Beretta returned from injury tonight at ROH’s Honor for All house show in Nashville, Tennessee. His return stems from an angle where Chuck Taylor defeated Bully Ray by disqualification after Ray intentionally low blowed Taylor. He continued the assault, beating him with a chain. Colt Cabana tried to make the save, but couldn’t get the job done.
It was at this moment that Baretta came to the ring and chased off Bully Ray, who threw a fit outside of the ring. The two Best Friends and tag team partners embraced after the match. The announcers sold it like he had officially returned to the company.
Beretta has been out since February with a torn triceps, which likely happened during his match against Chuck Taylor at PWG’s Neon Knights event that month. After working the NJPW/ROH Honor Rising events in Japan, he took time off to heal from the injury.
Television tapings for MLW took place in Long Island City, New York last night. Tony Schiavone and Matt Striker, making his MLW debut, did commentary for the tapings. Striker will be a regular announcer going forward.
– Fred Yehi defeated Richard Holliday
Yehi submitted Holliday with an armbar.
– Kotto Brazil defeated Myron Reed
Brazil pinned Reed with a sliced bread #2. This was billed as a middleweight match
– Jake Hager defeated Simon Gotch
Hager pinned Gotch after a kick to the face.
– Jimmy Havoc defeated Brody King
Havoc pinned King after avoiding a chokeslam and followed through with a forward roll.
– Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix defeated Drago and Rey Horus to retain the MLW tag team titles
Pentagon and Fenix retained the titles after a double team.
– PCO defeated Homicide
PCO won after a forearm shot.
– MJF defeated Joey Ryan to become the first MLW Middleweight champion
MJF won the title after pinning Ryan with a powerbomb.
– Sami Callihan defeated Shane Strickland.
– Teddy Hart and Davey Boy Smith Jr. defeated Rich Swann and ACH
Hart and Smith won after Brian Pillman Jr., who was at ringside, low blowed ACH with a cane. Hart followed with a lumbar check for the pin.
Swann appeared to be injured during the match after hitting his head on the guardrail. He was vomiting after the match and was later taken to the hospital with a concussion. Su Yung, who was supposed to do a run-in later that night with Zeda Zhang, went to the hospital with him instead. He was released later that night.
His status for Slammiversary this Sunday, where he is set to face Fenix,Taiji Ishimori and Johnny Impact (Hennigan) in a four way bout is currently up in the air.
– Low Ki defeated John Hennigan to retain the MLW championship.
– Filthy Tom Lawlor won the 40 man Battle Riot
Participants included Tom Lawlor, Ken Doane, John Hennigan, Kevin Sullivan, Jimmy Havoc, ACH, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Teddy Hart, Rich Swann, Pentagon Jr., Jimmy Yuta, Low Ki, Fallah Bahh, Brody King, the Blue Meanie, Jake Hager, Swoggle, Lance Anoa’i, PCO, Konnan, Joey Ryan, Sami Callihan, Jason Cade, MJF, The Tahitan Warrior (replacing Rich Swann), Headshrinker Samu, Barrington Hughes, Rey Fenix, Head Shrinker: Samu, Kotto Brazil, Aerostar, Drago, MJF, Leo Brien, Michael Patrick, Richard Holliday, Rey Fenix, Vandal Ortagun, The Dirty Blondes and Simon Gotch.
Lawlor last eliminated Hager for the win. He will be able to challenge for the MLW title anywhere at any time.
This match, along with the middleweight title match and Brazil vs. Reed will be part of a two hour special that will air a week from tonight.
A battle between the present and the future takes place tonight at Korakuen Hall.
Kazuchika Okada will battle Hangman Page in the main event. This is Page’s first G1 tournament, and at 26, has a big future ahead of him. Okada, who has yet to reach his peak, will look to gain his first win in the tournament after losing his first two bouts.
A well-established feud between Hiroshi Tanahashi and Bad Luck Fale is set for the co-main event. These two have battled off and on for years. Tanahashi is an expert at having great matches with just about everyone, so this should be no different. Togi Makabe vs. EVIL, YOSHI-HASHI vs. Minoru Suzuki and Michael Elgin vs. Jay White rounds out tonight’s A Block action.
Join us for live coverage starting at 5:30 a.m. EST. There will be English commentary with Kevin Kelly and Rocky Romero calling the action.
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Zack Sabre Jr. and Taka Michinoku defeated Toa Henare and Shota Umino
Interestingly, while SANADA and Sabre are set to face each other tomorrow, they aren’t facing off in tag team action. This was a match to let Sabre pick apart Umino, and he did, submitting him with a rear naked choke.
Kota Ibushi and Yujiro Takahashi defeated Toru Yano and Gedo
Basic tag match, same as the usual fare. Gedo replaced Jado for whatever reason; he was originally set for this match. Takahashi pinned Gedo with the pimp juice DDT.
Tetsuya Naito and SANADA defeated Juice Robinson and David Finlay
Naito made it clear he was after Robinson’s had as he set his focus on the injured hand the entire match. SANADA and Finlay worked well together as Naito was destroying the hand. SANADA caught Finlay, spun him around them submitted him with the skull end.
Guerillas of Destiny defeated Kenny Omega and Chase Owens
Omega and Owens wasted no time in attacking the Guerillas of Destiny and gained control early. Tonga avoided a pescado from Omega and worked him over while Loa was in the ring with Owens. Omega came in and ran house on both, but was taken out by a gun stun from Tonga. Loa then pinned Owens with the sitout piledriver.
After the match, Omega was tending to Owens when Tama Tonga returned to the ring and laid him out with another gun stun, setting the stage for tomorrow.
