-2)
• Jessica Middleton (1-0) vs. Alice Yauger (4-4)

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/12): The Outsiders win WCW tag team gold

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• SmackDown ratings down slightly for this week’s episode
• WWE SmackDown video highlights: John Cena takes on Baron Corbin
• Rich Swann vs. Neville set for the Royal Rumble
• Mark Hunt files lawsuit against the UFC, Brock Lesnar & Dana White
• WWE 205 Live results: Swann vs. Nese; Alexander vs. Dar
• WWE SmackDown live results: John Cena vs. Baron Corbin
• Raw ratings drop only slightly against national title game
• How WWE helped a big boxing fight get booked at MSG
• Okada vs. Suzuki headlines NJPW’s New Beginning lineup

AUDIO

• B&V&C: Retro Raw and Nitro from 19 years ago this week! 1/10
• WOL: Raw fallout, Rusev is awesome, WWE Hall of Fame, more! 1/10
• WOR: RAW report, Royal Rumble, Kenny Omega, UFC fights, more! 1/10
• WOL: Raw, Smackdown, Kenny Omega, WrestleMania 2018, more! 1/9

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 9, 2017 – Ronda Rousey loses potential final fight, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 review

Coverage of Wrestle Kingdom at the Tokyo Dome and the legacy of Ronda Rousey are the lead stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. There are updates on the WWE WrestleMania situation, coverage of the Japanese New Year’s Eve Rizin show and its mix of fighting and pro wrestling theatrics.

The lead story talks about Amanda Nunes’ win over Rousey, the lack of promotion by Rousey, how the show did on PPV and television numbers, what happened in the fight, the coaching of Rousey, the Rousey fan base, Rousey in WWE, Rousey’s legacy in MMA, how the history of MMA could have changed greatly by different matchmaking, the myths of Rousey’s career and the reality.

Check out the plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the big announcement coming, new inductee into WWE Hall of Fame, notes on WrestleMania activities, strange WWE injury story, notes on upcoming Raw episodes, some comedy regarding top WWE stars, WWE value, most watched shows on WWE Network, plus notes from all the holiday week house shows and business notes.

Finally, this issue contains full coverage of the Rizin weekend shows, as well as the business notes on the show and the different storylines, including who they are pushing as stars for the future as well as what they are looking at doing next. 

Click her for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general… Subscribers click here to continue.

WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

• Goldberg is officially being advertised by the Bradley Center in Milwaukee for Fastlane on March 5th. Dave Meltzer reported in last week’s edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Goldberg was scheduled to wrestle on the show.
• There are now 13 entrants announced for the Royal Rumble match after the additions of Dean Ambrose, The Miz, and Dolph Ziggler last night.
• Alexa Bliss will defend her Women’s Championship against Becky Lynch in a steel cage match on next week’s SmackDown. The stipulation comes as a result of La Luchadora’s involvement in their storyline over the past few weeks.
• Tonight’s episode of NXT will feature DIY defending their tag titles against The Revival. The winning team defends against the Authors of Pain at NXT TakeOver: San Antonio. 
• Jack Gallagher and Ariya Daivari participated in their parley on last night’s 205 Live, which resulted in them agreeing to wrestle in an “I Forfeit” match down the road.
• Timothy Smith, who wrestled as Rex King and Timothy Well of the tag team Well Dunn in WWF, passed away on Monday at 55 years old. Chris Jericho donated the entire initial goal of $2,500 to a GoFundMe that had been set up by his family.
• John Cena again seemed to reference Kenny Omega on Instagram today. Cena first posted a picture of an O and then posted another one of Mega Man.
• WWE posted full video of the United Kingdom Championship tournament preview show that aired after Raw on Monday night.

