>
PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.
(Search “wade keller” to subscribe in podcast app or CLICK HERE to subscribe in Apple Podcasts.)
2K Sports officially announced Tuesday the next WWE video game franchise and Bill Goldberg as the lead playable character.
“WWE 2k17” is due out in October and Goldberg will “make his virtual return to WWE” in the next video game.
Goldberg’s WCW and WWE characters will be available with pre-sale orders of the video game. 2K Sports will also release playable arenas WCW Nitro and Halloween Havoc as bonus content for pre-orders for Playstation 4, PS3, Xbox One, and Xbox 360.
“After 12 years away from the business, I’m incredibly honored to work with WWE and 2K while following in the footsteps of such greats as Ultimate Warrior, Sting, and Arnold Schwarzenegger,” said Goldberg in a press release. (Goldberg commented on the honor to IGN.com.)
““My son was a big part of this coming together, and I can’t wait for him to see his dad kicking ass in a WWE ring through the magic of video games. I encountered the likes of The Rock, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, and Ric Flair during my WWE career, and now through WWE 2K17, I’ll be taking on the biggest and baddest Superstars of today – showing them once and for all that I am still ‘Da Man!’”
“Goldberg’s return to WWE action through two WWE 2K17 playable characters, along with the WCW Monday Nitro and Halloween Havoc arenas, collectively delivers a unique opportunity to experience one of WWE’s true living legends,” said Chris Snyder, Vice President of Marketing at 2K. “Fans can now relive many of their favorite Goldberg moments, as well as create brand new ones, as they decide ‘Who’s Next?’ in the virtual ring.”
The next WWE franchise video game was developed collaboratively by Yuke’s and Visual Concepts, a 2K studio. For more information on the video game, visit 2K.com.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
>
PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.
(Search “wade keller” to subscribe in podcast app or CLICK HERE to subscribe in Apple Podcasts.)
This week’s Lucha Underground episode drew the fewest viewers in nearly three months.
Lucha Underground Viewership Tracking
May 1: Lucha Underground drew a combined audience of 151,000 viewers, down 17 percent from last week.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
The first airing drew 111,000 viewers, very close to 114,000 last week.
However, the replay only drew 40,000 viewers, down from 68,000 last week.
It was the fewest combined viewers since March 16.
– DEMOGRAPHICS: The bright spots can be found in the demos. The show drew a median age viewer of 47.2 years-old, continuing a recent streak of falling in the desired 18-49 window.
Also, the show drew the most female 18-49 viewers in six weeks dating back to April 20.
The males 18-49 audience fell from last week, though. The resulting split was 80 percent m18-49 and 20 percent f18-49.
Rusev became a three-time United States Champion by defeating Shinsuke Nakamura on the Christmas Day edition of SmackDown.
Rusev won the title after hitting Nakamura with his second Machka Kick of the match. But while Nakamura vs. Rusev was the main event, there was another segment after that. Vince McMahon and AJ Styles met backstage, with the storyline being that Vince was trying to get a reaction out of Styles.
Vince said he wants to see the real Styles. He said he and Styles are a lot alike, and Styles has a black hole in his heart and an animal inside of him begging to get out. Vince slapped Styles, then Styles responded by punching Vince in the face. The episode ended by showing Vince on the floor smiling.
Daniel Bryan interrupted R-Truth and Carmella in the opening segment and later attacked Mustafa Ali after Ali had defeated Andrade “Cien” Almas.
Also on SmackDown, Shane McMahon appeared on Miz TV and agreed to become Miz’s tag team partner, Jeff Hardy got disqualified against Samoa Joe, Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson teamed with The Usos against Cesaro, Sheamus & SAnitY, and Mandy Rose taunted Naomi by unsuccessfully attempting to flirt with Jimmy Uso.
