Daily Update: Weekend preview, Canada ratings, AEW notes

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WON NEWSLETTER: August 30, 2021 Observer Newsletter: CM Punk debuts in AEW, SummerSlam review

An amazing weekend for pro wrestling as AEW on 8/20 featured the return of C.M. Punk, while WWE the next day at SummerSlam brought back Becky Lynch and Brock Lesnar.

The Punk return was one of the most amazing television wrestling moments in history. Never before has a show been announced with simply a name, The Last Dance, just a few weeks ahead of time, in a building the size of the United Center in Chicago, and sold out instantly.

Current subscribers click here to continue reading.

ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].

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FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE

Garrett Gonzalez and I have a show tomorrow morning rather than tonight. It will be fun.

Smackdown tonight from North Little Rock, AR features the return of Becky Lynch. Shinsuke Nakamura & Rick Boogs vs. Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode was also announced.

AEW Dark will be taped most weeks in Orlando going forward at Universal Studios. It will not be a closed set so fans will be allowed to attend.

AEW All Out will be airing in movie theaters around the country. Among the theaters are Cinemark, AMC, Harkins, Galaxy, Marcus, Emagine, Studio Movie Grill, Cinepolis Luxury Cinema and Landmark Cinemas in Canada.

Today is the 50th anniversary for the Fred Blassie vs. John Tolos match at the Los Angeles Coliseum which was one of the biggest matches of the era and set a gate record for the time.

We didn’t get these in time for the issue deadline (the audience and 25-54 numbers are in the issue) but these are the 18-49 numbers for all the wrestling shows over the past week in Canada except Rampage.

  • Smackdown 62,000
  • Main Event 8,000
  • NXT Takeover 36 (aired live on TV in Canada) 16,000
  • Raw 123,000
  • NXT 33,000
  • Dynamite 72,000

Rampage probably beat Smackdown based on how AEW demos turn out even though it aired at 11 p.m. and Smackdown aired at 8 p.m.  Rampage was likely about 80,000. In Canada, while WWE is on a stronger sports station, the penetration of the two stations is more even so the advantage is less than in the U.S.  Of course it’s very unlikely Rampage does those numbers again.

Numerous people have told us to make sure and watch the Penta & Fenix vs. Jurassic Express match tonight on Rampage. The other matches on the show are Bunny vs. Tay Conti and Frankie Kazarian & Christian Cage vs. Kenny Omega & Brandon Cutler.

Jake Paul vs Tyron Woodley takes place in a boxing PPV tomorrow in Cleveland. There has been a lot of pub for this one in recent days.  Paul is a -195 favorite.

UFC tomorrow:

Prelim at 7 p.m. Eastern on ESPN+

  • Mana Martinez (140) vs. Guido Cannetti (135.5) – Martinez forfeits 30 percent of his purse to Cannetti
  • Jamall Emmers (145.5) vs. Pat Sabatini (145.5)
  • JJ Aldrich (125) vs. Vanessa Demopoulos (125.5)
  • Dustin Jacoby (203.5) vs. Darren Stewart (204.5)
  • Sam Alvey (185.5) vs. Wellington Turman (185.5)
  • Alessio Di Chirico (185.5) vs. Abdul Razak Alhassan (185.5)
  • Main card on ESPN at 10 p.m. Eastern
  • Makhmud Muradov (184.5) vs. Gerald Meerschaert (185
  • Andre Petroski (185.5) vs. Michael Gillmore (184)
  • Kevin Lee (170.5) vs. Daniel Rodriguez (171)
  • Ricky Turcios (135) vs.   Brady Hiestand (135.5)
  • Bryan Battle (185.5) vs. Gilbert Urbina (186)
  • Edson Barboza (145) vs  Giga Chikadze (145.5)

Turcios vs. Hiedstand and Battle vs. Urbina are the finals of the Ultimate Fighter season that just aired on ESPN+

PFL weigh-ins for tonight’s show on ESPN 2 from Hollywood, FL:

  • Cezar Ferreira (205.2) vs. Mathin Hamlet (205.8) in a light heavyweight semifinal
  • Emiliano Sordi (206) vs. Antonio Carlos Jr.. (205.4) in a light heavyweight semifinal
  • Chris Wade (145.6) vs. Bubba Jenkins (146) in a featherweight semifinal
  • Brandan Loughnane (145.8) vs. Movlid Khaybulaev (145.8) in a featherweight semifinal

Invicta has a PPV tonight from  Kansas City Memorial Hall:

  • Serena DeJesus (136) vs. Lauren Mueller (135.8)
  • Jodie Esquibel (116) vs. Liz Tracy (117.2) – Tracy was fined 25 percent of her purse for missing weight
  • Brogan Sanchez (125.8) vs. Emilee King (124.6)
  • Lisa Verzosa (134.6) vs. Taneisha Tennant (134.7) for the bantamweight title
  • Emily Ducote (114.4) vs. Danielle Taylor (114.6) for the strawweight title

LFA tonight at 9 p.m. Eastern on UFC Fight Pass:

  • Bruno Souza (145) vs. Javier Garcia (144.4) for the featherweight title
  • Charles Johnson (124.8) vs. Joao Camilo (124.4)
  • Anthony Garrett (251.2) vs. Jimmy Lawson (259.6)
  • DeWayne Diggs (200) vs. Joseph Holmes (200)
  • Elmar Untarov (169.4) vs. Ben Bennett (171)
  • Irfan Mulabitinovic (162.4) vs. William Starks (161.6)5) fm0_

WWE

  • Stephanie McMahon sent this out  this morning: This past weekend, WWE held our biggest event of 2021, SummerSlam, emanating from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas with a record-breaking crowd of over 51,000 fans. More people watched Saturday’s event live across Peacock and WWE Network than any other SummerSlam in our company’s history, marking a 55% increase over 2020. SummerSlam also trended #1 worldwide, ahead of Pacquiao vs. Ugas and NFL preseason football. Leading up to the event new multi-year partnership announcements were made, bringing WWE together with Spotify, Bill Simmons and The Ringer to launch an exclusive audio network, and MLB to offer sports fans team-inspired WWE Championship replica titles and accessories. In addition, WWE partnered with Bitski to drop WWE’s second edition of NFTs inspired by WWE Superstar John Cena.
  • Raw will take place on 10/11 at the Chase Center in San Francisco.

