Daily Update: WWE-Peacock, Jon Jones, John Cena

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

We have one of the most news and business heavy issues of the year
*All the details of the WWE’s deal with ESPN, what is in the deal, what isn’t, who can watch for free and why that probably won’t be for long, what ESPN Needs for it t make economic sense, as well as break-even for the ESPN UFC PPV deal and when the ESPN deal with WWE starts
*Brock Lesnar returns to WWE, how it happened, why it happened, why it was inevitable because of how TKO management views things, the double talk, comments from loads of people in WWE as well as Janel Grant’s side, exactly what was in the lawsuit that regards Lesnar and other example of TKO decisions which show a pattern
*Full coverage of SummerSlam, business details, the Rollins cash-in, Netflix numbers, attendance numbers and next PPV show
*Notes on UFC and WWE business numbers, what is up and what is down
*Hulk Hogan’s funeral, Brooke Hogan’s claims of info on Hogan’s Moves never talked about before, a ton of Hogan history, Hogan’s heyday in Japan and much more.
*Update on the G-1 Climax tournament
*Forbidden Door and the surprising record it has set and other major notes regarding the show and update n the card
*The most complete look at the ratings for all the wrestling and MMA television shows of the past week, competition, demos, why ratings were up or down, as well as Netflix numbers for Unreal and Raw.
*MJF returns to Arena Mexico and coverage of Friday’s hwo
*Salvador Lutteroth talks his fan base and AEW
*TripleMania updates
*Five Star Grand Prix updates
*Hogan documentaries
*RevPro anniversary shows
*Bloodsport notes
*A change at Discovery that is major and how that affects AEW streaming as well as notes on the current streaming deal
*How much did WBD loss or gain by losing the NBA
*Lots of injury updates
*Notes on Dustin & Cody Rhodes
*Backstage stuff in AEW ande what is and isn’t real
*Who at this point isn’t at Forbidden Door
*Ticket sales for upcoming TNA, AEW and WWE shows over the next few months
*More notes on Zuffa Boxing run by Nick Khan and  Dana White
*Peacock and WWE business
*How much is Dwayne Johnson’s WWE stock worth
*Karrion Kross and Scarlett contract update
*Raw ad rates on Netflix and comparisons to AEW on TBS

This Week’s Back Issue

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Friday Update

–Garrett Gonzales and I have a new show that will be up later today covering all the news of the week and this was one busy week, between the news on the WWE ESPN deal, Brock Lesnar’s return, G-1, SummerSlam, Hulk Hogan and more.  Lots of stuff on this show and in this week’s issue.

–Multiple sources today have told us, and John Ourand also reported this, that Peacock had the right to match ESPN’s $325 million offer to keep the WWE PLE shows.  They made the decision not to match the offer.

–Tony Khan said that Jay White was going to be out for a long time in an interview with the My Mom’s Basement podcast.

–Jon Jones has entered the UFC drug testing pool.  That means he had pulled himself out previously without it being reported.  He will be eligible to fight again in six months.  Jones has said he wants to fight on the July 4, 2026 show at the White House.

–Smackdown is in Montreal tonight with John Cena talking Brock Lesnar, Cody Rhodes there and the MFTs vs.  Motor City Machine Guns, Solo Sikoa vs. Sami Zayn, Charlotte Flair vs. Chelsea Green and Cena & Rhodes vs. Logan Paul & Drew McIntyre.  Nearly 13,000 tickets were out as of this morning so it should be sold out.

–We’re looking for reports from Montreal on any dark matches or off air stuff to [email protected]

–John Cena and Kevin Hart have signed on to produce a Netflix action comedy “The Leading Man” based off a graphic novel of the same name.  The story is that Cena plays a self-absorbed movie star finds out that his co-star, played by Hart, is a secret agent, he has to cope with the idea that action stars aren’t really  real when they are forced into saving the world.