More coverage from last night —
SmackDown notes: Vince McMahon-AJ Styles, next week’s episode
WWE SmackDown live results: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev
WWE SmackDown video highlights —
Daniel Bryan interrupts Truthy Claus and Carmelfa
Mustafa Ali vs. Andrade “Cien” Almas
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
The Usos, Gallows & Anderson vs. The Bar & SAnitY
Daniel Bryan attacks Mustafa Ali backstage
Shane McMahon agrees to team with The Miz
Jeff Hardy vs. Samoa Joe
Mandy Rose taunts Naomi by trying to flirt with Jimmy Uso
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev for the United States Championship
Vince McMahon gets a reaction out of AJ Styles
SmackDown fallout: Rusev thanks his mother after winning the US title
SmackDown fallout: Rusev and Lana react to Rusev’s US title win
SmackDown fallout: It’s a whole new year for Gallows & Anderson
DAILY UPDATE
Latest News
Elias vs. Baron Corbin announced for WWE Raw
Hulk Hogan returning to WWE Raw on Monday
Impact ratings for last episode on Pop TV, updated Homecoming card
NWA title defense set for ROH TV tapings
NJPW notes: Wrestle Kingdom attendance, Six-Man tag title match
Kota Ibushi suffered concussion at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13
NJPW running back-to-back shows at Tokyo Dome in 2020
First night of NJPW G1 Climax 29 taking place in United States
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13 live results: Omega vs. Tanahashi
Latest Audio
WOL: New Japan Wrestle Kingdom 13 recap show! 1/4
Wrestling Weekly: ‘Mean’ Gene, AEW, NJPW in 2019 1/4
WOR: New Japan Wrestle Kingdom 13 recap from Tokyo 1/4
B&V&G: Granny, NXT, THURSDAY NIGHT POTPOURRI! 1/3
WOR: Gene Okerlund, AEW, Wrestle Kingdom 13, more 1/3
F4W NEWSLETTER: Figure Four Weekly: WWE’s biggest news stories of 2018
2018 was an especially mixed year for WWE. It’s been an incredible year for WWE financially — even if that hasn’t always been mirrored by traditional metrics. They agreed to two transformative TV deals that will shape the company for years to come. WWE also reached a lucrative 10-year deal with the Saudi General Sports Authority, with the first two shows in Saudi Arabia being among the most controversial in the history of the promotion.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
WON NEWSLETTER (ONLINE ONLY): January 7, 2019 Observer Newsletter special: History of the Tokyo Dome – NO HARDCOPY AVAILABLE
When the Tokyo Dome opened on March 17, 1988, the idea of pro wrestling there wasn’t even an idea.
The Dome was built to be the new modern home of two baseball teams, the Yomiuri Giants of the Central League, the team of Shigeo Nagashima and Sadaharu Oh years earlier, the unofficial national team that had all its games on NTV, and sold out every game. The Dome held 48,316 fans for baseball, but for years, every single Giants game announced the attendance as 56,000. The other team, the Nippon Ham Fighters of the Pacific League, which played there through the 2003 season, were the ones that the average person could get tickets to see.
The idea was baseball and concerts, the Rolling Stones (who have 19 Tokyo Dome sellouts), Michael Jackson (who sold 405,000 tickets for nine dates in December 1988), U2, Madonna and Japanese artists. But while it has housed numerous sporting events, including NFL and Major League Baseball, with the exception of baseball and concerts, it’s probably best known for pro wrestling.
Pro wrestling was still huge on television back then. All Japan, headed by Giant Baba, was a fixture on Nippon TV, one of the major networks. New Japan, on TV-Asahi, had matches airing in prime time.
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 Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to [email protected]. For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52. If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.)
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can choose one free classic issue or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.
FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
WWE has announced that Bobby Roode & Chad Gable’s Tag Team title defense against The Revival on Monday’s Raw will now be a lumberjack match.
WWE paid tribute to “Mean” Gene Okerlund with a 10-bell salute at last night’s NXT television tapings.
Mauro Ranallo apologized for what he felt was a substandard performance from him on commentary at last night’s NXT tapings: “Like me or loathe me, I pride myself on performing my job at the highest level possible. Tonight, I failed. I know it will come across as an excuse to some but the car accident and other personal issues affected me more than I thought. I apologize to @WWENXT I WILL BE BETTER.”
NXT UK is holding TV tapings at the SkyDome Arena in Coventry, England on Friday, February 22 and Saturday, February 23.
Becky Lynch’s appearance on MTV’s Ridiculousness will air at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time tonight. The episode was filmed in October, with Lynch filling in for Sasha Banks while Banks was out of action.
The Undertaker appeared in a 26-minute documentary for Onnit called “True Wrestling,” which focuses on indie wrestling.
Mick Foley returned to the Worcester Centrum for a WWE Revisited video. Foley won his first WWF World Championship at the venue on December 29, 1998, and the episode aired on this day 20 years ago.
