{"id":67622,"date":"2018-10-15T15:14:49","date_gmt":"2018-10-15T20:14:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=67622"},"modified":"2018-10-15T15:24:55","modified_gmt":"2018-10-15T20:24:55","slug":"10-15-afternoon-update-latest-on-wwe-saudi-arabia-crown-jewel-situaton-cody-bucks-tease-wwe-rapper-open-eagle-mike-wins-title-and-celebrates-with-foley-and-mr-anderson-plus-cobb-strickland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2018\/10\/15\/10-15-afternoon-update-latest-on-wwe-saudi-arabia-crown-jewel-situaton-cody-bucks-tease-wwe-rapper-open-eagle-mike-wins-title-and-celebrates-with-foley-and-mr-anderson-plus-cobb-strickland\/","title":{"rendered":"10\/15 Afternoon Update: Latest on WWE-Saudi Arabia &#8220;Crown Jewel&#8221; situaton, Cody\/Bucks tease WWE, Rapper Open Eagle Mike wins title and celebrates with Foley and Mr. Anderson, plus Cobb, Strickland, Bandido"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-2619022419\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p>-WWE continues to list WWE Crown Jewel on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wwe.com\/events\/results\/wwe-live\/all-dates\/0\/0\/Enter%20Location\/0\">WWE.com events listing<\/a> without a location, whereas the live events the next day in Madrid, Spain and Nottingham, England do have the location listed.<\/p>\n<p>-Sports Illustrated has published an article today with the headline: &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/wrestling\/2018\/10\/15\/wwe-saudi-arabia-crown-jewel-jamal-khashoggi-controversy?utm_campaign=sinow&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;xid=socialflow_twitter_si&amp;utm_source=twitter.com\">WWE Talent Is Uncomfortable With Saudi Arabia Show\u2014And They Should Be<\/a>.&#8221; The article says wrestlers, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have expressed discomfort with the idea of performing in Saudi Arabia.\u00a0 Exceprts:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>WWE needs transparency in its relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.\u00a0If an exorbitant amount of money makes the deal worthwhile, then WWE should state the obvious and say so.<\/p>\n<p>With female talent not allowed to perform in the country, the Saudi deal hurts WWE\u2019s efforts to champion their women\u2019s revolution.<\/p>\n<p>Multiple members of the WWE talent roster have expressed discomfort with the idea of performing in Saudi Arabia, especially given the nation\u2019s poor record with human rights<\/p>\n<p>If the show takes place as planned, \u201cCrown Jewel\u201d on Nov. 2 will forever be stained. Unfortunately, that means that special moments\u2014particularly the AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan\u00a0dream match and the long-awaited return of Shawn Michaels\u2014will always be associated with the controversial alliance with the Saudi Arabian government.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>-PWTorch has reached out to a number of active WWE wrestlers regarding the Saudi Arabia situation, and they indicate in some circles the politics of the situation hasn&#8217;t been a conversation in their circles of the locker room yet. That could change tonight.<\/p>\n<p>-As discussed on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2018\/10\/14\/vip-audio-10-14-bruce-mitchell-audio-show-w-keller-what-does-wwe-stand-to-gain-and-lose-if-they-go-through-crown-jewel-in-saudi-arabia-or-if-they-move-show-plus-twist-in-the-futures-of-cod\/\">PWTorch VIP Bruce Mitchell Audio Show yesterday<\/a>, New Japan&#8217;s management changes this year and their attitude toward its top non-Japanese stars has shifted the likelihood of Cody Rhodes returning to WWE, joined by Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Adam Page, has increased dramatically. The Young Bucks have been touting that they are releasing their final Bullet Club t-shirts. Toma Tonga seems to indicate Cody &amp; Co. are headed to WWE in a Tweet today. It&#8217;s also not unlike Cody to throw out red herrings. Hear <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stitcher.com\/podcast\/blogtalkradio\/wade-keller-pro-wrestling-podcast\/e\/55598446\">my interview with Cody<\/a> where he discusses his mindset headed into a pivotal time in his career, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stitcher.com\/podcast\/blogtalkradio\/wade-keller-pro-wrestling-podcast\/e\/55598446\">CLICK HERE.<\/a><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The Elite doesn\u2019t exist without <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/BulletClub?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#BulletClub<\/a> . Good luck in WWE<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Tama Tonga (@Tama_Tonga) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Tama_Tonga\/status\/1051710544514703360?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 15, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/twitter.com\/Tama_Tonga\/status\/1051490909680881664<\/p>\n<p>-As noted in a separate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2018\/10\/14\/hbos-last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver-scorches-wwes-saudi-arabia-affiliation-wwe-com-removes-mentions-of-saudi-arabia-as-host-country-for-crown-jewel\/\">article yesterday here at PWTorch<\/a>, we detailed HBO&#8217;s &#8220;Last Week Tonight with John Oliver&#8221; addressing the Saudi Arabia controversy which for several minutes focused on WWE&#8217;s affiliation and live events in the country. The segment was highly critical of WWE&#8217;s financial windfall and, perhaps more so, the propaganda videos that were aired on their first &#8220;Greatest Royal Rumble&#8221; special earlier this year.<\/p>\n<p>-The latest on this is that Saudi Arabia officials are ready to admit that Saudi journalist and U.S. resident and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi is dead. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2018\/10\/15\/middleeast\/saudi-khashoggi-death-turkey\/index.html\">CNN reports<\/a>: &#8220;One source says the report will likely conclude that the operation was carried out without clearance and transparency and that those involved will be held responsible.&#8221; If the official story gains public acceptance that the leadership in Saudi Arabia were not behind the killing, it might give WWE and other corporations the &#8220;cover&#8221; they are looking for if their desire is to keep profiting off of doing business in the country.\u00a0Host of Showtime&#8217;s &#8220;The Circus&#8221; John Heilemann said on today&#8217;s &#8220;Deadline: White House&#8221; program on MSNBC hosted by former President George W. Bush White House Communications Director Nicole Wallace: &#8220;This is about [President Trump] trying to find an excuse because he has too much skin in this game to go after MBS. That&#8217;s what this is. This is about the bottom line&#8230; This is a very, very important moment between the United States and Saudi Arabia, and Saudi Arabia&#8217;s place in the world and in Washington and other places. For the president to be behaving like this is cause for profound moral concern.&#8221; Associated Press reporter Jonathan Lemire said: &#8220;[President Trump]\u00a0seems inclined to take [the Saudi&#8217;s] word for it, at least carry the water publicly for their cover story no matter how implausible it may be even though it flies in the face of what his own intelligence agencies are telling him.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>-WWE and Impact Wrestling present their women wrestlers differently in written p.r. statements. On <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wwe.com\/shows\/wwenxt\/article\/major-news-from-sunday-nights-nxt-uk-tapings\">WWE.com&#8217;s story on the NXT UK tapings<\/a>, they mix the names of the top women and men and introduce the stars of the show this way: &#8220;The groundbreaking show will feature the greatest\u00a0male,\u00a0female\u00a0and tag team\u00a0competitors from the United Kingdom and Ireland including the likes of\u00a0WWE United Kingdom Champion\u00a0Pete Dunne,\u00a0Mark Andrews,\u00a0Rhea Ripley, Toni Storm, Tyler Bate, Trent Seven, and Wolfgang.&#8221; Impact Wrestling, on the other hand, lists the men and women separately, and describes the men as &#8220;great&#8221; and the women as &#8220;lovely and lethal.&#8221; Here&#8217;s their p.r. summary of their roster in press releases: &#8220;The roster features such greats as Austin Aries, Johnny Impact, Eli Drake, Moose, Eddie Edwards, Sami Callihan, Brian Cage, Pentagon Jr., Fenix, Matt Sydal, Rich Swann, the high-flying X-Division, plus the lovely and lethal Knockouts, including Tessa Blanchard, Su Yung, Allie, Rosemary, and Taya Valkyrie.&#8221; While it&#8217;s a &#8220;compliment&#8221; to be called lovely, and they&#8217;re playing off of the alteration of &#8220;lovely&#8221; and &#8220;lethal,&#8221; WWE&#8217;s mixing of men and women together and classifying them all as &#8220;great&#8221; seems more inclusive and (finally) lets the women&#8217;s looks speak for themselves rather than overtly prescribing looks as a key trait to the females but not the males, which feels more out of the &#8220;Mad Men&#8221; era where top executive males were &#8220;sharp and successful&#8221; and the women were &#8220;pretty and attentive.