In a long rumored move, Warner Bros. Discovery announced on Monday that they intend to split up their various broadcast entities and other properties into two separate publicly traded companies by mid-2026.
One, called Global Networks, will house their various networks like TBS and TNT (the home of AEW’s weekly content), Discovery, Discovery+ and Bleacher Report. This will be headed up by Gunnar Wiedenfels who is WBD’s chief financial officer.
The other, Streaming & Studios, will house the WBD movie studio, DC Studios, the WBD television production arm, HBO, the soon-to-be renamed HBO Max streaming service where AEW programming can be seen, and their TV & movie libraries. This will be headed up by David Zaslav, current WBD president and CEO, whom Tony Khan frequently mentions when talking about their partnership.
This is unlikely to affect AEW in the short term as they are in year one of their latest WBD TV contract that runs through 2027 with an option for 2028. The next development in that partnership is the ability to offer pay-per-views on Max which is expected for 2025. Whether this intended split will change that timeline or eliminate it altogether remains to be seen.
Ourand noted that at least four companies are in the mix with a split in two packages appearing to be the likeliest outcome. It could be just one if one of the big streamers wants everything for themselves, leaving the sport “underexposed” — something TKO’s Mark Shapiro has cautioned about in the past.
He said renewal talks with incumbent ESPN “appear to be the furthest along” which would include retaining content for their linear networks in addition to their new direct-to-consumer ESPN streaming service launching this year.
He stated that both Amazon Prime and Netflix are in talks with the former “most interested in UFC’s pay-per-view business.” That is currently controlled domestically by ESPN where they pay UFC for the rights to sell PPVs for whatever price they choose. Of note, Prime began offering AEW PPVs earlier this year.
Ourand then noted that AEW partner WBD (Warner Bros. Discovery) is the “wildcard in the negotiations” as they have been acquiring various sports rights to help replace the NBA which has officially departed the network as of this week. He noted they would air fights on their linear channels in addition to HBO Max, but did not mention if there is any interest in PPV — a technology they are building to offer AEW PPVs.
If they were to acquire UFC rights, it’s assumed that AEW Collision would need to move from Saturdays on TNT or potentially go head-to-head on a different WBD station which seems very unlikely. Given the company’s occasional Thursday Collision due to NBA/NHL playoff games and to avoid WWE PLEs, moving to Thursdays would appear to be the most logical for a variety of reasons.
Ourand stated his sources indicate any deal closure is still nearly two months away. UFC’s current $1.5 billion deal with ESPN signed in 2018 ends at the close of 2025.
While media and fans try to dissect WWE Raw on Netflix viewership numbers, there has been no update from either AEW or WBD on how Dynamite or Collision has been performing on Max since the shows began simulcasting on January 1st.
That is, until now.
Fightful Select reported Friday that according to WBD sources, AEW “has been among the top streamed live sports events” since the simulcast kicked off this month. The report didn’t clarify whether that was a cumulative number or on a weekly basis.
The Max service currently offers live NBA, NHL, and the new women’s basketball Unrivaled league.
AEW Dynamite kicked off the Max simulcast era on January 1st with every subsequent Dynamite (TBS) and Collision (TNT) available both live and on-demand. The entire 2019 run of Dynamite and pay-per-views are also available for subscribers.
AEW and WBD signed a new media rights deal in the fall of 2024 with three years guaranteed and WBD holding the rights to extend for a fourth. Annual values have been reported anywhere from $150 million to $185 million, but were never formally announced by either side.
In a press release on Thursday, Max promoted AEW’s upcoming arrival to the streaming service and provided some details on what library content will be available at launch.
AEW Dynamite and Collision will be simulcast live on Max starting with the Fight for the Fallen edition of Dynamite from Asheville, North Carolina on New Year’s Day 2025. The shows will still air live on their regular broadcast homes (TBS and TNT respectively) in addition to this new way to watch.
Dynamite and Collision will also be available to watch on demand on Max after their live airings.
The press release notes that all Dynamite episodes from 2019 — along with all AEW pay-per-views from that year — will be available for Max subscribers to watch when AEW launches on the service on January 1. In addition to that, so will the past couple of months of AEW television programming. The remainder of the library will be added “on a rolling basis.”
“AEW Dynamite, AEW Collision, AEW Rampage and all AEW pay-per-view library content through the end of 2024, representing more than 700 hours of AEW action, will be made available on Max on a rolling basis,” the press release said. “At launch, all AEW Dynamite episodes and pay-per-views from the company’s inaugural 2019 year will be available, as well as more than two months of the most recent AEW programming that aired across WBD’s networks (select episodes will be made available shortly after launch).”
The Max component is part of AEW’s new media rights deal with Warner Bros. Discovery. It will include AEW PPVs being distributed on Max starting later in 2025, but a date has not been set for that aspect yet because Max is still developing the technology for it. Further information will be announced in the coming months.
“As previously announced, AEW and WBD will also collaborate to distribute AEW live pay-per-view events on Max, with all marketing and promotions of those PPV events exclusively centered on Max,” WBD stated. “AEW PPV distribution on Max will begin later in 2025, with additional information and pricing to be shared in the coming months.”
AEW and WBD are promoting this as a new era for the promotion with the start of the Max deal:
With Bryan Alvarez out directing a Suessical, Filthy Tom Lawlor and Mike Sempervive are here to talk about Saturday’s AEW WrestleDream, the ongoing Cung Le v. UFC suit, Jesse Ventura, baseball fans hate TNT Sports, and more!