Tomohiro Ishii and YOH defeated Hirooki Goto and SHO
Another formulaic tag team match, though action was good. SHO worked a lot with YOH and the two people that’l square off tomorrow (Ishii and Goto) did their thing. After scoring a really cool near fall, SHO rammed YOH with a knee and Ishii soon followed with a brainbuster for the win.
A Block:
Jay White defeated Micheal Elgin
Elgin takes out White early with a huge suicide dive that takes him into the barricade. Elgin stands on chairs in the crowd and looks to suplex White into the chair, but White counters and takes him down back to the outside of the ring.
After taking a beating, White starts mounting a comeback. Elgin strikes with a superkick and blocks a rolling suplex attempt from White by taking him to the top rope and plants him with a superplex. Elgin heads back to the top and hits a big splash.
They make it to the apron where White smacks Elgin on the apron with a complete shot. White went for a kiwi crusher but it looked like Elgin countered and suplexed him to the floor. They trade offense in the ring until Elgin connects with a roaring elbow, a huge lariat and a tiger bomb for a great nearfall.
White gets planted with a buckle bomb, but White takes the ref with him. That allows him to low blow Elgin and plants him with the bladerunner for the win. A great match with a very tired finish. They absolutely did not need a ref bump here and I don’t know why they did it yet again.
Minoru Suzuki defeated YOSHI-HASHI
YOSHI-HASHI brought it to Suzuki early, but Suzuki quickly put himself in the driver’s seat, smashing his elbow with a chair and and pelting him with chairs in the crowd.
Suzuki continues to dominate in the ring until YOSHI-HASHI grabs a leg and DDT’s Suzuki. Suzuki grabbed YOSHI-HASHI’s arm and torked it, applying an armbar. YOSHI-HASHI counters and grapples, going for the butterfly lock. Suzuki finally makes it to the ropes as YOSHI-HASHI laid him out with a backbreaker.
Suzuki fights out of a karma attempt and flattens YOSHI-HASHI with a dropkick. After peppering him with slaps, Suzuki drops YH with the Gotch piledriver and picks up the win. Really good, hard hitting match. YOSHI-HASHI plays an underdog very well and this match delivered.
EVIL defeated Togi Makabe
They started off by trading a number of forearm shots. EVIL on the outside grabs a chair, puts it on Makabe’s neck and smashes it with another chair. He took Makabe into the crowd and tried for a running lariat, but Makabe blocked his attempt and EVIL ended up walking right into his own.
EVIL cuts off Makabe back in the ring and starts wearing him down. EVIL connects with the Darkness Falls but Makabe fights back after a STO attempt. He takes EVIL down but EVIL struck back with a lariat and pinned him with the STO. Good match; nothing special, but a pretty good back and forth brawl.
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Bad Luck Fale by disqualification
Tanahashi rushed over to Fale and immediately connected with a dropkick, focusing on one of Fale’s knees. Fale eventually did gain momentum by throwing Tanahashi into the crowd. While Fale distracted the referee with a chair, Tanga Loa jumped Tanahashi on the outside.
Fale worked on Tanahashi for a while before Tanahashi fired back with shots to the previously injured knee. He locks in the Cloverleaf but Fale reverses forcefully, sending Tanahashi to the floor. Tanahashi tries to focus on Fale’s knee, but Fale takes him out with a clothesline and a samoan drop.
Fale set up for the Bad Luck Fall but Tanahashi countered with a roll up. Tanahashi reversed a suplex into the twist and shout and followed with a sling blade. Fale dodged a high fly flow attempt. Fale hit the grenade, but got a near fall. Fale went for the Bad Luck Fall but Tanahashi countered with a sling blade. He connected with the high fly flow, but guess what? Tama Tonga pulled out the ref for the 236,234th time in this tournament.
Loa and Fale accidentally collided with one another when they were looking for a double team, but Tama Tonga came back in and laid out Tanahashi with a gun stun. Fale went to cover, but the most amazing thing happened. Red Shoes decided he had enough, flipped off the Bullet Club and disqualified Bad Luck Fale for all the interference. Amazing. Match itself was pretty good.
The Tongans put the boots to Tanahashi after the match, standing tall.
Kazuchika Okada defeated Hangman Page
Things start off pretty slow, some good back and forth between the two. They go to the outside where Okada sends Hangman into the barricade. Page fights back by laying out Okada with the buckshot lariat through the barricade. Back in the ring, he misses a moonsault attempt as Okada rolls out of the way.
Page lands a package tombstone piledriver as he looks to build momentum. He landed a giant neckbreaker from the top rope as Page followed that with another big moonsault, this time connecting. Another buckshot lariat follows.
Page went for the rite of passage but Okada counters with a roll up. Okada went for a German suplex but Page landed on his feet. Okada countered Paige’s attempt at offense with a tombstone. The two start battling, with Okada landing the dropkick. He tries for a rainmaker, but Page counters with a superkick.
Page connected with a roaring elbow and goes for the rite of passage but Okada connected with a rolling lariat and hit the rainmaker for the win. Great match, Page held his ground with Okada, looked great and they had a really nice back and forth match.
Okada was happy about his win after the match, his first in the tournament so far. He started to cry, then cut himself off and said the G1 is just getting started.
Daniel Bryan has expressed optimism that he’ll resign with WWE.
In an interview with The Business Times during WWE’s recent stop in Taipei on July 1, it was mentioned that Bryan is currently in negotiations with WWE for a new contract, which is set to expire on September 1. Bryan said in the interview that chances were good when it came to re-signing with the promotion.
