July 2020 – Page 35 – BLOGGERPARUNG

PWTorch editor Wade Keller presents a special Thursday Flagship edition of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast featuring a WrestleMania 36 Preview with ex-WWE Creative Team member and professional stand-up comedian Matt McCarthy.

(Search “wade keller” to subscribe in podcast app or CLICK HERE to subscribe in Apple Podcasts.)

Donald Trump on Thursday warned he is prepared to shut down the US government just before Christmas in a row with Democrats over paying for his proposed border wall.

The US president declared he would not sign a temporary spending bill extending funding for key government departments because it did not contain money for the wall, his signature election campaign promise.

Mr Trump’s high-stakes decision, along with an interest rate hike, sent the US stock market tumbling.

After meeting with the president at the White House, Paul Ryan, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, said: "The president informed us that he will not sign the bill because of his legitimate concerns for border security."

That dramatically increased the chances of a partial shutdown when current funding arrangements for swathes of the government run out at midnight on Friday.

Mr Trump wanted $5 billion for the wall but Democrats in Congress have refused to support a spending bill that includes that.

Paul Ryan leaving the White House after being informed of Mr Trump's decisionCredit:
Bloomberg

The stopgap spending bill would extend government funding until Feb 8, but without the $5 billion wall money.

It passed the Senate on Wednesday and the House had been set to vote on the bill on Thursday.

Last week, Mr Trump had said he would be "proud" to shut down the government over the lack of funding for the wall.

But he had then appeared to drop the threat, indicating he would consider whatever bill Congress sent him to sign.

That changed again on Thursday after Mr Trump faced severe criticism from some of his most ardent supporters, who accused him of "caving".

Ann Coulter, the high-profile media commentator who had been a vocal supporter, said if Mr Trump didn’t get funding for the wall his presidency would be a "joke".

She said: "Trump will just have been a joke presidency who scammed the American people, amused the populists for a while, but he’ll have no legacy whatsoever.

"My prediction is his support will evaporate and Trump will very likely not finish his term and definitely not be elected to a second term."

Coulter said she would not vote for Mr Trump in 2020 without a border wall.

Immediately after her comments Mr Trump "unfollowed" Coulter on Twitter.

Ann Coulter: I won't vote for Trump in 2020 without border wall https://t.co/bOmoabD1Ky pic.twitter.com/RdUeKFfIrY

— The Hill (@thehill) December 20, 2018

Mr Trump then lambasted Mr Ryan and other Republican leaders in Congress for not securing the $5 billion for the wall.

On Twitter he wrote: "I was promised the Wall and Border Security by leadership. Would be done by end of year (NOW). It didn’t happen!"

He added: "The Democrats, who know Steel Slats (Wall) are necessary for Border Security, are putting politics over Country."

Nancy Pelosi, the incoming Democrat House Speaker, said: "Republicans are in a state of disarray. Wall funding is a non-starter."

The temporary funding bill, which Mr Trump said he wouldn’t sign, would keep wall funding at the the $1.3 billion which has already been approved.

Without a temporary spending bill signed by Mr Trump more than 800,000 federal workers would be furloughed, or be forced to work without pay, disrupting government operations days before Christmas.

But Republican congressman Mark Meadows, a leader of the conservative Freedom Caucus, said Mr Trump’s political base "will just go crazy" if he signed the finding bill.

He told Fox News: "A lot of people are very nervous about whether the president will cave or not."

Mr Trump later indicated he would not compromise on his demand for funding for the wall.

He said: "I look forward to signing a bill that fulfills our duty to the American people. We’re working on it. Hopefully it will all come together."

He added: "In life there are certain principles worth fighting for. Walls work, they work better than anything.

"We have proposed a steel slat barrier to stop illegal traffickers and smugglers and terrorists. It should be bipartisan. I think it will be bipartisan, I really do."

The sun rises, the world turns, I dream of soft serve ice cream, and NXT keeps producing better content in one-hour blocks than the rest of WWE put together.

Even with some talent moving up to the main roster — Ember Moon, The IIconics, among others — NXT just keeps rolling right along even though it should be a time of transition. Clearly a large part of that is just the overwhelming amount of talent on the brand, but they’ve also learned how to grow while changing, and are able to keep making new stars without forcing anyone down the throats of the audience.

