David

This is what I'm seeing just now, and that won't include walk-ups, which are quite prevalent in the US and Canada from what I hear. There was a lot of walk-ups for Collision in Toronto.

Just now, Infinity Land said:

Tonight's the night of the Hamilton Collision. The show that only had 800+ tickets as of a couple weeks ago. Last number I saw still had it under 2,000. So it's going to look worse than last night's Dynamite.

Are you sure? I had a quick look and there's not all that many tickets left at this point. Just like they did in Toronto, they dropped the prices a bit in the past week or so. You can get a pretty good seat for like $25 CAD, which is like £15.

10 hours ago, FelatioLips said:

He’s a short beardy vegan that acts goofy and weird any time you see him behind the scenes.

Exactly. He's just too likeable to be a hated heel. Everything about him screams "nice guy."

Just now, LaGoosh said:

Absolute madness, Danielson is an absolutely brilliant heel. That's not an opinion, it's 100% fact and it shall not be debated any further.

Oh, you should know me well enough by now to know that is most certainly never the case.

2 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

They paid him in cash?

I like to think so. Dana handing him a giant bag of ten dollar bills while he's sitting there all bruised and bashed up. The other fighters, all far superior in every way getting paid next to nothing in comparison.

10 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

This week on Collision he's going to wear a fat lip and a frown in memory of his UFC run.

While waving his bulging wallet, in memory of the half a mill he earned per fight in the company.

Just now, The King Of Swing said:

Probably setting myself up for disappointment but I hope Final Countdown wasn't a one off. 

I hope it signifies him moving away from the BCC. Just like Punk seems false and forced as a face, Danielson is not believable as a borderline heel/tough guy. He's too likeable.

On 6/24/2023 at 9:37 PM, The King Of Swing said:

Also is someone new helping to book things now? Rampage has been on a surprisingly good run recently imo.

I usually enjoy it but never lost any sleep if I missed an episode but lately I've found myself really looking forward to it. 

It might be wide of the mark, of course, but I'd heard they'd moved Danielson into a part-time creative position with both Collision and Rampage as of a month or so ago.

That's been the only thing I've read regarding new input to creative, so maybe that's it. 

20 hours ago, The King of Old School said:

Get Punk in for Danielson if he's fucked, you know it makes sense.

You have to think the plan is to fully turn him heel and get some bodies around him in a faction type deal, right? I actually think that if they don't royally fuck it up, this second half of his AEW run could be amazing.

I've never really been a fan of smiling, babyface Punk. 

On 6/27/2023 at 8:53 AM, Louch said:

I’d not be surprised if the many you seen in punk shirts are booing him too, most big punk fans I know want to see heel Punk and happy to influence it. Much prefer that kinda audience to those that cheer heels they like, booing is the right reaction 

That's a really good point, actually. I'm hoping he goes full-on heel in this situation he's found himself in. I mean, let's be honest, even if fans might consider the Bucks, Omega and Hangman to be over-sensitive tits in the Punk/Elite carry-on, it's very difficult to boo those guys when they're in the ring. The stuff they do, the way they work, you can't help but cheer them.

On 6/25/2023 at 6:05 PM, The King Of Swing said:

Something, something, Whaaa my god has abandoned me, something, hot wife, something. 

Every Miro promo before and after his return. It's beyond tiresome now.

Didn’t seem like much of a departure to me, this week. 

Yeah, the crowd in the arena cheered when he first appeared on-screen, then they sat confused as he waffled on. He's a terrific in-ring competitor, but he doesn't need to be chatting the kind of shite he is now. It's a shame, as he'll likely fade again if they keep this line of character development up I think.

This was probably the best show I've ever attended live. And being not quite the spring chicken anymore, I've seen a few. The crowd during the Omega match was insane. So many near-falls and highlights that it was difficult to pick who was going to win. 

The reaction to Punk was again split, with the boos being from what I'd describe as a slight minority, but definitely more vocal. One thing I did note was the sheer amount of Punk shirts being worn in the queue, and also when I was moving around the arena at the food stalls and bathrooms. The guy definitely has a ton of fans, but they're maybe not as vociferous as his detractors. It also seemed on the night that he was moving into definite heel territory with his reactions to the crowd and so on.

The show went long. A little too long for many I think, as I noticed fans leaving while the Danielson match was in progress. This was because people had to get home, and it was also Pride weekend in Toronto, so Ubers, taxis, and transport in general was a bit of a nightmare. A shame, as a match like that didn't deserve a crowd that was already jaded and looking to get back home. Hopefully it didn't come across that way on TV.

But yeah, what a show. It'll take something special to top that.

7 hours ago, JakeRobertsParoleOfficer said:

Punk for me just isn't in that league

Is anyone actually making that claim?

Well, that crowd was hot tonight. I would say it seemed 50/50 on Punk in the actual arena. Honestly, if they don't turn him heel, where he basically goes all-in (pardon the pun) on those who are booing him, while appreciating the fans who aren't, they're missing a trick. 

Bring on Forbidden Door!

I think he's a decent enough bloke. Until you cross him. Be it real or imaginary.

15 minutes ago, Michael_3165 said:

It depends what you call a draw. Sure nowadays, but that's a relatively low bar, comparative to Austin, Hogan or Rock. I wouldn't really say ANYONE can legitimately be called a draw in 2023. 

It's all relative, isn't it? For me, someone who is a draw manages to draw attention and eyeballs to a product. And is a defining factor in selling tickets. 

The Austin, Hogan and Rock eras aren't really comparable in 2023. It's like when people talk about TV ratings today, as if it's still 1998 and everyone is using traditional cable to consume content. 

I personally haven't watched a TV show via traditional television means for years now. I subscribe to services online. 

Back in the day, Hogan, Rock or Austin didn't have to lean as much on social media. The internet wasn't as big a factor. The landscape has changed quite a bit, and it's like the old timers who would say "well, this Austin or Rock fella isn't a patch on Bruno or Andre." Well, yeah, but it was a different world back then as well. Different parameters for measuring success. Not to say that Bruno couldn't have been a success in the Rock and Austin era, as we don't know how he'd have changed his act to adapt to modern times. Maybe he'd have positioned himself as a more hairy Bret Hart? Who knows?

But yeah, Punk clearly has the fans interest. We're all talking about him now, and have been for months. He's polarizing, and has got wrestling fans in 2023 to do that weird tribal thing they feel they need to do with everything. It's WWE or AEW. Vince or Tony. Wrestling or Sports Entertainment. And it's Punk or The Elite. 

Basically, he matters. People are gonna boo him, or cheer him. And having him around has increased the level of buzz and online chatter, which to me, is up there as a yardstick in this day and age with the antiquated TV ratings measurements.

Just now, gmoney said:

I think they taped before Collision and after it, to a massively dwindling crowd.

It seems they're taping an hour before and about an hour and a half or so afterwards.

Just now, WeeAl said:

Punk looks like shite.

You think so? I think he actually looked pretty good physically. Well, for a guy who's 44 years old and has reputedly never been on the juice or anything like that. He's clearly been working on his physique a bit, and while he's never going to be Brian Cage or Batista, he looks a bit more muscular than he did when he left.

And considering he has wrestled a handful of matches in the past year, I thought he looked not too bad. He'll obviously improve as he gets back to full fitness, but having him back and working with the right people will undoubtedly help.

Out of all the UFC fighters over the past few years, Nagannou has always been the guy I've thought who is best suited to boxing. 

9 hours ago, Suplex Sinner said:

Unfortunately, Punk isn't a draw and didn't have any impact on the shows other than making them slightly worse.

Nah, I'm not having that. There's a reason why promoters are willing to put up with his arsey behaviour. It's because he shifts merchandise and attracts fans. 

Just now, Egg Shen said:

I think Delboy would have Ngannou blowing out his arse by round 4.

More than likely. But if he doesn't, then it tells me Ngannou can make something of this boxing career he wants.

Just now, RIDDUM_N_STYLE said:

Tanahashi maybe if they keep up the ‘MJF hates New Japan’ angle

That would work maybe. Have Punk step in for MJF who refuses to wrestle, Punk wins, which then leads us nicely to the resumption of the Punk/MJF feud, which has already been hinted at with the bag in his initial promo on Saturday.

Ngannou vs Chisora will be a pretty good barometer of where he is as a boxer. If he can beat Chisora, then he's legit. If he can stop Chisora, then he's very legit. Maybe not top three in the world legit, but a legit boxer worthy of note.

Just now, burchybabi said:

The Elite aren’t scheduled to be there.

Phew.

12 minutes ago, Infinity Land said:

The rumours of Punk turning up on Dynamite is potentially to get an alternative in place.

Wait, surely that can't happen! We all know Punk can't be in the same building as The Elite and their hangers-on! What has Meltzer said about this?!?