Rumored Big News

[DBSommer]

NJPW has shown that they'll work with pretty much anyone. The benefits of working with NJPW for ROH far outweigh any negatives. The negative really isn't even a negative, since Okada/Nakamura/KUSHIDA/KES trumps Liger.

True. And the bottom line is, Vinnie Mac will never push NJPW talent (or any Japanese) in any meaningful way on WWE proper. You had Taijri, who already had some following in the US from his ECW run, and... um. Akebono? Kenzo Suzuki? Tensai? He actually managed to bury the M Pro guys, and never did anything meaningful with Shinzaki. Time will show, like it always does.

[TYFDK]

So is ASE 7 going to be a PPV, or an iPPV?

You would think they would announce it as a PPV by now, right? Let everyone know so they won't make other plans?

Hopefully it's an iPPV. I'll get an iPPV for a night where I'm working, not so sure about a regular PPV.

[WHG]

Could have meant either, but I think Meltzer would have called in an iPPV if it wasn't going to be a traditional PPV. I expect we'll see the announcement on the DBDXIII broadcast this Friday.

[Mike0284]

If it is a traditional ppv then that gives ROH 4 PPV's with 2 months between them.
March, June, September, & December. Plus they can have a random iPPV or 2 during the year also.

[Sandy Fork]

NJPW are not partnering with the WWE because of one major factor. In any alliance New Japan cuts, they want to be the dominant party. They would not be that with the WWE.

[TYFDK]

If it is a traditional ppv then that gives ROH 4 PPV's with 2 months between them.
March, June, September, & December. Plus they can have a random iPPV or 2 during the year also.

I can't remember where I read this, but I was under the impression they only wanted to do 3 regular PPV's a year. Which would be Final Battle, the Anniversary shows, and Best in the World.

[WHG]

They never specifically said 3, but Meltzer did report after BITW that he expected Final Battle to be the next PPV. I kind of figured when they did the Anniversary Show on PPV this year that we'd see a 1/Quarter schedule. It's still mind boggling to me, though, if we see 4 traditional PPVs this year with no significant New Japan guys on them. They should be planning their PPVs around NJPW talent availability.

On another note, it will take a while for them to line them up, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if NXT starts doing live specials...even if it's just their house shows...on the network up against ROH's PPVs.

[Burnside]

On another note, it will take a while for them to line them up, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if NXT starts doing live specials...even if it's just their house shows...on the network up against ROH's PPVs.

It wouldn't surprise me if that happens in September. I think WWE will run an NXT network special head-to-head with ASE.

In his audio update last night, Meltzer made it clear he was talking about ASE being a TV PPV.

[Croms Bones]

I just really wish guys that get "called up," would just flip off the WWE and stay put, realizing that they have something truly special in ROH- a formula that the WWE gave up on a long time ago.

I mean, if ROH is ever going to grow into something more, that's what it is going to take. The more talent stays, the quicker the momentum will shift.

[Memphis Mark]

I just really wish guys that get "called up," would just flip off the WWE and stay put, realizing that they have something truly special in ROH- a formula that the WWE gave up on a long time ago.

I mean, if ROH is ever going to grow into something more, that's what it is going to take. The more talent stays, the quicker the momentum will shift.

Well in a way that has already happen. The Briscoes were offered a NXT deal and they turned it down. The reasons were that they are grown men with families and did not want to relocate to Florida. Also ROH offered money money than the NXT deal. Companies like ROH , NJPW or AAA can come up with money when they believe that a talent will increase business.

The Young Bucks were offer NXT tryouts and tuned them down. Like the Briscoes , the Jacksons brothers have young families and might not want to move to Florida. The Jacksons are also making good money handling their own booking and keeping their merchandising rights. The Bucks are working NJPW , ROH , Indies and oversea tours. I would venture to say that their income as free agents is greater than than a NXT deal. The WWE would have to let them live in California and come up with a large contact offer to sign the Bucks.

AJ Styles is handling his own bookings and doing quite well without a WWE contract. Styles agent , Bill Behrens , is handling bookings for most of the top American free agents. Austin Aries has a agent in LA handling his bookings. Now the TNA talent have been released from their contracts ,so the flood gates are now opened for new talent to hit the indies.

