Sunday Observer site news -
http://www.wrestlingobserver.com/wo/news/headlines/default.asp?aID=20310
The Austin DVD has been pushed back to November, no reason is given as to why. Mero is tentatively scheduled to be back on the Nancy Grace show tomorrow. Scorpio faced Sid Vicious last night at the New Alhambra in front of 700 fans.
Sunday F4WOnline news -
http://www.f4wonline.com/content/view/3953/
Karl Gotch passed away last night at the age of 82, and Cena beat an OVW guy last night in a torrential downpour, and somehow no one got injured as a result of it.
A Gotch bio -
http://www.wrestlingmuseum.com/pages/wrestlers/karlgotch2.html
Gotch vs Inoki -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiwiAss5mic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpbWyd1WgC4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qb9Bafas_AE
Guyver, the Go 2 Sleep and CANADIAN DESTROYER! are also in FPR, which was also mentioned in the Observer site news update today.
Wrestling Observer Live opens with it being revealed that Congress wants ALL of WWE's drug testing records, and not just the ones from the wellness policy. WWE has to explain why they didn't do drug testing for a decade. This will be something else. There's also a belief that Congress will investigate TNA at some point, since they don't have drug testing at all, and Congress could end up regulating wrestling as a result of this.
Karl Gotch trained Maedea, Fujinami, Inoki, Funaki (not WWE's Funaki), Takada, and Benoit in shooting, and was known as the God of wrestling in Japan. He was legitimately the Babe Ruth of Japan, but wasn't a big name in the U.S. because he didn't like to sell, and was difficult to work with and control. He did get work as a police man for promoters, and won the world title in Ohio.
He also headed up Pancrase, which was the first full-time MMA group in the U.S., and the modern-day UFC can be traced back to him and what he did years ago. If not for Gotch, there'd be no UWF, and that lead to Pancrase, which was shoot pro wrestling, and changed pro wrestling in Japan forever. Gotch was the corner man and trainer of Inoki for his bout with Ali, which is seen as the first major MMA bout in history, and would have been even bigger if Inoki had won.
Scott Williams is on the show, and beyond helping with the Observer and writing about wrestling, he's also a crime reporter in Texas, and nothing he's covered has matched up with the Benoit double-murder suicide. He knocks Nancy Grace and "that other idiot" Glenn Beck for their simple explanation of the tragedy as it being "roid rage", and that while steroids may have played a part, they weren't completely responsible for it.
He was embarrassed by Nancy's coverage at first, but improved it tremendously after a couple of weeks, and that she's gotten the closest of anyone on TV to getting to the bottom of it. He's amazed at how poorly WWE has handled it, as there are junior college kids taping what WWE has done to show what NOT to do. Bryan might be on Nancy Grace tomorrow, if nothing else big happens.
Marc Mero e-mailed Dave and said that he's scheduled for tomorrow, and Scott says that he might be on at some point as well, and he's done it before to cover the guy who microwaved his child, but he stated that he felt odd doing that, but did it because the first coverage by Nancy Grace on that just took his story and told it poorly, so he decided to do it himself to avoid that kind of B.S. Dave says that's kind of his motive for doing the shows, even if he only gets 19 seconds to clear up 90 minutes of B.S.
Scott talks about people coming up to him asking him questions as his well-researched stuff goes against what the "smart man" on TV said, so he has to explain the actual truth to people. He also might be working on a Benoit book.
A caller asks if Scott will do a Von Erich book, and he says that they'll be mentioned plenty of times in his book covering deaths in wrestling, and that one reason there hasn't been a book just covering it because it happened too long ago, and that even his book on ECW sold poorly, despite ECW being more recent, and states that one problem is the overexposure of wrestling books that have flooded the market.
Dave says that even the horrible books, like Chyna and Rock's books, probably wouldn't even be published now due to how horrible they were, although Rock's might still get through just because he's the Rock. Dave's asked about the Lawler case, and Dave says that it'll be a tough one, since Lawler will just claim it was a wrestling accident, and Corrente is incredibly upset since Lawler's turned it into an angle, and that even if Corrente is honest and could win, Lawler's never pinned down in court, and has been in court over far worse things.
Scott says that the burden of proof is a big decider here, and that if Corrente was pursuing this as a civil suit, he'd have a better chance than having it charged as a criminal case. Bryan says that Corrente would be helped by having guys come up and state that they've faced Lawler and never been hurt by him, and Dave says that he's only heard of two stories of Lawler potatoing guys - one involved Heyman, who Dave thinks he meant to hit, and the other was Bret, and he gave Lawler a receipt.
Scott says that the booker of that show needs to state something about this, but since that might've been Lawler, it'll just lead to more problems for Corrente, and it's doubtful that guys will testify against Lawler in Memphis. Dave's asked about WM being in Florida, and Dave says that a structure will be built that will surround the ring in case it gets rainy, but that it won't cover the crowd. Bryan says that even at the OVW show last night, the rain didn't keep people away, and Dave brings up Mexico's rainy outdoor shows as proof that wrestling fans will sit through a rainy show, and no one thinks that people paying for 'Mania will leave the show due to rain.
