As noted, GFW announced Jeff Jarrett would be on an indefinite leave of absence for personal reasons. Reportedly, his “erratic behavior” and condition at TripleMania led to a lot of people wondering if he needed time off. Last night, Karen Jarrett tweeted out a message thanking the fans and to GFW/Anthem/Ed Nordholm for “giving Jeff the time he needs.”
Source: WrestlingINC
A fan asked Executive Vice President of Anthem Sports and Entertainment, Ed Nordholm, about if he would buy Lucha Underground, if their fourth season didn’t happen. Nordholm responded, “I’m sure rumors of the demise of Lucha Underground are no more valid than those about GFW.” This comes on the heels of Global Force Wrestling Vice President of Production, Kevin Sullivan, ripping Sports Illustated’s report about GFW “hemorrhaging funds.” Nordholm continued that he would be thrilled to have Lucha Underground as a partner in their new Global Wrestling Network. It should also be noted his tweet about the rumors was retweeted on the Impact Wrestling Twitter account.
Source: WrestlingINC
Global Force Wrestling Vice President of Production Kevin Sullivan took to Twitter to blast the Sports Illustrated report from earlier this week that stated that Anthem Sports was looking to sell GFW. According to the SI article, “GFW is hemorrhaging funds, and sources close to the situation have confirmed that Anthem is ready to withdraw itself from the wrestling industry and sell GFW.”
Sullivan called the story “BS” and tweeted the following:
PWInsider reported that the discussion at this week’s GFW meetings centered around the company’s plans going forward. It was noted that there “was no inkling of plans to shut down or sell off the video library.” The report added that that there has been no indication from the WWE front that there have been discussions to purchase the tape library.
Source: WrestlingINC
Below is audio posted on the WrestlingInsiders YouTube channel of Steve Austin Commenting on the Sexy Star Incident with Rosemary.
* Footage from AAA’s TripleMania
* GFW Champion Eli Drake defends against Matt Sydal
* Allie & Gail Kim vs. Sienna & Taryn Terrell
* DJ Z Returns
* Trevor Lee & Caleb Konley vs. Petey Williams & Sonjay Dutt
* LAX in Action
Davey Richards recently spoke with USA Today’s For the Win, here are the highlights…
On His Decision to Leave GFW: “I’ve done a pretty good of trying to juggle the very high demands of wrestling and school, but it’s gotten to the point where my school load would be so much that I couldn’t do both. The last little while, I couldn’t give 100 percent to wrestling or to medicine because I was being pulled in both directions. I didn’t think it was fair to anyone who pays to see me not to be able to give 100 percent. I can still wrestle a part-time schedule, but it’s not really right to expect TNA to pay me a salary with my hopefully being able to commit to a schedule. School needs to come first. That’s the point where I am.”
On Becoming an EMT: “Emergency medicine has always been my main source of interest,” he said. “The adrenaline rush I get from that is in some ways the same that I get from walking through that curtain because you never know what’s going to happen in a match.”
On The Demands of His Schedule Leading to Him Making The Change: “I’ve always been the kind of wrestler, nine times out of 10, I would take a booking, no matter how much the travel is because I like to wrestle,” Richards said. “I want to get out there, and I want to stay on the top of my game and compete against the best people. The more bookings I take, the more I have to travel. It got to be too much. We’d fly to Seattle to leave David with my mom and then fly to Florida to do tapings and then fly from Florida to Seattle to get David. Then fly back home to St. Louis. Add in my school schedule, and it just became impossible. This is definitely for the best for right now. Maybe when I’m done with school, that will change.”
Source: 411Mania
GFW issued the following:
For Immediate Release – September 7, 2017Global Force Wrestling Announces Deal with 7Sports to Bring IMPACT Back to Screens in Germany
NASHVILLE | TORONTO – Global Force Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp., announced today that it has reached an agreement with 7Sports, the sport business unit of the ProSiebenSat.1 Group, to bring its flagship weekly show IMPACT back to screens in Germany, Austria and Switzerland via ran FIGHTING.
Showcasing top professional wrestling stars such as GFW Champion Eli Drake, Bobby Lashley, the high-flying X-Division, the lovely and lethal Knockouts, including Sienna, Rosemary and Gail Kim, plus talent from international partner promotions such as Johnny Impact, Naomichi Marufuji and El Hijo del Fantasma, IMPACT will be available as part of the ran FIGHTING BLACK PASS for €3.99 per month starting on September 8th, available at ranFIGHTING.de on-demand via web, smartphones, tablets and Smart TVs, including Samsung, as well as over-the-top (OTT) devices such as Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Google Chromecast. IMPACT will be available on ran FIGHTING’s VOD service on Friday mornings in Germany and it will air on Fridays at 8 p.m. on ran FIGHTING’s 24/7 web channel. ran FIGHTING’s BLACK PASS will also include access to GFW’s One Night Only specials.
“Our fan base in Germany has been vocal about the demand for Global Force Wrestling and IMPACT content, so we are thrilled to announce a new distribution deal in the territory,” said Ed Nordholm, president of Global Force Wrestling. “As the leading provider of high-quality combat sports content in Germany, ran FIGHTING will be an excellent partner for us as we continue to expand the brand globally, making our product available in more international households than ever before.”
“We are pleased to further extend the offer of ran FIGHTING with Wrestling. In GFW and IMPACT, we have found a strong partner on whose return the German fans have been waiting for a long time,” said Zeljko Karajica, CEO of 7Sports.