Moving Authors of Pain and SAnitY up so they can inexplicably do nothing? No big deal, here’s Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch to hold things over until the War Raiders are ready. Andrade “Cien” Almas is going to SmackDown? It’s cool, big boy Lars Sullivan is here with Velveteen Dream, Ricochet, and EC3 waiting in the wings. Same thing with Ember Moon to Shayna Baszler/Dakota Kai/Lacey Evans/Bianca Belair, etc.

NXT is an absolute wagon. I didn’t even mention a good amount of talent that’s actually, you know, wrestling on the card. Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa are poised to blow off the best feud in years. Ricochet and Dream are ready to blow Chicago’s doors off and make a leap to full-fledged superstardom. It’s all here. It’s all happening, and it’s not stopping anytime soon. If you’re tired of watching Jinder Mahal get 20 minutes of television time every Monday, or sick of being confused by the presence of Big Cass, then come to Wednesday nights; it’s safe and warm and almost never lets you down.

It’s not even worth wondering if TakeOver is going to be good, it’s a matter of just how good at this point. So like we always do at this time, let’s run down this card in the (correct) order of my personal desire to watch the match:

NXT Champion Aleister Black vs. Lars Sullivan

When I write these column/previews I, predictably, write up each match individually. The order that I write them in, typically, determines my excitement about the match itself. This one came last and it wasn’t even close.

It just doesn’t quite hit home for me. This feels massively less important than Ricochet/Dream, which doesn’t even have a belt attached to it, let alone the damn NXT title. The build to this has been entirely unspectacular. It’s pretty much been Large Lars (™ myself) being Large Lars and beating up Aleister Black a couple of times and now they have a title match. When that’s all a match is, it’s hard to come up with more than a few sentences about it.

The match should be, and most likely will be, fine, with Black retaining by hitting Black Mass in some capacity. Heck maybe he hits him with like three of them to keep Lars looking strong and keeping the title on Black. Spoiler alert: I think every title should be retained here which almost never happens, so something has to give at some point. Is this really the time to hot potato the belt off of Black after he just won it in New Orleans?

NXT Tag Team Champions The Undisputed Era (Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong) vs. Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch

Before I get into the actual match, I just want to talk about how perfect Kyle O’Reilly is. He’s become the most gif-able wrestler that isn’t Will Ospreay, and I am absolutely smitten. I remember watching him when he was in Future Shock with Adam Cole and am fully willing to admit that I didn’t see this coming. He plays the smarmy, cocky heel role like he was born into it, and I can’t wait to see where it goes.

With that said, I just can’t get all the way into this match. All four of these guys are good to great in the ring, but that’s kind of where it stops for me. I don’t have a vested interest in either Lorcan or Burch, neither of them display enough personality for me to really care. They’re both great hands, but are they anything more than that? And this is coming from someone who has watched them both work the Northeast indie scene fairly heavily before and during their time with WWE.

I think this is the perfect match to go about 12-15 minutes, go on first, and just be a stiff as hell sprint. Lord knows all four of these guys are capable of beating the hell out of each other, so just let them do that.

This does kind of smell like it’s setting up for something between Cole and Pete Dunne in the near future. Both have been heavily involved in the feud leading up to this, and both are conspicuously absent from the card. As far as the result goes, I just don’t think it’s time for Lorcan/Burch right now. I’m not saying they don’t have a time, but it certainly isn’t now. Oney does rule, though.

NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler vs. Nikki Cross

I love how Shayna Baszler has been presented in NXT. Everything she is a part of hides her weaknesses and accentuates her strengths. Is she still a bit green in the ring? Sure, but she hasn’t been asked to carry a match with someone at her level of experience.

Is she incredibly charismatic and believable as a “real fighter?” Absolutely. She carries herself like the real deal, so we believe she is the real deal. The only downer is the fact that she’s almost 38 years old. Imagine if she transitioned into wrestling just a few years earlier? What an absolute monster she would be.

