Daily Update: Can Raw rebound, Funk update, Goldberg on Punk

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Television & Shows

Please send thoughts on the following shows with a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match: Dave@WrestlingObserver.com

  • New Japan Destruction in Tokyo

MONDAY

Raw is in Memphis tonight — the go-home show for Clash of Champions. Cesaro vs Sheamus in match number six of their best-of-seven series will be on the show, along with Seth Rollins vs Rusev, as well as the debut of the cruiserweight division which will likely set up something for Sunday’s PPV show. 

Smackdown will have a Monday night house show in Tupelo, MS, with A.J. Styles, Randy Orton, Dean Ambrose, The Miz, Becky Lynch and Natalya.

We’re taking your news and notes from dark matches, Superstars, and anything off camera to newstips@wrestlingobserver.com.

TUESDAY

Smackdown and Main Event will be on Tuesday night from Birmingham, AL. John Cena is scheduled for his only show of the week on Tuesday.

We’re taking your news and notes from dark matches, Main Event, and anything off camera to newstips@wrestlingobserver.com.

Figure Four Weekly, 9/12/2016: More on the Last Battle of Atlanta, wrestling Holy grails, and WWE’s video library – The release of the Last Battle of Atlanta on WWE Network, discussed here last week in advance of it dropping, was met with mixed reaction online. The namesake match itself, Tommy Rich vs. Buzz Sawyer in a cage (with a roof on top for the first time in wrestling history) had become legendary more due to magazine hype and the lack of available footage than anything else… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

F4W YouTube Page: Tons of clips and full free audio shows that you can tell your friends about, and much more to come! Make sure you subscribe today!

Wrestling Observer Newsletter, September 19, 2016:CM Punk loses UFC debut, TJ Perkins wins Cruiserweight Classic, Backlash review, tons more – The two-year odyssey, odd being the key part of the word, of C.M. Punk to the UFC octagon saw the door shut and the clock strike midnight, not Eastern time, but Cinderella time.

In the end it was simple reality. Starting out at 36 with very limited training past some Jiu Jitsu classes from Rener Gracie, no great athletic gifts and a body beaten up by 15 years of pro wrestling was not going to be able to train for two years and be able to compete in the UFC.

Subscribers click here to continue reading.

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WON Back Issue, August 23, 1999: WCW Road Wild review, NJPW G1 Climax results, plus tons more – Steve Austin has become the subject of a lot of talk in the past week, with his various injuries, his probable, maybe almost assured dropping of the WWF title at SummerSlam and stories regarding him becoming harder to deal with… Subscribers click here to continue reading.

MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

Raw looks to rebound off its lowest non-holiday number since 1996 last week going against football. Tonight’s game is the Chicago Bears vs. Philadelphia Eagles, which are two of the top five markets in the country. Next week would be the one that Raw will really take it on the chin unless they do a hot angle coming off Clash of Champions.

Katsuyori Shibata will be out of action for the next few weeks. He did a match Saturday with Bobby Fish and after doing so, it was announced he’s out the rest of the tour due to a spine injury. However, they didn’t take the NEVER title from him as he beat Fish. They set up a Shibata vs. Kyle O’Reilly match with New Japan’s next major show after this tour is the 10/10 show at Sumo Hall.     

Two of the top developmental programs in MMA, the Resurrection Fighting Alliance and Legacy Fighting Championships, which both air on AXS TV, announced a merger today on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani. The new promotion, which will run 30 Friday night shows on AXS per year with New Japan as its lead-in, will be called the Legacy Fighting Alliance. The two companies combined have placed more than 100 fighters in either UFC or Bellator.

Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw, as well as more on the TNA sale with some exclusive notes, Terry Funk and talking your questions to Mailbag@WrestlingObserver.com.

WWE

  • Brandon Howard has some great research on how the first brand split affected the WWE PPV business.
  • Tickets for the 11/19 NXT Takeover show at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto are on sale for American Express members right now. Other presales will start on Wednesday.
  • Among those backstage in Memphis at Raw include Luke Harper, Emma, Paige, T.J. Perkins, Brian Kendrick, Jack Gallagher (who was in Toronto over the weekend) and Rich Swann. Emma worked the Raw weekend house shows as a referee. Harper is just about ready to return if he’s not ready right now.

