Tag: Wrestling Observer Radio

Wrestling Observer Radio: Discussing modern era candidates for the WON HOF

Posted on by Garrett Gonzales

Dave Meltzer and I are back for a Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio. Post Wrestling’s John Pollock and this website’s own Paul Fontaine joined us to talk about the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame as it pertained to modern candidates.

Here were some of the candidates we discussed:

  • The Young Bucks
  • Jay & Mark Briscoe
  • Roman Reigns
  • Jon Moxley
  • Seth Rollins
  • CM Punk 
  • Edge
  • Randy Orton
  • Tomohiro Ishii
  • Satoshi Kojima

Dave and I then talked about the passing of Darren Drozdov, AEW Dynamite’s rating, Dave’s lead story in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, and Money in the Bank.

Click here to listen or watch on YouTube with a subscription.

WOR Video: Carmelo Hayes vs. Finn Balor

Posted on by F4W Staff

Not the greatest momentum for Carmelo Hayes just one day prior to a big title match.

Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer discussed Hayes’ appearance on Raw while going over the latter half of the show on Wrestling Observer Radio. Hayes first appeared on the show in the crowd, helping Seth Rollins ward off Finn Balor who attempted to take out Rollins with a chair. This led to a match later that night where Hayes was defeated clean by Balor, despite being the NXT Champion and having a title defense the following night against Baron Corbin.

“I was stunned, but I wasn’t stunned,” Alvarez said. “Right out of the Vince playbook. It happens every time.”

Although Finn Balor is going for the World Heavyweight Championship on Saturday, Alvarez noted that literally anybody else on the roster could have been used for the spot Hayes was put in. Meltzer thought it established the NXT Championship as a lesser title.

“All it did was tell everybody that [the NXT Championship] is a secondary title,” Meltzer said. “Carmelo Hayes is so far down the list that he’s like Gargano/Ciampa level…he was a plucky midcard to lowcard babyface and the NXT Champion should be a champion close to competitive with that.”

WOR video: The two problems with Danielson vs. Okada

Posted on by F4W Staff

Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer explained the two problems with the Forbidden Door main event.

Bryan Danielson defeated Kazuchika Okada in the main event of Forbidden Door on Sunday. Alvarez on Wrestling Observer Radio Monday morning said that the match was great, but not as great as he thought it would be. Both he and Meltzer agreed that one of the reasons was the crowd not being into the match due to Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay’s match, which they thought was a match of the year contender.

“If we had known what we knew, Osprey and Omega should have gone last,” Meltzer said.

Meltzer also brought up the other reason the match didn’t meet expectations: Danielson  said at the post-show media scrum that he and the AEW medical team believe he fractured his right forearm near the end of the match.

“They changed the last several minutes of the match because they had to,” Meltzer said.

In the scrum, Danielson also admitted he suffered a torn labrum in the match against MJF back at AEW Revolution in March. Meltzer noted that it was concerning that Danielson has only wrestled twice since Revolution, but has injured himself both times.

“This one was more of a fluke. The Max match was just so brutal. You start piling up injuries like that and it’s not a good thing either,” he said.

WOR Video: One Bill Phil

Posted on by Bryan Rose

CM Punk’s promo and return on Collision was the lead story in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales discussed the story on Friday’s Wrestling Observer Radio. Meltzer had reported that despite some reports saying the ‘counterfeit bucks’ line was known by the Bucks beforehand, it was not.

“I don’t know if it was approved by management or not,” Meltzer said. “I only know that [The Young Bucks] were not aware of the line, so there you go.”

Meltzer thought that the more interesting line in the promo was Punk referring to himself as “One Bill Phil’, a line referring to previous reports that AEW had secured a new billion dollar television deal, something that has not been confirmed. Tony Khan later in a media call said “that was the goal” when asked about the television deal, something that Dave thought could lead to disappointment if AEW secures anything less.

“If they get a deal and let’s say [they get] $750 million, which is still a great deal, it’s almost like it’s a disappointment even though it shouldn’t be.”

Wrestling Observer Radio: CM Punk’s return to AEW, Forbidden Door preview

Posted on by Garrett Gonzales

Dave Meltzer and I are back for a Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio going over all the news in the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

We discuss the following:

  • Dave’s story on CM Punk’s return to AEW
  • One specific talent being frustrated after Wednesday’s TV
  • 1 Bill Phil and what it means
  • Forbidden Door’s two big matches
  • The excitement surrounding the entire card
  • AEW’s Dynamite rating
  • Bellator and Tony Khan
  • NXT ratings and strategy
  • The Bloodline storyline and the level of detail to the story

We also take a couple questions from listeners.

Click here to listen or watch on YouTube with a subscription.

WOR Video: Could Logan Paul win WWE Money in the Bank?

Posted on by F4W Staff

Logan Paul is back in WWE, and he’s going for the Money in the Bank briefcase.

Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer discussed that segment and more on Tuesday’s Wrestling Observer Radio. Alvarez was confused by Logan Paul’s promo, where he was trying to be both a face and a heel while announcing he was part of the Money in the Bank ladder match. This brought out the participants from both brands, the latest example of the brand split not meaning anything.

