Daily Update: TKO business, WWE Raw, Jorge Masvidal

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

The new issue of the Observer is up on the site right now covering these stories:

  • Match and performer of the week
  • Preview of Crown Jewel, favorites and directions
  • Preview of Full Gear, directions, business and more
  • Update on perhaps the most important business story this year and its ramifications as the Cung Le lawsuit against UFC is headed for trial next year. We talk about the trial, what it means to UFC, WWE and the MLW lawsuit against WWE. We also have notes from discovery on the actual pay that Conor McGregor, Georges St-Pierre, CM Punk, Ronda Rousey and Jon Jones got for their biggest career fights.
  • Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou, the story behind coming one round short of one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. We look at what happened, how this fight was a prelude of the change of the business of major events and why, how the PPV did and why it doesn’t really matter, the celebrities and what happens next.
  • We preview the 2023 Hall of Fame with research on the wrestlers with the best matches throughout their careers, best tag matches, annual MVP, Most Outstanding, Best Draws and best tag team votes involving candidates on the ballot or in the Hall of Fame and who comes across well in this.
  • A look at the Vladimir the Superfan documentary
  • The most detailed look at the TV ratings from the past week, numbers, competition, gains and losses over the last year, placings and segment-by-segment.
  • Women’s Grand Prix show draws big crowd
  • Injuries plaguing Stardom
  • Stardom PPV and tag tourney coverage
  • Big match this weekend in All Japan
  • A tag match this past week that you should see
  • Nakajima’s NOAH farewell
  • New Japan U.S. house show notes
  • Update on a women’s dream match that was planned but now is uncertain and why
  • New Japan Super Juniors tag team tournament news
  • Ronda Rousey working indies against AEW stars
  • Talks of two pro wrestlers and fights with Jake Paul
  • CM Punk talks unionization of wrestlers
  • New documentary coming out in two weeks
  • Jon Moxley returns from concussion
  • Jon Moxley talks concussion protocols
  • Impact signs two U.K. wrestlers
  • Impact U.K tour
  • Bryan Danielson injury details
  • Notes on Ric Flair’s two new deals with AEW
  • Talks on Omega vs. MJF
  • More on the CMLL/AEW deal
  • Ticket advances for WWE & AEW shows
  • International TV ratings and top streaming numbers
  • Merch sales
  • Derrick Lewis arrest
  • UFC pay
  • This weekend’s UFC show
  • Why FOX didn’t bid to keep Smackdown
  • Raw’s live show growth
  • Fastlane actual gate numbers
  • What record did WWE claim that doesn’t look to be accurate
  • Lots of injury updates
  • Reviews of al the major WWE house shows
  • WWE signs a three-time national college wrestling women’s champion

This Week’s Retro Observer Newsletter

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Monday Update

Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw television negotiations, Raw, Most Outstanding Wrestler of 2023, Giulia, NWA, Power Struggle and the rest of the latest wrestling and MMA news. We have our Hall of Fame show up on the site with several voters talking about their picks, surprisingly similar which is interesting. People have heavily praised that show to us. People have noted that there has been more Hall of Fame research done in the last year and I think a lot of voters that have studied have come to more clear consensus. 

The TKO earnings call covering WWE and UFC will be tomorrow at 5 p.m. Eastern. It will cover business from July through September. They will likely talk about advance sales for the Royal Rumble.

J.P. Morgan did a major analysis of the WWE & UFC business. They believe the stock is undervalued and should be trading at $100. It is undervalued. They estimated a 42 percent increase in the Raw rights fee to $375 million, felt that stock drop over concerns that Saudi Arabia will back the PFL to be real competition for UFC as being overblown, especially when UFC made its own deal with Saudi Arabia. Plus they expect cost savings from WWE & UFC working together. They pointed out WWE Raw costs 97 cents per viewer hour, barely one-third of the NFL and less than half of baseball. Smackdown’s new deal puts them at $1.35, but that’s misleading and will be far higher because Smackdown viewership will drop greatly with the move to USA. AEW’s TV deal is ridiculously low compared to these other entities. They list potential bidders for Raw as Disney (FX), Amazon, WBD (TBS and/or TNT) and USA. They also mentioned Apple and Netflix. They talked about a unique deal where the first two hours would air on FX and the third hour would move to Hulu. They listed WBD as a longshot due to AEW, but also felt Fox may bid for AEW after losing WWE. 

I’ve got a Sports Illustrated article regarding the battle for Will Ospreay as well as the battle for the main event spot at WrestleMania. 