AEW

  • C.M. Punk has opened as a -400 favorite to beat Darby Allin at All Out according to BetOnline.ag
  • A few notes on names from the Chicago tapings on Friday.  Tay Conti’s opponent was Heather Reckless.  Ethan Page & Scorpio Sky wrestled GPA & Mat Fitchett, who got a big reaction since he’s known locally from AAW, while Jeff Parker & Matt Lee beat Travis Titan & Jason Hotch.
  • Rampage is not airing on television in Canada tonight even though it did big numbers last Friday.  There is no good reason why as three stations are airing the same football game,one has a documentary and another has PFL, which has significantly less interest.
  • Ryan Nemeth’s film HEEL was named as an official Section of the 17th annual HollyShorts Film Festival which runs from 9/23 to 10/1 at the TCL Chinese 6 Theaters in Hollywood,CA.  The film is about the subject of sexual assault in the independent pro wrestling scene.

UFC

  • Frankie Edgar vs. Marlon Vera takes place on the 11/9 Madison Square Garden show.
  • Casey O’Neill vs. Antonina Shevchenko has been added for a 10/2 show.
  • Jessica Eye vs. Andrea Lee and Lando Vannata vs.Tucker Lutz are scheduled for an 11/13 show.

OTHER NOTES

  • The International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame has its first weekend on Saturday and Sunday in Albany, NY.  Tomorrow at 2 p.m. will be a history session with Don Luce, Tom Burke and Mark Hewitt. 3 p.m. will have Ricky Morton, Robert Gibson, J.J. Dillon, Manny Fernandez and Ron Garvin.  4 p.m. Will have Luke Williams, Sunny, Rita Chatterton, Davey O’Hannon and Virgil.  The induction ceremony is at 7 p.m. with Dillon and Bill Apter as hosts at the King Street Ballroom.  Apter hosts a party at 11 p.m. tonight at the Fort Orange Ballroom at the Desmond Hotel.
  • Steve Corino comes out of retirement tonight to face his son Colby for the PWF in North Carolina.
  • Kevin Eck’s weekly look at ROH news.
  • Minoru Suzuki faces Cavin Tankman on 10/1 in St Louis at the Affton Elks Lodge for WrestleMax St. Louis. Suzuki also has been added to the 10/3 Glory Pro Wrestling show in St. Louis at the South Broadway Athletic Club against Davey Richards.
  • Stardom returns after being shut down for two weeks due to COVID cases with a show tomorrow in Nagoya.  
  • Great North Wrestling tomorrow at 8 p.m. in Kingston,ONT is sold out with Rene Dupree, Alicia Atout and Mike Bailey.  There are tickets left for a 5 p.m. show at the Cataraqui Arena.
  • wXw announced the lineup for its Catch Grand Prix tournament.  The A block has:
    A block:
    Axel Tischer (Alexander Wolfe)
    Tristan Archer
    Dennis Dullnig
    Levaniel
    Leon van Gasteren
    Michael Knight

    B block:
    Bobby Gunns
    Robert Dreissker
    Stephanie Maze
    Fast Time Mondo
    Akira Francisco
    Maggot

  • The tournament takes place from 9/23 to 9/26. Cara Noir will be working the Saturday night and Sunday afternoon shows, facing Marius Al-Ani for the world title on 9/25. They run one show on Thursday, two on Friday, one on Saturday with the finals on Sunday.  They will also be taping additional shows with the talent in town on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. (thanks to Markus Gronemann)
  • Pro Wrestling Ontario on 9/19 in Burlington, ONT at 3141 Mainway.
  • C4 Wrestling on 9/18 in Ottawa,ONT at St. Anthony’s Hall.
  • KSW 83 on 9/4 from Warsaw, Poland is headlined by welterweight champion Roberto Soldic (18-3) defending against Patrik Kinci (24-9) and Olympic wrestling medalist Damian Janikowski (6-3) vs.  Pawl Pawalak (18-4-1)
  • LFA on 9/24 in Oshkosh, WI at the Menominee Nation Arena with Josh Silveira (5-0) vs. Tee Cummins (4-0) to decide the LFA light heavyweight title.
  • Combate Global announced the signing of Spain’s Kevin Cordero (11-2), who will debut with a 9/3 main event against Ricky Bandejas.  
  • GWN Wrestling on 8/29 at 1 p.m. in Hamilton, ONT at 222 Queenston Road.
  • UAE Warriors on 9/3 and 9/4 from the Jiu Jitsu Arena in Abu Dhabi.  The 9/4 main event has Shawn Bunch (9-5) vs. Randy Saadeh, the former BAMMA champion (12-3)   Former Chelsea goalkeeper Ricard Prasel (11-2) faces former sambo champion Mihail Mokhnatkin (12-5)
  • Lance Storm will appear on two CWE shows on 9/8 in Medicine Hat, Alberta and 9/9 in Calgary. Storm will be part of both shows but not wrestling.

Daily Pro Wrestling History: Shane Douglas wins, throws down NWA title

CONTACT INFORMATION

Daily Update: Big weekend preview, Bill Eadie, Shawn Daivari

DAILY UPDATE

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JOB LISTING: Web/UI Developer(s)

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  • Cloud based hosting experience a plus
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WON NEWSLETTER: June 14, 2021 Observer Newsletter: SummerSlam to Las Vegas, NJPW Dominion review

Updated coverage on SummerSlam and early word on Survivor Series is the lead story on this week’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

We look at the location, the time of the show and why they are limited in time, the new stadium, talk about top matches plus more on Dwayne Johnson and WrestleMania, Survivor Series and a plan for an August Takeover.

Also in this issue:

Dominion, the Shingo Takagi title win, with match-by-match coverage, star ratings, poll results, business notes and booking direction.

Plans for a WWE draft, a WWE TV show on verge of being canceled, Bret Hart documentary, Stephanie McMahon talks WWE business, WWE ticket sales, Miz talks injury, UK & Canada viewing numbers, WWE looks a changes in how it does house hows, WWE autograph new rules, most watched WWE videos of the past week and WWE market value.

