After rumors began earlier in the day, reigning TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater is officially out of his highly anticipated match against Ricochet for next week’s WrestleCon Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow in Las Vegas.
The reason: TNA president Carlos Silva pulled Slater.
“Despite being previously cleared by all parties and respective management, Leon Slater has been pulled from this match one week prior to our Memorial event. We will have more to say at a later time, but we wanted to be immediately transparent to all fans.”
Fightful reported Wednesday that according to sources, Silva wasn’t happy with AEW Collision airing last Thursday head-to-head against Impact even though it was WBD’s call. The outlet had noted earlier Wednesday that Silva pulled some talent from shows due to “partner conflicts.”
To this point, neither Silva, Ricochet or Slater have commented publicly on the situation which we’ll have more on as part of tonight’s Wrestling Observer Radio.
Despite being previously cleared by all parties and respective management, Leon Slater has been pulled from this match one week prior to our Memorial event. We will have more to say at a later time, but we wanted to be immediately transparent to all fans. https://t.co/O1v7yrmyvd
Live from Las Vegas, Bryan Alvarez has not one, but two recaps from Thursday night’s action as part of WrestleMania weekend.
The first is the WrestleCon Supershow (featuring what Bryan called the worst match ever) followed by TNA Unbreakable which featured one of the most violent matches in recent memory.
For those and all of our members-only content, click here.
Fans attending WrestleMania week in Las Vegas will be able to see Mickie James in action at the 2025 WrestleCon Supershow.
James is returning to the ring for a match against Maki Itoh at this year’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial Supershow on Thursday, April 17. The event has a start time of 3 p.m. Pacific and will stream live via Highspots.TV.
When she faces Itoh, the 45-year-old James will be wrestling her first match in seven months. She only wrestled a few times in 2024 and has not competed in the ring since September. She is currently featured as a coach on “WWE LFG (Legends & Future Greats),” a reality-competition series that airs on A&E. The show has been renewed for season two, but Michelle McCool is listed as a coach for the new season instead of James.
WrestleCon has also announced that James will be appearing at their convention on the Friday (April 18) and Sunday (April 20) of WrestleMania week.
James vs. Itoh is a first-time-ever matchup. Itoh, who has become popular with international audiences through her social media presence, regularly competes for Tokyo Joshi Pro in Japan and GCW in the United States. She worked some matches for AEW from 2021-2023 as well.
The Pearl Concert Theater at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas is hosting this year’s WrestleCon Supershow. There have now been two matches confirmed:
Minoru Suzuki vs. Butterbean (with Dan Severn as special guest enforcer)
The one and only Eric “Butterbean” Esch will return to pro wrestling as he will face the one and only Minoru Suzuki at next month’s WrestleCon Supershow.
The event is part of the WrestleMania 41 weekend activities in Las Vegas, taking place at the Palms Casino Resort on Thursday, April 17th.
To add a wrinkle, former WWE wrestler, former UFC champion and former NWA World Champion Dan Severn will be the special guest enforcer.
While Esch is best known for his incredible run inside a boxing ring and 35-second knockout of Brawl for All winner Bart Gunn at 1999’s WrestleMania IV, he has dabbled in wrestling here and there since then, including in March of this past year on an indie show. He also was part of the Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling TV show in 2008.
The annual Wrestlecon Mark Hitchcock Memorial Supershow as part of WrestleMania weekend returns with its usual array of interesting first-time matches.
Two tremendous athletes from two generations will clash for the first time as Rob Van Dam will battle “Speedball” Mike Bailey.
In a Philadelphia street fight against Sami Callihan, award-winning actor Paul Walter Hauser will look to remain undefeated in his third-ever match.
Multi-promotional champion Nic Nemeth will take on Joey Janela while former TNA World Champion Josh Alexander will battle Masato Tanaka.
RevPro undisputed British heavyweight champion Michael Oku will defend against Titan.
In an eight-man tag team match, The FBI (Little Guido, Tommy Rich & Tony Mamaluke) will team with a mystery partner against Los Boricuas (Huracan Castillo Jr., Jose Estrada, Miguel Perez Jr. & Savio Vega).
