Daily Update: WWE MSG, Gabe Sapolsky, AEW ticket sales

Daily Update

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter:

*Wrestler of the Week and Match of the week
*John Cena’s early career and his return, as well as an update on his WrestleMania prospects
*In depth on why television and streaming are cutting back on new programming and how this impacts the pro wrestling business.
*If you asked people to name a pro wrestler, how many could name one and who would be the first person they’d name, and the reality of “mainstream” knowledge of today’s pro wrestlers.
*Complete coverage of UFC’s last show of the year as well as a sad lesson about getting injured the week of your fight.
*A look at one of the best shows of 2022, the TakaTaichi promoted show at Yoyogi Gym in Tokyo
*The most detailed look at TV viewership for every major show over the past week
*New weekly streaming live show debuts
*Promotion doing rematches of its best matches of 2022
*The story behind the voting for tag team of the year in Japan
*Stardom has one of its biggest shows in its history this week
*Notes on the upcoming show at the Tokyo Dome
*A week of incredible matches
*Ospreay vs. Ishii
*El Hijo del Vikingo in the U.S. working dates
*Impact next PPV
*AEW makes major new broadcast deal that will be announced in a few weeks
*The mystery man on Dynamite this week
*Tickets sales for upcoming AEW & WWE shows
*WWE & AEW streaming numbers
*International TV ratings
*Ticket sales for upcoming AEW & WWE shows
*UFC PPV numbers for this past year
*A bill expected to be introduced in the U.S. Senate that would greatly change the MMA world
*Dana White talks about luck and timing
*Judging controversies
*Two fighters feud on Twitter and got into it at the UFC gym
*Sports business analyst predicts NBCU buying WWE and we talks about what is and isn’t valid about that
*Post-Christmas WWE touring
*Most popular WWE names in social media
*Current WWE market value

This Week’s Retro Observer Newsletter:

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Monday Update

We had some schedule changes this week as far as shows. Our show for today wit Bryan is already up because there is no new Raw tonight, being a Best of show. I will be doing a show with Jim Valley Wednesday night and there will be a ton on that. We’ll also have a big show with Garrett Gonzales on Friday. Bryan and I won’t do another show together until Jan. 1 and from there we will be back on schedule, including a big show on Jan. 4 covering the Tokyo Dome and Dynamite. Plus we will have a special show immediately after Battle of Los Angeles the week after next.

We have a gigantic history piece in the next issue of the Observer, which talks about the early days of the NWA, Sam Muchnick, Vince McMahon Sr., promotional battles around the country, when the government investigated wrestling, when the NWA encouraged promoters not to air arena matches on television for fear of hurting live attendance, wrestlers strikes, talk of heath care for wrestlers all revolving around Johnny Doyle, a promoter show life story is fascinating.

Raw is a Best of 2022 show tonight. No doubt they will heavily push the Friday Smackdown show where the expectation is for the biggest match rating for WWE this year. As noted yesterday,. FOX heavily pushed the Cena & Owens vs. Reigns & Zayn match during its football broadcasts Saturday and Sunday. Raw tonight goes against the Indianapolis Colts vs. Los Angeles Chargers NFL game. With a highlights show I suspect the numbers will be way down, perhaps a record low, but it would be silly to try and read anything into this week’s rating.

We are looking for reports on tonight’s WWE shows from Madison Square Garden and Columbus, OH, results, finishes and highlights to dave@wrestlingobserver.com There is talent that was having problems getting into New York for the show. Even though Ricochet took six stitches, that match was actually on 12/16, not Friday, so he’s fine for this week. As noted on Friday, Drew McIntyre is still off this week’s shows due to a busted eardrum suffered at Survivor Series. He did work matches after the injury not realizing the severity of it. 

There were 9,700 tickets out for MSG with a show headlined by Braun Strowman & Kevin Owens vs. Usos. Columbus and all the Raw house shows this week have Austin Theory vs. Seth Rollins. Most shows are doing very well attendance wise since this is traditionally the easiest week to draw for live shows of the year.

