Daily Update: Ricochet, Hikuleo, ratings

Daily Update

Latest News

Latest Audio

Latest Free YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Among the topics covered in this issue:

  • Update on what Mexican talent can work on the same shows as other Mexican talent, the recent changes and how they’ve gone down and the current political situation leading into Forbidden Door
  • Looking at WWE Clash at the Castle and NXT Battleground
  • Update on Forbidden Door, ticket demand and AEW’s top programs
  • Conor McGregor and UFC 303
  • Full report on UFC 302, business and match-by-match coverage
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi’s 10-point plan to strengthen New Japan Pro Wrestling. We look at where the company stands and its obstacles as Tanahashi hits the six-month mark as President
  • Death of El Signo and the heyday of Los Misionero de la Muerte
  • A look at episode one of Who Killed WCW?
  • The most detailed look at the ratings for all pro wrestling and MMA television shows over the past week including competition, key demos, segment-by-segment, analysis, standing and how it compares with one year ago.
  • New promotion gets weekly television on a top 20 station starting in one week, as well as being on the verge of a second deal
  • Celebration of 20 years of Mistico shows
  • Arena Mexico continues big crowds
  • Dream Gate title change
  • A look at the Dominion show this week
  • Update on next week’s show featuring talent from a number of major promotions including a rematch of one of this year’s best matches
  • More on the B Block finals and semifinals of the Best of the Super Juniors tournament
  • Gable Steveson tries the NFL and how this very much differs from other former top level wrestlers who have had NFL success
  • Missy Hyatt talks Vince McMahon and details her own experience with him
  • Wrestling book writers Hall of Fame
  • AEW star challenges for British title
  • Notes on MLW Battle Riot
  • GCW has a major weekend
  • Update on TNA office cuts and changes
  • Mike Santana talks about battling drinking issue
  • Notes on people whose contracts are expiring and updates
  • Chuck Taylor and his hopes of returning to the ring
  • More details on AEW doing a residency in Arlington, TX and the economics behind it
  • Kevin Kelly talks his AEW departure and issues with Ian Riccaboni
  • Story behind the Collision rating report
  • International TV ratings
  • Why certain wrestlers haven’t been on AEW TV of late
  • Another AEW star comes out publicly
  • More on the Cung Le antitrust lawsuit settlement
  • Just how much Saudi Arabia is paying for these big events
  • How UFC & WWE are doing record grosses
  • Mark Shapiro talks about how Dana White reacted to the merger and talks about White’s previous problems with Vince McMahon
  • How McMahon first saved UFC and then became a powerful enemy
  • Former WWE stars talk about how talent is paid now, why not getting booked is better for your paycheck and how easily it is to get around WWE drug testing
  • Updated King of the Ring and Double or Nothing PPV notes
  • Reports on WWE weekend house shows

This week’s Wresting Observer Newsletter back issue

Monday Update

  • Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw, and the rest of the news with Wrestling Observer Radio tonight.
  • Tonight is expected to be Ricochet’s final show with WWE.  Raw tonight is from Toledo and was sold out well in advance in a building that would hold around 7,000.  The only matches announced are Sami Zayn vs. Otis non-title to build Zayn vs. Chad Gable for the title on Saturday, Bron Breakker vs. Ilja Dragunov and Iyo Sky vs. Lyra Valkyria.  The prevailing belief is Ricochet is headed to AEW but nobody has confirmed that, only that he made his decision.
  • We did get a confirmation from the WWE side that Hikuleo is coming in after what appeared to be the farewell scene in the post-match after he had been pinned at yesterday’s Dominion show in Osaka.  Hikuleo & El Phantasmo, the New Japan Strong tag champs, were out first, with Hikuleo taking the pin  from the Tank buster from Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls in an elimination match where Haste & Nicholls own both the IWGP World and New Japan Strong tag titles over Hikuleo & Phantasmo, Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi and former IWGP champs Chase Owens & KENTA.
  • Some notes on the Friday ratings.  Smackdown did 2,207,000 viewers and an 0.61, putting it first on all of television.  It was down from last week’s 0.65.  Rampage did 256,000 viewers and 0.09.  The viewer number is very low for the usual time slot and basically identical to what last week’s show did outside the normal time slot.  They advertised nothing but Mina Shirakawa vs Serena Deeb and AEW isn’t going to get an audience these days without advertising something viewers want to see.  I know that Rampage is the lowest priority but one would expect since contract negotiations are going on right now that every show would have matches people would want to see and be promoted strongly even if Dynamnite is the key show.
  • We’re looking for your thoughts on both NXT Battleground and NJPW Dominion so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match for each show to dave@wrestlingobserver.com
  • We were told today’s Despe Invitational, a PPV show put on by Desperado and New Japan with the entire card a secret, was one of the most fun shows of the year.  The show sold out Korakuen Hall and had to women legends from the past like Kyoko Inoue and Mima Shimoda, a variety of Lucha Libre styles, a crazy hardcore match with Minoru Suzuki & Takayuki Ueki vs. Hiromu Takahashi & Jun Kasai, a DDT comedy match, a super technical match with Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Hikaru Sato and a pure comedy main event with Danshoku Dino of DDT & Desperado vs . Gedo & Dick Togo. (thanks to Ingo Gohrs)
  • All the key TNA officials including President Anthony Ciciione, Ariel Schnerer (head of the creative team) and Gail Kim were at the  Battleground show yesterday.
  • WWE canceled two house shows this week, a 9/14 show in Kennewick, WA and 9/15 in Boise, ID.  Ticket sales were fine in Boise, a little low in Kennewick but we’re three months away so it’s doubtful that was the reason for it.  No reason was given and the arena in Kennewick just said the event organizer has had to cancel the event and that all refunds will be made as soon as the funds are received from the event organizer within 14 to 21 days. (thanks to WrestleTix)
  • Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope of ICP are going to relaunch Juggalo Championship Wrestling with live shows on a bi-weekly basis.  They didn’t list a start date for the shows but the main names involved listed were Willie Mack, Yabo Ruffo, Silas Mason, Alex Taylor, Kerry Mortno, Officer Colt Cabana, Mad Man Pondo, James Storm, Kongo Kong, Matt Cross and Caleb Konley.
  • Christian Cage is doing a Father’s Day special on Collision on Saturday night in Youngstown, OH.  It should be noted that Nick Wayne has been booked for some time on Saturday for  TripleMania in Tijuana.  It has not been said officially he’s off that show and will be appearing in Youngstown but that advertising would make that at least a solid if not strong possibility.
  • Ric Flair wrote on X today that he wanted to lay low on Who Killed WCW, but he said it was a “three-headed monster,” citing Jim Herd, Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo.  He said no individual wrestler (he’s not going to blame Hogan) or faction , it was those in charge who created the discfunction.  While Herd didn’t do a good job in the position, you can’t blame him for the death since he was gone for years and they had a boom period after he left.  He wrote “It Was The People In Charge That Created Dysfunction, Animosity, And Tried To Divide And Conquer By Lying To Everyone And Involving Themselves In The Promotion Which Was The Ultimate Failure! God, I Could Give You A Thousand More Examples. I Am One To Live Through All Three Nightmares And To Be Saved By The @WWE.   Thank You To The WWE For Bringing Someone Who Was Dead In The Water As A Result Of These Three People Back To Life!”
  • Paul Heyman will  make a rare public appearance on 11/9 as part of The Big Event in New York at the  Suffolk Credit Union Arena in Brentwood, NY.   Heyman rarely does autograph shows.
  • Deonna Purrazzo turned 30 today.