Tag: nigel mcguinness

Nigel McGuinness returning to action at ROH Supercard of Honor

Posted on by Josh Nason

Former ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness is returning to action at next month’s ROH Supercard of Honor with a future title shot in mind.

In a clip shared to social media, McGuinness addressed former Pure Champion Josh Woods who has gone 3-0 since losing to reigning Pure champion Lee Moriarty in March in search of a rematch. Woods issued an open challenge as part of Friday’s ROH TV.

McGuinness answered the challenge.

“If you can’t beat me, you can’t beat Lee,” he said. “And if you can’t beat me, Lee…I want one more shot for the Pure title. If I can’t beat you in a third time, I’ll go quietly into the night.”

He then accepted Woods’ challenge for the streaming special, set for Friday, May 15 in Salisbury, Maryland. It will be their first ever clash and will be held under Pure rules.

The 50-year-old AEW announcer has competed sparingly since coming back in 2024 at All In: London, his first match in 13 years. He’s wrestled seven additional times since then, including two matches against Moriarty. The last was a 30 minute Iron Man match at last December’s Final Battle.

Current ROH Supercard of Honor card | May 15

  • Nigel McGuinness vs. Josh Woods in a Pure rules match
  • ROH Women’s Champion Athena defends against Maya World, Trish Adora, Yuka Sakazaki, Billie Starkz and Persephone in a Survival of the Fittest match
  • ROH Women’s Pure Champion Deonna Purrazzo defends against Diamante

Iron Man match added to Ring of Honor Final Battle

Posted on by Josh Nason

With Komander being moved into a six-way Survival of the Fittest match for the Ring of Honor World title at next Friday’s Final Battle, there was an opening for a new challenger for Pure Champion Lee Moriarty.

Enter former ROH star and current AEW broadcaster Nigel McGuinness.

During Friday’s ROH broadcast, McGuinness appeared during a pre-taped promo, putting over Moriarty for defeating him once before while pointing out he defeated him as part of a four-way so he considers them 1-1. He admitted he doesn’t know how many matches he has left, but wanted one of them to be with Moriarty to settle the score.

He then challenged Moriarty to a 30-minute Iron Man match next Friday which was later made official. The Pure title will not be on the line.

The two first squared off at last year’s Final Battle where Moriarty successfully defended the gold. The aforementioned four-way was an IWGP World title eliminator for this past August’s Forbidden Door which included McGuinness, Moriarty, Daniel Garcia and Hechicero.

Current ROH Final Battle card | Friday, December 5 | Columbus, Ohio

  • ROH World Champion Bandido defends against Sammy Guevara, Hechicero, Komander, The Beast Mortos and Blake Christian in a Survival of the Fittest match
  • ROH Women’s TV Champion Mercedes Mone defends against Red Velvet
  • ROH Women’s World Champion Athena defends against Persephone
  • ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty vs. Nigel McGuinness in a 30-minute Iron Man match (Non-title)
  • ROH Six-Man Tag Team Champions Shane Taylor Promotions (Shane Taylor, Carlie Bravo & Shawn Dean) defend against Skyflight (Scorpio Sky, Dante Martin & Darius Martin)
  • AEW National Champion Ricochet defends against TBA
  • Sammy Guevara & The Beast Mortos vs. Tommy Billington & Adam Priest for the vacant ROH Tag Team titles
  • Finals of ROH Women’s Pure Championship tournament

Nigel McGuinness gives update on AEW in-ring future

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Nigel McGuinness loves being able to wrestle occasional AEW matches, but he has no interest in a full-time return to the ring.

While appearing on The Wombreezy Wrestling Podcast, McGuinness — a commentator for AEW — was asked if he would be interested in working a full wrestling schedule for a year. McGuinness responded by saying that he loves what he’s doing now and doesn’t see what the benefit would be of him taking a regular spot from younger competitors.

“Of wrestling? No, good lord, no [laughs]. My full years of wrestling are long, long gone,” he said. “Good lord, you could have asked me probably 10 years ago and I would have said the ship has truly sailed when it comes to me even wrestling again. But I guess, truthfully, without AEW and specifically Tony Khan, I never would have got this opportunity again.

“I don’t think there’s any benefit to me wrestling a full-time schedule. [The] sort of part-time schedule that I’m currently on, you know, if an opportunity presents itself and it makes sense from a storyline perspective, then I’ll do it. I love doing it. But, yeah, not full-time. There’s too many guys on the roster anyway, younger guys, who deserve more of those spots than me. But if I can add a little bit of flavor, little bit of spice, to what else is going on with my experience and the fact that they see me on TV every week as a commentator, then I think that’s the best way they can use me.”

McGuinness is a former ROH World Champion and also starred for TNA before retiring in 2011. He transitioned over to commentary after that and did not wrestle at all for nearly 13 years — until returning at Wembley Stadium during AEW All In 2024.

This year’s Forbidden Door pay-per-view included an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match where McGuinness unsuccessfully challenged fellow countryman Zack Sabre Jr. for the belt.

McGuinness, 49, told The Wombreezy Wrestling Podcast that he feels very blessed to have had the career he’s had. He currently works alongside Tony Schiavone on the AEW Collision commentary team every week.

Last month, McGuinness and his partner Kaori Takee revealed that they are expecting a child together.

AEW’s Nigel McGuinness and partner expecting child

Posted on by Joseph Currier

AEW’s Nigel McGuinness and his significant other revealed some big personal news on Monday.

In an Instagram post, McGuinness and his partner Kaori Takee announced that they are expecting a child together. The two have been dating for several years.

“Something magical has happened,” their announcement said. “Our crumpet is toasting…”

Takee is a fitness coach, cosplayer, and longtime wrestling fan who describes herself as a “frequent flyer” and “foodie.” She has podcasted about wrestling in the past as well as doing on-camera work for AfterBuzz TV. Along with that, she’s helped out McGuinness in his side career as a magician while appearing as his assistant at magic shows.

