Weekend Roundup: RAW 30 Plans Changes, WWE Interested in AOP, CM Punk AEW Update, Comcast Buying WBD Rumor, MLW, Indies

WWE

• This past Friday’s WWE Friday Night SmackDown drew a preliminary viewership of 2,113,000 viewers on FOX, according to SpoilerTV.
• WWE Hall of Famer Booker T reportedly is currently scheduled to be among the WWE Legends making an appearance at this Monday’s RAW 30 show in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, according to PWInsider.
• Mustafa Ali recently posted a video on Twitter about a new character he had been working on called “The Commodity.” Ali stated “a concept i worked on late last year. ‘the commodity’ would be this arrogant performer that would only compete against local wrestlers and would over embellish his victories over them. when a credible challenger would come up, he would make excuses to postpone the fight.”
• WWE recently announced that the previously advertised Bloodline Acknowledgement Ceremony for this Monday’s RAW 30 show will no longer be taking place and instead will be replaced by a “Trial of Sami Zayn” segment. WWE stated “Weeks of tumultuousness and questionable decision making has caused dissension in The Bloodline. A wild Royal Rumble contract signing between Roman Reigns and Kevin Owens, left The Bloodline wiped out in the ring and Sami Zayn holding the contract. Now, The Head of The Table and The Undisputed Universal Champion has decided to hold a Tribal Court and put Sami Zayn on trial for his recent actions. What will the final verdict be on The Honorary Uce? Tune into Raw XXX on Monday on USA to find out!“
• In regards to the reason for the dropped plans for a Bloodline Acknowledgement Ceremony segment on RAW 30, the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported in Sunday’s Daily Update that his sources stated that the official reasons were due to travel-related issues with Afa and Sika and a recent illness-related issue with Rikishi.
• Former WWE wrestler Zack Gowen reportedly was seen backstage during this past Friday’s SmackDown show in Detroit, Michigan, according to PWInsider.
• As noted before, Vince McMahon made his officially return to WWE earlier this month and is currently in the process of a potential sale of the company. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the current feeling from those in the media industry is that the reason why WWE is pursing a sale now is due to the recent changes in the media rights economy that point to a potential media rights bubble bursting sooner than expected. Meltzer reported that due to WWE’s current value is heavily tied into their media rights deals, McMahon and others within the company likely believe that it is better to sell the company now while its value is very high than in the future where its value could decrease a lot if the media rights bubble does burst by then.
• Meltzer also reported that it is possible that McMahon could be considering the idea of purchasing WWE himself either via his own money or finding partners to help finance the purchase. The idea reportedly being McMahon’s way of taking the company private and ensuring he stays in charge of the company.
• As noted before, this past Monday’s WWE RAW show featured the official announcement of Cody Rhodes entering this year’s Men’s Royal Rumble match. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that Rhodes had yet to be medically clear at the time of his announcement but he is currently expected to be cleared in time for the Royal Rumble.
• WWE reportedly generated an attendance of 5,991 (5,400 paid) for their Jan. 13th SmackDown show in Green Bay, WI, 4,446 for their Jan. 14th house show event in Roanoke, VA, 3,171 for their Jan. 15th house show event in Corbin, KY, and 7,608 (6,700 paid) for their Jan. 16th RAW show in Cincinnati, OH, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• WWE reportedly has sold around 39,018 tickets for their Jan. 28th Royal Rumble 2023 event in San Antonio, TX as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• As noted before, the January 16th episode of WWE RAW drew 1,489,000 viewers and a 0.42 key demographic rating. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that RAW’s overall viewership was the fourth lowest ever for a RAW show in RAW series history. Meltzer speculated that had that night’s NFL Playoffs game between Dallas and Tampa Bay been more competitive, there is a good chance that week’s RAW could have set the all-time record for lowest viewership ever for a RAW show in RAW history due to the massive numbers the NFL game generated for just a blowout.
• WWE reportedly is currently interested in potential signing many talents from New Japan Pro Wrestling, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s issue that many of NJPW’s notable stars currently have their contracts set to expire at the end of this month. WWE already has shown interest in Jay White, Hikuleo, and Tama Tonga from NJPW and had most recently signed Bronson Reed, known as JONAH in NJPW.
• As noted before, WWE recently made the decision to split up The Usos’ Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that the main reason for the decision is due to WWE officials wanting fans to think teams that compete against the Usos would be more likely to win if only one set of tag titles was on the line.
