https://x.com/stokelyhathaway/status/1841889270128378248

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Upside: MLW

Downside: Some Willy Pumpkin shit for 2mo before someone does a heroin spot lmao

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• The deal is closer to $185M annual average (per @WrestleVotes). Both sides said they didn't provide the $150m number to Variety.

• Both WBD and AEW sources had no knowledge of any equity situation, and reps said they've never been breached on that.

• Dynamite and Collision will air in their normal time slot and days, and also be streamed on Max. This was an important factor for both sides.

• Dynamite, Collision and Rampage replays will be the library of footage available on Max.

• PPVs will be added to Max for a discounted price to subscribers in 2025

• Rampage will not be featured on WBD in 2025. AEW gets more money for less programming.

• ROH and TruTV were not mentioned in the press materials.

• WBD had exclusivity over AEW broadcast content on TV, but now do not.

Patreon link for those who pay Sapp money

We can probably expect an on screen debut soon.

"Regarding reports claiming WBD has equity in AEW, nobody from either side in an official capacity had any idea where it came from, and claimed that they had never heard of that element of the deal."

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You're not supposed to get injured more than Darby ffs.

Update:

PWTorch has heard from multiple sources that, while there was serious concern for his well-being after the incident among his colleagues and management, after being treated and evaluated, he was walking around backstage on his own. In fact, if you hadn’t known he was stretchered out of the ring earlier, it wouldn’t have been obvious to anyone.

That said, it’s not clear if he suffered a concussion or another injury that could cost him ring time. AEW doesn’t always report on injury details and leaves it up to wrestlers themselves.

https://www.pwtorch.com/site/2024/10/03/update-on-sammy-guevaras-scary-injury-that-led-to-him-being-stretchered-out-before-dynamite-last-night/

On January 4, 2019, Wrestle Kingdom 13 saw Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kenny Omega collide in the main event for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. In the wake of defeat, Omega would disappear from the cerulean blue for four years; in his absence, something new was born in All Elite Wrestling.

On January 5, 2025, AEW and NJPW, together with CMLL, STARDOM and Ring of Honor are all under the same Tokyo Dome roof for Wrestle Dynasty. As the wrestling world counts down to this grand reunion, another came in the New Japan offices, where Tanahashi and Omega sat down to reflect and to look ahead.

‘Time goes by so fast,’ Omega reflected on his absence from the NJPW fold. ‘I was driven out of NJPW, but at the same time, AEW was born in that, so it’s happy-sad’.

Their Tokyo Dome encounter was a title fight, but also a clash of philosophies between the classical stylings of the Ace and an anything goes abandon from the Cleaner. ‘We wrestled once before, for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship,’ Omega recalled. ‘I won… less than cleanly, but I wanted to win a belt come what may. In the Tokyo Dome, it was about wanting to really test myself against the Ace of professional wrestling, on the biggest stage in pro-wrestling.’

The Ace was victorious. ‘I was stronger, faster, more athletic. So why did I lose? It was a passion that Tanahashi had, his heart. That loss was important for me to learn from. More than disappointed by that loss, I’m grateful for it’.

It was a comment that brought mixed emotions of a different kind from Tanahashi, who acknowledged ‘we said a lot in the press about one another back in 2018, but he’s gone on to do great things,’ before confessing he was most conflicted that ‘(Kenny) has stayed in good shape all this time, while I’ve become a fat boy.’

Kenny’s impressive physical shape comes despite a near fatal battle with diverticulitis earlier in the year, an illness that required surgery and that he is still not cleared to return to the ring from. ‘If they cleared me tomorrow, I would be back in the ring. There’s a lot I don’t know right now, but I’d absolutely love to be on a stage like Wrestle Dynasty,’ admitted Omega, in response to Tanahashi’s appeal to NJPW’s younger generation that he ‘hopes Kenny can experience for himself.’