On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer gave an update on how much AEW is being paid by Warner Bros. Discovery in its new media rights deal.
The deal was announced on Wednesday and is a three-year agreement with an option for a fourth year. Meltzer reports that the deal is worth $555 million over those three years at an average of $185 million per year.
“$555 million over three years,” Meltzer said. “Average $185 million a year. It starts lower, the middle year will probably be about that, and then the third year would be up from that. And the fourth year would be way up. I’m presuming it includes the buying of the pay-per-view in that figure.”
Dynamite and Collision will remain on their respective homes of TBS and TNT in the deal. Those shows will also stream live on streaming service Max for U.S. subscribers starting in January 2025.
Starting later in 2025, AEW PPVs will be offered live on Max at a “discounted price per event.” All marketing and promotions of the PPVs will be exclusively centered on Max. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO of U.S. Networks Kathleen Finch told the Hollywood Reporter that the launch date for AEW PPVs on Max is to be determined because the technology to offer the shows is still being developed.
While AEW head Tony Khan will not confirm that a new TV rights deal with WBD has been struck, he isn’t shying away from confirming that AEW has a future with the media empire.
Khan did an extended interview with Busted Open Radio to hype this Wednesday’s Grand Slam in Queens, New York, and was asked about the future and where things are at WBD. Recent reporting by Puck’s John Ourand has the two sides agreeing to a three-year deal with an option for a fourth in the range of $170 million annually that could be announced as early as next week.
“I know they have been reporting things that are very interesting. There are a lot of reports and rumors. I have not confirmed and Warner Brothers has not confirmed anything officially,” he said, adding he has not leaked any info to Puck. “I think we have a really exciting future there. I can say with 100% certainty, AEW and TBS and TNT are here to stay for a long time.”
The current deal between AEW and WBD reportedly expires at the end of the year. Ourand also mentioned that AEW is also pitching a package primarily to broadcast channels which have been rumored to be Fox — the former home of WWE SmackDown. Khan has yet to address those rumors.
On Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer gave an update on where things stand with AEW’s impending new media rights deal.
Meltzer reports that AEW & Warner Bros. Discovery have reached an agreement for their new deal. It looks like the deal will include a pay-per-view component, though Meltzer doesn’t know the exact specifics regarding how PPVs will be handled.
“Everyone knows, but the WBD deal is a done deal,” Meltzer said. “There are going to be changes, from what I gather there is going to be a pay-per-view component in this deal. Exactly what it is, I don’t know. But if they’re doubling the number [of the past media rights deal] and WBD is getting the rights to the pay-per-views, that makes doubling the number make more sense in a lot of ways — if they get that. I don’t know exactly if it’s going to be how UFC does it, if it’s going to be how WWE does it. But there is going to be a deal with Max with the pay-per-views in some form, is what it looks like.”
Since AEW applied to trademark “AEW Shockwave” last week, there have been rumors that AEW is in discussions for an additional show that would air on a Fox network. Meltzer does not believe that a deal between AEW and Fox is done yet. If the new show does come to fruition, Meltzer suspects it would not be on the main Fox network, instead airing on a different Fox channel or streaming platform.
“The Fox deal is not done. I know a lot of people have been talking about the idea on the Fox network. I would strongly suspect — I do not know — but I would very strongly suspect it would not be on the Fox network,” Meltzer said. “It would probably be another station, whether it’s FS1, whether it’s a different station, whether it’s a streaming component, I don’t know. And I don’t believe it’s a done deal either. I think it’s something that they’re working on. Although as far as the Shockwave thing, they did trademark the name of Shockwave. So they have to be pretty darn close to a deal to actually go to the lengths of trademarking the name.”
AEW head Tony Khan spoke to the media for an hour Thursday ahead of Saturday’s All Out, giving updates about his impending TV rights renewal with likely partner WBD, injury updates on Powerhouse Hobbs and Mark Davis, and Sting’s status with the company.
He also shared what he considered an “insane stat.”
The full audio from the call can be heard below.
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On the TV rights end, Khan continued to heavily suggest that they will be renewing with WBD and are continuing to have “great conversations” with them. No timetable was given, but he said recent media reports about the deal are accurate without specifically saying which ones.
He again said the deal is in the red zone and will be a “huge touchdown” for AEW. It’s just waiting to be pushed in.
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Khan said he’s been learning a lot about AEW fans during the TV rights negotiations, including some information he didn’t even know about his company.
He then talked about how much wrestling fans have changed in terms of knowing the news and the business. He said it’s a golden age now and AEW is a huge part of the wrestling conversation now. Historically, the avidity has never been higher: a word he used several times during this portion of the call.
One stat he made a point to call “insane:” Of all the world’s sports leagues, the league whose fans spend the most per month on streaming video is AEW. He did not cite his source or other details on where that stat came from.
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Khan was asked if Sting remained under any kind of AEW contract given his recent appearance at All In. Khan didn’t answer directly, saying Sting was in the “AEW family” and was also recently backstage in Dallas, Texas, during their residency in Arlington.
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He also gave updates on two injured talents in Powerhouse Hobbs and Mark Davis. He confirmed Hobbs had been backstage recently to visit doctors, and that Davis had surgery on his arm. He didn’t provide any timeline for when either could be back, nor if Davis would be paired up with Aussie Open partner Mark Davis upon his return.
