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Previewing NXT TakeOver New York: Gargano vs. Cole

Posted on by Mike DellaCamera

Hello again, friends. Allow me to be the first to welcome you and all your loved ones to WrestleMania week 2019. It was, as always, a long and torturous road to getting here, but Mama, we made it.

When the WWE lists ‘card subject to change’ on all their tickets, this TakeOver is an example of why. The disappointment of losing Tommaso Ciampa to a neck injury for god knows how long is very, very real. Capping off the biggest TakeOver over the year with the biggest match in NXT history would have been really special, but sometimes even the toughest necks need surgery, and I only hope we see that beautiful bald bastard in a WWE ring, of any form, sooner rather than later.

As always, this is an excellent card. I’m personally excited for Pete Dunne and WALTER to get introduced to a broader audience. NXT fans are the smartest fans in WWE, but there is still a large subset of them who might not be as familiar with those two. Lets face it: there is too much wrestling every week to watch everything. Even I, a professional wrestling writer, don’t have enough time to watch it all. But fret not because I always make time for NXT so I can crank out *checks word count* 2,700+ words before each TakeOver. It is a labor of love and one I take very seriously.

Since this is the unofficial season finale, I’m going to try out a new thing called ‘Where do we go from here’ in which I predict the future of the guys/girls involved in the matches. Since I was the genius who predicted Kenny Omega would stay in NJPW, these should be considered unimpeachable predictions and not just ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

For those keep track at home, the answer is yes, I do try to shoehorn the shrugging man into as many columns as possible.

So like we always do at this time, let us run through the card and try to figure out what’s going to happen this Friday in Brooklyn.

NXT Tag Team Champions The War Raiders vs. Ricochet/Aleister Black

Man. I am just having a real hard time caring about this match. I’ve said in multiple columns that the War Raiders don’t really do it for me, and they still don’t. Their match at the last TakeOver was really, really good, but I’m inclined to give more credit to The Undisputed Era guys than Rowe and Hanson. They just don’t connect with me. Maybe it’s because I don’t buy a lot of Hanson’s offense. Sure, it’s cool that a big dude can do a handspring and a (slow) cartwheel, but it would be a whole lot cooler if we didn’t see someone do them better. Jeff Cobb can do a standing shooting star press! I can’t do that on a trampoline! As I’m writing this, I realize that maybe it’s just Hanson that doesn’t do it for me, because I think Rowe could be a legit singles star if given the chance.

It’s always kind of hard to put words to digital paper when you feel this way about someone. I think of it like Radiohead. They are incredibly talented musicians and it’s clear how technically proficient they are, but they just don’t do it for me. I even like some of their songs and would probably see them in concert, but they aren’t a band I would wait in line to see. What I’m saying is Ray Rowe is Thom Yorke and Hanson is…the other dudes in Radiohead. I just really hope they don’t have a 20 minute entrance like they did last TakeOver.

Something else that’s not connecting with me (that’s what we in the biz call a transition) is the team of Ricochet and Your Pal Aleister Black. Never has a tag team felt more like ‘two dudes wrestling together’ than these guys. Individually, they are incredible performers. Together they are…incredible performers who don’t perform together. They don’t work as a cohesive unit. There is no teamwork, no tandem offense, nothing that makes tag team wrestling the best form of wrestling on the planet.

I understand the reason for this, and I understand that they might want to give these two a proper sendoff from NXT on the TakeOver stage. All of it makes sense, and I just can’t seem to make myself care about it. Giving them the titles makes less than zero sense. At this point, both of them are established main roster stars, and putting the belts on them would be a stroke of insanity.

WDWGFH (where do we go from here): This one is pretty obvious, really. Ricochet and Black are clearly main roster bound. Could the War Raiders join them? Sure, but the Magic 8-Ball that is my brain says ‘highly unlikely’. Someone has to anchor the tag division in NXT, and my personal bias aside, they will do a great job in that role. Besides, we all know they’re just keeping the belts warm until the Forgotten Sons get their title shot. Just kidding, those guys are the dirt worst. I’m convinced they are some kind of inside joke NXT has where they are convinced they can get absolutely anyone over.

NXT UK Champion Pete Dunne vs. WALTER

Woooooo brother, is this match going to slap. If it wasn’t for the next match in this column, this would be what I’m looking forward most the entire Mania week. Admittedly, I am not caught up on NXT UK, but I don’t think that matters and even if it does, I don’t care. Dunne, for all his considerable gifts and charisma, is not a physically imposing man. This really kind of hit home when he was in the Royal Rumble back in January; he’s just not that big of a dude!

You know what he is? An incredibly talented wrestler. Someone who just gets wrestling. It’s actually a bit scary how well he gets it considering he somehow is only 25 years old. He knows how to tell a story and how to structure a match. I can’t tell you one bad match I have seen him in and it might actually be impossible. His size isn’t a detriment for a couple reasons. The first, obviously, is that he’s just so damn good. The second is that pretty much everyone in NXT UK is Mike DellaCamera sized, which, for the record, is not large. You know who is large? WALTER. WALTER is large.

He feels like the final boss of Europe. On the rare occasions where he loses, it feels like a huge deal. Jordan Devlin beat him a little while ago in OTT and the reaction was as loud as I’ve ever heard at an indie show. Part of that was because it was Devlin’s hometown promotion, and part of it was because, well, WALTER lost. Part of me is actually surprised he is in WWE because of just the brutal style of matches he works, but I’m certainly not going to complain about it.

I don’t mean to keep waxing on about why and how WALTER is so incredible, but I’m absolutely going to continue doing just that. He’s big, he can move, and his chops sound like gunshots. His physical imposition is so striking and so unique that even people who haven’t seen wrestling before understand that they are seeing someone who is a big deal. I showed someone the clip of him chopping Zack Sabre Jr. recently and after they were done squirming, they asked “Is he alive?”

How many other people in wrestling elicit that kind of reaction? One? None? WALTER is a singuarly unique force in wrestling. This really seems like a good time to take the belt off of Pete. He’s had it for so long that it only makes sense to see what it’s like having him someone to chase after. He’s always felt more important than anyone one else on NXT UK…until now.

WDWGFH: Neither of these guys are going anywhere. These are the two dudes who are going to make NXT UK.

NXT North American Champion Velveteen Dream vs. Matt Riddle

It is April 2019. The world has been around for a long time (and is also round) and never in its long and illustrious history has it ever produced something more perfect or more beautiful than this: a match for a secondary title between an MMA stoner Bro and, for lack of a better description, a Prince impersonator. This sounds like something that would be at one of the GCW shows running this weekend, not at one of the biggest WWE shows of the year.

To take it a step further, this is a match between someone who appears to not care about anything to someone who cares so much about everything.

Riddle dropped into pro wrestling as an almost fully formed character. It helps that he is essentially just himself on screen, but he is someone who is as close to a natural as there is. Even from his earliest matches, it was clear that his time on the independents was going to be short lived. Compare that to Dream’s path. He started out as Patrick Clark, a contestant on Tough Enough, a “competition” he didn’t even win. For him to achieve success meant he had to completely destroy Clark in order to become the Velveteen Dream. He has even disavowed him on television.

When he was asked about his past, he said, “The Dream has no recollection of this.” Patrick died so Dream could live. All of that has created this incredible juxtaposition of two characters, ene who has succeeded because of his own authentic self, and the other by creating a persona so unique and so powerful that it has become his true self.

The build to this match produced the greatest tweet in the history of the internet when Dream posted ‘UR Not A BRO UR A HO’. I need that tattooed on my back yesterday. The build to this match also produced the best moment in NXT history when Dream came out on a couch to watch Riddle’s match last week. Imagine not liking this. It would be like not liking bikes or pizza or something else that is just so clearly great. This will be, like all of Dream’s matches, an experience. Riddle has been incredibly protected in NXT, so would he really lose here?. Then again, would Dream really lose in his first TakeOver title defense? Something has to give and I think it’s everyone’s favorite Bro.

WDWGFH: This one is actually a bit tricky. If there really is a plan for Riddle to retire Brock (and please believe that is something very real and not just a social media gimmick), his time in NXT should be short. I don’t think now is the time for a call up, but it’s not that far off. Dream is an even weirder case in that he could get called up tomorrow, or stay in NXT forever. I truly think it would be a shame if he doesn’t get a title run at some point, and I think he’s down there for the foreseeable future.

NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler vs. Bianca Belair vs. Io Shirai vs. Kairi Sane

On one hand, it’s so great that there are four women wrestling on a TakeOver special. One the other hand, couldn’t there just have been, you know, two women’s matches on the card? I’m never going to complain about seeing 2/3 of the Black Lotus Triad wrestle Shayna Two Time and the EST of NXT, but it’s still fair to wonder.

There is just an incredible amount of female talent in this match. The greatness of Shirai and Sane is apparent, even to a novice fan. They just wrestle and move differently like it’s ingrained in their DNA. My thoughts on Bianca were exhaustively documented before the last TakeOver, but the TL;DR version of it is that I think she is incredible with a Charlotte Flair ceiling.

Everyone remembers the Four Horsewomen era of NXT as a transformative time for women’s wrestling, as they absolute should. I would argue that these four have just as much talent as the horsewomen did back in their day, not to mention better resumes at this point in their careers. With these four plus Candice LeRae, Deonna Purrazzo, Mia Yim, plus the rehabbing combo of Dakota Kai/Tegan Knox, the future of the NXT women’s division is the brightest one in the entire company.

This is the match that I’m having the hardest time wrapping my head around from an outcome perspective, because it can really go anywhere. It’s easy to write a story where Shayna keeps the belt and continues running through NXT. It’s just as easy to write when where she doesn’t get pinned, loses the title…and continues running through NXT. Selfishly, I never want her to drop the title. She is one of my favorite NXT talents of recent memory, but it’s time for her to do more. If there really is a large Ronda Rousey sized hole on the main roster, what better choice to fill it? Being on the older side means there are fewer opportunities to take advantage of Baszler’s substantial gifts. It makes sense to drop the title to either Io or Kairi, and I’m going to say Io because she hasn’t had the title and has the best nickname in wrestling.

WDWGFH: As much as it pains me to predict Shayna loses her title, it’s time for her to go. With the women’s division on the main roster in flux with the constant switching of brands, now is the perfect time to establish her as an immediate main event level threat. This allows Io/Kairi/Bianca to lead the next wave of women in NXT, and what a wave it is.

Vacant NXT Championship: Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano (2/3 falls match)

Apparently, they have been running a version of this match on the house show circuit and the results have been incredible. My super official sources (Twitter, the Internet) have provided nothing but glowing reviews which is kind of crazy because everyone on the Internet is miserable and hates everything.

I have no doubt that these two can live up to any and all expectations attached to this match. Both are proven, main event caliber wrestlers and talkers…but does that matter? Will anyone really care about a Gargano coronation if it comes against Cole? Will anyone really care about a Gargano coronation if it comes against anyone not named Tomasso Ciampa? This was supposed to be the last chapter of the best planned out story the WWE has told in years, and it’s so, so unfortunate that Ciampa’s neck isn’t allowing that, but this is as fine an alternative as we could rationally expect.

More than any other match on this card, this match is about the future. This maps out the next generation of NXT. Does Johnny get to stick around for another year waiting for Ciampa to come back or is this the time to send him off? They can’t really just re-run the underdog story scraping to the top again, can they? Is there really such a burning desire to see him finally win the NXT title? He has been in the main event scene for such a long time that the risk of burnout is absolutely real. There is actually a section of fans that doesn’t like the Gargano/Ciampa feud, and to that I say get over yourself. That mindset is the reason we don’t deserve nice things. People criticize the main roster endlessly for not telling coherent, cohesive stories. When NXT tells a story that has stretched on for years, is layered, well written, dynamic, and is as close to complete as can be, people want to complain about it. Complaining is fun, I get it. But come on, guys.

Adam Cole was born for this. He really has it all: the look, the music, the stable, the microphone skills, the wrestling ability, all of it. There is nothing he can’t do well in the world of pro wrestling. He has held major titles in every just about company he’s ever worked for, so why should NXT be different? He is a proven main event level heel that is more than ready to carry the post Gargano/Ciampa/Black/Ricochet version of NXT. Gargano has had more than enough time in NXT, and if his time there doesn’t end with a title reign, I don’t think it’s a bad thing.

It makes all the sense in the world to put the belt on Cole for a while and let someone like Dream come get it. So yeah, let’s go with that! Oh, and if you don’t do the ‘Boom’ point during Cole’s music, you are an actual coward.

WDWGFH: The era of Johnny Gargano in NXT ends (please don’t put him on 205 Live), and the reign of the Undisputed Era officially begins.

‘Omega Man’: A look at TSN’s Kenny Omega documentary

Posted on by Josh Nason

There were two reasons I was interested in viewing ‘Omega Man: A Wrestling Love Story’, part of Canadian sports network TSN’s ‘Engraved On A Nation’ documentary series on various Canadian athletes.

The main one is that despite my role here, I’m really not overly familiar with his history and can’t call myself an Omega fan, per se. I’m more in appreciation of what he’s been able to do in the past few years and the character it takes to go work with your friends vs. taking the big money WWE contract. The second reason: I love sports documentaries. That seemed like a good enough combo to me.

Thus, I was coming in from a fairly objective viewpoint on the subject and in the way the documentary was put together. Having viewed it several times before its Wednesday night debut on TSN, I can tell you this: ‘Omega Man’ is a good watch but is saddled by trying to tell a few too many stories in a short amount of time.

What’s In It?

The opening 15 minutes or so is a primer on today’s wrestling scene and what Omega (aka “Tyson Smith from Winnipeg”) means in the current scope of things. We see the strip club/bar where he made his debut and hear from his then-contemporaries about why they thought he was going to be special as an 18-year-old.

