Daily Update: Cody Rhodes, Raw notes, Brian Gewirtz

Daily Update

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter: January 17, 2022 Observer Newsletter: 2021 Observer Hall of Fame issue, MLW sues WWE

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MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

Bryan and I will be back tonight talking about Mustafa Ali, Raw, Cody Rhodes, Ultimate Fighter, Hall of Fame and much more. You can send questions to the show tonight to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com

Regarding Cody Rhodes, if for some reason he is pulled from Wednesday’s show, then there is a story. Right now he’s agreed to do a second season of Rhodes to the Top and is advertised for Wednesday’s Dynamite.

Raw tonight is from Tulsa. The advance was only 4,000 and paid was well below that. The show would be expected to do among the lowest numbers in the show’s history due to the Cardinals-Rams wildcard playoff game tonight. If they equal last week’s number, which was the fourth lowest in history in 18-49, one would have to consider it a success. To make things worse, Dwayne Johnson will be head-to-head as part of the Manning Brothers announcing the football game on the ESPN 2 simulcast. This is the last week against football and the first time Raw has ever gone against a playoff game. The Raw number should bounce back to whatever normal is next week.

Announced for Raw are Seth Rollins vs. Bobby Lashley and Becky Lynch & Doudrop vs. Liv Morgan & Bianca Belair. There is set to be another Alexa Bliss segment as well.

WWE

  • Sorry to report that Sasha Banks’ father passed away over the weekend. The father-in-law of Trish Stratus also passed away over the weekend.

AEW

  • Thunder Rosa will wrestle Tony Deppen on the next GCW show in Los Angeles on 2/25 at the Ukrainian Cultural Center.

UFC

  • Mike Jackson, who some may remember as the MMA reporter who beat C.M. Punk in Punk’s second UFC fight, returns to UFC in his first fight since the Punk win. He will face Dean Barry on the 4/23 show.

OTHER NOTES

  • Brian Gewirtz’s book on his life as head writer of WWE now has a title: “There’s Just One Problem: True Tales from the former one-time seventh Most Powerful Person in he WWE.”
  • Brooklyn Brawler, at age 60, wrestled Saturday night for UPW in Iron Mountain, MI pinning a guy named Kato (thanks to Leonard Brand)
  • On HBO’s second season of The Gemstones, John Goodman’s character is revealed to be a one-time pro wrestler with Memphis wrestling. No promotion is mentioned, just the Eli Gemstone, who is a patriarch of the family, when he was young wrestled under a mask as The Maniac Kid. We also see him as a heavy collecting for the mob. It’s a dark comedy, said to be very funny. The idea is the son of his promoter returns and his family finds out about his past (thanks to Brendan Faherty)
  • The Briscoe Brothers will be doing open challenges both Saturday night for Northeast Wrestling in Poughkeepsie, NY and Sunday for GCW on their PPV show from New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom. Obviously the reason is to give you the idea it’ll be FTR, which would be who fans are expecting. I’d think Tony Khan would want that match for himself, but we’ll see how this plays out.
  • A first-time ever meeting of Killer Kross vs. Homicide takes place on 3/3 for Outlaw Championship Wrestling in Ridgewood, NY.
  • Terri Runnels replaces Tammy Sytch for Great Lakes Championship Wrestling on Saturday in Cedarburg, WI at Circle B.
  • Wrestling Revolver from last night in Clive, IA: Mike Bailey b Acey Romero, Masha Slamovich won three-way over Billie Starkz and Tootie Lynn, Eddie Edwards & Chris Sabin b Myron Reed & Warhorse, Crash Jaxon won over JJ Garrett, Cole Radrick, Dan the Dad, Jason Strife, Kody Lane, Marcus Mathers and Kevin Giza, Jake Manning & Manders b Logan James & Tyler Matrix, Madman Fulton b Ninja Mack, Ace Austin won four-way over Alex Zayne, Andrew Everett and Blake Christian, Brian Cage b Jonah, Alex Colon b Jake Crist in a scaffold light tubes deathmatch
  • Adam Scherr and EC3 are announced as competing in a tag team match on 3/7 in Dubai. (thanks to CBS Sports)
  • Epic Pro Wrestling on 5/21 in Los Angeles featuring Peter Avalon. Avalon is still under contract with AEW although he has started taking more independent dates
  • Impact is doing TV on Friday and Saturday at the Charles Dodge Center in Pembroke Pines, FL featuring Jay White,Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa from new Japan Pro Wrestling. The Iinspiration vs. Tenille Dashwood & Madison Rayne Knockouts tag title match that was scheduled for the 1/8 PPV show will be taped this week. The match was postponed due to COVID protocol.