Other notes:
Asked about a potential women’s Casino gauntlet match perhaps at All Out, Khan said he thinks it would good to build one up and advertise it in the future. He wouldn’t commit to doing one this weekend.
Asked about their relationship with GCW and Josh Barnett, Khan said he likes and respects Barnett a lot but doesn’t really know the GCW team that well.
– Afa Anoa’i just passed away today at the age of 81. He had a number of serious health issues in recent months. This comes less than two months since the death of brother and tag team partner Sika. We send our best to the family. We are also apologetic for reporting this yesterday on X. Afa & Sika were a legendary tag team in the 70s and early 80s and part of one of the largest pro wrestling families in history, which include WWE stars Roman Reigns, The Usos, Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu and countless others including Umaga, Rikishi, Yokozuna, Tonga Kid, Afa Jr., Black Pearl, Zilla Fatu, Rosey and Gary Albright. What a week with the deaths of Kevin Sullivan and Dennis Brent.
– Garrett Gonzales and I will be doing our week in review show today. If you have any questions for the show on topics in the current issue you can send them to [email protected] and in particular anything on Kevin Sullivan. The weekend show with Bryan Alvarez will be tomorrow night.
– The new issue of the Wrestling Observer is up on the site right now. We have a giant story on the life and career of Kevin Sullivan. It’s one of the biggest stories we’ve done in recent years covering this very unique person who wore a lot of hats in the industry and had a lot of very significant influence on aspects of the genre.
Among the other topics covered:
Tony Khan announces the second AEW stadium show for 2025 and we talk about reports of a third one as well.
Previewing All In
Update on Bash in Berlin including a new main event not announced yet and the latest on the planned stipulation
Bryan Danielson talks about his life and career
AEW and Triller doing PPV bundles
U.S. Olympic wrestling roundup as well as Hiroshi Tanahashi wants to recruit three Olympians
Update on G-1 Climax tournament and all the bouts of the past week
A look at the career of Yoshinari Ogawa who retired this past week
A look at Dennis Brent, who passed away, a behind-the-scenes figure who was very close to many insiders in the wrestling community and had worked for and with World Class, Mid South, WCW, JCP and WWE before a tragic case of MS ended him in wrestling.
Update on legal wranglings involving Janel Grant, Vince McMahoin and Dr. Carlon Colker
The most detailed look at the TV ratings from the past week, weekly rankings, comparisons with a year ago, segment-by-segment, nightly placings competition and more
Rundown from another big show at Arena Mexico
More on the CMLL Grand Prix show featuring wrestlers from all over the world
Return date announced for one of the biggest international stars
Exactly what the issues are with AAA and Penta & Fenix and why their talent isn’t allowed to appear on the same shows in Mexico
Update on the Stardom Five Star Grand Prix
Dragon Gate Dangerous Gate update
N-1 tournament update
What WWE NXT star is getting over in Japan
Grandson of one of the biggest wrestling stars of all-time now training to wrestle
El Hijo del Santo retirement tour update and he talks about when he was negotiating to go full-time with WWE
MJF vs. Michael Oku match story and angle with Ospreay
GCW hits Japan
PPV updates for recent pro wrestling and boxing events
Tony Khan talks more on big announcements
Update on Young Bucks
Penta & Fenix update
Behind the making of MJF vs. Oku in England
Advances for upcoming WWE & AEW shows
Streaming numbers and international TV numbers
Update on Conor McGregor fighting
Former MMA fighter involved in a shooting death of a man who was friends with the person who was accused of kidnapping his son
Heyman talks his ECW run
Ronda Rousey on Vince McMahon
Jesse Ventura and his attempt to unionize wrestlers
– Cain Velasquez pleaded no contest in his attempted murder case today in San Jose. His trial was scheduled to start in three weeks. The plea bargain agreement was that the charge of premeditated attempted murder was dropped. If he had been convicted of that charge he would face mandatory life in prison, although with the possibility of parole. Judge Arthur Bocanegro will decide on his punishment at a date to be determined. The District Attorney in the case did say Velasquez would be facing prison time. What hurt Velasquez in this case is that a search of his phone found he was looking up searches for “sexual assault case where the victims family fights back” and “sexual assault cases where victims family retaliates,” which showed this was not a momentary rage but something he had been looking up before he chased down Harry Goularte, who was accused of molesting his young son at a daycare center. Velasquez chased a car with Goularte in it for 11 miles and fired shots which hit Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender in the arm. He was arrested and spent eight months in jail before being released on bail. After release he did one pro wrestling match for AAA and had been training fighters at the AKA School in San Jose.
– Kathleen Finch, the chairman and CEO of WBD’s U.S. networks, which include TBS and TNT, announced that she would be retiring at the end of this year. Channing Dungey, the Chairman and CEO of Warner Brothers Television Group, will be her successor. Finch was and is a big proponent of AEW and always talked positively publicly about the product and its ratings success. We are told that this is not expected to affect the contract negotiations for a new deal or AEW in general’s day-to-day business. Finch started as a programmer for the Food Network in 1999 after working 12 years as a reporter for CBS News.
– Tony Khan said that AEW will run a show in England in 2025. He said All In would be in Texas but they would have something in London as well. He didn’t specify the venue.
