As we noted earlier this month, WrestleMania 37 is likely to take place from Los Angeles, California. This year’s “Show Of Shows” took place from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Next year, WrestleMania 36 will be held inside the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
Now, it’s expected that the new Los Angeles Stadium at Hollywood Park will be WrestleMania’s landing spot in 2021. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that the stadium – which hosts the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and Rams – holds a capacity of 80,240. However, that’s expected to expand to 100,000 for big events such as the 2022 Super Bowl, World Cup games, and Olympic events.
WWE would’ve liked to instead go to Los Angeles in 2022, in an attempt to top the Super Bowl attendance and set a new attendance record for the company. But Los Angeles wants to use WrestleMania as a trial run before the Super Bowl to fix any kinks before the big game.
WrestleMania In L.A.
WrestleMania has been held in Los Angeles twice before. The first being WrestleMania 2 in 1986. The show was headlined by Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy inside of a Steel Cage. Then WWE returned in 2005 for WrestleMania 21. In the main event, Batista toppled Triple H to capture the World Heavyweight Championship.
What do you think about WrestleMania 37 being held in Los Angeles?
UFC President Dana White announced that former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar is “done” competing in mixed martial arts (MMA). “The Beast” was on track to face Daniel Cormier for the heavyweight title this summer. The fight was seemingly set up last year when Lesnar shoved Cormier inside the Octagon.
For the past several months Dana White has been saying he’s waiting for Brock Lesnar to call him and let him know he’s ready. Over the past year, Lesnar has also been subject to testing from the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). However, the UFC wasn’t able to pull the trigger on getting Lesnar back into the Octagon.
According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio, this is due to the new pay-per-view (PPV) model the UFC is running. Lesnar and the UFC were negotiating for his return, however, Lesnar didn’t want to do a deal based on PPV points. Instead, the WWE star requested a flat fee. When he gave his number, the UFC believed it to be too high. As a result, no deal was able to get done.
ESPN+ now serves as the exclusive PPV provider of the UFC. In turn, the UFC’s PPV numbers have dropped considerably according to Meltzer. The UFC’s PPV numbers are now a little less than half of what they used to be. The UFC will be making the same money from PPVs either way under their new deal with ESPN, and are no longer pressured to pull in big numbers. Because of this, stars like Lesnar and Conor McGregor have lost a bit of negotiating leverage.
What do you think about Lesnar’s apparent retirement from MMA?
On last night’s (Tues. May 1, 2019) episode of SmackDown Live, the Paige-led team of Kairi Sane and Asuka continued to impress. The duo defeated a pair of enhancement talents on the blue brand. WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions The IIconics (Billie Kay and Peyton Royce) were on commentary for the match.
Sane and Asuka’s opponents have now been identified as local talents Queen Aminata and Jaylee. Check out some highlights from their match with Sane and Asuka here:
Ken Shamrock Calls Out Brian Cage
Ken Shamrock has been working some indy professional wrestling shows for the past several months since November. However, it looks like the former UFC and WWE star wants to take things to the next level. Shamrock took to Twitter yesterday and called out IMPACT World Champion Brian Cage.
Cage responded by saying he thinks Shamrock’s time has passed, but would be honored to share the ring with him if the opportunity presented itself:
Let me help with the curiosity, the outlook is as follows… 100% probability of #snap#crackle and #pop followed by heavy precipitation from @MrGMSI_BCage as I stand over him as the new @IMPACTWRESTLING World Champion!
Predicted outcomes could have strong percentage of probability, Minus the standing over me as new impact champ. normally maybe, but since I'm a machine ur percentage goes way down. I got a degree in Steiner math, So I know the numbers dont lie, and they spell disaster for you.
Many have tried. All have failed. I got a lot of respect and admiration for you Ken, & it'd be an honor. But I think your time/ability to be able to break the machine has come & gone. Right now you look like the only things you're breaking is Jack & shit. And Jack left town
Cage captured the IMPACT World Championship from Johnny Impact over the weekend at the Rebellion pay-per-view (PPV). Unfortunately, Cage suffered an injury during the match that forced him to be immediately hospitalized after the event.