Pro Wrestling

• Jim Ross tweeted that he’s finished voicing over six episodes of NJPW on AXS with Josh Barnett. Wrestle Kingdom 11 will begin airing this Friday on AXS with the Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega main event.
• An interesting note from the New Beginning cards that were released by NJPW yesterday is that Katsuyori Shibata will defend his Revolution Pro Wrestling British Heavyweight Championship (as long as he’s still champion or else it will be a special singles match) against Will Ospreay in Osaka on February 11th. Shibata will defend the title against Matt Riddle at RevPro’s show at York Hall in London on January 21st.
• ROH posted an interview with Christopher Daniels where he discusses his desire to be ROH World Champion.

UFC/MMA

• Floyd Mayweather appeared on First Take on ESPN today, where he countered Conor McGregor’s demand of $100 million to fight him in a boxing match by offering $15 million and a cut of the pay-per-view. Mayweather said that McGregor is the only opponent that he’s interested in fighting.
• For the seventh time in a row, Tyron Woodley has opened as an underdog in his next fight. Woodley is set to defend his title against Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson at UFC 209.
• Woodley tweeted to Demian Maia that he thought Maia should’ve gotten the next shot at his title.
• Brad Pickett will have the final fight of his career against Henry Briones at UFC London on March 18th. Pickett was Urijah Faber’s opponent in Faber’s retirement fight last month.
• Bas Rutten and Mauro Ranallo appeared on today’s episode of the Joe Rogan Experience.
• Spike TV will air a one-hour countdown special on Friday night at 11:15 p.m. ET that looks ahead to the Chael Sonnen vs. Tito Ortiz fight at Bellator 170.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/11): Ric Flair defeats Sting to win NWA title

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​ 

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• Raw ratings drop only slightly against national title game
• How WWE helped a big boxing fight get booked at MSG
• Okada vs. Suzuki headlines NJPW’s New Beginning lineup
• WWE Raw video highlights: The Undertaker makes an announcement
• The Undertaker enters the 2017 Royal Rumble
• WWE Raw live results: The Undertaker & Shawn Michaels return to TV
• WWE unveils United Kingdom Championship tournament bracket
• Kenny Omega addresses his future & WWE rumors
• WWE officially confirms New Orleans as WrestleMania 34 host city
• TNA Impact TV taping spoilers: More title changes

AUDIO

• WOR: RAW report, Royal Rumble, Kenny Omega, UFC fights, more! 1/10
• WOL: Raw, Smackdown, Kenny Omega, WrestleMania 2018, more! 1/9
• WOR: New Japan and Kenny Omega, CMLL, Raw and Smackdown previews, more! 1/9
• B&V: NWA World Championship Wrestling and the return of Suzuki-Gun! 1/8

TNA also will be taping more television Tuesday through Thursday in Orlando and we’re looking for reports on those shows.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 1/9/2017 Chris Hero’s unlikely road back to WWE

Chris Hero returned to NXT as Kassius Ohno last week after a little over three years away from WWE developmental. All that happened in between is that he became arguably the best professional wrestler in the world. It’s not that Hero didn’t enter developmental in 2012 as an excellent performer. He was a genuine independent wrestling star even then, having worked for Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling NOAH, and seemingly everywhere else across the globe… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 9, 2017 – Ronda Rousey loses potential final fight, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 review

Coverage of Wrestle Kingdom at the Tokyo Dome and the legacy of Ronda Rousey are the lead stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. There are updates on the WWE WrestleMania situation, coverage of the Japanese New Year’s Eve Rizin show and its mix of fighting and pro wrestling theatrics.

The lead story talks about Amanda Nunes’ win over Rousey, the lack of promotion by Rousey, how the show did on PPV and television numbers, what happened in the fight, the coaching of Rousey, the Rousey fan base, Rousey in WWE, Rousey’s legacy in MMA, how the history of MMA could have changed greatly by different matchmaking, the myths of Rousey’s career and the reality.

Check out the plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the big announcement coming, new inductee into WWE Hall of Fame, notes on WrestleMania activities, strange WWE injury story, notes on upcoming Raw episodes, some comedy regarding top WWE stars, WWE value, most watched shows on WWE Network, plus notes from all the holiday week house shows and business notes.

Finally, this issue contains full coverage of the Rizin weekend shows, as well as the business notes on the show and the different storylines, including who they are pushing as stars for the future as well as what they are looking at doing next. 

Click her for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general. Subscribers click here to continue.

TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

• Chris Jericho won the United States Championship in the main event of last night’s Raw in a handicap match where he teamed with Kevin Owens against Roman Reigns.
• Tonight’s SmackDown features three already announced matches, with John Cena returning to the ring against Baron Corbin, The Wyatt Family challenging American Alpha for the tag titles, and Nikki Bella facing Natalya.
• The Undertaker became the 10th official entrant in the Royal Rumble match last night. Seth Rollins was also added to the match earlier in the day.
• Rich Swann is set to face Tony Nese on tonight’s 205 Live. The show will also feature Cedric Alexander vs. Noam Dar, as well as Jack Gallagher and Ariya Daivari participating in a parley.
• WWE held a press conference in New Orleans today to promote that WrestleMania 34 will be taking place in the city in 2018. WWE uploaded a playlist of videos from the event.
• Vince McMahon was pictured on crutches at the press conference. 
• Brock Lesnar will return to WWE TV in person on next week’s Raw. Lesnar also appeared at yesterday’s Winnipeg Jets hockey game.
• The former Big Damo’s NXT name is now Killian Dain.
• Universal acquired “The Pact” (which features John Cena in a role) for an April 20th, 2018 release.
• WWE.com has an article on Andy Shepherd, who will be the ring announcer for the UK tournament this weekend.

Pro Wrestling

• PWG announced that their next show will take place on February 18th. Jay White will make his PWG debut against Marty Scurll, while Lio Rush faces Ricochet in his first match for the promotion. Also scheduled for the show: Zack Sabre Jr. puts his PWG title on the line against Chuck Taylor, Cody Rhodes returns against Trevor Lee, Jake Crist, Dave Crist & Sami Callihan take on The Young Bucks & Adam Cole, Jeff Cobb & Matt Riddle team against Michael Elgin & Brian Cage, and Rey Fenix faces Trent Barreta.
• AXS TV released another promo video for the Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega match from the Tokyo Dome that will air this Friday night. Jim Ross and Josh Barnett did the voice overs for the match today.
• Our Dave Meltzer was on today’s episode of the Steve Austin Show to talk about the Okada vs. Omega match, WWE, and Ronda Rousey’s UFC 207 loss and her future.

UFC/MMA

• Dana White fired back at Meryl Streep over her critical comment about MMA at the Golden Globe awards.
• Daniel Cormier will call UFC Phoenix with Jon Anik. Former WWE and ESPN personality Todd Grisham will make his UFC broadcast team debut on the studio show.
• ESPN’s Brett Okamoto tweeted that Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov is all but done for UFC 209.
• The UFC confirmed that Tyron Woodley defending his welterweight title against Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson will headline UFC 209.
• Demian Maia tweeted about the Woodley vs. Thompson fight.
• TJ Dillashaw claimed that Cody Garbrandt is trying to avoid fighting him.
• The Nevada State Athletic Commission will discuss possibly removing marijuana from its banned substances list at a meeting on Friday.
• The UFC canceled an event that was scheduled for Las Vegas on March 3rd.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/10): Taz defeats Shane Douglas to win ECW title

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

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THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

Shawn Michaels & The Undertaker to appear on Raw tonight

NEWS

• WWE unveils United Kingdom Championship tournament bracket
• Kenny Omega addresses his future & WWE rumors
• WWE officially confirms New Orleans as WrestleMania 34 host city
• TNA Impact TV taping spoilers: More title changes

AUDIO

• WOR: New Japan and Kenny Omega, CMLL, Raw and Smackdown previews, more! 1/9
• B&V: NWA World Championship Wrestling and the return of Suzuki-Gun! 1/8
• WOL: THE 2017 PREDICTION SHOW! 1/8
• DragonKing Dark: Revenge of the devil’s music 1/8

We’re looking for reports from Raw in New Orleans tonight with the non-Raw matches and anything else not evident from the live show, as well as the Smackdown house show in Lake Charles, LA, and the Friday night show in Columbus, GA to [email protected].

