Tag: netflix

TKO exec addresses UFC passing on Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano: ‘More of a stunt than a meaningful MMA event’

Posted on by Josh Nason

TKO head Mark Shapiro is now on the record regarding why the UFC passed on the Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano fight that aired on Netflix this past Saturday.

Speaking at the JP Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference Monday, Shapiro said the reason UFC passed on Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano was it “more of a stunt than a meaningful MMA event” and one he thought wasn’t good for the sport after how it played out.

“(Netflix) wants big spectacle events and they saw this as a big spectacle event. We’re in the true MMA business on a meaningful, consistent basis. When we looked at this potential matchup, keep in mind there’s a real art and skill to matchmaking….The answers (he & Ari Emanuel) got back (from Dana White & Hunter Campbell) were that fight will be over in 20 seconds,” he said.

“I don’t believe a fight like that, just the way it played out, is really good for MMA especially because it’s Netflix and such an incredible global audience…that is going to sample, depending on what comes up on the front page, to go to that fight and think that’s what MMA is, I don’t believe is good for the sport long term. “We saw it that way and decided to pass on it,” while adding he didn’t want to take anything away from Rousey, her win, or the viewers the broadcast got.

There wasn’t much in the way of WWE news coming out of the 30-minute conversation other than Shapiro putting over ESPN in how they are promoting PLEs and that they are looking forward to when YouTubeTV finishes their authentication process with ESPN Unlimited. That was reported as hopefully being completed in August or September.

He did say that “We’ve added some cards for NXT because we we think have a couple stars that are about to pop and we want to give them more stage time, if you will.” Based on last week’s announcement about WWE house shows returning this summer, it appears more than likely he meant young talent called up from NXT that need more in-ring work on the main roster, hence the house shows.

TKO remains bullish on the Middle East for events, saying their partners want more events and “want to show the world they are still open for business.”

He talked about how title fights on UFC numbered events make them distinct from Fight Nights, signaling to consumers that it’s “something different” and that Paramount’s ad spends reflect that as well. When it comes to the PPV era, he said, “We’re past that” and want to be accessible to the broadest audience possible.

They are continuing to plan for UFC Freedom 250 and how it will be a big week for them with corporate partners and such. Attendance is going to be at 4000 people: 2900 White House and TKO guests and 1100 military members and their families. He did point out that U.S. president Donald Trump is a WWE Hall of Famer.

Overall, they are looking to get to $400 million in TKO site fees (what they call financial incentive packages”) due to a “pretty clear-cut strategy” in that they have premium content that is in demand and that “there needs to be government and private financial incentives that reflect the economic and cultural impact we bring to these cities and regions.”

Mauro Ranallo part of broadcast team for Netflix’s Rousey vs. Carano

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Pro wrestling fans tuning into Ronda Rousey’s MMA return this weekend will hear a familiar voice on the commentary team.

MVP Promotions has announced that Mauro Ranallo will be the play-by-play announcer for Saturday’s broadcast on Netflix, working alongside former MMA fighter Kenny Florian. The main card begins at 9 p.m. Eastern time streaming live from the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.

Ranallo has a long history calling marquee boxing and MMA events, along with having served as a commentator for WWE and NJPW. He still contributes to wrestling commentary with Scott D’Amore’s Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling in his native country of Canada. In 2018, Showtime released the documentary “Bipolar Rock ‘N Roller” focused on Ranallo and his struggle with bipolar disorder.

Elle Duncan, Tyron Woodley, and Ariel Helwani will anchor Netflix’s Rousey vs. Carano coverage as hosts of the event, with Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez, and Cat Zingano appearing as guests. The broadcast team also includes Sibley Scoles (reporter), Sean Wheelock (rules and scoring), and Kody “Big Mo” Mommaerts (in-cage announcer).

Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian of MVP are the promoters for this event, which is Netflix’s first time airing live MMA. The show has a five-fight main card:

Rousey vs. Carano fight card (Saturday, May 16) —

  • Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano
  • Nate Diaz vs. Mike Perry
  • Francis Ngannou vs. Philipe Lins
  • Salahdine Parnasse vs. Kenneth Cross
  • Junior dos Santos vs. Robelis Despaigne

There is also a slate of prelim fights airing live on YouTube at 6 p.m. Eastern leading into the main card.