The only talent that will sign a entry level NXT are young wrestlers that are just starting , people that are not wrestlers or wrestlers that are just a total mark for the WWE .

The talent north of 30 years old will take the best money . Whether they work for for the WWE , NJPW , AAA , ROH or freelance , it is all about making the most money in a short time period. These guys do not have another 15 years to wrestle.. I don't know if that considered flipping off the WWE , but that seems to be where the market is at this point in time.

[AssShooter]

So, where is this major news that ROH won't see coming ??

[Burnside]

So, where is this major news that ROH won't see coming ??

There are now rumors that WWE had a meeting with Destination America last week.

[Burnside]

I just really wish guys that get "called up," would just flip off the WWE and stay put, realizing that they have something truly special in ROH- a formula that the WWE gave up on a long time ago.

I mean, if ROH is ever going to grow into something more, that's what it is going to take. The more talent stays, the quicker the momentum will shift.

Well in a way that has already happen. The Briscoes were offered a NXT deal and they turned it down. The reasons were that they are grown men with families and did not want to relocate to Florida. Also ROH offered money money than the NXT deal. Companies like ROH , NJPW or AAA can come up with money when they believe that a talent will increase business.

The Young Bucks were offer NXT tryouts and tuned them down. Like the Briscoes , the Jacksons brothers have young families and might not want to move to Florida. The Jacksons are also making good money handling their own booking and keeping their merchandising rights. The Bucks are working NJPW , ROH , Indies and oversea tours. I would venture to say that their income as free agents is greater than than a NXT deal. The WWE would have to let them live in California and come up with a large contact offer to sign the Bucks.

AJ Styles is handling his own bookings and doing quite well without a WWE contract. Styles agent , Bill Behrens , is handling bookings for most of the top American free agents. Austin Aries has a agent in LA handling his bookings. Now the TNA talent have been released from their contracts ,so the flood gates are now opened for new talent to hit the indies.

The only talent that will sign a entry level NXT are young wrestlers that are just starting , people that are not wrestlers or wrestlers that are just a total mark for the WWE .

The talent north of 30 years old will take the best money . Whether they work for for the WWE , NJPW , AAA , ROH or freelance , it is all about making the most money in a short time period. These guys do not have another 15 years to wrestle.. I don't know if that considered flipping off the WWE , but that seems to be where the market is at this point in time.

While a lot of this is true, ROH did not "offer the Briscoes more money than WWE". The NXT deal was more than their ROH deal. However, it failed to compensate them for the loss of income they'd incur from not working the lawn care/chicken farm business.

[YimYac]

I just really wish guys that get "called up," would just flip off the WWE and stay put, realizing that they have something truly special in ROH- a formula that the WWE gave up on a long time ago.

I mean, if ROH is ever going to grow into something more, that's what it is going to take. The more talent stays, the quicker the momentum will shift.

Well in a way that has already happen. The Briscoes were offered a NXT deal and they turned it down. The reasons were that they are grown men with families and did not want to relocate to Florida. Also ROH offered money money than the NXT deal. Companies like ROH , NJPW or AAA can come up with money when they believe that a talent will increase business.

The Young Bucks were offer NXT tryouts and tuned them down. Like the Briscoes , the Jacksons brothers have young families and might not want to move to Florida. The Jacksons are also making good money handling their own booking and keeping their merchandising rights. The Bucks are working NJPW , ROH , Indies and oversea tours. I would venture to say that their income as free agents is greater than than a NXT deal. The WWE would have to let them live in California and come up with a large contact offer to sign the Bucks.

AJ Styles is handling his own bookings and doing quite well without a WWE contract. Styles agent , Bill Behrens , is handling bookings for most of the top American free agents. Austin Aries has a agent in LA handling his bookings. Now the TNA talent have been released from their contracts ,so the flood gates are now opened for new talent to hit the indies.

The only talent that will sign a entry level NXT are young wrestlers that are just starting , people that are not wrestlers or wrestlers that are just a total mark for the WWE .

The talent north of 30 years old will take the best money . Whether they work for for the WWE , NJPW , AAA , ROH or freelance , it is all about making the most money in a short time period. These guys do not have another 15 years to wrestle.. I don't know if that considered flipping off the WWE , but that seems to be where the market is at this point in time.

