Weekend Roundup: Blair Davenport & Riley Osborne Got Married, Bryan Danielson Health Update, Dalton Castle Injury Update, Giulia Announcement Set for 7/30 Marigold Event, MJF vs. Oku Set for 8/11 RevPro Event, Indies

Indie / Misc

Steve C.

Jul 28, 2024

WWE

WWE announced two new matches for the card of this Monday’s WWE RAW show in St. Paul, Minnesota. The first new match announced was a singles match of Sheamus vs. Bronson Reed. The second new match was announced a tag team match of the Creed Brothers (Julius & Brutus Creed) vs. Akira Tozawa & Otis.
In a follow-up announcement, WWE also announced that a singles match of Xavier Woods vs. Karrion Kross has also been added to the card of this Monday’s RAW show in St. Paul, Minnesota.
In a recent interview with Ringside Collectables, CM Punk gave his thoughts about the potential of his wife and former WWE wrestler AJ Lee making her return to WWE in some form in the future. Punk stated “I’m the wrong guy to ask those questions about. My stance, and I know there’s a lot out there of that, but I certainly am not pushing her to do anything. I think she knows that there’s options. I think she sees how happy I am and how things are different, but if the right situation presented itself, it would have to be a discussion between like her and certain people.I don’t necessarily want to be in the middle of that just because it could get kind of weird. Selfishly I would love to make out with my wife on television again.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In the same interview, CM Punk also gave his thoughts about how he would have never left WWE ten years ago if the company was the way it is now. Punk stated “Yeah, absolutely. To, to a point where I almost don’t like talking about it because everyone thinks I’m just like toeing the company line, you know, but I know if this place is the way it was now, I wouldn’t have left 10 years ago. This is the most basic way I can explain it. Really exciting.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent interview with DAZN, UFC fighter Paddy Pimblett gave his thoughts about his interest in pursing a potential wrestling career in WWE in the future. Pimblett stated “Yes, I have thought about that to be honest. I have because I used to love the WWE growing up. Shawn Michaels, The Heartbreak Kid, is my favorite fighter. I’d love to Sweet Chin Music someone in the cage in the UFC. D-Generation X, when I was even younger, X-Pac was my favorite wrestler. So yeah, I would. WWE pays big money as well, and you’ve got to have a character, you’ve got to have a personality, and I’ve got a personality, so it would work. So yeah, Triple H, if you ever wanted to sign me up, just let me know I’ll make an appearance for some cash.”
As noted before, WWE President Nick Khan sold 22,693 shares of his TKO stock for $2,394,846.54 this past Monday. The Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported that his sources confirmed that the reason for Khan’s stock sale was solely to pay taxes on his stock grants. Those same sources reportedly also stated that all of Khan’s stock sales to date have been only to cover taxes.
This past Friday’s WWE house show event in Tokyo, Japan featured Cody Rhodes being presented the same robe that his late father Dusty wore for his title match against Antonio Inoki for the NWF Championship in 1979 in Japan.
Blair Davenport announced on Instagram that she got married to WWE NXT talent Riley Osborne this past Friday.
This past Friday’s NXT house show event in Davenport, Florida featured TNA Wrestling talent Joe Hendry making a surprise appearance. Hendry teamed with Je’Von Evans & Shiloh Hill in a Six-Man Tag Team match against Gallus (Wolfgang, Joe & Mark Coffey), which was won by Gallus.
As noted before, WWE held a meeting with London mayor Sadiq Khan this past Thursday in London, England for talks about the potential for a future WrestleMania event taking place in the city. Fightful Select’s Sean Ross Sapp reported that his sources stated that WWE officials did not have any plans at the time of potentially running a WrestleMania event in London when John Cena made his speech at last year’s Money in the Bank event in the city. Sapp reported that London city officials became very aware of the demand for the event following the reaction to Cena’s speech causing them to be motivated to show their interest publicly in wanting a future WrestleMania event. In regards to the recent talks between WWE and Khan, Sapp reported that those spoken to stated that the talks were productive but at the moment there are no concrete plans to bring a future WrestleMania event to London.
Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that he currently estimates that WWE’s RAW weekly viewership will average around 6,640,000 viewers on Netflix once the show moves to the service in January of 2025. Meltzer reported that this estimate is based on Netflix’s current subscriber base of over 277 million users and around 75 million of them being in the United States. Meltzer also reported that Netflix’s viewership for RAW would be estimated to be around 37% higher compared to cable television. Meltzer also reported that despite the huge increase in average viewership, this number would be more comparable to around 1,800,000 million viewers on cable television based on how ratings are currently tracked.
WWE’s Money in the Bank 2024 event earlier this month reportedly generated around 7,300 pay-per-view buys based on updated late buys purchases, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Meltzer reported that Money in the Bank 2024’s buys are currently up 22.6% compared to this past June’s Clash at the Castle 2024 event but down compared to last year’s Money in the Bank event, which drew 18,400 buys.
In their recently released fiscal second quarter 2024 report, Comcast announced that NBC Universal’s Peacock streaming service had around 33 million total subscribers at the end of the quarter. This was down by 500,000 subscribers compared to their fiscal first quarter but up compared to the 24 million subscribers for the same fiscal quarter last year. Comcast also stated that Peacock generated a net loss of $348 million for the past fiscal quarter.
As noted before, Vince McMahon filed a motion this past Thursday requesting for the court-ordered pause on Janel Grant’s lawsuit be lifted on a limited basis over his claims that Grant violated the federal stay order after she sought medical records from a WWE Wellness doctor related to her lawsuit. Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that his sources spoken to familiar with the case stated that Grant’s request for medical records did not violate the federal stay order. Those same sources spoken to reportedly stated that this was due to Grant’s Bill of Discovery was filed against Dr. Colker and Peak Wellness who are not defendants in her federal lawsuit. Those spoken to reportedly also stated that Grant’s request was filed as a state action in the Connecticut Superior Court, not in federal court as another reason why she did not actually violate the stay order.
WWE reportedly drew an attendance of 9,193 for their July 19th SmackDown show in Omaha, NE and 6,343 for their July 22nd RAW show in Green Bay, WI, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
WWE reportedly has sold around 11,320 tickets for their July 29th RAW show in St. Paul, MN, 48,595 tickets for their Aug. 3rd SummerSlam 2024 event at the Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, OH, 8,492 tickets for their Aug. 5th RAW show in Baltimore, MD, 7,513 tickets for their Aug. 9th SmackDown show in Tulsa, OK, 11,188 tickets for their Aug. 12th RAW show in Austin, TX, 9,071 tickets for their Aug. 16th SmackDown show in Orlando, FL, 2,728 tickets for their Aug. 17th house show event in Lakeland, FL, 3,186 tickets for their Aug. 18th house show event in Estero, FL, 9,134 tickets for their Aug. 23rd SmackDown show in Washington, DC, 6,249 tickets for their Aug. 26th RAW show in Providence, RI, 11,227 tickets for their Aug. 30th SmackDown show in Berlin, 11,844 tickets for their Aug. 31st Bash in Berlin event in Berlin, Germany, 9,226 tickets for their Sept. 6th SmackDown show in Edmonton, Canada, 6,674 tickets for their Sept. 9th RAW show in Calgary, Canada, 10,494 tickets for their Sept. 13th SmackDown show in Seattle, WA, 8.005 tickets for their Sept. 16th RAW show in Portland, OR, 11,391 tickets for their Sept. 20th SmackDown show in Sacramento, CA, and 8,365 tickets for their Sept. 23rd RAW show in Ontario, CA as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Dave Meltzer reported in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter that the current tickets sales for WWE’s SummerSlam 2024 event will end up as the largest live gate for a non-WrestleMania wrestling event in North American history and the second most-attended SummerSlam event in SummerSlam history, only behind the 1992 event at Wembley Stadium in London, England.

