This hold up comes on the heels of two other major stories: Hennig is supposed to be heading to WWF, meanwhile. At 4:00, Warrior splashed Demolition Axe. Tenta was pretty over during his one appearance, so EMLL is trying to get him back. It drew a legit sellout of 5708 to West Palm Beach. The Road Warriors beat the Midnight Express in a scaffold match in 3:00, which kind of ruins their videotape business, Dave thinks. Main event is. Continue reading. 19. – Anyway, moving on. 8 this week. – The first Saturday Night show is going to be taped on 10/3, and Dave expects to heavily feature the freakshow wedding of Uncle Elmer, which will likely be even worse than the Paul Vachon wedding. 18. NEXT WEEK: The Monday Night War begins. 89. – The top story of the week, and for a long time in general, was Ron Garvin winning the NWA World title from Ric Flair on 9/25 in their debut in Joe Louis Arena. By Scott Keith on 4th June 2016. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 12. ”) 3. Sid actually drew pretty big on the East coast, doing 11,000 at the Nassau Coliseum and 8000 in Philly. I’m not. D if wrestling was fake and got slapped around pretty good as a result. Wrestling Observer / Figure Four. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 02. 94. 09. Dave thinks it was counterproductive to kill off the Rockers like that. This issue only has the first 4 pages, so it’ll be a truncated recap, but all the good stuff is in those pages anyway. Dusty is certainly the top candidate, and that theory is bolstered by the house show results from the past week, which saw Dusty doing 90 second jobs to VIRGIL at every show. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 01. The PPV showdown of 1987 is upon us! It’s Vince v. 88. 1. Here’s a shocking story to start this week’s issue: Dave is a really big fan of New Japan Pro Wrestling. 96. -. This is ridiculous on a lot of levels, most of which is actually against Zulu because he’s even worse than Mike Von Erich and in. 6. Back on track after our detour back to March yesterday. 14. Wrestling Observer Flashback–11. The main event saw Tito Santana beating Bob Orton for the newly created AWF title in a *3/4 match. Well, one week left until the WWF really goes off a cliff. Rants. 95. . ”. The debut of Giant Gonzalez (who was “wearing Ultimate Warrior’s old underwear”) perked things up again. 20. 96. Apparently Bret Hart’s negotiations with WCW were so potentially fruitful that someone else is wanting to give it a try. After Stan Lane lost to the Patriot on the Global show, Cornette launched into a tirade about how it was a conspiracy against Stan, just like the cops conspired against his good friend. The biggest story of the week is actually buried way down. I must now face the eternal dilemma of sports fan who has lost their team in the playoffs: Do you cheer for the bastards that eliminated them because they earned it. By Scott Keith on 10th July 2016. 95. 94 So it turns out that WCW’s record buyrate for Halloween Havoc wasn’t quite what they anticipated… – The buyrate for Havoc 94 currently sits at 0. Welcome to 1996 WCW, notes our teaser for this week. Steve Jennum was put into the finals as a last-minute. 15. 96. 08. The grand plan for five days a week has been dropped and ESPN will air reruns of Pro Wrestling This Week instead. – In Japan, SWS continues to alienate Japanese wrestling fans by booking WARLORD v. – So UFC III was supposed to be another easy ride for Royce Gracie, but in fact the KING IS DEAD. And now it’s time for the MONDAY NIGHT WARS. 05. ) – The rumor mill continues to churn around the idea that Dusty Rhodes and his $300,000 / year salary will be cut at the end of the year. Shawn Special Edition! Okey doke, so in the 1997 RAW rants thus far, we’ve alluded to the all the crazy stuff happening behind the scenes with Bret and Shawn, but what EXACTLY was that? Well, Dave was covering it extensively in the Observer at the time, so here’s a mini-Flashback covering the top. By Scott Keith on 18th October 2016. In fact, even today I’m not sure that those title switches are counted as part of the “real” count of Flair’s title reigns because the NWA did such a bang-up job of denial that. – Andre’s beginnings in the sport are something of a mystery. – Dave is kind of shocked at the response to Wrestlemania, in that it was not only one of the biggest responses to a show that he’s ever had, but also there was pretty much no consensus on the quality of the show, with a fairly even split between thumbs up /. 1. “Hey look, it’s Joe Weider” – Not sure what that refers to, but I’m sure we’ll find out. – Flair defended the World title on a pair of Mid-South shows in Oklahoma, but there’s no plans or indications of Watts joining the NWA. Collection. – On the bright side, Warrior v. Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Rude/Vader tag match, the highest rating for any wrestling match on TV in more than a year. 96 IT’S TIME. Time to welcome in 2021 with everyone’s favorite blog column! And to celebrate, I’m currently three drinks in with “Best Rock of 1988” on Spotify in the background, so hopefully I’ve got lots to snark on tonight. Wrestling Observer Flashback–02. And now it’s time for the issue that kicks off one of the biggest stories in the history of wrestling, although we didn’t realize it at the time. By Scott Keith on 24th July 2019. 5. Wrestling Observer Flashback–05. Warrior pinned Haku with the shoulderblock and splash in 4:48. Wrestling Observer Flashback–08. The 85 issues are quite a trip, since it’s a very different writing style than even these ones. Guess it’s time for another one of these. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 08. Lots of people have claimed to have discovered him, for example. 95. 10-28-1991. OK, let’s get back into these again. Perfect. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 11. 18. – But first, speculation is still running rampant in the wake of Ole Anderson getting fired as booker. Also, be sure to check out the SquaredCircle subreddit, where some dude is RIPPING OFF MY. – In the top story, the UFC has decided to drop the superfight concept after the debacle that was Shamrock v. Wrestling Observer Flashback–02. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 09. 96 Stop me if you’ve heard this one before… – After 15 years of being the world’s biggest babyface, Hulk Hogan turned heel in the main event of WCW’s Bash at the Beach PPV in an angle that Dave thinks will be “remembered for years”. 02. While it seemingly wasn’t a major milestone in his life at that. – Dave sums up the last PPV of 1996 as “solid but unspectacular”. Owen won with a Rocket Launcher on Tanaka. 96. The NWA Canadian Heavyweight Championship was the top singles title in Maple Leaf Wrestling from 1978 until 1984,. 20 to an average of 2. ). 96. – Two major World title changes since the last issue as well, with Vader winning the WCW World title back from Ron Simmons on 12/30 in Baltimore, and Great Muta beating Masa Chono to win the. 48 buyrate (120,000 buys) for the Great American Bash in June, with WWF doing 0. – But first, the lead story is the rapid descent of UWFI, as they have reached out in desperation to New Japan for a combined show at the Tokyo Dome on 10/9 and maybe more after that. He literally stole Verne’s TV slot out from under him (the AWA wasn’t even told by the station until the day the show was supposed to air!) and Verne’s big show at the Cow Palace in March as a complete debacle due to scheduling. By Scott Keith on 14th August 2016. By Scott Keith on 18th April 2022. 28. 95. So after Masa Chono won the NWA title tournament, Thesz did a press conference for UWFI where he agreed to award his old NWA World title belt to the winner of the UWFI World title match between Takada and Gary. Ken Wayne found the body after. 94. – Although the WWF had “by far” the superior show, WCW won the ratings battle with a 2. They even flew in Steve DiSalvo as part of the ring crew to. – It’s sounding like Scott Steiner will work Halloween Havoc, but won’t be doing much. No one tell Donald Trump. 96. 94. 1986 Wrestling Observer Yearbook. 2 million, making it the largest gate in pro wrestling history. – Dave feels that the team of Sting & Rick Steiner are improving so rapidly that they’ll be one of the best in the world by the summer. Terry Funk has retired. Sorry. 89. We’ve gotta skip all of November due to more gaps, but at least I can now promise that everything from now on is 100% complete! And we didn’t miss Starrcade. It's great historical reading of the rise and fall of wrestling's biggest boom period. 06. – All Japan on 9/17 saw the debut of former Olympic wrestler Jun Akiyama, who was pinned by Kenta Kobashi in the semi-main of the show. *. Lesson the Fourth: Antonio Pena is the new innovator in wrestling and everyone should listen to him. I’m actually recovering from a shoulder injury at work today but I’ll power through an Observer Flashback for you. 96. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 08. Identifier-ark. 96. Wrestling Observer Flashback–09. The feeling is that running a show in the traditional Sunday timeslot where live shows draw will kill off the house shows. The previous record was 69,000 for the Big Event. – Dave notes that speaking of network TV, ABC was filming an episode of 20/20 at the MSG show, and one of the reporters asked Dr. 19 as I try to get as much done as possible in advance. 3/4. 6. Marc Mero pinned Hunter Hearst Helmsley in 16:23. 11-4-1991. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 10. 16. 