In a recent interview, Cage sounded optimistic about making a return soon, and doesn’t anticipate being sidelined for a long time.
Bray Wyatt has finally returned to WWE TV. The former WWE Champion has been hosting “Firefly Fun House” segments on Monday Night RAW. Recently, Wyatt took to Twitter to share a clip from one of the segments, attaching comments regarding former on-screen ally Randy Orton.
Wyatt said he forgives Orton for burning down his “temple” and taking the WWE Championship from him two years ago. Earlier today (Wed. May 1, 2019) Orton responded to Wyatt’s comments by taking a shot at his new gimmick. Here’s what Orton had to say:
Recently, Firefly Fun House director Jason Baker offered some big praise for Wyatt’s performance of his new character:
“I’ve had the opportunity of working on films with Russell Crowe, Tom Cruise, Will Smith and a bunch of other people working here in the Pittsburgh film industry and his mindset for his character development is on par with those guys,” Baker said.
Orton vs. Wyatt
Orton and Wyatt feuded back in 2017 over the WWE Championship. “The Viper” took the WWE Championship from “The Eater Of Worlds” at WrestleMania 33. In their rematch at the Payback pay-per-view (PPV) a month later, the pair competed in the infamous House of Horrors match.
As for Orton, he went on to drop the WWE Championship to Jinder Mahal, feuding with “The Modern Day Maharaja” for several weeks.
What do you think about this brief back-and-forth between Orton and Wyatt?
For those of you who follow mixed martial arts (MMA), it was recently announced that ex-UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz has signed with the Combate Americas promotion. Combate Americas is an MMA promotion that former WWE Champion Alberto El Patron is affiliated with.
El Patron formerly served as the promotion’s president before stepping down. Now, it’s believed that he could possibly even fight under the promotion’s banner. El Patron has a background in MMA, with a professional record of 9-5. He has shared the cage with the likes of MMA legend Mirko Cro Cop, who knocked El Patron out in 2003.
Now, it’s being rumored that El Patron could face another MMA legend in his return to fighting. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio mentioned a rumor that El Patron could be the man to welcome Ortiz to Combate Americas. Last year, El Patron stated that he was preparing for a return to fighting, and wanted to get into the cage sometime this year.
He hasn’t fought since 2010, last losing to Yamamoto Hanshi in February of that year via second-round TKO. It would be interesting to see how he fares against a former 205-pound UFC champion.
For more MMA news please visit our partner site MMANews.com
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has been making some big moves ahead of its first-ever pay-per-view (PPV) event next month, Double Or Nothing. The trend seems to be continuing. Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio reports that a deal is being worked out to have The Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. and Fenix) be exclusive to AEW in the United States.
The deal is being worked on between AEW and AAA, who want to have Lucha Bros exclusive to AEW in the U.S. while being exclusive to AAA in Mexico. This would mean that Lucha Bros’ time with other promotions such as IMPACT, MLW, CMLL, and others are coming to an end.
This makes sense given the pair dropped the IMPACT Tag Team Championships to LAX at last night’s (Sun. April 28, 2019) Rebellion PPV event. Now, Fenix and Pentagon prepare to defend their AAA Tag Team Titles against The Young Bucks at Double Or Nothing in Las Vegas on May 24.
The show will be taking place from the MGM Grand Garden Arena. It will feature other big names such as Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho, Cody Rhodes, and many more.
What do you think about the Lucha Bros being exclusive to AEW and AAA in their respective countries?
Two notable faces were missing from last night’s (Mon. April 22, 2019) Monday Night RAW broadcast. Those being Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley. However, after the show went off-air, both men appeared as part of the evening’s dark match to close out the night.
WWE Universal Champion Seth Rollins teamed up with Strowman to defeat Lashley and Drew McIntyre.
Rollins Is Ready For AJ Styles
Last night, former WWE Champion AJ Styles earned a shot at Rollins’ Universal Championship. The pair will square off at the Money In The Bank (MITB) pay-per-view (PPV) event next month (Sunday, May 19, 2019). All the action takes place from the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut.
