LIVE From The Dean's Den

Just when you think things at Major League Wrestling couldn't get any more surprising, a former Lucha Underground writer/assistant executive producer has been hired by Court Bauer just as a former Lucha Underground champion is joining the company. We'll tell you who the producer is, his connections not only to Lucha Underground, but one of the most outrageous segments of WWF TV ever. Speaking of outrageous, a former WWF star, who was also involved in an outrageous segement many years earlier, has been suspended by Twitter for outrageous behaviour that is not wrestling related.

There appears to be both a date and location change for this year's WrestleMania. Will the current COVID-19 situation affect even these plans? In what has to be considered a highly unusual situation, a WWE contracted talent has filmed an interview for the VICE series DARK SIDE OF THE RING. Anyone hoping to attend Royal Rumble at the end of the month is going to be out of luck, we'll explain why.

Rumors abound about Ricochet concerning his contract, we'll give you the most accurate information we have. In the past, many wrestlers have gone after the dirt sheets and sites about unflattering things they have written and now Charlotte Flair joins the club. We'll tell you what she said and the site she's going after. All this PLUS Lee will discuss the interview he recorded yesterday with former WWF/WCW/TNA executive producer Vince Russo.

After a two week hiatus for the holidays Steve and Lee are back with the latest news.

Wrestle Kingdom, New Japan's annual big show was done in two nights for the second time in two years, but this time without major North American talent. They not only had two good nights, there were title changes, a title challenge and a post match backstage interview/promo/possible shoot.

MLW, which Lee covers for Sportskeeda has been taping TV and a name that many people know from other places captured one of their titles.

AEW had an invasion for the first night of their New Year's Bash which was delayed a week for the Brodie Lee tribute show. After the invasion, the shirts came out. Also during this week, Snoop Dogg not only showed up, he made a splash, literally. Cody Rhodes told a story about working with him on Go-Big Show. There's been a turn in one of the Joey Ryan lawsuits, but it might not be what you think. WWE executive Bruce Pritchard did a company podcast the other week and let's just say it didn't get the best recption. Damien Priest was in NXT, then he's moving to main roster then he isn't. What's the deal? Ryback appears to be getting suppressd by WWE. And why wasn't Carlito at RAW Legends night? Well it depends on who you ask.

Get ready for 60 minutes of fun wrestling talk.

Note: We will NOT be on for the next two weeks because of the holidays. Please enjoy them safely.

Lee Walker will not be on this week. I'm hoping a certain cohost will join me.

What a year 2020 has been! We started out normally, then suddenly, because of this virus called COVID-19, in the words of the musical "Hamilton", "the world turned upside down". Not just independent promotions, but even AEW, Impact Wrestling & WWE were looking at the very real possibility of shutting down, so all three promotions scrambled to record as much TV as possible, dealing with gathering and other restrictions. After politics, namely Florida politics, entered the picture, things were brought back into play. However, not even limits in the amounts of people stopped the virus and both promotions were hit hard, even crossing promotions in one well known case, and some wrestlers even refused to work due to concerns for themselves and their families. The empty arena, once a very rare gimmick match, became the norm in wrestling.

As restrictions were eased, a big set of shows in one state faced backlash as several wrestlers came up positive after the event. A WWE star became the victim of an obsessed stalker who terrorized his would be victim even after he was behind bars. Today, stories of another WWE star recieving mail at her home bring back thoughts of that incident. Shows have opened with a ten bell so much that not opening a show that way became a miracle.

Despite these restrictions, pro wrestling, once considered possibly finished, has instead kept going. Even the independent shows, with smaller, more distant and masked crowds, are starting to return. In other news, a former WWE talent, the son of a WWE Hall Of Famer, pled guilty to a serious crime today. All of this and more will be covered this week.

Imagine you're a WWE superstar. Imagine you're one of their titleholders. Now imagine your cousin is a world famous performer. He's even performed your entrance LIVE at WrestleMania. Now imagine in a few weeks your cousin is going to show up on (gasp) THE COMPETITION! Well you already know who we're talking about but what is the reaction at WWE? We'll tell you all about that.

At AEW the Inner Circle has been short one member as Santana has been missing for the last few episodes. We knew there was a personal issue that lead to his absence, now we know what that was.

