TV ratings an outdated way of measuring success in wrestling

On Friday, it was revealed that AEW Dynamite drew a record-low viewing. According to Programming Insider, the flagship show drew 502,000 viewers, the lowest-ever rating for a "non-preempted" show in Dynamite history.

Fightful Select reported that AEW isn't panicking. 

"Fightful Select spoke with AEW sources about their feelings on the number and how they rationalized it. We were told that the typical lead-in for AEW, Big Bang Theory, usually does a demo number of 200-250k for their final quarter-hour. This week's lead-in was Black Panther, which they said landed at under 85k in the demo for the final quarter-hour, a significant drop-off. They believe that the missing people were the lead in watchers that didn't exist this week."

Regardless of the reasoning, judging a wrestling show's success based on live television viewers is an antiquated mindset. AEW also airs via Triller TV. Millions of people worldwide consume the show via the streaming platform, either live or on demand. Those numbers aren't part of the rating data and thus show a skewed metric.

Of course, live television viewers within the United States are important when negotiating a new deal due to the money on offer. Tony Khan must show his programming can draw and retain viewers if he wants to increase revenue. 

Nevertheless, WWE's imminent move to Netflix shows how little single-country metrics matter. WWE's chief content officer, Paul Levesque, better known as "Triple H," understands that the move will open programming to a worldwide audience without additional cable packages.

Khan likely has similar views. He has previously discussed how well AEW does in Europe and other parts of the world. While that argument will have no value to his contract discussions with Warner Brothers Discovery, it is a sign of the changing media landscape. AEW could eventually join a streaming giant like Amazon Prime to escape the consistent battle for live-viewer ratings.

As viewers' consumption habits continue to change, wrestling fans, analysts and critics must follow suit. Live television isn't as ubiquitous as it once was. Streaming is now king. Half a million viewers, with a changed lead-in, is still a strong number. Factor in worldwide viewers, and AEW likely broke the 1 million mark.

It won't happen soon, but AEW must follow WWE's lead and sign with a streaming giant. They will only escape the constant criticism for a metric that tells less than half the full story. 

source: yardbarker.com

CM Punk On WWE Return, Reconciling With Triple H, Nick Khan As The 'Difference Maker'

It took a walkout, a decade, and a controversial two-year run in AEW, but CM Punk finds himself back in WWE once again, having returned in his hometown of Chicago at Survivor Series 2023. While plenty has been made about Punk's return or what came before it, the story of just how he and WWE came to terms on a reunion had remained a mystery, until today. Appearing on "The MMA Hour," Punk spoke about his talks with WWE on a return, confirming that the process began only a few days before his Survivor Series return. He also revealed that it was WWE who reached out to him.

"The action of it started the week of, I think, Thanksgiving...," Punk said. "I'd have to look at a calendar to figure out dates exactly. I remember times and places of where I was when I would get phone calls and such. And I had a CFFC show coming up, I think. So I got a call from Nick Khan, and he was just like 'Hey, we want to talk to you.' And I was like 'Cool. [I'm] on my way to the gym, and I have this coming up. CFFC, I'll be back.' 'Cool, you want to talk Monday?' 'Great.'

"So it was the week of Thanksgiving. I spoke to him Monday...The call, I'm always so nervous about pulling the curtain back on stuff, but I think the call was more about 'Hey, we want to talk about you coming back. We'd love you for Royal Rumble.' Cause they assumed that I probably had some sort of noncompete or something like that, and were kind of floored when I was like 'No man, I'm ready to go. Let's do it."

While Khan and Punk continued to talk frequently during the next several days, things took a turn when Punk asked Khan if he could put him in contact with Paul "Triple H" Levesque, whom Punk had a tumultuous relationship with during his first WWE run.

"It's funny because everyone calls him Paul [now]...I always call him Triple H or Hunter," Punk said. "When I spoke to him, that's when the ball really got rolling, you know? Cause it was a very...I asked him if he wanted to talk on the phone, and he said 'No. I would actually rather kind of like to face-time you, so I can see you.' And I was like 'Oh, that's interesting.'  

