THE ROUND-UP
The Latest from the F4W Staff
NEWS
NJPW/ROH Honor Rising results: The return of Kenny Omega
EVOLVE 79 recap: Timothy Thatcher vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
EVOLVE 78 recap: Timothy Thatcher looks to continue his title reign
‘Bruiser’ Bob Sweetan dies at 76 years old
VIDEO: Former UFC champion Josh Barnett makes his TNA in-ring debut
TNA Impact Wrestling results: A wedding, a return & the Hardys
AUDIO
WOL: New Japan Honor Rising, Show vs. Shaq, news, more! 2/26
DR. KEITH PRESENTS: ‘I was there when…’ 2/25
WOL: Dr. Lucha, open lines, news and more! 2/24
Wrestling Weekly: Les & Vic answer your questions 2/24
Today WWE has a Smackdown brand house show in Cedar Rapids, IA.
ROH/NEW JAPAN AT KORAKUEN HALL ON MONDAY MORNING AT 4:30 A.M. EASTERN TIME ON NEW JAPAN WORLD
Kushida & David Finlay & Tomoyuki Oka vs. Silas Young & Gedo & Jado
Tiger Mask & Jushin Liger & Delirious & Dalton Castle & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Tetsuya Naito & Sanada & Evil & Bushi & Hiromu Takahashi
War Machine vs. Tama Tonga & Tanga Roa
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jay Lethal & Juice Robinson vs. Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi & Hangman Page
Hirooki Goto vs. Damien Martinez for Never Open weight title
Adam Cole vs. Yoshi-Hashi for ROH title
Mark & Jay Briscoe & Kazuchika Okada & Will Ospreay vs. Young Bucks & Kenny Omega & Cody
Raw will be live on Monday from Green Bay, WI. Bill Goldberg’s return is being promoted for what is the go-home show for Fast Lane. Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman are also booked on the show.
There will be a Smackdown brand house show on Monday night in Dubuque, IA.
Smackdown and 205 Live will be Tuesday from St. Paul featuring an A.J. Styles vs. Luke Harper match which supposedly will be for the WrestleMania title shot.
FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: 2/20/2017, Looking at pro wrestling’s stellar start to 2017
While making judgments about a year less than two full months into it probably isn’t a good idea, it’s clear that 2017 is already on pace to surpass its predecessor in terms of match quality. That’s not entirely unexpected. The stellar in-ring work that defined professional wrestling in 2016 didn’t come out of nowhere. It was the result of there being more qualified workers, more opportunities for them to work, and a wider variety of promotions for them to work for than there have been in many years… Subscribers click here to continue.
WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: February 27, 2017, Massive Ivan Koloff bio, death of George “The Animal” Steele, tons more
A huge feature on the life and career of Ivan Koloff is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, which is available right now. Plus, there are also features on George Steele, Nicole Bass, Johnny K-9, Diamond Dallas Page and Teddy Long.
The Koloff story talks about the most famous match of the 1970s in the U.S., his win over Bruno Sammartino, as well as his loss to Pedro Morales in WWWF title matches, the birth of Ivan Koloff, his days as Red McNulty, his first match with Sammartino, how he got the Koloff gimmick and who he was named after. This issue also looks at his title run with Sammartino the first time in Pittsburgh and then the WWWF, the most one-sided trade in sports history, the return of Koloff for his title win, the angle done to cover Sammartino, and the two big nights in Madison Square Garden.
Have a look at the creation of Ivan Koloff in Quebec and how he first made his name as a major drawing card, and look at his run in Australia where Gary Hart managed him. Plus look at his days in the AWA, Hawaii, St. Louis, Georgia, Florida, the second WWWF run, the role as top heel for the opposition, the tag team with Ole Anderson, his feud with Dusty Rhodes, and the emergence of Nikita Koloff and the other Russians in the 80s.
Examine the career of George Steele, the life and times of Johnny K-9, the strange world of Nicole Bass, and the WWE Hall of Fame inductions of DDP and Teddy Long.
Plus, details about the filming of “Fighting with My Family” after Raw and Smackdown this past week, notes on the movie, the phone calls to C.M. Punk in front of the fans, the Naomi injury, an update on Fast Lane, return of Finn Balor notes, a look at plans for a show after WrestleMania, the busy Raw brand schedule, WWE working with Indies on WWE Network update, WWE market value, most watched shows on WWE Network, plus details of all the WWE & NXT house shows over the past week along with business notes.
ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected].
Rates in the United States are $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to [email protected]. For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52. If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.)
If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can choose one free classic issue, or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.
WON BACK ISSUE: January 31, 2000, WCW departures, WWF Royal Rumble review, more
The soap opera surrounding WCW and the group of wrestlers who vowed to stick together got even stranger over the past week, with the company mired in even more uncertainty and friends who stuck together breaking apart. WCW sent unconditional release letters to Chris Benoit, Dean Simon (Malenko), Carlos Ashenoff (Konnan), Troy Martin (Shane Douglas), Eddy Guerrero and Perry Satullo (Perry Saturn) on 1/19, thus cancelling the planned meeting Bill Busch had agreed two days later to have with the group that same day, and allowing all of them to start with Titan Sports on 2/1 provided they agreed not to say anything publicly disparaging about WCW and agreed not to sue WCW… Subscribers click here to continue.
SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I will be back tonight with Wrestling Observer radio. We’ll be covering the weekend news as well as taking questions you can send to [email protected].
A.J. Styles is off the weekend Smackdown house shows. He was advertised. I guess it was an ad mix-up as he had the time off and will be back to wrestle Luke Harper on Tuesday night in St. Paul.
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Glover Teixiera is being targeted by UFC to headline a 5/28 show in Stockholm.
Ed Nordholm, the President of TNA, went with Jeff Jarrett to Tijuana for The Crash show last night. Sounds like Dorian Roldan’s strategy of threatening to sue them didn’t lead to them working with AAA. Who would ever have thought?
Results from The Crash show last night: Flamita b Septimo Dragon to keep the cruiserweight title, Black Danger & Ultimo Maldito & Tiago b Oraculo & Black Boy & Arkangel Divino, Juventud Guerrera & Laredo Kid & Bestia 666 b Willie Mack & Zumbi & Mascarita Dorada, Fenix & Daga b Ricochet & Rey Hours (this match tore the house down), Blue Demon Jr. & Garza Jr. & Zorro b Jeff Jarrett & Eli Drake & Brian Cage-DQ. Cage saved Demon from an unmasking by Jarrett and went face. Rey Mysterio Jr. did a run-in saving the babyfaces and they did an angle where Pentagon asked him to join La Rebelion, and he agreed. Nicho & Mazada b Aeroboy & Violento Jack in a cage match. Tons of weapons used. Many left when the cage match started. (thanks to Ramses Tavera)
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The Young Bucks and Bobby Lashley were announced for The Crash show on 3/25 in Tijuana. Young Bucks surprise me but sometimes CMLL (which has a deal with both ROH and New Japan) doesn’t care about the Tijuana market since they don’t run their own. But they’ve made it pretty much impossible for their talent to work on Crash shows.
WWE
WWE finished up the Germany tour yesterday and the crew is flying into Green Bay for the show tomorrow.
Paul Heyman, who usually avoids talking negatively in public about former ECW talent, went off on C.W. Anderson after an Anderson interview on a podcast where he claimed that Heyman didn’t try to save ECW and when he claimed he was meeting with USA Network officials he was actually filming “Rollerball.” Heyman noted he filmed “Rollerball” months after ECW closed, although talent for 15 years has passed around that story.
Ric Flair celebrated his 68th birthday in Los Angeles doing a signing at Frank & Son’s Collectibles. There were hundreds of people singing Happy Birthday to him when he arrived. (thanks to Daniel Short)
Bret Hart talks Linda McMahon and Donald Trump.
UFC / MMA
After a two year layoff from MMA, Shayna Baszler, who was on tour in Japan with Stardom, lost a fight yesterday to Reina Miura via decision on a show in Tokyo.
The LawNews streaming network will be airing the War Machine (Jon Koppenhaver) trial when it starts on Monday.
MISCELLANEOUS
Congrats to the U.S. national team in winning the World Cup, beating the Russian national team in wrestling yesterday, with wins by Logan Steiber at 134, James Green at 154, Jordan Burroughs at 162, David Taylor at 185, Kyle Snyder at 213 and Zach Ray at 275.
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Ryusuke Taguchi worked as “The Boys” on today’s ROH show at Korakuen Hall for Dalton Castle.
Friday night’s Arena Mexico main event turned into quite the match. It was Volador Jr. & Cavernario teaming up against Ultimo Guerrero & Valiente in the finals of the parejas increibles tournament.
AAW on 3/4 in LaSalle, IL at the Knights of Columbus with Sami Callihan vs. Rey Fenix for the AAW title, ACH vs. Pentagon Jr. for the Heritage title, Dave & Jake Crist vs. Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz in 2/3 falls, Leo Kruger (Adam Rose) vs. Ethan Page, Jessicka Havok vs. Samantha Heights plus AR Fox, Arik Cannon, JT Dunn and more.