Averno, Cavernario, Mistico, Star Jr. & Villano III Jr. will take on Ben-K, Dragon Kid, Kota Minoura, Shun Skywalker & YAMATO in a ten-man match.
**********
Show Report —
The show started with a photo slideshow featuring the show’s namesake, the late Mark Hitchcock.
Kevin Gill & Veda Scott were on the call.
Nic Nemeth defeated Joey Janela
Janela dominated early on. Nemeth started a comeback but was dropped with a dragon suplex. They started trading big moves, including back-and-forth superkicks for the double down. Janela nailed Nemeth with a Death Valley driver on the apron.
Back in the ring, Nemeth avoided a diving stomp and hit a jumping DDT for two. Janela blocked the Famouser and turned it into a powerbomb, following it up with a package piledriver for a near fall. Nemeth came back with the Famouser and the Danger Zone for the win.
**********
– Former ECW referee Jim Molineaux came out to officiate the following match.
The FBI (Little Guido & Tommy Rich) and Deonna Purrazzo (w/ Tony Mamaluke) defeated Los Boricuas (Miguel Perez Jr., Nathalya Perez, & Savio Vega) (w/ Huracan Castillo Jr. & Jose Estrada)
The Virtuosa joined the Full Blooded Italians for one night.
This was obviously more for novelty and fun than anything else. Los Boricuas were good heel foils for the FBI. Guido can still go! Molineaux sent the rest of the Boricuas to the back midway through.
The best actual wrestling in the match was between Purrazzo and Nathalya. Eventually, it was Purrazzo getting the submission victory with the Fujiwara armbar.
**********
Rob Van Dam (w/ Bill Alfonso) defeated “Speedball” Mike Bailey – with special guest referee Jerry Lynn
RVD was super over, he got by far the biggest reaction of anyone on the show to this point. They started with some back-and-forth chain wrestling, leading to a couple standoffs. RVD got the upper hand on the outside, landing a spinning kick to a prone Speedball. Speedball fired back and landed an Asai moonsault to the floor.
After an extended control segment, RVD put together a comeback. Fonzy entered the ring but was sent packing by Lynn. Speedball landed his rapid-fire kicks and avoided Rolling Thunder, earning enough breathing room to hit a missile dropkick. RVD avoided the Ultimate Weapon.
Fonzy tossed RVD a chair and distracted the official, allowing RVD to kick the chair into Speedball’s face. The Five-Star Frog Splash followed for the win.
**********
RevPro Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship: Michael Oku (c) defeated Titán
After the opening exchange, they went right into trading chops. Oku sent Titán to the outside after a headscissor takeover, but Titán countered the follow-up and landed a tope suicida. After that, it was Titán in control for a while.
Oku came back with a Fosbury Flop and a diving crossbody for two. Titán nailed a superkick and a diving double stomp but missed another before getting the knees up on an Oku moonsault. Oku fired back with a running knee and a lionsault before locking on a half Boston crab. Titán fought his way to the ropes.
Titán hit a psycho driver for two. Oku returned fire with a superkick, but Titán fought back with his through-the-ropes clothesline. Titán stuck the diving double stomp but was too slow on the cover. He immediately applied an inverted Figure Four leglock, but Oku escaped and put on the half crab. Titán nearly made it to the ropes, but Oku dragged him back into the center of the ring and bridged back, forcing the tap.
**********
Mustafa Ali & Matt Riddle defeated The Rascalz (Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel)
This match was unadvertised. Riddle and Wentz went back-and-forth at the start, then their partners did the same. Riddle & Ali hit some tandem offense with Riddle holding the ropes open for an Ali suicide dive, but the Rascalz cut them off for a heat segment.
Riddle eventually reached Ali for the hot tag, getting a near fall. The Rascalz returned fire with a strike combination for two. Riddle strung together some offense with a ripcord knee, an exploder suplex, and a Bro-ton to both Rascalz. Riddle hit a double RKO on both Rascalz before nailing Miguel with the Bro Derek for the win.
