Weekend Roundup: More on WWE Releases, AEW Supercard Update, Miro Update, AAA Cancels Show Over Cartel Threats, Sabu, Indies

WWE

• WWE filed a trademark for “Veer Mahaan” for wrestling and entertainment-related purposes on November 1st to the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
• WWE also filed trademarks for “Jacket Time” and “Erica Yan” for wrestling and entertainment-related purposes on November 2nd to the USPTO. In regards to “Jacket Time,” this is the name of the newly formed team of KUSHIDA and Ikemen Jiro on WWE’s NXT brand.
• Fightful Select reported that Joseph Parks and Petey Williams were the producers of the Los Lotharios vs. Cesaro & Mansoor tag team match during this past Friday’s episode of SmackDown. Molly Holly and Tyson Kidd reportedly were the producers of the Naomi vs. Shayna Baszler match. Jamie Noble and Jimmy Wang Yang reportedly were the producers of the Drew McIntyre vs. Ricochet match. Shawn Daivari reportedly was the producer of the Happy Talk segment with the Viking Raiders. Adam Pearce and Steve Corino reportedly were the producers of the Hit Row & Sami Zayn segments.
• Fightful Select reported that Tyson Kidd and Molly Holly were the producers of the RAW Women’s Championship match during this past Monday’s episode of RAW. Shane Helms and Shawn Daivari reportedly were the producers of the Rey Mysterio vs. Austin Theory match. Adam Pearce reportedly was the producer of Seth Rollins’ promo segment. Jamie Noble and Jimmy Wang Yang reportedly were the producers of the Finn Balor vs. Chad Gable match. Petey Williams and Pat Buck reportedly were the producers of the Street Profits vs. Dirty Dawgs match.
• During a recent interview with Fightful Select, Mandy Rose revealed that WWE has been recently teaching some of their NXT talent about the production side of the company. Rose stated that this was not to teach them how to become future producers for the company but instead to help improve their performance work by showing why the company does things a certain way.
• As noted before, Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch was involved in a backstage incident following the October 22nd episode of Friday Night SmackDown in Wichita, Kansas. This incident revolved around Flair’s issues with the Champions Exchange segment on the show which quickly went off script and the belief backstage that Flair was entirely responsible for what happened during the segment and afterwards. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that the reason why Flair was not punished for causing the incident was due to “Charlotte is a tricky situation. Not just because she’s a star in a division with very few stars. But because she’s not the only guilty party. Discipline her and you have to discipline quite a few people.”
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that one WWE source recently spoken to stated that besides issues with an aging roster, WWE officials are also aware of their issues with a serious lack of big babyface stars on the main roster and lack of notable big name part-timer stars as hotshot attractions for ratings and events. In regards to hotshot attractions, Meltzer reported that WWE is pretty much down to just Edge, Brock Lesnar, and Goldberg as their go-to big name part-timers for shows. Meltzer reported that all of WWE’s other notable reliable big name part-timers either are retired, such as Undertaker, are tainted, such as Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair, are unlikely to ever wrestle again, such as Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin, or have scheduling issues, such as The Rock.
• WWE reportedly generated an attendance of 4,180 (3,000 paid) for their October 29th SmackDown show in Wilkes-Barre, PA, 6,076 (4,500 paid) for their November 1st RAW show in Providence, RI, 3,357 for their November 3rd house show event in Brighton, and 6,562 for their November 4th house show event in Sheffield, England, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• WWE reportedly has sold around 3,678 tickets for their November 8th RAW show in Louisville, KY, around 4,647 tickets for their November 12th SmackDown show in Norfolk, VA, around 3,961 tickets for their November 15th RAW show in Indianapolis, IN, around 9,467 tickets for their November 21st Survivor Series 2021 event in Brooklyn, around 4,005 tickets for their November 22nd RAW show in Brooklyn, around 4,320 tickets for their November 29th RAW show at the UBS Arena in Long Island, NY, around 4,534 tickets for their January 1, 2022 Day 1 event in Atlanta, GA, and around 22,098 tickets for their January 29, 2022 Royal Rumble event in St. Louis, MO as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• In an interesting note, WWE is currently advertising a 6-Man Tag Team match of The Bloodline (Roman Reigns & The Usos) vs. Drew McIntyre & The New Day (Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods) and are holding a new ticket sales promotion as their newest attempt to boost sluggish tickets sales for their November 29th RAW event at the UBS Arena, especially in comparisons to AEW’s sales for their December 8th Dynamite show at the same venue.