– We send our best wishes to Bobby Fulton of the Fantastics, who has been battling cancer on and off for years. Fulton had surgery on Tuesday to repair his throat from the years of cancer treatments and during the surgery had heart complications. He will be seeing a cardiologist shortly. He has been responding to people on Twitter wishing him the best.
– FuboTV’s lawsuit against ESPN, FOX, WBD and Hulu to block the debut of Venu, the streaming service that would have ABC, all the ESPN channels, TBS, TNT, TNT Sports, FOX, The Big 10 Network, FS1 and FS2 that was due to debut next week, won the first round today, blocking the launch of the service. ABC Disney, WBD and FOX have said that they will appeal this ruling.
– SmackDown tonight from Orlando, which will be sold out with more than 13,500 fans, has DIY vs. Street Profits with the winners getting a tag title shot, Kevin Owens vs. Grayson Waller, Andrade vs. Carmelo Hayes, Blair Davenport vs. Naomi, Tiffany Stratton throws a party for Nia Jax, and Roman Reigns appears.
– Rampage tonight on TNT at 10 p.m. has Mark Briscoe & Tomohiro Ishii & Orange Cassidy vs. The Butcher & The Outrunners, Nyla Rose vs. Erica Leigh, Nick Wayne vs. Kip Sabian and Top Flight vs. MxM Collection. This was taped Wednesday so Mansoor is not going to be in two places at the same time in real life. It’ll only appear that way, since he’s in the semi at Aena Mexico tonight as well.
– There are less than 30 tickets remaining for the Q&A show that I’m doing with Bryan Alvarez on the morning of All In. The event takes place at 11 a.m. at the Tattershall Castle steamship in downtown London across from the London Eye and a five minute walk from Big Ben and Parliament. For more info, click here.
–Nic Nemeth vs. Josh Alexander in a one hour Iron Man match for the TNA title headlines the 8/30 special from Louisville.
– We’re looking for reports from these weekend shows
SmackDown tonight in Orlando (non-Smackdown matches only)
AAA TripleMania tomorrow in Mexico City
WWE house show tomorrow in Lakeland, FL
AEW in Arlington, TX (matches not on Collision)
WWE house show Sunday in Estero, FL
We’re looking for results, finishes and highlights to [email protected]
– We’re doing weekend polls on both the Saturday and Sunday New Japan Sumo Hall G-1 semifinals and finals shows, so you can leave a thumbs up, down or middle, best and worst match for each show to [email protected].
– The start times for the New Japan G-1 semifinals with Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Shingo Takagi and David Finlay vs. Yota Tsuji is 4 a.m. Eastern tomorrow morning. The finals are 2 a.m. Eastern very late tomorrow night.
– Dana White announced today that Alex Pereira vs Khalil Rountree Jr. for the light heavyweight title will headline the 10/5 UFC PPV in Salt Lake City, UT. Rountree as the challenger was a big surprise, as most figured Magomed Ankalaev to be the top contender. Rountree is coming off a suspension after testing positive for the steroid androsterone, which was found to be something he accidentally ingested after they tested one of his supplements. Also announced was Raquel Pennington defending the women’s bantamweight title against Julianna Pena, Kayla Harrison vs. Ketlen Vieira, Mosvar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling, Mario Batista vs. Jose Aldo, Steven Wonderboy Thompson vs. Joaquin Buckley and Roman Dolidze vs. Kevin Holland.
– Harrison being booked on the show with a bantamweight title fight looks to lead to her, if she wins, getting a shot at the winner and making that clear that night.
– Mistico & Esfinge & Atlantis Jr. vs. Valiente & Ultimo Guerrero & Gran Guerrero headlines Arena Mexico tonight. Mansoor & Rocky Romero also face Angel de Oro & Niebla Roja.
– Tuesday in Guadalajara is the League of Nationals Cibernetico match with Barbaza, Dulce Gardenia, Elemental, Furia Roja, El Hijo de Villano III Jr., Zandokan Jr., Mistico, Soberano Jr., Star Black, Villano III Jr., Akira (MLW), Dark Magic, Flip Gordon, Ikuro Kwon (MLW), Kyle Fletcher (AEW), Mansoor (AEW), Okumura, Robbie X (RevPro), Romero and Yutani.
– UFC 305 is tomorrow our time from Perth, Western Australia:
6:30 p.m. on ESPN+
Jesus Aguilar vs. Stewart Nicoll
Ricky Glenn vs. Sng Kenan
Tom Nolan vs. Alex Reyes
ESPN2 and ESPN +at 8 p.m. Eastern
Herbert Burns vs. Jack Jenkins
Casey O’Neill vs. Luana Santos
Josh Culibao vs. Ricardo Ramos
Junior Tafa vs. Valter Walker
PPV at 10 p.m.
Li Jingliang vs. Carlos Prates
Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs. Tai Tuivasa
Dan Hooker vs. Mateusz Gamrot
Steve Erceg vs. Kai Kara-France
Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title
– Natsuko Tora will defend the World of Stardom title against Tam Nakano on 8/31 in Tokyo.
– Mina Shirakawa will replace Stephanie Vaquer on the 8/24 RevPro show at the Copper Box in London.
