Author: John Bass

Ronda Rousey Announces New Partnership With Facebook Gaming

Ronda Rousey is now an official Gaming Video Creator for Facebook. Rousey took to social media yesterday and announced the new gig with Facebook. It looks like all of her YouTube content will also be uploaded to fb.gg/RondaRousey.

Rousey’s debut stream will air live on Tuesday, February 18 at 6pm ET. It looks like she will be playing Pokemon Sword & Shield, and 100% of the streaming proceeds will go to benefit the victims of the bushfires in Australia.

Rousey tweeted on the new partnership with Facebook Gaming and said the time is right for her to jump into streaming.

She wrote, “Game streaming is one of the most authentic mediums,& the time is right for me to jump into the stream exclusively on FacebookGaming. My first stream is on Feb18th at 3pmPST–100% of proceeds from the first stream go to Australian bushfire recovery efforts https://Fb.gg/RondaRousey”

https://twitter.com/RondaRousey/status/1228018437974188032

 

ROH Pure Title Tournament To Continue In NYC At Battlestarr 2020

Ring of Honor has announced that the quarterfinals of the Pure Title tournament will take place on Friday, April 23 when they return to New York City for the Battlestarr 2020 event at Terminal 5.

Tickets for Battlestarr 2020 go on sale next Wednesday, February 19 at 10am ET for HonorClub members. Tickets for the general public will be on sale next Friday, February 21.

ROH recently announced that they were bringing back the Pure Title, which was active from 2004-2006. Pure Rules matches are bouts where closed-fist punches are illegal, and each competitor is allowed three rope breaks to stop submission holds and pinfalls during the match, and after that, pinfalls and submissions on or under the ropes would be legal.

There will also be a ROH meet & greet before the Battlestarr 2020 event at Terminal 5. You can click here for the full announcement from ROH.

ROH noted in their official announcement, “The quarterfinals of the Pure Title tournament are among the featured attractions of what is guaranteed to be an incredible night of the fast-paced, hard-hitting, in-your-face action that only Ring of Honor can deliver.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Jeff Cobb Reportedly A Free Agent While On AEW Dynamite

Jeff Cobb has arrived in AEW, but word is that he’s still a free agent.

It was announced during last night’s Dynamite episode from Austin, TX that AEW World Champion Chris Jericho had hired Cobb to take out Jon Moxley in a singles match on next Wednesday’s show. Jericho is set to defend his title against Moxley at AEW’s Revolution pay-per-view at the end of this month. Cobb later made a surprise debut at the end of this week’s Dynamite, which came after Moxley defeated Santana in the main event. The Inner Circle attacked Moxley after the match and Jericho dropped him with a Judas Effect. Jericho then called Cobb out to the ring. Cobb came out to a reaction and then left Moxley laying after hitting a Tour of the Islands. Cobb celebrated with The Inner Circle to end the show.

Cobb is not currently signed to an AEW contract, according to PWInsider. The ROH & NJPW star remains a free agent. It was noted that Cobb’s appearance on Dynamite was not a sign that AEW has a new working relationship with Ring of Honor or New Japan Pro Wrestling. Cobb was booked directly by AEW as he’s free to work anywhere he wants. There’s no word yet on if Cobb’s looking to sign with AEW or any other promotion soon.

The 37 year old Cobb is currently scheduled to team with Dan Maff to face KENTA and Taiji Ishimori at ROH’s Supercard of Honor event on April 4 during WWE’s WrestleMania 36 weekend.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Teddy Hart Arrested For Possession Of A Narcotic With Intent To Sell Or Distribute

Independent wrestler Teddy Hart has been arrested for possession of narcotics.

According to Hart’s booking information, the 40-year-old wrestler was taken into custody yesterday for possession of a schedule III narcotic with intent to sell or distribute.

Virginia law states possession of a schedule III controlled substance is a misdemeanor and punishable by up to twelve months months in jail, as well as a fine of up to $2,500.

The wrestler, whose real name is Edward Annis, is due in court on April 23.

For those who are maybe unfamiliar, Teddy is part of the legendary Hart family and most recently worked for MLW before the promotion let him go.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

teddy hart arrested narcotics intent to sell or distribute

Ring Of Honor Renaming Women Of Honor Title, Announce Upcoming Tournament

Ring of Honor announced the Women of Honor Title is changing to the Ring of Honor Women’s World Championship.

A tournament is going to decide a new champion and will begin at ROH Quest For Gold on April 24 at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eight first-round matches will go down at the show. Participants have yet to be announced.

The original title also crowned a champion through a tournament, which was Sumie Sakai back in April of 2018 at Supercard of Honor. Kelly Klein was the last Women of Honor champion, but parted ways with the company at the end of the year.

Below is ROH’s full announcement about the upcoming event:

An exciting new era in women’s wrestling in Ring of Honor is imminent.To emphasize ROH’s commitment to women’s wrestling, a new Ring of Honor Women’s World Championship has been created. This title will replace the Women of Honor Title and carry the utmost prestige as only the best competitors will earn its gold.

The tournament to crown the inaugural champion begins with eight first-round matches at “Quest For Gold” on Friday, April 24 at Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena. The tournament will feature talent from all over the world, including some new faces who have never competed in ROH.

“Quest For Gold” tickets go on sale Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 10 a.m. ET for HonorClub members and Friday, Feb. 21 at 10 a.m. ET for the general public.

The first women’s match in ROH history took place in 2002, the company’s first year in existence. In the ensuing years, some of the best women’s wrestlers in the sport competed in an ROH ring, including Sara Del Rey, Mickie James, Amazing Kong, Mercedes Martinez, MsChif, Cheerleader Melissa and Daizee Haze, who all paved the way for the current generation of female talent in ROH.

