Daily Update: Dr. Martha Hart, Dana White, WWE European tour notes

Martha Hart AEW
Martha Hart AEW (Image credit: AEW)

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Among the topics covered:

  • Crazy hyperbole for the UFC White House show
  • The arrests of people looking at ruining the show and worse
  • Explaining all the misleading viewership numbers
  • The best real comparisons to Rousey vs. Carano and Gaethje vs. Pimblett
  • The lessons that the viewership number taught us
  • Who paid for what and what the taxpayers had to cover from the show
  • The Josh Hokit situation
  • Gavin Newsom responds to the show
  • Sean Strickland silliness
  • Celebrities who came and didn’t come
  • The Daniel Cormier/Eric Trump twitter show
  • What the public thought of the show
  • A look at next weekend’s big shows, business notes, and big show business for AEW & WWE PPV shows the next few months
  • Updates on Forbidden Door and what is and isn’t there
  • Full coverage of UFC at the White House
  • Full coverage of NewJapan Dominion and the G-1 Climax tournament
  • The life and career of Pete Doherty, the Duke of Dorchester
  • The most detailed look at the ratings of all the major shows this past wek
  • CMLL gets new international PPV home
  • A look back at another big week for Komander, a week of sellouts and big crowds, and Komander mad at Guadalajara fans
  • All Japan big show coverage
  • NOAH tag tournament finals
  • Tiger Mask’s farewell notes
  • Maple Leaf Wrestling TV tapings
  • Out of control brawl at RAF show
  • The story behind the birth of King of the Ring
  • Layfield out of retirement
  • Death of Van Hammer update
  • Big names coming to European indies
  • MLW TV taig notes
  • Departures of Tommy Dreamer and Tessa Blanchard from TNA looked at
  • More on the Paramount/Skydance purchase of WBD and how it affects AEW
  • Sareee explains missing AEW show
  • Mistico teaes ROH title match
  • Advanced ticket sales to upcoming WWE & AEW shows
  • Fallout of the Conor McGregor New York Times story
  • More on UFC officials deleting evidence agauisnt lawyers advice in regard to Kajan Johnson case
  • Allegations against Alex Pererira
  • Former Pride star charged in sexual assault case
  • Former UFC star charges dropped in beating daughter
  • Janel Grant speaks about her case, and depositions in the shareholders lawsuit
  • Kaiser case updated
  • George Barrios defends voting for Vince’s return

This Week’s Back Issue

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Sunday Update

LA Knight | WWE
LA Knight heads to the ring. (Image credit: WWE)

— Bryan and I will be back tonight talking about the news from the weekend and the TV’s. Our week in review show on the UFC 250 Fallout, previewing next week’s PPV show, answering questions and more with Garrett Gonzales is up on the site now.

— Jim Ross noted that he’s been in the hospital for the past 22 days. He didn’t say what the issue was that has hospitalized him.

— Dr. Martha Hart was named Calgarian of the year at the city awards last night. Dr. Hart has done so much for the Calgary community in helping people have money for college or to buy first homes. She is someone whose family was dealt the most horrible blow possible with the death of Owen Hart. She could have gotten her settlement from WWF and lived a life of luxury, but instead she kept Owen Hart’s name alive in a manner that as far as real life and real world meant far more than anything in wrestling. I can’t express how much admiration I have for her and her work, and having to endure decades of being cast as the bad guy. The people who did Dark Side of the Ring do deserve credit for this one, in making it so clear what the real story was and not this insidious propaganda against her.

— Dana White said that at one point they were looking to have a match between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg to be held at the Roman Colosseum but claimed they wanted $100 million to do the fight there so it was too expensive. There is no way those two were ever going to fight.

— WWE results from last night in Cardiff, Wales:

  • Jimmy Uso b Dominik Mysterio
  • Raquel Rodriguez b Lyra Valkyria
  • Penta b Ethan Page to retain the IC title via DQ when Rusev interfered
  • Penta & Chad Gable b Page & Rusev
  • Montez Ford b Austin Theory
  • Sol Ruca retained the IC title in a four-way over Roxanne Perez, Bayley and Iyo Sky by pinning Perez
  • LA Knight b Bron Breakker in a street fight

— We’ve looking for reports on these shows:

  • WWE in Birmingham, UK tonight
  • NXT last night in Evansville, IN

We’re looking for results, finishes and highlights to [email protected]

— Josh Hokit after Daniel Cormier was critical of his interview calling Michelle Obama a fan:

“I’ve been nothing but nice to this fat cow pig. I’m not here for unity, in reality there will never be unity, I come to divide people’s faces. If you don’t like it then come do something about it.”

Notice he said this about Cormier but wouldn’t dare say it about Dana White, who said the same thing Cormier did.

— Irv Muchnick’s book “Pachinko Man,” the life of Rikidozan, the first English language book on the Rikidozan phenomenon that will be released in January, can be pre-ordered at $24.95 in the U.S, $34.95 U.S. for Canada and $44.95 in the rest of the world to [email protected]. Rikidozan may have been the single most influential pro wrestler in history (the only person I could think of you could argue would be Frank Gotch), as not even El Santo changed the culture, not even close, let alone Hulk Hogan, Jim Londos or Gorgeous George. Rikidozan essentially created Japanese pro wrestling, was the biggest pro wrestling star and most influential athlete ever in the country, drew the most viewers to watch events on television anywhere in the world, and was largely responsible for getting television sets into almost every Japanese home.

