POST SCHEDULE
Tonight: Rewind-A-Raw with John Pollock & Wai Ting
Tuesday: upNXT with Braden Herrington & Davie Portman
Wednesday: Pollock & Thurston
Wednesday: Rewind-A-Dynamite
Thursday: Rewind-A-Wai – WWE Money in the Bank 2011 (POST Wrestling Café)
Saturday: WWE Crown Jewel with John & Wai
Saturday: Collision Course with Siino & Kate (POST Wrestling Café)
Sunday: Agatha All Along – Ep. 8 & 9 Finale (POST Wrestling Café)
Due to the short turnaround time between SmackDown and Crown Jewel, we are skipping Rewind-A-SmackDown this week and will have a show on Saturday immediately following the PLE.
NEWS
**Lee Cole hosted a program discussing his late brother, Tom Cole. On the show, their sister Maggie joined them and discussed her relationship with Tom, his upbringing, and the problems he endured toward the end which led to him taking his life in February 2021 at the age of 50. They were also joined by their nephew, Steven Spencer. I’d urge people to listen to this show to be provided with a broader context of who Tom was as a person and as Lee said, he was more than just a ring boy, which is how he’s also been referred within the pro wrestling space.
Cole worked for the WWF on two separate occasions the first from 1985 until 1990 and again in 1992 after settling with the company and being paid $55,000 in back pay to guarantee that Cole did not move forward with a lawsuit. Cole came forward in early 1992 with another fellow ring boy, Chris Loss, with their allegations first reported by Jeff Savage at the San Diego Union-Tribune and followed by lengthy coverage from columnist Phil Mushnick of the New York Post, which launched the ring boy scandal in a public spotlight.
Famously, Cole settled with the company and went dark among allies he had in the industry, including Barry Orton, right before the Phil Donahue Show taping. Having a sense that something was fishy, no one on the panel brought up Cole’s name as WWF had this secret pact with Cole and was prepared for a dramatic moment if Cole’s name was uttered. Secretly, Cole was sitting in the audience next to Linda McMahon and Liz “Miss Elizabeth” Hulette and ready to jump up and defend McMahon if he was accused of wrongdoing. Cole’s name was never mentioned, and it was after the show that people attached to the show learned that the ring boy at the center of the scandal was present. Cole was fired approximately one year later by the WWF after Cole didn’t perform well in school and was part of his agreement with WWF and he outlined the circumstances behind his dismissal in a rare interview he did with Wrestling Perspective in 1999.
Cole would pop up now and then over the next two decades including Linda McMahon’s political campaigns where he publicly supported her. Through conversations with his brother Lee and reporter David Bixenspan, it has been relayed that he had a triggering episode when seeing a random photo of himself in an edition of Raw Magazine in a nostalgia article and was extremely bothered by the portrayal of Pat Patterson as a celebrated figure on WWE Legends’ House after announcing on the show that he was gay. Patterson, Cole, and Barry Orton ended up dying within three months of each between December 2020 and March 2021.
Tom is survived by his wife and three daughters, who have not spoken publicly since his passing.
Lee Cole was also our guest on Pollock & Thurston last Thursday.
**There has been an outpouring of well wishes and concern for TNA performer Chris Bey after he is believed to have sustained a neck injury at Sunday’s tapings in Detroit. Bey was transported to a hospital with Fightful Select reporting that Bey has undergone surgery but there is no update beyond that detail. ABC was having a match with The Hardys when the injury occurred and the match was stopped. Earlier in the show, El Hijo del Vikingo was injured during a match with Trent Seven and had to be taken to hospital. Vikingo posted the following on Instagram:
Thanks to my brother, Laredo Kid, for accompanying me and keeping an eye on me! I chose this sport, I am happy for the good and the bad. I will recover and come back stronger than ever. Thanks to everyone who sent me a message!
**Session Moth Martina sustained a head injury at Saturday’s OTT tenth anniversary card in Dublin, which Finn Balor & JD McDonagh wrestled on. Martina was wrestling Raven Creed and was set to take a powerbomb through a table on the stage and overshot the table with her head hitting the stage and being transported to a hospital. She has commented on the injury and called it “a significant head injury” she sustained and will be out of action for a while. We wish her a full and speedy recovery.
**There was a tragic story over the weekend with the death of Sebastian Kidder, the son of Wendy Barlow. TMZ announced that the 24-year-old took his own life on Saturday and died from a gunshot wound. Barlow stated, “I am devastated and shocked. This is an epidemic with your young men. And mental health.”
Kidder was an aspiring musician, who released his first song in 2021 and an album this past summer.
Ric Flair released the following statement about his stepson:
I Have Spent Hours Wondering What To Say. After Hearing The News Of Sebastian’s Passing, I Can Only Imagine What Wendy & Paul Are Going Through Having Lost A Son Approximately The Same Age In 2013. I Know The Pain Of Your Loss Will Be With You The Rest Of Your Life. I Still Every Day Of My Life Think About Reid As You Will Continue To Think About Sebastian. You Can’t Blame Yourselves As I Blamed Myself For Making Reid My Best Friend Instead Of Being A Good Parent. Sometimes We Get So Close To Our Kids, We Forget That They Need Us In So Many Different Ways. I’m So Thankful For The Time I Had With Sebastian. I Have So Many Great Memories & Bonding Time With Him As He Grew Up! He Stood Tall By His Mother Along With The Whole Family- Sophia, Paris, And Summer, While I Was Dying [Flair’s near-death experience during a health battle in 2017]. He Was So Unselfish Sharing His Mother With Me As I Was Dying. And Also, At The Passing Of My Son Reid. He Was Multi-Talented & In Everybody’s Eyes A Huge Success And Will Always Be Remembered That Way. I’m So Sorry! Wendy, Please Stay Strong & Don’t Let Anything Deter You From All Your Successful Endeavors You Have In Place In The Future. God Bless You Both! Rest In Peace Sebastian! @sebastianonthemic
On Monday, he wrote a follow-up message thanking people for the outpouring of support:
Wendy & I Are Overwhelmed By The Messages Of Love & Thoughts And Prayers. We Can’t Respond To Everyone Individually, But Just Know We Love You All And Respect You. Always Remember, Life Is Precious. Live Every Day To The Fullest. Don’t Take Anything For Granted. Love Your Family And Keep Them Close!
**Dawn Marie was announced as the special referee for a grudge match between Lola Vice and Jaida Parker for next week’s show in Philadelphia. It marks Marie’s first appearance for WWE since she was released in 2005. The controversy surrounding her release is that the company did so when she was pregnant and led to a lawsuit filed by the performer, although never publicly bashed WWE. Earlier this year, Marie spoke on Wrestling Then And Now regarding her firing, the lawsuit, and ultimately, respecting Vince McMahon.
He [Vince McMahon] fired me when I was pregnant or because I was pregnant. That’s a whole other story. But again, I guess I’m just that person. That we handled it, it was business. And that’s it. Years later I actually had to call Vince for something. I had to tell him that Captain Lou had passed. His family wanted me to call him and I did. It was so funny, it was the first time ever since the lawsuit. You know, I walked out on Vince twice in mediation… He had his lawyers. But I walked out twice. I was like… That’s a whole other story.
So anyway, he… I called him for Captain Lou, and told him. And he was like, ‘Oh, okay.’ Then we were talking about that and he said, ‘You know what Dawn?’ He’s like, ‘I have more respect for you today than I did when you worked here.’ I was like, ‘Oh really Vince? Why is that?’ ‘The way you handled your business [mimics Vince McMahon’s laugh].’ I was like, ‘Okay. Well Vince, I have more respect for you too. You actually followed through. And the way you handled your business.’ And we laughed.
We had a good little laugh and you know, that was the olive branch. It’s just business. Yeah, it is what it is. But like at that time there was like Geraldo and Nancy Grace. And…. I don’t know. They were all calling me. They all wanted me on their shows to shit on them. But I would never shit on the business. Never. I would never. It’s just how I was raised in the business. You don’t shit on it. By shitting on the business I’m shitting on everyone that came before me. How dare I? I can’t do that. So I just handled my business and that was it. I never went public. I never cried about it. No. I did not want to do that. (Transcribed courtesy: Wrestle Zone)
**WrestleMania 41 tickets went on sale last week with the two-night combo packs available for the April 19 & 20, 2025, set of shows at Allegiant Stadium. No official numbers have been reported by the TickPick site lists a “get-in” price of $894 U.S. for the two nights. The shows are scaled to obliterate records as the largest-grossing shows in the history of professional wrestling.
**WWE runs the GIANT Center in Hershey, Pennsylvania for the second night in a row. It is going to be an incredibly competitive night between Monday Night Football on ABC & ESPN, and Game 3 of the World Series. The latest figure from WrestleTix lists 7,400 tickets distributed with the following advertised:
*#1 Contenders Match: New Day vs. Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee vs. War Raiders
*Dominik Mysterio vs. TBA
*Zelina Vega vs. Ivy Nile
*Sheamus vs. Ludwig Kaiser
*Seth Rollins appears
*Fallout from Bron Breakker’s win against Jey Uso
**Game 3 of the World Series between the New York Yankees and L.A. Dodgers going against WWE Raw tonight. The series has averaged 14.5 million viewers across Fox’s networks over the first two games. Front Office Sports observed that Game 2’s 13.44 million average was up 65% from Game 2 in 2023 on the same network. Game 4 of the series airs on Tuesday night and if a fifth game is required, it would air against AEW Dynamite this week.
