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Top 5 Matches: Week Ending 7/15/2018

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Now last week we had two votes, the June Pool and the normal weekly one. Both votes came down to a tie breaker vote, and one isn’t a surprise where the other might be a small shock. Let’s show what the current MOTY Pool looks like, and you’ll see what won June.

January – Takeover Philadelphia NXT Championship Match: Johnny Gargano vs Andrade Almas (c)
February – New Beginning in Osaka IWGP Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs SANADA
March – Strong Style Evolved: Golden Lovers vs Young Bucks
April -Takeover NOLA NXT Championship Match: Andrade Almas (c) vs Aleister Black
May – WWE  Backlash Intercontinental Match: Seth Rollins (c) vs The Miz
June – NJPW Dominion IWGP Heavyweight Match -Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Kenny Omega

So yes, Omega vs Okada IV barely edged out Nakamura vs Styles. The first match to go into the July pool though, may be a surprise. Coming off of a fairly high critical acclaim G1 Special in San Francisco, one could’ve expected New Japan to take the first week. But too many votes were spread out among the ones on the list, so it came down to Jay White vs Juice Robinson or Mustafa Ali vs Buddy Murphy. The 205 Live NoDQ match, edged out all of the New Japan matches.

Will we get more of the sam? Since the G1 started on Saturday, so for the next month, it will be very hard for anything to overshadow G1 matches.

 

5. WWE Extreme Rules WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles (c) vs Rusev

Both men trade strikes, as AJ goes after the legs, but Rusev manages a nice Judo throw to start stomping on Styles. Styles continues the leg strikes, tries a suplex, but it gets blocked, so he goes to the ropes and Rusev catches him with a Spinebuster. Rusev is visibly favoring his left leg but manages two Vertical Suplexes and a elbow drop for a 1 count.

AJ attempts a few more kicks and tries to get something going, but Rusev throws AJ back with a huge Back Body Drop. Styles gets beat down for a while until Rusev goes for a top rope move, but AJ lands an Enzuigiri to the injured leg and sends him crashing to the floor. Styles then follows up with a Flying Forearm to the outside.

Phenomenal Blitz back inside as AJ hits the sliding forearm. Stinger Splash from AJ, as he tries an Ushigoroshi, but Rusev slides out. AJ counters Rusev’s attempt with a Scorpion Deathdrop for 2. Styles takes Rusev to the corner and tries to roll him out for the Calf Crusher, but Rusev blocks it and sends him to the outside. Suicide Dive attempt from Rusev, met with a jumping forearm.

Rusev counters another Calf Crusher attempt, going into the Accolade, as AJ slips out, kicks him in the bad leg and goes for the sliding forearm again but Rusev kicks him in the face. Fall Away Slam attempt from Rusev, but AJ turns it into the Calf Crusher. Aiden pushes the ropes forward to help Rusev break the hold, AJ gets distracted, chases Aiden on the outside as he eats a Belly to Belly Suplex followed by a Machka Kick for 2.

Macha Kick attempt number two, dodges and Styles hits a Pele Kick. Rusev catches Styles next move and hits a Roundhouse Kick for 2. Accolade attempt, but Rusev’s left leg gives out on him so it’s more like a Half Camel Clutch as Styles struggles to the ropes. Aiden gets involved again by taking the pad off the top turnbuckle. Rusev goes face first into the exposed turnbuckle since he wasn’t aware of it, Styles lands a Springboard 450 for 2.

Styles knocks Aiden down and lands the Phenomenal Forearm for the pinfall victory.

Winner:  Styles via Phenomenal Forearm

Rating: **** 1/4

 

4. NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Moustache Mountain (c) vs The Undisputed Era

Moustache Mountain dethroned the, then NXT Tag Champions, Undisputed Era during the UK Special a couple weeks ago. So we get to see The Era try to prove something, whereas Trent Seven got his leg banged up in a previous Six Man Tag.

Trent Seven started it off, and that was the beginning of the story. Strong and O’Reilly managed to work over the injured like hunters going in for the kill. Multiple back breakers from Strong and O’Reilly with Heel Hooks and Knee Bars just killing Seven’s leg.