“The wrestling world is an interesting world right now,” he said. “But I love working with WWE and my wife is a part of WWE and so there’s a good chance I’ll re-sign.”
Before he was cleared to wrestle back in March, Bryan hinted that if he wasn’t cleared to return while under contract to WWE, he would likely leave to resume his wrestling career on the independent scene. Medical Director for WWE Joseph Maroon eventually did clear Bryan, who returned to the ring at WrestleMania 34 teaming with Shane McMahon to defeat Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn.
Bryan is next expected to team with Kane to take on The Bludgeon Brothers for the SmackDown tag team titles tomorrow at Extreme Rules.
Tonight marks the beginning of the twenty eighth Grade One Climax tournament.
We’re kicking things off with a bang in the A block with five big matches. Kazuchika Okada, who will be in one of his first high profile matches since losing the IWGP title to Kenny Omega last month, will square off against fellow CHAOS member Jay White. The latest addition to CHAOS has a chip on his shoulder, especially after losing the IWGP United States title to Juice Robinson. He should have no problem bringing it to the former world champion despite being stablemates.
Another high profile match tonight pits Hiroshi Tanahashi against Minoru Suzuki, who have had some genuine classics in the past. We also might get an answer from Bad Luck Fale, as he challenges one of the Bullet Club members who were taken out last week by the Firing Squad, Hangman Page. Other matches for tonight include Michael Elgin vs. EVIL and Togi Makabe vs. YOSHI-HASHI.
Join us for live coverage starting at 5:30 a.m. Eastern time. There will be English commentary.
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JADO & HIROOKI GOTO DEFEATED REN NARITA & TOA HENARE
This was your standard opening match on a tournament show, maybe slightly below the usual quality level.
Jado and Henare started out. Jado used some chops and a knee lift to send Henare into the corner, but Henare fought back with a series of headbutts. Narita tagged in, while Goto and Henare brawled on the floor.
Jado and Goto double teamed Narita, but Narita hit Goto with a dropkick, and tagged Henare back in. Henare hit a shoulder block on Goto and knocked Jado off the apron. Narita and Henare worked over Goto, and made a cover, but Jado made the save.
Goto went for ushigoroshi, but Narita slipped out. While Jado and Henare brawled to the floor, Goto hit an ushigoroshi on his second attempt, and pinned Narita.
SHO & TOMOHIRO ISHII DEFEATED YOH & TORU YANO
An interesting matchup here, with CHAOS stablemates. This went about ten minutes, and was a solid, all-action bout.
SHO and YOH were in first. They started with some chain wrestling, and a clean break. SHO hit a dropkick, and tagged in Ishii. Ishii lit up YOH with chops, and no-sold YOH’s counter strikes. Ishii ducked a dropkick, but YOH hit a dragon screw and tagged Yano.
Yano removed the corner pad, but Ishii reversed and whipped him into the exposed buckle. Yano came back with an inverted atomic drop, and sent Ishii into the buckle with a slingshot. Yano hit a brainbuster, and tagged YOH.
YOH hit a footstomp on Ishii, and SHO jumped in to make the save for Ishii. YOH hit a knee lift and a neckbreaker, but SHO cut him off with a german and a backstabber. Ishii hit YOH with the vertical brainbuster, and got the pin.
TAMA TONGA & TANGA LOA DEFEATED JUICE ROBINSON & DAVID FINLAY
This was quick, and mostly served just to give a little context to Juice and Tonga’s match tomorrow.
Loa and Finlay started the match. Loa used a simple, power-based attack to work over Finlay, before tagging in Tonga. Tonga hit a dropkick, then tagged in Loa, as they methodically beat down Finlay.
Finlay hit a suplex on Tonga, and made the tag to Juice. Juice ran wild on Loa, but Tonga cut him off. The match broke down as all four guys jumped in. While juice and Loa went to the floor, Finlay went to the second rope. Tonga caught him coming off with a gun stun, and got the pin.
TAKA MICHINOKU & ZACK SABRE JR. DEFEATED YUJIRO TAKAHASHI & KOTA IBUSHI
They had a nice match, but Ibushi and Sabre really need more time to build their matches, and this was not the time or place for that.
Sabre and Ibushi started with some chain wrestling. Sabre pie-faced Ibushi after a clean break, then ducked a spinning kick from Ibushi and rolled to the floor. Back inside, they worked a knuckle lock. Sabre hit a bridging suplex without breaking the hold, and Ibushi hit a monkey flip, again, not breaking the hold. Both bridged out simultaneously, which was a cool spot.
Ibushi got the best of a striking battle, before tagging Takahashi. Michinoku tagged in and hit some strikes, before tagging Sabre back in. Ibushi hit TAKA with a dropkick off the top, then a plancha to the floor, leaving Sabre and Yujiro in the ring.
Sabre used an octopus, then hit a Michinoku Driver for the pin.
TETSUYA NAITO & SANADA DEFEATED CHASE OWENS & KENNY OMEGA
This was very good, and laid the foundation for tomorrow’s Omega vs. Naito main event.
Naito and Omega had an intense staredown, allowing their partners to jump in and attack. SANADA sent Owens and Omega to the floor, then hit a plancha. Naito briefly worked on Omega inside, but Owens tripped him from the floor, allowing Omega to take over.
Omega used a suplex and a series of clotheslines, then tagged in Owens. Owens tried to apply the paradise lock on Naito, but got confused as to how to apply it, allowing Naito to attack. SANADA tied up Owens with the paradise lock, while Omega hit a frankensteiner.
Naito and Omega brawled to the floor, while SANADA hit skull end on Owens, and got the tapout.
