THE ROUND-UP
The Latest from the F4W Staff
NEWS
WWE SmackDown TV taping spoilers: Two title matches
WWE Raw ratings unchanged despite taped show from England
Title change at WWE SmackDown tapings in Manchester
Kurt Angle wrestling at WWE house show in Birmingham, England
Sin Cara cleared to return after suffering knee injury
Roman Reigns returning to WWE Raw next week
WWE Raw video highlights: The New Day teases an invasion
WWE Raw live results: Survivor Series build continues in England
AUDIO
WOL: Smackdown spoilers live, Jinder vs. AJ, tons of news, more! 11/7
JNPO Classic: John McCarthy and a fantasy MMA draft 11/7
WOR: Raw report, Tokyo Dome line-up, Jericho vs. Omega details, more! 11/7
WOL: Bound for Glory, Raw and Smackdown, Dr. Lucha and more! 11/6
Smackdown and 205 Live are from Manchester, UK with Jinder Mahal vs. A.J. Styles for the WWE title and Usos vs. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin for the tag titles. There is also a Raw house show in Birmingham, UK.
Also today, Fathom Entertainment will be presenting a Ted DiBiase documentary at movie theaters for a 7:35 p.m. showing across the country. ESPN 30 for 30 will do the Ric Flair story.
Wednesday has Raw in Dortmund, Germany and Smackdown in Leeds, UK.
Also on Wednesday will be the one-day release of the Conor McGregor documentary at theaters around the U.S.
FIGURE FOUR WEEKLY: Figure Four Weekly 10/30/2017: Looking at WWE’s recent releases
At a time when WWE releases aren’t as common as they used to be, it was surprising to see three wrestlers let go this week. That WWE broke the news on a Sunday morning only made things more odd. The names who were released weren’t exactly shocking, with Emma, Darren Young, and Summer Rae no longer with the company. Of those, Emma was the only one currently on television.
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WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: November 6, 2017 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: WWE quarter financials, Manami Toyota retiring, more
The most complete look anywhere at WWE business over the summer and fall is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, plus a look at three major documentaries out next week, two Hall of Famer retirements and Survivor Series and WWE booking updates.
Look at WWE’s positive financial reports at a time when some of the usual base categories are disappointing and what led to them. Read actual numbers in detail, how the stock is doing, how this quarter compared historically, as well as financial projections for the rest of the year and into next year.
Check out the TV rights situation, how the UFC negotiations look to tell the story for WWE and what the UFC negotiations say, what happens when WWE’s biggest TV deals expire as well as when the company expects to finalize deals in all of those markets going forward.
Read why the network is more profitable even with slower growth than projected, including different projections, exactly how many people signed up and canceled the WWE network in recent months and how it compares to last year. There are notes on WWE plans going forward for different changes with WWE network, the arena business, the changes in the pro wrestling business as well as looking at the Jinder Mahal question, has he helped, has he hurt and what the numbers say.
Plus, read about U.K. revenue, why YouTube views seem to mean nothing as far as driving revenue, the China experiment, as well as where WWE money comes from as far as what country over he past four years.
Find out if stronger marquee PPVs effects the network, as well as the remnants of the PPV business, how much WWE spends on tapings, the home video business, the digital media business, as well as the live event business and merchandise figures. Also, look at NXT numbers, Performance Center costs and other businesses the company has stake in.
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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: October 23, 2000 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: The fates of WCW and ECW
It’s come down to the finish line in the story of how the wrestling industry is going to shake down. Exactly what the future of World Championship Wrestling and Extreme Championship Wrestling will end up being is up in the air, and it has never been a more harrowing time to be a full-time pro wrestler in the United States.
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TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE
WWE
“Nature Boy,” the 30 for 30 on Ric Flair’s life and career, airs on ESPN at 10 p.m. Eastern time tonight. Flair has been all over ESPN promoting it and Twitter has a Flair emoji for their “NatureBoy” hashtag. The special will also stream on ESPN3.
While appearing on ESPN, Flair said he’s not sure if he’s accepted the death of Reid yet. Flair also got emotional when talking about Charlotte’s career.
Flair appeared on ESPN’s “First Take” this morning.
GQ has an interview with Flair about the documentary, and Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated has a review of the 30 for 30.
“The Price of Fame,” the documentary on Ted Dibiase is also having a one-day run at Fathom Theaters today.
Pete Dunne will be defending his WWE United Kingdom Championship against Johnny Gargano on November 18th in Houston, but it won’t be on the NXT TakeOver: War Games special. WWE announced the match today, with it likely taking place on the TV tapings they do prior to TakeOver.
Dunne & Mark Andrews vs. Trent Seven & Tyler Bate is also set for WWE’s house show in San Antonio on the night before TakeOver.
WWE posted the full list of people who attended their two days of tryouts in Manchester this week. It included indie wrestlers Eddie Dennis, Jack Sexsmith, Omari, Jackie Polo & Mark Coffey, Little Miss Roxxy, Samii Jayne, Chris Ridgeway, Iestyn Rees, Kasey Owens, and more.
We’ll have a full report from the show up later, but Kurt Angle again teamed with Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose as he wrestled at his first WWE house show in over a decade in Birmingham today. They took on Cesaro, Sheamus & Samoa Joe in the main event.
Piers Morgan responded to Corey Graves saying on commentary last night that Enzo Amore may be the only person less liked than Morgan in England: “You’re the guy who couldn’t make it as a wrestler so turned to (bad..) commentary, right @WWEGraves? #WWERaw”
Pete Dunne posted a photo of him receiving a tryout last year side-by-side with him debuting on Raw last night.
Pro Wrestling
Bram is no longer with Impact Wrestling, with him announcing in a tweet today that he’s been granted his release: “I’ve been granted my release from @IMPACTWRESTLING. Thank you to everyone from top to bottom and to you the fans for your support”
ROH announced that Kenny Omega’s match for their Survival of the Fittest show in San Antonio on November 17th (which is going against an NXT house show in the same city) will be Omega teaming with Cody Rhodes against Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian. The Young Bucks vs. Flip Gordon & Scorpio Sky is also set for the show.
Stephen Amell, who is the star of “Arrow,” is friends with Cody, and previously wrestled him in WWE, will be a special guest at Survival of the Fittest in San Antonio.
ROH’s TV tapings in Nashville have been rescheduled to January 20th.
wXw announced Mark Haskins for 2018’s 16 Carat Gold tournament.
UFC/MMA
Interim champion Robert Whittaker tweeted that he’s willing to face Georges St-Pierre at any place or time: “Thx for a gr8 week NY. @danawhite @bisping @GeorgesStPierre wat an amzing fight! GSP lets unify anywhere anytime. B an honor champ #anywhere”
Freddie Roach would like GSP to go back to welterweight after defeating Michael Bisping.
TJ Dillashaw said Team Alpha Male’s trash talk at UFC 217 helped him recover during the fight.
Dana White thinks the Brazilian people are tough enough to handle Colby Covington’s promo about them.
When asked about retirement, Conor McGregor said that his body is still very young from a damage-taking standpoint.
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