Weekend Roundup: Brandi Rhodes, White Rabbit, WWE Day 1 2023, AEW Rankings Update, AEW & Space TV, Antonio Inoki, Indies

WWE

• This past Friday’s WWE Friday Night SmackDown drew a preliminary viewership of 2,076,000 viewers on FOX, according to Wrestlenomics.
• As noted before, the September 23rd episode of SmackDown drew 2,535,000 viewers and a 0.63 18-49 key demographic rating. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE’s peak in overall viewership occurred during their 9:00-9:15PM quarter, which drew 2,767,000 viewers and a 0.70 key demographic ratings. Meltzer reported that SmackDown experienced a very large drop in viewers at 9:25PM and did not regain most of them back for the rest of the show, based on the minute-to-minute ratings for the show. This reportedly was due to it being right after a recent White Rabbit teaser that hinted something big would happen at 9:23PM during the show, which ended up being just a new teaser aired for the live crowd only.
• WWE filed a trademark for “WWE Campus Rush” for NIL-related purposes on September 28th to the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
• During a recent interview with the MCW Backstage Pass podcast, Dexter Lumis gave his thoughts about the origin of his ring name in WWE. Lumis stated “It’s just, hey, you get an email and it’s like, hey pitch us five names. Anything but your own name and the intellectual property. So I basically just, I didn’t initially have the name ‘Dexter Lumis.’ I had it in the list. I don’t even know if it was Dexter Lumis, it may have been like ‘Dexter Shawshank’ or something. But the writers seemed to like ‘Dexter Lumis.’ Lumis was a play on Dr. ‘Loomis’ from Halloween, we just spelled it different for trademark reasons and whatnot. So I was always a big fan of the horror movie genre. ‘Halloween’ is one of my favorite horror movies from the 70s, early 80s. Dr. Loomis, Sam Loomis, that was the guy who I sort of based that name on, and Dexter obviously being the famous TV show, the vigilante serial killer that kills bad people.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
• As noted before, Brandi and Cody Rhodes left AEW this past February following the expiration of their contracts with the company. Fightful Select reported that their sources stated that Brandi recently participated in several tryout matches for WWE at their Performance Center but no deal has yet to be reached regarding a potential return to the company. It was also reported that Brandi and AEW have not had any contact with each other since Brandi’s departure earlier this year. In regards to Warner Bros Discovery, it was reported that Brandi still has a cordial relationship with the company.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that WWE’s Performance Center only suffered a little water damage to their gym from the effects of Hurricane Ian’s landfall in Florida this past week. Meltzer reported that the main reason why WWE’s Performance Center managed to escape serious flooding issues was due to being built on higher ground than other areas in Orlando which suffered serious damages from the hurricane.
• As noted before, WWE has recently been airing cryptic teases for a mysterious “White Rabbit” character at their recent television and house shows. These teases are currently rumored to be for Bray Wyatt’s return to the company. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that WWE officials have been very happy over the the recent sales of White Rabbit merchandise. WWE officials reportedly have also been very happy over their creative and marketing efforts for the White Rabbit being very effective to the point that Paul “Triple H” Levesque is currently considering the idea of doing similar stuff going forward.
• As noted before, this past Monday’s RAW show featured a new cryptic White Rabbit teaser that included the phrase of “No man is every truly good, no man is ever truly evil” which was the intro line to Aleister Black’s theme song in WWE. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that the reason for the line’s inclusion was due to the teaser being made around the time WWE had contacted AEW talents for potential returns and Malakai Black (former Aleister Black) being one of the people they wanted to bring back.
• This past Friday’s SmackDown show in Winnipeg, Canada featured a new White Rabbit cryptic teaser. This teaser featured a reference to the 1933 The Three Little Pigs cartoon, the phrase of “AZAZEL REBORN”, imagery of pigs after being slaughtered, and a reference to a past The Simpsons episode that featured the “White Rabbit” song by Jefferson Airplane, and a reference to the intro line in The Shield’s entrance song. WWE also aired a second cryptic teaser in the form of a sign held by a random fan that stated “Revel in what you are” which was the same wording from a tweet made by former WWE talent Bray Wyatt around three years ago.
• WWE reportedly generated an attendance of 6,687 (5,900 paid) for their Sept. 23rd SmackDown show in Salt Lake City, UT, 8,380 for their Sept. 24th house show event in Vancouver, Canada, 4,218 for their Sept. 24th house show event in Stockton, CA, 4,321 for their Sept. 25th house show event in Fresno, CA, and 11,681 (11,000 paid) for their Sept. 26th RAW show in Edmonton, CA, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• WWE reportedly has sold around 5,618 tickets for their Oct. 3rd RAW show in St. Paul, MN, 4,451 tickets or their Oct. 7th SmackDown show in Worcester, MA, 11,252 tickets for their Oct. 8th Extreme Rules 2022 event in Philadelphia, PA, 5,299 tickets for their Oct. 10th RAW show in Brooklyn, NY, 3,692 tickets for their Oct. 14th SmackDown show in New Orleans, LA, 3,846 tickets for their Oct. 17th RAW show in Oklahoma City, OK, 4,097 tickets for their Oct. 21st SmackDown show in Toledo, OH, 4,773 tickets for their Oct. 24th RAW show in Charlotte, NC, 5,690 tickets for their Oct. 31st RAW show in Dallas, TX, 3,628 tickets for their Nov. 7th RAW show in Wilkes-Bare, PA, 4,470 tickets for their Nov. 14th RAW show in Louisville, KY, and 3,808 tickets for their Nov. 21st RAW show in Albany, NY as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE officials recently held talks regarding potential plans for The Usos to defend their Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship at their upcoming Extreme Rules 2022 event.
• Cable television network A&E reportedly is currently working on a new Biography: WWE Legends episode based on Randy Orton, according to PWInsider.
• As noted before, WWE is currently planning to remove all of their content very soon from streaming service Hulu due to their deal with Hulu is currently set to expire by the end of this year. PWInsider’s Paul Jordan reported that Hulu currently no longer lists an expiration date for the removal of WWE content on their service. Jordan reported that this could likely mean that a new deal between both sides might be reached soon.
• As noted before, Sasha Banks and Naomi have been absent from WWE since this past May due to their current suspensions over a walk out incident during a WWE RAW show in Norfolk, Virginia. In an interesting note, Banks recently changed her account handle on Twitter from @SashaBanksWWE to @MercedesVarnado, which is her real name. Banks’ bio on Twitter still contains a reference to WWE which states “Sasha Banks-WWE. Koska Reeves – The Mandalorian. She remembered who she was and the game changed.”
• WWE officials reportedly are currently expected to make a decision soon regarding the date for next year’s Day 1 event, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Dave Meltzer reported that his sources stated that the main issue is stiff sports competition from College football BCS Playoffs that WWE would be facing on the same night should they go ahead with holding their Day 1 2023 event on January 1, 2023. In regards to the venue, Meltzer reported that should the date be changed, WWE is still planning on holding their upcoming Day 1 event at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.

AEW & ROH

• As noted before, CM Punk, AEW producer Ace Steel, Kenny Omega, and The Young Bucks were involved in a backstage fight incident following AEW’s All Out 2022 event earlier this month. Following the incident, AEW suspended all of them for an indefinite period of time, as well as several others who recently had their suspensions lifted. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that many people within AEW current want the results of the outside third party investigation to be made public due to them wanting to know who was in the right and wrong and other details AEW officials are currently not willing to discuss due to potential legal issues.
• AEW reportedly generated an attendance of 5,000 (4,400 paid) for their Sept. 28th Dynamite show in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• AEW reportedly has sold around 2,265 tickets for their Oct. 5th Dynamite show in Washington, DC, 1,988 tickets for their Oct. 7th Rampage & Battle of the Belts IV show in Washington, DC, 6,783 tickets for their Oct. 12th Dynamite show in Toronto, 4,853 tickets for their Oct. 13th Rampage show in Toronto, Canada, 3,053 tickets for their Oct. 18th Dynamite show in Cincinnati, OH, 2,250 tickets for their Oct. 21st Rampage show in Jacksonville, FL, 2,217 tickets for their Oct. 26th Dynamite show in Norfolk, VA, 3,768 tickets for their Oct. 28th Rampage show in Uncasville, CT, 1,525 tickets for their Nov. 2nd Dynamite show in Baltimore, MD, 776 tickets for their Nov. 4th Rampage show in Atlantic City, NJ, 2,322 tickets for their Nov. 9th Dynamite show in Boston, MA, 1,682 tickets for their Nov. 16th Dynamite show in Bridgeport, CT, 9,776 tickets for their Nov. 19th Full Gear 2022 event in Chicago, IL, 3,226 tickets for their Nov. 23rd Dynamite show in Chicago, IL, and 6,050 tickets for their Jan. 4, 2023 Dynamite show in Seattle, WA as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• AEW reportedly is currently rumored to be downplaying the importance of their ranking system for their championship divisions, according to Post Wrestling. John Pollock reported that AEW has not updated the official ranking lists for their divisions on their official website since August 31st. Pollock speculated that AEW likely won’t completely get rid of their ranking system and just keep it in the background instead of it being heavily tied into their matchmaking process.
• AEW CEO Tony Khan recently commented on Twitter about the reasons why this past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite show featured three longer than usual promo segments. Khan stated “Wednesday’s #AEWDynamite after #GrandSlam was the first Dynamite with 3 lengthy live promo segs in one show since 12/9/20 following #WinterIsComing. Both 12/9/20 + this week needed these promos to follow up on newsworthy supercards; I promise we won’t lose focus on the wrestling.”
• AEW recently announced that they will no longer being airing on television network Space in Mexico, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean but will continue to air on the network in Brazil. The company also announced that those affected can still watch their programming on FITE TV via their AEW Plus service.