**********
Josh Alexander defeated Masato Tanaka
This was a hard-hitting heavyweight battle in the early portions. Alexander held the control sections, continuing to beat Tanaka down until Tanaka fought back with a brainbuster. Alexander hit three consecutive German suplexes, bridging into a kickout at 2.
Tanaka hit a big superplex, but Alexander popped up and slapped on the ankle lock. Tanaka was bleeding from the forehead. Alexander landed a nasty car crash crossbody for a near fall.
They had a really cool back-and-forth fight towards the end that fired up the crowd. We got the cursory forearm exchange before simultaneous clotheslines led to the double down. Tanaka hit Diamond Dust, but Alexander avoided the Sliding D and hit a powerbomb onto a knee before the C4 got him the win.
*********
Team CMLL (Místico, Cavernario, Averno, Star Jr., & Villano III Jr.) defeated Team Dragongate (Shun Skywalker, YAMATO, Kzy, Kota Minoura, & Dragon Kid)
Cavernario vs. Dragon Kid to start. The participants in the match each paired off early on in this order: YAMATO vs. Averno, Shun vs. Místico, Kzy vs. Star, and Minoura vs. Villano.
It was pretty messy in the early portions. Interestingly enough the Dragongate team leaned into being heels even though Shun is the only true heel on the team. Minoura even went for Místico’s mask at one point.
It was Místico who was the catalyst for Team CMLL’s comeback. Star Jr. landed a running tornillo to the outside, followed by Místico hitting a diving crossbody into the front row. The other CMLL wrestlers took turns hitting big moves on Dragon Kid in the ring. Averno hit a double-tap powerbomb on Shun, but Dragon Kid ran in to break it up.
YAMATO hit Go To Hospital 2 on Averno, allowing Dragon Kid to hit the elevated top-rope Frankensteiner, which Kzy followed up with a frog splash. Cavernario broke up the pin and hit a splash on Dragon Kid for two. Villano landed a corkscrew splash for two of his own.
We got the parade of big moves until a Místico vs. Kzy face-off in the middle of the ring. Shun cut his own partner off, trying to steal all the glory, before just booting Kzy. Místico capitalized on the infighting, allowing Star to lock on a wacky submission. Meanwhile, Místico applied La Mística to Kzy for the win.
**********
Philadelphia Street Fight: Paul Walter Hauser defeated Sami Callihan
Hauser is an actor known for roles in films like Richard Jewell and I, Tonya. He’s also made a couple of AEW appearances.
The actor teased a dive at the start, but Callihan cut him off with a shot from a trash can lid. Callihan cut between Hauser’s fingers and squeezed lemon juice on the wounds. He then pulled out a pizza cutter and ran it over Hauser’s forehead. Hauser donned the crimson mask.
Hauser tossed powder in Callihan’s face before nailing a big boot on the outside. Callihan didn’t stay down for long, but Hauser moving out of the way led to Callihan chopping the ring post. Back inside, Hauser smacked Callihan with a chair. He propped Callihan up against a door, but Callihan rolled out of the way, sending Hauser crashing through it.
The two men each acquired staplers and took turns stapling each other. A falling headbutt from Hauser got two. Hauser then planted Callihan on some thumbtacks with a Samoan Drop. He tried to follow it up with a diving elbow drop, but Callihan moved out of the way.
Callihan powerbombed Hauser through a table for a near fall. He attacked the official. Bill Alfonso came out, and Callihan took him out too. The lights then went out, Enter Sandman played, and The Sandman appeared.
Sandman attacked Callihan with a kendo stick. He handed the kendo to Hauser, who hit a cane-assisted side Russian leg sweep onto tacks for the win.
On his first WrestleMania weekend since being released by WWE, Nic Nemeth will be in action at WrestleCon’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial Supershow.
The Supershow is taking place from the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia on Thursday, April 4. It was announced today that Nemeth vs. Joey Janela will be part of the lineup for the event.
