Kofi Kingston is currently out with a jaw injury, although WWE’s version of a broken jaw might not be necessarily accurate.
It was announced on Raw last night that the former WWE champion has suffered from a broken jaw although in a recent interview on social media, he did not mention the broken jaw although he did admit that he’s suffering from a jaw injury.
Kofi told international rugby player Tendai Mtawarira on an Instagram Live interview that he is dealing with a jaw injury and his mouth is only closing on one side so he feels like he’s talking from one side of his mouth.
“So if I sound kinda funny…that’s why! Ordinarily I do a lot of imitations, impersonations, and impressions…but I’m not doing that right now,” Kofi joked. “I’m talking funny trying to figure this situation out.”
It’s not known how long Kofi will be out for but a Finn Balor broken jaw on NXT kept him out of action for several months.
In an age where the costs of oil continue to be in a state of limbo, the Tesla Company continues to defy analyst projections that expected lower oil costs to deal a blow to the business of selling electric vehicles (EVs). For the fourth quarter in a row, Tesla hit a milestone that outdid both top-line and bottom-line anticipations. Better yet, the EVs maker has topped the Wall Street delivery estimates and registered record earnings as it continues to usher the world into an emission-free era through its vehicles.
The company recorded third-quarter revenue of more than $8 billion, which is an impressive 39% year-over-year growth, effectively beating Wall Street projections by a cool $460 million. Like the slots online when the online casino industry was just getting started back in the 2000s, Tesla’s keep proving again and again that we are entering into a new era tech revolution in the vehicle industry.
If you were a non-believer when it comes to EVs, then you should take a look at what we expect from Tesla in 2021 and beyond, and you’ll understand the EVs market potential.
Tesla Earnings Will Continue Growing Next Year
For the third quarter of this year, Tesla reported that it manufactured 145,036 cars, 50% more than the same period last year, and distributed 139,593 cars, a figure that’s 44% higher than Q3 2019. Moreover, the company is poised to hit its 500,000 car-distribution targets for the entire year, beating Wall Street’s estimation of 476,000.
By the same token, Tesla’s productivity metrics were remarkable as their operating income got better, rising to a record level of $809 million. The gross profit margin for electric motor-powered cars rose to 27.7% compared to 25.4% for the second quarter and 22.8% one year back.
What’s even more impressive is the fact that the company realized these outstanding milestones, even though it took a rather large hit in the form of stock-based reparation for CEO Elon Musk after accomplishing numerous achievements, such as the considerable rise in share market capitalization. By September, Musk’s net worth hit over 100 billion dollars in the wake of the automaker’s massive stock surge.
Q3 2020 is the fifth consecutive quarter that the EV maker has registered positive growth in GAAP (generally accepted accounting principle) net revenue. We expect this momentum to maintain the same trend next year and perhaps even the years to come as the world continues embracing electric vehicles.
Tesla Is on Right Track to Deliver 1 Million EVs in 2021
According to its latest stakeholder briefing, Tesla disclosed that its California factory at Fremont could mass-produce 90,000 units of the Model S and Model X as well as 500,000 units of the Model 3 and Model Y annually. And for the time being, the company has also increased the capacity of its Shanghai factory, meaning that it can churn out 250,000 Model 3 cars per year. If you add this all up, the total comes to 840,000 deliveries per year.
But that’s not all. There are still numerous other gigafactories, which can considerably boost up Tesla’s car production ability as the quarters roll on. The automaker is bringing in a new Model Y manufacturing line at its factory in Shanghai. Besides, many other factories are being built in Texas, Austin, and Berlin, Germany. Once the upcoming plants are completed, they will ramp up capacity fast enough for Tesla to hit the magical 1 million deliveries by the end of 2021.
Risky Expenditure Plan, but It Will Pay Off
The automaker is steered towards higher capital expenditures for the current financial year to somewhere between 2.5 to $3.5 billion. Tesla also anticipates that its capital expenditures will hit over $4.5 billion over the next two fiscal years. What does this mean given that the market hasn’t responded too well to the expenditure plans?
Well, one of the reasons why the market has responded adversely to this spending plan is because it may imply extra trips towards the secondary markets. Moreover, it might also mean more dilution for current stakeholders. Back in September 2019, TSLA disclosed an equity offering worth 5 billion dollars in an SEC filling. The company also said that it plans to put extra shares up for sale occasionally and at-the-market costs. That’s despite Tesla registering a record-breaking free cash flow worth 1.4billion dollars.
A 5 billion dollar offering at the company’s current $402 billion market cap would mean a dilution of approximately 1%, which is considerably lower than Tesla’s stock standard movement for a day. But then again, no one can tell how often or how large forthcoming offerings will be. Furthermore, there’s the possibility that Tesla might collapse if it begins to miss future distribution prospects.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer is reporting that more WWE Superstars have tested positive for coronavirus and at least three others, apart from Drew McIntyre, are recovering.
Meltzer says that someone from Smackdown who was scheduled for the show last week and was taken off, an NXT star, and another “big star” who was positive before and just returned, are all in quarantine. Other individuals who they interacted with are also being told not to come to television due to contact tracing.
Monday Night Raw operated with a skeleton crew last night as the company tries to prevent another COVID-19 outbreak within their ranks. NXT and Smackdown are also scheduled to have skeleton crew with limited Superstars available.
Drew McIntyre was the first Superstar that WWE openly acknowledged that he had been tested positive. McIntyre is said to be suffering from mild symptoms and at this stage his match against Goldberg at the Rumble on January 31 is still on.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his business partner Dany Garcia have teamed up with Dave Rienzi and John Shulman to launch ZOA, a new healthy energy drink set to be introduced this March.
ZOA is a re-imagined, first-of-its-kind energy drink packed with clean, natural caffeine from green coffee and green tea, powerful antioxidants from camu camu and acerola, as well as vitamin D and a unique blend of vitamins and nutrients that support immune function and elevate energy levels.
The Molson Coors Beverage Company will be the exclusive distribution partner for all retail locations. Until the drink hits the stores, it will be made available on the ZOA website and Amazon.
“I’m very passionate about ZOA. I’m humbled and grateful for the opportunity to serve our eager consumers with ZOA – the ultimate healthy and immunity-supporting energy drink that’s the first of its kind, thanks to our unique combination of ingredients,” said Johnson.
The product has been in development for the past 18 months and this follows the highly-successful release of Johnson’s Teremana Tequila.
WWE champion Drew McIntyre has tested positive for COVID-19 and has been placed in quarantine according to WWE.
McIntyre was set to take on Randy Orton on tonight’s episode of Monday Night Raw but obviously that match will now not take place. The Scot is one of the biggest WWE names to get infected with the virus.
The champ is scheduled to take on Bill Goldberg at the upcoming Royal Rumble pay-per-view on January 31. It’s unclear if his positive test will affect the match, although it sure will affect the build-up. Typically, those who have the virus have to quarantine for 14 days but if McIntyre is suffering from symptoms, it might take longer for him to recover.
Former WWE Co-Presidents George Barrios and Michelle Wilson today announced the formation of Isos Capital Management to identify and execute on attractive investment opportunities leveraging their unique operating experience, insights and network.
The Isos co-founders plan to invest in businesses that fit their thesis of mega trends shaping the industry and provide value creation through brand growth, digital transformation and globalization. Isos will target early, growth and late stage media, entertainment and sports companies and will consider a variety of investment vehicles.
“Global connectivity has unleashed unprecedented disruption in content creation, distribution and consumption. The COVID-19 pandemic has only accelerated these changes and requires a new strategic framework for success,” said Barrios. “Against this backdrop, Michelle and I see unique opportunities for growth and value creation across the media, entertainment and sports ecosystem.”
“There is no better time to invest in the industry and we believe Isos offers a distinct advantage in the marketplace. We are a firm built by operators for operators, and we bring proven strategies and innovative thinking to help media, entertainment and sports companies win in the long term,” added Wilson. “George and I have worked together for more than a decade and have demonstrated how to achieve game-changing results in an evolving landscape. We look forward to utilizing our experience, insights, network and capital to partner with management teams to accelerate growth and better meet consumer needs.”
Barrios had joined WWE in 2008 and Wilson in 2009 and together they were promoted as Co-Presidents and were unceremoniously fired together as well in late January 2020, a move which led the WWE stock to tank on Wall Street. Until their dismissal, the two were some of the most powerful individuals in the company.
Episode six of season six of Total Bellas, titled Family Ties, did a total of 426,000 viewers last Thursday, up 121,000 viewers from the previous episode. The show did a 0.20 in the 18-49 and placed #53 on the chart. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin is back on USA Network starting tonight with the second season of Straight Up Steve Austin.
In Straight Up Steve Austin, Stone Cold and a celebrity guest get real, heading out to different cities across America to take part in one-of-a-kind adventures, while swapping stories about their lives and careers.
Some of the guests announced for season two include Joel McHale, Steve-O, Brett Favre, Ice-T, and others while Charlotte Flair will be this season’s WWE guest after last year Becky Lynch took that spot. Lynch ended that episode with Austin by delivering the Stunner on the WWE Hall of Famer.
The show will start immediately following the conclusion of Monday Night Raw.
A lot of users have pointed out that WrestleMania 24 has been taken off the WWE Network completely.
This is not the first time that WWE has moved a specific show offline and usually it always revolves around rights to a specific song used on the pay-per-view, either because the license has expired or maybe because the company does not want to pay any more royalties for a particular song played during the show.
Shows are taken offline and the songs are removed and remixed with a different song before being uploaded again on the Network. WWE had a big task when uploading old ECW shows on the Network as they were not legally able to use the music played, so many of them had to be edited out.
During WrestleMania 24, there were two songs which were used not owned by WWE, one for Snoop Dogg’s entrance and one for Floyd Mayweather’s entrance.
2020 was undoubtedly a difficult year, and it was no different for professional wrestling. It was perhaps the strangest year for the sport, as it had to get used to taking place without fans in attendance, which was a huge blow for something that thrives on the energy provided by fans and packed arenas. At the same time, we saw several stars return to the stage, while All Elite Wrestling also became a must-watch show on Wednesdays. Therefore, going into 2021, here are some of the things we think will happen, and also some which we hope will take place, while everyone wishes that we can go back to normal as soon as possible, and can pack arenas full of passionate fans.
Better showcases for the women’s division in AEW
AEW is only a couple of years old at the moment, but it has already managed to make a name for itself, booking former WWE stars in high-profile spots, while also building up some new faces into household names. However, the women’s side of things has not been quite as successful, and there is a lot more that could be done in this space. Many of the women’s roster do not feature as much as they should on AEW, with some of them going weeks without a match. There is enough talent in the AEW’s women’s division to be a rival to the WWE, and the management needs to give them a chance to shine and grab fans’ attention.
Better storylines from the WWE
While everyone has had to adapt in a massive way in 2020, one area that should not have been affected too much is the creative team for WWE. However, we saw some extremely poor storylines come out of the WWE in 2020, with the women’s division in a complete mess, champions facing the same challengers repeatedly, and debuts being botched and pushed back. There have been some bright spots, but not enough to keep people tuning in every week, which hurts even more during a pandemic given that people are looking for fresh entertainment. The aim for WWE must be to provide more compelling storylines in 2021, to keep people coming back and maintain high ratings.
More options for WWE betting
Another area which saw a lot of flux during the year was the world of sports betting. WWE-related betting was no different, with events having to be cancelled initially, and then taking place in the absence of fans. However, there has been a lot of innovation in this area during the year as well. Various online casinos have begun offering their clients the opportunity to bet using cryptocurrencies, and some dogecoin casinos have become quite popular. It would therefore not be surprising to see this extend to sports betting as well, and if it does so, WWE should be quick to get on the bandwagon, given how popular these offers have been with customers at online casinos.
Daniel Bryan vs Roman Reigns will be the highlight of WrestleMania 37
Daniel Bryan will probably first go for the WWE Universal Championship, in what has been a stunning return from retirement due to injury. He is also one of the favourites for the Royal Rumble, which would set up a championship match against Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania. The expectation is that these two will go head-to-head at the wrestling event of the year with the title on the line, and we could even see a new champion.
Brock Lesnar will return
Brock Lesnar has made a career out of being the guy everyone loves to hate, and so it was quite bittersweet when he was dumped out of last year’s Wrestlemania by Drew McIntyre, and subsequently was removed from contract by WWE as well. However, there have been umpteen examples of stars coming back into the fold, and a third return for Lesnar cannot be ruled out, with him coming back to get revenge on McIntyre and then going after Reigns being a brilliant storyline which can transition into 2022 as well.
Linda McMahon, the former WWE President and CEO who is now chairing the America First Action SuperPAC and America First Policies group for Donald Trump, has remained largely silent following the events that took place last week at the Capitol.
CNBC revealed that America First Policies donated money in the past to the group which was responsible in organizing the march last Wednesday, a march which started peacefully for Donald Trump’s speech but then turned ugly once it moved to the U.S. Capitol.
McMahon was part of Donald Trump’s cabinet as the SBA Administrator but then left to chair the SuperPAC to raise money for his re-election. Both she and her husband Vince McMahon are big Trump donors and the couple have been friends with the President for decades.
Back in November, Linda urged supporters to stand with Donald Trump for a fair count of legal votes. “Ignoring court orders and breaking state laws is the opposite. We must continue the challenge,” she wrote in a tweet.
Trump, also a WWE Hall of Famer, has his fair share of critics among WWE Superstars, and one in particular, Mick Foley, has urged Vince McMahon to “fire” Trump from the Hall of Fame.
The New Day podcast will be honoring the life of Jon Huber this week with special guests Cesaro, Tyler Breeze, and Erick Rowan joining the trio.
All five Superstars will be joining together for an in-depth conversation about their close friend who sadly passed away just after Christmas at the age of 41.
A WWE statement on The New Day podcast read, “The tragic passing of Jon ‘Luke Harper’ Huber on Dec. 26 shook the WWE Universe and the wrestling world to its core, leading to an outpouring of stories, memories and tributes celebrating the former Intercontinental Champion as a competitor, as a cherished friend and as family. On tomorrow’s special episode of The New Day’s podcast, The New Day: Feel the Power, Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E invite special guests Cesaro, Tyler Breeze and Erick Rowan – Huber’s longtime tag team partner – for an in-depth conversation about their friend, whose legacy in the ring, in the locker room and beyond will live forever.”
The full episode of the podcast will be available on the free version of the WWE Network at 10AM today.
Brian Myers, the man formerly known as Curt Hawkins in WWE, has finally landed a deal with Impact Wrestling.
Myers moved to Impact in July of last year, three months after he was let go from his WWE contract due to coronavirus cost-cutting measures. This is his second stint with the company after he worked for them in 2015.
“Thanks for the money Eddie,” Myers wrote in a tweet, referring to Impact Wrestling chief Ed Nordholm. “You just made the best decision of your life. You now have a workhorse in the prime of his career with a massive chip on his shoulder signed to your roster. The Most Professional Wrestler. @IMPACTWRESTLING is now mine. #IMPACTonAXSTV.”
Nick Jackson of The Young Bucks revealed he was diagnosed with COVID-19 in early September and was bedridden for nearly three weeks.
“Crazy to think there’s still COVID deniers out there in the world,” Nick wrote in a post on Instagram, adding that he could not taste or smell for two and a half months after his diagnosis.
“At one point my whole body had hives on it and my doctor said that it was definitely from COVID,” he added.
Nick continued saying that his brother Matt had to do the majority of the work in matches after he returned because he couldn’t catch his breath and his cardio has only returned after months.
The two brothers also announced last week that their aunt had died from coronavirus complications.
The WWE India Twitter account announced last night the arrival of the first-ever WWE Superstar Spectacle event coming to India.
The show will air on Tuesday, January 26 on Sony Sports Network, and is being taped at the Capitol Wrestling Center just days before. January 26 happens to be Republic Day in the country of India.
An eight-man tournament featuring several talent from India under WWE contracts is expected to be the focal point of the show as the company tries to push for more localized content in their top markets. Originally, the show was said to be NXT India and the tournament would be to crown the first NXT India champion similar to what they did with NXT UK years ago before it expanded into its own show.
Sony Pictures Network India is one of WWE’s main broadcast partners and the company has a huge following in the country.
23-year-old Ace Austin won the 2021 Impact Wrestling Super X Cup in a tournament held yesterday which was aired on the Impact Plus streaming service as part of the Genesis special.
Austin went through Suicide in the first round, Cousin Jake in the semi-final, and then defeated Blake Christian in the final to win the cup.
Other matches in the first round included Blake Christian defeating KC Navarro, Cousin Jake defeating Daivari, and Crazzy Steve defeating Tre Lamar. The other semi-final match featured Blake Christian defeating Crazy Steve.
There have been three Super X Cup tournaments in the past, specifically in 2003, 2005, and 2017. The 2017 one was held under the Global Force Wrestling name. Chris Sabin, Samoa Joe, and Dezmond Xavier are the previous Super X Cup winners.
With regular programming back on air, Smackdown dropped a bit in viewers this week compared to the non-holiday shows, with the show getting 2,002,000 viewers in the overnight ratings. Last week’s final number was 2,013,000 so this week will certainly beat the New Year’s day show when final viewership is added on Monday.
The show had 2,036,000 viewers in the first hour and 1,969,000 viewers in the second hour. It did 0.30 in the 18-34, 0.50 in the 18-49, and 0.60 in the 25-54 demos, placing joint second, joint third, and joint fourth respectively among all networks. (Ratings credit: Showbuzzdaily.com)
Sasha Banks topped the Sports Illustrated top 10 wrestlers of 2020 following a year where she was one of the biggest focal points of the company and without a doubt carried the promotion, along with Bayley, during the pandemic.
Banks was chosen from a list of men and women who wrestle in WWE, AEW, and New Japan Pro Wrestling, so her accomplishment is even bigger.
“Of course I’m #1 in the world,” Banks tweeted after the list came out.
Former AEW champion Jon Moxley took the #2 spot and WWE champion Drew McIntyre was listed as #3. NJPW’s Tetsuya Naito was fourth and current AEW champion Kenny Omega in fifth.
Rounding up the top ten were former Smackdown Women’s champion Bayley in sixth, NXT Women’s champion Io Shirai in seventh, NJPW’s Kota Ibushi in eighth, Universal champion Roman Reigns in ninth, and Eddie Kingston in tenth place.
NXT had an average of 698,000 viewers every week during 2020 and trailed its competitor AEW Dynamite for the majority of the year.
The 15 episodes that aired in 2019 had an average of 829,000 viewers and even when comparing only those 15 episodes from last year, NXT dropped to 686,000 viewers on average during the same time period.
The show suffered ever since fans left Full Sail University in mid-March although there are now a limited number of fans at the Capitol Wrestling Center. NXT averaged 718,000 viewers before the pandemic and 693,000 viewers since fans departed from WWE television shows.
The most-watched episode of 2020 was the Halloween Havoc special on October 28 which did 876,000 viewers. NXT never crossed the 900,000 viewer mark once in 2020 and only did over 800,000 viewers on five occasions. Apart from Halloween Havoc, the other four times it did over 800,000 was when the show did not go head-to-head with Dynamite.
The March 18 episode was the least-watched episode of NXT with only 542,000 viewers tuning in. The January 1 episode did 548,000 and the last episode of 2020 did 586,000 viewers.
NXT also failed to beat AEW in the 18-49 demographic all year long, with Dynamite going 52-0.
An unlikely individual will be getting a Universal title shot at the Royal Rumble and his name is…Adam Pearce!
Pearce was forced into the gauntlet match main event and after Shinsuke Nakamura ran down everyone, Jey Uso and Roman Reigns came in to attack him, laying him out with a superkick, splash, and Superman punch. Adam Pearce was the last one to enter the gauntlet and was superkicked by Jey Uso and then placed on top of a fallen Nakamura and the referee counted to three, declaring Pearce the number one contender for Reigns’ Universal title.
It was Paul Heyman who informed Pearce during the show that he was being added to the main event even though Pearce had no desire to wrestle. But Reigns was pissed with Pearce for making Uso wrestle Kevin Owens last week so this was his punishment.
The gauntlet match featured Sami Zayn, Rey Mysterio, Baron Corbin, and Daniel Bryan along with Nakamura and Pearce. Mysterio took out Zayn quick first, then Nakamura pinned Mysterio, Corbin, and Daniel Bryan before the attack by Reigns an Uso.
The 42-year-old Pearce wrestled between 1996 and 2014, doing mostly independent promotions.