• WWE reportedly is currently not planning to hold a NXT TakeOver event during WrestleMania 38 weekend in Dallas, Texas, according to the Wrestling Observer. Dave Meltzer reported that WWE is currently only advertising a SmackDown show, two nights of WrestleMania 38, a RAW show, and an AXXESS event for travel packages for the weekend of April 3, 2022. Meltzer reported that a Hall of Fame ceremony was also not listed as part of the package of events for next year’s WrestleMania weekend festivities as well.
• As noted before, WWE released 18 wrestlers this past Thursday as part of a larger round of cuts targeting their talent roster and office employees. Fightful Select reported that two internal emails had been sent to talent that day. In regards to main roster talent, the internal email sent by WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis stated “Due to budget cuts, the following WWE talent were released today, November, 4, 2021. Thank you, John Laurinaitis.” In regards to NXT talent, the internal email sent by the NXT Director of Talent Relations stated “Due to budgetary cuts, with immediate effect, we’ve come to terms with the following NXT talents. We wish these individuals all the best in their future endeavors.” It was reported that B-Fab’s name had been included in the email sent for NXT talent despite her being a main roster talent while Oney Lorcan’s name was misspelled as “Oney Lorkan.”
• PWTorch’s Wade Keller reported that sources spoken to with WWE stated that Keith Lee’s release was allegedly due to “perceived attitude issues” and being outspoken when it came to being booked to lose matches. Keller stated that “This is coming from people in WWE so take it for what it’s worth.” Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp responded on Twitter to Keller’s report stating that “‘Attitude issues’ are the new thing when someone calls out dog shit creative and bad booking.”
• Following her release from WWE last week, former NXT talent Katrina Cortez announced on Twitter that her work visa in the United States is currently set to expire next month due to her no longer working for WWE. Cortez stated “At 18 I made the decision to travel to an unknown country, without knowing English I came here… today I receive an email telling me that my visa expires next month and I will have to sell everything that with much love and effort I have achieved.“
• During a recent vlog episode, former WWE talent Oney Lorcan revealed why he is currently under a 90-days no-compete clause following his release instead of the typical 30 days for NXT talent. Lorcan stated “I’ve been getting a lot of questions about why I have a 90-day no-compete rather than a 30-day no-compete. When I wrestled for 205 Live, the show used to travel around SmackDown so when I got called to 205 Live, I re-signed a contract to a main roster contract. Rather than have a 30-day no-compete that’s in the NXT contract, my contract became a 90-day no-compete clause. I just wanted to clear that up. ” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

AEW

• During a recent interview with Pro Wrestling Torch, AEW CEO Tony Khan gave his thoughts on how often he tends to stick with his original long-term booking plans for AEW. Khan stated “It’s probably two out of three times. One out of three times something changes, it’s not what you expected, somebody gets sick, and then you put a replacement in and then that starts going well and you move in another direction. So, I would say it’s probably about two out of three times if I draw stuff up and map stuff up.“
• Khan also stated that he held recent talks with TNT and TBS officials over CM Punk being one of AEW’s big stars that TNT and TBS wants AEW shows to be built around going forward. Khan stated “I was on with TNT yesterday, they’re so excited about the direction we’re going and the future of the business and there’s so many possibilities they see for the AEW franchise and [Punk’s] one of the big stars they want to build around. The TNT executives also had a great call with Punk and talked to him and they want him to know he’s a really valued member of the TNT WarnerMedia family, the TBS family.” (Transcript h/t: SEScoops.com 1 & 2)
• The Washington Post held a recent interview with Tony Khan and one of the topics discussed included Khan’s thoughts on how the coronavirus pandemic separated AEW & WWE. Khan stated “The pandemic made it more obvious who was putting more time into the stories, and who was trying to put on more quality national television.” Khan also gave his thoughts on trying to keep AEW’s fanbase happy, stating “I don’t think you’ll ever please every wrestling fan, but if you can make most of the fans happy most of the time, then you’ll have a great fan base. That passion has been within the fans all along. The fans were just looking for an outlet to express it.”