The Knoxville News Sentinel has an article on the wrestling school that Kane (Glenn Jacobs) and Tom Prichard are opening in Knoxville. Jacobs’ spokesman noted that Jacobs is an investor in the school and won’t be involved in the day-to-day operations.
Pro Wrestling
The fallout from Wrestle Kingdom 13 takes place overnight tonight as Korakuen Hall hosts New Year Dash 2018. The show will air live on New Japan World for free at 4:30 a.m. Eastern time. The full card for the show won’t be revealed in advance, but it will feature tag matches and angles to build what’s next for NJPW. There will be a NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team title match on the show, with Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa & Taiji Ishimori defending against Ryusuke Taguchi, Toru Yano & Togi Makabe. Taguchi, Yano & Makabe won the pre-show gauntlet match at Wrestle Kingdom to get the title shot.
Every title that was on the line at Wrestle Kingdom 13 changed hands:
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Kenny Omega to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Tetsuya Naito defeated Chris Jericho in a no DQ match to win the IWGP Intercontinental title
Taiji Ishimori defeated KUSHIDA to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
Juice Robinson defeated Cody Rhodes to win the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
EVIL & SANADA defeated Guerrillas of Destiny and The Young Bucks in a three-way match to win the IWGP Tag Team titles
Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Tomohiro Ishii to win the Revolution Pro Wrestling Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship
Shingo Takagi & BUSHI defeated El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru and SHO & YOH in a three-way match to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles
Will Ospreay defeated Kota Ibushi to win the NEVER Openweight Championship
Omega wrote “1-1” on Twitter following his match with Tanahashi, bringing up that they both have a win against each other.
Jay White confronted Tanahashi in a backstage angle after Tanahashi’s IWGP Heavyweight title win, likely setting up a future match between the two.
Jericho also said in his post-match comments that he wants to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight title.
Jericho posted a picture of welts on his torso and back after his match against Naito.
Matt Jackson tweeted after the Tokyo Dome show: “Thank you Japan.”
Ospreay posted an in-character tweet after his match with Ibushi: “My reckless style has shortened not only my career but my life. You all wanted change, so that I have a long career. You’ve just shorten everyone else’s.”
NJPW apologized for the streaming issues that occurred on New Japan World at the start of Wrestle Kingdom: “From 16:00 to 17:20, the server faced too much traffic, making it difficult to log in and for new registration. It is currently stabilized. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience to our customers.”
Impact Wrestling uploaded the opening video for Sunday’s Homecoming PPV.
UFC/MMA
Fabricio Werdum, who is serving a two-year suspension for a drug test failure, has requested his release from the UFC.
Conor McGregor and Dee Devlin welcomed the birth of their second child. McGregor wrote: “Heading home with my two healthy babies and an energized and healthy SuperMam 2019 is off to the best start! Thank you for the well wishes everybody!”
Daniel Cormier’s coach wouldn’t be surprised if Cormier fights two or three more times in his career.
Jon Jones and Anthony Smith have both hinted that they’ll be facing each other next.
Cris Cyborg’s YouTube channel has a 19-minute video of Cyborg from UFC 232 and dealing with her loss to Amanda Nunes.
Daily Pro Wrestling History: NJPW Tokyo Dome cards
CONTACT INFORMATION
Poll opinions: [email protected]
Feedback: [email protected]
Show results and news tips: [email protected]
Wrestling Observer Radio questions: [email protected]
Support the Empire~! with F4W shirts. Grab yours today!
>
PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.
(Search “wade keller” to subscribe in podcast app or CLICK HERE to subscribe in Apple Podcasts.)
WWE Raw on Monday, June 6 included an historical second-to-third-hour decline in TV viewership.
The quarter-hour ratings indicate that Raw peaked in a big way at the top of the second hour for the John Cena-A.J. Styles exchange. Then, the third hour started very poorly and never recovered.
WWE broke from the recent formula of putting their most-important content at the top of the third hour to try to save the hour. Instead, Cena-Styles went at the top of the second hour to maximize viewership. The feud built on last week’s opening exchange…
5/30 Raw – Q9 (Cena-Styles): 1.68 m18-49 rating / 1.056 million viewers
6/6 Raw – Q5 (Cena-Styles): 1.86 m18-49 rating / 1.173 million viewers
The surge in Q5 viewership led to Raw’s second hour hitting a two-month high point and the overall m18-49 demographic increasing one-tenth of a rating from last week.
