What's the status of Dynamite?

After the Forbidden Door pay-per-view, Tony Khan being the smart promoter that he is, touted the success of the event with its live gate, and by all indications the show did a solid buy rate. While the co-promoted card with New Japan is almost in a vacuum because it's not directly related to most of the AEW programming, a successful pay-per-view should theoretically generate some momentum for the record-setting Wembley Stadium crowd  in August.

Unfortunately, this week's edition of Dynamite was a prime example of Khan's "throw everything against the wall and see what sticks approach" that is not only misguided in terms of the long term success of the company, but also impacts the mileage that specific angles could get if used properly. Keep in mind, Tony Khan has three weekly television shows to book, and while the charts and graphs he cited in previous interviews might give him the sense of an organized product, the presentation on television is a completely different story.

In fact, you could go through segment-by-segment of the TBS broadcast and parse why there are valid criticisms against All Elite programming.

That being said, I think the standard disclaimer should be mentioned to keep things in perspective for the diehard AEW fan base that take any critique of the shows as a personal insult to them and their families. Order another shirt from Pro Wrestling Tees and relax. It goes without saying that Tony Khan has a passion and dedication to professional wrestling. While there are positives and negatives to that, many of which can be seen on the shows, you have to give him credit for being willing to fund a sports entertainment project. Khan is already from a billionaire family and it would've been much easier for him to buy and island and drink ice tea than to launch a pro wrestling group, especially considering the stress often associated with being a promoter. Tony wanted to spark the industry, he didn't need to invest in pro wrestling to attempt to achieve financial security. Despite some of the mishaps, the sports entertainment business is better with the existence of All Elite, both for the talent and the fans, and a major reason that's possible is that Tony was willing to fund the launch of the promotion. Plus, outside of the dollars and cents, which are the true measures of success and often the only thing that matters from a business prospective, Tony seems to be a genuinely nice guy that cares about his roster, which isn't something usually said about most wrestling promoters. Tony Khan does right by his talent and if nothing else, that's a very commendable approach to a business that has a history of shady tactics.

The other side of the coin is that the fandom that spurred his investment into the industry also appears to cloud his judgement.

The show opened with Jox Moxley vs.Tomohiro Ishii and it was a great match. It was physical and a brand of wrestling that you aren't going to see in the WWE, which makes sense because the alternative approach is what allows for variety. Remember, TNA floundered for years as "WWE lite" so despite Ishii being relatively unknown to the national TV audience, it's still a bout that is unique to AEW in America. That being said, considering the time this bout was given and the brutal nature of the strikes, including some nasty headbutts that split Moxley open, this should've been the main event. The segment was given almost twenty minutes, was very physical, Moxley was bleeding, and it was an entertaining contest. If you start the program with that, anything else is going to be a decline or recycled, and the rest of the show had both aspects during the broadcast.

A wise booker knows what to ask for or expect from a match-up, and as mentioned, this would've been great in the main event spot. However, the hard way cut that Moxley had made Adam Page's minimal amount of blood in a rather lackluster segment more or less pointless. Much of the same could be said for the blade job Jericho did for the last three minutes of the show, did it really add anything to the tag match? There were three wrestlers bleeding in the course of a two-hour program and it led to diminishing returns on each occasion. Quite simply, if blood is overused, it adds nothing, and after the nasty cut Moxley had, anything else on the show was tame by comparison.

Speaking of Adam Page's subpar blade job, the entire premise of the match with The Dark Order against The Elite was misguided. Let's be honest here, The Hangman's association with The Dark Order, especially within the past few months, has been secondary at best. The Dark Order is a comedy stable and the story of a potential grudge against The Elite is weak and forgettable in the grand scheme of things. The point being, The Dark Order has a role in the company and does it well, but The Elite should theoretically be on a different level. The question is, are the fans really invested in Adam Page leaving the comedy stable behind to team with a few of the featured stars of the organization? If not, there's no reason to give it TV time, and furthermore, The Dark Order are rarely featured on television so it would be difficult to expect the fans to be invested in a rather flimsy angle.

It goes without saying that getting the audience to emotionally invest into the characters on the show is a key piece of the puzzle to draw money, and prehaps that's why the MJF title reign seems rather undistinguished so far. As I've written several times, MJF's attempts to "shock" the audience often seem desperate and lack substance, which is why most of his promos have a "been there, done that" scenario. He hasn't wrestled often as champion, and while his in-ring skills are stellar, the standard MJF promo just to get him on television is stale. Instead, he was booked for a backstage skit with Adam Cole about their upcoming tag team matches as a part of a tournament that hasn't been fully explained that will take place at the same time as the Owen Hart tournament. The other tag teams involved or the brackets haven't been announced. The backstage skit was lame and almost minimized MJF's importance as the world champion. It might be a drastic comparison, but when Roman Reigns is on television, it's always spotlighted as a major segment. MJF, with the recycled shtick doesn't have that importance for his TV time. He has talent, but the bottom line is, if the backstage segment wasn't on the show, would it really have made a difference for the product?

The trios match was an absolute mess and it was such a cluster that nobody looked good in the match. Why exactly were Orange Cassidy, Vikingo, and Keith Lee on a team? They beat the JAS so unless the thrown together trio will challenge for the belts why did they defeat a regular stable?

Ruby Soho is extremely talented, but when the product is all over the place, it's difficult to expect the audience to follow everything, and after the confusion of the trios match, Ruby's promo got zero reaction from the crowd.

I understand the hype for the first ever match with Sting and Chris Jericho in the ring, and from that perspective, it makes sense to put it in a main event segment to maximize Sting's status as a legend, but you don't put Moxley/Ishii on the same show to go almost twenty minutes. Both matches could've and should've been used in the main event spot of different shows. Again, Tony has three weekly TV shows, why not get the most from each bout with putting it in the main event spot on different weeks? Finally, the dive that Sting did was really dangerous and looked like it could've been a disaster so it's another situation where the booker should have more control with the presentation of the matches.

This week's episode of Dynamite overused blood, had a match that became a total cluster, promos that either got no reaction or were meaningless, and didn't establish a solid direction for the product after the Forbidden Door pay-per-view. The biggest problem is, this slapstick booking is a pattern within AEW programming and when the content is so disjointed, it's difficult to truly build or expand the audience. This becomes an exponentially bigger problem when you take into account that Tony has to book three national television shows. Make no mistake about it, All Elite has some great talent and some great matches, but the argument could be made that it doesn't have great booking for the product.

The career of Nick Brown

The drama and the spectacle of professional wrestling are often said to be built around moments, a specific point in time that stands out among all the chaos and colorful bravado to create something memorable in the minds of the audience. As the grappling arts reaches its crescendo, fans lean from the edge of their seats to see if a potential three-count will lead to the final bell. As much as that excitement is generated by the spirited athletes in the squared circle, those with a deep understand of sports entertainment mechanics know that a solid referee is the glue for those tense moments that signal a dramatic victory.

In truth, an official’s job is to stay outside of the viewers’ scope until the action dictates their involvement. You simply won’t notice a great referee until its time to notice their count, calls, or decisions. To say the third participant in the ring is overlooked is a true statement because that’s what the job description calls for. However, as mentioned, those that truly understand the sport know that a top-tier official allows for top talent to shine the brightest possible.

Names like Bucky Palermo, Mark Curtis, Shawn Patrick, Bobby Williams, and Joe Mandak are Pittsburgh natives that have worn the stripes to count the falls on a variety of stages during different eras of the industry.

The region is known almost as much for its wrestling as the steel it once produced. Palermo was a staple of the studio wrestling days, the late Mark Curtis was one of the most beloved figures of the industry during his tenure in Smokey Mountain Wrestling and WCW in the 90s. Shawn Patrick, with more of 30 years of experience under his belt, is one of the most well-regarded officials in the history of the Pittburgh scene. Much of the same can be said for Williams, who broke into the sport as a teen and after more than two decades as a referee and wrestler, is one of the head trainers of the IWC Wrestling Academy. Mandak worked his way to Ring Of Honor pay-per-view before the organization was sold last year.

Quite simply, those at the highest levels of the business understand the value of a professional and talented referee.

Among the current generation of Pittsburgh officials, one of the referees that has drawn comparisons to the previously mentioned refs is Nick Brown, a 31-year-old IT specialist that hopes to take a career path beyond just the standard office with cubicals and water coolers.

"My immediate goal is to work a cable or broadcast level TV match.  At the moment I’m trying to work for indies that do their best to create this type of environment at their shows as it is the closest approximation I can get.  I’m also doing seminars with professionals from the world of wrestling who have experience working in this environment or creating this environment. Another goal is to continue to work as much as possible.  Right now, I work basically every weekend," Brown explained.

A fan of the industry since he was a toddler, Nick, similar to some many that develop a passion for the business, originally daydreamed out stepping into the ring himself, dropping elbows on imaginary opponents as a youngster. Playing hockey from around the same time that he discovered pro wrestling until his college days, Brown was a sports enthusiast and always trained with a focus on competitive athletics.

Finally, he took the plunge into pro wrestling in 2016, signing up to learn the craft under Brandon K, one of the longest-tenured veterans of the Western Pennsylvania area. That same year, Brandon founded his own organization, Ryse Wrestling, a league that runs event just south of Pittsburgh and will celebrate its seventh anniversary in December.

Unfortunately, a history of concussions from his hockey days brought his wrestling training to a complete halt. After a few scary collisions with the mat, Nick knew that the toll that professional wrestling took on the body wouldn't yield any longevity for him.