This first part, and really the entire documentary, is buoyed by the spread of personalities interviewed. From familiar names like Omega, Don Callis, Chris Jericho, and Dave Meltzer to lesser knowns like Mike Angels, Jason Geiger, and Ryan Price, the 20+ people we meet through the 48 minute show add both depth and detail to his rise in pro wrestling. 

We learn about his philosophies and his hopes of having matches and angles play out more like a traditional TV drama or a movie. If so, Omega says, perhaps wrestling could be perceived more as art than fake fighting. That mentality is on display with his DDT tryout video and his eventual run in that promotion that followed his admittedly disappointing time spent with WWE’s developmental system. Footage of his match with AJ Styles (including a funny quote from Styles given where he is now) is presented as a true turning point that still photos and a voice over couldn’t have accomplished.

That leads into a main focus: the story of The Golden Lovers, Omega’s tag team with Kota Ibushi. It’s also where ‘Omega Man’ loses its way. We gets an education on how Omega first heard of Ibushi, their first match, the team they formed, and the rollout of their story. We meet Omega’s parents for the first (and only) time where his father talks about the “are they really gay?” discussion around the two men with his mother comically admitting she has no idea what any of the story is or what people are talking about. Guess she’s not part of Wrestling Twitter.

The aforementioned group of people interviewed included LGBTQ wrestling fans and a culture critic who talked about the GL storyline and why it was important to them, both from a personal and entertainment standpoint. Their stories and experience were welcome and a reality check for those of us not in that community. 

However, the GL history lesson and evolution gets a little repetitive at times mainly because there was so much more material to cover. The middle felt like a documentary within a documentary which hurt the flow from a traditional sports documentary perspective. Also, it’s tough to tell what Omega is kayfabing about and what is truthful with certain aspects of the story, confusing considering everything we had heard to this point didn’t have that filter.

After passing through the Omega IWGP title win, the final seven minutes are spent at All In and what Omega is looking to do in this stage of his career. (Him meeting Eric Bischoff backstage is a bit of a trip to watch.) We get a lot of footage of his match with Pentagon Jr. but not a ton of context as to what being outside WWE really means to him or the business. The shot of him walking backstage after the match, petting a dog and embracing Ibushi was cool to see. His All In promo and him working a Winnipeg indie shortly after his Tokyo Dome main event close out the documentary.

What Was Missing?

Absent from the film is anything about Omega’s decision to sign with AEW over WWE which would have been a fascinating focus area. This is where a few extra minutes taken from the Golden Lovers portion would have been used best, but having watched this a few times, I don’t believe a true career retrospective is what the filmmaker was going for. Considering the audience, however, I would have liked to see more about that. 

I also was disappointed in the lack of focus on the Omega vs. Okada series which also could have been its own doc within a doc. The first match and the third one are covered a bit, but the wrestling fan in me wanted to hear more about the series. We get so much other detail about other aspects of his career that it left me wanting to get more about the experience of winning the title. I also was surprised to not hear more from Jericho as he had a great quote about Omega being Elvis in the intro, but that’s pretty much it. 

Is It Worth Watching?

Definitely. ‘Omega Man’ is wrestling porn for his fans and wrestling fans in general. The amount of footage from backstage shows and from Omega’s private life are worth the price of admission alone and the quality in which the shots of Japan are done are excellent. The biggest enemy of the film, however, is time. Where other wrestling documentaries (Ric Flair, Andre The Giant, etc) usually have over an hour to tell a story, ‘Omega Man’ has to pack everything into 48 minutes. Perhaps an extended director’s cut would give me more of what I was looking for.

If the goal was to give sports fans an understanding of why Omega is arguably the best in the world at what he does, ‘Omega Man’ largely hits the mark and is well worth your time to watch.

UFC 235: Questions, answers and predictions

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: MMAFighting.com

As the saying goes, March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. We get to see the UFC equivalent of the lion Saturday with UFC 235, the organization’s most potent card of the calendar year.

Featuring two good title fights, a former champion returning against a debuting undefeated Bellator champion, a former champion returning in search for redemption, and an undercard loaded up with intrigue, 235 is why fight fans are fight fans. Plus, for PPV buyers, this is as value-packed a main card as you’ll ever see.

Helping me sift through the show as always are fellow MMA scribes Paul Fontaine and Ryan Frederick, who will be cageside tonight for our live coverage. Also, be sure to check out my talk with ESPN’s Dann Stupp about the show and other news of the week.

The card (PPV/ESPN/Fight Pass):

  • UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones vs. Anthony Smith
  • UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley vs. Kamaru Usman
  • Robbie Lawler vs. Ben Askren
  • Tecia Torres vs. Weili Zhang
  • Cody Garbrandt vs. Pedro Munhoz
  • Jeremy Stephens vs. Zabit Magomedsharipov
  • Misha Cirkunov vs. Johnny Walker
  • Cody Stamann vs. Alejandro Pérez
  • Diego Sanchez vs. Mickey Gall
  • Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Charles Byrd
  • Gina Mazany vs. Macy Chiasson
  • Polyana Viana vs. Hannah Cifers

What are you most looking forward to?

Ryan: There is so much to look forward to as it’s one of the best overall cards in a long time. My top three: Jon Jones, Ben Askren, and Zabit Magomedshapirov. Jones is still on another level despite all of the drug test shenanigans going on, and is a pleasure to watch. I hope he has taken Anthony Smith seriously, but this should be another vintage Jones performance. I’m really curious how Askren is going to fare. He is undefeated but he also hasn’t fought in a long time, and Robbie Lawler is no joke. Magomedshapriov is a special talent, and he has a tough and unique test in the form of the veteran Jeremy Stephens. Zabit hasn’t fought someone who hits as hard as Stephens, and Stephens is the type of guy you have to beat if you want to be a true contender.

Paul: Almost everything. There are several fights on the show with established names going against up and coming stars which are the fights I love. Gall vs. Sanchez, Cirkunov vs. Walker, Stephens vs. Zabit, and Lawler vs. Askren kind of all fall into that category and I’m fascinated to see how they play out. Do the veterans have a little gas left in the tank or do the rising contenders get one step closer to stardom? It makes the fights feel important. And then, of course, you’ve got the title fights on top. This show really has everything I’m looking for.

Josh: Broken record alert: it’s basically the whole show. However, I will shine a light on Askren vs. Lawler because the fight could go several directions. Askren really has been something this week and with a win, there’s a lot of intrigue into what he could do next. I don’t know what to make of Lawler because he looked so bad his last time out…but he tore his knee to hell. I’m not a huge fan of wrestlefests, but if Askren makes this into one, it could be pretty entertaining.

Anything being slept on?

Ryan: Garbrandt vs. Munhoz is getting overshadowed. It’s easy to count Garbrandt out after seeing him get knocked out in back-to-back fights against TJ Dillashaw. It is time for him to prove that he is still a contender and that it’s just a case of Dillashaw having his number. Don’t blink watching this one as I feel Garbrandt has a huge chip on his shoulder.

Paul: There’s a fight on the Fight Pass prelims involving a 9-0 stud that’s only 21 years old and I think we could be looking at a future superstar. Edmen Shahbazyan can only get better and if early indications are anything, that could be scary. His opponent, Charles Byrd, has a middling record and this looks to be a showcase fight for young Edmen.

Josh: UFC and media have done a good job with the card overall, but I’m super intrigued with how Johnny Walker looks in his short-notice fight with a game Misha Cirkunov. Walker has been impressive in two UFC fights, but Cirkunov is tough. However, he did have back to back first round losses to hard punchers Glover Teixiera and Volkan Oezdemir before rebounding against Pat Cummins his last time out. If Walker connects flush, Cirkunov could be out quick like.

Anything not doing it for you?

Ryan: I like it all. If I’m pressed to name one fight I don’t care for, I guess it would be Mazany vs. Chiasson, only because it could be the most boring fight on the show. Most people might think that could be Woodley vs. Usman, but I find that one to be so compelling and interesting.

Paul: I feel the same as Ryan, but if I have to pick one that may not be terribly great, it would probably be the Tecia Torres vs. Weili Zhang fight on the main card. This has the potential to be one of those fifteen minute standup fights where both try to stay out of each other’s range and nothing much happens. I hope that’s not what happens but there’s a lot at stake in this one for both and hopefully they want to win more than they are afraid to lose.

Josh: Torres vs. Zhang. Hopefully, it will be entertaining but going into it, I don’t really care about either fighter or their prospects for the future.

What will be people talking about most after the show is done?

Ryan: Jon Jones is still the most dominant fighter on the planet, and made it somehow look as easy as ever. There is a new force at 170 pounds in the name of Kamaru Usman, and can you please let him shut Colby Covington up. Ben Askren is ready to fight for a UFC title right now. Cody Garbrandt has bounced back in a nice way, and ohnny Walker is still the most exciting prospect to come into the UFC in a long time.

Paul: Obviously what’s next for the two champions. There are challengers in waiting for both belts although if we crown new champions, the question will be whether you go to an immediate rematch or have one of those challengers get their shot. Thiago Santos has promised to challenge the winner of the main event and after his destruction of Jan Blachowicz last week, there’s a marketable fight against either Smith (which would be a rematch) or Jones. For the welterweight bout, there’s Colby Covington, who can’t stay away from a camera for more than 10 seconds this week, or the Askren/Lawler winner. And Johnny Walker may just sneak into the 205 title picture with another highlight reel KO over Misha Cirkonov.

Josh: We’ll be talking about a potential Jones vs. Thiago Santos fight for July or August, Woodley calling out Covington and forcing his way into making that fight happen, that Askren belongs in the UFC, and that that Garbrandt needs to change something up badly.

Who wins these five fights?

Jon Jones vs. Anthony Smith

– Jones: Josh, Ryan, Paul

Tyron Woodley vs. Kamaru Usman

– Woodley: Josh
– Usman: Ryan, Paul

Robbie Lawler vs. Ben Askren

– Askren: Josh, Ryan, Paul

Jeremy Stephens vs. Zabit Magomedsharipov

– Magomedsharipov: Josh, Ryan, Paul

Misha Cirkunov vs. Johnny Walker

– Walker: Ryan, Paul, Josh

Keep up with our live coverage tonight on WrestlingObserver.com.

PCO on his ROH deal and career resurgence at 51

Posted on by Justin Knipper

The unlkely career resurgence of Pierre Carl Ouellet took another amazing turn when he signed a deal with Ring of Honor just a few weeks shy of his 51st birthday. I recently talked with the man known as PCO about his wrestling career revival, the ROH deal, how his life has changed, and more.

You can check out Monday Night PCO with he and Destro on Facebook and Twitter every Monday at 7 PM Eastern as well as a shorter talk he did with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive on Wrestling Observer Live from last week, available via video or streaming audio.

Justin Knipper: After the WALTER match in 2018, when did you realize that this was going to be more than just one show in the year? When did you clear it with your family or discuss your new schedule and what kind of life changes have you had to make?

PCO: Well, I had to quit my regular job, which was a pretty good deal. When I knew I’d like to switch was when my schedule started getting pretty full, three dates per week in a month. That’s when I decided to quit the job that I had so I could fully concentrate on pro wrestling and to fully concentrate on the goals I wanted to achieve, the ones that I’ve wanted my whole life since I was 14 years old. 

And so, I went to my 10 year old daughter and her mom and talked with her grandparents to make sure everything would be ok. The big deal is (her) going to school and to see her whenever I’m available. And on my days off, I’m with her, keeping our relationship the same. 

Her mom has been great, the family’s been great, and everybody has been pretty cool about when I decided to concentrate on pro wrestling. Some people were skeptical, like I was out of my mind a little bit. But as I was getting more and more intense about it and was getting more and more bookings, I just started to believe in myself and believe in what I was doing. I needed to burn the ships. It’s like if you were in a war and you burned the ships with all your soldiers; it’s either you make it or you don’t make it. There’s no going back and that’s what I did. I gambled everything and we’re in an age where people don’t really gamble that much, so it paid off.

JMK: Around which month did you realize it would become pretty serious?

PCO: I would say around August. From after Wrestlemania weekend in New Orleans on April 6th, I only had Chicago on the 21st and a show in Montreal. So with the WALTER match, I only had like three other shows in April and then it started to get going in May. I had like ten dates in May, and then by June it was getting full. In June and July, I was doing three to four dates a week, so working pretty much full time from there. April was kind of slow, May was kind of slow, and then in June and July, it was like boom-boom-boom-boom, fully stacked every week. 

JMK: When did ROH contact you?

PCO: It was when I was gone in Germany for a ten day tour in November. Throughout the whole year, they hit me up a few times, but I felt like it wasn’t serious enough for me to get back to them. Maybe they were just trying to see what was going on with me, so I turned a few opportunities down.  I don’t want to mention any companies or anything like that as I don’t wanna make anybody look bad or anything, but I turned the two offers down. ROH was asking if I had a contract but nothing more than that, and then it got serious when I was in Germany.

So, I signed with them in December. It was a perfect fit for me and I made the right choice. They were really professional with me and really interested in me, and it made me feel the same way toward them. I felt as mutually attracted to them as they were to me, you know, so it was a perfect match for where I was in my career. 

I really like the way they let their talent express their creative sides. It’s not so much writers writing things for guys, but it’s the guys coming up with ideas and working together with the company. There are some companies who tell you you have to do this or you have to do that, but sometimes you feel it’s not connected to your personality or your values. Sometimes the character doesn’t fit the person or the person doesn’t fit the character. ROH creative really works with the talent and that’s what I like about it. 