Triplemania XXVIII will happen this Saturday night in an empty arena situation in Mexico City. That doesn't mean it won't be an exciting event. with seven matches scheduled including one involving a past guest of ours.Speaking of past guests, our friend Mel "Thunder Rosa" Cervantes had her next Mission Pro Wrestling event Thursday and we will try to have the results.

Steve and Lee will be covering these and other stories, including a MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT by our friend Bill Apter.

For the first time in its three seasons in which it has covered the most controversial subjects in wrestling, including the Owen Hart, Chris Benoit and Dino Bravo cases, the Vice program DARK SIDE OF THE RING has run into a roadblock in trying to set up an episode, this one about Joannie "Chyna" Lauer. We have the information as to why this episode has stalled.

Why did WWE pull an "indefinate suspension" of Brawn Strowman this past Monday night? There are two schools of thought, one of which has a Twitter post that could possibly be the clue. If you watch Impact Wrestling, you know "All Ego" Ethan Page has been on a bit of a losing streak lately, including this past week to "The Weenominal One AJ Swoggle". As always there is an explanation behind it and we will tell you about it. The Impact locker room is also very upset about a recent turn of events that they were not made aware of.

Recently D'Von Dudley's sons made their AEW debut, well the son of another legendary star had a WWE tryout and we'll tell you who that is. The Netflix Hulk Hogan biopic has hit a snag and Eric Bischoff has an explanation. MLW has released its latest episode of FUSION, we'll tell you where you can watch it.

Lee and Steve will discuss these stories along with some Kenny Omega news and a few other items.

I honestly don't know what happened on Friday, so I'm doing it again. This time I will talk about Survivor Series, RAW, some possible TLC stories and the other news that fits in the time slot.

(Note: The program was set up several hours before Zelina Vega/Thea Trinidad was released by WWE which is why it is not mentioned in the program description.)

If you're working in WWE "Creative" you have just been given one of the hardest jobs in the world. You have less than two hours to complete both your Smackdown Men's and Women's Survivor Series teams AND get the audience to actually care about them before next week's go home show. If working for Vince isn't hard enough, you now have this added pressure. of adding one male and THREE females and making it make sense in just one show.

In other news, knowing that Survivor Series is officially Undertaker's last hurrah, what's in store for one of the longest running and most successful performers in WWE history? Well he relates acouple of ideas that have been floated to him that could be very interesting.

The Rascalz have finished up their commitments with Impact Wrestling and now we know why. Speaking of Impact, we'll discuss Saturday's impact Plus event Turning Point. MLW fans now have another outlet to watch their favorite wrestlers. The buy and crowd figures for Full Gear are now out.

These stories and more with Steve Cain and Lee Walker.

After being released from his WWE contract, the man known as "The Man Of The Hour" seemed to drop off the face of the earth. For someone who was a constant presence on social media, especially Instagram, where he would interact, sometimes insultingly, with the fans who would ask to join in his videos. After what seemed to be an eternity away from not only social media, but wrestling itself, the man known as Lio Rush has returned, and it seems like this is not a temporary return.

In other news, how much does Vince pay attention to AEW? Quite a bit, it seems. AAA ended their popular AutoLuchas series this past Sunday with matches that might point to the planned December Triplemania. WWE has filed for two new names while dropping one rather well known name. We have information regarding the current situation with AEW star PAC. New Japan has a major card slated for this weekend which could, once again, shift the balance of power within the company.

Steve and Lee will cover these and other stories this week.

As of episode time there STILL isn't a solid plan for this week's Smackdown! Why is this happening? We'll discuss the apparent issues behind the lack of a solid plan. Also this week we will discuss:

• Road Dogg quits Twitter
• Legitimate trained wrestlers donate to a yarder
• NJPW star to film live action anime
• MLW has a future
• Thunder Rosa's future
• The other match announced for Triplemania
• More about the Marvel/AAA agreement

These and other stories as the develop over the course of the day. Listen to Steve and Lee expound on these and other stories.

For several weeks we talked about the Game Changer Wrestling series of events known as The Collective. Since then at least three of the wrestlers has tested positive for COVID 19. We'll talk about the reports, who has tested positive and what GCW is saying about the situation.