– TripleMania on Triller is tomorrow night with a Domed cage and the last person left loses their hair or mask with Dark Cuervo, Dark Ozz, Cibernetico Fiscal, Abismo Negro Jr., Psicosos (not the 90s Psicosis), Panic Clown, Dave the Clown and Murder Clown, plus Nic Nemeth defends the AAA Mega title against Alberto El Patron, Vamapiro faces a mystery man in a casket mach, Negro Casas & Psycho Clown defend the AAA tag titles against Dr. Wagner Jr. & Galeno del Mal and Raj Dhesi (Jinder Mahal) & Satnam Singh, Komander defends the AAA cruiserweight title against Matt Riddle and Laredo Kid, Flammer defends the Reina de Reinas title against Faby Apache and a Copa Bardal (Royal Rumble rules, all men in are mysteries)
– Sam Adons and Kenzo Suzuki have indicated being on the show.
– Satoshi Kojima defends the MLW title against Ares on 8/31 in San Juan, Costa Rica.
– Aja Kong makes her debut for West Coast Pro tomorrow night at the Queen of Indies show in San Francisco at the United Irish Cultural Center. The Queen of Indies is a one-night tournament with first round matches of Kylie Rae vs. Masha Slamovich, Hyari vs. Maya World, Great Sakuya vs. Brooke Havok and Amazona vs. Keyra Strong.
– Trevor Lee and Kylie Rae have been added to Scott D’Amore’s Maple Leaf Wrestling promotion debut shows on 10/19 and 10/20 in Windsor ONT.
– Actor Jeff Goldblum, who guest hosted Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday, and had John Cena as a guest, mentioned watching Bruno Sammartino, Haystacks Calhoun, Killer Kowalski and Bobo Brazil as a kid on his black & white television set.
– Jonathan Gresham will be appearing on this week’s Memphis Wrestling TV show.
– Garrett Gonzales and I have our week in review show later this afternoon. You can also send in questions during the live airing. Bryan and I will be back tomorrow night with our weekend show covering UFC, AEW, G1, SmackDown and CMLL.
Update on SummerSlam and All In, lineups, possible additions, things expected to happen, business notes on both shows, ticket sales and where they will stack up in the all-time historical records. We also look at the stories behind the matches.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan meets with Nick Khan and Paul Levesque regarding bringing WrestleMania to the city.
Notes on the first week of the G1 Climax tournament, stories, standings, business and quality of the matches.
Notes on week two of G1
Part one of our story on the life and career of Canadian star Leo Burke, a Stampede Hall of Famer and how he shaped the career of Bret Hart, and trained some of the biggest names in wrestling
Vince McMahon’s lawyers try and shut down a motion by Janel Grant’s lawyers
TNA Slammiversary, its biggest crowd in years and how it was done, PPV numbers update, and full show coverage
Coverage of Dragon Gate & DDT’s biggest shows of the year
The most detailed look at the ratings of all the major pro wrestling shows, placings, competition and segment-by-segment
What the CMLL current era compares to in Mexican history
A look at the big matches coming over the next month including AEW stars and World Grand Prix participants
Stardom PPV shows this weekend
50th anniversary celebration
One of the top legends of this era pushing his farewell tour
Bloodsport notes
Next few weeks of TNA television
Update on AEW TV negotiations
Lots of AEW injuries
Tony Khan talks about strippaing titles vs. waiting for champions to recover
Darby Allin talks current scene
Ticket sales for upcoming AEW & WWE shows
International TV ratings and streaming numbers
Cung Le lawsuit update
Top ten male and female fighters of the 21st century
Jake Paul vs. Mike Perry and update on celebrity fights and how they are doing
– Meiko Satomura will have a press conference at 11 p.m. Eastern time tonight which is believed to be her retirement announcement and farewell match or matches. (thanks to Jose Gonzalez)
– As expected WBD has filed suit against the NBA claiming breach of contract and failure to negotiate in good faith after the NBA turned down WBD’s accepting to match the right package of Amazon Prime. WBD is arguing that Max is equivalent to Amazon Prime as both are major streaming services plus they offer television. The NBA is claiming WBD matched the money but can’t match the exposure.
– ROH Death Before Dishonor on Honor Club with the pre-show starting at 7 p.m.
MxM in a match
Dustin Rhodes & Marshall & Ross Von Erich vs. John Silver & Evil Uno & Alex Reynolds — winning team faces Matt Taven & Mike Benett & Roderick Strong on Battle of the Belts tomorrow night to fill the vacant ROH trios titles
Komander vs. Beast Mortos
Atlantis Jr. vs. Lio Rush vs. Shane Taylor vs. Lee Johnson vs. Brian Cage vs. Johnny TV for the ROH TV title
Taven & Bennett defend the ROH tag titles against Kyle O’Reilly & Tomohiro Ishii
Diamante vs. Leyla Hirsch Texas death match
Wheeler Yuta vs. Lee Moriarty for the ROH Pure title
Billie Starkz vs. Red Velvet for the women’s TV title
Athena vs. Queen Animata for the ROH women’s title
Mark Briscoe vs. Roderick Strong for the ROH title
A note is that AEW has gotten CMLL to agree to allow its talent on the same show as AAA talent at least in this instance. Komander is the AAA cruiserweight champion on the same show as Atlantis Jr, one of CMLL’s biggest stars.
– SmackDown tonight is a taped show since the crew is in Japan right now. Lineup has:
LA Knight vs. Santos Escobar
Bayley & Michin vs. Nia Jax & Tiffany Stratton
Gauntlet with Angel & Berto, Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa, Street Profits, Pretty Deadly, Apollo Crews & Baron Corbin and Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson for a title shot at DIY in the future.