This is the third match that’s been announced for the Supershow. Here’s the updated card:
Rob Van Dam vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey
Masato Tanaka vs. Josh Alexander
Nic Nemeth vs. Joey Janela
Formerly known as Dolph Ziggler, Nemeth was released by WWE in September 2023. He’s since become a member of both the TNA Wrestling and NJPW rosters. Nemeth won NJPW’s IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship from David Finlay at the New Beginning in Sapporo last month.
Nemeth is also set for a match against Mike Bailey at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport X in Philadelphia on April 4. The Bloodsport event begins at 4 p.m. Eastern time. The WrestleCon Supershow has a start time of 7 p.m. Eastern.
Nic Nemeth, Matt Riddle, Shun Skywalker and Titan have been added to the Mark Hitchcock Memoria show on 4/4 at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia. They had already announced Mistico, Mascara Dorada, Dragon Kid, Hechicero, Little Guido, Tommy Rich, Savio Vega, Jose Estrada Jr., Huracan Castillo Jr. and Miguel Perez Jr. Dorada and Hechicero will not be on the show due to visa issues. They will be adding wrestlers from CMLL to the show to replace them that have visas.
Thursday’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow as part of WrestleCon will officially open up our live coverage of WrestleMania weekend.
The show is headlined by AAA Mega Champion El Hijo del Vikingo defending against both Komander and Black Taurus in a three-way.
United Empire’s Jeff Cobb & Aussie Open will take on Time Machine (Motor City Machine Guns & KUSHIDA) in trios action while Ultimo Dragon and Negro Casas do battle in their first match against each other in the U.S. since 1994.
“Speedball” Mike Bailey begins a busy weekend against Shigehiro Irie while Michael Oku goes one-on-one with Rocky Romero.
The show from the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles will feature a six-man lucha match (Rey Horus vs. Aramis vs. Galeno Del Mal vs. Toxin vs. Latigo vs. Arez); a Tokyo Joshi 10-woman tag team showcase match, and KENTA & Bryan Keith against Tom Lawlor & a mystery partner.
**********
The show opened with Mick Foley coming to the ring to introduce a video package for the late Mark Hitchcock. The video featured pictures of Hitchcock surrounded by a who’s who of the wrestling world.
This was followed by a five-minute intermission.
Blake Christian defeated Michael Oku
Do you remember when your mom would tell you, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all”? That’s where I am with this match.
After an opening handshake, this match quickly devolved into an acrobatics showcase. Christian offered a second handshake; this time, Christian attacked Oku out of the shake, gaining an advantage for the first time.
A kick to the chest let Oku fight back into the match. Christian was quick to respond with a 619 and a springboard kick. Oku responded with a pair of dives, one in the ring and one to the floor. Christian responded immediately with his own dive to the floor. On the floor, the count hit 10, and everyone thought the match was over, but there was apparently a 20 count. Once the count was broken, the pair continued to fight. Christian hit a suplex on the apron to secure a substantial lead late in the match. A second suplex to the apron should have pushed the advantage further, but Oku caught him in a half crab before hoisting Christian to the top rope almost as soon as he landed. From the top, Christian dropped Oku and immediately hit a springboard 450 to win the match.
After the match, the pair shook hands again.
Bryan Keith & KENTA defeated Tom Lawlor & Christopher Daniels
Christopher Daniels in daisy dukes was revealed to be Lawlor’s partner before Ken Shamrock was announced as a surprise special guest enforcer.
Keith and Daniels opened the match with a fun back-and-forth. As the match developed, Lawlor tagged in and prevented Keith from tagging out. Once the tag to KENTA came, Lawlor tagged back out.
KENTA beat down Daniels before passing the torch to Keith. Lawlor and Daniels were able to take the lead back while keeping KENTA away from Lawlor. Lawlor and Daniels eventually knocked each other down, but Lawlor left Daniels to fend for himself after KENTA tagged in.
A double tag to Lawlor and KENTA finally left the pair alone to fight. They traded blows before KENTA dropped Lawlor with a dropkick and double stomp. Daniels blocked the GTS, buying him enough time to steal momentum back.
