News Archives - Fall/Winter 2010(September - December 2010)

-Wrestling Roundtable Radio returns tomorrow night at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. Call 346-857-4647 to share your thoughts on UFC 122 + 123, TNA Turning Point 2010, WWE Survivor Series 2010, "Old School" RAW, Linda McMahon's failed senate run, Stand Up For WWE, The Expendables film and more!

-Gran Naniwa, 34, AJPW, NJPW, ECW & Michinoku Pro wrestler, died Wednesday October 6th in Japan due to a heart attack.

-Lucha Libre USA's Solid(Chris Long, 33) was shot dead Saturday night at Shooters Alley, a DeKalb County strip club in Doraville, GA, where he worked as a bouncer, with the unconfirmed report saying three males that Long & other bouncers threw out earlier in the night returned at 5:30am and shot Long(Credit : pwinsider). Two other bouncers were hospitalized.

-This past Saturday at NAGA in Newark, NJ's Essex County College gymnasium, Rodney Leconte placed 2nd(silver medal) in the Beginner Light Heavyweight No-Gi division. Unfortunately, his brother Martin, competing in the Intermediate Featherweight Gi division, did not rank.

-UFC 123 took place from the Palace Of Auburn Hills in Michigan this past Saturday. In the main event, light heavyweight Quinton "Rampage" Jackson(31-8) defeated Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida(16-2) via split decision. In the pre-main event, BJ Penn(16-7-1) moved back up to welterweight with a stunning KO victory over Matt Hughes(45-8) with punches 21 seconds in to the first round. After losing on the preliminary card to Dennis Hallman(43-13-2), 1:47 in to the 1st round by TKO(strikes), welterweight Karo Parisyan(19-6) will be let go by UFC.

-WWE presented the Survivor Series 2010 Sunday night at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, FL. In the opener, US Champion Daniel Bryan defeated Ted Dibiase, Jr. by submission to the LeBell Lock. Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler also successfully defended his belt, using a rollup(with pulled tights) on Kaval to defeat him by pinfall. In the only Survivor Series elimination tag, the team of Kofi Kingston, MVP, Chris Masters, Rey Mysterio & The Big Show defeated Alberto Del Rio, Jack Swagger, Cody Rhodes, Tyler Reks & Drew McIntyre when The Big Show pinned McIntyre following a chokeslam, making Big Show & Rey Mysterio the sole survivors. Natalya Neidhart won the Divas Championship when she submitted Michelle McCool in a sharpshooter. Beth Phoenix returned to WWE after the match, helping Natalya fend off an attack from LayCool. After initially counting both men's shoulders down following a spear/pinfall by Edge in his World Heavyweight title match against Champion, the match was awarded to Kane. Tag Team Champions Justin Gabriel & Heath Slater defended against Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov when Slater pinned Santino following a Zig Zag. In the main event, WWE Champion Randy Orton retained by pinfall after an RKO over Wade Barrett, with special referee John Cena making the count after helping Orton by punching Barrett.

-TNA President Dixie Carter has stated that London Brawling would return to TV soon, while the latest rumor is Ken Anderson won't return to the ring until next year(Credit : pwinsider).

-JAPW Champion Dan Maff lost his title in a four way with NJ State Champion Brodie Lee, Azrieal, & Nick Gage this past Saturday at "November To Remember" in Rahway, NJ's Rec Center when Lee pinned Maff(Credit : pwinsider).

-Also this past Saturday, The Dark City Fight Club became the new NWA World Tag Team Champions when they defeated Champions The Skullkrushers at Milwaukee, WI's Tripoli Shrine Center.

-Top Rope Promotion's 2010 Kowalski Cup took place Friday October 8th in Fall River, MA's PAL Hall. Retiring Spike Dudley vacated the Heavyweight title, a new champion to be crowned at their Saturday December 3rd show with the winner of the Spindle City Rumble. Also, Matt Taven defeated Vinny Marseglia in the finals to win the 2010 Kowalski Cup tournament.

-Nemesis Fighting : MMA Global Invasion, originally scheduled for November 13th at the Hard Rock Hotel Punta Cana in the Dominican Republican, has been delayed until December 11th at the Barcelo Convention Center due to threat of inclement weather. The event will feature fights from Keith Jardine, Paul Buentello, Dean Lister & more(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Scott Hall is due back in a Seminole County, FL court on Monday for his probation violation hearing regarding his disorderly intoxication & resisting of a police officer in May(Credit : WGN).

-Christopher Nowinski was nominated by Sports Illustrated for their 'Sportsman Of The Year' award for his work on head trauma & concussions.  The winner will be announced on November 29th.

-California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jim Lorimer & Kurt Angle recently approved the "GNC presents Kurt Angle World Teen Championships" to take place at the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus, OH's Greater Columbus Convention Center March 4-6(Credit : WGN). It will include the first Angle Ultimate Teen High School Football Combine and strongman/woman contests.

-Representing WWE for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Shawn Michaels will be a guest horse rider at the 4th Annual 4R Performances Horses Celebrity Slide at Oklahoma City, OK's State Fairgrounds on Saturday December 3rd(Credit : WGN).

-Ric Flair will be making a motivational speech in the Icons Uncensored series next month at Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada's Pantages Playhouse(Credit : WGN).

-At John Stewart & Stephen Colbert's Rally To Restore Sanity in Washington, DC Saturday October 30th, Mick Foley was presented with an 'award for reasonableness' for his work with RAINN!, an anti-sexual violence organization.

-WWE is working on 3-disc Bill Goldberg and Triple H DVD sets, along with a new DX DVD set. In addition, "The Best of WCW Monday Nitro 'Seasons' 1 & 2', a "Best Of Cages Matches", and a Big Show DVD set are being produced as well(Credit : WGN). 

-Triple H is featured in an upcoming self-titled documentary on lead singer of Motorhead, 'Lemmy'.



Wednesday, December 1, 2010 :

-Wrestling Roundtable's Season 3 is finished, as our Season Finale(Show #47) has been posted in full. We're planning on returning for Season 4 next year. We'll keep you posted & thanks for being part of the community for another year. Roundtable Radio continues however, returning Tuesday December 7th at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. We'll be discussing WEC's absorption in to UFC, UFC 123, the Best/Worst Of Survivor Series, and much more!

-The Roundtable's own Will Vafides, as TLD(Tommy Lee Danger), has opened a TLD website, tldwrestling.com

-Kantaro Hoshino, 67, 60s-80s former JWP & NJPW wrestler & manager, died due to pneumonia this past Monday(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Hijo De Cien Caras(Ignacio Jimenez, 33, IWRG/former AAA & CMLL luchador) and a woman(Adela Luna, 50), were shot to death in a truck in front of a house by what police believe to be two shooters Sunday in Coyoacan, Mexico(Credit : pwinsider).

-Northeast indy wrestler Matthew "Arkham" Ball died recently, cause of death unknown.

-9 days ago on WWE Monday Night RAW from the Amway Arena in Orlando, FL, WWE Champion Randy Orton successfully defended his title against Wade Barrett in the main event, winning by pinfall following an RKO. However, The Miz utilized his Money In The Bank title shot afterwards, leading to a pinfall victory following a Skull Crushing Finale to win his first WWE Championship. Earlier on the show, John Cena gave a 'farewell' speech after being 'fired' as per the match stipulations from the previous night's title match between Champion Orton & Barrett at Survivor Series(Nexus member Cena would be "fired" if Barrett did not win the title). Cena reappeared during the main event, attacking Barrett, preceding Orton's victory. Though it is likely to remain a house-show-only act, Cena has started a new masked gimmick, wrestling as "Juan Cena", his own supposed Mexican cousin. Promoting the gimmick on his Twitter account, Cena debuted the look at a Salisbury, MD RAW house show this Sunday in the Wicomico Civic Center in a losing effort - WWE Champion The Miz retained against Juan & Wade Barrett in a triple threat title defense. Orton has been pulled from all recent shows, however, due to neck problems(Credit : pwinsider). 

-The Philadelphia Spectrum in Pennsylvania, which housed WWWF/WWF pro wrestling events for 22 years(until 1996) was torn down Tuesday November 23rd at noon(Credit : Cherry Hill Courier Post). However, Monday's RAW, which took place at the Wells Fargo Center next to the former Spectrum, hosted the 2010 King Of The Ring tournament, won by Sheamus, who defeated John Morrison in the finals via pinfall following a High Cross. In the main event, WWE Champion The Miz successfully defend his title against Jerry "The King" Lawler in a TLC match. Guest host Miss USA Rima Fakin crowned Sheamus the 2010 KOTR(Credit : WGN). Fakin returns to WWE Sat. Dec. 18th as ring announcer during the Tribute To The Troops show. Sherri Shepherd will also appear on the show, along with Diddy-Dirty Money, Ariel Winter & Cedric The Entertainer performing.

-Ken Shamrock(28-15-2) headlined King Of The Cage : Platinum against Mike Bourke(10-16-1) this past Saturday at the Durban International Convention Center in South Africa. Shamrock lost via TKO after suffering a hamstring injury during what most reports indicate was a scramble in the 2nd round, though some others says it was in the 1st round.

-EMLL held their annual bodybuilding contest on Thanksgiving, this past Thursday at Arena Mexico. Pequeno Halcon won the Minis Category, Dark Angel took 1st place in the Female Category, the Newcomer Category went to Dragon Lee, Astral won the Intermediate Category, and Rush placed first in the Advanced Category(Credit : Lucha World).

-On WWE NXT 8 days ago from Jacksonville, FL's Veterans Memorial Arena, A.J. was eliminated. Last night on the season finale from the Scope Arena in Norfolk, VA, Kaitlyn was declared the winner. NXT will continue for a 4th season, with this lineup :
US Champion Daniel Bryan mentoring Derrick Bateman
Ted Dibiase, Jr. mentoring Brodius Clay
R-Truth mentoring Johnny Curtis
Chris Masters mentoring Byron Saxton
Alberto Del Rio mentoring Conor O'Brian.

-Jean-Claude Van Damme has signed to fight 1996 Olympic featherweight gold medalist boxer Somrak Khamsing in Las Vegas this coming July in a kickboxing bout. Vam Damme will be 50 when the fight happens. 

-Joey Styles' talent contract has expired, though he is still an employee for WWE working on their website(Credit : pwinsider). Jim Ross has confirmed that a rep. of UFC heavyweight Roy Nelson contacted him casually about Nelson's interest in joining WWE "at some point", while MMA fighter Shonie Carter(49-26-7) claims to have retired and has told CM Punk he's interested in WWE also(Credit : MMAFighting).

-AAA's Zorro has signed a non-exclusive 2-year deal with TNA. Mick Foley, however, has stated that he will not be re-signing with the company when his contract is up in 8-9 months(Credit : GeekWeek).

-Newly christened UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo(18-1) has pulled out of his next scheduled title defense at January 1st's "UFC 125 : Resolution" event against Josh Grispi(14-1) in Las Vegas, NV's MGM Grand Garden Arena due to a compacted vertebrae injury suffered in training. Aldo will be replaced with Dustin Poirier, 8-1(Credit : MMAJunkie). UFC is currently negotiating with Spike TV regarding doing more live Prelim broadcasts, expected to continue throughout 2011.

-SF Heavyweights Valentijn Overeem_28-25) & Herschel Walker have pulled out of their fights for 'Strikeforce : Henderson Vs. Babalu' this Saturday December 4th in St. Louis, MO's Scottrade Center. Overeem had been scheduled to face Antonio Silva(14-2) until he hurt his elbow and will be replaced by Mike Kyle(18-7-1). Herschel Walker(1-0) was set to face Scott Carson(4-1) but suffered a deep cut under his left eye that required stitches Monday November 22nd. No replacement has been named as of yet(Credit : MMAJunkie). SF CEO Scott Coker is now claiming an expected MMA debut from Batista for the promotion between April & June(Credit : pwtorch).

-TNA TV Champion AJ Styles broke a finger at TNA's Abu Dhabi, UAE house show Monday at the Abu Dhabi Combat Club during a tag match with Beer Money, Inc. Vs. TNA Tag Team Champions The Motor City Machine Guns & Doug Williams, and to have it re-set at a hospital.

-Goldust is set to get an MRI on his shoulder tomorrow(Credit : pwinsider).

-UFC officials are investigating a possible timekeeping issue from UFC 123 that took place Sat. Nov. 20th in Auburn Hills, MI, where the 1st round of middleweight bout Gerald Harris(17-3) Vs. Maiquel Falcao(26-3) may have been ended seven seconds early(the bout ended in a Falco win via unanimous decision, but Falco had Harris locked in a rear naked choke during the time in question). The Michigan Unarmed Combat Commission was in charge of the event and stated they are currently meeting with their media relation department(Credit : MMAJunkie). Harris was released by UFC following the event.

-NEO Women's Professional Wrestling in Japan will be closing at the end of the year, citing lack of a deep talent pool - not financial problems(Credit : Japan Times).

-Stone Mountain, GA resident Ahmad Gill was arrested at 3:45pm Wednesday, suspected in the shooting death of Lucha Libre USA's Solid(Chris Long) at the Shooters Alley strip club in DeKalb County early Sunday morning, November 21st. An accomplice, Jason Stephens, has been charged with two felonies(being a party to a crime & making false statements to police), accused of driving Gill to & from the club so Gill could shoot randomly in to the club he was thrown out of earlier by several bouncer, one of which was Long. His bond has been set at $15,000, while Gill is being held at the DeKalb County Jail without bond. Gill entered a plea of 'not guilty' to homicide and aggravated assault Friday at the Dekalb County Magistrate Court(Credit : Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Another bouncer, who had been shot in the buttock during the incident, was released from the hospital later.

-The US Court Of Appeals' Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr. in Georgia has overruled a previous judgment in the lawsuit brought against Larry Flynt Publishing by the Toffolonis(parents of Nancy Benoit) regarding the spring 2008 Hustler Magazine publishing of nude photos taken in 1983 of Nancy. As such, LFP must pay financial damages to the family, though how much will be determined in a trail(Credit : pwinsider, WGN).

-Scott Halls' probation violation hearing was continued in criminal court to December 29th from last Monday(Credit : WGN).

-Amazing Kong returns to Ring Of Honor on Saturday December 18th for their Final Battle 2010 iPPV, teaming with Daizee Haze against Sara Dely Rey & a too-be-determined opponent. Also, "Papa Briscoe", father of The Briscoes, makes his wrestling debut, teaming with his sons against ROH World Tag Team Champions The Kings Of Wrestling & Shane Hagadorn. ROH has been working on getting some surprise appearances for the show, but at least one fell through.

-Jimmy Valiant comes out of retirement Christmas night at Kingsport, TN's armory for Southern States Wrestling(Credit : WGN).

-ECWA will be holding the 15th Super 8 tournament April 30th in Voorhees, NJ.

-Zuffa officials will be meeting with Rio De Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes and others later this month(as they had in October) regarding bringing a UFC event to Brazil in August 2011(Credit :  FiveOuncesOfPain).

-WWE COO Donna Goldsmith is now claiming the WWE TV network is scheduled to not happen until mid 2012-early 2013 at the earliest(Credit : Reuters). WWE & 2X2 signed a 2-year TV distribution deal for Russia yesterday, however.

-Bruno Sammartino had his own float, which he appeared on, this past Saturday at Pittsburgh, PA's Thanksgiving weekend parade(Credit : wrestling observer).

-The Pro Wrestling Hall Of Fame in Amsterdam, NY's  2011 class includes Vincent K. McMahon, The Road Warriors with Paul Ellering, Jerry Lawler, Ivan Koloff, Judy Grable, Billy Robinson, The Sheik, Bronko Nagurski, Everett Marshall, and Dick The Brusier. The Induction Weekend takes place May 20-21.

-'Faster' starring Dwayne Johnson made $12.2 at the US movie theater box office since opening Wednesday November 24th, ranking 7th this weekend(Credit : pwinsider). Johnson also did the voice of Cliffjumper in the first episode of the new Transformers cartoon.

-UFC heavyweight Randy Couture will be filming a movie, 'Setup', with Bruce Willis in Grand Rapids, MI in the first couple weeks of this month, while shooting on The Expendables 2 is targeted for March.

-Meister International is releasing a limited edition signature watch featuring UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva's logo(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Sho Funaki has agreed with River City Wrestling to be head trainer of the FU Dojo in the Coverse, Texas RCW Gym.

-Lance Storm stars in a reality show, World Of Hurt, produced by Pyramid Productions, about Storm teaching wrestlers at his school, set for a 2011 debut on Canada's The Cave(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Matt Hardy filmed an appearance on NBC's Marriage Ref yesterday for airing possibly next month(Credit : pwinsider).

-Colt Cabana, Disco Inferno & Johnny Fairplay star in Ghost Trek, a TV pilot being shot Dec. 10-13(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Trina Michaels was nominated for AVN's 2011 Cross Over Star Of The Year Award for doing wrestling valeting(Credit : wrestling observer). The AVNs take place January 8th at the Palms in Las Vegas, NV(Credit : WGN).

-Shawn Michaels, as an ambassador for the Cross Trail Outfitters Ministry, will go on a personal hunting trip with the winner of a contest, where they will shoot animals just like Jesus would(Credit : pwinsider).

-Paul Heyman has signed with Gallery Books to pen his autobiography, "The Heyman Hustle : Wrestling's Most Extreme Promoter Tells All", set for a summer 2011 release(Credit : pwinsider).

-Dutch Mantell's next book, 'Tales From A Dirt Road', is targeted for a release 'early next month(Credit : WGN).'

-DGUSA will be crowning the first Open The United Gate Tag Team Champions(whatever) via a round robin tournament held over their New York, Philadelphia & Union City, NJ events in January, which will be Austin Aries' first set of appearances for the group(Credit : pwinsider).

DEAD WRESTLER TALLY FOR THE PAST WEEK : 3

-Wrestling Roundtable Radio returns this Tuesday December 7th at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. We'll be discussing WEC's absorption in to UFC, UFC 123, the Best/Worst Of Survivor Series, The Expendables, Chris & Nancy(Irv Muchnick's book on the Benoit murders) being made in to a film, and much more! Maybe TNA Final Resolution 2010. Maybe.

-The Roundtable's own Jay Alletto is auctioning off several wrestling-related items(DVDs, figures) on eBay. Take a look at what you can get here : http://myworld.ebay.com/jalletto1984

-Roundtable guest panelist Shane Hagadorn has started a BLOG on comic books, which you can read here : http://www.shanehagadorn.blogspot.com/

-Jack Laskin, 81, 50s & 60s Canadian-born pro wrestler who performed throughout Canada, Europe & San Francisco, author of the 1999 wrestling play & later book 'One Of The Boys', died Sunday in a Toronto care facility.

-MVP and FCW 'Diva' Vicky Skeeles requested their releases from WWE, which were granted Thursday.

-The 3rd Annual Fighter's Only World MMA Awards took place Wednesday night from The Pearl at The Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, NV, for airing December 9th on Versus. UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo won Fighter Of The Year, while Fight Of The Year went to UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva Vs. Chael Sonnen from UFC 117. Strikeforce Women's Middleweight Champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos won Female Fighter Of The Year.

-Bellator FC is expected to announce a new multi-year broadcasting deal with Fox to air live events on F/X, which will be replayed via tape delay on FSN and Fuel TV(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-The winner of Strikeforce's light heavyweight main event tonight between Dan Henderson(25-8) and Renato "Babalu" Sobral(36-8) will get a shot at Champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante, 10-2(Credit : MMAWeekly).

-The California State Athletic Commission(CSAC) has reduced UFC middleweight Chael Sonnen's drug test failure punishment(from showing elevated testosterone levels before his Aug. 7th fight with Champion Anderson Silva in Oakland, CA at UFC 117) from a 1 year suspension to 6 months, meaning he can return to fighting March 2nd. At the same hearing, Strikeforce heavyweight Josh Barnett's hearing for being re-licensed was rescheduled for February. Also, beginning in 2011 for use throughout the year in over 100 bouts, the California AMMA Organization(CAMO) in conjunction with the CSAC will be experimenting with a new points system for amateur MMA(AMMA) fights(Credit : MMAJunkie, ESPN). Fights will be scored under the current Unified Rules standard and this new Mixed Martial Arts Specific Scoring(MMAS) system simultaneously to determine which works best. The new system utilizes half points, a fourth judge(a tie-breaking table judge) and an accounting of damage, domination, effective striking, catch, near-submissions, & grappling in addition to the criteria of the Unified Rules. The new rules could be implemented in professional fights if successful.

-UFC middleweight Maiquel Falcao was arrested in Pelotas, Brazil yesterday for an assault charge from 2002, though his management claims it should be resolved quickly(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Bubba The Love Sponge said on his radio show Thursday that despite what Hulk Hogan implied on Twitter weeks ago, Hogan is not married yet. In addition, Hogan will require yet another back surgery, as the previously inserted electrical spinal cord stimulator was not working. Hogan is also considering a new reality TV show.

-Randy Orton had an MRI on his neck this week(Credit : pwinsider).

-Tyler Reks had a deviated septum reset recently.

-Jim Powers officially announced his retirement yesterday.

-A sequel to EA MMA is planned(Credit : f4wonline).

-On the Thursday November 18th iMPACT!, Douglas Williams turned face on Fortune, saving Matt Morgan from a beatdown in a match Vs. Ric Flair where if Morgan won he'd choose the referee for his title re-match with Champion Jeff Hardy at tomorrow's Final Resolution PPV. Mr. Anderson was chosen.

-PWTorch reports that DDP recently turned down an offer to return to TNA.

-EPIC WAR, a southern California indy, is attempting to break the Guinness World Record for longest professional wrestling match on Saturday December 18th at the Murrieta Community Center with a Six Hour IronMan Challenge between "Rockstar" Mike Cordova and Jaysin Strife. The current record was set July 5th, 1916 by Ed "Strangler" Lewis & Joe Stecher's 4 hour, 52 minute-long draw in Benson, NB's Gene Melady Stadium at the Douglas County Fairgrounds.

-Lance Storm is a featured character in the thriller novel 'Like A Vengeance' by Marcus Wynne.

-Lex Luger is opening a new business in Atlanta, 'Total Package Fitness' for exercise, nutrition, supplementation and wellness consultation.

-WWE will be releasing a '50 Biggest Matches In WWE History' DVD next fall.

-Raven & Johnny Kashmere will be doing stand up comedy at The Deck at Harbor Point in Philadelphia, PA Thursday December 16th.

-DGUSA will be featured on 'Strange Days with Bob Saget' this Tuesday on A&E.



Tuesday, December 7, 2010 :

-Roundtable Radio returns tonight at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. Call 347-857-4647 to share your thoughts & questions, as we'll be discussing WEC/UFC, Strikeforce, TNA Final Resolution 2010, the Best/Worst Of Survivor Series, The Expendables, the future 'Chris & Nancy' film, and much more!

-King Curtis Iaukea, 73, former ASPW(Britain) & WWWF wrestler who also performed in Florida, the Pacific Northwest, San Francisco, Hawaii, Australia, died Saturday(Credit : Honolulu Star Advertiser).

-FCW Florida Tag Team Champions Wes Brisco & Xavier Woods were stripped of their titles Wednesday due to Brisco suffering a torn ACL at a recent Punta Gorda, FL show. New Champions were crowned Friday in Plant City, FL's Armory when Col. Damien Sandow & Titus O'Neil defeated Xavier Woods & Heavyweight Champion Mason Ryan to win that titles.

-At the 2010 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup this past Saturday in Brooksville, FL's National Guard Armory, Sami Callihan defeated FIP Champion Jon Moxley in the finals to win the tournament(Credit : PW Torch).

-UFC presented The Ultimate Fighter Season 12 Finale from the Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, NV this past Saturday. In the first featherweight fight in UFC history, Leonard Garcia(15-6-1) was awarded a split decision "victory" over Nam Phan(16-8) in the opener. Light heavyweight Stephan Bonnar(13-7) won over Igor Pokrajac(22-8) by unanimous decision, as did lightweight Jonathan Brookins(12-3), who defeated Michael Johnson(8-5) also by unanimous decision to become the TUF 12 winner.

-"Strikeforce : Henderson Vs. Babalu II" also took place Saturday night at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. In his SF debut, welterweight Paul Daley(26-9-2) scored a stunning knockout on Scott Smith(17-8), 2:09 in round 1. Heavyweight Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva(15-2) finished Valentijn Overeem-replacement Mike Kyle(18-8-1) via TKO(punches) 2:49 in round 2. And in the main event, Dan Henderson(26-8) earned a Light Heavyweight title shot against Champion Rafael Cavalcante(10-2) with his 1st round KO of Renato "Babalu" Sobral(36-9) in 1:53 of round 1. Herschel Walker(1-0), originally scheduled to fight that night, could be ready to fight again January 29th at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, CA. SF is also looking to do  a show in conjunction with the 2011 Arnold Sports Classic in Columbus, OH's Nationwide Arena this March, and is "close" to finalizing negotiations with M-1 Global regarding a new contract for Fedor Emelianenko, 32-2-1(Credit : Daily Dayton News).

-TNA Final Resolution 2010 took place Sunday at the iMPACT! Zone in Orlando, FL. Doug Williams defeated TV Champion AJ Styles for the title in 14:50 via pinfall following a Styles Clash. Tag Team Champions The Motor City Machine Guns retained the titles over Generation me in a Full Metal Mayhem title match, scaling ladders to grab the hanging titles in 16:27, Abyss defeated D'Angel Dinero in 11:40 of their casket match, and in the main event, Champion Jeff Hardy once again retained the title against Matt Morgan via pinfall following a Twist Of Hate, this time on a chair in 12:31. There was concern over Jeff Hardy's condition prior to air time, though various explanations point to either travel exhaustion or alcohol inhibition. Samoa Joe, who lost to Jeff Jarrett in 9:05 of their Submission match by tapping out to an ankle lock, is still in negotiations with TNA, as his contract expired the day of the PPV. At the iMPACT! tapings yesterday, the Knockouts Tag Team title were vacated(Hamada was released, and Taylor Wilde's deal expired without interest from TNA in re-signing her), with a tournament to start this Thursday to crown new Champions(Credit : wrestling observer, pwinsider).

-GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion Yoshinobu Kanemaru lost the title to Kotaro Suzuki at NOAH's Budokan Hall show Sunday(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Charly Manson returned to AAA this past Sunday on their show at Auditorio Benito Juarez De Zapopan, joining Los Bizarros(Credit : Lucha World).

-Last night on WWE Monday Night RAW from the KFC YUM Center in Lousiville, KY, Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov won the Tag Team titles from Champions Heath Slater & Justin Gabriel by pinfall following a Cobra Strike 12 minutes in to an elimination tag match that also featured the Usos and Mark Henry & Yoshi Tatsu. Also, FCW's Jackson Andrews debuted as Tyson Kidd's new partner.

-"Superstar" Billy Graham has proclaimed his appearance at WrestleReunion in Los Angeles this January 29-31, 2011 to be his last public appearances, as he appears to be near-death due to third stage liver disease. He was hospitalized Friday November 26th due to extreme swelling of his feet, ankles & calves and has made funeral & cemetery plot arrangements in Phoenix, AZ(Credit : The Post & Courier).

-Current WSU Champion Mercedes Martinez looks to debut with AAA and perform full time in Mexico early next year, likely to team with Alissa Flash(Credit : Diva Dirt).

-T.J. Perkins returns to ROH for their December double shot, December 17th in Plymouth, MA Vs. Kyle O'Reilly, & at Final Battle 2010 in New York City's Manhattan Center. Perkins will not be the only former ROH wrestler to return for the iPPV.

-DREAM presents Dynamite!! 2010 on December 31st from the Saitama Super Arena in Japan featuring Kazushi Sakuraba(26-14-1) Vs. Welterweight Champion Marius Zaromskis, 13-5(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-SoCalVal is working with the Muscular Dystrophy Association to raise awareness and funds.

-Batista stars in The Scorpion King 3, currently being filmed(Credit : 411mania).

-Mick Foley will be on Last Call with Carson Daly this Friday(Credit : pwinsider).

-Stacy Keibler appears in 'Blue Mountain State' this Wednesday on Spike TV.

-A Kofi Kingston special will be airing on InDemand and other cable systems(Credit : pwinsider).



Thursday, December 9, 2010 :

-Roundtable Radio returns Tuesday night December 21st at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. We'll be discussing the "Chris & Nancy" film based on Irv Muchnick's book about the Benoit murders since we ran out of time for it this past Tuesday, UFC 124, WWE TLC 2010, and much more, including following up on our Best/Worst Debuts, Returns & Makeovers show. Call 347-857-4647 to share your thoughts & questions.

-Sweet Brown Sugar(Galton "Skip" Young), former 70s & 80s WCCW, WWC, FCW & NWA wrestler, died Sunday(Credit : wrestling observer). He was in his early 50s.

-UFC 131 is official for Toronto, ONT, Canada, on April 30th at the Rogers Centre(formerly the Toronto Skydome), and will be accompanied by a 2-day fan expo at the Direct Energy Centre April 29-30th. This will be UFC's first show in Toronto, and caused Ring Of Honor to push back their planned Detroit/Toronto double shot that weekend. Their Dearborn, MI show at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center will now be Friday May 6th, and their return to the Ted Reeve Arena in Toronto will be Saturday May 7th. UFC 128(originally planned for Abu Dhabi, UAE on May 12th & possibly featuring light heavyweight fights of Champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua Vs. Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira Vs. Tito Ortiz) may not be UFC's return Abu Dhabi afterall according to UFC President Dana White as the venue used last time(the Concert Arena at the Ferrari World theme park on Yas Island) no longer exists and a replacement hasn't been found, but a Scotland debut for UFC is planned for that month, likely Fight Night 25 at Braehead Arena in Renfrewshire. Continuing their international expansion, Dana White announced there will be three international versions of The Ultimate Fighter in 2011, with a Canadian version to follow. Zuffa is also in negotiations with Japanese DREAM featherweight Norifumi "KID" Yamamoto(18-3-1) for a possible UFC debut in February or March(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Strikeforce's rumored event March 5th at Columbus, OH's Nationwide Arena has been made official, and will be headlined by Dan Henderson(26-8) challenging Light Heavyweight Champion Rafael Cavalcante(10-2) for the title.

-AAA has been in talks with Matt Hardy, Carlito & MVP(Credit : wrestling observer). TNA's Hernandez has been wrestling in the Mexican promotion for several months, and with his TNA deal possibly expiring in December, he is expected to stay in AAA(Credit : wrestleview). Female Reina De Reinas Champion luchador Sexy Star was recently on a 3-day tour of Japan.

-Tara injured her right elbow in a cage match Vs. Mickie James taped Monday at the iMPACT! Zone for airing tonight, suffering a torn ligament(Credit : pwinsider).

-Goldust will be out of action for 5-6 months from shoulder surgery he will have tomorrow in Birmingham, AL.

-Kaval had an MRI on his left ankle today(Credit : pwinsider).

-Floyd Mayweather has been charged with criminal battery against a private security officer Shayne Smith, who Mayweather jabbed on the check November 15th, under left eye, outside of Mayweather's Las Vegas, NV home(Credit : TMZ).

-619661 Canada Inc., the parent company of The Fight Network, filed for bankruptcy last month, seemingly to drop older debt owed to creditors. A meeting with creditors(owed $13,748,318.06) is scheduled for Friday, and the network will continue operation(Credit : pwinsider).

-The NFL and the football team The Tennessee Titans are planning to file an opposition to WWE's attempt to trademark "TitanTron"(Credit : pwinsider).

-UFC middleweight Maiquel Falcao(26-3) was released from detainment in Pelotas, Brazil on 18 months probation for assault charges stemming from a 2002 night club incident(Credit : MMAJunkie). Falcao claimed at the time to have not been involved with an assault on a woman, but was sentenced to 24 months of house arrest & community service. However, his lawyer did inform him of additional responsibilities and Falcao was considered a fugitive. He is now free to travel.

-Triple H's return will be sometime in early 2011 at this point(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Blue Demon, Jr. Vs. Tatanka takes place at this Sunday's Lucha Libre USA taping in Alburquerque, NM(Credit : pwinsider).

-Serena Deeb returns to ROH as Sara Del Rey's partner Vs. Daizee Haze &  Amazing Kong at ROH's iPPV Final Battle 2010, Saturday December 18th at New York City's Manhattan Center. MsChif returns to ROH tonight & tomorrow at their HDNet tapings at the Danny Davis Arena in Louisville, KY.

-Diego Sanchez(22-4) Vs. Martin Kampmann(17-4) in the welterweight division will likely main event UFC On Versus 3 on March 3rd(Credit : MMAJunkie). No venue has been announced as of yet, though Evan Dunham(11-1) Vs. Melvin Guillard(26-8-2, likely replacement for Kenny Florian, 13-5, who pulled out due to a knee injury) could headline UFC Fight Night 23 : UFC Fights For The Troops 2 on January 22nd at Fort Hood in Killeeen, Texas(Credit : Heavy).

-Taz, Grand Street Media and a certified Master Fitness Specialist will be holding "Finishing" sessions in Long Island, NY for wrestlers with at least 2 years experience. Starting in January, the sessions will be 6 weekly, 3 hour classes on preparations wrestlers need to do to get looked at by WWE or TNA officials, flexibility & injury prevention.

-Casting for WWE's next Tough Enough is expected to finish in January, with a spring debut for the show featuring developmental(FCW) wrestlers(Credit : pwinsider).

-Bob Sapp stars the 3D film 'Conan The Barbarian'. The movie will be released August 19th(Credit : Super Hero Hype)'.

-WWE's 'The Chaperone' starring Triple H will be released in theaters in February followed quickly by the Blu-Ray/DVD release(Credit : wrestlenewz).

-Tammy Stych is working on a cookbook, 'Out Of The Ring, Into The Kitchen: Cooking With Wrestling's Original Diva.'



Wednesday, December 15, 2010 :

-Roundtable Radio returns Tuesday night December 21st at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. We'll be discussing UFC 124, WEC 53, WWE TLC 2010, the "Chris & Nancy" film based on Irv Muchnick's book about the Benoit murders, and much more, including following up on our Best/Worst Debuts, Returns & Makeovers show. Call 347-857-4647 to share your thoughts & questions.

-The Wrestling Roundtable presents an exclusive match : Balls Mahoney Vs. Roadkill from the Breed MC Bike Day 1998 rally, which was held that year in New Jersey and hosted by Bam Bam Bigelow. Shot by Chad Anderson, the match is available here :



-A new teaser for The Wrestling Roundtable is available here :





-This past Thursday at Tokyo, Japan's Korakuen Hall, Real Japan(RJPW) presented "Extreme", which saw NJPW's Tiger Mask(IV) defeat the original Tiger Mask(Satoru Sayama) in 10:41 by ref stoppage(Credit : puroresufan).

-Also this past Saturday in Tokyo, Japan's Ariake Coliseum, Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem(33-11) won the 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix, defeating three-time K-1 WGP Champion, "The Dutch Lumberjack" Peter Aerts(2-1 MMA, 102-29-1 kickboxing), 67 seconds in to the finals of the tournament via stoppage due to strikes and upping his kickboxing record to 5-0, making him the first person to win titles in kickboxing & MMA simultaneously. Overeem is pushing to fight on FEG's DREAM "Dynamite!! 2010" event on New Year's eve, though an opponent is unlikely to be found in time, and he plans his second defense of the SF Heavyweight title in the spring(Credit : MMAJunkie). 

-UFC 124 took place at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada this past Saturday, and saw Welterweight Champion Georges St Pierre(21-2) sweep Josh Koscheck(15-5), taking every round and winning via unanimous decision. Although talks of a dream fight between GSP & Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva have heated up once again, GSP's next fight is likely to be a Welterweight title defense against Jake Shields(26-4-1). In the other welterweight division fight, Thiago Alves(18-7) also won a unanimous decision victory over John Howard(14-6). Mac Danzig(20-8-1) knocked out lightweight Joe "Daddy" Stevenson(31-12) 1:54 in to round 1, and heavyweight Stefan Struve(21-4) won 3:55 in to round 1 over Sean McCorkle(10-1) via TKO(punches).

-Jersey All-Pro Wrestling(JAPW) & Combat Zone Wrestling(CZW) presented a double-shot of a shows this past Saturday at The (ECW/Asylum) Arena. New JAPW Light Heavyweight Champion Jushin "Thunder" Liger(who won the title a day earlier at the Rahway Rec Center in New Jersey, defeating Kenny Omega, El Generico, B-Boy, Azrieal & Bandido, Jr. in a 6-way elimination match by pinning Azrieal after a brainbuster 25:18 in to the match) successfully defended the title against "Lightning" Mike Quackenbush on the afternoon JAPW 13th Anniversary Show. On the evening show, CZW presented their first iPPV, Cage Of Death XII. The Briscoes returned to CZW to challenge new Tag Team Champions Philly's Most Wanted, who defeated The Osirian Portal in a tournament finals match for the vacant belts when Sabian cradled Ophidian for the pinfall after taking Opidian's mask off. Yuko Miyamoto won the Ultraviolent Underground Championship, defeating Nick Gage via pinfall after a moonsault off a ladder. In the main event, The Suicide Kings beat Cult Fiction in the Cage Of Death when Devon Moore was the sole survivor after MASADA & Billy Gram fell through tables.

-This past Sunday at the Aichi Prefectual Gymnasium in Japan, NJPW taped for Samurai! TV. The Motor City Machine Guns defeated Prince Devitt & Ryusuke Taguchi when Shelley pinned Devitt after a Made In Detroit in 13:52. Minoru Suzuki returned, getting in to a brawl with Yuji Nagata to renew their feud(Credit : puroresufan).

-This past Monday on WWE Monday Night RAW from New Orleans Arena in Louisiana, the 2010 Slammys were presented. John Cena(who was 're-hired' by Wade Barrett during the show) won Superstar Of The Year. Cena subsequently Tweeted that his "cousin Juan Cena" was 'fired'. Michelle McCool won a battle royal in 3:30 by eliminating Beth Phoenix to win the Diva Of The Year Slammy. And former WCW World Heavyweight Champion David Arquette made his WWE debut, as the Guest Host teamed with Alex Riley to lose to Randy Orton in a handicap match, when Orton pinned Riley in 2:45 following an RKO.

-TNA has signed Tommy Mercer, who plays Amazing Red's 'brother'. They will also be sending many wrestlers to New Japan for their "WRESTLE KINGDOM V" Tokyo Dome PPV January 4th headlined by Champion Jeff Hardy Vs. Tatsuya Naito and featuring a CMLL tag match, as CMLL World Middleweight Champion Jushin Liger & Hector Garza face La Sombra & Mascara Dorada. Beer Money, Inc. also challenge for the IWGP Tag Team titles in a three-way with Champions Bad Intentions and Manabu Nakanishi & Strong Man, Rob Van Dam faces Toru Yano, and other wrestlers from NOAH, DDT & Zero-1 will be featured. Tag Team Champions The Motor City Machine Guns will be going back to NJPW early though, touring later this month(Credit : pwinsider, puroresufan).

-Some spoilers for upcoming TNA shows : Angelina Love & Winter won the vacant Knockouts Tag Team titles in the finals of a tournament to crown new Champions when they defeated Madison Rayne & Tara in a match that will air December 23rd on Spike TV, and Kurt Angle returns at the Genesis PPV January 9th to face Jeff Jarrett in an "MMA exhibition" match(Credit : pwinsider, wrestling observer).

-DREAM featherweight Michihiro Omigawa(12-8-1) has signed with to return to UFC(who also signed DREAM bantamweight Norifumi Yamamoto, 18-3-1). Omigawa is expected to face Chad Mendes(9-0) in early 2011.

-Bellator Fighting Championships have signed a 3-year deal with MTV2, beginning in March 2011. An expected deal with Fox to air on F/X, FSN & Fuel TV fell through(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-The Fight Network is now partially owned by new CEO Leonard Asper, former shareholders, Louden Owen & Ed Nordholm and more. They plan to re-organize business plans(Credit : pwinsider).

-Kenny Omega has pulled out of his return to ROH on this weekend's Boston/NYC double shot.

-Jeff Hardy is scheduled to return to court in Moore County, NC January 20th on drug charges. Chasyn Rance returns to court also, on March 9th as part of a pre-trail conference on statuary rape charges in Orange County, FL(Credit : pwinsider).

-Serena will be wrestling for Tajiri's SMASH! wrestling show in Japan on Saturday January 29th.

-After initially setting up a poll to determine a new Mexican National Trios Champion teammate for Metro & Stuka, Jr. after Mascara Dorada vacated his third, EMLL has decided to vacate the titles outright and hold a tournament to crown new Champions starting December 19th at their Arena Coliseo show in Mexico(Credit : Lucha World).

-Rey Mysterio, Sr. was named a commissioner for the Box Y Lucha commission in Tijuana, Mexico this past weekend(Credit : Lucha World).

-Frank Mir(14-5) Vs. Brendan Schaub(7-1) could happen in early 2011, maybe March(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-WEC's final event before being absorbed completely in to UFC, 'WEC 53 : Henderson Vs. Pettis' in Glendale, AZ's Jobing.com Arena this Thursday live on Versus, is headlined by Lightweight Champion Ben Henderson(12-1) Vs. Anthony Pettis(11-1). The winner faces the winner of UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar(13-1)'s defense against Gray Maynard(10-0-1) on UFC 125(January 1st at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas, NV) in a 2011 unification bout. Also, Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz(16-1) defends against Scott Jorgensen(11-3), the winner to be the first UFC Bantamweight Champion.

-UFC 128, originally planned to be the company's return to Abu Dhabi, will now instead be UFC's return to New Jersey, as it will take place Saturday March 19th at the Prudential Center in Newark. UFC 127, set for February 27th at the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia, was one of the fastest sell-outs in UFC history and will be headlined by a welterweight showdown between Jon Fitch(23-3-1) and BJ Penn, 16-7-1(Credit : f4wonline).

-Hulk Hogan married fiancee Jennifer McDaniel yesterday at Hogan's Clearwater, FL house, in his backyard near the beach(Credit : TMZ).

-UFC light heavyweight Quinton "Rampage" Jackson appears on Dr. Phil today to discuss teen gangs.

-'Special Attraction: An Inside Look At Female Wrestling', a documentary on indy women's wrestling, is set for a mid-2011 release(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Goldust's autobiography, Cross Rhodes: Goldust Out Of The Darkness, was released today. Dutch Mantell's Tales From A Dirt Road is also available.

-Ring Of Honor taped their first HDNet shows outside of Philadelphia this past Thursday & Friday at the Danny Davis Arena in Louisville, KY. OVW Southern Tag Team Champions Fighting Spirit(Sucio & Fang) lost the belts to The Elite in a pre-show dark match. Nick Dinsmore made his ROH debut, losing to "The Prodigy" Mike Bennett by pinfall following a spinebuster. Also making his ROH was Alex Silva, losing to Michael Elgin by pinfall. On Friday's show, OVW Heavyweight Champion "Mr. Media" Cliff Compton defeated "Low Rider" Matt Barela via rollup pinfall in their ROH debuts dark match, as did OVW TV Champion Mohamad Ali Vaez, defeating Christopher Silvio. TV Champion Eddie Edwards lost the title to Christopher Daniels by pinfall after an Angel's Wings.



Thursday, December 16, 2010 :

-Roundtable Radio returns Tuesday night December 21st at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. We'll be discussing UFC 124, WEC 53, WWE TLC 2010, the future "Chris & Nancy" film based on Irv Muchnick's book about the Benoit murders, and much more, including following up on our Best/Worst Debuts, Returns & Makeovers show(Show #46). Call 347-857-4647 to share your thoughts & questions.

-Hans Mortier(Jacob Grobbe), 86, former bodybuilder & WWWF wrestler who also wrestled in Florida, Montreal, Houston, & Hawaii under many different names, died at 2am yesterday morning after a long illness(Credit : Slam! Wrestling, pwinsider).

-Nemesis Fighting presented 'Global Invasion' this past Saturday at the Barcelo Convention Center in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, an event that at least 8 of the fighters that performed that night have not been paid for yet. In the main event, light heavyweight Keith Jardine(16-9-1) defeated Francisco "Kiko" France(6-2) via unanimous decision in a bout Jardine was accused of greasing in. Heavyweight Paul Buentello(29-13) also won via unanimous decision over Kerry Schall, 23-12-1(Credit : Sports Betting World, Blloody Elbow).

-UFC announced yesterday they will return to Brazil for a major show on Saturday August 27th at the HSBC Arena in Rio De Janeiro. During the press conference, Royce Gracie(14-3-3) hinted that he might be interested in fighting on the card. Randy Couture has been hinting at retirement lately, saying that he'd like to fight either Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua or Lyoto Machida, but if he can't fight either he'd be done fighting. Done fighting in UFC, at least for the time being, are Joe Doerksen(46-14) and LC Davis(16-4), who were cut this week(Davis' WEC contract not being picked up with the merger). Duane Ludwig(20-11) was re-signed to a 4-fight deal, however.

-Ubisoft is being sued by Zuffa for trademark infringement over the term "ultimate fighting" used to promote their video game 'Fighters Uncaged'(Credit : Sherdog).

-Midway through a felony trial, former TUF contestant Jeremy Jackson plead guilty to raping a former girlfriend on June 28th, 2008. Jackson was charged with 1 count of forcible rape with the special allegation of entering a residence to sexually assault a victim. He will be sentenced February 14th, facing 25 years to life(Credit : Ventura County Star).

-The lawsuit in the case of former WWE Global Licensing Coordinator Fara D'Angelo against WWE for sexual harassment by then-Senior Director Of International Consumer Products Alex Romer has been settled. A judge had ordered the case to be dismissed, but it can be reopened until January 13th if either side fails to make good on the settlement agreement(Credit : pwinsider). No settlement could be reached in the Martha Hart lawsuit at a December 3rd meeting, however.

-Kaval's ankle MRI came back negative.

-DREAM Welterweight Champion Marius Zaromskis(13-5-1) faces 41-year-old Kazushi Sakuraba(26-14-1, 2 NCs, making his welterweight debut) at FEG's 'Dynamite!! 2010', December 31st at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan.

-Daniel Puder(8-0) Vs. Tank Abbott(10-14) is close to being officially signed for February 26th, to take place in southern California(Credit : f4wonline).

-Herschel Walker(1-0)'s return to Strikeforce will be January 29th at the HP Pavillion in San Jose, CA against an unnamed opponent - possibly Scott Carson, who Walker was originally scheduled to face at December 4th's "Henderson Vs. Babalu II" event in St. Louis, MO's Scottrade Center until a suffering a deep cut under his left eye from a knee strike by Daniel Cormier Monday November 22nd at San Jose's American Kickboxing Academy(Credit : Liquida, Blood Elbow).

-2000 Olympic gold medalist Greco-Roman wrestler Rulon Gardner will compete on the next season of NBC's The Biggest Loser, premiering January 4th(Credit : MMAPlaygound).

-'Deep Focus : They Live' by Jonathan Lethem is out now, a book examining John Carpenter's 1988 sci-fi film 'They Live'.



Monday, December 20, 2010 :

-Roundtable Radio returns tomorrow night, Tuesday December 21st at 11pm EST/8pm PST on BlogTalkRadio. We'll be discussing UFC 124, WEC 53, ROH Final Battle 2010, WWE TLC 2010, the future "Chris & Nancy" film based on Irv Muchnick's book about the Benoit murders, and much more, including following up on our Best/Worst Debuts, Returns & Makeovers show(Show #46). Call 347-857-4647 to share your thoughts & questions.

-WEC 53, the promotion's last event, was also their debut show at Glendale, AZ's Jobing.com Arena this past Thursday, live on Versus. Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone(13-3) defeated Chris Horodecki(16-3) via submission in a triangle choke 2:43 in to round 3 of their lightweight fight. Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz(17-1) bested Scott Jorgensen(12-4) via unanimous decision to be christened the first UFC Bantamweight Champion. And in the main event, Anthony Pettis(13-1) beat Lightweight Champion Ben Henderson(12-2) to win the title via unanimous decision in a fight that featured an amazing kick off of the cage by Pettis. Pettis faces the winner of UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar(13-1) Vs. Gray Maynard(10-0) in a unification match in 2011. First though, Edgar/Maynard main events UFC 125, Sat. January 1st at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, NV.

-ROH Final Battle 2010 took place this past Saturday at the Manhattan Center in New York City, NY. Champion Roderick Strong successfully defended the title against Davey Richards, defeating Richards via technical submission when referee Todd Sinclair stopped the match in 31:00 when Strong had Richards in a Strong Hold. Mike "Papa" Briscoe made his pro wrestling debut, teaming with sons Jay & Mark to defeat the World Tag Team Champions The Kings Of Wrestling & Shane Hagadorn when Hagadorn was pinned by Mark in 16:00 following a Doomsday Device delivered by Mike. And in the main event, an 'unsanctioned' Fight Without Honor, El Generico defeated Kevin Steen in 32:00 with an unprotected chair shot to the head of the kneeling Steen(Credit : 411mania). The stipulation of Steen's loss was his "ROH career being over".

-WWE TLC 2010 emanated from the Toyota Center in Houston, TX this past Sunday. Tag Team Champions Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov retained the titles over Nexus' Heath Slater & Justin Gabriel via disqualification in 7:00 when Michael McGuillicutty attacked Marella. Champion The Miz also retained over Randy Orton in a Tables match when Miz shoved Alex Riley in to Orton when Orton was standing on the apron, sending Orton in to a table outside the ring at 15:00. Edge won his 10th World title when he climbed the ladder in the TLC match with World Heavyweight Champion Kane, Alberto Del Rio & Rey Mysterio. At the 22:00 mark, Edge claimed the belt at the top, making him a 6-time World Heavyweight Champion. And in the main event Chairs match, John Cena defeated Wade Barrett in 19:00 via pinfall following an Attitude Adjustment on seated chairs(Credit : 411mania).

-Daizee Haze suffered a broken nose during a tag team match with Sara Del Rey Vs. Fire Ant & Soldier Ant at Chikara's "Reality Is Relative" show on Sunday December 12th at the Goodwill Fire Assoc. Hall in Reading, PA. Haze & Rey lost in 5:00. However, Haze wrestled through her injury at ROH's iPPV Final Battle, teaming with Awesome Kong Vs. Rey & Serena Deeb, Deeb making her ROH return. Sara pinned Haze in 14:00 following a piledriver. Haze plans to get her nose looked at this week(Credit : OWW, 411mania).

-Samoa Joe has signed a new long-term contract with TNA, possibly between 2-3 years in length.

-Bellator FC Featherweight Champion Joe Warren(6-1) claims to be putting his MMA career on hold for 6-7 months in December 2011 so he can make a run at the 2012 London Olympic Games in wrestling(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-TNA 'Knockout' Tara's bike shop, Black Widow Customs(BWC) on Preston Highway in Louisville, KY, had to have fires put out in it Thursday morning. The shop's window tinter came to work to find it had been broken in to, vandalized with several quickly-spreading small fires on the ground near a car inside the stop. The fire department arrived quickly to put out the fires. Some of the other businesses sustained smoke damage. WHAS11, a local news station, had featured BWC the previous day in their Consumer Watch investigation featuring an unhappy customer(Credit : WHAS11). Tara, meanwhile, had tumors cut out of her breast Thursday morning.

-Scottish comedic actor Greg Hemphill will be special refereeing TNA's January house show in Scotland show(Credit : pwinsider).

-UFC On Versus 3 takes place March  3rd, with the promotion targeting a Kentucky venue to make their KY debut in.

-Jun Akiyama returns to NOAH on their January 15th show at the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium, teaming with Akitoshi Saito Vs. Go Shiozaki & Shuhei Taniguchi. Akiyama has been wrestling sporadically since vacating the GHC Heavyweight title on June 14, 2009 due to injuries. The final First Navigation 2011 tour show for NOAH takes place at Tokyo's Korakuen Hall January 29th, featuring GHC Jr. Heavyweight Champion Kotaro Suzuki Vs. Eddie Edwards(Credit : Green Destiny).

-Kevin Nash stars in 'The Almighty Thor', a straight-to-video movie by studio The Asylum(Credit : wrestling observer).

-WWE will be releasing 'The WrestleMania Story' Blu-Ray & DVD March 15th. Their video game, WWE All Stars, is set for a March 29th release(Credit : pwinsider).

-TNA plans on releasing a Best Of Mick Foley DVD this April.

-Rebecca Budig, former host of WWE Sunday Night Heat, is a finalist on ABC's Skating With The Stars(Credit : wrestling observer).



Friday, December 31, 2010 :

-Wrestling Roundtable Radio will be going on hiatus for a few weeks to allow host Eric Santamaria to put the finishing touches on the soon-to-be-released Wrestling Road Diaries, which should have a January release. We're happy to announce, however, that Roundtable Radio will be simulcast on GoFightLive starting with our next show. Check back with Wrestling Roundtable for updates on when the Radio show will return and when Wrestling Road Diaries is available!

-Shocker defeated Atlantis for the NWA Historic Light Heavyweight title at EMLL's Tuesday December 14th Arena Mexico show, making Shocker a 3-time Champion. However, he suffered a meniscal tear & a patellar tendon rupture in his right knee Sunday December 19th at EMLL's Arena Coliseo show. In the main event that night, Shocker had teamed with Blue Panther & La Mascara to defeat Atlantis, Ultimo Guerrero & Rey Bucanero by disqualification. Surgery to repair the injuries performed at Hospital Obregon afterwards means Shocker will be out at least 3-4 months recovering. Meanwhile, the NWA Historic Light Heavyweight title will be re-designed(Credit : Lucha World, The Gladiatores).

-Aleksander Emelianenko(17-4) suffered a TKO loss to Peter Graham(6-3-1) at the Drake 5 event, Saturday December 18th in Khabarovsk, Russia, 2:59 in to round 2 due to leg kicks.

-This past Thursday(December 23rd), New Japan presented "Road To Kingdom ~Battle XMas!~" at Tokyo, Japan's Korakuen Hall for Samurai! TV. TAKA Michinoku & NOSAWA Rongai appeared as Taichi's mystery partners against Jushin Liger, Ryusuke Taguchi & Koji Kanemoto, TAKA getting the win for his team by pinfall in 11:24 with a side cradle on Taguchi(Credit : Puroresu Fan).

-This past Friday(Christmas Eve, December 24th), Pro Wrestling NOAH presented the "NOAHFUL Gift In Differ 2010" at the Differ Ariake. NOAH booker(VP) Naomichi Maurufuji & Atsushi Aoki defeated GHC Jr. Tag Team Champions Tiger Mask(IV) & Koji Kanemoto 23:18 in to the match via pinfall following Aoki's Assault Point on Kanemoto to become the new Champions and making Marufuji a 2-time Champion. Their first defense of the belts will be at NOAH's First Navigation 2011 event in the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium January 15th against Osaka Pro's Atsushi Kotoge & Daisuke Harada, while NOAH returns to the UK May 13th & 14th(Credit : Puroresu Fan, A-Merchandise).

-Dragon Gate's FINAL GATE 2010 took place on Sunday December 26th at Japan's Fukuoka Kokusai Center. Ricochet, CIMA & Dragon Kid won Dragon Gate's Open The Triangle Gate belts from Champions Takuya Sugawara, Yashushi Kanda & Naoki Tanizaki after a Double Rotation Moonsault 19:40 in to the match(Credit : Puroresu Fan).

- At this past Sunday's RAW house show in New York City, NY's Madison Square Garden(which the Roundtable unfortunately could not attend due to the blizzard that hit the tri-state area), WWE announced a return date of March 19th for their next MSG house show. Ring Of Honor had scheduled a return date to the Manhattan Center, down the street from MSG, on March 19th before either UFC & WWE announced their shows(ROH is looking to move the start time of their show to earlier in the day). Also on WWE's house show Sunday, Nunzio(along with Charles Robinson) refereed the bouts, and Tito Santana replaced Sgt. Slaughter as Rowdy Roddy Piper's guest in Piper's Pit. A bantamweight fight between Urijah Faber(24-4) and Eddie Wineland(18-6-1) is being targeted to co-headline UFC 128 at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ March 19th, along with heavyweights Mirko Cro Cop(27-8-2, 1 NC) Vs. Brendan Schaub(7-1), both underneath the main event of Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua(19-4) Vs. Rashad Evans, 16-1-1(Credit : MMAFighting).

-WWE's Monday Night RAW on December 20 at Austin, TX's Frank Erwin Center saw Melina turn heel on Natalya, slapping the Women's Champion in the face, and CM Punk attack John Cena with a chair after his victory over Dolph Ziggler. This past Monday at Albany, New York's Times Union Center, CM Punk was revealed as the new leader of Nexus.

-UFC legend Chuck Liddel(21-8) announced his retirement at Wednesday's press conference for UFC 125, taking on the role of new Executive Vice President Of Business Development at UFC.

-There are rumors that former UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar(5-2) wants out of his contract(which has 1 fight left on it) so he can wrestle at WWE's WrestleMania 26(Credit : mixedmartialarts.com).

-John Cena(who 'What's Playing' reports is rumored to be looked at to star in a 'True Lies' TV movie & series) suffered an injury in the main event of WWE's Wilkes-Barre RAW house show Tuesday night. In a steel cage match with Wade Barrett, Cena's pelvis suffered what appears to be a deep bone & muscle bruise(a 'hip pointer') while taking The Wasteland. Though it shouldn't be serious, The Big Show has replaced Cena on the remainder of the house show tour this week as a precaution. Cena will be out several weeks(Credit : pwinsider).

-WWE released Kaval on Thursday December 23rd, but has re-signed Shawn Michaels to a new long-term deal. Also, Ashley Valence, host of WWE NXT's second season, has quit WWE to pursue acting in Los Angeles with the Lane Management Group. Kaval will once again use the Low Ki moniker in his immediate appearances.

-Jake "The Snake" Roberts, previously stating he'd retire at the end of 2010, has stated that he will have his 'retirement' match at WrestleReunion's Pro Wrestling Guerilla event, Saturday January 29th in Los Angeles, CA.

-BattleARTS in Japan will be shutting down in mid 2011(Credit : Puroresu Fan).

-UFC has fired lightweight Dustin Hazelett(12-7), after his UFC 124 1st round loss via submission in a triangle choke to Mark Bocek,(9-3) at Montreal, Quebec, Canada's Bell Centre on December 11th. Also cut  was WEC lightweight Chris Horodecki(16-3), who lost to Donald Cerrone at WEC 53(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-4th degree BJJ black belt & 2-time Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Daniel Gracie(5-2-1) has signed with Bellator FC and will compete in their Season 4 Light Heavyweight tournament in March.

-DGUSA has signed PAC, while Brodie Lee makes his first tour of Japan for Dragon Gate January 14th-18th. TNT, an indy wrestler from Australia, recently wrestled for DG as well(Credit : Puroresu Fan).

-Hulk Hogan is recovering from back surgery performed for 9 hours on December 21st to rebuild/straighten his spine(Credit : Radar Online).  

-Evan Bourne has stated he is 2-3 months away from returning to action in WWE.

-SHINGO will be taking time off to head a nagging shoulder injury(Credit : Puroresu Fan).

-EMLL luchador Guerrero Maya Jr. has contracted Hepatitis & will be out of action indefinitely(Credit : Lucha World).

-Jeff Hardy plans to plead guilty next month to drug charges in Moore County, NC court(Credit : The Charlotte Observer).  

-A warrant for the arrest of CZW wrestler Nick Gage(Nicholas Wilson, 30) has been issued by the Camden County Prosecutor Warren Faulk for the 1:40pm Wednesday December 22nd robbery of $3,000 from a PNC Bank on Haddon Avenue in Collingswood, NJ. Should he be caught on charges of second-degree roberry, a $150,000 bail has been set(Credit : NJ.com, AP).

-Awesome Kong was arrested in Tampa, FL oat 11:59am on Wednesday December 22nd for driving with a suspended license. She was released at 1:44pm on $1,000 bond(Credit : pwinsider). That, however, may not have stopped her signing with WWE, as she is hinting at.

-DREAM presents 'Dynamite!! 2010' tonight, live on HDNet from Japan's Saitama Super Arena. Heavyweight Bob Sapp(11-6-1) faces former sumo wrestler Shinchi Suzukaw in a fight contested under "IGF special rules", Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki(26-5, 1 NC) takes on Yuichiro Nagashima(3-2) under MMA/K-1 mixed-rules, Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem(33-11), fresh off his K-1 World Grand Prix victory, has an added-at-the-last-minute fight with Todd Duffee(6-1) for the Interim Heavyweight title, Welterweight Champion Marius Zaromskis(13-5-1) defends against Kazushi Sakuraba(26-14-1, 2 NCs), and in the main event, Featherweight Champion Bibiano Fernandes(8-2) takes on Hiroyuki Takaya, 14-8-1(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-UFC 125's preliminary matches air Saturday night on Ion Television while Spike TV & Zuffa continue to negotiate a new deal to air Prelims in 2011(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Strikeforce's Saturday January 29th show in San Jose, CA's HP Pavilion has been named 'Diaz Vs. Cyborg' after the main event of Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz(23-7, 1 NC) defending against Evangelista Santos(18-13). Heavyweight Herschel Walker(1-0)'s return bout against Scott Carson(4-1) finally takes place, undefeated light heavyweight Roger Gracie(3-0) returns to SF against Trevor Prangley(23-6-1), and Middleweight Champion Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza(13-2, 1 NC) fights Robbie Lawler(20-6, 1 NC), who just signed a new multi-year deal. A middleweight bout between Jason "Mayhem" Miller(24-7) and Timy Kennedy III(12-3) is also likely(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Light heavtweights Tito Ortiz(15-8-1) Vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira(19-4) has been signed for UFC Fight Night 24,  Saturday March 26th in Seattle, WA's Key Arena, UFC's debut event in Washington state(Credit : MMAWeekly). Also, welterweights Dany hardy(23-8) and Anthony "Rumble" Johnson(8-3) square off.

-UFC President Dana White has stated UFC still plans on a return to Abu Dhabi, UAE this year, while an Afghanistan show for US troops has been delayed indefinitely(Credit : MMAJunkie).

-Spike TV has canceled TNA ReAction. The final episode aired last night.

-Casting for WWE's Tough Enough starts in January(Credit : pwinsider).

-'Half Pint Brawlers' has been picked up by MTV Australia(Credit : wrestling observer).

-Shad Gaspard stars in the film 'Untouchable,' produced by Yale Productions and set to shoot in Miami, Fl midway through 2011.

-Chyna stars in the independent movie 'Code Of Death', which shoots this spring.

-Raven did a standup comedy show at Tailgators in Clifton Heights, PA last night.

-WWE's 2-disc "Bobby 'The Brain' Heenan' DVD was released Tuesday. A Big Show DVD called "Big Show : A Giant's World" will be released March 15.

-WSU runs their first iPPV January 22nd on GoFightLive.

-Chikara holds their King Of Trios 2011 tournament April 15-17 in Philadelphia, PA.