FRI UPDATE: Dismal TNA rating, WEC notes, Poffo funeral, Strikeforce fun, Wrestlelicious, Linda, etc

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The weekend itself isn't loaded, with the biggest event being the WEC show on Saturday night, before the return of the Monday Night Wars, full-time. Don't forget tonight is the debut of the Dragon Gate USA PPV. In the U.S., the show is only available on cable, not on satellite as neither DirecTV nor Dish Network are carrying the show.

We're looking for your thoughts on the Dragon Gate USA PPV show, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Lineup has
*Mike Quackenbush & Jigsaw vs. Super Crazy & Cima
*TJP vs. Gran Akuma
*Jimmy Jacobs vs. Brian Kendrick
*Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Davey Richards for the FIP title
*Young Bucks vs. Masato Yoshino & Naruki Doi vs. Yamato & Shingo in a three-way elimination match
*BxB Hulk vs. Dragon Kid for Open the Freedom Gate title

We're looking for reports on tonight's ROH TV tapings in Philadelphia at the Arena at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it There will be tapings both tonight and tomorrow night, headlined by the final build for the 4/3 Big Bang show in Charlotte as well as the crowning of the company's first TV champion.

No WWE house shows tonight.

Tomorrow night's major show is WEC from the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH, with Brian Bowles defending the bantamweight title against Dominick Cruz and Joseph Benavidez vs. Miguel Angel Torres to determine the top contender for that title. In addition, it is likely do-or-die for Jens Pulver, as he faces Javier Vazquez. With four straight losses, and six losses in his last seven fights, it is only his popularity, being likely the second most popular fighter in the company behind Urijah Faber, that has saved him from being cut. The show will air live on Versus starting at 10 p.m. Eastern time, with L.C. Davis vs. Deividas Taurosevicius and Karen Daradebyan vs. Bart Palaszewski rounding out the live show. Chad Mendes, one of the top featherweight prospects, who placed second in the 2008 NCAA tournament and is unbeaten in MMA, makes his WEC debut against Eric Koch in an undercard match.

We're looking for reports on Saturday night's Raw show in Salt Lake City and Smackdown show in Pullman, WA. Sunday has Raw in Boise and Smackdown in Yakima.

Monday has a live Raw in Portland, featuring Criss Angel as the guest host, John Cena vs. Vince McMahon and Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase. Spike will air Impact live from Orlando with Hulk Hogan & Abyss vs. Ric Flair & A.J. Styles as the only match announced, but it is believed that Sting and Rob Van Dam will appear on that show. Sting is confirmed.

Tuesday will have a Smackdown and NXT taping in Seattle, while the Impact show for 3/15, against a Steve Austin-hosted Raw, will be taped Tuesday night in Orlando.

Smackdown tonight has:
* Matt Hardy vs. Drew McIntyre in a Money in the Bank qualifier
* Hart Dynasty vs. Cryme Tyme vs. Truth & Morrison with the winners getting a tag title shot at Mania
* Rey vs. Luke Gallows
* Edge vs. Show
* Shelton vs. Dolph Ziggler
* Zeke vs. Jimmy Wang Yang

Between unique wrestling shows, crazy promos, legal actions, more on WWE's business year in review, the most updated analysis of the chess game between UFC and Strikeforce, the death of Umaga, more on the Ric Flair situation with his wife, where MMA stands on CBS as well as the next planned show, we've got two issues of the Observer coming out this week.

Both issues are now available on the web site.

We look at the Frank Mir reaction to his own apology, and his reaction to his reaction, as well as comments by Brock Lesnar, and then the story behind Marcus Davis wishing a death of AIDS to Dan Hardy and why this stuff is more dangerous in UFC right now then if it was to happen in pro wrestling or boxing.

We also look at the UFC vs. Strikeforce promotional war regarding April, how the signing of James Toney fits in, proposed opponents for Toney, and a look at how ratings and buy rates could be affected depending on when the head-to-head battle takes place. We also look at Toney going in, his unique contract, his background as a boxer, the first time Toney was talked with about coming to UFC and his opponent scheduled at the time and more.

We also have as part of our business year in review, live attendance for WWE arena dates averaged for the last 18 years, ratings comparisons for the last several years, as well as TNA's numbers for the past few years.

We have more on the death of Edward "Umaga" Fatu, looking at his cause of death, his career, his getting fired by WWE and post-WWE.

We also look at the 10 questions for Linda McMahon, the reality of the situation and what questions are easy and difficult for her to answer.

We also have a look at the audience that watches, UFC, Strikeforce, WWE, TNA along with the NBA, NFL, boxing, NHL and baseball and compare and contrast, both in ages, ethnicity, education and earnings. This is some very interesting information that relate to advertising as well as showing the major differences in UFC vs. Strikeforce, UFC vs. WWE and TNA vs. WWE.