• WWE producer Jeremy Borasch reportedly has been the person behind the recent Cody Rhodes vignettes about his road to return from torn pectoral injury, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• Roman Reigns reportedly recently set the record for longest ever championship reign in WWE of the past 35 years at 871 days and counting as of this past Thursday, according to Wrestling Stats & Info. It was reported that Reigns surpassed the previous record of 870 days held by Gunther, former WALTER, and his NXT UK Championship reign from April 5, 2019 to August 22, 2021.
• Former NJPW talent Karl Fredericks made his official debut for WWE’s NXT brand at their NXT house show event this past Friday in Fort Pierce, Florida. Fredericks had signed an official contract with WWE earlier this month.
• Fightful Select reported that Kofi Kingston told them in a recent interview that the reason why WWE’s New Day podcast has been on a hiatus since this past September is due to issues revolving around Big E’s neck injury and his inability to travel. Kingston stated that it is possible they could hold future episodes via Zoom but he feels that their is more magic when they are all together in a single place. It was reported that there have not been any guarantees that the podcast series will return in the future.
• WWE reportedly recently held talks regarding the idea of potentially bringing back The Authors of Pain, Akam and Rezar, to the company in the future, according to Fightful Select.

AEW & ROH

• This past Friday’s WWE SmackDown show featured an extended version of their ad hyping up this Monday’s RAW 30th Anniversary show. Among those shown included AEW’s Chris Jericho. Jericho recently responded on Twitter about being included in WWE’s ad for RAW 30 stating “Pro wrestling transcends any given company. Pro wrestling is about memories….and this video contains some LEGENDARY ones! #WWERaw.”
• During a recent interview with the Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz podcast, Kansas’ singer and keyboardist Ronnie Platt gave his thoughts about The Elite using his band’s song “Carry On Wayward Son” as their entrance theme for trios matches in AEW. Platt stated “That’s the original that they’re using. Then I saw that video where they’re walking out in the stadium, and all the people are going nuts. Oh my god, that was so cool. That’s just good for the band. That’s good promo and really introducing Kansas, even though the kids might not know who the band is or haven’t heard the song before, it really is initiating young people to that music. So that’s all good. We call that job security.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
• As noted before, CM Punk was involved in a backstage fight incident following AEW’s All Out 2022 event this past September and was among those suspended by AEW over this incident. Punk is currently not expected to return to AEW following the company’s recently completed investigation into the incident. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that AEW CEO Tony Khan recently put Punk on “ice” in regards to AEW not considering any plans for a potential return in the future nor a potential release from the company.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that those within the television industry currently believe that Comcast is considering the idea of purchasing Warner Bros Discovery next year. Meltzer reported that should a sale take place, that would put AEW and WWE under the same umbrella for home networks for their weekly television shows.
• This past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite show in Fresno, California featured the main event of the TNT Championship match between KUSHIDA and champion Darby Allin, which was won by Allin. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources stated that AEW’s booking of KUSHIDA was due to a deal they made with New Japan Pro Wrestling to get a date scheduled for him to work in their company. Meltzer reported that KUSHIDA’s booking in AEW was unrelated to his current work and status in Impact Wrestling.
• AEW reportedly generated an attendance of 5,300 (5,100 paid) for their Jan. 18th Dynamite show in Fresno, California, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• During a recent interview with the Insight with Chris Van Vliet podcast, Anthony Bowens gave his thoughts about his tag team partner Max Caster’s raps before their matches in AEW. Bowens stated “I’m grateful to have you know, every time when the siren hits, people lose their minds, because they want to hear what Caster has to say. Because you never know what he’s gonna say, that’s the beauty of him having a live microphone. We hit on just about everything, which seems to make people upset with certain things. But it’s like, if it’s news, we don’t operate within the realm of we have to live in a bubble of just our company. If it’s news, if it’s out there, if it happened, it’s up for grabs. Obviously, if it’s tasteful. But, you know, we will touch on anything, and that’s the way it’s gonna continue to be, so get used to it.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
• Shawn Spears announced on Twitter that his wife and former wrestler Cassie Lee recently gave birth to their first child.
