Daily Update: WWE Royal Rumble, Jake Paul-Dana White, Riho

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter: January 30, 2022 Observer Newsletter: Royal Rumble rumors, NJPW cancels January shows

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter Back Issue: December 20, 2004 Observer Newsletter: Brock Lesnar returning to wrestling, WWE Armageddon review

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FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE

Garrett Gonzales and I will be doing a show tonight talking Royal Rumble, TNT vs. TBS for Dynamite, GCW, Tyson Fury and more tonight. Bryan and I will be doing a post Royal Rumble show tomorrow night.

Stories in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer:

  • Royal Rumble preview, surprises, business, WrestleMania updates
  • Match & Performer of the week
  • Francis Ngannou & Dana White and the contract situation
  • GCW PPV coverage, what worked and what didn’t
  • AAA’s TripleMania plans
  • What the move to TBS has meant for AEW and the key its value down the line
  • Grappl top 20 matches of 2021
  • What to learn from this week’s ratings including what segment did great with men 18-34 but fell badly with women
  • More Japanese awards
  • Story on the death of former Memphis wrestler Ken Raper
  • Coverage of major indie shows of the week
  • How tickets are moving for all WWE & AEW shows over the next month plus
  • What DVR viewership of AEW Dynamite shows
  • The death of Sheldon Silver and his role in keeping UFC out of the state of New York for years
  • Tons of news on NXT and WWE prospects in NXT
  • WWE contacts with Jeff Hardy
  • WWE job head counts
  • International TV ratings
  • WWE NIL signees in wrestling update

With the death of Ken Raper, a look back at one of the most memorable segments in Memphis TV history.

Jake Paul’s rap on Dana White.

Ariel Helwani talks to Randy Orton about a number of different subjects

Smackdown tonight is from Kansas City, MO. Tommaso Ciampa, Io Shirai, Roderick Strong, Dakota Kai and LA Knight are all backstage as is Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins. Matches announced are Big E & Kofi Kingston vs. Happy Corbin & Madcap Moss, Naomi vs. Sonya Deville and Ricochet & Cesaro vs. Sheamus & Ridge Holland. There will also be some kind of angle with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins. 205 Live has Draco Anthony vs. Joe Gacy, Josh Briggs vs. Damon Kemp and Lash Legend & Amari Miller vs. Yulisa Leon & Valentina Feroz.

We’re looking for reports from Kansas City with dark matches and anything notable not on television to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

We’re doing weekend polls for Stardom’s PPV tonight from Nagoya at 3 a.m. Eastern and midnight Pacific with Syuri vs. Mirai for the World of Stardom title, Mayu Iwatani vs. Giulia vs. Tam Nakano for the next shots at the title, and Saya Kamitani defending the Wonder of Stardom title against Unagi Sayaka, as well as tomorrow’s Royal Rumble, so you can leave a thumbs up, down or middle, best & worst match to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

Rampage tonight at 10 p.m. has Jon Moxley vs. Anthony Bowens, FTR vs. Lee Johnson & Brock Anderson, Jade Cargill vs. Julia Hart for the TBS title and Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus vs. Private Party for the tag titles.

PWInsider reported Celeste Bonin is in St. Louis for WWE. She wrestled as Kaitlyn between 2010-2014. Kurt Angle is also there. That doesn’t mean for sure they are in the Rumble although most of the women who are there like Melina, Cameron, Aksana and Ronda Rousey are expected to be.

Riho has some sort of an arm or shoulder injury as she posted a photo of her arm in a sling saying “I’m taking a rest a little.”

Brock Lesnar is being advertised for TV dates on 2/14 in Indianapolis, 2/21 in Columbia,SC, 2/25 in Hershey, PA and 3/11 in Birmingham, AL. Except for Hershey, all of those shows had slow ticket sales, so we’ll see if he can jump start sales.

Bellator tomorrow night at 10 p.m. from Phoenix on Showtime

  • Sabah Homasi (170.8) vs. Jaleel White (170.2)
  • Henry Corrales (145.8) vs. Aiden Lee (145.8)
  • Benson Henderson (155.8) vs. Islam Mamedov (155.6)
  • Ryan Bader (232.2) vs. Valentin Moldavsky (234.4) for the heavyweight title

CMLL at Arena Mexico tonight has Mistico vs. Ultimo Guerrero on top plus the Reyes del Aire elimination match wit Titan, Gran Guerrero, Soberano Jr., Templario, Atlantis Jr., Cavernario, Volador Jr., Negro Casas, Stuka Jr., and Dragon Rojo Jr.

WWE

  • Randy Orton talks to St. Louis Today about the Royal Rumble.(thanks to Mike Kumzuk)
  • For what it’s worth, for Raw in Cincinnati, they are advertising Bobby Lashley & Kevin Owens & Seth Rollins vs. Big E & Street Profits and Becky Lynch vs. Liv Morgan vs. Bianca Belair for the women’s title. (thanks to Brian Henke)

AEW

UFC

  • Paul Craig vs. Nikita Krylov looks to happen on the 3/19 show in London.

OTHER NOTES

  • The Hardys first match back as a tag team will be on 3/12 in Webster, MA for Big Time Wrestling. They will face the winner of a match with the Briscoes vs. Jose & Joel Maximo earlier in the show.
  • A story on England’s first black Olympian, wrestler Louis Bruce, who came from the famed Snake Pit in Wigan. (thanks to Dave Roebuck)
  • Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Ricky Morton and Scotty 2 Hotty are scheduled for Prestige Wrestling on 5/28 and 5/29 in Roseland, OR.
  • AAW on 2/4 in Merrionette Park, IL at 115 Bourbon Street is headlined by Lio Rush vs. Josh Alexander, plus a no rules match with Fred Yehi vs. Schaff, Silas Young vs. Manders bullrope match, Hakim Zane & Karam vs. ACH & Jah-C, Christi Jaynes & Ren Jones vs. Lady Frost & Victor Benjamin and Russ Jones vs. Jake Something plus Ace Austin, Mat Fitchett and more.
  • MCW Fan Fest 1-5 p.m. on 2/5 in Hollywood, MD at the Fire
  • Department has a meet and greet with Taya Valkyrie, Kevin Nash, Jimmy Hart, Lex Luger, Angelina Love, Quinn McKay, Velvet Sky, The Headbangers, Serena Deeb, Lita, Adam Cole, Thunder Rosa, Sabu, Lio Rush and Bushwhacker Luke Williams. They also have a wrestling show and another on 2/6 in Glen Burnie, MD at La Fontaine Bleue.
  • Former UFC fighter Tom Breese (12-3) has signed a multi-fight deal with the Levels Fight League and will debut on 3/13 in Amsterdam, Holland, against David Ramies (8-4).

    • Defy has its fifth anniversary month with shows on 2/12 and 2/26 in Seattle at Washington Hall. On 2/12, Christopher Daniels defends the Defy interim title against Nick Wayne and Midnight Heat vs. Bollywood Boyz (formerly the Singh Brothers) in a ladder match.