A BLOCK MATCH: TOGI MAKABE DEFEATED YOSHI-HASHI
This was better than it had any right to be, and both guys did an excellent job selling the intensity and importance of the tournament.
They traded forearm shots at the opening bell. YOSHI-HASHI sent Makeabe to the floor after a corner clothesline, then sent Makabe into the barricade twice, the idea being that this is a new, more ruthless YOSHI-HASHI.
YOSHI-HASHI hit a brainbuster for a nearfall, then went back on the attack with strikes. Makabe made a comeback, hitting a chop and a powerslam. He hit a corner clothesline, and a northern lights suplex for a nearfall. They traded strikes, before Makabe hit a lariat, leading to a double down.
Makabe teased a top rope german, but YOSHI-HASHI escaped and hit a powerbomb for a nearfall. He followed with a lariat and a meteora for a nearfall. He went for the butterfly lock, but Makabe slid out. YOSHI-HASHI applied it a second time, and Makabe just reached the ropes.
YOSHI-HASHI hit a headhunter off the top for a nearfall. He went for karma, but Makabe escaped. He hit a lariat and a german, but YOSHI-HASHI stood out of the suplex. They hit simultaneous forearms to the chest, but Makabe got the best of the exchange.
Makabe placed YOSHI-HASHI on the top rope, then hit a spider german. He followed with a king kong kneedrop off the top, and picked up the pinfall.
A BLOCK MATCH: HANGMAN PAGE DEFEATED BAD LUCK FALE BY DQ
They had one of the better Fale matches you will ever see, but the match was just a backdrop for the Bullet Club vs. Firing Squad storyline.
Fale jumped Page at the opening bell, and sent him to the floor. Page made a quick recovery and hit a suicide dive, but Fale was intent on making this a brawl, and sent Page into the crowd. Fale continued the beatdown inside, until Page made a comeback. He hit Fale with strikes and a sunset flip, then side-stepped an elbow drop and hit a standing shooting star.
Tanga Loa came down to ringside, which served to distract Page, allowing Fale to regain control. Fale hit a splash. He went for an avalanche, but Page ducked him, and clotheslined him to the floor. Page teased a dive, but Loa grabbed his foot. Page hit Loa, then hit a moonsault off the top to the floor, wiping out both Fale and Loa.
Back inside, Page hit a slinghsot lariat for a nearfall. He went for the rite of passage, but Tama Tonga ran in and nailed Page. Fale, Loa and Tonga beat down Page, and the referee called for the bell and the DQ.
The Firing Squad teased choking Page with the noose from his entrance gear, but Omega and Ibushi ran in to make the save.
A BLOCK MATCH: MICHAEL ELGIN DEFEATED EVIL
They had a very good, hard-hitting match.
They traded chops and brawled to the floor. Elgin sent EVIL into the barricade, but Elgin missed a clothesline and hit the post. EVIL placed his arm in a chair, then Pillmanized it against the post. Back inside, EVIL continued working on the right arm, and hit a standing senton for a nearfall.
Elgin made a comeback, and used the right arm in his attack, selling after every strike. Elgin hit a suicide dive and a slingshot foot stomp, then hit a delayed bridging german for a nearfall. Elgin hit a series of forearm shots, and a running clothesline into the corner. He went for a press slam, but EVIL hit slid out and hit a superkick.
EVIL hit a bulldog, then applied an armbar, but Elgin rolled out. He hit a pump kick, but EVIL went back to work on the arm. He clotheslined it over the top rope, then jumped off the apron and and rammed the arm over the barricade.
Back inside, EVIL hit a seated senton. They hit a pair of simultaneous lariats, then EVIL hit darkness falls for a nearfall. He went for everything is evil, but Elgin slipped out and hit a falcon arrow, leading to a double down.
They traded lariats. EVIL went for the STO, but Elgin hit a superkick. EVIL countered with a huge german, but Elgin hit a rebound lariat. Elgin hit a superplex for a nearfall. Elgin hit a buckle bomb, and after a series of reversals, hit a razor’s edge, and an Elgin bomb, and got the pin.
A BLOCK MATCH: HIROSHI TANAHASHI DEFEATED MINORU SUZUKI
This was excellent. Suzuki looked like a killer, but Tanahashi caught him with a dragon screw late, and did just enough to get the win.
They had a brief striking battle, before Suzuki went after Tana’s bad right knee. He used a low dropkick and a heel hook. Tana fought to reach the bottom rope, but Suzuki rolled out and maintained the hold back in the center of the ring. Suzuki transitioned to an ankle lock, before going back to the heel hook. Suzuki briefly tied up the right arm with a kimura, then switched to a kneebar, then to an STF, then back to a kneebar, before Tana finally reached the ropes.
Suzuki continued to attack the right leg with kicks, until Tana hit a dragon screw, and followed up with a dropkick in the corner. He hit a flying forearm, but missed a senton off the second rope, allowing Suzuki to hit a penalty kick. Suzuki went back to the heel hook, then applied a figure four, until Tana reached the ropes, forcing a break.
Suzuki hit a series of slaps to the face, then applied a rear naked choke. He went for the Gotch, but gave it up after Tana put up a fight. Tana executed a cradle for a nearfall, then used a crucifix to pick up another. He hit a dragon screw and sling blade for a nearfall, as Suzuki sold the damage from the dragon screw.
Tana went to the top and hit two high fly flows, and got the pin.
A BLOCK MATCH: SWITCHBLADE JAY WHITE DEFEATED KAZUCHIKA OKADA
They had a very good match, but it was hurt by the lack of heat, and all the shenanigans at the finish.
