Author: John Bass

WWE Reportedly Making “A Strong Play” At Jay White

Following his defeat to Kota Ibushi at the main event of day two of Wrestle Kingdom 15 for the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Titles, Jay White said in the post-match press conference that he simply was done with pro wrestling and just wanted to go home after the sacrifices he made.

Many believed this to be an angle. However, the Super J-Cast is reporting that their sources of told them that there is doubt whether White would extend his NJPW contract and that WWE are making “a strong play for him.” They also reported that it is currently “50/50” as to whether he stays or leaves NJPW.

“Several sources have indicated there is some doubt whether Jay White will extend his NJPW contract, rumoured to be up at the end of the month,” Super J-Cast wrote. “WWE are believed to be making a strong play for him and it’s 50/50 whether he stays or goes.”

White has some connections in WWE as Finn Balor and Shinsuke Nakamura were part of a group that recruited him to NJPW. White has stated in the past that signing with WWE was not on his radar.

You can view the Super J-Cast’s tweet below:

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Bullet Club Reunion In AEW – Will The Name Be Used In AEW?

Impact stars Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson have made their All Elite Wrestling debuts and reunited with some former Bullet Club buddies.

It all went down on this week’s New Year’s Smash edition of Dynamite following the main event in which AEW World Champion Kenny Omega defeated Rey Fenix.

After the bell, Omega’s associate Don Callis got on the mic and declared Fenix’s career over. Omega was about to attack Fenix when Jon Moxley appeared to make the save. But Mox’s upper hand was short-lived.

Impact tag champs The Good Brothers then shocked everyone by making their AEW debuts and rescuing their old Bullet Club colleague. Omega, Gallows, and Anderson beat the hell out of Moxley for some time, until The Young Bucks appeared and pleaded for some decorum.

The show went off the air with all four former Bullet Club members participating in a four-way “Too Sweet” salute.

The question now is will they be able to use the Bullet Club name in AEW. Karl Anderson is a founding member of Bullet Club in New Japan Pro Wrestling. Bullet Club is still a group in NJPW.

The Good Brothers will be returning to NJPW at some point – Speaking to GameSpot’s Wrestle Buddies podcast the Good Brothers confirm that they will be returning to New Japan. In fact, there’s already a deal between the two sides to make it happen. “For sure. There’s a deal in place,” Anderson said. Gallows added, “Yeah, we’re going.”

The Bullet club name wasn’t mentioned during Wednesday Night’s episode of Dynamite. The Good Brother and Omega have mentioned the Bullet Club name on episodes of Impact. So it will be interesting to see if they will use/mention the Bullet Club name in AEW.

MLW Kings of Colosseum Preview 1/6/21

MLW returns TONIGHT at 7pm ET with Kings of Colosseum, featuring a double main event available on Fubo Sports, Roku Channel, DAZN and YouTube.  Learn more about where to watch.

•World Middleweight Championship: Myron Reed (c) vs. Lio Rush
•National Openweight Championship: Alexander Hammerstone(c) vs. Mads Krügger
•Tornado World Tag Team Championship: Ross & Marshall Von Erich (c) vs. Colonel Parker’s Dirty Blondes (managed by Aria Blake)
•Grudge Match: Jordan Oliver vs. Simon Gotch

It’s a FREE marquee event from Major League Wrestling as newlawoffice.com presents Kings Of Colosseum.

The double main event sees a battle between MLW’s emerging franchise against CONTRA’s 7-foot masked mercenary.

After being put on the injured list at the hands of Mads Krügger, National Openweight Champion Alex Hammerstone looks to drop the hammer on “The Black Hand of CONTRA” with the title on the line!

Will CONTRA’s mercenary put the champ in a body bag and walk away with the belt, or will Hammerstone take out the vile CONTRA commander and move one step closer to a shot at Jacob Fatu’s World Heavyweight Title?

The highly anticipated World Middleweight Championship fight between defending champ Myron Reed and challenger Lio Rush headlines a double main event. “The Young GOAT” Myron Reed has run through the best from Japan to Mexico and all points in-between, but he has yet to battle Lio Rush. The Man of the Hour believes it is his time to shine with gold.

Can “The Young GOAT” stay true to his moniker and take down “The MOTH”, thereby defining his legacy and staking his claim as king of the division? Or will “The Moneyweight” add the World Middleweight championship to his extraordinary and growing list of accomplishments?

Ross and Marshall Von Erich put the World Tag titles on the line against Colonel Parker’s Dirty Blondes, in a Tornado Tag Title fight! The Colonel has relentlessly petitioned for a title fight against The Von Erichs, and he gets his wish at Kings of Colosseum!

9 months in the making, Injustice’s Jordan Oliver looks to take out CONTRA’s elite grappler, Simon Gotch! It’s a grudge match!

After celebrating his Opera Cup win, “Filthy” Tom Lawlor returns with a proclamation of his own. What does the Filthy One have in store? Tune in to find out!

Amidst chaos and corruption, Salina de la Renta has promised a bombshell announcement!

Join Rich Bocchini, fight analyst Jared St. Laurent, and backstage correspondent Alicia Atout for a night of top-ranked championship fights as Major League Wrestling presents Kings of Colosseum.

AEW Dynamite ‘New Year’s Smash’ Night 1 Preview 1/6/21

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite New Year’s Smash Night 1 episode airs on TNT at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida.

* Kenny Omega (c) w/ Don Callis vs. Rey Fenix w/ Penta El Zero Miedo (AEW World Championship)

* The return of Jon Moxley

* Hikaru Shida (c) vs. Abadon (AEW Women’s World Championship)

* AEW World Tag Team Champions Young Bucks and SCU vs. The Acclaimed and The Hybrid 2

* Cody Rhodes vs. Matt Sydal

* Jake Hager vs. Wardlow

* Sting appears

* Weigh In for next week’s Brian Cage vs. TNT Champion Darby Allin match

* Chris Jericho on commentary

* Special guest: Snoop Dogg

WWE NXT ‘New Year’s Evil’ Preview 1/6/21

Tonight’s WWE NXT episode on the USA Network will be the New Year’s Evil special, the first show of 2021 for the brand.

Host: Dexter Lumis

NXT Title Match
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Finn Balor (c)
Commercial-free from bell to bell.

NXT Cruiserweight Title Match
Gran Metalik vs. Santos Escobar (c)

Last Woman Standing Match
Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Gonzalez

Karrion Kross with Scarlett vs. Damian Priest
Commercial-free from bell to bell.

Xia Li and Boa return from their transformation

It looks like the Fight Pit II bout has been pulled from tonight’s event.

The Fight Pit structure was scheduled to return tonight for Tommaso Ciampa vs. Timothy Thatcher, but the match has been pulled from the WWE website. Furthermore, the official NXT Twitter account has removed a recent tweet announcing the match.

Fight Pit
Tommaso Ciampa vs. Timothy Thatcher

Chris Jericho Receives Inscribed official Stryper Platinum Album

Chris Jericho received his very own inscribed official Stryper Platinum Album for ‘To Hell with The Devil’ from Stryper frontman Michael Sweet.

Jericho wrote on Facebook:

“Thanks to Michael Sweet & @champagnesweet1 for my very own inscribed official Stryper platinum album for #ToHellWithTheDevil!!! What an honour to receive this from the band who I first saw live in Fargo, North Dakota in 1988. I even snuck into their meet and greet and grabbed a Bible…who knew that 32 years later I would receive this in the mail!!!”

Several Advertised Stars Did Not Appear For WWE Legends Night, Carlito Reacts

Several stars did not appear for last night’s Legends Night edition of WWE RAW, despite being advertised ahead of time.

The WWE Hall of Famers and Legends who did appear for various cameos during the show, and on the stage to watch WWE Champion Drew McIntyre retain over Keith Lee in the main event, were Irwin R. Schyster (IRS), Melina, Jeff Jarrett, Jimmy Hart, Molly Holly, Booker T, Alicia Fox, Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Torrie Wilson, Big Show, Mickie James, Mark Henry, Ron Simmons, Teddy Long, Sgt. Slaughter, and Tatanka.

Stars who were advertised but did not appear were Beth Phoenix, Candice Michelle, Carlito, Eve Torres, Hillbilly Jim, Ivory, Jacqueline, Kurt Angle, and Michael “PS” Hayes.

Carlito was one of the most anticipated returns for Legends Night and WWE had previously confirmed his appearance on social media and their website. There’s no word yet on why he never appeared but as seen in the tweet below, he tweeted a shrug GIF in response to the show:

Update

According to Wrestling Inc., Carlito was never officially booked for the show at all. WWE sent feelers out to a variety of talents, including Carlito, and someone internally in WWE apparently simply jumped the gun announcing his appearance. This was not an issue of travel problems or him being held up due to COVID-19 precautions.

We’re told there is no bad blood over the errant announcement since it appears to have just been a communication error.

Carlito’s appearance on RAW would have been his first RAW appearance in over ten years. His last appearance for WWE was as part of Edge & Christian’s Show That Totally Reeks Of Awesomeness on the WWE Network back in 2016.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Impact Wrestling Preview 1/5/21

Impact Wrestling will return to its in-ring programming following their two-week holiday break at 8/7c on AXS TV and Twitch!. This will be their go-home show before their Impact Plus exclusive event Genesis, which will take place this Saturday at 8 PM EST.

* We’ll hear from the AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and the Impact World Tag Team Champions, The Good Brothers, ahead of their main event match with Rich Swann and the Motor City Machine Guns at Hard To Kill on Saturday, January 16.

* The last semi-final matchup of the Knockouts Tag Team Title Tournament between Jordynne Grace and Jazz versus Havok and Nevaeh.

* 3 Minute Challenge: Moose vs. Matthew Palmer

* Rhino and Cousin Jake vs. Eric Young and Joe Doering

* KC Navarro vs. Crazzy Steve vs. Blake Christian vs. Ace Austin

* Sami Callihan vs. Eddie Edwards

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 15 Night 2 Results 1/5/21

IWGP HEAVYWEIGHT AND INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Kota Ibushi (c) defeated Jay White

IWGP JR. HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Hiromu Takahashi defeated Taiji Ishimori (c) to win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship

SANADA defeated EVIL

NEVER OPENWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Shingo Takagi (c) defeated Jeff Cobb

IWGP JR. HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru (c) defeated Ryusuke Taguchi and Master Wato

PROVISIONAL KOPW 2021 TROPHY
Toru Yano defeated Chase Owens, Bad Luck Fale, and BUSHI

STARDOM MATCH (DARK MATCH)
Saya Kamitani, AZM, and Utami Hayashish*ta defeated Maika, Natsupoi, and Himeka

STARDOM MATCH (DARK MATCH)
Syuri and Giulia defeated Mayu Iwatani and Tam Nakano

Investment Group Purchases Majority Interest In OVW, Will Work With Al Snow On Expansion

A new ownership group has purchased a majority interest in the legendary Ohio Valley Wrestling promotion.

OVW announced today that Kentucky Sports Radio founder Matt Jones and former 21c Museum Hotels CEO Craig Greenberg have purchased the majority interest in the former WWE developmental territory, which has ran from Louisville, Kentucky since 1993. The ownership group also includes Dr. Jeffrey Tuvlin and Andrew “Hubby” Jefferson.

It was also announced that the legendary Al Snow will continue to run OVW’s daily operations, while expanding The Al Snow Wrestling Academy. Working with Snow, the new ownership group will work to position OVW for continued growth in live events, online and broadcast events, and expanding the school.

To celebrate the new investment, OVW will run a free online event this Saturday, January 9 at 7:30pm. The 2021 Nightmare Rumble will feature a 30-Man Rumble Match, and a title defense featuring OVW National Heavyweight Champion Jessie Godderz. The event will air free on OVWrestling.com, live from the Davis Arena in Louisville.

Stay tuned for more on the new OVW investment. Below is the full press release that was sent to us today:

Matt Jones and Craig Greenberg Purchase a Majority Interest in Ohio Valley Wrestling

Wrestling Legend, Al Snow, Will Continue to Run The Historic Wrestling Company

New Ownership Group Offers Free Online Event to Celebrate

LOUISVILLE – The New Year is bringing new ownership and momentum to one of the nation’s premier wrestling organizations. Today, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) announced that two prominent Kentucky leaders, Louisville’s Craig Greenberg and Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones, will lead a group of investors who purchased a majority interest in the storied sports entertainment operation. The group plans to build on the rich legacy of Ohio Valley Wrestling and its Louisville-based training institute, grow the organization, promote and train the next generation of wrestling superstars, and bring exhilarating entertainment to wrestling fans locally and across the globe.

WWE legend Al Snow will continue to run Ohio Valley Wrestling day-to-day and focus on the continued success of the wrestling product. Working with Snow, Jones and Greenberg’s group will work to position OVW for continued growth in live sports entertainment, online and broadcast events, as well as expanding the Al Snow Wrestling Academy, the only state-accredited trade school for professional wrestling and sports entertainment in the world.

Matt Jones is the founder and host of Kentucky Sports Radio, the largest radio show and website in the State of Kentucky. Jones is a New York Times bestselling author and part-time host on ESPN Radio nationally. Craig Greenberg is the former CEO of the award-winning hotel company, 21c Museum Hotels. The investor group also includes Louisville’s Dr. Jeffrey Tuvlin and Lexington’s Andrew “Hubby” Jefferson. In addition to Al Snow, the other existing owners, Larry Benz, Chad Miller and Joe Reeves, will remain active and involved in the company.

“With a leadership team combining business expertise and enthusiasm for local sports, we believe Ohio Valley Wrestling is poised for even more growth and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for this outstanding Louisville-based organization,” said Greenberg. “More importantly, during these challenging times, we understand that everyone could use some fun. As lifelong wrestling fans, Matt and I know OVW can play a huge role in delivering that.”

“Craig and I are excited about building OVW’s fan base and viewership, while showcasing the best wrestling in America,” said Jones. “With a legend like Al Snow running the wrestling and our massive KSR fan base joining in, we believe we can take OVW to the next level and create one of the world’s premier promotions right here in Kentucky. We’re thinking big. This is only the beginning.”

Since 1993, Ohio Valley Wrestling has been one of the premier training grounds for professional wrestling superstars. Some of the sport’s biggest stars learned the ropes in Louisville including John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Cody Rhodes, Bautista, CM Punk, The Miz and many more. OVW’s live shows have entertained generations of fans in Louisville and are shown every Tuesday live at 8pm on WBNA & 11am on Saturday, as well as digitally distributed to fans around the globe via YouTube, Roku, and many other platforms.

To celebrate the new ownership group’s investment, Ohio Valley Wrestling is offering a free online wrestling experience this Saturday, January 9th at 7:30pm — the 2021 Nightmare Rumble. This event includes a 30 Man Rumble and a Championship Match featuring Jesse Godderz, Mr. Pectacular! The live event, which will take place at Louisville’s Davis Arena, 4400 Shepherdsville Rd, will also be live streamed free of charge at http://www.ovwrestling.com.

Source: Wrestling Inc.