"We just talked about a whole lot of stuff, and about stuff that was at one point serious to probably both of us...that is silly now. And we just kind of laughed and buried the hatchet. And then we started talking business."

Among the more shocking revelations was that Punk confirmed there had been talks of him returning to WWE before, even before his stint on "WWE Backstage" in 2019, but that things only seriously moved forward during the recent talks. As good as his conversation with Triple H went, Punk ultimately believes that it was Khan who helped steer things towards a WWE return, something that host Ariel Helwani, Khan's former client, seemed to agree with.

"He was the difference maker," Helwani said.

"I think so," Punk said.

source: "The MMA Hour" with Ariel Helwani

WrestlingInc

WWE NXT Viewership Triumphs Over AEW Dynamite in Tuesday Showdown

On October 10th, AEW Dynamite and WWE NXT clashed, with the former airing a special Title Tuesday edition featuring multiple title shifts and Adam Copeland's debut match against Luchasaurus. This came as Major League Baseball playoffs were scheduled on TBS for October 11th.

On the other hand, WWE NXT promised fans a star-studded evening with the likes of John Cena, Cody Rhodes, Asuka, and Paul Heyman in attendance. Fans also anticipated appearances from NXT Women’s Champion Becky Lynch, North American Champion Dominik Mysterio, and possibly, The Undertaker, following circulating rumors of his presence.

Before the showdown, reports mentioned Triple H and Shawn Michaels aiming to highlight the dominance of NXT over AEW. Tony Khan, on the other hand, had a sharp retort, labeling the NXT heads as "bald a**holes."

According to Wrestlenomics' Brandon Thurston, WWE NXT garnered an impressive 921,000 average viewers and a 0.3 rating in the 18-49 demographic. AEW Dynamite, in comparison, achieved an average of 609,000 viewers and a 0.26 rating in the crucial demographic.

Interestingly, while NXT dominated in viewership during the October 3rd episode, AEW Dynamite led in the key demographic against the October 4th NXT episode.

CM Punk fired from AEW after altercation with Jack Perry

AEW has released an announcement effective immediately about the termination of CM Punk from AEW. This comes following controversial situations involving Jack Perry, The Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, and others.

You can read the full announcement below.

STATEMENT FROM ALL ELITE WRESTLING AND TONY KHAN

All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has terminated the wrestler and employment agreements between Philip Brooks (CM Punk) and AEW with cause, effective immediately. The termination was confirmed today by Tony Khan, CEO, General Manager and Head of Creative of AEW.

The termination follows a weeklong internal investigation of an incident occurring backstage at AEW – All In London on Sunday, August 27. Following the investigation, the AEW Discipline Committee met and later convented with outside legal counsel before making a unanimous recommendation to Khan that CM Punk be terminated with cause.

Khan offered the following statement:

“Phil played an important role within AEW and I thank him for his contributions. The termination of his AEW contracts with cause is ultimately my decision, and mine alone. Of course, I wish I didn’t have to share this news, which may come as a disappointment to many of our fans. Nevertheless, I am making the decision in the best interests of the many amazing people who make AEW possible every week – our talent, staff, venue operators and many others whose efforts are unsung but essential to bringing our fans great shows on television and at arenas and stadiums throughout the world.”

Tensions erupted between CM Punk and Jack Perry backstage at All Elite Wrestling's All In London event on Sunday, August 27, just before Punk's scheduled bout with Samoa Joe. While conflicting stories exist about the specific details of the clash, it's confirmed that both wrestlers had been temporarily suspended as AEW looks into the incident which now seems to have concluded.

The dispute was fueled by Jack Perry's comment, "It's real glass, go cry me a river," which he made during his Zero Hour match against HOOK. Perry pointed to a limousine's windscreen that he would later be slammed through. This jab was directed at CM Punk and pertained to a previous argument the two had about glass during an AEW Collision taping earlier in the summer. Perry reportedly felt that insiders close to Punk, who leaked the argument, aimed to publicly humiliate him.

Souece: WrestlingNewsSource.Com

MLW’s Amended Lawsuit Against WWE, Details On Alleged Talent Tampering

PWInsider has more details from MLW’s amended lawsuit against WWE. As noted, MLW has filed a 44-page amended lawsuit against WWE which adds more detail and arguments regarding WWE’s alleged violation of the Sherman Act regarding anti-trust practices and more.

