DAILY UPDATE
Latest News
ROH/NJPW G1 Supercard live results: Okada vs. Jay White
WWE Hall of Fame live coverage: Bret Hart gets attacked on stage
Rey Mysterio officially ready for WrestleMania
GCW Orange Cassidy Is Doing Something live results
WWE Watch Along is back
Joey Ryan’s Penis Party results
WrestleCon vs. World results: Brian Cage vs. Masato Tanaka
MLW Rise of the Renegades spoilers from Thursday
Stardom American Dream NYC results
Impact Wrestling TV results: LAX vs. Edwards/Drake
RevPro in NY results
Joey Janela’s Spring Break 3, pt. 1
NXT TakeOver sees two title changes
BLP: Bryan Alvarez gets squeezed by Orange Cassidy
Latest Audio
F4D: Lance Storm and Paul Lazenby
Pacific Rim: Stardom recap, ROH/NJPW Supercard preview
Bryan & Vinny recap TakeOver, BLP, Bloodsport and more
F4W NEWSLETTER: Figure Four Weekly: Looking at the WWE HOF and the 2019 class
While interest has inevitably decreased over the years, the 2019 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony feels like less of an essential part of WrestleMania weekend than ever.
There are a few major reasons why the Hall of Fame ceremony has lost some of its luster. As WrestleMania week has become a destination for promotions from the United States and abroad, fans have to make difficult decisions on how they’re going to spend their time and money.
WON NEWSLETTER: April 9, 2019 Observer Newsletter: Massive Wrestlemania weekend preview
A preview of WrestleMania week leads off this week’s issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Read notes on the business for the week, how the business of WrestleMania has changed, what records are going to be set, a look at how fans changed the week, matches changed over the past few weeks, notes on surprises, and who is scheduled.
Have a look at the HBO Last Week Tonight segment on WWE. It starts with a story about Sherri Martel that is important to understanding a key issue involved here. Look at how the business has changed, what has also stayed the same, and why wrestling talent doesn’t get the benefit of the amount of revenue they drive compared to major sports and entertainment stars.
Also look at the 2019-2020 WWE arena schedule. Look at the foreign tours, the update on Saudi Arabia shows, and house shows that are in danger of being canceled because of the next Saudi Arabia show.
Read about the future of Linda McMahon after leaving Trump’s Cabinet and the position she was up for, the story behind the death of the AAF, Vince McMahon’s XFL plans, how much money Vince has earmarked for the XFL, why one analyst thinks stock will hit $157 per share, and thoughts on upcoming TV deals.
Read coverage of this past week’s UFC show in Philadelphia with match-by-match coverage and business notes on the show.
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 [email protected] or by going to www.paypal.com directing funds to [email protected].
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.
SATURDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
If you were watching the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, you saw Bret Hart assaulted by a fan during his acceptance speech for the Hart Foundation’s induction. The video cut to black for a few seconds and resumed with a gang of talent in the ring and the fan being removed. Bret eventually continued the speech to his credit after a very strange situation.
WWE released a statement to us on the matter: “An over-exuberant fan surpassed our security at ringside and made his way briefly into the ring. The individual has been turned over to the proper authorities.”
The LA Times Arash Markazi reported, “I’ve been told Bret Hart’s attacker has been charged with 2 counts of assault in the 3rd degree and disorderly conduct.” He also had some good footage of the whole situation.
Pro Wrestling Sheet reported that Al Wilson, the father of Torrie Wilson, passed away earlier this week. Torrie wrote on Instagram ahead of her WWE Hall of Fame induction Saturday: “This week is an incredible one for me but has also brought me some horrible pain in the form of a sudden loss. Just wanted to tell you to make that call to a loved one, don’t put it off…and TELL someone you love em and don’t think twice about it. That’s all. Big love.”
In a post-TakeOver New York video, WWE played up tension between Adam Cole and Roderick Strong by having Cole blame Strong for his loss to Johnny Gargano.
Pete Dunne did an interview saying there will be a rematch between him and WALTER. WALTER won the WWE United Kingdom Championship from Dunne at TakeOver.
The WWE Performance Center’s YouTube account has a video of Gargano and his family reacting to his NXT Championship win and Triple H greeting Gargano backstage.
Tommaso Ciampa posted a picture of he and Gargano from last night: “The Best Wrestler Alive. The Greatest Sports Entertainer of All Time. We. Are. DIY. We. Are. NXT. And one of us is the real NXT Champion”
WWE uploaded post-match interviews with Gargano and Shayna Baszler from TakeOver.