Last month, McGuinness unsuccessfully challenged Zack Sabre Jr. for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door. The 49-year-old former ROH World Champion is a commentator for AEW and now occasionally wrestles for the promotion as well. He had been retired from in-ring competition for nearly 15 years before returning in 2024.

McGuinness also has a child from a previous relationship.

Nigel McGuinness credits AEW, Tony Khan for ‘opportunity to live out my dreams’

Posted on by Ian Carey

Nigel McGuinness spoke about wrestling at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door this weekend during a recent interview with Justin Barrasso of The Undisputed.

McGuinness will challenge Zack Sabre Jr. for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship on Sunday’s show from the O2 Arena in London. He qualified for the match by winning the “Technical Spectacle” against Hechicero, Daniel Garcia, and Lee Moriarty on AEW Collision.

“When I came back a year ago and wrestled Bryan Danielson, that was phenomenal and very important for me. But a match on this prestigious a stage against Zack Sabre Jr., I can’t get over it.“

“I’ve dealt with the disappointment, the regret, and the failure,” said McGuinness. “A decade ago, never once did I dream that I’d ever have any sort of opportunity like this. I thought this ship had sailed and my career was over.”

“If it weren’t for Tony Khan, none of it would have happened. I owe Tony and this company so, so much. This is the opportunity to live out my dreams.”

Following his return to the ring at All In 2024, McGuinness wrestled his longtime rival Bryan Danielson at AEW Grand Slam in Arthur Ashe Stadium the following month. He returned to Ring of Honor at Final Battle 2024, where he unsuccessfully challenged Moriarty for the Pure title. He also teamed with Daniel Garcia in a loss to FTR at Double or Nothing in May.

The full interview with Nigel McGuinness is available here.

Former ROH champion earns IWGP title shot at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: AEW

Years after his in-ring career was thought to be over, former Ring of Honor World and Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness has a chance to add the IWGP World title to his trophy case and in front of his countrymen.

McGuinness earned the opportunity on Saturday’s AEW Collision by winning a four-way title eliminator that included Lee Moriarty, Daniel Garcia and Hechicero.

The 49-year-old will get that chance at next Sunday’s AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door in his hometown of London, England, challenging reigning champion Zack Sabre Jr. As an added bonus, Garcia will be in McGuinness’ corner for the match.

It will be their first ever match against each other. It will be the first title defense in Sabre Jr.’s second run.

The Collision commentator made his surprise return at 2024’s All In as part of the Casino Gauntlet match — his first since December 2011. Since then, he fell in defeat to Bryan Danielson and Lee Moriarty (also in 2024) and then he and Garcia lost to FTR at May’s Double or Nothing.

Current AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door card | Sunday, August 24 | London, England

  • AEW World Champion Hangman Page defends against MJF
  • AEW Unified Champion Kazuchika Okada defends against Swerve Strickland
  • AEW Tag Team Champions The Hurt Syndicate (Bobby Lashley & Shelton Benjamin) defend against winner of Tag Team title eliminator tournament
  • Adam Copeland & Christian Cage vs. Nick Wayne & Kip Sabian
  • AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm defends against Athena
  • TBS Women’s Champion Mercedes Mone defends against Alex Windsor, CMLL TBD and Stardom TBD
  • IWGP World Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defends against Nigel McGuinness
  • TNT Champion Kyle Fletcher defends against Hiromu Takahashi
  • Lights out steel cage match: Darby Allin, Will Ospreay, Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kota Ibushi vs. The Death Riders (Jon Moxley & Claudio Castagnoli), Gabe Kidd & The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson)

AEW Collision live results: IWGP World title eliminator, Ace Austin debuts

Posted on by Jeff Moss

Tonight’s AEW Collision from Cincinnati, Ohio, will feature a four-way title eliminator match for Forbidden Door in addition to the debut of former TNA star Ace Austin.

ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty, former TNT Champion Daniel Garcia, Nigel McGuinness and Hechicero will do battle with the winner moving on to face IWGP World Champion Zack Sabre Jr. at this month’s Forbidden Door.

Months after moving on from TNA, former X-Division and Tag Team Champion Ace Austin will make his debut as he battles Ricochet.

The Death Riders’ Jon Moxley & Wheeler Yuta will take on JetSpeed (Kevin Knight & Mike Bailey) while Paragon (Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly) faces Blake Christian & Lee Johnson.

In a four-way, it will be Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart vs. Anna Jay vs. Penelope Ford for $100,000 on the line.

The card is rounded out by Juice Robinson vs. Bryan Keith, and an appearance by AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm.

**********

Let the colliding begin as Collision begins with the one and only AEW Women’s Champion Toni Storm!

Storm addressed the crowd as only she can, calling Athena “annoying.” Storm mocked Athena’s many nicknames and her bullying of Billie Starkz. Storm got on her knees and prayed to the “Fallen Goddess” when suddenly, the ROH Forever Champion herself arrived to attack her. Starkz joined Athena and the two beat down storm. Athena grabbed the mic and said that Storm better pray that Athena doesn’t expose her as the fraud she is.

Starkz dragged Storm to the ring and Athena assured Storm that her days were numbered. She then claimed Storm’s spotlight but suddenly Mina Shirakawa arrived and sent Athena reeling. In the ring, Storm hit a suplex on Starkz, leaving Athena caught in between Shirakawa and Storm. She dove off the ring ramp and was taken away by security. Storm and Shirakawa celebrated on the ramp.

JetSpeed (Kevin Knight and “Speedball” Mike Bailey) vs. Death Riders’ Jon Moxley & Wheeler Yuta

Knight and Speedball have both had singles matches with Jon Moxley. Now, they are going to try the tag team thing and take on Mox and Yuta, while Marina Shafir prowls around the ring.

