Ringside Rap

02/15/2012 – WEDNESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-15T06:27:00.001-05:00

Tonight’s edition of Ringside Rap, with hosts Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, will feature an interview with legendary southern referee Mac McMurray, and discussion on the top stories in pro wrestling, boxing, and MMA, and some old school nostalgia as well. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

Randy Orton was injured during his match against the Big Show on WWE’s Monday Night RAW, and will not be able to work at Elimination Chamber.

UFC will present UFC on Fuel TV 1 at the Omaha Civic Auditorium in Omaha, NE, tonight. Advertised for the main card, to be broadcast on Fuel starting at 8:00 PM ET: Jake Ellenberger versus Diego Sanchez; Dave Herman versus Stefan Struve; Ronny Markes versus Aaron Simpson; Philip De Fries versus Stipe Miocic; T.J. Dillashaw versus Walel Watson; and John Albert versus Ivan Menjivar. Advertised for the preliminary card, to be webcast on Facebook beginning at 5:00 PM ET: Jonathan Brookins versus Vagner Rocha; Sean Loeffler versus Buddy Roberts; Anton Kuivanen versus Justin Salas; and Bernardo Magalhaes versus Tim Means.

According to our records, Hugo Savinovich celebrates a birthday today.

Mark Tender died at the age of 55 on this day in 1990, and Bill MacMurray was 79 when he passed in 1997. Louie Spicolli was 27 when he passed away on this day in 1998, and Paddy Casey died at 92 in 2002. Michiaki Yoshimura died at the age of 76 on this day in 2003, and Johnny Weaver was 72 in 2008.

02/14/2012 – TUESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-14T19:12:00.000-05:00

Dixie Carter confirmed Vince Russo’s departure from TNA on Twitter: "TNA and Vince Russo have mutually parted ways as of this week. The separation is amicable and professional."

We hear that Jesse Sorensen is making significant steps in recovering from Sunday’s botched moonsault at Against All Odds, and that TNA made arrangements for his mother to be flown to Orlando to be with him. He is expected to make a full recovery.

Gina Carano, straight off the heels of Haywire, has been cast in the lead for In the Blood, an action thriller set to start filming within the next few months.

Floyd Mayweather, Jr., made some comments on Twitter earlier this week about the level of press Jeremy Lin is getting for his success in the NBA, saying he is getting special treatment from the media because he is Asian. Eric Adelson has a piece here where he throws out the fact Tiger Woods and the Williams sisters get the same treatment in their respective sports as well.

The video below is Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson talking with Ben Cafardo of ESPN:

Cristiane Santos will appeal her suspension on April 9 before the California State Athletic Commission.

02/14/2012 – TUESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-14T06:23:00.000-05:00

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, CA, tonight, taping for this week’s Superstars and NXT webcasts, and SmackDown, to be broadcast on SyFy on February 17. Advertised: Randy Orton versus Daniel Bryan; plus the Big Show, Cody Rhodes, the Great Khali, Wade Barrett, Sheamus, Hunico, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Alicia Fox, and Natalya. Bell time is 7:00 PM.

TNA will be at Universal Studios in Orlando, FL, tonight, taping for Impact Wrestling, to be broadcast on Spike TV on February 23.

According to our records, Rip Rogers, Tommy Dreamer, and Big Daddy Voodoo celebrate birthdays today.

Frank Martinez was 81 when he died on this day in 2010.

Click here for dark match results and Superstars spoilers from the RAW event at the Valley View Casino in San Diego, CA, on Monday night.

The final rating for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday was 2.17.

Click here for Impact Wrestling spoilers from the TNA tapings at the Universal Studios in Orlando, FL, on Monday night.

Kevin Iole answers questions from the boxing mailbag here.

02/13/2012 – MONDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-02-13T23:15:00.000-05:00

Results and highlights from WWE’s live Monday Night RAW broadcast for the USA Network on February 13 from the Valley View Casino in San Diego, CA: the show opened with Kane promising that John Cena would embrace the hate tonight, and also vowed to make someone leave in an ambulance; a debate moderated by Jerry Lawler that featured Chris Jericho, CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler (w/ Vickie Guerrero), R-Truth, and the Miz ended with Kingston laying out Jericho; Jericho over Kingston; backstage, Triple H welcomed Shawn Michaels with a hug; also backstage, Cena found Zack Ryder in his dressing room looking to surprise Eve Torres, but Cena told him to stay there so Kane won’t find him; still backstage, David Otunga reminded John Laurinaitis that although the Board of Directors kept him on as GM, they didn’t make him permanent, but he teased that he had an idea how he could help Laurinaitis not only get the permanent gig on RAW, but SmackDown as well; Randy Orton over the Big Show by disqualification after Daniel Bryan hit the ring and laid him out with a belt shot to the head, and then did the same to Show twice; an in-ring segment saw Michaels call HHH a coward for not accepting the Undertaker’s challenge, but HHH said he had to think about business first, which resulted in Michaels walking away in disgust, which led to Taker calling out HHH yet again via the TitanTron; Truth over Ziggler (w/ Guerrero); a backstage comedy segment with Santino Marella giving advice on love to Ryder; Tamina over Brie Bella (w/ Nikki Bella), with Beth Phoenix on commentary, followed by a staredown between Phoenix and Tamina; a lovefest for the Hollywood side of the Rock was shown; backstage, Cena stopped a kidnap attempt of Torres by Kane, who tried to drive off with her in an ambulance, only to have Ryder roll up in his wheelchair to catch Torres kissing Cena; in trying to console Ryder, Torres disgusted him more when she said they should be friends; Punk over Miz, with Jericho watching in the back; a promo by Cena was interrupted by Ryder, who went to hit Cena, only to have Cena block it and push him down inadvertently, followed by a Kane promo on the TitanTron; as Cena turned his back, Kane came out and rolled Ryder off the stage in his wheelchair, which led to the show ending with Cena and Torres watching as medics rolled Ryder out on a stretcher.

Shawn Michaels will appear on the March 5 edition of Monday Night RAW from the TD Garden in Boston, MA.

The official live attendance for UFC 143 has been announced as 9,015, for a live gate of $2,389,975.

Dereck Chisora has predicted a knockout in the eighth round when he challenges Vitali Klitschko for the WBC Heavyweight Title in Municj, Germany, on Saturday.

The International Sports Hall of Fame has announced the 2012 inductions of Mark Henry, Randy Couture, Chuck Wepner, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jack LaLanne, and Cory Everson. The ceremonies will be held at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, OH, on March 3.

Monday’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, hosted by Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Dany Only, featured Sugar Dunkerton, Aaron Epic, Eddie Graves, Frankie Valentine, and Micah and Tracy Taylor. Click here for the archive.

02/13/2012 – MONDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-13T18:43:00.000-05:00

Taz explained his absence at TNA’s Against All Odds PPV on Sunday night by posting the following on Twitter: "My wifes brother passed on Sat' night, great man. I wouldve NEVER had a career if it wasn't for him. Gave me the $ to go to wrestling school when I had nothing. RIP Joe."

As a follow up to the injury to Jesse Sorensen last night, he went numb following the botched move, and is still hospitalized. He has regained feeling in his arms and legs to some degree, but is said to have a long way to go. He suffered a C1 vertebrae fracture with spinal cord edema.

02/13/2012 – MONDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-13T06:26:00.000-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Valley View Casino in San Diego, CA, for tonight’s live broadcast of Monday Night RAW on the USA Network, starting at 9:00 PM ET. There will also be tapings for this week’s Superstars webcast. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, the Big Show, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, R-Truth, the Miz, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Jack Swagger, Brodus Clay, Primo, Epico, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Daniel Bryan, David Otunga, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres, Rosa Mendes, Beth Phoenix, the Bella Twins, and Natalya. Bell time is 5:30 PM.

TNA will be at Universal Studios in Orlando, FL, tonight, taping for Impact Wrestling, to be broadcast on Spike TV on February 16. Advertised: a women’s battle royal to determine a top contender for Gail Kim’s Knockouts Title.

According to our records, Akio Sato and Baby Doll celebrate birthdays today.

Bubba Douglas was 42 when he died on this day in 1986.

Tonight’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, with hosts Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Dany Only, will feature interviews with Frankie Valentine and wrestling couple Micah and Tracy Taylor, and discussion in recent and upcoming events. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

02/12/2012 – SUNDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-02-12T23:00:00.001-05:00

TNA results from the Against All Odds PPV at the Universal Studios in Orlando, FL, on February 12: Zema Ion over Jesse Sorensen in a match to determine the top contender for the X Division Title, after Sorensen was accidentally knocked out cold and had to be carried out; Robbie E issued an open challenge, putting up his TNA TV Title, and went over Shannon Moore, in a match that appeared to be a time filler since the opener was cut short; Gail Kim over Tara to retain the TNA Knockouts Title; Samoa Joe & Magnus over Matt Morgan & Crimson to win the TNA World Tag Team Title; Austin Aries over Alex Shelley to retain the TNA X Division Title; Kazarian over A.J. Styles; Gunner (w/ Eric Bischoff) over Garett Bischoff (w/ Hulk Hogan); and Bobby Roode over Jeff Hardy, James Storm, and Bully Ray, despite a slow count from enforcer Sting on Roode pinning Hardy, to retain the TNA World Title in a four-way.

Early reports on the injury to Jesse Sorensen are that he was having a series of tests done on his neck.

A story has broken that a Vince Russo is no longer head writer for TNA, a development that reportedly took place before the weekend. Speculation that David Lagana would replace him has not been confirmed.

Golden Glory has obtained a court order which asks for $427,714.27 be paid by Zuffa via check to a Nevada District Court, almost doubling the amount they had previously sought to be withheld from Alistair Overeem’s salary at UFC 141.

02/11/2012 – SATURDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-11T07:22:00.000-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Zayed Sports City International Tennis Complex in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, tonight. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, the Miz, R-Truth, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, and Mason Ryan. Bell time is 7:00 PM.

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, CA, tonight. Advertised: Randy Orton, the Big Show, Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Alberto Del Rio, Ricardo Rodriguez, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, the Great Khali, Justin Gabriel, Hunico, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Alicia Fox, and Natalya. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

According to our records, Ken Shamrock and Hernandez celebrate birthdays today.

Bill ‘Dinty’ Parks died at the age of 83 on this day in 2004. Jackie Pallo was 80 when he passed on this day in 2006, and Ron Dobratz died at 64 on the same day. Jim Melby passed away at the age of 57 in 2007.

Results from WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday: the Great Khali over Jinder Mahal; Beth Phoenix over Alicia Fox, with Tamina saving Fox from a post-match assault by Phoenix; Sheamus & the Big Show over Cody Rhodes & Wade Barrett; Ted DiBiase, Jr., over Hunico (w/ Camacho); and Daniel Bryan over Randy Orton by disqualification due to interference from Show, resulting in Orton and Show fighting as Bryan retreated.

