Daily Update: Mae Young Classic, G1, Conor McGregor

THE ROUND-UP

The Latest from the F4W Staff

NEWS

CMLL Arena Mexico results: Universal tournament finals
WWE Roanoke, VA, live results: Seth Rollins vs. Bray Wyatt
WWE Mae Young Classic taping spoilers: The finals are set
Talking Smack to no longer air weekly on WWE Network
WWE Mae Young Classic taping spoilers: The tournament begins

AUDIO

DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Marathon: An interview with Karl 7/15
DR. KEITH PRESENTS: Grade One Season!!! 7/15
DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Marathon: Ranking wrestlers 7/14
WOL: WWE Talking Smack canceled, Mae Young Classic, more! 7/14
B&V&G&P: NXT, Lucha Underground, Granny’s Montana Road Report, more! 7/14

Raw is in Huntington, WV, headlined by John Cena; Smackdown is in Pensacola, FL, and NXT shows in Portland, OR, and Gainesville, FL. We’re looking for reports on all of those shows to newstips@wrestlingobserver.com.

Sunday has Raw in Lexington, KY, headlined by John Cena and Smackdown in Tallahassee, FL.

UFC ON SUNDAY FROM GLASGOW, SCOTLAND AT THE SSE HYDRO

Fight Pass at Noon Eastern time

Amanda Lemos vs. Leslie Smith
Brett Johns vs. Albert Morales

FS1 at 1 p.m. Eastern time

Danny Henry vs. Daniel Teymur
Galore Bufando vs. Charlie Ward
Alexandre Pantoja vs. Neil Seery
Bobby Nash vs. Danny Roberts
James Mulheron vs. Justin Willis
Paul Craig vs. Khalil Rountree
Ryan Janes vs. Jack Marshman
Paul Felder vs. Stevie Ray
Joanne Calderwood vs. Cynthia Cavillo
Gunnar Nelson vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio

NEW JAPAN G-1 OPENING NIGHT ON SAPPORO AT THE HOKKAIDO SPORTS CENTER AT 2 A.M. LATE SUNDAY NIGHT EASTERN

Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Jushin Liger vs. Michael Elgin & Juice Robinson & David Finlay
Minoru Suzuki & Taichi & Desperado vs. Kenny Omega & Tama Tonga & Chase Owens
Seiya Sanada & Bushi vs. Evil & Hiromu Takahashi
Kazuchika Okada & Gedo vs. Toru Yano & Jado
Yuji Nagata vs. Yoshi-Hashi
Togi Makabe vs. Bad Luck Fale
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi

        Some interesting tag matches as the top three are all matches you’d never see on a regular show. Suzuki vs. Omega is to tease their 7/20 singles match main event.

Monday has Raw TV in Nashville. The Kurt Angle mystery is supposed to be solved on Monday night plus Samoa Joe vs. Roman Reigns for the SummerSlam title match is on the show. No Brock Lesnar this week at least at this point. There is also a Smackdown house show in Columbus, GA. John Cena will be on that Smackdown show.

Tuesday has the go-home Smackdown show from Birmingham, AL plus 205 Live. Announced is that they will be bringing the Punjabi Prison to TV, plus Drew Gulak vs. Mustafa Ali in a 2/3 falls match and Jack Gallagher vs. Brain Kendrick are scheduled.


FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: Figure Four Weekly 7/10/2017: What’s next for Samoa Joe?

While the question of whether that was actually a double-turn with Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman was the most interesting question coming out of Great Balls of Fire, the biggest long-term issue may be what’s next for Samoa Joe after his main event with Brock Lesnar. Lesnar vs. Joe offered few surprises, mostly delivering on what everyone thought it would be. Joe was a credible threat to Lesnar (despite having to cheat to get most of his offense) before losing in about six minutes. The match felt like the big fight that it was built up to be and Joe more than held his own.

Subscribers click here to continue.


WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: July 10, 2017 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: NJPW in Long Beach reviewed, TNA becomes GFW, tons of news   

New Japan’s expansion into the U.S. with the shows over the weekend in Long Beach is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Look through the business of the show, the positives, the negatives, the complaints about using ex-WWE talent, the U.S. title tournament, views on the U.S. title, as well as the New Japan plans for early 2018 in the U.S.

Read about examples as to why the early success may not lead to long-term success, indications of how well the show did, where the show was the strongest, which wrestlers had the most mainstream interest on the show, the Omega vs. Rhodes dynamic, and all the controversy regarding the announcing is covered. Plus, there is match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results of both the shows.

Check out Impact’s rebranding to GFW, the good and the bad of the Slammiversary show, the interesting politics involved, the debut of DeAngelo Williams as well as match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.

This issue talks the WWE security breach reported by Forbes, MSG notes, ideas for big events in 2018 in WWE, new TV show idea, Iron men of 2017 plus who never wins and who never loses, lots of updates on the Mae Young Classic, why Randy Orton will be out for a couple of weeks, experiences of a woman on the WWE writing team, plus the most-watched shows on the WWE Network this past week, WWE company market value, and notes on all the WWE and NXT arena events the past week with highlights and business notes.

Also inside, notes on the pending case against Jim Breaks, the death of his ex-girlfriend, and the details of the case, and notes on the career of Vic Faulkner of the Royal Brothers tag team, who passed away this past week.

Subscribers click here to continue.


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 Dave@WrestlingObserver.com. 
 
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 moonsault@mediaplusint.com. 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: June 19, 2000 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Goldberg turns heel at Great American Bash, All Japan changes, more

In a week where the entire landscape of the pro wrestling industry is expected to change, the first tree to fall, All Japan Pro Wrestling, at least in the form it has been for the past 28 years, is no more.Tokyo Sports confirmed on 6/12 that the long-rumored split talked about in this publication had started with Mitsuharu Misawa, the President and top star of the company, resigning on 5/28. The news was kept quiet by all parties until the end of the tour and they were hoping to keep it quiet for several more days in an attempt to present a smoother public transition.

