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News From Cook’s Corner 2.8.21: Tom Freaking Brady

Cook goes over a few big/interesting wrestling topics, but the week was capped off by Tom “Freaking” Brady!

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Hi, hello & welcome to News From Cook’s Corner! I am Steve Cook, and I absolutely nailed everything that happened on Super Bowl Sunday. If you read my column on Saturday, you didn’t even need to watch the game. Of course the Buccaneers won. They had Tom Brady. As I’ve told you before, you don’t bet against greatness, and betting against Brady is like betting against Michael Jordan’s Bulls or Bill Russell’s Celtics. You might as well flush your money down the toilet if you’re thinking of betting against that.

I told you the under was the smart bet, because all of the hype heading into the game was about the offense, and whenever that happens we end up with a lower-scoring game than expected. The Buccaneers put up plenty of points, but there weren’t enough on the other end. I also told you that the best bet on Gatorade color splashed on the winning head coach was blue, since the Patriots had used blue the last couple of times they were able to get Bill Belichick with it, and Brady had enough stroke to pick the Gatorade dispensed on the sideline. Sure enough…

It was an up & down year for me with the NFL. Pretty sure that calling everything that happened at the Super Bowl pushes me over the top and solidifies my “expert” status. Granted, I achieved this by going in the tank for Tom Brady, but if you’re going to shill for somebody, it might as well be the GOAT. Honestly, I don’t see how people that still hate him at this point sleep at night. Just give in already! Accept it for what it is! Denying reality will just make you angry and useless to the world.

There’s a political joke there, but I’m gonna leave it alone. Gonna be nice to the opposition. Let’s get to what you all click on this column for, the wrestling news!

AEW & New Japan

We have to start this week with something that’s a rarity amongst Internet wrestling writers. Many of us have a tough time admitting when we’re wrong about something. We usually just sweep it under the rug while moving on to the next hot take.

Me, I feel the need to own up to when I get something wrong. Especially when I’m so sure I’m right about something. Like last week, when I said with 100% certainty that this whole Moxley/KENTA thing on NJPW Strong wouldn’t lead to anything important on AEW television. I absolutely thought they might mention it on commentary prior to the match, and then not say anything after the match aired.

I did not think that KENTA would appear at the end of Dynamite to make Moxley Go 2 Sleep. I also did not think that KENTA would do a match on the next week’s episode, as I didn’t expect him to appear on AEW Dynamite. Some crazy stuff going on here, which was easier to make happen than I originally thought.

As it turns out, the heat between AEW & New Japan came down to two things. One being the fact that Harold Meij wouldn’t do business with the Elite guys. Once Meij got relived of his duties with NJPW, things got easier. The other issue, which is easier for people like you & I to understand, is the fact that AEW was not an established brand in North America. New Japan likes to rely on established partners in various countries. Ring of Honor was their partner in the United States. They didn’t know that the Elite & Tony Khan could form a promotion that could be a viable partner. They underestimated what AEW could be. Once AEW established themselves as a viable partner with international reach, New Japan saw the value.

Let’s be honest. This isn’t the sort of thing that’s going to draw in those casual viewers. People are going to slam this thing because of that. They’ll use it as evidence that AEW is only interested in catering to their hardcore demographic, because nobody outside of that demo cares about Japanese wrestling. They’re not entirely wrong. I, for one, am happy to be catered to from time to time. Also, it’s kind of nice to be able to watch a show and not feel compelled to defend it by saying “it’s not for us”.

We don’t know how far this thing can go, and as long as things are the way they are, that dream match supercard can’t happen. As a wrestling geek, I am marking out over the idea of AEW, NJPW & Impact Wrestling crossing over, and I’m also hoping that Ring of Honor gets involved since I review their show for 411. Would be nice!

New Japan on Roku

We’ve been hearing about this New Japan TV deal in North America for awhile, and in most circumstances I would be ready to dump on what they came up with. People were hoping for New Japan to get a nice slot on a channel people could find on their cable systems. Vice was a popular suggested destination, and apparently there were talks with ESPN as well. Neither of those happened, so they got a deal on the Roku Channel. It’ll be like the show they had on AXS, older stuff for an hour.

Doesn’t sound like much, but it works for me. I have a Roku box since Tony Sly told me to get one for fifteen years. So I’ll be able to view whatever they put on Roku. Sounds good to me!

Cesaro Re-Signs

There was a brief period of time where Cesaro’s WWE contract was about to expire and people thought he might go somewhere else. That led to Shinsuke Nakamura getting the push in the gauntlet match on SmackDown a few weeks ago, and apparently Shinsuke’s job going forward will be to make stars. I hope he does, WWE could definitely use some!

Cesaro was apparently the original choice for that role, as Daniel Bryan has been pretty insistent on featuring him. In an somewhat related note, it’s interesting how nobody noticed the difference between Daniel Bryan & Edge on the creative team until Dave Meltzer wrote a sentence or two about it in his newsletter. One wants to push other people, the other wants a main event slot for themselves. I’m not even blaming Edge for it, as I know some otters that are totally buying into his deal. Just noting the difference between him & Bryan, who could have a main event slot for himself if he wanted it. Doesn’t seem to be a priority for him.

Cesaro has reportedly agreed to a new deal with WWE, and people have thoughts & opinions about it. My thoughts & opinions: whatever makes Cesaro happy is good with me. Also, I don’t think he’s been as underutilized as people claim over the years. We’re talking about a seven-time Tag Team Champion here, and I happen to think he’s best as part of a tag team. I know that “tag team” is a dirty word to some of you, but I think there’s a lot of value in somebody that can make a perfect tag team with just about anybody. Cesaro is the Bobby Eaton of his generation, which isn’t a bad thing. It’s kept him under contract for a very long time. Nothing wrong with that in my book.

