WWE Sells To Endeavor, Announces Merger With UFC

After being initially reported by CNBC on Sunday, it has now been made official: WWE has been purchased by Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor Group and will join with UFC to form a new publicly-traded company, holding a supposed collective value of more than $21 billion. Former WWE CEO Vince McMahon, who re-joined the company’s Board of Directors as executive chairman in January, reportedly to help facilitate a sale, called the move “the best outcome for our shareholders and other stakeholders.”

“Together, we will be a $21+ billion live sports and entertainment powerhouse with a collective fanbase of more than a billion people and an exciting growth opportunity,” McMahon said. “I, along with the current WWE management team, look forward to working closely with Ari and the Endeavor and UFC teams to take the businesses to the next level.”

Under the terms of the acquisition, McMahon will continue to serve as executive chairman of the board, while Emanuel will lead the company as CEO and Mark Shapiro will be President and COO “of both Endeavor and the new company.” Dana White and Nick Khan are set to maintain their respective roles as President of UFC and President of WWE.

“This is a rare opportunity to create a global live sports and entertainment pureplay built for where the industry is headed,” Emanuel said. “For decades, Vince and his team have demonstrated an incredible track record of innovation and shareholder value creation, and we are confident that Endeavor can deliver significant additional value for shareholders by bringing UFC and WWE together.”

The deal sees Endeavor take ownership of 51% of WWE, while the company’s existing shareholders retain 49%. The new company will list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “TKO.” The transaction values WWE at $9.3 billion, which was McMahon’s reported asking price back in February (though WWE stock is down in pre-market trading, indicating that investors disagree with the valuation) and comes the day after the conclusion of WrestleMania 39.

The full SEC filing for WWE’s merger can be found here, whilst WWE and UFC’s joint press release can be found here.

An all-hands-on-deck meeting has been called for WWE employees later this afternoon.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE WrestleMania 39 Night Two 5/2/2023 (Results)

Brock Lesnar vs. Omos

Women’s Tag Team Fatal 4 Way
Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler def. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez, Natalya & Shotzi and Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville

Triple Threat for the WWE Intercontinental Title
GUNTHER (c) def. Sheamus and Drew McIntyre

RAW Women’s Title Match
Bianca Belair (c) def. Asuka

Now the co-hosts of WrestleMania appear in the ring. The Miz dances as Snoop Dogg music plays. He announces 81,395 fans in attendance tonight for a two-night total of 161,892.

The two banter back and forth about Pat McAfee and George Kittle and the impromptu match last night. Miz complains that they ruined his expensive suit. Snoop Dogg ends up making another match for him tonight.

“HERE COMES THE MONEY!”

Shane McMahon’s theme hits and out he comes for an unscheduled bout against The Miz.

The Miz vs. Shane McMahon/Snoop Dogg

The bell sounds and we’re off-and-running. Miz complains that tonight’s suit is more expensive than last night’s. Shane gets emotional and says how much it means to be here tonight.

The bell sounds and within seconds we see Shane down clutching his knee after a leap frog gone wrong. A couple people come in to check on him as he stays down. Snoop Dogg ends up filling in, entering the ring and blasting Miz with two punches an hitting a People’s Elbow for a pin fall victory.

Winner: Snoop Dogg

Hell In a Cell
Edge def. “The Demon” Finn Balor

Undisputed WWE Universal Title Match
Roman Reigns (c) def. Cody Rhodes

The Ref ejected Solo Sikoa after hearing him hit Cody with Cody’s weight belt.

After the ref got knocked out The Uso came down and attacked Cody. Kevin owens and Sami Zayn then came down and clrar Usos out of the ring. Kevin hits Roman with a Stunner after The Usos are cleared from the ring. Sami hits his Helluva Kick in the corner as well. Kevin and Sami head out to the floor to continue beating down Jimmy and Jey Uso. They fight over the barricade and through the crowd.

Cody was set to finish Roman, Paul Heyman distracts the ref, Solo comes back in and hits Cody with a Samoan Spike. Reigns hit Cody with a Spear and covers him for a 3 count. Reigns retains the titles.

WWE WrestleMania 39 Night 1 5/1/2023 (Results)

Hosted by The Miz with Snoop Dogg

Men’s Tag Team Fatal 4 Way
Street Profits def. The Viking Raiders, Braun Strowman & Ricochet and Alpha Academy

Seth Rollins def. Logan Paul

WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus and WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Becky Lynch & WWE Hall of Famer Lita def. Damage CTRL (Bayley, Dakota Kai, IYO SKY)

Rey Mysterio def. Dominik Mysterio

SmackDown Women’s Title Match
Rhea Ripley def. Charlotte Flair (c) to become New SmackDown Women’s Champion

Pat McAfee answered The Miz’s open challenge. Snoop Dogg made the match official

Pat McAfee def. The Miz

San Francisco 49’s TE George Kittle closelined Miz on the outside to help McAfee win.

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles Match
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens def. The Usos (c) to become New Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions

WWE NXT Stand & Deliver 5/1/2023 (Results)

MIXED TAG TEAM MATCH: * Stipulation: If Schism wins, they get control over Chase University *
Chase University (Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Thea Hail and Tyler Bate) def. Schism (Joe Gacy, Ava Raine, Jagger Reid, Rip Fowler)

NXT WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP LADDER MATCH:
Indie Hartwell def. Roxanne Perez (c), Gigi Dolin, Lyra Valkyria, Tiffany Stratton and Zoey Stark To become New NXT Women’s Champion

NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP TRIPLE THREAT MATCH:
Gallus (c) def. The Creed Brothers and Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo & Tony D’Angelo

NXT NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP FATAL 5-WAY MATCH:
Wes Lee (c) def. Axiom, Dragon Lee, Ilja Dragunov and JD McDonagh

UNSANCTIONED MATCH:
Johnny Gargano def. Grayson Waller

After the match Gargano celebrated with is wife Candice LeRae and then was joined by Indie Hartwell and Dexter Lumas

NXT WOMEN’S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn def. Fallon Henley and Kiana James (c) to become New NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions

NXT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Carmelo Hayes def. Bron Breakker (c) to become New NXT Champion

Rey Mysterio Brings Back The LWO With Legado Del Fantasma

The Latino World Order is back, but not in the way fans of the former WCW faction would expect.

During Friday night’s “WWE SmackDown,” Rey Mysterio was shown backstage preparing for his WWE Hall of Fame induction following the show when Legado Del Fantasma appeared to show their respect to the lucha libre legend, as they have continued to for several weeks now. When the group’s leader, Santos Escobar, told Mysterio they have his back against The Judgment Day in preparation for this Saturday’s match between Rey and his son Dominik, Rey handed each member of the group a special shirt, which had the iconic LWO logo. Something involving LWO shirts was rumored to happen prior to the show. As the revived group celebrated the reveal, all its members put on their shirts, including Zelina Vega, Joaquin Wilde, and Cruz Del Toro.

The feud between Rey and his son Dominik reached new levels when Rey’s son confronted his mother and sister ringside during last week’s “SmackDown,” bashing his family members before Rey would ultimately agree to face his son on “The Grandest Stage of Them All.” Prior to Friday night, LDF’s leader Escobar expressed his interest in helping Rey fend off his son Dominik so that in the future, he could face Rey for his lucha libre empire later. 

Eddie Guerrero first formed the Latino World Order faction in 1998, with the group’s major storyline involving Rey Mysterio’s unwillingness to join the group which happened following a loss to WWE Hall of Famer Eddie Guerrero. The group also featured Latino wrestling icons such as Juventud Guerrera and Psychosis. 

Source: Wrestling Inc.

A Recovering Jerry Lawler Helps Jimmy Hart Induct Andy Kaufman Into The WWE Hall Of Fame

Andy Kaufman’s momentous stint in wrestling was undoubtedly enough to warrant a position in the WWE Hall of Fame, and the comedian’s time has finally arrived. The late Kaufman was inducted into the company’s Hall of Fame last night as a part of the 2023 class and, though a recent stroke prevented him from appearing in person, the moment would not have been complete without involvement from Kaufman’s notorious in-ring rival, Jerry “The King” Lawler. Lawler has long been campaigning for Kaufman to be inducted, and he was finally able to see it through this year.

“One of [the] most memorable moments in my career certainly involved Andy Kaufman,” Lawler said, speaking from his home. Lawler was likely referring to the onscreen tussle that took place on an episode of “Late Night with David Letterman” in 1982 during the pair’s ongoing wrestling feud. In a pre-recorded video, Lawler stated that tonight would have been the biggest night of Kaufman’s life, and then introduced fellow Memphis veteran Jimmy Hart to induct the legendary comedian.

Kaufman and Lawler engaged in a heated rivalry during Kaufman’s time in the Memphis territory in 1982 and 1983, with Kaufman acting as a despised heel who preferred to wrestle women, and Lawler stepping in as a hero who aimed to take Kaufman down a peg or two. At the time, many viewers were fully convinced of the feud’s reality, though Kaufman and Lawler were actually close friends who were working together to put on as entertaining of a performance as possible. Devastatingly, Kaufman passed away from cancer just a short time later in 1984. However, his brief foray into the world of professional wrestling spawned a lasting legacy that’s influential to this day.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

ROH Supercard Of Honor 3/31/2023 (Results), Dante Martin Appeared to Have Suffered Horrific Injury

ROH Supercard Of Honor: Zero Hour Pre-Show:

  • – Jeff Cobb def. “Hot Sauce” Tracy Williams in a Singles Match. After the match, the commentary team noted that they were not alone for the night, with Bobby Cruise announcing that former ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness had returned to the company as a commentator.
  • – Konosuke Takeshita def. Willie Mack in a Singles Match.
  • – Willow Nightingale def. Miranda Alize in a Singles Match.
  • – Stu Grayson def. Slim J in a Singles Match. After the match, The Righteous (Vincent and Dutch) made an appearance as the ROH Supercard Of Honor: Zero Hour Pre-Show came to an end.

ROH Supercard Of Honor 2023 PPV:

  • – El Hijo del Vikingo (c) def. Komander to retain his AAA Mega Championship.
  • – The Embassy (Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun and Toa Liona) (c) def. AR Fox, Blake Christian and Metalik to retain their ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championships.
  • – Athena (c) def. Yuka Sakazaki to retain her ROH Women’s World Championship.
  • – Samoa Joe (c) def. Mark Briscoe via referee stoppage to retain his ROH World Television Championship.
  • – Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Daniel Garcia in a Singles Match.
  • – The Lucha Brothers (Penta El Zero Miedo and Rey Fenix) def. Top Flight (Dante Martin and Darius Martin), Aussie Open (Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher), La Faccion Ingobernable (RUSH and Dralistico) and The Kingdom (Mike Bennett and Matt Taven) in a Reach For The Sky Ladder Match to become the new ROH World Tag Team Champions.
  • – Katsuyori Shibata def. Wheeler Yuta (c) in a Pure Rules Match to become the new ROH Pure Champion.
  • – Claudio Castagnoli (c) def. Eddie Kingston to retain his ROH World Championship.

Dante Martin suffered what appears to be a very serious injury at Friday night’s ROH Supercard of Honor pay-per-view event.

During the Reach for the Sky Ladder Match, Martin and Penta were battling it out on the top of a latter. After an insane spot that featured Penta hitting Dante with a Canadian Destroyer off the ladder and through several tables, Martin came down hard on the floor and his lower leg snapped in half.

You can check out the video below. **We’ll warn you ahead of time – it’s extremely graphic!**

As of this writing, there is no word on his status but it’s very likely he’s been taken to a local hospital.

WWE WrestleMania 39 Night One 5/1/2023 – Night Two 5/2/2023 (Card)

WWE WrestleMania 39 will take place Saturday, April 1 and Sunday, April 2 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. On Peacock and PPV at 8 pm E.