JMK: How about the locker room people behind the scenes in ROH? How does it differ from other territories you’ve worked in the past?

PCO: It’s a cool dressing room and a cool atmosphere. So far, I’m very impressed. But, you know, it’s like any place where you start. You’re not gonna be friends with everybody right on the first day. There’s that process where people get to know you, you get to know people, things like that. It’s something that takes a little time, but it’s a good thing for me with ROH because I was already good friends with Marty Scurll from 2008. And I had been on the road almost every weekend for a full year already, so I had seen a lot of Brody King on the road and we worked a lot against each other in MLW at one point, you know, so the chemistry was already there.

JMK: Who came up with the idea to put you three together?

PCO: I’d say Marty and the ROH creative together. From what I heard, Marty had a lot to say. 

I think it’s a good idea because Brody King is like the big monster, very strong and tall, you know, full of tattoos across his body, and then you got Marty who is a genius in the ring, a pure villain. He snaps the fingers, does pure wrestling, cheating, all kinds of things. (He’s) probably one of the greatest heels out there now. And you got PCO, the Not Human, (a character) pretty similar to his life, got nailed down, got beat up, and he gets up and he always gets back up. No matter what hits him, he always gets back up, always fighting. Not human, you know? Doing big moonsaults, big flying moves, big power moves…

If you look at top guys similar to the Young Bucks and Cody, a comparison with them is like comparing me to a Lamborghini. You could say which one is the fastest or whatever, but if you compare a tank with a Ferarri, it’s like two different machines. There’s almost no comparison because there are different styles now. I think that’s the coolest thing about (it). It’s totally different. With a non-human like PCO, you gotta have moments during the match where it’s just gonna be a big moment, something special.

Instead of a flashy thing, when PCO goes up to the top rope for a moonsault, people are expecting a moonsault … he crushes the first rope, he crushes the second rope, he crushes the top rope, and boom, he goes, he weighs like a thousand pounds, you know? Just landing a moonsault, turning over just at the last second, it’s almost like he’s not gonna make it and at the last minute he switches his body and makes that moonsault, just hit it, and the crowd goes insane, man. And that’s who we are. I mean, the three of us, if you combine all the qualities of the three guys it’s like, it’s…it’s pretty crazy. Pretty sick. 

JMK: You mentioned you’re doing the moonsaults, the topes, and a lot of the moves that people say are dangerous. Your in-ring style is still in line with how it was in the 90s, but it’s more extreme now. What made you decide to do that? 

PCO: I had to crank it up a few notches to be with the top guys in the world, to become the best. Maybe not “the best”, but you have guys with different styles, power styles, technique wrestlers. There’re so many styles, but the thing is becoming a top draw in this business, drawing people, drawing interest. The Not Human, you know? I think doing other gimmicks before where sometimes you’re doing something pretty crazy, but now, it makes sense not being human. If something big happens to me and I keep on getting back up or keep on fighting they’ll say, “He’s just not human.” Which, a lot of times people will say it’s unnecessary, but if I do it, it’s because I feel it’s necessary, and when I do it, I know there is a reason why it’s happening.

I’m the only one who can judge when the time is right or not or whatever timing is right. But one thing’s for sure. It makes the Not Human French-Canadian Frankenstein the perfect character to go with the style that I’ve got now because it all made sense together, whatever happens to me. It was really the perfect fit: the perfect fit with ROH, the perfect fit with Destro and finding that Frankenstein character. It fits me like a glove. 

JMK: You mentioned Destro. Is he your real trainer?

PCO: Yeah, he’s a super genius in real life as far as trainers go, the best in the world. That’s why I give him a lot of credit for my success because I felt like it was the last dream, that my dream was that soon to be realized. It was like the last hope, you know, getting him to train me, to feel his knowledge. He’s so creative and is very, very passionate with every thing he does, almost like an extremist. When I start something, I’m pretty hard (on myself) at everything I have to do to obtain success  and he’s pretty much the same way.

So, when two brains and two spirits together are working in the same direction without jealousy or anything like that, when everybody is in line with everything they want to do in life, working together with him is a blessing in my life. It was the perfect crossroad when I saw him at the gym and asked him if he wanted to train me and I decided to go for it.

And here we are today talking about a lot of great things that were accomplished last year. The beginning of the new year started pretty well and I think it was all worth it to have him as a personal trainer but also as a creator, because he’s the one that came up with the Frankenstein character. It’s pretty cool.

JMK: Speaking of training, I heard you have been doing different types of physical training with some martial arts and some gymnastics. What other kinds of training have you been using for the pro wrestling ring?

PCO: I’ve done a lot of a lot of Brazilian Jiujitsu but it doesn’t really work out with the kind of monster I am. It doesn’t mean I won’t have a submission hold at one point and that could something to look forward to eventually. I keep on rolling when I do have the time. I didn’t have much time in 2018, but I kept going here and there when I could and I really like it.

I did a lot of striking also. I used that a little bit in 2017, a little bit in 2018 and I kind of stopped doing the striking with my kickpads. But I have been using a little more of my kicks and a couple of karate moves I’ve been practicing over the past five or six years.

Gymnastics has obviously helped with the moonsault, big time. I don’t know how many I’ve done because I was spending days (training), but like 300 or 500, 600 moonsaults (training) in the last year, I was practicing other things too, but there are things that I do that don’t fit the character that I would really like to do. Crush every rope and boom. That moonsault though, it gets people going. Who knows? There might be some surprises for 2019. I’ll keep doing what works and we’ll see how it goes.

JMK: Is there anybody you want to work with this year specifically?

PCO: Like I’ve said before, my goal was to wrestle at WrestleMania. I thought Undertaker would have been a good match for me as style-wise, it’s a little bit similar. Putting people into a coffin or casket, and me, I’m sleeping in a casket, so it’s like PCO is coming back from the dead and resurrected, but Undertaker is more like someone that cannot die so I thought there’d be a really good feud there. 

But going to Madison Square Garden (in April), I feel like I’m right on my goal and right on target. Going back to Madison Square Garden, I have been there many times, maybe, I don’t know, 10 or 15 times, and it’s one of the most prestigious arenas in the world and it sold out in less than 20-25 minutes. And going there with ROH, I mean, I am on a great ship for me with Villain Enterprises. I feel like I’m right there, you know, right on top, at the most prestigious arena in the world. 

NXT TakeOver Phoenix preview: The beginning and end of two eras?

Posted on by Mike DellaCamera

Welcome to NXT: PWG where every male competitor has wrestled at American Legion Hall Post 308 in beautiful Reseda, California.

It’s long been said that developmental isn’t really developmental, and it’s never been more true than it is now. The real developmental is the Florida house show loop and the portion of NXT that tours, but NXT proper is just a finishing school at this point. It’s where you go to get the last 10% of what you need to succeed on the main roster…before going up to the main roster and either being overexposed or underutilized.

This current generation of NXT is completely ready. With the exception of Bianca Belair and maybe Matt Riddle, everyone else on this show is more than ready to transition ‘up’ to the main roster. So ready, in fact, that it’s worth wondering if this isn’t the beginning of the end for Gargano, Ciampa, Black, Baszler, etc. They have done all they really can do in NXT. Maybe Gargano never wins the title and that’s his story. With or without the title, his and Ciampa’s story has ran for years, and is also the deepest and most layered story that any group within WWE has told in years.

Black has been an ancillary part of that story and has already won the top prize, plus I’m super sick of typing Aleister wrong a million times and everything is all about me anyway. Baszler is the first two-time women’s champ and could maybe fill a portion of the Ronda Rousey sized hole on the main roster that might exist after WrestleMania.

But, say all of them are done after Wrestlemania week. Look at who is still left on the roster:

  • Matt Riddle
  • Keith Lee
  • Ricochet
  • Adam Cole
  • O’Reilly/Fish/Strong
  • Bianca Belair
  • Kairi Sane
  • Io Shirai
  • Marina Shafir
  • Jessamyn Duke
  • Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan
  • Marcel Barthel/Fabian Aichner

Yeah, I think they’ll be fine. That doesn’t even mention the talents who should be starting soon like Trevor Lee, ACH, and god damn KUSHIDA. I’m looking at this as the last chapter for this generation of NXT, and it was for sure my favorite generation. There was more top-to-bottom talent than any other generation, and it will be sad to see them go. But between now and then, there is another TakeOver! So like we always do at this time, lets run through the card.

Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno

This is a match that has already happened a couple times on the award winning WWE Network ™. However, for those who have only seen those versions of this match, you could be in for an absolute treat. Their trilogy of matches in EVOLVE during 2016 did a ton to establish Riddle as a bonafide star on the independent scene. Seeing how this match compares to those, both in style and performance, will be interesting.

There will be plenty of time to talk about Riddle later and, well, forever. I want to take a second to talk about Ohno. Some people are disappointed with his booking in NXT, and I can certainly see why. The former Chris Hero has a legitimate case to be considered the best independent wrestler of all time. He is a genius, a true prodigy, and someone that has achieved a tremendous amount of success all over the world. His ability to work any style of match with opponents of any size is actually incredible.

This is very much a “62 year old sportswriter” thing to say, but you have to believe that the difference he is making behind the scenes as a pseudo player-coach is tremendous. The greatest thing a genius can do is be generous with their time, their mind, and their knowledge. Acting as the gatekeeper of NXT, Ohno seems to be doing just that: getting the new talent ready and making them look good in the process.

Riddle vs. Ohno is the wrestling prodigy vs. the wrestling genius, the can’t miss kid vs. the best that never was. the future vs. the trailblazer. Those are only a few of the threads that make up the story between these two, and there are many, many more. If it’s anything like their previous matches, this will range from good to great, although how much time they get will impact things. Look for Riddle to go over here and there’s really no reason for him to lose. Expect great performances by both of these guys.

NXT North American Champion Richochet vs. Johnny Gargano

The best worker in the company vs the best flyer in the…world? A match between two athletes of this caliber does not need much in the way of previews. I know this match is going to be off the charts, you know this match is going to be off the charts, we all know this match is going to be off the charts. The only question is how much will it resonate? This match certainly doesn’t have the emotional stakes that any of the Gargano/Ciampa matches had or even the stakes of his match with Aleister Black at TakeOver: War Games. It’s going to be interesting to see how much this one hits home with the fans outside of the spectacular spots.

Ricochet’s main connection to the fans has been through his unmatched athleticism and moveset, very similar to his run on the indies where it was fair to wonder if he could make the audience care enough to reach the stratosphere reserved for those who could make the audience truly feel something. Until his body fails him, we will always be in awe of Ricochet, but will we ever be completely invested in his successes and failures? This goes back to the finishing school comparison I made during the introduction to this column. The 10% he is missing, that hopefully he can gain in NXT, is how to form that meaningful connection with the audience.

I said in my last column that Gargano is the best NXT superstar of all time. Nothing that has happened since then has made me even reconsider that statement, let alone change my mind. While he doesn’t have the jaw-dropping set of moves that Ricochet has (and really, who does), he connects to the audience tremendously. It isn’t peak levels of Daniel Bryan (again, who does), but it’s more than any current main roster superstar with the possible exception of Seth Rollins. It remains to be seen if that type of connection can carry over outside of NXT, but at this point I am not willing to bet against it.

The fascinating thing about Gargano’s heel turn is that he’s wrestling almost the exact same as he did when he was a babyface. Most of the moves are the same, but slightly tweaked and a bit more vicious. If you compare that to Bryan’s recent turn, the differences are stark. He is wrestling a completely different style, one that is full of brutal submissions and strikes. This is one of the things that makes me love wrestling so much. Watching two master storytellers create entirely different layered takes on an old trope is fantastic.

Probably time to predict the outcome, yeah? It feels way too early for Ricochet to drop the title here, especially considering this is his first title defense at a TakeOver. Johnny also feels too big for a midcard title as there are bigger things planned for him. The only belt that should matter to him is the NXT Championship, which is held by the only person who really matters to him, Tommaso Ciampa. This match is going to rule, and should end with Ricochet retaining.

NXT Tag Team Champions The Undisputed Era (Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong) vs. War Raiders (Hanson and Rowe)

I’ve come to realize that no matter what, the War Raiders just aren’t for me. I suppose there is a subset of fans that enjoy the viking/warrior/big beard gimmick thing, but that’s just not me and it never will be me. Predicting success on the main roster seems to be an almost fruitless endeavor considering just how few NXT stars have had any kind of real sustained success. Their whole vibe just reeks of mid-card roster filler which isn’t a bad thing. That is something that is sorely needed in the tag team division, especially on Raw. But if a gimmick doesn’t hit home, and it’s hard to see any kind of real ceiling, I’m just out.

Ray Rowe does seem like a really great dude, and everyone should watch the video WWE made of his wedding to Sarah Logan. I’m a huge sucker any time they pull back the curtain and give glimpses into the real lives of the wrestlers. Humanizing these sensational characters we see on our TV is never a bad thing, WWE. It lets us connect more with the wrestlers, and lets us get way more emotionally invested in the actual people.

Since I put on my prognostication cap in the last paragraph with the War Raiders, it’s only fair I do the same thing for my precious sweet princes of the Undisputed Era. My love for them is well documented and knows no bounds, so this next sentence is going to be really tough. My guys Kyle and Roddy probably will cap out at the same level as the War Raiders. I genuinely hope I’m wrong, but let’s look at this objectively. Both of these guys are smaller tag team wrestlers that wrestle a ‘indie’ a style of match as there is. Kyle remains the most internet friendly champion in the entire company, but that weido charm probably isn’t enough to take them to the absolute top. Could they have a few runs with the tag titles on Raw or Smackdown at some point? Sure, why not? Is a more likely scenario them being used to fill out triple threat and fatal four way matches? Most likely.

