Daily Update: WWE notes, Stardom, Dana White

DAILY UPDATE

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WON NEWSLETTER: April 6, 2020 Observer Newsletter: Florida lockdown, WrestleMania preview

A look at plans for AEW and WWE tapings, the guidelines set forth by Donald Trump, how both companies violated them, and why UFC simply can’t adhere to them is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

It’s a news-packed issue giving the full background of WrestleMania including the dollars lost by WWE in doing the show the way they did, why the reasons for doing it now make no sense, who was taken off the show and why, what key thing that relates to both fighting and pro wrestling that makes certain people higher risk that everyone is ignoring, where the WWE medical staff failed at their jobs with Roman Reigns and others, the WWE’s false advertising, Reigns speaks on why he didn’t do the show, Brie Bella talks on why she had mixed feelings on Daniel Bryan doing the show, plus a match-by-match rundown with thoughts on everything.

The new issue also covers:

The changes in WrestleMania business, why what seems to make no sense has a long-term thought process but where it may be flawed, why WWE flooded television with product this week and why it’s dangerous not to keep this up.

The falling apart of the Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov fight, what Nurmagomedov and Dana White said this week as well  Tony Ferguson’s demands ad who else was in contention for top spots on the show.  Joe Rogan also talks why he’s not doing the show no matter what, as well as the reaction of the other leading groups while UFC insists on going forward.

The hidden story that nobody has talked about regarding a pro wrestling event where the coronavirus has already spread.

New WWE television deals, a major WWE deal ends and why. What WWE stars head the most popular YouTube shows, Canadian TV ratings, U.K. TV ratings, Drew McIntyre talks WrestleMania, Seth Rollins talks operating a small business during these times, Edge talks about how he’s improved his promos, WWE market value plus the most-watched shows of the past week on the WWE network.

The Japanese scene, who is still running, who isn’t, what shows were canceled last minute as well as the state of sports in Japan and South Korea.

Six months from now or longer, when people are allowed to go to live entertainment events who things may change greatly and who is hurts the most. 

Live attendance, television numbers the future of television and streaming and how it also affects the smaller groups.

DAZN’s decision to withhold payments to sorts leagues and what that says about its future.

Update the arrest of Jon Jones, with details on his plea bargain, what happened when he was stopped, the government’s reaction to Jones, both officers and their report as well as Jones’ reaction to what happened.

A look back at the 2019 Wrestling Observer awards with comments on a number of categories, who was and wasn’t deserving, the closest categories, and more on winners and close placings.

A feature on the life and career of Dean Silverstone, a former promoter and historian who was one of the key people in keeping wrestlers from the past in touch with each other through the Cauliflower Alley Club.  We look at his role in wrestling, how he first got into wrestling, his promotion, his book, life after wrestling and how he got back into wrestling through his wife and ripper Collins.

Full coverage of all the WWE and AEW television shows from the past week.

In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.

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.

Rates in the United States are $14.50 for 4 issues, $35.50 for 12, $70 for 24, $116 for 40 and $149.50 for 52.

In Canada and Mexico, the rates are $16 for 4, $27 for 8, $38.50 for 12, $76 for 24, $126 for 40 and $162.50 for 52.

For the rest of the world, rates are $18 for 4, $48.50 for 12, $93 for 24, $155 for 40 and $201.50 for 52.

If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order to P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228, you can get $1 off in every price range.

TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE

  • New WWE Champion Drew McIntyre will be a guest on WWE Backstage tonight. San Francisco 49ers star George Kittle is also appearing on the show. FS1 has WWE 24 episodes on WrestleMania 31, 33, and 34 airing prior to Backstage.
  • McIntyre told ESPN that he locked his WWE title belt in a room until his win aired: “Things are not official until they happen. So just like everybody else, I sat on the couch and watched both days of WrestleMania. I enjoyed the show. It took my mind off of things. Watching myself was very crazy, being on the couch — watching it just like everyone else, wondering what was going to happen. I kind of pushed out of my head what had happened. I was reacting to it like I was in the match. My wife had to move away from me, because I was darting from side to side with every F-5, with every Claymore. Finally, when I had won the title, I saw the emotion and remembered how real it was to me. In that moment, it was real again as I was watching it. I went upstairs, I opened the door and I took the title out, now that it was official. I had another moment with my wife in the house, and with my family on Zoom. I had my whole family on there.”
  • WWE touted that they set a WrestleMania week record with more than 967 million video views across their digital and social platforms (including the WWE Network, WWE.com, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat), That’s an increase of 20 percent from last year. WWE also hyped that 46 million hours of content was consumed during WrestleMania week, which was up 28 percent from 2019.
  • WWE will report their first quarter financial results on April 23. The earnings call, which is usually in the morning, will be at 5 p.m. Eastern time.
  • William Regal will be on WWE’s The Bump tomorrow with breaking news regarding NXT. Drew McIntyre, Titus O’Neil, and Bubba Ray Dudley will also be guests on The Bump.
  • Becky Lynch has now been Raw Women’s Champion for a full year. WALTER’s NXT United Kingdom Championship reign also reached its 365th day on Sunday.
  • When asked if she was going to be on both Raw and NXT moving forward, Charlotte Flair told TV Insider that she hopes she gets to work on all three brands: “I guess that is up for debate. Do I need to be drafted to NXT? [Laughs] How is this going to work? I hope I get to work at all three brands.”
  • Edge posted on Instagram after his match against Randy Orton at WrestleMania: “So this was my Sunday. Actually it was filmed two weeks ago. So I’m officially out of self quarantine and back to being dad. After being Edge for WrestleMania 36. For the first time in a singles match in 9 years. Against, in my opinion, the most naturally talented person in the industry in @randyorton I will always be proud of what we accomplished with some strange circumstances. I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of each other. And for that I’m strangely thankful. He pulled me to a 40 minute fight after being retired for 9 years. Wasn’t sure I had that in me. Now I know. He pushed me. For all of you, hopefully you watched WrestleMania and were able to get lost in it and try to forget about our current reality, even if only for a few hours. I’d also like to thank EVERYONE for the outpouring of positivity for the @wwe 24 documentary, The Second Mountain. Also, thank you to the ENTIRE team it took to support me and make all of this happen. I’ll get to you all on separate posts It’s humbling. Lastly, stay safe everyone.”
  • Kevin Owens tweeted that his promo that aired on last night’s Raw was filmed by his wife: “This is my favorite promo ever because it was shot by my favorite person. (It was my wife! She shot it with her fancy camera!)”