AEW & ROH

Fightful Select’s Sean Ross Sapp reported that his sources stated that Danielson’s promo was not just for storyline purposes and instead is a legitimate medical restriction he currently has for in-ring work in AEW. Those spoken to reportedly confirmed that Danielson has been dealing with physical health issues causing AEW officials to change their original plans for Danielson ahead of his AEW World title match against Swerve Strickland at next month’s AEW All In 2024 event. In regards to Danielson’s expiring contract, Sapp reported that the current plan is for Danielson to continue working for AEW for several additional dates after his current wrestling contract expires. Sapp also reported that the current expectation is that Danielson will transition to a part-time in-ring role or even possibly step back completely from in-ring wrestling once his current run ends.
Saturday’s AEW Collision show in Arlington, Texas featured AEW announcing that Shane Taylor suffered an injury at this past Friday’s ROH Death Before Dishonor 2024 event and is currently not medically cleared to compete. No other details were given regarding the nature nor severity of Taylor’s injury.
Saturday’s AEW Collision show also featured AEW confirming that the August 3rd Collision show will be airing at an earlier start time of 5PM EST on TNT. The reason for the preemption is due to AEW and TNT wanting to avoid this week’s show from going head-to-head against WWE’s SummerSlam 2024 event that night.
Saturday’s AEW Battle of the Belts XI show in Arlington, Texas featured Dustin Rhodes & The Von Erichs defeating The Undisputed Kingdom to become the new ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions. Rhodes reflected earlier today on Twitter about his title victory and getting to reunite with the Von Erich family in the ring. Rhodes stated “After years of hard work…… I have won my first title in a long time with a very special set of circumstances. 2 royal families together as your New @ringofhonor World 6 man Champions! @RossVonErich@MarshallVonEric@AEW Proud that I #KeptSteppin“
As noted before, Dalton Castle been out of action for AEW and Ring of Honor since earlier this month due to a head-related injury and is currently expected to remain out of action for the rest of 2024. Dave Meltzer reported in Sunday’s episode of the Wrestling Observer Radio that his sources stated that Castle had suffered a torn triceps injury.
AEW recently announced one new segment for the July 31st AEW Dynamite show at the Ben Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. This new segment announced was a Mariah May sit-down interview with Renee Paquette segment.
In a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, Swerve Strickland gave his thoughts about his belief of Bryan Danielson being the greatest wrestler of all-time. Strickland stated “Bryan’s not just experienced, he’s the greatest of all time. That’s who I’m going up against–a first-ballot Hall of Famer. I’ve never faced anyone like him. But he’s never faced anyone like me. I’m so proud of what we’re doing for the Pacific Northwest. We’re both from Washington. There’s me and Darby, and I know the people from DEFY are proud of that, and Bryan Danielson, who has been doing it at a high level a lot longer than us. Now we’re main-eventing one of the bigger shows of the year. There is a lot of Pacific Northwest pride going into that.“