That turned conversation to the crossover event January 5. ‘I made my Japanese debut in DDT, and was satisfied then with being in Shin Kiba First Ring,’ Kenny reflected. ’From there I made steady steps, and bigger goals for myself. From there I wanted to be in NJPW, be in Best of the Super Jr., then the G1, then be a champion, then being in the biggest stage in the Tokyo Dome. Now there are people who will be in the Dome for the very first time, that have never been in Japan, and I’m so happy for them. Especially the AEW women and the STARDOM wrestlers. Whenever I found it hard to be motivated by wrestling, I drew a lot of inspiration from Japanese women’s wrestling and I’m excited to see them get back on the Tokyo Dome stage’

Both Omega and Tanahashi have had their issues in 2024 with Kenny’s former partners in the Elite. The Young Bucks and Kazuchika Okada were part of an attack on Omega that sent him out of AEW television on a stretcher, while Tanahashi along with the Acclaimed fell to the Elite during Forbidden Door this year. ‘I was so concerned after I saw what happened to you!’ Tanahashi exclaimed, drawing a wry ‘surely not,’ from Omega. Could Wrestle Dynasty be the site of a wrestling executive tag team standing up to the Young Bucks?

‘First priority is making my return,’ Kenny responded, ‘but if I can come back, I do want to face the Bucks. I want revenge, but more importantly, I want to do it the right way. The first time Tanahashi and I wrestled, it was for the belt, and then in 2019 it was a lot on the line for the both of us. Now, with the two of us aligned, next time we wrestle, I’d want to do it together. I’ve been a bad guy for a lot of my time, especially in AEW. I cheated to win the AEW title. I don’t want that to be the memory of myself that stays with young fans. If Tanahashi and I meet in that ring again, I’d want to do it as his partner.’

Tanahashi offered encouragement to a his former foe and prospective partner, stating ‘I’m sure that Kenny will be doing all he can to get into ring shape, and I’ll be working as hard as I can to get into Kenny shape.’ Whether this backroom reunion will see the two reconvening in the cerulean blue remains to be seen, but the road to Wrestle Dynasty certainly sees some impressive possibilities.

All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has officially signed a new multi-year multimedia rights deal with Warner Bros. Discovery.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but according to sources, the deal is valued at upwards of $150 million per year when all elements are taken into account. Under the new deal, AEW shows “Dynamite” and “Collision” will remain on TBS and TNT respectively. But for the first time since its launch in 2019, AEW programming will stream live on Max simultaneously for U.S. subscribers and will be available to stream on-demand starting in January 2025.

“We are honored to announce the extension of our incredible partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery,” said AEW CEO, GM and head of creative Tony Khan. “This extension continues the tradition of iconic wrestling events broadcast on TBS and TNT, while also establishing a new legacy for AEW through weekly live streams on Max for years to come. We thank David Zaslav, Kathleen Finch and everyone at WBD for their tireless support of All Elite Wrestling since its inception, as well as the AEW fans, talent and staff that helped make this possible.”

The deal also includes enhanced distribution rights across social media as well as potential new AEW programming on linear and digital platforms. Furthermore, AEW live pay-per-views will be available on Max later in 2025 at a discounted price per event, with all marketing and promotions of those events exclusively centered on Max.

“Tony Khan and the entire AEW team have been incredible partners, and we are thrilled to strike this expanded agreement to deliver amazing new AEW content and stories to TNT and TBS, as well as bring the thrilling live action to Max for the first time,” said Kathleen Finch, chairman and CEO of US Networks for Warner Bros. Discovery. “We are focused on creating fresh and authentic experiences for AEW’s passionate and engaged fanbase while also introducing them to our growing lineup of high-action sports and entertainment at TNT and beyond.”

AEW’s flagship show, “Dynamite,” debuted on TNT in October 2019. The show currently ranks as Wednesday’s number one cable entertainment series among adults 18-49. “Collision” is currently in the top five of in its Saturday timeslot among both adults 18-49 and men 18-49.

