The latest WWE and AEW News and Results
Dave Meltzer and I are back on Wrestling Observer Radio discussing the major stories from today’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We talked about:
Click here to listen (subscription required) or watch on YouTube
After tonight’s AEW Double or Nothing ends, Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online will have subscribers and non-subscribers covered with all the thoughts and news from the show.
Right after the PPV ends, subscribers can catch the Bryan & Vinny Show live on both YouTube and Twitch, the latter of which is available free for Amazon Prime subscribers. The first 15 minutes will also be free on YouTube for non-subscribers. As always, the audio version will be on our site, Spotify and Apple Podcasts shortly afterward.
Later on, Bryan Alvarez will be back on Wrestling Observer Radio with Dave Meltzer for subscribers to recap the PPV as well. The show will air live on YouTube with the audio on our site, Spotify and Apple Podcasts shortly afterward.
Dave Meltzer has addressed what led WWE to release so many members of its roster recently.
On Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer stated that one reason there were so many cuts made this year is because, in 2025, TKO felt it was too new as WWE’s ownership group and did not want to look like “bad guys” by cutting a large number of people.
“Last year, because they had basically just taken over the company and they were trying to be good guys and all that, they didn’t order a lot of cuts last year. They kind of held back. So it’s kind of like a catch-up,” Meltzer said.
Meltzer noted that TKO went to WWE creative and requested that the number of roster cuts this year reflect the number of NXT call-ups, as well as SmackDown moving back to two hours.
Meltzer continued:
“The main roster cuts, essentially, it was two things. Number one, all the people who were brought up from NXT that got spots, essentially, they wanted to remove a similar amount of people. They went to creative. It was creative that made the call as to who. They said, ‘Who on the roster are you not planning on using? Give us X number of names,’ which would be that number, the number that were brought up, and additional names from SmackDown.”
“SmackDown is going to two hours. So therefore, there is an hour less time of television. So therefore, there is less time to put as many people on. So therefore, there would be additional cuts on the SmackDown side.”
Meltzer also noted that everyone who is going to be cut as part of this round of releases has been notified. However, he said not all of the names have necessarily become public yet.
The full episode of Wrestling Observer Radio is available for subscribers here.
If it hadn’t been for Ted Turner, wrestling today would look very different.
Turner’s passing at 87 years old was announced on Wednesday.
In 2018, Turner revealed during an interview with CBS that he was living with Lewy body dementia, a condition similar to Alzheimer’s. This prompted our own Dave Meltzer to write about Turner’s impact on the wrestling industry in the October 8, 2018 edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, available in our archives for subscribers.
Meltzer wrote:
“Turner is obviously a key figure in the shaping of pro wrestling history, and easily the second or third most important player in the U.S. over the past 50 years.
While from a hands-on perspective he did little, but from a big picture perspective, his decisions changed the face and history of the industry more than all but one person, Vince McMahon, in the U.S. in the last 50 years.”
In the article, Meltzer traced Turner’s wrestling influence back to 1972, when his Atlanta station WTCG picked up Georgia Championship Wrestling, through the infamous “Black Saturday” in 1984 and his purchase of Jim Crockett Promotions in 1988.
One of Turner’s greatest contributions to wrestling was his refusal to listen to executives in his company who were concerned with the financial losses the former JCP was incurring. Turner said that wrestling helped build his network, that the industry was cyclical, and that he didn’t want people bringing up the idea of closing WCW down again.
Meltzer wrote:
“There were times between 1989 and 1994 when the Turner executives would note the wrestling losses and want to close down the company. At one such meeting, where basically everyone of the key execs underneath were I agreement to shut down the wrestling company due to losses, Turner, at a meeting pointed out that wrestling has been a key part of TBS, had built the station, that it was a cyclical business and to never bring up closing down the company again.“
After the Time Warner and AOL mergers, however, Turner lacked the ability to save WCW.
Meltzer continued:
“As the years went on, with a Time Warner merger and an AOL merger, Turner lost power and, that, combined with the $62 million in losses in 2000 and nosediving popularity, he could no longer save the company that had gone off the rails.”
The full edition of the October 8, 2018 Wrestling Observer Newsletter is available in our archives for subscribers.
Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back live from Las Vegas with tons to talk about including the highs and mostly lows of night one of WWE WrestleMania 42, where things are going with the top match finishes, what was changed, and more.
Then, the guys talk the night two lineup, WWE not credentialing reporters like Andreas Hale, the death of Van Hammer, Brodie Lee Jr.’s debut, and tons more.
Click here to listen (sub needed)
Live from Las Vegas and WrestleMania weekend, our Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez answer questions and give answers from subscribers, fans and friends as part of our annual convention at The Circa.
If you’re in town, here’s some of the other events you can attend.