After a few cut off moments stopping Tyler Bate from getting into the match, Seven finally fights through and gets in the fresher man. It was at this point we get a goofy spot where Bate has Strong on his shoulders and grabs O’Reilly for an Airplane Spin/Big Swing combo, but since he couldn’t hold Strong, it made no sense why he stayed on his shoulders. So the crowd might’ve enjoyed it, but it really was rather awful.

We see Bate hit a Tyler Driver ’97, but it gets broken up. The trainers come out to work on Seven’s knee, which inspires Bate to try and fight harder without letting him come back in. Eventually, the Bate’s energy leaves him and the numbers game gets too much, so he ends up tagging in Seven.

Trent comes back in looking good, knocking them both down, hitting a Seven Star Lariat for a near fall, but it was all cooking. However, after breaking up one submission attempt the referee admonishes Bate and him being the good babyface listens to him. So we see Kyle O’Reilly go back to torturing Trent Seven by tearing his knee apart as Bate stays in the corner and tries to urge him on.

However, it becomes too much after a while. Tyler can’t watch his mentor get his knee torn apart so he throws in the towel even though Seven keeps saying not to do it. So Undisputed Era regains the Tag Titles.

Winner: Undisputed Era via Stoppage

Rating: **** 1/4

 

3. NJPW G1 Climax 28: SANADA vs Hirooki Goto

G1 Climax 28

This match is interesting where neither of these guys have much history fighting each other. Goto, who even though he’s the current NEVER Openweight champion and a former winner of the G1, as well as, he went to the finals of G1 Climax 26, but isn’t ever seen as a strong favorite. SANADA on the other hand is seen as a future champion.

It’s hard to really put in to words what happened in this match. We saw beautiful counter wrestling from SANADA, and his athleticism was on display opposed to Goto’s technical Bushido persona. We saw the match spill to the outside for a short time, but in general the match started off a little slow. So as we watch this build, it has the skeptical hallmarks of a good but forgettable Goto match.

But once we get to a point where SANADA goes for the Skull End then we watch the counter wrestling begin. SANADA did the usual thing where he puts too much stock in the Muta Moonsault and misses, which gives Goto the opening. A nice tease is Goto looks like he’s gonna pull off a Shouten Kai which was more of his go to finish before the GTR all the time.

So Goto lands a Reverse GTR, Draping GTR and his normal GTR to pull off a hard fought victory. SANADA keeps impressing and Goto definitely showed up a lot of doubters. Could’ve easily been the number 1 match, if it wasn’t paired against the well recognized names.

Winner: Goto via GTR

Rating: **** 1/2

 

Honorable Mentions:

WWE Extreme Rules Intercontinental Iron Man Match: Seth Rollins vs Dolph Ziggler (c)
Winner: Ziggler 5-4
Rating: ****
NJPW G1 Climax 28: Michael Elgin vs EVIL
Winner: Elgin via Elgin Bomb
Rating: ****
NJPW G1 Climax 28: Kota Ibushi vs Zack Sabre Jr
Winner: Ibushi via Kami GoYe Knee
Rating: ****
205 Live Cruiserweight Title Match: Hideo Itami vs Cedric Alexander (c)
Winner: Alexander via Lumbar Check
Rating: *** 3/4
Raw: Drew McIntyre vs Seth Rollins
Winner: McIntyre via Claymore
Rating: *** 3/4
Impact: Sami Callihan, Jake Crist & David Crist vs Rich Swann, Fenix & Pentagon Jr
Winner: Callihan via Get Out of Here
Rating: *** 3/4
WWE Extreme Rules: Roman Regins vs Bobby Lashley
Winner: Lashley via Spear
Rating: *** 1/2
NJPW G1 Climax: Tama Tonga vs Juice Robinson
Winner: Tama via Gun Stun
Rating: *** 1/4
MLW Fusion: ‘Filthy’ Tom Lawlor vs Jake Hager
Winner: Lawlor via DQ
Rating: ***

 

2. NJPW G1 Climax 28: Kazuchika Okada vs Jay White

From My Coverage:

So Jay White gets his first shot at Okada since returning from excursion and joining Chaos. Jay did say he wanted more inner stable matches, but given that neither have titles currently, this is just awkward. Okada sporting red hair and new awful music, and Jay White asking people where his belt is…I don’t even know what to think here. One will bounce back after big losses, but neither seems to be mentally complete at the moment.