– Rampage tonight at 10 p.m. on TNT:
Two Ring Rampage Rumble Battle Royal, winner gets an AEW title shot on 9/25 at Arthur Ashe Stadium
Kris Statander vs. Leila Gray
Lance Archer vs. ?
Dutch & Vincent vs. Private Party vs. Kyle Fletcher & Rush vs. Outrunners
– Regarding the note in the new Observer on Nick Khan selling $4,887,506 of TKO stock this past week we noted it was partially to pay taxes. Those close to the situation say it was entirely to pay taxes on stock grants and that all of Khan’s stock sales to date have been only to cover taxes.
– WWE results from earlier today at Sumo Hall in Tokyo:
Shinsuke Nakamura (as a babyface) & Kevin Owens & LA Knight defeated Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa & Solo Sikoa
Liv Morgan defeated Iyo Sky to retain the world women’s title
Sami Zayn defeated Dominik Mysterio to keep the IC title
Damian Priest defeated Rey Mysterio to keep world heavyweight title
Finn Balor & JD McDonagh defeated New Day to keep the world tag titles
Gunther defeated Jey Uso
Cody Rhodes defeated AJ Styles to keep the undisputed WWE title
Rossy Ogawa was at the show walking around in the crowd.
At the show, Cody Rhodes was presented with the robe and hat that Dusty Rhodes wore in his 1979 NWF title challenge in Tokyo against Antonio Inoki. The robe had been on display at the Super Inoki Exhibition.
– UFC 304 is tomorrow from Manchester, England:
Prelims on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. Eastern
Shauna Bannon (115) vs. Alice Ardelean (116)
Mick Parkin (264) vs. Lukasz Brzeski (235)
Sam Patterson (170) vs. Kiefer Crosbie (a171)
Muhammad Mokaev (126) vs. Manel Kape (125.5)
Oban Elliott (170) vs. Preston Parsons (169)
ESPN2 at 8 p.m. Eastern
Modestas Bukauskas (204) vs. Marcin Prachnio (205)
Caolan Loughran (136) vs. Jake Hadley (137) – Hadley missed weight and had to forfeit 20 percent of his purse
Molly McCann (116) vs. Bruna Brasil (116)
Nathaniel Wood (145) vs. Daniel Pineda (146)
PPV at 10 p.m. Eastern
Arnold Allen (145) vs. Giga Chikadze (146)
Christian Leroy Dunca (185) vs. Gregory Rodrigues (185)
Paddy Pimblett (156) vs. Bobby Green (154.5)
Tom Aspinall (251) vs. Curtis Blaydes (256) for the interim heavyweight title
Leon Edwards (170) vs. Belal Muhammad (169) for the welterweight title
– Dana White said that he would announce the complete September PPV card from The Sphere in Las Vegas today.
– Beth Phoenix is no longer under contract to WWE.
– There was apparently a Ticketmaster snafu for a few hours today which listed tickets for All In for just the service charge. We are told the tickets would not be honored and AEW officials had gotten the mistake rectified.
– Paddy Pimblett has signed a new UFC contract this week.
–Mistico & Volador Jr. & Mascara Dorada vs. Penta & Fenix & Pac headlines Arena Mexico tonight in what should be a great match. The show also has Templario & Titan vs Rocky Romero & Ultimo Guerrero and Angel de Oro vs. Star Jr in the Leyenda de Plata tournament final. They are expecting a sellout of 15,000 fans for the show to see Penta & Fenix’s first match at Arena Mexico in many years.
– CMLL posted the Misticio vs. Volador Jr. title match from Puebla for subscribers to their YouTube page. As if there isn’t enough other wrestling to watch the next two days.
– The CMLL women’s tag title that was held by Stephanie Vaquer & Zeuxis will be filled by a tournament with eight teams. The first two rounds will be on 7/30 and the championship match will be on 8/6, all at Arena Mexico. Teams are Skadi & Kira, Olympia & Hera, Metalica & Reyna Isis, Sanely & Nautica, Dark Silueta & Valkiria, Zeuxis & Persephone, Tessa Blanchard & Lluvia and Catalina & Princesa Sugehit.
– G1 continues from Nagasaki tonight at 3 a.m Eastern and midnight Pacific
Katsuya Murashima & Shoma Kato vs. Konosuke Takeshita & Henare
El Phantasmo & Jado vs. Oleg Boltin & Toru Yano
Jeff Cobb & Francesco Akira vs. Yuya Uemura & Taka Michinoku
David Finlay & Gedo vs. Ren Narita & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
Hirooki Goto & Tomoaki Honma vs. Yota Tsuji & Bushi
Shingo Takagi vs. Callum Newman
Gabe Kidd vs. Sanada
Shota Umino vs. Great O’Khan
Jake Lee vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Tetsuya Naito vs. Evil
– Adam Copeland was at the San Diego Comic-Con today as part of the Percy Jaackson and the Olympians panel. Copeland has a role in that TV show.
– Mattel debuted its new WWE action figures including Chase U at the San Diego Comic Con. It was said that Thea Hail is the youngest woman ever to have had a WWE action figure modeled after her.
