This article shows snippets of news and notes from around the pro wrestling world for Saturday, June 8th. Many items are collected from mainstream media and others are from Wrestling Observer, PWInsider.com, Wrestling, Inc., and Fightful.
WWE Raw and Ricochet News
WWE Raw is in Toledo, Ohio and it’s been sold out for a while with about 7,000 seats. Everyone from Dave Meltzer to Sean Ross Sapp to Wade Keller believes that this is Ricochet’s last night with the WWE. No one has confirmed that Ricochet is headed to AEW, but believe he made his decision to do just that. Matches announced:
- Sami Zayn versus Otis in a Non-Title Match
- Bron Breakker versus Ilja Dragunov
- Iyo Sky versus Lyra Valkyria
News: Hikuleo Coming to WWE?
Dave Meltzer got confirmation from the WWE side that Hikuleo is coming in after what appeared to be a farewell scene in the NJPW Dominion on June 9th. He was pinned by a Tank Buster from Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls in an elimination match. in Osaka, Japan. Hikuleo was the NJPW Strong tag team champion with El Phantasmo.
Bullet Club’s Hikuleo
Friday Night’s Ratings (June 7th)
Brandon Thurston reports WWE Smackdown had 2,207,000 viewers and did a 0.61. It was first on all of TV. However, it was down from last week’s 0.65.
AEW Rampage had 256,000 viewers and 0.09. This is extremely low for their usual time slot. It’s what they have been doing outside of their normal time slot. AEW Rampage is the lowest priority for them and it shows. Mina Shirakawa versus Serena Deeb was the only announced match. AEW is going to have to advertise matches that fans want to see. They can’t rely on fans just showing up. I don’t understand why they aren’t putting on matches and shows that fans want to see. But none of this should be news to AEW. Since they are still in their negotiation period with WBD.
Despe Invitational (Thanks to Ingo Gohrs)
Despe Invitational is a PPV that was put on June 9th by Desperado and NJPW. The entire card was kept a secret. Fans said it was one of the most fun shows of the year. It sold out Korakuen Hall. The Despe Invitational had a variety of Lucha Libre, a crazy hardcore match with Minoru Suzuki and Takayuki Ueki versus Hiromu Takahashi and Jun Kasai. It also had women’s legends from the past like Kyoko Inoue and Mima Shimoda, a technical match with Zach Sabre Jr. versus Hikaru Sato. The main event was a comedy match with DDT’s Danshoku Dino and Desperado versus Gedo and Dick Togo.
News: WWE Canceled Shows
According to WrestleTix, WWE’s September 14th house show in Kennewick, Washington, and September 15th in Boise, Idaho house shows were canceled this week. Ticket sales were low in Kennewick and average in Boise. I found it weird since they were three months away. WWE didn’t give a reason. However, the Kennewick Arena said the event organizer has had to cancel the event. All refunds will be made as soon as the funds are received from the event organizer.
TNA Officials Present at NXT Battleground
TNA Wrestling key officials were present for the WWE NXT Battleground. Fans saw TNA President Anthony Ciciione, Head of Creative Ariel Schnerer, and Gail Kim on June 9th.
News: Juggalo Championship Wrestling Relaunch
ICP’s Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope are going to relaunch Juggalo Championship Wrestling with live shows on a bi-weekly basis. No one listed a start date for the shows. The main names involved are said to be: Willie Mack, Yabo Ruffo, Silas Mason, Alex Taylor, Kerry Mortno, Officer Colt Cabana, Mad Man Pondo, James Storm, Kongo Kong, Matt Cross, and Caleb Konley.
AEW Father’s Day Special
Christian Cage on AEW Collision (June 15th) will be doing a Father’s Day special in Youngstown, Ohio. The crazy thing is Nick Wayne has been booked for months on Saturday’s AAA TripleMania in Tijuana. Will AEW pull him from that show to be at AEW Collision? It will be interesting if they do.
Also we are getting a no disqualification match with Thunder Rosa versus Deonna Purrazzo.
Paul Heyman Appearance
On November 9th, as part of The Big Event in New York, Paul Heyman will make a rare appearance. This will take place on the Suffolk Credit Union in Brentwood, NY. Heyman rarely does autograph shows. His website says:
Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 9th, as it will be a rare opportunity for you to meet our boss, The WWE Hall of Fame Wiseman himself, Paul Heyman as he headlines The Big Event in New York. It needs to be noted, Paul has already made his first public statement regarding his appearance, and he’s promising something way out of the ordinary. On Instagram Stories, Paul stated, “This Will Be, Without Question, THEEEE Most Unique Appearance and Fan Experience in the History of The Big Event … and That’s Not a Prediction, That’s a Spoiler!
Ric Flair on Who Killed WCW
On Twitter/X, Ric Flair wrote that he wanted to lay low on Who Killed WCW. Flair stated that the killers were a “three-headed monster” of Jim Herd, Eric Bischoff, and Vince Russo. It was those in charge that created the disfunction within the promotion. He stated that no individual wrestler or faction could have done it. While Herd didn’t do a good job in his position, you really can’t blame him for WCW’s death. Herd was gone for years before it happened and WCW had boom period after he left.
Ric Flair on Confronting Russo, Herd, and Bischoff
After the above tweet was posted, Vince Russo mentioned Ric Flair. Therefore, Flair had to respond by saying he would give Jim Herd, Eric Bischoff, and Russo $20,000 each if they would show up in Tampa, FL or Atlanta, GA. He believes fans would love it to them hash it out on PPV.
Happy 30th Birthday, Deonna Purrazzo!