• The Washington Post also held a recent interview with Bryan Danielson and one of the topics discussed included Danielson feeling that AEW didn’t really need him since their product was already “awesome” without him. Danielson stated “My purpose in AEW is something completely different than it was in WWE. I really felt like AEW didn’t need me. My purpose is to get more eyeballs on this already awesome product.“
• AEW recently announced that their Full Gear 2021 event on November 13th will be airing live on Bleacher Report’s streaming service and at selected Cinemark, AMC, Regal, Harkins, iPic, Emagine Entertainment and other theaters throughout the United States.
• AEW reportedly generated an attendance of 3,950 (3,700 paid) for their November 3rd Dynamite show in Independence, MO, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• AEW reportedly has sold around 5,231 tickets for their November 10th Dynamite show in Indianapolis, IN, around 5,711 tickets for their November 12th Rampage show in Minneapolis, around 10,008 tickets for their November 13th Full Gear 2021 event in Minneapolis, MN, around 4,255 tickets for their November 17th Dynamite show in Roanoke, VA, around 7,009 tickets for their November 24th Dynamite show in Chicago, IL, around 4,446 tickets for their December 1st Dynamite show in Duluth, GA, and around 7,982 tickets for their December 8th Dynamite show at the UBS Arena in Long Island, NY as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• As noted before, Thunder Rosa recently revealed that she suffered a concussion last month that caused her to be out of action for AEW and the indies for at least ten days. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that it is currently believed that Rosa had suffered her concussion injury during her 6-Women Tag Team match at the tapings of Dark Elevation on October 16th in Miami, Florida.
• As noted before, the October 15th episodes of AEW Rampage and WWE Friday Night SmackDown were notable for being the first time that both shows went head-to-head against each other. In regards to key demographic viewership, WWE’s SmackDown show managed to top AEW’s Rampage show in overall key demographic viewership at 314,000 viewers compared to 313,000 viewers for Rampage while Rampage topped SmackDown for the 30 minutes of head-to-head competition at 328,000 viewers compared to 295,000 viewers for SmackDown. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that when factoring in same day DVR viewership, Rampage managed to also top SmackDown in overall key demographic viewership. Rampage reportedly had around 424,000 viewers (313,000 live and 121,000 DVR) while SmackDown had around 395,000 viewers (314,000 live and 81,000 DVR).
• As noted before, AEW is currently planning to hold their first supercard special under the tentative name of “Battle for the Belts” on January 8, 2022 on TNT. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that AEW’s original plans was for this upcoming special to be two hours in length but as of last week, the current plan is for it to be one hour instead.
• Anthony Ogogo has been absent from AEW programming since undergoing eye surgery in the United Kingdom this past Summer. During a recent interview with Daily DDT, QT Marshall revealed that Antony Ogogo recently returned to the United States and will be resuming work for AEW within the near future. Marshall stated “He just came back. He was overseas getting everything taken care of, so we’ll see. I think it’s about right place, right time and trying to figure out the right story as well. Just to throw someone out there is… my biggest thing for me personally, after 17 years, the last thing I want to do is go in there and take random bumps for no reason. I try to explain that to Anthony and everyone’s itching to get back. Right now, we have a huge roster of huge stars, so it’s just one of those things of going back to the drawing board and figuring it out. But in the meantime, he’s been training and working out and doing what he does. He’ll be ready when that call comes.“
• This past Wednesday’s episode of AEW Dynamite featured Miro replacing Jon Moxley in AEW’s on-going World Championship Eliminator tournament due to Moxley entering rehab for alcoholism related issues. Fightful Select reported that AEW officials made the decision to have Miro replace Moxley in the tournament was made on Tuesday afternoon. It was reported that Miro was originally not planned to be at this past week’s show and was flown in Wednesday afternoon and arrived shortly before the start of the show. In regards to AEW’s current creative plans for Miro, it was reported that one of their sources stated that “creative has changed often for Miro of late.”