‘No talk’ of using additional Hulk Hogan documentary footage

Posted on by Vincent Verhei

The makers of the Hulk Hogan documentary say they have enough unused footage to produce more episodes but as of now, there are no plans to continue the project. 

Bryan Storkel, director of Hulk Hogan: Real American, discussed the remaining Hogan material on the Ham Radio Show Friday.

“There’s definitely more that you could cover,” Storkel said. “I mean, there’s so many things that got cut out. But we decided on four parts and like that, it’s four hours worth, and we just put in the best stuff or the stuff we could fit. I think there’s so much more though.” 

Storkel said he does not expect anything new to see the light of day. 

“I mean, I think you can [do more episodes], there would be an argument made for that,” he said. “But there’s definitely no talk of that.”

Hulk Hogan: Real American is available to stream on Netflix. The four individual episodes range in length from 46 minutes to 1 hour, 19 minutes, totaling almost exactly four hours in length. 

Hulk Hogan docuseries big success in first week on Netflix

Posted on by Josh Nason

The four-part Hulk Hogan docuseries on Netflix was a big viewership success for in its first week on the streaming service.

Revealed as part of the streamer’s weekly Tudum rankings, ‘Hulk Hogan: Real American’ finished fifth overall in the world, just behind last week’s edition of WWE Raw.

The series brought in three million views globally and 12.3 million global hours viewed based on a total runtime of 4:06.

Co-produced by WWE, It was a top ten series in ten countries worldwide and was also fifth in the U.S. behind Raw.

After Hogan’s passing last year, it was announced last December that Netflix was continuing to move ahead with the project with the name and release date revealed three weeks ago.

By comparison, the Vince McMahon docuseries was the fourth most-watched show on Netflix globally after just four day on the service from September 23-29, 2024. The series was viewed 4.9 million times during that period with 28.2 million total hours streamed.

Fight Game: Hulk Hogan Netflix docuseries review

Posted on by Garrett Gonzales

John LaRocca and I return with a brand-new Tuesday edition of the Fight Game to discuss some of the most topical things going on in pro wrestling this week.

We gave out their thumbs up and thumbs down before jumping into two main topics:

  • Finding landing spots for the latest WWE releases
  • How to book the Brock Lesnar vs. Gunther storyline

We also did a full review of the new Netflix docuseries, Hulk Hogan: Real American.

Click Here to Listen (sub needed)

WWE Raw on Netflix viewers & hours viewed stay consistent for April 6

Posted on by Josh Nason

Consistency remains the name of the game for WWE on Netflix ratings leading into WrestleMania 42.

The April 6 edition of Raw did 2.9 million global views and 5.5 million global hours viewed, virtually identical to the prior week and the last two+ months (2.91 million/5.42 million).

The 1:46 runtime was also virtually identical to the previous week’s 1:47.

The episode placed sixth in the global top ten and was in the top ten in 17 countries worldwide, getting as high as fourth in the U.S.

The clubhouse leader worldwide was the first season of Trust Me: The False Prophet which brought in 9.8 million views and 32.1 million hours viewed.

Last reported 10 weeks of WWE Raw on Netflix viewership:

Episode dateGlobal ViewsGlobal Hours
April 6, 20262.9 million5.5 million
March 30, 20263.0 million5.5 million
March 23, 20262.9 million5.5 million
March 16, 20263.0 million5.9 million
March 9, 20262.8 million5.0 million
March 2, 20263.0 million5.4 million
February 23, 20262.8 million5.6 million
February 16, 20262.7 million4.9 million
February 9, 20262.9 million5.1 million
February 2, 20263.1 million5.8 million
Average for last 10 weeks2.91 million5.42 million

Netflix announces ‘Hulk Hogan: Real American’ docuseries

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Netflix has dropped the trailer for the ‘Hulk Hogan: Real American’ docuseries, which is set to premiere on April 22. 

The four-part docuseries provides an insight into Hogan’s childhood, wrestling career and transition to a pop culture icon. It also features what turned out to be Hogan’s final recorded interview. 

Hogan passed away on July 24, 2025, due to a cardiac arrest at the age of 71. He rose to stardom in WWE during his run in the 1980s. The launch of Hulkamania became a significant part of both wrestling history and his career. 

