Daily Update: WWE Raw, California MMA pension law, AEW Dynamite

Daily Update

Latest News

Latest Audio

Latest Free YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

This week’s issue of the Wrestling Observer is out with these stories:

  • The Tuesday night head-to-head battle
  • The ratings numbers and competition, quarters, demos, and how both numbers compared to last year
  • Tony Khan’s tweets
  • Controversy over the MJF storyline
  • Some notable bad taste angles
  • Advertising of Moxley vs. Fenix
  • MJF talks his angle
  • Highlights and rundowns of both shows
  • Next head-to-head battle and why this one won’t be close
  • The end of the UFC/USADA relationship from both sides
  • Major questions on the USADA era and the good and the bad of it
  • The cases of Jon Jones, Brock Lesnar and Conor McGregor
  • Things fighters didn’t like about USADA
  • Travis Tygart’s statement and UFC’s response
  • WWE Fastlane coverage and business note
  • 2023 Hall of Fame ballot and thoughts on leading candidate
  • Who are unknown to most but almost have to be in
  • New Japan & Stardom talk future business, youth movement, reality show, Inoki movie
  • Destruction in Ryogoku coverage, business notes, major angles, and plans for Copper Box
  • This past week’s UFC coverage
  • The most detailed look at the U.S. TV ratings
  • International TV ratings and streaming numbers
  • Major women’s tournament
  • Stardom PPV notes
  • Lots of injury updates
  • Several wrestlers celebrate 25th anniversary
  • Small town locals draw nice All Japan crowd
  • Katsuhiko Nakajima update
  • Tanahashi & Okada talk about Inoki upon release of movie as well as their futures
  • Plans for January 4th by New Japan and Stardom
  • Mayu Iwatani’s first IWGP title defense in the U.S. and opponent
  • Bill Dundee update
  • Billy Corgan talks NWA changes
  • Update on Mil Mascaras
  • Four-part BBC drama on famous talk show host and sometimes wrestler Jimmy Savile
  • Controversy regarding business deal in Europe
  • Update on Davey Boy Smith Jr.
  • GCW goes to Japan
  • Lots of new directions for AEW
  • AEW injury thoughts
  • Gordon Solie award winner for 2023
  • Update on WrestleDream PPV numbers
  • Two AEW stars in movie roles
  • Ticket advances for AEW & WWE shows
  • International TV ratings
  • Kyle O’Reilly talks return
  • UFC Saudi Arabia deal
  • UFC 294 changes
  • Laurence Epstein talks WWE/UFC merger
  • New UFC historical specials to be released this month
  • Bellator 300 coverage
  • Talks about the future of Bellator
  • Real weights vs. weigh-in weights and some surprises
  • A look at the career of Alistair Overeem
  • Update on WWE creative process
  • Ari Emanuel with interesting notes on the WWE TKO stock declines
  • John Cena update
  • Survivor Series notes
  • Update on recent main roster call-ups
  • Brian Pillman Jr. update
  • Update on WWE prospect

This Week’s Retro Observer Newsletter

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.

Monday Update

Bryan and I will be back tonight covering Raw and the latest news with Wrestling Observer Radio. Our Sunday night show covering the weekend is up on the site now.

Raw tonight is in Oklahoma City at the Paycom Center and billed as the season premiere episode. On paper this is a very good show, with Cody Rhodes & Jey Uso vs. Damian Priest & Finn Balor for the tag titles, Gunther vs. Bronson Reed for the IC title, Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler which isn’t clear if it’s for the title plus Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura in a falls count anywhere match. There were 7,200 tickets out as of today so this will not be close to sold out, but the last Raw taping in the building did 6,489 so they are going to be up some over last year and it’s the largest crowd in the building for pro wrestling in the last few years.

The NFL game up against Raw is the Dallas Cowboys vs. Los Angeles Chargers. The Cowboys are historically a big draw and you’ve got the No. 2 market in Los Angeles.

We’re looking for reports from tonight’s show with anything off television such as dark matches or Main Event matches or post-show angles to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

We’re doing a poll on the New Japan Royal Quest show from Saturday in London. You can leave a thumbs up, down or middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

Governor Gavin Newsome signed into law that the MMA pension plan for California boxers will now also include MMA fighters. It sounds great on the surface but the number of fights one must have in the state to qualify for the program makes it exceedingly difficult to do so.

Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite/Rampage tapings in Rosenberg, TX, has moved 1,000 tickets in the last four days to 3,577. There are cheaper tickets out, some as little as $10, which helped. The announcement of Mistico probably helped as well.

As was expected, Logan Paul has been announced for Friday’s Smackdown show, which is expected to build for a match with Rey Mysterio at Crown Jewel.

We don’t have the full chart for Friday night at press time but Smackdown won the night on network TV with a 2,417,000/0.62 for the return of Reigns and the special announcement by HHH. Rampage was behind seven sports shows on Friday but head-to-head it was behind only college football on ESPN and a Warriors-Lakers NBA preseason game on ESPN 2 with 407,000/0.14. It was boosted by an NBA preseason game on TNT with the Heat and Spurs as a lead-in.

Lee Johnson and Julia Hart of AEW were married Friday.

Ketlen Vieira faces Macy Chiasson on UFC’s first show of 2024 on 1/13.

Lots of praise for CMLL young stars Neon & Futuro who apparently had an awesome match on Friday night when challenging Magnus & Rugido for the Mexican national tag titles. 

We’ve heard more raves about the Starboy Charlie vs. Titus Alexander 40:00 match where Charlie won the West Coast Pro title on Saturday night in San Francisco. Also praises for CMLL on Friday which was headlined by Mistico vs. Templario.

Defy Genesis on 10/27 at Washington Hall in Seattle features IWGP world champion Sanada facing Cocy Chhun, plus Mike Bailey debuts against Judas Icarus, Viva Van defends the Ultra women’s title against Nicole Matthews, Defy tag champs the Bollywood Boyz vs. Illa Tribe and more.

Regarding Nick Aldis doing indies, the reason he pulled out of the Calgary show was because it was on a Friday so there was no way he could fulfill that commitment. Our impression is that he is allowed to fulfil prior commitments as long as they aren’t on Fridays but as far as taking new dates, we don’t know the answer to that. Obviously time will tell.

MLW returns to the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia on 11/18 for a FITE+ show called Fightland. Alex Kane, Jacob Fatu, Matt Cardona, Tom Lawlor, Salina de la Renta, the Bomaye Fight Club, Rickey Shane Page, AKIRA, Mance Warner, Rocky Romero, Janai Kai and others will be on the show.

This flew under the radar, but on the MLW show on Saturday night they did a Halloween theme stage set up and there was a tombstone that read “RIP Jerry McDevitt.” McDevitt, of course, is alive and well but I guess they did it because McDevitt is no longer representing WWE in its defense of the antitrust lawsuit filed by MLW.

Kofi Kingston has opened the Kofi Kingston Library and Digital Center in Ghana.

Best wishes to Cary Silkin, who was hospitalized this past week according to PWInsider. Silkin owned ROH before selling to Sinclair Broadcasting, but attended most of the shows as an ambassador and attended some of the shows since Tony Khan bought ROH from Sinclair. Hopefully we can see him again at Final Battle in December.

AIW on Thursday night at the Mercury Music Lounge in Lakewood, OH.