Cutler Cut

Steve Cutler, formerly one third of the truculent trio known as the Forgotten Sons, was released by WWE last week. In normal circumstances, most of us would shrug our shoulders & move on to the next thing, as Cutler wasn’t exactly a featured performer & WWE has become ridiculously profitable by letting people like him go. We don’t move on because outlets like the Wrestling Observer & Fightful tell us he got released because he got the coronavirus.

Cutler’s been quiet on the issue, but his girlfriend, Deonna Purrazzo, has been vocal in his defense on social media. She admits that they both tested positive early in January, but defends their decision to party with other wrestlers & points out that other wrestlers that attended the party are still employed. I’m guessing those other wrestlers are hoping that they remain nameless, especially if they’re expendable.

We don’t know if testing positive for the coronavirus after partying was Cutler’s only offense. He’s certainly not the only person contracted by WWE that’s done that, so there very well may be other issues at play that we don’t know about. We probably won’t know either, since the coronavirus angle is what the wrestling media is going with at the behest of Cutler & Purrazzo. Maybe it is just that. WWE’s probably getting frustrated with their workers continually ignoring requests to not party all the time party all the time party all the time during a pandemic.

Listen, it’s easy for me to say this because my social life hasn’t changed all that much over the past year. Might be hard for y’all to believe, but I’m not a popular guy. Never been particularly well-liked by my peer group. I don’t get invited to very many parties. So it’s easy for me to tell people to stop going to parties & spreading viruses. It seems like an easy thing to do from my perspective. Maybe not from that of a popular person that loves being around other people.

Should WWE be firing people for getting sick? Probably not, but I understand a certain level of frustration people there must be feeling towards their workforce. They keep getting sick and missing time at work, forcing plans to constantly be changed. WWE keeps having these outbreaks, and they’re not as good at covering it up as other wrestling promotions are.

Lars Let Go

PWInsider reported last week that Lars Sullivan had been released by WWE some time back. It was a bit surprising, not only because Lars had been a project they’d been trying to build for awhile, but because there was no notice on WWE’s website. No future endeavors! It was like WWE was hoping we’d forget he existed with them. And we did for about a month or so.

Lars’ last straw was continuing to no-show TV tapings, which had been a problem with him in the past due to anxiety. He confirmed during an interview with Fightful that his anxiety issues had gotten the best of him, and he & WWE mutually agreed to part ways.

Its very similar to what happened with Kylie Rae. Kylie got more sympathy from the public though, largely because she wasn’t known to post racist & homophobic comments online. Maybe it’s not fair to Lars, but people will hold that stuff against you. Hopefully he gets better, figures things out & finds some happiness on his own terms.

Tyler Reks Transitions

You might remember Tyler Reks from early 2010s WWE. Reks started in ECW before moving to SmackDown. Career highlights included beating Kaval to earn a spot on SmackDown’s Bragging Rights team & teaming with Curt Hawkins to kidnap Matt Striker. Reks left WWE in 2012 to spend more time with family, and didn’t do much in the pro wrestling scene afterward.

Reks made some news last week by coming out as a trans woman. Now known as Gabbi Tuft, she’s the first former WWE Superstar to make a transition in gender identity. We haven’t seen that a whole lot in wrestling in general. Nyla Rose is the only active transgender wrestler working for a major company. It’s not something we’re used to discussing, and I’m just happy I’ve gotten better at handling these things with age. Me trying to write about a topic like this in 2005 wouldn’t have been good. I had no idea what was going on back then. So young and stupid.

I tend to avoid reading the comment sections on news items like this one, so I don’t know how the majority of wrestling fans have been reacting. Hopefully they’ve been supportive. I can’t imagine what it’s like to spend your life being one thing when in your heart you know that you’re the opposite. Going through that, then deciding to make the change and dealing with the reactions of others that see you a certain way…that takes a strength I don’t think most people have. I doubt I would be able to. Fortunately, I am very confident in my identity as an ugly male that has no appeal to the opposite sex, and have no desire to explore other avenues. Especially at my advanced age.

We wish Gabbi the best, and hope people treat her with the respect she deserves.

Butch Reed

Butch Reed, most known for his stints with Mid-South Wrestling, WCW & the WWF, passed away last week at the age of 66. He suffered two massive heart attacks within a week and was unable to recover.

My Mid-South watching hasn’t gotten to the part where Reed shows up yet, but people speak very well of his work there. His WWF stint is mostly remembered for his chance to be Intercontinental Champion falling by the wayside due to a series of no-shows. That WWF road schedule was no joke, and claimed many a victim back in the day. Reed denied this for many years, but came clean later on.

I’m most familiar with Reed as one-half of Doom, the team he formed with Ron Simmons that won the WCW Tag Team Championship. Simmons would go on to further glory as the first black World Champion recognized by a national wrestling promotion. Reed did not have similar success, Doom was pretty much his last major run. I was pretty excited to hear that Reed was still watching wrestling recently, and saw Will Hobbs as the next “Hacksaw”, reminding him of himself back in the day. A great compliment to a youngster.

He did wrestle part-time while pursuing a career on the rodeo circuit in the 1990s. So you could say he spent his later years in wrestling riding producers of bullshit while Ron Simmons spent his later years in wrestling teaming with one.

And on that note, I’ll see you next week!


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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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