The strange case of Joseph Mehan, AKA Joey Ryan, just gets stranger by the day. We'll talk about the latest lawsuit brought by the sleeze invoking performer. In New Japan, the A Block of the G1 Climax ended last night with a turn as shocking as EVIL leaving Los Ingornobles De Japon to join Bullet Club. B Block wraps up this weekend and we will preview the matches and discuss who we want to see in the final.

Why was Seth Rollins moved to SmackDown? we have the answer to that. What is Goldberg's contract status? We have the answer to that too.

We don't have all the answers, but we have quite a few, and we'll give those to you this week.

Note: Lee is off this week, therefore this week's show will only be a 30 minute show. There most likely will not be a show next week.

We have talked about Vince Mc Mahon and his anger about the WWE performers making money on third party sites such as Twitch and Cameo. Well news came out today regarding Vince's next move and there was a backlash among fans, who knows what will happen with the boys and girls themselves.

Vince apparently has also reset the tenative location for next year's WrestleMania. Will it happen? We'll have to see. We'll also be talking about G-1, Bloodsport and any further GCW information. The G1 standings, Gatoh Move ChocoPro and many more items.

While there have been some notable additions to Josh Barnett's Bloodsport and some matches have been announced, there has been one major change that could affect an entire bracket.  In addition we will also talk about:

CHOCOPRO - The countdown is on to Sunday's 50th episode with the epic battle between Team ChocoPro and Team AEW.

WARRIOR WRESTLING - The Chicago based promotion is hosting the second half of its Stadium Series events this weekend, although there will have to be a change in one match.

KEN SHAMROCK - The next addition to the Impact Wrestling Hall Of fame will have a speech for his induction, and you won't believe who it is.

GOODBYE THUNDERDOME? - Rumor is WWE is going to abandon its Thunderdome set at the Amway Center in Orlando. We'll talk about the potential last date as well as the reason behind leaving the big building.

WHO IS THE NXT MYSTERY MAN? - The video that was on NXT this week with the distorted voice may have been figured out.

COVID-19 - The pandemic has been affecting the business since it first hit, now it's causing matches to be changed right before TV.

Steve & Lee will discuss these and many other items this week.

Tonight Sportskeeda's Lee Walker joins Steve in The Den and the converstaion should be VERY interesting:

NXT UK - WWE's British roster plans to go REALLY old school on their next big idea.

JOSH BARNETTE'S BLOODSPORT - The "inspiration" for RAW Underground (Others call it ouright theft) which was cancelled for WrestleMania week due to COVID-19 has been rescheduled and now the second talent has been announced for the knockout or submission only event.

WARRIOR WRESTLING - The Chicago based promotion is running a two night event which may mark the return of currently one of the most controversial people in wrestling.

NJPW - Due to injury, the IWGP Jr Tag Team Title was vacated and new champions were crowned. In addition, the blocks for the G1 Tournament have been announced, and there are some surprise names among the participants.

TONY KHAN - The AEW owner talks about his talent being on third party social media sites.

GCW - Joey Janela's group, in addition to Bloodsport, is announcing lineups for other rescheduled WrestleMania week shows.

We will discuss these and other wrestling stories as time allows.

Here's what I'm going to be talking about tonight:

JIM CORNETTE - In a strange turn of events, AEW's biggest critic DEFENDS the company he likes to make fun of.

JORDYNNE GRACE - Don't feel sorry for the former Knockouts Champion, she has some good things going on, despite the pandemic and the title loss.

GATOH MOVE CHOCO PRO - The Japanese company owned and operated by AEW's Emi Sakura made a bold move this week.

REY MYSTERIO - The lucha legend & WWE star adds a new item to his resume

RING OF HONOR - Despite not having done anything in months the former number 3 promotion is making a move of sorts.

EDINBURGH - A popular spot closed down, it's history and connection to wrestling make its demise all the sadder.

NJPW - NJPW Strong unveils its latest episode with a face wrestling fans haven't seen in a long time.

CMLL - The "other" lucha promotion in Mexico makes its return tonight in an unusual (for them) format.

ALL OUT - I will talk about my ideas as to what will happen on the big Saturday night PPV.

All this news plus more as time allows.

(Note: Halfway through the episode news of the passing of "Black Panther" star Chadwick Boseman broke. I am a Marvel fan as well as a wrestling person)

For my listening audience that has never heard my story, I grew up in the days of the territories. My area was run by Verne Gagne and the AWA. It was all I really knew because it was the only wrestling on TV. I knew OF the then WWWF & NWA because of Stu Sacks and my friend Bill Apter, but to me, these were minor league organizations.

In 1980 my perspective on wrestling was changed when my family was finally able to get cable TV and one Saturday night shortly before I got home from work my Dad happened to tune to WTBS and accidentally found a little show called Georgia Championship Wrestling. One of the big heroes of the territory was a man known as "The fighting firefighter from Marietta, Georgia". He went under the name of Bob Armstrong and before long I became a fan of his. His homespun, gosh darn Southern charm along with a legitimate toughness due to his background made him relatable to the average viewer watching at home.

Tonight I'll talk about watching Bob and his family and the good old days of territroy "rasslin". 

This week the WWE experiment known as Thunderdome made it's debut. I will talk about the look of the dome on TV and what we could expect this weekend for SummerSlam and TV from here on out.

Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) the Joey Janela run promotion hosts its next event Saturday and I will talk about the upcoming matches which has some unusual matchups happening. Speaking of unusual matchups, This week's NJPW Strong, in addition to having the New Japan Cup 2020 USA finals has some interesting matches with people that are new to the company and a surprise return to the company, especially because it's taking place on US soil.

A few weeks ago I did a show that was supposed to talk about the resurgance of the Japanese wrestling scene in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to technical difficulties a full episode did not make air. This is my attempt to rectify that situation.

Since that episode NJPW has really kicked up their event schedule, but they aren't sticking to Japan. The NJPW Los Angeles dojo is now creating original content and I will talk about that tonight as some interesting people are showing up at the US tapings. In addition to NJPW and Stardom there are some other independent promotions in Japan that are also running that I will discuss.

Time permitting I will talk about some of the bigger names that are not only on major rosters but are also contracted to other organizations.

Tonight I'm going to cover some items we didn't get to cover Thursday (ERN Presents TNT On BTR, available on most podcast carriers) along with some fresh items. Someone who was named in the Speaking Out movement was none too happy about it.  A WWE employee whom we interviewed a few years back has introduced a motivational website and a line of products to go with it. Speaking of WWE, did last week's ending, along with a scene in the Extreme Rules "match" between Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman signal a long rumored change for a rather popular performer?

New Japan has been busy on both sides of the Pacific with events happening in Korakuen Hall and Los Angeles. We'll discuss the Summer Struggle Tour in Japan and the New Japan Cup USA tournament which will give the winner an eventual shot at IWGP US Champion Jon Moxley.

The daughter of a legend will be making her AEW debut this week along with an MLW star who has also shared our airwaves.

All these stories an more on this week's episode.

For quite a while Impact Wrestling, despite having some top tier talent has been considered the "weak sister" of the wrestling business, despite being the only option to WWE with an actual TV deal. However, multiple channel changes and numerous talent defections made the future of the alternative promotion doubtful, especially once All Elite Wrestling started running.

Once the coronavirus hit and basically shut down the industry, and in the case of WWE, forced them to make cuts that they probably would not have made in the current business environment, it became open season. AEW had already gotten the team they wanted when they signed FTR. They also picked up former NXT star Tino Sabbatelli, a guy who, if he wouldn't have gotten injured so much, including at least one concussion, probably would have been on the main roster. This still left a wealth of talent looking for a place to go.

Well when you not only own a wrestling promotion, but also your own network where the ad revenue gives you a bigger budget to work with. What do you do? You go on a buying spree, especially when there are guys who are recognized stars, a few of whom had worked under one or more of the banners Impact had used.

This week I'll examine the people Impact brought on board, their visual message to Vince McMahon and some other news in the wrestling world. This should be a good show

While wrestling in front of live audiences in the US is still pretty much non existent, with WWE & AEW doing TV at set locations using talent to make noise Japan is starting to return to a somewhat normal stage. Yes they are now requiring masks for all audience members, but many have been wearing masks since the tsunami of 2011 so they have no issue with that. The seating has been changed with gaps between seating areas to observe social distancing. Even the current four person commentary team, which includes retired Japanese legend Jushin Thunder Liger are placed in two separate areas and separated on opposite ends of the tables they were at.

This week I will look at the resurgence of the Japanese wrestling scene, from the Bushiroad owned New Japan and Stardom to the smaller promotions dotting the landscape. With a new reality new stories are being developed and new champions are emerging. I hope this week to provide you fans, especially those whose knowledge of wrestling is limited to WWE and AEW with a fresh perspective, something new to look at and consider watching more of.https://anchor.fm/livefromthedeansden/message

Last week, several weeks ahead of plans, The Den returned amidst the then just starting #SpeakingOut trend. Myself and Lee Walker from Sportskeeda.com were literally reporting a story in progress as news was happening while we were live on the air.

Tonight we return with more stories as we find them, including the major shakeup at Impact Wrestling. There are more witnesses coming forward to back up previously reported stories on Jim Cornette. More action on the WWE UK front is happening and I'm sure more will happen before we hit the air tonight.

In this episode we continue to examine the repercussions of the #SpeakingOut movement as well as more positive COVID-19 tests and other news that happens.

NOTE: I was not planning to bring the show back this soon. However, I would be less than the journalist I have always considered myself to be if I did not start this VERY painful conversation.

For those of you who are fans of the legendary Warren Zevon you recognize the lyrics I am using for the title tonight. For those who may not be, the second chorus says "Send lawyers, guns and money. The **** has hit the fan!". No statement can be truer than this, especially as relating to what has broken over the last 18-24 hours. For those of you who were listening to TNT On BTR Thursday, we started by discussing early racist and Islamophobic posts made by Chad "Jaxon Ryker" Lail. Before the night was over stories regarding sexual abuse by Jim & Stacey Cornette were burning up social media. Today, the dam started to break wide open as numerous wrestlers, including one we covered for over year, were being exposed as rapists/sexual assault perpetrators.

Some of these charges include pedophilia and are particularly frightening and uncomfortable to talk about. Tonight, myself and Lee Walker from Sportskeeda.com will only scratch the surface as I am sure by the time I go live there will be numerous additional allegations that will come out. We will discuss much more in terms of accused wrestlers and what the accusations are.

Please note, this show is NOT for younger or more sensitive listeners as there will be VERY mature subject matter discussed.

Normally this would be a week and weekend that wrestling fans live for. However, living in a COVID-19 age changed everything. The independent events that normally flood the landscape were all cancelled, and WrestleMania itself was all pretaped in an empty WWE Peformance Center. Matches had to be changed and producing matches that work better in a larger stadium probably posed more problems. I'll discuss all these variables and what the final matches are slated.

AEW was visited, some say raided, by Georgia officials as they were taping TV. I have all the details, including a rumor about how the officials knew about it.

In other items that might make air, Chris Jericho revealed where one of the ideas for the first Brodie Lee kit came from. Want to own a WrestleMania chair? You can get one without having spent the money for a ticket.

I'll also have an announcement concerning future broadcasts tonight.

This year's WrestleMania matches are changing as rapidly as the current statistics on the Coronavirus. A match that was possibly going to be filmed yesterday had to be changed today and so on. In this episode I'm going to look at the current situation with WrestleMania. As I'm sure the situation will possibly change before Smackdown airs I will not post any specific subjects and I will fly according to what happens there and what happens in the news as it happens.

As I have been continuing to monitor the situation concerning the COVID-19 pandemic the situations are changing literally minute by minute. I will give you the latest information regarding what actions are being taken in regards to moving and/or cancelling events throughout the country.

In other news, it looks like more people are leaving WWE. Did a well known WWE official get a demotion? I'll take the information I gave on W.A.R. and add on information that has come out today. I'll fill you in on all of these stories and more as they occur tonight.

Vince McMahon is known to change entire shows hours before they are supposed to air live, one of those changes may cause a change in the Women's Elimination Chamber match, which now is the only one that counts since Vince already put Roman Reigns against Goldberg for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania.

In regards to WrestleMania, there was an announced change to Axxess concerning a scheduled appearance. I'll tell you who and my thoughts as to why.  AAA airs live on Twitch Saturday but there will be a time change there as well. There's also an angle that is happening right now that may have been the result of someone going into business for themselves.

All of these stories and MORE are LIVE From The Dean's Den.

Talk to me: https://anchor.fm/livefromthedeansden/message

Saturday is AEW's first pay per view of the year, REVOLUTION. Steve will go over the card and what to possibly expect during several of the matches.

"Home Alone" star McCauley Culkin, who was supposed to be at this year's WrestleMania in Tampa is no longer going as he is quite upset over Bray Wyatt dropping the Universal Championship to Goldberg. Well it didn't take long for Goldberg to respond and the response was short and to the point.

Speaking of older WWE part timers getting title opportunities, it looks like another part timer will be getting a title shot at WrestleMania. WWE pre show host Sam Roberts and Revival member Dash Wilder got into a battle on social media over terminology. There is another AEW figure that pre orders are being taken on.

All of this and other items will be discussed LIVE From The Dean's Den.

When Jonathan Good left the security of a job and a midcard push at WWE to strike back out on his own, taking back the name Jon Moxley, he wasn't sure if wrestling fans would accept the change, especially after some of the things he had to do in the later stages of his time at WWE. In this episode, in addition to other news, including who has been added to WrestleMania, including someone who will be working an independent show the day before.

A huge rumor concerning the future of WWE pay per views has emarged, and it may change the future of one particular streaming service, in addition to the WWE Network. Why is Sami Zayn still playing his "Liberator" role rather than compete? Rhea Ripley has talked about the one thing WWE will not allow her to do. All of this and other news as it breaks prior to air time.

WrestleMania week has become an event in and of itself, with every promotion in the world converging on the host city and surrounding area to present their own talent, some of whom are also seen on Impact, ROH,NJPW and now AEW. Previously, Josh Barnette's Bloodsport had been the one specialty show during the week, but now there are other shows highlighting various diverse segments of the wrestling landscape, including FOR THE CULTURE, an event with an all Black roster and EFFY'S BIG GAY BRUNCH. I'll go over the major events that will be happening in the Tampa area during that week including the announced talent and highlighted matches.

AAA is off for the week headed into another Twitch broadcast on the 22nd leaving CMLL the only main promotion running in Mexico, including a Valentine's Day event. There's a MAJOR spoiler concerning a WWE star and one of the championships. I hinted on TNT On BTR I hinted about a current WWE roster member who may be jumping to AEW but did not get to name them, I will name them on this episode.

Slightly over two weeks ago Andrade was suspended for violating the WWE Wellness Policy, but did he really violate it? On TNT On BTR we discussed the situation and a report coming from our good friend Hugo Savinovich about the situation.

Earlier today I had a long phone conversation with Hugo. He relayed a lot of information to me, some of which I am free to share with you on this episode. Once you hear this your opinion toward the Wellness Policy may very well change.

This is not going to be a pretty conversation, but it is a necessary one.

Now I don't plan to be all serious or down, so if there is time I will discuss Saturday night's AAA card which will be broadcast live on Twitch as well as a BIG rumor concerning a current WWE star.

On TNT On BTR Steve broke the story of the upcoming AEW debut of Brodie Lee, FKA Luke Harper. Well Steve's got another one, and it's based on a copyright request made a few months ago.

He also gave a teaser about an upcoming WrestleMania week show that, while the event is good for who it waill showcase, he's a little concerned about the name because of what it was used for just several weeks ago.  WWE UK has announced new talent signings that he will talk about.

This should be a very interesting show.

On TNT On BTR we talked about Baron Corbin putting down the opening contest on Wednesday's AEW Dynamite. We're going to look into the implications of his tweet, as well as more of the clapback he recieved from it. Rey Fenix may have gotten injured Wednesday night taping AEW Dark, I will have the details. Eric Young has come out about his current status with WWE. I now have more information concerning TNT's potential plans for AEW Dark.

In Ring Of Honor news I have an update on the status of Jeff Cobb, a favorite of both ROH and NJPW fans.More rumors, including a possible clue on Twitter, are surrounding former Impact Wrestling star Killer Kross. Who was supposed to be the leader of The Dark Order? You might be surprised at the answer. WWE is applying for another trademark.

I will bring you current information on the CMLL/NJPW joint shows in Japan as well as the upcoming dates for AAA. This should be a fun show, I hope you will enjoy it.

After a little rest for the holidays, Steve is back as Wrestle Kingdom weekend is about to start. He'll run down the matches for the two night event and might even make a couple of predictions. He'll akso go over the situation between NJPW, AXS TV and AEW. More information has come out within the past 14 hours that had not been known previously. Nikki Bella is back in the news, but not for anything wrestling related.

John Morrison's name is being bandied about, but the question is when will he make his first appearance. We may know that before we go on the air, although some clues are already coming out.

Both AAA & CMLL ran New Year's Day events and we'll talk about the matches that occurred and possible upcoming plans for the Mexican promotions, including continuing controversy over the name of one of AAA's biggest stars.

We'll discuss all these and MORE.

...Of The Year (GOTCHA!)

Before I take a break for the holidays I will cover some of the biggest events in wrestling this year, along with up to date news from the major promotions.

Thank all of you who make LIVE part of your weekly listening, no matter where you listen and I hope you will stick with me as I plan on making 2020 an even better year for LIVE.

The Dean

Yes, CM Punk said "F*** Hulk Hogan". I'll tell you the circumstances behind the "WWE Backstage" anaylist's statement. I have information regarding SmackDown Live's channel status in the UK. We have match listing spoilers for TLC and news about Lana and Rusev.

In MLW one talent has been released while a new one has been signed. We have an update on Jeff Hardy that sounds very hopeful. Former ECW talent The Sandman came under fire recently for some comments made to several women involved in the main event at last weekend's WrestleCade and he is speaking on it.

I will discuss all these things and MORE! You don't want to miss this.

For my listeners on Anchor and other host services, the Bill Dundee episode will NOT be put on those services. I will explain why in this broadcast.

The Chicago area is abuzz, it's Survivor Series weekend. It's been 30 years since the Thanksgiving time tradition was in the area, but at that time, NXT wasn't even a gleam in Vince McMahon's eye, Now the Black & Yellow brand seems to be poised, especially with the way they have been presented over the last few weeks , not as the underdog, but as the team to beat. Since the issues with the Saudi Arabia flight grounding (which is still a source of debate) forced the NXT roster to make an emergency trip to fill slots at SmackDown, they have been getting cheered over almost all the main roster on RAW & SmackDown.

We'll also take a look at the situational surrounding Jim Cornette's leaving the NWA. WWE Hall Of Famer Mark Henry has come out with comments regarding the situation. Henry was trained at then WWE developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling when Cornette was in charge and holder him to be a friend, but he is pulling no punches.

This WILL be a controversial episode, so you do not want to miss it.

Well, WWE 2K20 has proved to be a technical bust, so WWE is going back to another idea that did woek. While WWE fans are waiting for the in ring return of Ronda Rousey they have something else fans of the UFC Hall Of Fame member can look forward to.

We now have a buy rate, at least partially, for Full Gear and it does look good. Cody Rhodes issued a statement on social media regarding his loss in the championship match at Full Gear. We also know about the situation concerning AEW's won/loss records.

We talked previously about Kenny Omega's issues with entering Japan recently, New Japan has issued a statement regarding some charges regarding them and Omega's entry issues. Both CMLL & AAA have loaded schedules over the next week, including Twitch and Facebook Live events.

Next week there will be TWO episodes! In addition to the regular LIVE episode we will publish the COMPLETE Superstar Bill Dundee episode from Wrestling Authority Radio. Enjoy this episode in anticipation for next week.

Last night on Wrestling Authority Radio our friend Hugo Savinovich talked about the behind the scenes issues and frightened WWE staff during the grounding of the charter plane that was supposed to take them back from Saudi Arabia. Tonight Steve looks further into the situation, including the meeting that took place before RAW on Monday night.

Meanwhile, at AEW, last minute preparations are going on behind the scenes for Saturday's Full Gear pay per view, while in Mexico at the same time AAA will be doing a show which will air for free on their English and Spanish feeds. Puerto Rican star Savio Vega is making claims concerning the status of members of the legendary Colon family.

All of these stories and MORE will be covered TONIGHT.

THIS is the original write-up I had for this episode, which I FULLY planned to follow:

Several WWE stars will not make it to tonight's Friday Night SmackDown on Fox due to plane issues in Saudi Arabia.