CARDS

Host: The Miz

Live DJ: DJ Valentino Khan (Night 1 and Night 2)

America The Beautiful singer for Night 1: Becky G

America The Beautiful singer for Night 2: Jimmie Allen

CONFIRMED MATCHES FOR NIGHT 1:

WWE United States Title Match
John Cena vs. Austin Theory (c)

SmackDown Women’s Title Match
Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte Flair (c)

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles Match
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens vs. The Usos (c)

Damage CTRL (Bayley, Dakota Kai, IYO SKY) vs. WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus and WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Becky Lynch & WWE Hall of Famer Lita

Logan Paul vs. Seth Rollins

Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio

Men’s Tag Team Fatal 4 Way
The Viking Raiders vs. Braun Strowman and Ricochet vs. Alpha Academy vs. The Street Profits

CONFIRMED MATCHES FOR NIGHT 2:

Undisputed WWE Universal Title Match
Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns (c)
Night 2 Main Event.

RAW Women’s Title Match
Asuka vs. Bianca Belair (c)

Triple Threat for the WWE Intercontinental Title
Sheamus vs. Drew McIntyre vs. GUNTHER (c)

Hell In a Cell
“The Demon” Finn Balor vs. WWE Hall of Famer Edge
Rumored to be Brood Edge.

Brock Lesnar vs. Omos

Women’s Tag Team Fatal 4 Way
Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez vs. Natalya and Shotzi vs. Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler vs. Chelsea Green and Sonya Deville

WWE NXT Stand & Deliver 5/1/2023 (Card)

The 2023 NXT Stand & Deliver event will take place this Saturday, April 1, 2023, at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California as part of WrestleMania Weekend, being held the same day as WrestleMania 39 (Night One).

CARD

NXT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Bron Breakker (c) vs. Carmelo Hayes

NXT WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP LADDER MATCH:
Roxanne Perez (c) vs. Gigi Dolin vs. Indi Hartwell vs. Lyra Valkyria vs. Tiffany Stratton vs. Zoey Stark

UNSANCTIONED MATCH:
Grayson Waller vs. Johnny Gargano

NXT WOMEN’S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Fallon Henley and Kiana James (c) vs. Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn

NXT NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIP FATAL 5-WAY MATCH:
Wes Lee (c) vs. Axiom vs. Dragon Lee vs. Ilja Dragunov vs. JD McDonagh

MIXED TAG TEAM MATCH:
Chase University (Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Thea Hail and Tyler Bate) vs. Schism (Joe Gacy, Ava Raine, Jagger Reid, Rip Fowler)
* Stipulation: If Schism wins, they get control over Chase University *

NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP TRIPLE THREAT MATCH:
Gallus (c) vs. The Creed Brothers vs. Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo and Tony D’Angelo

ROH Supercard Of Honor 3/31/2023 (Card)

Ring of Honor returns to pay-per-view for the first time in 2023 with Supercard of Honor 2023. On FITE TV and Bleacher Report Live with a bell time of 8 pm Eastern /4 pm Pacific time on Friday, March 31st.

Card

ROH WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Claudio Castagnoli (c) vs. Eddie Kingston

ROH WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Samoa Joe (c) vs. Mark Briscoe

ROH WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Athena (c) vs. Yuka Sakazaki

ROH PURE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
Wheeler Yuta (c) vs. Katsuyori Shibata

REACH FOR THE SKY LADDER MATCH FOR THE VACATED ROH WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP:
The Lucha Brothers (Penta El Zero Miedo and Rey Fénix) vs. Top Flight (Dante Martin and Darius Martin) vs. The Kingdom (Matt Taven and Mike Bennett) vs. Aussie Open (Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher) vs. La Facción Ingobernable (Rush and Dralístico)

AAA MEGA CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
El Hijo del Vikingo (c) vs. Komander

ROH WORLD SIX-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
The Embassy (c) vs. AR Fox, Blake Christian and Gran Metalik

SINGLES MATCH:
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Daniel Garcia