Okada comes out with his balloons and looking relaxed to the point of goofiness, but does manage to take an early advantage. After some time on the outside, Jay White turns it around and starts banging Okada’s back off the barricade and apron. Plenty of entertaining spots in this match. Jay rips off the banner from the apron and tries to asphyxiate Okada, wait til 4, and then reattaches it as the crowd applauds that. Jay beats down Okada on the outside, Red Shoes starts counting, but Jay goes out there and throws Okada in the ring as the crowd applauds that also. So even though he’s doing obviously heelish things, they’re applauding when he does nice stuff as a show of respect, even if Jay is being disingenuous.

Even though this shell of Okada isn’t the same man that defended the IWGP title for 720, he gets a small fire under him when Jay starts toying with him. The Okada Dropkick, Macho Man Style Elbow Drop, Scooby Dooby Doo Crossbody and even a Rainmaker pose, but Jay manages to counter the Rainmaker the first few times.

We see Jay going to any lengths necessary to try and win the match, while verbally harassing Okada and messing with the crowd. Speaking of the crowd, they were oddly quiet through a lot of it. I’m not sure if they’re still trying to figure out new Okada or if they’re just not ready to openly support him after a year of cheering ever challenger he faced. Either way, the tense atmosphere, coupled with Jay’s insistence upon cheating to make it “his Chaos”, gave the match an odd feel.

Towards the end, Jay brings in a chair, pushes down Red Shoes and goes to hit Okada, but the Rainmaker Dropkicks the chair into Jay’s face and looks to be on track to winning the match. Red Shoes gets up, Okada winds up Jay for the Rainmaker, but Jay backfists Red Shoes before eating the Rainmaker. So even though the ref could’ve counted to 12, White’s tactics paid off. Kazuchika goes to pick him for another move, Jay hits a low blow, followed by throwing the chair into Okada’s face and finally, Blade Runner ends the match as the referee comes to.

So it told a good story of Okada still not being himself, and Jay White finding a character that will go to any lengths to win all while claiming everything is his.

Winner: Jay White via Blade Runner

Rating: **** 1/2

 

1.  NJPW G1 Climax 28: Kenny Omega vs Tetsuya Naito

Usually when we see these two, it’s either the finals, or leading to the finals. In two previous matchups they each have one win, but Omega wasn’t the champion at the time. Also there’s the under current of Omega’s comments about Japanese wrestlers not working as hard as gaijins (it’s a work), so Naito has something to prove not only for himself but for Japanese wrestlers.

This starts off fast and doesn’t slow down until they start to get exhausted. Naito gets his Avalanche Frankensteiner countered a few times, both the Destino and One Winged Angel get countered multiple times, and it’s just a beautiful match to watch. For as much as people talk about Okada versus Omega matches, the Naito matches have a special feeling about them.

Recounting things that happened won’t do this justice, so I’ll just fast forward to the end. Naito lands a Running Destino, but Omega kicks out. He then tries Destino four or five more times from different angles, but Omega finally gets an opening to land a V-Trigger to daze Naito long enough to hit the One Winged Angel.

Omega gets the early 2 points, which puts Naito behind the eight ball since B Block doesn’t really have an easy match up. Let’s remember that Okada went 6-0 last year before the wheels fell off, so it’s more how you finish, then how you start.

Winner: Omega via One Winged Angel

Rating: **** 3/4

 

Now even though my summation wasn’t fantastic, you need to watch the match to understand it, Tetsuya Naito vs Kenny Omega, gets my vote for match of the week. I can’t wait to see them have a match outside of the G1, but for now, I’ll be happy with these.

So Use Your Head, and I’m gonna go to bed.


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Opinion

Greg DeMarco’s 2024 WWE Royal Rumble Reaction

It’s the Royal Rumble! A favorite of many fans, the Rumble kicks off the Road To WrestleMania. Greg DeMarco is here with his live reactions to the event!

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WWE Royal Rumble 2024 Results

It’s the Royal Rumble! A favorite of many fans, the Rumble kicks off the Road To WrestleMania. Greg DeMarco is here with his live reactions to the event!