“The Architect” took to Twitter after the announcement to offer his reaction. Rollins said that he has been ready for a match-up with Styles for the past 15 years. Check it out here:
That’s not the only match that was made official for the card. WWE also made it official that Becky Lynch will be defending her RAW Women’s Championship against Lacey Evans at the show.
Becky Lynch might take the ring twice at next month’s (Sunday, May 19, 2019) Money In The Bank (MITB) pay-per-view (PPV). The show goes down from the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut. Currently, Lynch is to defend her RAW Women’s Championship against Lacey Evans on the card.
However, she also has obligations as SmackDown Live Women’s Champion. Last week on RAW, Evans said she’s looking forward to winning the RAW Women’s strap. But on last night’s episode, Evans said she’s coming after both of “The Man’s” titles. Dave Meltzer addressed this on yesterday’s Wrestling Observer Radio.
Meltzer revealed that Lynch and Evans’ match won’t be for both the RAW and SmackDown Live Women’s Titles. Instead, Lynch will be defending both titles on the MITB card, but in two separate matches. It remains to be seen who will be Lynch’s challenger for the SmackDown Live Women’s Title, but that could very well be addressed on tonight’s episode.
It was speculated that Charlotte Flair might be the woman to challenge Lynch at MITB. As for Evans’ comments about both belts, Meltzer hypothesized that “The Lady Of WWE” could earn a title opportunity in both matches. Regardless of how things work out, it looks like Lynch will be having two matches on the card.
Who do you think will be Lynch’s challenger for the SDL Women’s Title at MITB?
WWE’s tag team division has been without former RAW Tag Team Champions The Authors Of Pain, as one-half of the team, Akam, has been dealing with an injury. In the meantime, Rezar has been getting work on WWE Main Event and live events. He has also been going hard in the gym.
Sharing a photo of himself after a workout on his Instagram story, Rezar is looking absolutely jacked since last being seen on WWE TV:
There’s currently no update on Akam’s status or when we might see AOP make their return.
What Happened After SmackDown Live Went Off-Air
Last night’s episode of SmackDown Live featured the second night of WWE’s Superstar Shake-Up. Several names moved brands, including Roman Reigns, who is now a member of the SmackDown Live roster. It was expected that some big names would move over to the blue brand given SmackDown is moving to FOX in October.
“The Big Dog” proclaimed after attacking Vince McMahon and Elias last night that SmackDown Live is his yard now. After the show went off-air and 205 Live taped, Reigns returned to the ring to face-off with Randy Orton. However, the match never had an official ending. Reigns hit Orton with a spear before “The Viper” rolled out of the ring. Reigns’ music his as though he won the match, but nobody was ever pinned or submitted.
Former WWE star Adam Rose suffered a frightening health scare recently. Rose (whose real name is Raymond Leppan) took to his official Facebook page to announce that he had a “mild heart attack scare” over the weekend. Here’s what he had to say:
“Some news before it gets online. Had a mild heart attack scare on Saturday. Just letting everyone know I’m fine and at home already. Nothing to worry about. To all those that love me, I love you back. See you soon.”
Rose Retires From Wrestling
Last month, Rose announced on Instagram that he would be retiring from professional wrestling. The 39-year-old South African started his professional wrestling career back in the ’90s. After 15 years working the independent circuit, Rose signed with WWE in 2010.
After four years in developmental, Rose made his main roster debut with his Rosebuds gimmick. During his time in NXT or WWE’s main roster, Rose never captured a title. However, he captured two FCW Florida Heavyweight Championships before FCW turned into NXT.
Back in May of 2016 Rose requested and was granted his release from WWE. Last month he announced he will retire from professional wrestling after fulfilling his remaining indy dates:
“I want to announce my full time retirement from the wonderful world of professional wrestling. It’s been one hell of a ride. I will be fullfiling all dates currently booked but not taking any more bookings going forward. Thank you to the fans who supported me, the promoters who booked me, all the good brothers and sisters who worked with me. Mainly thank you to the @wwe for letting a 9 year old South African boy live his dream. Many blessings and so much love to all. Goodbye and thank you.”
This past summer, former WWE star and son of Hall Of Famer Jerry “The King” Lawler, Brian Christopher, passed away at 46-years-old. Christopher had been jailed for a DUI in July. While in jail, Christopher allegedly committed suicide when he decided to hang himself in his cell.