The next two WWE major events with lineups, notes about the Takeover crowd, matches announced and not yet announced for Hell in a Cell and more.

Full coverage of this past Saturday’s UFC show.

Cyber Fight show combining NOAH, DDT, Ganbare Pro and Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling.  We look at Keiji Muto’s title loss, why he got the title in the first place, why Marufuji wasn’t the guy who should have won, plus match-by-match coverage with star ratings.

The death of controversial wrestler Angel o Demonio.

More into detail on the ratings than any other source, how many different viewers the shows had which is very different from the television number, breakdown of who watches the shows, how they watch, DVR numbers and how long the average fan watches.

Results of the major pro wrestling events of the past week.

ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].

Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.

In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.

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If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.

FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE

Garrett Gonzales and I will be previewing the weekend and covering the news of the past week tonight on Wrestling Observer Radio. Bryan and I will be doing shows tomorrow after UFC, Sunday after Takeover and Monday after Raw.

Want to wish our best to Bill Eadie, best known under names like Demolition Ax, Masked Superstar, Super Machine and Bolo Mongol, who was one of the top names in pro wrestling in the late 70s and through the 80s, who is suffering from heart-related issues.

Smackdown tonight has Chad Gable & Otis vs. Street Profits, Kevin Owens & Big E vs. Apollo Crews & Sami Zayn and Bayley interviewing Seth Rollins. For 205 Live is Ari Sterling & Asher Hale vs. Tony Nese & Ariya Daivari and Sunil Singh vs. Grayson Walker (formerly Matty Walhberg in Australia who played Ric Flair in an episode of Young Rock).

AEW at 10 p.m. Eastern on TNT tonight:

  • Appearing are Don Callis, Cody Rhodes and The Pinnacle
  • Lance Archer vs. ?
  • Nyla Rose vs. Leyla Hirsch
  • Adam Page & 10 vs. Brian Cage & Powerhouse Hobbs
  • Christian Cage vs. Angelico
  • Miro vs. Evil Uno for TNT title
  • Young Bucks & Brandon Cutler vs. Penta & Pac & Eddie Kingston

Bellator tonight at 9 p.m. Eastern on Showtime:

  • Demarques Jackson (170) vs. Mark Lemminger (170.5)
  • Aaron Pico (145.75) vs. Aiden Lee (145)
  • Paul Daley (175) vs. Jason Jackson (175)
  • Douglas Lima (169.75) vs. Yaroslav Amasov (170) for the welterweight title

On paper this looks like a very exciting show with Pico, Daley and Lima all high-action fighters and Amasov as a challenger for the title comes in at 25-0.

Invicta runs an eight-woman one-night tournament for an Atomweight title shot on AXS tonight.  It will also air on YouTube live:

First round matches as voted by the fans are:

  • Paulina Granados (105.9) vs. Marisa Messer-Belenchia (105.4)
  • Jillian DeCoursey (105.5) vs. Linda Mihalec (105.9)
  • Lindsey VanZandt (105.8) vs. Katie Perez (105.3)
  • Jessica Delboni (105.6) vs. Samantha Seff (105.9)

UFC 263 is tomorrow from Phoenix:

ESPN+ at 6 p.m. Eastern:

  • Carlos Felipe (262.5) vs. Jake Collier (264.5)
  • Fares Ziam (156.5) vs. Luigi Vendramini (155.5)
  • Chase Hooper (145.5) vs. Steven Peterson (148.5) – Peterson forfeits 20 percent of his purse for missing weight
  • Matt Frevola (155) vs. Terrance McKinney (155.5)
  • Pannie Kianzad (135.5) vs. Alexis Davis (134.5)

ESPN at 8 p.m. Eastern:

  • Movar Evloev (145.5) vs. Hakemm Dowodu (145.5)
  • Lauren Murphy (125.5) vs. Joanne Calderwood (125)
  • Eryk Anders (205) vs. Darren Stewart (204.5)
  • Drew Dober (154) vs. Brad Riddell (155)

PPV at 10 p.m. Eastern:

  • Paul Craig (204.5) vs. Jamahal Hill (205.5)
  • Demian Maia (170.5) vs. Belal Muhammad (170.5)
  • Leon Edwards (170.5) vs. Nate Diaz (170) in five round non-title fight
  • Deiveson Figueiredo (125) vs. Brandon Moreno (125) for flyweight title
  • Israel Adesanya (183.5) vs Marvin Vettori (184.5) for middleweight title

Lauren Murphy tweeted that everyone was told that if they so much as touch their opponent with anything more than a fist bump, handshake or high five at the ceremonial weigh-ins that they will be pulled from the show, fined and suspended. So no more pushing and shoving.

AEW in Canada tonight is on TSN 2 even though it is listed in some cable guides as WNBA Basketball in the time slot. So this could hurt ratings since the wrong show is listed.

Stardom runs Ota Ward Gym in Tokyo with a PPV show which starts at 3 a.m. tomorrow morning Eastern time. This will be the first time they’ve offered PPVs from Japan in English.  You can order the show at this link.

  • Utami Hayahishita vs. Syuri for the Wonder of Stardom title
  • Cinderella tournament finals
  • Mayu Iwatani & Starlight Kid & Rin Kadokura & Hanan & Koguma vs. Natsuko Tora & Konami & Saki Kashima & Fukigen Death & Ruaka
  • Giulia & Natsupoi vs. Momo Watanabe & AZM vs. Tam Nakano & Mina Shirakawa
  • Himeka vs. Saya Kamitani in a Cinderella tournament semifinal
  • Maika vs. Unagi Sayaka in a Cinderella tournament semifinal
  • Rina vs. Hina vs. Lacy C

CMLL has the first of three weeks of the Torneo IncreĆ­bles de Parejas, with the idea of tag teams of guys who usually feud with each other at Arena Mexico tonight. The teams tonight are Cuatrero & Dark Panther, Hechicero & Stuka Jr., Gran Guerrero & Mistico, Cancerbero & Espiritu Negro, Atlantis & Negro Casas, Volador Jr. & Templario, Titan & Dragon Rojo Jr. and Valiente & Gemelo Diablo I.

New Japan Strong at 10 p.m. tonight on New Japan World:

  • Jordan Clearwater & Misterioso vs. Fred Yehi & Wheeler Yuta
  • Alex Coughlin vs. Hikuleo
  • Rocky Romero & Lio Rush vs. The DKC & Clark Connors

Impact Against All Odds takes place tomorrow night on Impact+ and FITE TV with Kenny Omega vs. Moose for the Impact title as the main event plus Deonna Purrazzo vs. Rosemary for the Knockouts title.

PWInsider reported Ronda Rousey was filming and hosting episodes of the ESPN+ show “Peyton’s Place” at the 2300 Arena with Paul Heyman and Devon Dudley talking about ECW history.

WWE

  • Even though the A&E Biography series on WWE has concluded the Most Wanted Treasures show will air this weekend but a two-hour show at 8 p.m. featuring two AEW names, Mark Henry and Paul Wight, with the idea that they are looking for Andre the Giant items.
  • PWInsider reported that Shawn Daivari has been hired by WWE as a producer. He had worked this past week with Billy Corgan’s NWA as a producer and formerly held the job with WWE prior to the pandemic cuts.
  • Cesaro talked to the Hindustan Times where he said that while there are guys who can lift heavier weights in the gym than he can, that he is the strongest guy in WWE when it comes to strength inside the ring. (thanks to Mike Kuzmuk)
  • Steve Austin will be doing a signing with Highspots and American Icon Autographs the first week of August in California.
  • The Milwaukee Brewers announced a WWE Night for their 9/25 game against the New York Met. Fans attending will get a Bob Uecker Bobblehead. Uecker was a mediocre player who became famous for being a funny announcer, and has a wrestling tie-in since he announced at WrestleMania III and was put in the WWE Hall of Fame in 2010.

AEW

  • Taz underwent undisclosed surgery earlier today.

OTHER NOTES

  • ROH TV this weekend has Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus defending the tag titles against Dragon Lee & Kenny King.
  • United Wrestling Coalition on Saturday in Wrightstown, NJ at  Kelly’s Bar with shows at 2:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. outdoors.
  • CWE returns to Saskatchewan for the first time in 17 months with shows on 7/21 in Prince Albert, SK, 7/22 in Saskatoon, 7/23 in Regina and 7/24 in Weyburn.
  • Innovate Wrestling Fire on the Mountain on 8/14 in Kingsport, TN at the Civic Auditorium.
  • Showtime will be airing the Floyd Mayweather vs. Jake Paul exhibition fight tomorrow night.
  • AAW tonight on Fite TV from 115 Bourbon Street in Merrionette Park, IL is headlined by Mance Warner vs. Jake Something for the AAW title and Kris Statlander vs. The Hyan for the women’s title.  The show starts at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time.  AAW also has announced they return to the Logan Square Auditorium in Chicago on 9/2 and that the Jim Lyman Memorial tournament will be 10/29 and 10/30.
  • AIW on 6/18 in Cleveland at the Odeon Concert Club with Matt Cardona, Brian Myers, Mark Sterling and Swoggle.
  • Pro Wrestling Phoenix tonight in Omaha, NE at the Waiting Room Lounge.
  • DAZN and Matchroom have signed a deal where they will air a series of boxing shows live from Mexico with Canelo Promotions, with the first show on 6/26 from Guadalajara.
  • Pro Wrestling Australia on Sunday has a live show on FITE with Aussie Open vs. Robbie Eagles & Mat Diamond and PWWA champion Jessica Troy against Sam Osborne.  
  • Aramis defends his Warrior Wrestling Lucha title on 7/17 in Chicago Heights, IL against Daga, his trainer, plus Lance Archer vs. Robert Ego Anthony managed by Frank the Clown. Those under 16 are admitted free.

Daily Pro Wrestling History: Okada vs. Omega II

CONTACT INFORMATION

Anthem Sports acquires Invicta Fighting Championships

The parent company of Impact Wrestling has acquired an MMA brand as Anthem Sports are the new owners of the all-female Invicta Fighting Championships.

ESPN’s Ariel Helwani broke the news Thursday morning. Terms were not disclosed.

Invicta will air on Anthem-owned AXS TV in the U.S. starting in May, moving from UFC Fight Pass where they had been since 2014. In Canada, they will air on the Anthem-owned Fight Network. The first show is scheduled for a Friday, May 21st, but it’s unknown whether that will be their regular night going forward and how many events they are planning on holding per year.

The company was founded in 2012 by former UFC and Strikeforce executive Shannon Knapp who will now be part of Anthem’s board. Former UFC executives Jaime Pollack and Ant Evans are also both part of the Anthem family.

Invicta alumni include double UFC champion Amanda Nunes; Bellator featherweight champion Cris “Cyborg” Justino; former UFC strawweight champions Rose Namajunas and Carla Esparza, former Strikeforce bantamweight champion Marloes Coenen and more.

In addition to Invicta, Impact and Fight Network, Anthem owns HDNet Movies, the Pursuit Channel and GameTV/Game+.

Daily Update: WrestleMania 37, Invicta, All Out 2

DAILY UPDATE

Latest News:

Latest Audio:

WON NEWSLETTER: February 10, 2020 Observer Newsletter: Major WWE corporate shakeups, more

We look at the changes in WWE business and details on what Vince McMahon was talking about regarding changes in the network and PPV distribution in the lead story of the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

We examine the departure of Michelle Wilson and George Barrios, the drop in the stock price, what it will take to get the price back up, McMahon talking business options, what WWE can learn from how UFC handled a similar situation, the business of WrestleMania, the key players, the different options, the UFC PPV deal, and McMahon talks AEW.

Also in this issue:

WWE fourth quarter numbers in every category, profits, losses, arena business, corporate spending and all categories.

McGregor vs. Cerrone business including details of it being the largest streaming PPV in history, how it did on traditional PPV, how UFC ha helped ESPN+ numbers, ESPN+ subscribers as well a the bundle with Hulu and Disney Plus, and how successful it has been financially.

WrestleMania and the net Saudi Arabia show, a new WWE TV deal, Takeover Portland, what medical treatment wrestlers from many different companies are looking at doing, new WWE signings, John Cena in Fast 9, update on talent that has  wanted their release, Jake Atlas debut, lots of ratings info, WWE Network price notes, Mauro Ranallo talks getting off twitter, Total Bellas story lines, Bret Hart update, most watched shows on WWE Network and coverage of all of last week’s WWE arena events.