White offered a handshake. Okada reluctantly accepted, but White tried to turn it into a blade runner. Okada countered and went for the rainmaker, but White slipped out. White hit a series of chops, but Okada used a headlock takeover. He dropped White off the top rope after holding a headlock to the count of four, then sent White to the floor.
Okada sent White over the barricade and teased a running dropkick over the railing, but White walked away before Okada went for it. Okada hit a pump kick, and continued to punk out White on the floor, but White countered, and hit a snap suplex on the floor. White continued the assault, repeatedly sending Okada into the barricade and the ring frame.
Back inside, White hit a suplex into the corner, which didn’t look fun for Okada’s neck. White tried to smother Okada with the ring skirt, then used a headlock. White hit a pair of kicks and a pumphandle backbreaker for a nearfall. White used a last chancery, until Okada reached the ropes, forcing a break.
Okada made a comeback, hitting a series of hard forearm shots and a DDT. Okada kipped up, and hit the running back elbow. He followed up with a flapjack for a nearfall, then hit a crossbody off the top, while shouting “Scooby Dooby Doo.”
White came back and hit a snap suplex, and a pair of rolling underhook suplexes. He hit a vertical suplex and went for blade runner, but Okada slapped on the cobra clutch, which continues to get a poor crowd response. White slipped out and applied a head and arm submission, but Okada reached the ropes, before hitting a neckbreaker, which led to a double down.
Okada hit a huge shotgun dropkick, sending White into the corner. Okada hit a scoop slam, and the top rope elbow drop. Okada did the rainmaker pose, but White dropped him and hit a bridging suplex for a nearfall.
They exchanged chops and uppercuts in the center of the ring, before White hit a lariat for a nearfall. White hit a series of strikes, then sent Okada over the top to the floor with a suplex. White hit a snap suplex into the barricade, right in front of the announce table, playing off the spot where Jim Ross got hurt last week at the Cow Palace.
White sent Okada inside, then grabbed a chair. He shoved Red Shoes down and swung the chair at Okada, but Okada ducked, and dropkicked the chair into White’s face. Okada hit a second dropkick. As Okada hit the rainmaker, White hit Red Shoes with a backfist, knocking him out.
With the referee down, White hit a low blow. At the 25 minute mark, White hit a chair shot to the head, then hit blade runner as Red Shoes recovered, then picked up the pinfall.
White cut a promo after the match, and declared that CHAOS was now his, and ran down Okada.
If you wanted another match for Extreme Rules, you got one.
Andrade Cien Almas will once again battle Sin Cara, this time as part of the preshow kickoff set to air before Extreme Rules. WWE confirmed the news this afternoon on their Twitter account. This would be a rematch from this past Tuesday’s match on SmackDown where Almas defeated Sin Cara pretty decisively after hitting the double knees in the corner.
This brings the match total for this Sunday’s Extreme Rules event to 12, including two kickoff matches. Here is the full card:
AJ Styles vs. Rusev for the WWE title
Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley
Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax in an Extreme Rules match for the Raw women’s title
Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins in a 30 minute Iron Man match for the Intercontinental title
Carmella vs. Asuka for the SmackDown women’s title where James Ellsworth will be suspended above in a shark cage
Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the United States title
Bludgeon Brothers vs. Team Hell No for the SmackDown tag team titles
Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens in a steel cage match
Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin
Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt vs. the B-Team for the Raw tag team titles
Brock Lesnar’s next WWE match is set for next month’s SummerSlam event.
Dave Meltzer has confirmed that Lesnar will be back in the ring for WWE’s premier summer show. It isn’t known who he will face. A multi-man match was originally set for Extreme Rules that would have determined the next contender for the Universal title, but that was canceled as part of a storyline where negotiations for Lesnar’s next title defense fell through. Roman Reigns and Bobby Lashley, who were the first two announced for the bout, will instead battle in a singles match.
Lesnar made headlines this past weekend at UFC 226 when he responded to a challenge by new UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. The two got into a brief shoving match before being seperated. It was later revealed that Lesnar had returned to USADA testing and would be able to fight starting in January.
Despite the high profile altercation, there was no mention of Lesnar in this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw. In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, it was said that this was a Vince McMahon call as they want to focus on stars that will be at this Sunday’s Extreme Rules event.
The infamous “Black Saturday” episode of World Championship Wrestling will be this week’s Hidden Gem upload on the WWE Network, according to a report.
WWE Network News, who has broken similar stories in the past, first reported the news. While episodes of World Championship Wrestling have already been uploaded to the WWE Network, nothing has been uploaded before November 1985.
Viewers were in for a shock on July 14, 1984 when their usual World Championship Wrestling action was completely overhauled. Instead of Gordon Solie and wrestling stars from Georgia Championship Wrestling, Vince McMahon and the superstars of the World Wrestling Federation filled the hour time slot instead. While the Georgia show usually featured hot in-ring action and interviews, McMahon used the Saturday time slot mainly as a recap show that only featured the occasional in studio squash match.
Declining ratings due to viewership outrage over the drastic overhaul eventually led McMahon to sell the time slot to Jim Crockett Promotions, who took over in March 1985.
Takeshi Morishima is set to return to the ring by the end of this year.
He made an appearance during a Riki Choshu produced event held earlier today and announced his return to pro wrestling after a three year absence. Interestingly, his return bout will not be for Pro Wrestling NOAH, where he spent most of his career, but instead will be for another Riki Choshu produced event called Genesis on October 15. His opponent has not been named.