– House of Glory Wrestling tonight in Jamaica, NY on FITE+ has the Matt Travis Memorial Battle Royal, Gringo Loco vs. Kevin Knight for the cruiserweight title plus Mike Santana vs. Steve Maclin in a street fight and a first time ever match with Swerve Strickland vs. Amazing Red.
– Kirk White’s Big Time Wrestling on 8/2 in Newark, CA at the Pavilion has Toa Liona of AEW vs. Juicy Finau vs. Journey Fatu vs. Losefa Parsi in a South Pacific Savage match plus Robbie Eagles & Aaron Solo vs. Marcus Lewis & Big Fonz, Starboy Charlie vs. Lince Dorado and Viva Van vs. Jada Stone.
Tony Khan is happy with the status of AEW’s negotiations with Warner Bros. Discovery for its next media rights deal.
In an interview with the Battleground Podcast that was conducted before Dynamite this week, Khan was asked about AEW’s talks with WBD and how close the two sides are to getting a deal done. Khan said there are things to figure out and the talks are complex, but AEW and WBD are “in very deep, exciting conversations.” He called WBD a great partner and said the conversations they’re having are awesome.
“Such an exciting time for AEW. We’re in great conversations with our partners at Warner Bros. Discovery. It’s a real blessing to me, and I think to everyone in AEW, that we’re able to put wrestling on TBS and TNT every week. When I grew up, and I think for you guys too growing up, wrestling on TBS and TNT was a big part of our childhoods. There was no wrestling on TNT for about 18 years and there was no wrestling on TBS for over 20 years, so it meant a lot to bring that back. In particular on TBS, that tradition goes back over 50 years. I love it here. And so we’re having great talks. It means the world to be able to do this. We’re in very deep, exciting conversations. There’s a lot to figure out because we have these great shows with AEW Dynamite, Rampage, and Collision,” Khan said
“Our prime time shows [Dynamite and Collision]… we’ve been doing great, great ratings with our flagship shows. And it’s a really exciting time. Like I said, this past week both shows did their biggest numbers in months. So it’s an exciting time for us to hit new highs. The conversations are awesome right now. There’s a lot to figure out with the AEW TV shows, our pay-per-view content, our streaming library, and all of these things. So it’s a lot of very complex conversations, but they’ve been great. And we’re having great talks with Warner Bros. Discovery now. And it’s a great partnership and we’re very fortunate to be here and it’s a great place, for wrestling in particular — TBS and TNT.”
AEW programming first debuted on WBD stations in 2019. It’s believed that the current deal expires around the end of this year/start of 2025.
The new issue of the Wrestling Observer is up on the site right now:
The updated details of the biggest lawsuit that ever faced TKO
Build to SummerSlam and All In
Updated PPV numbers on Forbidden Door, Money in the Bank and Diaz vs. Masvidal
G-1 is starting and a look at the first week of the tournament
The first Fantastica Mania show in the U.S.
The latest moves by Janel Grant’s legal team regarding Vince McMaahon’s doctor, the motion, why they are doing this and more on Vince’s doctor including bigger celebrities than Vince that he’s worked with along with legendary fighters
Pro Wrestling NOAH runs Budokan Hall with A.J. Styles
A look at the N-1 tournament
Longtime NOAH star retires
NOAH star joining New Japan and Bullet Club
A look at Marigold’s biggest show in its history with Iyo Sky plus Sareee vs Giulia
Giulia timeline updated of going to WWE
Upcoming Marigold PPV shows
A look at the Category A Observer awards and favorites after six months of 2024, who should win MVP in pro wrestling and MMA, match & fight of the year
The closing months of WCW looked at as Lenita Erickson says she played a part in killing Eric Bischoff’s TV deal that would have kept the company alive
Lots of talk regarding different negotiations to get the company
The most detailed look at the ratings from the past week
What place did the pro wrestling and MMA shows finish in the ratings
How the different shows did with ratings, segment-by-segment, competition and placings as well as other notes on viewership
Lots of big things coming to Arena Mexico
Leyenda de Plata tournament
11 companies join together with a united front to government
Death of Ken Hoffman and the major title change that happened because of what he wrote in the newspaper
Notes on a number of wrestling movies and documentaries
MLW with big show with lots of CMLL talent
More on Bloodsport with WWE talent
TNA looking at biggest crowd in years
As AEW talks with WBD about a new deal, lots of things are going on in that world
International ratings and streaming numbers
Advance ticket sales for all upcoming AEW & WWE shows
More on Nate Diaz lawsuit against promoter
Peacock raising prices
WWE Survivor Series notes
Lots of new WWE dates
Cody Rhodes talks AEW
This Week’s Wresting Observer Newsletter Back Issue
In an interview with the New York Post, Damian Priest expressed how excited he is that Rhea Ripley is back from injury:
I don’t think there is one person around that’s not happy to have her back, maybe Liv [Morgan].
We just got back from the gym and we were riding in the car and I literally told [Ripley], ‘Man, it’s really good to have you back.’ I’ve felt like I’ve been missing something and it was my friend. It’s my road buddy. It’s my backstage buddy. Besides our TV dynamic, it’s everything else. I missed having that person next to me that also pushes me.
A video package aired on NXT last night promoting Joe Hendry’s concert for next week’s episode.
For fans who attended last night’s NXT, Hendry autographed concert posters that were left on every car in the parking lot.