Then, the third hour started with a poorly-presented Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose match. Even watching the broadcast live, it felt like a cold match with both men already in the ring without lead-in and nothing on the line.
The rest of the hour had no chance and the audience did not come back for the over-run in the “fourth hour” of Raw for New Day vs. The Club.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
June 6 Raw – Top Segments
(1) John Cena-A.J. Styles confrontation (Q5 – top of the second hour).
(2) Enzo Amore & Big Cass, then facing The Vaudevillains (Q6 – follow-through from Q5).
(3) Opening Segment with six dudes on ladders, Teddy Long, and Stephanie McMahon. (Q1).
June 6 Raw – Audience Flow
First Hour: 3.371 million viewers
Second Hour: 3.490 million viewers (two-month high)
Third Hour: 2.903 million viewers (16.8% decline – largest drop in three-hour Raw history)
AVERAGE: 3.254 million viewers
First Hour: 1.47 m18-49 rating
Second Hour: 1.63 m18-49 rating
Third Hour: 1.36 m18-49 rating (16.6% decline – matching overall audience)
AVERAGE: 1.48 m18-49 rating
***
PWTorch received a quarter-hour and minute-by-minute break down in the bellwether males 18-49 demographic…
June 6 Raw – M18-49 Break Down
OVERALL SHOW AVG.: 1.48 rating / 932,000 viewers
– Q1: 1.59 rating / 1.001 million viewers
The opening segment peaked with 1.139 million viewers at 8:12 p.m. for the end of the segment before break.
– Q2: 1.37 rating / 862,000 viewers
– Q3: 1.44 rating/ 908,000 viewers
– Q4: 1.48 rating/ 931,000 viewers
HOUR AVG.: 1.47 rating / 926,000 viewers
– Q5: 1.86 rating / 1.173 million viewers (26% increase from Q4)
John Cena and A.J. Styles dominated the show.
The peak audience of the segment and the show was 1.298 million viewers at 9:11 p.m. at the climax of the promo exchange.
Last week’s Q9 segment with Cena-Styles drew a 1.68 rating / 1.056 million viewers.
The historical comparison is Daniel Bryan’s retirement speech on the February 8 Raw.
The Q14 over-run for Bryan’s speech scored a 1.86 m18-49 rating and averaged 1.173 million m18-49 viewers.
– Q6: 1.70 rating/ 1.069 million viewers
Enzo Amore & Big Cass vs. The Vaudevillains drew the second-highest audience of the show building on the Cena-Styles momentum.
– Q7: 1.56 rating / 980,000 viewers
The end of the Alberto Del Rio vs. Sami Zayn match was the last time Raw topped 1.0 million viewers for the rest of the show. No minute from Q8 to the over-run reached 1.0 million.
– Q8: 1.41 rating / 888,000 viewers
HOUR AVG.: 1.63 rating / 1.028 million viewers
– Q9: 1.45 rating / 914,000 viewers (minimal 2.8% increase)
From here, the show kept falling all the way to the over-run…
– Q10: 1.38 rating / 872,000 viewers
– Q11: 1.31 rating / 823,000 viewers
– Q12: 1.30 rating / 817,000 viewers
HOUR AVG.: 1.36 rating / 856,000 viewers
– OVER-RUN: 1.29 rating / 814,000 viewers
OVERALL SHOW AVG.: 1.48 rating / 932,000 viewers
A first-time matchup between Ronda Rousey and Sasha Banks is set for the Royal Rumble.
Rousey will defend her Raw Women’s Championship against Banks at this month’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view. That was made official on Monday’s episode of Raw, with Banks defeating Nia Jax in a number one contender’s match to become Rousey’s next challenger.
On Raw, Rousey appeared on Alexa Bliss’ “A Moment of Bliss” talk show segment. Rousey said she wants to be a champion everyone can be proud of and praised Banks. Nia Jax then interrupted Rousey and Bliss and wanted another match against Rousey. Banks came out, said she was honored by Rousey’s comments and would love to face Rousey for the title, and that it would be her pleasure to teach Rousey how to lose with dignity and class.