Morishima retired back in April of 2015 after doctors told him that he had abnormally high glycated hemoglobin, which could lead to diabetes. He was set to have a retirement match later that year, but NOAH announced in December that his contract was expiring and that they would no longer have a retirement show for him. Since retiring, Morishima largely removed himself from pro wrestling.
Originally an All Japan dojo graduate, Morishima jumped with the rest of the roster to form Pro Wrestling NOAH in 2000. After a run in Ring Of Honor, where he won their world championship, he was brought back to Japan and had a successful career, winning the GHC Heavyweight title three times.
A big Bullet Club confrontation, along with a number of high profile title matches headline tonight’s G1 in San Francisco event at the historic Cow Palace arena.
Kenny Omega will defend his newly won IWGP Heavyweight title against someone that’s been a thorn on his side for most of this year, Cody. The two have butted heads over the leadership of the Bullet Club, and after a win by Cody at Supercard of Honor Omega looks to even the score tonight.
Other big title matches tonight include Jay White defending the IWGP United States title against Juice Robinson, Hiromu Takahashi defending the IWGP Jr. title against Dragon Lee in what promises to be a spectacle, The Young Bucks defending the IWGP tag team titles in a rematch against former champions EVIL and SANADA and Hirooki Goto defending the NEVER Openweight title against Jeff Cobb.
Join us for live coverage tonight starting at 8 p.m. ET. The show will air live on AXS TV and on New Japan World for subscribers outside the United States. The show will appear on demand for US viewers at a later date.
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Guerillas of Destiny, Meng, Yujiro Takahashi and Chase Owens defeated Roppongi 3K, Rocky Romero, YOSHI-HASHI and Gedo
Haku and YOSHI-HASHI started things off. Heels isolated Romero, working him over. Haku even planted him on the mat with a piledriver. He came back by taking out Owens and Takahashi and tagged in Yoh for the hot tag.
It boiled down to Gedo and Tama Tonga. Gedo had Tonga down but Meng came in and applied the Tongan death grip. He threw Gedo to Tonga, who laid him out with the gun stun for the win. Pretty good opener, did exactly what was needed.
Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano defeated Minoru Suzuki and Zack Sabre Jr.
Minoru Suzuki/Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano/Zack Sabre Jr. paired off here. Yano was very over with the crowd and was into all of his stalling and other gimmicks. Sabre and Suzuki worked over Yano, rolling around and both applying submissions at the same time.
Ishii was tagged back in as the two struck each other hard with shots. Suzuki took Ishii down. They tagged in their partners, with Yano undoing the turnbuckle. It turned into a wild brawl. Yano tried to low blow Sabre, but Sabre used his leg strength to block it. He turned around and was right in the line of fire for Ishii’s lariat. Yano followed up with a cradle for the win.
Solid match, weird finish. I wonder where they’re going here with this result. Ishii and Suzuki have been feuding a lot in recent months.
Hangman Page and Marty Scurll defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi and KUSHIDA
Heavyweights and junior heavyweights paired off with one another. They targeted KUSHIDA early with a superkick on the apron followed by Page’s shooting star shoulder block. Page and Scurll work really well as a tag team.
Lots of great back and forth action. It boils down to KUSHIDA and Page. The latter tried for the Rite of Passage but KUSHIDA countered with a roll up. Page cut him off again, then after a tilt-a-whirl transitioned into the Rite of Passage and connected for the win. I liked this a lot, all four guys are great and Page and Scurll in particular came off as a very polished tag team.
Hirooki Goto defeated Jeff Cobb to retain the NEVER Openweight title
Cobb launched Goto with a giant belly to belly. Goto takes down Cobb and grinds him with a headscissors lock. Cobb fres back with a dropkick and a giant spinning backdrop suplex.
Cobb hit a delayed fireman’s carry slam and went for a standing moonsault but Goto rolled out of the way. After some back and forth, Cobb connected with a giant lariat and the standing moonsault for a nearfall. Goto countered and went for a sleeper. He rallied back, laying out Cobb with the ushigoroshi. He soon followed with the GTR for the win.
Weird match. I felt like it was building well, then it just ended in the most anti-climatic manner possible. I’ve seen way better Cobb and Goto matches this year, and this was ok, but felt way too short.
The Young Bucks defeated SANADA and EVIL to retain the IWGP tag team titles
Good back and forth early. SANADA put Nick in the Paradise lock as he and EVIL worked him over. Bucks made a great comeback. EVIL and SANADA laid out Nick with the Magic Killer for a nearfall.
The Bucks went for a superkick on EVIL but instead struck the referee. EVIL laid them out and introduced a chair that soon wound up on EVIL’s face. SANADA came in, however, and together the two hit an assisted spike tombstone on Matt. They followed with another magic killer, but he kicked out.
Nick came back in and the two started to make their comeback. They took out SANADA with a superkick then took out EVIL with the Meltzer Driver for the win. A pretty good title match. Bucks looked great tonight, both in selling and execution.
Kazuchika Okada and Will Ospreay defeated Tetsuya Naito and BUSHI
Okada came out to a new remixed version of his theme song. He also didn’t have his robe and had new pants.
Like in the previous match, heavyweights and junior heavyweights paired off. Okada was tagged in and went after Naito, launching off with a big crossbody. Naito cut him off and went for the Destino but Okada blocked it and went for a tombstone. Both escaped from various signature moves until Okada plants Naito with a neck kneebreaker.
BUSHI and Ospreay were in the ring. Okada took out Naito as Ospreay started to build momentum after avoiding the MX. He connected with the stormbreaker for the win. A good tag team match with some fun interactions between Okada and Naito.