Truthfully, the build to this feud hasn’t been great. I can’t even tell you one memorable thing about it. The Undisputed Era’s whole thing is that 2019 is the year they get all the gold, something that would make me happier than I want to admit on the internet. There is NOTHING I love more than a stable having a collection of belts. If all the other champions retain like I think they will, look for War Raiders to take the gold here.

Also, the tag match from the week’s NXT absolutely slapped. I would be very much into Burch/Lorcan and/or Barthel/Aichner getting this spot.

NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler vs. Bianca Belair

The Future is what Bianca Belair represents. I have been wanting to write about her for a while, and I’m so glad I can finally do it. There is no one on the NXT roster, or in WWE period, that has what she has. Her upside, with apologies to the also great Keith Lee, is seemingly limitless. There is nothing in wrestling that she is not physically capable of doing and excelling at. This is the star the company has been searching for. This is the African-American performer the company needs to hitch their wagons to and let her go. It’s all there: the looks, the athletic ability, the charisma, the confidence, all of it. It all exists in the -est of NXT.

I think we take for granted just how good Charlotte Flair is. There is an argument to be made that she will be looked back on as the gold standard for the modern WWE superstar. She is an all-time great (minus her inability to connect on a moonsault) who lives up to the incredibly weight of her last name. I bring her up because that is Belair’s ceiling. There is no other comparable superstar of any gender. She has the chance to be a transcendent star, and her career is just starting. The future of WWE is, most certainly, female.

Baszler is no slouch herself. The only two-time NXT Women’s champion deserves a rightful place when you mention the top female stars to have come through the Performance Center. She just continues to improve and add layers to her character. Often times when a heel is given stablemates, it can make them seem weak and can make them seem like they can’t do it themselves. That isn’t the case with the Queen of Spades. Have you ever once thought this shoot badass needing help to win? Sure, some help makes things easier, but she is perfectly capable of getting there on her own.

There is no doubting the talent in this match and there is no reason to doubt how well it meshes together. As good as Shayna is, and as good as Bianca will be, neither of them have been doing this all that long. Neither of them have ever really had to carry someone to a good match and have always had very capable dance partners. It remains to be seen what these two can do when tasked with leading a match from start to finish.

NXT is an interesting space because it’s both about the present and the future. Belair is a future champion multiple times over at every level of the company. But the present? It still is probably a little too soon for someone who hasn’t been wrestling all that long and is in their first serious televised program. Shayna forever, and ever.

NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa vs. Aleister Black

Aleister is just an afterthought. Not only is that the working title for my debut novel about an angsty, goth teen, it also applies to this title match. It just feels like a placeholder. This doesn’t mean I’m not interested, it just means I know there are bigger things ahead. Black’s injury was the best non-marrying Zelina Vega thing that ever happened to him. He came back fresh, new, and exciting again. He looks incredible and seems to be performing at full speed for the first time since coming to WWE.

It’s kind of like when you take the governor off a golf cart. With the governor on, the cart will still get you from hole to hole, but it’s not operating at full capacity. With it off, you can go fast. You can have fun. That’s what Black is doing now: full tilt, full time, and looking incredible doing it. This is the Aleister Black that WWE signed and the one that has a ceiling as a future WWE champion. Who knew all it would take was an injury…umm…below the belt to get here?

I have really enjoyed Ciampa’s transition into the Great Value version of Triple H. He’s got the beard instead of long hair and has a modified version of the pedigree as his finisher. I’m very into it. He even works a similar, methodical style to NXT’s proud papa. I’m curious to see what this match brings. Ciampa’s first TakeOver title defense was against Velveteen Dream, a man for whom my love knows no bounds. But his matches are an experience, and extremely character based. This is by no means a bad thing, but is for sure something. This seems like it will be a more standard match, and brother, I am here for it.

Black’s anger against Ciampa’s puppet master tactics should be on full display. He really laid into Ciampa during the brawl that closed NXT TV this week. Imagine 15-20 minutes of that to close a TakeOver? *kisses fingers*

It’s weird to say, but the outcome of this match doesn’t matter as much as you would expect it to. Could Black win the title back? Sure! But he doesn’t feel like the type of guy to get the belt twice. A more likely outcome involves Gargano getting involved in some way, either costing Ciampa the belt or helping him keep it. Regardless of where that falls, all roads lead to Ciampa/Gargano one more time with the everything on the line. Hook that to my veins.

Check out our live coverage of NXT TakeOver tonight and an audio recap of the show on Wrestling Observer Radio.

UFC debuts on ESPN+: Our questions, answers and predictions

Posted on by Josh Nason

The UFC on ESPN era kicks off in just a few hours, a five year ride to help us better understand where everything we once knew as television is going. Will this marriage be a big success, a meaningless failure or somewhere in between? We get our first data point Saturday night with a pretty fun looking card, at least near the top of it.

For the fun of it, here’s a look at the August 2013 Boston FS1 debut vs. tonight’s lineup.

Helping me preview tonight’s show is one of our MMA writers and MMADraws.com head Paul Fontaine and traveling event writer Ryan Frederick. For more content on tonight’s show, check out our full picks at MMA Draws and my talk with Jack Encarnacao from this week’s JNPO.

The card (ESPN+ and ESPN):

  • UFC flyweight champion Henry Cejudo vs. TJ Dillashaw
  • Greg Hardy vs. Allen Crowder
  • Gregor Gillespie vs. Yancy Medeiros
  • Joe Benavidez vs. Dustin Ortiz
  • Paige Van Zant vs. Rachel Ostovich
  • Glover Teixeira vs. Karl Roberson
  • Donald Cerrone vs. Alexander Hernandez
  • Joanne Calderwood vs. Ariane Lipski
  • Alonzo Menifield vs. Vincius Moreira
  • Mario Bautista vs. Cory Sandhagen
  • Dennis Bermudez vs. Te Edwards
  • Belal Muhammad vs. Geoff Neal
  • Chance Recountre vs. Kyle Stewart

What are you most looking forward to?

Paul: Honestly, I’m looking forward to seeing if anything changes with the presentation of the sport with the move to ESPN. There’s a few good fights here but the card is pretty top heavy. With a lot of unknown fighters, it will be interesting to see how UFC and ESPN introduce them. Also, with things like graphics and stats and various little extras that ESPN has with other sports, how will they be incorporated into their UFC broadcasts?

Josh: On Ariel Helwani’s new ESPN audio show ‘The MMA Reporters’, he mentioned how he thought the card could be more impressive given the circumstances with the show and the canceled PPV next week. You know, I think this show is pretty solid overall. The early prelims on + will be a good way for last minute subscribers to get in, but I don’t forsee any major streaming or buying problems tonight. The main event is great, the Gillespie-Medeiros tilt is really interesting, and suddenly, I cannot wait for Cerrone vs. Hernandez. I’m really excited for the action and, to Paul’s point, how it’s presented.

Ryan: Like Paul, I’m looking to see how the presentation on ESPN goes. I’ve been enjoying how much ESPN has put into this show, and I know it’s the first event, but if they treat every major event like this, and treat the smaller events a fraction of this way, this deal is going to be a home run for the UFC. There is also a fantastic and intriguing main event here between Cejudo and Dillashaw, and that one I’m really looking forward to.

Anything being slept on?

Paul: I feel like Josh is going to say the Cerrone fight after listening to his conversation with Jack Encarnacao on Punch-Out earlier this week and I would’ve said that as well, so I’ll go with Gregor Gillespie vs. Yancy Medeiros. I’d wager money that this fight will steal the show. Medeiros almost always has exciting fights while Gillespie is the most unknown 12-0 fighter (5-0 in UFC) and tonight is the biggest platform of his fighting career. He’s got four stoppages in those five UFC wins, which is pretty impressive in a tough division.

Josh: Wrong! The Gillespie-Medeiros fight. I love when prospects are allowed to quietly advance their career without getting shot to the moon too soon and ol’ GG has done just that. It’s a nice step up in competition with a tough and exciting fighter heading back to lightweight. With a win here, Gillespie will be elevated even more in a division that gets deeper by the month. Due to the hype that now surrounds Cerrone-Hernandez, I couldn’t go with that one.

Ryan: I’m going with a fight very early in the card between Muhammad and Neal, maybe the best matchup outside of the main event. They are both action fighters with violent sides, and Neal is coming off a spectacular head kick knockout win. This one should be fireworks.

Anything not doing it for you?

Paul: Greg Hardy in the co-main. I know why they’re doing it and on some level, I may even agree with it but it still rubs me the wrong way. Don’t get me wrong: he’s been very impressive early in his MMA career and even moreso when you consider the combined record of his three opponents was 7-1 going into those fights. But putting this on the same card as Rachael Ostovich, still recovering from her own domestic violence incident, is just too much for me.

Josh: The Hardy placement is weird, but at this point, I’m over it. It is what it is and UFC’s decision to stand their ground on this so firmly is an interesting one. I’m surprised there hasn’t been more negative coverage this week, but I guess we overthought that when this all broke. What really isn’t doing it for me these days is Dana White’s attitude. Can you imagine a more angry and upset multi-multi millionaire when they get confronted with criticism? It’s clear he has utter disdain for native MMA media and really, anyone else who dares push back on their decisions, but it’s exhausting. This whole exchange on First Take was just…yeah. I wish the likeable White would come back, but I think that guy is dead.

Ryan: The whole Hardy situation really rubs me the wrong way, and the less I say and think about it, the better. I’ll just leave it at that.

What will be people talking about most after the show is done?

Paul: Whether or not the flyweight division is done after Cejudo either defeats the bantamweight champion or Dillashaw becomes champ-champ. And speaking of which: why couldn’t this be for both belts? Both guys weighed in under the bantamweight limit.

Josh: From what I heard today, I believe it’s because fighters would have to weigh in at 126 or above in order to qualify for the next weight limit. Anyway, I think if Dillashaw wins, we’re going to get more champ-champ-champ talk from Dillashaw which would be the worst. It’s bad enough two divisions get tied up when they do these champ vs. champ fights but the potential for three divisions to get tied up due to one guy might put me in a grave. Well, maybe not, but I would be mad about it for five minutes. Another one: that tonight was a big success for ESPN+ but the new subscriber numbers aren’t where they should be.

Ryan: Unfortunately, I think we will be talking about the official end of the flyweight division. I see another double champion coming out of this show, and no way does Dillashaw defend that title, or even entertain the idea of going back down to 125 pounds. He looked horrid on the scale and this is one and done for him.

What is your hope for the ESPN era?

Paul: I hope the fighters make more money, that the sport becomes even more mainstream than it became in the Fox era and that somehow the glut of shows results in a reduction in the amount of PPVs. For the last one, not just because it’s easier on the walle but I feel like PPVs should feel like big events and, for the most part, they really don’t.

Josh: That the promotion improves its TV product to be more viewer friendly (pacing for example) and that ESPN pushes them to be better. The UFC’s control over production has some benefits but some drawbacks when it comes to innovation that comes from actually listening to suggestions from outside parties. White seemingly hates change, so maybe my hope is he becomes less and less involved so we get some new voices in the room. I won’t hold my breath.

Ryan: I hope it works out for everyone involved. It certainly seems like ESPN is 100 percent behind the UFC right now, and this does feel like a big show. I hope it keeps up because if it does, this is going to take the company further than Fox ever could have. It’s a good move for them. I want this to work out for everyone, especially the fighters.

Who wins these five fights?

– Cejudo vs. Dillashaw

Cejudo: Paul
Dillashaw: Ryan, Josh

– Hardy vs. Crowder

Hardy: Paul, Ryan, Josh

– Gillespie vs. Yancy

Gillespie: Paul, Ryan, Josh

– PVZ vs. Ostovich

PVZ: Paul, Ryan, Josh

– Cerrone vs. Hernandez

Cerrone: Paul, Ryan
Hernandez: Josh

Pro wrestling’s big questions and predictions for 2019

Posted on by Josh Nason

Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive did their annual prediction show on Wrestling Observer Live this week where listeners got to call or email in with their thoughts on what things will happen in the pro wrestling and MMA world this year. So, we wanted to throw it out to our writers and podcasters about big questions and predictions for the year ahead. If you want to look back to last year and how bad we did, here you go.

Let’s get to it:

Josh Nason, Website editor and contributor; Josh Nason’s Punch-Out podcast host —

I am most curious about whether this is the year the combat sports content tidal wave finally crashes. There is already so much stuff to watch, not enough time to do it, and now more groups are getting into the game like AEW. It’s happened a bit already, but fans are going to have to make choices and someone is going to get left behind. Similarly, I am also curious as to how many of these various streaming services and networks will survive. People only have so much money to spend and every time a new $10/mo service launches, that’s another opportunity for someone to drop a service they barely watch.

I know we keep talking about the sports media bubble not popping, but I think the next 18-24 months are going to show us how much room there is for everyone.

Karl Stern, Dragon King Karl & Dragon King After Dark podcast host — 

2019 is a year where there could be a huge revolt in UFC. Tensions are simmering following the Jon Jones testing debacle and the slaps on the wrist to Conor McGregor following his multiple incidents. Fighters have been suspended for far worse than what Jones or McGregor have done repeatedly, so might a fighter who has been previously suspended fight back by filing a lawsuit? Could a group of fighters join together and boycott a show? I’m not sure of what form it will take but I do feel like UFC is one more incident away from something major going down that will significantly impact their business.