The angle led to Banks and Jax’s number one contender’s match being made. Banks submitted Jax with the Banks Statement to win.
Royal Rumble 2019 is taking place at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona on January 27. Here’s the updated card:
Universal Champion Brock Lesnar defending against Braun Strowman
WWE Champion Daniel Bryan defending against AJ Styles
Women’s Royal Rumble match
Men’s Royal Rumble match
Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey defending against Sasha Banks
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy defending against Kalisto, Akira Tozawa, and either Cedric Alexander or Hideo Itami in a fatal four-way match (a qualifying match between Alexander and Itami is taking place on this week’s 205 Live)
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
>
PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.
(Search “wade keller” to subscribe in podcast app or CLICK HERE to subscribe in Apple Podcasts.)
A new action movie featuring WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus is officially out Tuesday.
“Gridlocked” is available on home video featuring Stratus in a supporting role alongside Danny Glover, Vinnie Jones, and Dominic Purcell from “Prison Break.”
Stratus talked to WWE’s website about getting a role in the movie through conversations with Edge (Adam Copeland) and being able to film locally in Toronto shortly after giving birth to her baby Max.
Stratus said she “met with the producers and the director, who happened to be Toronto-based and WWE fans, so they were familiar with my body of work. The director was willing to take chance on me because he realized that what we do in WWE is acting.”
Stratus did not discuss whether she will be returning to WWE TV any time soon, but hyped the movie as a chance to reconnect with WWE fans who want to see her in action.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
“It’s a throwback to classic action flicks. It’s smartly written and has some comedy in it as well. There’s lots of action and a– kicking. It’s just an entertaining movie that people will enjoy. WWE fans will be Stratusfied,” she closed the interview.
The NJPW and CMLL Fantastica Mania tour continued this morning in Chiba.
The traditional family tag team tournament got under way with two first round matches, and Tetsuya Naito, KUSHIDA, and Ultimo Guerrero were among the stars featured on the undercard.
Full match reports and results are below:
GEDO, TAIJI ISHIMORI & FORASTERO DEFEATED KUSHIDA, RYUSUKE TAGUCHI & TITAN
A decent opener.
Gedo and KUSHIDA started off. KUSHIDA and Taguchi used a series of quick tags and worked over Gedo’s left arm. Gedo tagged Forastero, and he had his arm worked on as well. Ishimori tagged in, and they did a comedy spot where Taguchi blindly worked over KUSHIDA’s arm by mistake.
Titan hit a tope con hilo. Taguchi and KUSHIDA missed with pescados, and Gedo and Ishimori fought them on the floor. Inside, Forastero went for Titan’s mask, and Ishimori went to work on his arm.
KUSHIDA tagged in, and found himself triple-teamed. Taguchi got a tag and ran wild with hip attacks and ankle locks, before Gedo jumped in and cut him off. KUSHIDA came in for the save, and hit a handspring elbow and a plancha. Taguchi hit a plancha, and Titan hit a springboard crossbody.
Titan used a crossface, but Forastero escaped, hit a tilt-a-whirl slam, and used a head and arm choke for the submission win.
FUJIN & RAIJIN (SHO & YOH) DEFEATED SHINGO TAKAGI & BUSHI
These guys are capable of so much more, it was kind of surreal to see them working a second match on a house show type of pace.
Shingo and SHO started with some power spots. YOH and BUSHI jumped in, and SHO and YOH hit some tandem offense. Shingo outsmarted them, and YOH accidentally knocked SHO from the apron.
They went to the floor, and Shingo posted YOH. BUSHI teased unmasking both SHO and YOH. BUSHI used a neckbreaker for a near fall. BUSHI and Shingo hit their tandem leg drop and senton.
YOH hit a dragon screw, and SHO jumped in and hit a dropkick. There were more power spots with SHO and Shingo, and SHO got the edge this time. He hit a lariat for a two count. He went for a suplex, but Shingo cut him off. SHO finally got the suplex, but Shingo popped right up and hit the pumping bomber into a double down.
BUSHI and YOH got tags. YOH hit a flying forearm, missed a back elbow, then hit a neckbreaker for a two count. SHO and YOH hit stereo knees on BUSHI, and knocked Shingo off the apron. BUSHI hit a double rana.
Shingo came in for a double team. Shingo hit YOH with a lariat, and BUSHI hit a backstabber. SHO also came in and hit BUSHI with a backstabber. Shingo and SHO did a clothesline to the floor spot, and they landed awkwardly.