"I had a number of concussions playing college hockey and the deeper I got into training to become a wrestler, the more problems I had. I honestly didn’t feel comfortable making my opponent work with someone who would be in control of their body, but not totally conscious," Brown explained.

Nick assumed he would help out around events, but little did he know, timing is everything and he had an unexpected introduction to the business that opened another door for him.

When a scheduled referee couldn't attended Ryse's second live event in early-2017, Nick Brown was thrown a referee and given instructions. He didn't know it at the time, but he was a natural in the role.

"Training to become a referee really just happened on the fly.  I was given a five-minute tutorial by a veteran worker just before a show and was then thrown right into the card. Thankfully, I had a little bit of aptitude for the job," he said.

Nick showed a poise and timing not often seen by rookie refs, and it didn't take long before he was not only a regular for Ryse, but began to branch out to several promotions in neighboring states. The International Wrestling Cartel, Absolute Intense Wrestling, and a variety of other groups are where Nick can be found on any given weekend as he zigzags to different states when promotions look for a solid official to be in the ring for important bouts.

"The most important thing a referee needs to know is that your job is to enhance the match or the wrestlers in the match in any way possible. This will sound cliche, but I honestly take something away from every show I work on.  Wrestling is a creative endeavor that makes it highly subjective to people’s opinions and interpretation.  As a result of that I have been exposed to a number of ideas for everything from finishes, storylines, moves, promos and just about anything else you can think of," Brown commented.

After spending the past few years working events almost every weekend, Nick has the reputation and experience of a stellar official so he looks to pursue sports entertainment to the highest level possible. When you don't see him inside the squared circle, you can see Nick at PPG Paints Arena during Pittsburgh Penguins home games as a part of the ice crew. When he's not on the canvas or the ice, Nick enjoys adding to his extensive sports memorabilia collection and spending time with his sidekick, a Golden doodle named Emmett.

Perhaps, the biggest takeaway from the career of Nick Brown is that talent is talent, and the serious professionals in the sport find a way to utilize those skills. Sure, he wears the stripes instead of the boots, but he undoubtedly found success in the pro wrestling business.

Forbidden Door review

The Forbidden Door pay-per-view, a co-promoted venture between All Elite Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling is in the books, and it looks like the results of the event might give an indication of the direction the company will go ahead of the Wembley Stadium event in August.

As is the case with any PPV event, the primary questions are, did the show live up to the hype and was it worth the price tag to order the broadcast?

The show opened with the AEW world title match, with MJF defending against NJPW legend, Hiroshi Tanahashi. If I had to guess, I'd say that this was put first on the card to specifically protect Tanahashi, who has definitely slowed down in recent years after a myriad of injuries that he suffered during the several years that he carried New Japan took their toll. Make no mistake about it, "The Ace" of the Japanese league is without question an all-time great, but he undoubtedly shows his age in his current work. At 46, Tanahashi has achieved that legendary status that just being on the card in Japan is seen as a major deal, similar to when John Cena makes an occasional comeback to the ring, but Tanahashi doesn't necessarily have that type of cache with American fans because those audiences, both at home and in the building might not be as familiar with his work. Granted, he's a very smart worker that does all the little things that make the most of his performance, but his well-documented series of knee injuries seemed to noticeably limit his mobility.

That being said, the pace of the AEW world title match was lumbering, even if it was designed to camouflage some of the aging legend's mobility issues. The bout started with a lot of pandering to the crowd and some stalling by MJF before there was a series of holds that kept the action at an almost tedious pace. Even during Tanahashi's offense in the contest, including a rather clunky cross body and a few sling blade maneuvers that didn't get much height, he looked his age. The over-the-top knee injury sell from MJF happens in almost every match so it almost seems comical rather than anything that could add depth to the match. Tanahashi got a pin while the referee was distracted, which gives him a reason for the defeat after MJF used the diamond ring to get the victory. The match itself was fine, but nothing spectacular so I'm not sure if the win does anything to boost MJF's title reign.

CM Punk vs. Satoshi Kojima was in a similar boat, as far as it was a current AEW star against an aging Japanese legend with a very predictable finish. Let's be honest here, nobody thought that Kojima was going to make the trip back to the United States to compete in the next round of the Owen Hart tournament, and this contest was only booked as a way to get CM Punk on the show, but considering that this bout had no build up or barely any promotional push before the event, I don't think his involvement made much of a difference either way. However, Kojima can still go, despite being 52, and Punk worked to the Japanese grappler's strength to make him look good in the ring. The match itself wasn't anything too spectacular, but it was decent, and highlighted the best stuff that Kojima does at this point in his career. There was an entertaining Easter egg for longtime ROH fans, as Punk yelling "Kojima!" and "lariat!" in the corner was an inside joke to a story he told in an ROH shoot interview when he prank called former ROH booker, Gabe Sapolsky, pretending to be Homicide with claims that he had to cancel a match with Kojima in 2003.

As mentioned, the finish was predictable so the bigger story is the negative reaction that Punk received on Collision and at the pay-per-view in Toronto. Keep in mind, the diehard audience that primarily follows All Elite are the fans of the performers that were a part of the launch of the organization, and considering how much Punk trashed the company before he returned, it's possible that the hostile reaction will continue for the majority of the audience. Usually, that could set the stage for a major heel run, but all indications are that The Elite aren't willing to work with Punk, which is foolish since that's the biggest money to be made for the company. Phil Brooks might be a jerk, but he's a talented jerk and does his best work as a heel anyway so if The Elite are serious about building the future of AEW as a profitable business then they should be the professionals they claim to be and draw the biggest money possible for the company.

The four-way match for the International title had a lot of action, but it was more just a series of spots than a contest that had any structure to it. Again, there wasn't anything wrong with this match, but I think there could've been a better quality match with a traditional title match between Orange Cassidy and any of the challengers. I understand that Tony Khan tries to shoehorn as many performers on the card as possible, but when there are a few different multi-person matches on the card, it's an aspect of overbooking that can be a tedious viewing experience.

Sanada vs. Jungle Boy was a really good bout that went about ten minutes, and it should be a booking lesson for Tony, not every match needs to be twenty minutes to be a good match. This was a solid under card bout that provided quality to the card so it was mission accomplished. Furthermore, this was an example that Jack Perry can elevate his game when he brings a level of intensity to his work, as opposed to promos where he sounds like a total mope or when he gets steamrolled in the ring by Rush on Dynamite. Hopefully, the heel turn can be an opportunity for Jack Perry to add that intensity to his character. After the infamous wrestling convention Q&A clips from England a few months ago, Perry has the chance to be a believable heel so it will be interesting to see if he can make progress in the next few months.

The 10-man tag was the opposite of the International title match, in terms of the structure and pace that it had that allowed for a contest that was action packed, but was more than just a spot fest. The chop exchange between Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley was very well done because while the sequence is usually just two wrestlers standing there waiting for the next strike, Kingston and Moxley showed how the exchange can be done right with proper selling and physicality. The biggest takeaway from this segment might be that Konosuke Takeshita should be a priority to become a main event star within the next year or so. He took the company by storm with stellar performances when he debuted, but was lost in the shuffle after that because of the very bloated roster. That said, this heel turn proved just how much of a complete worker that he is since he also has the mannerisms and body language of a heel. When you see the presentation, you know that he's a heel and those intangibles are the true keys to drawing money. With the majority of Tony Khan's booking that throws so much at the wall just to see if it sticks, there's no way to know if or how The Elite's victory will be followed up on television, but the bottom line is, there were a lot of talented performers in this match that should arguably be utilized better in AEW.

Toni Storm beat Willow Nightingale to retain the AEW Women's championship. It was a solid contest that went about ten minutes and probably resembled more of a TV match than a PPV bout, but it was a way to pace the card so it was a wise decision. Aside from the decent in-ring action, it should be noted that Toni Storm is the standout member of The Outcasts stable. I still think Ruby Soho brings a lot more to the table than she's been given the chance to display during her All Elite tenure, and regardless of if it's the ring rust or the prior injuries,  Saraya just doesn't seem to be the performer that she was in the WWE. The promos are subpar and her in-ring work is average at best. Don't get me wrong, it's great that she's healthy, but for whatever reason, she just hasn't made the impact that many would've expected after she arrived in the organization.

I wrote in an article about the Forbidden Door pay-per-view last week that in many ways, the selling point of this show was based on the Kenny Omega/Will Ospreay rematch from The Tokyo Dome earlier this year, and the Kazuchika Okada/Bryan Danielson dream match. The IWGP US title match was incredible, and while it would be rather moot to parse the details on the 40-minute contest, this is without a doubt a match that is worth going out of your way to watch. If it was better than the Tokyo Dome match or not is almost an irrelevant discussion. It was a physical contest that built drama as the momentum tilted back and fourth to create an intriguing narrative throughout the action. Ospreay bled buckets, which added a level of intensity to the segment. Eventually, Ospreay got the win to reclaim the belt and presumably set up the trilogy match.

I've often said and will continue to say that four-hour PPVs are too long. When you have such an extended broadcast, it's almost unavoidable for the event not to drag at some point. After such a lengthy Omega/Ospreay match, and three hours into the show, the six man tag was more or less just cannon fodder. In a vacuum, the six man tag was fine, but as far as the live viewing experience, it would've been nice if the show didn't end at midnight.

Thankfully, the main event picked up the pace of the pay-per-view and it had a  major atmosphere to it. Quite simply, this was a classic between two all-time greats. It's amazing to consider how much Okada has accomplished already and that he's still in the prime of his career. Everything these two did was crisp and smooth. It was quality from bell-to-bell. In some respects, it's similar to the Flair/Steamboat series as far as the level of the performance. The only major criticism I have toward the segment is that at one point, Danielson tired to sell as if he had a seizure to swerve Okada. There was some speculation that this was a tactic to buy some time because The American Dragon legitimately broke his forearm during the match. Even if that was the case, there's absolutely no reason to imply a seizure during the selling in the ring, especially given Danielson's history of injuries. Bryan Danielson is one of my favorite wrestlers, but that was absolutely the wrong call and took away from an otherwise tremendous match. I was very surprise the Okada tapped out for Danielson to get the win.

The broken forearm is concerning on a few different levels for AEW. At the post-show press conference, Danielson speculated that he might be on the shelf for 6-8 weeks, but nothing was officially confirmed yet. That might keep him on the sidelines for the Wembley Stadium event. More importantly, given Danielson's previous injuries and his age, another injury isn't good news because there's a pattern, even during his relatively short tenure in AEW. All things considered, it might be a wise decision for The American Dragon to work a much more limited schedule.

Overall, the top two bouts, which were the most important in terms of marketing the PPV to the demographic that was willing to pay for it delivered quality action so the event should be considered a success. That said, the vast majority of the results from Forbidden Door didn't have much of an impact on the direction of the AEW product, outside of the possible Omega/Osprey trilogy match being booked for Wembley Stadium. Speaking of which, the biggest questions around the AEW product are still if Tony Khan can book Dynamite and Collision effectively, and if AEW programming can build to the stadium event.

What's the status of Conor McGregor?

It has been almost two years since Conor McGregor, the brash Irishman that still maintains the position as the top drawing card for the UFC, appeared inside the octagon. In an attempt to avenge a loss to former Lightweight champion, Dustin Poirier from six months earlier, McGregor suffered a gruesome injury, snapping his leg at the conclusion of the first round of the main event at UFC 264 in July 2021. Considering the severity of the injury, which was similar to the broken leg that Anderson Silva suffered years earlier, many wondered if the charismatic striker would return to the sport?

If the former multi-division champion steps into the cage again, it won't be during this year. Despite being a coach opposite 155 LBS contender, Micheal Chandler for the current season of The Ultimate Fighter reality show, a concept that was rejuvenated with distribution on cable on the ESPN network and Conor's role in the season, McGregor is officially ineligible to fight in 2023. To be able to compete in the UFC, a fight must be enters into the USADA testing pool for at least six months. Conor hasn't entered the testing program, and the finale pay-per-view of the year is December 18th so the earliest he could return to the octagon would be sometime in 2024, if he applies to the USADA program.

The premise of the TUF production was that the weekly series would chronicle the journey of the finalists in each weight class to the finale where the winners would earn a UFC contract. In many ways, it's a very wise marketing strategy, as it allows the audience to get to know the background of the fighters and ideally, it can make a star in the process. At the same time, the entire seasons theoretically builds up and sells the clash of the coaches on pay-per-view.

While McGregor's potential comeback to MMA will sell tickets and pay-per-views on its own, it's obvious that a grudge match is what draws the biggest numbers. Conor's career is proof of that, as he often borrowed a page from the sports entertainment playbook to talk his way into the biggest fights and biggest paydays possible. Without Conor/Chandler on the schedule, it renders the majority of the reason for the casual fan to tune into the Ultimate Fighter show moot since there's no conclusion to the coaches rivalry after the season. After two years away from MMA, the UFC office gave McGregor about a dozen weeks of national television exposure to hype his return, but he left management with very little direction for the television show.

Let's be honest here, the costs involved with the production of this season of TUF were ultimately designed to give Conor McGregor the platform to promote himself for his comeback to pay-per-view, which would allow everyone to make a lot of money from it. Michael Chandler is a solid competitor, but yielded just two wins so far in the UFC, albeit against top competition. His most recent fight in November of last year was a defeat against the previously mentioned Poirier via submission in the third round. At 37, the former Bellator Lightweight champion could still have a few more years left in the prime of his career, but the point being, at least on paper, this could've been a winnable fight for McGregor.

That being said, the fact Conor leaves the UFC without a direction shouldn't be too surprising when you take into account this scenario happened before.

Conor might be a mostly one-dimensional fighter without much grappling or submission skills, but he's a tremendous striker. He has the speed and the power to be a KO artist, and that combined with his pro wrestling-style hype is why the causal fans paid to see him on pay-per-view. Dana White, being the savvy promoter that he is, looked to market the Dublin native as the next top star of the company, especially after the retirement or exit from the organization of the stars of the previous era. The UFC shoehorned him into a title fight with Eddie Alvarez for the 155 LBS championship in 2016 after he KO'ed the legendary Jose Aldo to claim the Featherweight weight title and then he split a pair of welterweight contests with Nick Diaz. Despite not competing or winning any fights in the lightweight division previously, Conor was given the title shot against Alvarez so that the UFC could promote him as a double champion. Both divisions were completely halted because McGregor wisely decided to take the promotional hype from the UFC and agreed to a boxing bout with Floyd Mayweather for a $100 million payday.

Conor was stripped of both belts without defending them, but was granted a title shot upon his return after a two-year hiatus when he was submitted by Khabib Nurmagomedov in October 2018. Just over a year later, he beat the aging Donald Cerrone in just 40 seconds before he lost a pair of contests to Poirier, with the latter because of the leg injury mentioned prior. Outside of the Cerrone fight, because of the combination of the Floyd fight and the injury, it's been almost seven years since McGregor had a dominate win in the UFC.

Given the question marks about the injury and his ineligibility to fight, you have to wonder, is the UFC putting too much stock in McGregor?

Granted, Conor McGregor is the top star, and outside of Jon Jones, especially with the recent retirement of Amanda Nunes, there aren't many main stream stars on the roster, but at this point, is catering to McGregor really going to pay off?

Sure, the UFC could shift the McGregor/Chandler bout to early next year, potentially for the trademark Super Bowl weekend event, but that depends on if Conor actually enters the USADA testing pool. Even if Conor gets into the program to be eligible to fight, the longer that the potential bout gets delayed, the less the match-up will draw with viewers that watched The Ultimate Fighter show. The sizzle from the season will fade and there's not nearly as much of a selling point. It's possible there's a reason that Conor hasn't entered the program, maybe early test results would prevent him from fighting? Keep in mind, Anderson Silva tested positive for a banned substance after his fight against Nate Diaz when he returned from the leg injury. Perhaps, McGregor is taking a medication to heal from the injury that is legitimately prescribed for it, but not a substance that is permitted to fight? Even if that's the case, Conor should've been upfront with the UFC about when he could realistically return to competition.

However, there's a much bigger and more serious problem that could keep Conor McGregor away from the UFC than anything to do with USADA testing. He was recently accused of sexual assault against a woman in a bathroom at game 4 of the NBA finals. If Conor actually assaulted her, he should be charged with the crime and the UFC should re-evaluate if they want to continue to promote his fights. McGregor has a laundry list of incidents on his record, but the seriousness of the most recent accusation could prevent him from fighting, especially if there will be a lengthy court case.

Even if McGregor is proven innocent of the accusations, in some ways, he's still a cautionary tale in sports. The guy is worth a few hundred million dollars and he has a track record of getting into bar fights. It remains to be seen how the legal situation will unfold, but the bottom line is, if McGregor isn't in the USADA testing pool, he won't be fighting in the UFC so it might be time for the UFC to consider if Conor McGregor can still be the top star in the organization? The answer would appear to be no because a top star can draw money, but McGregor can't generate cash for the company if he isn't approved for competition.

Will Forbidden Door sell?

This weekend, All Elite Wrestling returns to pay-per-view for another co-promoted event with New Japan Pro Wrestling, the second edition of Forbidden Door. It’s rather ironic, considering the current landscape of AEW that two promotions that weren’t on the same page because of The Elite's exit from the Japanese organization prior to the launch of AEW are now working together on a regular basis and will put together a co-promoted pay-per-view for the second year in a row. It proves that if money is there to be made then the smart business move is to mend fences so that cash isn’t left on the table, which is a lesson that CM Punk and The Elite should take note of.

That being said, as much as these co-promoted shows can be considered dream match scenarios, it’s important to keep in mind that it’s just not realistic to put every possible dream match from both rosters on the card. It’s not so much the political side of things in a nefarious sense, but rather the fact that both organizations have their own business and own agendas that they have to take into account with the booking of the event. In many ways, both companies have to be kept strong, while still giving the audience those crossover matches that many look forward to with this type of situation. 

With of the nature of the New Japan booking structure, as far as not getting ahead of themselves with announced matches that could potentially reveal the results of prior bouts, it’s not uncommon for cards to be announced much closer to showtime than what is typically seen in the American market. When you take into account that the event is primarily being hosted on American pay-per-view, although I'd guess the New Japan World streaming service will show the matches as well, and the fact that it will held in the North American city of Toronto, you’d expect more of the usual, PPV promotional push for the event.

But, has the Forbidden Door pay-per-view been properly marketed on AEW television?

In many respects, even though there were only four matches announced ahead of this week's Dynamite, the selling point for this event and what the audience expects from it were established several weeks ago.

As mentioned, both organizations have to be kept strong, so you can’t necessarily have top stars from each promotion booked against each other on the entire card since that would necessitate that a few of the biggest stars get defeated, which is fine in a limited capacity, but again, each company has to protect their assets. For example, of the four matches that were announced, the top two matches of Kazuchika Okada/Bryan Danielson and Kenny Omega/Will Ospreay are truly the money matches on the card. While I expect everything else on the show to be at least solid, the decision to purchase this event will be based on the top two contests on the PPV.

