Author: John Bass

MLW Fusion Preview 1/5/2023

MLW FUSION tonight at 8pm ET streaming worldwide on Pro Wrestling TV and Saturday 8pm ET nationwide on cable television on beIN SPORTS. 

This week’s card:

  • Willie Mack vs Jacob Fatu
  • Microman, Laredo Kid & Kommander vs. Gino, Taurus, Mini Abismo Negro 

The Mack goes Major League in the new year as Willie Mack makes his debut against Jacob Fatu!

Can Willie Mack knock off the unstoppable Samoan Werewolf and kick off 2023 by hotshotting himself into the title mix? Will Fatu bulldoze another top level veteran and send a definitive statement to Hammerstone as rumors swirl of an imminent Battle Riot cash in? 

EJ Nduka flexes for more cash and puts the Last Man Standing match in jeopardy.

Nearly a year in the making and the stakes have never been higher for Micromania as an enraged and vengeful Gino Medina challenges Microman to trios action. The catch? The loser leaves MLW!

Ol’ Mancer does unboxing and shows off his favorite Christmas gift.

Alex Kane fields offers from promoters around the world to bring the Opera Cup international while a Bulldog sets his sights on the Bomaye Fight Club captain. 

IMPACT Wrestling Preview 1/5/2023

Just eight nights away from Hard To Kill, don’t miss an all-new IMPACT! this Thursday at 8/7c on AXS TV and 8:30pm ET on YouTube for IMPACT Insiders!

  • Impact Wrestling Tag Team Champion Chris Sabin vs. Matt Cardona.
  • The debuting Anthony Greene vs. Black Taurus.
  • Masha Slamovich vs. Taylor Wilde.
  • Jonathan Gresham vs. Jack Price

NJPW & Pro Wrestling NOAH Announce Joint Show For This Month – Wrestle Kingdom 17 Part 2

New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) and Pro Wrestling NOAH have announced a joint show for January 21. The show is being called Wrestle Kingdom 17 Part Two and will go down from the Yokohama Arena.

This was hinted at when NOAH’s KONGO faction confronted Los Ingobernables de Japon backstage at Wrestle Kingdom 17. No matches have been announced as of this writing.

Source: ewrestlingnews

XFL Announces 2023 Schedule Ahead Of Next Month’s Kickoff

The Rock’s XFL football league will relaunch next month, with its games airing across various ESPN networks as well as ABC. The following presser was issued:

Season kicks off on Saturday, February 18, 2023, at 3 pm ET on ABC with
the Vegas Vipers facing the Arlington Renegades at Choctaw Stadium

Opening weekend matchups include:
Feb. 18: Orlando Guardians vs. Houston Roughnecks at TDECU Stadium
(8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN & FX);
Feb. 19: St. Louis Battlehawks vs. San Antonio Brahmas at The Alamodome
(3 p.m. ET, ABC);
Feb. 19: Seattle Sea Dragons vs. D.C. Defenders at Audi Field
(8 p.m. ET, ESPN)

Season tickets now available and single game tickets on sale starting January 12, 2023.
For more information, please visit: www.xfl.com/tickets.

Arlington, TX and Bristol, CT – January 5, 2023 – The XFL today announced its 2023 schedule in partnership with The Walt Disney Company and ESPN, the exclusive broadcast partner of the XFL.

Key details:

  • All 43 XFL games (40 regular season games, two playoffs, one championship) will be featured on a combination of ABC (7 games), ESPN and ESPN2 (22 games), and FX (15 games).
  • All XFL games will be streamed on ESPN+ and simulcasted in 142 countries around the world.

“Through the global scale and support of Disney and ESPN, our fans will have multiple options to access and experience the XFL across broadcast, cable, and streaming,” said Russ Brandon, XFL President, “With six weeks until kickoff, we are excited about our partnership and the immersive game day viewing experience that our collaboration will provide viewers.”

Tim Reed, ESPN Vice President, Programming & Acquisitions, added, “Throughout the 2023 XFL season, each platform will have unique opportunities to showcase key moments, from the Championship on ABC, Playoffs on ESPN and ESPN2 and a big opening weekend with games on ESPN, ABC and FX. We are also excited to provide another innovative offering for ESPN+ subscribers, with every game available live.”

