By: Kristen Ashly
*During a Twitch charity stream on Friday, NXT Superstar Mia Yim raised $1,115 for Squared Circle Sirens’ Casey Michael’s memorial and hospital bills. Yim was a close friend of Michael’s. The GoFundMe for Casey Michael has been reopened for donations, due to piling medical bills. Please donate if you can.
*Several news stories came out of AEW All Out 2020, on Saturday:
During the week, fans were upset Britt Baker vs. Big Swole was added to the preshow Buy-In, and not the main card. I spoke with Big Swole, who said she was grateful for the match, regardless of the place on the card. On Saturday, Tony Khan announced via Twitter he would move the match to the main card.
During the Casino Battle Royal, former ECW and Impact Wrestling star Matt Sydal debuted for AEW. Lance Archer won the Royal and will get a future AEW World Championship match.
During the Broken Rules Match against Sammy Guevara, Matt Hardy overshot a table and smacked his head on the concrete underneath. Ref Aubrey Edwards signaled the “X”, and after consulting with a doctor, Hardy returned to the match, clearly wobbly and still suffering from the fall. Hardy’s wife Reby took to Twitter upset about his return. Khan said during the post-show scrum that Hardy would be alright, and the doctor’s analysis of his injury was on the up-and-up. Hardy was taken to the hospital and stayed overnight. He was released this morning, according to Dave Meltzer. This morning, Reby confirmed Hardy stayed overnight for additional imaging to be done after his CT scan, noting he had a concussion. Reby’s Twitter account has since been protected.
[Editor’s Note]: Tony Khan tweeted Sunday afternoon that Hardy is out of the hospital and will speak on AEW Dynamite this Wednesday:
An update on Matt Hardy: it’s great news! Matt’s ok, we sent him to the hospital as a precaution & he’s passed the MRI + CT scans, he doesn’t have a concussion, and he’s being driven home now. Matt will be at Dynamite on Wednesday night to thank you amazing fans for your support!
After Rhodes won his 8-man tag team match against the Dark Order, it was announced he would face Brodie Lee for the AEW TNT Championship on Wednesday’s Dynamite.
New AEW World Tag Team Champions were crowned after FTR defeated Kenny Omega and Adam Page.
Chris Jericho got an orange juice bath, thanks to two Superman Punches from Orange Cassidy that sent the Demo God flying into a vat of the orange stuff.
During All Out on Saturday, Penelope Ford and Kip Sabian announced they would get married on AEW Dynamite. Sabian claimed the bachelor party would also occur on Dynamite and feature his mystery “best man”. Sabian made sure to plug his Twitch after the announcement.
AEW announced their next pay-per-view during All Out. AEW Full Gear is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 7.
ANALYSIS: I watched the pay-per-view the next day, which might have been a mistake. After hearing all of the news on Matt Hardy, and Jim Ross’ inappropriate comments regarding Anna Jay, my enjoyment of the show was a little clouded. I would give the show a C. AEW should take better health precautions—an on-site doctor shouldn’t be the only say on whether or not a wrestler continues. Ross should not be allowed to speak about women that way, and the fact that he has so many times and remains unpunished is not a good look for the new company.
*Several news pieces came out of the All Out media scrum:
Tony Khan stated he has not committed to signing Matt Cardona, though he has enjoyed working with him.
Khan did state, however, that he would like to bring back Thunder Rosa if NWA would allow it.
Jon Moxley was asked about Renee Paquette (formerly Renee Young) joining AEW. Moxley stated he doesn’t think she wants to be in “his corner”, and states she has an extensive non-compete clause.
*Raj Giri of Wrestling Inc. reported that Vince McMahon held a call with talent regarding third-party engagements. McMahon also sent out a letter to talent condemning any talent who continued use with such third parties, like Twitch, YouTube, and Cameo. The letter can be seen below. [letter via Fightful]
Furthering my comments last Sunday regarding the reinvention of our product, it is imperative that we promote and protect our brand in every conceivable way. Some of you are engaged with outside 3rd parties using your name and likeness in ways that our detrimental to our company. It is imperative that these activities be terminated within the next 30 days (by Friday October 2). Continued violations will result in fines, suspension or termination at WWE’s discretion. These actions are necessary in order to rebuild our brand as we enter the next phase of growth at WWE.