YOH hit BUSHI with a dropkick to the knee, then followed with a la magistral cradle for the pin.
ANGEL DE ORO, AUDAZ & SOBERANO JR. DEFEATED OKUMURA, NAMAJAGUE & BARBARO CAVERNARIO
Lots of really cool dives in this one.
Angel de Oro and OKUMURA started with some chain wrestling. OKUMURA worked some holds. de Oro hit a dropkick. Audaz and Namajague tagged in for some quick lucha spots. Cavernario and Soberano jumped in and did a really nice sequence, ending in a stalemate.
Cavernario offered a handshake, but it was a trap, and his team tripled up on Soberano. They triple-teamed Audaz next, isolating him in their corner. OKUMURA tried directing traffic, but there was dissension in the ranks.
It was de Oro’s turn to be triple-teamed next. He made a comeback with a dropkick and a Sasuke special. Soberano and Audaz hit dives as well. Cavernario and Soberano had another nice sequence.
de Oro and OKUMURA jumped in. de Oro did some nice flying and picked up a near fall. Namajague broke up the pin. Audaz hit a crazy dive, de Oro hit a crazy dive, and Cavernario hit a crazy dive.
The finish saw Soberano hit his tornillo off the top, then another springboard leg drop on OKUMURA. Soberano pinned OKUMURA.
TETSUYA NAITO & TERRIBLE DEFEATED SATOSHI KOJIMA & TOA HENARE
Not much to this one.
Terrible and Kojima’s gameplan early was to chop the hell out of each other. Kojima missed an elbow drop. Terrible missed a leg drop. Henare and Naito tagged in. Henare has changed his look a little bit and has new gear. Henare hit a standing moonsault for a two count.
Naito hit an inverted atomic drop, and Terrible jumped in for a high kick. The action spilled to the outside. Naito sent Henare into the first several rows of seats. Naito used a chair. Terrible used a headlock on Kojima.
Back inside, Terrible went to work on Henare’s legs. Naito hit the combinacion de cabron for a two count. Naito stomped on Henare’s back, and taunted him with short kicks. Henare hit a Samoan drop. Kojima tagged in and hit machine gun chops on Naito. Kojima hit a top rope elbow for a two count.
Naito and Kojima exchanged strikes, and Kojima hit a DDT. Naito hit a flying forearm, then tagged Terrible. Terrible hit a series of strikes, a slam, and a top rope splash, picking up a near fall.
Kojima made a comeback and hit a Koji cutter, then tagged Henare. Henare hit a tackle, but Naito jumped in and cut him off. Henare sent Naito outside, then hit a Samoan drop for a two count.
Terrible and Henare traded chops. Terrible fired up and hit a left hand. Henare came back with a headbutt. Kojima and Naito jumped in. Naito hit Kojima with a neckbreaker. Naito and Terrible hit stereo dropkicks on Henare, and Terrible used a Styles clash for the pin.
CARISTICO, JUSHIN LIGER & TIGER MASK DEFEATED ULTIMO GUERRERO, GRAN GUERRERO & TEMPLARINO
A ton of star power here, but not a ton of action.
They stalled a lot early. The Guerreros took a cheap shot at Caristico before the bell. They did a celebration to psych themselves up, which Tiger, Liger and Caristico then mocked in a comedy spot.
They did some more comedy, with Tiger offering Gran a handshake, then pulling it away. Caristico and Ultimo got in and stalled some more, before finally locking up. They exchanged holds, then stalled again. Caristico was begging the crowd to get into it. Caristico took off Ultimo’s mask and made a big show of it. He’s a few years late on that one. Caristico hit a dive into a flying headscissors on the floor.
Liger and Templarino got in for the first sustained action of the match. Liger sent Templarino to the floor, and the Guerreros jumped in to the ring to triple up on Liger. They did a human pyramid spot, but Caristico broke it up with a thrust kick.
Liger made his own comeback, hitting a senton off the apron. Tiger jumped off the top into a slam from Ultimo for a near fall. Tiger used a victory roll for a near fall. Ultimo rolled to the floor, and Tiger hit a high cross off the post.
Templarino and Caristico jumped in as the legal men, and Caristico used la mistica for the submission.
