Monthly News Thread (September 2019)

[M.C.G. 31]

Yes, this is true. Loyalty is often bad business, and NJPW trying to stick with ROH hasn't been good this year. The bottom has been falling out since the MSG show.

I'm sure Don Callis is hustling very hard to get NJPW to link up with Impact. I just don't think Impact will have the presentation factor that NJPW will want.

Also pretty sure NJPW still views Impact as “TNA” and they haven’t forgiven TNA/Impact for the Okada excursion iirc.

 

[GKJ]

Also pretty sure NJPW still views Impact as “TNA” and they haven’t forgiven TNA/Impact for the Okada excursion iirc.

That's why Don Callis is hustling

 

[Disclose]

i dont know the CMLL thing....
so wait.... did they just fired Dragon Lee?
and from what im reading and i didnt know either, Rush and his dad were the ones that asked to be released and they were granted.

to be fair Dragon Lee was in the crowd at ROH during CMLLs big show. but thats on CMLL i guess right for not booking him, right?

what a f***ing mess this guys are.
cant believe AAA is doing f***ing great compared to this guys.

 

[WingsMJN2965]

... Would they kick off the Oct 2nd NXT with Punk returning?

That would be a pretty devastating blow to AEW right out of the gate. You know the hardcore audience is gonna change the channel at least to see that.

 

[Disclose]

(if hes signs)........he's signed for a FOX show. not USA or WWE/NXT

 

[M.C.G. 31]

... Would they kick off the Oct 2nd NXT with Punk returning?

That would be a pretty devastating blow to AEW right out of the gate. You know the hardcore audience is gonna change the channel at least to see that.

They probably haven’t even had formal conversation yet.

Fox would absolutely want him on Smackdown, though.

It’s funny looking back at Starrcast and seeing that lightbulb go off in Punk’s head when he was told they can take vacations now lol.

 

[Kimi]

i dont know the CMLL thing....
so wait.... did they just fired Dragon Lee?
and from what im reading and i didnt know either, Rush and his dad were the ones that asked to be released and they were granted.

to be fair Dragon Lee was in the crowd at ROH during CMLLs big show. but thats on CMLL i guess right for not booking him, right?

what a ****ing mess this guys are.
cant believe AAA is doing ****ing great compared to this guys.

Yeah, CMLL is a mess now that the new regime has taken over. They are cutting pay to guys and charging other promotions more to book them. So the guys who are stars outside Mexico want out so that can take the full booking fee for themselves and make more money.

Like Dragon Lee wasn't allowed to do BoLA, but did it anyway. So he got fired, but he was also quitting anyway. So it's a mess. But the wrestlers will be fine outside of CMLL, everyone is going to want them.



Mexico is kinda bizarro world right now. When AAA and CMLL switch TV station a while back, that might turn out to be a great move for the side that got AAA before the crazy started in CMLL.

 

[WingsMJN2965]

They probably haven’t even had formal conversation yet.

Fox would absolutely want him on Smackdown, though.

It’s funny looking back at Starrcast and seeing that lightbulb go off in Punk’s head when he was told they can take vacations now lol.

FOX would prefer that they get every major star and leave RAW with the 24/7 crowd, lol.

I don't think he honestly cares about the vacation thing. I think no matter what the climate of the company, he would've negotiated a Brock-like deal.

And I think the "Vacation" thing is bullshit too. They let Finn go because in their world, Finn's not a big loss. Might s well keep him happy and keep him from going to AEW. If it's Seth or Roman asking for a 2 month break, Vince is gonna pull the same, "We need ya pal, I'll owe you one", game he played with Punk.

 

[Kimi]

If anyone should feel slighted, it's ROH towards the Elite. None of this happens if they didn't support them running All In. Of course that's not to say that those guys did anything wrong at all. There's going to be books written about this time, moreso than any other.

RoH can't complain.