New Beginning shows in Sapporo, with a full rundown of the booking, the business, match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.

A feature on the Jericho Cruise, the top matches, how TV was taped, and what happened.

UFC event from Raleigh with match-by-match coverage and business notes.

A feature on the death of Romeo Cormier and the famous Burke/Martin/Cormier family and the heyday of pro wrestling in Eastern Canada. 

Regarding the Wednesday numbers, we’ve got full details, demos that each side won, how every segment did and what match ended up as the difference maker. 

Full coverage of all the WWE and AEW television shows from the past week.

In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.

Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week. 

ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].

Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.

In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.

For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.

If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.

MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

Bryan and I will be back tonight for Wrestling Observer Radio covering Raw, New Beginning in Osaka, David Von Erich, Open scoring and other topics. You can send questions to tonight’s show to [email protected]

We’re also looking for reports from the NXT show in Phoenix on Friday, Riverside on Sunday, and WWE house shows in Oakland on Saturday and Fresno on Sunday, as well as dark matches from tonight in San Jose to [email protected]. We’re doing weekend polls on UFC 247 and New Japan New Beginning in Osaka, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match for each show to [email protected]

WWE’s official press conference for the 2021 WrestleMania at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood,CA takes place at 11 a.m. local time with Stephanie McMahon, Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch, John Saboor (WWE Executive Vice President of Special Events) and Jason Gannon (the Managing Director of the stadium) appearing.

After all the controversy over the weekend with the Jon Jones-Dominick Reyes scoring, Invicta has announced that it will have open scoring, meaning they will announce to the crowd all three judges scores at the end of each round, starting with its 3/6 show in Kansas City. The Kansas Athletic Commission announced today that promoters will have the option to have open scoring or maintain things as they are. They are the first commission that I’m aware of in the U.S. to allow open scoring.

A correction from yesterday. In the note on the New Japan MSG show being one week before All Out 2, it is actually two weeks prior as All Out 2 will be 9/5.

The XFL has gotten mostly strong word of mouth. It is said that they’ve already sold in advance more tickets for this season than the AAF did during its season. On sports radio that I was listening to last night, they were talking about it with the results on the news breaks and such.  The Houston team opened up the second deck of TDECU Stadium for walkup and New York and Dallas both drew in excess of 17,000 announced. Elevate Sports Ventures, according to business newsletter John Wallstreet, built out teams sales staff and they were selling tickets for six months before the season started.  They will not come close to the attendance of the 2001 league, but everything is different now. The XFL was projecting 15,000 to 20,000 per game this season with Seattle and St. Louis maybe topping that as each team has sold more than 10,000 season tickets..

 WWE

  • Raw tonight is in Ontario, CA. They may sell out TV both tonight and Friday this week as both were close. Kevin Owens & Samoa Joe & Viking Raiders vs. Seth Rollins & Murphy & AOP plus Becky Lynch vs. Asuka for the women’s title are the top matches tonight.
  • Becky Lynch feels she should be the highest paid person in the company, which she is not.
  • Wells Fargo has cut its target price for WWE stock from $80 to $36 due to all the concerns.  The stock closed today at $42.05 per share. 
  • The guy who King Corbin poured the drink on Friday night on Smackdown was Markus Mack, the promoter of All Pro Wrestling in Northern California.

UFC

  • The Ministry of Sports in France and the French Boxing Federation are developing rules for MMA in the country which would eventually lead to UFC debuting in that market.
  • Jon Jones talked about going to WWE with Sports Illustrated. 

MISCELLANEOUS

  • Rafael Lovato Jr. has vacated the Bellator middleweight title due to what were called ongoing medical issues. He did not elaborate on what they were, but Scott Coker said that this has been a challenging time for Lovato, his team and his family, but called him a true warrior and that they will work with him regarding his future. The company said it will announce plans for filling the title vacancy in the next few days.
  • Both Ilima-lei MacFarlane and Douglas Lima, two of Bellator’s top stars, holding the women’s flyweight and welterweight titles, have signed multi-year new contracts.
  • MLW has signed a television deal in France on Webedia airing every Monday night at 9 p.m.
  •  365 Pro Wrestling on 2/29 in Kitchener, ONT at the Alpine Club.
  • Jerry Lawler will defend his Arkansas title against Michael Barry on 3/21 in Searcy, AR at the White County Fairgrounds.
  • Defy Wrestling Kings of Crash on 2/21 at Washington Hall in Seattle will feature a show with stars from The Crash promotion in Tijuana plus the return of Jeff Cobb.  Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf 450 will defend the Crash tag titles. Ricky Gibson & Eddie Pearl defend the Defy tag titles against Damian 666 & Guillermo Rosas, while Schaff defends the Defy title against Randy Myers.
  • Lights Out Xtreme fighting on 3/13 at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, CA has an MMA show with heavyweight champion Mike Quintero (6-2) defending against Blake Troop (8-6).  Quintero is also a professor at Los Angeles City College and he’s now 43 years old. The show is being taped for Fox Sports West, Prime Ticket, Fox Sports San Diego and other Fox Sports regional stations.

Daily Pro Wrestling History: TNA Against All Odds 2008

CONTACT INFORMATION

Invicta 15 results: Cris Cyborg Justino vs. Daria Ibragimova

Submitted by Crimson Mask

Megan Anderson vs. Amber Leibrock

Good opening scrap between 6-foot FWs. Leibrock had KOed Ronda’s roommate Marina Shafir, and was clearly the bigger puncher, but the Australian Anderson wore her down with clinch work and then took her apart with strikes, having her in big trouble in the 2nd and finishing her early in the 3rd. 

Amanda Bell vs. Ediane Gomes was scrapped.

Mizuki Inoue vs. Lacey Schuckman

Another good performance from the 20 year old Inoue, dominating some high tech grappling exchanges and finishing in the 3rd with an arm bar after several attempts.

Angela Hill vs. Alida Gray

Recent UFC cut Hill blows away late sub Gray, staggering her with a counter right and not letting her off the hook.

