Daily Update: WWE Raw, Bellator, Tyson Fury

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

The highlights of the issue:

  • The WrestleMania direction
  • First WWE show on Netflix
  • John Cena, The Rock, Undertaker and more and what things on the show garnered the most interest
  • Businessnotes on the show
  • Positives, negatives and goals of the show
  • How the show did on Netflix and deciphering what the different numbers mean
  • How advertising works comparing television vs. streaming
  • Hulk Hogan reaction
  • Changes on the show
  • Run time change
  • TKO looking at getting into the boxing business with Saudi Arabia
  • Kenny Omega returns for the Tokyo Dome show
  • In depth on New Japan business concerns and Bushiroad CEO Takaaki Kidani speaks on a number of issues
  • The business of the two Dome shows
  • Takaaki Kidani talks about his thoughts about a future WrestleDynasty show
  • Zack Sabre Jr. does something unprecedented and a list of all  non-Japanese who have won an NJPW Tokyo Dome main event
  • The Chris Charlton story in depth
  • Did the injury to  Douki change the finish?
  • Where do Young Bucks rank among most world tag team title reigns in history
  • A look at the career of the late Rick  “Hangman” Harris/Black Bart
  • Who had the most four star matches of 2024 and the most in history
  • Who has the most of the top 250 matches of all-time on Cagematch
  • Explaining how ratings are changing and how to reevaulate numbers
  • How many homes have access to the different services
  • Quality of watching on MAX vs. TBS
  • Tourist board putting on a major international show
  • Another big business week for CMLL
  • New Year’s Dash notes
  • Notes on the next major New Japan shows
  • New Japan bodybuilding contest
  • The death of Gilbert Cesca, one of the best technical wrestlers that you never heard of
  • Germany has a prime time major celebrity wrestling show featuring Claudio Castagnoli
  • Malakai Black news
  • Ticket advances for WWE & AEw shows
  • Streaming numbers and International TV ratings
  • How did TNA debut on SportsNet in Canada
  • GFL announces lots of women stars’
  • Paul Levesque talks planning WrestleMania and The Rock
  • Update on Bill Goldberg
  • Nick Khan and Dwayne Johnson stock transactions this week
  • How much does WWE help the USA Network

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter Back Issue

Monday Update

  • Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Vince McMahon, Raw, Saturday Night’s Main Event and more with Wrestling Observer Radio.
  • A few notes for tonight’s Raw in San Jose. They were 400 tickets shy of a sellout as of this afternoon so it’s going to be a legit sellout. Unless something drastically changes and it won’t, Penta is debuting tonight. The show is booked for under three hours. Damian Priest vs. Finn Balor in the street fight is the scheduled main event.
  • MMA Fighting has reported that the Bellator brand is shutting down shortly.  PFL has now made an announcement regarding this or what they are going to do with the current group of champions.  Usman Nurmagomedov is scheduled to defend the Bellator lightweight title against Paul Hughes on 1/25.  The show is now being listed as a PFL event. Ariel Helwani also reported that the Bellator name and brand is shutting down. The plan for 2025 is also dropping the style of points tournaments and going with single elimination tournaments. with $500,000 going to each winner.
  • Tyson Fury today announced he was retiring from boxing. That was a surprise given how much he can earn these days from fights in Saudi Arabia and the U.K.  
  • It’s been noted elsewhere, but WWE has confirmed that even though Bad Bunny told Rolling Stone that Backlash would be in Mexico this year, that is not the case. He also said in the article he’d like to do one more match.
  • Smackdown did 1,436,000 viewers and an 0.40 in 18-49. It’s a good number considering the competition as Ohio State vs. Texas in the college playoff did 20.42 million viewers and a 5.21 in 18-49 on ESPN and ESPN 2.
  • We updated the Vince McMahon situation with notes updated about his legal situation.
  • ana White said that if for some reason Saturday’s UFC 311 PPV show can’t take place at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles due to the fires they have a back-up location ready in Las Vegas.
  • We’re looking for your thoughts on Saturday night’s New Japan Battle in the Valley, thumbs up, down or middle, best and worst match on the show to dave@wrestlingobserver.com
  • A note for subscribers voting for the awards.  he list of those eligible for Rookie of the Year is in the January 6 isuse. If someone is not on the list, that means they are not eligible.  
  • Reader B Faherty said that the replays of AEW on MAX are identical to television with commercials as opposed to the Triller feed with no commercials that we’d been told would be the case.  
  • Mercedes Mone appeared on the SHERRI show today.
  • Leon Edwards vs. Jack Della Maddalena will headline the 3/22 UFC show in London at the O2 Arena. Edwards is looking to rebound after his welterweight title loss to Belal Muhammad.
  • Athena beat Thekla to retain the ROH women’s title on today’s Stardom show in Korakuen Hall.  
  • Jeremy Borash’s wife Vanessa is part of the Blue Origin team that is launching the new Glenn Rocket tonight.
  • Masato Tanaka worked Saturday night for Prestige Wrestling in Portland, OR, challenging and losing to Kevin Blackwood.
  • CM Punk is advertised for the 3/10 Raw in Madison Square Garden.
  • WWE announced a 4/11 Smackdown show in Seattle.
  • There is a Bruno Forever Event where the family of Bruno Sammartino is working with Pros of Wrestling for an event on 3/17n at  the Ross Township Rec Center. Sammartino lived in Ross Township from before he won the WWWF title in 1963 until his death. There will be a live wrestling show and a Q&A with Stan Hansen, one of Sammartino’s biggest career rivals, at the event.
  • MLW announced Matt Riddle’s first title defense will be a three-way with Satoshi Kojima and Alex Kane on 2/8 at Center Stage in Atlanta.
  • Progress announced 2/14 in Manchester at the BEC Bowlers Arena a match with Ethan Allen & Luke Jacobs vs. Flash Morgan Webster & Mark Andrews.