MAJOR ROH Announcement (Possible Spoliers)

rovert

Ring of Honor Announcement
Sunday, October 26, 2008

Ring of Honor is announcing that Gabe Sapolsky will be leaving the company effective immediately. Everybody at ROH would like to thank him for his contributions and wish him well in all future endeavors.

Going forward Ring of Honor will be focusing on the stories and the talent in the ring. The company will have no further comments on this issue or a replacement for Mr. Sapolsky. We would like to thank all of the fans and media who have supported us over the years and look forward to bringing you more great wrestling excitement in the future.

:eek:

No one who can say he wasnt stale as a booker but Gabe has been with the company since day one. Pretty shocking stuff and it looks like going this weekend's results we will see a lot more new and returning names in ROH.

flahavaj

Thats pretty major alright, he was far and away their greatest asset and like all good bookers knew how to book his roster to their strengths.

I can only inagine the mass hysteria and gnashing of teeth over on the ROH forum. I'm half afraid to look, its probably exploded with panic.:pac:

rovert

Who is going to replace him? Feinstein would make me lol until the new year.

flahavaj

rovert wrote: »

Who is going to replace him? Feinstein would make me lol until the new year.

LOL. Feinstein wasn't the booker AFAIK just the owner, no?

I'd say Dave Prazak who does commentary is a good short term bet, I think he has a little experience. Quackenbush would be good in the longer term, his booking of Chikara this year has been great, simple, compelling stuff.

The poor Bots are cracking up on their board, one poor kid thinks " the world will never be the same again." Good to see people have a healthy perspective on life anyway.:eek:

Now if TNA got Sapolsky, THAT would skake things up significantly, not that its gonna happen.

rovert

flahavaj wrote: »

LOL. Feinstein wasn't the booker AFAIK just the owner, no?

Nope, I point you to the direction of The Christopher Street Connection, Special K and others. Rob's best mate Doug Gentry had a lot to do with the positive aspects of early ROH.

flahavaj wrote: »

I'd say Dave Prazak who does commentary is a good short term bet, I think he has a little experience. Quackenbush would be good in the longer term, his booking of Chikara this year has been great, simple, compelling stuff.

I think your choices are more realistic than people hoping for Heyman and Cornette.

flahavaj

rovert wrote: »

The Christopher Street Connection

Now THAT I can believe.:eek:

jeffk

Jesus that is a shocker :eek:

I think Roh i think Gabe because he was so out there in the public eye very like heyman in ECW.

Heyman or cornette would be dream bookers but that's it,a long term booker is needed.Should be interesting to see how this goes.

Isn`t raven free? lol

On Second thoughts who thinks this is a work?I mean for all that he done its after the big ten sale on the news section and then you have to click a link to get the news on another page!

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

On Second thoughts who thinks this is a work?I mean for all that he done its after the big ten sale on the news section and then you have to click a link to get the news on another page!

It may just be a public departure so they can make wholesale changes without Gabe getting the heat.

callaway92

I think they should break the bank to get Ruuuuuuusso

rovert

callaway92 wrote: »

I think they should break the bank to get Ruuuuuuusso

Nah Bushwhacker Luke is a worse and more likely choice.

rovert

Looks like it isnt an angle:

pwinsider.com wrote:

Ring Of Honor owner Cary Silkin removed Gabe Sapolsky from the head booker's position with the company after last night's event in Edison, NJ. We were told that there wasn't any major blow up, but rather that the company is going in a different direction.

Sapolsky, who has been with ROH since its inception, is now gone from the company completely.

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

Looks like it isnt an angle:

Can anyone throw out a mini update on that show and this new direction?
Im hearing about a lot more chikara workers being booked.

Also what about FIP? Could Gabe "buy" that and run it and thus set up a roh-v-fip fued?I mean anythings possible with this news.

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Can anyone throw out a mini update on that show and this new direction?

Yes but PWInsider is fairly reliable

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

Yes but PWInsider is fairly reliable

Pay for wrestling news?Your having a laugh

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Pay for wrestling news?Your having a laugh

WHat does this have to do with what I posted exactly?

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

WHat does this have to do with what I posted exactly?

Well the site you suggested was asking for a username name and password and mentioned elite.
Wouldn't have killed you to put up some info on the show, now back on topic please!!

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Well the site you suggested was asking for a username name and password and mentioned elite.!!

Did I put a link up to the website? I was just crediting a news source, I wasnt suggesting it or directing anyone anywhere.

jeffk wrote: »

Wouldn't have killed you to put up some info on the show, now back on topic please!!

What show are you talking about?

jeffk

http://www.wrestlingunlimited.com/news/227051335


» The only thing I've heard about the ROH/Gave Sapolsky situation is that he was indeed released and did not quit the company on his own. Rumor also has it that 'Sheepherder' Luke Williams has been in early talks with the company about a possible creative role. Gabe's account on the ROH Message Boards is also no longer listed as an admin. 'ROHAdmin' is the new guy running things today. Something seems awfully fishy here.

jeffk

http://www.wrestlingunlimited.com/news/227057130

There is talk of adding a booking committee to ROH. There had actually been talk of shutting down ROH just a few months ago because it was losing so much money but other people in management advised Carey Silkin to keep it going. No word on the future of PPV events but the company just wasn't drawing in money and crowds at live events have been down over the last few months. This all factored into the release of booker Gabe Sapolsky. Can you really blame him though? Times are tough and the economy is down for everyone. I had thought the ROH booking was fine and it's hard to put the blame on one person like that.

gimmick

From Wrestlezone.

Additional Information On Gabe Sapolsky Leaving ROH
10/26/2008 by Bill Behrens

ROH is financed by Cary Silken. Several years ago the decision was made to begin PPVs. The hope was it would grow the company, add fans, and revenue. It has not.

It has been suggested ROH needs TV. They do not unless they are paid to provide their show and at least break even. ROH had TV briefly in Philadelphia on WGTW-TV, payiong for the time slot weekly, and canceled that deal after a few months. The TV was not helping them draw and was cutting nto DVD sales. They had been warned going in that they would lose money, but too many see TV as a holy grail. It usually is not. It's usually just another expense.

ROH house shows are down in attendance, and several planned shows in Florida were cancelled then rescheduled to next year.

Only NYC & Chicago have really been drawing the crowds ROH needs and expects.

After last month's Philadephia show Silkin was close to shutting down ROH altogether. Too much money was being spent, and too little was coming in.

Other ROH Management convinced Silkin to keep the company running, and to let Gabe Saposky go, and in the process make changes beyond the booking alone.

Card budgets need to be cut. Towns need to be booked to run at a profit regardless of draw even if it means reducing pay to some talent or reeducing the number of wrestlers booked p[er show, particularly fly-ins.

Whether PPV will continue is unknown. I'd recommend no. ROH needs to focus on events and DVDs, and story telling, alnost go back to the beginning in some ways. Their press release suggested that direction.

The current booking plan is to use a committee. Exactly who is on the committee has not been announced. For this group, whoever they turn out to be, to be sucessful, they first need to meet with Cary Silkin and find out exacting what he wants. It is his money after all. If they plan to repackage ROH, I'd focus on NE dates and run fewer shows, and go to the mid-west only once every two-three months. I'd cancel any new market unless indications are good for ticket sales, and regardless I'd underbook the cards. I'd try to sell ROH Shows to buildings for a guaranteed fee.

There will be no quick fix, but if the bleeding can be stopped, Cary Silkin & ROH can survive.

jeffk

So much sounds like ecw minus the tv deal that killed ecw and the fact ecw where still drawing crowds when they folded.

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

So much sounds like ecw minus the tv deal that killed ecw

How exactly

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

How exactly

Have a guess rovert and see if your right :pac:
Ill let you use google!!

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Have a guess rovert and see if your right :pac:
Ill let you use google!!

Nope you tell me

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

Nope you tell me

Spoil sport

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Spoil sport

You are just trolling here you are about to ruin a perfectly decent thread.

rovert

gimmick wrote: »

From Wrestlezone.

Additional Information On Gabe Sapolsky Leaving ROH
10/26/2008 by Bill Behrens

ROH is financed by Cary Silken. Several years ago the decision was made to begin PPVs. The hope was it would grow the company, add fans, and revenue. It has not.

It has been suggested ROH needs TV. They do not unless they are paid to provide their show and at least break even. ROH had TV briefly in Philadelphia on WGTW-TV, payiong for the time slot weekly, and canceled that deal after a few months. The TV was not helping them draw and was cutting nto DVD sales. They had been warned going in that they would lose money, but too many see TV as a holy grail. It usually is not. It's usually just another expense.

ROH house shows are down in attendance, and several planned shows in Florida were cancelled then rescheduled to next year.

Only NYC & Chicago have really been drawing the crowds ROH needs and expects.

After last month's Philadephia show Silkin was close to shutting down ROH altogether. Too much money was being spent, and too little was coming in.

Other ROH Management convinced Silkin to keep the company running, and to let Gabe Saposky go, and in the process make changes beyond the booking alone.

Card budgets need to be cut. Towns need to be booked to run at a profit regardless of draw even if it means reducing pay to some talent or reeducing the number of wrestlers booked p[er show, particularly fly-ins.

Whether PPV will continue is unknown. I'd recommend no. ROH needs to focus on events and DVDs, and story telling, alnost go back to the beginning in some ways. Their press release suggested that direction.

The current booking plan is to use a committee. Exactly who is on the committee has not been announced. For this group, whoever they turn out to be, to be sucessful, they first need to meet with Cary Silkin and find out exacting what he wants. It is his money after all. If they plan to repackage ROH, I'd focus on NE dates and run fewer shows, and go to the mid-west only once every two-three months. I'd cancel any new market unless indications are good for ticket sales, and regardless I'd underbook the cards. I'd try to sell ROH Shows to buildings for a guaranteed fee.

There will be no quick fix, but if the bleeding can be stopped, Cary Silkin & ROH can survive.

This all came from F4WOnline btw.

gimmick

Wrestlezone obviously just lifted it from there then.

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

You are just trolling here you are about to ruin a perfectly decent thread.

me trolling no i don't do that sure ive added more to this thread while u where out marking out over bret hart.

anyways back on thread does this mean well see less pure wrestling in roh and more sports entertainment

gimmick

^ I think that is purely speculation. If ROH were to go more "sports entertainmenty" it would be a turn off for me. ROH has pretty much always been a workrate based promotion, and that how I would like it to stay. Not that my opinion counts for a shyte in the grand scheme of things.

jeffk

gimmick wrote: »

^ I think that is purely speculation. If ROH were to go more "sports entertainmenty" it would be a turn off for me. ROH has pretty much always been a workrate based promotion, and that how I would like it to stay. Not that my opinion counts for a shyte in the grand scheme of things.

well from what i have seen they went the wwe route in a lot of way with the factions/sweeney inc and characters like delirious.

Mostly im going on broken information from dvds ive ordered, but i doubt many people have every dvd and have followed roh week by week.

gimmick

On the contrary, there are crap loads of "completists" out there.

well from what i have seen they went the wwe route in a lot of way with the factions/sweeney inc and characters like delirious

Thats nonsense. Sweeney has been around almost 2 years now. He is a heel manager. SNSI is a heel faction. Delirious has had more or less the same character for 4 years in ROH now. Thats not a wwe route. Its storylines, plain and simple.

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

me trolling no i don't do that sure ive added more to this thread while u where out marking out over bret hart.

Except why it is like ECW thus making me ask the question again?

Also what is wrong about marking out about Bret Hart you would if you meant him.

jeffk

gimmick wrote: »

On the contrary, there are crap loads of "completists" out there.



Thats nonsense. Sweeney has been around almost 2 years now. He is a heel manager. SNSI is a heel faction. Delirious has had more or less the same character for 4 years in ROH now. Thats not a wwe route. Its storylines, plain and simple.

Well i didnt wanna go into it but if your going on offical dvds i assume you wont have every show.But mayb there are people who would and could afford that many dvds

Well as i said im not up to speed fully so larry sweeny and his gimmik is new to me.
Ok so how do you see ROH going forward and become a stable profit running wrestling company?

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Well as i said im not up to speed fully so larry sweeny and his gimmik is new to me.

So why are you talking about the company to the degree that you are and how can say it is like ECW when your knowledge of the product seems to be lacking?

jeffk

rovert wrote: »

Except why it is like ECW thus making me ask the question again?

Also what is wrong about marking out about Bret Hart you would if you meant him.

Because ecw was a niche market product that the net/marks/smarks adored and generally done better in a certain town/state than others.
It tried the ppv market two and didnt ever really get what it should/could out of it.
Its wrestlers where poached by bigger companies.

I can go on im sure but do i need to?
I mean Rohs ex top booker learned from heyman in ecw.

gimmick

jeffk wrote: »

Ok so how do you see ROH going forward and become a stable profit running wrestling company?

Hontesly, I have no notion of what will happen next. This could still be an angle, to work the so called smart fanz "OMGZ gabe is gone. This is the end of ROH".

If its not, who knows. I wil not even pretend to be in the know with regard to how it will work backstage.

jeffk

I said my complete storyline and week to week knowledge is lacking,i mean is there some gauge where you need so many dvds to proove your knowledge?

This happened on another thread even after i stated i wasn't up to speed and wouldn't come on here an make stuff up.
SO i dont see why your nit picking on something i covered before i said it!

gimmick

jeffk wrote: »

Because ecw was a niche market product that the net/marks/smarks adored and generally done better in a certain town/state than others.

I mean Rohs ex top booker learned from heyman in ecw.

That logic can be applied to any and every promotion all over the world. Niches does not come into it.

Sapolosky was a production hand (I thik) in ECW, so its arguable that he learned everything from Heyman.

jeffk wrote: »

I said my complete storyline and week to week knowledge is lacking,i mean is there some gauge where you need so many dvds to proove your knowledge?

Who said that? I was merely pointing out what your said was incorrect. It was not meant as a slight or anything.

jeffk

gimmick wrote: »

Hontesly, I have no notion of what will happen next. This could still be an angle, to work the so called smart fanz "OMGZ gabe is gone. This is the end of ROH".

If its not, who knows. I wil not even pretend to be in the know with regard to how it will work backstage.

I still think the lack of info as to FIP is interesting and could be one area to keep an idea one.

Having two companies could be a great way to "fire" gabe from roh and to have him say i own fip.
Then have gabe run a pure wrestling promotion "head to head" with a new direction roh!

gimmick

But why are we certain that ROH is going in a new direction? Who is to say that it was not GS who wanted to change direction, if indeed that reason evn comes close to anything?

ROH made its name and established itself as a workrate based promotion. I do not see why they would wish to change this. But then, thats only me being an ROH fanboy



genuinely surprised the topic has not gone off on a Kane tangent yet

jeffk

gimmick wrote: »

But why are we certain that ROH is going in a new direction? Who is to say that it was not GS who wanted to change direction, if indeed that reason evn comes close to anything?

ROH made its name and established itself as a workrate based promotion. I do not see why they would wish to change this. But then, thats only me being an ROH fanboy

Thats true i suppose its people just people saying theres smoke there must be a fire.

Well if the best wrestling isnt bringing in money do they continue on that business plan and die a death?

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Because ecw was a niche market product that the net/marks/smarks adored and generally done better in a certain town/state than others.

The post where you replied saying it was like ECW outlined business related issues nothing to do with promotional styles.

jeffk wrote: »

It tried the ppv market two and didnt ever really get what it should/could out of it.

For ECW it did was just they did get revenue in quick enough as it would take six months to get it and to make matters worse the PPV companies so you are wrong about ECW.

jeffk wrote: »

Its wrestlers where poached by bigger companies.
.

So this has nothing to do with their separate business difficulties.

jeffk wrote: »

I mean Rohs ex top booker learned from heyman in ecw.

Again so this has nothing to do with their separate business difficulties. Heyman was autonomous boss Gabe was not.

gimmick

FFS, the speculation on the ROH board counts for nothing. Few months ago, Gabe said there would be a huge announcement in a few days, speculation was rife re TV deals and everything. The announcement was a 30% off sale

jeffk

Say what you will rovert but its late, we don't know the full story yet and cyber sundays on soon.(i know it will be crap but the whole voting thing still intrigues me)

So im not getting into a business debate with you and throwing around fancy words to describe wrestling bookers.
Again pick holes or whatever in that but im not continuing this debate of roh/ecw, roll on some concrete evidence to whats happening with gabe!

rovert

jeffk wrote: »

Say what you will rovert but its late, we don't know the full story yet and cyber sundays on soon.(i know it will be crap but the whole voting thing still intrigues me)

So im not getting into a business debate with you and throwing around fancy words to describe wrestling bookers.
Again pick holes or whatever in that but im not continuing this debate of roh/ecw, roll on some concrete evidence to whats happening with gabe!

You are the one said:

So much sounds like ecw minus the tv deal that killed ecw and the fact ecw where still drawing crowds when they folded.

Yet you defended that by talking about stylistic differences NOT business ones. ROH and ECW are totally different outside of the relatively superfical differences you pointed out.

flahavaj

Baaaaack on topic anyway, I'm surprised at the news reports that have been posted about ROH bleeeding money so badly. I mean I had heard that the PPVs did little or no buys and had seen attendances were down a little but this is genuinely surprising to me. I'm not sure how firing Sapolsky is gonn help though, I don't think that the booking is to blame for any of this even if it has gottten a litle stale. This is a recassion period and a general downturn in the wrestling industry is going on after all.

I await the Observer this week with bated breath. Gabe and Meltzer have always been quite close, maybe he'll have the scoop on what exactly is going on.

rovert

Cary Silkin's boyfriend "Bushwacker" Luke Miller is getting Gabe's job.

flahavaj

rovert wrote: »

Cary Silkin's boyfriend "Bushwacker" Luke Miller is getting Gabe's job.

I truly hope this is a bizarre rumour.:eek:

D'ya think they're f*cked? I was optimistic this morning that they'd be fine, but less so after reading this thread.

rovert

flahavaj wrote: »

I truly hope this is a bizarre rumour.:eek:

D'ya think they're f*cked? I was optimistic this morning that they'd be fine, but less so after reading this thread.

They are a couple and Meltzer intimated that this where Cary is going with the company. Butch was brought in originally to help ROH with their characters.

flahavaj

rovert wrote: »

They are a couple and Meltzer intimated that this where Cary is going with the company. Butch was brought in originally to help ROH with their characters.

As in romantically involved? If so the bizarreness of that makes my head want to explode.