Amber Brown vs. Shino VanHoose

Brown makes short work of the badly outsized late sub VanHoose, muscling an out of position Guillotine for the tap. Unfortunately for the apparently skilled but tiny VanHoose there’s no lower division than atomW.

Raquel Pa’aluhi vs. Colleen Schneider

In the most competitive fight of the night, which took place after a long delay with both fighters already in the ring waiting for the ambulance to return to the arena, Schneider takes a 29-28 SD over a battered Pa’aluhi that didn’t look that close. Pa’aluhi got the best of the grappling but couldn’t do much with it, while Schneider did damage with nearly every strike landed.

Livia Renata Souza defends SW title vs. DeAnna Bennett 5R

Chickens finally come home to roost for the strangely overpushed and overprotected Bennett, as the much smaller Souza finishes her quickly with a liver kick and retains.

Cris Cyborg Justino defends FW title vs. Daria Ibragimova 5R

Late sub Ibragimova at least comes in loose and with a plan, and has success penetrating to single leg pickups, but she can’t get Cris off her feet and takes a battering in the process, till Cris lands a clean right hand from long range late in the round for the KD and puts her out with followup hammerfists. I’m not sure how much you can blame Cris for her quality of opposition, with not too many girls that anxious to sign to fight her, and apparently not all of them willing to show up.

Invicta FC 14 live results: Tonya Evinger vs Pannie Kianzid

By Paul Fontaine, for WrestlingObserver.com

Welcome to our live coverage of Invicta FC 14 on UFC Fight Pass, from Kansas City, MO. The ten fight card is headlined by Bantamweight Champion Tonya Evinger facing Pannie Kianzad in a non-title fight after Kianzad missed weight. The show also features former UFC Fighter Roxeanne Modafferi and unbeaten Strawweight prospect DeAnna Bennett. Coverage of the 10 fight cards begins at 8 pm eastern.

Lightweights Rach Wiley (0-0) vs Felicia Spencer (0-0)

Spencer was out to “Fat Bottomed Girls” by Queen. In the heaviest weight division in Women’s MMA. I thought the Undertaker was coming out next  but it was Wiley, to “Gonna Cut You Down” by Johnny Cash. Maybe she’s in James Storm’s Revolution. Is that still a thing?

Joe Martinez is the ring announcer and we’ve got fights! Mike Englund and his “God Bless You” to the fighters is the ref. Spencer got an early takedown and laid in some brutal ground and pound, creating a huge hemotoma on Wiley. She was just relentless with punches and elbows, basically little sistering her from side control. Wiley had nothing from the bottom and the ref finally stepped in to stop  it with just over a minute left.

WINNER: FELICIA SPENCER (1-0) by TKO

Flyweights Aspen Ladd (1-0) vs Amanda Bobby Cooper (1-0)

Cooper out to “Takin’ Care of Business” by BTO. They definitely have UFC beat in terms of walkout music. Don’t recognize Ladd’s music, sounds like Ravii Shankar or something. Ladd looks really nervous. Martinez introduces the ref as Juan Grande (Big John McCarthy).

Ladd got a takedown 3 minutes in after a back and forth clinch battle for the first part of the round. Cooper went for an armbar from the bottom with a minute left but Ladd escaped. Cooper had a couple sweep attempts but Ladd maintained control and got in some ground and pound to probably take the round. 10-9 Ladd

Ladd with an early takedown and got into side control 1:00 in. Ladd working for a key lock but doesn’t quite have the right angle. She gave it up after a minute and took Cooper’s back. Ladd with full back mount 3:00 in and working for a rear naked choke. Gives up the choke but keeps landing punches from behind. She got the choke in again at 4:00 after cranking the neck several times and using punches to set it up. Cooper escaped but Ladd ended up in full mount, laying in vicious ground and pound and opening up a cut. Cooper turtled and Ladd with an armbar attempt for the tapout win.

WINNER: ASPEN LADD (2-0) by submission

Strawweights JJ Aldrich (1-1) vs Rosa Acevedo (3-1)

Acevedo with some current music for her walkout “Someone to Lean On” by Major Lazer and DJ Snake. She missed weight so this is officially a catchweight bout. Aldrich out to “Number One” by Nelly. Acevedo is wearing a catsuit, but very different from the one you saw at the G1 Climax. Personally, I enjoyed the NJPW version but each to his own.

Mike Englund is the ref but no blessings from God this time. According to TJ, Acevedo once weighed 215 lbs. Even though she missed weight, Acevedo looks to giving up a lot of size here. Aldrich dominated her right from the get-go with the finishing blow being a knee to the midsection and then she finished off with some ground and pound when Acevedo went down. 

WINNER: JJ ALDRICH (2-1) by TKO

Atomweights Jinh Yu Frey (3-1) vs Liz McCarthy (2-2)

Don’t recognize McCarthy’s walkout music. Some good female hard rock song. Frey’s song is a mystery to me as well, generic hip-hop. Love the pace of these shows, as one hour in, we’re already on our fourth fight. These ladies do get a God Bless You from Englund. I think he’s showing some favoritism or something (not really).

Gotta say that although it sucks for the fighters, I much prefer the UFC uniforms to the ad-filled unis on the other shows, as we have here. Frey gets a takedown 1:30 in and briefly gets side control but McCarthy works back to her feet. McCarthy was cut on the nose during the ground exchange. Both ladies landed some nice shots standing. Frey with a nice punch combo in the last 30 seconds to cinch the round. 10-9 Frey

Frey with a takedown 1:45 in. McCarthy up quickly. Standup again is very even. Frey with a nice punch combo that rocks McCarthy at 3:45. Much closer round, probably 10-9 Frey for the takedown.

Very even to start again. McCarthy gets the first sustained advantage about halfway through, backing up Frey to the cage with a punch combo. Frey does land a hard punch to escape the cage clinch. McCarthy controlling the pace and in a close round, that could take it for her. McCarthy rocked Frey with a kick to the body and Frey tried for a takedown but couldn’t get it. Clinch on the cage but Frey escaped with a hard elbow to the head. 10-9 McCarthy so probably Frey’s fight but all depends how they scored round 2. 