Hogan was among the first wrestlers to crossover into Hollywood and gain mainstream recognition. 
Last month, WWE announced Hogan’s match against Andre The Giant at WrestleMania III into the Hall of Fame. Hogan was inducted into the Hall of Fame for his contributions as a singles competitor in 2005 by Sylvester Stallone. He was later inducted again in 2020 as a part of the nWo with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash.

Daily Update: Netflix price increases, Roman Reigns, WWE NXT

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Daily Update

Latest News

Latest Audio

Latest YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Among the topics covered:

  • Full coverage of AEW Revolution, keys to the show, the returns and surprises, poll results and other business notes, thoughts on the matches
  • Notes on Tony Khan’s attempt to buy WWE in 2023 that came out this week
  • Updates on WrestleMania with confirmed matches, matches not announced but are on the schedule, the 31.6% off ticket sale, comparisons of demand for tickets with last year, potential matches and more on how matches were changed, as well as Steve Austin talks
  • AAA Rey de Reyes update, a look at the promotion and how it differs from WWE and CMLL and what comes next
  • A look at what happened in the ring when referee Dallas Edwards suffered a medical emergency in the ring during a match and the response issues
  • The most detailed look at the ratings for all the major television and streaming shows of WWE, AEW and TNA, demos, comparisons, competition numbers and placings
  • Claudio Castagnoli draws his first Arena Mexico sellout as CMLL world champion
  • Notes on the other major shows of the week in Mexico
  • Stardom Cinderella tournament finals and the top matches for the company’s biggest show of the year
  • Champion Carnival blocks
  • New Japan Cup notes
  • Manami Toyuota and never going to WWE and would it have mattered
  • Sareee talks her WWE stint
  • Kendo Kashin on Tadao Yasuda
  • 45th anniversary of the Tiger Mask debut and the best woman wrestler in the world at that time is still holding a championship today
  • NCAA wrestling tournament notes
  • Ted DiBiase Jr. trial notes
  • Ticket sales for upcoming WWE, AEW, TNA, Tokyo Joshi Pro, Rousey vs. Carano and more shows
  • Mistico sells out San Jose three weeks in advance and thoughts on the show
  • Former WWE champion in boxing match
  • Ricochet, Gates of Agony and Mercedes Mone in Europe
  • TNA new business deal
  • Ricochet Twitter controversy
  • Former AEW and WWE champion appears this weekend on one of the most-watched TV shows
  • AEW contract notes
  • Zuffa makes choice not to accept a commission regulation and will do it themselves
  • Gina Carano talks about how UFC tried to stop the Carano vs. Cyborg fight from happening
  • WWE in Saudi Arabia thoughts
  • WWE’s deal with Front Office Sports and some thoughts
  • Davey Coates, WWE tour manager, passed away

This Week’s Back Issue

FIRST TIME SUBSCRIBERS GET 50% OFF YOUR FIRST MONTH

Thursday Update

WWE logo
Official WWE logo. (Image credit: WWE)

WWE

  • Roman Reigns is appearing on “The Tonight Show” tonight, with Chris Pratt & Charlie Day and Ariana DeBose set to be the other guest. BTS are the musical act.
  • Netflix, the broadcast home of WWE Raw, has raised its prices on all three tiers in the United States:
    • The ad-supported tier is now $8.99 per month (previously $7.99)
    • The standard plan without ads is now $19.99 per month (previously $17.99)
    • The premium plan with ultra HD is now $26.99 (previously $24.99)
  • The June 9 episode of WWE NXT will take place on the road from the Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Lowell, Massachusetts. Tickets are going on sale this Friday.
  • NXT referee Adrian Butler (Darryl Sharma) thanked Ricky Morton for spending time with the refs while guest coaching at the Performance Center this week:
    • Thank you @RealRickyMorton for coming back for a great week with us. Thanks for the amazingly kind words and spending time with the #WWENXT referees!
  • Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has wrapped up production on the third and final movie in his “Jumanji” franchise, which is set to be released in theaters this Christmas.
  • WWE ID wrestler Cappuccino Jones told Opinion City Podcasts that Sean “X-Pac” Waltman and Booker T have been two of his wrestling mentors:
    • Let’s be talking about Sean Waltman, X-Pac. He’s like one of my biggest mentors. I’ve learned so much from him. Really, he’s someone who really has taught me to just be myself, be an artist. You know, I’m an artist at heart, I think we all are. Wrestling’s an art form at the end of the day. He’s really good about reminding me that it’s – just be yourself, just be loose out there.
    • Booker T as well. I wrestle at Reality of Wrestling quite often. I’ve had so many matches there. And Booker T has so many good – he’s really good at the details. All these guys, Booker T, X-Pac – it’s no accident that they were stars for their whole careers.
  • While promoting tomorrow’s SmackDown, Chelsea Green visited the Pittsburgh Steelers’ facility and met up with players Cam Heyward and Joey Porter Jr.
  • WWE Vault uploaded a full Madison Square Garden house show from March 19, 1990 featuring Ultimate Warrior vs. Mr. Perfect, Bret Hart vs. Rick Martel, and more.