–Arena Mexico tonight has Mistico & Atlantis Jr. & Mascara Dorada vs. Angel de Oro & Difunto & Hechicero on top plus Ultimo Guerrero vs. Blue Panther for the MLW Openweight title, Templario vs. Barboza and Esfinge & Rey Bucanero vs. Felino & Valiente.

–Flip Gordon underwent surgery on 8/2 for a ruptured right patella tendon.  That’s usually about eight months out.

–UFC from 4-10 p.m. tomorrow on ESPN:
Cody Brundage (202.5) vs. Eric McConico (204.5)
Gabriella Fernandes (125.5) vs.Julija Stoliarenko (26)
Uros Medic (171) vs.  Gilbert Urbina (171)
Joselyne Edwards (136) vs. Priscila Cachoeira (134)
Elijah Smith (136) vs. Toshiomi Kazama (136)
Juius Walker (206) vs. Raffael Cerqueira (203)
Eryk Anders (186) vs. Christian Leroy Duncan (185)
Miles Johns (136) vs. Jean Matsumoto (136)
Andre Fili (146) vs. Christian Rodriguez (146)
Iasmin Lucnido (115) vs. Angela Hill (116)
Steve Erceg (135.5) vs. Ode Osbourne (135.5)
Roman Dolidze (185.5) vs. Anthony Hernandez (186)

–A note from this week’s issue, in talking in the SummerSlam article about the record WWE attendance number, we noted the Wembley paid number was the record through 2005, it was actually through 2006 and the AT&T Stadium Mania show.

–G-1 returns Sunday in Gunma with the last night of the A block  round-robin:
Yuya Umerua (4-4) vs. David Finlay (4-4)
Taichi (3-5) vs. Oleg Boltin (4-4)
Hiroshi Tanahashi (4-4) vs. Evil (5-3)
Yota Tsuji (4-4) vs.  Callum Newman (4-4)
Ryohei Oiwa (5-3) vs.  Sanadsa (3-5)
The top three finishers in the block go into the playoffs that start Thursday at Korakuen Hall.

–Lucha  Va Voom on 8/22 at the Mayan Theater.  This will be the company’s last show at its home base after running the building for 23 years due to the theater closing its doors in September.  TJP, Xtreme Tiger, Viva Van, Magno and Dirty Sanchez are on the show.

–El Hijo del Santo has announced a German retirement show on 11/2 in Berlin.  He  already has two shows booked in England that week.

–Esfinge will be part of Fantastica Mania UK on 10/18 in Wolverhampton at The Hangar.

–NWA Sanheim on 10/17 in Atlanta .

–Marlon “Chito” Vera faces Alemann Zahabi on the 10/18 UFC show in Vancouver.  Alemann is the younger brother of Firas Zahabi, who was a well-known trainer of Georges St-Pierre and Rory MacDonald years ago.

–Disney and former MMA star turned actress Gina Carano have settled their lawsuit.  Carano, who was backed by lon Musk, had sued Disney claiming she was pulled from  The Mandalorian due to Twitter posts she had made that compared living in the U.S. and having conservative viewpoints as comparable to what Jews went through in Nazi  Germany.  Lucasfilm called the post abhorrent and unacceptable and pulled her from the show.

–Gillberg will be on tomorrow’s Memphis Wrestling TV show.

–AIW on 8/16 in North Canton, OH at the Main Street Festival.

–MLW airs a taped show on YouTube at 10 p.m. tomorrow night as well as on beIN Sports.  The show has Matt Riddle vs. Donovan Dijak for the MLW title plus Opear Cup matches with Mistico vs. Ikuro Kwon, Satoshi Kojima vs. Bobby Fish, Bishop Dyer vs. Anthony Greene and Neon vs. Paul London, plus Shotzi  Blackheart will be there and a six-way with Mads Krule Krugger, Matthew Justice, CW Anderson, Mr. Thomas, Okumura and Ariel Dominguez

–The Philadelphia Flyers have hired UFC fighter Andre Petrski and BKFC fighter Johnny Garbarino to train its players with hockey fight skills as well as confidence building from having that skill. (Thanks to Bill  King)

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