The amended lawsuit focuses its anti-trust arguments on how companies monetize their content and how WWE ices out other companies in their practices. The suit argues that pro wrestling companies need to strike media rights deals to be successful and that WWE has taken actions that make that almost impossible, which has hurt MLW and other possible competitors. It maintains its previous claims that WWE’s involvement caused the FOX-owned Tubi to cancel their contract with MLW the night before a deal was set to be announced between them, as well as the allegation that Vice backed away from a deal with MLW after a WWE executive told Vice that Vince McMahon was unhappy they were working together. The suit argues that with A&E owning a minority share in Vice, their connection to WWE through the WWE programming block on Sundays hurt MLW’s tanding with the network. While all the financial information from the Tubi deal and their current deal with Reelz are redacted, it is noted that:

“In sum, WWE’s predatory and unfair anti-competitive conduct in the Relevant Market is multi-faceted, with the intent and effect of expanding and maintaining its market power. This conduct includes, but is not limited to: (1) substantially foreclosing the Relevant Market through maintaining exclusivity agreements with major media companies and interfering with competitors’ media rights deals; (2) substantially increasing barriers to entry in the Relevant Market by raising rivals’ costs and restricting their access to the critical and scarce inputs required for professional wrestling programming, namely athletic performers with the requisite physical skills, acting talent, and marketability to be professional wrestlers, including by hiring away rivals’ wrestlers and not using them and by threatening to never hire talent that previously signed with rivals (“blacklisting”); and (3) blocking and foreclosing the access of rivals to professional wrestling venues, which are necessary for the production of professional wrestling programming. The combined effect of the conduct is that WWE has maintained its dominant market power.

Through its predatory and exclusionary conduct and abuse of its market power, WWE has substantially harmed competition in the Relevant Market by depriving MLW and other competitors of access to key media distribution platforms. Its conduct has harmed purchasers of media rights for professional wrestling programming by depriving them of programs and enabled WWE to impose and maintain supracompetitive prices, and in turn has harmed wrestling fans by reducing their choices and quality of professional wrestling programming and increasing their costs of consuming that content.

As a result of WWE’s anti-competitive and predatory conduct, MLW and other professional wrestling promotions have suffered and will continue to suffer substantial monetary damages and irreparable harm.”

The lawsuit also goes into specific details regarding WWE’s alleged tampering with talent contracts, claiming that former talent relations head Canyon Ceyman encouraged Swerve Strickland to get out of his deal with MLW so he could sign with WWE. It also alleges that WWE hired Davey Boy Smith Jr. away from MLW but then never used him outside of a dark match, which they argue makes it clear that WWE was intending to impair their ability to build themselves up. PWInsider notes that Smith is not identified as a former WWE star and a WWE legacy talent, and that WWE could argue that they knew of Smith long before he worked for MLW.

The suit also points out that AEW has reached out to WWE demanding that they not tamper with talent contracts, which appears to be referencing the AEW talent meeting where Tony Khan revealed that AEW legal head Megha Parekh emailed Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan telling them to stop contacting AEW-contracted talent.

The lawsuit also details some of the history of wrestling in the early 200s when WCW and ECW fell and were acquired by WWE, pointing out that WWE moving to TNN in 2000 directly contributed to ECW’s death and WWE acquiring the company’s assets in bankruptcy court.

The lawsuit also makes additional allegations of WWE blocking venue bookings beyond the previously-noted claim that Triple H contacted Madison Square Garden to get the ROH/NJPW G1 Supercard blocked in 2019. The suit claims that WWE prevented AEW Dynamite tapings from taking place at Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio in 2019 and 2020. It also argues that WWE has run events opposite AEW PPVs to attempt to prevent those shows from being profitable.

Chris Nowinski Blasts NFL's 'Tua Disaster' While Praising Pro Wrestling Promoters

Fans watching last night's NFL game between the Miami Dolphins and the Cincinnati Bengals witnessed a scary moment when Dolphins starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa had to be carted off the field on a stretcher following a rough sack. Tagovailoa was taken to a local trauma facility, and while he was ultimately released and traveled back to Miami with the team, he clearly suffered a concussion during the play, just one week after likely receiving another head injury in a previous game.

