News, results & more from Japanese Pro Wrestling & Sumo
In a post on Facebook, All Elite Wrestling just announced the “Forbidden Door” PPV held last year with New Japan Pro Wrestling will return for a second installment this year. It will be held on 6/25 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
More as it becomes available.
I held off on posting last night’s AEW Rampage results because I wanted to watch and compare the TV presentation to the live experience I had as I was at Wednesday’s event & taping in Sacramento, CA. So here’s what happened…
TV:
Sammy Guevara beat Action Andretti.
The Acclaimed beat 2 jobbers. Squash.
Mark Briscoe announced a Reach For The Sky Ladder Match on 3/31 for the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Championship at their next PPV. Mark holds half the title, his late brother Jay Briscoe held the other half. The first team in the match was announced and it’s Lucha Bros.
Konosuke Takeshita beat Preston Vance.
Riho beat Nyla Rose.
Live experience:
Rampage taping began about 20 minutes after Dynamite went off the air (had to change the ring skirts, graphics, etc.). We also got entrances for Jim Ross and Chris Jericho (again) for commentary. Second Judas Sing Along of the night! The Acclaimed squash was taped first. Quick squash against two guys working their second matches of the night (you’ll also see them on this Monday’s Dark Elevation on YouTube, which was taped before Dynamite began). Afterwards, they hung around and posed for fans with signs at ringside. They are ridiculously stupid over.
The Mark Briscoe segment happened. I was excited to see him in person as I’ve been a longtime big fan of The Briscoes. Big pop of course for yet another Lucha Bros appearance (they were also on Dark Elevation). I was almost right in front of the stage and pyro all night. When those flames shoot out, when you’re that close YOU FEEL THE HEAT!
Riho-Rose was next. Great match that made for a solid TV main event and they got a lot of well-deserved time. Everyone loves Riho, she’s the perennial underdog because of her size (not even 100 pounds) but her personality and fighting spirit makes her very easy to root for (and she has 17 years experience despite only being 25…yes, that means she debuted in Japan at age 8. EIGHT!). This was a rematch between the first 2 AEW Women’s Champions-Riho beat Rose to become the first champion and Rose later returned the favor. No Vickie Guerrero amidst rumors she might be done with AEW (contract is about up), Marina Shafir seconded Rose. After the Paige/Saraya/Storm beatdown (TV ended here) they left and flipped off the fans in the process. My section in particular, haha.
An advertised Jungle Boy promo and all other promos/video packages and the Mark Henry main event intro were not shown to the live crowd so I first saw them on TV. That was perhaps the biggest difference between TV and being at the taping.
Takeshita-Vance was taped next. Another solid affair. Takeshita may not be as over as he should be due to fans maybe not being aware of his years in DDT in Japan, but he is gaining more fans with his performances and professed love of Cinnabon. Jose interference didn’t keep Takeshita from winning and Vance got good heel heat too.
The opening theme and pyro went off after Guevara & Andretti made their entrances to start the TV broadcast (entrances were streamed on YouTube). This was our live crowd main event. Another good match that ended sour for the live crowd when Daniel Garcia interfered and hid to help Guevara win. After the TV portion cut away, Chris Jericho left commentary to join Guevara & Garcia in the ring for the live crowd show-ending promo. It did not send the crowd home happy of course, but we still sent LE DEMO GOD CHAMPION off with one final Judas Sing Along. That ended the event. From start to finish the whole thing went about 4 1/2 hours (we did start 15 minutes earlier than advertised).
While TV editing and commercials obviously took away from the live experience, it was a quite good Rampage overall with what I felt were 3 solid single matches. Outside of The Acclaimed squash it’s all worth watching. Of course haters and the WWE chapter of the IWC are gonna hate, but it’s much better being able to see it live and in person because you’ll get stuff TV won’t, and it’s different presentation depending on where you’re seated. If you ever have a chance to get to a Dynamite/Rampage combo or a live Rampage, do so. Then go back and watch on TV and compare the experiences.
As noted previously, I was at ringside for last night’s (3/8/23) AEW Dynamite in Sacramento, CA. As promised, here is my live in-person recap of the event (will contain SPOILERS for Rampage! I’ll cut those off below):
I arrived 40 minutes before doors opened and was near the front of the security lines to get in. A few hundred fans were already there, that grew to probably in the thousands by opening time. Like most of California, Golden 1 Center doesn’t let you bring much more than yourself in. A lot of people couldn’t bring their signs in due to size limits of 11×17″ or slightly bigger than a sheet of legal size paper. Bags had to be checked in at a valet of they were bigger than an average size men’s wallet. That caused a lot of issues for fans. When doors opened I went straight to a merchandise table and got a souvenir event t-shirt, putting it on under my “Busted Open” hoodie. Good for layering. After using the restrooms I made my way to my seat at ringside, my back was to the entrance area with the ring to my right. Could not see the floor around the ring due to barricades. No comment on food/beverages/prices because I didn’t have anything (had a big lunch at a nice burger place just down the block from my office. I work just over a mile from the venue so getting there and leaving was quite easy. Leaving was easier than arriving, my light rail stop heading there was about a 2 block walk away)
The venue was not sold out. To my right was the hard camera section that was mostly tarped off. I would estimate about 85% full at peak. Some fans left before and during the Rampage taping. More arrived throughout the first hour.
The event began 75 minutes before broadcast with the taping for this Monday’s Dark Elevation episode on YouTube. I could see the heads of Paul “Big Show” Wight and Matt Menard at the commentary desk from my ringside seat. Dasha Gonzalez was the ring announcer. They taped 7 matches, first bringing out the unknown talent then the main roster stars got their entrances. A treat for me was that first up was Emi Sakura from Japan. We also got ROH Women’s Champion Athena, Brian Cage and Jake Hager (I LIKE THAT HAT!) plus more. The main event there was Peter Avalon & Ryan Nemeth vs. Lucha Bros. Most of the matches except the main were glorified squashes. I really like Dasha, she’s a great announcer and backstage personality.
That went about an hour then we had a short break before Dynamite went live. Justin Roberts did his entrance and got us warmed up, then out came Tony Khan for his introduction. After that…WE ARE LIVE!!! Opening match was Orange Cassidy vs. Jay Lethal for the AEW All-Atlantic Championship (afterwards renamed International Championship). I don’t like Cassidy and Best Friends but nobody at ringside for either side (refs kept Jeff Jarrett, Sonjay Dutt & Satnam Singh in the back). It was a surprisingly good opener. Cassidy won but Jarrett followed with a post-match guitar shot to set up a title match next week in Canada.
Renee Forever Young (Paquette) interviewed Powerhouse Hobbs backstage. Like everyone else, we love Renee and having her there live.
Ricky Starks promo. Another guy I don’t like. A bit of a pop for Juice Robinson laying him out. Several Bullet Club fans in my seating area.
Tony Schiavone interviewed Wardlow backstage. Saw this on big screen above the entrance ramp behind me.
Renee came out to a great reaction to interview Ruby Soho. Buried everyone before they brought out Slye Blue for their match. Blue is not ready for Dynamite/Rampage even as a mostly jobber. She does not look comfortable enough with the veterans. As Soho, Saraya & Toni Storm left they flipped us off as some of us tried to return the favor, maybe risking getting tossed out. Only live!
Renee interviewed Adam Page backstage. Most of us knew very well already that Renee is married to Jon Moxley so we keep waiting for Page to hit on her. Page still had quite the bruising and redness around his eyes from his PPV match.
FTR came out to a big pop and got a great reaction throughout and after their interview with Schiavone. Nothing but respect for Top Guys.
Renee interviewed Jade Cargill backstage as FTR left. Didn’t get audio and was only shown on big screens high above the ring. Will have to watch this on TV (I DVR’d the show but will not have a chance to watch until this weekend).
JAS came out for their trios match. Of course we did the Judas sing-along! They faced Top Flight & AR Fox in a solid trios match. JAS promo afterwards led to The Elite coming out…AND House Of Black after a video promo. Despite the lights going out I could see them running to/from the ramp. Now I know how they do it! (My seating was in front of the curtain to backstage where the losers go)
Tony Khan announcement backstage about the All-Atlantic Championship. We did not see or hear this.
Bryn Danielson video promo. This got a huge reaction when he suggested he was done.
BCC came out for their match. Jon Moxley came through the crowd but not my area, I couldn’t see him due to my position. Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta were with him. They won then further beat down Dark Order until evil Uno made the save, then Adam Page came out and we started the Let Them Fight! chants as refs broke it all up. Expected but fun.
The Acclaimed interviewed backstage. They got pops of the night. I hate them.
Main Event started backstage as it was changed to Falls Count Anywhere for the TNT Title. Their hardcore stuff got huge reactions and then they came to the ring through the entrance behind me! We popped HUGE! The match was a solid boss fight although our pop for Hobbs winning was slightly muted by QT Marshall interfering to help Hobbs win. After the cameras went off, Hobbs cut a full heel promo burying Sacramento and we booed them out of the building.
Click below for Rampage recap (SPOILERS!).
Continue reading “AEW Dynamite LIVE Recap for 3/8/23 (SPOILERS!)”Here are the quick results from tonight’s AEW Revolution PPV from San Francisco, CA:
Pre-Show: Mark Briscoe & Lucha Bros beat Ari Daivari & Varsity Athletes. Briscoe pinned Daivari after Froggy Boy.
PPV:
Ricky Starks beat Chris Jericho. JAS was banned from ringside
In a Final Burial Match (Buried Alive Match), Jungle Boy beat Christian Cage.
House Of Black beat AEW Trios Champions The Elite to become THE NEW AEW TRIOS CHAMPIONS! Malakai Black pinned Matt Jackson after Dante’s Inferno.
AEW Women’s Champion Jamie Hayter beat Saraya & Ruby Soho in a 3-way by pinning Soho to retain the title
In a Texas Death Match, Adam Page beat Jon Moxley by submission.
Wardlow beat AEW TNT Champion Samoa Joe by submission to become THE NEW AEW TNT CHAMPION!
ARW Tag Team Champions Gunn Club beat The Acclaimed, Jeff Jarrett & Jay Lethal and Orange Cassidy & Danhausen in a 4-way, when Austin Gunn pinned Danhausen, to retain the titles. FTR returned post-match.
In a 1 Hour Iron Match, AEW World Champion MJF beat Bryan Danielson in Sudden Death after a 3-3 TIE to retain the title.
Here are the quick results from tonight’s LIVE AEW Rampage in Daly City, CA:
Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta beat John Silver & Alex Reynolds, Top Flight & Dark Order in a 4-way when Yuta pinned Darius Martin.
Riho beat Emi Sakura.
Powerhouse Hobbs beat Serpentico. Squash.
Keith Lee & Dustin Rhodes beat Swerve Strickland & Parker Boudreaux. Lee pinned Boudreaux after a jackhammer.
A couple rough spots (especially at the end of Riho-Sakura, Emi seemed to botch a moonsault sequence) but otherwise a fine hour of action, all average to above-average. Main event was quite good. Lee’s new look with a dark purple supervillain-like cape and hood was definitely a high spot for his return.
Added to Revolution Sunday: The Pre-Show match will be Lucha Bros & Mark Briscoe vs. Varsity Athletes. Also, Jungle Boy vs. Christian Cage, which was announced as a No Holds Barred match on Dynamite, is now being called The Final Burial. This suggests it could be a cinematic-style match like WWE did a couple times in recent years with The Undertaker.
Here are the quick results from tonight’s AEW Dynamite in Daly City, CA:
AEW All-Atlantic Champion Orange Cassidy beat Big Bill to retain the title.
Powerhouse Hobbs won the Face Of The Revolution Ladder Match. As a result, Hobbs gets an AEW TNT Championship match next week.
Chris Jericho beat Peter Avalon.
FTW Champion Hook beat Matt Hardy to retain the title. As a result, Hook gets a No DQ match with Stokely Hathaway with The Firm banned from ringside in the future.