Antonio Garza, Impact Wrestling weekly recapper — 

What does Impact Wrestling mean to 2019’s wrestling industry? For many years, for better or worse, TNA was that link between the independent scene and WWE, offering TV deals at decent pay. Impact has managed to turn a lot of things around from their shaky past, but they now find themselves on an incredibly hard to find network, risking it all on that Friday night schedule. With WWE, AEW, and ROH getting into a bidding war for indie talent, and MLW slowly making a name for themselves, what will become of Impact Wrestling? Will they manage to keep top talent like Johnny Impact, Moose, LAX, or Tessa Blanchard under contract? Can they make it out of Pursuit, do they sink into ratings obscurit, or will their Twitch experiment pave the way for promotions all over the world?

Jeremy Peeples, WWE 205 Live weekly recapper — 

All Elite Wrestling went into 2019 with as much buzz as possible for something that didn’t technically exist. Now, with the company’s formation being official, many questions remain. We know that Double or Nothing will be their first show in May. I see that show effectively taking the place of what would be a normal first TV episode for a wrestling show and crowning the company’s first champions. I also see an NWA alliance forming so that if they want, they can use their champions as a secondary set akin to what New Japan did with the NWA World Title years ago. When it comes to TV, WGN America makes the most sense to start with, and the roster will take shape over the next six months. For the first time since the death of WCW, a company has a very real chance to create something great and large-scale right away and that’s going to make 2019 an incredibly exciting year to follow.

Mike DellaCamera, NXT TakeOver preview writer — 

2018 saw WWE take the first steps towards expanding their reach with the establishment of NXT UK. That, along with the company cultivating relationships with other big name independent promotions like EVOLVE and PROGRESS, portends for a massive shift in the landscape of pro wrestling. As wrestling expands, it also shrinks. There has never been more good wrestling, and it has never been easier to consume that wrestling. With wrestlers having legitimate, serious options besides WWE for the first time in a long time, watching how the company reacts to this will be fascinating.

In my mind, it is the story of 2019. How will the currently existing relationships change? What will the contracts for newly signed performers look like? Will there be more or less restrictions for outside bookings? Will the company continue to ‘loan’ out performers to other promotions? If history has shown us anything, it’s that WWE is never better when it is forced to try, and they surely need to try this year. Never one for subtlety, look for them to continue to lock up as many performers as possible while trying to develop relationships with more promotions, both domestic and abroad. It’s been a long time since they’ve had face even the possibility of competition and I expect them to react very, very loudly.

Other 2019 predictions:

  • The Undisputed Era debutS as a group on the post-Mania Raw
  • Matt Riddle has a main roster title by SummerSlam
  • A second Cruiserweight Classic is announced
  • NXT creates a weekly women’s program
  • Smackdown outdraws Raw and becomes the A show
  • Big E gets a long overdue singles run when The New Day moves back to Raw
  • Kenny Omega stays in New Japan…LOL whoops! Who knows…maybe he goes back?
  • Jay White wins the IWGP heavyweight title

Josh Molina, Special Projects —

  • Jon Jones will test positive for performance enhancement drugs
  • Drew McIntyre will win the men’s Royal Rumble and defeat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania
  • Becky Lynch will win the women’s Royal Rumble and win the title at WrestleMania
  • All Elite Wrestling will debut to big ratings on cable and then will gradually decline in popularity as the WWE product gets hot again
  • Roman Reigns will do a run-in at WrestleMania to help Seth Rollins defeat Dean Ambrose
  • Elias will win the WWE Championship at SummerSlam
  • Georges St-Pierre will return and submit Conor McGregor in the first round
  • Renee Young will get booted from Raw and replaced by Nigel McGuinness
  • Kenny Omega will sign with WWE and feud with Finn Balor
  • SmackDown will debut on Fox to 4.1 million viewers then gradually hover at about 3.5 million viewers the rest of the year
  • Shinsuke Nakamura will sign with All Elite Wrestling
  • Robbie Lawler will knock out Ben Askren in the first round
  • WWE will re-sign Enzo Amore and Big Cass
  • The Honky Tonk Man will get inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame
  • Frances Ngannou will knock out Cain Velasquez

Paul Fontaine, MMA event recapper and ratings evaluator — 

I think that Daniel Cormier will fight Brock Lesnar for the UFC heavyweight title first and then, on the very first episode of Smackdown on Fox, they will rematch for Lesnar’s Universal title….and Cormier will win. I think they’ll do a very good number on their first week between that match and other bells and whistles like Rock and Steve Austin returning. By the end of the year, they’ll be down around 2.5 million viewers on average and speculation will be rampant that Fox will bump them down to FS1.

By the end of 2019, Viacom will be looking to either sell or shut down Bellator as I can’t see the declining ratings slowing down any time soon and the company will be bleeding too much money to keep them viable.

I think that Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov will each fight in the fight half of 2019 on separate PPVs with those shows being the two biggest of the year to that point in terms of PPV buys. They will then rematch on the year-end show and break the all-time PPV buys record they set in 2018.

Iain Oliver, MLW weekly recapper —

  • Chris Jericho will snub AEW for a return to WWE (Note: This was submitted before Tuesday’s press conference.)
  • Undisputed Era will debut on the main roster on the post Mania Raw
  • On his return, Jericho will join/become the leader of Undisputed Era.
  • WrestleMania will be headlined by Becky vs. Ronda
  • Marina Shafir, Jessamyn Duke and Shayna Baszler will be involved during the Ronda vs. Becky match which will lead to an “MMA vs WWE” Horsewomen feud throughout the year
  • Braun Strowman will defend the Universal title against Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania
  • Mustafa Ali, Elias, McIntyre & Velveteen Dream will all win WWE singles titles in 2019
  • Tom Lawlor will win the MLW World Heavyweight title in 2019
  • Hulk Hogan and The Rock will return as General Managers of Raw and SmackDown! for the Fox debuts
  • UK promotions ICW and PROGRESS will be shown on the WWE Network

Antonio Thomas, I Left My Wallet in Greg Polanco podcast host —

With All Elite Wrestling now officially a go, and me being the sports show on the site, I want to know if the NFL Network is a viable home for AEW. We all now know the affiliation between the Khan family and AEW and with the first official press conference being held outside the Jaguars’ stadium, why not have the NFL Network be a possible suitor for the brand? The fanbase between football and wrestling is very similar and you’d be tapping into every male demographic on the Network: kids, teens, 18+, and the all important 35-59 demo thats often used for wrestling.

Plus, there’s the very real possibility of bringing back the lapsed fan to a fresh, different product, and of course, garnering new fans. There seems to be countless hours that singular sports network need to fill, especially during the offseason, and I feel with all the synergy between football and wrestling in the past, the NFL Network be a realistic home for AEW each week.

Other predictions:

  • Zack Sabre Jr. makes it to the G1 finals
  • A Kid is signed by NXT UK
  • CM Punk returns to wrestling, albeit not necessarily in the ring
  • Alexander Gustafsson moves to heavyweight
  • Kevin Owens wins the Universal Championship upon his return

Josiah MacDonald, Lucha Underground weekly recapper —

  • AEW will sign a deal with TBS, bringing wrestling back to Turner Networks
  • CM Punk will wrestle with AEW
  • Somehow, AEW will manage to have a working relationship with NJPW (and possibly ROH)
  • KUSHIDA will sign with AEW instead of WWE
  • Cody Rhodes will compete in the G1
  • Daniel Bryan will wrestle Brock Lesnar again to unify the WWE and Universal Championships
  • Roman Reigns will return and I sincerely hope this happens as he is a great talent and a good man
  • ROH and NJPW will sellout another 10,000 seat show
  • Matt Taven will win the ROH World Championship…as will Marty Scurll
  • And a fun one: Bryan Alvarez will wrestle David Arquette

Big questions:

Despite my predictions (some of which are serious, some of which are more fun), the real question that I have going into 2019 is what the relationship will be with AEW, NJPW, and ROH. While it appears that this relationship isn’t going to happen at the moment, I do not rule out the possibility of it happening. Regardless, AEW’s news about equal pay for women and medical benefits for employees is already one of the biggest stories of the year. I’m not sure where this ends, but it’s very exciting, nonetheless.

The Year In Wrestling: WWE Crown Jewel, Becky Lynch becomes ‘The Man’

Posted on by Josh Nason

As you well know, a lot happens in a year especially in sports and entertainment. When I do my year-end MMA review shows, I am always amazed looking at all the little things that happened in a given month that ended up being bigger things later on.

But, we had never really done a comprehensive month-by-month look at the year that was in pro wrestling, so here we are. I tasked website contributor Josh Molina to help me out and that’s exactly what he did. 

There was so much that happened that I had to split this up into four separate posts, the first of which covered January-March, then April-June, and then, July-September.

As we truly get into WWE’s new year with Monday’s Raw, we finish up with October through December.

October

  • Roman Reigns was diagnosed with leukemia and vacated the WWE Universal title
  • WWE holds their first all-women’s PPV, Evolution with Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte in a Last Woman Standing match as a highlight
  • Mercedes Martinez defeated Tessa Blanchard for the Rise Women’s Championship in a 75-minute iron woman match, the longest women’s match in history
  • The death of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi put pressure on WWE to pull out of their November Crown Jewel show in Saudi Arabia
  • “Rebel” Dick Slater passed away from heart complications at 67
  • Don Leo Jonathan passed away at 87
  • Johnny Impact defeated Austin Aries for the Impact world title, but Aries no sold the finish and walked away from the ring
  • Charlotte Flair’s ex-husband Riki Paul Johnson filed a $5 million defamation lawsuit against Charlotte, Ric Flair, and WWE over her book “Second Nature”.
  • Impact moved from 8 PM EST time slot to 10 PM EST on Pop TV
  • Sami Callihan signed a contract with Impact wrestling
  • Kevin Owens had surgery on both knees, putting him out until early-2019
  • Rey Mysterio signed a deal to return to WWE and returns to SmackDown
  • WWE backstage interviewer Charly Caruso signed a deal with ESPN while also remaining with WWE
  • Pete Dunne hit 500 days as WWE UK champion, the longest WWE title reign since Hulk Hogan’s world title reign from 1985 to 1988
  • WWE held Super Showdown in Australia, a stadum show where HHH faced the Undertaker to set up the November return of Shawn Michaels
  • Ted Turner, one of the most influential people in professional wrestling television history, announced he was suffering from Lewy body dementia
  • Alberto Del Rio said he plans to compete in MMA again for Combate Americas
  • Pac, formerly Neville in WWE, returned to wrestling at a Dragon Gate show
  • SmackDown had their 1000th episode
  • Chris Jericho stages Rock ‘N Rager Wrestling Cruise featuring the Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, and more

November

  • At WWE Crown Jewel, Brock Lesnar regained the WWE Universal title by defeating Braun Strowman while HHH and Shawn Michaels were victorious over the Undertaker and Kane
  • AAA signed a deal with Facebook to promote a live 10-week tournament on Facebook Live
  • Hangman Page turned down an offer to re-sign with Ring of Honor
  • Becky Lynch was removed from her highly anticipated Survivor Series match with Ronda Rousey after Nia Jax gave her a concussion during a show-closing angle on Raw
  • Leading into Survivor Series, Daniel Bryan upset AJ Styles for the WWE Championship on SmackDown, setting up a match between he and Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at SS
  • At SS, Lesnar defeated Bryan while Ronda Rousey defeated Charlotte Flair by DQ after Flair savagely beat up Rousey with a kendo stick
  • IWGP Champion Kenny Omega and AAA Champion Fenix drew 2700 fans and a $100,000 gate in Poughkeepsie, NY
  • Cody Runnels tore his meniscus during a match in Buffalo for ROH
  • Louisiana’s governor said WrestleMania generated $175 million for the city of New Orleans
  • Steve Austin announced on his podcast that he no longer drinks alcohol
  • WWE told its UK contracted wrestlers that they were getting raises, but could no longer wrestle for rival independent promotions
  • Larry Matysik, longtime St. Louis pro wrestling commentator and booker, passed away at 72
  • Jose Lothario, longtime Texas wrestler and trainer of Shawn Michaels, passed away at 83
  • Former judo champion, pro wrestler and mixed martial artist Gene Lebell retired as an MMA judge
  • Kairi Sane suffered from hand, foot and mouth disease
  • All Elite Wrestling, a group thought to be led by Tony Khan, Cody, and the Young Bucks got trademarked in Jacksonville, FL, along with other trademarks like ‘Double or Nothing’

December

  • Dynamite Kid (Tom Billington) passed away on his 60th birthday
  • Vince McMahon’s XFL announced eight teams and cities for their 2020 return
  • Jack Swagger announced his MMA debut for Bellator in January 2019
  • Ring of Honor signed PCO and Brody King
  • John Cena was honored with the Muhammad Ali Sportsperson of the Year Award by Sports Illustrated
  • Aleister Black (Thomas Budgen) and Zelina Vega (Thea Trinidad) were married
  • Larry “The Axe” Hennig passed away at 82
  • Women of Wrestling announced their show on AXS would debut in January 2019
  • A judge threw out Colt Cabana’s lawsuit against CM Punk over legal fees
  • Big Cass collapsed and experienced a seizure at an independent show
  • L.A. Park, Jerry Jarrett, Jimmy Hart, Bill Apter, Howard Finkel, Gary Hart and Yuji Nagata were voted into the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame
  • Vince McMahon announced that the McMahon family was returning taking over Raw and SmackDown as part of a shakeup
  • Asuka beat champion Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair to win the Smackdown women’s title in a TLC match at TLC
  • Entertainment Weekly named “Mother of All Matches”, an episode of GLOW featuring Awesome Kong, as the best episode of a television show in 2018
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi, 42, captured the Tokyo Sports pro wrestling MVP award for the fourth time in his career

The Year In Wrestling: ROH-NJPW to MSG, Rousey wins WWE gold

Posted on by Josh Nason

As you well know, a lot happens in a year especially in sports and entertainment. When I do my year-end MMA review shows, I am always amazed looking at all the little things that happened in a given month that ended up being bigger things later on.

