UFC 205
A press conference will be held on Tuesday at 6 p.m. Eastern time at the Theater in Madison Square Garden to announce the UFC 205 show on 11/12. At this point we know six of the matches, while a number of other matches are being talked about.
The strangest situation concerns Conor McGregor and what would be the main event. Last night on UFC Tonight, Megan Olivi, having talked with Dana White, said that Conor McGregor had a leg injury and would not be on the show. He said they were looking at Eddie Alvarez vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov for the lightweight title, but that Alvarez had been given a deadline to sign for the fight and the deadline passed. So he said they were working on that fight for UFC 206 in Toronto. Then sources at McGregor’s camp said that McGregor would be ready and wanted to fight on 11/12 against Alvarez, and Alvarez wants McGregor.
Valentina Shevchenko said that he had agreed to face Julianna Pena on that show, but Pena had not signed for the fight. UFC was looking at Chris Weidman vs. Yoel Romero for that night but as of the latest word, that fight also hasn’t been signed.
More and more, top fighters are looking at wanting more money to fight nowadays. There’s the feeling across the board that they deserve more and the sale tells them the company can afford more, plus a lot of fighters had a loyalty to Lorenzo Fertitta for building the company, and while some have loyalty to Dana White, none have that loyalty to WME-IMG.
The matches announced so far:
Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson for the welterweight title
Donald Cerrone vs. Kelvin Gastelum
Frankie Edgar vs. Jeremy Stephens
Rashad Evans vs. Tim Kennedy
Tim Boetsch vs. Rafael Natal
Liz Carmouche vs. Kaitlyn Chookagian
THE ROUND-UP
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Show Reports
Lucha Underground results: Rey Mysterio kung fu; pizza bites; Trios title match
NJPW Destruction in Hiroshima results: Kenny Omega defends his title shot
WWE NXT results: Cedric Alexander vs. Andrade Cien Almas; Austin Aries vs. Oney Lorcan
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IMPACT TONIGHT AT 8 P.M. ON POP TV
DJZ vs. Trevor Lee for X title
Aron Rex vs. Eli Drake
Maria Kanellis vs. Ninja
Eddie Edwards vs. Drew Galloway
Ethan Carter III & Moose vs. Bobby Lashley & Michael Bennett
Figure Four Weekly, 9/19/2016: The Unlikely Story of TJ Perkins (Part I) – T.J. Perkins being the winner of WWE’s Cruiserweight Classic and first champion of the new version of the cruiserweight division was something of a surprise. It was clear that Zack Sabre Jr. and Kota Ibushi were booked as the stars, but neither signed with the company. Gran Metalik (Mascara Dorada) and Perkins, who both signed… Subscribers click here to continue reading.
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Wrestling Observer Newsletter, September 26, 2016: Clash of Champions preview, new concussion test, more – The first Raw brand exclusive PPV takes place on 9/25 in Indianapolis, headlined by Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins for the Universal title. There are two business aspects to look at immediately. The first is whether these PPVs lead to a ratings bump, although the Raw the next day is expected to be at near all-time record lows due to the Presidential debate. The second is how it draws. The Smackdown only PPV on 9/11 in Richmond, VA, only drew 7,000 fans, and they were papering heavily… Subscribers click here to continue reading.
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THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE
Don’t pie face KJ…
Urijah Faber was in attendance last night at the event that turned into a brawl involving former NBA star and current Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson. Sean Thompson, 32, was arrested for felony assault on a public official. According to various media reports, Thompson, a protestor, shoved a pie in the face of Johnson. Johnson then reportedly tackled Thompson and threw a number of punches, leaving Thompson with multiple bruises and a deep cut under his left eye and another to the side of the left eye. Thompson was taken to the hospital. The event was at Sacramento High School with nearly 200 people in attendance including students, and some of the city’s leading restaurant owners, as well as Faber who appeared on local television last night talking about the incident. Apparently at a 2011 city council meeting Thompson spoke and turned his back on Johnson and three officers went to go after him but Johnson waved them off at the time.
