Here is the CKY statement: 

"GUNS N ROSES TOUR CANCELLED!! TYPICAL. And freakishly EXPECTED. Haha. They really fucked the Philly fans over, really bad idea… I wouldn't suggest they come back... So… we are going home after over 50 shows... from our own headlining shows to  Tony Hawk's boom boom huck jam tour on to a month of the fucked-up GNR tour, it has been great... CKY did play in NYC at Madison Square Garden (legendary) and in Philly at the cancelled FU center show on Friday. So we played the (2nd) cancelled show that resulted in a Philly riot... Part of history… Glad to be part of it… More history to come... We are definitely psyched to take a short break and get back to more playing and fucking shit up the way we like it. Better the change."

What happened in Philly? It depends on who you asked. Officials at the venue initially denied that fans became violent after learning that Axl was not going to perform. We have sense learned that several fans were indeed hospitalized after suffering injuries at the venue. Witnesses claim that fans took to ripping out chairs from the higher levels and throwing towards the floor level of the First Union Center in Philadelphia. 

Why didn’t the show go on? Because it’s Axl Rose is the easiest answer. The “spin” is that Axl was having health problems that kept him from catching his plane from New York to Philly. It was a delayed flight that caused the cancellation of this tour’s opening night which also lead to fan violence and vandalism. 

What health problem Axl was suffering from is not known. But the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that a source from the First Union Center told them that “speculation was that Rose had stayed in his New York hotel room to watch a basketball game.” 

An official statement (read excuse) is expected from the Axl Rose camp on Monday.  Judging by the CKY statement a tour cancellation is excepted in the statement. 

Update 12-11-02: The tour promoter, Clear Channel Entertainment has officially pulled the plug on the Guns N’ Roses tour. They issued the following statement today,"The remainder of the Guns N' Roses concert dates promoted by Clear Channel Entertainment have been cancelled. Refunds will be available at point of purchase."

Although no reason was provided, the general consensus is that Clear Channel decided they could not risk a repeat of last Friday’s riot in Philadelphia that followed the last minute cancellation of the concert after Axl failed to show up for the gig. Other theories include that the tour was cancelled due to poor ticket sales in some markets instead of Axl’s unpredictable behavior.  

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