The WWE Royal Rumble is upon us, and while the Men’s Royal Rumble Match isn’t for the World Heavyweight Championship like I suggested, it’s still the most anticipated event of the year.

Why? The Unknown.

That’s right–in this age of the internet (usually incorrectly) telling us everything it possibly can about what is going to happen in the world of wrestling, the Royal Rumble stands out because despite what we’re told (or, more importantly, what we choose to listen to), the event is always full of fun and surprises.


Check out Steven Mitchell’s 2024 WWE Royal Rumble Results & Review!


Women’s Royal Rumble Match

  • They really are driving home the “main event WrestleMania” point this year–strengthens my thought that women will main event Night 1. Triple H would catch a ton of heat if he keeps women out for the third straight year.
  • NAOMI! Good to see her back, and the emotional response she had.
  • Love Michael Cole calling out Naomi’s time in TNA, and recognizing her as a former Knockouts Champion.
  • Entering #3 doesn’t bode well for Bayley. I honestly don’t think she is gonna win.
  • JORDYNNE GRACE! I saw the reports earlier today. This is a much bigger deal than Mickie James, because Mickie was a returning legend.
  • “TNA HAS A WEAPON!” So glad to have Pat McAfee on the call.
  • Honestly, Jordynne Grace belongs in WWE.

  • Asuka comes in, and they sell the surprise of Bayley. STORYTELLING, people!
  • Something tells me when we get Kairi Sane in there, The Kabuki Warriors will eliminate Bayley.
  • Ivy Nile enters, and I immediately want to see her go toe-to-toe with Jordynne Grace.
  • What if they pulled some crazy sh*t and had Jordynne Grace win???
  • Just step through the ropes next time, Bianca.
  • When I first saw the C4 clock, I thought I would get tired of it But I am already used to it.
  • Here’s Kairi Sane, time to set the plan into motion!
  • This crowd does not appear to like Tegan Nox.
  • Welp, there goes my idea o Asuka and Kairi eliminating Bayley.
  • That was a hell of a way for Jordynne Grace to go out.

  • I think Michael Cole secretly loves to call a Meteora.
  • There’s a reason Maxxine Dupri doesn’t wrestle much.
  • That tandem Code Red was very Young Buckish. And that’s not a compliment.
  • Hair,…gear…this might be the messiest Royal Rumble yet.
  • Ah, here comes the winner, Becky Lynch (I am calling Becky eliminates Bayley to win her second Royal Rumble).
  • LOVE the scoreboard of time in the Rumble for selected wrestlers.

  • R-TRUTH?!?! (Funny story, it was Truth’s spot that Nia Jax took in 2019.)
  • If you push Mia Yim, she’ll take it further than you could imagine.
  • “How is everybody the most athletic person on Earth?” – Pat McAfee
  • Surprising that Roxanne Perez, at #27, is the first NXT entrant. I don’t think we’ll be seeing Tiffany Stratton of Blair Davenport since we only have 3 more to come.
  • Amazing reaction for Jade Cargill. Give her time, she’s definitely going to be a huge star.
  • JUST GIVE HER TIME.
  • Seriously, Nia Jax had to help Jade eliminate her–A LOT.

  • Greg Was Wrong: It is indeed Tiffy Time in the Royal Rumble.
  • Back to Jade–she is insanely over.
  • I know it won’t be, but this should be Tiffany Stratton’s official main roster call-up.
  • Liv Morgan returns at #30, and good for Liv. She nearly went wire-to-wire last year.
  • Liv Morgan: “Thank you!” Pat McAfee: “No problem.”
  • Tiffany Stratton eliminating Roxanne Perez is, to me, an invitation for a match with them on Raw this Monday.
  • Still love the scoreboard as Naomi passes an hour.
  • The camera is catching a lot of in-ring communications right now.
  • And Jade Cargill eliminates my pick to win. Bye Becky.
  • Jade Cargill in the final three of the Royal Rumble (with Liv Morgan and Bayley) is huge for her.
  • Hell of a debut for Jade Cargill.
  • And a huge win for Bayley.

