Daily Update: WWE takes aim at CMLL, AAA Noche de los Grandes & Clash in Italy fallout

El Grande Americano mask vs. mask, Chad Gable AAA Noche de Los Grandes
El Grande Americano mask vs. mask, Chad Gable AAA Noche de Los Grandes (Image credit: AAA on Instagram)

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This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

  • The most detailed look at the sale of New Japan, what happened, the glory days that Bushiroad built and why it came down and what led to the sale.
  • Business realities of Japanese wrestling today.
  • The reason for the surprising low sale price.
  • The shareholders lawsuit against Vince McMahon and the WWE Board of Directors is getting near. Judge Travis Laster orders sanctions against Nick Khan and Vince McMahon for destruction of evidence. Laster makes a ruling, and we look at it in detail, on how this changes the trial and the exact details of the destruction of evidence including when McMahon and company knew not to do it and ignored their own lawyers. Also we look at problems with the case.
  • AEW Double of Nothing coverage. Business notes, historical biggest gates in U.S. pro wrestling, three-time world champions by 30, how the PPV did, poll results, Mick Foley and more.
  • Did Ronda Rousey set a viewing audience record for MMA, plus coverage of Rousey vs. Carano, how everything goes forward, can things be sustained, can she fight, will she fight, her thoughts on AEW.
  • Scott Coker returns to MMA with a new promotion.
  • Marcel Barthel (Ludwig Kaiser) arrested.
  • A look at the career of Jerry Grey.
  • The most detailed look at the ratings for all the TV shows over the past two weeks.
  • Mistico injury update.
  • How CMLL is doing this year compared to last year.
  • Natalia Jiminez and J Balvin appear and are part of CMLL shows.
  • Wrestlers vs. media soccer game.
  • Grande vs. Grande match looked at.
  • Major return to Stardom.
  • Champion Carnival finals.
  • NOAH tag team tournament.
  • New Japan Best of the Super Juniors tournament.
  • Hana Kimura tribute show.
  • Phil Hickerson passes away.
  • WCW announcer is the final anchor as CBS News Radio closes its doors after 99 years.
  • Death of the Laguna version of Piloto Suicida.
  • Junior Hodge Trophy winner.
  • Advance ticket sales for all major events in AEW, WWE, TNA and other indies.
  • Pro wrestler/fighter on the Rousey-Carano undercard.
  • WWE stars purchase promotion.
  • Tony Khan media appearances.
  • More thoughts on how Paramount/Skydance can affect AEW.
  • What can affect the time slot of Collision in 2027.
  • What’s next for AEW.
  • AEW star to return in the fall.
  • Latest Zuffa myths regarding Trump and UFC.
  • UFC fighter pay comes up again

This Week’s Back Issue

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Sunday Update

CMLL logo
CMLL logo (Image credit: CMLL)

— Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Grande de los Noches, Clash in Italy, Holly Holm, Ray Stevens, Collision, King & Queen of the Ring, Copa Juniors, and assorted other topics with Wrestling Observer Radio.

— I’ll save the talk of today’s show for tonight. I will say that if you have not seen the main event from Noche de los Grandes, you should drop everything and do it as quickly as you can. The Grande Kaiser vs. Grande Gable match is a candidate for best match and a probable winner for best feud of 2026. But that is not the big news from the show.

— The big news is that WWE is now taking direct aim at CMLL, which should surprise nobody. With CMLL announcing its anniversary show for 9/18 at Arena Mexico, WWE has now announced a SmackDown on 9/11, TripleMania on 9/13 and Raw on 9/14 all at Arena Ciudad in Mexico City. Mexico City is the No. 1 pro wrestling market in the world by leaps and bounds, but even that is stretching things. TripleMania should sell out and the anniversary show will sell out, and I think Raw will as well. SmackDown I’m not sure about. But just the fact WWE will book TV in Mexico City, and specify it the week before the anniversary show indicates something that eventually was going to happen, but is happening now. The TripleMania show is traditionally in August and was clearly moved back a month because September is anniversary month, but adding the tapings was something more as WWE had been okay with AAA vs. CMLL, but adding WWE to the mix takes things up. I suspect there will be AEW talent on the CMLL shows both of those weekends.

— At last night’s show they announced the first night of Triplemania would be in Las Vegas at the Luxor Hotel’s HyperX Arena which, depending on the setup, holds 650 to 1,000. Fans in Monterrey last night were mad because they thought they “deserved” it. Why you are doing Triplemania in a building that small is a question for sure.