He was transported to a nearby hospital in Memphis. After several hours of treatment, and family members getting the opportunity to say their final goodbyes, Christopher was taken off life support and later passed. However, some doubts soon emerged over the official story regarding Christopher’s death, prompting an investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
According to a report from PWInsider, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has wrapped up its investigation. Representative Keli McAlister released the following statement:
“Our investigation has concluded and all findings have been turned over to District Attorney General Mark Davidson. I will have to refer any questions to his office,” said McAlister.
It remains to be seen if the investigation’s findings will be made public.
Lawler Doubts Official Story
Back in August, Jerry Lawler told local Memphis media that he doesn’t believe his son took his own life:
“It just doesn’t pass the smell test,” Lawler said. “We’ve received literally countless calls, text messages from people, actual eyewitnesses, that were in the jail and saw things that happened on the actual day that Brian died that now has opened up a new can of worms. It just doesn’t seem like it was suicide.”
What do you make of the controversy surrounding Christopher’s passing
Tommy Dreamer Teases Signing With Major Organization
It looks like ECW Original Tommy Dreamer has some big news coming soon. Dreamer took to Twitter recently and teased that he will be signing with a major organization next week. Here’s what Dreamer had to say:
Dreamer could be referring to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), who has been making a ton of signings ahead of its ‘Double Or Nothing’ pay-per-view (PPV) event in May from Las Vegas. AEW recently signed both Darby Allin and CIMA to exclusive deals. Perhaps Dreamer could soon become All Elite as well.
Mickie James Wants ‘Monday Night Milf’ Merch
Later on today, WWE will be holding its Superstar Shake-Up on Monday Night RAW. WWE star Mickie James has an interesting idea for merchandise should she remain on the red brand. James shared her idea for a “Monday Night Milf” t-shirt:
“So if I stay on @wwe Monday Night Raw… I mean.. can we get Monday Night Milf over or naw?! Maybe a t-shirt?! Definitely a koozie. Asking for a friend”
So if I stay on @wwe Monday Night Raw… I mean.. can we get Monday Night Milf over or naw?! Maybe a t-shirt?! Definitely a koozie. Asking for a friend ????? #MondayNightMilfpic.twitter.com/rADLIQqGwZ
James hasn’t been seen since teaming with Alicia Fox while pursuing the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships. She was most recently seen at WrestleMania 36 while participating in the WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal, which was eventually won by Carmella.
We have even more All Elite Wrestling (AEW) news to pass along. The Khan Family-backed promotion is rumored to have secured a broadcast television deal with a major network. Teh report suggests AEW TV is said to begin airing in October. Now, a new signing has been made official for the AEW roster.
The announcement came during the latest episode of ‘Being The Elite.’ The Young Bucks announced that AEW has signed CIMA to a contract. Matt and Nick explained that CIMA got The Bucks booked on a Dragon Gate tour several years ago, and even wrestled some tag team matches with them for the promotion.
CIMA is now All Elite. He will participate in a Six-Man Tag Team match against SoCal Uncensored (Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, and Scorpio Sky) at AEW’s ‘Double Or Nothing’ event in May from Las Vegas. CIMA’s partners have not yet been announced:
Former pro skateboarder Darby Allin also appeared in the episode, who was announced to be joining AEW last week. It’s likely he will be part of AEW’s ‘Double Or Nothing’ card, however, his first advertised match for the promotion isn’t scheduled for a month later.
Check out the full episode of ‘Being The Elite,’ featuring CIMA’s signing announcement and Allin, here:
It looks like WWE could have another high-profile injury on their hands after WrestleMania. According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio, Daniel Bryan might be dealing with an injury. Bryan dropped the WWE Championship to Kofi Kingston at WrestleMania 35 from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Sunday.
Meltzer notes that Bryan was waiting to be examined this week, however, the word going around is that the now-former champ is dealing with an injury. As a result, Bryan was sent home early this week and was not backstage for Tuesday’s episode of SmackDown Live from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
There are currently no specifics on the type of injury Bryan is dealing with, or when it may have happened. We’ll keep you updated as more becomes available.