Other Wrestling

  • Referee Aubrey Edwards made an Instagram post reacting to the end of AEW’s Unrestricted podcast:
    • Today we released the last episode of the AEW Unrestricted podcast. I’ve been crying on and off about it for a few weeks, but I’m smiling listening to it this morning. It’s incredibly bittersweet, as I’m not going anywhere – this is just an end to one of the few projects I work on at AEW. Now I get those precious few hours back every week to put into being the best referee I can be.
    • On this episode I tell the story of how I accidentally became a podcast host for 7 years. It’s never something I expected, but I’m thankful for [Tony Schiavone] for picking me to be his cohost.
    • Thank you to [Alex Abrahantes] for filling in sooooooo many times at the last minute when Schiavone’s plate was overflowing.
    • Thank you to [Will Washington] for becoming the second full time host when Tony’s plate got too full. You’ve become one of my closest friends in the process.
    • Thank you to our wonderful producer Stacie. She was behind the scenes, involved in all 316 episodes. This podcast would not have happened without the glue and magic that was Stacie.
    • Thanks of course to @aew and @tonyrkhan for giving us a platform to tell stories.
    • Thank YOU so much for listening to AEW Unrestricted
  • Wardlow will be going by the name “Fang” in Amazon Prime Video’s “American Gladiators” revival.
  • Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows appeared on a new episode of TMZ’s Inside the Ring podcast.
  • ECW legend Shane Douglas was interviewed by Going Ringside.

Netflix executive teases more WWE crossovers

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Netflix executive Bela Bajaria is excited to work with WWE on more cross-promotional opportunities.

On a new episode of Stephanie McMahon’s “What’s Your Story?” podcast, Bajaria discussed the WWE-Netflix relationship and how much she’s enjoyed collaborating with WWE’s talent. That’s included Seth Rollins appearing as a pundit on some of Netflix’s event coverage and WWE stars being brought to MLB’s opening night.

Bajaria, who is Netflix’s Chief Content Officer, teased that there are more crossovers like this to come, pointing to Raw’s “Stranger Things Night” as another successful collaboration.

“The WWE partnership has been incredible,” she said. “And I think what you all have created there, too, which I see when we work with your talent — when Seth comes to our events, or John Cena is in a movie, they really have this, like, community connection. They care so much. They’re so positive, and they [have] this work ethic, and they have this real joy that they bring to fans and audiences. So what I love is they’re so good at that.

“So when they come to our events, they just are like, ‘We want to make everybody feel [good].’ I go, ‘You’re all so good at this.’ But really, the partnership, again, just wanting to like, continue with this, having the storytelling that touches people and then surprises them and takes them on a journey is — you all do it so incredibly well.

“So I think it has been such a great partnership. And I’m excited for, like, more things. You know, ‘Stranger Things’ was this year, but there’s more things to continue to do together.”

McMahon added that she believes some of WWE’s talent can be used to help promote Netflix overseas.

“Especially internationally, too,” McMahon said. “And so many of our talent are native to other countries as well. As you’re building, there’s so much opportunity.”

Netflix became the broadcast home of WWE Raw in January 2025, with the WWE PLE library now also available on the streaming platform. Outside of the United States, Netflix offers a wider array of WWE programming including live PLEs.