Hiromu Takahashi defeated Dragon Lee to retain the IWGP Jr. title
Dragon Lee started off hot coming of with a huge dive to the floor, wiping out Hiromu on the outside. Dragon Lee controlled the match until Hiromu sent Lee to the outside and hit a huge running dropkick into the barricade. He followed with a giant senton to the floor.
The two ended up perched on the top rope. Hiromu hovered over the apron as Lee hit a giant foot stomp that sent them both tumbling out of the ring. They beat the count and soon after start trading some crazy German suplexes. They keep trading over and over until finally Hiromu breaks the cycle with a lariat.
Some vicious exchanges between the two leads to a belly to belly by Hiromu into the turnbuckle. Lee came back with a standing spanish fly. Hiromu catches Lee in a triangle. Lee struggles to break free, deadlifting him and dumping him head first on the floor in a super scary spot. I have no idea how he didn’t break his neck from that.
Lee lifted him up for the powerbomb but Hiromu countered with a Canadian destroyer. He then followed with the time bomb for the win. Just as crazy and incredible as one would expect. I think a couple of their bouts were better in terms of heat, but this was still a completely crazy match.
Juice Robinson defeated Jay White to win the IWGP United States title
The two exchange some ground and pound before Robinson sends White to the floor. Robinson dives out to the floor then throws White into the barricades, one time sending him into the crowd. White grabs him while he was posting and side suplexes him to the outside.
White retaliates by throwing Robinson into barricades on the outside. Back in the ring, he works on the injured hand, including sending him to the floor and applying the Indian deathlock, clutching the injured wrist. White then takes him to the ropes and drapes him in the middle, exposing the chest to chops.
Robinson comes alive with a spinebuster but White takes him down with an STO. He takes him to the outside into the barricade where Jim Ross and Josh Barnett are and suplexes Robinson into the barricade, sending Jim Ross to the floor. Josh Barnett gets up and confronts White, even getting into the ring.
Once things settled down, Juice starts to come alive back in the ring as he takes White to the top rope, launching a big superplex. Juice went for the pulp friction, but White countered with the crucifix elbows. White went for the blade runner, but Robinson escaped and went for the pulp friction again. White pushed him into the referee and low blowed him, but Robinson retaliated by pelting him with the cast and landing the pulp friction. He took too long to cover, however, and White kicked out.
Robinson went for the pulp friction but White cut him off and hit several half nelson suplexes. He went for the blade runner, but Robinson countered into a cradle and scored the win, becoming the third United States champion. Great match — Robinson is an awesome babyface and felt like someone who could headline shows in the future. White still lacks in certian areas, but always delivers in these kinds of matches.
Kenny Omega defeated Cody to retain the IWGP title
They start things off with some back and forth, neither really gaining any momentum until Omega sends Cody to the outside. Cody shields himself with Brandi as Omega misses a dive, allowing Cody to wipe him out with a dive. Omega fights back, taking Cody to a barricade, putting him on top of a table and, with the Bucks stabilizing the guardrail, hops off and puts Cody through the table.
Cody cuts him off back in the ring and starts wearing him down. He takes down a second table that was set up by Omega but doesn’t see Omega leap off the top rope with the Rise of the Terminator. He connects with a v-trigger in the ring and a snap dragon suplex. Cody counters with one of his own. Omega went for a sunset flip, but Cody countered with a figure four leglock, which Omega manages to reverse.
Back on the outside, Omega introduces a ladder. Cody introduces a chair, which the referee sees and confiscates. As he does that, Cody cuts off Omega and body slams him on top of the ladder. He then takes him to the outside, where he reverses a suplex and sends Omega stomach first on top of the ladder.
Meanwhile, Cody sets back up the table and sets up the ladder in the ring to build to a big spot. Matt Jackson tries to talk to Cody, but they get into it. The distraction leads to Omega fighting back as they both fight on top of the ladder. Omega cuts him off and looks to send him through the table to the floor, but at the last second Cody reverses it, suplexing him on top of the ladder to the ring.
Cody exits the ring and grabs the IWGP title. The referee grabs it from him as Omega strikes back with a reverse rana. Ref bump allows Cody to strike with the disaster kick. He decides not do it and instead goes for the crossroads. Omega avoids it the first time, but then connects for a near fall.
Coming back to life, Omega started to connect with some v-triggers. He wears him down, then grabs him and powerbombs him through the table on the outside…that was the idea, anyway, but the table didn’t break and mostly landed on the floor. Cody is able to make it back in the ring, but is clearly out of it. Brandi tries to shield him from a v-trigger but Cody fires back with a lariat.
Omega hits the butterfly piledriver, one more v-trigger then hits the One Winged Angel for the win. A great main event. It’s not like your typical main in New Japan as it was a bunch of smoke and mirrors, but still told a good story and the big moments of the match mattered and came off big.
Omega helped Cody to his feet after the match. The two stared at one another, then Cody exited as Omega and the Bucks celebrated in the ring.
Omega cuts a promo, saying that each and every one of us is human and Cody’s effort was nothing short of valiant. Each and every one of us needs to stand by good people. He will give you the very best matches from each member of the roster. Thank you for the positivity and changing the world.
Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa and Haku come out to celebrate with the Golden Elite as they all pose on the stage. But out of nowhere, the Tongan contingent beat down the Bucks and Omega, taking them back to the ring. They take off their Bullet Club shirts and reveal new shirts that label them as the Firing Squad. They continue the assault as the rest of the Bullet Club (Hangman Page, Marty Scurll, Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi) come out to make the save, but despite the number advantage are unable to help the Golden Elite.