“So the brand thing is over,” Meltzer said. “Not even an explanation.”

With Paul’s entry into the match, he becomes the immediate favorite.

“I think Logan Paul should win the match. I don’t know that he’ll win, but I think he should,” Meltzer said. “He’ll get a lot of publicity if he won and the other thing about that is I think the briefcase is so annoying when it’s there week after week, but if it’s there every now and then, I think that’s pretty cool.”

Meltzer even suggested that Paul could win the title, saying he’s no David Arquette, who won the WCW Championship back in 2000 while looking completely incompetent in the ring.

“This guy’s great. He can talk, he looks good, he can work, he’s great. He’s a bigger celebrity than anyone they got in the entire company, so why not?” he said.

New tickets on sale for Dave Meltzer & Bryan Alvarez live in London

Posted on by F4W Staff

If you will be in London, England, for AEW All In this August, join Dave Meltzer & Bryan Alvarez for a live edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, presented by Hooked on Wrestling, Wrestle Tours and PROGRESS Wrestling.

After the original venue sold out, we moved to a new place and have added 40 more tickets.

The event is set for Sunday, August 27th at Sports Bar & Grill Marylebone, SW11 1RU from 11 AM – noon local time. A meet & greet for those with VIP Seven Star tickets begins at 10 AM.

Starting Monday, June 19th at 1 PM Eastern, 40 new tickets will be released which you can buy here. Do so quickly as they are expected to sell out again. Note that if you select PayPal Later at checkout when purchasing, you can pay for your ticket in three monthly installments.

GA tickets are available in addition to Seven Star packages that include priority seating and the aforementioned autograph/photo opportunity with Dave and Bryan.

The venue is a short tube ride from Wembley Stadium so you can stick around after the show to grab lunch there before heading to All In later in the day.

Join Dave & Bryan live in London this August~!

WOR Video: A wild ending to AEW Dynamite

Posted on by F4W Staff

Both Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez were amazed by the wild ending to this past week’s AEW Dynamite on Wrestling Observer Radio.

The main event of Wednesday’s show saw The Elite (Hangman Page and The Young Bucks) defeat The Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Wheeler Yuta).

“Nonstop, just one great thing another another and great crowd heat,” Meltzer said, praising everyone in the match, particularly Hangman Page and Wheeler Yuta. He also noted that this was the first BCC loss that featured Jon Moxley.

After the match, a chaotic scene emerged where Eddie Kingston made his return to make the save for The Elite. Konosuke Takeshita came out, which led to Kenny Omega making his return to lay out Takeshita. However, the show ended with Will Ospreay emerging and attacking Omega, laying him out with a hidden blade and the stormbreaker.

“The match itself was spectacular,” Alvarez said. “But then the aftermath with everyone running in, all these surprises, the place is just going crazy for these guys. This felt like a super hot show.”

Meltzer noted that when they finally get to Omega and Takeshita, it will be a hot feud due to Don Callis’ turn on Omega being so effective.

Wrestling Observer Radio: CM Punk/ESPN interview, AEW Collision

Posted on by Garrett Gonzales

Dave Meltzer and I are back for a Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio going over all the news in the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

We discuss the following:

  • CM Punk’s interview with Marc Raimondi on ESPN’s website
  • MLW’s lawsuit against WWE
  • AEW Collision’s theme song and announce team
  • The lineup for the show 
  • Forbidden Door’s current lineup and thoughts on Jungleboy vs. SANADA
  • Conor McGregor being accused of sexual assault
  • The unpredictable AEW Dynamite ratings
  • XFL losses
  • Upcoming WON HoF class

We also take a couple questions from listeners.

Click here to listen or watch on YouTube with a subscription.

WOR Video: AEW needs Collision to succeed

Posted on by F4W Staff

A big test for AEW will come Saturday night with the debut of Collision.

Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed the upcoming new show on Wrestling Observer Radio Tuesday morning. Meltzer said that the show needs to be big in order for AEW to have the best footing ahead of their TV rights negotiations.

“A lot of money involved, obviously a lot of money involved in the next negotiations. this show’s success or failure or in between will mean a ton of difference most likely in what they are getting.” he said.

Meltzer also seemed wary of the idea of a brand split, which has been proposed but hasn’t been officially announced.

“I don’t know if that is the right answer here. I think that you need your stars on Wednesday and Saturday and not just split the stars in half,” Meltzer said. “There’s a lot of pressure on the Saturday show this week. It has to be a big one.”

Alvarez said that the travel for some of these stars, which may end up working both shows, is going to be tough, disrupting AEW’s easier travel schedule compared to WWE.

“That travel is going to be a b**** for people that are going to be required for both the Wednesday and Saturday shows on any given week,” Alvarez said, pointing out that being on both shows would require being away for four days straight.

AEW Collision will premiere this Saturday on TNT.

WOR Video: How the Iron Sheik became WWE Champion

Posted on by F4W Staff

Dave and Garrett discussed The Iron Sheik’s WWE Championship win on Wrestling Observer Radio.

