WWE Breaks Gate Record With WrestleMania 40

WWE touted WrestleMania 40, breaking its all-time gate record in just one day of selling tickets. WWE issued the following:

WrestleMania 40 Breaks WWE® All-Time Gate Record in One Day

WrestleMania 40 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia Sells More than 90,000 Tickets and Surpasses the WrestleMania 39 Total Gross of $21.6 Million

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– WWE® (NYSE: WWE) today announced that WrestleMania 40 broke the company’s all-time gate record in one day. The previous total gross record – $21.6 million – was set earlier this year at WrestleMania 39 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

WrestleMania 40, which takes place at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7, sold more than 90,000 tickets when it went on sale last Friday.

The record gate comes on the heels of unprecedented ticket sales demand for WWE in 2023, which to date has produced the highest-grossing gates of all-time for premium live events such as SummerSlam, Royal Rumble and Money In The Bank. SummerSlam, which emanated from Ford Field in Detroit earlier this month, generated a record gate of $8.5 million, the largest gate for any non-WrestleMania event ever.

Additionally, On Location has sold more fan experience packages for WrestleMania 40 than all of WrestleMania 39 and broke the all-time revenue record for a single WWE event in this area.

Limited tickets for WrestleMania 40 are still available via https://www.ticketmaster.com/. In addition, limited exclusive ticket packages are available for WrestleMania 40 via On Location. WrestleMania 40 Priority Passes offer the WWE Universe the chance to be ringside for every exhilarating moment, including premium seating, pre-show hospitality with WWE Superstar appearances, ringside photo opportunities, exclusive merchandise and more.

About WWE

WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The Company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly entertainment on its television programming, premium live events, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE’s TV-PG programming can be seen in more than 1 billion homes worldwide in 25 languages through world-class distribution partners including NBCUniversal, FOX, BT Sport, Sony India and Rogers. The award-winning WWE Network includes all premium live events, scheduled programming and a massive video-on-demand library and is currently available in more than 180 countries. In the United States, NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, is the exclusive home to WWE Network.

Additional information on WWE can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com.

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward looking statements include statements regarding our outlook regarding future financial results, the impact of recent changes to management and our board of directors (the “Board”): the timing and outcome of the Company’s media and other rights negotiations including major domestic programming licenses before their expirations through 2024: the Company’s pending business combination with UFC, our plans to remediate identified material weaknesses in our disclosure control and procedures and our internal control over financial reporting, and regulatory, investigative or enforcement inquiries, subpoenas or demands arising from, related to, or in connection with these matters. The words “may,” “will,” ·could,” ·anticipate,” “plan,” “continue,” “project,” “intend,” ·”estimate,” “believe,” ·expect,” ·outlook,” “target.” “goal,” ·”guidance” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such words. These statements relate to future possible events, as well as our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and are not historical facts and accordingly involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results or the performance by us to be materially different from expected future results or performance expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements are subject to uncertainties relating to, without limitation, the consummation of the pending business combination with UFC in the expected timeline or at all; diversion of management’s time and attention due to the pending business combination with UFC: the availability of sufficient cash at the close of our transaction with UFC to distribute to shareholders of the new public company in line with current expectations; possible disruptions in our content delivery and online operations and our those of our business partners; privacy norms and regulations; our need to continue to develop creative and entertaining programs and events; our need to retain and continue to recruit key performers; the possibility of a decline in the popularity of our brand of sports entertainment: possible adverse changes in the regulatory atmosphere and related private sector initiatives: the highly competitive. rapidly changing and increasingly fragmented nature of the markets in which we operate and/or our inability to compete effectively, especially against competitors with greater financial resources or marketplace presence; uncertainties associated with international markets including possible disruptions and reputational risks; our difficulty or inability to promote and conduct our live events and/or other businesses if we do not comply with applicable regulations; our dependence on our intellectual property rights, our need to protect those rights, and the risks of our infringement of others’ intellectual property rights; potential substantial liability in the event of accidents or injuries occurring during our physically demanding events; large public events as well as travel to and from such events; our expansion into new or complementary businesses, strategic investments and/or acquisitions; our accounts receivable; the construction and move to our new leased corporate and media production headquarters; litigation and other actions, investigations or proceedings; a change in the tax laws of key jurisdictions; inflationary pressures and interest rate changes; our indebtedness including our convertible notes; our potential failure to meet market expectations for our financial performance; our share repurchase program; the impact of actions by Mr. McMahon (our controlling shareholder, whose interests could conflict with those of our Class A common stockholders); the substantial number of shares are eligible for sale by the McMahons and the sale, or the perception of possible sales, of those shares could cause our stock price to decline; and the volatility in trading prices of our Class A common stock. In addition. our dividend and share repurchases are dependent on a number of factors, including. among other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital, our financial results and condition. contractual and legal restrictions, general economic and competitive conditions and such other factors as our Board may consider relevant.

