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Andrew’s Top 5 Matches: Week Ending 7/26/20

A week with a bunch of important Japanese title matches! How much of the Top 5 contains Japanese wrestling?

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This week is much different from the last, we’ve got a lot of bigger shows in Japan and only North American television product to contend with it. So exactly how stacked is this Top 5 with Japanese matches? Let’s see!

Now now – you know I go over who won last week’s vote first as to slow roll the goods. Riding the wave of positive vibes and good faith, Impact Slammiversary: Vacant Impact World Championship 5 Way: Eric Young vs Ace Austin vs Trey vs Rich Swann vs Eddie Edwards, won the popular vote. So it goes into the pool, and this week’s choice will fill out the July bunch!

Let’s get to see the options to fight for the July Match of the Month.

Quick Top 5:

  1. IMPACT!: Impact World Tag Team Championship: The North (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander) (c) vs Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin)
    Rating: **** 1/4
  2. NJPW Sengoku Lord: IWGP Intercontinental & Heavyweight Double Gold Match: Hiromu Takahashi vs EVIL (c)
    Rating: **** 1/4
  3. AJPW Summer Action Series: Triple Crown Championship: SUWAMA (c) vs Shuji Ishikawa
    Rating: **** 1/4
  4. NJPW Sengoku Lord: NEVER Openweight Championship: Shingo Takagi (c) vs El Desperado
    Rating: ****
  5. NXT: Triple Threat for Qualification to North American Championship Ladder Match: Johnny Gargano vs Roderick Strong vs Bronson Reed
    Rating: ****

 

Honorable Mentions:

  • AJPW Summer Action Series: AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Championship: Koji Iwamoto vs Susumu Yokosuka (c)
    Rating: *** 3/4
  • WWE Raw: Kairi Sane w/Asuka vs Bayley w/Sasha Banks
    Rating: *** 1/2
  • AJPW Summer Action Series: Yusuke Kodama, Kuma Arashi, Hokuto Omori & Shotaro Ashino vs Kento Miyahara, Akira Francesco, RISING Hayato & Jiro “Ikemen” Kuroshiro
    Rating: *** 1/2
  • NXT: Karrion Kross w/Scarlett vs Dominik Dijakovic
    Rating: *** 1/2
  • NJPW New Japan Road: Suzuki-Gun (DOUKI & El Desperado) vs LIJ (SANADA & Shingo Takagi)
    Rating: *** 1/4
  • WWE Raw: Seth Rollins vs Aleister Black
    Rating: *** 1/4
  • NXT: Timothy Thatcher vs Oney Lorcan
    Rating: *** 1/4
  • NJPW New Japan Road: LIJ (Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI) vs Darkness Club (EVIL, Dick Togo & Taiji Ishimori)
    Rating: *** 1/4
  • IMPACT!: X Division Championship: Chris Bey (c) vs Willie Mack
    Rating: ***
  • NJPW Sengoku Lord: Toru Yano, Gabriel Kidd & Tomohiro Ishii vs Togi Makabe, Satoshi Kojima & Ryusuke Taguchi
    Rating: ***
  • WWE Raw: Unsanctioned Match: Big Show vs Randy Orton
    Rating: ***
  • NJPW New Japan Road: Master Wato, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi & Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, ZSJ & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
    Rating: ***
  • NXT: Killian Dain vs Dexter Lumis
    Rating: ***
  • WWE SmackDown: Chad Gable vs Grand Metalik vs Lince Dorado vs Drew Gulak
    Rating: ***
  • AJPW Summer Action Series: KAI &Tajiri vs Seigo Tachibana & Yoshitatsu vs Izanagi & Zeus
    Rating: ***
  • AEW Dynamite: TNT Championship: Eddie Kingston vs Cody Rhodes (c)
    Rating: ***
  • NJPW Sengoku Lord: Yujiro Takahashi vs Kazuchika Okada
    Rating: ***
  • AEW Dynamite: Falls Count Anywhere: Butcher & Blade vs The Young Bucks
    Rating: ***