Click here to listen (sub needed)
Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales are back on Wrestling Observer Radio discussing the major stories from today’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We talked about:
Click here to listen (subscription required) or watch on YouTube
Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales are back on Wrestling Observer Radio discussing the major stories from today’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We talked about:
Click here to listen (subscription required) or watch on YouTube
Dave Meltzer and I are back the post-WWE RAW edition of Wrestling Observer Radio.
We reviewed RAW including discussing the Elimination Chamber qualifiers. Here are some of the other things we talked about:
Click here to listen (sub needed) or watch on YouTube
With Wednesday’s news of the passing of Kim Wood, mentor to Brian Pillman and the first-ever full-time NFL strength coach, the following is Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales’ two hour talk with Wood from a 2021 edition of Wrestling Observer Radio.
The following is free for anyone to listen to and is available here, Spotify or Apple Pods.
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Original description:
Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales are back with Wrestling Observer Radio, and joining us is Kim Wood to talk about Brian Pillman and the Dark Side of the Ring season opener.
Kim talks about his participation in the episode and then he and Dave go into old stories about Pillman. Kim gives his thoughts on who were the strongest interviews from the episode as well as Eric Bischoff’s participation.
Kim talks about his interest in conmen and his history with pro wrestling. They talk about their memories from the wake and funeral for Pillman. Kim even brings up stories about Dave from many years ago.
Click here to listen (no sub needed) or on Spotify or Apple Podcasts (search Wrestling Observer)
An update from Bryan Alvarez on this morning’s edition of Wrestling Observer Radio:
“Wrestling Observer Radio will be up at some point Thursday due to an Internet outage here. A technician will be out at some point and we will do the show immediately afterwards. I’ll update in the morning regarding Observer Live. Sorry for the inconvenience.”
Raven says if he was to go back and change things about his life, he’d have sought help for mental health much sooner than he did.
Raven was a guest on the Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio with Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales promoting Nevermore: The Raven Effect, the documentary on his life and career. The documentary is set to release on Amazon Prime on Tuesday, November 18.
During the interview, Raven was asked about any regrets he has from his career.
“Anybody who says they don’t have regrets is full of s–t. I got millions of regrets,” Raven responded.
“I’m very content with my life, as content as I’ve ever been but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have changed things along the way. And one of the things I would have is I would have found a way to get over my insecurity much sooner because my insecurity led to my egotism. Anybody who’s egotistical is just insecure, that’s scientific fact.”
Raven continued:
“I would have went to a psychiatrist earlier, or psychologist earlier probably.”
“I think everybody should spend time on a couch, frankly. It’s very liberating to talk to a therapist and to be able to bear your soul and to offer up all your inner demons and look for a way to get around them instead of just suffering with them.”
In addition to the interview with Raven, Friday’s edition of Wrestling Observer Radio also covers the 2025 WON Hall of Fame Class, which includes CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Sabu, Gran Hamada, Dorrell Dixon, Bobby Bruns, and Spyros Arion. The full episode is available for subscribers here.
Nevermore: The Raven Effect was directed by Geordie Day, who also worked on Tough Guy: The Bob Probert Story and Charles Manson: The Final Words. Chris Jericho, Buff Bagwell, Moose, The Sandman, Shane Douglas, Brian Myers, Perry Saturn, Billy Corgan, Rob Van Dam, Lodi, Bubba Ray Dudley, Sami Callihan, Kevin Sullivan, Tommy Dreamer, Diamond Dallas Page, D’Lo Brown, Blue Meanie, and Scott D’Amore are advertised as appearing in the film.
Dave Meltzer and I are back with the Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, talking about the big news from today’s 2025 Hall of Fame issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Dave talks about the new inductees, who missed the mark but was close, and those who may do well on next year’s ballot.
Then, Raven joined the show to discuss his new documentary “Nevermore: The Raven Effect” which debuts on Amazon Prime next week.
Here were some of the things we discussed:
Click here to listen (sub needed) or watch on YouTube
Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales are back with the Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, talking about all the big news from today’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Here were some of the things we discussed:
Click here to listen (sub needed) or watch on YouTube
Dave Meltzer and I, Garrett Gonzales, are back with our Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, talking about all the big news from today’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
For the first part of the show, we talked about Dave’s story on Hulk Hogan. Dave also talked about the media that he did as well as how big this story was from a non-wrestling fan perspective.
We also talked about Netflix’s engagement report with the WWE viewership numbers, AEW Dynamite ratings from Wednesday and new information on the HBO Max numbers, as well as Will Ospreay.
Then, Mark Briscoe joined the show. He talked about the Player’s Tribune documentary Two In One: The Briscoe Story.
You can also watch our interview with Mark on the free YouTube section of our channel.
Click here to listen (sub needed)