While a lot of this is true, ROH did not "offer the Briscoes more money than WWE". The NXT deal was more than their ROH deal. However, it failed to compensate them for the loss of income they'd incur from not working the lawn care/chicken farm business.

Might want to post a source for a claim like that.

[Marketh.]

I'm pretty sure that's always been the story. I don't recall ever reading ROH offered more money than WWE.

[Burnside]

Might want to post a source for a claim like that.

Observer.

Also, logic and reason. To make financial sense, their WWE deal didn't just have to beat their ROH deal. It had to beat their ROH deal plus all their other income plus uprooting their entire lives.

[Croms Bones]

I'd love to see an interview with some of the ROH guys where they are asked about what the WWE has done with wrestling over the past, what, ten years- because I can't imagine that on average they would endorse the WWE's current format, compared to eras in the past, Attitude Era and before- ask them about the best years of WCW in which they would just send wrestlers down to the ring and 90% of the show was wrestling, the focus being wrestling instead all the cluttered and contrived BS that they put in front of the camera now.

Why would anybody want to wrestle for the WWE other than the money and the opportunity to technically perform in front of larger crowds. That's all well and good, but it would suck to be a wrestler passionate about wrestling, wanting to work 20-minute matches to work 3-minute matches for a company that focuses on everything but the actual in-ring product.

[trufreedom]

Croms Bones, I think you have too romantic an idea about wrestling's past, and about the mindset of most wrestlers.

If you think mainstream wrestling is more cluttered and contrived now than it has been at any point over the last 30 years, I think you're wrong. Are you talking about any era in WCW? Where Cactus Jack got amnesia and 3 Count had a groupie from the UFC? Or maybe some era in WWF, where Papa Shango cursed the Ultimate Warrior, Doink the Clown had a team of midgets, and the Kaientai cut off Val Venis' penis with a samurai sword? I think, if anything, the WWE's storylines are less contrived than they've been at any point since Vince's expansion (The problem, for me when I watch their show, is sterilization.

And I think you're wrong about most wrestlers. If they can work 6 minute, slow paced WWE matches and get paid more to do it, they're going to take that any day of the week. No one likes taking superplexes and apron bumps every night.

[LJimmy]

I heard people covering the Beyond show tonight saying that WWE is not hiring top Indy names from their last tryout camp like Busick, Gulak, Gargano, Ciampa or Taylor. They are only hiring Haste and Nicholls and I think a big part in that is due to them loving people with international flavor. This again begs to question what is WWE going to do once all the best Indy and international names left get called up or are they going to leave guys like Balor there for ever?

This shows that ROH shouldn't sweat this WWE nonsense. WWE still doesn't get why fans started caring about NXT in the first place. They don't get that the type of fans they are trying to cater to with NXT want wrestlers who can deliver in the ring and be entertaining personalities, not their out of touch mindset on what they see as being larger than life. NXT on the road shows are selling tickets due to what guys like Zayn, Neville, Itami, Balor and Owens built. Once people start figure out these guys are gone and WWE has no intention to replace them with other names who are talented ticket sales will cool off when they return to the same markets. WWE still sucks when it comes to recruiting.

I'm impressed with how ROH has handled this so far. They are not saying anything in public. They are just going about their business. Although, I still wouldn't mind seeing ROH take legal action if WWE are doing things to go over the line business wise.

[WHG]

Might want to post a source for a claim like that.

Observer.

Also, logic and reason. To make financial sense, their WWE deal didn't just have to beat their ROH deal. It had to beat their ROH deal plus all their other income plus uprooting their entire lives.

My recollection of Meltzer's reporting, which has been refuted publicly by HHH (for whatever that's worth), was that the Briscoes got an NXT offer that was more than their expiring ROH deal. They took that to ROH, who offered them a substantial increase. The Briscoes then took that back to the WWE, who refused to budge from their initial offer.

The inference was that the ROH was for more than the NXT deal, but he never really said one way or the other. For ROH to have outbid the WWE in this case wouldn't have been too big a deal, because Meltzer said they weren't offered a huge sum of money or anything.