A scrap on the mat left KENTA in control of Lawlor. Daniels hit the ring and attacked the referee just as Lawlor tried to tap out. Lawlor dropped Keith with a low blow, but special enforcer Ken Shamrock refused to count the subsequent pin. Shamrock dropped Daniels with a strike and pushed Lawlor into KENTA. KENTA rolled Lawlor up and won the match with Shamrock’s count.
After the match, Shamrock put Lawlor in an ankle lock and forced him to tap.
Ultimo Dragon defeated Negro Casas
Before the match, a Chris Jericho video was played. He hyped up both men while sporting a black eye.
All things considered, this was an incredible match.
The opening leg of this match was all seamless back-and-forth grappling. Eventually, Casas climbed to the top rope, where Dragon cut him off with a drop kick that sent the 63-year-old crashing to the floor. Dragon met Casas on the floor, where the pair fought for control. Casas won out, returned to the ring, and climbed to the top rope. Dragon caught Casas on the top and hit a superplex.
A sick smile manifested on Casas after being dropped to the mat. Casas was the first to recover from the high-impact superplex, but Dragon quickly answered with a Dragon sleeper. Casas passed out from the hold, leaving Dragon with the win.
Aramis, Galeno Del Mal & Rey Horus defeated Arez, Laredo Kid & Latigo
This was an incredibly enjoyable match.
Aramis and Latigo opened the match with a lighting-paced sequence of pin attempts. Arez and Horus tagged in for a creative sequence of their own.
A stray strike to Galeno got Arez into a world of trouble. Arez retreated, tagging out to Laredo. Laredo and Galeno had a typical lucha exchange, made all the more impressive considering the size of Galeno.
Arez, Laredo, & Latigo took control by rushing the ring. They were able to isolate opponents, establishing a make-shift numbers advantage for some time.
The babyface trio eventually were able to land tandem superkicks, setting Galeno up for a splash to take all of their opponents out. Aramis, Horus, & Galeno followed up with dives to the floor.
Back in the ring, Arez was able to strike down Galeno. The match broke down after this, as all the men hit the ring as they recovered to retake the lead for their team. Eventually, Galeno hit a bomb from the second rope, dropping Latigo to win the match for his team.
After the match, the crowd tossed money into the ring, and all six men stood tall in tandem.
This was a great look into the world of TJPW. The crowd ate everything up, and everyone was given ample time to shine.
Before the match could begin, Hyper tried to cut a promo. She said she could beat her opponents in two seconds. Instead, they rushed her, leading to a beatdown.
The match then began to escalate with multiple showcase-style exchanges, with most women showing off some of their signature offense/personalities.
Eventually, the two top champions of TJPW came to blows. Rika fell to a Mizuki double stomp and crossbody for a near fall. Rika answered by attacking Mizuki’s legs with the corner post. Watanabe hit the ring to help Rika finish, but Mizuki fought free, landing Whirling Candy to clear the ring. The match broke down again after a tag to Raku.
In the end, Mizuki won the match with a double stomp on Raku.
Shigehiro Irie defeated Speedball Mike Bailey
Everything from this match that made the stream was incredible. Great, great match.
Mere minutes after his Bloodsport match with Kota Ibushi, Mike Bailey made his second appearance against the ever-wonderful Shigehiro Irie.
The match’s opening moments were lost due to a stream failure, but when the feed picked up, Irie was in control after hitting something on the floor. Back in the ring, Irie hit a cannonball to further his early lead.
A strike exchange left Irie in a strong position after he landed a colossal lariat. A follow-up Samoan drop from the top rope seemingly widened his lead, but Bailey was able to fight back after the crash. Bailey flipped out of a suplex and landed a trio of kicks but missed the finish. Irie hit the beast bomber and locked in a choke, but Bailey escaped and answered with a green tea plunge.
A massive cannonball into the ropes and a second beast bomber scored Irie a near fall. Irie locked in another choke. After the brutal struggle for control during the choke, Irie transitioned into elbow strikes. The referee was forced to step in, leaving Irie with a win via referee stoppage.