Forward-looking statements made by the Company speak only as of the date made and are subject to change without any obligation on the part of the Company to update or revise them. Undue reliance should not be placed on these statements. For more information about risks and uncertainties associated with the Company’s business. please refer to any documents filed, or to be filed, by the Company with the SEC, including, but not limited to, the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors” sections of our annual reports on Form 10‑K and 10‑K/A and quarterly reports on Form 10‑Q/A and Form 10‑Q.

Impact Wrestling x NJPW MultiVerse United 2 8/20/2023 (Results)

Pre-Show – Countdown to Multiverse United 2

Joe Hendry, Heath & Yuya Uemura def. Master Wato, Rocky Romero & Ryusuke Taguchi

Impact Digital Media Championship Match:
Kenny King (c) def. Yoshinobu Kanemaru

Multiverse United 2: For Whom the Bell Tolls

X-DIVISION Scramble Match:
Chris Sabin def. YOH, Frankie Kazarian, BUSHI, Kevin Knight, Rich Swann, MAO & El Desperado

After the match, BUSHI blinds Sabin with the black mist

IMPACT (Moose & Eddie Edwards) def. TMDK (Zack Sabre Jr & Shane Haste)

NJPW Strong Women’s Championship Match:
Giulia (c) def.. Deonna Purrazzo, Gisele Shaw & Momo Kohgo

After the match, Kohgo blindsides Giulia but gets taken out with a Glorious Driver from the champ.

SOUTH PHILLY STREET FIGHT:
Sami Callihan def DOUKI 

Catch 22 (TJP & Francesco Akira) def TMDK (Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita)

Bullet Club (David Finlay, Ace Austin, Chris Bey, Alex Coughlin, KENTA & Clark Connors) def. The World (PCO, Josh Alexander, Tanga Loa, Tama Tonga, The DKC & ELP)

After the match, Bullet Club clears the ring of their adversaries before standing tall.

Lio Rush & Trey Miguel def Hiromu Takahashi & Mike Bailey

After the match, Lio Rush sets his sights on the IWGP Jr Heavyweight Championship. Takahashi appears to accept his challenge but Bailey is concerned because he believes that opportunity should be his.

Impact World Championship Match:
Alex Shelley (c) def. Hiroshi Tanahashi

AEW Collision ‘Fight For The Fallen’ Preview 8/19/2023

Tonight’s AEW Collision ‘Fight For The Fallen” live on TNT from the Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

  • Darby Allin vs. Christian
  • Powerhouse Hobbs in action
  • Willow Nightingale vs. Diamante
  • Jay White vs. Dalton Castle
  •  Ricky Starks addresses his comments from last week
  • We’ll hear from FTR
  • We’ll hear from Miro

AEW ALL IN 2023 Passes WrestleMania 32 Paid Attendance Record

AEW ALL IN 2023 is breaking records left-and-right.

Wrestle Tix is reporting that the highly-anticipated premium live event has sold 80,846 tickets for the show scheduled for Wembley Stadium in London, England on August 27, 2023.