Neuroscientist and former WWE star Chris Nowinski, a prominent advocate for concussion safety, took to Twitter to share his perspective on the matter.

"In light of the Tua disaster last night, I appreciate more than ever AEW's Tony Khan, WWE's Triple H, and NWA's Billy Corgan all inviting me to come teach their talent [about] concussions & the risks of getting in the ring before you've recovered," Nowinski tweeted. "Protecting athletes begins with educating them."

Nowinski had tweeted about the NFL's concussion protocol ahead of last night's game, saying that it was blatantly dangerous to allow Tagovailoa to take the field after allegedly suffering a concussion the previous week. "If Tua takes the field tonight, it's a massive step back for concussion care in the NFL," Nowinski stated. "If he has a 2nd concussion that destroys his season or career, everyone involved will be sued & should lose their jobs, coaches included. We all saw it, even they must know this isn't right."

After being forced to retire in 2003 due to his own concussion issues, Nowinski went on to earn a PhD in behavioral neuroscience and is the co-founder of the Concussion Legacy Foundation non-profit organization. Nowinski and his former partner, Dr. Bennet Omalu, were able to get a hold of Chris Benoit's brain post-mortem and diagnosed the notorious wrestler with CTE in 2007 — the first time a wrestler was publicly diagnosed with the dangerous illness.

WWE vs. AEW: Analyzing the top wrestling companies’ live-event experience

Triple H Addresses WWE NXT Changes, Competition From AEW, Wrestlers Jumping Ship, More

During an interview with The Athletic, Triple H discussed the recent changes to the WWE NXT brand to NXT 2.0, and the new directive to hire hiring younger talent.

On hiring college athletes and younger talent:

“It always bothered me, like, (to get into wrestling in the past) you’ve almost got to be someone with nothing else going on or can’t take no for an answer and dig and dig and dig. But that pool is so small, people trying to get into this business. As I met more people, and you become savvy to the world of athletes, you realize the NFL is letting go 500 players a year. … You look at that massive pool of incredible athletes (from all sports). If you take that pool and 10 or 5 percent have big personalities that would be good for your business, you’re talking about a talent pool that’s 1,000 times bigger than right now.”

On the change to NXT 2.0:

“There was this point where it was on the (WWE) Network, had this cult following, and we needed to get on television. How do we do that? We need more experience, need to professionalize this a little bit to make the product to where fans want to see that. We got them to that place. The pandemic (messed) it up a little bit because it was right when we went on TV and we had to shift our focus, doing it in front of no people. It completely altered what we were doing. We couldn’t recruit or train talent for almost two years. … But the show stayed. Then we said, OK, let’s reboot it and go back to what we originally were. Some of these people won’t be ready for television, but we’re gonna put them on television, and we believe the audience is invested enough that the numbers might come down, but a core group of them will stay, and now you’re creating fresh stars all the time. That’s where we are now. The numbers have stabilized.

People like Bron Breakker, he’s been training for a year. Half the women, they’ve been here a year maybe. There’s a lot that’s just so fresh and new. People used to say the constant churn of NXT was a negative. The churn is what’s great about it. The people here now, hopefully a year and a half from now, none of them are even in NXT anymore, and the ones that make it will be on to “Raw” and “SmackDown. That’s the magic. It truly is the developmental league, the college football, Triple-A baseball. Yeah, they’re not all quite ready to be in that major-league role yet, but you’re discovering them before they become household names. We were talking about this shift anyway. That’s where we were headed. It happened at a period of time where I had to leave for a bit. Luckily, Shawn (Michaels) had been doing it with me all that time, so it was a seamless thing. I stepped out, did what I needed to do, but that team has killed it. They’ve really created a show where you can really say that’s the next generation of stars.”