Indies & Misc. Wrestling

• As noted before, Lucha Libre AAA recently released the full card for their upcoming Triplemania XXX: Mexico City, which takes place on October 15th. This upcoming event will not feature either FTR nor Tay Melo and Sammy Guevara despite both teams currently holding championship belts in the company. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that the reason was not due to any issues from AEW regarding AAA’s booking plans and instead was just due to scheduling-related issues. Meltzer also reported that AAA officials had been interested at one point in booking Adam Cole for this event but dropped those plans after he suffered a concussion injury this past June.
• AAA reportedly has sold around 294 tickets for their December 3rd event in Tempe, Arizona, according to the Wrestling Observer.
• New Japan Pro Wrestling reportedly generated a paid attendance of 1,182 for their Sept. 21st Burning Spirit 2022 event in Kumamoto, 915 for their Sept. 23rd Burning Spirit 2022 event in Takamatsu, and 3,150 for their Sept. 25th Burning Spirit 2022 event in Hyogo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• NJPW recently released an “In Memorandum” article on their official website honoring the life and legacy of former NJPW founder and legendary wrestler Antonio Inoki, who passed away this past Friday.
• The Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported in Sunday’s Daily Update that Antonio Inoki’s passing was the only wrestling-related thing that managed to rank on the Top 10 for searches on Google over this past week. Inoki’s passing reportedly generated over 100,000 searches and #10 ranking for this past Friday.
• Stardom reportedly generated a paid attendance of 1,207 for their Sept. 23rd 5STAR Grand Prix 2022 event in Tokyo, 683 for their Sept. 24th 5STAR Grand Prix 2022 event in Tokyo, and 759 for their Sept. 25th Showcase Vol. 2 event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• Dragon Gate talent Naruki Doi reportedly recently changed his contract with the company from a full-time deal to a freelancer type deal, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Dave Meltzer reported that Doi still wants to continue working for Dragon Gate but also wants the chance to work with other people outside of the company and wear-and-tear issues on his body from his career.
• Pro Wrestling NOAH reportedly generated a paid attendance of 1,933 for their Sept. 25th Grand Ship In Nagoya – Pro-Wrestling Love Forever 2 “Outbreak” event in Nagoya, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• DDT Pro Wrestling reportedly generated a paid attendance of 701 for their Sept. 25th Who’s Going to Top? 2022 event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Dave Meltzer reported that this event featured fans being allowed to verbally cheer throughout the show.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Pro Wrestling Revolution and the Masked Republic recently worked together to help secure 37 work visas for Japanese-based talent to work in the United States. Meltzer reported that these visas were mostly for talent from Dragon Gate and Pro Wrestling NOAH.
• Game Changer Wrestling reportedly generated a paid attendance of 295 for their Sept. 26th Planet of Death event in Tokyo and 296 for their Sept. 27th Dead on Arrival event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• As noted before, VICE TV will be airing a new wrestling-based documentary series called Tales From The Territories starting this Tuesday. PWInsider’s Steven Fernandes reported that this upcoming debut season will feature episodes based on Championship Wrestling from Florida, Stampede Wrestling, and Polynesian Pro Wrestling based on casting calls from this past August and September.
• Concussion Legacy Foundation founder and former WWE wrestler Christopher Nowinski recent praised WWE, AEW, and the National Wrestling Alliance on Twitter for allowing them to have him recently teach their talents about concussion protocols and the dangers of concussions. Nowinski also recently criticized the NFL over their controversial handling of the health safety of Miami Dolphins Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who had suffered two concussion-related injuries within the span of four days but had been allowed by NFL officials to play two NFL games this past week.
• Deadlock Pro Wrestling recently announced a new match for the card of their Carolina Classic event on October 15th in Durham, North Carolina. This will be a singles match of Mei Suruga vs. Emi Sakura.
• Big Time Wrestling recently announced that WWE Hall of Famer Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat will be making an appearance for the company at their Return of the Dragon event on November 27th in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was announced that Steamboat will be teaming up with FTR in a 6-man tag team match against Black Machismo (Jay Lethal), Brock Anderson, & mystery partner at the event.
• Impact Wrestling recently announced that they recently signed a partnership deal with arena football team Albany Empire as part of the promotion for this Friday’s Bound For Glory 2022 event in Albany, New York. It was announced that this will be for a BFG Fallout fan fest event on October 8th.
• During a recent interview with the Paltrocast with Darren Paltrowitz podcast, Heath gave his thoughts about the goals he still wants accomplish for his wrestling career. Heath stated “I mean, there’s two that I probably can’t say, but there’s one I can. you know, I definitely want to become the IMPACT World Champion. But I also want to hold the Tag Titles with Rhino again. So that’s like a more of a goal personal goal for me, with me and Rhino, just because we’ve held gold somewhere else. It’s one of those things that were like, I wouldn’t mind you know, running the roads with him at least a little bit longer to be Tag Champs again and everything.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)