Daily Update: Jerry Lawler, Becky Lynch, Junior dos Santos

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F4W NEWSLETTER: Figure Four Weekly: Smackville, EVOLVE & the WWE Network

Joseph Currier looks at two Network specials and what they could mean for the future of the service.

EVOLVE’s 10th Anniversary Celebration streamed on the Network opposite AEW Fight for the Fallen on July 13. Another in-ring special has also been added to the Network schedule for this month, with “Smackville” set to air this Saturday (July 27).

Smackville is similar to past specials like The Shield’s Final Chapter and WWE Starrcade. The WWE Network broadcast of Smackville will be an hour long. Kofi Kingston will defend the WWE Championship against Samoa Joe and Dolph Ziggler in a triple threat match, Finn Balor will face Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura in a rematch from Extreme Rules, and there will be a musical performance segment with Elias.

The Smackville name is playing off the show taking place in Nashville, Tennessee and the city’s Bridgestone Arena, which is the home of the Nashville Predators. The event was just a house show prior to the special being announced, and it will still feature some untelevised matches.

Televised house shows have been something WWE has surveyed subscribers about for a long time. Smackville feels very much like a by-the-numbers house show card. After already having defeated them in his most recent pay-per-view title defenses, Kingston is facing Joe and Ziggler again. Balor has already moved on to a storyline with Bray Wyatt and is set to take some time off from WWE after SummerSlam, so it seems unlikely that he’ll be regaining the Intercontinental title. The Smackville theme should play into the Elias segment, but it’s unlikely that it will have much meaning to the larger audience.

WON NEWSLETTER: July 29, 2019 Observer Newsletter: AEW announces TV details, more

The new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter has details on the first episode of AEW on TNT, the possible name of the show, why the host city was chosen, and potential TV competition in the first few weeks of airing. 

We detail the latest G1 Climax 29 shows, and how it compares to last year’s tournament. 

We have coverage of Jon Jones and his latest potential legal trouble.

We cover Summerslam, how the card is shaping up, and the possible return of a WWE Hall of Famer on the show. 

We look back at Saturday’s UFC show, and the business notes on the show.

We have details on Dragon Gate’s biggest show of the year, and have business notes on that as well. 

We also have coverage of a wrestling star being part of Hollywood box office history.

There’s also a run down the ratings of all the major TV shows, along with detailed demo info for the WWE shows and results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.

ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to dave@wrestlingobserver.com or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to dave@wrestlingobserver.com.

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TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE

by Joseph Currier and Bryan Rose

WWE

  • SmackDown tonight will take place in Memphis, Tennessee. A non-title match between AJ Styles (with Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows) and Kofi Kingston (with Big E and Xavier Woods) has been announced. A tag match with Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross vs. Ember Moon and Bayley is also set. Jerry Lawler will also host the returning King’s Court with guest Trish Stratus.
  • 205 Live will have an unsanctioned match between Drake Maverick and Mike Kanellis.
  • Jerry Lawler thanked everyone who thought about Brian Christopher yesterday on the one-year anniversary of his death: “Today was a very tough day. It’s been exactly one year since my son Brian Christopher died. I want to thank everyone who thought about Brian today. We’ll never forget you, Brian.”
  • Becky Lynch told Talksport that she was initially apprehensive about teaming with Seth Rollins on TV: “Honestly, I was very apprehensive. What I didn’t want was everybody talking about the relationship. What I wanted was two bad asses, two people at the top of their game fighting side-by-side. Not for the world to be reminded every five minutes that this is Becky Lynch’s boyfriend or that’s Seth Rollins’ girlfriend. Which, of course, they didn’t do. They were the masters of subtlety…So, for that reason, I was apprehensive. But when I thought about it, I was like OK. One, we’re going to make this a badass fight, it’s going to be a great fight. No matter what, you know when you put me and Seth Rollins in a fight you’re going to get pure passion and we’re going to pull out all the stops. But in terms of having my relationship be the freaking — be the front and centre, that’s not what I’m about. That’s not what I’ve worked towards. That’s not what I wanted. I wanted to work with Seth because he’s the best in the business — you know, besides me — but working with him was awesome. He really is the absolute best.”
  • Chris Sabin is guest coaching at the WWE Performance Center this week.
  • Hulk Hogan is the guest on today’s episode of the Steve Austin Show.
  • WWE’s YouTube channel uploaded Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena from SummerSlam 2014.

Pro Wrestling

UFC/MMA

  • A match between Alexander Volkov and Junior Dos Santos is reportedly in the works for UFC’s next event in Moscow.
  • John Makdessi has withdrawn from UFC 241. The promotion is looking for a replacement opponent for Devonte Smith.
  • Deron Winn vs. Darren Stewart is being discussed for UFC’s next Boston event on 10/18.
  • Stephen Thompson is hoping to fight in November at MSG.
  • UFC 240 prelims averaged 722,000 viewers, the worst numbers since UFC 230 with Cormier vs. Lewis.
  • Laureano Starpoli is out, Alexey Kunchenko is in as he’ll fight Gilbert Burns at UFC’s Uruguay event on 8/10.

Daily Pro Wrestling History: Stan Hansen wins PWF Heavyweight Title

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