On competition with AEW:

“As far as the competition aspect goes, it’s great. It makes everybody sharper. You get lazy if you’re all there and everybody goes about their business. The end of the day, it’ll make us better, and we’ll all be better for it. All those things have forced us to be in a better place right now. Not that we wouldn’t have gotten there anyway, but we had to do it quicker in some manner. That’s an important piece of it, right? As long as there aren’t things hurting the business overall, I think any of that stuff is good. If you’re a 6-year-old kid, you turn on the TV, wrestling is on and you like it. Now you’re caught up in it. Then you start sampling all of it. You get to where you’re a huge fan. That’s the money. There’s room for everybody to do it. It’s like saying the USFL or XFL is starting up and the NFL is panicking about market share. It’s just going to increase people’s love for football. If you love football that much, you’ll watch all of the football, and it’s great. But the NFL is not sweating that.”

On former NXT wrestlers in AEW:

“I like all those guys. They helped us get where we needed to get, and I’m thankful for it. The truth is there was a period of time where we were trying to build NXT. We built NXT. Then we were trying to build a brand that could get a television show and sustain it. All those names helped us get there. Whether anybody believed or not they fit on “Raw” or “SmackDown,” those aren’t necessarily my decisions solely, and they’re Vince’s (McMahon) decisions and fans’ decisions; and then, can we continue to do business with them? If they have great gigs, I’m happy for them. I stay in touch with almost all of them. I like to think they came into us here, we taught them a lot, got them to (a higher level) where they learned how to do television, how to be professionals and all that to be successful there. At some point, they might come back with us, or they might never because they don’t fit our brand as well, but that’s OK. They got us to certain places, and I’m thankful for that, and they’re thankful for that, and they’re off to different things. But that doesn’t stop the train. People leave football teams, move to different teams all the time, and it’s great.”

Tony Khan Acquires Ring Of Honor

Throughout the past few weeks, Tony Khan and various AEW stars have hyped a “massive announcement” to be revealed on tonight’s episode of Dynamite. Tony even promised to personally appear in the ring for the big moment, which was a promise he fulfilled at the opening of the show this evening.

After thanking the crowd and promising the get the action going soon, Tony Khan said it would be the biggest night in the history of the company.

It was revealed that the major announcement is Tony Khan signed a deal to become the official owner of Ring Of Honor.

It was noted earlier this week in a report that sources from multiple wrestling companies say there was a possible sale of ROH and another promotion. It’s clear now that the deal was between AEW and Ring Of Honor.

ROH has been on a hiatus since December’s Final Battle pay-per-view, and Supercard of Honor is scheduled to be their first show back on Friday, April 1. The company announced in the lead-up to Final Battle that they were taking some time off during the first quarter of this year to “work internally to reimagine” the company and return with a “new fan-focused product and provide a unique experience.” Khan previously indicated that the announcement was not related to any individual talent acquisition, and instead, it had to do with a new business deal for AEW. 

Jon Moxley Entering Alcohol Treatment Program

AEW President, CEO, General Manager & Head Of Creative Tony Khan took to Twitter tonight and revealed that Moxley is going into rehab, noting that Moxley has allowed Khan to make the announcement.

“Jon Moxley has allowed me to share with you that he is entering an inpatient alcohol treatment program. Jon is a beloved member of the AEW family. We all stand with him and Renee, and all of his family and friends, as he shifts his focus to recovery,” Khan wrote.

Khan noted in a follow-up tweet that AEW is embracing Moxley’s choice, and supporting him in any way they can.

“Jon is making a very brave choice to get help, and we’re embracing his choice and supporting him however we can. I’m proud to call Jon a friend, and like many of you, I’m also a fan of Mox and look forward to a time in the future when he is eventually ready to return to the ring. Until then, thank you for supporting Jon and respecting his privacy at this time. If you or a loved one need help, please reach out to SAMHSA’s National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357),” Khan wrote.

Moxley was scheduled to face Orange Cassidy on tomorrow’s AEW Dynamite episode, in a match for the AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament. The winner, previously expected to be Moxley, would then advance to the AEW Full Gear pay-per-view on November 13 to face Bryan Danielson in the finals. There is no word on how AEW will handle Moxley’s spot in the tournament, but we should know more after tomorrow’s Dynamite.

Moxley just released his “MOX” autobiography today, which you can find at this link via Amazon.