Injury History
Obviously, any injury concern surrounding Bryan makes fans hold their breath. The 37-year-old’s in-ring career was nearly ended several years ago due to concussion-like symptoms. Thankfully, after a few years sidelined due to medical suspension, Bryan was able to get cleared to make his return to the ring.
Hopefully, Bryan’s injury concerns from WrestleMania are not related to his past neurological issues, and we see him back in the ring again soon.
What did you think about Bryan and Kingston’s match at WrestleMania 35?
As noted, WWE Hall Of Famer “Superstar” Billy Graham has not been a fan of Kofi Kingston’s WWE Title run. Upon Kingston being announced as part of the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania, Graham expressed his concern with the booking.
Shortly after Bryan’s title win in New Jersey, Graham suggested that Kingston actually take steroids to improve his look. This advice wasn’t received well by the professional wrestling community, sparking outrage from the likes of WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T. Now, Graham has doubled down on his comments in a recent Facebook post.
Graham said that he advised Kingston to use steroids, but he never said anything about abusing them the way he did. He continued by saying that the likes of 16-time World Champion John Cena and Batista were likely using steroids throughout their careers as well. Check out Graham’s full post below:
Graham Doubles Down
Steroid ” Kofi ” Hysteria
OK fans, I hope someone can get a message to Kofi that me, Superstar Billy Graham, has him all over his FB and that he is causing pure pandemonium…Now lets hope he can match my MSG sell outs, I had about 21 sell outs according to Dave Meltzer. By the way folks, at the time those sell outs were 22,000 fans and on most occasions 5,000 fans in the Felt Forum under the main floor.
So, let me address a few concerns some fans have about my advice to have Kofi bulk up a bit by using some steroids. Please notice that I urged Kofi to use some steroids …….but never told him to ABUSE them like I did. Please notice the two WWE greats in the photos below. Cena, 16 time WWE World Heavyweight Champion appears to me to very massive…..you think he might have been a little juiced in this photo ??? Of course …BUT…. no one is complaining about Vince’s golden boy being all roided up…or did you good folks simply forget ??? And Mr. Dave Batista posing with me backstage here in Phoenix. Ya think ol Dave might be on a little juice in this shot ??? No one is complaining here again….ya all just forgot didn’t you ???
A fan brought up Chris Masters; well add Bobby Lashley to that list of guys with muscular bodies that didn’t draw. Why ??? Zero F-ing charisma for both of those names that’s why. There are way to many comments for me to respond to as it’s Spring Break and I could use a break from all of this insanity. I just remember when I beat Bruno for the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship Title, I had to fight my way back to the locker room. I got spit on, pissed on, crapped on, hit with chairs, kicked, punched, beer thrown in my face, screamed at and called every foul obscene name you can think of. What did we see last night on Smackdown 4/9/2019 – the ring with a rainbow of balloons of all colors over it, a pile of pancakes piled up in each corner on the ring posts, and little toy cartoon graphics. With the Big E declaring, ” There will be no comedy tonight ” and Kofi thanking everyone and mentioning his lovely wife and children standing ringside.
Grant Heller has it right when he said…” It’s the era of the small man ” well I thank God above I was there during the era of the big man…because I want no part of this comedy act that is coming. S.B.G
We have a title match official for tonight’s (Tues. April 9, 2019) episode of SmackDown Live. WWE has confirmed that tonight, SmackDown Live Tag Team Champions The Usos will be defending their titles against The Hardy Boyz (Matt and Jeff Hardy).
It should be noted that the SmackDown Live Tag Team Titles are the only tag titles The Hardys have yet to win. Matt and Jeff captured the RAW Tag Team Championships when they returned to WWE two years ago at WrestleMania 33 in Orlando.
The Hardy Boyz have been challenging The Usos via social media for the past several weeks. It looks like they’ll finally get their wish tonight on the first SmackDown Live after WrestleMania.
What do you think about The Usos vs. The Hardy Boyz for the titles tonight?
The WWE Universe was completely behind Kofi Kingston all the way through his WWE Championship win at WrestleMania this past weekend (Sun. April 7, 2019). Kingston toppled Daniel Bryan to win his first major World Championship in WWE after 11 years with the company. Now, we get to see how Kingston’s first reign as WWE Champion plays out on tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live.