• A recent episode of the FTR with Dax Harwood podcast featured host Harwood giving his thoughts about his time in WWE. Harwood revealed the amounts he was earning while on WWE’s main roster and why the real amount he took in was much lower after expenses not covered by WWE. Harwood stated “If you look back at 2019, I was number one, Baron [Corbin] and Cash [Wheeler] were tied for number two as far as most matches in 2019 for WWE and so we were on the road every single week, four days a week, five days a week, and so when you think I’ve signed this million dollar contract or whatever, it’s not that lucrative. Our contracts were at the very bottom dollar. I mean, I’ll tell you mine. I don’t know about Cash’s. But our first contract for the main roster was $125, $150, $175 (thousand) across the three years and that was it. No expenses at all… There’s the potential of making more than that and breaking that $125 barrier and that $125 ceiling with merch and pay-per-views and stuff like that and house shows as well but that’s what we had signed and that is a lot of money, that’s a lot of money to me right now but you gotta think about it, if I’m on the road five days a week, and I’m spending breakfast, lunch and dinner all five days a week, let’s not even talk about snacks or whatever. Breakfast, lunch and dinner, five days a week on the road while my wife is at home cooking and paying for groceries for her and my daughter and then I’m paying for rental cars and then I’m paying for hotels. I’m not making as much money as you think… When I heard a lot of the fans say, ‘They could’ve just sat back and had catering and made their money,’ it’s not that simple. Money is one thing but there’s always been something that I wanted to do for professional wrestling and being there at that time was not gonna allow me to do that.” (Transcript h/t: PostWrestling.com)
• During the same episode, Harwood also gave his thoughts on Vince McMahon’s recent return to WWE and why McMahon’s return now makes FTR less interested in a potential return to the company in the future. Harwood stated “We got to the back after we won the belts, and we were all proud of the match, all four of us. We were super happy about the match. We come to the back, and Vince is there waiting for us, off his headset. I’m hoping that, since he’s off his headset, he’s gonna tell us, ‘That was incredible. That was a great job. That was storytelling.’ He comes to us and he goes to New Day, and he says, ‘Hey, great job, guys. Thank you, I appreciate it.’ They walk off, he leaves me and Cash there. That’s when he says, ‘Everyone tells me that you guys are the next great tag team. Everyone tells me you’re the next Arn and Tully. Well, that’s your problem. You are the next Arn and Tully. You’re just great wrestlers, that’s all.’ He walks off. I’m like, ‘This son of a bitch thinks that he just hurt my feelings by saying that. But he didn’t. He made my dreams come true by telling me that we’re the next Arn and Tully, that we’re just a tag team, we’re just great wrestlers. He just didn’t like us. He wasn’t enamored with us. I think it had a lot to do with this accent that I have, coming from North Carolina because he’s from North Carolina. His real father grew up in North Carolina. He went to East Carolina, and he hated that whole culture. I think that maybe the accent or maybe just us in general reminded him of that. Maybe he just didn’t like us period. That’s okay too. Maybe he didn’t our work. That’s okay, too. But he didn’t like us for some reason, and he made sure to tell us that that day with our brand-new belts in our hands, on a high. We’ve the first-ever WWE Triple Crown Tag Team Champions, WWE Raw, WWE SmackDown, WWE NXT, no one else had ever done that at the time, except for us. We were so proud of that moment, and he decided to take a shit on us in that moment. That’s the kind of things, as a human being, I will never forget how you try to make people feel. The fans were with us, so obviously we didn’t hurt your business. We went out there, put our life on the line, for you, for your company, and coming back to the back as much endorphins running through our body, and you decide to say that to us. That’s one of the things I can’t ever forget. We talk about what I’m gonna do in the future, and now that I think about that, and with him back at the helm, ah, makes this a little questionable for me.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

Indies & Misc. Wrestling

• Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre’s Sabados De Coliseo event on Saturday in Mexico City, Mexico featured Rocky Romero defeating Volador Jr. to win the NWA World Historic Welterweight Championship.
• Former CMLL talents Negro Casas and Dalys made their surprise official debuts for Lucha Libre AAA at their television tapings on Saturday in Queretaro, Mexico.
• Luchablog reported that AAA officials recently dropped their rule preventing those who book AAA talent for Hijo del Vikingo from being able to air his matches at their events on streaming services. Luchablog also reported that this new change only covers paid streaming events.
• As noted before, former Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and Lucha Libre AAA wrestler Black Warrior passed away earlier this month. Mexcian news outlet Publimetro reported that Black Warrior’s cause of death was revealed to due to a bacteria infection that was discovered in his bloodstream.
• Game Changer Wrestling held a tribute to the late Jay Briscoe at the start of their Don’t Talk To Me event in Concord, North Carolina.
• As noted before, Matt Cardona recently filed a trademark for “Zack Ryder” which was Cardona’s ring name during his time in WWE. During a recent interview with the Love Wrestling podcast, Cardona stated that he currently does not own the rights to his former “Hoeski” he performed in WWE. Cardona stated “Believe it or not, this is the 10-year anniversary for Hoeski this week. Listen, I don’t own the rights to that song. If I did, I would definitely re-release it. But it’s not up to me…. Yeah, it’s all WWE stuff. If they want to re-release it, please! But yeah, unfortunately, it’s not my decision.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
• Major League Wrestling reportedly is currently working on plans to sign more talent to the company within the near future, according to PWInsider. Mike Johnson reported that his sources stated that one of the indie talents currently planned to make his official MLW debut soon is Matthew Justice.