Subscribers click here to continue.


SATURDAY NEWS UPDATE

WWE
At last night’s Mae Young Classic tapings, Triple H presented Sara Amato (Sara Del Rey) with a bouquet of flowers and credited her for starting the women’s revolution in WWE. Stephanie McMahon wrote on Instagram: “#ThankYouSara for all of your sacrifices on the independent circuit all around the world, helping pave the way for women’s wrestling, and ensuring its future as the first women’s coach and assistant Head Coach in @wwe. #WeAreNXT #WomensWrestling #maeyoungclassic #WeAreReady”
The second round, quarterfinals, and semifinals for the Mae Young Classic were taped last night, with two non-tournament matches being filmed as well. The first four episodes will be uploaded to the WWE Network on August 28th, then the second batch will be available starting on September 4th. The finals will air live on the WWE Network after SmackDown on September 12th. Our JJ Williams has spoilers from the first and second nights of the tapings.
Drew Gulak sent an in-character message to the Mae Young Classic competitors.
People posted an article on Renee Young and Daniel Bryan tweeting that WWE didn’t tell them about Talking Smack’s cancelation as a weekly series before releasing their statement about it. Bryan claimed: “I come online to support #SamiForSyria and find this out. I’m the GM!!! Nobody tells me anything!!!”
The Miz wrote about the end of Talking Smack: “RIP #TalkingSmack I enjoyed the freedom this show gave @wwe talent to showcase what they could do @ReneeYoungWWE brought the best out of all”
Mick Foley posted on Facebook about visiting a dying fan named Dillon and Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair taking time out of their day to talk to Dillon during the visit.
Mike Mooneyham’s latest article for the Charleston Post and Courier focuses on WWE not turning Roman Reigns heel.
The Miami Herald has an article on Stephanie McMahon being honored at the Stuart Scott ENSPIRE Awards.
Wired looked at the reasons behind WWE’s recent data exposure.
The wildest facial expressions made by wrestlers are the subject of this week’s WWE top 10 list on YouTube.
Pro Wrestling
NJPW held its annual pre-G1 Climax press conference last night, which always gets attention for the wrestler’s fashion choices and their reactions to each other. Highlights included Kazuchika Okada and others trying not to laugh at Toru Yano and Kenny Omega’s reaction to Kota Ibushi. NJPW uploaded the full press conference for free on YouTube.
NJPW also released the opening video for this year’s G1.
What Culture Pro Wrestling announced that Will Ospreay will be facing Rey Mysterio at their Pro Wrestling World Cup show on August 23rd.
Dave Prazak was backstage at the Mae Young Classic tapings last night.
Wrestle:List interviewed Simon Grimm (the former Simon Gotch) about why he was unhappy in WWE.
Shane Helms spoke to Pro Wrestling Sheet about his time with Impact Wrestling and Jeff Jarrett saying that Helms and other agents were let go because they had too many of them.
UFC/MMA
Conor McGregor declared victory after his world tour with Floyd Mayweather, saying that he came out on top of all four stops. Mayweather also said it’s obvious that he’s getting in McGregor’s head.
Demetrious Johnson is siding with McGregor in his fight against Mayweather and said he hopes McGregor faces the winner of Gennady Golovkin vs. Canelo Alvarez in a boxing match next.
Showtime’s Stephen Espinoza said that McGregor’s improv skills are on par with The Rock.
McGregor reiterated that he’d like to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov in Russia at some point and said that the trilogy with Nate Diaz is also on his mind.
Sarah Moras is asking for donations to fund her fight camp prior to her facing off with Ashlee Evans-Smith at UFC 215 on September 9th.
Gegard Mousasi will make his Bellator debut against Alexander Shlemenko at Bellator 185 on October 20th.

Today in Pro Wrestling History: Brock Lesnar stripped of IWGP title

F4W Online / Wrestling Observer Vegas Convention Event Info

August 17-21; All times are TBA; Full information on the group Facebook page; Activities subject to change

For ticketing information go to https://f4wvegas.brownpapertickets.com/

Thursday: Meet at the High Roller for Bowling at the Link; Party at Carnival Court at Hurrah’s
Friday: Kiss Mini Golf tournament at the Rio; Dinner at Texas de Brazil; Suite party (location TBA)
Saturday: Burgers with Granny for lunch; Future Stars of Wrestling show featuring Stephan Bonnar & Phil Baron, and co-main events: 3-way match with Leva Bates vs. Mia Yim vs. Hudson Envy, and “Filthy” Tom Lawlor vs. Thomas Santell (f.k.a. Antonio “The Promise” Thomas); NXT viewing party at the Sci-Fi Center
Sunday: SUPER CHINA BUFFET DAY at the Wicked Spoon Buffet at 1pm; SummerSlam viewing party at the Sci-Fi Center
Monday: Goodbye lunch at Chen Chen at NY NY
All website members will also receive a 15% discount on any purchases from the Las Vegas Fight Shop for the entirety of the convention

Texas de Brazil, Wicked Spoon, NXT and Summer Slam will all be sign up and pre-paid events, prices and collection begin in mid July~!

Pro Wrestling Tees is now carrying our latest line of F4W shirts. Support the Empire~! Grab yours today!


CONTACT INFORMATION

Poll opinions: dave@wrestlingobsever.com
​Feedback: feedback@wrestlingobserver.com
Show results and news tips: newstips@wrestlingobserver.com
Wrestling Observer Radio questions: mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com