We also have more on the Ric Flair situation with the release of the 911 call by Rene Beems about the incident with Flair and Jacqueline Beems, the content of the call and more information on the incident.

We also have a look at the situation regarding Awesome Kong and Bubba the Love Sponge, and the unique situation it has put TNA in. We look at her claims, his responses, and more on the original incident between the two.

We look at the next Strikeforce show on CBS, the Strikeforce/Dream relationship, matches planned for the company's next two major events, why this CBS special is important and if it's successful, how that impact the business going forward. We also look at how CBS is going to cross-promote the show with one of its major prime-time series, a look at the three CBS matches, who is Shinya Aoki, as well as more on Herschel Walker, as well as obstacles put forth in the path of the company's PPV idea of Fedor Emelianenko vs. Alistair Overeem.

We also have a complete rundown of the Dragon Gate USA show that plays throughout March, with notes on the show and coverage of all the matches and angles.

We also have more on WWE business in 2009, including more notes on live attendance throughout the year, the drop in North American PPV vs. the drop in international PPV and why, a look at the government incentives WWE has been able to take advantage of, the growth in some revenue streams and losses in others. We look at the profitability of every aspect of company business as well as a chart showing which revenue streams are the most and least important right now. We also look at how much WWE spent on an average PPV in 2008 and 2009, and it's quite the eye opener.

We also have a look at comparing now to 1995, as where WWE and TNA are now leading into the new Monday Night Wars, and where WWF and WCW were leading into the first Monday Night Wars.

We also have a WrestleMania update, more update on WWE changes in PPV in 2010 and why one of the weakest PPV shows of last year wasn't cut. We also have a rundown of WWE firings over the past week, who was and wasn't expected, why and notes on all involved including some comments from people on the firings. We look at each person's chances with TNA, a bio of Mad Dog Vachon, lots of more Hall of Fame notes, more on NXT and different ideas that were batted around and may or may not show up in future episodes.

We've got more on Jim Ross' future, probably the most-watched pro wrestling match on U.S. TV of the 70s, update on guest hosts and injuries, several new wrestlers signed, new DVDs, some new angles talked about, something about NXT and finishing moves that came up, more on comments by Shad Gaspard, developmental news as well as business notes and highlights from the weekend house shows.

We also have updates on the Linda McMahon senatorial campaign and how pro wrestling is being dragged more and more into the campaign.

We also have a rundown of the next season of Ultimate Fighter, with a complete look at the cast, who they are, their record, what they've done and personality notes.

We've got a rundown of two major Japanese events, the NOAH show at Budokan Hall and atmosphere of NOAH vs. New Japan, as well as the pro wrestling world champion vs. kickboxing world champion match and pro wrestler bench press contest held at a unique show this past week.

We also have our usual weekly features such as the results of the biggest matches of the week and rundown of the major television shows.

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-- TNA is screwed. I mean, really bad. After Bischoff explained last week that Impact's ratings were low due to the Olympics, this week's show, with no Olympic competition, did a 1.14 rating and 1.5 million viewers. Worse, the lowest rated quarters by far were the final two. The show did fine for an hour, averaging a 1.3, and then completely collapsed, losing tons of viewers in every remaining segment until closing at an 0.9 for the big angle with Hogan and Flair to set up the tag match on Monday night. You couldn't ask for a worse ratings pattern going into the supposed new Monday Night Wars. But it will be another message about the writing team going unheeded, as it has gone unheeded for years now.

-- WEC weigh-in notes are on the front page. Dave has a story on Brian Bowles here, and another on Joseph Benevidez here.

-- Angelo Poffo funeral info: It will take place at St. Joseph Church, 4824 Highland Ave., Downers Grove, IL 60515-3615. Phone: 630-964-0216. Monday 10 a.m.

-- Tickets for the Strikeforce on CBS show headlined by Jake Shields vs. Dan Henderson from Nashville, Tennessee on Saturday, April 17, go on sale today.

-- Line-up for Wrestlelicious this month has Autumn Frost vs. Paige Webb on March 8th (these dates are all BiteTV dates, all shows air two days later on MAV TV), Lacey Von Erich & Amber Lively vs. GHOULS GONE WILD (Draculetta & White Magic) (and yes, Lacey's team is called Team Beautiful) on March 15th, Sierra Sheraton vs. Marley Sebastian on March 22nd, and The Naughty Girls vs. Paige Webb (she gets around) & Southern Belle on the 29th.

-- This should be awesome. Jason Mayhem Miller, Josh Thompson, Lavar Johnson and Scott Smith will all be on MVT2'd Rock n Jock tomorrow at 11 AM ET/8 PM PT counting down the week's top music videos, plus teaching host Dirty some of their mixed martial arts tricks.

