Daily Update: TKO stock, Cody Rhodes, MLW SuperFight
Daily Update
Latest News
- Adam Copeland explains origins of AEW’s ‘The Cope Open’
- Samoa Joe live appearance announced for AEW Dynamite
- John Cena on post in-ring career: ‘I always want to be involved in the business’
- Seth Rollins ‘dodged a bullet’ with WWE Raw injury, hopes to return in a month
- Premiere date, list of topics announced for Dark Side of the Ring season five
- Taya Valkyrie, Ethan Page & Nyla Rose set for ROH TV
- John Cena reveals venue he wants to host his final WWE match
- Kazuchika Okada vacates NEVER Openweight Six-Man tag title
Latest Audio
- DragonKingKarl Greatest Kayfabe Tournament: Bruiser Brody vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
- Bryan & Vinny & Craig & Shawn Show: Okada’s last three Tokyo Dome main events, epic Granny segment
Latest Free YouTube Video
This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Match of the week and performer of the week
- Kazuchika Okada leaving New Japan
- What is next and where his decision stands
- Coverage in Japan
- Future prospects in AEW or WWE
- How this not only affects New Japan but the change in the marketplace
- Okada’s career legacy
- Preview of Royal Rumble and Revolution
- Full coverage of Battle in the Valley, the return to Chicago, and the next major events
- Debut of Matt Riddle and Jack Perry with New Japan
- Impact turns into TNA, business notes, full coverage
- The PFL vs. Bellator dream card, lineup, how this relates to pro wrestling in the past, and how this show exemplifies the complete economic changes in the fight business
- Full coverage of the ratings over the past week, including weekly ratings, competition, comparisons with a year ago and segment-by-segment
- Dream rematch shows continue at Arena Mexico
- Lots of new tournaments
- Takagi vs. Mochizuki
- Masa Fuchi main events at the age of 70
- Anniversary of the first pro wrestling show in Japanese television
- FantasticaMania notes
- Wrestling references by Paul Walter Hausen at the Emmys
- Demolition of famous arena
- Kevin Von Erich is Israel
- Update on Iron Claw movie business
- Mark Hitchcock show update
- New wrestling history book out
- Examining WBD press release on AEW
- New AEW international deal
- Samoa Joe talks current scene
- Advance ticket sales to WWE, AEW and UFC events
- New AEW signee who will have a new gimmick and details as to why
- Overseas programmer talks about AEW setting ratings record
- Sean Strickland and sponsors and this isn’t going to be fun for Dana White when Bud Light hears about it
- A college working with fighters for courses in fight disciplines
- New Cena movie
- Drug testing realities
- WWE injury updates
- WWE, AEW & TNA PPV updates
- International TV ratings and streaming numbers
- What Canadian ratings mean in comparison to U.S. numbers
- Coverage of all the WWE house shows of the past week
This Week’s Retro Observer Newsletter
Wednesday Update
WWE
- TKO Group Holdings stock closed today at $87.91 per share, down 1.92 percent after yesterday’s 15.8 percent increase.
- In an interview with CBS Sports, Cody Rhodes spoke about how he and Bullet Club/The Elite were able to change the pro wrestling world:
- I think as I grow old I’ll probably wax poetic and grow even fonder of the things I was able to be a part of. The people I was able to team with. When we were a group, The Bullet Club, The Elite, the idea was to change the world. We really did actually change, at least, our world.
- The reality is I can name about eight people. If one of them weren’t there it wouldn’t have happened. An alternative wouldn’t exist. It wouldn’t have spring-boarded me into the position I am now. All of these factors — and the biggest factor being the fans themselves.
- Bleacher Report and ESPN also have interviews with Rhodes.
- Rhodes reiterated that he isn’t worried about Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson interrupting his story:
- You mentioned ‘The Great One’ The Rock, nothing but respect for him. I went and saw ‘Jungle Cruise,’ I’m a Rock fan. I don’t think he’s the type that would come in and meddle with a story that’s been being told over the past two years. I think he’s probably up to something else, but you never know with WWE. I’ll be watching just like everybody else when I’m not wrestling.
- The Rock told Fox News that he has no intention of running for president:
- I’m honored. I’m not a politician, [I] never had the intentions to be a politician. As all this continues to take shape and form, and I get it, especially ramping up into this year in particular with an election year. I actually got approached by both parties. One after the other. I said, then, as I say now, ‘I’m honored, thank you. The most important thing I’m doing now is being a daddy to my little girls.’ I like school drop-offs, and I like pick-ups. I like that and I know if I were to ever go down that road, which I have no intention to, all that goes away, and I don’t want that to go away.
- New Day’s Big E, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods reunited for an appearance on WWE’s The Bump this afternoon. Comedian Jay Pharoah was also a guest on the show.
- TNT Sports in the United Kingdom interviewed Jey Uso.
- Bianca Belair & Montez Ford appeared on the latest episode of First We Feast’s Snacked.
- In a video for GQ Sports, Becky Lynch & Seth Rollins revealed the 10 things they can’t live without.
AEW/Other Wrestling
- Samoa Joe offered some praise for Hook during an interview with WrestleZone:
- What a tough kid. I mean of all the lambs that I’ve slaughtered lately that was by far the toughest sheep I’ve ever had encountered. Let’s be honest here. I mean, Hook is very young. He’s a very tough and very durable individual, incredibly strong for his size. I will admit that. But when it comes down to it, he’s the type of dangerous individual that I knew I needed to squash out immediately. You gotta go after the dangers in this world. And you know, he’s a very, very dangerous young man who’s still becoming the predator that someday he hopes to be. But I was more than happy to remind him of his place in the grander scheme of things and how the food chain works.
- Shop AEW released a “Final Encounter” T-shirt for Sting’s last match at Revolution.
- AEW shared a behind-the-scenes video with Roderick Strong, Matt Taven, and Mike Bennett embracing the Briscoe family backstage after the tribute to Jay Briscoe on last week’s Dynamite.
- Eddie Kingston appeared on Going Ringside.
- Rocky Romero will defend his MLW Middleweight title against Ichiban in a two-out-of-three falls match at MLW SuperFight in Philadelphia on Saturday, February 3.
- MLW also announced Sami Callihan vs. AKIRA in a Death Machine Rules match for SuperFight. It’s an anything goes match.
Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.