There is a lot of turmoil right now in Ring Of Honor as a veteran performer who was working as a producer for the company has been let go and it is causing a big rift within the locker room.

A sheet writer has actually been tabbed to be one of the people involved with "WWE Backstage" on FS1. WWE has also experienced a drastic drop in  income recently which is causing concern and may be based on a fan exodus that started after the disappointment that was Hell In A Cell.

All of these issues and MORE will be discussed TONIGHT.

THEN a whole group of NXT stars were brought up to fill in and the best of SmackDown in years happened. Sit back and enjoy my analysis of Friday's episode.

This has been quite a unique week in the wrestling business. As the WWE was conducting it's "draft" there were stars asking for their releases. Meanwhile, AEW continues to be THE force to reckon with in the wrestling business while NXT continues what appears to be a downward spiral.

In this episode Steve discusses who is coming and going from which promotions, who is getting pulled from events and so much more. After a two week hiatus, The Dean is back and loaded for bear.

This week was the beginning of the new wrestling war. The participants were:

• Monday - RAW -USA
• Tuesday - Impact Wrestling - AXS TV
• Wednesday - NXT - USA
• Wednesday - AEW Dynamite - TNT
• Friday -  Friday SmackDown - Fox
• Saturday - MLW - BEIN Sports
• Saturday - WOW -AXS
• Saturday - NJPW - AXS

Steve goes over the Big 4 shows, breaks down the action and analyzes what happened on all four shows. You may agree, you may disagree, and please feel free to contact him and let him know. The best comments will be added to next week's show.

After what many are calling a lackluster at best pay per view on Sunday with Clash Of Champions, the follow up last night on RAW can only be described with three initials: W T F! We will break down Clash and then break down a RAW that had some of the most questionable content of the series dating back to the Attitude Era.

Tonight is also the final (for now) episode of SmackDown Live on USA. In addition to the "coronation" of "King" Corbin, a six man tag between The New Day and Randy Orton and SmackDown tag champs The Revival is scheduled. Along with that, Shane McMahon is scheduled to address the firing of Kevin Owens, who has trolled Twitter beautifly since his "firing" with not only hints about his future, but trolling Becky Lynch's match finish at Clash. Will Run Bailey Run make it to Atlanta after running out of the building in Cleveland? Will Alexa Bliss make it after getting "hurt" last night?

In other news we will cover, a strange and sad incident occured over the weekend involving Big Cass, the AAA invasion of New York involved one title change and continued controversy as a star on AAA's roster was NOT used. We'll tall you who that was and why. We'll also go over more information regarding the AEW premier on TNT and much more. Steve & Khaotic Katie are your hosts for this episode, we hope you enjoy it.

In the conclusion of our interview, Duke talks about the reason for his long absence from the business, what he's currently doing, and reveals something about himself that very few people probably don't know. Stay tuned for an announcement regarding the next edition of LIVE.

In this episode we interview former WWF star Mike "Duke The Dumpster" Droese. In this portion he talks about his early life, how he got started in the wrestling business and the brash way he got the attention of Vince McMahon.

The conclusion to this interview will take place on next week's episode.

This episode contains an interview I did on my other show with my good friend Hugo Savinovich. Hugo was good friends with the late Harley Race and he talks about him, Triplemania XVII, AEW and a lot of other wrestling related subjects. I hope you will enjoy it.

Remembering Hall Of Famer Harley Race, news concerning a new AEW title, Triplemania, SummerSlam & NXT TakeOver Toronto

Kaci Dillon is a young trans pro wrestler. She was involved in a match on July 19 that had problems that were not her doing, but that of one of her opponents. The backlash that opponent caused on Twitter sparked a firestorm with many wrestlers and fans jumping to her defense. This is a story I feel can't be shared enough. Please listen with an open mind.

Touching slightly on Fight For The Fallen, Evolve 10th Anniversary and Extreme Rules, Steve continues to discuss the latest situations across all of the promotional landscapes. Be warned, there is at least one post SummerSlam spoiler reported and Steve talks about a very sensitive subject concerning a long time friend of his who is not only a well known wrestler but is the head of the largest wrestler organization in the world.