Friday afternoon’s show had Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales discuss The Iron Sheik, who passed away on Wednesday. Meltzer noted that once Sheik had entered the WWF in the early 1980s, he was already passed his peak as a wrestler.

“The Iron Sheik everybody saw was nowhere near the competitor of the Portland Iron Sheik or Mid Atlantic Iron Sheik,” Meltzer said.

Gonzales noted that when The Iron Sheik won the WWE Championship in late 1983 from Bob Backlund, he had only been in the territory a short time. Meltzer said that was common during the territory era for heels to debut at the top.

“In those days, a heel would show up on TV and they’d be on TV for two months or so and when they debut, it’d be at the Spectrum or in the Garden in the main event,” he said.

“The Sheik’s run…it was kind of the right place at the right time,” Meltzer said regarding Sheik’s title run. “I think a lot of people think that The Sheik was picked as this great plan because of Hulk Hogan being an American hero…it could have been anyone in that spot.”

WOR Video: Jey Uso doesn’t make his choice & more on WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Bryan Rose

The drama continued on Friday’s SmackDown.

Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed some of the news on Wrestling Observer Radio on Sunday morning. One of the major storylines had Asuka being presented with a new WWE Women’s Championship belt, similar to the title Roman Reigns was given on last week’s show. With the new distinction, what used to be the Raw Women’s Championship is no more.

“Rhea [Ripley] will probably be the World Women’s Champion,” Meltzer said. “Or maybe Universal.”

The segment ended with Charlotte Flair returning and immediately inserting herself into the title picture, much to Bianca Belair’s chagrin.

The Bloodline situation, meanwhile, continued to roll along with Jey Uso ultimately not making a decision whether or not he’ll side with The Bloodline or his brother. At one point, Jey told Paul Heyman backstage that if he were to stick with The Bloodline, he would want Heyman out. The main event had Jey Uso ultimately fail to capture the United States title from Austin Theory, with Jimmy Uso accidentally superkicking his brother after attempting to go after Solo, who had interfered.

“Very clever the way they did that finish there because Jey’s now all upset, and of course the story here was that he had to make a decision, but after that happened he doesn’t make a decision,” Alvarez said.

The show continued to tease that ultimately, Jey Uso will have to make his choice next week when Roman Reigns returns.

WOR Video: MJF and Adam Cole have their confrontation on AEW Dynamite

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Adam Cole and MJF had a lot to say to one another on Dynamite.

Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer discussed Wednesday’s promo on Wrestling Observer Radio Thursday morning.

“I hate long talking segments, but this was the exception,” Meltzer said.

The segment had MJF put over Cole during his run in ROH before burying his current physique and mindset. Cole retaliated, saying MJF couldn’t keep a relationship and offered to go to the back, where they could “piss in cups” to determine who had the natural physique. MJF responded by alluding to reports prior to Adam Cole leaving WWE, in which creative suggested giving Cole a haircut, a new name, and the opportunity to manage someone on the main roster, with Lee’s name being mentioned.

“Vince and Bruce Prichard in fact did not see him as a wrestler,” Meltzer said. “They saw him as Keith Lee’s manager, allegedly…Adam Cole himself was never told anything. What happened was when all those stories came Adam Cole didn’t know them. And later he found out they were true.”

In the end, MJF accepted a match between himself and Cole. That match will take place this coming Wednesday, a non-title match where if Cole wins, he could get a title match down the line.

WOR Video: WWE SmackDown’s massive rating

Posted on by F4W Staff

SmackDown’s big number last Friday was discussed on Tuesday morning’s Wrestling Observer Radio.

The show garnered 2,563,000 viewers, making it the strongest show of the year. The 18-45 0.73 number, according to Meltzer, was the best number SmackDown has gotten in years in that demo.

“They started strong but [the audience] grew waiting for that final segment,” Meltzer said.

The final segment, in which Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa turned on Jimmy Uso, received 2,901,000 viewers and a 0.87, one of the bigger numbers for wrestling in a long time.

Next week’s show will center around Jey Uso being forced to choose Reigns and his twin brother Jimmy. Meltzer said that he hopes Jey chooses his brother in order to keep the feud balanced.

“I think when you watch Paul [Heyman] basically say that Jey is going to choose their side, that tells you Jey’s not going to choose their side,” Meltzer said.

One of the victims of SmackDown’s success? AEW’s Rampage. Despite promoting a card full of title matches, the show only garnered 357,000 viewers, down 18 percent from last week’s number. 

Wrestling Observer Radio: Iron Sheik biography, AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door thoughts

Posted on by Garrett Gonzales

Dave Meltzer and I are back for a Friday edition of Wrestling Observer Radio going over all the news in the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

We discuss the following:

  • Dave’s bio on the life of the Iron Sheik
  • Jon Moxley’s hectic week to get to Japan
  • Forbidden Door 2
  • AEW Collision streaming plan
  • Ticket sales for Collision shows
  • CM Punk vs. KENTA and whether it’s booking a match of hoping for a match
  • Possible stipulation for Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes 3
  • Young Rock
  • UFC 289

We also take a few questions from listeners.

Click here to listen or watch on YouTube with a subscription.