While many fans were behind Kingston during his Road To WrestleMania, he did have a few haters. One of them being WWE Hall Of Famer “Superstar” Billy Graham. Graham voiced his displeasure with Kingston being booked in the main event of WrestleMania a little over a week ago. The Hall Of Famer takes issue with the booking due to Kingston’s size.
However, now that the title victory is official and in the books, Graham took to his official Facebook page to offer his thoughts. Graham actually adviced Kingston to take steroids to add 50 pounds of muscle to his frame. He also suggested that Vince McMahon would be happy with such a move.
Here’s what he had to say:
Graham’s Advice
“Kofi Kingston…. My Advice I am sure Vince will sit Kofi down and say, ” Now Kofi, you listen to every word the Superstar has to say about your run as the first African born WWE World Heavyweight Champion.” Congratulations to Kofi for winning the most important Title in pro wrestling history….sorry you NWA guys….
“Notice the word ” Heavyweight ” in his Title…so my man, I urge you to start doing some steroids and add about 50 pounds of solid muscle to your championship body. Vince wont care, honestly. Actually he would be quite pleased with the muscular transformation, as I predict that you young man will have the longest run as WWE champ in modern-day history.
“Then in just a short time while you are red hot and the fans are celebrating your win, your 2 former partners in crime, E and Woods get jealous and turn on you. In my day there would be some blood in that double cross on you but God forbid….not now. You then have Daniel Bryan for rematches and your two former partners as opponents.
“The final suggestion, is to get all of my promo material together that you can find in the WWE’s vast library and study my promos. You must be an entertainer as well as a wrestler my man and best of luck with your run !!! S.B.G.”
What do you make of Graham telling Kingston to take steroids?
Tuesday’s episode of SmackDown Live was the final stop before this weekend’s WrestleMania 35 event in New Jersey. Closing out the show, Daniel Bryan and Kofi Kingston held their contract signing for their WWE Championship match. Bryan will defend his title against Kingston in one of the more highly-anticipated bouts of this weekend’s card.
After the show went off-air, WWE held their 205 Live tapings. Afterward, a dark match main event between Bryan and Kevin Owens was being advertised. However, upon making his entrance, Bryan refused to square off with “KO” so close to his big match at “The Show Of Shows.”
Instead, Rowan took his place in the contest. Just as Owens began to get the upper hand, Bryan hit the ring to attack the former Universal Champion, costing Rowan the match via disqualification.
You can check out some photos from the segment here:
WrestleMania 35 goes down live on the WWE Network from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Kingston will get his first one-on-one match for a WWE World Title against Bryan at the show.
After months of the WWE Universe getting behind him, hopefully Kingston can bring it home against Bryan on “The Grandest Stage Of Them All.”
What do you think about Bryan refusing to wrestle so close to WrestleMania?
Another match has been added to this weekend’s (Sat. April 6, 2019) Ring Of Honor (ROH) and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) G1 Supercard. The show goes down from Madison Square Garden in New York City. There are several high-profile matches slated for the card already.
Jay White will be defending his IWGP heavyweight title against Kazuchika Okada. Also, Jay Lethal will defend his ROH World Title in a Triple Threat Ladder match against Marty Scurll and Matt Taven. Now, it has been announced that a Six-Woman Tag Team match has been added onto the pre-show.