In a recent interview with Ringside Collectables, Darby Allin gave his thoughts about how Jack Perry’s backstage incident with CM Punk at last year’s AEW All In event helped Perry find his niche and groove as a heel performer. Allin stated “No, it’s really interesting because I felt like last year, Jack Perry was going to All In as a heel, but I really didn’t feel like he like found his niche. Unfortunately, he did what he did, but weirdly enough, I feel like that actually made him find his niche. They say wrestling’s the best when you’re yourself turned up to 100, and he’s just a douchebag, so it’s kind of cool that he can just be his normal self.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent interview with Ringside Collectables, Britt Baker gave her thoughts about her match against Hikaru Shida at this past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite show being her first match in over ten months due to a mini-stroke health incident. Baker stated “So wait, I didn’t just have a return match. They threw me into the fire. They said, here, your first match back, you’re gonna wrestle the longest-reigning Women’s Champion ever, (Hikaru) Shida. So I was so nervous for that match and I am so sore today. I woke up and I was like, ‘Oh my God, my head hurts, my neck hurts, my back’ but, I miss that so much. I missed the aches and pains and everything in-between and I mean, hey, that’s a hell of a win to start out off on is Shida. That’s no joke and every match with Shida is a battle so I’m happy I came out on top and I’m happy I’m standing today. Physically able to stand. It’s great.” (Transcript h/t: PostWrestling.com)
In a recent virtual fan signing event for Signed By Superstars, WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart stated that AEW has yet to contact him for a potential appearance for their Owen Hart Foundation Cup tournaments. Hart stated “No. Never asked me.” Hart also gave his thoughts about if he were asked by AEW for an appearance, he would likely turn it down due to him not wanting to upset WWE. Hart stated “I’d have to think about it. I like Tony. I’d be happy to help out. I don’t know if I would want to go down. I think it might ruffle WWE’s feathers. I get everything tied in through them. Then again, it can’t hurt to ask.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent interview with Sportskeeda’s WrestleBinge podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Scott Steiner gave his thoughts about if he has watched AEW shows. Steiner stated “I try to watch some stuff sometimes. I don’t have a whole lot of time.” Steiner also gave his thoughts about his praise of AEW being another place for wrestlers to work at only to then give bigger praise to WWE and criticized AEW’s bigger focus on matches over storylines for their shows. Steiner stated “It’s great for another place for the guys to work. Competition’s always good for the business. But there’s no doubt that WWE is hot right now. They got the fan interest. That’s what’s most important. The thing is, you just can’t have matches. Nobody gives a shit if they’re just matches with no storyline. You’re throwing two guys together…No, [it doesn’t work.]” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent interview with Denise Salcedo, Willow Nightingale gave her thoughts about having someone of the big star status of Mercedes Mone be in AEW’s locker room. Nightingale stated “She is definitely an intimidating aura because she does bring all this star power. She can definitely run her mouth, and she talks her smack. At the end of the day, she is very pro-AEW, women’s division, and helps push us forward. I’ve seen people write down the data, ‘Since Mercedes got here, you can see how much more time the women have on-screen.’ At the end of the day, she’s a cheerleader for us all. I appreciate that. We’re all pushing forward together. For her to take the helm and help us get that, I think it’s sick as hell.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
As noted before, the NBA recently rejected an offer submitted by Warner Bros Discovery and TNT Sports to match the media rights B package that is currently held by Amazon for their Amazon Prime service. Following the NBA’s statement, WBD responded stating that they would consider taking legal action against the NBA over issues related to the terms of their current deal with the league. WBD filed a lawsuit against the NBA this past Friday before the New York Supreme Court. Following the filing of the lawsuit, TNT Sports issued an official statement on Twitter stating “Given the NBA’s unjustified rejection of our matching of a third-party offer, we have taken legal action to enforce our rights. We strongly believe this is not just our contractual right, but also in the best interest of fans who want to keep watching our industry-leading NBA content with the choice and flexibility we offer them through our widely distributed WBD video-first distribution platforms – including TNT and Max.” It is currently not known how WBD’s lawsuit and on-going legal issues with the NBA will impact the status of their current talks with AEW for a potential new media rights deal.
AEW reportedly is currently estimated to have generated around 118,000 to 125,000 pay-per-view buys for this past June’s AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door 2024 event based on updated estimates and late buys purchases, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Dave Meltzer reported that Forbidden Door 2024’s buys are currently down 12.6% compared to this past May’s Double or Nothing 2024 event based on the same number of days after the event.
Dave Meltzer issued a correction in this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter stating that Bryan Danielson will become the fifth and not fourth wrestler ever to compete in a match at Madison Square Garden, Wembley Stadium, Arena Mexico, and the Tokyo Dome in a wrestling career since Juice Robinson was the actual fourth person to achieve that milestone. Meltzer reported that this list could grow to as large as ten people in total should Mark Briscoe, Kazuchika Okada, Jay Lethal, Tomohiro Ishii, and Zack Sabre Jr. also work at this year’s All In 2024 event.
AEW reportedly drew an attendance of 1,268 for their July 20th Collision show in Arlington, TX and 5,009 for their July 24th Dynamite Blood & Guts 2024 show in Nashville, TN, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
AEW reportedly has sold around 1,995 tickets for their July 31st Dynamite show in Greenville, SC, 363 tickets for their Aug. 1st Collision show in Arlington, TX, 1,634 tickets for their Aug. 7th Dynamite show in Winston-Salem, NC, 512 tickets for their Aug. 10th Collision show in Arlington, TX, 1,612 tickets for their Aug, 14th Dynamite show in Norfolk, VA, 536 tickets for their Aug. 17th Collision show in Arlington, TX, 3,197 tickets for their Aug. 21st Dynamite show in Cardiff, Wales, 42,155 tickets for their Aug. 25th All In 2024 event at Wembley Stadium in London, England, 851 tickets for their Aug. 28th Dynamite show in Champaign, IL, 1,181 tickets for their Aug. 31st Collision show in Sioux Falls, SD, 1,444 tickets for their Sept. 4th Dynamite show in Milwaukee, WI, 5,247 tickets for their Sept. 7th All Out 2024 event in Hoffman Estates, IL, and 3,364 tickets for their Sept. 25th Dynamite Grand Slam 2024 show at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, NY as of this past Thursday, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
During this past Friday’s ROH Death Before Dishonor 2024 post-show media scrum, Ring of Honor owner Tony Khan gave his thoughts about the potential of him rebranding ROH into AEW: ROH as a way to help grow the ROH brand under his ownership. Khan stated “I recognize that AEW is at the very top of pro wrestling. The ROH brand could frankly benefit from even more association. I don’t think it’s out of the question to say or sacrilegious to say. I think it would only help grow the ROH brand if I were to license it, sublicense, if it were AEW ROH. I don’t think that’s a crazy thing or sacrilegious or bad. I think it would be good for everybody. People would see more of the connectivity that exists between promotions and what we’re going for.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)

TNA, NJPW, Indies, & Misc. Wrestling

In a recent interview with Tokyo Sports, Marigold owner Rossy Ogawa stated that Giulia’s time in the company and her wrestling career in Japan is nearing its end. Ogawa stated “It’s true that Giulia doesn’t have that much time (in Japan). I’m not sure how many matches she has left, but it might be best to think of this as the last time you’ll see her at each venue.” In the article, Tokyo Sports reported that their sources stated that Marigold’s upcoming event on July 30th in Tokyo, Japan is currently expected to be Giulia’s final date with the company and of her current career in Japan. Those same sources reportedly also stated that Giulia is currently expected to travel to the United States this August and report to WWE’s Performance Center.
Following Ogawa’s comments, Giulia provided an update on Twitter stating that she will be making an announcement at Marigold’s event this Tuesday regarding the future of her career with Marigold and her wrestling career. Giulia stated “I have an announcement to make to everyone at Korakuen Hall! Let me say it with my own mouth and look into your faces.“
PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that his sources stated that WWE Hall of Famer Abdullah the Butcher has been hospitalized for the past week in Georgia. Johnson reported that the reason for Abdullah’s hospitalization is due to him currently dealing with an intestinal issue.
Marigold announced that they have pulled Utami Hayashisita from this week’s set of events in Japan due to her currently suffering from enteritis, which is an inflammation of the small intestine,
Marigold reportedly drew a paid attendance of 284 for their July 20th Summer Gold Shine event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Sunday’s Sapporo Wonder Rendezvous event for Stardom in Sapporo, Japan featured Natsuko Tora defeating Maika to become the new World of Stardom Champion. Following the match, Tora gave a promo and officially disbanded her Oedo Tai faction to form a new faction called “HATE.” Tora stated that this new faction would consist of herself, Saya Kamitani, Konami, Thekla, Rina, Momo Watanabe, and Ruaka.
Stardom reportedly drew a paid attendance of 301 for their July 21st event in Chiba and 1,017 for their July 23rd Nighter in Korakuen event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Sunday’s RevPro Live in Coventry event for Revolution Pro Wrestling in Coventry, England featured MJF making a surprise video appearance. During his video promo, MJF called out current RevPro Undisputed British Heavyweight Champion Michael Oku and issued a challenge to Oku putting his AEW American Championship on the line at RevPro’s Summer Sizzle 2024 event on August 11th in London, England.
Sunday’s Chapter 169: The Devil On My Shoulder event for PROGRESS Wrestling in London, England featured Luke Jacobs defeating Kid Lykos to become the new PROGRESS World Champion.
New Japan Pro Wrestling reportedly drew a paid attendance of 4,177 for their July 20th G1 Climax 2024 event in Osaka, 2,545 for their July 21st G1 Climax 2024 event in Osaka, 1,972 for their July 23rd G1 Climax 2024 event in Hiroshima, and 1,219 for their July 25th G1 Climax 2024 event in Takanatsu, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Dragon Gate reportedly drew a paid attendance of 4,795 for their July 21st Kobe World Festival 2024 event in Kobe, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
DDT Pro Wrestling reportedly drew a paid attendance of 4,131 for their July 21st Peter Pan 2024 event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Consejo Mundial De Lucha Libre reportedly drew an attendance of over 6,000 for their July 23rd Martes De Arena Mexico event in Mexico City, Mexico, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
All Japan Pro Wrestling reportedly drew a paid attendance of 1,341 for their July 20th Summer Action Series 2024 event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Pro Wrestling NOAH reportedly drew a paid attendance of 903 for their July 21st Star Navigation 2024 event in Tokyo, Japan, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling reportedly drew a paid attendance of 873 for their July 20th Summer Sun Princess ’24 event in Tokyo, Japan according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
TNA Wrestling reportedly drew an attendance of 1,200 for their July 21st Impact tapings in Montreal, Canada, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Dave Meltzer reported that TNA had sold around 1,500 tickets for the tapings. Meltzer also reported that due to TNA’s four-hour long tapings session that ran from 5PM to 9PM that night, many people started leaving after the 7PM mark.

Wrestling TV Ratings for Week of July 19 to July 25, 2024

WWE Friday Night SmackDown – 2,313,000 viewers, 0.65 rating (prior week – 2,355,000 viewers, 0.70 rating)
WWE RAW – 1,790,000 viewers, 0.59 rating (prior week – 1,669,000 viewers, 0.56 rating)
WWE NXT – 633,000 viewers, 0.19 rating (prior week – 610,000 viewers, 0.20 rating)
AEW Rampage – 284,000 viewers, 0.10 rating (prior week – 339,000 viewers, 0.12 rating)
AEW Collision – 472,000 viewers, 0.15 rating (prior week – 362,000 viewers, 0.14 rating)
AEW Dynamite – 786,000 viewers, 0.26 rating (prior week – 795,000 viewers, 0.27 rating)
TNA Wrestling Impact! – N/A (prior week – N/A)
Various – Biography: WWE Legends (A&E) – 208,000 viewers, 0.05 rating (prior week – 160,000 viewers, 0.04 rating)
Various – WWE Most Wanted Treasures – N/A (prior week – 158,000 viewers, 0.06 rating)

Total wrestling television viewership for the week: 6,486,000 viewers, up 38,000 viewers from the prior week’s 6,448,000 viewers.

The viewership and ratings numbers for the July 18th and July 25th TNA Impact! shows are currently not known.

A&E did not air a new episode of WWE Most Wanted Treasures on July 21st.