This match with Nikki Cross is, again, an example of perfect NXT booking. Much like Baszler, Cross completely owns her character as an unhinged…something that is totally unafraid of this very real, very bad ass woman standing across from her. It just proves what good characters and booking can do to make a feud seem believable. Cross is maybe 5’1 on a good day, and Baszler just towers over her. But it doesn’t feel like she’s overmatched, because her character does not believe she’s overmatched.

This match does feel a bit rushed, and I suppose that’s because out of all the NXT women, Cross is the most ready. She’s been there awhile, has been on TV, has been on live specials, and certainly stands out. Everyone else just isn’t quite there yet. Dakota Kai is almost there and Bianca Belair is certainly on her way, but Cross is the character the audience knows the most. This is, of course, ignoring Kairi Sane, who NXT still seems to be figuring out for whatever reason.

I’m excited for this match, much more than I was about Baszler’s matches with Ember Moon, because Cross is just a better professional wrestling character. Baszler should absolutely retain here and have a long run at the top. When she drops the belt it should be at the end of a decent length storyline that can be used to establish a new top babyface…not in a match that had this little build to it.

Ricochet vs. Velveteen Dream

Give me this. Give me this again. Give me this forever. If this TakeOver was just this match, I would be more than okay with it. Ricochet is the guy the internet has been talking about as the next big thing forever. Dream is the guy John god damn Cena name dropped as someone who could be the next big thing. I love it. I love it SO much. The amount of talent and charisma in this match is actually disgusting.

I don’t think there is anyone, anywhere that isn’t extremely excited for this match. Ricochet’s first time to shine in a singles match and yet another chance for Dream to impress at a TakeOver. This is the match that for sure will have the most “moves” and should provide enough of a stage for both guys to become even bigger stars than they already are.

What’s most exciting is where this can go from here. Dream’s whole character is based on ego, he thinks he’s the biggest star, who deserves the biggest stage, and is the main attraction. But what happens if someone outshines him? What happens if someone like Ricochet comes in and sets the world on fire? Where does that leave him? Does he fall apart? Does he reconsider everything? Hell, does he try and team with the guy? There are endless directions to go with this. If he wasn’t such a well-rounded performer, we wouldn’t even ask these questions. It’s a testament to how good he is that we can even consider such a variety of outcomes for him.

Ricochet should go over here. He’s still the “new” hotness and could use the win to either set up a longer feud with Dream, or launch him into something else. Dream continues to not be defined by wins or losses, so he can take one here without losing a thing.

Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa (street fight)

The (possible?) payoff to the best feud in wrestling. An absolute master class in storytelling, promo work, and in-ring performance. Even the biggest Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa fans could not have seen THIS coming. This level of performance, the amount of development and growth these two have went through is nothing short of astounding.

They kept a white hot feud going through Ciampa’s ACL injury and are ready to finish it right where it started, in Chicago. What else can possibly top this? This is a WrestleMania caliber main event happening on a random Saturday in June. This is our reward for watching insufferably bad Raws and barely tolerable SmackDowns for the last 2-3 months.

I used to listen to a podcast that said there are only three types of movies: love stories, revenge stories, and coming-of-age stories. This is all of them. What started as Johnny Wrestling trying to get revenge on his former partner has turned into something so much more. Ciampa is so in Gargano’s head that he has become what he hated. Someone so fixated by the idea of hurting someone that he’s willing to throw everything else away. He’s lost the support of his wife to chase this obsession. He started out as a vanilla babyfaced boy from Ohio, and has grown into a man laser focused on hurting someone that he used to love, someone he thought was his brother.

Of course a story like this can’t exist without both people playing their parts equally, and holy hell has Ciampa carried his part of this; to the point where I think he’s actually the real MVP of this feud. Everything he has done has been pitch perfect and true to his character. My personal favorite was when he put athletic tape around his eye, that’s just some next level sh*t.

And yes, there is a clear argument that this feud should have ended at the last TakeOver, and if Ciampa wins here then clearly they have to have the rubber match during SummerSlam weekend. But come on, watch the video package and tell me you aren’t excited for more matches between these two:

Click:天花燈
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Personal details of nearly 1,000 North Korean defectors living in the South have been leaked in a hacking case, officials said Friday, exposing them to potential threats from the North.

This is the first time that personal details including names and addresses of North Korean defectors have been stolen on such a large scale, the Unification Ministry said.

The hack was made at a centre which is tasked with helping North Korean defectors settle in South Korea and get accustomed to its capitalist society.

The classified data was leaked through a personal computer. It was infected with a malicious code when an unsuspecting staff member opened a mail at the Hana Centre in the North Gyeongsang Province.

There are 25 such centres across the country which provide support for the roughly 30,000 North Korean defectors who live in the country.

After confirming the hack last week, authorities conducted an emergency inspection of all computers at Hana Centres but no other leaks were found.

"We apologise to defectors from the North. We will make utmost efforts to protect their personal information and prevent any recurrence of such an incident", the ministry said in a statement.

North Korea’s state media have threatened to silence defectors who actively engage in anti-Pyongyang activities such as launching leaflets to the North by balloons.

Yi Han-yong, a nephew of Song Hye Rim – the first wife of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il – was shot to death outside his house in Bundang, south of Seoul, in 1997.

His assassination by two attackers, who were never caught, followed the publication of his tell-all book about the private life of the Kims.

CEO x NJPW When Worlds Collide, a collaboration between CEO Fighting Game Championships, New Japan Pro Wrestling, and Kenny Omega, took place at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida on Friday night.

Pre-show matches —

– Chasyn Rance defeated Aaron Epic

– Michael Nakazawa defeated “Skinny Boy” (an unnamed wrestler)

Before the match, Nakazawa said he could beat any American and that Japanese people are better than Americans at wrestling and video games. He used an underwear-assisted claw for the victory.

Nakazawa then said he would continue to beat anyone.

– Alex Jebailey defeated Michael Nakazawa

Jebailey, the promoter of CEO, made his way to the ring and said he would do it himself. Jebailey was on crutches with a torn Achilles but said he still wanted this match.

Jebailey won with a fireman’s carry slam after using his crutch. Kenny Omega joined him after the match to thank us for being here and prepare us for the main show.

Main card matches —

– Jushin Thunder Liger defeated Rocky Romero

The crowd loved Liger. Romero tried his best to rough up the legend early on, even hitting a middle rope dive that drove Liger into the barricade. Liger won with his Liger Bomb and bowed to the adoring audience.

– Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa) defeated David Finlay and Juice Robinson

The fans loved Robinson but were also strongly behind the Bullet Club team of Tonga and Loa. Tonga hit a Gun Stun on Finlay for the win.

– Jeff Cobb defeated Chase Owens

Hard-fought match by both men, with Owens staying ahead of Cobb with his wily tactics because he was no match for Cobb’s power. The Tour of the Islands spinning slam won it for Cobb.

– Ryusuke Taguchi & Dragon Lee defeated Roppongi 3K (Sho & Yoh)

Competitive match with excellent action. Taguchi was able to score the pin after some amazing counter wrestling.

– The Golden Lovers (Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi) defeated Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi)

This was an excellent match. The crowd loved everything that all four did.

Takahashi’s stuffed cat Daryl Jr. got involved early, with Ibushi almost coming to blows with it. Omega and Ibushi connected with their crossing corner moonsaults, Takahashi hit a German suplex on Omega and a rough-looking powerbomb to the floor on Ibushi, and Omega and Ibushi used multiple combination moves, including a powerbomb into a German suplex on Naito that looked dangerous.

The LIJ team kept kicking out until Omega and Ibushi finished it with the Golden Trigger.

Following the match, Omega, Ibushi, and Jebailey thanked us for being here and said CEO would be back next year.

The full show is available to watch below:

The arrest of a figurehead of the “yellow vest” anti-government protest movement provoked defiant calls for “harder” demonstrations and outrage among French far-Left and far-Right leaders on Thursday.

Éric Drouet was arrested on Wednesday night on his way to a protest on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. Riot police grabbed him from a crowd of dozens of supporters and marched him to a van in front of television cameras.

A charismatic 33-year-old lorry driver, Mr Drouet had called for a rally “to shock public opinion”. He is under investigation for allegedly organising a demonstration without official permission, an offence in France punishable by up to six months in prison and a €7,500 (£6,760) fine.

An influential voice in the leaderless movement, which has no formal structure, Mr Drouet was charged in December for carrying a club to a protest.

Mr Drouet’s supporters called on social media for a “hardening” of protests this weekend following what they said was a “political arrest”.

The numbers of protesters have dwindled in recent weeks following concessions by Emmanuel Macron, the president, including a rise in the minimum wage and tax cuts for low-income pensioners and households.

However, the two-month-long protests, which have often degenerated into clashes with police, have raised doubts about Mr Macron’s ability to push forward with business-friendly economic reforms.

He further incensed the demonstrators by branding them as a “hate-filled mob” in a combative New Year’s message, vowing to maintain law and order “without compromise”.

The government now appears determined to quash the protests across France, threatening to arrest “yellow vests” who continue to occupy roundabouts. At least 10 people have died in car accidents as “yellow vests” blocked roads. Some 216 people were jailed for public order offences and thousands arrested during the first month of the “yellow vest” protests.

Mr Drouet claims to have no political alignment, but many Left-wingers accuse him of far-Right sympathies because of he has expressed anti-immigration views on social media. However, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, a far-Left leader, has expressed admiration for Mr Drouet, comparing him to an 18th century revolutionary with the same surname, Jean-Baptiste Drouet.

Marine Le Pen’s National Rally leapt to Mr Drouet’s defence on Thursday. “The protest he was trying to organise would have been harmless,” said Wallerand de Saint-Just, the party treasurer. “Once again Mr Macron has revealed himself to be a cold technocrat who favours repression. He has failed to understand the political and moral authority of the protests.”

Émilie, one of Mr Drouet’s supporters who witnessed his arrest, told reporters: “He always called for peaceful demonstrations.”

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Mr Drouet was later released but must appear in court on February 15 to answer both the latest allegation – which he denies – and the weapons charge.

Opposition leaders said the treatment of Mr Drouet contrasted with the leniency shown to the president’s former security aide, Alexandre Benalla, who has not been charged despite being filmed beating May Day protesters.

Meanwhile Mr Macron’s spin doctor announced his resignation as the president struggles to restore his authority, with his approval ratings down to about 20 per cent.

Sylvain Fort, 46, will quit his post as head of Elysée Palace communications before the end of January “for personal reasons”. However, his once close relations with Mr Macron have soured, partly because he objected to clumsy off-the-cuff remarks by the president that have repeatedly offended members of the public, government sources said.

THE ROUND-UP

THE LATEST NEWS

HHH appearance, Rousey segment, Ambrose vs. Ziggler set for Raw
ROH Honor Re-United London results: Jay Lethal vs. Mark Haskins
Netflix officially renews GLOW for season three
Impact Wrestling to hold September TV tapings in Mexico City
SANADA added to next month’s ROH TV tapings
Three matches announced for NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed
Full cards released for next month’s NJPW Destruction shows
Ronda Rousey wins Raw Women’s title at WWE SummerSlam
Roman Reigns beats Brock Lesnar for Universal title at WWE SummerSlam
Natalya makes appearance at WWE SummerSlam
WWE SummerSlam live results: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

THE LATEST AUDIO

WOL: WWE SummerSlam 2018 fallout and more! 8/20
WOR: SummerSlam 2018, weekend news and more! 8/20
F4D: Bryan Alvarez and Filthy Tom Lawlor review SummerSlam 2018! 8/19

We’re also doing weekend polls on NXT Takeover and SummerSlam so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected].

We’re also looking for reports on tonight’s Raw show in Brooklyn with Main Event matches or anything else not on the live TV show, as well as reports from the Smackdown house show in Atlantic City to [email protected]. We’re also looking for reports from the ROH show in Doncaster, England.

Smackdown and 205 Live take place Tuesday night from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

F4W NEWSLETTER: Figure Four Weekly: ROH and NJPW sell out Madison Square Garden

With All In still a few weeks away, the second non-WWE pro wrestling show in the United States to sell over 10,000 tickets since the death of WCW is already official. Tickets for Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling’s G1 Supercard at Madison Square Garden went on sale last week, with the April 6, 2019 event selling out in just a few days. Approximately 9,000 of the 15,000 tickets were sold after the first day of the HonorClub pre-sale, they were up over 12,000 after a second day of pre-sales, and they sold out shortly after being made available to the general public last Friday.

WON NEWSLETTER: (August 20, 2018) Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Death of Jim Neidhart, ROH/NJPW sell out MSG

We’ve got a ton of news and analysis on why the next nine months will be so interesting in pro wrestling in the new double-issue of the Observer.

Look at the ROH/NJPW Madison Square Garden sellout and its ramifications. Look at how tickets went, how many were bought by ticket brokers, and how this compares money wise to the biggest non-WWE shows in North America,

Take an extensive look at the life and career of Jim Neidhart. Look back at Neidhart before pro wrestling as a world class shot putter, how he got his start in pro wrestling, and who talked him into trying pro wrestling, his attempts to play in the NFL,

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There is an extensive look at the final three days of the G-1 Climax tournament.

Also look at SummerSlam and NXT Takeover, with a look at the two shows, ticket sales and why Takeover looks to be such a strong event.

Examine the Colt Cabana lawsuit against C.M. Punk, and who saw that one coming.

Updated Rey Mysterio Jr. and WWE notes, the future of Matt Hardy, first match official in the women’s evolution PPV, wrestlers who are learning the production side, details on a lot of new WWE injuries, and matches advertised for 1,000th Smackdown,

Also look at Jeff Jarrett’s lawsuit against Anthem Entertainment.

Take in-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos for the WWE shows and what can be learned from them.

Read the results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.

ORDERING INFO: Order the print Wrestling Observer right now and get it delivered via mail, by sending your name, address, Visa or Master Card number and an expiration date to Dave Meltzer, or by using PayPal directing funds to [email protected].

Rates in the United States are $13 for 4 issues, $32 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $14.50 for 4, $35 for 12, $67 for 24, $111 for 40 and $144 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to [email protected]. For the rest of the world, rates are $16.50 for 4, $44 for 12, $85 for 24, $141 for 40 issues and $183 for 52. If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.)

If you are a new subscriber ordering 24 or more issues, you can choose one free classic issue or two free classic issues with a 40-issue subscription.

MONDAY NEWS UPDATE

Bryan and I will be back tonight covering SummerSlam and the rest of the weekend news with Wrestling Observer Radio. You can send questions to the show to [email protected].

The expectation this morning was a crowd of about 12,000 for Raw tonight. That’s above usual, but would be slightly shy of a sellout. Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler is set for tonight, and Brock Lesnar, Paul Heyman, Ronda Rousey and HHH are all scheduled.

Actually pretty quiet coming off SummerSlam. A few guys were obviously busted up, but it didn’t appear there were any serious injuries.

Steve Musulin, who wrestled under his real name as well as Steve Travis from 1977 to 1984, including two tours of the WWF, passed away on 8/10 after a lengthy illness at the age of 67. We talked about his death on last night’s show and there will be a story on him in Wednesday’s issue.

CMLL will be announcing its Anniversary show on Wednesday. The long pushed L.A. Park vs. Rush mask vs. hair match looks to be off. It’s been rumored off for weeks even though both were pushing it the last time Park was at Arena Mexico, and he’s booked there again on Friday. Rush & Cavernario vs. Volador Jr. & Matt Taven in some form of hair match was teased in challenges on Friday. They did a brawl on Friday with Volador and Rush, with Volador wanting a match. Rush asked the crowd if they wanted him to face Volador or L.A. Park, figuring the brawl would make them say Volador and that would be the way out of it. Except, the live crowd wanted Park. Oh well, not everything works as well as WWE’s idea for Reigns and Lesnar last night.

There was a lot of talk regarding Penta 0M and Rey Fenix this weekend. They were scheduled for Friday night’s APW show in Daly City, CA. This was after Fenix took that booking instead of a high-profile match at Arena Mexico that same night. Fenix contacted the promotion during the day and said he was having flight problems and his flight was canceled but he was looking to get a new flight. Eventually he didn’t make it. Penta 0M said he suffered a back injury on Thursday night. Penta was also supposed to wrestle Saturday night for Pro Wrestling Revolution. He wasn’t there either, citing the back injury. Both did wrestle on a show last night in Mexico. APW was able to get Ultimo Dragon at the last minute for one replacement. Penta told the promoters he will reset the date.

Cody did an interview about All In, and when asked about C.M. Punk, said Matt Jackson asked him to do the show but was turned down. There is also a new video promoting the event.

WWE
Natalya on last night and being in the ring with Ronda Rousey last night: “I needed tonight so much. I love my friends at work. I love New York. I love how you’ve all been so wonderful to me this last week more than I could have ever imagined. And I’m looking forward to a fresh start tomorrow.”
Paul Levesque announced new NXT shows for 10/11 in St. Charles, MO, right outside St. Louis, 10/12 in Southaven, MS, right outside Memphis and 10/13 in Owensboro, KY.
OTHER
The funeral for former wrestling and Roller Derby television announcer Walt Harris will be this coming Monday, 8/27, at the Queen of Heaven Funeral Home at 1965 Reliez Road in Lafayette, CA 94549 from 10 a.m. to Noon. You can call 925-932-0900 for more info. All wrestling and Roller Derby fans are welcome.
One Fall Power Factory will be hosting the first American Dream Scholarship Super Camp at the Canton Village Shopping Center with two days of classes plus a live event on 8/26 with eight matches. Cody and Brandi Rhodes are putting this on with a coaching staff of Les Thatcher, Tom Prichard and Kevin Kelly. There will be two rings to train in and the coaches will decide on four men and four women in a tournament on the live event and in the end there will be one male winner and one female winner of the American Dream scholarship.
Pro Wrestling Mid South from Saturday night in Dyresburg, TN: Jeffro Wilson b The Wonderboy, Greg Anthony b Brandon Ray, Sharknado b Trent Ware, Dale Wylde b Addison Caime, Jeff Cobb b Matt Riviera-DQ.
Low Ki vs. Jonah Rock has been announced for NHPW in Australia on 11/30. It will be an MLW title match if Low Ki is still champion on that date.
Abyss was announced as the fifth member of Sami Callihan’s team on the 9/6 MLW War Games show in Fort Lauderdale. The two teams in War Games are John Morrison & Tommy Dreamer & Kotto Brazil & Barrington Hughes & Shane Strickland vs. Callihan & Jimmy Havoc & Abyss & The Death Machines.
Dann Lennard, an Australian historian who noted that the recent Will Ospreay vs. Robbie Eagles match was one of the best matches he’s ever seen, when talking about Ospreay vs. Slex on Melbourne Championship Wrestling’s 100th show on Saturday, said, “the best bout I’ve seen since Ospreay vs. Robbie Eagles last week.” But he seriously said that you should go out of your way to see it when it goes on-line. He also said that Tetsuya Naito went all out, even one week after G-1, in the main event with Jonah Rock.
Best in the West has an iPPV on 8/25 in Santa Cruz, CA at the Veterans Memorial Building at 5 p.m. Pacific time with Kenny K vs. Kadin Anthony vs. Matt Cross, Niko & Wiseguy vs. Buddy Royal & Levi Shapiro, Chris Masters vs. Bison Braddock, and Funnybone vs. Sinn Bodhi vs. JR Kratos.
Blackcraft Wrestling has its debut iPPV on Friday night from Pittsburgh. Among the matches are Pittsburgh’s Britt Baker vs. Saraya Knight, Taya Valkyrie vs. Isla Dawn vs. Samantha Heights, PCO vs. Chris Dicksinson and the main event is a no DQ match to crown their first champion with Johnny Blackcraft (John Hennigan) vs. Brody King vs. Jimmy Havoc.
Superkick’d on 9/21 in Toronto at The Great Hall at the Longboat Mall.
CIPW on 9/29 in Kitchener, ONT at the CBPW Academy with a taping for Powerbomb.tv.
MCW on 9/29 at the MCW Arena in Joppa, MD plus 10/6 in Galena, MD at the Volunteer Fire Company and 11/9 back at the MCW Arena.

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The wife of one of Norway’s richest men has been abducted from her home outside Oslo, with the kidnappers demanding a ransom of €9 million in cryptocurrency.

Tom Hagen returned home on October 31 to find his wife Anne-Elisabeth Falkevik Hagen missing and a ransom note, written in bad Norwegian, threatening to kill her unless he made a payment of €9 million in the crypto currency Monero.

“There have been both ransom demands and serious threats,” Tommy Brøske, the police inspector leading the investigation, said at a press conference in Oslo on Wednesday morning. “Police have so far advised the family not to meet the requirements.”

Mr Hagen, 68, has made an estimated 1.7bn Norwegian kronor (£156m) from Elkraft, the power supply company he founded, ranking him 172nd on the Norway rich list by Kapital, a financial magazine. It is the country’s first kidnap for crypto ransom.

Norwegian police had asked the media to stay silent on the kidnap, but on Wednesday decided to make it public in the hope that neighbours, or people hiking in the area, may have seen or recorded something that could help lead to the attackers.

Media have only now been allowed to report on the kidnappingCredit:
Ole Berg-Rusten/NTB Scanpix via AP

“October 31 was Halloween, and many may remember the day because of this,” Mr Brøske said.

According to Mr Brøske, the person or persons who had taken Mrs Hagen had made contact over “a digital platform” but have so far sent no proof that she remains alive.

Mr Hagen’s lawyer, Svein Holden, who is known for prosecuting the far-Right terrorist Anders Breivik, called on the kidnappers to contact the family.

“The family wants to get in touch with those who have Anne-Elizabeth today. They want to get a confirmation that she is OK, and that she is alive,” he said during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon. “If she is, the family is prepared to initiate a process to get her home safely.”

He called on people in Norway to respect the family’s privacy.

“This is something which has already put enormous demands on the family members and those close to them,” he said.

At a glance | Cryptocurrencies

John Christian Grøttum, a former police investigator turned private detective, told The Daily Telegraph that Norway was a low-security society.

“In Norway we are an open society, people can walk anywhere they like, and maybe the Norwegians are a little bit naive as well," he said. "There were no surveillance cameras, there was no protection whatsoever, so I think this was a very easy for the kidnappers.”

Kidnap for crypto-ransom has been growing internationally since the first case was recorded in Costa Rica in 2015, with about one case per month in the first half of 2018, according to the security firm Control Risks.

Monero uses an “obfuscated public ledger”, which means that it is impossible for an outside observer to discover the source or destination of transfers.

According to the cybersecurity company Carbon Black, the currency was used in 44 percent of cryptocurrency ransomware attacks in the first half of 2018.

It’s not even the end of 2018 and the start of UFC’s 2019 is already a bit of a mess.

The company announced Wednesday that UFC 233, scheduled for Saturday, January 26th in Anaheim, CA, has been “postponed” and that all scheduled fights will be moved to other shows. However, the numbering convention won’t change so the first UFC pay-per-view of the year will be February’s UFC 234 from Australia.

The numbering non-change is consistent with their cancelation of UFC 151 in 2012 and UFC 176 in 2014 with the costs associated with changing marketing materials cited as a reason for not just changing the number of the event.

The UFC said they will still have 12 PPVs in 2019.

While not mentioned by UFC, the reason for the cancellation is they couldn’t find a main event after moving the Henry Cejudo-TJ Dillashaw flyweight title fight up a week to main event their debut on ESPN+.

With their desire to have title fights headlining PPVs and a lack of available champions to fill that slot, something had to give and it did.

To their credit, they tried to make welterweight champion Tyron Woodley vs. Colby Covington for Anaheim, but Woodley couldn’t do it due to a hand injury, something White spoke out against last week doing press for the Toronto PPV.

This has happened to a scheduled January Anaheim show before as UFC 208, originally scheduled for January 21, 2017, was moved to August 5, 2017.

A positive for MMA fans: Bellator’s heavyweight grand prix finals in Los Angeles featuring Fedor Emelianenko vs. Ryan Bader, the return of Aaron Pico, the debut of former WWE star Jack Swagger and more will now run unopposed.

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Kidnappers demand €9m in cryptocurrency for Norwegian billionaire’s wife

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