Winner of the 2024 Women’s Royal Rumble Match: Bayley (eliminating Liv Morgan to win)

Fatal 4-Way Match for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship: Randy Orton vs AJ Styles vs. LA Knight vs. Roman Reigns (champion, with Paul Heyman)

  • Glad to see AJ Styles got his tights back. Pants AJ Styles (but still with the football gloves) was not working. Not just bring the beard back to your face Allen–the think beard also ain’t working.

  • Pat McAfee campaigning for Roman Reigns to be given at least a 26% chance is amazing.
  • Say what you want about LA Knight, he’s a damn star and totally belongs in this match.
  • Roman completely sandbagged Randy on the table drop. I don’t think it was on purpose, but he definitely didn’t jump.
  • Roman Reigns is very much like Gunther in that he does the simple things SO WELL, like a jumping clothesline. That’s how you do it.
  • Yes, I compared Roman Reigns to Gunther. Don’t @ me, I’m right.

  • RKO City, Bitch.
  • Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand here’s Solo! (At some point, Solo will get tired of saving Roman’s ass.)
  • Solo ’bout to go through that barricade.
  • Solo indeed went through that barricade.

  • Yes, we had the Solo interference mid-match, but honestly in the end Roman won that clean.

Winner, #ANDSTILL your Undisputed WWE Universal Champion: Roman Reigns

WWE United States Championship: Kevin Owens vs. Logan Paul (champion)

  • Kevin Owens wearing Zubaz shorts in the Performance Center fight makes me very happy.
  • Logan Paul talking about a full time run, and now he’s putting on size.
  • Logan’s headband didn’t list very long.
  • I honestly hate it when modern-day wrestlers bust out a crotch chop.
  • If you were watching the Royal Rumble and didn’t know who Logan Paul was, you’d just assume he was a pro wrestler. That says everything you need to know about how good he is at this.
  • ANOTHER crotch chop. Now we’re at 2 too many.

  • Cue the “Better Buckshot Than Hangman” tweets. But they might be right.
  • I love the idea of a Logan Paul, Austin Theory, and Grayson Waller stable.
  • C’mon, there’s NO WAY Ryan Tran could see the knucks on Kevin Owens’ hand given his placement. It’s the little things.
  • Finish here tells me we’ll see KO vs. Logan Paul again. I’d guess on TV, if not in Australia.

Winner by disqualification, #ANDSTILL WWE United States Champion: Logan Paul

Men’s Royal Rumble Match

  • Jey Uso coming at #1 was expected thanks to the internet reports. But I still think Jimmy should be #1 and Jey #2, for the reaction shots on Jimmy.
  • Grayson Waller talking himself to the ring is perfect.
  • “No Yeet!” Grayson is a brilliant performer. I’d make a Roddy Piper comparison here, but y’all would get at mad at me.
  • Good to have Andrade back in WWE. Great reaction for him when the mask came off.

  • SmackDown superstar Carmelo Hayes! I really really really hope Trick is also in this match, just for the chants.
  • Melo pointed to the sign, C’mon, man.
  • Do you send Andrade to Smackdown, or do you send him to Raw and let him do his own thing?
  • Oh goody, Karrion Kross is here. Yay.
  • (Yes, that’s sarcasm you read.)
  • Dominik Mysterio is so good. Give him time, he’s going to be a huge star.

  • The Royal Rumble was a great place for the Apple Spot.
  • Here comes Bob Lashley–please just eliminate Karrion Kross.
  • Lashley wearing the WrestleMania white gear more than 2 months early.
  • Austin Theory still gets his concussion effect entrance, despite it being the Rumble.
  • What if–hear me out now–Finn Balor wins the Royal Rumble to get the shot at Seth Rollins, and Priest uses his briefcase to make that match a triple threat at ‘Mania?
  • I know he didn’t, but it sure looked like Jimmy was swerving while he drives in that interaction with Gunther.
  • Kofi did tell us the Rumble Magic wasn’t happening anymore.
  • Give me Ivar vs Gunther!
  • Bron Breakker is a star. It’s inevitable.
  • Of course Omos would be in the Rumble. Good to see MVP on my TV as well.
  • “I didn’t know humans came that big!” – Pat McAfee
  • I half think Pat McAfee didn’t know he was entering the Rumble.
  • Nice moment for Bron Breakker eliminating Omos. WrestleMania match?
  • R-Truth trying to get Dominik (Tom or Nick?) Mysterio to tag him in is brilliant.
  • DOM MADE THE TAG!!!
  • “And now R-Truth is the legal man.” – thank you Michael Cole.
  • Michael Cole delivers multiple TNA references tonight, along with a Dolph Ziggler reference. God Bless Michael Cole.
  • Imagine for a second that this was CM Punk’s actual WWE return.
  • The reaction to Drew McIntyre’s entrance is a reminder that they don’t actually need him.
  • Sami Zayn enters at #30, also known as “Not The Rock.”