WINNER – JINH YU FREY (4-1) by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 x 2)

Strawweights Jamie Moyle (3-0) vs Sharon Jacobson (3-1)

Jacobson is a Sargent in the U.S. Army fighting for the 2nd time in Invicta. Don’t recognize her walkout tune. Another rap song. Moyle is a product of Syndicate MMA. Her song is some sort of disco remix. Not a bad tune. These ladies get a “God Bless You” as well. Starting to think I might’ve just missed it the one time.

Jacobson with a wrestling background doing a lot of clinching and going for takedowns but Moyle defending well early on. Moyle rocked Jacobson with a kick 2:15 in. Jacobson with a nice punch combo at 4:00, backing up Moyle to the cage. Jacobson starting to find her range in the last minute, doing a lot of damage. 10-9 Jacobson

Jacobson finally got her takedown 1:15 in but stood up right away. Moyle stayed on her back for a bit but then followed her up. Jacobson landed a nice spinning elbow but Moyle followed up with a hard right that rocked Jacobson. Moyle starting to swarm at 2:15 and Jacobson recovered. Jacobson definitely slowed down by that exchange though. Jacobson with a nice punch combo at 3:15 that backs up Moyle. Both ladies firing punches at 3:30. Jacobson landing a lot of  body punches from the clinch. Jacobson got a flash takedown at 4:30. Moyle bleeding from the nose as the round ends. 10-9 Jacobson

Moyle is all cut up and bruised in the face as she comes out for Round 3. Moyle rocked Jacobson with a body kick at 1:00. Jacobson with a takedown and dropped Moyle on her head right after that. Jacobson again stood up right away and Moyle followed. Jacobson landed a hard elbow to the face 2:00 in. Jacobson with another takedown at 2:45 and follows up with ground and pound this time. Moyle stood up at 3:15 and Moyle followed. Jacobson with a flurry of punches to the body at 3:45 and follows up with a nice combo of punches to the head. Moyle lands a couple hard knees to the body at 4:15. 10-9 Jacobson

WINNER – SHARON JACOBSON (4-1) by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27 x 2)

Miesha Tate was interviewed backstage. She didn’t have much to say. Was asked about Amanda Nunes and she said that nothing’s been signed as of yet. 

Featherweights Cindy Dandois (5-2) vs Megan Anderson (4-1)

These ladies are competing for the “right” to be the next sacrificial lamb for Cris Cyborg , it would seem. Anderson is an Australian making her Invicta debut. Walkout song is Revolution by Diplo, some dubstep for the KC folks. Dandois’ choice is Let it Go from the Frozen soundtrack. She looks a lot like Brigitte Nielson from Rocky 4. She’s returning to Featherweight after losing to Tonya Evinger at 135 in her last fight.

Big John is the ref for this one. Professional commentator Julie Kedzie was still humming “Let it Go” when the match was starting. Dandois gets an early takedown. Dandois into mount at 1:30. Anderson gave up her back and Dandois went for an armbar at 2:30. Anderson escaped and ended up in top position. Dandois with a triangle from the bottom though. Dandois swept to mount and gave up the triangle but laying in ground and pound at 3:30. Anderson used the cage to escape and got to her feet. Anderson with a takedown but stood right back up and got separation. 10-9 Dandois, almost a 10-8

Anderson advancing and get  the first damage 1:00 in with a body punch. Anderson with a takedown at 1:15, might’ve even been Dandois pulling guard. Dandois with a triangle from the bottom. Anderson landing body punches while in the triangle and works it to the cage after starting in the middle. Anderson finally tapped at 2:30

WINNER – CINDY DANDOIS (6-2) by submission

Flyweights Rachael Ostovich (2-1) vs Andrea Lee (2-1)

Ostovich out to the Rocky Theme, while wearing a Wonder Woman uniform. Don’t recognize Lee’s music, sounds like AC/DC. Big John gets the dukes once again.

Lee controlling things for the first couple minutes. Ostovich does get a Superwoman punch in, getting Mauro Ranallo a shout-out after he coined the phrase on one of the earlier shows. Lee knocked her down with punches and took her back with a choke but Ostovich fought out and to her feet at 3:30. Ostovich nailed a nice spinning backfist at 4:30. Lee rocked her with a body kick that crumpled her to the mat and finished the round with ground and pound. Lee with a choke right as the round was ending. 10-8 Lee

Ostovich with a nice spinning backfist 45 seconds in. Doesn’t follow up though. Lee looking very crisp on the standup, completely controlling the cage. Nice punch combo at 2:15 from Lee. Ostovich lands another spinning backfist. Lee with a knockdown at 3:00 and follows her to the ground, taking Ostovich’s back. Lee landing punches from behind. Lee also landing hard knees to the legs and butt. Ostovich to her feet and eats a hard knee to the gut. Lee all over her in the last minute. Lee lands a high kick to the head and gets another takedown at 4:45. Lee finishes the round with ground and pound. Another 10-8

Ostovich gets a takedown after catching a kick 30 seconds in. Lee to her feet quickly. Ostovich was cut on the right side of her head by the kick though and she’s bleeding hard. Lee landing hard knees to the body and head and Ostovich down. Ostovich briefly to her feet but right down again. Somehow Ostovich ended up on top though. Lee easily to her feet though. Ostovich is bleeding all over the place and stays on her back and Lee goes into her guard. Lee landing hard elbows to the body and has Ostovich folded up so she can’t defend. Lee with full back mount 3:00 in. Lee continuing to land punches from behind. Lee with a hard and arm choke but gives it up quickly. Ostovich to her feet right before the round ends but brought back down again by Lee. 10-9 Lee
Lee actually verbally submitted with one second left.

WINNER – ANDREA LEE (3-1) by submission

Flyweights Roxanne Modafferi (17-12) vs Mariana Morais (9-2)

Morais is making her Invicta and US debut after fighting her whole career in South America. Don’t recognize her walk-out song but it sounds like it could be Brazilian. Modafferi is, of course, the reason we’re all watching. Don’t recognize her song either but it’s an upbeat dance song and she comes out all excited waving her hands in the air. She’s another Syndicate MMA fighter. Big John is the ref once again.

