The Heat and the Shine

Pro wrestling fans know that it's worked. NBA fans think that it's real. Those are two obvious facts, but their repercussions are less than obvious to many.  The NBA can draw from angles that evoke old time wrestling; modern pro wrestling can't. The NBA and its broadcast partners learned the value of old time wrestling booking today.  The Cleveland Cavaliers were subject to something akin to a "Loser Leaves the Playoffs" heading in to Game 5 of the NBA Finals last night.  They needed to win three straight times to avoid elimination. Due to fans believing that the NBA isn't predetermined (which I don't think it is, for the record), the "needs to win out" angle worked.  The 18-49 demographic (demo) rating was 7.6, up a whopping 27% from a shockingly low Game 4 demo rating.  People tuned because there was suspense in whether the season could end. Due to pro wrestling fans believing that New Japan is predetermined (which it is, for the rec

The International Pro Wrestling Commission (IPWC) issued the following statement upon reviewing live reports and video footage from the TNA 'Impact Wrestling' event of June 7, 2016. The following disciplinary action has been assigned in response to the actions of various parties during the June 7, 2016 TNA 'Impact Wrestling' event: MATT HARDY (Cameron, NC, USA) has been fined $2,500 USD for delaying the start of the Impact Wrestling event.  TNA producers Dixie Carter, William "Billy" Corgan and David "Lagana" Lagana were issued a warning for repeated start time delays, along with notice that fines may be imposed for future delays under the IPWC's "lack of institutional control" provision. DREW GALLOWAY (Tampa, FL, USA) has been fined $1,000 USD for agreeing to a Championship match without IPWC performance enhancing drug (PED) procedures in place.  IPWC rules stipulate a minimum of fifteen (15) days of random, twenty-four (24)

Whether one's taste runs towards stuntman spot-fests, wild multi-team tag matches or bouts between cool little guys and unwelcome big guys (twice!), WWE Money in the Bank -- happening on June 19 at 5 p.m. PDT -- has something for every wrestling fan. Being that the show is nearly two weeks away, now is not the time to preview the card. But, being that the show is happening in Las Vegas, now is the perfect time to preview a last-minute trip to watch the show live. The live WWE experience is so far superior to the televised experience that there is no comparison. Who cares if you miss the commentary? You get chanting and little kids and long merchandise lines and lots and lots of overpriced beer (or food, if drinking isn't your thing). It's the summer, the kids are out of school.  If you have been thinking about getting away for a day or two and you're a WWE fan who hasn't planned his (or her) getaway yet, this is the show to do it for. SummerSlam will be a

Will Ospreay and Ricochet had a match on May 27 at New Japan's "Best of the Super Juniors" in Tokyo.  Maybe you've heard. It was the talk of the Internet Wrestling Community (IWC) for days after Vader , a Hall of Famer with a tremendous legacy in Japan, Tweeted critically about a choreographed spot early in the match.  Predictably, IWC sentiment sided with the young blood, while a few old fogies (and people who admire old fogies) defended the big man. Overlooked, at least until the June 6, 2016 Wrestling Observer  was perused, was the fact that the match didn't draw.  Patches of seats at the 2,005 seat Korakuen Hall were visibly unfilled during the match, and the announced attendance was a mere 1,505.  The flyers match couldn't draw flies. Best of Super Juniors ran over two-and-a-half weeks and Ospreay vs. Ricochet are both non-Japanese headliners, so perhaps the lukewarm attendance was predictable.  Though the show was on a traditionally strong drawing

TNA Slammiversary happens this Sunday (June 5, 2016 at 5 p.m. PDT), and conventional wisdom is that the show will do tepid business.  TNA hasn't been touring and their weekly Impact Wrestling show on Pop TV has been beset by a string of bad luck .  The number of wrestling fans buying one-time pay-per-views has dwindled.  The main event is Lashley vs. Drew Galloway.  And there are ongoing questions whether it is worth wrestling fans' time  to emotionally invest in a promotion that has seen numerous departures and a decline in ancillary spending (production, promotion, marketing, etc). It is all quite bleak. Until, that is, a brief Twitter perusal  results in a viewing of this:   It is TNA's 'Contract Signing' video promo for the Matt Hardy vs. Matt Hardy "Full Metal Mayhem" match at Slammiversary. The video is an acquired taste, to be sure.  It has nearly as many Dislikes as Likes on YouTube.  The acting is campy and it hardly fits with the more

The good news is that a UFC 199 preview appears on ESPN's front page.  Just scroll down through fourteen other front page stories, the ads for ESPN's sister sites, a handful of pictures and nine embedded videos and it right there.  A thousand words and forty-nine words on tomorrow's pay-per-view by ESPN's top UFC writer, Brett Okamoto. That UFC 199 would be relegated to niche sport coverage is no surprise.  The cynical might point out that the NBA Playoffs (basketball) and the X-Games (skateboarding, etc.) are televised by ESPN, and Disney -- ESPN's corporate overlord -- is well-versed in media synergy.  Those who have a more virtuous view of ESPN (including this blog) might point out that the Stanley Cup Finals (hockey) and Copa America (soccer) are also heavily covered, despite airing on NBC and Fox, respectively. No major stars + a one-sided main event + numerous other big sporting events = minimal coverage of UFC.  That equation is no mystery to anyone w