Dragon Gate USA & EVOLVE promoter Gabe Sapolsky issued a personal apology as well as an official statement on the talent issues the DDGUSA promotion is experiencing for next weekends Mercury Rising event. From the fan comments on his Facebook page, many believe there is an ongoing pattern of not living up to promises and issuing apologies. Gabe even acknowledges this in some of his replies. in both the apology and statement there is no mention of refunds, you can check them both out below:
“We apologize, but it looks like there will not be Dragon Gate talent on the shows next weekend. This has been an ongoing situation for a while. It is not between us and Dragoon Gate. Our relationship remains strong and DGUSA will continue and will feature Dragon Gate talent in the future. This has been a daily thing where every day we think something was about to break. Now the clock has run out. We owe you a complete explanation and will have that on Monday.
In the meantime, we know you only care about two things- what the lineups are going to be and how we will make this up to you. We took the first step as a precaution by booking Masato Tanaka to face Chris Hero on the Friday night DGUSA show. We need to thank Highspots for making this possible. We are now finalizing the rest. We will have word to you on Monday.
I personally apologize and am very embarrassed by this entire situation. As an organization, we deeply apologize. The bottom line is that we will rebound and we will have amazing shows in New Orleans with a talented, exciting and dynamic roster. We will give you a great experience and present events that you will always remember fondly.
We appreciate and value your patience. We would have said more earlier, but this is something where we literally thought there would be a resolution and announcement on a daily basis. I realize this is not a suitable explanation for some of you and will accept the criticism and try to make it right. It is the best we can do right at this moment.
We’ll give you the entire story on Monday when we have everything situated. I will be around for all your questions and comments on Twitter and here on Facebook after we release the lineups and explain what happened. Thank you for all your support and we will make this right on the biggest weekend of the year.”
Official Statement:
“It is with deep regret that DGUSA must inform our audience of the unfortunate fact Dragon Gate (Japan) talent will not be able to perform on WrestleMania weekend shows. We are in the process of adjusting the lineups and guarantee we will make sure we deliver to you nothing less than top quality shows this coming weekend, as has become our reputation. We will have announcements shortly.
We have already announced the 1st time ever matchup pitting Masato Tanaka against Chris Hero on the Friday night DGUSA show. As the entire pro wrestling world converges on New Orleans this week, the last thing our audience wants to hear or read about is promotional drama. We know you have practically unlimited choices this coming week, and we are going to make sure all those who chose and choose to support DGUSA are rewarded with the best experience we can possibly provide.
DGUSA’s mission has always been to earn our fans one at a time. We continue to strive to do so, and thank you for your support during the most exciting week of the year to be a pro wrestling fan!”