Kagetsu, Jenny Rose, and Hazuki will team up against Hana Kimura, Stella Grey, and Sumie Sakai. The G1 Supercard pre-show begins at 6:30 P.M. ET. Fans can watch on ROH’s Facebook Live, FITE, NJPW World, and pay-per-view (PPV). Check out the updated card here:
Main Card:
IWGP Heavyweight Championship: (C) Jay White vs. Kazuchika Okada
Ladder Match for the ROH World Championship: (C) Jay Lethal vs. Marty Scurll vs. Matt Taven
IWGP Intercontinental Championship: (C) Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi
Winner Takes All Match:NEVER Openweight & ROH TV Title: (C) Will Ospreay vs. (C) Jeff Cobb
Winner Takes All Match: IWGP and ROH World Tag Team Titles: (C) Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa vs. (C) Brody King & PCO vs. EVIL & SANADA vs. The Briscoes
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: (C) Taiji Ishimori vs. Dragon Lee vs. Bandido
RPW British Heavyweight Championship: (C) Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
Women of Honor World Championship: (C) Mayu Iwatani vs. Kelly Klein
New York Street Fight: Bully Ray vs. Juice Robinson
Rush vs. Dalton Castle
Pre Show:
Kagetsu, Jenny Rose, and Hazuki vs. Hana Kimura, Stella Grey, and Sumie Sakai
Honor Rumble: Jushin Liger, Kenny King, PJ Black, Beer City Bruiser, Brian Milonas, Cheeseburger, Rhett Titus, LSG, Shaheem Ali, TBA
The Alliance of American Football (AAF), which was expected to be a rival league to the XFL, has suspended all football operations today (Tues. April 2, 2019). The AAF was in the eighth week of its inaugural season. Kickoff was just six days after Super Bowl XLIII in February.
According to reports, the AAF was struggling financially and was in danger of missing payroll. NHL Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon had pledged $250 million to initially save the league. However, it became clear very quickly that his vision for the league was much different from co-founders Charlie Ebersol and Bill Polian. Polian released the following statement on the matter:
“I am extremely disappointed to learn Tom Dundon has decided to suspend all football operations of the Alliance of American Football,” Polian said.
“When Mr. Dundon took over, it was the belief of my co-founder, Charlie Ebersol, and myself that we would finish the season, pay our creditors, and make the necessary adjustments to move forward in a manner that made economic sense for all.
“The momentum generated by our players, coaches and football staff had us well positioned for future success. Regrettably, we will not have that opportunity.”
The Action Network reports that Dundon wanted to immediatley make the AAF a minor league feeder system for the NFL. However, Ebersol and Polian wanted to develop the league over the next three years before doing so. Thus, Dundon made the decision to cease all football operations.
Other issues also plagued the league, such as the Orlando Apollos being forced to move their practices to Kingsland, Georgia – three hours away – and the scheduled league championship game later this month being moved from Las Vegas to Texas. If the AAF does eventually fold, which seems likely, it will have done so before the completion of its first season.
The XFL plans to kick off in 2020, alongside other startup leagues kicking off the same year; such as the American Patriot League, Pacific Pro Football, and the Freedom Football League.
What do you think of the XFL’s competition folding before finishing its first season?
Starrcast II just picked up another huge name for its lineup.
The upcoming wrestling convention will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada during AEW Double or Nothing weekend. On Monday night, AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes broke the newws that Olympic Gold Medalist and WWE Hall of Famer has signed on to appear
Angle joins names like The Undertaker, Sting, Bret Hart, Scott Hall & Kevin Nash, Jim Ross, Eric Bischoff, Bruce Prichard, Tony Schiavone, and many more.
Starrcast II will be held May 23rd-26th at Caesars Palace and the Tuscany Suites & Casino. For more information please visit here.
As for Angle, he is currently approaching his final match with WWE. The WWE Hall Of Famer will face Baron Corbin at WrestleMania 35 this weekend (Sun. April 7, 2019) from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The match is being advertised as Angle’s final match in WWE.
He has been on a retirement tour on both Monday Night RAW and SmackDown Live in recent weeks leading up to the match. It remains to be seen what Angle’s affiliation with the company will be after WrestleMania. We already know one WWE Legend’s appearance at Starrcast II has caused quite the stir within WWE.
What do you think about Angle appearing at Starrcast II?
One of the most highly-anticipated matches at WrestleMania next month has yet to be made official. It’s expected that WWE Champion Daniel Bryan will defend his title against Kofi Kingston at “The Show Of Shows.” However, Kingston has been screwed out of every opportunity to punch his ticket to WrestleMania by Vince McMahon.