As crazy as this match was, Bailey’s night is just starting. He has a match with Hiroshi Tanahashi on the NJPWxIMPACT show before he can rest.
United Empire (Jeff Cobb, Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) defeated Time Machine (Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin & KUSHIDA)
This match opened with a reasonably typical feeling-out exchange between the teams. Eventually, UE established control and began to isolate Sabin. Once the tag came to Shelley, he worked with KUSHIDA to fight for control.
The match broke down, allowing UE to take advantage of the chaos. This time they worked to isolate Shelley. Once Shelley tagged to KUSHIDA, he was able to retake the lead.
The match continued to escalate with dives and control segments before a sudden half-and-half suplex to Sabain left Aussie Open free to land Corialis and win the match.
AAA Mega Championship: El Hijo Del Vikingo (c) defeated Komander & Black Taurus
This was a wild encounter. I barely captured any of the wild action in this match, so if you’re at all into hyper-athletic lucha, give this a watch.
Taurus opened the match by clearing the ring of both men, using Komander as a weapon, and landing a massive dive to the floor. Komander and Vikingo were forced to work together to take out Taurus, landing a pair of dives to subdue the giant. The pair then took turns landing moves on Taurus before turning to each other.
After wiping out Komander, Vikingo launched into an insane sequence against Taurus. Once Komander recovered, he led a crazy series of his own against both of his competitors. A pause from Komander allowed Vikingo to take advantage, landing an absolutely insane single-leg springboard dive to the floor.
Back in the ring, momentum spontaneously transitioned between all three men. Vikingo landed an insane 630 to the floor but missed the follow-up in the ring, so he dove to the floor before trying again. On his second attempt, Vikingo hit a wild top rope 630 before pinning Taurus.
*The new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter is up on the site. It’s got the most detailed coverage from a business standpoint and creative standpoint, covering AEW Revolution including reader feedback on that show, UFC 285 and the Stardom show this past weekend.
*Match and performer of the week
*The longest singles title matches since 1970 all over the world
*MJF vs Danielson and comparisons to other Iron Man matches
*Evaluating MJF as a performer and a drawing card
*Early PPV numbers along with gate numbers from San Francisco and other business metrics
*The return of FTR
*The potential of the AEW tag team division
*AEW repeat PPV business notes
*Movie theater business for Revolution
*San Francisco records
*Future AEW directions
*Full details on WWE’s attempt to get gambling legal on its outcomes and what steps and how its business will have to change to make this happen
*Full coverage of UFC 285 including Jon Jones legacy and future, Alexa Grasso’s win and business notes regarding the show including what unique note thee was about the prelims this week
*Full details on the amended lawsuit MLW has filed against WWE, McDevitt talks, what new things are added and what it says about the MLW relationship with REELZ, and lots of business notes from the lawsuit regarding the wrestling television rights fees
*Stardom puts on its best show of the year and a look at the very different excellent matches
*Notes on the first few days of the New Japan Cup and where things stand
*TV ratings over the past week as well as segment-by-segment notes, competition and the whys of how everything went down
*The unique team challenge tournament CMLL finished up this past week
*AAA star faces claims by girlfriend of domestic violence and both CMLL and AAA talk about the situation
*Notes on the joint NWA and AAA show put together as part of a Smashing Pumpkins concert
*Notes on retirement of Daisuke Harada
*New Japan anniversary show and New Japan Cup notes*Zero-1 runs 22nd anniversary show
*Notes from Creed III
*Big shows over Mania weekend not from WWE
*Major questions on AEW talent and their media talks
*What international star AEW tried to get for San Francisco and why it didn’t happen
*International TV ratings and streaming numbers for WWE & AEW and what NXT segment scored huge
*Upcoming ticket advances for WWE & AEW shows
*Dana White on the future of Power Slap
*48-year-old world champion wrestler has retirement MMA fight soon
*Notes on Vince McMahon’s return backstage at the Boston show
*Wells Fargo Securities predictions on Smackdown negotiations and the value of Raw & Smackdown right now
*WWE performer talks trying to go to the 2024 Olympics and is training for MMA as well
Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.
