Daily Update: Roddy Piper WWE statue, Ric Flair at WrestleCon
July 5, 2020 | News | No Comments
DAILY UPDATE
Latest News
EVOLVE 125 live results: Austin Theory vs. Kyle O’Reilly
wXw Amerika ist Wunderbar live results: David Starr vs. Lucky Kid, LAX, more
Hulk Hogan inducting Brutus Beefcake into WWE Hall Of Fame
WWE, A&E co-producing five ‘Biography’ documentaries
Matches set for next two weeks of NXT TV
AAA announces September 15th MSG debut, LA date coming soon
WWE NXT results: Kairi Sane vs. Bianca Belair
NXT’s Kyle O’Reilly set for PROGRESS Super Strong Style 16
WWE SmackDown ratings down 11 percent for WM go-home show
Latest Audio
WOL: WrestleMania weekend in full swing, AAA announcement 4/4
Portland Wrestlecast: ‘Golden Boy’ Jerry Grey on 1980s wrestling politics 4/4
Left My Wallet: WOR’s Garrett Gonzales on sports and hip hop 4/3
F4W NEWSLETTER: Figure Four Weekly: Looking at the WWE HOF and the 2019 class
While interest has inevitably decreased over the years, the 2019 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony feels like less of an essential part of WrestleMania weekend than ever.
There are a few major reasons why the Hall of Fame ceremony has lost some of its luster. As WrestleMania week has become a destination for promotions from the United States and abroad, fans have to make difficult decisions on how they’re going to spend their time and money.
WON NEWSLETTER: April 9, 2019 Observer Newsletter: Massive Wrestlemania weekend preview
A preview of WrestleMania week leads off this week’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Read notes on the business for the week, how the business of WrestleMania has changed, what records are going to be set, a look at how fans changed the week, matches changed over the past few weeks, notes on surprises, and who is scheduled.
Have a look at the HBO Last Week Tonight segment on WWE. It starts with a story about Sherri Martel that is important to understanding a key issue involved here. Look at how the business has changed, what has also stayed the same, and why wrestling talent doesn’t get the benefit of the amount of revenue they drive compared to major sports and entertainment stars.
Also look at the 2019-2020 WWE arena schedule. Look at the foreign tours, the update on Saudi Arabia shows, and house shows that are in danger of being canceled because of the next Saudi Arabia show.
Read about the future of Linda McMahon after leaving Trump’s Cabinet and the position she was up for, the story behind the death of the AAF, Vince McMahon’s XFL plans, how much money Vince has earmarked for the XFL, why one analyst thinks stock will hit $157 per share, and thoughts on upcoming TV deals.
Read coverage of this past week’s UFC show in Philadelphia with match-by-match coverage and business notes on the show.
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THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE
As I write this, the WrestleCon SuperShow is kicking off with Ric Flair and WrestleCon ambassador Road Warrior Animal in the ring, reportedly killing time because the venue is waiting for an ambulance to be on site. Flair apparently did an incredible, emotional promo about Charlotte Flair and more.
Along with AAA announcing their MSG debut today, WWE announced a series of documentaries set to air on A&E in 2020 and WWE added a tag title match to WrestleMania. Check out the links at the top of the update and listen to Wrestling Observer Live in case you missed anything.
For those in New York for WrestleMania weekend, there are a slew of our writers, podcasters, and editors there in addition to Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez hitting up shows all over the place. If you see them around and about, please say hi, take pictures, ask for autographs, etc. The guys will be doing a lot of audio and we’ll be posting results from 15+ shows and events over the next few days. There’s A LOT going on, and we’ll do our best to keep you in the loop.
In addition to show recaps already posted on the website, we will have Thursday coverage of Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport coming up shortly in addition to the WrestleCon Supershow, Impact’s United We Stand, MLW’s TV taping, and Axxess results.
WWE
As part of Axxess, WWE unveiled a statue of “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, seen above. Ricky Steamboat, Sting, Jimmy Hart, and Brutus Beefcake were among those attendance. The Hall of Famer joins Andre The Giant, Ultimate Warrior, Dusty Rhodes, Ric Flair, and Bruno Sammartino as those with statues.
In an interview with TMZ Sports, Big Show responded to John Oliver and Last Week Tonight’s segment about WWE. “I’ve had a lot of injuries, I knew from day one stepping through the ropes that it was not an easy job, it was a job that was gonna put myself at risk. I took the paychecks, I took the fame, I took the fortune,” Big Show said. “The industry’s changed. It’s done everything it can to protect the athlete and create longevity for the athlete. I’m 47 and I’m still rocking and rolling, so they’re doing something right.” Big Show prefaced his comments by saying everyone is entitled to their own opinion and has their own experiences.
Sports Illustrated asked The Miz about the segment. “I feel like I’ve gotten everything I’ve ever wanted from WWE and more,” he said.
Braun Strowman. Carmella, Drew McIntyre, Alexa Bliss, Kofi Kingston, and Seth Rollins appeared on last night’s episode of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, taking part in a segment where they read trash talk submitted by kids.
Seth Rollins spoke to Yahoo Sports about his return to the Universal title picture.
WWE posted a 21-minute video of Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole preparing for their NXT Championship match at TakeOver: New York.
WWE’s YouTube channel uploaded Charlotte Flair and Asuka’s SmackDown Women’s Championship match from last year’s WrestleMania.
Pro Wrestling
Dave Meltzer reports that Saturday’s NJPW/ROH show at MSG will have a PPV window to midnight Eastern.
Kyle Fletcher was the final entrant announced for this year’s PROGRESS Wrestling Super Strong Style 16 tournament. Travis Banks, Ilja Dragunov, Trevor Lee, Aerostar, Artemis Spencer, DJZ, Jordan Devlin, Chris Ridgeway, Chris Brookes, Darby Allin, Paul Robinson, Daga, David Starr, Lucky Kid, and Kyle O’Reilly are the other wrestlers in the tournament. It’s taking place at Alexandra Palace in London, England from May 4-6, with the winner getting a future PROGRESS title shot.
On this day in pro wrestling history, Yokozuna defeated Bret Hart to win the WWF World title…and then lost it to Hulk Hogan.
Our Ethan Renner put together results from the Wednesday indie shows that kicked off WrestleMania weekend:
UPWA: Undeniable
Sonny Kiss won a battle royale, earning the right to face Carolina Champion Kenny Bengal; Mikal Mosley defeated Craig Steele; The American Pitbulls defeated Stars and Stripes, Team Espana, The Dirty Blondes to win the UPWA tag titles; BoZworth defeated Chris Masters after nearly defeating him in a Master Lock Challenge; James Anthony defeated Ricky Reyes to win the UPWA Cruiserweight title; The Stro defeated UPWA Heavyweight Champion LA Tank via countout when Tank walked out on the match; The American Murder Society defeated Tough Guy Inc. Carolina Champion Kenny Bengal defeated Sonny Kiss; Victor Andrews defeated Billy Gunn in what was said to be a very physical match; Corrine Mink retained the UPWA Women’s title defeating Mercedes Martinez & Nyla Rose
Battle Club Pro Icons: Women Crush Wednesday
Leyla Hirsch won a gauntlet match; Savannah Evans defeated Kiera Hogan; Shazza McKenzie & Indi Hartwell defeated Allie Kat & Veda Scott; Tasha Stellz defeated Diamante; Maria Manic defeated Su Yung; Aerial Monroe defeated Thunder Rosa; Leva Bates & Solo Darling defeated Ashley Vox & Delmi EXO; Kylie Rae defeated Harlow O’Hara via countout; Tasha Steelz defeated Harlow O’Hara
Pizza Party Wrestling
Faye Jackson defeated Brad Rush; Ugly Ducklings defeated Sass and Fury, The Stepdads, and The Atlantic City Scoundrels. This was advertised as an elimination match, but they went one fall to a finish. The FEST Tag Team titles were also put on the line right before the match; Tyrannosaurus Flex Ezekiel James defeated Tony Deppen; Pizza Cat defeated Ophidian; Alex Zayne defeated Robbie Eagles; KTB defeated Rory Gulak, Sam Jude, and ??? in an East London Street Fight. Sam Jude is said to have taken thumbtacks, barbeque skewers, and some unprotected headshots; Dick Justice defeated Johnny Cockstrong in triple overtime of a 60 second Ironman match. Fans chanted 5 more seconds; Tyrannosaurus Flex came back out and challenged a fan in ring gear. He said his name was 01086Y0 and he was born in a Petrie Dish and the fan pinned Flex.; Matt Vertigo defeated Zacky Strutts, Champagne Douglas, Everett Cross, “Vicious” Van Valley, and Russel K. Best; Daniel Makabe beat Fred Yehi with a European Clutch. Yehi is said to have wrestled circles around Makabe for most of the match. (Thanks to Dan Mullooly)
WrestlePro Does Funny = Money?
Santino & Colt Cabana defeated Heavenly Bodies; Dan Maff defeated Swoggle; Team Espana won a tag team gauntlet match; Buster Jackson defeated Shawn Donovan in a Bird Box match; Demon Bunny (Allie & Rosemary) defeated Team Tremendous; Kikutaro defeated Bobby Wayward; Jake Manning defeated Anthony Bowens, Johnny Clash, Matt Macintosh; Scarlett Bordeaux defeated John Hartnett
MurderMania: Night 1
Casanova Valentine defeated FMW Leather; Ophidian defeated Joe Gacy; The Ugly Ducklings defeated Gym Nasty Boys (Thanks to Steven Bradley)
UFC/MMA
For the second time in company history, Bellator is running a show at Madison Square Garden. It’s taking place on June 14, and Ariel Helwani reported that Chael Sonnen vs. Vitor Belfort has already been booked for the show.
Anthony Pettis suffered a broken nose during his fight against Stephen Thompson last month.
Ed in San Antonio presents the WRESTLEMANIA Weekend Event:
Saturday, April 6th at 12:00 pm: Lunch (all you can eat) at Churrascaria Plataforma ($90 per person), located at 316 W. 49th street in Manhattan. Purchase tickets here~!
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