CUATRERO & SANSON DEFEATED ATLANTIS & ATLANTIS JR. IN A CMLL FAMILY TAG TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND MATCH
Atlantis has really slowed down since I saw him last. Atlantis Jr. is going to be good, but he’s still green. Cuatrero and Sanson are a fine team, but they don’t stand out on their work alone.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
Atlantis and Cuatrero started off with some mat wrestling. Atlantis Jr. and Sanson came in and traded holds on the mat as well. Sanson got the upper hand with an enzuigiri, then raked the eyes. Atlantis Jr. came back with a headscissors and a suicide dive.
The dive did more harm than good for Jr., as while he was on the floor, Cuatrero and Sanson worked over Atlantis. When Jr. finally got back inside, he ate some tandem offense.
Jr. came back with backbreakers, and Atlantis jumped in. He hit a crossbody off the top, and a series of backbreakers. Jr. hit a dive, and Atlantis hit a crossbody off the post to the floor. Cuatrero hit a plancha on Atlantis.
Jr. and Sanson battled on the top rope, and Sanson hit a Sanson special, then pinned Jr. to win this first round battle.
DRAGON LEE & MISTICO DEFEATED VOLADOR JR. & FLYER IN A CMLL FAMILY TAG TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND MATCH
A good match, but it was missing something. They worked hard, they did a lot of moves, but it fell short of a great match to me.
Dragon and Flyer started off. They began trading holds, hip tosses and armdrags. Good, but not as crisp as you would expect from Dragon. Flyer hit an Asai moonsault, and Volador hit a suicide dive.
Back inside, Volador and Flyer took control of the match. Flyer hit a dropkick in the corner on Dragon. Volador took the referee, and Flyer tried to unmask Dragon. Dragon came back with a rolling dropkick on Volador, but Flyer cut him off.
Mistico came in and ran wild. Mistico and Dragon hit stereo topes. Back in the ring, they each hit dropkicks. They were exactly as crisp as you would expect from Dragon.
Dragon and Volador traded kicks, which got a good reaction. They fought on the top rope, and Dragon hit a double stomp. All four guys jumped in, and Volador hit a Canadian destroyer on Mistico. Mistico hit a DDT on Volador.
Dragon and Mistico hit stereo dropkicks on Flyer. Dragon hit a Spanish fly on Volador. They went back to the top, and Dragon teased another stomp, but Flyer cut him off with a Spanish fly off the top.
Volador hit a thrust kick on Mistico. Mistico came back with a springboard rana. Mistico dumped Volador to the floor, then hit a moonsault to the floor. Inside, Flyer hit a Canadian destroyer on Dragon for a two count.
Dragon hit a suplex, and used a powerbomb for a near fall. Dragon hit a knee strike, then hit desnucadora for the pin.
An easy show to watch, but nothing here was must-see.
>
PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.
(Search “wade keller” to subscribe in podcast app or CLICK HERE to subscribe in Apple Podcasts.)
APP UERS: Press HERE to visit the dedicated Money in the Bank PPV coverage page.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey
Four matches are now official for this week’s episode of SmackDown.
The Miz vs. Cesaro has been announced for Tuesday’s show, which is taking place at INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas. WWE is advertising that Shane McMahon will be in Miz’s corner, while Sheamus will be in Cesaro’s corner.
Miz & Shane are set to challenge for Cesaro & Sheamus’ SmackDown Tag Team titles at the Royal Rumble next Sunday (January 27).
The Miz defeated Sheamus in the main event of last week’s SmackDown. The finish came when Sheamus was distracted and Miz rolled him up for the pin. Cesaro had tried to interfere, and Shane put him through a table that had a birthday cake on it. Miz vs. Sheamus was set up as part of an angle where Cesaro and Sheamus interrupted Miz and Shane while Miz was throwing Shane “The Best Birthday Bash in the World.” After Miz won, the show ended with Shane hitting a coast-to-coast dropkick and smashing cake into Sheamus’ face.
Rey vs. Andrade in a two-out-of-three falls match, Samoa Joe vs. Mustafa Ali, and Naomi vs. Mandy Rose are the other matches that have been announced for Tuesday’s SmackDown. Vince McMahon moderating a face-to-face segment with WWE Champion Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles ahead of their title match at the Royal Rumble is also set for the show.
Click Here: liverpool mens jersey