John Pollock of Post Wrestling reported that WWE is scheduled to start running vignettes for Bray Wyatt imminently. Pollock wrote that he’s been told there are big changes to Wyatt’s character that have been in the works for a while.
Pollock also reported that Sami Zayn is expected to return imminently.
While we’re on the Post Wrestling front, Pollock did a lengthy look at the career of Kurt Angle called “I Can’t Lose” which is well-worth your time to check out.
Wrestle and Flow’s Josiah Williams has signed with WWE as an on-air digital talent. He’ll be based out of the Performance Center.
Roman Reigns was on Mike Francesa’s WFAN show for nearly an hour.
Brian Koppelman, the co-creator of Showtime’s “Billions” said Becky Lynch has an open invitation to appear on the show. Co-creator David Levien told Lynch they’ll be in touch after she accepted the invitation.
Lynch also had a brush with more Hollywood stars as her and her dad went to Bryan Cranston’s Broadway show, “Network”. Reader Rob Hunter said, “As part of the show, about halfway through, Cranston goes into the audience and interacts with audience members in the front row (this also appears on camera for the entire crowd). Wouldn’t you know it, but he ended up talking to “Rebecca from Ireland” and her dad, totally coincidental based on where they were sitting.”
Sasha Banks & Bayley and The Revival took part in a WWE Now roundtable on tag team wrestling in WWE.
Scott Dawson told Fox Sports Australia about tag team wrestling being a lost art: “This is going to sound terrible, but I kind of blame our company for that. Because the individual stars made so much money, so people had that goal in mind to be an individual star here. And for us we knew that to make the most money, we needed to be a tag team, we needed to be a unit. Collectively we’re individuals but mentally we’re one. That’s how we had to think to make the most money that we could. In the 80s, obviously tag team wrestling was huge, then it kind of died off a little bit, then you had Edge and Christian and the Hardys and the Dudleys, even Too Cool and the APA bringing back tag team wrestling, and then it just got lost. I don’t know if it’s because the whole culture of the world is becoming more selfish or what. I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished and what we’re doing, and that we’ve never had an argument or had selfish ambitions.”
WWE talents surprised some New Jersey firefighters at their station.
Pro Wrestling
Jay White debuted a restored version of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship belt at a press conference for his title match against Kazuchika Okada at G1 Supercard.
Will Ospreay tweeted that he broke his nose while teaming with Hiroshi Tanahashi against Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. at yesterday’s Revolution Pro Wrestling show: “Minoru Suzuki broke my nose the first 5 minutes of the match. This photo was take 15 minutes later. Wars don’t end til the bell rings. Win, lose or draw. Hope you realise I’m no push over.”
During an appearance on Carlin, Maggie & Bart on WFAN, Jim Ross said AEW will have a two-hour weekly live TV show beginning in October. Ross said the network AEW will be on is one that we can all find.
Viceland released the full Bruiser Brody episode of their “Dark Side of the Ring” docuseries. The series premieres on April 10 with an episode on Randy Savage & Ms. Elizabeth. Expect to hear more about the series next week on our site.
Impact Wrestling announced the signing of The Deaners (Jake & Cody).
Pitchfork has an interview with Zack Sabre Jr. on his taste in music.
WrestleCircus announced that they’ll be returning for a show called “WrestleCircus: Encore”: “The Circus is Back! @WrestleCircus returns to #AustinTX to close out one chapter and start a new one. Enjoy #Wrestlemania35 weekend and stay tuned for more details as we accounce the date and matches for ‘WrestleCircus: Encore’.”
OVW announced on Saturday they are holding the first-ever combine (like in the NFL) on June 1st. The top 15 will earn a full tuition scholarship and room/board to OVW’s wrestling school run by Al Snow. The group is trying to be the first accredited professional wrestling and sports entertainment trade school in the world.
EVE announced their nine year anniversary show for Saturday, May 11 at The Resistance Gallery in Bethnal Green in London featuring Viper, Kay Lee Ray, and more.
UFC/MMA
ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reported that Jacare Souza vs. Jack Hermansson has been verbally agreed to as the new main event of the UFC’s Fight Night show on April 27: “Breaking: Jacare Souza vs. Jack Hermansson is verbally agreed to headline UFC Fight Night on April 27. Hermansson replaces Yoel Romero, who withdrew due to illness. UFC has promised Souza a title shot should he win. A victory would improve his UFC record to 10-3.”
Daily Pro Wrestling History: Daniel Bryan wins the WWE World title and the Undertaker snaps The Streak at WrestleMania 30 in New Orleans, LA.
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!