AEW Dynamite To Begin Airing Live Across The Country

AEW President, CEO, General Manager & Head Of Creative Tony Khan took to Twitter today to announce that Dynamite will begin airing on TNT at 5pm on the West Coast, 6pm in the Mountain time zone, and 7pm in the Central time zone, starting with this Wednesday’s episode.

“Great news for you great wrestling fans who support @AEW: we’re back on Wednesdays for #AEWDynamite starting this week in just over 48 hours, from now on we’re officially LIVE everywhere in America! Dynamite every Wednesday @ 8pm ET, 7pm CT, 6pm MT, 5pm PT! See you all Wednesday!,” he wrote.

All Elite Wrestling is the strongest challenger WWE has seen in 20 years

The Way TV Ratings Are Measured Is Changing, WWE & AEW To Be Impacted

The 18-49 demographic viewership has long been considered the most important number for advertisers when it comes to analyzing the ratings of U.S. television broadcasts.

The higher the 18-49 demo, there more advertisers have been traditionally willing to spend on commercials, however, that is all about to change.

A report in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter, reveals there’s going to be a shift away from the traditional 18-49 being used as the sole deciding factor for advertisers and where they spend their money.

The new key data for advertisers to watch will be "total impressions" a show is able to generate. This will reportedly include streaming and on-demand numbers, rather than live broadcasting viewership or demographics.

The change is expected to come in January 2022 and it will be very interesting to see how this impacts both WWE and AEW, especially since they focus on their 18-49 demographic viewership. The belief is that when the new numbers are included, the genre that will benefit the most are sports programs and shows on streaming services such as Netflix.

AEW And The Owen Hart Foundation Announce Partnership, Tournament To Be Held

 All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and The Owen Hart Foundation (OHF), a nonprofit charity which provides a vast range of assistance and opportunities to individuals in-need across the world, are collaborating to honor the legacy of late wrestler Owen Hart, a beloved figure in the professional wrestling community and beyond. This collaboration includes launching the annual Owen Hart Cup Tournament within AEW, which will see the winner receive a Cup known as “The Owen,” as well as the production and distribution of unique and original Owen Hart merchandise, including specified retail goods as well as the upcoming AEW console video game.

This alliance incorporates opportunities to develop Owen Hart action figures via AEW’s partnership with Jazwares, apparel, posters, and additional collectable merchandise. Owen Hart is survived by his wife, Dr. Martha Hart, who spearheads The Owen Hart Foundation with a mission of providing global aid to at-risk communities (e.g., scholarships, housing, various forms international assistance, food drives, backpack giveaways and Christmas projects).

“AEW’s relationship with the Hart family dates back to our inaugural pay-per-view event, Double or Nothing in 2019, and Owen’s influence is still felt today,” said Tony Khan, AEW CEO, GM and Head of Creative. “To extend his memory and his legacy even further through this agreement is a powerful and meaningful moment for the entire wrestling community.”

“The Owen Hart Foundation is extremely pleased to partner with AEW in this wonderful joint venture to honor Owen’s substantial international wrestling career and the lasting influence he and his craft has had in the sport. AEW’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament serves as a tremendous tribute to Owen and provides an incredible way for professional wrestling enthusiasts to celebrate his work in a most fitting way. We trust that Tony Khan and his amazing AEW team will do a brilliant job with this highly anticipated project. This OHF/AEW partnership is my special gift to all of Owen’s magnificent loyal fans who forever remember him and his inspiring repertoire of talents,” said Dr. Martha Hart.

Mick Foley Says WWE Has A Problem, Touts AEW As ‘The’ Place Where Talent Aspire To Be

This past weekend’s AEW All Out pay-per-view may have signaled a major shift in the world of professional wrestling, and that’s exactly the case if you ask a certain WWE Hall of Famer in Mick Foley.

Mick Foley took to social media to post a video titled ‘WWE — We Have A Problem’ to claim that AEW is now the place that talent ‘aspire’ to be. Foley explained that WWE broke something that didn’t need to be fixed, but now they need to correct that mistake if they want to be the destination for talent once again.