94. Thanks for reading! UWFI president and top star Nobuhiko Takada announced that the company is officially going out of business and that the final show will be held this week. 96 September 9, 2023; Morning Daily News Update September 9, 2023; Mike Reviews WWE Capitol Punishment 2011 September 9, 2023; Question September 9, 2023; Jey Uso trade to Raw September 9, 2023; Weekend Wrestling! September 9, 2023Wrestling Observer Flashback–12. When it comes to catching and wrestling a giant. (Clearly Wrestlemania had not become the thing it is today, because $429 barely gets you a nosebleed seat at this point. 87. It’s time for the CLASH OF CHAMPIONS, a flying elbow to the wrestling business that should have revived it! But first, a pretty major death to kick off the issue. Curiosity over Kevin’s return is. 05. 87. – The Wrestling Classic, scheduled to be the first ever nationally available PPV show, will feature a 16 man tournament, plus Hogan v. 90. (Just wait until Slamboree. Baba had actually been. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 07. 4. By Scott Keith on 7th March 2017. 90. Mr. GROUP #2: Nobuhiko Takada is forming the UWFi (Union of Pro Wrestling Force International) and they’ll also be running Korakuen Hall, in May, and. Wrestling Observer Flashback–03. He was the person credited with popularizing the superplex, although he didn’t invent it. Shinjiro Otani retained the UWA junior heavyweight title pinning El Samurai. Bruiser Brody (“Nobody gives an aura of violent realism. 06. Jack Petrik would have to wage war against the WWF and spent lots of money to win, and it. as they did a matinee taping of the new Sunday edition of World Championship Wrestling in Atlanta, then did a show in Columbus GA, then finally. Obviously, doctors gave him some mumbo-jumbo diagnosis about “severe spinal disc and sciatic nerve damage”, and. Join Dave Meltzer and Brian Alvarez for coverage of the latest in wrestling and mixed-martial arts. George Scott has been fired as booker and replaced by the duo of Gary Hart and David Manning, so things are at least booked better now. – It’s COLD WAR in Toronto. – Over to Japan, where Nobuhiko Takada had announced plans to retire, at which point UWFI whiplashed and put out their own press release, noting that what Takada had MEANT TO SAY was that he was THINKING of retiring at age 35, which was two years away. So with the year in PPV finally caught up, let us venture back to the world of 1994 again, with rumors of Hulk Hogan. But don’t be fooled by the Slow News, as two major promotions actually reach their finales this week, although we didn’t realize it at the time. 16. – Vince McMahon is apparently planning to sue Sgt. -Pro Wrestling 1983-1987. By Scott Keith on 9th November 2017. 04. – Another quiet week in the world of wrestling, as we’re waiting for Starrcade and Superdome results. )3. – In an understatement, Dave notes that the babyface side in the WWF is in a state of disarray, what with Scott Hall about to jump to WCW in late May once all his contractual stuff ends. 4. Max Moon was eliminated quickly because his spaceship was double-parked. 06. For. Ah, wrestling, where one guy can beat up another guy for real and flush his head in the toilet for riding with his ex-girlfriend and people are just like “Eh,. It’s time for SUMMERSLAM! But first, the WWF is messing with their PPV schedule again. 95. 22. 16. 96 Apparently it’s time for WCW to get rowdy. Just like the Untouchables, if you sign two of ours to a guaranteed contract, we sign one of yours to a guaranteed contract! And his hot wife! – Johnny B. Also, Prime Time Wrestling is just getting destroyed on Monday nights and is down to a 1. I know, I know, I’ll give you a minute to let it sink in. *1/2. Did you think that Best of ECW Volumes 1 and 2 was as EXTREME as the blog was getting this week? Then prepare yourself, because it’s time for WCW UNCENSORED!– The weirdest story of the week comes from Japan (shocking, I know) where Lou Thesz is making waves in the business again. – Art Barr’s petition for a wrestling license was denied by the commission once again. Hosted by Sean Oliver, he welcomes guest the Honky Tonk Man as he talks about SummerSlam ’88. – In the top story, the WWF held a press conference, which got more attention in Mexico, to announce that Royal Rumble 97 would be held in the Alamo Dome in San. Well this should do better than NWA Powerrr at least. Well this was all well and good, but wrestling magazines found out about it and started publishing stories and photos, and the NWA had to go into coverup mode. By Scott Keith on 12th June 2016. 