In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.
For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.
If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.
Tuesday Update
WWE
Shawn Michaels announced on Twitter that Roxanne Perez’s condition was “still in question” and that at Stand at Deliver they will “possibly” have to crown a new NXT women’s Champion. Micheals wrote on Twitter: “Starting tonight there will be a series of qualifying matches with the winners advancing to Stand and Deliver to compete to become the NXT Women’s Champion in a Ladder Match.”
A contract signing between Bron Breakker and Carmelo Hayes has also been added to tonight’s NXT.
Carmelo Hayes vs. Akira Tozawa and Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson vs. Maximum Male Models were taped for this week’s Main Event.
Bianca Belair has made history as the longest-reigning Black champion in WWE’s history, having held the Raw Women’s Championship since last year’s WrestleMania 38 at 344 days. The previous record holder was MVP, who held the United States title for 343 days.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Charlotte Flair was asked about Mercedes Mone’s recent transition to New Japan Pro Wrestling. “I think it’s cool whenever someone follows their heart, and that’s inspiring,” she said. “There will never be another group like the Four Horsewomen, ever.”
PWInsider reported that Drew McIntyre nearly missed last week’s SmackDown due to illness. He was cleared by WWE’s medical team to compete that night.
In an update regarding the MLW vs. WWE case, WWE has asked for an extension to respond until April 7.
WWE filed for the trademark “Bobby Lashley” on March 9.
Shotzi celebrates a birthday today.
AEW
This week’s AEW Road to, focusing on the AEW International and Trios title matches.
Other Wrestling
Josh Alexander vs. Michael Oku has been added to the WrestleCon Mark Hitchcock Memorial Supershow on March 30.
Bushiroad announced that they and Pro Wrestling Wave will hold a joint show on April 28 at Shinjuku FACE.
ECW Press will be publishing a biography on Macho Man Randy Savage by Jon Finkel. The book will be titled Macho Man: Life of a Savage and will be released in 2024. Slam Wrestling announced the book Tuesday morning.
The first match has been made official for this year’s WrestleCon SuperShow.
It was announced today that Ultimo Dragon and Negro Casas will face off in a singles match at WrestleCon’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow on March 30, which is the Thursday of WrestleMania week. The SuperShow is taking place at the Globe Theatre in Los Angeles.
This will be the first time the two pro wrestling legends have faced each other in the United States since a 1994 match at Los Angeles’ Grand Olympic Auditorium.
Negro Casas made a surprising promotional jump in January, leaving CMLL and joining Lucha Libre AAA. Former CMLL wrestler Dalys also joined AAA with Negro Casas.
WrestleCon has also announced that Will Ospreay, “Speedball” Mike Bailey, El Hijo del Vikingo, and Taurus will be in action at the Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow. Their matches have yet to be confirmed.
Bandido and “Speedball” Mike Bailey have received a monetary bonus for having the best match at Thursday’s WrestleCon Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow.
Bandido defeated Bailey in the opening match of the SuperShow card. Following the conclusion of the event, the fans in attendance voted Bandido vs. Bailey as being the best match on the show. Bandido and Bailey will split WrestleCon’s $5,000 reward for winning the fan vote.
“Congratulations to @SpeedballBailey and @bandidowrestler for being voted best match by fans in attendance last night and each receiving a $2500 match bonus,” WrestleCon tweeted.
There being a $5,000 reward for best match was announced by WrestleCon on March 24. WrestleCon noted that they’ve had the idea for years and were finally going to test it out at this year’s SuperShow.
The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) defeated The Rottweilers (Low Ki & Homicide)
Team Onita (Atsushi Onita, Colt Cabana, Juice Robinson, Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) defeated Team PCO (PCO, nZo, Jimmy Wang Yang, Dirty Dango & Barry Horowitz) in a 10-man tag match
Minoru Suzuki defeated Biff Busick
Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid defeated Josh Alexander, Black Taurus & Ace Austin in a six-man tag match
Dirty Dishes match: Taya Valkyrie defeated John Morrison
A husband vs. wife “dirty dishes” match has been added to Thursday’s WrestleCon Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow, as John Morrison will take on Taya Valkyrie.