In addition to weekly episodes of IMPACT and monthly One Night Only specials, customers can purchase GFW’s premium annual pay-per-view events, including Bound for Glory and Slammiversary, individually and exclusively. This is part of ran FIGHTING’s Live Pass, which is available without being subscriber to the BLACK PASS – live and on demand as pay-per-view.
ran FIGHTING boasts Germany’s largest combat sports archive, including UFC, Sauerland and Matchroom Boxing, all available through the ran FIGHTING BLACK PASS subscription.
For more information, visit http://www.impactwrestling.com and http://www.ranFIGHTING.de.
Jeff Jarrett has not issued any public comments since his indefinite leave of absence from GFW was announced, but he did edit his bios on Instagram and Twitter. Jarrett is already teasing new projects to come soon.
His Twitter bio now reads, “Husband! Father! Family Man! Love to quote Scripture and Quotes that mean something 2 me… Several new projects on the way…Bookings, email JJ4Jarrett@gmail.com” His Instagram bio now reads like this, “Really looking forward to things to come…”
Source: WrestlingINC
Jarrett also posted these comments to Instagram:
GFW issued the following:
For Immediate Release – September 6, 2017Global Force Wrestling Announces Global Broadcast and Digital Expansion Initiatives
NASHVILLE | TORONTO – Global Force Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp., announced today numerous global and digital expansion initiatives, including:
* Plans to launch the Global Wrestling Network, a multi-platform digital service designed to give fans around the world instant 24-hour access to the extensive GFW and IMPACT libraries.
* Plans to launch the IMPACT Wrestling Channel on Pluto TV, a 24-hour live feed of content on the leading free over-the-top (OTT) television service in the U.S.
* Extension with Pop TV in the U.S. to continue airing its flagship weekly show IMPACT on Thursday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET.
* Distribution deal with 7Sports, the sport business unit of the ProSiebenSat.1 Group, to bring IMPACT back to screens in Germany, Austria and Switzerland via ran FIGHTING.
IMPACT showcases top professional wrestling stars such as GFW Champion Eli Drake, Bobby Lashley, the high-flying X-Division, the lovely and lethal Knockouts, including Sienna, Rosemary and Gail Kim, plus talent from international partner promotions such as Johnny Impact, Naomichi Marufuji and El Hijo del Fantasma. The 3,000+ hour library features household industry names such as Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Sting, Kurt Angle, Kevin Nash, Jeff Jarrett, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Bobby Roode and many more.
“These digital initiatives and broadcast agreements are a significant step forward for the Global Force Wrestling organization as we continue to expand the brand globally, making it available on more platforms and in more countries,” said Ed Nordholm, president of Global Force Wrestling. “Anthem is committed to broadening Global Force Wrestling’s footprint, as we work alongside international broadcast partners, digital platforms and professional wrestling promotions to bring our passionate fans a high-quality product that not only stands out in today’s media landscape, but continues to thrive into the future.”
Additional details about the launch of the Global Wrestling Network and IMPACT Wrestling Channel on Pluto TV will be revealed in the near future. For more information on Pluto TV, visit http://www.Pluto.tv.
“We are excited to extend our partnership with Anthem and remain the exclusive linear television home of IMPACT in the U.S.,” said David Mandell, COO of Pop. “IMPACT delivers over 100 hours of original programming per year on Pop with some of the best and most passionate fans in television. With our broad distribution across all major cable and satellite providers, as well as almost every new over-the-top bundle, including DirecTV Now, Sony Vue, Fubo TV, Hulu TV and YouTube TV, IMPACT fans have more options than ever to catch their favorite show every week.”
IMPACT will be available as part of the ran FIGHTING BLACK PASS for €3.99 per month at ranFIGHTING.de across Germany, Austria and Switzerland starting on Sept. 8, which includes a simulcast of IMPACT on ran FIGHTING’s 24/7 web channel, plus VOD access to IMPACT episodes and One Night Only specials. The service also gives customers the opportunity to purchase GFW’s premium annual pay-per-view events, including Bound for Glory and Slammiversary.
“The deal with ProSieben marks the second major European broadcaster to license IMPACT, including Spike UK earlier this year,” Nordholm added. “Coupled with the Pop renewal, our digital launches and significant increase in YouTube views, this reflects the increasing excitement and demand for GFW’s content.”
For more information, visit http://www.impactwrestling.com.
Global Force Wrestling is in a state of jeopardy, and things seem to be getting worse. After Jeff Jarrett took an indefinite leave of absence as Chief Creative Officer to focus on personal matters, Sports Illustrated’s Justin Barrasso reports that GFW’s parent company Anthem Sports and Entertainment is preparing to sell the wrestling commodity.
Barrasso states that GFW is “hemorrhaging funds” and Anthem had to needed to “gut the Fight Network” just to finance GFW. It was just earlier this year that Anthem acquired the company after GFW’s merger with TNA Impact Wrestling. Barrasso reports that since Jarrett technically owns the name of Global Force Wrestling, Anthem would technically be selling Impact Wrestling.
Also, PWInsider reports that “multiple meetings” were held Tuesday afternoon to discuss the future of GFW. Members of the roster were called to reassure them of the company’s stability in the wake of the Jarrett announcement. But with these latest reports, it seems that Anthem is looking for suitors to get rid of GFW. Barrasso reports that among the potential suitors are WWE, Ring Of Honor and former TNA investor Billy Corgan.
Source: WrestlingINC
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