Scott thinks that the DA, and other offices associated with the Benoit case have done a fantastic job, as they've kept people informed and have handled themselves well.
A new caller asks about WWE's travel schedule, and if an off-season is needed for WWE. The caller says that they're on the road 350 days a year, which is corrected by the hosts as being 140-170 dates for most, with Cena getting less time off than anyone else.
Dave says that they don't need an off-season, but can cut back on house shows, and they can rotate the crews, as no one but Cena makes a difference in drawing big numbers for house shows. Dave says that old time guys consider the current road schedule is ridiculously easy, and that he expects a couple weeks on/couple weeks off for house shows, and that some schedule changes will probably be made.
Dave states that the Congressional investigation will be historical, and the caller is back, stating that if you believe the mainstream media is to be believed, the wrestlers are made to work 300 days a year. Dave feels that a TV movie or documentary on the Benoit tragedy will be made, but the caller hopes that one won't be made. Scott says that he isn't a fan of hers, but that she did an incredible job, and everyone knocks Glenn Beck's coverage. Dave asks Scott what he thinks Congress will do with this WWE thing. Dave compares it to baseball, who didn't have much of a steroid policy, and Congress didn't let them get away with it. Scott says that's true, and that baseball didn't even have bodies stacked up like cordwood due to them. Dave says that some will be embarrassed to discuss it, which Scott disagrees with, as they're covering it, which shows that they are interested in it, and that if they were worried about the embarrassment of it, they'll just rationalize it by stating that they won't allow themselves to be embarrassed by Vince. Dave says that one thing hurting wrestling is that it, unlike baseball, it isn't a national pasttime, and lacks well-connected promoters who had connections like Paul Boesch did, and WWE also really lacks a base.
Boesch was thought of as a wrestling promoter, but wasn't seen as a sleazy guy. Scott brings up Boesch being a good man in Houston, who helped the Lion's Club, and Boys and Girls club, and he was humble to media, and contrast that to Vince, who slaps interview questions out of an interviewer's hands. Dave and Scott state that Paul might change a match finish due to it, but won't do that. Scott cites Roberts being reported to leave for the WWF, and then he put his belt on Roberts, and then invited the reporter for BBQ, and even thought he wasn't happy with his coverage, he still wanted to be nice to him. Scott says that Vince is confrontational and doesn't give an inch, and that reporters notice it and will hold it against you, and now he has a problem, and he won't be given the benefit of the doubt by the media due to his own arrogance.
Dave asks Bryan if WWE, if there's another crisis, if WWE has learned anything from this. Both Bryan and Scott say they haven't, and Scott says that no matter how badly they treat the media, they just do it again. Bryan says that at most, they'll just be slightly less stupid, and in five years, they'll show that they've learned nothing because they just forget history so quickly. Dave says it's kind of funny how they're able to come back from crises, and that in all of those cases, they all hurt the company badly at the time, and all had things that they could've learned from.
He cites the Gulf War thing costing them NBC, the '91 'Mania venue being changed and forcing them to lose a chance at breaking a record. He says that despite that, they didn't go out of business, and they won't go out of business now, as they're still wildly profitable, and the show is still doing strong ratings. Scott says that one thing that helped them was their opposition being run by inept management whenever there was a problem, and now there's nothing, leaving them to fend for themselves.
He says they've got scripted promos hurt them from being able to have a really exciting, spontaneous promo like Austin 3:16, which was seen as history in the making. Dave says that it's very hard to go from mid-card to the top, and the only way to get there is either the company wanting you there no matter what, or injuries piling up so much that they have no other choice.
Scott says that it's impossible to tell how many potential Stone Cold Steve Austins due to these scripted promos, and that their internal structure seems to be set up to hurt upward mobility, and Dave states that it's really hurt promos and really hurt it in other ways, and that while he doesn't like people stating it used to be better, but that it's true for at least promos, and that Dusty cutting the best promo in the company at 61, which is incredibly sad. Right as they talk about the good parts of wrestling today, Bryan Danielson's theme plays, leading everyone to praise him and recommend his ROH and NOAH work. Bryan says that Danielson makes him feel better about wrestling today.
Dave states that the Benoit story is still going on, and will continue due to Astin, and that many wrestlers are attached to him whose names who haven't gotten out. Bryan brings up that the Congress letter wanting both stage names and real names of wrestlers. Dave says that 11 wrestlers are linked to Signature Pharmacy, and the only names that have been named there are Benoit and Eddie, and WWE names will come out. Bryan states that the wellness policy states that internet doctor prescriptions are banned by the policy, and yet guys still got them, and a doctor admitted to writing prescriptions for guys that she'd never met due to an online pharmacy.
Bryan says that WWE obviously wants illegal drugs out of their roster's bodies, but that they'd like steroids to be legal, as the company wants guys with great bodies to be main eventers, and they want figures that can't really be kept naturally for most people. Bryan says that WWE has a great scapegoat in Dr. Astin, and says that Dr. Black should've looked at a guy living in California and going to a doctor in Georgia and wondered why that was allowed, and Dave says that that guy did that before Dr. Black was involved, and that WWE doesn't want multiple guys going to the same doctor, as it would only affect one guy on the roster, and wouldn't hurt more.