• As noted before, MLW filed an antitrust lawsuit in January of 2022 against WWE claiming that WWE illegally interfered in several of their business deals with television networks and engaged in contract tampering with several of their contracted talent. PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that MLW’s lawyers filed a response on January 17th to the United States District Court, Northern District of California, San Jose Division over WWE’s motion to have a protective order put in place against MLW’s requests for their discovery process based on recent court documents.
• MLW recently announced a new match for the card of their SuperFight 2023 event on February 4th in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This is a Four-way Dumpster match of Real1 vs. Microman vs. Mance Warner vs. mystery opponent.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Stardom drew the second highest paid attendance for their shows in Japan for 2022, only behind New Japan Pro Wrestling. Stardom reportedly drew a total of 84,606 for 114 events (737 average per show) when not counting the co-promoted Historic X-Over event. NJPW reportedly drew a total of 231,768 for 144 events (1,609 average per show) while Dragon Gate was ranked third at 74,498 for 165 events (452 average per show). In regards to all-women’s promotions, Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling was ranked second at 20,652 for 60 events (344 average per show).
• Stardom reportedly generated a paid attendance of 406 for their Jan. 14th Triangle Derby event in Osaka and 454 for their Jan. 15th Triangle Derby event in Osaka, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
• Stardom recently announced the full list of winners for their Stardom Awards 2022 ceremony. In regards to their MVP award, it was announced that Syuri took their top award as their MVP performer for the past year.
• Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that he recently discovered that he had been the victim of a long running hoax regarding his reporting of certain news from Dragon Gate. Meltzer reported “Over the past week, I was alerted that a lot of Dragon Gate information I had received and used last year came from one or two people doing a hoax. During that period I received correspondence from someone who allegedly worked in the company office and from one of the company’s top wrestlers. The hoaxter, who could have been one person or two, largely complained about alleged power gains by Nosawa Rongai in regard to taking more and more control of booking. Nosawa actually was booking the Open the Triangle Gate titles for a time, because the belts were being defended in both Dragon Gate and his home promotion, Pro Wrestling NOAH. There is a lot more I will probably say about this in the future, but it is my job not to fall for these things and I did, and am very unhappy about it. In looking back, I probably should have figured it out and eventually was told information wasn’t real and stopped with it, but did not know it was a hoax as much as I thought it was people with an agenda against Nosawa perhaps embellishing stories. But each corroborated other stories, and while at first, when I checked them out, others close to the company denied the stories. In time, if I would check it out, people didn’t respond and the stories did keep coming. There was a lot of behind-the-curtain news that I didn’t print. What also made it believable is Kaito Ishida was the name of the wrestler, and the person masquerading as Ishida claimed he was unhappy and would be leaving the company. Then Ishida did leave the company and is now wrestling for GLEAT. Then when it became public later he was leaving, the fake Ishida explained why. It was noted to me that Ishida actually doesn’t know English, and I should have checked with people, but in doing so, that would violate me allowing people to know sources. But the information regarding Nosawa and the booking of the company was not true and I apologize for that.” The revelation of Meltzer being hoaxed was first reported by Voices of Wrestling’s Open the Voice Gate podcast series who mentioned a similar hoax attempt against them.
• Bushiroad recently released their third quarter fiscal 2022 report. This report covered the time period of this past July to this past September and revealed that the company generated $11.83 million in revenue and $2.7 million in net profit from their sports division, which contains NJPW and Stardom. It was also stated that the combined revenues from NJPW and Stardom was up 33% compared to the same fiscal quarter last year. (Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter)
• Television ratings data analyst firm Nielsen recently announced the launch of new changes to their Nielsen ONE system to better gauge the viewership of shows in terms of audiences and advertisers. This new system was stated to be able to measure the second-by-second viewership and ratings for shows instead of the current minutes-based system. This new system will also help provide more accurate numbers for advertisers for both traditional television and streaming shows.
• KUSHIDA revealed on Instagram that Mercedes Mone visited his recent wrestling training seminar at NJPW’s LA Dojo in Los Angeles, California.
• WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart recently announced on Twitter that he will be launching a new bar called the Hitman’s Bar this February in Calgary, Canada.
• Deadlock Pro Wrestling recently announced a new match for the card of their You Already Know on February 25th in Raleigh, North Carolina. This is a DPW Women’s Worlds Championship match of Sumi Sakai vs. Emi Sakura (c).