They had everything, but never made the push. They had the Bucks and Cody, the use of Omega from NJPW. They had access to all the CMLL guys they wanted as well as everyone from NJPW. They had UK guys, and could get the ones in NJPW too. Everything that AEW wanted, RoH already had. RoH just did nothing, screwed up their relationships, did bad booking, made bad decisions, and are now down to TNA levels.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

FOX would prefer that they get every major star and leave RAW with the 24/7 crowd, lol.

I don't think he honestly cares about the vacation thing. I think no matter what the climate of the company, he would've negotiated a Brock-like deal.

And I think the "Vacation" thing is bull**** too. They let Finn go because in their world, Finn's not a big loss. Might s well keep him happy and keep him from going to AEW. If it's Seth or Roman asking for a 2 month break, Vince is gonna pull the same, "We need ya pal, I'll owe you one", game he played with Punk.

Seth literally just came back from a 2 week vacation with Becky where they got engaged.

Their roster is so bloated that they can afford to let their guys go and keep them happy. AJ got a lighter workload on this last contract.

 

[GKJ]

FOX would prefer that they get every major star and leave RAW with the 24/7 crowd, lol.

If the brands stay split, yes, that's exactly what they expect. Fox still has leverage even though they're paying the money, they can put them down on FS1 at any time.

 

[WingsMJN2965]

Seth literally just came back from a 2 week vacation with Becky where they got engaged.

Their roster is so bloated that they can afford to let their guys go and keep them happy. AJ got a lighter workload on this last contract.

They've been doing AJ style contracts for nearly two decades now. HBK and Angle, for example.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

They've been doing AJ style contracts for nearly two decades now. HBK and Angle, for example.

Very few actually got those contracts, though. Shawn was the only one with it for a while.

Randy has it now, and that was a major sticking point for AJ’s contract and he got it. Punk can get something even better.

 

[WingsMJN2965]

Random, but I want to submit my idea to WWE that Bray has a Rollins head lantern at HIAC, and that when he puts it on the apron, it bursts into flames......

Obviously they can dress it up and make it look cool.

 

[Disclose]

DISH dropped FOX. so alot of people wont get it if they dont change provider.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

DISH dropped FOX. so alot of people wont get it if they dont change provider.

That’s bad timing.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

Cody said Punk made them look like dumbasses by saying they only texted him offers and claims that they called him and someone met him in a coffee shop too.


It really sounds like CM Punk did what many in the WWE locker room have been doing and that’s using AEW as leverage, and he can continue to do so until he gets the deal he wants from WWE because there’s no way AEW would pass him up, but it really sounds like Punk wants that big money, part-time deal from WWE, and Vince is not letting one of his biggest stars of the last decade re-enter the wrestling business with AEW.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

Also, the Smackdown highlight show rating on Fox last night drew 1.39 million viewers with a 0.3 in the 18-34 demo.

in the same timeslot last Friday, Fox averaged 872,000 viewers with a 0.1 in the 18-34 demo.

Really encouraging for both parties considering it was a nothing filler highlight package.

 

[Jussi]

Cody said Punk made them look like dumbasses by saying they only texted him offers and claims that they called him and someone met him in a coffee shop too.


It really sounds like CM Punk did what many in the WWE locker room have been doing and that’s using AEW as leverage, and he can continue to do so until he gets the deal he wants from WWE because there’s no way AEW would pass him up, but it really sounds like Punk wants that big money, part-time deal from WWE, and Vince is not letting one of his biggest stars of the last decade re-enter the wrestling business with AEW.

Also finished by saying they'd rather focus on people who actually want to be there.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

Also finished by saying they'd rather focus on people who actually want to be there.

I think Punk may have had a Bret Hart like epiphany along the way at a certain point. Losing seven figures doesn’t help anything, but his answers from Starrcast would point to him thinking about this for a decent amount of time. He was super political and respectful in that he said he’d talk to anyone and that he’s changed and is at peace with everything and the past is the past. He essentially rolled out the red carpet for WWE to come talk to him again. Maybe they didn’t and he decided the Fox gig is good to open the door again.