But, we had never really done a comprehensive month-by-month look at the year that was in pro wrestling, so here we are. I tasked website contributor Josh Molina to help me out and that’s exactly what he did. 

There was so much that happened that I had to split this up into four separate posts, the first of which covered January-March and then April-June. We now move into July, August, and September which featured a company other than WWE making moves at MSG, a legend announcing his return to the ring, and Ronda Rousey winning the WWE Raw women’s title.

July

  • ROH and NJPW announced plans for a combined Madison Square Garden show on April 6, the night before Wrestlemania
  • WWE announced their first all-women’s PPV, Evolution
  • Jay Lethal won the ROH world title
  • Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat had hip replacement surgery
  • WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar challenged Daniel Cormier to a UFC heavyweight title match after Cormier won the belt
  • New Japan Pro Wrestling held a show at San Francisco’s Cow Palace. On the show, Josh Barnett shoot got involved in the Jay White vs. Juice Robinson match after a table bump injured Jim Ross
  • Phoenix Police Department released a report on the sexual assault allegations against Enzo Amore after they dropped the investigation
  • WWE held a rare mid-year Madison Square Garden house show
  • Raymondo Rodriguez, the original Piratita Morgan, one of the top mini-wrestler heels in the 1990s, passed away at age 49
  • Nathaniel Whitlock, a heel manager for Nate the Rat in the USWA, passed away
  • Tessa Blanchard signed a two-year deal with Impact
  • Ric Flair had surgery to remove his temporary colostomy bag
  • Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson said the earliest he would run for U.S. president is 2024
  • The Miz & Maryse show debuted on USA
  • WWE Hall of Famer Nikolai Volkoff passed away
  • After a three-year suspension, Hulk Hogan returned to WWE
  • Under his real name Harry Smith, Davey Boy Smith Jr. captured a gold medal in the expert division of he shoot-style Billy Robinson Classic
  • Ayako Hamada, 37, was sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years probation for possession of methamphetamine
  • David Arquette, former WCW champion, had his first wrestling match since 2000
  • Tom Lawlor and Bryan Alvarez (The Chop & Roll Express) teamed up to battle The Rock & Roll Express
  • Brian Lawler (aka Brian Christopher) died of suicide while in jail

August

  • Roman Reigns defeated Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship at SummerSlam while Ronda Rousey defeated Alexa Bliss easily to become the first woman to hold both the UFC and WWE championships
  • The ROH/NJPW MSG show sold 9000 pre-sale tickets on their first day and sold out in 19 minutes after the public onsale
  • In the main event of AAA’ s biggest show Triplemania, El Hijo del Fantasma lost his mask in a four-way match against L.A. Park, Pentagon Jr., and Psycho Clown
  • Former professional wrestler and MMA fighter Aya Koyama passed away due to cancer at 45
  • Ed Cohen, WWF arena booker in the 1980s, passed away at the age of 62
  • Michael Luisi was fired as president of WWE Studios
  • WWE finally released Neville after he walked out in October 2017
  • Villano III passed away due to a brain hemorrhage at 66
  • Former pro wrestling announcer and Roller Derby host Walt Harris passed away at 97
  • Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart passed away at 63 due to a seizure
  • Daniel Bryan re-signed with WWE
  • Kane (aka Glen Jacobs) was elected mayor of Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Sami Zayn had surgery on his left rotator cuff
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi won the 2018 G1 Climax
  • Colt Cabana filed a lawsuit against CM Punk, claiming breach of contract

September

  • Shawn Michaels announced his return to wrestling in a tag team match at WWE Crown Jewel in October
  • All In and Starrcast weekend happend in Chicago to great fanfare and buzz
  • WWE announced the second season of Mixed Match Challenge
  • Becky Lynch defeated Charlotte Flair to win the Smackdown women’s championship
  • An New York State appeals court dismissed concussion lawsuits filed by 60 wrestlers against the WWE
  • Frank Andersson, one of the most decorated amateur wrestlers to turn professional, passed away at 62 from heart surgery complications
  • A Go Fund Me campaign raised $10,000 to pay Paul Orndorff’s property taxes. Orndorff, 68, is suffering from severe memory issues
  • WWE 205 Live became a taped show instead of live
  • CMLL, the longest-lasting pro wrestling company in history, held its 85th anniversary show
  • Former UFC fighter and indie wrestling talent Matt Riddle finally signed a deal with WWE and began at NXT
  • Renee Young replaced Jonathan Coachman on WWE Raw
  • Ric Flair and Wendy Barlow (Fifi in WCW) got married
  • WWE announced a show for Helsinki, Finland, in 2019
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Kazuchika Okada at Destruction in Kobe, setting up a brutal beatdown of Okada by Jay White. Gedo also turned on Okada during the angle
  • New Japan Pro Wrestling held a show in Long Beach, CA
  • Brie Bella accidentally kicked Liv Morgan in the face during a match doing a Daniel Bryan kick spot, giving her a concussion

October-December coming up later today.

NXT: Who to watch in 2019

Posted on by JJ Williams

In 2018, we saw that from the top of WrestleMania down to the Performance Center tryouts, nothing compares to top tier athletes in pro wrestling.

The percentage of talent who actually become great wrestlers is still incredibly low. There aren’t many Ronda Rouseys out there with the love of WWE to dive into this world, yet, in 2018, we saw a special group on the Florida tour that showed flashes of brilliance. These are a few of those names to watch in 2019 as NXT continues to refine these incredible people into, hopefully, larger than life superstars.

Kacy Catanzaro

An instant hit with her showing in the Mae Young Classic, the former American Ninja Warrior star has adapted her college gymnastics expertise into her in-ring style. A successful rookie year in terms of attention along with the foundation of wrestling with and against some great talent on the NXT Florida loop sets the stage for her future. There aren’t many talents with twenty three matches in to a career that you can compare to “Mighty” Kacy.

Stacey Ervin Jr.

In 2018, the live event legend of Stacey Ervin grew at a rapid pace. We always read about new recruits and what they excel at. Mr. Ervin just to happens to be one of the greatest gymnasts to ever try to cross in to the world of professional wrestling. Fourteen matches in to his career, Stacey has already faced veterans such as Tony Nese, Kassius Ohno, and a major test for any athlete in the profession, Ricochet, in the main event of an Orlando live event. There is no limit to what Ervin can do in the ring; it’s just a matter of time to see his progression.

Xia Li

A two time Mae Young Classic competitor and one of the best kept secrets of the P.C. in that time, Li was part of a major Chinese recruitment class a couple years ago and has become a standout in just a few televised appearances along with quality showings on the Florida events. With a fighter’s presence and a flashy charm I’ve seen Florida crowds go wild for and the barrage of kicks she has in her arsenal, a TV run should be on the way soon.

Raul Mendoza and Humberto Carrillo

You’ve probably seen each of these young luchadors on TV doing enhancement work, Mendoza (fka Jinzo) was part of the Cruiserweight Classic and has always showed flashes of brilliance against much more established opponents. Carrillo was a very under the radar signing and the former Ultimo Ninja is in his early 20s. These two have found something special on the Florida live event tour. Whenever the NXT tag team division needs a jump start or if 205 Live wants some fresh speed lucha action, these guys are money.

The Year In Wrestling: Bruno passes away, WWE TV deals announced

Posted on by Josh Nason

Photo: Associated Press

As you well know, a lot happens in a year especially in sports and entertainment. When I do my year-end MMA review shows, I am always amazed looking at all the little things that happened in a given month that ended up being bigger things later on.

But, we had never really done a comprehensive month-by-month look at the year that was in pro wrestling, so here we are. I tasked website contributor Josh Molina to help me out and that’s exactly what he did. 

There was so much that happened that I had to split this up into four separate posts, the first of which covered January-March. We now move into April, May, and June which featured WrestleMania, the passing of a wrestling icon, great matches, and the usual amount of weird stuff.

April

  • The grea Bruno Sammartino dies at 82
  • HBO debuts the Andre The Giant documentary to great criticial acclaim
  • WWE holds the Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia to kick off their decade-long deal. Daniel Bryan lasts 76:06 in the GRR, a Rumble record
  • Mike Bennett and wife Maria Kanellis-Bennett have their first child
  • “Blockers” starring John Cena and “Rampage” starring Dwayne Johnson debut at movie theatres
  • Charlotte Flair returns after missing two weeks due to dental surgery
  • At WrestleMania, Ronda Rousey impressed everyone in her pro wrestling debut while Universal Champion Brock Lesnar shocked everyone by defeating Roman Reigns to retain her title
  • After getting engaged in the ring, John Cena and Nikki Bella announced their separation
  • Johnny Gargano defeated Tommaso Ciampa in a five-star match at NXT TakeOver
  • WWE Network announced they had reached 1.8 million subscribers
  • Cody defeated Kenny Omega in their first meeting
  • “Luscious” Johnny Valiant passed away at 71
  • Wrestler/manager Paul Jones passed away at 75
  • Motoko Baba, wife of Shohei “Giant” Baba dies at 78
  • Danny Davis sold Ohio Valley Wrestling, the WWE’s first developmental territory, to Al Snow
  • Impact held its first PPV under its new creative leadership of Don Callis and Scott D’Amore called Redemption
  • Bob Backlund, 68, returned in a tag team match with Riki Choshu and Tatsumi Fujinami to defeat Tajiri, Jinsei Shinzaki, and Kasma Sakamoto
  • Jake “The Snake” Roberts pressed charges against Davey Boy Smith Jr, alleging that Smith threw hot coffee on him at an event
  • Dwayne Johnson welcomed his third daughter into the world
  • WWE women’s wrestler Paige abruptly retired due to a neck injury

May

  • WWE announced Smackdown was moving to Fox while Raw would stay on USA through two separate five year deals worh a combined $2.4 billion
  • First day ticket sales for New Japan Pro Wrestling’s San Francisco Cow Palace show were slow at just 3300
  • Kane won the Republican nomination to run for mayor of Knoxville
  • Universo 2000, who held the CMLL title for a combined seven years over three reigns, passed away at 55
  • Tony Schiavone signed contract to announce Major League Wrestling events
  • “Bipolar Rock & Roller”, a documentary about Mauro Ranallo’s battles with bipolar disorder, debuts on Showtime
  • Batista starred as Drax the Destroyer in “Avengers: Infinity War”, one of the biggest movies of the year and of all-time
  • Believed to be the patriarch of the Samoan dynasty, Prince Neff Maiava passed away at 93
  • All In sold out (10,000+ tickets) in roughly half an hour
  • Raw Women’s Champion Nia Jax challenged Ronda Rousey for a title match
  • The Phoenix (AZ) Police Department dropped their sexual assault investigation into Enzo Amore
  • Amore also releaseed a widely panned rap single
  • John Hennigan (Johnny Morrison/Nitro/Impact) was announced as part of the Survivor cast
  • Dr. Chris Amann’s slander suit against CM Punk and Colt Cabana went to trial

June

  • WWE aired their first NXT UK shows on WWE Network
  • AXS TV announced the launch of Women of Wrestling show for early-2019
  • Jose Luis Hernandez, who wrestled as El Egipcio in EMLL, passed away at 61
  • John Greene, who wrestled as Johnny Attitude in WCW in the 1990s, passed away at 53
  • Eli Drake signed a multi-year deal with Impact Wrestling
  • Anthem (parent company of Impact Wrestling) hired former MTV executive Peter Einstein as COO
  • A police dog attacked and bit Shinsuke Nakamura at the Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield, CA, forcing the cancelation of a planned title match against Jeff Hardy
  • Sami Zayn underwent shoulder surgery
  • WWE released Big Cass due to multiple backstage problems
  • Pop singer Shania Twain invited Kevin Owens on stage during her concert at the Bell Centre in Montreal
  • Leon White, aka Vader, passed away due heart failure
  • Madison Square Garden temporarily dropped a planned ROH show due to their relationship with WWE
  • Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss won briefcases at WWE Money in the Bank
  • In her first title shot, Ronda Rousey shone brightly in her debut singles match against Raw women’s champion Nia Jax, but lost via DQ
  • AJ Styles got the cover of the WWE 2K19 game
  • John Cena settled out of court with Ford after he sold a rare $450,000 Ford GT Supercar that was supposed to be just for him
  • Kenny Omega defeated IWGP Champion Kazuchika Okada in an all-time classic match, becoming the first Canadian to win NJPW’s top prize
  • CM Punk lost his second MMA fight at UFC 225 in Chicago
  • Tough Enough winner Matt Cappotelli lost his longtime battle with cancer at just 38
  • WWE returned to Sumo Hall in Japan
  • Juan Jose Avila, known as Chicano Power, passed away
  • An Illinois jury ruled in favor of CM Punk and Colt Cabana in a defamation lawsuit filed by WWE doctor Chris Amann

Next: July-September

The Year In Wrestling: Ronda points, All In announced, WWE signings

Posted on by Josh Nason

As you well know, a lot happens in a year especially in sports and entertainment. When I do my year-end MMA review shows, I am always amazed looking at all the little things that happened in a given month that ended up being bigger things later on.

But, we had never really done a comprehensive month-by-month look at the year that was in pro wrestling, so here we are. I tasked website contributor Josh Molina to help me out and that’s exactly what he did.

There was so much that happened that I had to split this up into four separate posts. We begin by looking at January, February, and March.