— Dricus du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman at middleweight will headline the 7/18 UFC show in Oklahoma City.

— Update on Raw tomorrow at the O2 arena in London which starts at 2 p.m. Eastern rather than the usual 8 p.m. Dragon Lee faces Ethan Page, Bron Breakker & Austin Theory defend the world tag team titles against The Street Profits and Paige & Brie Bella defend the tag titles against Bayley & Lyra Valkyria.

— Josh Barnett returned to New Japan yesterday for a Yuji Nagata produced show in Kimitsu. Barnett & Nagata & Aaron Wolf won the main event over Ren Narita & Yujiro Takahashi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru.

— As far as big matches this weekend, the only stuff I’ve heard recommended were from yesterday’s Stardom show at the Yoyogi Gym, notably Syuri vs. Rina Yamashita and Suzu Suzuki’s World of Stardom title win over Sayaka Kurara. I did think Young Bucks & Jack Perry vs. Lee Johnson & Blake Christian & Jay Lethal was excellent as was Maya World vs. Athena. That was one of the better Collisions as far as match quality goes.

— Thekla was at the show yesterday and attacked President Taro Okada.

— The 5 Star Grand Prix blocks were announced.

  • Red Stars A block: Kurara, Tomoko Inaba, AZM, Itsuko Aoki, Maika, Natsuko Tora, Rina and X
  • Red Stars B block: Saya Iida, Lady C, Mei Seira, Rina Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Konami, Azusa Inaba, Utami Hayashishita
  • Blue Stars A block: Aya Sakura, Hina, Miyu Amasaki, Suzuki, Hanko, Rian, Ruaka, Bea Priestley
  • Blue Stars B block: Hanan, Yuna Mizumori, Ami Sohrei, Starlight Kid, Koguma, Momo Watanabe, Saya Kamitani and X

It starts 7/18 at the Ota Ward Gym in Tokyo. The finals are 8/23 at Sumo Hall in Tokyo.

— Dynamite on Wednesday from Rio Rancho, NM is pretty loaded.

  • Red Velvet vs. Queen Aminata in a TBS title Survival of the Fittest qualifier
  • Marina Shafir vs. Harley Cameron in a Survival of the Fittest qualifier
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Jack Perry
  • Will Ospreay vs. El Phantasmo — they had a match in New Japan years back that was fantastic
  • Konosuke Takeshita vs. Ricochet for the International title

— New matches added to Forbidden Door are Megan Bayne & Lena Kross vs. Thunder Rosa & Olympia for the tag team titles and Young Bucks vs. Mistico & Mascara Dorada vs. Titan & Shingo Takagi. The latter match on paper looks phenomenal. Dorada and Titan may be the two best wrestlers in Mexico right now and Mistico is the biggest star there. Takagi is all kinds of great, a legit Hall of Famer, but he’s a very different style from the other five.

— For A&E tonight, LFG is at 10 p.m. At 11 p.m. is Greatest Moments of the Elimination Chamber. At 11:30 p.m. is Greatest Debuts of the 2000s.

— The UFC announced they will be debuting a new rankings system tomorrow. This will be by computer rather than media voting. I expect you’ll find as many problems, or at least close to as many as from the previous incarnation of the ratings.

— Aiden Prince on his Facebook page noted that he had been released by TNA.

— Stevie Romero aka Jay Youngblood was born on this day in 1955. Don Greene of the original Heavenly Bodies tag team was 83 when he passed away 12 years ago today. Cora Combs was 88 when she passed away 11 years ago today. (thanks to Tony Richards)

— House of Glory before a sellout 325 fans at the Logan Square Auditorium in Chicago:

  • Joe Alonso b Sweet Cheeks
  • Lio Rush retained the ROH TV title over J J Doze, Mikee G, Raheem Royal, Jake Crist and Angel Vaquez
  • Mustafa Ali retained the TNA International title over Rich Swann (so he’s back in action)
  • Gringo Loco & Vengador Jr. b JJP & KB Prime
  • Ricky Sosa b Amazing Red
  • Shotzi b Steph De Lander to keep the women’s title
  • Charles Mason b Nic Nemeth to keep the men’s title

They announced that 8/7 in New York will be the company’s biggest event of the year.

— Avery Styles, the son of AJ Styles, will debut on 6/26 in Royston, GA. AJ will be in his corner for the match.

— Best wishes to historian/writer/promoter Sheldon Goldberg, who has been hospitalized in recent days due to an infection.

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Dave Meltzer
Dave Meltzer

Dave Meltzer is the founder and lead writer on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the weekly constant when it comes to news and reviews in pro wrestling and mixed martial arts for more than 40 years. Dave also co-hosts Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and had had bylines for The National, Yahoo Sports, MMA Fighting and others.