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SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)…

-Triple H suffered a possible torn pectoral muscle during Crown Jewel earlier today, according to WWE.com. His overseas trip is cut short as he’ll return to the U.S. to undergo surgery.

-Check out my detailed rundown of WWE Crown Jewel which took place “somewhere on the globe” earlier today. In the www.prowrestling.net poll on the event, with 236 votes in, it’s receiving 76 percent thumbs down, 9 percent thumbs, and 15 percent thumbs in the middle. In fact, over half of those voting gave it the worst grade of “Awful.” Read my analysis with star ratings HERE.

-With the news of Roman Reigns recurrence of leukemia, SAMAR is raising awareness for the need for people to volunteer for the national blood stem cell/marrow registry, “Be the Match.” If you believe in karma, this is about as good as it gets because of how easy it is to put yourself out there as someone who took a simple step to potentially save a life. Here’s details on how you can help save a life.

As you all know, WWE wrestler, Roman Reigns has been dealing with leukemia for years and it has relapsed. I am the Executive Director of SAMAR, a center for the congresssionally authorized national blood stem cell/marrow registry, Be The Match. Volunteer, committed, life-saving donors who are given the opportunity to save the lives of patients suffering with leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell, and other blood disorders. People like Roman who are multiracial (Samoan & Italian) have less than a 23 percent chance of finding an available donor on the national registry. The same percentage applies to the Black/African American population. It’s 44 percent for Asians, 44 percent for South Asians, 46 percent for Hispanic/Latino, and 77 percent for Caucasion. If you are interest in registering as a donor, click on the following link: https://join.bethematch.org/romanreigns or text Cure133 to 61474. After creating an account and verifying your email, you will be asked to complete a consent form. It takes five minutes. Swabs will be mailed to you. It only takes 20 seconds to swab. You will only have the opportunity to save a life if you send the swabs back.

-Wednesday night’s WWE Total Divas drew 385,000 viewers, up from last week’s 390,000 viewers. Total Divas is averaging just under 398,000 viewers this year, 373,000 not counting the premiere episode which drew a season-high 545,000. Every other episode has drawn below 400,000.

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-Last night’s episode of Impact Wrestling drew 105,000 viewers, back over the arbitrary but symbolic 100,000 viewership level after dipping below it last week, the first week in the new later timeslot (11 ET) on Pop TV. In the 18-49 demo, it drew 47,000, which wasn’t actually far off from the 50,000 and 54,000 in its last two weeks in its earlier timeslot. Female 18-49 viewership was down to 9,000 after averaging 14,800 in the final six weeks in the old earlier timeslot.

-Every episode of Impact Wrestling from 2005 is now available on the Global Wrestling Network.

NOW CHECK OUT THIS WEEK’S POST-IMPACT EPISODE OF THE PWTORCH LIVECAST: PWTorch.com’s Mike McMahon and Andrew Soucek discuss Impact Wrestling! They take listener emails on the GWN App, Desi Hit Squad, Killer Kross, and Willie Mack. They also talk about Tessa Blanchard retaining her Knockouts Title, LAX defending the tag titles, as well as Pentagon vs. Homicide and more! They open the show discussing Impact’s 98,000 viewership last week, and if this could be the beginning of the end for them on Pop TV.

-On Tune In Radio HERE
-On Apple Podcasts HERE
-Or search “Wade Keller” on your podcast app of choice

-Former UFC and Bellator fighter Stephan Bonnar, who had a stint in Impact Wrestling last year, was arrested for a DUI in Las Vegas last weekend. Bodycam footage has been released showing Bonnar barely conscious and being dragged from his car. He then can be seen allegedly taking a swing at a police officer. Full story at our sister site, MMATorch.com.

-Kenny Omega topped the men’s PWI 500 list this year. Here’s an excerpt of the PWI press release explaining the rationale:

On January 4, he beat WWE legend Chris Jericho at Wrestle Kingdom 12. On June 9 at Dominion, he stunned the world by winning the IWGP heavyweight title, ending the record 720-day reign of Kazuchika Okada.

And now, he’s received official recognition from Pro Wrestling Illustrated editors and writers that he’s the man they regard as the top wrestler in the world.

Coming off a brilliant 12 months of accomplishments, Omega was been named the top wrestler in annual “PWI 500.”This marks the first time in the 28-year history of the “500” that non-WWE wrestlers have received the honor in consecutive years.

Last year, Omega’s New Japan rival, Okada, earned the honor. This year’s “PWI 500” evaluated the time period of July 31, 2017, to June 30, 2018. Omega, who finished fifth last, was selected in front of top 10 finishers AJ Styles (2010 winner), Okada (2017 winner), Brock Lesnar (2003 winner), Seth Rollins (2015 winner), Braun Strowman, Roman Reigns (2016 winner), Cody, Tetsuya Naito, and The Miz (2011 winner).

“Not only has Kenny Omega managed to set a new standard for excellence in his matches in New Japan Pro Wrestling, but he has also captured the imagination of the fans in a way few others wrestlers have been able to do in recent years,” said Senior Writer Dan Murphy, who coordinates the “PWI 500” issue. “In a very real way, Kenny Omega embodies 2018 in professional wrestling. His success on his own terms has made him an international phenomenon.”

-Meanwhile, Ronda Rousey topped the PWI Women’s 100 list. The women’s list was doubled from 50 to 100 this year. PWI’s explanation:

Ronda Rousey has been named number one in Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s newly expanded annual ranking of the top female wrestlers in the world. Despite having wrestled a mere 10 singles matches during the evaluation period (October 1, 2017-September 30, 2018), the former UFC champion proved to be a dominant force in the women’s division.

Rousey seemed a bit embarrassed when informed by Senior Writer Dan Murphy during a taping of The PWI Podcast that the magazine has chosen her as the number-one woman wrestler in the world. “Wow! That’s absolutely incredible,” she said. “I don’t really know how to react to that. I really appreciate it. I don’t know how much I deserve it, but wow!”

Rousey did not make her debut until midway through the evaluation period, teaming with Kurt Angle to defeat Stephanie McMahon and Triple H at WrestleMania 34. It was immediately clear that she was very serious about her new line of work and was not in it for short-term gain. Rousey won the Raw Women’s title from Alexa Bliss at SummerSlam in August and has held it since.

“Ronda’s success in such a short period of time is absolutely unprecedented,” said Murphy. “She has become one of the biggest stars in WWE, male or female, and is setting a new standard for excellence in the women’s division. When it comes to our ranking criteria of championships won, quality of opposition, technical proficiency, won-loss record, and promotional ‘push,’ she is unmatched. Ronda was an easy pick as number one.”

-MLW announced that Teddy Hart will face Jason Cade for the MLW Fightland event in Chicago at Cicero Stadium, an MLW Fusion TV taping. Tickets available at MLWTickets.com. MLW builds up the match this way in their press release:

Teddy Hart is undefeated thus far in singles competition but will be tested by the cagey Jason Cade. Cade has had a bad attitude since splitting embarking on his singles career in MLW this past summer. Earning controversial wins; one cannot deny Cade is making moves in the middleweight division. However, no one in the sport is quite like Teddy Hart.

Teddy Hart is enjoying arguably the strongest 6 months of his career. A charter member of the new era Hart Foundation along with Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Brian Pillman Jr., the trio has dominated the competition since uniting on MLW Fusion TV.

While this is Jason Cade’s biggest challenge to date, the bout also is a critical statement match for Hart, whose family’s greatest triumphs have been tied to Chicago.

-As part of the Hire Heroes USA charity and to celebrate the release of “Marine 6: Close Quarters” on Nov. 13, WWE is running a contest to win “the Ultimate WWE Survivor Series Weekend with The Miz and Becky Lynch.” It includes a lunch with Miz and Lynch at the Nov. 20 Smackdown, a private CrossFit training session with Lynch, tickets to Survivor Series plus Raw and Smackdown the next two nights, replica title belts, plus roundtrip airfare and hotel. DETAILS TO ENTER

NOW CHECK OUT THIS WEEK’S “INTERVIEW FRIDAY” EPISODE OF THE WADE KELLER PRO WRESTLING PODCAST: Ex-WWE creative team member John Piermarini discusses with Wade the state of women’s wrestling today compared to his years with WWE in 2009-2010 with behind the scenes insights on how the WWE women were treated back then. He also reviews Evolution and the futures of Becky Lynch, Charlotte, and Ronda Rousey, among others.

-On Tune In Radio HERE
-On Apple Podcasts HERE
-Or search “Wade Keller” on your podcast app of choice

NOW CHECK OUT YESTERDAY’S UPDATE: Afternoon Update: Linda McMahon and Henry comment on Crown Jewel, latest on Hogan-Crown Jewel, Cormier talks Lesnar fight, NWA Title, Bischoff, Austin, Riddle, Ohno, more

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