The mark passes WWE’s record that was established at WrestleMania 32 in Texas for paid attendance.

AEW is currently set up for 85,000 seats for their ALL IN 2023 premium live event, however it is expected that they will continue to open up as many additional seats as they can.

Source: Rajah.com

Impact Wrestling x NJPW MultiVerse United 2 8/20/2023 (Card)

LIVE THIS SUNDAY, August 20th at 5pm ET streaming exclusively on FITE, IMPACT and New Japan Pro-Wrestling join forces for another co-branded mega event, Multiverse United 2: For Whom the Bell Tolls from the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia. Tickets are on-sale now at 2300arena.com.

CARD

Impact World Championship Match:
Alex Shelley (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

NJPW Strong Women’s Championship Match:
Giulia (c) vs. Deonna Purrazzo vs. Gisele Shaw vs. Momo Kohgo

Impact Digital Media Championship Match:
Kenny King (c) vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru

X-DIVISION Scramble Match:
BUSHI vs. Chris Sabin vs. El Desperado vs. Frankie Kazarian vs. Kevin Knight vs. Mao vs. Rich Swann vs. YOH

Bullet Club (David Finlay, Ace Austin, Chris Bey, Alex Coughlin, KENTA & Clark Connors) vs. The World (Josh Alexander, PCO, Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, El Phantasmo & the DKC)

Lio Rush & Trey Miguel vs. Hiromu Takahashi & Mike Bailey

Zack Sabre Jr. and Shane Haste vs. Moose & Eddie Edwards

DOUKI vs. Sami Callihan

Joe Hendry, Heath & Yuya Uemura vs. Master Wato, Rocky Romero & Ryusuke Taguchi

TJP and Francesco Akira) vs. Robbie Eagles and Kosei Fujita

Edge To WWE SmackDown Crowd In Toronto: ‘This Is My Last Time In Front Of Y’all’

WWE fans still don’t have a concrete answer as to whether the “Rated R Superstar” is officially retired from the company, but Edge cut a promo to the “WWE SmackDown” live crowd after the broadcast went off the air following his match with Sheamus — a match many believe could be the star’s final match with the company — shedding at least a little bit of light on the situation.

In a video posted to  Twitter by a user named Dylan Melanson, Edge is seen speaking in the middle of the ring following his victory. “What I can say, is this is my last time in front of y’all,” he said, to a chorus of boos from his hometown crowd of Toronto. “I don’t think I could make it a full… to get here again for another match. I’m just being honest with you.”

Edge also instructed the crowd to “not let that be a downer,” because the fans gave him an amazing experience. He said he will never forget it.

“And when I’m 84-years-old and don’t remember much, you’re damn sure I’m going to remember this,” he said before thanking the crowd and walking out of the ring to his theme music.

Later, WWE’s official Twitter account would post a snippet of the speech, in which Edge says he doesn’t know what the future holds and needs to ask his family, who were sitting ringside, what they want him to do.

Before the match, Edge addressed the retirement rumors, saying “SmackDown” was the final match on his current WWE deal. As of this writing, neither the star nor WWE have commented on any official retirement.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Cash Wheeler Arrest Affidavit: AEW Star Allegedly Pointed Handgun At Victim In Traffic

In light of the news of Cash Wheeler’s arrest and his subsequent arraignment on the charge of aggravated assault with a firearm, the Orange County Clerk’s Office has released the sworn affidavit from the complainant in the case. According to the statement made by Daniel Matta, Daniel Wheeler (Cash’s real name) is alleged to have pointed a gun in his direction as part of a road rage incident on July 27.

The statement reads, in part, “[Victim Daniel] Matta stated he was driving west on Interstate 4 north of Exit 83. He noticed a Jeep Gladiator weaving in and out of traffic honking its horn, so he moved over to the far-right lane to let the Jeep pass. Matta said the Jeep took the right shoulder to drive around him on the passenger side of his vehicle. Matta looked over and noticed a white male with a beard pointing a black semi-automatic handgun out of the driver’s window at him with a strong stare. Matta said he feared for his life at this time.”

The victim goes on to explain that he tried to get out of the way and ended up behind the Jeep, taking pictures when it began to drive recklessly and calling 911 to relay the information. Officers created a photo line-up using an online database for investigative purposes, from which Matta identified Wheeler out of a randomized order of potential suspects.

Wheeler had been set to defend the AEW Tag Team Championships alongside partner Dax Harwood against The Young Bucks at All In. AEW has stated that they are aware of the charge and are closely monitoring the situation, making no assessment on Wheeler’s status for the pay-per-view otherwise.

Haus of Wrestling’s Nick Hausman reports he was given the impression that the Young Bucks versus FTR rubber match would still be going ahead at All In on August 27, given that Wheeler was not asked to surrender his passport. AEW World Champion MJF came to Wheeler’s defense and said the match would still be happening.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW Rampage ‘Fight For The Fallen’ Preview 8/18/2023

Tonight’s AEW Rampage ‘Fight For The Fallen’ on TNT.

  • Toni Storm & Ruby Soho vs. Hikaru Shida & Skye Blue
  • Rey Fenix vs. Komander
  • ROH Tag Team Champions Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) vs. Ethan Page & Brother Zay
  • Sammy Guevara vs. Jon Cruz

WWE SmackDown Preview 8/18/2023 – 25 Years Of Edge Celebration – Edge Retiring?

Tonight’s WWE SmackDown Live on FOX from the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, ON.

Tonight’s episode of “WWE SmackDown” might be Edge’s final match in the company he’s been part of since 1998. “The Rated R Superstar” claims that he doesn’t know if it’ll be his last outing.

According to the “Wrestling Observer Newsletter,” Edge’s trainer and friend, Ron Hutchison, reportedly claimed that the WWE Hall of Famer is pretty sure that he’ll hang up his boots after “SmackDown.” Edge hasn’t expressed this viewpoint publicly in the lead-up to the show, but he has given fans some information about where his mind is at.

Earlier this week, Edge addressed the retirement rumors by admitting that it’s the last match he’s contracted to compete in, and the fact it’s taking place in Toronto, Canada has led to speculation that it’ll be his farewell bout. However, while he admits that wrestling has become difficult for him, he’s still torn about retiring. WWE hasn’t advertised the match as Edge’s retirement either, presumably because the Superstar still doesn’t know if he’s going to hang up his boots when it’s all said and done.

The “Wrestling Observer Newsletter” report notes that Edge signed a three-year deal when he returned to WWE in 2020. However, that contract was supposed to have expired months ago, but it’s possible that he signed an extension. While Edge has openly stated that tonight’s bout is the last match on his current contract, it’s currently unknown if that means he’ll become a free agent afterward. WWE signs lots of retired Superstars to Legends deals, after all.

  • Edge 25 years celebration
  • Edge vs. Sheamus
  • The Grayson Waller Effect with guest United States Champion Rey Mysterio

Breaking News: AEW Star Cash Wheeler Arrested This Morning For Aggravated Assault With Firearm

Daniel Wheeler, who wrestling fans know as AEW star Cash Wheeler, was arrested by the Orlando Police Department on Friday morning, the Orlando Sentinel has learned. Per the report, the 36-year-old is facing one count of aggravated assault with a firearm.  

PWInsider has since provided more information, revealing that the AEW star will have a hearing at 1 p.m. today. The warrant for his arrest was filed on July 28 and he was booked in the Circuit Court of Orange County, Florida. Wheeler has pled not guilty to the charge, which is considered a third-degree felony in the State of Florida. 

Further details about the situation are minimal at the time of this writing. However, AEW has issued a statement to the Orlando Sentinel, noting that the company is aware of the situation.  

“AEW has been made aware of the charge, and we are closely monitoring the situation. He (Wheeler) is fully cooperating with local authorities.”