Daily Update: SmackDown ratings, Omos, Davey Richards

Daily Update

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter:

Highlights include:

  • Match of the week and performer of the week
  • WrestleMania updates, including status of different matches that have been planned and not announced
  • Ticket sales notes and demand for tickets, plus notes on NXT Stand & Deliver
  • A study of the buying patterns of PPVs for AEW, including comparisons with one year ago, how many shows the average AEW PPV buyer purchases each year, the difference between satellite owners and others in the viewing patterns, update on Revolution numbers and how many different people bought an AEW PPV this past year
  • Letters from WWE to the Alamodome in San Antonio show how WWE counted Royal Rumble attendance, along with the actual numbers from the show
  • Richard Schaefer, the famed boxing promoter, heading Anthem’s wrestling, MMA and new boxing divisions and what are future plans for the divisions
  • New Japan Cup coverage with all the matches from the past week
  • Notes on AEW’s Canada tour
  • Mexican star taken to prison on domestic violence charges against another Mexican wrestling star
  • Full coverage of this past week’s major pro wrestling events and the UFC show
  • Update on the WWE Hall of Fame including stories on the careers of the inductees
  • Coverage of the WWE’s return to its most famous arena, Madison Square Garden
  • The life of former wrestler Jeff Gaylord and his very checkered life after wrestling and during wrestling
  • The most detailed look at the weekly television ratings, competition, how segments did, where shows are strong and weak.
  • Promotion adding a ton of new talent after young wrestlers impress in a special format
  • Mainstream angle being done in Mexico
  • Joint show announced in Japan for the Himeka retirement
  • A look at the Guerrero wrestling family
  • Legendary athlete passes away that a wrestling move done all over the world was named after including the person who actually named the move
  • New promotion starting taking the name of a legendary regional company
  • International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame 2023 inductions and ceremony
  • Ric Flair Twitter war of words
  • Lots of indie notes including some big crowds this week
  • 16 Carat Gold tournament in Germany news
  • Notes on recent Will Ospreay matches
  • Notes on major AEW negotiations
  • AEW cancels TV tapings and why
  • Update on social media abuse of Riho
  • Chris Jericho honored
  • Ticket sales for upcoming WWE & AEW shows
  • Streaming numbers for WWE & AEW this past week
  • International TV ratings updates including a company sets its all-time viewing record in Canada
  • Notes on AEW signees
  • UFC TV renewal talk even though it’s years away
  • Former UFC champion Benson Henderson retires
  • Update on WWE’s attempt to get legalized betting on its matches
  • Update on Jay White
  • Interest level mainstream of UFC, WWE and AEW big shows including geographical popularity split between AEW Revolution and WWE Elimination Chamber
  • Update on MLW lawsuit against WWE
  • What are the key new things in the suit
  • WWE injury updates and returns

This Week’s Retro Observer Newsletter:

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Saturday Update

WWE

  • Against competition from NCAA March Madness, last night’s SmackDown averaged 2.122 million viewers in the fast national ratings. The rating in the 18-49 demo was a 0.52.
  • In an interview with the Daily Mail, The Undertaker was asked about Omos facing Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania:
          • I’m anxious to see what happens there. I’m really high on Omos, he has a way to go and it’s difficult cause it’s so hard to book him. There’s nobody that matches Brock, but it’s so hard to match anybody up against him and it’s not like it was for Andre (The Giant) back in the day.
          • Andre before WWE, he went from territory from territory and traveled and he was just a global ambassador so people didn’t see him week after week on the same show. With Omos, that’s something they’re going to have to figure out because he’s a very special talent. He’s still developing that talent and my gosh what a great human being he is – actually I’m killing him off cause he’s a bad guy right! But he is a really nice human being and he is a sponge and he wants to get better and he wants to do all of these things that I look for when I see somebody that I really want to mentor.
          • But it’s difficult because its just so hard to book him in a way that he should be booked. He is an attraction, he’s not an every week TV kind of guy, he needs to be special and I think he needs to be protected in that way.
          • It’s a really interesting dynamic, you have this guy who is massive and dwarfed Brock. Nobody dwarfs Brock. So it should be interesting, I’m curious to see how it all works out, but Omos is a great human being.
  • On Watch What Happens Live, Omos revealed that he’s getting married later this year. Omos said his fiancee is a medical doctor.
  • Booker T spoke about Stacy Keibler potentially being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame:
          • I would love to see someone like Stacy Keibler actually make that walk on the stage because she was another one who did so much for this business. Stacy, she was someone you did not want to change the channel when Stacy Keibler was on, man. She didn’t have to take one bump. That was the beauty about her career.
          • Stacy was like a supermodel. She was someone that you could put in Vogue. She was definitely one of a kind.
  • Cameron Grimes posted a picture revealing a new muscular physique.
  • On Twitter, Butch seemingly teased a return back to being Pete Dunne.
  • WWE shared sneak peek clips of the Paige and Jerry Lawler Biographies that are airing on A&E this Sunday.
  • AEW’s Saraya (Paige) tweeted: “Make sure you tune in Sunday!! From becoming Paige to becoming Saraya. I watched it. Cried 3 times. Very hard to watch back but man I love to see the healthy transformation. Incredible journey I’m forever thankful. Thank you @WWEonAE for still showing this.”
  • Raquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan, Drew McIntyre, and Cody Rhodes appeared on The SmackDown LowDown.
  • WWE has a Women’s History Month photo gallery with women’s wrestlers reflecting on their inspirations.
  • Trish Stratus was interviewed by Robbie Fox on My Mom’s Basement.
  • Austin Theory was the guest on this week’s episode of WWE After the Bell.
  • Astro SuperSport has an interview with Cody Rhodes.
  • WWE released a two-hour Playlist video chronicling the entire Bloodline story.
  • WWE’s YouTube channel uploaded the following: Triple H vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship (WrestleMania XXV), Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio for the WWE Championship (March 18, 2004 SmackDown), and The Usos vs. The Dudley Boyz (WrestleMania 32 pre-show).

AEW/Other Wrestling

  • Following the domestic violence allegations made against him, OTT Wrestling announced that Davey Richards will no longer be appearing at ScrapperMania in Dublin today or their show in Belfast tomorrow.
  • Eddie Kingston explained why he deactivated his Twitter account: “I got rid of my tweeter because I saw some evil sh*t tweeted at Riho and I’m done.”
  • Will Ospreay, who has been pulled from the New Japan Cup due to a shoulder injury, tweeted yesterday: “This is the first time I’ve every been pulled from a tour. Tomorrow I leave for rehab and recovery. Thank you everyone for the messages it’s gonna be ok. I’ll rest up and spend time with my family. Meanwhile support Davis in his Semi Final match. All the love guys”