WrestleCon announced the new match today on social media. Eight matches are now official for the SuperShow, which take place Thursday, March 31 at 9 p.m. Central time.
WrestleCon has announced a change to the lineup for Thursday’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow.
Josh Alexander is replacing Jonathan Gresham in a six-man tag team match at the WrestleCon SuperShow. It will now be Alexander, Black Taurus & Ace Austin vs. Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid.
Gresham is no longer on the WrestleCon SuperShow card. This Friday, Gresham will face Bandido in the main event of ROH Supercard of Honor to determine an undisputed ROH World Champion.
The WrestleCon SuperShow is taking place at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas on Thursday night. The show will air live on Fite TV, with Ian Riccaboni and Veda Scott serving as the commentary team.
Here’s the updated SuperShow card:
Minoru Suzuki vs. Biff Busick
The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. The Rottweilers (Low Ki & Homicide)
Bandido vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Timothy Thatcher
Mia Yim vs. Athena (formerly known as Ember Moon in WWE)
Josh Alexander, Black Taurus & Ace Austin vs. Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid
Team Atsushi Onita vs. Team PCO 10-man tag match (other participants in the match have yet to be revealed)
The best match at the SuperShow will receive a $5,000 bonus. The fans in attendance at the show will vote to determine what the best match was.
A new match has been confirmed for this year’s WrestleCon SuperShow.
It was announced today that Jonathan Gresham, Black Taurus & Ace Austin will team together against Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid in a six-man tag match at WrestleCon’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow next Thursday (March 31). The event is being held at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas.
The SuperShow will be available live via Fite TV.
At the SuperShow, the fans in attendance will vote for which was the best match. The match that wins the fan vote will receive an extra $5,000.
The updated WrestleCon SuperShow card is listed below:
Minoru Suzuki vs. Biff Busick
The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. The Rottweilers (Low Ki & Homicide)
Bandido vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Timothy Thatcher
Mia Yim vs. Athena (formerly known as Ember Moon in WWE)
Jonathan Gresham, Black Taurus & Ace Austin vs. Michael Oku, Rey Horus & Laredo Kid
Atsushi Onita, The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson), and PCO have also been announced for the show
WrestleCon is adding an extra financial incentive for the performers at this year’s Mark Hitchcock Memorial SuperShow.
WrestleCon announced today that is adding a “$5,000 reward” for the best match at the SuperShow. The fans in attendance will vote to determine which match gets the extra $5,000.
“A crazy idea we had for years, we are finally going to test it out,” WrestleCon tweeted. “We can create a great match on paper, but let’s give the talent an extra incentive to bring their A+ game and steal the show. A live fan vote will decide which match out of the 8 gets an extra $5k”
A crazy idea we had for years, we are finally going to test it out. We can create a great match on paper, but let's give the talent an extra incentive to bring their A+ game and steal the show. A live fan vote will decide which match out of the 8 gets an extra $5k pic.twitter.com/6h9wvz1w8E
Yim and Athena were both released by WWE on November 4 of last year. They officially became free agents when their non-compete clauses expired last month.
Athena returned to the ring at a show for Warrior Wrestling in February, while Yim has yet to have her first match since being released.
“To those wondering why I’m not back in the ring yet.. February is a busy month. With the wedding and the move, I decided to not take any bookings until March to focus on getting everything handled at home first,” Yim tweeted last month. “So don’t worry, I’ll see you all in the ring in March.”
This year’s WrestleCon convention begins on March 31 and ends on Saturday, April 2. The updated SuperShow lineup is listed below:
Minoru Suzuki vs. Biff Busick
The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. The Rottweilers (Low Ki & Homicide)
Bandido vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Timothy Thatcher
Mia Yim vs. Athena
Atsushi Onita, Jonathan Gresham, The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson), Michael Oku, Black Taurus, and PCO set for action