JetSpeed dove over the top rope and took out Yuta and Moxley before the bell had even rung. Bailey tossed Yuta into the ring and the match started, officially. Knight tagged right in and the two hit a bunch of double team plants and kicks.

Yuta and Knight carried on while Moxley sauntered his way to the corner. Yuta tagged him in and Moxley went right to Bailey in the corner, knocking him off. He then sent Knight over the top rope to the outside, bouncing his head off the announce table multiple times. Bailey tried to help, but Moxley bounced his head off the table for good measure.

Back in the ring, Moxley tagged in Yuta who hit a bridge suplex for a two-count. Yuta tagged Moxley back in and he proceeded to punch Knight in the stomach for a few minutes before tagging Yuta back in. The Death Riders plan seemed to be to keep both members off JetSpeed off their feet so that they couldn’t build momentum.

Bailey tagged in and hit a few quick kicks on Yuta followed by a standing Shooting Star cover for two. Bailey resorted to a Karate Kid crane kick that knocked Yuta off his feet. He tagged in Moxley who was able to get in just in time to eat a double dropkick.

Moxley grabbed Bailey and hit a German suplex on the ring apron (the hardest part of the ring!) before tossing him back in to Yuta. The two double teamed Bailey with Moxley working over his arm. Moxley sent Bailey out of the ring where Shafir added her two cents. Mox bounced Bailey off the barricade and tossed him back in for a backbreaker.

Yuta tagged in and Baliey began a comeback. Moxley tagged back in and put an end to that with a suplex attempt that Baily reversed into a pin attempt. Yuta tagged in before Bailey could make a tag to Knight, but after a bit of a back and forth, the tag was made and a fresh Knight leapt in to slam and splash Yuta.

Yuta tagged in Moxley and Knight tagged in Bailey and the two started trading forearms. Yuta and Knight tried to get involved, but it ended up with all four men brawling in the ring. Moxley dodged a high kick from Baliey and turned it into a cutter and a two count. Knight came in and took out Mox, leaving Bailey and Yuta as the legal men.

Bailey and Knight hit an amazing double team hurricanrana into a power bomb, but it only got a two count. Bailey went up for a springboard splash but again, only two. Knight took his turn next, going for a splash, but Yuta rolled out of the way. Knight had Yuta in a backslide, but Shafir pulled Knight out. Bailey tried to help, but sent Shafir into the stairs by mistake.

Back in the ring, Yuta was covered by Knight, but Shafir pulled the ref out. Then Mox pulled out Bailey for a ddt on the outside. Yuta took the opportunity to low-blow Baliey and get a three count.

Match Result: Death Riders defeated JetSpeed

Great match to kick things off! The brawling style vs the high flying was a joy to watch. Jon Moxley is the grumpiest man on the planet and I’d pay just to watch him stomp around about stuff.

-Back from break, The Outrunners were shown in the music video for “Brother Nature” which one can only assume was produced in 1988. Good TV.

Ricochet vs. Ace Austin

This is Austin’s big AEW debut and doing it against Ricochet promises to make it memorable. The two had a confrontation on Wednesday, so there’s already some bad feelings in the mix. Also, I love Ricochet’s entrance music.

Austin made a pretty big splash as he entered. He looks like he’s about 17 years old though, so I’ll assume he had to put down his Switch 2 to get into the match.

Speaking of, Austin had control off the top. He and Ricochet had a lighting fast exchange, with Austin sending Ricochet out of the ring. Austin then wouldn’t let him get back in the ring, stopping him with some big kicks.

When Ricochet finally made it back in, he managed to hang Austin up on the ropes and then stood on his hair, clearly out of jealousy. Ricochet dropped elbows and knees on Austin, keeping him off his feet and sending him into the corner for a 619 and then a big elbow drop.

Back from break, Austin was headed up to the top turnbuckle, when Gates of Agony appeared at the top of the ramp. That allowed Ricochet to get a brainbuster followed by a shooting star press off the distraction. Ricochet hit a big samoan drop, but only got a two count.

Ricochet tried to position Austin for a big move, but Austin wormed out only to eat a bit kick. Ricochet went up top, but Austin returned the favor from earlier and knocked him off the ropes. Austin then hit a lalriat sending Ricochet out. Austin followed with a dive, but before he could get back in the ring, Kaun got ahold of him. Austin sent Kaun into a ring post and jumped back in.

Austin and Ricochet exchanged pin attempts until Ricochet hit a Spirit Gun and that was too much for the younger star and Ricochet got the pin.

Match Result: Ricochet defeated Ace Austin

-Backstage the Hurt Syndicate were interviewed and stated that they don’t care who wins the finals of the Tag Team Tournament because they will beat whoever it is.

Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong vs. Blake Christian & Lee Johnson

After saying so in an interview with Rene Paquette, O’Reilly and Strong are looking to re-forge some undisputed links in their new group, Paragon. A win over Christian and Johnson would be a good step forward in that, but personally I think they should go the Dark Order route and get some matching jackets. Those Dark Order jackets are sweet.

Strong and Christian kicked things off with a speedy exchange. Christian cartwheeled his way into into a double team though as O’Reilly tagged in. Johnson tried to save his partner, but Strong sent him packing.

Strong and O’Reilly double teamed Johnson in the ring, isolating him from Christian, who flew in and knocked Strong off the ring apron. Johnson claimed the momentum in the ring with a flurry of kicks on O’Reilly, blocking a hot tag to Strong by tagging in and out with Christian.

Strong and Johnson tagged in respectively and Strong hit a big shoulder slam. Strong hit a bunch of forearms and then O’Reilly joined him for some tandem knees. Christian and Johnson absoltuely flew around the ring ring until Strong and O’Reilly hit a high/low and picked up the win.