Dave says that's one thing they learned from the Zahorian trial, as they looked horrible having three dozen guys linked to one mark doctor. Dave says that the test says there's no less than four tests per year, and that Benoit had only had four tests, which is less than four tests each year. Bryan says that they might not have tested him when he was off, and Dave says that would explain it.
A caller asks about Bound For Glory being in a 13,000 seat arena, and says that as a die-hard TNA fan who traveled to the last one and is one of the 25,000 who buys their PPVs, he's worried, and thinks it could be a huge disaster. Dave says it's already been set up to have half the building curtained off, and that even the recent Nashville show had a disappointing turnout, it still looked good on TV. They got a good deal on the building and they made the move due to it.
The caller asks if Goldberg will do a one-shot, and Dave says that now, Goldberg considers himself retired, and he doesn't need wrestling. Dave says that Goldberg's weird, given that a lot of guys keep coming back, while that hasn't happened with him. He has his money, likely won't have a money issue, has a kid, doesn't have any major pressures, and doesn't want to go back, and doesn't want to go to TNA unless they are in a position to beat Vnce at something. Dave says that it's a good idea to have him do something for BFG, given that he's an Atlanta guy and could help them a lot, but doesn't see it happening.
A new caller is up and asks about Joe working in NOAH in September, and Dave says he's known about it for a while but wasn't exactly sure when. Dave says that TNA is working with NOAH, New Japan, IGF, Zero-One, and All Japan, and that they're basically working with everyone. The caller asks if Joe's contract is running out, and Bryan says that he's heard it's due in fall, and Dave says that if he was Joe, he wouldn't go to WWE, even though he'd make more money, he'd probably be used as a prelim guy, and after being a main eventer in TNA, he could be crushed by it. Dave says that he hasn't talked to Joe about this, but if he was Joe, and had to pay for his own medical bills after hurting his knee in a TNA ring, he wouldn't feel much loyalty to TNA.
Dave says that might've flown when Jerry Jarrett was around, but it doesn't fly now, and Scott says that Vince had better hope that Congress doesn't go after WWE calling their wrestlers "independent contractors", and Dave says that Dixie's in a tough spot, as she's being told from above to cut losses, and at the same time, there's a really good chance they're getting two hours, and they certainly can be profitable, and they don't want Bob Carter to pull out now, and yet at the same time, they have to do something, as they're not paying for medical coverage or drug testing, and that they might just want to view it as they do spending money on TV - an essential expense. Bryan says that TNA had better hope that Congress doesn't find out about it, and that if you talk to someone in the real world and explain how wrestling works, they're baffled at how horrible it is. Dave cites Stacy being amazed while doing Dancing with the Stars, with the stars being disgusted when she told them how wrestlers were treated, and how they had to pay for so many things, and she was told by them to get out and that it wasn't worth getting hurt to stay in.
A new caller is up and says that Joe has to go to WWE to get to the next level, and Dave says that's true, but that WWE has a very narrow view of what main eventers are, and Bryan says that they've already got a Samoan main eventer, and beyond that, they're already loyal to a Samoan family, and Joe isn't part of it. Scott says that he would've been Umaga, and Dave says that he wouldn't have been, as he isn't big enough to play that role. Dave says that he could survive it, like Punk did, but he won't main event any key WWE shows, like Punk. The caller says that Khali takes too much flak compared to Andre, and Dave says that he disagrees with that, and calls him horrendously bad.
Bryan says he was watching 24/7, and that a '77 Andre match was way, way better than Khali. Dave says that even at the end, Andre was a great mental worker, but his body was too broken down. Dave says that Khali has a better physique than Andre ever did, but that's about it, as he was million times better, as was Big Show, who was better in his first match than Khali's ever been. Khali was also a former bodybuilder. Bryan says that Khali's improved, but that doesn't mean he's any good. Dave says that he felt that Khali improved when watching Cena matches, he realized that Cena carried him, and Scott says that Cena had improved. Dave says that Cena works super-hard, and when he's in a main event that the agents have worked with him on, his matches are fantastic, but when he's in there with the wrong guy, it's horrible.
Dave says that Cena's PPV matches have been terrific throughout much of the year, and he thinks that Cena is comfortable, but that if he isn't comfortable in a match, it's not good, and that he's much better now, but isn't someone that will be called a ring general. Someone says that he isn't a good worker, and Dave says that he's a good worker, but needs work in places, and that he had good matches with Khali, which almost no one has had.
HHH is discussed, and Dave asks if he'll be small, Bryan says he'll be in-between, while Scott thinks he'll be Luger-like. Bryan says HHH is the guest editor of WWE Magazine, and in that issue, a photo of Lashley wrestling at 177 pounds has a caption stating that "MY GOD, SOMEONE THREW LASHLEY IN THE DRYER!", and bashed Masters for losing his physique due to the wellness policy.