Kevin Iole has a story here where he suggests that HBO and Showtime should consider changing their business models in regard to boxing.

Friday night’s edition of Midnight Black Mass, hosted by Rev. Dan Wilson, featured actress Lesleh Donaldson (Funeral Home), the Muji Movie Minute, TV Casualty, and more. Click here for the archive.

02/10/2012 – FRIDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-10T18:35:00.000-05:00

WWE results from the RAW house show at the Zayed Sports City International Tennis Complex in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on February 10: Jack Swagger over Alex Riley to retain the WWE US Title; Michael McGillicutty over Drew McIntyre; Primo & Epico over Mason Ryan & Santino Marella to retain the WWE Tag Team Title; R-Truth over the Miz; Chris Jericho over Kofi Kingston; John Cena over Kane in a no disqualification match; and CM Punk over Dolph Ziggler to retain the WWE Title.

Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson, whose Journey 2: the Mysterious Island opened in theaters today, will be a guest on tonight’s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC.

WWE will be at the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, PA, for the May 14 edition of Monday Night RAW.

02/10/2012 – FRIDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-10T06:14:00.000-05:00

TNA will be at the Constant Center in Norfolk, VA, tonight. Advertised: a three-way featuring Kurt Angle, Bobby Roode, and James Storm; Gail Kim versus Mickie James; Matt Morgan & Crimson versus Samoa Joe & Magnus; Austin Aries versus Jesse Sorensen; A.J. Styles versus Christopher Daniels; and Robbie E versus Shannon Moore. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

The lineup for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast tonight, which can be seen on the SyFy Channel beginning at 8:00 PM ET, is as follows: Randy Orton versus Daniel Bryan; Wade Barrett & Cody Rhodes versus Sheamus & the Big Show; Jinder Mahal versus the Great Khali; Alicia Fox versus Beth Phoenix; Ted DiBiase, Jr., versus Hunico; plus Teddy Long, Michael Cole, Tamina, A.J. Lee, Camacho, and more.

According to our records, Tara and Kevin Matthews celebrate birthdays today.

Everett Marshall died at the age of 67 on this day in 1973, and David Von Erich was 25 when he passed in 1984. Curt Hennig was 44 when he died on this day in 2003, and Charles Baillargeon was 92 in 2010.

Results and highlights from WWE’s Superstars webcast on Thursday: Justin Gabriel over Heath Slater; Yoshi Tatsu over Johnny Curtis; Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) over Mike McGillicutty & JTG; and Jack Swagger (w/ Vickie Guerrero) over Santino Marella.

Results and highlights from TNA’s Impact Wrestling broadcast on Spike TV on Thursday: Christopher Daniels (w/ Kazarian) over A.J. Styles; a segment featuring James Storm, Bobby Roode, Bully Ray, and Sting resulted in the making of the main event; Alex Shelley over Douglas Williams and Austin Aries in a three-way; Matt Morgan and Crimson confronted Samoa Joe and Magnus; Velvet Sky over Mickie James; a brawl involving Garrett Bischoff and Hulk Hogan on one side, and Eric Bischoff and Gunner on the other; and Storm & Sting over Roode & Ray.

Tonight’s edition of Midnight Black Mass, with host Rev. Dan Wilson, will feature actress Lesleh Donaldson (Funeral Home), the Muji Movie Minute, TV Casualty, and more. The show begins at Midnight ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

Thursday’s edition of Peach State Pandemonium, hosted by Mike Norris, Jerry Oates, and Bobby Simmons, featured interviews with Terry Lawler (on his career and the upcoming Ted Allen memorial show, A Nightmare to Remember) , ‘Moondog’ Ed Moretti (on San Francisco, Nashville, Canada, Moondog Mayne, and more), and also George Schire, who joined the show to talk about Buddy Rose and Ray Stevens. Click here for the archive.

02/09/2012 – THURSDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-09T20:49:00.000-05:00

Nick Diaz tested positive for marijuana metabolites following his UFC 143 defeat to Carlos Condit via unanimous decision in the main event on Saturday in Las Vegas, NV. Unless he has a successful appeal before the Nevada State Athletic Commission, this will be his second offense, having tested positive for marijuana in 2007. Diaz will go before the NSAC in April, but is temporarily suspended.

UFC President Dana White issued the following statement: "I am beyond disappointed that he tested positive for marijuana. It is now in the hands of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.”

Kevin Iole wrote a piece here on the Diaz situation.

WWE results from the RAW house show at the Zayed Sports City International Tennis Complex in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on February 9: Alex Riley over Drew McIntyre; Primo & Epico over Mason Ryan & Santino Marella to retain the WWE Tag Team Title; Michael McGillicutty over David Otunga; Kofi Kingston over Chris Jericho; Jack Swagger over R-Truth and the Miz in a three-way match to retain the WWE US Title; John Cena over Kane by disqualification; and CM Punk over Dolph Ziggler to retain the WWE Title.

Alberto Del Rio returns to house show duty this weekend for WWE.

Matt Bishop has a story here on Samoa Joe, looking for a big year as 2012 rolls on.

Alex Marvez also has a piece up on Samoa Joe here.

The second episode of TNA’s Ring Ka King on Colors TV pulled a 1.7 rating. The debut episode finished with a 2.2.

Jim Ross has updated his blog here, with thoughts on Nick Diaz, Steve Austin, Cena vs. Rock, and more.

Crowbar Press has released Nikita: A Tale of the Ring and Redemption, authored by Nikita Koloff and William Murdock, and it can be ordered here.

02/09/2012 – THURSDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-09T06:12:00.000-05:00

Wednesday’s edition of Ringside Rap, hosted by Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, featured an interview with Nigel McGuinness, and discussion on WWE already hurting Elimination Chamber, basics of wrestling conditioning, development, and psychology, UFC 143, and more. Click here for the archive.

The lineup for TNA’s Impact Wrestling broadcast, which can be seen on Spike TV beginning at 9:00 PM ET, is as follows: Bobby Roode & Bully Ray versus James Storm & Sting; A.J. Styles versus Christopher Daniels; a three-way featuring Douglas Williams, Alex Shelley, and Austin Aries; Mickie James versus Velvet Sky; plus Hulk Hogan, Samoa Joe, Matt Morgan, Kazarian, Eric Bischoff, Magnus, Gunner, Garrett Bischoff, and Crimson.

The lineup for WWE’s Superstars webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Jack Swagger (w/ Vickie Guerrero) versus Santino Marella; Mike McGillicutty & JTG versus Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes); Johnny Curtis versus Yoshi Tatsu; and Heath Slater versus Justin Gabriel.

According to our records, Alexis Smirnoff and Shelly Martinez celebrate birthdays today.

Farmer Burns died at the age of 75 on this day in 1937. Jack Britton passed away on this day in 1980, and Butch Levy was 78 when he died in 1999.

Results and highlights from WWE’s NXT webcast on Wednesday: Percy Watson over Darren Young; Maxine over Kaitlyn; Heath Slater over Derrick Bateman; Tyson Kidd over Trent Barreta; and Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks over Jimmy & Jey Uso.

Tonight’s edition of Peach State Pandemonium, hosted by Mike Norris, Jerry Oates, and Bobby Simmons, will feature Terry Lawler and ‘Moondog’ Ed Moretti. The broadcast starts at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

There is a story here on the legendary bloodbath battles featuring Bruiser Brody vs. Abdullah the Butcher.

02/08/2012 – WEDNESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-08T18:33:00.001-05:00

There is an interview here with Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson, who talks about getting ready for WrestleMania.

Mick Foley is finishing up his second book for children, saying he hopes to have it out in time for Christmas.

WWE has announced a new TV deal in Lithuania on Baltijos TV.

Cesar Gracie is saying that despite Dana White’s recent comments, a rematch between his charge Nick Diaz and Carlos Condit is not a done deal.

The main card for UFC on Fuel TV 2 at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, on April 14, will be as follows: Alexander Gustafsson vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira; Brian Stann vs. Alessio Sakara; Paulo Thiago vs. Siyar Bahadurzada; and John Maguire vs. DaMarques Johnson.

Igor Pokrajac will replace the injured Brandon Vera against Thiago Silva at UFC on FX 3 at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, VA, on May 15.

There is an interview here with Christopher Daniels, who talks about his career, how he feels about working in TNA, and retirement.

Bellator 64 will be held at the Colosseum at Caesar’s Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, on April 6, headlined by Ben Askren defending the Bellator Welterweight Title against Douglas Lima. The card will be broadcast on MTV2.

Kevin Iole has a story here on Mike Lee, who is featured among other athletes in the latest ad campaign from Subway.

‘Superstar’ Billy Graham spent the weekend hospitalized at the Mayo Clinic, suffering from an infection in his leg and also pneumonia. He is on a heavy dose of antibiotics and resting at home.

Ray ‘Glacier’ Lloyd has a new blog page here.

Tony Mamaluke and Little Guido will reunite the FBI to appear at the Extreme Reunion in Philadelphia, PA, on April 28.

02/08/2012 – WEDNESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-08T06:09:00.000-05:00

Tonight’s edition of Ringside Rap, with hosts Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, will feature an interview with Nigel McGuinness, discussion on the top stories in pro wrestling, boxing, and MMA, and some old school nostalgia. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

Click here for SmackDown, Superstars, and NXT spoilers, as well as dark match results, from WWE’s tapings at the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK, on February 7.

The lineup for WWE’s NXT webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Tyson Kidd versus Trent Barreta; Heath Slater versus Derrick Bateman; Kaitlyn versus Maxine; and Darren Young versus Percy Watson.

According to our records, Misty Blue Simmes and the Big Show celebrate birthdays today.

Irish Jackie died at the age of 69 on this day in 2000, and Bob Luce was 78 when he passed away in 2007.

UFC has announced that the July 7 event we reported on yesterday will be UFC 148 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. They have also confirmed UFC on FX 4 will be held in Atlantic City, NJ, on June 22, and UFC on FOX 4 will be in Los Angeles, CA, on August 4.

Donald Cerrone vs. Yves Edwards has been added to UFC on FX 3 at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, VA, on May 15.

Lee Groves has a fun piece here, comparing boxers and U.S. Presidents who share the same names.

02/07/2012 – TUESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-07T20:15:00.000-05:00

John Laurinaitis will continue as the on-air General Manager for Monday Night RAW, per a storyline post today at the company’s website.

The final rating for WWE’s Monday Night RAW broadcast on the USA Network was 3.3.

Chris Hero has begun at the developmental camp in Tampa, FL, making his signing official.

The main event title match featuring UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones vs. Rashad Evans has been officially announced for UFC 145 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA, on April 21.

The second UFC Prelims episode to air on FX, leading into UFC 143 on Saturday, drew 1.4 million viewers.

Jason Young vs. Akira Corassani has been added to UFC on Fuel TV 2 at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, on April 14.

John Cholish vs. Danny Castillo has been added to UFC on FOX 3 at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, NJ, on May 5.

UFC Ultimate Insider debuts tonight on Fuel TV at 10:30 PM ET.

Jim Ross has updated his blog here, writing about RAW in his backyard, and answers questions from the mailbag.

02/07/2012 – TUESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-07T06:14:00.000-05:00

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK, tonight, taping for this week’s Superstars and NXT webcasts, and SmackDown, to be broadcast on SyFy on February 10. Advertised: Randy Orton versus Daniel Bryan; plus the Big Show, Mark Henry, Sheamus, Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, the Great Khali, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Hunico, Alicia Fox, and Natalya. Bell time is 7:00 PM.

Click here for dark match results and Superstars spoilers from the WWE event at the Chesapeake Energy Center in Oklahoma City, OK, on February 6.

R-Truth’s injury in the main event on Monday Night RAW last night was legitimate. He was supposed to be caught by the Miz, but went too far for Miz to be able to reach him, resulting in him landing on the flat of his back unexpectedly. We are being told the injury isn’t serious.

Also injured last night was Eve Torres, whose nose was broken during a clothesline by Beth Phoenix in the ladies match. The segment that ended the episode, featuring Kane terrorizing Torres, was taped earlier in the day, hence the reason this was not evident in that scene.

According to our records, Keith Steinborn celebrates a birthday today.

Buzz Sawyer was 32 when he died on this day in 1992.

02/06/2012 – MONDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-02-06T23:09:00.000-05:00

Results and highlights from WWE’s live Monday Night RAW broadcast for the USA Network on February 6 from the Chesapeake Energy Center in Oklahoma City, OK: the show opened with Triple H addressing the ending of last week’s RAW, saying it was over between him and the Undertaker, but Taker appeared on the screen and told HHH that by facing him again, HHH could achieve immortality; the Big Show over Daniel Bryan by countout, with Show almost injuring A.J. Lee again; a backstage segment with NASCAR’s Carl Edwards driving into the arena in his car and greeting John Cena, inviting him to be the honorary starter at the Daytona 500 on February 26; David Otunga came out to campaign for John Laurinaitis to keep his job, only to be informed that HHH made an impromptu match for him; Sheamus over Otunga; Chris Jericho did a promo referring to everyone as wannabes, including CM Punk, who came out to confront him, but dropped his mic without saying a word before walking off, frustrating Jericho; Randy Orton & the Great Khali over Cody Rhodes & Wade Barrett, followed by Orton laying out Khali; Eve Torres, Alicia Fox, Tamina & Kelly Kelly over Beth Phoenix, Natalya & the Bella Twins; a preview of the Rock on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, airing in full later tonight on NBC; backstage, Laurinaitis sucked up to HHH; Laurinaitis talked to Josh Matthews backstage about the meeting with the Board of Directors set for Tuesday morning to decide his fate; Jericho over Punk, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, and the Miz to earn the right to be the last to enter the ring for their match at Elimination Chamber; and backstage, Kane scared Torres, talking about how he is afraid for her and anyone that gets in his way of Cena, but he is also afraid of himself.

Shawn Michaels will be on Monday Night RAW on February 13 in San Diego, CA, and as noted earlier today, the following week in Minneapolis, MN.

Monday’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, hosted by Jonathan Williams and Matt Hankins, featured Jimmy Rave, Dany Only, and Big Wood, with discussion on recent and upcoming events. Click here for the archive.

02/06/2012 – MONDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-06T21:05:00.000-05:00

WWE results from the RAW house show at the Kay Yeager Coliseum in Wichita Falls, TX, on February 5: Brodus Clay over Michael McGillicutty; Ryback over Alex Riley; David Otunga over Kenneth Cameron; Jack Swagger over Kofi Kingston; Beth Phoenix over Eve Torres to retain the WWE Divas Title; John Cena & R-Truth over Kane & the Miz; and CM Punk over Dolph Ziggler to retain the WWE Title.

WWE results from the SmackDown house show at the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City, UT, on February 5: the Great Khali over Jinder Mahal; Yoshi Tatsu over Drew McIntyre; Jimmy & Jey Uso over Heath Slater & Tyson Kidd; Hunico over Ezekiel Jackson; Cody Rhodes over Booker T to retain the WWE Intercontinental Title; Alicia Fox over Natalya, with Aksana as referee; Sheamus over Wade Barrett; and the Big Show over WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan by disqualification in a title match.

The final rating for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday was 2.15.

Ron Simmons will be announced tonight as the next inductee to the WWE Hall of Fame.

Shawn Michaels will be appearing on Monday Night RAW in Minneapolis, MN, on February 20.

Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson will be a guest on tonight’s episode of NBC’s Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

There is an interview here with Zack Ryder, who talks about the push he’s gotten and the help from John Cena.

The total payroll for UFC 143 over the weekend was $880,500. The numbers released by the by the Navada State Athletic Commission were as follows: Nick Diaz ($200,000), Josh Koscheck ($146,000, plus a win bonus of $73,000), Carlos Condit ($110,000, plus a win bonus of $55,000), Fabricio Werdum ($100,000), Ed Herman ($62,000, plus a win bonus of $31,000), Matt Brown ($30,000, plus a win bonus of $15,000), Matt Riddle ($30,000, plus a win bonus of $15,000), Dustin Poirier ($24,000, plus a win bonus of $12,000), Renan Barao ($22,000, plus a win bonus of $11,000), Scott Jorgensen ($20,500), Roy Nelson ($20,000), Mike Pierce ($20,000), Rafael Natal ($20,000, plus a win bonus of $10,000), Edwin Figueroa ($16,000, plus a win bonus of $8,000), Stephen Thompson ($12,000, plus a win bonus of $6,000), Clifford Starks ($8,000), Alex Caceres ($8,000), Chris Cope ($8,000), Max Holloway ($6,000), Henry Martinez ($6,000), Michael Kuiper ($6,000), and Dan Stittgen ($6,000).

UFC has reserved the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV, for May 26 (Memorial Day) and July 7, planning what are said to be major events.

Walel Watson vs. T.J. Dillashaw has been added to the main card at UFC on Fuel TV 1 at the Civic Auditorium in Omaha, NE, on February 15.

Daniel Pineda will replace Robert Peralta against Mackens Semerzier at UFC on FX 2 at the Allphones Arena in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on March 3.

John Hathaway vs. Pascal Krauss have been added to UFC on FOX 3 at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, NJ, on May 5.

Kevin Iole has a story here on the matchup between Rashad Evans and Jon Jones, to take place at UFC 145 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA, on April 21.

Ring of Honor has moved their event in Belle Vernon, PA, to June 30.

02/06/2012 – MONDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-06T01:28:00.000-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Chesapeake Energy Center in Oklahoma City, OK, for tonight’s live broadcast of Monday Night RAW on the USA Network, starting at 9:00 PM ET. There will also be tapings for this week’s Superstars webcast. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, Triple H, the Big Show, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, R-Truth, the Miz, Mark Henry, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Jack Swagger, Brodus Clay, Primo, Epico, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Daniel Bryan, David Otunga, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres, Rosa Mendes, Beth Phoenix, Natalya, and the Bella Twins. Bell time is 7:15 PM.

According to our records, Conor O’Brian celebrates a birthday today.

‘Bulldog’ Bob Brown died at the age of 60 on this day in 1997, and Tony Olivas (a/k/a the Elephant Boy) was 86 whjen he passed in 2008.

02/05/2012 – SUNDAY MID-DAY REPORT

2012-02-05T11:55:00.000-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Kay Yeager Coliseum in Wichita Falls, TX, tonight. Advertised: John Cena, the Miz, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Kofi Kingston, Kane, R-Truth, Dolph Ziggler, Primo, Epico, Jack Swagger, Rosa Mendes, Beth Phoenix, and Eve Torres. Bell time is 2:00 PM.

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City, UT, tonight. Advertised: the Big Show, Sheamus, the Great Khali, Wade Barrett, Booker T, Cody Rhodes, Daniel Bryan, Hunico, Alicia Fox, and A.J. Lee. Bell time is 1:00 PM.

According to our records, Susie Spirit and Madison Rayne celebrate birthdays today.

Chris Belkas died at the age of 63 on this day in 1982, and El Santo was 66 when he passed in 1984. Renato Torres passed away on this day in 2009.

02/04/2012 – SATURDAY MID-DAY REPORT

2012-02-04T13:29:00.001-05:00

UFC will present UFC 143 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV, tonight. Advertised for the PPV card, starting at 10:00 PM ET: Carlos Condit vs. Nick Diaz for the interim UFC Welterweight Title; Fabricio Werdum vs. Roy Nelson; Josh Koscheck vs. Mike Pierce; Renan Barao vs. Scott Jorgensen; and Ed Herman vs. Clifford Starks. Advertised for the mid-card, to be televised on FX at 8:00 PM ET: Dustin Poirier vs. Max Holloway; Matt Riddle vs. Henry Martinez; Alex Caceres vs. Edwin Figueroa; and Matt Brown vs. Chris Cope. Advertised for the preliminary card, to be shown on Facebook: Dan Stittgen vs. Steven Thompson; and Rafael Natal vs. Michael Kuiper.

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, KS, tonight. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, the Miz, Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Primo, Epico, Jack Swagger, Mason Ryan, Rosa Mendes, and Beth Phoenix. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the Spokane Arena in Spokane, WA, tonight. Advertised: the Big Show, Mark Henry, Booker T, Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, the Great Khali, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, Hunico, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Alicia Fox, and Natalya. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

TNA will be at the Cabarrus Arena in Concord, NC, tonight. Advertised: Bobby Roode versus Jeff Hardy; James Storm versus Kurt Angle; A.J. Styles versus Kazarian; Gail Kim versus Velvet Sky; a three-way featuring Austin Aries, Jesse Sorensen, and Zema Ion; Garrett Bischoff versus Gunner (w/ Ric Flair); and Robbie E & Robbie T versus Eric Young & ODB. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

Ring of Honor will be at the Du Burns Arena in Baltimore, MD. Advertised: Davey Richards defends the ROH World Title against Jay Lethal; Kyle O’Reilly versus Michael Elgin (w/ Truth Martini); T.J. Perkins versus Mike Bennett (w/ Brutal Bob and Maria); Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander versus the Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson); plus Mark & Jay Briscoe, Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team (Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin), Eddie Edwards, Kevin Steen, Roderick Strong, Adam Cole, and Jimmy Jacobs. Bell time is 7:00 PM.

According to our records, Chris Sabin celebrates a birthday today.

Billy ‘Whipper’ Watson died at the age of 74 on this day in 1990, and Pedro Martinez was 82 when he passed away in 1998.

02/03/2012 – FRIDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-03T19:42:00.001-05:00

The final rating for TNA’s Impact Wrestling broadcast on Spike TV on Thursday was 1.15.

Steven Marrocco has a preview here of UFC 143, taking place tomorrow night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV.

Kevin Iole has a story here on Nick Diaz.