The eight XFL teams are split into two divisions: XFL North (D.C. Defenders, Seattle Sea Dragons, St. Louis Battlehawks, Vegas Vipers) and XFL South (Arlington Renegades, Houston Roughnecks, Orlando Guardians, San Antonio Brahmas).

“The alignment of our divisions creates instant rivalries and an added level of excitement,” added Brandon. “Fans at every XFL game will experience the energy and passion these players bring to the game while being immersed in a stadium experience designed to bring them closer to the action on the field.”

Opening weekend will kick off on Saturday, February 18, with the Arlington Renegades hosting the Vegas Vipers at Choctaw Stadium on ABC starting at 3 pm ET. Additional opening weekend matchups include:

  • Saturday, February 18: Orlando Guardians vs. Houston Roughnecks at TDECU Stadium at 8:30 pm ET on ESPN/FX and ESPN+
  • Sunday, February 19: St. Louis Battlehawks vs. San Antonio Brahmas at The Alamodome; at 3 pm ET on ABC and ESPN+
  • Sunday. February 19: Seattle Sea Dragons vs. D.C. Defenders at Audi Field in primetime at 8 pm ET on ESPN and ESPN+

ESPN will also televise the 2023 XFL Playoffs, which will take place on Saturday, April 29, and Sunday, April 30, on ESPN and ESPN2, respectively, and streamed on ESPN+. The XFL Championship game is set for Saturday, May 13, at 3 pm ET on ABC and streamed on ESPN+.

The Vegas Vipers will play their home games at Cashman Field, a 10,000-seat venue in downtown Las Vegas. Fans will have access to parking, concessions, and tailgating areas before Vipers games during the season. For more details about the venue and season ticket deposits, please visit www.xfl.com/teams/las-vegas. Single-game tickets will go on sale at a future date.

Season tickets are now available for purchase at XFL.com/tickets, and single-game tickets for all teams other than Vegas will go on sale on January 12, 2023. Season tickets have two membership levels, gold and silver, which include exclusive benefits such as priority access to fan events, game day access to on-field experiences, merchandise discounts, and much more.

For more information on the 2023 schedules and broadcast details, please visit www.xfl.com/schedule.

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s Demands Soured Warner Bros. Relationship

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson may be the People’s Champion, but those at Warner Bros. aren’t sharing the love.

Last year, Black Adam, a project Johnson had been tied to for over a decade, underperformed at the box office, earning $391 million from its $260 million budget.

Following the film’s release, Johnson unfollowed both the social media accounts for Black Adam and Warner Bros, and there were reports of conflict.

Variety reports that The Rock, along with Black Adam producers Hiram Garcia and Beau Flynn, “ruffled feathers” after they “went around everyone” to pitch their plans for Black Adam and Henry Cavill’s Superman.

Things got worse between Johnson and Warner Bros as expenses on Black Adam’s production grew, including Johnson demanding a tequila bar featuring his brand, Teremana, be set up for the film’s premiere.

One source who spoke to Variety explained that “his demands increased and the returns just weren’t there.”

While a post-credits scene sets up a Black Adam sequel, many believe that Black Adam will not receive a follow-up.

Source: ewrestlingnews

AEW Dynamite Preview 1/4/2023

AEW Dynamite will air live tonight on TBS, and emanate from the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA. Tonight’s show is the start of a new look and feel, as a new era begins.

  • Ricky Starks vs. Chris Jericho
  • TNT Championship Match: Samoa Joe (c) vs. Darby Allin
  • AEW Tag Team Championship Match: The Acclaimed (c) vs. Jeff Jarrett & Jay Lethal
  • Bryan Danielson vs. Tony Nese
  • Jade Cargill & Red Velvet vs. Kiera Hogan & Skye Blue
  • Swerve Strickland vs. AR Fox
  • MJF to appear
  • Jon Moxley promo
  • Medical update on Hangman Page

William Regal Is Officially Back With WWE

William Regal is back with WWE following his departure from All Elite Wrestling.

Regal had an opt-out clause in his AEW contract, but AEW President Tony Khan had an option earlier than that, allowing Regal to leave the company early as requested. Regal wanted to return to WWE to be with his son in NXT and work with Triple H again.

Pwinsider.com reported that Regal made his return to WWE this morning. Regal has taken on a Vice President role in the company.

Source: ewrestlingnews

Mercedes Mone (Sasha Banks) Makes NJPW Debut At Wrestle Kingdom 17

It is indeed ‘Boss Time’ at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 as Sasha Banks has made her debut for the promotion.

In the second match of the main card, IWGP Women’s Champion KAIRI retained her title against Tam Nakano.

Post-match, Banks, now going by the name Mercedes Mone, appeared and posed in the ring, before challenging KAIRI to a Women’s Championship match.

Mone would attack KAIRI and vow to leave the IWGP Women’s Champion bankrupt when they face off for the title.

The match between KAIRI and Mone has been set for NJPW Battle in the Valley on February 18 in San Jose, California.

Mone’s arrival was later shared via tweet by the NJPW Global account.

Source: ewrestlingnews

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 (Results) 1/4/2023

  • Ryohei Oiwa vs. Boltin Oleg ended in a three-minute draw
  • SHO, Great-O-Khan, Toru Yano, and Shingo Takagi win the New Japan Rambo to advance to the KOPW Championship match at New Year’s Dash
    • Participants in order: SHO, Hikuleo, EVIL, Tomohiro Ishii, Great-O-Khan, DOUKI, Rocky Romero, KENTA, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Aaron Henare, Ryusuke Taguchi, Jeff Cobb, Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls, Yujiro Takahashi, Toru Yano, El Phantasmo, Taichi, Shingo Takagi
  • Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata & Togi Makabe def. Minoru Suzuki, Tatsumi Fujinami & Tiger Mask
  • IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship: Catch 22 (Francesco Akira & TJP) (c) def. CHAOS (Lio Rush & YOH)
  • IWGP Women’s Championship: KAIRI (c) def. Tam Nakano
    • Mercedes Mone’ (fka Sasha Banks) appeared, attacked KAIRI, and officially challenged her to an IWGP Women’s Championship match at NJPW Battle in the Valley on February 18
  • IWGP Tag Team Championship: Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) def. FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) (c)
    • Bishamon are the new IWGP Tag Team Champions
  • NJPW World TV Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. def. Ren Narita
    • Zack Sabre Jr. is the first NJPW World TV Champion
    • Zack Sabre Jr. joined TMDK after the match
  • NEVER Openweight Championship: Tama Tonga def. Karl Anderson (c)
    • Tama Tonga is the new NEVER Openweight Champion
  • Shota Umino, Keiji Muto & Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, BUSHI & SANADA)
  • IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Hiromu Takahashi def. Master Wato, El Desperado, and Taiji Ishimori (c)
    • Hiromu Takahashi is the new IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion
  • IWGP United States Championship: Kenny Omega def. Will Ospreay (c)
    • Kenny Omega is the new IWGP United States Champion
  • IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada def. Jay White (c)
    • Kazuchika Okada is the new IWGP World Heavyweight Champion
    • Shingo Takagi challenged Okada to a IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 (Card) 1/4/2023

  • Date: January 4, 2023
  • Location: Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan
  • The event will stream on NJPW World at 3 am ET / 12 am PT for the main card

CARD

EXHIBITION MATCH:
Ryohei Oiwa vs. Boltin Oleg

NEW JAPAN RANBO:
Participants TBA

ANTONIO INOKI MEMORIAL SIX-MAN TAG TEAM MATCH:
Yuji Nagata, Satoshi Kojima and Togi Makabe vs. Tatsumi Fujinami, Minoru Suzuki and Tiger Mask

IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Catch 2/2 (T.J. Perkins and Francesco Akira) (c) vs. LiYoh (Lio Rush and Yoh)

IWGP WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Kairi (c) vs. Tam Nakano

IWGP TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
FTR (c) vs. Bishamon (Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi)

NJPW WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ren Narita

NEVER OPENWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Karl Anderson (c) vs. Tama Tonga

SIX-MAN TAG TEAM MATCH:
Keiji Muto, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Shota Umino vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, Sanada and Bushi)
* This is Muto’s last NJPW match *

IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP FOUR-WAY MATCH:
Taiji Ishimori (c) vs. El Desperado vs. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Master Wato

IWGP UNITED STATES HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Will Ospreay (c) vs. Kenny Omega

IWGP WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Jay White (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada