Weekend 3 Count 12.25.16

By Brandon Albright, @B_Rock1978

Wrestling Lockup with Brandon, brought to you by Triple Threat CLE brings you the Weekend 3 Count. W3C brings you wrestling news, rumors and recaps from around the wrestling world. You'll find news and recaps involving WWE, NXT, TNA, ROH, Lucha Underground, GFW, NJPW, House of Hardcore and any Indy promotion that I find an interesting story or a cool discovery in. Be sure to check out the W3C every Sunday afternoon at @TripleThreatCLE. 

*** WWE *** 

- WWE Roadblock: If you missed WWE Roadblock last Sunday be sure to check out my recap and see how Charlotte won the WWE RAW Women's Championship and see how Cesaro and Sheamus ended The New Day's longest WWE RAW World Tag Team Championship reign.

- Mick Foley Taking Time Off: According to Pro Wrestling Sheet, Mick Foley is taking the rest December off from appearing on WWE programming. According to a WWE representative, Mick is taking time off to spend the holidays with his family and do his volunteer work as Santa. He has not been released or fired. WWE officials stated that Mick will return to Raw on Monday, January 2.

- Mick Foley Surgery: According to Dave Meltzer, on his Wrestling Observer Radio show, Mick Foley will be undergoing hip replacement surgery. Meltzer said that Foley may be back on the January 2nd episode of RAW, but will be gone again regardless to recover from the surgery.

- Finn Balor Update: Finn Balor was recently interviewed by Sirius XM's Sam Roberts about his rehab status. The original prognosis for Balor’s return was six to eight months, which would have given Balor a return time of either February or March. Balor has stated that his goal is to be back before WrestleMania 33 in April. During the interview with Roberts, Balor stated that he might actually make it back in time for the 2017 Royal Rumble on January 29th. If Balor were to return at the Royal Rumble, he’d return well ahead of schedule.

- Rumored Wrestlemania 33 Match: According to many sources, WWE is looking at having Charlotte defend the WWE RAW Women's Championship at Wrestlemania 33 against fan favorite Bayley. WWE were originally going to start a storyline with Charlotte and Bayley a few months back, but those plans were put on hold. Now it appears the big payoff with Bayley winning the title will take place at Wrestlemania 33.

- New Signee: WWE announced the recent signing of former World Kickboxing champion Katya "Dominator" Kavaleva. Katya is 6'5" and will have a WWE tryout in February of 2017. Katya stated that she is very excited about this opportunity.

** 205 Live Recap **
The main event of the show saw WWE Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann team up with TJ Perkins and battle Neville and Brian Kendrick in tag team action.

-- Ariya Daivari vs. Lince Dorado: The match closes out with Dorado and Daivari battling on the top rope. Daivari sends Dorado crashing to the canvas and follows that with a frog splash for the pinfall. After the match, Daivari mocks Jack Gallagher and insults the fans for liking Gallagher.

-- Backstage, Neville and Brian Kendrick meet up. Neville says he respects Kendrick because both he and Kendrick made names for themselves wrestling 300 pound men. Neville says they are partners tonight, but there is only room for one king in the cruiserweight division.

-- Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak: The match closes out with Gulak shoving Alexander into Alicia Fox. Gulak attacks Alexander, as Noam Dar arrives and carries Alicia backstage. Alexander ends up hitting the Lumbar Check on Gulak and scores the pinfall. After the match, Alexander rushes backstage to find Alicia.

-- Backstage, Alicia Fox is being checked by doctors and Noam Dar is present. Cedric Alexander arrives and Alicia says her ankle is twisted, but is thankful Dar was there to help her. Dar says if she ever needs help, he'll be there.

-- Rich Swann and TJ Perkins vs. Neville and Brian Kendrick: The match closes out with Perkins leaping at Neville, but eating an enziguri. Kendrick delivers the tope suicida on Swann as Neville goes to the top rope. Neville hits the Red Arrow on Perkins and scores the pinfall. Neville and Kendrick celebrate to end the show.

*** NXT ***

- Samoa Joe Possible Injury: According to sources, Samoa Joe may be suffering from some kind of injury. He appeared at last Thursday's WWE NXT live event and announced that he was not cleared to compete. He then watched the main event from ringside. No word on whether or not Joe has a legit injury or if it's all storyline.

- NXT Takeover: San Antonio: The main event for NXT Takeover has officially been signed for the event. NXT World Champion Shinsuke Nakamura will defend the title against Bobby Roode.

- NXT 2 Hour Special: Triple H announced this past Friday that a 2 hour NXT special will air next Wednesday night with footage from the recent Osaka, Japan live event.

*** TNA Impact Wrestling ***

** TNA Impact Recap **
This week's TNA Impact was a best of 2o16 show. TNA Impact will return on December 29th with a new episode.

- TNA Announces TV Tapings: TNA announced that they will be having the next TV tapings January 5th-8th and January 10th-12th.

- Possible Jeff Jarrett Return?: Live Audio Wrestling recently reported that Jeff Jarrett and TNA Wrestling are exploring a possible reunion. It's been reported that Jarrett and TNA’s parent company, Anthem Sports, has had talks with Jarrett that are best characterized as “background information and it would be premature to assume Jarrett will have any role within the company. PWInsider.com reported that those talks began last week. If Jarrett were to be brought back, it's unknown if he'll have any kind of a management role. TNA did state that Jarrett would be allowed to bring his Global Force Wrestling roster with him if he were to return to TNA.

- Drew Galloway's Contract Expiring: According to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Drew Galloway’s TNA contract expires in mid February. The company previously gave him an offer to stay several months back (at $200,000 per year), which he turned down because TNA would be in charge of his outside bookings. Galloway works in other independent organizations, especially in the UK. Galloway wouldn't be able to compete in other organizations by being TNA only. There have been minor rumors brewing of Galloway going back to the WWE with the new WWE United Kingdom Championship Tournament beginning soon.

- Next Live Pay Per View: TNA recently announced that they will have a live pay per view coming up in January. No word on the name of the pay per view, but many think it'll just be a live One Night Only event.

*** Ring of Honor Wrestling ***

** ROH TV Recap **
This week's show was taped right after ROH Final Battle. The main event saw a Six Man Tag Team Match with The Bullet Club battling reDRagon and Dalton Castle.

-- Kyle O'Reilly Promo: The new ROH World Champion Kyle O'Reilly kicked off the show and listed his name as being apart of some of the greatest champions in ROH history, like Bryan Danielson, Samoa Joe and Nigel McGuinness. Adam Cole interrupts and says the only reason O'Reilly won was because the No DQ stipulation was added at the last minute and Cole didn't have time to prepare. The Young Bucks, Bobby Fish and Dalton Castle all interrupt next, claiming to deserve future title shots, and it sets up the Six Man Tag Team Match for the main event later.

-- "Decade of Excellence Tournament Match": Christopher Daniels vs. Mark Briscoe: The Decade of Excellence tournament is a #1 contenders tournament, which only wrestlers that debuted with ROH within the past 10 years could compete in. The match closes out with Briscoe missing the Froggy Bow, allowing Daniels to capitalize and hit the Angel Wings to score the pinfall and advance in the tournament. 

-- Lio Rush vs. Caprice Coleman: Before the match, The Rebellion cut a promo, trying to get Rush to join them, but Rush refuses. The match closes out with Rush scoring a quick rollup pinfall on Coleman. After the match, The Rebellion beat down Rush, until Jay White and Donovan Dijak hit the ring to make the save.

-- "Six Man Tag Team Match": The Bullet Club (Adam Cole and The Young Bucks) vs. reDRagon (Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish) and Dalton Castle: The match closes out with O'Reilly locking Nick Jackson in a gogoplata submission, then turns it into the Armageddon submission. Castle takes out Cole and Fish takes out Matt Jackson. Nick tries to escape the submission, but ends up tapping out. O'Reilly, Fish and Castle celebrate to end the show.

- Michael Elgin Done: According to Pro Wrestling Sheet, Ring of Honor and Michael Elgin will no longer be working together in the near future. Rumors are stating that Elgin is unhappy with how the company operates. Sources close to the situation tell us Elgin informed Ring of Honor this week that he no longer intends to work with them and he hasn’t heard back from them to confirm they received or accepted his request.

- Billy Corgan Meets With ROH: Dave Meltzer stated in the latest issue of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Billy Corgan and former TNA head writer Dave Lagana met with ROH three weeks ago in Baltimore, MD. Corgan and TNA's new owners, Anthem Sports & Entertainment, reached an agreement last month to pay back Corgan's loans to TNA and drop his lawsuit against the company. Corgan has expressed interest in continuing to be involved in the business.

*** Lucha Underground ***

** Lucha Underground TV Recap **
This week's main event saw Johnny Mundo defend the Lucha Underground Championship against Sexy Star inside a Steel Cage.

-- "Battle of The Bulls, Fatal Four Way Finals Elimination Match": The Mack vs. Cage vs. Jeremiah Crane vs. PJ Black:

** First Elimination: Cage is in control, but Texano jumps on the apron and smacks Cage with his bullrope. Crane lands a kick on Cage, Mack hits a Stunner on Cage and Black hits a 450 Splash on Cage to score the pinfall.

** Second Elimination: Crane hits the Cranial Contusion piledriver on Black, but Black rolls to the floor. Mack and Crane trade shots on the top rope. Mack hits a Super Stunner on Crane off the top rope and scores the pinfall.

** Final Elimination: Black hits a jawbreaker on Mack, but Mack quickly bounces back, hits the Stunner on Black and grabs the victory by pinfall, making The Mack the new #1 Contender.

-- Backstage, Aerostar and Fenix are looking for Drago. Kobra Moon appears and says Drago has gone home to his Tribe. Aerostar says Drago stated he'd never go back. Kobra says Drago is a broken man now and Pindar and Vibora will now break Aerostar and Fenix. A brawl breaks out and Aerostar and Fenix are left laid out. Kobra promises that Drago will leave them both for dead next time.

-- Backstage, Sexy Star congratulates The Mack for winning Battle of the Bulls.

-- Inside Dario Cueto's office, Jeremiah Crane appears and grabs a ouija board out of the ceiling, claiming to have left it there when he was younger.

-- Backstage, Jeremiah Crane meets up with Catrina, with his Ouija Board, and reminds her that they used to play with it when they were younger. Catrina makes fun of Crane for still playing games. Crane says he got a match made against Mil Muertes next week. Crane promises that once he kills Muertes, Catrina will be all his.

-- "Lucha Underground Championship, Steel Cage Match": Johnny Mundo (c) vs. Sexy Star: Mundo's faction, The Worldwide Underground, was banned from this match. The match closes out with Sexy and Mundo both climbing the cage wall and trading shots. Mundo almost escapes to the other side of the wall, but Sexy pulls Mundo back over the wall and onto the top rope. Mundo and Sexy trade more shots until Mundo grabs Sexy by the face and rips off her mask. Sexy falls to the canvas, covering her face and trying to hide her identity. Mundo quickly climbs out of the cage and to the floor to pick up the victory. Mundo celebrates with his title in hand, but suddenly gets jumped from behind by The Mack. Mack hits a Stunner on Mundo and celebrates with the title.

-- In Kobra Moon's Lair, Drago is chained to a wall. Kobra appears and asks to be called Queen. Drago refuses. Kobra was going to let Drago eat, but refuses. Drago says he'd rather starve anyway. Kobra says sooner or later a Dragon has to eat. The show ends with Kobra laughing as Drago blows out a ball of fire.

*** New Japan Pro Wrestling ***

- Matt Sydal Fired: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that Sydal was let go by New Japan Pro Wrestling after he was sentenced to prison in September following his legal issues in Japan. Sydal was arrested for possession of cannabis on September 23rd. Sydal was caught with a hidden pipe containing liquid cannabis two and a pipe containing cannabis two of a state of being attached to the electronic cigarette. Sydal has since been released from prison and is back home in the United States.

*** House Of Hardcore ***

** House Of Hardcore 22 Recap **
House Of Hardcore 22 took place at the old ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
-- "Broad Street Brawler" Steve Lombardi defeated Alex Reynolds
-- Taya defeated Jessicka Havok
-- Tony Nese defeated Lio Rush
-- "Six Man Tag Team Match": Dan Barry, Conor Braxton, and Kikutaro defeated Vik Dalishus, Eddie Kingston, and TJ Marconi
-- Sami Callihan defeated Brian Cage
-- Moose defeated Colt Cabana
-- John Hennigan defeated Fenix
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-- "Steel Cage Match": Broken Matt Hardy defeated Tommy Dreamer

** House Of Hardcore 23 Recap **
House Of Hardcore 23 took place at the MCW Arena in Joppa, Maryland.
-- Jessicka Havok defeated Taya
-- Eddie Kingston defeated Lance Anoa’i
-- "Six Man Tag Team Match": Matt Striker, Conor Braxton, and Kikutaro defeated Vik Dalishus, Benjamin Boone, and Hale Collins
-- Moose defeated Brian Cage
-- "Fatal Four Way Match": Alex Reynolds defeated Dan Barry, Sonjay Dutt, and Brandon Scott
-- Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman defeated The Spirit Squad
-- Fenix defeated John Hennigan.

*** Shine Wrestling ***

** Shine 39 Recap **
Shine 39 took place at The Orpheum in Ybor City, Florida.
-- Kiera Hogan defeated Lindsay Snow
-- Jessie Belle Smothers defeated Brandi Lauren
-- Leva Bates defeated Stormie Lee
-- Malia Hosaka defeated Priscilla Kelly
-- "Shine World Tag Team Championship Match": Raquel and Santana Garrett defeated Jayme Jameson and Marti Belle
-- Allysin Kay defeated Tessa Blanchard
-- Su Yung defeated Vanessa Kraven
-- "Eight Woman Tag Team Match": Las Sicarias (Amanda Carolina Rodriguez, Ivelisse, Mercedes Martinez and Thea Trinidad) defeated C4 (Amber O'Neal, Andréa, Kennadi Brink and LuFisto

*** Other ***

- Smith Hart Cancer Announcement: The oldest brother of the legendary Hart Family, Smith Hart, recently announced that he has been diagnosed with stage IV terminal cancer and he might only have a year left to live. Smith Hart posted the following on his Facebook page:

"The diagnosis is official, I have Stage 4 Terminal Cancer, I have been told that I could potentially have another year. To all of my siblings, I want you all to know how much I absolutely love all of you. We haven't always been the closest of siblings, but I do love you unconditionally. I grew up the son of an Icon and that shadow was insurmountable. I know my parents wanted big things from me. Where my father saw me as an heir apparent to his athleticism, I was never as dedicated as an athlete as he was. I always wanted to have my hand in the creative end though and while I often butted heads with my parents over this and other lifestyle choices, it never waned my respect and admiration for them."

- Chyna's Autopsy Report: This week, former WWE superstar Chyna's (real name Joan Marie Laurer) Autopsy report was finally made final as to what the former WWE Womens and Intercontinental Champion died from. Chyna passed on April 20, 2o16, due to a combined effect of alcohol and drugs, ET confirms. The official autopsy report obtained by ET states that Laurer had several substances in her system at the time of her death, including Ethanol, Oxycodone, Oxymorphone, Nordiazepam, Temazepam, Zolpidem, and Marijuana.

And that's this week's W3C! Join me every Sunday afternoon as I bring you news, recaps and rumors all around the wrestling world!