We’re also looking for you thoughts on the CMLL show on Friday night and the TNA PPV on Friday night, thumbs up, down or middle, best and worst match to [email protected].

Raw tonight in New Orleans has Roman Reigns vs. Chris Jericho & Kevin Owens in a handicap match for the U.S. title, plus appearances by Shawn Michaels and Undertaker.

Smackdown and 205 Live on Tuesday are from Baton Rouge, LA.  Matches on Smackdown will be John Cena vs. Baron Corbin, Jason Jordan & Chad Gable vs. The Wyatt Family for the tag team titles and Nikki Bella vs. Natalya.

TNA also will be taping more television on Tuesday through Thursday in Orlando and we’re looking for reports on those shows.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: WWE’s transformative 2016

Though the malaise of three-hour Raws and seemingly constant content often made it difficult to appreciate in the moment, 2016 was a transformative year for WWE that featured high points in diverse in-ring action. Some of the same problems that have long existed still remain as we enter the New Year. Raws are, indeed, too long… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 9, 2017 – Ronda Rousey loses potential final fight, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 review

Coverage of Wrestle Kingdom at the Tokyo Dome and the legacy of Ronda Rousey are the lead stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. There are updates on the WWE WrestleMania situation, coverage of the Japanese New Year’s Eve Rizin show and its mix of fighting and pro wrestling theatrics.

The lead story talks about Amanda Nunes’ win over Rousey, the lack of promotion by Rousey, how the show did on PPV and television numbers, what happened in the fight, the coaching of Rousey, the Rousey fan base, Rousey in WWE, Rousey’s legacy in MMA, how the history of MMA could have changed greatly by different matchmaking, the myths of Rousey’s career and the reality.

Check out the plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the big announcement coming, new inductee into WWE Hall of Fame, notes on WrestleMania activities, strange WWE injury story, notes on upcoming Raw episodes, some comedy regarding top WWE stars, WWE value, most watched shows on WWE Network, plus notes from all the holiday week house shows and business notes.

Finally, this issue contains full coverage of the Rizin weekend shows, as well as the business notes on the show and the different storylines, including who they are pushing as stars for the future as well as what they are looking at doing next. 

Click her for full preview.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 19, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWF Armageddon review, more – The one thing I can say for WWF Armageddon is, it was a weird show. When it was over, I couldn’t say that I liked or disliked it, and based on the response here, a lot of people has similar reactions. Some of the undercard wrestling was decent. Nothing was particularly good. A few matches were pretty bad. But that’s to be expected both from the line-up, which didn’t promise on paper one good match, and from the WWF PPV undercards in general. Subscribers click here to continue.

MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

Bryan and I will be back tonight with Wrestling Observer Radio, talking Kenny Omega, Raw and taking questions to [email protected]. The Omega vs. Okada match has taken on a life of its own. We’ll talk more about it tonight.

The WrestleMania press conference will take place tomorrow in New Orleans to announce the show on April 8th, 2018, at the Mercedez-Benz Superdome.

Raw tonight will be interesting because they’ve loaded the show up with Shawn Michaels and Undertaker, but the competition will be tough with the Alabama vs. Clemson national football championship game. Last year’s championship game did 26 million viewers, which is more than any NFL game did this season by a pretty wide margin. However, this is Mania season so there is some momentum right now and an upswing in interest.

Tyron Woodley announced on his podcast The Morning Wood Show that he expects to face Stephen Thompson for the title in a rematch on 3/4 in Las Vegas.