4t. NXT: Triple Threat for Qualification to North American Championship Ladder Match: Johnny Gargano vs Roderick Strong vs Bronson Reed

Snippet from Mitchell’s Coverage:

Gargano throws haymakers and CHOPS on Reed, then goes after Strong. Strong fights Gargano back and fireman’s carries him up! Gargano fights that off, but Reed adds on with clubbing forearms. Reed has Gargano in an Electric Chair, Strong gets up, but Gargano avoids Doomsday with a POISON-RANA! But Strong KNEES Gargano first! Cover on Reed, Gargano SUPERKICKS it apart! All three men are down and “This is Awesome!” Reed is on the apron and Strong throws forearms from all sides. Reed CLUBS back, Gargano clubs Reed’s legs from behind! Gargano has Reed, Strong KNEES Reed into the POWERBOMB!! The crowd loses its mind while the ref checks on Reed. Reed writhes, Gargano turns around for Strong to WRECK him with a dropkick!

Strong puts Gargano in, runs corner to corner and SHINING WIZARDS! Back suplex SLAM! Cover, TWO!! Strong keeps his focus as he drags Gargano up. Gargano resists the underhooks but Strong still gets him up, only for Gargano to huricanrana! Gargano runs, tilt-o-whirl takedown to GargaNO Escape! But Strong makes it a cover, TWO! Gargano powers out of Strong Hold, ducks the boot and rolls Strong, TWO! SUPERKICK! Gargano drags Strong up to scoop and LAWN DART! The crowd fires up as Gargano aims but Strong dodges! Strong fireman’s carries, GUTBUSTER DROP! Gargano is on the apron, and enziguris Strong away! Slingshots, ONE FINAL BEAT!! But Gargano sputters to the cover, REED THICC BOI SPALSHES! Cover, REED WINS!!

Winner: Reed via Thicc Boi Splash

 

4t. NJPW Sengoku Lord: NEVER Openweight Championship: Shingo Takagi (c) vs El Desperado

From My Results:

Desperado continued his plan from New Japan Road, and focused on Shingo’s left knee. Dragon Screws, Knee Breakers, Chairs to the knee, Stretch Mufflers, Indian Deathlocks…all of Despy’s offense was focused on the injured leg and trying to take the base away from the power fighter. It was a great plan, that Despy played into really well through the match.

Shingo’s selling is amazing, where he knows how to sell awkward movements in the ring, he sent a message to Desperado early in the match when he had him in the ropes, blocked a kick, grabbed both legs and Double Dragon Screwed Despy from the ropes to the mat. This was fun to watch since it told a great story of Desperado trying to methodically cripple the champion, while peppering in cheating tactics, with Shingo fighting from underneath most of the match.

He only needed to hit it once, and once he did, Shingo retained the title after Last of the Dragon. The beauty in this match is Shingo’s ability to sell the injury and the story. Always making sure to sit out on certain moves, to alleviate pain on his knee, leaning to the good side to carry the burden of weight and moving around the ring, sometimes scooting around the ring, because he really couldn’t move well. 

Winner: Shingo via Last of the Dragon 

 

1t. AJPW Summer Action Series: Triple Crown Championship: SUWAMA (c) vs Shuji Ishikawa

From My Results:

The early goings was either stalemate since they’ve been tag partners for the last three years, or SUWAMA had a slight edge.  Once Shuji hit the Fire/Thunder Driver on the outside though, the match turned. SUWAMA sold a stinger for a while, his strikes were weak, his desperation was high and Shuji was in complete control. It wasn’t until SUWAMA got fired up out of pure frustration hitting a Belly to Belly Suplex that he started to bring the match closer to equal.

We saw a great back and forth slugfest, done in more of an old 90s style of All Japan. Two men, known for high impact power moves, nothing too flashy, just a downright fight. Both men were exhausted and even the moves reflected so. A few great German Suplexes from SUWAMA, but because of Shuji’s size and the exhaustion, he ended up throwing him more over his shoulder than straight over.