The three-part UFC Primetime: Diaz vs. Condit concludes tonight on FX.

02/03/2012 – FRIDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-03T06:30:00.000-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Kansas Expocentre in Topeka, KS, tonight. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, the Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Kane, R-Truth, Mason Ryan, Kofi Kingston, Primo, Epico, Rosa Mendes, Eve Torres, and Beth Phoenix. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

TNA will be at the Florence Civic Center in Florence, SC, tonight. Advertised: Bobby Roode versus Jeff Hardy; James Storm versus Kurt Angle; A.J. Styles versus Kazarian; Gail Kim versus Velvet Sky; a three-way featuring Austin Aries, Jesse Sorensen, and Zema Ion; Garrett Bischoff versus Gunner (w/ Ric Flair); and Robbie E & Robbie T versus Eric Young & ODB. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

The lineup for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast tonight, which can be seen on the SyFy Channel beginning at 8:00 PM ET, is as follows: Wade Barrett versus Randy Orton; Cody Rhodes versus Sheamus; Sanitno Marella & Jim Duggan versus Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes); Heath Slater versus Brodus Clay (edited from the international version, so it may not air in North America); Beth Phoenix & Natalya versus Aksana & Tamina; plus Teddy Long, Mark Henry, the Big Show, Daniel Bryan, the Great Khali, Justin Gabriel, A.J. Lee, Hunico, Camacho, and Aksana.

According to our records, Dory Funk, Jr., Haku, Marty Jannetty, Becky Bayless, and Angela Fong celebrate birthdays today.

02/02/2012 – THURSDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-02T20:13:00.001-05:00

CM Punk appeared on Colt Cabana’s Art of Wrestling podcast here, where he acknowledged a DVD featuring him is being developed for release later this year.

There is an interview here with Sheamus, who talks about the Royal Rumble win and the disappointment of not being included on last year’s WrestleMania.

Results and highlights from WWE’s Superstars webcast on Thursday: Jinder Mahal over Yoshi Tatsu; Alicia Fox & Kelly Kelly over the Bella Twins; and R-Truth over Jack Swagger.

Some sources are reporting that the WWE Network will include a show that features cruiserweights in the 200-pound range, and that independent wrestlers are being targeted to fill the slots on the program.

02/02/2012 – THURSDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-02T06:17:00.001-05:00

Wednesday’s edition of Ringside Rap, hosted by Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, featured Jimmy Rave, who talked about TNA’s Ring Ka King, ROH’s Final Battle, his past struggles with drug and family issues, and his current work as director of the Bartow County Peer Support, Wellness and Respite Center. There was also discussion on WWE’s Royal Rumble and Monday Night RAW, as well as speculation on WrestleMania storylines, UFC on FOX 2, and the early days of pro wrestling on television. Click here for the archive.

Total Nonstop Action will be at the Township Auditorium in Columbia, SC. Advertised: Bobby Roode versus Jeff Hardy; James Storm versus Kurt Angle; A.J. Styles versus Kazarian; Gail Kim versus Velvet Sky; a three-way featuring Austin Aries, Jesse Sorensen, and Zema Ion; Garrett Bischoff versus Gunner (w/ Ric Flair); and Robbie E & Robbie T versus Eric Young & ODB. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

According to our records, Genichiro Tenryu, Greg Oliver, and Susan Sexton celebrate birthdays today.

Nelson Royal died at the age of 70 on this day in 2002, and Jim Wilson was 67 when he passed away in 2009.

02/01/2012 – WEDNESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-02-01T19:04:00.000-05:00

WWE launched its new YouTube channel here today, including Santino Marella’s Foreign Exchange, as well as Dolph Ziggler on WWE Download.

Video from ABC’s Wife Swap, featuring Mick Foley, can be seen here.

The official attendance for UFC on FOX 2 at the United Center in Chicago, IL, on Saturday was 16,963 for a live gate of $1.27 million. The preliminary matches that were broadcast on Fuel TV pulled in 144,000 viewers for a final rating of 0.35.

UFC has made available the thirty-five page program for UFC 143 online that will be sold this weekend’s event here.

Kevin Iole has a story here on this weekend’s matchup between Carlos Condit and Nick Diaz.

There is a story here where Georges St. Pierre talks about Diaz.

TNA will be at the First Arena in Elmira, NY, on March 23. Tickets go on sale on February 10.

Floyd Mayweather, Jr., will face Miguel Cotto on May 5 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. Kevin Iole has a story here on the fight.

There is a documentary in the works featuring Nigel McGuinness, focusing on the end of his in-ring wrestling career. McGuinness will be the guest on next week’s edition of Ringside Rap.

02/01/2012 – WEDNESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-02-01T06:05:00.001-05:00

Tonight’s edition of Ringside Rap, with hosts Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, will feature Jimmy Rave, and discussion on the top stories of the week from pro wrestling, boxing, and MMA, as well as some old school nostalgia. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

According to our records, Charlie Smith, Mr. Saito, Dennis Condrey, and Nick ‘Mitch’ Mitchell celebrate birthdays today.

Luis ‘the Medic’ Hernandez died on this day in 1972. Jack Brisco was 68 when he passed away on this day in 2010, and Nick the Greek died at the age of 79 in 2011.

The lineup for WWE’s NXT webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Alex Riley & Percy Watson versus Darren Young & Titus O’Neil; Trent Barreta versus Tyson Kidd; and Alicia Fox versus Maxine; plus Heath Slater, Johnny Curtis, and Derrick Bateman.

Former middleweight boxer Don Fullmer died on Saturday at the age of 72, following a long battle with lymphocytic leukemia. His 79 bout pro career spanned from 1957 to 1973.

01/31/2012 – TUESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-31T21:53:00.000-05:00

Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson will be at WWE’s Monday Night RAW in Boston, MA, on March 5, making that five consecutive weeks beginning on February 27 that he will be appearing on the program leading up to WrestleMania.

WWE has hired Eric Pankowski, a former executive with Warner Bros, as Senior Vice President of Creative and Development. Pankowski will report to Stephanie McMahon.

The final rating for WWE’s Monday Night RAW broadcast on the USA Network was 3.6.

01/31/2012 – TUESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-31T05:57:00.000-05:00

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, NE, tonight, taping for this week’s Superstars and NXT webcasts, and SmackDown, to be broadcast on SyFy on February 3. Advertised: Randy Orton versus Wade Barrett; plus Mark Henry, the Big Show, Cody Rhodes, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, Hunico, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Natalya, Alicia Fox, and Teddy Long. Bell time is 7:00 PM.

Dutch Mantell died at the age of 59 on this day in 1941, Shohei ‘Giant’ Baba was 61 when he passed in 1999, and Blackjack Hedden was 65 in 2010.

The episode of ABC’s Wife Swap featuring Mick Foley airs tonight.

Fuel TV will debut Countdown to UFC 143 tonight at 9:00 PM ET.

Monday’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, hosted by Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Nemesis, featured Ray ‘Glacier’ Lloyd, Buff Bagwell, Ronnie Gossett, Brian Lawler, and Larry Goodman, discussing recent and upcoming events, including UCW, GCW, and Lawler’s retirement match this weekend. Click here for the archive.

01/30/2012 – MONDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-01-30T23:19:00.000-05:00

Results and highlights from WWE’s live Monday Night RAW broadcast for the USA Network on January 30 from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO: John Laurinaitis opened the show touting his success, campaigning to keep his job, and announced that CM Punk would defend the WWE Title against Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, and the Miz at Elimination Chamber; Punk, Daniel Bryan, and Sheamus all come out and confronted Laurinaitis, insulting and wishing him well in his future endeavors, and a match between Punk and Bryan made; Randy Orton over Ziggler (w/ Vickie Guerrero), as Wade Barrett watched; backstage, Laurinaitis was seen walking around sucking up to the crew, when he ran into William Regal and clearly had no knowledge of Regal’s personal life; Brodus Clay over Tyler Reks; backstage, Punk and Bryan had some back-and-forth; Bryan over Punk by disqualification after Jericho hit the ring and laid out Punk; Mike Tyson was announced as a 2012 inductee into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame; Kingston over Miz, with Truth on commentary; backstage, a paranoid Laurinaitis wondered if David Otunga was bucking for his job; a video package featuring Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson; Beth Phoenix over Eve Torres to retain the WWE Divas Title; post-match, Kane appeared on the TitanTron, telling Torres he would use her to get John Cena, and suddenly he appeared in the ring, prodding Cena to hit the ring and save Torres by brawling with Kane until Kane disappeared through the crowd; Triple H confronted Laurinaitis in the ring, and after embarrassing him a bit, he started to wish him well in his future endeavors, but the Undertaker interrupted, coming to the ring for a staredown with HHH, implying the issue of a rematch challenge for WrestleMania.

Dr. Johnny Benjamin has a piece here where he ponders if responsibility for fighter safety falls on the commissions or the company.

There is an interview here where Jersey Shore’s Snooki says she can “bring boxing back”.

01/30/2012 – MONDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-30T20:44:00.001-05:00

WWE kicks off a new channel on YouTube on Wednesday, which will feature Zack Ryder’s long-running True Long Island Story series, as well as new features called Santino’s Foreign Exchange, WWE Presents, Superstar Toyz, Backstage Fallout, Outside the Ring, Download, WWE Inbox, and Are You Serious?

The final rating for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday was 2.11.

The episode of ABC’s Wife Swap featuring Mick Foley airs tomorrow night.

Dana White paid a visit to Julie Breeler, a Las Vegas, NV, resident who received several hundred harassing phone calls after information said to be that belonging to White was posted online after he dared hackers to hack the UFC website again. Click here for the story.

The final rating for UFC on FOX 2 from Saturday was 2.7.

01/30/2012 – MONDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-30T06:08:00.002-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO, for tonight’s live broadcast of Monday Night RAW on the USA Network, starting at 9:00 PM ET. There will also be tapings for this week’s Superstars webcast. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, the Big Show, Triple H, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, R-Truth, the Miz, Mark Henry, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Jack Swagger, Brodus Clay, Primo, Epico, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Daniel Bryan, David Otunga, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres, Rosa Mendes, Beth Phoenix, the Bella Twins, Natalya, Vickie Guerrero, and John Laurinaitis. Bell time is 7:15 PM.

According to our records, Ricky Harris (a/k/a Black Bart) celebrates a birthday.

Dennis Clary died at the age of 31 on this day in 1955, and Gino Hernandez was 29 when he passed in 1986.

The Wrestling Observer is reporting that Mike Tyson is going to be announced as the next inductee to the WWE Hall of Fame, possibly as early as tonight on Monday Night RAW.

Tonight’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, with hosts Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Nemesis, will feature Ray ‘Glacier’ Lloyd and Brian Lawler, and discussion on recent and upcoming events. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

Dave Meltzer has a story here about UFC on FOX 2, calling it a success for both companies.

01/29/2012 – SUNDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-01-29T23:15:00.001-05:00

WWE results from the Royal Rumble PPV at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO, on January 29: Yoshi Tatsu over Heath Slater in a dark match; Daniel Bryan over Mark Henry and the Big Show in a three-way cage match to retain the WWE World Title; Beth Phoenix, Natalya, & the Bella Twins over Eve Torres, Alicia Fox, Tamina & Kelly Kelly; Zack Ryder was shown in a wheelchair and a neckbrace, with John Laurinaitis telling him he would be taken care of, and to ask if he needed anything; John Cena versus Kane ended in a double countout, with the brawling going into the back, where Kane found Ryder and led him to the ring before laying him out, and giving chase to Torres, only to be stopped when Cena returned, and Kane laid him out; Brodus Clay over Drew McIntyre; CM Punk over Dolph Ziggler (with Vickie Guerrero ejected from ringside), to retain the WWE Title, with Laurinaitis helping the referee; and Sheamus won the Rumble by eliminating Chris Jericho.

According to our records, Bob Holly celebrated a birthday today.

Jim Clinstock died at the age of 38 on this day in 1944, and Emory Hale passed on this day in 2006.

Aside from the previously advertised appearances by Dwayne’ the Rock’ Johnson for WWE’s Monday Night RAW in Cleveland, OH, on March 12 and Atlanta, GA, on March 26, he is also now being plugged for RAW in Portland, OR, on February 27. All of these, of course, in advance of his participation at WrestleMania 28 in Miami, FL.

WWE results from the SuperShow at the Ford Center in Evansville, IN, on January 28: Sheamus over Jinder Mahal; R-Truth over Jack Swagger; Beth Phoenix over Eve Torres to retain the WWE Divas Title; Ryback over Santino Marella; Randy Orton over Wade Barrett; Cody Rhodes over Justin Gabriel to retain the WWE Intercontinental Title; the Big Show over WWE World Champion Daniel Bryan by disqualification in a title match; and John Cena over Kane by disqualification.

Jimmy Uso will face a jury when his DUI trial goes to court on February 13 in Tampa, FL.

Speaking of trials, former WWE Tough Enough contestant and Miss America, Rima Fakih, has her DUI trial starting on March 14.

01/28/2012 – SATURDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-28T10:57:00.001-05:00

UFC will present UFC on FOX 2 at the United Center in Chicago, IL, tonight. Advertised for the main card, to be televised on FOX: Phil Davis versus Rashad Evans; Michael Bisping versus Chael Sonnen; and Demian Maia versus Chris Weidman. Advertised for the mid-card, to be televised on Fuel TV: Evan Dunham versus Nik Lentz; John-Olav Einemo versus Mike Russow; George Roop versus Cub Swanson; Charles Oliveira versus Eric Wisely; Michael Johnson versus Shane Roller; and Joey Beltran versus Lavar Johnson. Advertised for the preliminary, to be shown online at UFC’s Facebook page: Chris Camozzi versus Dustin Jacoby.

WWE’s RAW and SmackDown crews will be at the Ford Center in Evansville, IN, tonight. Advertised: John Cena, Kane, the Big Show, Mark Henry, Randy Orton, Wade Barrett, Dolph Ziggler, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Cody Rhodes, Sheamus, Eve Torres, and Beth Phoenix. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

TNA will be at Wembley Arena in London, England, tonight taping for Impact Wrestling, to be broadcast on Spike TV on February 2 and February 9. Advertised: Hulk Hogan, Sting, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, A.J. Styles, Bobby Roode, James Storm, Samoa Joe, Velvet Sky, Gail Kim, Mickie James, Matt Morgan, Bully Ray, Crimson, and Gunner.

WrestleReunion continues a three-day stretch at the Westin Hotel in Los Angeles, CA, today. Advertised: Maryse, Mick Foley, the Great Sasuke, Scott Steiner, Big Van Vader, Kevin Von Erich, B.G. James, Kip James, Rick Steiner, Kevin Sullivan, Tommy Dreamer, Carlos Colon, Charles Wright, Mikey Whipwreck, Molly Holly, Harry Smith, Spice, Finlay, Brooke Tessmacher, Fifi the Maid, Tori, the Honky Tonk Man, Konnan, Tajiri, Chavo Guerrero, Jr., Sara Underwood, Ivan Putski, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Larry Zbyszko, Sid Vicious, Brutus Beefcake, Greg Valentine, Mike Tyson, Lanny Poffo, Abdullah the Butcher, Billy Graham, Rosita, Traci Brooks, Ryan Shamrock, Shelly Martinez, Amber O’Neal, Angel Orsini, Winter, Sassy Stephanie, Fantasia, Buggy Nova, Davina Rose, Cookie, Supreme, Kris Kloss, Messiah, Raven, Robbie E, Virgil, Dark Journey, Magnificent Mimi, the Destroyer, Gene LeBell, Rikishi, Gangrel, and Shane Douglas.

According to our records, Shark Boy celebrates a birthday today.

Hassen Nuhammed (a/k/a the Terrible Turk) died at the age of 38 on this day in 1929. Dick Barkley was 69 when he passed away on this day in 1999, and Buck Forrester was 54 in 2002. Don ‘Hard Boiled Haggerty’ Stansauk passed away at 78 on this day in 2004, and Victor Mar Manuel (a/k/a the Black Cat) was 51 in 2006.

01/27/2012 – FRIDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-27T19:35:00.000-05:00

There is a story here on David Otunga, who returned to the courtroom this week.

Everyone made weight today for UFC on FOX 2: Phil Davis (205) vs. Rashad Evans (205); Michael Bisping (185) vs. Chael Sonnen (185); Demian Maia (186) vs. Chris Weidman (185); Evan Dunham (155) vs. Nik Lentz (155); John-Olav Einemo (253) vs. Mike Russow (251); George Roop (145) vs. Cub Swanson (145); Charles Oliveira (144) vs. Eric Wisely (145); Michael Johnson (156) vs. Shane Roller (156); Joey Beltran (228) vs. Lavar Johnson (252); and Chris Camozzi (185) vs. Dustin Jacoby (185).

Steven Marrocco has a preview here for UFC on FOX 2.

Dave Meltzer also writes about the event here, pondering the implications.

The second episode of UFC Primtetime: Diaz vs. Condit airs tonight at 11:00 PM ET on FX.

TNA results from the house show at the Evening News Arena in Manchester, England, on January 27: Austin Aries over Alex Shelley and Mark Haskins in a three-way; Crimson over Doug Williams; A.J. Styles over Gunner; Mickie James & Tara over Gail Kim & Madison Rayne; Bobby Roode over Samoa Joe to retain the TNA World Title; and James Storm, Hulk Hogan & Sting over Kurt Angle, Bobby Roode & Bully Ray.

The final rating for TNA’s Impact Wrestling broadcast on Spike TV on Thursday was 1.17.

According to a story going around with Hulk Hogan is giving to the media in the UK, Lars Ulrich invited him to play bass for Metallica in their early days … you know, while he was busy being a wrestling star and they were utilizing the late, great Cliff Burton.

Bellator 61 will be held at the Horseshoe Riverdome in Bossier City, LA, on March 16. Eric Prindle vs. Thiago Santos will take place, as will the opening round of the middleweight tournament, featuring Bruno Santos vs. Giva Santana, brian Rogers vs. Vitor Vianna, Victor O’Donnell vs. Vyacheslav Vasilevsky, and Norman Paraisy vs. Maiquel Falcao.

Kevin Iole has a piece here, where he blames the lack of star appeal for boxing’s woes.

Jim Ross has updated his blog here, sharing thoughts on the Royal Rumble, Gordon Solie, and more.

01/27/2012 – FRIDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-27T06:26:00.000-05:00

TNA will be at the Evening News Arena in Manchester, England, tonight. Advertised: Hulk Hogan, Sting, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, A.J. Styles, Bobby Roode, James Storm, Samoa Joe, Velvet Sky, Gail Kim, Mickie James, Matt Morgan, Bully Ray, Crimson, and Gunner.

Dragon Gate USA presents Open the Golden Gate at the Westin Hotel in Los Angeles, CA, tonight. Advertised: CIMA & Ricochet defend the Open the United Gate Title against Jimmy Susuma & Masaaki Mochizuki; Akira Tozawa versus PAC; Masato Yoshino versus Naruki Doi; A.R. Fox versus Sami Callihan; Low Ki versus BxB Hulk; Chuck Taylor & Rich Swann versus the Young Bucks; and Jon Davis versus Caleb Konley (w/ Larry Dallas). Bell time is 8:00 PM. The iPPV can be ordered by clicking here.

WrestleReunion begins a three-day stretch at the Westin Hotel in Los Angeles, CA, tonight. Advertised: Maryse, Mick Foley, the Great Sasuke, Scott Steiner, Big Van Vader, Kevin Von Erich, B.G. James, Kip James, Rick Steiner, Kevin Sullivan, Tommy Dreamer, Carlos Colon, Charles Wright, Mikey Whipwreck, Molly Holly, Harry Smith, Spice, Finlay, Brooke Tessmacher, Fifi the Maid, Tori, the Honky Tonk Man, Konnan, Tajiri, Chavo Guerrero, Jr., Sara Underwood, Ivan Putski, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Larry Zbyszko, Sid Vicious, Brutus Beefcake, Greg Valentine, Mike Tyson, Lanny Poffo, Abdullah the Butcher, Billy Graham, Rosita, Traci Brooks, Ryan Shamrock, Shelly Martinez, Amber O’Neal, Angel Orsini, Winter, Sassy Stephanie, Fantasia, Buggy Nova, Davina Rose, Cookie, Supreme, Kris Kloss, Messiah, Raven, Robbie E, Virgil, Dark Journey, Magnificent Mimi, the Destroyer, Gene LeBell, Rikishi, Gangrel, and Shane Douglas.

The lineup for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast tonight, which can be seen on the SyFy Channel beginning at 8:00 PM ET, is as follows: Mark Henry versus the Big Show; Randy Orton versus Wade Barrett; Drew McIntyre versus Sheamus; Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) versus Santino Marella & Yoshi Tatsu; Ted DiBiase, Jr., versus Hunico (w/ Camacho); Alex Riley versus Brodus Clay; Cody Rhodes versus Justin Gabriel; Natalya versus Aksana; plus Teddy Long, Daniel Bryan, Tamina, and more.

According to our records, Red Bastein and Mike Norris celebrate birthdays today.

Andre the Giant died at the age of 46 on this day in 1993. Herb Calvert was 45 when he passed on this day in 2002, and Johnny Heidman was 90 in 2011.

01/26/2012 – THURSDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-26T07:22:00.000-05:00

Wednesday’s edition of Ringside Rap, hosted by Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, featured Bob Evans, and discussion on WWE’s Monday Night RAW, Royal Rumble, UFC, Ring of Honor, the quality of the major pro wrestling promotions, and some old school nostalgia. Click here for the archive.

TNA will be at the Capital FM Arena in Nottingham, England, tonight. Advertised: Hulk Hogan, Sting, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, A.J. Styles, Bobby Roode, James Storm, Samoa Joe, Velvet Sky, Gail Kim, Mickie James, Matt Morgan, Bully Ray, Crimson, and Gunner.

The lineup for TNA’s Impact Wrestling broadcast, which can be seen on Spike TV beginning at 9:00 PM ET, is as follows: Jeff Hardy & James Storm versus Bobby Roode & Bully Ray in a tables match; Matt Morgan versus Samoa Joe; a three-way match featuring Mickie James, Velvet Sky, and Tara to earn a shot at the TNA Knockouts Title; Alex Shelley versus Zema Ion; Angelina Love & Winter versus Eric Young & ODB; plus Sting, A.J. Styles,Christopher Daniels, Magnus, Kazarian, and Crimson.

The lineup for WWE’s Superstars webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Brie Bella versus Beth Phoenix; Michael McGillicutty versus Kofi Kingston; and Tyson Kidd versus Jinder Mahal.

According to our records, the Maestro and Taylor Wilde celebrate birthdays today.

Doug Gentry died at the age of 34 on this day in 2007. Shawn Osborne was 34 when he passed away on this day in 2011.

Results from WWE’s NXT webcast on Wednesday: Jimmy & Jey Uso over Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks; Heath Slater over Trent Barreta; and Titus O’Neil over Percy Watson, followed by Alex Riley saving Watson from a post-match beat down.

Tonight’s edition of Peach State Pandemonium, hosted by Mike Norris, Jerry Oates, and Bobby Simmons, will feature free-for-all, no-holds-barred old school wrestling discussion. The broadcast starts at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

01/25/2012 – WEDNESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-25T19:22:00.001-05:00

As of right now, it appears that once again the WWE Hall of Fame ceremonies will not be broadcast on the same day of the event.

Ted DiBiase, Jr., posted on Twitter that he has a broken wrist.

Mitch Gagnon has had issues entering the United States from Canada, so his fight against Johnny Bedford at UFC on FOX at the United Center in Chicago, IL, on Saturday has been nixed. The move promotes the Joey Beltran-lavar Johnson fight up to the televised preliminaries on Fuel TV.

The main card for UFC on Fuel TV 1 at the Civic Auditorium in Omaha, NE, on February 15, has been finalized as follows: Jake Ellenberger vs. Diego Sanchez; Dave Herman vs. Stefan Struve; Aaron Simpson vs. Ronny Markes; and Stipe Miocic vs. Philip De Fries.

John Dodson vs. Darren Uyenoyama has been added to UFC on FOX 3 at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, NJ, on May 5.

There are rumors that UFC on FX 3 will be held at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, VA, on May 15.

01/25/2012 – WEDNESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-25T06:28:00.000-05:00

Tonight’s edition of Ringside Rap, with hosts Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, will feature the show’s “Fifth Beatle”, Brutal Bob Evans, and discussion of the top stories of the week, as well as some old school nostalgia. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

The lineup for WWE’s NXT webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks versus Jimmy & Jey Uso; Heath Slater versus Trent Barreta; a segment featuring Johnny Curtis; and Percy Watson versus Titus O’Neil.

According to our records, the Honky Tonk Man and Michelle McCool celebrate birthdays today.

Alan ‘Beetlejuice’ Carnill was 42 when he died on this day in 2004. Georgiann Makropoulos passed away at 68 on this day in 2010.

WWE will be at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, AL, on March 10.

UFC on Fox 3 will be held at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, NJ, on May 5, and Nate Diaz vs. Jim Miller will be on the card.

TNA results from the house show at the Forest National in Brussels, Belgium, on January 24: Austin Aries over Alex Shelley and Mark Haskins in a three-way to retain the TNA X Division Title; Gunner over Douglas Williams; Crimson over Samoa Joe; Mickie James & Tara over Madison Rayne & Gail Kim; and A.J. Styles over Bully Ray; and Bobby Roode over Kurt Angle and James Storm in a three-way to retain the TNA World Title. Christy Hemme is handling ring announcer duties on the tour.

The episode of ABC’s Wife Swap that features Mick Foley has been postponed until January 31.

01/24/2012 – TUESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-24T19:39:00.000-05:00

Dwayne’ the Rock’ Johnson will be appearing on the March 12 and March 26 editions of WWE’s Monday Night RAW, in Cleveland, OH, and Atlanta, GA, respectively.

The final rating for WWE’s Monday Night RAW broadcast on the USA Network was 3.2.

There is a story here where Dana White talks about the rivalry between UFC and Strikeforce fighters.

Dennis Siver vs. Diego Nunes has been added to UFC on Fuel TV 2 at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, on April 14.

There is a story here on Ronda Rousey, questioning if she is the new face of women’s MMA.

A title match featuring ROH World Champion Davey Richards vs. Jay Lethal has been announced for the TV tapings at the Du Burns Arena in Baltimore, MD, on February 4.

Kevin Iole answers questions from the boxing mailbag here.

Greg Oliver has a story here on WrestleReunion kicking off with a tribute to the history of wrestling in Southern California.

01/24/2012 – TUESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-24T06:20:00.002-05:00

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the Tucson Arena in Tucson, AZ, tonight, taping for this week’s Superstars and NXT webcasts, and SmackDown, to be broadcast on SyFy on January 27. Advertised: Randy Orton, the Big Show, Cody Rhodes, Mark Henry, Sheamus, Wade Barrett, Daniel Bryan, Hunico, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Alicia Fox, and Natalya. Bell time is 7:00 PM.

TNA will be at the Forest National in Brussels, Belgium, tonight. Advertised: Kurt Angle, Mr. Anderson, A.J. Styles, Samoa Joe, Velvet Sky, Matt Morgan, Bully Ray, and Mexican America.

According to our records, Akira Maeda, Vince Russo, and Jay Briscoe celebrate birthdays today.

Bull Montana died at the age of 62 on this day in 1950, and Orville Brown was 72 when he passed in 1981. Jerry Graham was 58 when he passed away on this day in 1997, and Bobby Duncum, Jr. died at 34 in 2000. Jack Tunney died at the age of 68 on this day in 2004, and Nick Pacchiano was 72 when he passed in 2010.

Triple H makes his on-screen return to WWE on next week’s edition of Monday Night RAW.

The video below is Dana White and more for UFC on FOX:

01/23/2012 – MONDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-01-23T23:13:00.002-05:00

Results and highlights from WWE’s live Monday Night RAW broadcast for the USA Network on January 23 from the US Airways Center in Phoenix, AZ: CM Punk opened the show with a promo, which brought out John Cena, and later John Laurinaitis, who made an impromptu match teaming Cena and Punk, and a falls-count-anywhere match later with Zack Ryder versus Kane; Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger (w/ Vickie Guerrero) over Cena & Punk, with help from Laurinaitis; post-match, Punk challenged Laurinaitis to match in the main event, and Laurinaitis accepted; Chris Jericho came out for a highlight reel segment, which featured clips of himself over the years, ending with him declaring the world would end as we know it at the Royal Rumble; a good segment recapping the history of past Rumbles; backstage, Eve Torres tried to talk Ryder out of the match with Kane, but Mick Foley dropped by and gave him encouragement, and Cena said he’d have his back, but Ryder told Cena to stay out of it so a rematch for the US Title would not be jeopardized; Ryder versus Kane ended in a no contest after Kane sent Ryder through the stage (literally), and then went after Torres until Cena came out, at which point he disappeared through the crowd as Cena and Torres watched Ryder get strapped down to a stretcher; as Ryder was loaded into the ambulance, Torres told Cena this was all his fault and then got in the ambulance, and as Josh Matthews tried to get Cena to comment, Cena knocked the mic from his hand and glared into the camera; Sheamus over Jinder Mahal, with Wade Barrett on commentary; backstage, R-Truth interrupted Matthews interviewing the Miz, which brought Laurinaitis and David Otunga out to stop them from yelling at each other; Brodus Clay over Heath Slater, with William Regal on commentary; Truth over Miz, meaning Miz will open the Rumble on Sunday; Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler announced that they had just received word that Ryder’s back was broken; backstage, Laurinaitis was getting ready for his match when Otunga interrupted and presented him with a fax that Laurinaitis read and stared off at nothing in particular; the main event turned into a promo between Punk and Laurinaitis, with Laurinaitis explaining that the fax was a message from the Board of Directors, who are unhappy with his job performance, leading to a brawl between Punk and Otunga, with Punk laying out Otunga and Laurinaitis, but then getting laid out by Ziggler to end the show.

TNA will be at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, MS, on March 15. Tickets go on sale on February 3.

Monday’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, hosted by Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Nemesis, featured interviews with Buff Bagwell and Slim J, and discussion on recent and upcoming events, including PWA, Top Rope, Empire, the XWF, and more. Click here for the archive.

01/23/2012 – MONDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-23T20:03:00.002-05:00

WWE results from the RAW house show at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, NM, on January 22: Sheamus over Mason Ryan, Kofi Kingston, Drew McIntyre, Santino Marella, Alex Riley, David Otunga, Primo, Epico, and JTG to ear a shot at the WWE Intercontinental Title; Sheamus over WWE Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes by disqualification in a title match; R-Truth over Jack Swagger (w/ Vickie Guerrero); Eve Torres & Kelly Kelly over Beth Phoenix & Natalya, with Brie Bella as referee; a confrontation between Wade Barrett and Randy Orton; the Big Show over WWE World Champion Daniel Bryan by disqualification after Otunga and McIntyre interfered in a title match; John Cena over Kane by disqualification; and CM Punk over the Miz to retain the WWE Title.

The final rating for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday was 2.18.

WWE will be at the McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, TN, on May 6.

WWE has launched a website for the Russian audience here.

There is a story here touting John Cena’s work with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, noting he is nearing his 300th event.

There is a story here where Kris Kristofferson mentions his son Jody signing to a developmental deal with WWE.

01/23/2012 – MONDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-23T06:11:00.000-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, AZ, for tonight’s live broadcast of Monday Night RAW on the USA Network, starting at 9:00 PM ET. There will also be tapings for this week’s Superstars webcast. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, the Big Show, Chris Jericho, R-Truth, the Miz, Mark Henry, Kane, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Jack Swagger, Brodus Clay, Primo, Epico, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Daniel Bryan, Zack Ryder, David Otunga, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres, Rosa Mendes, Beth Phoenix, the Bella Twins, Natalya, Vickie Guerrero, and John Laurinaitis. Bell time is 6:30 PM.

According to our records, Nigel McGuinness celebrates a birthday today.

Bobby Bruns was 68 when he died on this day in 1983.

Tonight’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, with hosts Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Nemesis, will feature Buff Bagwell and Slim J, as well as discussion on recent and upcoming events. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

TNA results from the house show at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, MA, on January 22: Brooke Tessmacher & ODB over Rosita & Sarita; Robbie E (w/ Rob Terry) over Garrett Bischoff; Shannon Moore over Jesse Sorensen and Kid Kash in a three-way; Eric Young over D’Angelo Dinero; Rob Van Dam & Mr. Anderson over Mexican America; and Jeff Hardy over Christopher Daniels.

01/22/2012 – SUNDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-22T19:58:00.000-05:00

Randy Orton is scheduled to appear at WWE’s SmackDown/Superstars/NXT tapings at the Tucson Arena in Tucson, AZ, on Tuesday.

UFC’s website has been hacked, and is temporarily down as of this post.

There is a story here on MVP, with a heavy focus on the Wrestling Retribution Project.

There is a story here reporting the death of Savannah Jack, who passed away on January 17.

01/22/2012 – SUNDAY MID-DAY REPORT

2012-01-22T13:01:00.002-05:00

WWE results from the house show at the Fargodome in Fargo, ND, on January 21: Alex Riley over Ryback; Eve Torres & Kelly Kelly over Beth Phoenix & Natalya; R-Truth over Jack Swagger; Cody Rhodes over Riley, after Rhodes demanded a win by forfeith when Ted DiBiase, Jr., could not wrestle due to injuries sustained the previous night; Sheamus over Wade Barrett; Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) over Mason Ryan & Kofi Kingston to retain the WWE Tag Team Title; the Big Show over WWE World Champion Daniel Bryan by disqualification in a title match after interference from Barrett and David Otunga; and CM Punk over the Miz in a cage match to retain the WWE Title.

There is a story here on shooting details for the WWE Network’s reality series Legends House.

Ring of Honor results from the house show at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, VA, on January 21: Kenny King over Andy Ridge; Mike Bennett over Grizzly Redwood (replacing Eddie Edwards, who appeared but could not wrestle due to a staph infection); Kevin Steen over Adam Cole; Mark & Jay Briscoe over Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander to retain the ROH World Tag Team Title; Team A-1 (Zach Hilton & Jefferson Early) over Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team (Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin) by disqualification; Tomasso Ciampa over Jay Lethal; and Davey Richards & Kyle O’reilly over Michael Elgin & Roderick Strong (w/ Truth Martini).

01/22/2012 – SUNDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-22T00:32:00.001-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, NM, today. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, the Miz, Kane, Randy Orton, the Big Show, R-Truth, Sheamus, Wade Barrett, Kofi Kingston, Jack Swagger, Epico, Primo, Rosa Mendes, Mason Ryan, Eve Torres, and Beth Phoenix. Bell time is 5:00 PM.

TNA will be at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, MA, tonight. Advertised: Jeff Hardy versus Christopher Daniels; Rob Van Dam & Mr. Anderson versus Mexican America; a three-way featuring Jesse Sorensen, Shannon Moore, and Kid Kash; Rosita & Sarita versus Brooke Tessmacher & ODB; Garrett Bischoff versus Robbie E (w/ Rob Terry); and Eric Young versus D’Angelo Dinero. Bell time is 6:00 PM.

According to our records, Tully Blanchard celebrates a birthday today.

Jerry ‘Crusher’ Blackwell died at the age of 45 on this day in 1995. Al Costello was 80 when he passed on this day in 2000.

01/21/2012 – SATURDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-21T11:24:00.001-05:00

WWE will be at the Fargodome in Fargo, ND, tonight. Advertised: the Big Show, CM Punk, Sheamus, the Miz, Cody Rhodes, Mason Ryan, R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, Primo, Epico, Rosa Mendes, Natalya, Beth Phoenix, Eve Torres, and Kelly Kelly. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

TNA will be at the Memorial Hall in Plymouth, MA, tonight. Advertised: Jeff Hardy versus Christopher Daniels; Rob Van Dam & Mr. Anderson versus Mexican America; a three-way featuring Jesse Sorensen, Shannon Moore, and Kid Kash; Rosita & Sarita versus Brooke Tessmacher & ODB; Garrett Bischoff versus Robbie E (w/ Rob Terry); and Eric Young versus D’Angelo Dinero). Bell time is 7:30 PM.

Ring of Honor will be at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, VA, tonight. Advertised: Davey Richards & Kyle O’Reilly versus the House of Truth (Roderick Strong & Michael Elgin, w/ Truth Martini); Jay & Mark Briscoe defends the ROH World Tag Team Title against Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander; Eddie Edwards versus Mike Bennett; Jay Lethal versus Tommaso Ciampa; Adam Cole versus Kevin Steen; Kenny King versus Andy Ridge; plus Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

According to our records, Ivan Putski, Go Shiozaki, and Maryse celebrate birthdays today.

Billy Edwards died at the age of 51 on this day in 1941, and Rudy Miller passed away in 1982. Eddie Graham committed suicide at the age of 55 on this day in 1985, and Nick Gulas passed at 76 in 1991.

01/20/2012 – FRIDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-01-20T22:48:00.001-05:00

Results and highlights from WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday: the show opened with a Daniel Bryan promo demanding the Big Show quit the company to make up for injuring A.J. Lee last week; a backstage segment where Teddy Long, with Aksana, introduced the roulette wheel, to be used to set up match stipulations for the show; Cody Rhodes over Justin Gabriel, instead of Hornswoggle as originally slated; Mark Henry reluctantly spun the wheel to establish his main event with Bryan later would be of the lumberjack variety; Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) over Jimmy & Jey Uso in a tornado tag match; a dance contest with Brodus Clay beating Vickie Guerrero, and laying out William Regal; Wade Barrett over Sheamus in a tables match, with an assist from Jinder Mahal, whom Sheamus laid out post-match; Ted DiBiase, Jr., over Hunico in a flag match; Long fired Drew McIntyre, but Santino Marella tried to help by setting up a match with him and McIntyre, where if McIntyre won, he got to keep his job; Marella over McIntyre in a blindfold match; WWE World Champion Bryan and Henry went to a no contest in a lumberjack match for the title after all the lumberjacks hit the ring and attacked both of them; and Bryan confronted Long about what just happened, and Long announced that Bryan would defend the title against Henry & show in a three-way at the Royal Rumble.

The video below is this week’s edition of WWE’s Superstars webcast:

Chris Jericho has joined Chipper Jones, Derrick Brooks, and Tim Tebow as owners of D1 Sports Training and Therapy.

01/20/2012 – FRIDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-20T06:10:00.003-05:00

UFC will present UFC on FX at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN, tonight. Advertised for the main card, to be broadcast on FX beginning at 9:00 PM ET: Melvin Guillard versus Jim Miller; Duane Ludwig versus Josh Neer; Mike Easton versus Jared Papazian; and Pat Barry versus Christian Morecraft. Advertised for the preliminary card, to be shown on Fuel TV starting at 6:00 PM ET: Jorge Rivera versus Eric Schafer; Khabib Nurmagomedov versus Kamal Shalorus; Charlie Brenneman versus Daniel Roberts; Fabricio Camoes versus Tommy Hayden; Daniel Pineda versus Pat Schilling; and Nick Denis versus Joseph Sandoval. Bell time is 5:00 PM.

WWE will be at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Advertised: CM Punk, the Big Show, Chris Jericho, Daniel Bryan, the Miz, Mark Henry, R-Truth, Sheamus, Cody Rhodes, Epico, Primo, Rosa Mendes, Kofi Kingston, Eve Torres, Beth Phoenix, Natalya, and Kelly Kelly. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

TNA will be at the DCU Center in Worcester, MA, tonight. Advertised: Jeff Hardy versus Christopher Daniels; Rob Van Dam & Mr. Anderson versus Mexican America; a three-way featuring Jesse Sorensen, Shannon Moore, and Kid Kash; Rosita & Sarita versus Brooke Tessmacher & ODB; Garrett Bischoff versus Robbie E (w/ Rob Terry); and Eric Young versus D’Angelo Dinero. Bell time is 7:30 PM.

Ring of Honor will present Homecoming at the National Guard Armory in Philadelphia, PA, tonight. Advertised: Davey Richards defends the ROH World Title against Jay Lethal; Eddie Edwards versus Roderick Strong (w/ Truth Martini) in a no-holds-barred match; Chris Hero versus Michael Elgin (w/ Martini); Future Shock versus Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team; Jay & Mark Briscoe versus Jigsaw & Hallowicked; Kenny King versus Kevin Steen; a four-corners match featuring Andy Ridge, Mike Bennett (w/ brutal Bob), Grizzly Redwood, and Tomasso Ciampa (w/ the Embassy); plus Steve Corino. Bell time is 8:00 PM.

01/19/2012 – THURSDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-19T20:42:00.001-05:00

WWE’s Monday Night RAW will take place at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC, on April 9. WWE will be at the US Cellular Center in Asheville, NC, on May 5. A SmackDown/Superstars/NXT taping will be held at the Cajundome in Lafayette, LA, on May 29.

PETA has named Daniel Bryan the Most Animal-Friendly Athlete.

Steven Marrocco has a preview here for UFC on FX 1, taking place tomorrow night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN. Kevin Iole also has a preview here.

Weigh-in results for UFC on FX 1 were as follows: Melvin Guillard (156) vs. Jim Miller (155); Duane Ludwig (170.5) versus Josh Neer (171); Mike Easton (135) versus Jared Papazian (135.5); Pat Barry (242) versus Christian Morecraft (256); Jorge Rivera (185.5) versus Eric Schafer (185); Khabib Nurmagomedov (155) versus Kamal Shalorus (155.5); Charlie Brenneman (170.5) versus Daniel Roberts (170.5); Fabricio Camoes (157.5)* versus Tommy Hayden (155.5); Daniel Pineda (145) versus Pat Schilling (145); and Nick Denis (135.5) versus Joseph Sandoval (135). It took Camoes a while to cut weight after initially hitting 157.5 on the scales, and ultimately dropping to 156.

01/19/2012 – THURSDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-19T06:10:00.001-05:00

Wednesday’s edition of Ringside Rap, hosted by Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, featured a lengthy interview with Terry Taylor, and discussion on Evan Bourne’s suspension, drugs in wrestling, Dany Only’s piece on independent wrestlers (with some commentary from Only), and some old school talk inspired by Memphis Heat. Click here for the archive.

The lineup for TNA’s Impact Wrestling broadcast, which can be seen on Spike TV beginning at 9:00 PM ET, is as follows: Jeff Hardy versus James Storm; A.J. Styles versus Gunner (w/ Ric Flair); Magnus versus Crimson; Angelina Love versus Eric Young in a mixed match; plus Sting, Bully Ray, Christopher Daniels, Samoa Joe, Matt Morgan, Kazarian, Bobby Roode, Austin Aries, Alex Shelley, Winter, and ODB.

The lineup for WWE’s Superstars webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks versus Mason Ryan & Santino Marella; Alex Riley versus Jinder Mahal; and Natalya versus Tamina.

According to our records, Pat Patterson, R-Truth, and Al ‘Blade’ Green celebrate birthdays today.

Bam Bam Bigelow died at the age of 45 on this day in 2007. Ida Mae Martinez passed away when she was 79 on this day in 2010, and Tiki Tapu was 48 in 2011.

01/18/2012 – WEDNESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-18T19:25:00.001-05:00

The final rating for WWE’s Monday Night RAW broadcast on the USA Network was 3.0.

The Big Show was injured last night when he took a bad landing on his back against Daniel Bryan in a dark main event at the SmackDown event in Las Vegas, NV.

The Smoking Gun site has a story here on Donald Trump, which notes that WWE contributed a large donation to the Trump Foundation in 2010.

Chris Jericho’s band Fozzy has signed a new recording deal with Century Media.

Former Miss America and Tough Enough contestant Rima Fakih is slated to be in court on March 14, facing misdemeanor charges from her arrest following a traffic stop in December.

01/18/2012 – WEDNESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-18T06:27:00.002-05:00

Tonight’s edition of Ringside Rap, with hosts Mike Sempervive and Les Thatcher, will feature Terry Taylor and discussion on the top stories of the week. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

The lineup for WWE’s NXT webcast, which can be seen on the WWE website today beginning at 4:00 PM ET, is as follows: Darren Young versus Titus O’Neil in a no disqualification match; Heath Slater versus Percy Watson; Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks versus Trent Barreta & Yoshi Tatsu; and the wedding between Johnny Curtis and Maxine.

According to our records, Perro Aguayo, Ted DiBiase, and Batista celebrate birthdays today.

Gordon McKinley passed away on this day in 1958, Lord Athol Layton was 63 when he died in 1984, and Marshall Carter passed at 79 in 1989. Ed Farhat (a/k/a the Sheik) died at the age of 80 on this day in 2003, and Don‘Ox’ Anderson was 71 when he passed away on the same day. Pez Whatley was 54 when he died on this day in 2005.

01/17/2012 – TUESDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-17T19:39:00.002-05:00

WWE rarely has a title change at a house show anymore, so when they do, there’s usually a good reason. This one appears to have been a punishment for Evan Bourne, who has been suspended for the second time since November for violations of the company’s Wellness Program policies. Because this is the second incident, he will be out sixty days. Bourne and Kingston dropped the WWE Tag Team Title to Primo & Epico at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA, on Sunday.

Maria Kanellis, now working with ROH, was backstage at the RAW show in Anaheim, CA, on Monday. Dennis Haskins, who played Mr. Belding on Saved By the Bell was also milling about.

Perez Hilton on Twitter, following his appearance on Monday’s RAW broadcast, which drew a hugely negative reaction: “I expected it. So I wasn't butthurt. Didn't take away from all the fun I had. I'm not a pro. Was just there to have fun! Didn't expect to be caught up in all that drama!”

Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson will be at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA, on March 26 for the go-home edition of Monday Night RAW for WrestleMania.

The final rating for WWE’s SmackDown broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday was 2.21.

01/17/2012 – TUESDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-17T06:05:00.000-05:00

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, NV, tonight, taping for this week’s Superstars and NXT webcasts, and SmackDown, to be broadcast on SyFy on January 20. Advertised: Daniel Bryan defends the WWE World Title against Mark Henry; Wade Barrett versus Sheamus; plus the Big Show, Cody Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Hunico, Natalya, and Alicia Fox. Bell time is 6:45 PM.

According to our records, Kevin Thorn, Chase Stevens, and Mark Briscoe celebrate birthdays today.

The latest edition of Tommy Dreamer TV is below:

01/16/2012 – MONDAY NIGHT REPORT

2012-01-16T23:13:00.001-05:00

Results and highlights from WWE’s live Monday Night RAW broadcast for the USA Network on January 16 from the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA: the show opened with a video package paying tribute to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; the opening segment saw Mick Foley throw his hat in the ring for the Royal Rumble, get interrupted by Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero, resulting in CM Punk getting involved, and ending with John Laurinaitis informing Foley he would not be participating; Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) over Air Boom (Evan Bourne & Kofi Kingston) to retain the WWE Tag Team Title; backstage, Laurinaitis informed Chris Jericho that he would team with Daniel Bryan and CM Punk against Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, and David Otunga; backstage, Josh Matthews spoke with Zack Ryder and Eve Torres about the fact he had not been cleared to wrestle, but Ryder refuses to forfeit his WWE US Title, followed by video of last week’s attacks on Ryder and John Cena by Kane; Jack Swagger (w/ Guerrero) over Ryder (w/ Torres); backstage, Laurinaitis apologized to Ryder for forcing him to compete without having prior knowledge he had not been cleared, and Torres snapped at Laurinaitis as Ryder spent the whole segment grunting and selling the injury; Alicia Fox & Kelly Kelly over the Bella Twins after Perez Hilton stopped the twins from pulling a double switch; what began as a promo by R-Truth ended with Sheamus helping Truth in a brawl with Wade Barrett and the Miz until Teddy Long came out and made an impromptu mini-Rumble featuring all of them, with Truth going over; backstage, when Cena confronted Laurinaitis about sending out Ryder in bad shape, Laurinaitis awarded Cena a title match with Swagger, which never began because Cena laid into Swagger and laid him out before Kane appeared on screen taunting Cena; Brodus Clay over JTG; a considerable amount of time was given to showing the Big Show crashing into A.J. Lee on SmackDown last week, with Bryan doing a promo and dedicating his match on this week’s SmackDown to her; after Jericho walked out on the main event, Bryan, Punk and Foley went over Henry, Ziggler, and Otunga until Laurinaitis reversed the decision, leading to a great promo by Punk, slamming Laurinaitis before he walked away; and the show ended with Laurinaitis having a tantrum about being disrespected, admitting he would screw Punk at Royal Rumble, and laying out Foley.

Gene Okerlund has gone public regarding his participation as part of the residents of WWE’s Legends House reality show.

Monday’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, hosted by Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Nemesis, featured interviews with Mike Jackson and Father John Christian, leader of the Unholy Alliance, and discussion on recent and upcoming events for promotions including FWF, UIW, PWA, RPW, Empire, and Anarchy. Click here for the archive.

01/16/2012 – MONDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-16T20:08:00.000-05:00

The video below is WWE’s SmackDown, broadcast on the SyFy Channel on Friday:

WWE results from the SmackDown house show at the CN Centre in Prince George, British Columbia, Canada, on January 15: Ted DiBiase, Jr., over Jinder Mahal; Trent Barreta & Yoshi Tatsu over Drew McIntyre & Heath Slater; Hunico over Ezekiel Jackson; Cody Rhodes over Justin Gabriel to retain the WWE Intercontinental Title; Alicia Fox over Natalya with Aksana as referee; Sheamus over Wade Barrett; the Big Show over WWE World Champion Daniel Bryan by disqualification in a title match.

The video below is Dana White’s response to the ESPN2 piece that premiered on Sunday’s edition of Outside the Lines.

01/16/2012 – MONDAY MORNING REPORT

2012-01-16T06:16:00.002-05:00

WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA, for tonight’s live broadcast of Monday Night RAW on the USA Network, starting at 9:00 PM ET. There will also be tapings for this week’s Superstars webcast. Advertised: Zack Ryder defends the US Title against Jack Swagger (w/ Vickie Guerrero); Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) defend the WWE Tag Team Title against Air Boom (Evan Bourne & Kofi Kingston); plus John Laurinaitis, John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, the Miz, Kane, the Big Show, Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Mason Ryan, the Bella Twins, Beth Phoenix, Natalya, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres, and Perez Hilton, who will referee a divas match. Bell time is 5:00 PM.

Tonight’s edition of Georgia Wrestling Now, with hosts Jonathan Williams, Matt Hankins, and Nemesis, will feature Mike Jackson and Father John Christian, and discussion on recent and upcoming events. The show begins at 8:00 PM ET. Click here to listen live at show time. Feel free to call (347) 324-5735 to join in the conversation.

Ace Gordon died on this day in 1959, Yukon Eric committed suicide at 41 in 1965. Gust Karras passed away at the age of 73 on this day in 1976, and Paul E. Normous was 33 in 2009. Katsuhisa Shibata died at 66 on this day in 2010.

01/15/2012 – SUNDAY EVENING REPORT

2012-01-15T20:20:00.001-05:00

We don’t have full results yet, but Primo & Epico went over Air Boom to win the WWE Tag Team Title at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA, today.

There is a story here on Jeff Hardy, who talks about battling addictions and more.

Johnny Gargano was hospitalized following an injury during his match with Ricochet at Evolve 10 on Saturday. He has been released and is back at home.

01/15/2012 – SUNDAY MID-DAY REPORT

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WWE’s RAW crew will be at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA, today. Advertised: John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Kane, the Miz, R-Truth, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Evan Bourne, Zack Ryder, Eve Torres, Beth Phoenix, and the Bella Twins. Bell time is 2:00 PM.

WWE’s SmackDown crew will be at the CN Centre in Prince George, British Columbia, Canada, tonight. Advertised: the Big Show, Sheamus, Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett, Ted DiBiase, Jr., Hunico, Natalya, and Alicia Fox. Bell time is 5:00 PM.

According to our records, Bull Buchanan, Shane McMahon, and Kelly Kelly celebrate birthdays today.

Firpo Segura was 60 when he died on this day in 1968, and Buddy Fuller passed away at the age of 70 in 1996. Ricky Romero was 74 when he died on this day in 2006, El Texano was 47 when he passed on the same day. Ed Chuman was 62 when he died in 2010.

01/14/2012 – SATURDAY NIGHT REPORT

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Results and highlights from UFC 142 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on January 14: Felipe Arantes over Antonio Carvalho by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, and 29-28); Mike Pyle over Ricardo Funch by technical knockout at 1:22 in the first round; Yuri Alcantara over Michihiro Omigawa by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, and 30-27); Gabriel Gonzaga over Ednaldo Oliveira by submission to a rear-naked choke at 3:22 in the first round; Thiago Tavares over Sam Stout by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, and 29-28); Edson Barboza over Terry Etim by knockout from a spinning heel kick at 2:02 in the third round; Carlo Prater over Erick Silva by disqualification for illegal punches at 0:29 in the first round; Rousimar Palhares over Mike Massenzio by submission to a heel hook at 1:03 in the first round; Vitor Belfort over Anthony Johnson by submission to a rear-naked choke at 4:45 in the first round; and Jose Aldo over Chad Mendes by knockout at 4:59 in the first round to retain the UFC Featherweight Title.

It was announced today that UFC will return to Brazil in June, to the city of Sao Paolo, with more details to be announced soon.

Tickets for UFC on Fuel TV went on sale today and sold out in three hours. The event takes place on April 14 at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.

Dave Meltzer has a story here on the negative ESPN piece we covered this morning regarding UFC salaries.

This week’s edition of Les Thatcher’s other radio show, Wrestling Weekly, can be heard here.