WrestleMerica from Friday night in Barnesville, GA before 400 fans: Scotty Beach b Matt Gilbert, Merica Strong b ?, David Tita won three-way over CB Suave and Gil Quest, Abyss b Iceberg in a falls count anywhere match, Tyson Dean b Sal Rinauro, Tommy Dreamer & Fry Daddy b Nigel Sherrod & Scotty Beach. Next show is 3/11 featuring Gillberg and Joey Mercury. (thanks to Kris Zellner)
Dynamo Pro Wrestling from last night in Alton, IL: Justin D’Air won four-way over Jackal, The Snitch and Jayson Khaos, Makaze b Jack Gamble, Shawn Santel & Mauler McDarby b Jay Howard & Roy Lewis, Karim Brigante b Jayden Fenix, Jon Webb b CJ Shine, Michael Elgin b Outkast, Brandon Aarons b Elvis Aliaga. (thanks to Patrick Brandmeyer)
Pro Wrestling 2.0 from last night in Azalea Park, FL: Dez Griffin & Markos Espada b Chico Adams & Josh Parker, CT Brown b Saieve Al Sabah, Matt Knotts & Mark Harris b Erik Lockhart & Andrew Lockhart, Jesus (Ricardo) Rodriguez b Alexander Zane, Chasyn Rance & Kaci Lennox b Leo O’Farrell & Mila Naniki, JC Metro & Chris Metro b Li Bryan & Jason Dugan, Chuckles b Aaron Epic.
I Believe in Wrestling on Friday in Orlando at the Team Vision Dojo with Jesse Neal vs. Rhett Giddins as the main event.
Dan Masters, the ring announcer for Championship Wrestling from Hollywood, said that he was leaving the company.
Bodyslam Pro Wrestling from yesterday in Esbjerg, Denmark: Kristian Thorn b Levi Petrus, Emeritus b Shooter Schjotler, Swedish Elite b Heresh Kurdl & Vecino, Michael Fynne d Rick Dominick, Vasyl b Zach White, Tank b Chuck Cyrus. Next show is 4/29 in Odense, Denmark. (thanks to Kristian Nielsen)
Upstate Pro Wrestling on 3/11 in Rochester, NY at the Eagles Club at 6 p.m.
Results from Preston City Wrestling’s Kris Travis tournament. About 300 fans at each show:
Yesterday afternoon: Bubblegum b Lionheart, Kenny Williams b David Starr, Dean Allmark b Joey Hayes, Colt Cabana b Philip Michael, MVP b Danny Hope, Chris Ridgeway b Sha Samuels, T Bone b Charlie Sterling, Pentagon Jr. b Roy Knight.
Last night: Kenny Williams b Chris Ridgeway, Dean Allmark b MVP-COR, Pentagon Jr. b Colt Cabana, Bubblegum b T-Bone, Iestyn Rees b Jack Barton to keep PCW title, Charlie Sterling b David Starr, Jimmy J b Alex Boylin, Danny Hope & Zak Knight & Roy Knight b Joey Hayes & Lionheart & Sha Samuels.
This afternoon’s results: Bubblegum b Pentagon Jr. in a semifinal, Kenny Williams b Dean Allmark in a semifinal, Bubblegum b Kenny Williams in the finals, Iestyn Rees b Philip Michael to keep PCW title, Spirit Squad (Mike Mondo & Kenn Doane) b Joey Hayes & Martin Kirby and Zak & Roy Knight to win the PCW tag titles, Charlie Sterling won four-way over Jimmy J, David Starr and Chris Ridgeway, Sha Samuels & Lionheart b Danny Hope & Colt Cabana. The ring broke during the T-Bone vs. Sterling match. They had a cake for Roy Knight’s birthday with a drawing of Alberto Del Rio on the cake. The cake ended up in the face of Joey Hayes. The Spirit Squad returns on 4/2 to face Roy & Zak Knight, who have to leave PCW forever if they don’t win the tag team titles.
PW Eclipse’s on 3/12 in Ottawa at the Legion headlined by Jake O’Reilly vs. Cody Deaner in a strap match.
Kurt Angle will make a non-wrestling appearance at Harley Race’s WLW show on 3/11 in Troy, MO. It will be Angle’s first time with the promotion and his first time ever appearing in Troy. He will do a meet and greet from 1-4 p.m. that day at the Race Wrestling Arena. For more info you can call 573-392-4100.
Pro Wrestling Tees is now carrying our latest line of F4W shirts. Support the Empire~! Grab yours today!
Today in professional wrestling history (2/26): Verne Gagne wins AWA title on his birthday
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