Although it’s still expected that the match will happen, with just two weeks to go until WrestleMania, the bout is not yet confirmed on TV. However, WWE seems to already be advertising Bryan vs. Kingston for the WWE Title at MetLife Stadium. One fan shared on Twitter an advertisement from WWE that shows a graphic for Bryan vs. Kingston for the WWE Title:
Perhaps tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live will finally clear things up. There’s a chance Kingston is able to punch his ticket to New Jersey and get past Vince McMahon’s roadblocks once and for all. Or WWE could decide to hold off on making the match official until the go-home episode of SmackDown Live before WrestleMania.
What do you think about WWE advertising Bryan vs. Kingston at WrestleMania before the match being made official?
Earlier today (Tues. March 26, 2019) UFC star Conor McGregor shook up the sports community. “The Notorious” has announced his retirement from mixed martial arts (MMA) competition. He posted the following on Twitter early this morning:
Hey guys quick announcement, I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as “Mixed Martial Art” today. I wish all my old colleagues well going forward in competition. I now join my former partners on this venture, already in retirement. Proper Pina Coladas on me fellas!
This isn’t the first time McGregor has retired via social media. McGregor did the same back in 2016 when he was struggling to negotiate his next fight at the time. Of course, McGregor eventually returned to fight several more times, including a mega-money boxing fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Now, however, it looks like the Irish star is teasing retirement yet again.
With McGregor now focused on ventures outside of the Octagon, it did not take long for his fellow countryman Finn Balor to take notice. Balor responded to McGregor’s Tweet by saying, “See you at Mania brother.”
McGregor has certainly been linked to rumors of working with WWE before. He bad-mouthed several WWE stars prior to his UFC 205 fight back in 2016, and has been chummy with Becky Lynch on social media since her rise to fame. Perhaps McGregor will show up at “The Show Of Shows” in New Jersey next month to show support for Lynch and Balor, his two fellow Irishmen on the card.
Our partner site MMANews.com has much more on McGregor’s retirement from MMA, including UFC President Dana White’s reaction.
Do you want to see a McGregor appearance at WrestleMania?
It looks like WWE wants to keep “The Man” around for a long time. Pro Wrestling Sheet is reporting that the company has offered Lynch a new multi-year contract that includes a pay raise. Lynch is expected to sign the new deal fairly soon.
This comes after it was announced earlier today (Mon. March 25, 2019) that Lynch will be part of a historic WrestleMania main event. Lynch, Charlotte Flair, and RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey will all be part of the first-ever women’s match to main event a WrestleMania pay-per-view (PPV). The highly-anticipated bout takes place at WrestleMania 35 next month.
Becky Lynch has been part of WWE since 2013, when she joined the company’s NXT developmental brand. She made here main roster debut in July 2015.
Lynch has become, arguably, WWE’s biggest star over the past year. She really got over with fans when she attacked Charlotte Flair at SummerSlam. Lynch followed-up with a SmackDown Live Women’s Title win at Hell In A Cell. Also, Lynch won January’s Women’s Royal Rumble match to punch her ticket to WrestleMania.
Now, she hopes to win the first-ever women’s match to main event a WrestleMania show by toppling both Flair and Rousey. WrestleMania 35 goes down from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Sunday, April 7, 2019.
What do you think about WWE offering Lynch a new deal?
Nearly 20 years ago, actor David Arquette was crowned WCW World Heavyweight Champion. The move was, obviously, a controversial one. To put such a coveted title on an actor with no prior professional wrestling experience was essentially a slap in the face to the title’s lineage. Arquette earned his claim to fame in the professional wrestling community when he co-starred in the film, ‘Ready To Rumble.’
The film revolved around a former WCW Champion attempting to return to his former glory with the help of two fans, one of them played by Arquette. After the film, WCW decided to bring in Arquette for some storylines, which eventually led to his World Title win. Just several months later, the promotion folded and was purchased by Vince McMahon.
Now, after all this time, Arquette has returned to professional wrestling in an attempt to legitimize his career and ease the blow his World Title win had on his reputation within the community. Arquette has worked several independent shows and continues to appear at wrestling events around the country. One of them being the upcoming ‘Legends of Wrestling‘ event, which will also feature names like Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Booker T, and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan.
One man who will also be at the event is former WWE star, Mr. Anderson. He decided to take a shot at Arquette while promoting his appearance on Twitter, calling him “the guy who killed WCW”:
