Originally published at Tony Khan: "WWE is like the Harvey Weinstein of pro wrestling
POST IT NOTES
**Wai Ting & I are doing a special free edition of Rewind-A-SmackDown after the first night of the WWE Draft and we will be live immediately after the show at 10 p.m. ET.
**Karen Peterson will have a written review of STARDOM’S All-Star Dream Queendom on Saturday with a rundown of the card and her thoughts on the show.
**Tune into Collision Course at a special start time of 11 p.m. ET on Saturday on the POST Wrestling Café. John Siino & Kate from Montreal will review both AEW Collision & Rampage from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida.
**One of the wackiest shows we’ve reviewed recently is HUSTLE-3 from May 2004. This insane concept of money being burned at will led to last-minute bookings of Mick Foley, Kevin Nash, and Scott Hall on a card which included everyone from Dusty Rhodes to Mark Coleman and Giant Silva and Tiger Jeet Singh. The two of us go through the genesis of HUSTLE, its relationship to Dream Stage Entertainment, how Mick Foley accepted this match just weeks after his match at Backlash with Randy Orton, and why Dusty Rhodes never wrestled for this group again. The show is available to all POST Café members.
**Friday’s POST Audio News Update is available for all members of the POST Wrestling Café.
POST SCHEDULE
Tonight: Rewind-A-SmackDown with John Pollock & Wai Ting (FREE SHOW)
Saturday: The Long & Winding Royal Road with WH Park & Neal Flanagan
Saturday: Collision Course with John Siino & Kate from Montreal (POST Wrestling Café)
Sunday: POSTmarks with guest Andrew Thompson
Monday: Rewind-A-Raw – WWE Draft Night 2
WRESTLING NEWS
**While appearing on the NFL Network (in a neck brace to sell Wednesday’s angle with The Elite), Tony Khan compared AEW to the “Pepsi of pro wrestling” while stating that “WWE is like the Harvey Weinstein of pro wrestling”. The hosts seemed very uncomfortable when Weinstein’s name was mentioned and tried to change topics.
Khan also noted that he sent Jack Perry on an excursion to NJPW and reinstated him this past Wednesday in the angle.
Tony Khan discusses taking the TK Driver from the Bucks and compares WWE to Harvey Weinstein pic.twitter.com/borodQ1GiF
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) April 26, 2024
**Tony Khan received a fair amount of publicity during Thursday’s first night of the NFL Draft by selling the effects of the TK Driver from Dynamite. Khan was featured on camera multiple times including on the NFL Network as the hosts explained why Khan was wearing the neck brace and mentioned the angle. Pat McAfee also addressed the angle and used the term “Meltzer Driver” while explaining the move used by the Young Bucks.
Tony Khan is in a neck brace 😂😂😂#PMSDraftSpectacular pic.twitter.com/fIloULIBcH
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) April 26, 2024
**Brandon Thurston and I have learned that Vince McMahon recently enlisted the services of the Sitrick and Company crisis management firm to handle his public relations throughout the ongoing case with Janel Grant. This discovery comes days after McMahon’s team filed a 29-page rebuttal to Grant’s lawsuit and labeling the allegations “pure fiction” while asserting it was a consensual relationship, ending with a non-disclosure agreement between the parties that McMahon feels was broken by Grant. It naturally opens the question of how much further the public discourse will intensify as the agency is led by Michael Sitrick, who is working directly with McMahon. It’s a large firm and has represented a ton of major companies and public figures with Sitrick considered a heavyweight in this field. Grant’s side is being represented by the PR firm, The Agency Group or “TAG PR”. Until this past week, McMahon has kept a low profile beyond a brief statement after the lawsuit was filed to deny the charges and a recent New York Post story where one of the “love letters” sent by Grant to McMahon in December 2021 was published. Grant’s side has disputed the intentions behind the letter given the twenty-four drafts that Grant cites in the letter and her side stated it was among McMahon’s demands for Grant to provide love letters as a sign of her affection and place her under pressure to please him. Sitrick had an existing relationship with lawyers Marc Kasowitz and Jessica T. Rosenberg of Kasowitz Benson Torres, which is the legal firm representing McMahon (and ironically the firm that represented MLW in its suit against WWE, which reached a $20 million settlement). The next notable date is May 14, which is the deadline for defendant John Laurinaitis to respond to the case and is a major figure in the suit and which side his story will favor. The WWE has until June 1 to respond.
**The first night of the WWE Draft goes down on SmackDown tonight from the Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The rules include that all champions are exempt (except the Kabuki Warriors as the Women’s Tag Titles can float between shows) with Cody Rhodes, Logan Paul, Bayley, and A-Town Down Under staying on SmackDown. There will be four rounds of picks tonight with each brand making eight picks tonight followed by an additional twelve picks per brand on Monday’s episode of Raw and new rosters take effect beginning May 6.
Tonight’s pool of picks are as follows: AJ Styles, Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn, Alpha Academy, Andrade, Bianca Belair, Bron Breakker, Cedric Alexander & Ashante Thee Adonis, Ivar, Jey Uso, LA Knight, Liv Morgan, Nia Jax, Randy Orton, Ricochet, Seth Rollins, Shayna Baszler, Shemaus, The Bloodline (all one pick consisting of Roman Reigns, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga & Paul Heyman – Jimmy Uso is not listed on either night’s draft list), Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson, and Zoey Stark with NXT talent eligible to be drafted as well.
The following is listed for tonight’s episode at 8 p.m. ET on Fox:
*Contract signing between Cody Rhodes and AJ Styles
*Rey Mysterio & Dragon Lee vs. Angel & Berto
**Matt Hardy discussed his return to TNA on The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast with co-host Jon Alba. Hardy said the only person he alerted about his return was his wife Reby (and son Maxwell) to ensure it didn’t get out before Rebellion. Hardy said he received a text message from Tommy Dreamer last Tuesday inquiring about his status and TNA’s desire to work with him and ran some dates by him. Hardy’s schedule was open to accommodate the requested dates and started working out some creative ideas over the next two days. Hardy is on a “per show” basis with TNA, has not signed a contract, and believes doing a run in TNA could heat him back up as he felt he and his brother Jeff had “cooled off” toward the end in AEW. He is open to popping up elsewhere and making appearances and came off with a positive feeling in the TNA locker room. Hardy is set to team with Trent Seven & Speedball Mike Bailey against The System at Under Siege next weekend in Albany, New York. Matt also confirmed a recent report from Fightful Select that AEW recently offered Jeff Hardy a new deal and that his contract is “coming up a lot sooner than we thought”. Fightful had reported that Jeff’s deal expires “sometime in the spring” and that AEW could extend time on the deal.
**TKO and Endeavor president Mark Shapiro spoke on The Deal with Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly. The interview was conducted last September after the completion of the merger between WWE and UFC and there is a disclaimer before the interview noting the suit filed by Janel Grant after the interview was conducted and Vince McMahon’s subsequent resignation.
**STARDOM’s All-Star Dream Queendom pay-per-view airs early Saturday at 2 a.m. ET and available on the Pia streaming service from Yokohama Buntai. This is the first major event since the departure of Rossy Ogawa from the promotion he co-founded. Ogawa recently confirmed the launch of Marigold featuring several former STARDOM talents including Giulia and debuts on May 20. STARDOM has reinforced its ties with several talents appearing on the ROH Supercard of Honor show and Mina Shirakawa involved in a storyline with Mariah May on AEW programming. The pay-per-view will include English commentary from Stewart Fulton, who is an excellent broadcaster and this should be the norm for all their major cards. Below is the lineup:
*Two-of-Three Falls for the World of Stardom Championship: Maika © vs. Momo Watanabe
*Wonder of Stardom Championship: Saori Anou © vs. Hanan
*IWGP Women’s Championship: Mayu Iwatani © vs. Sareee
*Tam Nakano & Natsupoi vs. Aja Kong & Kaoru Ito
*Goddesses of Stardom Championship: Suzu Suzuki & Mei Seira © vs. AZM & Miyu Amasaki vs. Starlight Kid & Ruaka vs. Hazuki & Koguma
*Mina Shirakawa vs. Natsuko Tora
*High-Speed Championship: Saki Kashima © vs. Saya Kamitani vs. Saya Iida vs. Fukigen Death
*Future of Stardom Championship: Rina © vs. Sayaka Kuraka
*Syuri, Konami & Ami Sohrei vs. Xena, Hanako & Waka Tsukiyama
**The first of three TripleMania XXXII cards this year takes place in Monterrey on Saturday night and streams on Triller TV at 9 p.m. ET with the following card:
*AAA Mega Championship – Vacant: Nic Nemeth vs. Alberto El Patrón
*Vampiro, Pagano & El Mesias vs. Cibernético, Dark Cuervo & Dark Ozz
*Sam Adonis, Satnam Singh, QT Marshall & Parker Boudreaux w/ Jeff Jarrett vs. Psycho Clown, Laredo Kid, Octagón Jr. & TBA
*Negro Casas & TBA & TBA vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. & TBA & TBA
*Copa Bardahl Match: Heavy Metal vs. Aero Star vs. Abismo Negro Jr. vs. Super Caló vs. Charly Manson vs. Pimpinela Escarlata vs. El Elegido vs. Mr. Iguana vs. Niño Hamburguesa vs. Antifaz del Norte vs. Chessman vs. TBA vs. TBA
*Faby Apache, Estrellita, Sexy Star & Reina Dorada vs. Dalys, Flammer, Maravilla & La Hiedra
**TripleMania XXXII resumes on June 15 in Tijuana and August 17 in Mexico City.
**NJPW’s Road to Dontaku tour is in Hiroshima on Saturday featuring an Elimination Match with LIJ’s Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI vs. David Finlay, Jake Lee, Gabe Kidd, Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney. Plus, Great O-Khan defends the KOPW Championship against Yuya Uemura in a Rural Revitalization Matchm and Hikuleo & El Phantasmo defend the STRONG Openweight tag titles against TMDK. Monday is the Wrestling Satsuma no Kuni card from Kagoshima with SHO vs. DOUKI for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title, and Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney vs. Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight tag titles.
**AEW has a three-hour block on TNT following the NBA playoffs with live episodes of Collision & Rampage from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida. Collision will start right after the Boston Celtics vs. Miami Heat, so they should have a huge lead-in for the opening quarter hour. The following is listed for both shows:
AEW Collision:
*New AEW Champion Swerve Strickland to speak
*Unified World Trios Championship: Bang Bang Gang © vs. Action Andretti & Top Flight
*The Acclaimed vs. Grizzled Young Vets
*Timeless Toni Storm vs. Anna Jay
AEW Rampage:
*Parking Lot Fight: Trent Beretta vs. Chuck Taylor
*Deonna Purrazzo vs. Thunder Rosa
**The TBS schedule lists another three-hour block for next Wednesday with Dynamite and Rampage from 8-11 p.m. ET with the show from Winnipeg.
**AJPW’s Champion Carnival has shows on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday with tomorrow’s show in Osaka at the smaller Edion Arena. The A Block matches include Kento Miyahara vs. Cyrus, Davey Boy Smith Jr. vs. Kuroshio TOKYO Japan, and Hokuto Omori vs. Ren Ayabe while the B Block features Yuma Anzai vs. Rei Saito, Hideki Suzuki vs. Hartley Jackson, and Jun Saito vs. Ryuki Honda. The A Block leader is Shotaro Ashino at six points with Miyahara, Aoyagi, and Kuroshio behind him with four points each. The B Block features a tie between Anzai and Jun Saito with six points each and Suwama with four points. The Carnival runs until May 12.
**Pro Wrestling NOAH’s next Limit Break card is Saturday on Wrestle Universe from Yokohama Radiant Hall. The card will feature Akitoshi Saito vs. Satsuki Nagao for the Zero-One World Heavyweight title, Go Shiozaki teams with Kazuyuki Fujita & Muhammad Yone against Shuji Ishikawa, Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya, Tetsuya Endo vs. Hiroki (Hi69), Jun Akiyama & Rukiya vs. Atsushi Kotoge & Black Menso-re, and Yoshitatsu vs. Yu Owada.
**C*4 Wrestling at the Preston Event Centre in Ottawa, Ontario tonight features Junior Benito vs. Lio Rush vs. Kevin Blackwood for the C4 Championship, Dominic Garrini & Kevin Ku & Joshua Bishop vs. Stu Grayson & Evil Uno & Myung-Jae Lee, Alexia Nicole vs. Ben Tull for the C4 Underground title, Jody Threat vs. Kenndi Hardcastle, Brent Banks vs. James Stone, Vanna Black vs. Mark Wheeler vs. Cecil Nyx vs. Kristara, a Rush Hour Open #1 Contenders Gauntlet, and a ten-man tag on the card. The show will be available next Tuesday on IWTV.
**Mike Santana has released his schedule for May with dates for WrestlePro in Alaska, House of Glory, Beyond Wrestling, Greektown Wrestling in Toronto, TNA’s back-to-back nights in Kentucky, and two nights with Progress Wrestling in London. Santana returned to TNA last weekend at the Rebellion pay-per-view and wrestled on this week’s television taping where he beat Myron Reed in a short match.
**The UFC is back at the Apex on Saturday for a small show with the main card airing on ESPN+. Two fighters missed weight on Friday as David Onama missed the featherweight limit by 2.5 pounds and James Llontop was off the lightweight mark by 0.5 pounds.
MAIN CARD (7 p.m. ET on ESPN)
*Matheus Nicolau (19-3-1) vs. Alex Perez (24-8)
*Bogdan Guskov (15-3) vs. Ryan Spann (21-9)
*Karine Silva (17-4) vs. Ariane da Silva (17-8)
*Jhonata Diniz (6-0) vs. Austen Lane (12-4)
*David Onama (11-2) vs. Jonathan Pearce (14-5)
*Uroš Medić (9-2) vs. Tim Means (33-15-1)
PRELIMINARY CARD (4 p.m. on ESPN 2 & ESPN+)
*Victor Henry (23-6) vs. Rani Yahya (28-11-1)
*Austin Hubbard (15-7) vs. Michael Figlak (8-1)
*Don’Tale Mayes (10-6) vs. Caio Machado (8-2-1)
*Marnic Mann (6-2) vs. Ketlen Souza (13-4)
*James Llontop (14-2) vs. Chris Padilla (13-6)
*Na Liang (19-7) vs. Ivana Petrović (6-1)
*Hayisaer Maheshate (9-3) vs. Gabriel Benitez (23-11)
**The TKO stock closed at $96.76 on Friday.
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