The Unknown Poster

I agree. Everything about WWE is so formulaic. The way they shoot TV, the way the announcers talk, the commercial breaks, the slick everything, the matches, the booking...they need a major change in how they present TV from top to bottom.

The word is out that New Japan has decided to maintain its working relationship with ROH. They had been scheduled to all sit down together this past weekend (All Elite included). New Japan sort of had to do that since they have the co-branded MSG show Wrestlemania weekend (New Japan/ROH). But All Elite thought they'd be able to keep working dates in Japan. And this decision might be what cost New Japan Kenny. Had he been able to maintain his lucrative New Japan deal and then work with Elite, it would make a lot of sense. New Japan seems to always be fine losing guys but Jay White isnt a replacement for Kenny Omega. I get the sense Kenny might want some time to rest and recuperate. The sense out there is that Elite feels confident in landing him. If their holding deal is lucrative enough, they just might. It doesnt sound like Elite has a lot of shows planned for this year so those holding deals afford guys time to do the indies they want and to take time off.

So...an improvement.

He’s becoming totally unhinged. And scared.

There is definitely an argument to trade laine. But at his age, so much potential to get better

KUSHIDA says he’s leaving also. WWE wants him as well.

Hmmm wonder if the jets have any interest. Schmaltz?

Is that a prediction or did you just see the lines at practice? Lol

I can’t remember all the details off the top of my head but even more remarkable was Bret turned down more money from WCW in 96 to stay with wwe who offered him a 20 year deal or something like that. The difference in the deals is that Bret getting $2.5 million was his total deal not a downside. Wcw didn’t do downside guarantees. Which led to a lot of guys missing time because they made the same whether they worked or not.

Yup. I’m the same as you. I watched as a kid and then barely watched for years. It was when wrestling got smarter that it drew me back in. The quality of wwe is a way better now than in the early to mid 90’s but it’s just as boring. Everyone should watch Kenny vs Tanahashi from two nights ago that was 40 minutes of a match that never felt like it.

Stop using the term “marks” as a way to demean wrestling fans. That’s a Russo move. And he’s a delusional self loathing fan. If you have to ask why fans do care about Cody and the bucks you’ve missed the point completely. You know who else cares about them? The guy who just offered them $1 million. WWE is a behemoth that can never collapse without an extended period of incredible incompetence. But what they produce is not what appeals to modern wrestling fans right now. All their key metrics have been dropping for a couple of years. While New Japan made in roads into the US, had their best US numbers for their middle of the night PPV’s. ROH has their biggest year. And the biggest star in the world (who you didn’t include on your criticism) is Kenny Omega who every single promotion wants right now. Goldberg? Again...really. You can’t figure out why they would be interested?

$3.5 over 5 years would be reasonable downside a couple years ago. But especially, as you said, in the wake of Cody and the Bucks reportedly being offered $1 million per year, $3.5 per year isnt actually pretty reasonable...huge and very different from their regular pay scale, but reasonable based on who Kenny is. If it was $3.5 on a two year deal, I would not be surprised but I heard per year as well...who knows. Downside doesnt really matter (its a safety net), though WWE does work to justify their contracts (ie. if they pay you big dollars, they push you to justify it) so it is also a safety net against being buried. But Kenny would make way more than his downside anyway. Funny, it wasnt long ago that some people debated here that Kenny wasn't a star.

Stanley Cup Preview tonight.

No jail unless the deal is to spare his children jail. But even then, would Trump make the sacrifice of jail at his age to protect his kids?

WWE's contracts are for "downside guarantees" so if you never work a match, never sell a piece of merch, sit at home doing nothing, this is your guaranteed income. When you add in House Show pay, PPV bonuses, Merchandise etc, that can increase it multiple fold. I remember hearing that only Hunter & Cena had $1 million downside gurantees. In Cena's case it wouldnt matter because he would get so much more for merch and event bonuses. Hunter's pay is released since he's an officer of the company and I think it was like $1.6 million in 2017. Cena would be upwards of several million in a year he works fairly regularly. Reports of Roman Reigns being around $5 million (that would be his total pay, his downside guarantee would likely be much lower). It goes right down to some of the female talent, especially non-regular, making less than $100,000. And remember, in WWE on the main roster you pay your own road expenses (hotel, car rental, food). NXT talent are treated more like employees and road expenses are paid. When you're called up they continue to do pay your road expenses for a period of time as you acclimate (and the big cheques start coming). So if WWE offers someone a $3.5 million deal, the assumption is that's a downside guarantee and would be exceptionally large. And it would indicate WWE feels its a fraction of his value because you'd always make way more than your downside if you're working regularly. Obviously merchandise would be a big deal for Kenny. The higher up the card you are or the more responsible you are for a show's draw, the more bonus you get. Everything is negotiable. And for veterans the big thing is negotiating less dates (so you're not constantly on the road). Reportedly Brock gets $10 million a year and works limited dates. His contract allowed WWE to add dates if they wanted, but at an agreed upon price which was very high. Brock also gets the make his own sponsorship deals which is why he can wear corporate logos on his gear (no one else has that deal). They would definitely want Kenny working house shows. Anyone can look at Kenny's schedule the last few years and see his doesnt work as often as he could (he would make a lot of money doing indy gigs but doesnt). So I could see him negotiating less than a full time schedule but he'd be big for house shows and WWE would want him on the house show circuit. When AJ Styles went to WWE, Vince didnt see him as a star until the house show numbers with him suddenly shot up. So yeah everything is negotiable. Kenny has endorsement deals and things he enjoys doing on the side. So he'd want to keep those because he enjoys them and they supplement his income. Its all negotiable. Even airplane status is negotiable with first class travel being a perk given to veterans when they reach a certain point. WWE covers medical expenses and pays you your downside (and merch etc) when you're hurt. For background, their developmental deals used to be really low, $500/week (I think that was Kenny's original WWE contract pay_. And everyone got that. I think it was $1000/week when NXT started and then they began giving "custom" deals to certain developmental talent they liked. I believe custom deals are more common in NXT now. Back in the day, it was not uncommon for WWE to let certain talent work Japanese tours as well but that is a thing of the past. For what it's worth, Meltzer has confirmed WWE made a "fantastic offer" to Kenny. He also said ROH, New Japan and All Elite are sitting down this weekend to discuss the future and potentially all working together.

I only woke up for the main event but reading the detailed results, it seems people agree. It was a good show as it always will be with that talent but not blow away until the main event. One thing that is great about Kenny is every match feels different and feels like a different story. In WWE they are so produced and formulaic that sometimes matches seem longer than they are. I couldnt believe when they announced the 30 minute mark of Omega/Tanahashi last night. It felt like no time had gone. I guess I was a bit surprised at Jay White beating Okada but if they are losing a bunch of "Americans" it makes sense to push White and with Tanahashi as champion, they need a heel. Really interesting that Kenny kicked out of the High Fly Flow but never did hit the One Winged Angel. He's protected that move beyond belief. Rumor circulating that Kenny was offered $3.5 million by WWE.

I only woke up for the main event of Wrestle Kingdom. But spoiler alert: hell of a match with the outcome everyone expected. In fact New japan switched every title which is either confirmation of several guys leaving or their attenpt at a swerve (not their style). Kept calling it a new era. In many ways!

Maybe OP is waiting for the answer to his question. Which is, ofcourse, when people stop behaving like pigs

Wasnt it to save on energy back when we used oil lamps or something? Seems wild to have half the country or more switch hours twice a year. Just keep it the same. Who cares?

As mentioned, they signed Brit Baker. I'd suggest they look at Gisele Shaw too. I would expect Don Callis to be interested in going there though his job with Impact probably works better being a Canadian company. Rumors flying that Tony Khan has committed $100 million to the project, that TBS is in negotiations, that its a $30 million per year, 3 year deal...and that its not for TBS but for a streaming service Turner owns. All rumours have been both refuted and "seconded" by other sources. Hilarious. I'd literally only trust Meltzer on news/rumours due to his relationship with the Elite guys. Another rumour was Goldberg is being talked to. He shares an agent with...someone, Cody maybe? Can't remember. But I believe he follows All Elite (or vice versa) so it's intriguing.

What a clown.

They should not rush to impeach. I mean, if they think he's worth impeaching now just wait til Mueller and the Dems get finished with their investigations lol

Brit Baker signed with All Elite.

Geez