Ramblings of an Englishman

Despite my currently reservations towards the company I will always have a soft spot for TNA. In England I've been there with them since they were on Bravo long since that channel has stopped coming up on the TV guide. The first match I saw was the Electrified Cage match scrolling through the channels back in 2007 and to be honest probably would've been it if not for Kurt Angle and Christian Cage in the Lethal Lockdown probably would've been it. But man, that match left an impression on me with an immediate love for AJ Styles and Samoa Joe.  I bring that up as it's 20 years next year that I found out about wrestling beyond WWE, sure WCW was alive in my time but I was pretty young I remember the toys being on sale more than Nitro and the first I can really remember of WCW was the 2001 Invasion PPV (and the Jeff Hardy vs. RVD match on that a fan of both right away). From watching that show I ended up going to the Brentwood show of their first UK tour and then onto Wembley...

God I hate when news breaks while I’m in the office. This morning New Japan has announced that their largest shareholder, Bushiroad Inc. has concluded a share transfer agreement as of today with TV Asahi Corporation and CyberAgent, Inc.regarding Bushiroad’s shares in our company. In other words, Bushiroad out with TV Asahi getting a bigger piece of the pie and CyberAgent coming in.   I find this fascinating it is a time for takeover in wrestling following on from Nikki Cross and Big Damo’s purchase of both Britain’s Progress Wrestling and America’s Defy wrestling it reflects a changing landscape of new owners and maybe new ideas. CyberAgent is an interesting name. Their subsidiary in CyberFight is the owner of NOAH, DDT & TJPW so this is a real conglomerate of wrestling companies under one banner when you remember that New Japan owns World Wonder Ring Stardom as well (edit: apparently BushiRoad owns Stardom again? I don’t fucking know at this point). While minority owner compar...

Another rotation of AEW PPVs done and it brings us to the second biggest show in the AEW calander in Double or Nothing, the eight one in its history and you could argue the biggest one since that very first AEW show. Taking place in a packed stadium this should be a great match. I am glad this year that Double or Nothing isn't main evented by a match to get a title match at a different show. Instead, this year will be highlighted by a huge world title match and several grudges, so let's go match by match as ever. But you know who cares about wrestling really? ARSENAL WON THE LEAGUE!!!!!! Buy-In 5-minute Tag Team Eliminator Match: Divine Dominion (Megan Bayne and Lena Kross) vs. Zayda Steel and Viva Van I enjoy the set ups of this matches. Gets Divine Dominion over as dominant force and when someone eventually surivies or beats them it gets them over huge. Look if Brawling Birds are to win it at All In I'd still have someone before hand go the five minutes. Be it Maya World ...

Don’t really know where to begin. Arsenal have finally after 22 years won the Premier League. I was 7 the last time we won the league with little memory of it, this time I was pacing around my room watching the final few moments of Bournemouth vs. Man City that as the final whistle went I let out a massive yes and come on so loud was asked if I had injured myself. My thoughts passed to my Nan who passed away a few days before Arsenal lost at Anfield earlier in the season, I’m sure she would’ve believed unlike me the anxious mess thinking it was all over after every loss and most draws. Says more about my mental wellbeing but we will leave that for another day. So where am I this morning the day after it is all confirmed? Lack of sleep and travelling to work but on a high I’ve never felt. I’m just grateful for the journey, the highs and lows mould a person and after so much heartache we have triumph. The scenes outside the Emirates crowds gathered probably for first time celebrating Bou...

Weren’t we just here a month ago? Yeah it’s the month after month run of AEW shows. I’d prefer to save money but if the shows have the quality that AEW have I don’t mind. The good thing is that the build has to happen and has to happen quick and between the World, Tag Team and the Ospreay grudge match you have big hooks and big matches set up right away and you hope the rest of the card gets that sort of love. AEW is on an upward trajectory carrying on from a good 2025 with American TV viewership booming even without HBO Max numbers it does seem like audiences are looking for an alternative to the slop served by the sex trafficking MAGA company which people somehow still watch.  Anyway, this is a big show for me as it’s the first show for me on the new MyAEW service. With my Triller sub expiring on March 30th and the fact they won’t take new subs meant it was time to move as Triller moves further and further to bankruptcy. A sad end but a great service for supplying AEW content for...

I’m a sucker for a big swing what can I say.   I did envisage a longer break from NJPWWorld I really did, at least until the end of Best of the Super Juniors because of how disinterested I had become. Then Gedo remembered to take big swings with his booking specifically with Callum Newman.  Over the past few months Callum Newman has been given more than a push but the shove. While it felt like the long term build is always to Newman vs. Ospreay January 4th 2027 and I did have Newman as a cup finalist (funnily enough I for once predicted the final correctly of Newman and Uemura with Newman winning) I did not expect what followed. Callum Newman became not only the youngest New Japan Cup winner but the youngest IWGP Heavyweight champion. This is shocking to me because that record was held by Shinsuke Nakamura a man woven into the history of the company so for that record to be taken by a non Japanese talent and at 23 years and 7 months it’s a real difficult record to break. ...