&#8221;<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-832138151\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>-Rapper Open Mike Eagle captured the OVW Title from Shiloh Jonze\u00a0last week in Louisville, Ky. at OVW&#8217;s 1000th episode. Mick Foley was present to congratulate him afterward. Jonze tells PWTorch: &#8220;It was a very unique angle in that it started on social media, led to [Open Mike Eagle&#8217;s lead singer] coming here, and me interrupting his concerts in Los Angeles. It really blurred the lines of reality for a lot of his fans. Adult Swim got interested in it and started a mini-documentary of the whole thing that will air at a later date. It became one of the biggest angles on our show, where we got Mick Foley and Ken Anderson involved as well.&#8221; Read more and see some pictures from Twitter at <a href=\"https:\/\/uproxx.com\/hiphop\/open-mike-eagle-wrestling-match\/\">Uproxx.com<\/a>\u00a0and <a href=\"https:\/\/noisey.vice.com\/en_us\/article\/wj9bm4\/inside-open-mike-eagles-wild-sweaty-pro-wrestling-debut\">Vice.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">. @RealMickFoley and <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mrkenanderson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@mrkenanderson<\/a> helped me win a fight <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/O4ieQ3CyBa\">pic.twitter.com\/O4ieQ3CyBa<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; open michael eagle (@Mike_Eagle) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Mike_Eagle\/status\/1050435546236022784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 11, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>-DEFY Wrestling returns to Seattle, Wash. on Oct. 27 at Washington Hall featuring DEFY Champ Shane Strickland defending against SCHAFF, plus American Guns face Flamita &amp; Bandido and Jeff Cobb facing Brody King. They also have an event scheduled for Nov. 24 in Portland, Ore. at the Hawthorne Teahter and then back to Seattle on Dec. 14. If you plan to attend any of these live events, as with any live pro wrestling events, please email results to pwtorch@pwtorch.com. More info at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.defywrestling.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/www.defywrestling.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1539719170224000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE4JK7ldXza7ILzL1goL2pCxoJBUg\">www.DefyWrestling.com.<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>NOW CHECK OUT THE PREVIOUS TORCH TODAY UPDATE:<\/strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2018\/10\/13\/afternoon-update-trish-comments-on-beckys-heel-turn-madison-rayne-talks-about-inspiration-for-career-resurgence-wwe-uk-tv-debut-details-australia-writer-grades-show-downs-triple-h-taker-match\/\">Afternoon Update: Trish comments on Becky\u2019s heel turn, Madison Rayne talks about inspiration for career resurgence, WWE UK TV debut details, Australia writer grades Show-down\u2019s Triple H-Taker match, PCO, Sami, ACH, Havoc, Jacobs<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-3017437242\"><div id=\"pwtor-1457211717\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>-WWE continues to list WWE Crown Jewel on the WWE.com events listing without a location, whereas the live events the next day in Madrid, Spain and Nottingham, England do have the location listed. -Sports Illustrated <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2018\/10\/15\/10-15-afternoon-update-latest-on-wwe-saudi-arabia-crown-jewel-situaton-cody-bucks-tease-wwe-rapper-open-eagle-mike-wins-title-and-celebrates-with-foley-and-mr-anderson-plus-cobb-strickland\/\" title=\"10\/15 Afternoon Update: Latest on WWE-Saudi Arabia &#8220;Crown Jewel&#8221; situaton, Cody\/Bucks tease WWE, Rapper Open Eagle Mike wins title and celebrates with Foley and Mr. Anderson, plus Cobb, Strickland, Bandido\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24063,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,2,7,539,4,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-quicknews","category-prowrestlingnews","category-news_etc","category-indies-news","category-news_tna","category-news_wwe"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/RhodesCody_3x2Charlton.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67622"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67622\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67633,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67622\/revisions\/67633"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}