The other two announced bouts were set up with video packages, which is completely fine when you take into account, the audience that this show is geared toward. Keep in mind, NJPW has to continue to run their schedule, and it becomes very difficult from simply a geographical stand point for many of the NJPW stars to travel to The United States for a brief appearance on Dynamite if they have scheduled matches in Japan. The logistics almost prevent the traditional build up of a pay-per-view, which is why there were only many New Japan stars on television than usual this week since they had to be in America for the pay-per-view anyway. That's why the previous video packages were fine to set up some of the other contests. Essentially, Sanada, the current IWGP, Heavyweight champion, is booked in a match against Jungle Boy, because it allows one of the main New Japan stars to get a victory over one of the mid-card workers on the AEW roster. That’s not a jab at Jungle Boy, but rather to point out that his status within AEW won't be affected with a defeat on pay-per-view. In a similar fashion, New Japan legend, Hiroshi Tanahashi, who carried the company on his back when the organization was on the brink of collapse several years ago, is at the latter stages of his career. It’s almost comparable to John Cena in terms of Tanahashi‘s popularity because the multi-time IWGP champion is so over with the audience that any defeat in his career won’t affect how over he is with the New Japan fans. So with that in mind, MJF, the current AEW world champion, can get a victory over the aging Japanese legend and theoretically get a boost to his career because of it. The champion of each promotion will get the chance to be showcased on pay-per-view so it’s a booking that makes sense for both organizations.

As mentioned, the intrigue and the biggest selling point of this pay-per-view are the top two matches, even if for completely different reasons.

Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega had an incredible match at this year's Wrestle Kingdom event at the Tokyo Dome and the anticipation for a rematch has built since then. Considering that Omega beat the British grappler for the IWGP US title, I'd expect Ospreay to get the win at Forbidden Door to set up a rubber match in Japan, which makes sense, especially if they can book the trilogy to unfold over the course of the entire year. It maximize the mileage and the importance of each bout in the series instead of several matches between the two getting lost in the shuffle in a relatively short time frame. AEW gets a marquee match to sell their pay-per-view, and New Japan gets a set up for the third bout on one of their major shows so an Ospreay victory works well for both organizations.

Okada vs. Danielson is an absolute dream match between two of the best in-ring workers in the history of the industry. Just the match-up is enough of a selling point, but it was pushed as a major bout with the conclusion of Dynamite when Okada appeared during the main event segment. I would guess that Danielson will eventually work for New Japan, where he actually had matches early in his career, at some point, but as of now, it appears that Okada/Danielson might be a one-off for the Forbidden Door pay-per-view. A match of this caliber would be suitable for the Tokyo Dome, but again, just the match up itself is a draw for the audience.

Finally, there were two multi-man tag matches set up on Dynamite, but those, along with a few matches that were announced on social media, are cannon fodder in the grand scheme of things. The tag matches were booked to get a few more names on the show and have someone from each team be able to take the pin so the stars don't have to be defeated, and the matches added on social media, including CM Punk vs. Satoshi Kojima don't have the build up to make a difference in the buy rate of this PPV. It's important to consider what the target audience is for a co-promoted event. Even with the New Japan expansion into the American market, by nature, this is a niche venture. That's not to say that it won't be successful, but to point out that there's a niche demographic of American fans that follow the New Japan product and since they are diehard enough to follow the Japanese group, watching cards very late at night because of the time difference, they will be the audience that will pay $50 to watch a co-promoted pay-per-view. In some ways, this card already sold itself to that audience with the previously mentioned top two matches since the audience that would be willing to pay to watch Forbidden Door already knows the importance of those bouts.

The career of Eamon Paton

"Something about the soap opera-style nature of that build, bloody parking lot assaults included, really captivated my attention."

A youngster was flipping through the channels on a carefree Monday night in the summer of 2002 when he stumbled upon Spike TV, the predecessor to The Paramount Network, and found an episode of Raw. The flagship show of World Wrestling Entertainment featured the dramatic build up to Shawn Micheals' return to the ring after a four-year hiatus from in-ring competition following what was thought to be a career-ending back injury. Micheals, a former headliner for the newly-renamed WWE, was set to step back inside the square circle against his former best friend, Triple H, who savagely attacked him.

The showdown was scheduled for that year's Summer Slam, which many consider a pivotal event, as it was seen as the unofficial kickoff of the "Ruthless Aggression" era that shaped the direction of the organization in the years that followed. A former NCAA heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar, beat The Rock to claim The Undisputed championship. Rey Mysterio, an electric luchador that would go on to forge an incredible legacy made his WWE pay-per-view debut against Kurt Angle in a stellar match. Plus, Shawn Micheals, one of the best in-ring workers of all-time, was back into the fold.

The saga and the perceived magnitude of the event had a profound impact on nine-year-old Eamon Paton and eventually shaped the direction of his life.

"I was hooked since that point and it became a real bonding point between myself and my father. He nurtured it by taking me to house shows and TV tapings. It was such a consistent part of my media diet that it was hard to focus my attentions on anything else," Eamon explained.

Eamon spent the rest of his childhood nearly obsessed with the action inside the ring ropes, but it wasn't until the Corpus Christi native moved to San Antonio to pursue higher education at The University of Texas at San Antonio that he was exposed to independent wrestling, which opened the door for him to make his own journey into the industry after he befriended Justin Bissonnette, a longtime veteran of the Texas indy scene.

"After a few months attending shows, I got to know Biss. He was the lead commentator for Anarchy Championship Wrestling in Austin and also did backstage work for them as well. They were one of the few Texas promotions getting big mainstream attention outside of the state and bringing independent talents from all over. I interviewed Biss for the podcast I was a part of, the Wrestling Mayhem Show, and we struck up a solid friendship," Paton said.

Between diligently taking notes in class on Friday mornings and studying for exams the following week on Sunday nights, Eamon spent the bulk of his weekends during his college years zigzagging around the state to attend as many events as he could. It was on a car ride to Houston with Bissonnette one weekend that Paton was told of plans to launch Inspire Pro Wrestling, a group that will celebrate its tenth anniversary in just a few weeks, with Max Meehan. Considering his background in podcasting and his professionalism across the board, it didn't take long for Inspire management to offer Eamon the role of lead announcer for their new venture.

"I was barely 20 years old at the time, so it was definitely a trial by fire experience. But, I tried to learn as much as I could, absorb any advice or guidance that was offered to me, and do my best to put forth their vision and make the talent look as good as possible," Eamon explained.

Before he relocated to Pittsburgh, a region that known almost as much for its wrestling as the steel it once produced, Eamon spent a decade on the mic for Inspire Pro, working to become one of the trademark voices of the independent circuit with a level of knowledge and dedication that allowed his work to stand out among the indy landscape.

"To me, ego must be left at the door, first and foremost when it comes to commentary. Unless you have a truly one of a kind personality and comedic genius, two things I’ve definitely struggle with all the time by the way, the focus should be on the talent and the performers. The building of momentum and excitement is also a skill that takes time and practice. I cringe at some of my earlier work where I’m at level ten from the five-minute mark. When you start that high, there’s nowhere to go. Now, with a little more experience, I enjoy watching psychology of a match play out. Some of the biggest compliments of my work that I’ve gotten from talent is when I speak to one of those nuances during their match that they hoped would be picked up on, and that is always a satisfying," Paton commented.

Aside from educational pursuit and professional achievement Eamon found love during his wrestling adventures in Texas, eventually marrying his non-binary husband, Merlin, who is always a friendly face willing to assist at events. However, after a decade of work with Inspire Pro, the couple felt it was time for a move, which saw them make the decision for the previously mentioned relocation to Pittsburgh.

"My husband and I moved to Pittsburgh in September of last year, for a multitude of reasons, not the least being that Texas was becoming untenable for our mental health & safety as an LGBT couple," Eamon said.

Once they arrived in the steel city, Eamon reached out to his longtime friend, Mike Sorg, who runs the Sorgatron Media studios, filming a myriad of projects, including a bulk of the independent wrestling events that run in the area. Paton was seasoned from his time with Inspire and looked to continue his tenure in the pro wrestling business that he had such a passion for since his youth. Sorg directed him to Victory Championship Wrestling, a West Virginia-based organization that is run under the direction of standout performer Wes Fetty, known inside the ring as The Beastman, a massive grappler with an incredible amount of agility. VCW's blend of old school rasslin with contemporary talent was a platform where Eamon could shine, working as the group's lead announcer since last November.

"It has been an incredible experience. It’s been great seeing a locker room full of talented, hard working individuals with the same drive and passion that I witnessed in Texas. The work is top notch and deserves to be seen by as many people as possible. Also, it’s been great having the trust of someone like Beastman when it comes to putting forth his vision in such a vital role," Paton commented.

The move to the northeast brought with it a level of support and acceptance for the LGBT announcer as well, with the launch of his podcast with his husband. Eamon and Merlin cover a variety of relevant topics for their community with a production that emanates from the Sorgatron studios in Beechview.

"My husband and I have our own podcast 'A Gay and His Enby', that we started back in January. We release weekly episodes where we talk about our thoughts on some of our favorite reality tv programs popular in the LGBT community," Paton remarked.

Eamon's journey within pro wrestling, a path that brought him professional and personal growth, will go full circle when he makes a one-night return to Inspire AD, where it all started for him in Texas, as the company will celebrate its tenth anniversary event in early July. 

CM Punk on Collision

The months of speculation ended as soon as  Collision, All Elite Wrestling's new Saturday night television show, went live on the air, as CM Punk made his way down to the ring in his hometown of Chicago to kickoff the show.

The original tagline of the debut of Collision was rumored to be "the second coming," a nod to Punk's arrival in AEW nearly two years ago in the same city. When Punk's participation was speculated to be in doubt in recent weeks with the disagreement of the involvement of Ace Steel as a backstage producer, the tagline was scrapped.

However, the tagline should've been "self-serving Punk" because that's all his 10-minute promo was to start the Collision brand. The narrative of CM Punk claiming to be the victim when he isn't catered to or given the spotlight is as tired as the revolving stories about how difficult he is to work with.

While an ESPN interview that was published Friday had the real-life Phil Brooks portraying himself as the one to extend an olive branch to The Elite after their backstage brawl last September, claiming that he didn't see the locker room fight as a big deal and had attempted to mend fences before he was legally told he couldn't, the promo he cut on live television reveals a very different intention.

I wrote about the entire saga extensively since the infamous press conference last year as the situation continued to develop with rumors and social media posts from Punk, and more or less everyone has offered an opinion on it at some point so I will attempt to keep the portions of this discussion that refer to previous incidents to a minimum to maintain a focus on what this means for AEW in the future.

Brooks started the promo by reiterating that he was in the pro wrestling business, and in theory, he's correct, the sports entertainment business, especially on a national level is about revenue and profit. There was a time, specifically before the hefty amount of guaranteed cash from broadcast rights fees became so lucrative through the evolution of the distribution of media content, that personal grudges were put aside to draw money. If performers had a disagreement, it didn't interfere with the business side of the industry because the ability to work together allowed everyone to make the most money possible. That being said, when he had a live mic in his hand for the first time since he publicly buried the company at the press conference last year, he made a reference to the same thing he said before the locker room fight. Is repeating something that he said that initiated the backstage fight really a smart "business" move? Unless, there's an Elite feud planned, and by all indications there isn't, why should Brooks make reference to something that ultimately garnered the organization a wave of negative publicity?

The answer is probably simple, Punk wanted to make sure he "got the last word" on the incident so that he can think he "won" in the entire situation.

He went on to say that he's "tired of being nice," which appeared to be a reference to the fact that he claims he tried to make peace with The Elite until lawyers were involved in the matter. Again, this is Phil Brooks portraying himself as the better person willing to bury the hatchet. He continued when he said that he loves the fans because they love him, and the whole scenario was almost nauseating since it was Brooks on an ego trip. He was in his hometown where he will face zero backlash from the audience and got the chance to give himself all the credit he thought deserved with blatant pandering to the crowd.

He said that some people hate him, which was nothing more than Brooks taking the victim stance, something that he has done throughout his career when he wasn't given the spotlight. Remember the temper tantrum he threw on Colt Cabana's podcast that resulted in lawsuits?

Continuing, Punk said that some people are uncomfortable by the "sheer magnitude" of him. Who does this guy honestly think he is? Could his ego seriously be that inflated? Granted, it's a pro wrestling promo so it could be a work, but if it was, where's the payoff for any of this? This all sounded very similar to when he went off-script to call out Adam Page in a promo when there was no angle booked for it. Punk remarked "you know I'm right" at one point, but what exactly did this accomplish? Sure, he got the chance to get a rebuttal to The Elite on national television, but if he's in the pro wrestling business that he claims, what business was done with this valuable national television time? Again, unless there's an angle for CM Punk vs. The Elite, how does this 10-minute promo translate into money?

Before closing, he proclaimed he's the real article in a business of counterfeit Bucks, a jab at Matt and Nick Jackson before he "apologized" to the fans that are as soft as their favorite wrestlers. He finished the segment with saying, "the king is back" and barely made reference to a bag that he brought to ringside where he implied it was the original AEW world championship. If the angle is going to be CM Punk vs. MJF for the world championship, it's a wise move because their dog collar match proved to be one of the better matches with one of the better storylines in the history of the company. That being said, CM Punk spent very little of the 10-minute promo selling that potential match because Phil Brooks, he claimed he wanted to bury the hatchet during the ESPN interview, wanted to make sure he got the final word on the All Out brawl on national TV.

If Warner Brothers Discovery wants to pay for the CM Punk show where he gets to finally position himself as the top level guy he always thinks he should always be then great. If AEW makes a profit from the existence of the a show that will more or less be Punk's place to give himself credit then in some ways, it's mission accomplished because profit is profit. In fact, speaking of profit, if The Elite were true pros then they would agree to work with CM Punk since that's the most money that can be made with AEW right now. At the same time, when Punk said at the press conference if anyone has a problem with him then they can go to him for it, he can't try to play the victim card when someone did actually confront him. The Elite didn't hang it well either, specifically when they rallied the crowd during anti-CM Punk chants during their return to pay-per-view several months ago.

MJF vs. Adam Cole

On last night's episode of Dynamite, the show opened with a "world title eliminator" match with the champion, Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Adam Cole. If Cole won, he would secure himself a title shot in the future. Granted, I understand the perceived logic, and the finish of a time limit draw was booked to set up a level of intrigue for the next bout between the two, but I still disagree with the notion of putting a 30-minute bout on free TV, even with a non-finish before you attempt to sell the same contest as the main event of a pay-per-view. Obviously, there's more that these two can do, considering their level of talent, but the match on TBS had a table spot, apron bumps, a gimmick blood spot, and went the duration of the typical pay-per-view main event so what exactly is there left to sell in terms of in-ring action? It goes without saying that the selling point to the eventual PPV contest with MJF defending against Cole would be the chance for Cole to claim the title. However, with putting this bout on free television first, the chase for the title is more or less the only selling point since the fans already saw the "work rate" portion of the contest. Again, I understand what Tony Khan was going for, but when he gave away the 30-minute match, it took away one of the selling points of the MJF/Cole clash on pay-per-view.

Without the work rate portion to sell to the potential PPV audience, unless the rematch will be booked for several months from now, it will become exponentially more important that the booking of this feud makes it seem like Cole winning the title is a realistic possibility.

The problem is, at least so far, that is not the case for this storyline.

I was critical of how Adam Cole was used upon his arrival in All Elite Wrestling, as he was fresh off of NXT television and the general consensus was that he had all the tools to be a major player for the WWE, but the big man philosophy that Vince McMahon was known for was the reason the company missed the boat on him. At one point, particularly during his Ring Of Honor and early NXT championship reigns, I think it was possible to consider Adam Cole the Shawn Micheals of his generation. Granted, there's only one HBK, but with a similar frame and work rate, Cole seemingly had the ability to be a top guy for the WWE.

Tony Khan had a major commodity signed to his organization in 2021, but Cole's star power was minimized as he was booked in a stable and eventually got lost in the shuffle. A guy like Adam Cole should've arrived with plans ready for him to be included in the main event conversation, and not only did it not happen, but there's no excuse that it took almost two years for him to be in a feud for the title, the injury not withstanding.

Unfortunately, almost a year ago, Cole suffered a very serious concussion at the Forbidden Door pay-per-view, which halted any momentum he had from his win in the Owen Hart Memorial Cup tournament. Just a few months ago, he finally returned to the ring with the feud against Chris Jericho and while it set the stage for him to work with MJF, which theoretically makes sense, I'm not sure on if the audience is sold on him as a future world champion, especially after last week's promo segment.

Friedman wants to be known as the wrestler that will "go to far" as a way to standout from the pack in terms of the ability to work as a heel, but as I've said before, it's not that MJF is ahead of the curve, but rather that most others are just behind it. Keep in mind, in theory, every heel on the show is supposed to be able to make the audience believe that they are actually a "bad guy," instead of just playing the role of a villain on television. That being said, MJF's attempts to "shock" the audience are often just cheap heat as opposed to cutting edge. Don't get me wrong, Friedman has the ability to be the best heel in the business, but often falls short of that with almost desperate attempts to push the envelope.

Last week's promo segment saw MJF mock Adam Cole's physique, and the major problem with this is, when the heel actually has a point, it leaves the baby face without a proper response and thus hinders their presentation. As mentioned, Cole is a great worker, but regardless of its injuries or prehaps a shift in training, he looks noticeably thinner than he was during his NXT run. Along with that, and again this might have more to do with the long road to recover from the serious concussion, Cole just doesn't seem to have the same spark and the same presence since he returned to AEW. Again, when the heel actually has a point, it makes the baby face look subpar. On the flip side, Cole's implication that MJF is on steroids, even if it's true, doesn't make business sense at all. If Tony Khan suggested the line then he shouldn't book a national television show, and if Cole or MJF made the suggestion then neither of them understand the big picture, which I doubt would be the case. Either way, the implication that the world champion is on steroids just makes the entire company look minor league, especially in the modern era after so many deaths in a previous generation. If the notion was to again, "shock" the audience with the steroids implication, it missed the mark and was an amateur attempt to generate some buzz. This isn't the late-90s or ECW, it's not edgy television, it's just a  low brow attempt to try to get fans to notice the segment.

Finally, and this is probably the biggest takeaway from the current MJF/Cole feud, Friedman is going to eventually cause a total debacle for the company if he doesn't smarten up. During the previously mentioned TV match, as a stall tactic to get heat, he jumped the rail to take a walk in the audience, as he dismissed the challenge in the ring, which is fine. The problem is, while he was  playing to the audience, he attempted to hit someone's hat, something that is usually rather harmless, but also partially knocked their glasses sideways in the process. Again, the hat aspect of this is harmless, the heel looks like a jerk, and the fan gets the hat back. No harm, no foul and it's a part of the typical pro wrestling troupe. The problem is, while the real-life Max Friedman probably didn't intend to hit the fan's glasses or want to cause actual harm to the paying customer, if these attempts at edgy tactics continue, it could be a disaster for the organization.

The fans know that Tony Khan is from a billionaire family and it takes one incident with a fan for some yokel to see dollar signs. MJF infamously threw a drink that he thought was water on a kid, but was actually tequila at a previous pay-per-view. Sure, the company let the kid meet some stars and got him free tickets to the following week's Dynamite to smooth it over, but outside of the financial risk, if he does that to the wrong fan at the wrong time, some knucklehead takes a swing at the world champion during the main event of a pay-per-view. Again, if the fan that got his glasses knocked sideways decided to look for an ambulance chaser for a lawyer, a serious case of sprained eyes or some other imaginary injury could result in a lawsuit on Tony Khan's desk. If an incident happens, it would be amazing how a six-figure settlement would be enough to compensate for the supposed optic injury or any emotional distress from the AEW event.

Will CM Punk sell tickets?

This weekend, the speculation and controversy of the CM Punk/AEW debacle, drama that stretches back to September of last year after the infamous All Out press conference and the locker room brawl that followed it, will finally come to a close. After months of rumors and online jabs, the two sides worked out an agreement that will bring the former ROH, WWE, and AEW champion back to television with the debut of Collision, the new two-hour show that will be slotted for Saturdays, with the general assumption that Punk will be the centerpiece of the new program.

As is the case with any premiere, the debut of a show will probably garner a solid number, and with the first Collision broadcast in Punk's hometown of Chicago, ticket sales should be solid as well, but will his drawing power extend beyond his home turf?

Outside of Chicago, the bulk of the first several weeks of the Saturday show will take place on the Canadian loop, which also has the Forbidden Door pay-per-view scheduled for Toronto the week after the Collision debut. Despite the major population center of Canada being in Toronto, the extensive wrestling history throughout the western side of the country suggests that All Elite should be able to draw from that fan base, especially with the association of the Owen Hart tournament.

However, the most recent reports, including those that were published after the official CM Punk announcement from Tony Khan on Dynamite, have said that ticket sales for most of the scheduled Collision tapings have remained sluggish.

As I wrote a few weeks ago before Punk was confirmed for the Saturday show, the logistics of adding another show to the weekly schedule extend far beyond just the ability to book a program that will draw ratings against tough competition on more or less a regular basis. There will be college football, sports playoffs, the occasional big time boxing card, and UFC pay-per-views on the same night as Collision. That equation itself can be very tough to solve, especially when outside of the competition of major events, Saturday isn't deemed a great night for traditional television.

That being said, the other major hurdle that is arguably just as big for the addition of another event to the AEW line-up is that the company has to essentially double its ability to draw fans to the arena.

In the current economy with the current ticket prices, along with ticket fees that are such a scam that there was discussion of a congressional investigation, it's an extremely tough sell to get fans to purchase live event tickets to a major arena more than maybe once a year. Unfortunately, the vast majority of that has nothing to do with pro wrestling so there's not much the organization can do to affect the distribution of tickets or the impact of inflation on the economy. For example, there were several years, especially since the internet became common for ticket purchases, that scalplers, those shady characters that used to stand outside buildings to hustle last-minute tickets to events, bought blocks of tickets specifically for the resell market. If a specific event or concert had a high demand or sold out quickly, those scalplers could get a decent return on their investment without standing outside the venue the night of a show. Instead, they could list the tickets for sale online immediately to capitalize on the high demand of tickets, and thus could do so for events around the country, not just their local area. Since football seats are still sold primarily through season tickets so the buyer pays a face value for tickets to the home games for an entire season, scalpers can still make some hefty cash from NFL games.

However, Ticketmaster, who are as shady as any government committee that might investigate it, saw scalpers making a big profit on tickets sold through their service so the company wanted its piece of the pie. In an effort to combat the secondary market, Ticketmaster put in place in recent years, a ticket scale that will increase or decrease the official ticket prices through online sales depending on the demand for tickets at any given ticket. For example, if several people access the online presale for tickets, seats remain at their face value for a very short time until the price of better seats increase because of the amount of buyers that are online to purchase tickets. As well as the "premium seats" fee that will increase the price of ringside seats literally hundreds of dollars almost immediately after a presale stars for an event. Granted, it's possible that All Elite Wrestling priced their tickets too high, and if that's a reflection of the rental cost of the venue then prehaps they should book different buildings for their television shows, but the point being, there's only so much they can do from an administrative stand point to try to reduce the fees that prevent some fans from purchasing tickets. If anything, the advance might be weak, but a lack of sales also works the other way, with Ticketmaster reducing prices the close it gets to showtime in an effort to move as many tickets as possible so they don't miss out on the opportunity to collect those fees.

The point being, the hurdles to sell tickets to major arena in the modern era extend beyond just the ability to book stars on the show.

As much as I don't think the amount of star power that CM Punk brings to the table was worth the hassle that he caused AEW or that the level of drawing power he has justifies the drama he continued to cause in the weeks before he negotiated a return to the company, it's almost unfair to expect any individual star to shoulder that much responsibility to sell tickets for a weekly show. Keep in mind, while it's definitely by design, the WWE sells ticket to it's television and pay-per-views based more on the brand than anything else. Sure, there are positives and negatives to that strategy, but the bottom line is, the WWE moves tickets because of the brand recognition and market share that it has based on not only the current generation, but its history as well. Obviously, AEW has only existed for just over four years so it didn't have a chance to establish that type of brand awareness, Still, the fact remains that in the modern era, there's not one name on the card that is truly a needle mover outside of John Cena or possibly Roman Reigns.

As much as CM Punk might think so, he's not as big of a star as Stone Cold, The Rock, or any of the other truly top guys from a previous generation, especially compared to their prime years.

If Collision can't move tickets, and so far it hasn't, that's not an indication that CM Punk can't sell tickets, but rather that there's probably just not a demand for another weekly AEW television show. Keep in mind, as I wrote about previously, the ratings for Dynamite went from around a million viewers during Punk's initial stint in the company to hovering to just under a million viewers in recent months so there's nothing to demonstrate that the audience was clamoring for more All Elite content. MJF is the world champion and supposedly a generational talent so why isn't he used to sell tickets or being held to the standard of Punk as being the one to promote sales for the company?

Again, considering that the scale ticket pricing will decrease the price  if tickets haven't been sold prior to the start of an event, it's very possible that the Collision shows on the Canadian loop have a smaller advance, but a better walk up crowd to purchase seats the night of the event. Still, and this is the biggest problem ahead of the launch of Collision, nothing about the earlier sales for Collision are an indication that the show will draw in the future. Keep in mind, Tony Khan is trying to sell live event tickets on Wednesdays and Saturdays every week, which is very difficult in the current economy and in the modern era. So far, CM Punk it's the guy that will be the key draw for Collision and it's probably not a wise business strategy to bank on a performer that was injury prone to be the top draw for the show.

The Iron Sheik passed away

It was with incredible sadness that I read the news on social media yesterday that the legendary Iron Sheik passed away at the age of 81. Reaching his peak in main stream popularity in the mid-80s during the WWF's national expansion, the over-the-top Iranian, complete with the flag of his native country and his signature pointed-toe boots, along with his trademark mustache, the villainous grappler riled up the audience, as the foreign menace with anti-American mic work in his distinct accent. Despite the jeers he generated from the fans, The Iron Sheik was pure entertainment.

Ironically, the real-life Khosrow Vaziri was a prime example of the American dream, a stark contrast to his on-screen persona.

Vaziri made a name for himself in his early years in his home country as a stellar amateur wrestler, competing in the 1968 Olympics as a members of the Greco-Roman team. He was so well-regarded for his legitimate wrestling skills that he even worked as a body guard for the Shaun of Iran. Political tension was ripe toward violence with protests against the oppressive government regime. Gholamreza Takhti,who the young Vaziri considered an inspiration, was viewed as a national hero for his own accomplishments in amateur grappling, winning Olmpic gold for Iran years earlier before he retired from competition. Takhti used his status as a legendary sports figure in the country to assist many charities and was an advocate for improvements for the citizens of the region. With his immense popularity, many assumed that Takhti could've pursued political status in Iran, but he mysteriously died in 1968. The public assumed that the reports of suicide were a cover up for a government assassination to avoid political opposition. In a 2014 documentary about his life, Vaziri explained that the death of the Olympic champion is why he fled Iran because he didn't want to eventually become a target of the Shaun if his own amateur accomplishments were seen as a threat to the regime's power.

The Iron Sheik eventually battled against the all-American Hulk Hogan character, but when Khosrow Vaziri landed in the United States in 1970, he was a confidant to America.

Khosrow's reputation as a top-notch athlete was well-known, and he worked as a coach for the USA amateur wrestling team during the early-70s, including as an assistant coach for the 1972 Olympics. With his extensive experience and coaching in the amateur game, it actually wasn’t too surprising that he made the transition to the pro ranks under the guidance of the legendary promoter of the AWA, Verne Gagne, who had his owner experience on the amateur mats. Verne was also involved with Team USA when he sponsored Ken Patera during his tenure in the Olympics. Khosrow was a part of Gagne's famous 1972 training group that included many that went on to make a major name for themselves in sports entertainment, such as  Ric Flair, who was originally a Minnesota native.

After he started in the AWA, a group that was based in Minneapolis, in 1973, the man that would become The Iron Sheik worked under various names in various promotions over the next decade, including Jim Crockett Promotions, the Mid-South territory, and many other organizations.

As we know, The Iron Sheik received his greatest exposure and was launched to fame when he arrived in the WWF in the early-80s ahead of Vince McMahon's national expansion. The boot camp match against Sgt. Slaughter in 1980 was one of the most famous bouts in Madison Square Garden history so the north east audience was familiar with him when returned to the area in 1983. In the latter stages of that year, as Vince McMahon was poised to associate his wrestling league with the newly-launched MTV channel on the emerging cable systems, The Iron Sheik was an extremely colorful character that was showcased to a mainstream audience throughout the Rock N' Wrestling era.

The Iranian villain generated a tremendous amount of heat from the audience and played a key role in the launch of Hulkamania that fueled much of the surge in popularity throughout the 80s.

The Iron Sheik was chosen for this pivotal role because of the amount of heat and legitimacy that he brought to the table. Bob Backlund reigned as the champion for six years prior to the national expansion, but McMahon knew that a new era required a new champion, and the way to propel his next All-American star was a key piece of the puzzle. Sheik beat Backlund for the WWF title to transition the belt to Hulk Hogan, who pinned the Sheik in January of 1984 to claim the championship for America. That victory is what solidified Hogan as the top star, and the argument could be made that if Hulk didn't have a strong heel to defeat then his major successful wouldn't have been launched as well as it was because he had credibility with a win against The Iron Sheik.

After dropping the WWF title, Vaziri worked the mid-card of the organization, but always remained an entertaining persona with his wild promos and over-the-top mannerisms in the ring. In a business comprised of memorable characters, in an era with some of the most well-known competitors in the history of the industry, The Iron Sheik stood out as prehaps the most colorful of them.

Unfortunately, some fans might not realize that at his peak of exposure, The Sheik was already in his early-40s and was past his physical prime of a decade earlier. In May of 1987, Vaziri was arrested for drug possession during the infamous Jim Duggan incident when the two grapplers that were feuding on-screen were caught with drugs after they were pulled over by police on the highway. The incident garnered media attention and the two were fired at the time. Sadly, the exposure to the pitfalls of the 80s, particularly for those in the wrestling business had affected the former WWF champion. While he made various comebacks over the years, including brief stints as a wrestler in 1988 and 1991 for the WWF, drug use had clearly taken a toll on him. His two-year tenure in WCW between WWF returns, was almost embarrassing as weight gain and injuries drastically affected his mobility in the squared circle. In 1996, he was brought back to the WWF yet again for a manager role, but left the organization the following year.

Sheik still worked the independent circuit throughout the late-90s, but drug use made the legendary grappler a shell of himself.

In the mid-2000s, The Sheik garnered notoriety for his profanity-laced shoot interviews, where he wildly went on extended rants in broken English about a supposed grudge against Brain Blair, and the threat to make all of his foes humble with the camel clutch. The interviews were so outrageous that a new generation discovered the Iranian star on Youtube. In reality, the  aging legend was using the gimmick of his outlandish outburst to rejuvenate his career in his later years. With the help of Page Magen and Jian Magen, a Twitter account was launched that was supposedly written by the grappler. The Magen brothers actually ran the account, but it became a favorite on the social media platform. The Sheik's renewed popularity made him a social media celebrity, which garnered him appearances on The Howard Stern show and other media outlets. The previously mentioned 2014 documentary told the real-life story of Khosrow Vaziri, revealing that while the outrageous character was a work, the real guy underneath the persona was an endearing man that appreciated the opportunities that America brought him.

Finally clean from substances, The Iron Sheik seemed that he found a place of peace in his life in more recent years and enjoyed his status as a beloved legend of the industry. If I had to guess what made Vaziri so endearing is that when he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, he expressed his appreciation for his peers and fans, and even through the thick accent, you could tell that he was genuine. In regular interviews when he wasn't trying to work the outrageous gimmick, you could see the authenticity when he expressed gratitude for America and the respect he had for his peers in the sport.

It's ironic that the role of villainous Iron Sheik  was actually an example of the American dream for Khosrow Vaziri when he came to the United States in search of a better life and eventually became one of the most memorable characters in the history of the professional wrestling industry.

What's the status of All Elite?

With as much wrestling content that is among the current wrestling landscape, I often have to prioritize the events that I'm going to cover in this column before any leisure viewing takes place. Quite simply, there's usually so many happenings and often not enough time to realistically get to them all, particularly when real life can keep you as busy as it does.

My usual podcast line-up is rather simple and usually listened to while I'm doing laundry or attempting my best Rocky training montage impression on the treadmill. As we know from some of the subpar ratings of secondary wrestling shows, there are only so many hours in the day, and only so much time even diehard fans are going to commit to their pro wrestling schedules. Still, as mentioned, I keep my podcast routine rather simple, with different clips sprinkled in throughout any given week. That's not to say there aren't a lot of great options and entertaining content available, because there definitely are many great episodes, but to attempt to stay current with all of them is unrealistic.

The Kliq This podcast with Kevin Nash and Sean Oliver, who more or less revolutionized the shoot interview market that evolved into podcasts through his Kayfabe Commentaries production group, is one of the very few audio shows that I listen to in its entirety every week. Oliver is a great tour guide for Nash, with a very clear Howard Stern influence in terms of the pacing of the shows, and the Kayfabe Commentaries front man acknowledges his Stern fandom so the nod to the shock jock's hosting style isn't surprising. Nash, who seems like the coolest dude in wrestling, actually is the coolest guy in the room. He's smart and he knows it, but he's down to earth at the same time. I absolutely believe that he was a career politician during his wrestling heyday, but he has a much more mellow reflection in hindsight. I actually met Nash twice and he was a great guy so maybe that authenticity or at least the perception of it allows for an easier viewing experience on Youtube. Nash and Oliver sound like two buddies shooting the breeze, not two wrestling guys looking for headlines.

The other podcast regularly on my schedule is the weekly show that The Wrestling Observer's Bryan Alvarez co-hosts with the underrated legend, Lance Storm. Despite being one of the faces of the "dirt sheets." Alvarez has a much more measured approach than Dave Meltzer, in my opinion. In fact, while I don't necessarily agree with everything Alvarez says, he often makes very good points and has the broadcasting ability that Meltzer, quite frankly, just doesn't have, which isn't meant as a knock, but rather to point out Bryan's importance to the Observer. Lance Storm is one of the brightest minds of the industry and the insight he provides is extremely valuable.

Outside of that, I will listen to various clips from others that get to the point since the full episodes are usually just too long to find the time to listen to completely. For example, for all of his critics, Jim Cornette makes some extremely valid points and it'd be useful for those in the industry to take them into consideration. That said, as much as I enjoy listening to the Louisville Slugger rant and rave about sports entertainment and fast food, there's absolutely no way I could listen to a four-hour episode of The Jim Cornette experience. As a general rule, if a podcast is longer than a traditional pay-per-view, I'm not even going to attempt to listen to the entire show.

However, as I was folding towels over the weekend, the "related videos" column that caused countless people to wander down the Youtube rabbit hole only to emerge a few hours later wondering where the past four hours went, I saw the suggestion of Foley is Pod, the hardcore legend's audio show that he does with Conrad Thompson. The UWF edition that was put online just three months ago that chronicled the wild and disastrous tenure of Herb Abrams, who died in 1996 after a cocaine-fuel heart attack following an encounter with two escorts, was one that got selected. Underneath that was Foley's Youtube reflection on The infamous King of the Deathmatch tournament that was originally posted late last year so I added that to the list. And yes, it occurred to me that an eccentric promoter that died after chasing hookers around an office building with a baseball bat, and a fledgling wrestler that suffered second degree burns for a $300 payoff are stories that can only happen in pro wrestling.

As I cracked open another energy drink earlier to get some work done, I saw "Mick wins the TNA title" as a suggestion when I got to the Youtube page with nothing in particular lined up to listen to except for a non-wrestling travel podcast to provide some contrast to the in-ring mayhem I usually hear about on the streaming site. I clicked on the TNA championship episode, mostly because I actually attended the event at the time, and wrote in-depth about the journey that included chicken and cage matches in early-2021. 

As you'd expect, Conrad and Mick began the show will the general discussion about where TNA was in 2009. and Mick explained that despite more mainstream stars on the roster, Total Nonstop Action never received the type of recognition from the fans that All Elite Wrestling has today. In fact, Mick and Conrad commented that TNA's ratings in April on 2009, which was when the Lockdown main event of Mick vs. Sting for the TNA championship took place, were higher than anything AEW has done in its existence. Granted, the industry and the climate of television has changed drastically in the past 15 years, but how did TNA miss the mark with such a loaded line-up?

Pondering that question is what prompted me to write this article. Don't get me wrong, there were many mistakes that took TNA off of a cliff and are too numerous to cover within one column, but even before Dixie Carter's terrible business decision, why didn't fans embrace TNA the way they rallied behind AEW?

Again, make no mistake, All Elite Wrestling isn't perfect, and it remains to be seen if the mistakes that Tony Khan made will put a ceiling on the progress his organization can make, but there's no doubt that AEW has a dedicated fan base that just wasn't there for Total Nonstop Action. That should be a stark warning to Tony Khan that the right decisions have to be made because the organic and spontaneous events that allowed for the launch of AEW provide a very rare opportunity in the industry.

Most importantly, the implied mission statement of each promotion was a major factor into how the audience viewed the status of each promotion. TNA, fairly or unfairly, and there might've been some validity to this criticism at times, appeared to be a project that was put together so that Jeff Jarrett could be the top guy of his own organization. The indication was that the existence of TNA was to serve Double J's ego, not the wrestling fans. Obviously, that perception has softened over the years, but at the time, many fans shook their heads when Jarrett was often the centerpiece of his own company. The other side of the coin is that Jarrett, who made big money in the WWF and WCW for the majority of his career, put a lot of his own cash on the line to start TNA so it makes sense that he'd trust himself to shoulder much of the company in the ring when his personal finances were on the line.

Let's keep in mind the origin of All Elite Wrestling and the premise that brought it to a reality. Tony Khan saw the success of All In, the independent event that was held by Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks. It was very much a team effort between the athletes and the fans to prove that there was a demand for an alternative to the corporate machine of WWE. Remember in 2002, when TNA began, there was a question of what the next alternative would be, not necessarily an overwhelming demand for it yet because the WWE still had the bulk of the roster that was in the company during the surge of the Attitude era a few years earlier. While there was discontent with the direction the company, The Rock, Steve Austin, The Undertaker, and Kurt Angle were all still major players in mid-2002. As infamous as he was in the time since, Hulk Hogan's original return to the company that year was a major draw since he left the organization almost a decade earlier.

Fast forward to 2019 and the industry was in a much different place. TNA almost collapsed and had to be rescued by Anthem entertainment to become a product more or less tailored to the Canadian market, but hadn't really been a force in the industry since it was canceled from Spike TV in 2014. Fans saw their choice as the top star, Daniel Bryan ignored by the WWE office and then injuries put him on the sidelines for a few years. Roman Reigns is doing the best work of his career now, but let's not forget that it took management several years to realize that the forced baby face push wasn't going to work before they finally turned him heel.

The launch of All Elite Wrestling had the mission statement that the company wanted to revolutionize the business, and it was the chance to improve the stagnant industry that rallied fans behind the venture. The audience saw their choices ignored for what the WWE wanted to present as their corporate agenda. The fans knew that Tony Khan is from a billionaire family and didn't need to invest into pro wrestling to make money. There are some negatives to this, but the fans knew that Tony Khan was as passionate about the sport as they were, and that level of good will with the audience is ultimately what allowed fans to want to spend money on the product.

Revenue and profit are ultimately the ways to measure success.

Sure, it was cheaper for TNA to run free tapings in the Impact Zone, but when the audience there wasn't actually spending money, they were no way to gauge on how the product really connected with the audience. The fact that taking the show on the road during the Hogan era didn't draw well at all speaks to the lack of enthusiasm (and advertising) of the product. The dismissal house show numbers proved that jamming 700 fans into the Impact Zone for free shows didn't mean that the fans wanted to see an event without all the top names in different venues. Clearly, the numbers during 2009 that Mick talked about during the podcast indicated that fans were willing to watch TNA at one point, but I don't think the Nashville-based organization truly developed a connection with it fan base that made fans want to spend money on the product, outside of the occasional pay-per-view.

The goodwill that Tony Khan has with the AEW fans is based on the concept that it supports of not only their favorite wrestlers, but also the ability to spark the wrestling industry. It can't be understated how valuable that is, and how a few key mistakes could see it drastically decline. The Elite mocking CM Punk right after their return to television wasn't a smart move when Tony Khan will now have to promote Punk as the center piece of a new TV show to that same audience.

The biggest takeaway from the gems of knowledge that Mick mentioned is that the opportunity to garner the level of fan support to get a company off the ground is rare. The millions of dollars that Panda energy invested into TNA was moot since the company had to be sold to cover its debts. The opportunity cost associated with TNA was that stellar athletes like Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, Abyss, and others spent the majority of the prime of their career under the banner. If ECW could've stayed open another year, what could Paul Heyman have done with the stars of the X-Division? As this month is a major platform for AEW with the debut of Collision and The Forbidden Door pay-per-view, Tony Khan should make sure that the correct business decisions are made because the fact that more fans are willing to spend money on AEW now than anyone did on the TNA product throughout its entire existence provides a rare opportunity for All Elite to continue to expand, which would benefit the industry.

UFC 289

This weekend, the Ultimate Fighting Championship heads north of the boarder for UFC 289 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia with a bout for the Women's Bantamweight title set to headline the event. Unfortunately, as I've written throughout the first half of 2023 when I've covered UFC pay-per-views, the domino effect of the ESPN deal, which necessitates almost weekly fight cards to satisfy the contract that fuels the ESPN+ streaming platform, there are several pitfalls that eventually cause hurdles, both for fans and for the company itself.

First and arguably most importantly, the more fighters that are on a bloated roster, the more difficult it is for fans to follow all of the happenings within the organization and thus it becomes exponentially more difficult for the competitors to stand out from the pack, especially if a potential star-making performance is lost in the shuffle of countless fight cards on the streaming service. While it's great that more fighters get a chance to make a full-time living in the fight game, the fight business is just that, a business and if a fighter just becomes a name on the page to cover a spot on the card, there's not much promotional push for them. Without that spotlight and promotional push, the longevity of an athlete on the roster isn't certain. If fighters are considered interchangeable like an assembly line, which is how most modern UFC undercards are booked, it actually minimizes their chance to have the notoriety that can be garnered from an impressive performance.

For the promotion, the problem that occurs with such a bloated roster that had to be signed to satisfy the ESPN deal is that obviously, the office has to find spots on the card so the talent can be paid. They can't keep an athlete under a deal without some assurance that the contract will bring with it solid paydays. At the same time, because there are numerous fight cards and talent that have to be booked for them, it can leave some competitors unavailable if the organization needs a replacement. If an athlete just fought a month prior, they might have a medical suspension from the athletic commission to heal from any injuries that happened during the previous fight or they might simply not have the time to properly train for a major fight.

The latter is ultimately what happened to UFC 289, and instead of a trilogy fight with an intriguing backstory, which is a much better selling point for the hefty price tag to order the event on pay-per-view, the main event was probably reduced to a showcase contest for one of the most dominate fighters of the modern era.

Amanda Nunes put the world on notice when she stopped Ronda Rousey with nearly a dozen unanswered punches and sent her into retirement in late-2016. For nearly the past seven years, the Brazilian athlete used a combination of power and technique to bring a well-rounded skill set that was dangerous for opponents in any aspect of the fight. Just a few months before she pummeled Rousey, Nunes won the previously mentioned 135 LBS championship when she submitted Miesha Tate in the first round at UFC 200. Still, ahead of her December clash with Ronda that year, basically all of the promotional material was based around the return of "Rowdy" Ronda, who lost the title the previous year after a shocking head kick from Holly Holm. Rousey, who refused to do any media appearances to promote her comeback to the Octagon, was thought to be ready to reclaim the belt. Clearly, Rousey was unprepared, and the statement victory propelled Amanda Nunes as the best female fighter in the sport.

Over the next few years, 135 LBS championship added more gold when she knocked out Cris Cyborg in just 51 seconds to claim the Featherweight title, making her a double champion. The "Lioness" defended both belts, alternating between a pair of fights in each weight class before she would defend the other championship. Perhaps, the grind of the competition took its toll as  Julianna Peña, an underdog challenger, submitted Nunes to win the Bantamweight belt in December of 2021. However, Nunes avenged the loss to reclaim the championship via unanimous decision in July of last year.

UFC 289 was originally slated to be headlined by the rubber match, and with the nature of the trilogy fight, it advertised the selling point that the only fighter to beat Nunes in almost a decade would get the chance to do it again. However, Peña suffered broken ribs in training last month, prompting the UFC to announce that Irene Aldana would be the replacement in the main event for Featherweight title. Aldana, who has an MMA record of 14-6, brings a two-fight win streak against rather undistinguished competition into the cage ahead of UFC 289. Her two highest-profile career fighters were both decision losses against Raquel Pennington and Holly Holm in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

Essentially, Aldana is a mid-card contender that can beat the lower-tier competition, but hasn't been successful at a higher level. So, she's getting a title shot because the UFC needs an opponent for Amanda Nunes more than anything else. Granted, anything can happen in MMA, which was proven when Peña upset Nunes for the title, but by nature, those scenarios are the exception, not the rule.

Is Amanda Nunes against a mid-card challenger worth the $79.99 it cost to order the show?

For the UFC, they have guaranteed money for the ESPN contract, but how it sells to the general public still has an impact on the company at some point. The co-main event of Charles Oliveira, who lost in his last fight for the vacant Lightweight title against Islam Makhachev at UFC 280 last October, will square off against Beneil Dariush, a grappler that will bring an eight-fight win streak into the Octagon. Former champion, Oliveira is definitely a skilled fighter, but after he missed fight in a title fight against Justin Gaethje, prompting the UFC to strip him of the title and then suffered a defeat in his chance to reclaim the title in the Makhachev fight so he doesn't have much momentum ahead of this co-main event.

There's nothing on the undercard that stands out from random names that you might find on a random fight night card or even the prelims of an event. Again, when there are numerous fight cards and the names get lost in the shuffle, the fighters just become interchangeable to put on the paper to get a full card.

Thankfully, next month's international fight week pay-per-view has a stacked card with the Volkanovski/Rodríguez Featherweight title unification bout, a  Brandon Moreno title defense, and Robert Whittaker on the card, as well as a Robbie Lawler fight on the prelims. However, it's ironic that at a time when the UFC has more fighters on the roster than any other time in history, the argument could be made that the organization lacks depth in terms of star power.

I think there will a great performance from Amanda Nunes, but I'm not sure if the general public will pay $80 to watch it. The bigger story might be how the dynamics of the UFC and selling PPVs to its audience continue to evolve when the structure of the ESPN deal puts the vast majority of the MMA content behind a paywall, which is the opposite of the strategy that allowed for the surge in popularity several years ago.