January

  • Enzo Amore was accused of sexual assault and was later released by WWE
  • Ronda Rousey made her official WWE debut after the end of the women’s Royal Rumble, had her first ‘point to the sign’ moment
  • Asuka won the first WWE women’s Royal Rumble while Shinsuka Nakamura won the men’s Royal Rumble. 
  • Rey Mysterio returned for the night in the Rumble match
  • Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas and Johnny Gargano put on an epic match at NXT TakeOver the night prior to the Rumble
  • Raw celebrated their 25th anniversary with a dual location show which was widely panned, especially from those at the Manhattan Center
  • Roman Reigns was tied to a $10 million steroid ring by an alleged dealer named Richard Rodriguez
  • Ricochet signed with WWE/NXT. He also lost the PWG title to Chuck Taylor.
  • In a match that at one point seemed improbable, Chris Jericho wrestled Kenny Omega at New Japan’s Wrestle Kingdom 12, the same event where Kazuchika Okada retained his IWGP title over Tetsuya Naito.
  • Jericho announced the ‘Talk is Jericho’ podcast and The Jericho Network were moving from Podcast One to Westwood One
  • Wrestling historian and former announcer Larry Matysik was hospitalized
  • British heavyweight wrestling champion Albert “Rocky” Wall passed away
  • Emily Dole, who played Mt. Fiji in the 1980s GLOW promotion, passed away
  • To the surprise of many, Vince McMahon announced the return of the XFL for 2020
  • Negro Casas beat Sam Adonis in a hair vs. hair match at Arena Mexico
  • The WWE Mixed Match Challenge series on Facebook Live debuted
  • Longtime TNA/Impact Wrestling employee Jeremy Borash left the company for WWE
  • Rich Swann was cleared of battery charges against then-girlfriend, pro wrestler Su Yung
  • Jonathan Coachman returned to Raw to replace Booker T on the announce desk
  • Austin Aries debuted at a set of Impact Wrestling tapings and won the company’s World title
  • WWE wrestler Jey Uso was arrested on suspicion of DUI

February

  • All Japan Pro Wrestling announced their own streaming service
  • The Miz signed a new four-year contract with WWE
  • Ricochet made his debut at the NXT TV tapings
  • WWE announced their highest annual revenue ever at $801 million
  • WWE’s YouTube channel became the second-most subscribed to in the world behind T-Series
  • Ronda Rousey appeared on Monday Night Raw for first time
  • WWE and Impact reached a deal to air “Broken” Matt Hardy” footage on WWE Network which led to the character coming back in full
  • The longest single match in WWE history (106:55) happened on Raw as Seth Rollins survived a gauntlet match
  • WWE announced the end to dual-branded PPV events
  • New Japan Pro Wrestling toured Australia
  • Roman Reigns won the men’s Elimination Chamber to set up a Universal title match at WrestleMania while Alexa Bliss won the women’s Elimination Chamber
  • John Cena challenged The Undertaker to a match at WrestleMania. He also returned to TV in-ring competition and picked up a win over old rival AJ Styles on SmackDown
  • Tammy “Sunny” Sytch was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving
  • The Golden Lovers (Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi) reunited in New Japan Pro Wrestling
  • Taping began for the new Lucha Underground season
  • Apollo Crews briefly had to drop his last name because of the Parkland school shooter’s name (Nikolas Cruz)

March

  • Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle vs. Stephanie McMahon and Triple H were announced for WrestleMania
  • WWE and the Saudi General Sports Authority agreed to a 10 year exclusive deal for major live events
  • Members of The Elite announced All In for September in Chicago
  • Kazuchika Okada defeated Will Ospreay at New Japan’s 46th Anniversary Show
  • Jonathan Coachman’s name came up as part of a sexual harassment lawsuit against ESPN
  • Katsuyori Shibata was named head coach of the New Japan Dojo in Los Angeles
  • Lucha Underground sent cease and desist letters to reporters who ran TV taping results
  • Eddie Edwards renewed his contract with Impact Wrestling
  • Ric Flair announced that he will appear in his first movie, “Uncle Steamroller and Champion Rabbit”
  • Jim Ross underwent eye surgery to remove a cataract
  • Hillbilly Jim was announced as a WWE Hall of Fame inductee
  • The Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards were announced and Okada was named wrestler of the year
  • Jeff Hardy was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving
  • Rey Mysterio announceed he had a partially torn left biceps muscle and would miss some dates
  • Vader underwent open heart surgery
  • Konnan underwent hip surgery
  • Brian Lawler was severely beaten up by fellow pro wrestler Chase Stevens
  • Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat wrestled his first match in eight years
  • HBO debuted the widely acclaimed ‘Andre The Giant’ documentary
  • Kid Rock was announced for WWE Hall of Fame
  • Daniel Bryan was cleared to wrestle again
  • Due to scrutiny from sponsors and fans, WWE had to drop the Fabulous Moolah name from the women’s battle royal at WrestleMania
  • WWE attracted 13,000 people to Madison Square Garden for a house show
  • Mark Henry was announced for WWE Hall of Fame
  • Shane McMahon was diagnosed with diverticulitis
  • Jerry “The King” Lawler suffered a stroke
  • New Japan Pro Wrestling announced a July show at the Cow Palace in San Francisco

Up next: April, May, and June.

The best of NXT’s 2018 Coconut Loop house shows

Posted on by JJ Williams

Pictures by JJ Williams

The NXT brand has grown to become a global touring promotion in just a few years, having some of the best matches in WWE history under their banner. We all look forward to every TakeOver event, knowing that they have built up so much goodwill with the fanbase due to a consistent product that delivers in ring night in and night out.

The greatness of NXT is the layers. Sure, the world watches TakeOvers and the loyal watch the weekly TV shows, but then, there’s the Performance Center-fueled Coconut Loop house shows. I was fortunate enough to attend 35 non-televised events around the state of Florida last year and these are the matches that stood out to me.

Aleister Black vs. Buddy Murphy
January 20, 2018 | Sebring, FL

This was a match that, at the time, I wrote was TakeOver worthy. As great as the 205 Live run has been, I do wish we could have seen a few of Buddy’s great Florida matches on NXT TV as the chemistry he had with opponents was off the charts. They had counters to each other’s counters and their sequences were crisp. It was one of the top matches I have seen down here and we can only hope these two champions meet again someday.

Ricochet vs. Velveteen Dream vs. Lars Sullivan vs. Adam Cole
March 29, 2018 | Cocoa, FL

You could definitely see the makings of their future five star ladder match here. Ricochet was on fire with different types of wrestlers to work with, there was plenty of speed rope running, everyone getting demolished by Lars, teamwork to all take down the big man, and even he rare Adam Cole and Velveteen Dream staredown that still hasn’t happened on TV. This was one of those unique match-ups with a purpose that was a treat for the live crowd.

Dakota Kai vs. Bianca Belair
May 24, 2018 | Cocoa, FL

This was another TV tune-up match as these two eventually got the TakeOver Chicago pre-show spot. This match had a second gear that most NXT matches don’t have. There’s an unspoken rule that finishers are protected on the loop, so when Dakota went for the Kairopractor and Bianca escaped, it created a different buzz. Belair is a powerhouse and there’s so much potential for her to be the next unstoppable champion of the brand going forward. Kai is just the type of underdog with fight to chase as we’ve seen with her constant improvements against Baszler on TV. This could be a match up that gets revisited someday.

Roderick Strong and Kyle O’Reilly vs. Raul Mendoza and Humberto Carrillo
September 21, 2018 | Sanford, FL

The NXT tag champs are known as being the standard in NXT. Nobody will ever out work Roddy and Kyle so it’s incredible when they find guys that can not only hang with them but push the pace. The young luchadors who have minimal enhancement TV work in 2018 became one of the hottest crowd winners on the loop. This match would play on a bigger stage and win over any crowd. Both teams receieved standing ovations and this is one that must happen again someday.

Matthew Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno
September 27, 2018 | Lakeland, FL

This was their first time meeting in NXT after their storied history on the independent scene. If you’ve seen their EVOLVE matches and know what fits in the WWE style, this would be exactly it. The punishing Ohno tried to lay a beating on the faster Riddle and while a thunderstorm passed over the building, you could still hear the striking exchange once Bro got fired up. We still haven’t gotten to their best on TV yet and hopefully we will soon as this one felt special.

The NXT Halloween Rumble
October 27, 2018 | Orlando, FL

Words do this no justice. This was the last show before Halloween at the infamous OLE and we had ourselves a costume Rumble. By far, the greatest moment of this was Kassius Ohno showing up as a ten foot tall T-Rex and still being able to go up and over the top. EC3 as Batman and the in-ring debut of Drake Maverick as Robin was also a great touch.

Rhea Ripley vs. Candice LeRae
November 9, 2018 | Tampa, FL

The NXT UK Women’s Championship had been hidden from the public for some time, yet the champion was defending her title across Florida. This was a match that nobody could have expected just a few months ago and it delivered. Candice has always wrestled her best against stronger opponents and there aren’t many who wrestle bigger than Ripley these days. She has a presence that she uses as champ to overwhelm her opponents. One incredibly impressive spot in this one was LeRae running up to and hopping on the bottom rope to deliver a mid rope German to a prone Ripley.

Matthew Riddle vs. Dominik Dijakovic
November 10, 2018 | Daytona Beach, FL

This was two machines throwing bombs, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots come to life which is the Riddle style that we all know and love. This was the intense, physical hard work that brings the best out of each other since the fans can see who truly has what it takes to compete at that level. Dijakovic is one of the best match-ups for this style with his height and wingspan. Someday, this match will make a TakeOver.

Marcel Barthel vs. Fabian Aichner
Lumberjack Match
December 14, 2018 | Jacksonville, FL

There is a gem of the Coconut Loop and that gem is Jacksonville, a town so far from every other on the loop that they have their own storylines, favorites, and recurring match-ups. Aichner and Barthel have been in a long running program based around their hatred of Lars Sullivan who Barthel now claims he rid NXT of. Aichner was always left to take the beatings and after these two have previously fought to a double countout in their last match, they came back with a lumberjack match. It was an absolute spectacle with the roster around ringside, allowing for the craziest dives to the outside, interference, destruction, and Otis Dozovic doing commentary for those nearby.

Ricochet vs. Johnny Gargano
December 14, 2018 | Jacksonville, FL

This very well could be a TakeOver preview in the near future and if it plays as good as this one did, nobody will be disappointed. Gargano’s new routine involved running around ringside just far enough from fans that they couldn’t reach him while he mimed high fives to appear to still be a good guy. Johnny was all about the banter in this one, telling Ricochet that he himself could do a triple moonsault. For all the nonsense they then went with and with the level of in-ring match that we all know they can have, these are two absolutely amazing talents and I can’t wait to see what they can do on TV.

Matthew Riddle vs. Keith Lee
December 15, 2018 | Largo, FL

This match went ten minutes and in the moment, I deemed it my Florida MOTY. While it’s all subjective and many of the previous match-ups could easily be someone else’s favorite, this just had everything I want to see in a top tier match on the loop. There were minimal rest holds and no stalling for the crowd to plead with the wrestler to wake up that we see so much of. It was two hosses going at it for the purpose of winning. They respect each other and remained friends post-match but once the bell rang, it was on. Nobody takes the pounce like Riddle and seeing Lee being deadlift German suplexed is a moment of its own. This is one of those match-ups that must happen again on any WWE show you can imagine.

That wraps up the 2018 Coconut Loop from here and we’ll be back this Friday, January 4th in Jacksonville, FL, for another year of NXT action.

Dave Meltzer’s top-rated match of 2018: Omega vs. Okada IV

Posted on by Josh Nason

Throughout the week leading into December 31st, we are taking you back to some of Dave Meltzer’s top-rated matches of the past year, starting with the five star matches and ending up with this seven star classic.

15 matches got the five star treatment while six matches garnered ratings above that level.

What follows is an edited version of Dave’s writeup from the match from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, available in full for subscribers. Also, we want to give a big shoutout to Cagematch.net who makes research for this list ridiculously easy. 

Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega
IWGP Championship | 2-out-of-3 falls
NJPW Dominion | June 9, 2018
*******

“So I’ve been watching pro wrestling for 48 years consistently. I’m trying to figure out what the odds are that the two greatest individual performances I’ve ever seen would be in the same match.

On January 4, 2017, Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega had a match that I thought was one of the three best matches I had ever seen, perhaps the best ever. Some people thought it was the best match they had ever seen. But when it was over, I did think that someday I would see another match that good. The top guys in the industry today keep progressing the drama, art form and athleticism. Don’t get me wrong, anything that is great in its actual place and time is great. But what is great today learns from not only what is great in the past, but what is great all over the world in its present. It’s a situation that until the last few decades, that really couldn’t happen, but it’s easier now than ever before because you just push a few buttons and you can learn far more things that can work and apply them. Okada won what was up to that time the longest New Japan match ever held at the Tokyo Dome.

On June 11, 2017, they met again and went to a 60 minute draw, the first in a New Japan ring in 14 years. The match, in my mind, slightly better, enough so that I could say, with no reservations, it was the best match I had ever. Many other people thought the same. Others had it just as one of the best. Some didn’t see it that way. Some didn’t get it. Some, for whatever reason, refused to get it for their own political reasons. Almost all awards and voting of international scope had one of these two matches as the best match of the best year ever for great matches. More had the first match, perhaps because it was the first, perhaps because it had a clear winner and loser, or perhaps, just because the Tokyo Dome, like WrestleMania, magnifies both what is good and what is bad on that night.

Still, to me, it was the best match. But it wasn’t that much better than a dozen other matches I’d seen. Some day, I figured I would see a better match.

On August 12, 2017, the same two wrestlers met again, this time they had to do a finish, and it had to be done in less than 30 minutes. It was a completely different match. It was a classic to be sure. One of the best ever. Omega finally beat Okada, but the IWGP title wasn’t at stake. It was big enough that it more than made up for Omega losing the G-1 tournament finals and the Tokyo Dome main event spot to Tetsuya Naito.