Riho beat Toni Storm.
Danhausen & Orange Cassidy won the casino tag team battle royal as a late replacement for Best Friends. As a result, Cassidy/Danhausen are in the AEW Tag Team Title 4-way at Revolution vs. Gunn Club, The Acclaimed and Jeff Jarrett & Jay Lethal (Gunn Club defending the titles).
MJF/Bryan Danielson promo was main event segment but they got less than 4 minutes.
This was one of the worst episodes of Dynamite to date and a horrible finish to a rushed and very bad PPV build. Better now than next week when I will be there LIVE AND IN PERSON!
Rampage is LIVE Friday, only thing seemingly announced for the show was Dustin Rhodes & Keith Lee vs. Mogul Affiliates.
Here are the quick results from tonight’s TAPED AEW Rampage from Phoenix, AZ:
The Young Bucks beat Aussie Open.
Toni Storm beat Willow Nightingale.
Lance Harper beat Bryce Saturn. Squash.
Sammy Guevara beat Action Andretti.
Reminder that next week’s Rampage is LIVE! It’s the final TV hour before Revolution.
Click below for the results from today’s TAPED AEW Rampage, airing at 7 PM ET/4 PM PT, but ONLY IF YOU WANT SPOILERS! (I will be unable to watch this week’s episode due to work conflicts with the earlier time) The show airs early due to NBA coverage on TNT.
Continue reading “AEW Rampage 2/17/23 Results (SPOILERS!)”Here are the quick results from tonight’s AEW Dynamite in Laredo, TX:
The Acclaimed, Billy Gunn & Orange Cassidy beat Jeff Jarrett, Jay Lethal, Satnam Singh & Sonjay Dutt. Max Caster pinned Dutt. Jarrett competed despite the death of his father, wrestling legend Jerry Jarrett, yesterday. He was 80.
In a Texas Tornado Tag Match, Jon Moxley & Caludio Castagnoli beat Preston Vance & Rush. Moxley beat Vance with a chain-assisted jujigatame.
Mark Briscoe beat Josh Woods.
Jungle Boy beat Brian Cage.
Adam Page beat Kip Sabian.
Ruby Soho beat Britt Baker & Toni Storm in a 3-way by pinning Baker.
Not a good show tonight. Too much crammed into too little and some segments ran too long, plus a dead-on-TV crowd except for a spot where Lucha Bros returned.
Friday on Rampage at 7 PM ET/4 PM PT: AEW Trios Champions The Elite vs. Top Flight & AR Fox for the titles, AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill vs. Vertvixen for the title, Dustin Rhodes vs. Swerve Strickland and Daniel Garcia vs. Ricky Starks.
Next week: Jon Moxley vs. Evil Uno and the Revolution Tag Team Battle Royal where the winner will face Gunn Club, The Acclaimed and another battle royal winner in a 4-way for the AEW Tag Team Titles at Revolution.
Added to Revolution: The forementioned tag team title match, AEW TNT Champion Samoa Joe vs. Wardlow for the title and Jon Moxley vs. Adam Page in a Texas Death Match.
UPDATE: About 45 minutes after the show ended, the promotion announced Mark Briscoe has been signed by AEW and will compete in both AEW and Ring Of Honor going forward.
Here are the quick results from tonight’s TAPED AEW Rampage from El Paso, TX:
Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta beat Kip Sabian, The Butcher & The Blade. Castagnoli pinned Sabian after a European uppercut.
Ruby Soho beat Marina Shafir.
Jungle Boy beat Ryan Nemeth. Squash.
AEW All-Atlantic Champion Orange Cassidy beat Lee Moriarty to retain the title.
This week’s show ended a recent run of good episodes as it started well but then was monkey crap the rest of the way.
Next week on Dynamite: Moxley/Castagnoli vs. Rush & Preston Vance in a Texas Tornado Tag Match and Renee Paquette interviews Adam Cole.
Next week’s Rampage will air at an earlier time of 7 PM ET/4 PM PT due to NBA All-Star Weekend coverage on TNT.
