Main Event – September 7, 2018: Those Three Hours Make A Difference
IMG Credit: WWE
Main Event
Date: September 6, 2018
Location: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness
The march towards three different pay per views continues and that could mean a variety of things. Well actually it means we get what we already know we’re getting, because this show is a collection of highlights. Monday’s show was pretty dreadful while Tuesday’s was a lot of fun so let’s get to it.
Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.
Opening sequence.
Tyler Breeze vs. Mike Kanellis
Vic says that Baron Corbin must be watching this match. Why? He’s the Raw GM, not the Main Event GM. Mike kicks him down early on and goes up top, only to get small packaged for two. Some stomping has Breeze in trouble and it’s time to work on the knee. A half crab (with some yelling at the fans) keeps Breeze down but a superkick gives him two. Breeze actually rolls him up into a half crab of his own but gets catapulted into the corner. Kanellis grabs a rollup, only to be reversed into another one to give Breeze the pin at 4:50.
Rating: C-. They were actually working here and put on a decent match with a story in the leg instead of just doing a nothing match. Breeze still needs Fandango back, but nowhere near as much as Mike needs Maria. That being said, I’m not sure how much impact Mike and Maria can have together anyway, as it’s not like they have a track record to run on in WWE.
From Raw.
Here’s Shawn Michaels to talk about HHH vs. Undertaker in Australia. After allowing fans to shower him with praise and plugging some things (new shirt, the Network and Super Show-Down), Shawn talks about his fellow Hall of Famers’ predictions for the match. He wonders if the Streak being over has something to do with the picks, but he’s still picking HHH. Yeah they’re best friends, but HHH still has more left in the tank.
At Super Show-Down, with Shawn in attendance, the Cerebral Assassin is going to cerebrally assassinate Undertaker….and there goes the gong. Undertaker comes out and in a really cool visual, the lighting flashes against Shawn’s shirt, making the heart logo flash on and off. After the two hour and seventeen minute entrance, Undertaker says this just became personal. He talks about HHH and Shawn’s twenty year friendship (minus the part where they tried to kill each other) and brings up taking Shawn’s career.
Shawn says that’s not what this is about. He’s a man of his word and someone had to be a man of his word by actually staying out of the ring. He’s the only person to stay retired and he’s done it out of respect for Undertaker. Cue the ONE MORE MATCH chants, which Shawn says he hears every time he steps into an arena.
For nearly a decade, everyone knocks on his door at Wrestlemania season, begging for a dream match and he has to turn down millions of dollars because he respects Undertaker. Shawn goes to leave, but Undertaker asks if it’s respect or fear. If Shawn had ever chosen to come out of retirement, it would have been for Undertaker, and he would have put him down all over again. In Australia, Undertaker is going to put HHH down again.
It’s a good segment and I want to see HHH vs. Undertaker again, but I’m worried about the match being a huge letdown. I can’t imagine that doesn’t close the show in a 20+ minute match and that’s not really Undertaker’s strong suit anymore. Teasing Shawn vs. Undertaker again isn’t the best idea as I can’t imagine Shawn actually working one more match, no matter what. Still though, this was effective and had the result they were shooting for.
From Smackdown.
Here’s Samoa Joe to say he didn’t see AJ Styles here tonight. Last week he promised to show up at AJ Styles’ house so he’s sure that AJ is locked up tight with his family, probably cradling a baseball bat. AJ’s wife Wendy is probably cradling their daughter Annie, telling them that Uncle Joe is a bad guy. See, Joe isn’t a monster though because he’s managed to make AJ be home on a Tuesday for once.
Annie can enjoy being tucked in tonight and she can get used to it, because after Joe gets done with AJ, he’ll be there every Tuesday night. AJ pops up on screen to say it’s time to stop talking. Cue AJ for the fight with Joe grabbing a chair. AJ takes it away but misses a big swing against the post. Referees break it up so AJ springboards onto Joe, taking out one of the referees in the process. Paige finally gets AJ to leave.
Quick clip of Alexa Bliss vs. Natalya on Raw.
Zack Ryder vs. Mojo Rawley
Ryder is a little apprehensive to start until he sends Mojo into the corner. That earns him a knee to the ribs and we take a very quick break. Back with Ryder dropping the top rope elbow for two but missing the Rough Ryder. The running right hand in the corner sets up the sitout Alabama Slam to give Rawley the pin at 6:09. They edited the heck out of that.
Recap of Shield vs. Braun Strowman/Dolph Ziggler/Drew McIntyre.
From Raw.
Here are Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre to open things up. After a clip of last week’s attack on the Shield, Strowman talks about how that was justice. Two weeks ago, Strowman was ready to become Universal Champion but the Shield got involved. All that Reigns had to do was take his beating like a man, but now we have to go a different way, like it or not.
Strowman says that he has a path now with Ziggler and McIntyre at his side. Inside the Cell, he’s going to break Reigns’ spirit and body and there is no one to stop him. McIntyre says no one will ever be as dominant as they are. Ziggler promises to be more dominant than any group ever, including the Nation of Domination or D-Generation X.
The challenge is thrown out so here’s the Shield, only to have Baron Corbin send out some goons to stop them. That goes nowhere so Corbin sends out more of them but they’re taken out as well. The third batch is finally enough to keep Shield back, though they eventually break free and chase Strowman and company to the back.
Post break, Shield is arrested and taken away in an ambulance.
And from Raw again, after Strowman vs. Finn Balor.
Post match the beating is still on until a police siren goes off. A police van backs into the arena and it’s Reigns driving. Ambrose and Rollins come out of the back but the roster jumps them from behind. Reigns gets crushed by the steps, Rollins is knocked off the stage (and crashing arm first into the police van, slicing his arm wide open) and Ambrose is laid out on the announcers’ table. The big beatdown continues to end the show.
Overall Rating: C+. They did the right thing here by focusing on the better stuff from Raw and the big angle from Smackdown. The best thing here though was the missing three hours between the Shield appearances, which wasn’t exactly the most thrilling time. The original matches here were good too, making this a very easy sit, even by Main Event standards.
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I feel like Ryder/Rawley is running longer than Santana/Martel, but with the tag team being far less relevant.