Some day, I figured we would see a better match. In the opinion of the majority, some day was about 20 or so hours later. The Naito match pulled out more stops, was the finals of the tournament, which makes it bigger, and was more overall outstanding. But it was also more dangerous.

Most figured on January 4, 2018, that Naito was beating Okada for the title. I was kind of tipped off that the story of 2018 was going to be Okada setting the all-time record for not just the longest IWGP title reign in history, but longest combination time as champion in history, as well as most consecutive title defenses. The idea was to make him the greatest pro wrestling champion of the current era.

But a booker can only do so much. You can book a guy to win, and in time, even in a contrived world, those numbers in hindsight look impressive. Long crappy title reigns sometimes are remembered as legendary. But usually they aren’t.

People can cry and moan until the cows come home about the subjective method of rating pro wrestling matches. To some, the statistic that Okada’s title defenses averaged 4.86 stars going into this past week just gets people mad, and makes them dig deep and try and argue that he’s really overrated. To some, it means, since nobody has ever come close to that, it must be something special. To some, the numbers don’t mean that much, but it’s pretty clear the guy is something special. Even in a subjective world, there are also objective numbers, a great business rise during that period, and more international exposure, fame and respect that any Japanese wrestler based in Japan has ever had on an international basis. Okada is a lock to go into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot. The only question left is whether he will break the all-time record set by Kenta Kobashi in 2002 of getting 98 percent of the vote when he goes in.

Yes, this was a legendary title reign and one of the best of all-time. As far as big matches go, it was the best of all-time. Ric Flair did it far more often, carried some mediocre and even terrible guys to good outings and one can argue him as the greatest all-around performer the industry has ever seen. But as far as top tier matches, I’ve seen them in small gyms, big arenas and national shows with Ricky Steamboat and Barry Windham on down. They were great. It was a different era. Shawn Michaels was immensely talented. Kenta Kobashi could drive emotion like no other. This guy combined what they all had. He was the most creative of them all. He was as good an athlete as any. And, partially because of the time, put more thought and on his big shows, had generally better opponents. Nobody could match his consistent match quality when the title was at stake.

We knew it as it was going on. In Japan, they did as well. A poll was done recently among the general public as to the greatest wrestler to ever perform in the country of Japan. It has been nearly 55 years since Rikidozan passed away. People know of him, know the legend, but few people in the public, and really none under the age of 60 or 65, actually saw him and have the emotional connection to him. Antonio Inoki and Giant Baba were the top two, who had decades of prime time national television, beating every big star that was in pro wrestling. Satoru Sayama was a short-term cultural phenomenon, who came when television ratings were high, and was like no star previously, and he completely changed the game.

No. 4 was Okada, at the time he was 29 years old, and while he had the advantage of being today’s top star, wrestling is so much less popular mainstream that his finish stunned most long-time fans. Not that he wasn’t that good, but that he didn’t get the exposure the others did to the general public. If it was a poll of hardcore wrestling fans, the result would be less surprising. Equally surprising was that the No. 2 foreign star, behind Stan Hansen, was Okada’s new rival, ahead of Lou Thesz, The Destroyer, Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, Bruiser Brody, The Funk Brothers, Mil Mascaras and all the stars when they were on the front page of the daily sports newspapers and magazines on the newsstands and on network prime time television.

When Omega won the second longest championship match ever held in Japan, the initial reaction was that a two-year-long storyline had played out perfectly. Suddenly, in that moment, it was clear that the decision not to put the title on Naito was no longer even arguable. Even those of us who believed Naito winning to be the right move, but accepted the big picture that this was the run to create a legend, and breaking records were part of it, and that there was a very good reason Naito didn’t win, well, at that moment it was clear we were wrong. Naito wins, the key records aren’t broken. The Tanahashi match never happens. This match never happens. At least not in this way.

This match, held before an advanced sellout crowd of 11,832 paid at Osaka Jo Hall, was at a different level far more than for what took place over 69 minutes and 49 seconds, which just happened to be, in the opinion of an awful lot of people, the greatest pro wrestling match they had ever seen. Whether it was or it wasn’t that, as far as storytelling, emotion and drama in a match, it is inconceivable to me that there has been another match close to this level in modern times.

There was a two-year-chase, from Omega’s win and interview after beating Hirooki Goto to win the 2016 G-1 tournament, through his Tokyo Dome loss, his Tokyo Dome draw, his G-1 win and subsequent loss the next day.

There was an emotion that he could bring out of a match with Okada that Naito couldn’t. Tanahashi could get that emotion, and there was a great story there, but it wasn’t the best story.

This was something that rarely happens at this level in wrestling. Mitsuharu Misawa did it without a long chase in 1990 against Jumbo Tsuruta, which turned into an amazing business run. Kerry Von Erich did it for the moment with Ric Flair in 1984 at Texas Stadium, but three weeks later it was meaningless. Dusty Rhodes did it the first time in Tampa with Harley Race, but five days later it was over and meaningless. Jack Brisco could have done it in Tampa or Miami Beach with Dory Funk Jr., in 1973, but in fact, that never happened. Ric Flair could have done that anytime after 1979 or 1980 in Greensboro or Charlotte, but that also never happened. Jerry Lawler could have done it in Memphis, and sort of did with Curt Hennig, but it was too late when it happened. It’s a dream scenario that takes patience, but it also doesn’t always work, as Vince McMahon has shown for the past four plus years trying to build this exact same emotion of Roman Reigns finally beating Brock Lesnar.

The next emotion, as expressed by Omega in the backstage interview, was that the Okada reign was over. How could it have ended any better, the culmination of a chase by his now greatest rival, in what many would call the greatest match ever held. The records were set, and he went down on the night of what was easily his greatest performance. The goal for the last half-dozen years was to create a true legend in Okada, and he could not have lost the title in any greater manner.

After Omega’s interview, the show was over, and fans had gone home, and in one of the great shots of all-time, there was a close-up of a single $1 Okada bill alone on the ground of an empty building that a half hour earlier was packed and as full of life as could be.

We received the second most number of responses of any show in our history for Dominion, only behind this year’s Wrestle Kingdom. Considering the response to New Japan shows in recent months hasn’t been anything special at all, people were expecting something.

I didn’t keep a tally, but I read every response. The vast majority were the same. Well, almost the same. “I’ve been watching wrestling (insert the number, most numbers were more than 20, one was 62) years and this was the best match I’ve ever seen.” Over and over. Probably two-thirds of the responses said that. Many called it, and more because of the main event, although the entire show was great, particularly the second half, the greatest wrestling show they had ever seen. I’ve seen deeper shows from start-to-finish, but this was certainly close. As far as the last three hours of a show, because of the main event, as well as the tag team title, jr. title and IC title, and with the time of the main event, it makes that hard to argue.

When it had ended, my thought was that this was the greatest match I’ve ever seen. Not arguably, and not by a little big either. It was at a level far beyond when it came to emotion, storytelling, and attention to detail. It was almost astonishing watching it. Will Ospreay may be the best wrestler, night-after-night, in the game today, and he had an incredible opponent and they vowed that when the show was over, while Omega, Okada, Chris Jericho and Naito were the guys who brought people to the arena and to watch it, that they were going to be the people everyone talked about when it was over. Instead, they had maybe the greatest match ever to be so overwhelmed by another match to become an afterthought. The Young Bucks had the single greatest storytelling match they ever had in Japan, and won the heavyweight tag team titles. When their match was over, I thought it probably would get a ton of votes for match of the night. It got one out of 993.

But the biggest difference was I thought I would never see another match this good again. This was not some five-star match or six-star match. You can call it whatever you want. I’ve had people arguing 16 or 17 stars, with the idea that the first fall, which went 29 minutes was an easy six stars, and the third fall, at 17 minutes, was also an easy six star, and the middle fall couldn’t be less than 4 and probably closer to 5. Surprisingly, in responses, the consensus was far more clear than I would have expected at 7. There were a lot of 8s, 10s, even a 12, and the ones who argued it as three different matches, which it wasn’t, to get some crazy number, a few 5s, and 6.5s, a 4 3/4 here and there.

In the match build, Omega told the story that he finally had to admit to himself that Okada was a better wrestler than he was. His storyline was that he is still better all-around as a performer, and still more valuable in taking the New Japan brand worldwide. They did a storyline contrast as Omega said he was training with Kota Ibushi at a level he had never trained before, and showed up in incredible shape. Okada was said to be getting his head peaceful, doing things like fishing. Omega said the two of three falls and no time limit gives him the advantage because he was going to show up in better condition.

Omega becomes the first Canadian to win the IWGP champion, only the third former junior heavyweight champion in New Japan history (after Tatsumi Fujinami and Nobuhiko Takada) to win the IWGP heavyweight belt, and breaks a streak that dates back to January 4, 2011, when Tanahashi beat Satoshi Kojima to win the title, that the title was in the hands of someone other than Okada, Tanahashi, Naito or A.J. Styles.”

Dave Meltzer’s top-rated matches of 2018: Tanahashi vs. Ibushi

Posted on by Josh Nason

Throughout the week leading into December 31st, we are taking you back to some of Dave Meltzer’s top-rated matches of the past year, starting with the five star matches and ending up with a seven star classic.

15 matches got the five star treatment while six matches garnered ratings above that level.

What follows is an edited version of Dave’s writeup from the match from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, available in full for subscribers. Also, we want to give a big shoutout to Cagematch.net who makes research for this list ridiculously easy. 

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi
NJPW G1 Climax Finals | August 12, 2018
*****3/4

“Tanahashi beat Kota Ibushi in the finals on 8/12 at Budokan Hall in Tokyo in a match that many regulars in Japan called one of the greatest matches in the history of the building which covers an incredible amount of ground. It was a masterpiece of a match, probably Tanahashi’s best ever performance when it comes to fire and being a babyface. Ibushi on that night, and through the tournament, showed that he is one of the most physically talented and greatest in-ring performers of the incredible modern generation.

Ibushi was trying to become the first wrestler in history to win all three major New Japan singles tournaments: the Super Juniors, New Japan Cup and G-1. Kenny Omega was in Ibushi’s corner while Katsuyori Shibata was in Tanahashi’s corner. Both were very animated in encouraging and lending instructions and giving it a real feeling, not that the guys needed any help.

It was a total Tanahashi crowd even though Ibushi is the classic babyface that usually would be the crowd favorite against the established legend in this situation. Tanahashi blocked a dropkick but Ibushi changed into a double foot stomp on the apron. Tanahashi dropkicked him to the floor and teased the high fly flow to the floor but Ibushi jumped in the ring. Ibushi went for the lawn dart but Tanahashi turned it into a sling blade. There were some incredible striking exchanges and one of the longest and most brutal hard slap fests. Really, very few matches feel like a movie and this was one of them.

Tanahashi skinned the cat into the ring but Ibushi caught him in the Omega style spike power bomb. Tanahashi did the dragon screws into the Texas cloverleaf, but Ibushi struggled before making the ropes. Tanahashi hit the high fly floor to the floor. Ibushi barely beat the 20 count in. Ibushi did a top rope Asai moonsault. Ibushi came back with big moves like a springboard missile dropkick and half nelson German suplex. He went for the kamagoye but Tanahashi cradled him. Then Ibushi hit the bom a ye (Kinshasa).

There’s another layer of story here and the American announcers really shined, improving throughout and peaking with this. The story is that to Ibushi, Tanahashi is God. That isn’t meant as God like to Americans, but like God of Pro Wrestling like Karl Gotch or Lou Thesz. Tanahashi is what Ibushi always strived to be and that played into the story because at times in the match the feeling of Tanahashi as the untouchable God played with his mind. But his closest to God hero was Nakamura, so the idea he was using the finisher of one God to beat God, but Tanahashi escaped. They had another unreal striking exchange. Perhaps the peak was Ibushi slapping the hell out of Tanahashi, who kept walking forward showing some of the most incredible fire ever, and Ibushi feeling intimidated by who Tanahashi was and what he represented to him.

There was a striking exchange that Ibushi ended with a sick lariat. There was another that Tanahashi was losing, and then came back with one European uppercut after another. Tanahashi did a straitjacket German suplex for a near fall. Tanahashi went for a high fly flow but Ibushi got his knees up, and then Ibushi hit the bom a ye (Kinshasa), did a standing moonsault landing with both knees on Tanahashi’s chest and then hit other spots teased earlier, most notably the lawn dart. This was huge because everyone knows that Ibushi did this move to Tanahashi before and Tanahashi ended up with a neck injury that put him out of action. This created incredible drama. It did look safer than before, but there is still an issue with the lengths these guys go. Notably, there were so many hard slaps and even though they don’t knock you out, that kind of repeated head trauma is exactly what we’ve learned is bad in the long run.

Ibushi also hit the power German, and instead of taking it nearly on his head like Naito did, Tanahashi took it on his shoulder, which also was a risk. Then came the last ride power bomb and Ibushi did a straitjacket German suplex. He went to finish with the kamagoye but Tanahashi reversed into a twist and shout, followed by a dragon suplex, a high fly flow to the back. Tanahashi went to follow with the regular high fly flow, but Ibushi became the first person I can recall ever to get to their feet after a high fly flow, so Tanahashi instead did the crossbody.

Then Tanahashi hit the high fly flow for the pin with the idea it took three high fly flows to win his third G-1. After cheering for Tanahashi, a big Ibushi chant broke out. There was a staredown of sorts in the ring, but Omega took Ibushi to the back, and he was crying heavily from the emotion, to leave center stage for Tanahashi.