The ROH Women’s World Championship will take women’s wrestling in ROH to the highest level. Don’t miss your opportunity to witness history in the making at Quest for Gold!

https://twitter.com/ringofhonor/status/1227622085293375488

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Dynamite Preview 2/12/20

Tonight’s AEW Dynamite will air live from the H.E.B. Center in Austin, Texas.

* AEW Women’s World Championship: Riho (c) vs. Nyla Rose

* AEW World Tag Team Championship: Hangman Page and Kenny Omega (c) vs. SCU

* Santana vs. Jon Moxley in an “Eye for an Eye” match

* MJF vs. Jungle Boy

* Dustin Rhodes vs. Sammy Guevara

WWE NXT Preview 2/12/20

Tonight’s WWE NXT on the USA Network will air from the NXT Arena at Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL with the final hype for Sunday’s “Takeover: Portland” event.

  • Will Lio Rush or Angel Garza emerge as the No. 1 contender to the NXT Cruiserweight Title?
  • What will be the fallout of Velveteen Dream’s return?
  • Will Tommaso Ciampa be out for retribution ahead of TakeOver: Portland?
  • Will Ripley or Belair get the upper hand?
  • How will Lee and Dijakovic get ready for TakeOver?

The Rock’s Daughter Begins Training At WWE Performance Center

WWE announced that Simone Johnson – the daughter of WWE great Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson – has begun training at the WWE Performance. If she makes it to the main roster, she will become the first 4th generation wrestler in history as her grandfather Rocky Johnson and her great-grandfather “High Chief” Peter Maivia also competed for WWE. Rocky Johnson and Maivia are both WWE Hall of Famers.

“It means the world to me,” Johnson said. “To know that my family has such a personal connection to wrestling is really special to me and I feel grateful to have the opportunity, not only to wrestle, but to carry on that legacy.”

“Simone Johnson’s unbridled passion and incredible drive has earned her a coveted spot training with the elite athletes from around the world at the WWE Performance Center,” said Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events & Creative. “Not only does Simone now have an opportunity to cultivate and display her passion for WWE within the Performance Center, but she’ll carry on the tradition of her incredible family lineage while creating her own impact as WWE’s first fourth generation Superstar.”

Johnson will join the diverse group of Superstars in training at the Performance Center, learning from a coaching staff that includes legends of the squared circle, led by Head Coach Matt Bloom and Assistant Head Coach Sara Amato.

“Simone knows she has a lot to learn,” said Bloom. “She’s hungry to learn and picks the coaches’ minds, and the veteran Superstars’, as well. She’s not going to rest on her laurels. It’s been a short time, but she’s been crushing it.”

“Simone is a wonderful girl,” Amato added. “She’s like a sponge, it’s pretty amazing. She knows what it takes to succeed and all the hard work and sacrifice that goes into it. I wouldn’t have expected anything less.”

https://twitter.com/WWE/status/1226931688573415426

 

John Cena Announced For WWE SmackDown 2/28/20

On this week’s WWE Backstage it was announced John Cena will be appearing on the February 28 episode of SmackDown in Boston, Massachusetts.

Cena’s last WWE TV appearance was back in July on the RAW Reunion where he had a rap battle with The Usos.

As noted, Cena reportedly wants to have a more significant role on this year’s WrestleMania.

“Those spots are very coveted. There are performers who work all year, 250 shows a year, they earn those spots,” Cena said. “I would love to earn one, at least. And the way you do that is by Vince McMahon, the head of creative, calling you up and being like, ‘Hey pal, I’d like you to do this.’ And then I say yes sir, and then I kind of put my own spin on it.”

Last WrestleMania he showed up as his Doctor of Thuganomics gimmick in a segment with Elias.

XFL Opening Weekend TV Ratings And Attendance

The opening weekend of the revamped XFL is now history, and the ratings for the four games are in.

The first game airing on ABC on Saturday featuring the D.C. Defenders defeating the Seattle Dragons averaged 3.3 million viewers and scored a 2.07 rating. The attendance for the game was 17,163 fans.

FOX aired the second game on Saturday between L.A. Wildcats and the Houston Roughnecks, which averaged 3.29 million viewers and a 1.91 rating and drew 17,815 fans.

The first game on Sunday taht aired on FOX drew the biggest audience of the weekend with 3.385 million viewers and a 2.10 rating, and drew 17,634 fans.

The final game of the weekend was the Dallas Renegades facing the St. Louis BattleHawks on ESPN on Sunday, which scored the lowest audience of the weekend with 2.495 million viewers and a 1.43 rating with 17,026 fans at the stadium.

Between the four games, the XFL averaged 3.12 million viewers and a 1.0 rating in the 18-49 demo.

The now-defunct AAF drew similar ratings on its opening weekend in February of 2019, averaging 3.25 million viewers and a 0.9 in the 18-49 demo between two games on CBS. However, Darren Rovell of the Action Network reported that even before the first game started, the XFL had already topped the revenue from ticket sales for the entire season of the AAF.

AAF ratings dropped sharply in the second week, and the league folded before it could complete one season after it lost financial backing.

The Washington Times noted that while the XFL debut numbers are nowhere near the 16.5 million viewers that the NFL averaged per game during the 2019 regular season, is does top the 1.99 million viewers per game that the NBA averaged last year during the regular season.

Week two of the XFL kicks off this Saturday with the NY Guardians facing the DC Defenders. The game will air on ABC at 2 pm ET.