22. It’s like Wrestlemania, but for NEWS. 95. Big stuff in the news this week, and the start of the biggest shift in coverage in the history of the Observer. – The Sheik did an extremely rare job, submitting to Onita’s boston crab in just 3:18 at the latest FMW show. Wrestling Observer Flashback–10. Louis is finally over, and the WWF has won. 96. Wrestling Observer Flashback–11. It’s kind of hard to say what to expect around here as the show has been bouncing back and forth between focusing on the Intercontinental Title feud and then the World Title situation. 96. Wrestling Observer Flashback –04. 5 million as a startup amount and NOW got $480,000, and once they’ve blown through that, he’s done. Wrestling breakup and Cornette getting his face shoved in a birthday cake. Brian Pillman pinned Badstreet with a flying bodypress in the light heavyweight tournament semi-final at 6:52. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 12. 7th. Topics. 20. Get all the news from F4WOnline. 95 I love that the teaser for this one on the site is “Hotline sleaze award winner” because really it could be ANYTHING coming out of Mean Gene’s mouth. Dave is flabbergasted by how bad a show it was, wondering if this was a dream or a nightmare that he hasn’t woken up from. 21. Couldn’t do this one last night, because Daredevil is a thing that exists. 05. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 05. – The new Stampede Wrestling has already taken all but one of the WWF’s TV clearances in Western Canada, so this doesn’t seem to be a winning venture for Vince. – Dave watched the 12/19 All Japan show, and dished out another full monty, this one for Misawa & Kobashi winning the tag team tournament over Kawada & Taue in. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 03. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 10. So you picked a great time to start reading! – In the top story, Jerry Lawler was accused of being a very, very bad boy. Eaton did a scary kneedrop from the top rope to the ramp outside the ring for the highlight of the match. 0 number predicted by. Wrestling Observer Flashback–02. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 02. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 12. – Both the WWF and Crockett are running Philly on 10/18, but there’s a law on the books that says no two wrestling promotions can run shows within 25 miles of each other, and the respective arenas are less than 25 miles away. (This is why. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 06. – In the top story, Sports Illustrated had a story on the WWF in March, and no one in mainstream media really gave a shit. *. 20. 90 / 07. Despite running in the red for the past three years, both WCW and the WWF are confident that they’re going to be profitable in 1995 thanks to this new-fangled PPV market. Ware on 12/14, as expected. 26. 22. 1985. 96 (Part Two) – In the top story, “Sycle” Sid won the WWF title in the main event of the Survivor Series. By Scott Keith on 14th March 2019. 28. I was actually going to redo the Halloween Havoc 90 rant based on the full PPV version that I’ve never seen…but the Network only has the Turner Home Video version. 10-21-1991. 04. 0 (Extended OCR) Ppi. So don’t be disappointed at the lack of a review here. The team (Gene and Ole Anderson) dominated tag team. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 04. He does 100 but we’ll just do the top 10 because otherwise I’d have to break this up into 5 parts instead of 2. I know this year has been a slog, but we’re getting closer to September, when the magic happens! But first, WWF returns to your house! Whether you wanted them there or not. 96 Remember how in last week’s issue, Kevin Nash had until the weekend to make up his mind about leaving…? – In the top story, Kevin Nash officially gave notice to the WWF that he’d be accepting an offer from WCW, via phone call to Vince McMahon on 3/5. 18. 92. Wrestling Flashback publishes wrestling list videos, top 10’s, the history of classic. 90. Wrestling Observer Rewind ★ Dec. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 08. 95 (Part 1) So after Dave takes a week off, it’s a DOUBLE ISSUE featuring Wrestlemania XI, the show that drew so much money that Dave needed a second issue to contain it all!Wrestling Observer Flashback – 11. 2022-03-05 07:34:36. He was at the other guys’ PPVs this year taking notes, as well as New Japan and All Japan’s major shows. 3. 2. By Scott Keith on 29th August 2016. By Scott Keith on 14th January 2019. Buyrate looks to be between 0. – In the top story of the week, and in fact one of the top stories in wrestling history, Ric Flair was fired from WCW effective immediately when negotiations fell through. 2. 5-4-1987. Hogan! Starrcade ‘87 v. 22. Well, 1988, as much as I love and care about you, it’s time our relationship came to an end again, just like James and Natalie on Big Brother last night. 27. 3-21-1988. 22. Lex Luger jumped out of the final mystery box to attack Sting, injuring the wrong leg (Instinct on Luger’s part due to all his lucha libre experience, Dave notes) but it was a pretty great angle. Raw drew its best 18-49 number since the start of football season. ark:/13960/s2tmw3h1hz8. 94. I think once I wrap up 88 I’ll continue into 1989, and then when we reach the end of THAT year, we’ll go back to 1985 again. – The biggest question coming out of Wrestlemania XII is the future of Bret Hart, as he’s expected to finish the tour of Germany and then go on a hiatus until the end of the summer. – And now, a turning point for the Observer, although we didn’t know it at the time, as Dave announces that he’s taken a job with the National, writing a wrestling column for the paper. 0. 19. Wrestling Observer Flashback–02. 27. On with the week that was and one of the most famous stories in wrestling history!– Oh, also, the weekend shows set new lows for cable wrestling ratings, and that includes the WWF shows. – In our top story, Curt Hennig has apparently reached an agreement to jump from the WWF to WCW, as an active wrestler. tesseract 5. 96 Can I make it more than. He was indicted on 11/12 on counts. 16. 29. 11. 1984 Dave would chime in with “but luckily WWF isn’t wrestling” or something equally snarky, but mellower 1986. 07. – Dave reviews the 1/21 MSG show (which did NOT sell out, he notes, although he assumes that the War to Settle the Score sold out both the arena and the Felt Forum):Wrestling Observer Flashback – 07. 25. It's great historical reading of the rise and fall of wrestling's biggest boom period. 95. Rants. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 02. 13. Dave notes we. – Inoki’s business-killing freakshow ended up drawing 11,000 people for somewhere between $800,000 – $1. *1/4. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 08. Heyman is making. 96 By Scott Keith on 15th September 2023 Wrestling Observer Flashback – 12. Louis Wrestling Club from running. Warlord won a battle royale by tossing out Ricky Steamboat. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 01. – To Mexico, where it looks like EMLL is about to split. Wrestling Observer Flashback: 07. ) An industry shaking death in this issue, but. 09. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 03. 1. – Dave’s opening salvo this week: “After its television show reached a new low in. – The Ole Anderson & Gordon Solie version of World Championship Wrestling returned to TBS on 8/13, so in fact we missed the entire Black Saturday era! – The Road Warriors won the AWA tag team titles from the Crusher & the Baron as Dave breathes a sigh of relief, and apparently this was booked very last minute because Vince. 29. 88. – Dave proclaims that no promotion is any hotter here in 1996, with more mainstream popularity, than NJPW is. – To the WWF, where Wrestlemania III passed 70,000 tickets sold, officially making it the largest crowd ever to witness a wrestling show in North America. 96 (I’m putting this one in the can a few days earlier than publication so if there’s any pop culture references that age badly, blame me. At the latest WWF tapings, a guy named Mantaur debuted. Well, that probably won’t happen again for a while. ***1/4Wrestling Observer Flashback–03. – The really big news coming out of the first head-to-head meeting of RAW and Nitro is that WCW immediately took the lead in the ratings war, with a 2. They’re exclusively running small towns on the far Northern island of Japan, and mostly using lucha libre guys, which the mainstream papers didn’t really get. Winner of the 2016 Doomie Award for Favorite Blog Post!. Survivor Series!World Wrestling Federation presented a live pay-per-view event special live from Hartford, Conn. Wrestling Observer Flashback–03. By Scott Keith on 19th September 2016. 05. C. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 05. 96. 96. But goddamn is “Eyes of a Stranger. Back to the trenches after taking Friday off! And the big story this week is an abject lesson in John Lennon’s famous saying, “Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans”. Chelsea Anne Cardona (née: Green; born April 4, 1991) is a Canadian professional wrestler, stuntwoman, and model. Oh, and WCW tried to make a mini-movie and it didn’t go very well. Wrestling Observer Flashback–08. Wrestling Observer Flashback–04. Current talk is a rematch with Shawn Michaels at Summerslam in a ladder. Maybe if I skim over the Eddie Gilbert stuff it’ll get done easier. 03. This should be good. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 04. 95 Guys, I don’t think this UFC thing is gonna be around much longer if lawmakers have their way! – The debate over whether UFC and the other events like it should be banned has been raging in the press and the city of Denver has become a hotspot for the controversy. 96. Wrestling Observer Flashback–01. 96. 11. 01. Wrestling Observer Flashback – 08. 94.