The epiphany being that WWE is such a giant force that they control how your legacy is perceived and viewed. Maybe CM Punk realized that he doesn’t want WWE smearing his legacy at a later date, or that he wants to be remembered a certain way in a more positive light, or that he truly wants to end his wrestling career with a proper final run. Again, the money lost in the lawsuit would be a huge blow to anyone and that would be another deciding factor, but I think he’s seen the changes and wants in because it’d make him happy, he has the itch again, and it’s the only place to truly go and properly end his career and cap it off with a Hall of Fame induction and rake in royalties for the rest of his life.

 

[Jussi]

I think Punk may have had a Bret Hart like epiphany along the way at a certain point. Losing seven figures doesn’t help anything, but his answers from Starrcast would point to him thinking about this for a decent amount of time. He was super political and respectful in that he said he’d talk to anyone and that he’s changed and is at peace with everything and the past is the past. He essentially rolled out the red carpet for WWE to come talk to him again. Maybe they didn’t and he decided the Fox gig is good to open the door again.

The epiphany being that WWE is such a giant force that they control how your legacy is perceived and viewed. Maybe CM Punk realized that he doesn’t want WWE smearing his legacy at a later date, or that he wants to be remembered a certain way in a more positive light, or that he truly wants to end his wrestling career with a proper final run. Again, the money lost in the lawsuit would be a huge blow to anyone and that would be another deciding factor, but I think he’s seen the changes and wants in because it’d make him happy, he has the itch again, and it’s the only place to truly go and properly end his career and cap it off with a Hall of Fame induction and rake in royalties for the rest of his life.

WWE's Youtube channel's CM Punk videos do seem to be getting recommended a lot lately. I know, Youtube algorithm...

 

[WingsMJN2965]

I think Punk may have had a Bret Hart like epiphany along the way at a certain point. Losing seven figures doesn’t help anything, but his answers from Starrcast would point to him thinking about this for a decent amount of time. He was super political and respectful in that he said he’d talk to anyone and that he’s changed and is at peace with everything and the past is the past. He essentially rolled out the red carpet for WWE to come talk to him again. Maybe they didn’t and he decided the Fox gig is good to open the door again.

The epiphany being that WWE is such a giant force that they control how your legacy is perceived and viewed. Maybe CM Punk realized that he doesn’t want WWE smearing his legacy at a later date, or that he wants to be remembered a certain way in a more positive light, or that he truly wants to end his wrestling career with a proper final run. Again, the money lost in the lawsuit would be a huge blow to anyone and that would be another deciding factor, but I think he’s seen the changes and wants in because it’d make him happy, he has the itch again, and it’s the only place to truly go and properly end his career and cap it off with a Hall of Fame induction and rake in royalties for the rest of his life.

I think the FOX gig has more to do with him opening doors for the future.

Realistically, he's got three to five years, MAYBE 10 if he's lucky and can age like Jericho, in the ring. He's always seemed to be smart to the business side of things. And there was a lot of speculation by a lot of people that his UFC run was more to get a foot in the door and experience in the Octagon so he could be a commentator at a later time.

Maybe he's trying to be a Mauro.

 

[Kimi]

WWE's Youtube channel's CM Punk videos do seem to be getting recommended a lot lately. I know, Youtube algorithm...

On the topic of YouTube, a John "I'm not signing with WWE" Morrison match has been posted today lol.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

Yeah, CM Punk and John Morrison videos are all over from WWE’s youtube. WWE’s actively posting new Morrison videos, but the Punk ones are recommendations. So... yeah.

Where there’s smoke there’s fire.

 

[WingsMJN2965]

Also finished by saying they'd rather focus on people who actually want to be there.

I absolutely don't buy that they wouldn't sign him if he was interested.

If anything, this sounds like realizing the girl you wanted is gonna hook up with that other guy and now, "We never thought she was hot."

A cooled down Punk still has more star power than Jericho or Moxley, and that's AFTER the buzz from his return wears off. A brand new company, with the established rival going for their throats right off the bat, immediately signs him.