UFC

  • Bill Goldberg feels CM Punk should not fight again in UFC. “There’s no question he should not fight in the UFC,” Goldberg said on the 100th episode of Submission Radio. “That would be blasphemy. It would be a slap in the face to all the guys who worked their asses off to make it to prelims on Fox, on undercards and on the main event card. At the end of the day, from a promoter’s standpoint, from a competitor’s standpoint, from his standpoint, there’s no logic in him stepping in that octagon agsin. If he still has the passion for it and wants to train and compete, then yeah, lower-level shows are where he needs to be.” 
    He said he’s still interested in fighting for Glory. He also said he’d be doing Eric Bischoff’s podcast soon in Indianapolis this weekend, the same city Clash of Champions is in, but said right now he’s got nothing going regarding WWE but said he also has no more issues with them.
  • Bellator kickboxing has a show airing on Friday night from Budapest, Hungary:

*Karim Ghaji (96-12) defends the welterweight title against Zoltan Laszak (10-2)

*Raymond Daniels (11-3) vs. Zsoplt Benedek (15-3)

*Denise Kielhotz (44-3) vs. Renta Lantos (5-4)

*Alexandru Negrea (9-3) vs. Ali El Ameri (42-10-2)

VARIETY

  • Dynamo Pro Wrestling from Saturday night in Glen Carbon, IL: CJ Shine b Matt Kenway, Jackal b Ric Maverick, Keon Option & Justin D’Air b Billy McNeil & Jayson Kahos, Elvis Aliaga b Ricky Cruz, Outkkast b Shorty Bigggs, Makaze b Ozzie Gallagher, Mike Outlaw won three-way over Brandon Espinosa and Jon Webb (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
  • Smash vs. Progress from last night in Toronto: Face & Marc Hauss b Fuerza & Vertigo, Frankie the Mobster b El Ligero, Super Smash Brothers b James Davis & Rob Lynch and  Braxton Sutter (TNA) & Mike Rollins, Jack Gallagher b John Greed Tyson Dux b Zack Sabre Jr., Mark Andrews b Kevin Bennett, Mark Haskins b Speedball Mike Bailey, Scott O’Shea b Brent  Banks in a fans bring the keyboard match. There were fans who traveled from London to Toronto to see the Progress guys and all the fans knew all the Progress guys and their moves. Gallagher was said to be the star performer of the weekend (thanks to Dave Musgrave)
  • Wildkat Sports, the Louisiana-based promotion of Luke Hawx, debuts on Saturday night on the WUPL, Ch. 54 in New Orleans, at 9 p.m. That’s the MyNetwork affiliate.
  • TCW Cuore Ribelle 2016 benefit show for victims of the Central Italy earthquake: Scandalo b Rocco Gioiello, Violent Joe b Kevin Dopa, Darkness b Mefist, Frenic Rossa b Carlo Birra, Carlo  Birra & Claudio Campari b Il Merchese & Death Mask to keep TCW tag titles, Darkness II b Scandalo, Violent Joe b Fenice Rossa, Kombat Komedian b Blackslash, Violent Joe b Darknmess II to win the Cuore Ribelle Trophy. (thanks to  Alessio Garbini)
  • Capital City Championship Combat announced today they are canceling their show on Saturday due to a death to someone close to the promotion. The death was not specified in the release sent out.
  • Al Snow has a seminar for experienced and aspiring wrestlers on 10/1 in Omaha and will be headlining the Pro Wrestling Phoenix show that night. For those interested in the seminar, send to ProWrestlingPheonix@hotmail.com.
  • Maryland Championship Wrestling has big events this weekend. Friday night at 8 p.m. at Jimmy’s Famous Seafood in Baltimore, there will be a Jim Ross and Jim Cornette talk show. There will be a convention on Saturday from 10 a.m to 4 p.m. with Bret Hart, Jim Ross, Jim Cornette, Bob Orton Jr., Jimmy Hart, Howard Finkel, Paul Orndorff and Cornette which will include a Cornette live podcast. There will be a live show at 7:30 p.m. headlined by King McBride defending his MCW title against Drolix. Koko Ware, Tito Santana and Honky Tonk Man will wrestle and Cornette will manage on the live show.
  • NWA Smoky Mountain Wrestling on 10/8 in Kingsport, TN at the Civic Auditorium with Jason Kincaid defending the Southeastern title against Chase Owens.

Daily Pro Wrestling History (09/19): AJ Styles wins the TNA World Championship

CONTACT INFORMATION

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