Match Result: Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong defeated Blake Christian & Lee Johnson

That match was wild! Johnson and Christian are so fast and athletic that it’s hard to keep up with them. I couldn’t tell who was legal half the time because everyone was always hitting someone. Strong and O’Reilly are great at this pro wrestling thing and I’m loving all the friendship angles. Great Stuff.

-Back from break, we saw a beat up Bandido with Stokely and FTR standing over them. Brody King showed up to avenge his partner and King and FTR fought their way out to the ring. King manhandled FTR, until Stokely hit King in the face with a fistfull of powder. FTR stole the mask of Bandido and hit a Shatter Machine on King.

-SkyFlight joined us from backstage offering Don Callis any match that he wants. Tag, singles, anything. Then they left to train.

$100K 4-Way Collision: Julia Hart vs. Kris Statlander vs. Penelope Ford vs. Anna Jay

Straight up, I have no idea why $100,000 is on the line in this match. Considering they just had a $50K challenge before Supercard of Honor (won by AR Fox) this might be a sign that Tony Khan has too much money. Also, just so everyone’s clear, I will fight myself in a match for $25K.

The rules of the match weren’t really made clear, but all four women started brawling off the top. It seems that it’s no DQ and whoever gets a pinfall first wins. That said, Jay and Statlander sent HArt and Ford out early and battled each other in the ring. Statlander went for a pin, but Hart broke it up and replaced Jay in the ring.

Hart walked the ropes into a hurricanrana (do that, Undertaker!), but Ford stacked her and Statlander in the corner. Before she could do much though, Jay came back and stacked all three for a big roundhouse kick.

Hart and Ford seemed to form a loose alliance to beat up Jay. They traded moves on here, but anytime one went for a pin, the other would break it up. Statlander re-arrived and clotheslined, well, everyone, following it up with a big suplex to Jay.

Hart and Ford tried to suplex Statlander, but but she reversed it and ht a double suplex on them both. Jay sent Statlander to the outside and then Hart did the same to Jay, leaving her and Ford to fight in the ring. Ford hung Hart up on the ropes then whipped her backwards for a stomp or three.

Jay and Ford fought to the top turnbuckle, but Statlander grabbed Ford for a suplex, but left herself open to a blockbuster from Jay. Jay began spamming leg lariats and hit a backstabber on Statlander for a two-count.

Statlander got Jay and Hart on her back, but Ford dropkicked everyone into the corner. Statlander picked up Ford, but she reversed it into a poisonrana. Hart took Ford into the corner with a lariat and then a kick for Jay. Hart set Jay up in the corner and she and Ford hit stereo moonsaults that both missed.

Hart and Jay fought back and forth with Jay hitting a Gory special, but Ford broke up the pin. Ford dragged Jay to the outside, but Statlander caught Hart in the ring with a scissor choke on her forcing her to tap out and giving Statlander the win and $100k for some reason.

Match Result: Kris Statlander defeated Penelope Ford, Anna Jay and Julia Hart

After the match, every woman on the roster arrived for some reason and a melee broke out. Suddenly though, Harley Cameron and that broke it all up.

That was an amazing match but for two things: 1) there was no need for the gigantic run-in and 2) I still don’t know why $100K was on the line. Great fun though.

-SkyFlight’s challenge was answered in the back by Hechicero, Kyle Fletcher and Lance Archer. They will see Skyflight in Glasgow (because everybody dies, and so on) and seem very confident they will beat them in the match that they will surely tell us about before next Wednesday. Right?

-Backstage, Kris Statlander was interviewed about her big win. Harley Cameron arrived to celebrate with her and so did the Death Riders. Yuta and Moxley were very friendly (which was unsettling) and congratulated Statlander before leaving. The worst part was that Harley Cameron didn’t get to talk more.

Bryan Keith vs. Juice Robinson

Keith and Big Bill were knocked out of the AEW World Tag Team Title Eliminator Tournament by the Bang Bang Gang. So the interfered with Robinson’s match against Ricochet. So tonight, they can hopefully settle the beef.

Keith and Robinson kicked things off with a perfectly cromulent chain. Things picked up during the break as Keith wrapped Robinson’s leg around the ringpost and nearly broke it in half. Back in the ring, Keith kept working the leg until Robinson threw a few elbows. Keith just wrenched his knee harder and put him in a modified Boston crab.

Back from break, Robinson reversed a Keith charge with an elbow. Keith grabbed his leg and Robinson punched him in the face a lot about it. He grabbed Keith and hit a spinebuster, but seemed to hurt his knee more than Keith.

Big Bill hopped up on the ring, so Austin Gunn got in his face. Bill threw him into the barricade, while Robinson hit a big slam in the ring, pinning Keith clean.

Match Result: Juice Robinson defeated Bryan Keith

-Backstage Rene Paquette interviewed Anthony Bowens. Bowens is tired of hearing about Max Caster. He represents the company and the fans better than anyone. Bowens was mad that Caster is going to Scotland and he isn’t. Bowens stomped off with nothing really resolved.

Technical Spectacle: Hechicero vs. Nigel McGuinness vs ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty vs Daniel Garcia

My goodness! Someone has been reading my dream journal, Mr Khan! This match is going to be insane. For those with a love of the technical aspects of wrestling, this isn’t a fantasy match, it’s a literal fantasy and I am so stoked for it! The winner of this will face off against IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Zack Sabre Jr. at Forbidden Door on Sunday, August 24 in London.

After a feeling out, McGuinness and Moriarty paried off as did Garcia and Hechicero. It was like two matches were happening at once, with McGuinness stomping the hand of Moriarty and Garcia trying to work Hechicero into a surfboard.

