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Updated daily, the Torch News Ticker delivers a stream of news and information from WWE, TNA, ROH, Japan, the independents, and whatever else pops up. Keep it open in a new tab and bookmark it every Monday! Promoters and readers: Send in news, upcoming events, interview highlights, or wrestling-related information to the Torch News email address, Wade Keller, and James Caldwell for inclusion on the Ticker. Contact link.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Afternoon Update

- REPORTS WANTED: We're looking for reports from WWE's Super show in Rochester, N.Y. to kick off the Unforgiven PPV weekend. TNA is also in New York state, with a show tonight in Westbury prior to their NYC show on Saturday night. Be sure to send in a report if you attend.

- Mickie James appears on "Psych" tonight playing a Roller Derby girl. The episode, titled "Talk Derby to Me" airs at 10:00 p.m. EST on USA Network. Back story on appearance and Interview.

- Mark Henry offers his thoughts on each of the Unforgiven matches for Sunday night in an interview with the U.K. Sun. He said he's not sure HBK-Jericho has been WWE's top feud this year, as Undertaker and Edge have "done unbelievable numbers" and his feud against Matt Hardy has turned heads. Interesting read from the wise Henry on Sunday's PPV. Sun article link.

- Kevin Nash and Samoa Joe in a hotel room with a Newsday reporter to discuss all-things TNA. As you can imagine, Nash had plenty to quip about. "I'm a wreck," Nash said about his physical condition. "So at this point, I put my hand on the stove 350 times and I still don't realize that it's going to burn me. I don't have a whole lot left on me that you can cut on. I have more cuts on me than a cadaver. People ask me all the time why I still do this and I say, 'I can't sing and I can't dance.' If I could do either, I would do that." Nash also discusses his advice to younger wrestlers on lining up finances while employed in the wrestling business. Newsday article link.

- Wired.com reports that gaming website Games Asylum was forced to remove WWE video game videos from youtube, then the site had its account permanently deleted. From Wired's report: "One of the site's posters writes that Electronic Arts and a few other publishers have previously claimed ownership of uploaded videos, but have never requested that they be taken down." Story link.

- WWE's next European tour is in November, and now they have announced another European tour in April following WrestleMania 25. Tickets go on-sale Sept. 12 for an April 2009 show in Scotland. Tour details.

- Katie Lea believes the WWE Women's division is being taken more seriously lately. "There's a lot of effort put in and the producers are taking it very seriously, I think the division is on the way up," Katie told the Daily Star in the U.K. about becoming full-time in WWE. "When you're doing it, all the time you're thinking I'm at work, this is normal, but sometimes you look around at the people backstage or peer through the curtain at the thousands of people in the arenas and it's just crazy." Daily Star interview link.

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Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Evening Update

- Shawn Michaels will be wrestling Chris Jericho at Unforgiven on Sunday. WWE reports that Michaels only suffered a small tear on his left triceps after an exam from Michaels's doctor, who previously believed that Michaels had a full tear that would limit any range of motion. WWE article link.

- Josh Mathews picked up the label of "the voice of WWE" appearing on Great Van Sustern's "Off the Record" show last night. Mathews was joined by Mickie James to comment on WWE's voter campaign this week in St. Paul. Mathews claimed WWE reaches over 15 million viewers during the week with Raw, Smackdown, and ECW, which is potentially plausible when counting international viewership. FOX News article link.

- Shares of Jakks stock shot up today on the news that the toy-making company has signed a deal with WEC and PRIDE to market MMA action figures. Jakks is trying to make up for lost revenue when their toy deal with WWE expires in 2010 and they're adding MMA lines to their TNA line that will debut in 2010. An analyst at Morgan Joseph upgraded Jakks stock from "hold" to "buy," prompting the stock price increase. LA Biz journal article and Motley Fool analysis.

- WWE Raw on Sci-Fi last week still made the Top 15 cable ratings despite the drop due to channel switch. CNN's coverage of the Democratic National Convention dominated ratings for the week, and removing the DNC from the equation, Raw would have finished fourth for the week among the normal cable programming. Top 20 ratings.

- Marc Ambinder, who is an editor at Atlantic Monthly magazine and CBS political consultant, has a comparison between politics and WWE on his blog. Ambinder looks at the "candidates" in each profession trying to present issues from their perspective to convince an audience to cheer or boo. Interesting take. Blog link.

- WWE 24/7 has finally reached the San Antonio, Tex. market, with rural GVTC cable adding the on-demand program due to high-demand and strong cable TV ratings in the area. “It’s no secret professional wrestling is huge in our area,” says Mike Gross, GVTC Cable TV product manager. “Providing WWE exclusively on GVTC sets us apart from the competition and is another example of how we step into the ring to offer programming our customers want.” 24/7 is available starting today. Press release link.

- At TNA's New York City show this Saturday, TNA will be giving away a free DVD to every fan who attends. TNA claims management at the Hammerstein Ballroom created a ticketing problem for fans. "TNA Wrestling would like to reiterate that this issue was out of our control and we apologize to all of our loyal fans that have been inconvenienced," said TNA in a press release. We hope you will still join us this Saturday for a night of Total Nonstop Action in the Big Apple." NYC show details.

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Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Morning Update

- The latest on Shawn Michaels, as provided by WWE, is that he's scheduled for a full medical examination today to determine the severity of his triceps injury. He could be out four-to-six months, but Michaels is determined to make the PPV match against Chris Jericho on Sunday. Stay tuned.

- Jakks issued a press release this morning that Connecticut state court has dismissed "most of the claims" from WWE against the Jakks/THQ joint venture stemming from the bribery litigation that has gone on for several years. Jakks emphasized the state court's decision to dismiss the claims based on the amount of time that has passed since the alleged bribery and the federal court dismissing claims.

This has turned quite ugly in the relationship. Jack Friedman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of JAKKS Pacific stated, "From the outset, we have maintained that WWE’s claims against us were meritless and part of an attempt by WWE to force us to relinquish our financial stake in our licenses. We have refused to be bullied into submission and are delighted that the Connecticut Court has granted summary judgment in our favor." WWE has indicated they will appeal the ruling and Jakks has maintained they will vigorously defend any appeal. Press release.

- Jim Ross says in his latest blog that Randy Orton could return to the ring in two months and his special appearance on Raw certainly added star power to the show. Regarding the slew of injuries in the last month, Ross said on jrsbarbq.com, "The intriguing aspect of these unfortunate times is who will raise their game and break through? There has not been a more opportune time for a young, developing talent or a talent who has not been a perceived main eventer to challenge themselves and the system for playing time." Ross also comments on Tony Schiavone, Angle in MMA, and memories of Killer Kowalski's top matches. Blog link.

- John Cena is up for an award at the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards UK edition to be held Sept. 13 at London's Excel Arena. Cena's category is Favourite Sportsman and he's up against David Beckham, Lewis Hamilton, and Steve Gerrard. Awards show details.

- Variety published a report on USA Network's line-up of TV shows crushing the competition in prime time cable, to the point where its summer lead over second-place TNT is the largest margin in the history of cable TV. WWE Raw only receives minimal note for the success, as the article focuses mainly on Burn Notice, Monk, and Psych. Industry analysts say USA is looking more like a broadcast network with original scripted series each night of the week, starting with Raw on Monday nights. Article link.

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