-- Sean Morley on his Facebook page said he was done with TNA and was heading to Mexico.

-- The Rob Simmons campaign today unleashed the Linda McMahon Accountability Clock, which counts down the number of days in which she has avoided answering the 10 uncomfortable questions posed to her (see this week's Observer for more). Raj Shah, Communications Director for Simmons for Senate, said: "Linda McMahon is running a campaign based entirely on her experience as CEO of the World Wrestling Entertainment. She is using millions in profits acquired through WWE to finance her campaign. She is producing expensive television, radio and mail advertising touting her role at WWE. But she's refusing to answer the tough questions about her real record at WWE that she will face from Democrats if she is the Republican nominee. Just as we deserved the full truth about Chris Dodd's mortgage records, Republicans, and all voters, deserve honest answers to these critically important questions. Voters expect candidates for office to be accountable, and just as with Chris Dodd's mortgage records, we'll be counting the days until Linda McMahon comes clean." You can check out the clock here.

-- DISH Network will unfortunately not be carrying the Dragon Gate USA show tonight.

-- Next week's Smackdown in Orlando will be delayed due to basketball.

-- For those not counting, Eric Bischoff was in seven segments on Impact last night.

-- In an update from yesterday, Spike still has a Pride marathon planned for March 20th at 1 PM.

-- WWE Superstar the Miz a hit at West Tigers

-- A wrestling school named after Tiger Jeet Singh

-- Miguel Torres says he's getting rid of his bad habits for Saturday's fight with Joseph Benevidez

-- Ted DiBiase Jr. talks the Hall of Fame and WrestleMania

-- FOX Sports Southwest will webcast the 2010 Big 12 Wrestling Championships final matches live on Saturday, March 6 beginning at approximately 7:00 p.m. CT. Fans can watch the internet broadcast free of charge on FoxSportsSouthwest.com by clicking on the Big 12 Wrestling Championship banner located on the home page. J. Carl Guymon and former Oklahoma State All-American wrestler Lee Roy Smith will call the matches from McCasland Field House in Norman, Okla. FOX Sports Southwest and FOX Sports Oklahoma also will televise a delayed broadcast of the championship event on March 11 at Noon CT. All five nationally-ranked Big 12 squads will be in action for the 14th annual event. Iowa State will be competing for its fourth-straight Conference title, Oklahoma State for its ninth overall title, Oklahoma for its third, Nebraska for its second (co-Champions with ISU last year) and Missouri for the first title in school history. Preliminary matches will be streamed live on big12sports.com beginning at 11:00 a.m. CT.

-- Cain Velasquez will be on HDNet's Inside MMA tonight.

-- Miz will be at Australia's Kmart Southland (VIC) on Saturday, 6th March from 11.30am - 12.30pm.

-- Ring Of Honor will be holding an event on July 22nd, 2010 in Louisville, Kentucky at the Danny Davis Arena, which is OVW's home venue.

-- Wrestling Reunion has already announced Carlos Colon and Abdullah the Butcher for this September's upcoming convention.

-- VPW Presents: The Four Year Anniversary Show. V.F.W. Post 4927, 31 Horseblock Road, Centereach, NY 11720, Tel. 631-585-7390, Saturday, March 6, 2010. Doors open 6:30pm with an approximate 7:30pm bell time.

-- Great North Wrestling is putting on a huge show at Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay On on May 15th. Main event is Kevin Nash vs. Scott Steiner, Terry Funk will be the guest referee for Hannibal vs. Jeremy Prophet and Honky Tonk Man and The Genius will also be on the card. The website is up at greatnorthwrestling.com.

-- DREAMWAVE Wrestling returns to LaSalle, IL at the Knights of Columbus on Saturday March 6th with "Road to Anniversary" featuring DREAMWAVE World Champion "Silent Intensity" Austin Roberts defending the title vs. Luther, a Fatal Four Way to become the #1 Contender for the Alternative title and a special appearance by former WWE Monday Night RAW Superstar Eugene.

-- Ed in San Antonio talks women's wrestling tonight at blogtalkradio.com

-- The Liberty Wrestling Organization Presents New Hope, Saturday, March 6th, 2010, Boys and Girls Club of Lodi, 460 Passaic Avenue, Lodi, NJ. Doors: 6:30 PM. Bell Time: 7:00 PM. Tickets: Adults, $8 / Kids 12 and under, $5

-- Canadian Wrestling's Elite, Sunday, March 7th, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Glenwood Community Center, 27 Overton St., Tickets: $15 in advance, $18 at the door. Kids 14 and under $12 in advance $15 at the door. Tickets available at all Golden Tan Locations, The Brickhouse Gym (607 Corydon Ave.) Rudy's Video (668 Sheppard Ave.). Doors open 6:30pm Bell time 7pm