Moriarty hit a sunset flip on McGuinness and Garcia worked the ankle of Hechicero. Hechicero wrapped Garcia’s arm around the ropes while McGuinness sent Moriarty to the outside. Hechicero and Garcia followed them and Moriarty sent McGuinness into the barricade.

Garcia and Hechicero began chopping in the ring with Garcia sending Hechicero to the corner for some punches. Moriarty tried to break it up, but Garcia sent him packing. Hechicero grabbed Garcia and the two rolled around the ring hitting pin attempts.

On the outside, Moriarty put a full nelson on McGuinness, then flew back into the ring to try to pin Hechicero. Garcia sent Hechicero packing and turned his attention to Moriarty. McGuinness broke it all up with a stomp, leaving the other three on their backs.

Moriarty and Garcia exchanged opponents for a second before attacking each other. Moriarty got Garcia on his back, McGuinness locked around Moriarty’s leg and Hechicero went for his ankle. This lasted for a few minutes before everyone collapsed in a heap.

During the commercial, Moriarty and McGuinness fought in the ring while Garcia and Hechicero took things to the outside. Hechicero put a stretch on Garcia while McGuinness found himself in a Border City Stretch in the ring. Hechicero left Garcia and put an ankle lock on Moriarty. Then Garcia jumped back in and put an arm bar on Hechicero. The four men writhed in pain until everyone broke it up.

Hechicero wrenched McGuinness’ leg around the rope before moving on to Garcia. Hechicero went up top, but McGuninness pulled him down with a Tower of London and went for a pin. Garcia broke it up though and began chopping McGuinness. Garcia almost had him pinned, but Hechicero broke it up with a kick.

Hechicero put a sleeper on McGuinness and Garcia and Moriarty fought across the ring. McGuinness wrapped his leg around Hechicero’s ankle forcing him to break the hold. Moriarty Had Garcia on his back and Garcia wiggled free and hit a crossface on McGuinness. Hechicero had Moariarty wrapped up and McGuinness rolled through.

McGuinness had Garcia’s arm locked and Moriarty had Hechicero in a figure four, but he got a rope break. Moriarty started throwing strikes at Hechicero who got him a an absolutely brutal headscissor. McGuinness locked in an arm hold on Hechicero while Garcia worked the legs of Moriarty. No one gave up so McGuinness hit Garcia in the head and wrapped up Moriarty’s arm in a London Dungeon.

After Moriarty broke free, Garcia began slapping Hechicero, slugging it out with the luchadore. Garcia put a dragon tamer on Hechicero, while McGuinness locked in another London Dungeon on Moriarty.

Hechicero was about to tap, but Moriarty prevented it. McGuinness pulled back on the arm of Moriarty and that was it, the ROH Pure Champion was forced to tap out. McGuinness gets the victory and the shot at Zack Sabre Jr at Forbidden Door.

Match Result: Nigel McGuinness defeated Lee Moriarty, Daniel Garcia and Hechicero.

After the match, McGuinness was asked by Rene Paquette if he felt ready and McGuinness said that it was a dream match for everyone. McGuinness then took a moment to congratulate Garcia in particular, saying he gave his all. A somber Garcia went to leave the ring, but McGuinness asked him to corner for him in London. Garcia shook his hand and said that he would. FRIENDSHIP!!

Wow, that was INCREDIBLE. If they put it on Youtube or somewhere, take a few moments to check it out. I feel like I was only able to recap about 2/3rds of what was going on. It was like two matches were happening at the same time. Absolutely phenomenal, possible match of the year in my humble opinion.

Wrestling Weekly: WWE Backlash predictions, a look at AEW Beach Break Dynamite

Posted on by Victor Sosa

Image: WWE

With WWE Backlash this weekend, Les Thatcher and Vic Sosa look at the scheduled matches and give their predictions on this week’s Wrestling Weekly.

Can Randy Orton end his rivalry with John Cena by becoming WWE Champion again?

The guys also look at a busy week in AEW and what lies ahead for the Beach Break edition of Dynamite next week.

Thanks for listening and have a great weekend~!

Click here to listen (sub needed)

Daily Update: Wrestle Kingdom preview, Nigel McGuinness injury, TNA-NESN

Posted on by Dave Meltzer

Daily Update

Latest News

Latest Audio

Latest Free YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter Back Issue

Friday Update

– Right now our schedule, and this could change, is that Garrett Gonzales and I are doing a show covering the latest news and the 2024 Awards today. Bryan & Vinny are doing two shows tomorrow covering the Tokyo Dome. Right now I’ll be back with Bryan on Sunday night.  

– We’ve got a big new issue of the Observer up on the site today.

  • The end of Raw on cable television and a look back at the show, Prime Time Wrestling, where it stands among the longest running wrestling shows on television, what to expect from the Netflix audience, the first show, how much WWE was getting for Raw at its ratings peak plus the year that USA nearly canceled Raw.
  • 2024 live attendance numbers for WWE and AEW and comparisons with this past year and historical.
  • Full coverage of Worlds End, including historical notes on aspects of the show, questions on the show, the decision to cut back on matches and what was left on the cutting floor, the best multiple match days in history, best openers in history, returns, PPV numbers and other business notes.
  • A look at both Tokyo Dome shows
  • A look at the career of Sweet Daddy Siki
  • President Jimmy Carter and he and his family’s connections with pro wrestling and Jim Barnett
  • Pro Wrestling NOAH Budokan Hall coverage and attempt to make a superstar in one night
  • Stardom’s big year-end show with one of the best women’s bouts of the year
  • Janel Grant’s attorneys looking at rewriting the lawsuit against Vince McMahon, John Laurinaitis and WWE and the key reason why
  • 2024 Observer Awards ballot, detailed descriptions of the categories, the criteria and who placed top three in each category last year
  • Notes from the funeral of Rey Misterio Sr.
  • The most detailed look at the ratings from the past week
  • International TV ratings
  • Advanced ticket sales for all the major upcoming U.S. events including All In Texas, WrestleMania, Royal Rumble and more
  • CMLL huge business week
  • What promotion is spending January rematching the best matches as voted by fans for 2024
  • Major Japanese title changes as the year ends and starts
  • Two major companies losing U.S. TV this week and details of what happened
  • Shooting at independent wrestling arena
  • Deaths of two British stars of the ITV era, Tally Ho Kaye and their version of Blackjack Mulligan
  • Lots of notes on discussion points of Tony Khan’s press conferences this past week
  • What AEW idea got bounced because NXT did it first
  • Debut of Sakuraba’s son
  • Updates on WrestleMania
  • Updates of archival content on Netflix internationally and MAX in the U.S.
  • New WWE TV or streaming show being talked about
  • Survivor Series PPV number makes significant change and why
  • Notes on the must-read Inside the Ropes story on the late Axl Rotten’s days backstage regarding WWE and Mel Phillips
  • New WWE business deal
  • Full coverage of WWE holiday tour and how it compared with those the past few years

– The Los Angeles Times has a story on WWE Raw to Netflix and Monday night’s show quoting Paul Levesque and myself.

– We don’t have the Wednesday ratings numbers for Dynamite but do know the number was low. We also don’t know what it means because one would expect a low number on 1/1 against the football games, but also we don’t have info on how many regular TBS viewers chose to watch on MAX. The latter number is obviously very key as is what number if any gets out and if they are apples to apples numbers and not misleading numbers.

– The first three hour SmackDown is tonight from Phoenix. Three matches have been announced: The Usos & Sami Zayn vs. Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu & Tama Tonga, Nia Jax vs. Naomi for the WWE Women’s title, and Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Andrade in a non-title match. The show will air on the WWE YouTube page in Canada and U.K. because the Netflix coverage of SmackDown in those countries debuts next Friday. In the U.S., nothing’s changed except the extra hour on USA. They had 8,600 tickets out as of last night.

– We’re looking for reports from Phoenix on any matches not on the live TV show and other live notes to [email protected]

– We are doing polls this weekend on both Wrestle Kingdom late tonight and Wrestle Dynasty tomorrow. You can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]

– Wrestle Kingdom starts at 2 a.m. Eastern tonight and 11 p.m. Pacific on both New Japan World and Triller. Wrestle Dynasty starts at 10 p.m. Eastern (right after Collision ends on the East Coast) and 7 p.m. Pacific (head-to-head with Collision) Saturday night.

For tonight:

  • Mystery Rambo (Rumble) match. Nobody knows who is in it. The winner will get a shot at the IWGP world title, likely in February. This starts at 2 a.m. Eastern
  • Kevin Knight & Kushida defend the IWGP jr. tag titles against Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors, TJP & Francesco Akira and Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita in a ladder match. All four of these teams are great. Hopefully the ladder stip enhances rather than detracts. I expect some crazy chances being attempted before what may be a tough crowd.
  • Mayu Iwatani vs. AZM for the IWGP women’s title. Iwatani is a strong Women’s MVP candidate for this past year and had a feature movie at the theaters out on her life. AZM is great as well. I can’t imagine this not being great.
  • Ren Narita defends the New Japan World TV title against Jeff Cobb, El Phantasmo and Ryohei Oiwa.
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Evil in a lumberjack death match. Tanahashi is one of the greatest wrestlers in history bell-to-bell. But I’m so not looking forward to this one.
  • Konosuke Takeshita vs. Shingo Takagi for the AEW International title and the New Japan Never title. To say expectations are high for this is an understatement.
  • Douki vs. El Desperado for the IWGP jr.  title. These two are so underrated as workers. Because there are so many great ones, two like this often get overlooked. If you’ve never seen them, you’ll be surprised at how good both are.
  • David Finlay vs. Yota Tsuji for the Global title. They had a killer match in G-1.
  • Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiromu Takahashi. Naito is the most popular wrestler in Japan although long past his prime. Takahashi has always wanted this match and vowed this will be the only time the two meet in a singles match.
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Shota Umino for the IWGP World title. Sabre never has anything but strong matches and Umino is good, but this does not feel at all like a Tokyo Dome main event.

– The injury to Nigel McGuinness talked about in this week’s issue was a badly broken finger. He said at a recent magic show last week that the bone came through the skin. He said he got the injury by trying new things in the ring.

– Arena Mexico is loaded tonight with three match of the month winner rematches, well actually two but a third being called that. January’s Espiritu Negro & Rey Cometa vs. Akuma & Dark Magic match opens. March’s Neon & Futuro & Max Star vs Magnus & Rugido & Magia Blanca is second. That match was awesome. October’s Zandokan Jr. vs. Villano III Jr. match isn’t happening with Villano III Jr.  suffering a serious knee injury. So Zandokan is facing his brother El HIjo del Villano III. Templario defends the CMLL middleweight title against Volador Jr. The main event is Atlantis Jr. & Mistico & Legendario vs. Ultimo Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Crixus. Legendario and Crixus are getting main events on a big show coming off the Gran Alternative tournament.

– Cain Velasquez was announced as being a team manager in the GFL, the new promotion that is paying huge money for former MMA stars to fight including even Wanderlei Silva at 48 and Frank Mir. Velasquez won’t be fighting. His team will also have Javier Mendez as the head trainer. The announcement is strange because Velasquez is expected to be sentenced to prison on 1/25. GFL also announced a women’s roster headed by Paige VanZant, Julia Budd, Cynthia Calvillo, Jessica Aguilar, Pannie Kianzad, Tonya Evinger, Lvinha Souze and Olympic bronze medalist Natalie Kuziutine.