**Friday Night SmackDown averaged 216,400 viewers and 81,000 in the demo on Sportsnet 360 in Canada. This was one of the toughest Fridays of the year against the World Series, two CFL games, a Toronto Raptors game, and an NHL game. SmackDown ranked #7 among sports that night in viewership and the 25-54 demographic.
**Bully Ray will appear on NXT on Tuesday with a follow-up to his show-closing angle with Trick Williams at Halloween Havoc. The show ended with the tease of a future tag match against Ethan Page & Ridge Holland. WWE had already been advertising Bully Ray for a meet-and-greet at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia next week. The World Series ranked #1 followed by both CFL games.
**The Undertaker’s 1 deadMAN Show has added three dates in Texas. WWE and TKO announced that Mark Calaway will host his show on December 13 at The Factory Deep Ellum in Dallas, December 14 at the Houston Music Hall, and December 15 at Emo’s in Austin, Texas. All three shows have a pre-sale for tickets this Thursday at 11 a.m. ET and the public on-sale is Friday at 11 a.m.
**By the standard of NXT’s specials, Sunday’s Halloween Havoc was on the lower end and felt like a completely skippable one. The show lacked the big show-stealing match and just felt like a paint-by-numbers event. Halloween Havoc included Kelani Jordan losing the North American Championship in a Gauntlet Match by losing to Fallon Henley in her third match. This was more about the story of Jordan being placed in a disadvantaged position and unable to overcome the numbers when she was distracted by Jazmyn Nyx and Jacy Jayne before losing the fall. It compromised the ability of Jordan to have a better outing as she and Henley could have had a much better 10–12-minute match but this was about the story and none of the three matches were noteworthy. Tony D’Angelo and Oba Femi had a fine Tables, Ladders & Scares match but never approached the level of their match on television a few weeks ago. The two benefited from being the first match of the show and using the various weapons because, by the end of the night, it felt like a series of hardcore matches, and became inconsequential.
**Historian Karl Stern has released a 692-page research study on The Pioneer Era of professional wrestling preceding 1900. The release follows Stern’s previous books covering 1983 and 1984-85 where he researches past newsletters, podcasts, newspaper clippings, and other historical data to complement his research. Below is a description:
Major pro wrestling stars you will read about during Pioneer Era Wrestling Omnibus include William Muldoon, Col. James H. McLaughlin, John McMahon, Evan “Strangler” Lewis, Homer Lane, Andre Christol, Tom Jenkins, Farmer Burns, Dan McLeod, Clarence Whistler, Duncan C. Ross, Donald Dinnie, Prof. Thiebaud Bauer, Prof. William Miller, Greek George, and many more.
The DragonKingKarl’s Pioneer Era Pro Wrestling Omnibus is compiled from a research project at the When It Was Cool website and podcast network. The timeline used in the DragonKingKarl’s Pioneer Era Pro Wrestling Omnibus chronicles every major pro wrestling show known from the 1800s, title changes, births, deaths, arrests, and run-ins with the law, major angles, and business details.
**MLW has announced that Delmi Exo will face Gigi Rey at the beIN Sports tapings on November 9 at Cicero Stadium, which is attached to the Lucha Apocalypto event.
**The TKO stock closed at $116.25 on Monday, so it hasn’t experienced a rebound since last week’s drop after the news of TKO’s acquisition of PBR, On Location, and IMG for $3.25 billion in a stock transaction. Before the announcement, the stock was trading at approximately $126.
***
NXT Halloween Havoc
Braden Herrington and Davie Portman review Halloween Havoc 2024 featuring Trick Williams vs. Ethan Page in a Devil’s Playground match for the NXT Championship.
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TNA Bound for Glory
John Pollock and John Siino review TNA Bound for Glory with a triple main event of Nic Nemeth vs. Joe Hendry, Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich & Full Metal Mayhem.
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Collision Course (FREE)
Wai Ting joins Kate From MTL for a look at this week’s episode of AEW Collision where Ricochet takes on Lio Rush, La Faccion Ingobernable fights FTR, and Nigel McGuinness speaks to Wheeler Yuta.
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Rewind-A-SmackDown
John Pollock and Wai Ting review WWE SmackDown from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn featuring a big evening for The Motor City Machine Guns.
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The Queen of Villains – Netflix Series (FREE)
Karen Peterson (POST Puroresu) and JP Houlihan (GRAPPL Spotlight) review Netflix’s The Queen of the Villains, the historical dramatic presentation of the rise of Dump Matsumoto.
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Pollock & Thurston
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston are joined by Greg Gutzler and Lee Cole to discuss the lawsuit filed by five ex-WWF ring boys against Vince & Linda McMahon and TKO.
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