• During a recent interview wit the #DORK podcast, Adam Cole gave his thoughts on how fans helped the growth of WWE’s NXT brand and his feelings of the same happening for AEW. Cole stated “That roster was stacked. You had a lot of really talented dudes who were trying to make an impression and trying to show the world on the biggest stage they ever had how good they were. That created a really exciting atmosphere. The live audience that was there, I’ve said this before and I think it’s a big reason why AEW is so successful, the people who buy a ticket to that show and show up, they want the show to be good. They go there with the intention of ‘this show is going to rule. I can’t wait to watch these matches.’ It creates this exciting atmosphere that not only creates this magic within the audience, but it does create a different feeling with the wrestlers as well. That’s how the magic happens in a lot of ways. At the end of the day, in a lot of ways, the fans looked at NXT as, not the little engine that could, but this new brand that was starting that they felt responsible for its growth, which I think is so important. The fact that the roster kept growing and they kept signing these Independent stars, they felt responsible for this massive growth of NXT becoming this legit third brand. AEW has that same kind of passion in a the sense of people feel they are responsible for AEW’s growth these past two years, and they are. The fact that fans are so amped and so jacked up and ready to enjoy these matches, makes it so special. Fans are vital.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

Indies & Other Wrestling

• Lucha Blog reported that a scheduled co-promoted Lucha Libre AAA and Big Lucha event on November 10th in Metepec, Mexico was recently cancelled due to threats from a criminal cartel. The cartel warned those who were to perform at the Metepec Fair festival to not show up “unless they want the blood of their fans or themselves to be spilled.”
• New Japan Pro Wrestling recently announced a new match for the card of their Battle in the Valley event on November 13th in San Jose, California. This will be a singles match of Kazuchika Okada vs. Buddy Matthews.
• NPW reportedly had sold around 1,345 tickets for their November 13th Battle in the Valley event in San Jose and around 636 tickets for their Detonation themed tapings of NJPW Strong in Riverside, CA as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the reason why there was a lack of live English commentary as an option for NJPW’s Power Struggle 2021 event this past Saturday was due to NJPW not flying English commentator Kevin Kelly to Japan for the event nor setting up a remote broadcast booth like with other recent events during the coronavirus pandemic. Meltzer reported that Kelly likely will not be traveling back to Japan until next year’s Wrestle Kingdom 16 event.
• PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that King Muertes was unable to appear for Major League Wrestling at their War Chamber event this past Saturday in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania due to his flight being among the ton of flights cancelled by American Airlines this weekend. Johnson also reported that MLW officials reportedly originally had bigger plans for Jeff Cobb’s debut under his former Mantanza persona but had to change them due to Cobb not feeling physically comfortable working in his old gear. Johnson also reported that Davey Richards, Konnan, Homicide, Savio, and Dave Prazak all worked as backstage producers for the event.
• As noted before, “Filthy” Tom Lawlor’s contract with MLW expired on November 1st. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that despite him currently working for NJPW for their Strong series, Lawlor is not actually under contract with them and instead is a fully free agent.
• Westside Xtreme Wrestling recently announced that Oney Lorcan is the next official competitor for next year’s wXw 16 Carat Gold tournament, which takes place on March 4-6, 2022 in Oberhausen, Germany.
• During a recent interview with Wrestling Shoot Interviews podcast, Sabu revealed that he is currently planning on retiring from wrestling. Sabu stated “I’m not doing real good. I hurt my back about a year ago and it’s still been hurting. I wrestled a couple of weeks ago but I shouldn’t have. I’ve only wrestled like twice in the last year [and] I only went to the gym a couple of times the last year ’cause I hurt my back. I’m probably not gonna wrestle no more… I’m probably just gonna do autograph signings and personal appearance-type stuff.” (Transcript h/t: F4WOnline.com)
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that a new wrestling book based on the British Bulldogs, titled Dynamite and Davey: The Explosive Lives of the British Bulldogs, is currently scheduled to be released in Summer of 2022.
• During a recent episode of the K100 with Konnan & Disco podcast, co-host Konnan stated tat Lucha Libre AAA’s current legal issues with Lucha Libre FMV preventing AAA from airing their events and selling merchandise in the United States is likely expected to be resolved soon.
• Dragon Gate reportedly had a paid attendance of 1,685 for their Gate of Destiny 2021 event on November 3rd in Osaka, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• As noted before, Ring of Honor is currently planning on going on a hiatus after their Final Battle 2021 event this December. One of the main reasons for ROH’s decision is due to their parent company Sinclair Broadcast Group is currently dealing with serious financial-related issues caused by several of their recent investments. Sinclair released the results of their fiscal third quarter 2021 report this past Wednesday which revealed that the company has a current total debut of around $12.5 million. In regards to their debut, around $8.1 million was stated to be due to their Diamond Sports Group company and their planned Diamond streaming service that has yet to be launched.