I thank you for your cooperation in this matter and for all of your efforts towards the rejuvenation of WWE.
Vince.
WWE later released a statement addressing the mandate:
Much like Disney and Warner Bros., WWE creates, promotes and invests in its intellectual property, i.e. the stage names of performers like The Fiend Bray Wyatt, Roman Reigns, Big E and Braun Strowman. It is the control and exploitation of these characters that allows WWE to drive revenue, which in turn enables the company to compensate performers at the highest levels in the sports entertainment industry. Notwithstanding the contractual language, it is imperative for the success of our company to protect our greatest assets and establish partnerships with third parties on a companywide basis, rather than at the individual level, which as a result will provide more value for all involved.
ANALYSIS: It’s lousy that WWE is looking for more ways to make money off their talent, without classifying them as employees. Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang promises to look after wrestlers, regardless of his official status after the upcoming election, and I hope he follows through.
*Chris Jericho had harsh words for NXT in an interview with Alex McCarthy of TalkSPORT. In the interview, Jericho tells WWE to “take [their] head out of their ass and go make money.” The Demo God says AEW doesn’t care where or when NXT plays.
*****
THE LONG & WINDING ROYAL ROAD: Tsuruta vs. Misawa (June 8, 1990)
WH Park and JP Houlihan from the Grappl Spotlight podcast discuss one of the most famous matches in the history of both All Japan Pro Wrestling and the entire industry: Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Jumbo Tsuruta from June 8, 1990.
https://www.postwrestling.com/2020/09/06/lwrr-3-jumbo-tsuruta-vs-mitsuharu-misawa-6-8-90-w-jp-houlihan/
*****
AEW ALL OUT POST SHOW
John Pollock & Wai Ting review AEW All Out 2020 featuring Jon Moxley vs. MJF for the AEW World Title, Kenny Omega/Hangman Page vs. FTR for the AEW Tag Titles, and a very controversial handling of a stunt gone wrong in Sammy Guevara and Matt Hardy’s Broken Rules match.
https://www.postwrestling.com/2020/09/06/aew-all-out-2020-post-show-live-link/
*****
BRITISH WRESTLING EXPERIENCE: RevPro Epic Encounters 1, NXT UK Returns
Martin & Benno are joined by Shane of Wrestle Wipe to talk about the past few weeks in European wrestling including a review of RevPro’s comeback show, Epic Encounters 1.
https://www.postwrestling.com/2020/09/04/british-wrestling-experience-revpro-epic-encounters-1-nxt-uk-returns-benjamin-carter-gabriel-kidd/
*****
REWIND-A-DYNAMITE 9/2/20: All Out Go-Home, NXT Ratings, Renee Paquette
John Pollock and Wai Ting review the go-home Dynamite heading into AEW All Out and discuss the NXT & Raw ratings, Renee Paquette’s first interviews post-WWE, and Tuesday’s NXT Ironman Match.
https://www.postwrestling.com/2020/09/03/rewind-a-dynamite-9-2-20-all-out-go-home-nxt-ratings-renee-paquette/
*****
upNXT 9/2/20: “Super Tuesday”
The BDE run down WWE NXT’s “Super Tuesday” featuring the first-ever 4-Way 60 Minute Iron Man Match between Finn Balor, Adam Cole, Johnny Gargano, and Tommaso Ciampa to determine the new NXT Champion!
https://www.postwrestling.com/2020/09/02/upnxt-9-2-20-super-tuesday/
*****
REWIND-A-WAI #69: WCW Halloween Havoc 1991
John Pollock and Wai Ting review WCW Halloween Havoc 1991 featuring a classic Chamber of Horrors match and Ron Simmons challenging Lex Luger for the WCW World Championship.
https://www.patreon.com/posts/41132642
*****
REWIND-A-RAW 8/31/20: Clash Main Event, IIconics, Brock Lesnar, Mauro Ranallo
John Pollock and Wai Ting review WWE Raw following Payback, a discussion on Brock Lesnar’s status with WWE, Daniel Cormier’s retirement, an update on Rey Mysterio, and Mauro Ranallo leaving WWE.
https://www.postwrestling.com/2020/09/01/rewind-a-raw-8-31-20-clash-main-event-iiconics-brock-lesnar-mauro-ranallo/
*****
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