After Meryl Streep made the negative comments on MMA and football last night in her speech at the Golden Globe Awards that got a ton of talk, Scott Coker has invited her to his 1/21 show in Los Angeles. Somehow I don’t think she’ll be accepting that invite.

WWE

• Shawn Michaels will be on the show tonight plugging “The Resurrection of Gavin Stone”‘ a movie he’s in that has a theatrical release on 1/20. He plays the character of Dough, a reborn ex-con who turned into a volunteer mechanic.
• John Cena will be back on The Today Show tomorrow during the 9 a.m. hour.
• The pre-sale for the 2017 Hall of Fame is a week from Wednesday. Originally it was to be Wednesday. That means they may not announce the first name tonight and may wait until next week to do so.  

MISCELLANEOUS

• I’ll be on upcoming episodes of both Steve Austin and Konnan’s podcast talking Omega vs. Okada and Ronda Rousey in WWE & UFC and other MMA notes.
• Bellator also announced they are having a fight to determine the first Bellator women’s featherweight champion with Marloes Coenen vs. Julia Budd on 3/3 in Thackerville, OK at the WinStar World Casino. The irony is that Coenen, in her last fight, was submitted by Alexis Dufrense. But the division was created for her.
• FIST Combat adult pro wrestling on 3/3 in San Diego at VFW Post 7420 featuring Ryan Kidd vs. Matt Sydal, plus Teddy Hart also appears.
• Wrestling Revolver has a big show over WrestleMania weekend on 4/1 in Orlando at the Wyndham Orlando Resort at Noon featuring Ricochet vs. Shane Strickland, Brian Cage vs. Rey Fenix, Dezmond Xavier vs. ACH, Eddie Kingston vs. Masato Tanaka, Jeff Cobb vs. Sami Callihan, Jake Manning vs. Su Yung, AR Fox vs. Matt Cross vs Trevor Lee vs. Andrew Everett vs. Lio Rush vs. Septentico vs. 2 more guys, plus Jack Evans & Angelico vs. Jake & David Crist.
• RevPro at Cockit 13 in England yesterday before 200 fans: Rob Lyas b Dan McGhee, Josh Bodom b Eddie Dennis, Kurtis Chapman & Josh Wall b Sha Samuels & James Castle, Dave Mastiff b Tyler Bate, Trent Seven b Zack Gibson, Joel Redman & Charlie Garrett b London Riots, Zack Sabre Jr. b RJ Singh, Marty Scurll & Pete Dunne & Travis Banks b Ryan Smile & Shane Strickland & Will Ospreay. I’ve been told this match is worth going out of your say to see. After the match, Zack Sabre Jr. came out and gave Scurll a low blow. (thanks to Ian Dallibar)
• Jim Ross will be doing his one man show on 1/12 in Phoenix at Stand Up Live.
• TNA’s tapings at Universal in Orlando continue Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week starting at 6 p.m. Eastern time. 
• Matt Riviera & Rob Conway beat The Heat Seekers on 1/6 in Ripley, TN to become three-time NWA tag team champions.
• Premier Championship Wrestling from Saturday night in Winnipeg and Kenny Omega’s original home promotion: London Dynasty b Bobby Shink & Brett Evans, James Beaver b Alex Anthony, Jay Walker b Trent Nash-COR, Chad Tatum b Alix Vanna, Antonio Scorpio b Zack Mercury, Team Flex Appeal b Billy Blaze & Richard Blood-DQ, Scott Justice b Jakcie Lee. The next show is Highway to Hell on 2/18 at the Doubles Bar in Winnipeg. (thanks to Andrew Shallcross)
• One has announced a show on 2/10 at Stadium Negara in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia headlined by Malaysia’s Ev Ting facing former UFC fighter Kamal Shalorus.
• Absolute Intense Wrestling on 2/17 in Cleveland at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel has Louis Lyndon vs. Paul Burchill, Ray Rowe vs. Laredo Kid and more.
• Chaotic Wrestling on Wednesday night at Chunky’s Cinema Pub in Nashua, NH for a TV taping for  the Fite App.
• CWA on 1/21 in North Little Rock, AR at the Maumelle Event Center with Matt Riviera & Gregg Anthony vs. Buff Bagwell & Tim Storm.
• Total Combat Wrestling from yesterday in Rozzano, Milan, Italy: II Merchese b Mefisto, Pain b Richy-DLight, Darkenss II won Rumble match (thanks to Alessio Garbini)
• Acclaim Pro Wrestling on 1/28 in Ottawa at SPK Dom Polski with a 20 man Rumble match.
• Smash Wrestling on 1/26 in London, ONT at the Fansshawe Student Union featuring Sami Callihan, Tyson Dux, Braxton Sutter, Matt Cross, Space Monkey, Brent Banks and Psycho Mike Rollins.
• Hogtown Wrestling on 2/20 in Toronto at the Lula Lodge.
• NWA Smoky Mountain Wrestling from Saturday night in Kingsport, TN: Cross Brothers b Los Chicanos, Ali Shabazz b ATM, Hardliners & Travis Lee b Robbie Cassidy & G-Squad, Axton Ray b Timmy Lou Retton, Chase Owens b Jordan Kage, Wild Bill b White Mike, Savages b Jones Boyz, Toby Farley b Chris Richards, Heatseekers b Ugly Ducklings