Other Wrestling

MMA

  • The Association of Ringside Physicians issued a statement yesterday recommending the indefinite suspension of all combat sports events: “The Association of Ringside Physicians has been actively following the recommendations of the CDC as well as other professional medical societies concerned with the spread of COVID-19, or novel coronavirus. Sporting events across the world have been cancelled in response to the increased risk of infection and transmission by participants, fans, officials, and support staff. It is our recommendation that all combat sporting events be postponed until further notice. This includes any and all events, regardless of the number of people involved. Any combat sport taking place during this global pandemic places the athletes, officials, and anyone else involved in the event under unnecessary risk of infection and transmission of Covid-19. In addition, combat sports athletes often require medical attention after a bout, and we do not wish to see any additional strain on an already overwhelmed medical system. We continue to monitor this ever-evolving situation, and our thoughts continue to be with those who have been and will be affected by this disease. Our organization remains steadfast in our mission: to serve, protect, and educate all involved in combative sports.”
  • In an interview with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, Dana White was asked if he thinks going on with events is a risk: “First of all, everybody’s afraid to be first. Realistically, the only guy right now who isn’t afraid is me and Vince McMahon. I mean, Vince McMahon hasn’t skipped a beat but what he did was, he found solutions, he found ways, get rid of the crowd and I’m sure he’s doing everything in his power too to make sure that his guys are safe. Everybody else is afraid to be first, right now we need leadership, we need people that are going to go out and find solutions. Hiding in your house is not the answer, I get it, we have to do it. We’ve followed everything the CDC has said. But at what point do we get back to normal? You keep people in their houses for too long without entertainment, people are going to start losing their minds and we need to start figuring out solutions and that’s what we’re doing. We’re going to do this, we’re going to keep everyone safe, and we’re going to pull this thing off.”
  • White said no one’s to blame for Khabib Nurmagomedov not fighting at UFC 249: “Everybody knows that the Khabib fight fell out, and I could go on for 10 minutes telling you how that thing fell apart. But the reality is, that’s nobody’s fault. Every day when I got up, the rules changed. Things were shutting down, things were closing down. Many people thought this would be impossible for us to pull off; I’m of the mindset that nothing is impossible. We’ll get this thing figured out — where there’s a will, there’s a way. He [Khabib] got caught up in Russia, it was a total mishap. We all made mistakes in that one. Nobody’s to blame for that. And I know everyone was going crazy on Khabib and saying that he [pulled out]. Khabib didn’t do anything wrong. If you look at the way that the world changed, literally by the day, we got caught up man, and he ended up getting flown back to Russia. He didn’t fly back to Russia, he got flown back to Russia. So it sucks, but what are you going to do?”
  • White discussed how Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje affects Conor McGregor: “This impacts everybody. There’s three fights that have already been postponed, we’re going to work out over the next several weeks and I don’t know where this puts anybody. Conor really wants that rematch with Khabib. Well Khabib and Tony or Gaethje won’t fight now until probably September.”
  • A man was arrested and charged with first-degree criminal trespass after breaking into Anthony Smith’s home in the middle of the night.
  • The UFC’s YouTube channel uploaded Tony Ferguson vs. Anthony Pettis from UFC 229.
  • Bellator’s Erick Silva spoke to MMA Fighting about him and his family members having coronavirus.
  • Cage Warriors has secured a private location to hold multiple empty arena cards.

Daily Pro Wrestling History: WrestleManias 2, 29 and 35

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