  • In the ring, Drew McIntyre is amazing. Just keep the microphone away from him. (And stop the damn counting!)
  • And there goes my choice for the Men’s Rumble!
  • Love having both Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in the press boxes watching to see who wins.
  • Punk kinda looks like Chris Jericho in there. Seriously.
  • Between Punk and Cody, Cody is the right choice. I really don’t want to watch Punk right now–he needs to hit the cardio, and hard. Given Seth Rollins’ injury and Punk’s conditioning, WWE would be smart to make the World Heavyweight Championship match at WrestleMania 40 a multi-man match.

Winner of the 2024 Men’s Royal Rumble: Cody Rhodes


Overall thoughts on the 2024 WWE Royal Rumble

For at least the second straight year, the Men’s Royal Rumble Match was kinda disappointing. Not the result–that’s fine. But the match itself. It just wasn’t nearly as exciting as the Women’s. Of the four matches, I would place it 4th in terms of enjoyment.

Great moments for both Bayley and Cody Rhodes. Logan Paul continually shows that he deserves to be considered a pro wrestler, not a celebrity who is wrestling. Pat McAfee is a joy on commentary. Jordynne Grace is a WWE Superstar, regardless of what company she is signed to. Bron Breakker is a star.CM Punk is very out of shape. Cody Rhodes is about to become THE guy, and he deserves it.

Overall I give the event a thumbs up, but they have to do something about the Men’s Royal Rumble Match moving forward.


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WWE Raw Heads To Netflix: What Does It Mean?

Monumental news drops as WWE RAW is moving to Netflix. Is it truly a game changing move? Greg DeMarco analyzes this shift for the TV wrestling business.

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WWE Logo Metalic

Monumental news drops as WWE RAW is moving to Netflix. Is it truly a game changing move? Greg DeMarco analyzes this shift for the TV wrestling business.

Being a wee little kid in the 80s, I am “lucky enough” to remember having 3 TV channels, and my dad explaining what an 8-track is, how shocked I was when I say a laser disc for the first time, when I bought a 6 CD changer, installed my own car stereo, and all the way up to the fact that I have now been watching WWE pay-per-view/premium live events on the WWE Network and Peacock for 10 years. Hell, in the same month (February 2014) I signed up for the WWE Network, cut the cord to drop cable and got Sling TV. I have since moved onto YouTube TV which is highly recommended.

Over the last two years the NFL has put Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime, simulcast to various streaming services, and less than 2 weeks ago put a playoff game exclusively on streaming when a Wildcard Weekend showdown between the Chiefs and Dolphins was only shown on Peacock.

And now it’s fully permeated into pro wrestling.

WWE and AEW are both in the midst of a very important time on the business side, with all of their TV rights up for grabs. The first domino fell when SmackDown On FOX became SmackDown on USA Network, and soon after we learned that WWE NXT was moving to broadcast television and joining The CW (which is also rebranding, but just to CW).

The AEW suite of programming that includes Collision, Rampage, and their most successful show Dynamite is up for renewal with Warner Bros/Discovery, and Tony Khan has been optimistic about the relationship and potentially an increase in rights fees.

That brings us to Tuesday morning, and the likely groundbreaking WWE announcement that Raw is moving to Netflix, starting in January 2025. Triple H tweeted that they’re changing the game, and TKO President and COO Mark Shapiro (who knows a thing or two about shifts in media consumption) used the word “transformative” in his statement, and I really think he couldn’t be more right.

But what does it all mean?