Cody limps back to the ring as Tama Tonga hands him a chair to strike Omega. He grabs it and acts like he’s about to lay him out, but instead attacks the Firing Squad. Tama Tonga cuts him off with the gun stun and lays him out. The attack caps off with Haku laying out Omega with a piledriver. The new group heads to the back, with Roa making things clear: there is no leader, they are their own group and this is family.
Back in the ring, Kenny Omega and Cody reconcile as the remaining members of the Bullet Club hug it out. Despite what just happened, the Bullet Club has finally healed all its wounds and they are back as one cohesive entity.
Deonna Purrazzo will no longer compete at the upcoming All In event in Chicago on September 1st.
Cody Rhodes first broke the news yesterday on Twitter when someone asked about a potential match.
“Deonna is unable to do All In” he replied. “We love her. She’s phenomenal. She’s kicking ass/breaking arms no matter where you see her.”
Purazzo herself later confirmed on Twitter today that she wouldn’t be able to attend.
“It’s been incredible to see first hand what @MattJackson13, @NickJacksonYB, & @CodyRhodes envision for pro wrestling” she said. “I am so sad I won’t be wrestling at #AllIn but my heart will be there September 1st.”
Purrazzo, 23, is a standout independent wrestler trained by Rip Rogers and Damian Adams. She’s appeared both on WWE television and NXT as an enhancement talent. Squared Circle Sirens reported back in May that she has reportedly signed a WWE developmental deal, though that has yet to be confirmed.
The first ten participants for this year’s PWG Battle of Los Angeles have been revealed.
The most interesting name announced was the first: Pierre Carl Ouellet. The former Quebecer Pierre has had something of a career revival as of late, putting on a memorable performance at this year’s Joey Janela Spring Break event against WALTER.
Other international talent announced include longtime British indy star Jody Fleisch, WXW Unified Champion Ilja Dragunov, CMLL star Puma King and Chris Brookes, also from the UK wrestling scene who has wrestled for RPW and IPW, as well as CZW in the United States.
PWG regulars Brody King, Joey Janela, David Starr, Robbie Eagles and Rey Horus have also been confirmed.
Here are the full list of participants confirmed for the tournament so far, which takes place on September 14, 15 and 16 at the Globe Theater in Los Angeles, CA:
Here are results from the second night of the WWE United Kingdom Championship Tournament tapings at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England:
– Ligero defeated Wild Boar
– Moustache Mountain (Tyler Bate and Trent Seven) defeated Undisputed Era (Roderick Strong and Kyle O’Reilly to win the NXT tag team titles
Moustache Mountain won the titles after a stomp assisted burning hammer.
– Charlie Morgan defeated Killer Kelly
Morgan pinned Kelly after reversing a suplex into a small package.
– Noam Dar defeated Travis Banks, Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews to become the number one contender for the WWE UK title
UK GM Johnny Saint came out and made the match a fatal four way, adding Dar who is returning from a knee injury. Andrews hit Banks with a stundog then missed the shooting star press. Dar came in and pinned Banks with a leg lariat.
Joe Coffey and Mark Coffey ran in after the match and lay everyone out except Dar.
– Adam Cole defeated Wolfgang to retain the NXT North American title.
Cole pinned Wolfgang with a knee trembler to retain.
– Ricochet and Aleister Black defeated Velveteen Dream and EC3
Black pinned EC3 following Black Mass.
– Shayna Baszler defeated Toni Storm by countout to retain the NXT Women’s title
The two went to the outside, with Baszler winning by countout after choking Storm. Baszler returned to the ring after the match and laid out Storm with the Kirifuda clutch.
– Pete Dunne defeated Zack Gibson to retain the WWE UK title
Dunne retained the title after pinning Gibson with the Bitter End. This would mean the next UK title match is Pete Dunne vs. Noam Dar.
The show ended with Triple H cutting a promo saying this is the next chapter in UK professional wrestling, this is your brand and this is NXT.
A new report indicates that Sami Zayn will be taking time off to heal from nagging injuries.
Pro Wrestling Sheet reported today that Zayn is off the road currently to heal from knee and shoulder injuries that he has been wrestling with for a while. He will be reportedly travelling to Birmingham, Alabama to get the injuries checked out.
Before being called up to the main roster, Zayn injured his shoulder in a match against John Cena on WWE Raw for the United States title back in 2015. He spent the next seven months on the shelf before returning to NXT, eventually being called up at the 2016 Royal Rumble.
Zayn lost to Bobby Lashley this past Sunday in what was considered a largely one sided match that ended their feud. He had been paired with Lashley following WrestleMania, most infamously bringing Lashley’s sisters to Raw in a much derided segment.
There is no current timetable for when Zayn will return.
WWE announced the following on their website: “WWE has come to terms on the release of William Morrissey (Big Cass)”. No further explanation was given regarding his departure from the company.
Dave Meltzer notes that Vince McMahon called a private meeting at SmackDown in Toledo today and fired Cass.
Pro Wrestling Sheet reported last month that Big Cass got heat after going off script in a segment where he was to beat up a little person who was dressed up like Daniel Bryan. According to the report, officials only wanted to have the performer laid out with a big boot. Cass wanted to do something more physical, and despite Vince McMahon telling him otherwise, Cass pummeled the performer with punches. The footage was later edited off social media sites.
Despite the reported heat, he had continued his feud with Bryan over the last month, culminating with their match at Money in the Bank where Bryan submitted Cass.
Cass first signed with the WWE in 2011, working both in Florida Championship Wrestling and NXT. He was paired with Enzo Amore while in NXT and was called up to the main roster in 2016. After splitting with Enzo last year, he had been working as a singles wrestler. He had just returned to in-ring action in April following a torn ACL back in August.