Raw tonight is from Wilkes-Barre, PA with Miz (babyface) vs. Bronson Reed vs. Ricochet vs. Ivar with the winner getting an IC title shot at Gunther, a women’s Battle Royal for a title shot at Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest & Finn Balor vs. New Day in what I believe will be a non-title match plus Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Akira Tozawa. One would think they’ll be setting up directions for War Games in three weeks in Chicago. The show had 7,200 tickets out as of earlier today. We’re looking for live reports from the show with Main Event results or any things not on the live television show to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

We’re looking for your thoughts on both Crown Jewel and NJPW Power Struggle, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

Jorge Masvidal plead guilty to misdemeanor battery charges and in exchange his two felony charges were dropped from the March 2022 incident where he allegedly punched Colby Covington as Covington was coming out of a restaurant. If you think that closes the chapter, you’re wrong. As soon as it was closed, Masvidal wrote on social media, “It’s going to be a f***ing movie now. All these orders, all these restraining orders been lifted off. It’s going to be a f***ing movie.” Masvidal then went on Ariel Helwani’s show and all he talked about is what he would do if he saw Covington on the street. I can’t even imagine what the prosecution in the case would be thinking now.

Dana White announced new UFC title fights with Sean Strickland vs. Dricus du Plessis for the middleweight title on 1/20 in Toronto, Alexander Volkanovski defending the featherweight title against Ilio Topuria in February and Sean O’Malley defending the bantamweight title against Marlon Chito Vera in March.

A story about the new “Iron Claw” movie about the Von Erich family in Entertainment Weekly. There will be a red carpet preview of the movie tomorrow night in Dallas.

As we noted in yesterday’s update, and was confirmed today by the promotion, the 11/18 Tam Nakano vs. Suzu Suzuki match for the World of Stardom title is off the Osaka show due to Nakano’s left knee injury. As of right now, no decision has been made regarding the title. There is hope of doing the match on the 12/2 Big Winter PPV show in Nagoya, but that is not a definite at this point because it’s not clear if Nakano will be ready. (thanks to Jose Gonzalez, Mori Ono and Aoi Ito)

This is Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite so far: MJF vs. Daniel Garcia for the AEW title, Samoa Joe vs. Keith Lee for the ROH TV title, Jay White vs. Mark Briscoe, Penta vs. Swerve Strickland, Julia Hart vs. Red Velvet

NXT tomorrow has :Tiffany Stratton vs. Fallon Henley in an Iron Survivor qualifying match, Dijak vs. Tyler Bate in an Iron Survivor qualifying match, Bron Breakker vs. Von Wagner, Noam Dar vs. Akira Tozawa for the Heritage Cup

Ric Flair was brought to Schembechler Hall today to speak to the University of Michigan football team. Flair is friends with Jim Harbaugh, the coach of the team, who he knew from the late 80s when Harbaugh was quarterback for the Chicago Bears. 

AEW will be doing an event on 11/16 at the Inglewood High School Gym. Paul Wight and Matt Menard will be the announcers as AEW wrestlers and fans compete in three point shooting, free throw shooting and a dunking contest. R.J. City and Lexy Nair will host a pre-show event. The event will benefit the Brotherhood Crusade, which is an organization helping to improve the quality of life for low-income, underserved and under-represented disenfranchised people.

Henry Cejudo vs. Merab Dvalishvili was teased by both fighters on social media.

Wipeout with John Cena debuts its new season on TBS tomorrow at 9 p.m., head-to-head with NXT.

MLW has added a ladder match with Rickey Shane Page & Akira vs. 1 Called Manders & Matthew Justice for its 11/18 FITE+ special from Philadelphia.

The Grizzled Young Veterans appear for House of Glory Wrestling On 12/1 at the NYC Arena in New York. The Mane Event tag team of Midas Black & Jay Lyon defend their tag titles against Zack Gibson & James Drake, the former Dyad from NXT. Matt Cardona vs. Mike Santana for the HOG title is the main event, plus Swerve Strickland vs. Mike Bailey which on paper looks like a tremendous matchup is also on the show.

Impact will be doing a Throwdown Thursday comedy show on Saturday night in Mississauaga, ONT at the Dan Kolov Arena. It’s a comedy show where Impact talent will play characters out of a 1970s low-rent regional promotion.

The return of WaleMania will be 4/4 in Philadelphia at the Franklin Music Hall.

Results from yesterday’s Samurai TV 27th Anniversary Fan Appreciation Festival: Sakura Hirota & Ayako Sato b Humko Hoshi b Ibuki Hoshi & Arisa Shinose & Tsukasa Fujimoto, Aja Kong & Hiroyo Matsumoto & Ryo Mizunami b Yuuri & Yukari Hosokawa & Kaede Mtsushita, Arisa Nakaima & Saki & Haruka Umesaki b Maya Yukihi & Ungai Sayaka & Riko Kaiju,Abdullah Kobayashi & Batten x Burabura & Kankuro Hoshino b Danshoku Dino & Gorgeous Matsuno & Makoto Oishi, Yuya Aoki & Musashi & Shoki Kitamura & Takuya Nomura b Masato Tanaka & Daisuke Sekimoto & Kazunai Murakami & Yuji Hino. They also had talk segments with Keiji Muto and Kaito Kiyomiya, where Muto talked about his WCW days and knocked wrestlers doing dangerous things. Shota Umino also had a talk segment with Masahiro Chono, talking about New Japan, Will Ospreay and Chono’s five G-1 tournament wins. (thanks to Wrestling Nutshell)