“WWE is no longer the place for talent to aspire to. Part of it is because AEW is doing a great job of attracting great talent, proven talent, building other talent, creating storylines,” Foley said, “but part of it is a problem of your own [WWE] making. I think younger talent sees the way that developmental characters are cut or left by the wayside, or in the case of Karrion Kross, greatly watered down and even made a joke of when debuting on the main roster.

“If it’s not broke, don’t fix it. If I was an aspiring talent now, a big-league talent with a major decision to make, I’m not sure that I would trust WWE creative to do the right thing with my career. You guys did wonders with me back in the day but that was a different time, different place,” Foley noted, “and if it was today, I’m not sure that I would trust the powers to be with my career in their hands. And until that changes, WWE, we got a problem.”

Adam Cole, Bryan Danielson And Ruby Soho Debut At AEW All Out

Adam Cole, who walked to the ring and shocked everyone by attacking Jungle Boy. He greeted Omega and the Young Bucks, then said it was storytime and talked about how his arrival proved The Elite was unstoppable now. Omega went to bid the crowd adieu when “Ride Of The Valkyries” cued up and the arena erupted as Bryan Danielson made his way to the ring. Danielson aligned himself with Jurassic Express and Christian, then assisted in clearing the ring before playing to the crowd to end the night.

Ruby Soho‘s destination is finally known… and she’s got a date with Britt Baker in the future.

Ruby Soho not only made her AEW debut at All Out, but she also won the Women’s Casino Battle Royale to earn a shot at Baker, who retained her title against Kris Statlander earlier in the night. Ruby was the “Joker” in the match and eliminated Thunder Rosa to win the bout.

CM Punk Responds To Rumors Of AJ Lee Coming To AEW

CM Punk recently spoke with the New York Post about his newfound career in All Elite Wrestling, and he was asked about his wife: former WWE Divas Champion AJ Lee, and if we will ever see her return to the ring.

Punk shot down the rumors immediately.

“I just want to say no...just because of her neck. The reason she stopped wrestling is because of her neck. I wouldn’t want her to jeopardize her health and neither would she, so we’ll put an end to that rumor right now."

AJ hasn't wrestled since 2014, having to retire due to a neck injury. Since then, she has mainly focused on writing.

AEW All Out To Air In Movie Theaters

AEW’s All Out pay-per-view will air in select theaters across North America next month.

AEW and Joe Hand Promotions announced today that the All Out pay-per-view on September 5 will air live in select theaters. Participating theaters include Cinemark, AMC, Harkins, Galaxy, Marcus, Emagine, Studio Movie Grill and Cinepolis Luxury Cinemas in the United States, and Landmark Cinemas in Canada.

AEW CEO, General Manager and Head of Creative Tony Khan commented on how AEW has found a lot of success airing previous pay-per-view events in theaters.

“We’ve had a lot of success bringing the camaraderie and excitement of our pay-per-events to the big screen, and we’re looking forward to delivering another memorable evening next Sunday,” Khan said. “Joe Hand Promotions has been a great partner in delivering top-notch experiences and connecting us with our fans at theatres across North America.”

The full list of participating theaters can be found on the Joe Hand promotions website.

“We’re excited to give wrestling fans the opportunity to experience ALL OUT in their local theatres through our partnership with AEW,” said Joe Hand, Jr., President of Joe Hand Promotions.

AEW All Out will air live from the NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois on Sunday, September 5. 

Fans Point Out Bizarre Trend Between Randy Orton, AEW and Released Wrestlers

Cody Rhodes Comments On Triple H

“So I don’t know if I should share this, but, at some point, it’s going to come off my chest: Triple H is probably my favorite wrestler and was a role model. I only watched from a distance, but he reminded me a lot of my dad in the sense that I watched him do all the work, be this executive, and then go out there—and he was only part-time for the most part other than when I first started and had that run with him and Teddy and Shawn. He really was a model in terms of, “OK, you can do both, you can do both, but you have to be really disciplined. You have to take it really seriously.” And that doesn’t get you many friends when you’re the Hermione Granger of the company, and you just take it so seriously and are just a little bookworm.”

He also called to congratulate me on the birth of my daughter.