— The final three-hour episode of SmackDown for the next several months will be on 6/26. Many thought it would be this past weekend. But it is another month. The Braun Strowman Everything on the Menu show will be starting at 11 p.m. until July, when it likely moves to 10 p.m.

— We’re awaiting more of an update on Octagon Jr., who was injured on last night’s show in a match taped for later. But he was hurt significantly.

— Atlantis Jr. was taken off all shows through the end of the month.

— Jacob Fatu was injured in Liverpool on Thursday night. On the broadcast they tried to act like that wasn’t the case. It may play into why today’s match wasn’t nearly as good as the first Roman Reigns vs. Fatu match.

— We’re looking for your thoughts on Clash in Italy and Grande de los Noches from AAA last night. You can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle for each show as well as a best and worst match of each show to [email protected]

— Paul Levesque before the show claimed something would happen on this show that would change the foundation of WWE. I have no idea what he was talking about.

— Nice tribute to Dennis Condrey at last night’s Collision show in Huntsville, AL. Condrey was living in Huntsville when he passed away in March. Bobby Eaton grew up in Huntsville. The Midnight Express was the best tag team of its era.

— For the shows and topics this weekend, here are the Google searches as of earlier today:

Clash in Italy – 52,000
Holly Holm vs. Stephanie Han boxing for the world lightweight title – 22,000
UFC in Macau – 40,000
AAA Grande de los Noches – 10,000
Real American Freestyle – 10,000
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship – 5,000

— Steveson debuted in RAF last night and beat Alexandr Romanov via tech fall in the second round. Colby Covington beat Chris Weidman 5-4 in the semifinal. FOX Nation did stream the show for free live last night. Steveson challenged both Abdulrashid Sadulaev and Amir Hossein Zare to wrestling matches in RAF.

— With the win, Covington will face Arman Tsarukyan.

— Merab Dvalishvili suffered a broken nose in his tech fall win over Frankie Edgar. The two bonked heads, causing the broken nose. He had just recovered from a broken nose in training.

— For WWE on A&E tonight:

  • 8 p.m. – WWE Rivals on the feud between The Miz and Daniel Bryan
  • 9 p.m. – Seth Rollins vs. Triple H
  • 10 p.m. – LFG featuring Mike Derudder (Dorian Von Dux now) vs. Elio LeFleur
  • 11 p.m. – WWE Greatest Moments on ladder matches
  • 11:30 p.m. – WWE Greatest Moments on Bret Hart

— Best of the Super Juniors updated standings:

A Block

  1. Titan and Master Wato – 10
  2. Jun Kasai, Nick Wayne, Kosei Fujita, Robbie X and Francesco Akira – 8
  3. Ryusuke Taguchi – 6
  4. Valiente Jr. – 4
  5. Daiki Nagai – 0

B Block

  1. El Desperado – 10
  2. Sho, Yoh, Taiji Ishimori and Robbie Eagles – 8
  3. Daisuke Sasaki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Hyo and Jakob Austin Young – 6
  4. Kushida – 4

— Dralistico returned to action during the ROH tapings for AEW last night in Huntsville. He teamed with Lee Johnson, Blake Christian and Jay Lethal in a loss to The Outrunners, Dalton Castle and Adam Priest.

— The MVPW show with Han vs. Holm for the title drew the largest combat sports gate in the history of the El Paso County Coliseum, drawing a sellout of 7,000 fans. Many people believe Holm should have won the title and it was another robbery coming off the poor judging in the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven heavyweight title fight last week. Holm outlanded Han by a significant margin but two judges gave it 96-94 to Han and one had it 95-95. I’ll probably talk about it either tonight or tomorrow night, but Holm did have a sizable edge in strikes landed.

— Former NFL star Greg Hardy, who fought in UFC for years after his NFL career ended, missed weight by 25 pounds. Hardy weighed 292 pounds and lost via third-round stoppage.

— Villano III Jr. beat Zandokan Jr. Friday night at Arena Mexico to win the Copa Juniors. Atlantis Jr. was to face Villano III Jr. but he’s out with an injury. Very good match, many called it the best of the weekend. It wasn’t for experimenting with flashy moves, but that’s not all of pro wrestling. It did have great heat as well.

— Jushin Liger will be appearing for TMart Promotions at The Gathering from 7/22 to 7/26 in Charlotte, NC at the Hilton University Place. Liger will be there on 7/26.

— 72-year-old Tony Atlas won the ISPW Tri-State Championship in a tag team match last night in Wallington, NJ. Atlas and Joe Clean beat Anthony and Angel Reyez, and if Anthony was pinned he would lose the title. Atlas will defend the title on 7/23 in Wildwood, NJ.

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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.