– The GFL will have a draft with the idea of coaches picking the men and women fighters for their 20-roster teams. The league is to debut in April.

– Jun  Akiyama & Konoske Takeshita teamed up at today’s DDT show at Korakuen Hall beating Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya. In addition, Chris Harrington, the Director of Business Strategy for AEW, was at the show (he’s repping AEW for Wrestle Dynasty) and ended up as the Ironmetalweight champion, which is their version of the 24/7 title. He sprayed something in the eyes of promoter Sanshiro Takagi backstage and pinned him.

– Stardom earlier today in Tokyo:

  • Mizuki Kato & Yuma Makoto defeated Rian & Honoka
  • Lady C & Nanami defeated Saya Iida & Momo Kohgo
  • Hina & Ranna Yagami defeated Zones & Soy
  • Athena & Thekla defeated Mina Shirakawa & Tay Melo when Athena pinned Melo, in her first match in 22 months
  • Saki Kashime won a Battle Royal
  • Ruaka & Rina defeated Hanan & Manami
  • Chi Chi defeated Aya Sakura to keep the Sendai Girls jr. title
  • Syuri & Tomoka Inaba & Kiyoka Kottsu defeated Momo Watanabe & Azusa Inaba & Fukigen Death in a kickingmatch
  • Mayu Iwatani & Hazuki & Koguma defeated Mei Seira & AZM & Miyu Amasaki
  • Saori Anou & Natsupoi & Sayaka Kurara defeated Dump Matsumoto (the original) & ZAP & Natsuko Tora
  • Maika & Hanako defeated Chihiro Hashimoto & Yuu
  • Tam Naano defeated Sayaka Unagi so Unagi must leave Stardom forever
  • Starlight Kid & Suzu Suzuki defeated Saya Kamitani & Momo Watanabe when Suzuki pinned Kamitani, which likely makes Suzuki the top contender for Kamitani’s World of Stardom title

– After the show earlier today in Tokyo, Thekla challenged Athena to a match for her ROH women’s title.

– Utami Hayashishita beat Sareee to win the Marigold title at the Ota Ward Gym in Tokyo today. Already heard raves about this one.

– TNA has gotten TV on NESN on Saturday nights at midnight. It seems like it’ll be used as filler programming.

– AJ Francis will be on Memphis TV this weekend.

– Awesome Championship Wrestling tomorrow night in Poughkeepsie, NY at the Mid Hudson Civic Center has Thom Latimer vs. Tommy Dreamer for the NWA title, Nic Nemeth vs. Matt Riddle, as well as Anthony Greene, Crowbar, Little Guido, Richard Holiday and appearances by Tony Atlas and Rita Chatterton.

Nigel McGuinness is open to wrestling again, ‘okay’ if he doesn’t

Posted on by Ian Carey

Nigel McGuinness is open to continuing his in-ring career but if it doesn’t happen, he’s okay with that too.

McGuinness returned to the ring for the first time since 2011 in the Casino Gauntlet match at AEW All In and then wrestled Bryan Danielson a month later at AEW Grand Slam. During a recent appearance on Talk is Jericho, McGuinness said he was happy with how his match with Danielson went.

“I was very happy. I was very happy that I got the chance to do it, that I got to face him one more time, to have that sort of experience and my daughter was in the crowd as well, which was the first time she’d ever seen any pro wrestling.”

“She gave me a nine out of ten,” he said about his daughter’s reaction to the match. “So, not five stars but getting close.”

“It would’ve been ten out of ten if it’d been in the Tokyo Dome,” Jericho added.

Jericho asked McGuinness if the match gave him closure.

“I kind of had closure before,” McGuinness responded. “They say this a lot, ‘If you want something, let it go, and the universe might bring it to you’ and I kind of feel like that’s what happened here.”

Later in the show, Jericho asked him if there’s a chance he’ll wrestle again.

“There’s always a chance,” he responded. “And certainly now that I’ve realized – I don’t want to say it’s not as difficult as I thought it was because it is obviously very difficult – but I think I didn’t give myself enough credit for being able to do it and I think I listened to too many people.”

“I said it in a promo relatively recently, you hear that nobody knows you used to be a wrestler enough, and you start to believe it. And then one day, the voice telling you is your own. And then one day, and for me this took a long time, one day you learn it was your voice all alone and nobody else gives a sh*t. So, I’m at the stage now where I feel eternally blessed to have been able to get back in the ring.”

“Certainly, I’m open to the possibility but if I don’t wrestle again that’s okay as well. As I said, I’ve had closure and we’ll see what happens, what dreams may come.”

McGuinness’ full appearance on Talk Is Jericho is available below.

Wrestling Weekly: Rivalry renewed at AEW Grand Slam & huge win for WWE’s Jey Uso

Posted on by Victor Sosa

Image: AEW

Nigel McGuinness proved he hasn’t lost a step and Les Thatcher is one proud trainer.

On a new Wrestling Weekly, Les and I discuss the match between Nigel and Bryan Danielson at this past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite Grand Slam in addition to the rest of the card.

We also look at Jey Uso’s big win for the WWE Intercontinental title on Raw and what WWE could be building toward after Bad Blood.

Thanks for listening and have a great weekend~!

Click here to listen (sub needed)

Wrestling Weekly: Looking ahead to AEW Grand Slam and big things in WWE & NXT

Posted on by Victor Sosa

Image: AEW

On a new Wrestling Weekly, we are looking ahead to the future.

Can Nigel McGuinness pull off the upset against his greatest rival in Bryan Danielson at next week’s AEW Grand Slam? We’ll make the case for that result and more as we look ahead to the show, and discuss all the talk about the WBD TV rights deal.

Plus, Les Thatcher & I look ahead to what’s been announced for this Monday’s WWE Raw and all the happenings there this week.