Dakota Kai reflected on getting to wrestle in Japan again ahead of WWE’s house shows this week: “The last time I was in Japan was start of 2016, working as a freelance wrestler with promotions like Stardom and Sendai Girls. Just landed in Tokyo and about to do shows with WWE. What is life”
WWE Raw commentator Pat McAfee announced that he’ll be returning to ESPN’s College GameDay this season. McAfee didn’t say if this will impact his WWE role.
The NBA announced its new media rights deal with ESPN/ABC, NBC, and Amazon Prime today, saying that Warner Bros. Discovery’s proposal did not truly match the offer that was made by Amazon.
TNT Sports issued a statement vowing to take “appropriate action” over the situation. WBD does not believe that the NBA can reject its attempt to match Amazon’s offer:
We have matched the Amazon offer, as we have a contractual right to do, and do not believe the NBA can reject it. In doing so, they are rejecting the many fans who continue to show their unwavering support for our best-in-class coverage, delivered through the full combined reach of WBD’s video-first distribution platforms including TNT, home to our four-decade partnership with the league, and Max, our leading streaming service. We think they have grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights with respect to the 2025-26 season and beyond, and we will take appropriate action. We look forward, however, to another great season of the NBA on TNT and Max including our iconic Inside the NBA.
Darby Allin confirmed to Uproxx that Martha Hart gave her blessing for the spot where he entered from the rafters on Dynamite last week. Allin said Martha told AEW “absolutely, I trust your team, you guys are super professional.”
Allin said his one goal in AEW is to become the face of the company:
Becoming the face of this company. That’s literally the whole goal. It’s fun to put your head down and get to work. That’s what excites me, to get more eyes on AEW and just build this whole brand up. It’s so awesome to be there from the ground level and see what we’ve done in six years.
Tony just said, ‘Where’s the backlash when Jinder’s getting a championship match? When Hook is 28-0 or 28-1 or something.’ That was the thing and I just said, ‘Who the —- is Hook?’ That was it… Yeah, I’m a former WWE Champion (so I should be able to get a title shot). But then I actually started watching Hook and I really like his style. I like his demeanor, his style, everything about him. He’s like the next generation, right? The next generation, the next evolution of pro wrestling. Hook is one of the best… We’re just having fun on Twitter. It’s just wrestling.
New TNA World Champion Nic Nemeth thanked everyone who attended TNA’s events in Montreal during Slammiversary weekend: “Congratulations to [TNA] on an incredible weekend! #Slammiversary was sold out & Impact was amazing, as well. Huge thank you to the fans in Montreal. This company is making monumental gains in & out of the ring! I’m excited to be one of the many ambassadors, #LFG #TNA”
Brian Johnson vs. Heddi Karaoui has been added to the card for Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport XI in Brooklyn this Sunday.
In an interview with SportsGrid this week, Tony Khan was asked to explain what a new media rights deal would mean for AEW.
AEW’s current deal with Warner Bros. Discovery is scheduled to expire at the end of 2024. The two sides are in negotiations for a new agreement, and Khan has said they’re “approaching the goal line” on getting it done. He told SportsGrid that finalizing a deal would mean that all of the investment that’s been made in AEW will have more than paid off.
“It’s going to be a huge thing. It will mean that all the investment into AEW has more than paid off. It’ll mean a very secure future for AEW for a very long time to come,” Khan said. “We’re going to get a great media rights deal. We’re having great conversations here. And we have a great home now at Warner Bros. Discovery, and, you know, I think this is a great home for us. I’m really pleased they want us to stay. They’ve made us great offers and we’re having great conversations now. But, you know, with five hours of wrestling every week and streaming, there’s all kinds of things to talk about. It’s really, really very exciting for the future of AEW.”
Khan said he hopes to work with Warner Bros. Discovery for a long time.
“We’re having great conversations with Warner Bros. Discovery. Mr. [David] Zaslav himself has been really great, very engaged,” he said. “And we’re trying to figure this out. It’s a very complicated thing. It’s a big media rights package, and I’m very excited to keep working — hopefully for a long time — with Warner Bros. Discovery. We’re having a great time here and we have a great relationship with the management. Mr. Zaslav in particular has been fantastic to us.”
Click play below to watch SportsGrid’s full interview with Khan:
WBD could be a landing spot for the UFC if ESPN doesn’t close a deal with the world’s top fight company within its exclusive negotiating window.
White did an interview with Sports Business Journal after this weekend’s UFC 303 when the topic of UFC’s impending media rights came up. When specifically asked if WBD was interested in UFC, White said, “I think everyone is kicking the tires and is interested in making a bid.”
The UFC rights expire in 2025 with ESPN’s exclusive window to negotiate beginning this January although White and other TKO executives have previously said both sides have talked already. TKO’s Mark Shapiro has said they want to be “flexible” with these negotiations, even suggesting that ESPN might be willing to buy out their pay-per-view rights altogether in order to charge more for their standalone streaming service.
White said that while UFC has “had some headbutting with ESPN” during the course of their relationship, he thinks both sides are in a very good place with how the overall relationship has gone.
“We’ll see how it plays out,” he said.
White has worked with WBD previously for the launch of his inaugural Power Slap series that only lasted one season on TBS.
It is expected that WBD will lose their long-running NBA TV rights package, potentially opening up some significant budget for a bid. They are currently in negotiations with AEW on a TV rights renewal with that exclusive negotiating window set to expire shortly as the current deal between both sides is believed to end at the end of 2024.