Morais is just 19 years old. If you add up Modafferi and Evinger’s fights, I think they’ve got more combined fights than everyone else on the card put together. Modafferi gets a takedown 1:00 in and quickly into full mount. Modafferi landing punches and elbows from the top but Morais manages to work her to half-guard. Modafferi into side control at 2:30. Morais got her back to half-guard but Modafferi completely in control and Morais doing nothing from the bottom. Modafferi with elbows to the body but Morais sweeps to top position at 4:45. Modafferi trying for a guillotine from the bottom right before the round ends. 10-9 Modafferi

Nice punch exchange early with both ladies landing a lot of shots. Modafferi landing a lot of leg kick/punch combinations but not doing much damage. Modafferi with a judo throw takedown and into quarter mount right away. Modafferi landing a lot of punches to the face, which allows her to take full mount. Modafferi mixing in elbows with the punches. Morais blocking a lot of them and the ones that are landing aren’t doing a lot of damage but they are piling up. Morais gives up her back at 4:00 and Modafferi continuing with the punches. Modafferi landing a ton of elbows to the head and flips Morais back into full mount. Bell saves Morais, 10-8 Modafferi

Morais with a guillotine 30 seconds in and pulled guard. Modafferi pops out 1:00 in and in top position. Modafferi into side control at 3:15. Modafferi landing some punches from the top but not nearly as active as the first two rounds. Modafferi into full mount at 4:00 and landing a ton of punches and elbows. Morais turtling and Big John very close to stopping it. He finally did with 20 seconds left. Great performance from Modafferi, maybe the best I’ve ever seen her.

WINNER – ROXANNE MODAFFERI (18-12) by TKO

Our very own Filthy Tom Lawlor was there to congratulate Roxy afterward. She put over her fans for dressing up like Mortal Kombat characters and said how badly she wanted to finish her opponent. She also challenged Barb Honchak for a title shot and they’d be fools not to give it to her.

Strawweights Katja Kankaanpaa (10-2-1) vs DeAnna Bennett (7-0)

Bennett missed weight as well. Miesha Tate joined the commentary team after cornering Cindy Dandois to a win earlier. She put over Roxy’s win and also mentioned that Bennett has a win over UFC Bantamweight contender Julianna Pena. Don’t recognize either of the walkout songs. Kankaanpaa (who will herefore be known as KK in this report) has ditched the bunny ears that she wore for previous fights, which sadly is not pointed out by the commentators. 

Mike Englund passes on God’s blessings to start the fight. Bennett far bigger but has trouble making the 115 lb weight limit. She’s probably too small for 135 so it’ll be tough for her to make a move to UFC. First half of the round is back and forth with neither lady doing much damage. Bennett with an arm-in guillotine at 4:00 and brings it to the ground but KK quickly out. KK trying to take Bennett’s back but Bennett to her feet and KK follows. KK trying for a Kimura roll with 15 seconds left. Close round but probably 10-9 Bennett

Both ladies tried for early takedowns but unsuccessful. KK with a takedown 2:00 in but Bennett with a guillotine attempt from the bottom. Gives it up but gets to her feet at 2:30. Bennett with a takedown at 3:15 and KK trying for a guillotine but gives it up quickly. KK with a sweep but Bennett trying for an armbar. KK escapes and ends up on top. Bennett to her feet at 4:00 but KK takes her down again. KK working for a Kimura but Bennett to her feet. Bennett with a standing guillotine at 4:30 and pulls guard. It’s tight but not much time left. KK punching the body as the round ends. Very close but 10-9 Bennett I think

Bennett pulls guard early trying for a guillotine but KK escapes and in top position. Both ladies to their feet but KK in control and brings her down. KK with a head and arm choke from the top at 1:15. Bennett gives up her back but KK swings her back around. Bennett escapes the choke but KK with a body triangle. KK into top position but in Bennett’s guard. KK into side control at 2:45. Tate, in talking about KK, says she’s probably down in the scorecards but we’ll see how this round goes. If she’s down in the scorecards, she needs a finish to win, Miesha. Bennett landing elbows to the body from the bottom but KK fully in control. Bennett works her back to half-guard and tries to get to her feet but KK takes her back and going for a head and arm choke again. She gives it up right before the end of the fight. 10-9 KK but Bennett wins on my scorecard. Could easily be KK’s though as the first two were close. Would be interested to see this under the Velten scoring system because I think KK won the fight overall but under the scoring system, I have Bennett winning.

WINNER – DEANNA BENNETT (8-0) by unanimous decision on scores of 29-28 x 3

All the commentators going off about the judging but with this scoring system, Bennett won the fight. This was not bad judging but a bad scoring system. 

Main Event: Tonya Evinger (16-6) vs Pannie Kianzad (8-0) 

Kianzad out to 99 Problems by Hugo. Very different from the Jay-Z version but cool. Evinger with “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins, as always. Lots of people on twitter complaining about that last decision but that was definitely the scoring system, not the judging, to blame there. Kianzad missed weight so this is a 3 round non-title fight. 

Big John gets the main event reffing duties here. Tate is still on commentary. Maybe she’ll challenge Evinger for a title shot after the fight. Evinger with a takedown 1:00 in. Kianzad to her feet quickly. Kianzad working for a takedown but Evinger uses the momentum to end up on top and quickly into side control, landing hard elbows to the head and body. Kianzad gives up her back and Evinger with a choke at 2:45. Kianzad bleeding from the nose and the choke is in tight. Kianzad escapes but in a lot of trouble.  Kianzad having problems because of the half-shirt she’s wearing obscuring her vision. She does work to top position but Evinger working for an armbar from the bottom. Evinger landing hard elbows to the body as the round ends. 10-8 Evinger

Evinger dropped Kianzad with a knee to the body right away. Evinger to the ground and tried to take her back. Kianzad briefly into top position but Evinger quickly takes it. Kianzad bleeding from the nose again. Evinger all over her back, hitting her with punches to the body and head. Kianzad works her to half guard at 2:30 but still taking a lot of damage. Evinger with back mount and working for a head and arm choke at 3:00. Evinger pouring in the punches from behind. Kianzad flips her around to the top but Evinger not letting up and Big John stops it.

WINNER – TONYA EVINGER (17-6) by TKO

 Miesha Tate called for a catchweight fight under the Invicta banner between Evinger and Cyborg. I like Tonya’s chances better than Dandois’. Overall a fun night of fights after a lacklustre show in Vegas. Thanks for joining me tonight!