Thanks for listening and have a great weekend~!

Click here to listen (sub needed)

Nigel McGuinness says full-time AEW run is ‘definitely a wait-and-see’

Posted on by Ian Carey

Nigel McGuinness isn’t going to rule out a full-time return to the ring.

McGuinness will likely wrestle his first singles match since 2011 at AEW Grand Slam next week, provided his opponent, Bryan Danielson, is medically cleared in storyline. He told TV Insider recently that he wants to see how his match against Danielson goes before deciding on his in-ring future.

“It’s definitely a wait-and-see. I’m not going to rule it out,” he said. “I think for the longest time there has been the saying of never say never and never really meaning it. I think we’ll see how the match goes. If Bryan is able to compete, as he is legitimately pretty banged up. Hopefully, it comes to fruition when he honors the booking. I think we’ll see how things play out after that.”

McGuinness continued to say he felt fantastic after the Casino Gauntlet Match at AEW All In.

“People asked me after the match in Wembley how I was feeling. I felt fantastic. It will be different going into a gauntlet match like that versus a one-on-one with expectations. I feel confident about it.”

McGuinness also clarified that when he retired in 2011, it was not due to injuries but because he was not able to make a living from it.

“The truth of the matter is when I stepped away from wrestling, it was purely because I couldn’t make a living as a wrestler anymore. I could have gone back to Ring of Honor and wrestled that style, but I wouldn’t have made enough money to even afford health insurance, let alone save for the rest of my life.”

“WWE wasn’t interested in me because of an old arm injury, even though it was perfectly healed. I didn’t want to go back to TNA given what happened there. That was it. There was no AEW or anywhere else to make a living wrestling. I had no choice.”

McGuinness commented on Tony Khan’s reaction when he mentioned possibly coming out of retirement. Shortly before the 2023 AEW: All In was announced, McGuinness says he was on a flight with Khan when the topic came up.

“I can’t remember what I said. I think to the effect of if we get a sellout, then maybe I could dust the boots up. He perked up and said, ‘Would you be interested? Is that a possibility?’ We had a brief discussion at that point. I tried to hunt Bryan Danielson down that day to see if it was a possibility. That was a long time ago. Tony was ecstatic at the possibility. It just took a lot longer to come to fruition than either of us thought or planned.”

The full interview with Nigel McGuinness is available here.

 

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness made for AEW Dynamite Grand Slam

Posted on by Ethan Renner

An old rivalry will be renewed at this month’s AEW Dynamite Grand Slam as Nigel McGuinness vs. Bryan Danielson is now set for Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York.

McGuinness came out of retirement at last month’s All Out in the Casino gauntlet match for his first competition since 2011. He announced the match during an in-ring promo on Wednesday’s Dynamite after years of teasing the bout in his role as commentator on AEW programming.

In his promo, McGuinness noted that Danielson was a coward and had been ducking him, but that Tony Khan is not a coward and made the match, provided Danielson is healthy enough to wrestle on the show, a point that was repeatedly hammered on during Wednesday’s commentary.

The match does have a caveat that if Danielson is cleared to wrestle, it will be official. Based on the graphic, it’s assumed to be a non-title match.

The match was made possible as earlier on the show, Jon Moxley stated that Danielson was too injured to defend his title against Darby Allin at Grand Slam and as such, Allin should put his guaranteed title shot on the line against Moxley on the show which Allin agreed to.

Danielson vs. McGuinness is one of the most impactful rivalries of the 2000s with the duo matching up ten times in singles matches in Ring of Honor from 2006 through 2009.

The match will be just one day shy of fifteen years to the date since the final singles meeting between McGuinness and Danielson at ROH Glory by Honor on September 26, 2009.

Here’s the current lineup for September 25th in Queens, New York:

  • AEW World Champion Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness in a non-title match
  • AEW Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks (Nicholas & Matthew Jackson) defend against Will Ospreay & Kyle Fletcher
  • Jon Moxley vs. Darby Allin for Allin’s AEW World title shot

Nigel McGuinness wants to have at least one more match after AEW All In return

Posted on by Joseph Currier

After returning to the ring at AEW All In, Nigel McGuinness still hopes to have at least one more match.

McGuinness came out of a nearly 13-year retirement to compete at Wembley Stadium. He was a surprise entrant in the Casino gauntlet match that took place at All In. While speaking with Uproxx, McGuinness noted that — while he’s fully complacent if he never wrestles again — he does aspire to have at least one more match.

He mentioned Bryan Danielson as the top opponent he would like to face but also mentioned other options.

“Bryan’s certainly head of line because of our history, there’s so much emotion tied up in a match with him. Zack Sabre Jr. would be a dream match. Adam Copeland,” McGuinness said. “There are so many great talents, Lee Moriarty has been gracious enough to get in the ring with me before the shows at Collision, and that’s helped me a great deal.”

The road to McGuinness coming back to the ring began when there was “a bit of a discussion” about him facing Danielson at All In 2023, but Danielson did not compete at that pay-per-view due to injury.

McGuinness told Uproxx that the reaction he received from his hometown crowd in London is something he’ll take with him for the rest of his life.

“It gave me an incredible sense of, I wouldn’t say closure because that makes it sound like the last thing for me. But it certainly has given me peace and a sense of surreal reality that this was able to happen,” McGuinness said. “I had a lot of blessings in my life and a lot of obstacles as well. And to be as lucky as I was to have that opportunity — thanks to Tony Khan — it meant so much.”

Uproxx writes that McGuinness has “continued training as if he’s wrestling tomorrow.” McGuinness entered All In feeling like he did not need to look like a bodybuilder but needed to “look like an athlete.”

McGuinness starred for ROH and TNA Wrestling during his in-ring career. He’s done commentary for WWE in the past and is currently signed to AEW as part of the announce team for Collision.