Shuji landed most of his big moves, Splash Mountain was a very close near fall, TSUNAMI, Kamigoye…just deliberate strikes and a hard fought fight. SUWAMA had to hit three Backdrop Drivers, finishing the last with the bridge for the Backdrop Hold to put his friend and tag team partner away.

Winner: SUWAMA via Backdrop Hold

 

1t. NJPW Sengoku Lord: IWGP Intercontinental & Heavyweight Double Gold Match: Hiromu Takahashi vs EVIL (c)

From Mitchell’s Coverage:

Evil drags Hiromu up, slashes the throat, and with Dick’s help, MAGIC KILLER!! But that’s not all, Evil puts Hiromu in a drop zone as Dick climbs up. But Hiromu kicks Evil into ropes and trips Dick up! Dick lands on his namesake and tumbles to the floor. The fans are thunderous as Evil drags Hiromu up. Hiromu shoves Evil away, denies the STO to STEAL the STO!! The fans cheer but both men are down with no ref to count! Hiromu drags himself up, shouts for Red Shoes, then drags Evil back up. Red Shoes returns, Hiromu fireman’s carries Evil again, for a corner Death Valley to BARE BUCKLES! Hiromu and the fans fire up, fireman’s carry and TIME BOMB!! Cover, TWO!?! Evil survives all of that?!

Hiromu fires up again and the fans are thunderous again. Hiromu dragon sleepers, lifts, TIME BOMB II!!! Cover, but Dick drags out Red Shoes! Dick has his garrote! He chokes Hiromu with it!! Hiromu gets up and fireman’s carries Dick! Dick slips off, swings on Hiromu but Hiromu ducks to SUPERKICK! Hiromu brings Dick up, Evil LOW BLOWS! Dick chokes Hiromu again! Hiromu reaches but fades out and Dick lets him go. Dick gets Red Shoes back in the ring and Evil staggers up. Evil makes his way to Hiromu, drags him up, fireman’s carry for DARKNESS FALLS! But that’s not all, Evil wants to keep his promise! Evil drags Hiromu up, EVERYTHING! IS! EVIL!!! Cover, Evil wins!!

Winner: EVIL via Everything is Evil

 

1t. IMPACT!: Impact World Tag Team Championship: The North (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander) (c) vs Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin)

From My Results:

Some early tandem attacks gave the Guns the advantage, and we even saw the classic between the legs dive that they always used to do. My best way to describe a good bit of this is Alex Shelley is the type of partner you want. Shelley took about 70% of The North offense through this match, including the Sliding Crossbody that Josh Alexander just kills people with. This is most likely since Sabin is only a few months cleared from I think his third ACL surgery? So Shelley being the workhorse is very smart.

We saw a great spot where Shelley has Page in a Crossface, Sabin catches Alexander and slaps on the Cloverleaf; but Page manages to turn it into a pin. So Sabin breaks his submission to stop the pinfall. At this point we get a bunch of bigger moves. Each man tries to wipe the other out.

The North manages to isolate Sabin, then they look to win with the Northern Assault. As Alexander flips Sabin forward, Sabin grabs Page’s head and rolls him up. Shelley slides in to keep Alexander at bay, and the Motor City Machine Guns win the tag titles!

Winner: MCMG via Small Package

 

Thoughts:

This is the first time in a while that we’ve had a tie (ratings wise) at the top end of the list. Each of the top three had a different style and brought a unique feeling. Hiromu Takahashi vs EVIL, will get my vote this week. There were a lot of recent layers that people knew about, and the little nugget that popped up after the match, that Hiromu told LIJ not to help even if Bullet Club interferes; proves how seriously he took the whole situation.

A great week for fans of wrestling beyond the televised product! That’s not a slight, it’s more just yet another indication that the wrestling world is bigger and better than the cable box.

Most important thing though, is enjoy what you enjoy and #AlwaysUseYourHead


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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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Opinion

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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