It was announced today that Netflix will also carry the upcoming “Kill Tony: WrestleMania” comedy special. Hosted by Tony Hinchcliffe, it’s taking place in Las Vegas on April 18 and will be available to watch on Netflix starting on April 20.

‘Kill Tony: WrestleMania’ special to air on Netflix

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Fans not attending WrestleMania 42 weekend will still have the chance to watch Tony Hinchcliffe’s WWE-themed comedy special.

It was announced via Variety today that “Kill Tony: WrestleMania” will stream on Netflix. The special will not air live but will be available to watch starting on Monday, April 20, which is the same day Netflix is broadcasting the post-WrestleMania 42 episode of Raw.

This is the second straight year that Hinchcliffe — who is a big pro wrestling fan — and WWE have partnered together for a WrestleMania weekend event. When Hinchcliffe’s “Roast of WrestleMania” happened in 2025, it was billed as a closed-doors event that would not be broadcast anywhere. Audio of the entire show did end up getting leaked online, with some of the jokes generating controversy.

“Kill Tony” is a podcast Hinchcliffe hosts where aspiring comedians get the chance to perform in front of Hinchcliffe and other comedy veterans. He and Netflix have already partnered together for multiple specials in the past.

At this WrestleMania weekend event, Hinchcliffe will be joined by current WWE stars and legends, other comedians, and surprise guests. It’s being held at Dolby Live at Park MGM on Saturday, April 18 after the first night of WrestleMania 42.

WWE wrote about the event:

  • KILL TONY, known for its unpredictable format, rising comedic talents and no-holds-barred humor, will feature a mix of WWE Superstars and Legends, established comedians and surprise celebrity guests, while blending rapid-fire standup sets from aspiring comedians with sharp and often brutal feedback from Hinchcliffe and his panel of guests.

John Cena, other WWE stars appear on Netflix MLB opening night broadcast

Posted on by Josh Nason

John Cena thankfully found some work to do post-WWE retirement, appearing during Netflix’s inaugural Major League Baseball broadcast Wednesday.

Cena wasn’t live in San Francisco for the Giants vs. New York Yankees but appeared in a two-minute video, explaining the new automated balls and strikes (ABS) challenge system being rolled out this season (seen below). Clips of Cena doing wrestling moves were intertwined with his presentation.

Cena is currently involved with six projects at various stages of production with the first two — Acme vs. Coyote and Matchbox The Movie — set to be released this year.

WWE World Tag Team Champion Jey Uso and Jacob Fatu were also in attendance, sitting in the stands. The two were interviewed by NFL quarterback Jameis Winston with Winston doing a Rock promo line (seen below) when telling a story about people booing him not giving a ball to a kid.

Jimmy Uso did not appear as advertised, replaced by Fatu. It’s unclear what the reason was for the change.

WWE and Netflix are in year two of a five-year rights contract with MLB’s Netflix contract kicking off this season.

Real Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano Netflix MMA undercard announced

Posted on by Josh Nason

After a fake card made its way around X on Monday, the actual full lineup for this May’s Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano MMA event on Netflix has been announced.

Jake Paul’s MVP promotion made the reveal Tuesday morning on social media.

While it’s devoid of the name value of the fake card, the show will feature former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos returning to MMA to take on Robelis Despaigne. It’s Dos Santos’ first MMA fight since losing to Cyril Gane at UFC 256 in December 2020. He’s lost his last four fights.

Other notable fighters include former UFC, Strikeforce and Bellator fighter Lorenz Larkin against Bellator and PFL veteran Jason Jackson.

The event for the Inuit Dome in Los Angeles is headlined by the returns of both Rousey and Carano for what is expected to be their final ever MMA fights.

Full Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano MMA fight card | Los Angeles | Saturday, May 16

  • Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano
  • Francis Ngannou vs. Philipe Lins
  • Mike Perry vs. Nate Diaz
  • Junior dos Santos vs. Robelis Despaigne
  • Muhammad Mokaev vs. Adriano Moraes
  • Salahdine Parnasse vs. Kenneth Cross
  • Lorenz Larkin vs. Jason Jackson
  • Aline Pereira vs. Jade Masson-Wong
  • David Mgoyan vs. Albert Morales
  • Namo Fazil vs. Jake Babian
  • Chris Avila vs. TBD