Bryan Alvarez:
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Dave Meltzer:
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We're looking for reports on Thursday night's WWE house show in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, as well as Friday's show in Ponce, PR, and the PWG Battle of Los Angeles show in Reseda, CA.
Saturday has Raw in San Juan at the big Coliseum, Smackdown in Binghamton, NY (Kane vs. Big Show) and TNA in Woodstock, VA (Jeff Hardy vs. Kurt Angle, Abyss vs. Rhino), and more Battle of Los Angeles in Reseda.
Sunday has TNA's No Surrender PPV, as well as a Smackdown house show in White Plains.
Monday has Raw in Washington, DC at the Verizon Center and Impact tapings in Orlando
Tuesday has Smackdown and the beginning of season three of NXT in Baltimore at the First Mariner Center, as well as more Impact tapings in Orlando. Impact will also be taped Wednesday in Orlando as all the Bound for Glory tapings are being done this week.
We've got notes on three different promotions, including one of the largest in the business right now, all with their backs against the wall and with bad signs about their long-term future, covered in the two issues coming out next week of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
We also have bios on the likes of Luna Vachon, Anton Geesink, Kotetsu Yamamoto, Tony Borne, J.C. Bailey and Mickey Garagiola, who all passed away in a crazy week.
We also look behind UFC 118, along with having a rundown of the major UFC events planned between now and February
We look at the history of wrestlers vs. boxer, the background of how Couture vs. Toney first became an idea, what Toney is reported to have gotten paid, his conditioning, reaction to the match, business notes on the show, as well as the aftermath of the UFC lightweight division with Frankie Edgar as champion, Gray Maynard as the top contender, and B.J. Penn out of contention. We look at Dana White's comments regarding the marketability of Edgar as champion. We also have complete coverage of UFC 118, with match-by-match coverage and poll reaction.
We also have preview of season four of NXT, running down the six women, their background, and where they stand ability wise, including who is the favorite, the motive of the show, why it's an all-women's show, and what guys who were under consideration for the show until the idea changed.
The first issue will be on the site today. We will have the second issue on the site tomorrow along with a back issue from June 1993 new to the site. All are available right now for web site subscribers in the Wrestling Observer listings on the top of the page. You can also get the Observer delivered by mail, with details below. For those who are web site subscribers, not only do we have issues once and in big news weeks, twice every week, but also release one back issue per week, covering 1993.
We look at the death of Luna Vachon, how she was regarded in wrestling, her personal battles, her background, her wrestling hero, how she got involved in pro wrestling and her first job, and her transitioning from wrestling into the real world.
We also have a WWE statement released regarding the inordinate number of deaths of wrestlers.
We also look at the future of Chris Jericho, the WWE's mentality regarding championships changing and future plans, John Cena talks UFC and gets MMA fans upset, UFC vs. WWE in the Boston market this past week, Bret Hart Appreciation show, Bryan Danielson honors a former pro wrestler and his reaction, update on Randy Orton's injury and how it changed bookings this past week, as well as Carlito talking being out of the promotion. We also look at the probable shortest WWE championship match in history. Big Show talks about his attempts to be a boxer, where WWE gets its names from, as well as business notes from the past week shows in WWE and highlights from three different tours.
We look at Kotetsu Yamamoto and why people considered him the backbone of New Japan Pro Wrestling for three decades.
We also look at the life and sports career of Anton Geesink, an Olympic gold medalist who became one of the highest paid pro wrestlers of the 70s. We look at his fame from judo, how he got into pro wrestling, how the sport of judo evolved in so many ways due to him dominance, what pro wrestling legend he beat in the finals of the world judo championships, why he was banned from competing in the Olympics in wrestling, notes about his pro wrestling training, his most famous matches and why his matches with Don Leo Jonathan were talked about by wrestlers for decades.
We also have an article on the linear history of the world championships in MMA, as we trace each title back to the inception of the weight class and follow the line of to be the man, you've got to beat the man, and find out where the line ends. It's actually quite an interesting look, especially where each line finishes.
We also look at the Canadian Medical Association's attempt to get MMA banned.
We also have coverage of the biggest pro wrestling events of the week, the WWE's 900th Raw and All Japan's show at Sumo Hall, featuring the return to wrestling of the Great Muta, and a Triple Crown title change.
We also have an update on Scott Hall, and an update on Dwayne Johnson's upcoming movies.
All subscriptions for 12 or more issues will include what is traditionally our most talked about issue of the year, the 2010 Hall of Fame issue that comes out in September.
We also look at the ratings for every national MMA and pro wrestling television show in the U.S., as well as the segment-by-segment numbers for the major shows.
We also have our weekly results from the major league arena events held around the world as well as the major TV show reviews.
The Wrestling Observer ranges from 25,000 to 40,000 words covering pro wrestling and MMA all over the world.