Ratings will be delayed by one day this week. So the Friday numbers will be out tomorrow and the Raw number will be out Wednesday afternoon. It’s not a lock that Dynamite numbers will be out Thursday. They have been out on Thursday after other holidays this year but there have also been holiday weeks they aren’t out until Friday.

WWE is pushing a Pitch Black match for the Royal Rumble in conjunction with a Mountain Dew sponsorship deal.

The Ric Flair documentary is up on Peacock right now. We’ll talk more about this later in the week.

WWE’s Gabe Sapolsky is doing a seminar on 1/21 at the WWN Training Center in Port Richey, FL which will include tryout matches and those at the seminar will have the right to use their footage of their tryout matches to send promoters and Sapolsky will talk about what WWE is looking for, ideas on promos and more.

Athena defends the ROH women’s title against Kiera Hogan on Dark Elevation tonight. Also Dralistico faces Blake Christian.

AEW had 3,700 tickets out as of this morning for Wednesday’s show. It’s normal range for what they’ve been doing these days before walkup, but they are well ahead of the pace they were for their first time in the Denver market, which you can’t say about a lot of the recent shows. On paper it’s a strong show with Samoa Joe vs. Wardlow for the TNT title, match six in the best of seven with The Elite vs. Death Triangle, Bryan Danielson vs. Ethan Page, Jon Moxley & Claudio Castagnoli vs Dante & Darius Martin and Ruby Soho & Willow Nightingale vs. Tay Melo & Anna Jay.

Regarding Wednesday’s AAA show in Acapulco they are listing Sammy Guevara & Tay Melo defending the mixed tag titles against Octagon Jr. & Lady Shani and Komander & Sexy Star. Obviously that isn’t happening as Melo is booked for Dynamite in Broomfield, CO that same night. From what we talked about on today’s show, here is an update. the visa issue that kept Guevara & Melo from the last tapings in Mexico where they were to defend has been cleared up. However, AEW had an illness that changed original plans for a women’s match on Wednesday so last week they set up Melo & Jay vs. Nightingale & Soho, which means Melo was pulled from Acapulco. We are told there will be a mixed tag title match but Guevara & Melo will be stripped of the titles and new champions will be crowned. Two other things we were told is that Konnan will be at the show, which will be his first TV taping back since his health improved due to undergoing kidney dialysis, and we were told Larry Dallas would be there announcing. Dallas had said he was going into rehab but we just heard from him today and he’s doing much better. The main event is El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Bandido for the Mega title and FTR vs. Dralistico & Dragon Lee for the tag titles.

Bandido beat Vikingo in a non-title match on Christmas Day for
Bandido’s Big Lucha promotion championship belt. Yes, this is the same as if MJF or
Roman Reigns worked an indie show and lost to that company’s champion. Well not exactly the same.

UWC on 1/7 in Bordenton, NJ at the Elks Lodge has a show with an 80s theme wit wrestling mixed with music from the 80s.

Jeff Molina has been suspended by the Nevada Athletic commission. The reasons were not disclosed but Molina is associated with James Krause, who was suspended in the recent suspicious battling scandal. Molina’s profile on mixedmartialarts.com listed “this fighter is currently serving a suspension by an ABC-recognized athletic commission” and note it is from Nevada.

With Volador Jr. out due to testing positive for COVID, Soberano Jr. takes his place on tonight’s show in Puebla. Volador Jr. is scheduled for the main event on Friday night teaming with Titan to challenge Angel de Oro & Niebla Roja for the CMLL tag titles.

AIW on Friday night in Akron, OH at the Tadmor Shrine with Brian Myers, Tom Lawlor, Matthew Justice and Joey Janela. They also just announced a 2/11 date in Youngstown, O at West Side Bowl.