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/8): HHH wins the World title at New Year’s Revolution

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

​

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

• NXT Largo, FL, live results: Kassius Ohno vs. Andrade Almas
• Chris Hero makes his WWE in-ring return at tonight’s NXT house show
• TNA One Night Only live results: Eddie Edwards vs. EC3; Hardys in action
• CMLL Arena Mexico live results: Three Kings Day special
• WWE reveals full list of UK tournament competitors
• Roman Reigns to defend the US title in a handicap match on Raw
• NJPW announces 2017 Fantastica Mania tour & lineup

AUDIO

• Josh Nason’s Punch-Out: MMA Year In Review (April-June) 1/7
• Wrestling Weekly: Okada vs. Omega, Styles & Cena, Jarrett returns 1/6
• F4D: Magnum TA talks his life and career! 1/6
• WOL: Chris Hero returns, Kenny Omega tweet, Dr. Lucha, tons more! 1/6

WWE Raw is in Montgomery, AL and SmackDown in Bossier City, LA, along with NXT in Ocala, FL.

STYLE BATTLE ON FLO SPORTS FROM YBOR CITY, FL ON SATURDAY NIGHT

This is an eight-man tournament promotion with first round matches of:

• Darby Allin vs. Dave Crist
• Dezmond Xavier vs. Sammy Guevara
• Fred Yehi vs. Anthony Henry
• AR Fox vs. Austin Theory

Sunday has WWE Raw in Mobile, AL and SmackDown in Lafayette, LA.

There is a big Raw episode Monday night in New Orleans with Roman Reigns vs. Chris Jericho & Kevin Owens in a handicap match for the U.S. title, plus appearances by Shawn Michaels and Undertaker. SmackDown has a house show on Monday in Lake Charles, LA.

SmackDown and 205 Live on Tuesday are from Baton Rouge, LA. Matches on SmackDown will be John Cena vs. Baron Corbin, Jason Jordan & Chad Gable vs. The Wyatt Family for the tag team titles and Nikki Bella vs. Natalya.

FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: WWE’s transformative 2016

Though the malaise of three-hour Raws and seemingly constant content often made it difficult to appreciate in the moment, 2016 was a transformative year for WWE that featured high points in diverse in-ring action. Some of the same problems that have long existed still remain as we enter the New Year. Raws are, indeed, too long… Subscribers click here to continue.

WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: January 9, 2017 – Ronda Rousey loses potential final fight, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 review

Coverage of Wrestle Kingdom at the Tokyo Dome and the legacy of Ronda Rousey are the lead stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. There are updates on the WWE WrestleMania situation, coverage of the Japanese New Year’s Eve Rizin show and its mix of fighting and pro wrestling theatrics.

The lead story talks about Amanda Nunes’ win over Rousey, the lack of promotion by Rousey, how the show did on PPV and television numbers, what happened in the fight, the coaching of Rousey, the Rousey fan base, Rousey in WWE, Rousey’s legacy in MMA, how the history of MMA could have changed greatly by different matchmaking, the myths of Rousey’s career and the reality, all the numbers, as well as the Cody Garbrandt title win over Dominick Cruz, plus match-by-match coverage, poll results and how much each fighter made on the show.

Inside, coverage of Wrestle Kingdom 11, when the main event airs on U.S. TV, Kenny Omega, the future big shows of the year, the business of the show, all the tile changes along with match-by-match coverage with star ratings.

Check out the plans for the 2018 WrestleMania and the big announcement coming, new inductee into WWE Hall of Fame, notes on WrestleMania activities, strange WWE injury story, notes on upcoming Raw episodes, some comedy regarding top WWE stars, WWE value, most watched shows on WWE Network, plus notes from all the holiday week house shows and business notes.

Finally, this issue contains full coverage of the Rizin weekend shows, as well as the business notes on the show and the different storylines, including who they are pushing as stars for the future as well as what they are looking at doing next.

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.

Subscribers click here to continue.

ORDERING INFO: 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 in 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: December 12, 1999: WWF slightly tones down product, Vince Russo on WOL, more – After a week of bad publicity which sent sponsors running and sent its stock plummeting, the kinder, gentler WWF came back with a toned down SmackDown and a slightly toned down, although you’d have to examine to closely to notice, Raw show… Subscribers click here to continue.

SATURDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

• With the United Kingdom Championship tournament taking place next weekend, WWE will be airing a preview show on the Network after Raw on Monday that showcases the competitors and focuses on how the tournament came together.
• Nigel McGuinness participated in his first official WWE photo shoot ahead of the tournament.
• WWE’s Michelle Wilson said that the WWE Network offering downloadable content and offline viewing is “definitely on the roadmap.”

PRO WRESTLING

• TNA unveiled a new logo for Impact that incorporates Anthem’s logo into theirs after the company officially took over TNA recently.
• The first episode of Impact since the Anthem era began was watched by 290k viewers on Pop TV on Thursday night. The show had aired best-of specials the past two weeks during the holiday season.
• NJPW owner Takaaki Kidani explained why the company is running two G1 specials in California in July: “The reason why we decided to go to US is what WWE did to us one years ago. I’m really frustrated. That’s the reason.” Kidani is referring to WWE signing AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Karl Anderson, and Luke Gallows after last year’s Tokyo Dome show.
• AXS TV released a promo video for their NJPW episode airing on January 13th that will feature this year’s Tokyo Dome main event between Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega.
• Gabi Castrovinci (formerly Raquel in TNA) tweeted that she’s no longer with the company.
• Rey Mysterio will appear for What Culture Pro Wrestling in Newcastle on April 29th.
• Vader tweeted about his first week of working on his health with DDP.

UFC / MMA

• Mike Goldberg released a statement on his UFC departure and thanked everyone for the support they’ve shown.
• Ariel Helwani tweeted that Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson and Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson II headlining UFC 209 is still the plan if the company can make the fights official.
• When asked about sparring with Ronda Rousey before her UFC 207 fight, Raquel Pennington said that she signed a non-disclosure agreement after being asked to by Rousey.
• Amanda Nunes spoke about potentially wanting to challenge for the women’s featherweight title.

Today in Professional Wrestling History (1/7): Triple H returns from injury at MSG

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Poll opinions: [email protected]
• ​Feedback: [email protected]
• Show results and news tips: [email protected]
• Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]

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