Each issue has coverage and analysis of all the major news, plus every issue breaks major news stories before the Internet sites and has the most complete look at the business as a whole anywhere. The Observer is now in its 28th year of being the leading insider pro wrestling publication in the world. The biggest and most influential names in the pro wrestling industry as well as the MMA industry, from bookers, to promoters to Hall of Fame wrestlers and fighters to the biggest current names, both on camera, and behind the scenes, along with thousands of readers in all 50 states and 30 countries subscribe. Many have subscribed as long as 20 years or more straight. They get the most detailed and inside coverage of what is going on all over the world and an accuracy from having the most inside sources that can't be found on the web. Everyone from Wall Street to the major offices to the TV networks in U.S. and Japan turn to the Observer for what is going on in the business. If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can get one free classic issue of your choice sent to you today. With a 40 issue subscription, you can get two free classic issues sent to you today. Just send your Visa or Master Card order with your name, address, phone number, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or you can order by faxing that information to 408-244-3402. You can also subscribe via paypal at www.paypal.com and using the This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it address or subscribe via check, cash or money order, as well as credit card, by mail, by sending to Wrestling Observer Newsletter, P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228.
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-- El Olimpico lost the CMLL Cage of Death match at the Aniversario show last night in Mexico City and was forced to unmask as Joel Bernal Galicia. It came down to Olimpico and Sombra and Sombra pinned him with a small package. The show was a complete sellout, standing room only.
-- Pro Wrestling Guerrilla Presents 2010 Battle of Los Angeles tonight and tomorrow from American Legion Post #308 - 7338 Canby Ave., Reseda, CA 91335. Full bracketing:
1. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Ricochet
2. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: Brandon Bonham vs. Brian Cage
3. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: Austin Aries vs. Rocky "Azúcar" Romero
4. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: Joey Ryan vs. Chuck Taylor
5. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: "Intrepid Traveler" Paul London vs. Roderick Strong
6. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: Brandon Gatson vs. Ryan Taylor
7. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: "Mr. Instant Replay" Matt Jackson vs. "Slick" Nick Jackson
8. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: El Generico vs. Akira Tozawa
9. 2010 Battle of Los Angeles First Round Match: "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels vs. Chris Hero
I will be at the shows tonight and tomorrow and we'll be doing reports both online and on the audio shows. This is one of the biggest independent events of the year, and every one I have been to has been spectacular in terms of in-ring action. You can try to get tickets but I think they're sold out.
-- WWE Monday Night Raw on November 15th, 2010 will be a 3-hour show, airing from 8 to 11 PM on the USA Network. Thanks to Devin Cutting.
-- On WWE.com, the guest hosts are now being referred to as "guest stars".
-- Karl Stern has a huge editorial here called "RAVEN IS WRONG" about a post Raven made about a week ago taking fans and "dirt sheet writers" to task about the concussion issue. Raven's original post is here
-- Many of the TNA stars will be appearing on a future edition of Family Feud.
-- The TNA website is now listing Motor City Machine Guns vs. Desmond Wolfe & Brutus Magnus as the PPV match for tomorrow, which would make the most sense based on TV (which doesn't ever mean that's the direction they're necessarily going). Generation Me are in LA tonight for BOLA and they're facing each other in the tournament, meaning unless they do a fuck finish one of them has to advance to the finals, which take place tomorrow right after the TNA PPV ends. So my guess would be that they won't be going to Orlando.
-- Tony DelFonzo, Bobby Robinson, Biff Busick and Brandon Locke were the local talent used on Smackdown Friday night.
-- Although the October 7th Impact is a live show, it's a one-time thing as they're scheduled for tapings in Orlando on October 11th and 12th for the following two shows.
-- Jim Ross' latest blog is up here with some random Friday thoughts.
-- No official update on the Aloisa situation in WWE, but the feeling is that it's not a real firing and she's just way too green to appear on TV, so they're sending her back to FCW to train.
-- Jim Cornette is on Twitter at twitter.com/TheJimCornette. If you're fan of old school Smokey Mountain Wrestling you need to check out the show that Todd Martin and I did with Cornette on Thursday, which includes a great story about the Boots the Cat angle.
-- As noted a few days ago, we split my twitter so now you can follow me personally at twitter.com/bryanalvarez and the site at twitter.com/wonf4w. The website twitter is the site RSS feed. I'll be throwing up notes from LA on my feed.
-- WAR Wrestling "Trick or Treat", Saturday October 2nd, 2010, UAW Hall 1440 Bellefontaine Ave., Lima, Ohio 45804
-- TWA Pro Wrestling, Saturday, September 18, 2010, Wescott Field located at the corner of Fairview Dr. & Burlington Ave., Sewell, NJ 08080, Bell time 2PM
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