Wrestling Remains A Strong Media Product

I have been claiming this for over a year now. As many online will cite a decline in TV viewership for both WWE and AEW, the TV product has been a strong value to networks. Even in dropping SmackDown, FOX themselves said they didn’t pump enough resources into the show, and that the advertising return wasn’t what they wanted. That doesn’t mean the product (TV value, we’re not talking about creative here) isn’t strong. It’s so strong that USA Network picked up SmackDown for $280 million per year, giving WWE an increase over the FOX deal. CW is paying $20-$25 million annually for NXT, and now Netflix is paying $500 million for RAW.

Why? Because wrestling isn’t just a strong media product, it’s consistent. And that is key.

Look at this quote from Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria:

“Raw is the best of sports entertainment, blending great characters and storytelling with live action 52 weeks a year and we’re thrilled to be in this long-term partnership with WWE.”

Now cross reference that with a comment from CW President Dennis Miller from back when the CW/NXT deal was announced:

“We are thrilled to welcome the WWE brand into the CW Sports portfolio as they play an integral role in our mission to bring live sporting events to the network year-round.”

What do those statements have in common? The year-round, 52-week nature of wrestling programming. It’s an unbeatable value for networks. It’s cheaper than a deal with a major sports league, and it’s not finite. Wrestling joins news, talk, and sports talk as the only year-round programming available to networks. And WWE and AEW have shows that essentially always land in the Top 5 after you factor out live sports. You can’t beat it.

What Does This Mean for Netflix?

Don’t get it twisted, this is also a huge leap for Netflix. Prior to the WWE Raw deal, Netflix has only experimented with live events, streaming the live Chris Rock “Selective Outrage” special, and showing The Netflix Cup live (a golf event featuring athletes from their F1 series “Drive To Survive” and their golf series “Full Swing).

WWE is the perfect partner for Netflix as it gets into live programming. It’s sports entertainment: sports like programming (which Netflix has done) that focuses on storytelling (which Netflix has obviously done). And no one does it better than WWE. It’s essentially plug-and-play for Netflix, the perfect solution for their live programming aspirations.

The perfect solution that they were willing to pay $5 billion for.

What Does This Mean for AEW?

The biggest risk to an AEW renewal with Warner Bros Discovery was WBD picking up WWE Raw–and that risk has been eliminated by Netflix. Don’t discount that fact–Netflix did Tony Khan a huge favor by throwing $500 million per at WWE. The path is clear for AEW to remain on the Turner networks.

But at what price?

I know I usually write as if I have all the answers, but I have zero idea either way on this one. WBD no longer has any other options if it wants to keep wrestling (except for TNA, who recently expressed a desire to be on a bigger network), and AEW (at least, Dynamite) is a weekly Top 5 program for them on Wednesdays, on cable.

On the other hand, AEW doesn’t exactly have another network begging for their services. The reason WWE could get a yearly increase for Raw, SmackDown, and NXT is because it was truly a bidding war. Unless Tony Khan gets another network involved, any threat of walking away from a deal doesn’t really hold water.

So if I were a betting man (and who would ever bet on this) I would expect an announcement of a renewal for AEW and WBD relatively soon. We may not know the terms of the deal, I will take a shot in the dark and say that AEW gets a small increase (not the “nearly double” that had been reported last year).

Regardless of the increase (or not), given AEW’s recent attendance challenges, this likely renewal would have to be viewed as a win for the company.


Personally, this is simply an amazing time to be a fan. We’ve seen WWE go from one live TV show per week with Monday Night Raw, through the Monday Night Wars, the addition of SmackDown and later NXT, to being this global juggernaut that is commanding half-a-billion dollars per year for Raw. I also think this makes Raw the flagship once again. All of this comes after Vince McMahon is largely out of power, Triple H has taken over creative (and holds a pretty good success rate so far), and the company was sold to Endeavor, and merged with the UFC as a business entity under the TKO banner.

If you know me, you know I am a huge follower of the business side of the wrestling business. I often care less about WHAT wrestling companies do, but HOW they do it. I have always gravitated towards that, since middle school. And for the past near 24 months, I have been like a kid in a candy store.

The Peacock deal for the WWE Network runs out in 2026, right? The fun never stops!


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