Daily Update: Roman Reigns, Bruno Sammartino, Olympic wrestling updates (2024)

Daily Update

Latest News

• AEW Rampage draws record low viewership, ties lowest 18-49 demo rating
• WWE SmackDown ratings up for SummerSlam go-home show
• Subscriber exclusive: Gunther’s likely opponent for WWE Bash in Berlin
• WWE Raw live results: SummerSlam fallout, Wyatt Sicks debut
• Logan Paul launches storyline legal action against LA Knight after WWE SummerSlam

Latest Audio

• FILTHY Four Daily: Tom Lawlor talks Smackdown, SummerSlam, and WOW

Latest Free YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

• August 5, 2024 Observer Newsletter: UFC lawsuit going to trial, AEW’s future, WWE SummerSlam preview

The new issue of the Observer is up on the site right now featuring two very in-depth stories:

• Judge Richard Boulware refuses to accept the $335 million TKO settlement in the Cung Le case, why, lawyers react, lots of inside ramifications of the case, how different settlements would work out for the biggest name fighters and the average fighters and what comes next and why they still can’t risk a trial.
• AEW rights fees talks and what they mean, how much talent earns by percentage of revenues compared to other sports, estimating annual income at different rights points, cutbacks why the deal length is so important, noticeable TV cutbacks and ROH potential going forward.
• SummerSlam preview, ticket sales, secondary market, expectations for finishes and favorites.
• All In, update on new matches being teased, ticket sales, can they reach the next goal, PPV thoughts and promotion of the event.
• Update on the G-1 Climax tournament
• UFC 304 full coverage, what’s next for the fighters, new storylines, business notes, match-by-match rundown
• What matches you need to see from G-1
• A look at the retirement and career of Meiko Satomura
• A detailed look at ROH Death Before Dishonor and the ROH brand
• The life and career of longtime prelim wrestler Pete Sanchez/Gino Caruso
• The most detailed look at the ratings from the past two weeks including where the top shows placed, breakdown on who is watching and changes, how badly the Olympics changed viewership and much more.
• Death Triangle go to the hottest arena in the world and how the crowd reacted
• One of the best high flyers in the world is almost ready to return
• A look at two Stardom PPV shows and major title changes
• Oldest male wrestler ever to do a match
• Marigold tag team title decided and Grand Prix singles tournament
• Death of former Crockett wrestler who had a short career but was in with the biggest names in wrestling at the time
• Modern legend retirement tour first main event announced
• Dijak and MJF to RevPro
• Bloodsport with talent from WWE, ROH and TNA
• Update on PPV numbers from WWE, AEW, TNA and Diaz-Masvidal and Paul-Perry
• Tony Khan and Shane McMahon
• Top star returns to AEW
• Lots of injury updates
• Bill Goldberg talks Tony Khan
• Merch sales
• Highest ticket prices ever for an MMA event at The Sphere
• Updates on Brock Lesnar

This Week’s Wresting Observer Newsletter Back Issue

• March 5, 2007 Observer Newsletter: WWE’s expansion plans, Pride Second Coming recap

Monday Update

Bryan and I will be back tonight talking Raw and the latest pro wrestling and MMA news as well as taking questions that you can send to mailbag@wrestlingobserver.com.

– Roman Reigns officially will be on SmackDown Friday night which should be enough to get numbers back to normal levels even with the Olympics. I expect tonight’s show to do well even with the handicap of being on a different station and the Olympics because it’s the show after SummerSlam, which traditionally is one of the highest rated of the year.

– There will be a misleading fast national number if anyone still sees those things on Friday for SmackDown since a number of cities are pre-empting the show in the time slot for NFL preseason games, which in those markets will draw far bigger numbers than SmackDown. The show will do well with Reigns, but the first numbers will be misleading.

– We’re looking for your thoughts on SummerSlam so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to dave@wrestlingobsearver.com

– The two big wrestling stories from today at the Olympics revolve around one of the youngest and one of the oldest competitors. 20-year-old Amit Elor of Walnut Creek, CA, a gold medal favorite at 149 pounds, has dominated so far. She beat 2023 world champion Buse Cavusoglu Tosun of Turkey 10-2, then beat Wiktoriia Choluj of Poland 8-0 and in the semifinals beat Sol Gum Pak of North Korea by technical fall going up 10-0 in just 1:44. She faces Meerim Zhumanazarova of Kyrgyzstan in the finals tomorrow.