AEW’s current roster includes champions Bryan Danielson, Mariah May, Mercedes Moné, tag team The Young Bucks, Will Ospreay, Jack Perry, Wheeler Yuta, Pac, Claudio Castagnoli, and Kazuchika Okada.

“I was there when Tony Khan first shared his vision for creating a media and live entertainment company that would disrupt the wrestling industry,” said Bernie Cahill, founding partner of Activist Artists Management. “This WBD renewal is a resounding validation of Tony’s vision and leadership – making AEW a unicorn in terms of enterprise value in the media and live entertainment space.”

News of the AEW deal comes as sports rights prices have skyrocketed. AEW’s chief rival, WWE, recently set new deals for its shows “Raw,” “SmackDown,” and “NXT,” with “Raw” set to debut on Netflix in January 2025.

Tonight, AEW Dynamite brings us their 5th Anniversary Show! It'll be coming to us from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania!

The card for tonight's show will be:

Singles Match
Juice Robinson vs. Adam Page

Singles Match
Serena Deeb vs. Dr. Britt Baker DMD

AEW International Title Match
Will Ospreay (c) vs. Ricochet

AEW World Title / AEW Continental Title Match
(The Continental Title per match rules will only be at stake during the first 20 mins of the match [should the match exceed that time]) Bryan Danielson (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada (c)

And more!

Please check your local listings and AllEliteWrestling.com for more information on how to watch. Card subject to change, enjoy your show!

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Takayama (both a pro wrestler and MMA fighter) was paralyzed back in 2017 in the ring due to a cervical spinal cord injury from the neck down, but in recent years has regained a slight bit of movement in his neck. Very slow going but it's a slight bit of hope.

If you aren't familiar, here's one of the most famous MMA fights ever with Yoshihiro Takayama vs Don Frye at PRIDE 21

“It’s like I was saying, everyone defends their interests. Tony is defending his interests and we are defending our own. I’ll say this, I am still under contract with AEW, that is my present. I have not thought about my future because I prefer to think about my here and now, and my now is AEW. If they decided to not have us in matches, that’s their thing, but I am ready for the day they need me to go to work with the same energy and enthusiasm I’ve always had.

"We will see what happens in future months, but I am still in AEW and I cannot even think about talking to another company because that is not of my involvement. My legal team, lawyers and that stuff will handle everything relating to contracts and the like, but my job is inside that ring and with the fans. Everything that happens outside of that will be handled by people in their areas. My present in AEW, I’m still firm with them and, quite frankly, I don’t know what will happen in the future”.

So, we've all heard that it's coming back. I haven't yet heard if it's a one-off, or if it's a semi-regular show.

What I DID just hear, that I hadn't heard originally, is that it's an 8pm eastern start time. I assume 2 hours.

Even though I don't watch WWE, that kinda still pisses me off. It's supposed to be an 11:30pm thing, sitting in the SNL time slot on weeks when SNL is on a break week.

By 10pm, you'd still have time for a 60 minute show, then 30 minute local news, and STILL have room for SNLs regular time slot.

It's not the same.....

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"Unfortunately we have decided to cancel Fancy Wrestling and the rest of the events upcoming.

We are going on a hiatus for the time being.

All tickets have already been submitted for refunds.

Thank you for all the support."

An AEW star is in rough shape after a scary medical situation. Former AEW Trios, Tag Team and TNT champion Luchasaurus, aka Killswitch is recovering after his fiance found him collapsed on Friday, September 27. He was rushed to the hospital where they found his blood oxygen below 80 percent and determined he had pneumonia in both longs. It was discovered that he was days away from permanent lung damage. Killswitch has been on oxygen in the days that have followed, and was told to expect a recovery of over a month. His in-ring return is unclear. Fightful gained permission from those close to Killswitch/Luchasaurus before running this article.