Edmond Tarverdyan told ESPN that Ronda Rousey is getting ready to fight, and hinted at Amanda Nunes (who Rousey was offered) as the opponent. He said it could be before the end of the year. We talked in the Observer why it’s not the best idea for Rousey to fight on the 12/30 show.
A big story revolves around the Cris Cyborg Justino weight cut. She is in the 150s at last word but has to make 141 by tomorrow. She started cutting from a significantly higher weight (168 one week ago) than for the last time she made 140, actually getting to 139 for the fight with Leslie Smith.
TNA has announced a Bound for Gold match for the 10/2 Bound for Glory PPV. Essentially it’s a Royal Rumble match with the winner getting a title match.
Ryback has legally changed his name to Ryback Allen Reeves, in his attempt to continue using the Ryback name for wrestling and other marketing ventures after WWE claimed ownership of the name.
WWE
There is a presale today for the 12/26 Smackdown brand house show in Madison Square Garden use the code WWEHOLIDAY
UFC
Ross Pearson vs. James Krause is set for the 11/19 UFC show in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Derek Brunson vs. Robert Whittaker was signed for the 11/27 show in Melbourne.
VARIETY
A great video by Evolve on the departure of Johnny Gargano and creation of a new top babyface is here.
Tickets will go on sale on Wednesday for a Jim Ross show on 11/20 in Toronto at 2 p.m. (the afternoon of Survivor Series). Ross will be playing at the famous Second City Theater. Prices range from $29.50 to $95 and are available at Ticketmaster.
Rob Russen, who promoted wrestling in the 80s and worked under Verne Gagne at the end of the AWA, and Sal Corrente, are relaunching the old IWA promotion. The first show is 11/25 at the Hamburg, PA Fieldhouse, the former taping home of WWWF television. Announced on the show are Ethan Carter III, Silas Young, Robbie E, Pat Tanaka, Rockin Rebel, Missy Sampson and Sonny Vice. They will also run 11/26 in Paulsboro, NJ at the Monster Factory with Silas Young, Robbie E and Pat Tanaka as the top stars. They are looking at crowning heavyweight, junior heavyweight, tag team and women’s champions over that weekend.
Empire State Wrestling on 9/30 in Salamanca, NY at the Falling Leaves Festival headlined by Adam Rose.
Charity Pro Wrestling on 9/24 in Beverly, MA at the Beverly/Salem Lodge of Elks.
All Star Wresting on 9/24 in Maple Ridge, BC at the Ridge Meadows Seniors Centre.
Smash on 11/11 in St. Catharines, ONT at Isaac’s Bar and Grill, 11/12 in London, ONT at Cowboys Ranch and 11/13 in Toronto at the Franklin Horner Community Center.
Cody Rhodes vs. Michael Rich Blais headlines an 11/26 show of the Prairie Wrestling Alliance in Edmonton at the Northgate Lions Center.
AIW on 10/15 in Tequila Jaxx in Mentor-on-the-Laek, OH is headlined by Ray Rowe vs. Jeff Cobb.
CWE kicks off ten show sin ten days headlined by Nick “Magnus” Aldis, Jason Kincaid, Tony Kozina and Danny Duggan tonightin Yorkton, Saskatchewan at the Central School.
The World Series of Fighting announced a show on 12/3 in Everett, WA at XFinity Arena with Blgaoy Ivanov (14-1) defending his heavyweight title in he main event. He’ll defend against the winner of a Shawn Jordan vs. Ashley Gooch fight that takes place on 10/7. Also, former ranked UFC heavyweight Jared “Big Show” Rosholt faces Caio Alencar.
Evolve announced a 10/15 match in Orlando with Matt Riddle vs Chris Hero and Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fred Yehi and 10/16 in Ybor City, FL with Sabre vs. Tracy Williams.
Mongolian wrestling coaches were given a three-year ban for taking off their clothes in protest of an official decision.
A Devon Nicholson interview is here.
An Al Snow interview is here.
Daily Pro Wrestling History (09/22): WWF Champion vs. NWA Champion at MSG
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