The other is 286-pound Mijian Lopez of Cuba who attempts to become the first person in any sport to win gold medals in five different Olympic games. Lopez won gold in 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2021 and faces Yasmani Acosta of Chile on Tuesday. The interesting thing is that Acosta is actually from Cuba but relocated to Chile because he’d have no chance to make the Olympic team in Cuba until Lopez retired. Even the legendary Alexandre Karelin only won three gold medals. Lopez, in being guaranteed a silver, joins Wilfred Dietrich, a former pro wrestler in Europe, in being the second person to win wrestling medals in five different Olympics (1956-1972). Dietrich is famous for his overhead suplex of Chris Taylor in the 1972 Olympics.

– Raw tonight in Baltimore has the first hour commercial free. It’s on Syfy, not USA. The main event is listed as Wyatt Sicks vs. Chad Gable & The Creeds, plus Dakota Kai vs. Sonya Deville, Sheamus vs. Ludwig Kaiser, R-Truth & Miz vs. Austin Theory & Grayson Waller and New Day vs. AOP. The show is sold out in Baltimore. Gunther will be on and likely his opponent for Berlin will be made clear plus CM Punk and Drew McIntyre are on the show. The first hour of the show tonight is commercial free, which is now the case after major PPV events.

– We’re looking for live reports from the show with Main Event results and finishes and anything else not on the live show to dave@wrestlingobserver.com

– SmackDown did 2,179,000 viewers and 0.60 against the Olympics. It’s down from usual but not close to last week’s low mark. Rampage, on the other hand, did 209,000 viewers, its lowest in history, and a 0.07, tying its lowest in history. We’ll have more details on tonight’s show.

– UFC fighter Ramon Tavares was nearly a victim in a drive-by shooting in his home city of Jacksonville, FL, last week. He was leaving his mother’s home on 7/29 at 10:05 pm. and a group of armed men drove up and started shooting at him. He wasn’t hit and was able to grab his own gun and shoot back. He escaped without injury. He noted that in 2019 his brother was killed in Jacksonville due to gun violence.

– TKO has its investors call for second quarter financial results from WWE & UFC on Thursday.The call will be at 8 a.m. These calls have been far less interesting and newsworthy since the merger.

– MLW will have the matches from its last show that didn’t air live as a YouTube show this coming Saturday night, including Mistico vs. Magnus and Ikuro Kon & Minoru Suzuki & Mads Krugger vs. Akira & Matt Riddle & Satoshi Kojima.

– Tomorrow’s Great American Bash NXT show has Ethan Page vs Oro Mensah for the NXT title, Axiom & Nathan Frazer vs. Wes Lee & Zachary Wentz for the tag titles, Trick Williams vs. Pete Dunne, Kelani Jordan vs. Tatum Paxley for the North American title, Joe Coffey vs. Joe Hendry and Kendall Gray vs. Wren Sinclair.

– Yesterday was the third anniversary of the death of Bobby Eaton, one of the greatest in-ring performers ever and part of the Hall of Fame Midnight Express tag team.

– Insane Wrestling Revolution this past Wednesday had their annual Rumble show in Monroe, MI, with Rich Swann, Thom Latimer, Zack Gowen and Danhausen and announced on 9/12 that Mickie James and Elijah (Elias) would be there.

– There will be a Bruno Sammartino World Class tournament put together by Federazione Italiana Wrestling) in Pizzoferrato, Italy. That is the town that Sammartino grew up in before he moved to Pittsburgh and he’s the local hero. Among those in will be Tom La Ruffa who worked in NXT and TNA, Gianni Valletta who has worked for All Japan and Dragon Gate, and Fabio Ferrari, who was trained by Marty James and has wrestled Sami Zayn and Cesaro. There will be a full day of activities in the city including the show, seeing the home he grew up in that was invaded by the Nazis during the war, his WWWF championship belt that he donated to the city, and the statue of Sammartino.

– Robert Duran Jr., the son of legendary boxer Roberto Duran, will be fighting for the BYB Bare Knuckle promotion on Saturday in Pembroke Pines, FL against Serob Minasyan.

– Alex Misery vs. Jack Cartwheel for a shot at the NWA Jr. title was announced for the 76th anniversary show on 8/31 at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia.