NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #26
Date: December 18, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Don West

Believe it or not, the big story is about Jeff Jarrett and Vince Russo, who may or may not be on the same page. That’s in addition to Russo having his Sports Entertainment Xtreme stable, which may or may not have AJ Styles on his side. That could make for an interesting story but, you know, Jarrett and Russo. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We look at Jeff Jarrett going to Europe and Japan to defend the NWA World Title. Believe it or not, this makes him look like a hero.

Here is a ticked off Curt Hennig storming in from the parking lot and coming into the arena. He is here to deal with Vince Russo and since he isn’t Roddy Piper, he’ll be tying Russo in knots or punching him in the face. Cue Russo (with Don Harris) and the chase is on, only for Low Ki, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper to run in and jump Hennig. Apparently they’re part of Sports Entertainment Xtreme, so here is BG James to brag on commentary, followed by Russo yelling at Tenay.

Bob Armstrong stops AJ Styles in the back and asks why Styles is with Russo. Styles says he’s proven his greatness in the ring, including last week (when he lost clean) and now it’s time to be the heavyweight champion.

Gauntlet Match

Ten entrants with ninety second intervals and pin/submission for eliminations. Jason Cross is in at #1 and Amazing Red is in at #2…and we cut to the back where Jeff Jarrett jumps AJ Styles. They trade leapfrogs to start and go to a standoff, with Cross missing a running flipping legdrop. Red sends him outside for a jumping kick off the apron as Tony Mamaluke is in at #3. The same seated Brock Lock that made Cross give up last week doesn’t work this week so Mamaluke switches to a jawbreaker.

Jimmy Rave is in at #4 and goes after Mamaluke as the other two brawl on the floor. Mamaluke and Rave go up top and it’s Shark Boy in at #5 to powerbomb the two of them down. Everyone pairs off and thankfully we go split screen as Kid Kash is in at #6. Red charges into a boot to the face as AJ Styles and Boy slingshot dives onto Kash on the floor. Ace Steel is in at #7 and hits a springboard dropkick to Rave. Almost everyone is back inside as Rave rolls up Mamaluke for the first elimination at 8:40.

Rave’s spinning crossface to Boy is broken up so Boy grabs the Dead Sea Drop (Diamond Dust) to pin Rave at 9:21. Kash gets a quick pin on Shark Boy for another elimination at 9:35 for back to back…uh wrestler ejections. Jose Maximo is in at #8 and dives onto Kash, who cuts him off with a powerbomb. Joel Maximo is in at #9 and goes to the floor, where Steel gives him a suplex. Steel and Cross go inside as David Young is in at #10 to complete the field.

Young grabs a sitout powerbomb, followed by a double belly to back suplex tot he Maximos. Steel is sent into the corner, followed by a big flip dive from Young to take out a pile. Steel, Cross, Red and Kash all hit dives of their own, followed by Kash grabbing a rope walk hurricanrana to Young. The running tornado DDT plants Young again for two, leaving almost everyone else to brawl on the floor. A Doomsday DDT plants Young and Red’s Infrared is good for the elimination at 17:36.

Steel catches Jose up top with a super tornado DDT and the pin at 18:13. Joel Rolls Steel up for the elimination 18:36. A hurricanrana gets rid of Joel and we’re down to Kash, Cross and Red. Cross gets double teamed down, leaving Red to kick Kash in the head for two. Kash catches Red on top for a super gorilla press but Cross cuts Kash off. Red goes up for a diving cutter to pin Kash at 21:39. Cross brainbusters Red and hits the shooting star legdrop for the final pin at 22:11.

Rating: C+. It was fun and there were some good spots, but they were flying through the eliminations at the end and that wasn’t the best way to go. No one really had a chance to stand out, with the one on one portion barely breaking thirty seconds. I had a nice enough time, but they just needed a better structure.

Commentary runs down the card.

Here is Sports Entertainment Xtreme for a chat. Vince Russo talks about how people laugh at these fans for being so stupid looking. He introduces the fans to the three newest members of the team. Low Ki wasn’t being booked because he wouldn’t agree to a 52 week schedule. Christopher Daniels wasn’t here because a plane ticket from California was too much. And Elix Skipper wanted more money, which Russo promises him, along with various physical accompaniment. As for BG James, he needs to stop worrying about his dad and take care of him.

Russo is tired of Jeff Jarrett and wants an answer right now. Cue Jarrett to say it is time for Russo to shut up and listen. Russo is still a magazine writer who has no respect for anyone in this business. Jarrett was the first wrestler that Vince McMahon told him to interview. He has protected Russo time after time from people like Shawn Michaels and Bill Goldberg in the WWF and WCW. They have been successful together under the name of sports entertainment (oh good grief). And yes, Russo came up with the idea for the Good Housekeeping match with Chyna.

Then a few weeks ago, Russo crossed the line by spitting in Jerry Jarrett’s face. If not for wrestling, Russo would be selling TVs in New York. Russo says Jarrett has lost his respect and the boys laugh at him, so whose side is he on. Jarrett makes it clear that he has never been with Russo and never will be (….that’s not what he said just a few minutes ago but whatever). The brawl is on and Jarrett grabs a chair but the numbers game gets to him. Security breaks it up and Russo leaves through the crowd.

Disciples Of The New Church vs. America’s Most Wanted vs. Harris Twins

Non-title and for the sake of simplicity, I’ll refer to all three of the Harris’s by their first names. Storm Whispers In The Wind onto Slash to start, followed by a Russian legsweep for two. Chris comes in and gets booted down by Lee for one before a snap suplex gets two. A crossbody gets Chris out of trouble and Storm’s high version gets two.

Everything breaks down, as you probably knew was coming, and the brawl heads outside, as you probably also expected. Lee gets sent into the barricade and it’s AMW and the Twins brawling back inside. The H Bomb drops Chris but here is I believe Belladonna with a low blow…and never mind as the ROAD WARRIORS of all people run in to lay out the Twins. Hawk’s top rope splash lets Storm get the pin on Ron at 7:36.

Rating: C. Well, if the Twins are going to sell for anyone, you might as well make it the most dominant tag team ever. It was certainly a big reaction to have them show up, and if it gets the Twins away from the title picture, I’d certainly call it an upgrade. This was another “we’re not really wrestling for the most part” match and that’s happening too often around here lately. But, you know, Russo.

The Road Warriors say they still have it.

Bob Armstrong gives the X-Division a pep talk about going after Sports Entertainment Xtreme.

Video on the triple threat match for the X-Division Title, with champion Sonny Siaki ready to prove his greatness again.

X-Division Title: Sonny Siaki vs. Jerry Lynn vs. EZ Money

Siaki is defending and Lynn is in because he did well last week. The champ gets punched down to start and Money’s neckbreaker gets two. Siaki superkicks Money into a sunset flip to give Lynn two but Money fights up and takes over on both of them. Lynn uses Siaki as a launchpad for a tornado DDT to Money, followed by a flip dive to both of them on the floor. Back in and Money gives Siaki a Buckshot Lariat and a 3D drops him for two. Cue the woman from last week to open her jacket to Lynn, followed by a slap (she’s sending mixed messages). Lynn gets sent outside and Siaki’s swinging neckbreaker retains the title at 7:46.

Rating: C+. This was a good way to help get Siaki over as the champion, as he is still brand new in the title picture. Having the still unnamed woman with him should help as it’s a classic formula that works every time. Lynn being in there made this feel more important, but Siaki is going to have to beat him again at some point or his reign is only going to go so far.

Post match the woman hugs Vince Russo, who says he has had his eye on Siaki since the beginning. The woman (still no name) is a gift to him for every desire he has (because that’s all women are for in Russo’s world). Lynn comes back in to jump Siaki but the woman kicks him low and the villains leave.

BG James vs. Ron Killings

Street fight, which might be an improvement. James jumps the rapping Killings from behind to start fast and they brawl up to the stage. Killings’ ax kick gets two, as apparently this is falls count anywhere. They go over near the cage dancers (who are still a thing for some reason), with James getting in a trashcan shot. A powerbomb puts Killings through a table for two and James hits him with whatever he can find. Naturally Killings comes back with a shovel to the head but here are Christopher Daniels, Low Ki and Elix Skipper to take Killings out for the pin at 4:37.

Rating: D+. It was just a messy brawl which was barely a match, with the interference making it worse. That being said, it’s better to have James doing a brawl than a match, even with all of the screwiness. Then again I’m not sure I’m supposed to know the story in the first place, because the promotion probably didn’t either.

Post match here is Bob Armstrong, who has three men to face Russo’s three men.

Low Ki/Christopher Daniels/Elix Skipper vs. SATs/Amazing Red

Sure, send three people out there for their second match tonight. That’s the ticket. The villains clear the ring to start until Ki is left alone with Joel. Ki misses a charge and gets knocked out to the floor, leaving Daniels to come in. Red chases him out and it’s Ki coming back in to get caught in the corner for the running clotheslines. A doomsday dropkick sets up something like a wheelbarrow cutter for…nothing, as there’s too much time for that to be the pin.

It’s back to Daniels, who gets knocked down for two and Red kicks him in the face for two more. A backdrop sends Daniels outside and apparently we’re in Mexico as Skipper immediately comes in. The SATs tie up Skipper and Ki in a camel clutch/Boston crab combination, with Red adding in a running dropkick. Daniels comes back in for a clothesline to take over, with Skipper sending Red into the corner.

Another clothesline and a standing moonsault drop Red for two and Skipper grabs the chinlock. Red manages to counter the Ki Krusher into the corner and the Code Red puts Ki down again. Both Maximos come in (of course) off the tag and everything breaks down again. Skipper’s brainbuster gets two and he sends Jose outside for a slingshot dive. Red comes back in but misses the Code Red, only to avoid Ki’s phoenix splash but then miss Infrared.

Don West gets onto the announcers’ table to cheer for Red, whose hurricanrana gets two on Daniels. Ki comes in but kicks Daniels down by mistake, leaving Red to grab a springboard spinning Downward Spiral for two. Skipper’s gutwrench powerbomb gives Ki two on Red and everyone goes into the same corner. That results in everyone crashing down, leaving Ki to hit the super Ki Crusher to pin Red at 21:07.

Rating: B+. As usual, the X-Division guys do what they can to save the show with an awesome match. They beat each other up for over twenty minutes with pretty much nonstop action (hey that’s catchy) throughout. The villains winning is of course the correct call as they have to build some momentum now that they’re on the new team. Really good match here and it brought the show up a lot.

Post match Russo and company get in the ring to answer the greatest question in wrestling: why are there tables under the ring? BG James says it’s because he put them there, so some tables are set up. Curt Hennig tries to make the save but David Flair of all people comes in to take him out. Jeff Jarrett makes the save with a chair but AJ Styles saves Flair from the Figure Four. Skipper and Ki put Jarrett through a table and Russo destroys the set with an ax (because he’s manly like that) to end the show. And yes, while I know there were reasons, the show ended with David Flair as the big surprise rather than the ROAD WARRIORS.

Overall Rating: C-. The wrestling is good, but my goodness the huge overarching story is dragging everything else down. The Russo stuff is just people talking about old stuff and loyalty and bringing in random people for shock value. You have the awesome main event and a few other decent things, but having the Harris Twins and BG James in the ring so often is bringing it right back down. That’s in addition to Jeff Jarrett being one of the least interesting top stars you can find, yet here he is in the big featured spot. Oh but Russo got to use an ax so it’s cool. Not as bad as the previous show, but that’s not much of an improvement.

 

 

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NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #25
Date: December 11, 2002
Location: Tennessee State Fairgrounds, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Don West

So last week saw things get really Russo-y in a hurry, with the debut of the Sports Entertainment Xtreme (SEX) stable and a woman being treated horribly. Then Paul Bearer debuted to end the show, because that’s the kind of huge signing this place needs. I have no idea what I’m getting myself into here but let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening recap, which is described as from “LAST WEEKY”, because this company can’t spell a four letter word with two letters being the same. Anyway we look at the beginnings of Sports Entertainment Xtreme, because this place was needing an NWO knockoff.

Opening sequence.

Jason Cross vs. Tony Mamaluke

Mamaluke takes him down by the arm to start but gets sent into the buckle. That means a crash to the floor, with Cross hitting a big flip dive. Cross ties him in the Tree Of Woe for a baseball slide, followed by a brainbuster for two. Back up and Mamaluke starts in on the leg but gets kicked in the face for his efforts.

Mamaluke’s charge misses in the corner though and Cross hits something like a sideways Blockbuster. Cross goes up for a flipping Unprettier (cool) into a shooting star legdrop. This bangs up the knee (which was fine enough to do two big flips in a row) and Mamaluke grabs a seated Brock Lock (the Sicilian Crab) for the tap at 6:31.

Rating: C+. Oh dang that ending screwed up a lot of the good they had going here. Cross hits two awesome finishers in a row and doesn’t even get a cover before giving up. Not only does it waste the finishers, but the leg was fine enough to go up a few times in a row but the landing hurts it that badly? That’s just overbooking, as Cross’ finishers look weak and he loses on top of it. Get this stuff straight.

Post match BG James comes out and puts a guitar on the announcers’ table. They are responsible for keeping track of the guitar, which Jeff Jarrett will need to retain the World Title. It’s an official order from Vince Russo, so you know it’s serious. Oh and the Harris Brothers come in and wreck Mamaluke and Cross, making it clear that they mean absolutely nothing.

James says that Russo isn’t here because he’s recruiting new talent for SEX (oh good grief). He promises that the army will grow and says D-Generation X was a cross between Russo’s ideas and the members’ talent so this is all for the good of the business. Cue Bob Armstrong who can’t believe that James is joining with Russo. James says his daddy (ah so it’s confirmed) never did anything for him, which has Armstrong bringing out Ron Killings with a chair and a chain.

Tonight, it’s a chair and chain match (a chain match with a chair in the middle of the chain) between James and Killings, with the Twins facing the Disciples Of The New Church. The villains tease a brawl but the Church and some other wrestlers come out for the big pull apart as the villains run off.

So in case it wasn’t clear, the match at the beginning of the show means absolutely nothing because this is all about the NWA vs. Russo’s IN YOUR FACE stable, making it WCW vs. the NWO. Again. Oh and remember that D-Generation X was a thing, because…well why else would James have a job?

Commentary runs down the show, with Mike Tenay talking about what Jeff Jarrett has been doing lately.

Jorge Estrada is crushed that Priscilla left him and maybe he needs a new direction. From now on, he’s playing things by ear.

Kid Kash vs. Jorge Estrada

They fight over arm control to start with neither of them really being able to get very far. An exchange in armdrags leads to Kash grabbing an armbar but getting sent outside. Estrada’s springboard corkscrew moonsault drops Kash again but he’s right back with something like a Whisper In The Wind. Estrada trips him down for a springboard legdrop to the back of the head but Kash is back up with a running DDT. A brainbuster gives Kash the fast win at 5:17.

Rating: C. The action was fine, but it felt like two people just doing moves to each other until Kash won. It didn’t really build towards anything and while Kash’s stuff was good, there is only so much you can get with the second short X-Division match in a row. Estrada’s downward spiral continues, and I can’t see it getting much better for him anytime soon.

Bob Armstrong is on the phone and can’t talk.

Divine Storm vs. America’s Most Wanted

Trinity is here with Divine Storm. Harris works on Quiet Storm’s arm to start and slaps a dropkick away without much trouble. Some shoulders don’t work well for Quiet either so it’s off to Divine. James Storm comes in to kick him in the head (a good job if you can get it) and Divine is sent outside. James hits a big dive onto both opponents, followed by Harris hitting a dive onto all three of them (which isn’t that bright but this show’s logic went out the window a long time ago).

Naturally Trinity wants in on this by moonsaulting onto Harris, who is right back in with something like a dropkick Hart Attack to Quiet. Divine comes in to take over on Harris though and cuts him off with a boot in the corner. The spear gets Harris out of trouble though and it’s back to James for the real comeback (after being in trouble for about thirty seconds). Quiet gets superkicked out of the air and everything breaks down, with Trinity breaking up the Death Sentence, allowing Divine to steal the pin on Harris at 6:56.

Rating: C+. Well, points for having a new team get somewhere. AMW is by far and away the best team in the company and it’s nice to see someone else getting a chance. I’m not sure if Divine Storm is going to be the next big thing but it’s better than having AMW run through one team after another.

Referee Scott Armstrong talks to BG James (his brother, who is smoking) and tries to get him back on the right side with their dad. James says he paved his own roads. Except for the ones with Russo right?

We look at AJ Styles taking out Amazing Red last week.

AJ Styles vs. Amazing Red

Mortimer Plumtree is here with Styles and Red runs in to start fast. Styles keeps shoving him away and gets hit in the face for his efforts. A 619 rocks Styles and sends him outside, but he catches Red’s dive for a powerbomb backbreaker. Back in and Red strikes away until a discus clothesline brings him right back down.

A middle rope sunset flip doesn’t work for Red, who backflips up and over Styles (that looked great) into a failed Styles Clash attempt. Red’s tornado DDT is countered into a northern lights suplex and he’s in trouble again. Plumtree even gets in a few shots, earning himself an anklescissors. Styles isn’t having that and drops him face first onto the steps but Red is able to snap off a hurricanrana.

A reverse DDT gives Styles two and he grabs a Muta Lock, even turning over onto his stomach while continuing the cranking. With that not working, Styles hits a hard sitout powerbomb and they go up top. The super Styles Clash is blocked though and a super hurricanrana gives Red the big upset at 12:09.

Rating: B. These two beat each other up, which isn’t a surprise given who was in there. It’s a similar story to the AMW match, as you have the established ace and need to bring up someone new, which is where a fall like this comes in. Red even won clean to make it better and it makes sense as he’s a good guy. Solid stuff here, which tends to be the case with anything Styles does.

Tag Team Titles: Disciples Of The New Church vs. Harris Twins

The Disciples, with Belladonna and James Mitchell, are defending and WHY? The whole point of the match was to punish the Twins….so they get a title shot??? Good grief the logic really is gone here. The Twins come in through the crowd and the brawl starts fast. AJ Styles even joins commentary, which isn’t something you would see around this time.

They fight in the ring for a bit until Slash hits a big dive to the floor, meaning it’s time to fight into the crowd. They head back into the ring with the Disciples fighting out of trouble until BG James comes in with a chair to Slash’s head. Ron gets the pin and the titles at 4:17…but here is Percy Pringle (Paul Bearer) to tell the referee about the interference, which is enough for the DQ.

Rating: C-. Not much to this one, which shouldn’t be a big surprise. At the end of the day, there is pretty much nothing to the Harris Twins in the ring and having them in a title match here makes less than no sense. Throw in the fact that they wound up getting the pin until Percy Pringle of all people makes the save. Because the champs need to lose to the really awesome team you see.

Post match Mitchell says the teams don’t have problem with each other and suggests beating up Pringle. Cue AMW with chairs to go after the Disciples as we again have WAY too much going on at once. That’s ignoring AMW being put into a bigger story right after losing, because the wrestling just doesn’t matter.

Video on Sonny Siaki challenging Jerry Lynn for the X-Division Title.

Siaki wants the old guys gone and new guys, like him, getting a chance.

X-Division Title: Sonny Siaki vs. Jerry Lynn

Lynn is defending and we get the Big Match Intros. Lynn drives him into the corner to start and grabs a headlock takeover. A crucifix gives Lynn two and it’s an armdrag into an armbar. Back up and a triangle dropkick sends Siaki outside but he’s able to send into the apron. Lynn sweeps the leg and hits a slingshot legdrop to the back of the head, only to get caught in a hot shot. The referee gets distracted and Lynn gets kicked low, allowing Siaki to send him outside again.

They trade rams into the barricade, with Siaki getting the better of things by swinging him into the steel. Siaki hammers away back inside but walks into a sitout powerbomb for two. The referee gets bumped in the corner though and naturally Lynn grabs his cradle piledriver immediately thereafter. The very delayed count gets two but cue a mystery woman to crotch Lynn on top. A hanging swinging neckbreaker gives Siaki the pin and the title at 12:59.

Rating: C+. I appreciate the idea of getting someone new in the title picture as you can only have Lynn and AJ Styles fight so many times. Siaki was treated as something important for a little bit before dropping back down the card. It’s nice to see him doing something else, as there are far worse options out there.

Ron Killings vs. BG James

Chairs and Chains match (ignore that there is only one of each), which is a chain match with a chair in the middle. Naturally it’s just dangling there, making it look like a scene from a screwball wrestling sitcom (which I would love to see). James wraps the chain around his fist and punches away to start, allowing him to grab the chair.

That takes long enough that Killings can go up for a dropkick to send the chair into his face. A moonsault only hits chair though and James chairs him in the ribs. The chair is wedged in the corner, with Killings pulling him into the chair for the big crash. Then the chain just falls off so Killings gives him a sitout gordbuster onto the chair for the pin at 4:04.

Rating: F. This is the definition of a hat on a hat, as just having a chain match is one thing, but then they needed to add in a chair because reasons. It also didn’t work due to the chair just kind of dangling there, because they had to go with the dumbest idea possible. Terrible match, which had Russo’s style all over it.

Post match Killings puts the chair on him and goes up but Bob Armstrong makes the save. James gets up and chairs both of them in the head, leaving the referee to check on Bob. For like five seconds.

We run down next week’s card.

We recap Curt Hennig challenging Jeff Jarrett for the World Title. Basically Hennig wants to win the title to prove his greatness and that’s about it.

Earlier today, Jarrett had a sitdown interview and talked about the importance of the NWA World Title. He doesn’t like Vince Russo but isn’t happy with some of the things Roddy Piper said either. As for his allegiance with Russo…he’ll address it to Russo’s face later.

NWA World Title: Curt Hennig vs. Jeff Jarrett

Jarrett is defending. They go with the wrestling to start and neither get very far. A headscissors doesn’t work for Hennig so he goes with the chops in the corner. They’re already on the floor with Jarrett hitting him in the back with a chair, earning a look from the referee. Back in and Hennig grabs a quick Robinsdale Crunch, allowing him to wrap the knee around the post. Hennig ties the leg up inside and Jarrett even has to raise his shoulder to avoid a pin. No it wasn’t going to happen, but points for doing something instead of just laying there.

Jarrett is back up with an enziguri and sends Hennig into the corner, where a turnbuckle pad is taken off. Hennig is sent into the exposed buckle and of course the referee gets bumped (again). Jarrett teases getting the guitar from earlier in the night but opts not to, instead loading up the Stroke. That earns him a low blow, but here is Vince Russo (of course) to guitar Hennig in the head (and it doesn’t break). Jarrett retains his title at 8:12.

Rating: C. Jarrett and Hennig could have a passable match in their sleep due to talent and experience alone, but they had too much going on here, including the Russo ending. They only had a few minutes to actually wrestle here until they got to the screwy stuff. It could have been good but instead they went with the sports entertainment nonsense, as is always the case with Russo.

Post match Russo hands Jarrett the title and they go head to head. Cue AJ Styles to run in to jump Jarrett to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. There were good parts in here, but the Russo dominance is destroying those positives. Everything important revolves around Russo vs. Bob Armstrong of all people, which makes for such a mess. The X-Division stuff at the beginning was nice, but it only gets you so far when, like the cruiserweights in WCW, it doesn’t feel important in the slightest. Watch the AJ Styles stuff as usual, and skip the rest.

 

 

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Royal Rumble 2020
Date: January 26, 2020
Location: Minute Maid Park, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 42,715
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Jerry Lawler, Tom Phillips

Remember when we had crowds? It’s almost weird to see something like this but it’s a nice flashback to a show that feels like it was years ago. I remember the higher points of the show but given how many things have changed since then, it could be rather interesting to look back. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Shorty G. vs. Sheamus

Small guy with a ridiculous name vs. a monster, with Sheamus returning and pretending to save G. but then attacking him for being short. Sheamus shrugs off a single leg attempt to start and pulls G. down by the hair. A shoulder puts him down again but G. sends him outside in front of Green Shirt Guy. Back in and it’s way too early for G.’s ankle lock as Sheamus sends him into the post. There’s the shoulder breaker before Sheamus starts stepping on the fingers.

The armbar goes on and we take a break. Back with the armbar continuing, followed by Sheamus ax handling him in the face. Sheamus sends him to the apron for the forearms to the chest and asks the fans IF THEY ARE NOT ENTERTAINED. Eh it’s been a little slow so far so only kind of. G. slips out of a belly to back though and dropkicks the knee out, allowing him to stomp away on the leg in the corner.

The tornado DDT sets up the moonsault for two on Sheamus and the rolling Chaos Theory out of the corner is good for the same. Sheamus shoves him away and goes up, only to dive into the ankle lock. That’s broken up with a grab of the rope so Sheamus kicks him in the bad arm. The Brogue Kick is good for the pin at 12:37.

Rating: C-. This took some time to get going but the arm played into the finish and Sheamus needed the win to build himself up since he hasn’t even been back for a month so far. It was a slightly longer than usual TV match and unfortunately it saw G. lose again. I know it keeps happening, but that doesn’t make it any easier.

Kickoff Show: US Title: Andrade vs. Humberto Carrillo

Andrade, with Zelina Vega, is defending in another of about 35 matches between these two. Humberto had been injured by Andrade but came back to save Rey Mysterio on Raw, setting this up. They go to the mat to start for a standoff but Carrillo sends him outside, only to glide over Andrade on the baseball slide again. Carrillo hits the Tranquilo pose on the apron and you just don’t do that, as Andrade gets in a cheap shot to take over.

We take a break and come back with Andrade hitting a basement dropkick to the side of the head. The armbreaker over the ropes has Carrillo’s arm being broken, at least until just before the DQ. The Fujiwara armbar goes on to keep Carrillo in trouble but he fights to his feet. That’s about it for the good though as his high angle springboard armdrag is countered with a faceplant. Carrillo is back up with a spinning springboard crossbody but a moonsault hits knees.

Andrade’s running knees in the corner are broken up and he misses a charge to the floor, allowing Carrillo to nail an Asai moonsault. Back in and Andrade hits Two Amigos but the third is countered into a suplex from Carrillo. Andrade kicks him into the corner though and the running knees connect for two. The hammerlock DDT is countered into a small package for two on Andrade and it’s time for the slugout.

Carrillo scores with a superkick for two as Vega is panicking. Back up and Andrade misses some running elbows to the face but he’s able to catch Carrillo on top with a shot to the jaw. Carrillo is fine enough to snap off a super hurricanrana for two and Vega starts giving fast paced advice. Andrade slips out of a fireman’s carry so Carrillo tries another hurricanrana but Andrade reverses into a sunset flip to retain at 14:18.

Rating: C+. These two might not have been the most interesting but they could have some nice, fast paced matches. That’s what we got here on the bigger stage and the right person won, as usual. Carrillo can do all the moves but he’s a complete hole of charisma. Andrade and Vega worked well together, though the stupid deal with Angel Garza getting involved and fighting with Andrade brought them both way down. Still though, pretty good here.

The opening video features Steve Austin talking about the importance of the Royal Rumble, as everyone is out for one thing. It doesn’t matter if there is one person or thirty, because this is their shot at glory. The other matches, which aren’t quite as important, get a little bit of time as well.

King Corbin vs. Roman Reigns

Falls Count Anywhere, which is hardcore based on the introductions but the former sounds better. This is fallout from the rather good dog food angle, which was the only good part of their months long feud. Reigns doesn’t wait for Corbin to get off of his throne and beats up the handlers to start things off. The brawl is on outside with Corbin bailing over the barricade, only to get knocked back to ringside.

They head inside where Reigns gets two off a belly to back suplex. It’s way too early for the Superman Punch so Corbin grabs Deep Six for his own two. They’re back on the floor with Corbin hitting him in the face with the steps and loading up the announcers’ table. Reigns punches him in the face though and they head over the barricade with Reigns following for more right hands. It’s already back to ringside with Corbin getting in a bell shot to the ribs.

Reigns charges at him and gets chokeslammed through the announcers’ table. It’s back over the barricade now with Reigns being sent into some chairs and then into an anvil case. A Samoan drop through a table gives Reigns a breather and they’re both slow to get up. It works so well that Reigns does it again, this time for two. Back up and Corbin drives him into another anvil case (Neil’s Workbox according to the label) and here are Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler to beat Reigns down.

Cue the Usos to even things up and we cut over to the tag teams fighting as Corbin and Reigns are gone. Roode sets up a barricade but Jey dives off the scaffold to make a save as the people actually in the match pop up again. Reigns throws him into some portable toilets (Cole: “Those structures.”) and then turns it over with Corbin inside. That doesn’t seem to mean much and they head back through the crowd. This time Corbin pulls a cover off of the dugout and hitting a few chair shots. Reigns comes back with a Superman Punch and the spear for the pin at 21:17.

Rating: C. These two just aren’t all that interesting together and Reigns is even harder to watch in this role after seeing what he could do later on in the year. The problem here was that they just walked around a lot and punched each other with some spots in the middle. The interference spiced things up a bit, but you shouldn’t need to spice up a violent gimmick match between two people who can’t stand each other. It’s not an awful match, but it wasn’t an interesting feud at the time and the version without seeing most of the build isn’t that much of an improvement.

Samoa Joe comes up to Kevin Owens, who is really excited about getting to beat up Seth Rollins. That sounds cool with Joe, who is more than willing to throw Owens out. Bickering ensues.

Sonya Deville says she’ll eliminate herself before eliminating Mandy Rose because they’re partners.

In Memory of Kobe Bryant, who died earlier in the day. That was quite the shock.

Women’s Royal Rumble

Ninety second intervals and Alexa Bliss is in at #1 and Bianca Belair, still in NXT at this point, is in at #2. Bliss doesn’t look impressed and they lock up to start. Belair starts fast by driving Bliss into the corner for a shoulder to the ribs. The standing moonsault connects and it’s Mighty Molly in at #3. The posing, complete with cape, draws the flashbacks and Molly hits a high crossbody onto both of them. We get some rather sped up intervals as Nikki Cross is in at #4.

Bliss and Cross have the big hug but get taken down, including the KOD from Belair to drive Cross onto Bliss in a crash. Everyone gets knocked down and it’s Lana in at #5. Lana, in the required Captain Marvel gear, brags about being a newlywed (oh man that nonsense) and finally gets in as Mercedes Martinez is in at #6 to clean house. Lana is almost put out and it’s Liv Morgan in at #7 to get rid of Lana in a hurry. Morgan makes the mistake of going up top though and Lana pulls her off. The catfight is on outside and Mandy Rose is in at #8.

Cross has to kick Rose away and gives her a crossbody as Candice LeRae is in at #9. A missile dropkick puts Martinez down and a Lionsault hits Cross. Molly gets tossed and Rose is sent over as well….but lands on Otis, who happens to be laying at ringside for your comedy bit. Sonya Deville is in at #10, giving us Bliss, Belair, Cross, Martinez, Rose, LeRae and Deville. Mandy and Sonya fail to get rid of Candice but they can get rid of Martinez. Kairi Sane is in at #11 and comes in with her umbrella because Sane is kind of weird. House is cleaned, including a Blockbuster into a top rope elbow on Rose. Mia Yim is in at #12 and Belair knocks Cross out.

Sonya tries to toss Mandy but Otis catches her again. That’s fine with Belair, who throws Sonya onto both of them for the double elimination. Dana Brooke is in at #13 and starts beating up Yim in a hurry. Belair tosses Candice out for her fifth elimination setting a women’s Royal Rumble record. Bliss gets rid of Sane and it’s Tamina in at #14 and she gets to fire off her superkicks. That’s fine with Belair, who avoids a charge to send Tamina out. NXT’s Dakota Kai is in at #15 and kicks Brooke in the face as Bliss knocks Yim out.

NXT’s Chelsea Green is in at #16 and tosses Kai but gets tossed by Bliss in about ten seconds. Belair gets rid of Brooke and we’re down to Belair vs. Bliss again. Twisted Bliss is blocked and they fight to the apron with Belair knocking her into the post for the elimination. Belair is alone and it’s Charlotte in at #17. Charlotte chops away at Belair and sends her flying with a quick suplex. That goes nowhere and it’s the returning Naomi in at #18.

Naomi starts sliding around to avoid some shots, setting up a staredown with Charlotte. Some chops in the corner have Naomi in trouble and it’s Beth Phoenix in at #19. Charlotte and Naomi and Beth and Belair pair off but it’s Toni Storm in at #20 to give us Charlotte, Naomi, Phoenix, Belair and Storm. Charlotte finally throws Belair out to a big reaction and it’s the returning Kelly Kelly in at #21.

Beth manages to send Charlotte over the top and stomp away but Charlotte manages to hang on. Sarah Logan is in at #22….and Charlotte kicks her out in about ten seconds. Charlotte knocks Kelly out and it’s Natalya in at #23. Clotheslines abound and Beth and Natalya powerbomb Charlotte out of the corner. NXT’s Xia Li is in at #24 and starts kicking various blondes. Zelina Vega is in at #25 as they’re flying through these entrants.

A tornado DDT plants Naomi but a bunch of people can’t get rid of Charlotte in the corner. NXT newcomer Shotzi Blackheart is in at #26 and Naomi is thrown over the top….but she manages to land on the steps and dive onto the barricade. Naomi pulls herself back up and crawls along the barricade so she can walk along the announcers’ table and try to figure things out. Carmella comes in at #27 and hits a very spinning headscissors, setting up a double Bronco Buster on Natalya and Beth (who is bleeding BADLY from the back of the head).

Charlotte gets sent shoulder first into the post and calls out to the floor as Tegan Nox is in at #28. Phoenix hits Nox with a Glam Slam….and Santina Marella is in at #29. Beth isn’t happy and glares Santina down, with Natalya joining her. With nothing else working, Santina whips out the Cobra, strikes herself, and is eliminations. NXT’s Shayna Baszler is in at #30, giving us a final field of Charlotte (on the floor), Naomi (still on the announcers’ table), Phoenix, Storm, Natalya, Li, Vega, Blackheart, Carmella, Nox and Baszler.

Shayna starts fast by posting Charlotte on the floor and dumps Li. Nox and Vega are out as well, with Shotzi joining all of them. Naomi has finally gotten the top of the announcers’ table off and uses it as a bridge to the ring for a big reaction (after about ten minutes to get back). Shayna gets rid of Carmella and Storm before dodging Naomi’s Rear View and tossing her as well.

Beth and Natalya grab a quick Hart Attack on Baszler but Beth throws Natalya out. Charlotte comes back in to send Baszler and Phoenix to the apron, setting up the Charlotte vs. Baszler showdown. Phoenix is back in but gets tossed by Baszler. Charlotte hang son and skins the cat into a headscissors to eliminate Baszler for the win at 54:17.

Rating: C+. They were flying through this and while it was nice to see the NXT stars popping in, there wasn’t a lot of interesting in the whole thing. The biggest problem is Charlotte winning, as she certainly didn’t need the win over a newcomer like Baszler. Charlotte was already one of the most successful women in WWE history. Did she really need something like this over a newcomer like Baszler? It makes even less sense when you consider where they both went at Wrestlemania, but again, Charlotte. It wasn’t a bad match at all, but just too fast and not overly interesting.

Post match Charlotte says nothing is stopping her from becoming champion again at Wrestlemania.

King Corbin promises to eliminate Roman Reigns from the Rumble tonight.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bayley vs. Lacey Evans

Bayley is defending and gets shoved down to start. Some knee drops give Lacey an early two and a slingshot elbow has Bayley in more trouble. Hold on though as Bayley is favoring her knee, which is good enough goldbricking to let Bayley get in an elbow to the face for two. The chinlock sets up a suplex into another chinlock and the comeback attempt is countered into a third chinlock. Points for consistency? A clothesline gives Bayley two and she tells Lacey to “come on mommy.”.

The chinlock goes on again for a few seconds but Bayley misses a charge into the corner. Lacey grabs a slingshot rollup for two and nails a running knee. A slingshot dropkick almost sends Lacey falling out to the floor but she manages to hold on. The slingshot dive misses though and we see Lacey’s daughter and I’d assume husband in the front row. Back in and Lacey grabs a neckbreaker but the double jump moonsault hits knees (that’s what you get for stopping to salute). Bayley grabs a rollup with trunks to retain at 9:25.

Rating: C. Just slightly above a TV level match here but it was too early to take the title off of Bayley just yet. Bayley mocking Lacey was rather good but the amazing part is that Lacey still hasn’t won a title. You would just think she would have gotten one out of however many shots she has had over the years. It didn’t need to be here, but nothing since then? Really?

We recap Daniel Bryan vs. the Fiend. Bryan has brought back the YES Movement to fight against the Fiend and now it’s time to challenge for the title in a strap match. Bray Wyatt has brought up Bryan’s time as part of the Wyatt Family and wants some revenge.

Smackdown World Title: The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan

The Fiend is defending in a strap match, but this time it’s pins/submissions instead of the four corners. I don’t miss the red lights but I do miss the severed head lantern (that’s one of those “only in wrestling” deals). As for the custom Fiend title…..eh not so much either. Bryan kicks away in the corner but gets powerbombed out for his efforts. It’s already time to start whipping Bryan in the back but a kick to the face has Fiend on the floor. The suicide dive is swatted away though and Fiend whips him again.

As Cole refers to the Fiend as Reigns, they head back inside with Bryan being sat on top for some more shots to the back. The bright red marks are already starting to appear on Bryan’s back so Fiend laughs a lot. Bryan scores with a quick kick though and the running knee gets two. Fiend gets low bridged to the floor for the big dive, only to send Bryan into the steps. Bryan pulls him into the post over and over though and Fiend is rocked. He’s fine enough to clothesline Bryan inside out and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table.

Bryan kicks him low a few times to save himself and there’s a DDT onto the table for a thud. Fiend gets whipped for a change and it’s back inside for the YES Kicks, followed by several whips to Fiend for a change. As you might expect, Fiend wants more kicking and whippings so Bryan obliges. The running knee is countered into Sister Abigail (sweet) for two though and Fiend isn’t sure what to do. The Mandible Claw goes on on the top so Bryan pulls him into a triangle choke over the ropes.

That doesn’t work so Bryan pulls him into the YES Lock to….well not much as Fiend escapes and hammers away again. Another Sister Abigail is countered into another running knee for another two so Bryan starts firing himself up. Fiend pops up to his feet and you can see the defeat in Bryan’s face. Bryan’s whips are shrugged off and the Mandible Claw goes on again to finish Bryan at 17:36.

Rating: B. This was the Royal Rumble title defense as there was little doubt about who was going to win and there is nothing wrong with that. It was going to take someone special (or old) to beat Fiend and as great as Bryan is, it wasn’t the right place for him to get the title here. They had a hard hitting match but in the end, Bryan wasn’t enough to stop Fiend and that makes Fiend look a heck of a lot better.

Post match, a very damaged Bryan has to be helped out.

There is a new attendance record of 42,715.

We recap the Raw Women’s Title match, with Becky Lynch defending against Asuka. Lynch has been champion since Wrestlemania but Asuka was the last woman to beat her. That has weighed on Lynch and it is time for a rematch one year after the loss to Asuka. Green mist was used so you know it’s serious.

Raw Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Asuka

Asuka, with Kairi Sane, is challenging. Feeling out process to start with the grappling setting up Asuka’s rollup for two. They roll around a bit until Becky clotheslines her to the floor. The followup earns Becky a shot to the arm but the hip attack misses, allowing the Disarm-Her (in the ropes) to go on. Asuka is right back with a neckbreaker over the ropes to take over and it’s time to kick Lynch in the face a few times. A Shining Wizard connects for two but Lynch comes back with some kicks to the face.

They fight to the apron with neither being able to hit a suplex so Becky release suplexes her to the floor. Asuka is fine enough to hit a knee to the face back inside and a fisherman’s suplex drop (as in she drops Becky down onto the mat) gets two. Asuka takes her to the middle rope, where Becky is back with a super Rock Bottom for two more. Becky can’t follow up so Asuka goes with the cross armbreaker into the Asuka Lock (how she beat Becky last year) but Becky makes the rope.

The Kawada Kicks knock Becky silly so we pause for a bit for the referee to check on Lynch. She grabs the referee’s leg to beg him not to stop it so Asuka hits another big kick to the head. Another Asuka Lock attempt is countered into a failed Disarm-Her attempt so they trade kicks for a double knockdown. They slug it out with the referee almost getting bumped, so Asuka loads up the green mist. Lynch is smarter than that though and kicks it out of her mouth, setting up the Disarm-Her to retain at 16:35.

Rating: B. These two beat the heck out of each other with Asuka winning most of the match until she tried to cheat and Becky was ready for her. This felt like Becky surviving until the end and then beating Asuka at her own game because she knew she had to get her win back. I really liked this and they told a good enough story that I got into it without remembering a lot of the details. That’s hard to do but they pulled it off here.

Post match, Becky gives Asuka a knowing look.

Wrestlemania XXXVI is coming to Tampa. My how things change, but the awesomeness of that pirate theme isn’t one of them.

The Street Profits go over the men’s Royal Rumble favorites as only they can.

Men’s Royal Rumble

Non-title and Booker T. is a guest commentator but hang on as Bobby Lashley and Rusev are ruled out due to a huge brawl earlier in the day. 90 second intervals again and WWE Champion Brock Lesnar is in at #1 (he wanted a challenge) and Elias is in at #2. Hold on though as Elias needs to call Lesnar a gorilla and Paul Heyman a zookeeper. Elias’ song is about how he is a sacrificial lamb so Lesnar charges to start the beating in the aisle.

They get inside with Lesnar unloading with shoulders in the corner. There’s the German suplex and a guitar shot to the back keeps Elias down. That’s enough for the elimination, which is good as face Elias never worked. Erick Rowan is in at #3 and lasts less than ten seconds. Good because the caged animal deal never worked either. After Lesnar walks around for a bit, Robert Roode is in at #4 and wisely takes his time.

Roode gets a boot up in the corner but walks into the F5 and is gone. More walking around, this time while holding the title up, kills some time until John Morrison (who makes Lesnar laugh) is in at #5. He beats Rowan’s time, lasting a full nine seconds. Kofi Kingston is in at #6 to get his chance at retribution for Lesnar beating him for the title in about ten seconds (Yeah remember that?).

Kofi gets in a few shots but is driven into the corner for another German suplex. Rey Mysterio is in at #7 and that gets Lesnar’s attention. The pace picks up (as you may have guessed) but Lesnar clotheslines them both down and gets to pace a bit. The German suplexes keep both guys down on the floor (not out) until Big E. is in at #8. Big E. rallies the troops and it’s the parade of finishers to rock Lesnar….who tosses Rey, uses Big E. as a launchpad to drop Kofi, and then tosses Big E. with ease.

Kofi is out as well and Lesnar is alone in the ring as Cesaro is in at #9. Less than twenty seconds later and Lesnar is all alone again for Lesnar’s eighth elimination. Shelton Benjamin is in at #10 and Lesnar likes this one for a change. Shelton hugs Heyman at ringside and tells him to go reunite with Lesnar (Booker: “Don’t fall for that!”). They hug and Lesnar German suplexes him, setting up another elimination.

Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura (with hype man Sami Zayn) is in at #11 and a spinning kick to the head rocks Lesnar. Then he throws Nakamura out, but he did get kicked down. MVP (in Black Panther gear) makes a surprise return at #12 (Lesnar likes his music) and is out in about 25 seconds. Keith Lee is in at #13 and that gets Brock’s attention (Lesnar: “Big boy!”) in a hurry. They stare each other down and Lee drops him with a shoulder (giving us a shocked Lesnar face), followed by a double knockdown. Braun Strowman is in at #14 and dropkicks Lee to the floor (not out).

Brock suplexes both of them twice in a row and they’re all down for a bit. Strowman and Lee start fighting….so Lesnar dumps them both to tie the eliminations record at 13. Ricochet (who Lesnar beat up on Raw) is in at #15 and gets knocked into the corner. There’s another German suplex to send Ricochet flying as Cole says he doesn’t want to hear anyone talking about how Lesnar doesn’t do anything. Drew McIntyre is in at #16 and there’s the next big staredown.

Lesnar takes the gloves off but Ricochet returns the low blow from Raw and McIntyre Claymores Lesnar out for a HUGE pop. Heyman isn’t sure what to do as the match starts the second half. McIntyre tosses Ricochet and stares down at Lesnar because that’s Wrestlemania. Miz is in at #17 and gets Future Shocked and Claymored for another elimination. McIntyre keeps staring down at Lesnar, who walks off through timekeeper’s area for some reason.

AJ Styles is in at #18 and starts kicking away at McIntyre’s leg. The Calf Crusher goes on for a bit but McIntyre drives AJ’s head into the mat for the break. Dolph Ziggler is in at #19 but would rather hit AJ than double team McIntyre. Karl Anderson is in at #20, giving us McIntyre, Styles, Ziggler and Anderson to tie the most people in the match at once. Anderson and Styles team up but Ziggler gets to make one of his signature Rumble saves (he does those A LOT).

In your shock of the night/show/year, EDGE is in at #21 and looks near tears to be in his first match in almost nine years. Spears abound and absolutely the fans are going nuts as Edge soaks in some cheers. AJ scores with a Pele kick to Edge but gets speared down as well. A banged up King Corbin is in at #22 as AJ seems to be hurt in the corner. Edge quickly eliminates AJ, who grabs his arm/shoulder on the floor.

NXT’s Matt Riddle is in at #23 and kicks away, only to get tossed by Corbin in about forty seconds. Luke Gallows is in at #24 and kicks away as well until McIntyre dumps Corbin (with Cole calling him Humpty Dumpty.). Randy Orton is in at #25 and it’s an RKO each for the Good Brothers. We get a quick Rated RKO reunion as Edge and Orton get rid of Gallows and Anderson and here’s Roman Reigns in at #26 (Cole actually gets in an interesting stat by saying it’s the latest entry to never have a winner).

Reigns goes after McIntyre and it’s Kevin Owens in at lucky #27 (even though the luck is more of cliché these days). Reigns can’t hit the Pop Up Powerbomb and Owens hits him with a Stunner. There’s another Stunner to Orton and it’s Aleister Black (I had forgotten his music) in at #28. Black Mass abounds but no one is tossed as Samoa Joe is in at #29. Owens and Joe, friends at the moment, slug it out until Seth Rollins is in at #30.

That gives us an outstanding final field of McIntyre, Edge, Orton, Reigns, Owens, Black, Joe and Rollins (Ziggler seems to have been eliminated off camera). This time though Rollins has Buddy Murphy and the AOP with him so Owens and Joe go outside to brawl with the team (sweet goodness with all the camera cuts). AOP starts wrecking people but doesn’t eliminate anyone. Murphy gets in a cheap shot on Black to save Rollins though and Black is gone.

Owens throws Rollins over the top but AOP catches him, allowing Rollins to toss Owens as well. Rollins gets caught in the Koquina Clutch but manages to toss Joe as well. Joe, Black and Owens brawl with AOP and Murphy to the back and we’re down to Rollins, McIntyre, Edge, Reigns and Orton (that’s a fine final five). Rollins tries to get on Reigns’ side but takes one finisher after another, setting up the easy elimination for McIntyre.

Edge and Orton agree to team up and the brawl is on again as the fans find this awesome. There’s an RKO to McIntyre and a spear takes him down again. A double RKO plants McIntyre again but Edge catches Orton waiting to turn on him. That lets Edge toss Orton (makes sense) and we’re down to three. The fans tell Edge that he still has it as he slugs it out with Reigns, who nails a Superman Punch. Reigns misses the spear so Edge hits his own and they go to the apron. Reigns gets the better of it and tosses Edge but heads back inside for the Claymore to give McIntyre the big win at 1:00:08.

Rating: B. And that’s how you make a new star, as McIntyre not only slayed the Beast but then won what was pretty much an all star second half to win the whole thing. You don’t see people get this kind of a rub in the Rumble often enough but man alive this worked very well. At least the second half though, which brings us to the 294lb gorilla in the Rumble.

Watching this Rumble back and knowing what is coming made it a bit easier, but the first half is still total overkill as Lesnar could have made the same point with, I don’t know, seven or eight people? I’d like to think that it’s not just to equal Strowman’s elimination record from the Greatest Royal Rumble, but WWE seems to consider that the same as this kind so maybe they are ridiculous enough to consider that a reason. Lesnar was a monster and some of the stuff he did was cool, but we got the point already.

Overall it’s a good enough Rumble and the positives outweigh the negatives, but the Lesnar stuff went on too long. I do like seeing Lesnar be treated like a monster instead of rushing through everything in three minutes, but how many villagers does the monster need to devour to prove his point? The McIntyre stuff made up for a lot of it, though I don’t need to see the two half Rumble structure again.

Overall Rating: B+. Overall, this is a heck of a show, but I can get why watching it with more knowledge of what it would mean would change things a lot. There are some weak parts to the show, but at the same time the big matches all delivered and that’s what you need in a show like this. They also kept it a little shorter than the huge shows and with nothing bad, I’m not sure what else you could want. Well less Lesnar dominance maybe but that might be nitpicking.

Ratings Comparison

Shorty G. vs. Sheamus

Original: C

Redo: C-

Andrade vs. Humberto Carrillo

Original: C

Redo: C+

King Corbin vs. Roman Reigns

Original: D+

Redo: C

Women’s Royal Rumble

Original: B

Redo: C+

Bayley vs. Lacey Evans

Original: C-

Redo: C

Daniel Bryan vs. The Fiend

Original: B

Redo: B

Asuka vs. Becky Lynch

Original: B

Redo: B

Men’s Royal Rumble

Original: B+

Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: B

Redo: B+

Wait, I really liked the men’s Rumble better the first time? Reigns vs. Corbin being higher this time doesn’t surprise me though as that feud just destroyed me.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

 

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Royal Rumble 2019
Date: January 27, 2019
Location: Chase Field, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 48,193
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

It’s time to go back to the stadium with another major show. The Royal Rumble has changed a good bit in recent years as it is now another extended show with a pair of Royal Rumble matches instead of just one. No one is exactly jumping off the page as a favorite in either of them, though Becky Lynch is currently the most popular person in the company. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Bobby Roode/Chad Gable vs. Scott Dawson/Rezar

Non-title but if Dawson and Rezar (regular partners injured) win, the regular teams get a title shot each. And yes, this match was completely necessary as a last minute addition. The match is so awesome that a cameraman falls down during Roode and Gable’s entrance for the always fun camera shot. Drake Maverick is with Dawson and Rezar. Dawson’s headlock on Roode doesn’t get very far as Roode takes him into the corner for a monkey flip from Gable. Wilder wouldn’t have let that happen.

An exchange of near falls doesn’t go very far so Gable hits a springboard spinning crossbody for two. Dawson takes him down though and catapults Gable into a chokeslam to put the champs in trouble. Rezar chokes on the rope and Dawson grabs a northern lights suplex for two. The chinlock doesn’t last long as it’s back to Rezar to keep knocking Gable around.

Dawson sends him into the ropes but they bang heads for a double knockdown. Rezar comes back in and tries another chokeslam but Gable reverses into an armbar over the ropes. That’s enough for the hot tag off to Roode, who hits a spinebuster on Dawson. Back up and Dawson dropkicks Rezar by mistake, leaving Roode to take a neckbreaker/moonsault combination for the pin at 6:55.

Rating: D+. This would be a textbook definition of a match that did not need to be added to the show and did nothing more than fill in time. As usual, that’s not a good idea and yet it keeps happening around here almost every show. I’m not sure how much of a point there was to having the makeshift tag team thrown out there to lose when Akam wasn’t going to be back for months. Nothing good here and a match that didn’t need to happen.

Kickoff Show: United States Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

Nakamura is challenging and Lana is here with Rusev. Nakamura gets driven into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs and a suplex brings him right back out. They head outside but Nakamura gets in a running kick to the face off the steps, setting up the running knee to the jaw. Back in and Bad Vibrations into the running knee to the ribs gets two and we hit the front facelock. Rusev fights up and punches away, setting up the spinwheel kick for two.

A suicide dive is blocked with a kick to the head so Rusev knocks him over again. Nakamura kicks him in the head again so Rusev scores with the Machka Kick and a swinging release Rock Bottom. Since Rusev stops for half a second though, Rusev pulls him into a triangle choke, which is countered with a suplex. That works so well that Rusev loads up a superplex, only to get reversed into a Landslide for two. Nakamura goes for the turnbuckle pad but Lana gets on the apron (and grabs her ankle) to point it out. That just results in Rusev knocking her down by mistake, setting up Kinshasa for the pin and the title at 10;15.

Rating: C-. Just a little better than the opener but not all that much. Nakamura taking the title from Rusev just over a month into the title reign doesn’t exactly mean much, but that’s the case with so many of the midcard title changes around here. The match was a watchable enough power exchange but it still feels like a title change for the sake of a title change.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Hideo Itami vs. Kalisto vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Buddy Murphy

Murphy is defending, one fall to a finish, and Ariya Daivari is here with Itami. They circle each other for a bit until Itami rolls to the floor. That leaves the other three to trade rollups for two each until Murphy hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to drop Tozawa. Kalisto’s very springboardy hurricanrana is broken up as everything breaks down again. Kalisto tries a Cannonball off the apron but gets caught in Murphy’s suplex instead.

Itami gets back in and poses, meaning it’s time for the showdown with Murphy. The champ gets struck down in the corner and Itami demands respect as we can see his future going down the drain in a hurry. Murphy goes outside and tries to powerbomb Kalisto into the barricade, only to have Tozawa hit a suicide dive into Kalisto, which sends Murphy into the barricade for a crash. Itami throws Kalisto and Tozawa back inside so he can get two on each of them.

A Murphy distraction lets Kalisto kick Itami in the head and it’s a monkey flip to send Tozawa onto Murphy on the floor. Murphy comes back in and gets missile dropkicked by Tozawa, only to have Itami break up the top rope backsplash. Itami gets knocked to the outside though and Tozawa hits a suicide headbutt. Kalisto and Murphy follow with dives of their own with the champ getting the best of it.

Back in and Kalisto hits a hurricanrana driver for two on Murphy, who is right back up with a Liger Bomb for his own near fall. Tozawa scores with a reverse hurricanrana on Murphy but it’s Itami breaking that up. The Salida Del Sol gets two on Itami and everyone is down. A series of kicks puts everyone down again for a bit so Murphy knees Kalisto and Tozawa. Murphy slips out of whatever Itami’s spinning knee deal was (I STILL don’t get that one) and knees him down as well, setting up Murphy’s Law to retain at 12:06.

Rating: B-. Now that’s more like it with an action packed twelve minute match that actually felt like it mattered for a change. Or at least it felt like a match that had been set up more than thirty seconds before they came to the ring. Murphy continues to look like a star and it’s easy to see why he’s a much bigger deal just a year later.

The opening video looks at how important the Rumble is, with some great historical footage included. It has more history than any show not named Wrestlemania so it’s a smart move to go into that well. This switches into your regular opening video, which does its usual good job at looking at the rest of the card.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Asuka

Asuka is defending after taking the title from Becky in a TLC match at TLC, with Charlotte being included as well. Becky is on fire at this point and it’s a matter of time before she gets the big hero moment. They go with the aggressive lockup to start and that goes absolutely nowhere. Becky’s running shoulder earns her a running dropkick and a lot of shouting from the champ. Neither of them can get the arm so Asuka kicks her in the leg for two instead.

Becky is right back up with shots to the face and a kick to the ribs, followed by a running clothesline to sent Asuka to the floor. They switches places and you just don’t do that to Asuka, who scores with the running hip attack. Asuka heads outside as well and gets sent into the apron, only to send Becky into the post. The Bexploder sends Asuka into the barricade though and Becky is starting to seethe.

That means the aggressive stomping in the corner and the next of what is likely to be a bunch of armbars. That’s broken up so Becky avoids another hip attack and hammers away in the ropes. Asuka isn’t about to get beaten up though and pulls Becky into the Asuka Lock while still in the ropes. With that broken up, Becky fights out of the corner and grabs a Disarm-Her in the corner. That doesn’t last long either so Asuka knees her out of the air. Asuka strikes away but misses a missile dropkick so Becky can hit a Rock Bottom for two.

Back up again and they fight to the apron with Asuka hitting a fisherman’s neckbreaker to the floor and they’re both down. Asuka is in first and Becky beats the count, earning herself a basement dropkick to the head. They slug it out until Asuka kicks her head off for two. Asuka goes up so Becky stops her with a kick of her own and a super Bexploder gets a rather near fall as the crowd is staying right with them.

The middle rope legdrop misses though and Asuka catches her in a Disarm-Her. To keep up the same line of thinking, Becky gets her own Asuka Lock before switching to the Disarm-Her. Becky is too weak to get it on in full so Asuka rolls out and grabs the Asuka Lock and flips forward Cattle Mutilation style for the tag at 17:09.

Rating: B+. These two beat the heck out of each other and that finisher was the mega death version of the Asuka Lock. It’s really weird to see Becky lose though and it was even more surprising watching this live as Becky was the hottest thing around. Having her tap is a bit much, but sweet goodness would they get mileage out of that loss. The counters and different styles were awesome here though and it’s a near instant classic.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Shane McMahon/The Miz vs. The Bar

The Bar is defending and Miz’s dad is in the front row. Miz and Shane are together because of the Best In The World tournament but Shane has agreed to be nice to him so they can succeed together. In other words, expect the Shane Show to continue. Shane spears Sheamus down at the bell and it’s time for an early breather. Miz comes in to roll Cesaro up for two but it’s way too early for the Skull Crushing Finale.

Sheamus grabs Miz from behind to hold him in the corner though and Cesaro scores with the running uppercut. A right hand knocks Shane to the floor so Miz kicks away to avenge his fallen partner. They all head outside with Miz having to be saved from a double powerbomb through the announcers’ table. It’s too early for the big elbow through the table so Shane hits a top rope clothesline on Sheamus instead.

Shane gets sent hard into the barricade and that should let him stay down and use up all the oxygen in the first three rows. Back in and Sheamus drops a knee on Miz before cranking on the arm. The ten forearms to the chest and a double suplex back in get two as Shane is back up onto the apron. Cesaro drops a middle rope ax handle for two and Sheamus comes back in to talk more trash.

Miz sends Sheamus to the floor though and a backdrop puts Cesaro down as well. That’s finally enough for the hot tag to Shane and it’s bad punches a go-go. A DDT gets two on Sheamus and Shane loads up Coast To Coast to both of them at once. Cesaro pulls him out of the air and into the Swing though and it’s a rather long one this time.

Since it was just a really long Swing, Shane is right back with a triangle choke. Sheamus makes a save and it’s the spike White Noise for two, with no one making the save. Well you knew he was going to kick out of at least one finisher. Miz is back in to save Shane from the Brogue Kick, which hits Cesaro by mistake. The shooting star press finishes Cesaro for the titles at 13:23.

Rating: C. It’s every complaint about a Shane match that you could find: he’s pushed too hard, he looks ready to explode from hyperventilating after about eighteen seconds and he kicks out of a big finisher. Oh and now he’s a champion, naturally getting the pin in the process. It had already gotten bad and it was only going to get worse from here.

Shane and Miz celebrate with Papa Mizanin as the announcers get to praise Shane a bit.

Cole announces the attendance and Meltzer has a correction out immediately.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Sasha Banks. Rousey wants to see Banks get fired up and is ready to show us the difference between a Boss and a champion. Sasha promised to prove how good she was and made Natalya tap in a tag match on Monday. Graves: “It’s one thing to make Natalya submit.” Nice little unintentional insult there.

Sasha isn’t concerned about keeping her emotions in check. Tonight, she’s proving that she’s the best in the world.

Raw Women’s Title: Sasha Banks vs. Ronda Rousey

Rousey is defending and goes straight for the armbar but Banks armdrags her right back down. A springboard armdrag doesn’t work that well and Rousey mocks Banks’ pose. Rousey tries her own Three Amigos but Banks blocks the third, only to have to go to the ropes to avoid an armbar. A kick to the ribs puts Banks on the floor but Rousey punches the post by mistake.

That lets Banks hit a suicide dive to put Rousey down for a change. The chinlock doesn’t last long so Banks hits the running knees in the corner instead. Back up and Rousey hits a running elbow to the face for two so Banks hits a running knee of her own for the same. Rousey shrugs it off and loads up Piper’s Pit but gets reversed into a nasty armbar, complete with some finger bending.

Banks switches over into the Bank Statement but it’s broken up in a hurry. Now Piper’s Pit can connect and Rousey armbars her over the ropes. Rousey goes up but gets superplexed right back down so Banks can go back to the armbar. You don’t do that to Rousey, who rolls Banks over with some judo throws. They go outside with Rousey grabbing the armbar in full to make Banks tap.

Back in and Rousey hammers away in the corner but Banks gets in a shot of her own for the double knockdown. The armbar is broken up again and another Piper’s Pit is countered into a crossbody. The Bank Statement goes on until Banks switches to a Fujiwara armbar. Rousey rolls out and gutwrench suplexes the heck out of her, setting up another Piper’s Pit for the pin at 13:49.

Rating: B. This took time to get going but they were rolling at the end. Rousey was such a freak of nature as she probably hadn’t had 25 matches by this point (certainly not 10 big ones) and was going back and forth with one of the best around on the big stage. The battle of the submissions attempts worked well here and I got way into this all over again.

Post match they do a left handed handshake since Banks’ arm is wrecked. Banks does hold up the Horsewomen sign though because she isn’t the nicest loser in the world.

We recap the Kickoff Show. We’re so lucky.

John Cena has been injured and won’t be participating in the Royal Rumble. He was totally and really here and everything though. Honest. Braun Strowman is replacing him.

Beth Phoenix joins commentary.

Women’s Royal Rumble

90 second intervals and Lacey Evans (making her main roster in-ring debut, save for a random Main Event match) is in at #1, meaning she needs to introduce herself. Natalya is in at #2 and Lacey runs the ropes to start. Neither can hit a dropkick and Lacey can’t quite do a nip up. A clothesline can’t get rid of Natalya and she reverses a powerbomb with a hurricanrana. Natalya hits the discus lariat as Mandy Rose is in at #3, sending Graves over the edge all over again.

Another discus lariat drops Mandy and it’s the double Sharpshooter, which Graves says is like the even more stuffed Oreos. Liv Morgan is in at #4 and is out in less than ten seconds. Lacey and Mandy start double teaming Natalya but Lacey sends Mandy into the corner for the double Bronco Buster. Mickie James is in at #5, giving us the first non-blonde. House is cleaned in a hurry until Mickie has to save herself from being tossed by Mandy. Ember Moon is in at #6 and gets to clean house as well. No one can eliminate anyone else and it’s Billie Kay in at #7.

She’s fine with staying on the floor though, saying she’s going to wait for Peyton Royce to go in. More non-eliminations continue and it’s Nikki Cross in at #8 (Graves: “Batten down the hatches.” I really need to find out what hatches are and what it means to batten something.). She runs over Billie at ringside and then dives onto everyone else inside. Mandy and Nikki have a weird showdown with Nikki getting the better of it. Billie is inside now and get beaten up as well because she isn’t great on her own. Peyton Royce is in at #9 and it’s IIconics time. The team beats down Nikki and it’s time to fight on the ropes some more.

Tamina is in at #10, giving us Lacey, Natalya, Mandy, Mickie, Ember, Billie, Nikki Peyton and Tamina, meaning the ring is too full. Tamina gets to wreck people until Nikki gets to have another not that interesting staredown. A dropkick and tackle put Tamina through the ropes but she’s right back in with a kick to Nikki’s face. Mickie low bridges Tamina to the apron but she comes back in with the Superfly Splash to Nikki. A superkick gets rid of Mickie and it’s Xia Li in at #11.

Li kicks away at a lot of people but gets knocked down by Tamina. Sarah Logan, in Braveheart paint, is in at #12 as the ring is full and the crowd is dead. Ember has to hang on by her feet but pulls herself back in (finally a reaction) and the IIconics get rid of Cross. Charlotte is in at #13 and PLEASE get rid of some people. She gets jumped on the way in but everyone is fought off in a hurry. Lacey eliminates both IIconics at once and Charlotte kicks Li out to finally clear the ring a bit. Charlotte and Tamina have a staredown (NO ONE CARES ABOUT TAMINA!!!) and Charlotte gets rocked by a superkick.

Kairi Sane is in at #14 and she runs to the ring while looking through a telescope because of course she does. Charlotte gets rid of Tamina as Sane dives in. Charlotte chops Sane down but she’s right back up with the Insane Elbow to Logan. That’s enough to get rid of Sarah and it’s Maria Kanellis in at #15. She breaks up a staredown between Charlotte and Lacey, including a double bulldog. Charlotte is back up with a spear to Maria, who apparently doesn’t belong in this ring.

Naomi is in at #16 and that wakes the crowd up a bit. Mandy sends Naomi to the apron but gets backdropped out, only to pull Naomi to the floor. The feet don’t touch so Naomi backflips onto the barricade, tightrope walks across, and does a crazy athletic jump from the barricade to the steps. And then Mandy pulls her off the steps for the elimination anyway in a great heel move. Charlotte kicks Lacey out and it’s Candice LeRae in at #17. Candice Black Widows Ember but it’s broken up in a hurry.

Natalya powerbombs Charlotte out of the corner and it’s Alicia Fox in at #18 (I had almost forgotten about her.). Maria wants to be friends with Alicia so they beat up Sane. Alicia puts her captain’s hat on Maria before stopping to dance. Maria throws it on the ground and stomps on it….sending Alicia into a fit. She’s back up to eliminate Maria though as Kacy Catanzaro is in at #19 and starts with the hurricanranas. A slingshot version puts Alicia on the apron but she skins the cat to come back in.

Zelina Vega is in at #20, giving us Natalya, Moon, Charlotte, Sane, Candice, Alicia, Catanzaro and Vega. Candice and Vega slug it out as fallout from Andrade vs. Johnny Gargano but they slow down, meaning it’s yet another lull. Ruby Riott is in at #21 and has Logan and Morgan with her so all three pull Charlotte to the floor for some triple teaming. Fox gets the same treatment and Vega rolls to the floor to hide underneath the ring.

Riott throws Fox back inside and then eliminates her, followed by a powerbomb into the barricade for LeRae and another elimination. Dana Brooke is in at #22 and hits a weird looking sitout powerbomb on Catanzaro. Now the Squad pulls Brooke to the floor (I really can’t stand this whole people being on the floor but not eliminated deal as it makes things more confusing than they need to be) and Riott eliminates Sane. Io Shirai is in at #23 and dropkicks the Squad down, setting up the big moonsault to the floor (she was never in so it’s not an elimination).

Shirai and Riott go over the top to the apron for a slugout but they both get back in. Rhea Ripley is in at #24 but the star power hasn’t started for her just yet. She wrecks things a bit until Moon takes her down with a wheelbarrow faceplant. Brooke kicks Catanzaro to the floor but she holds her legs up, hand walks to the post, flips up to it and climbs back in to blow away Naomi’s save. Ripley blocks Catanzaro’s spinning DDT though and tosses her out for real.

Sonya Deville is in at #25 and spears Moon down but Brooke hits her with a shoulder. Brooke enziguris Ripley but gets sent to the apron and dropkicked out. Vega leans from under the ring to laugh at Brooke….and here’s freaking Hornswoggle to chase Vega back inside. That doesn’t last long as Ripley throws her out, with Hornswoggle chasing Vega to the back. Alexa Bliss is in at #26 to a MAJOR pop in her first match since September. The moonsault knees to the ribs hit Moon but Sonya pounds Bliss down in the corner. Bliss is right back by sending her to the apron though and a right hand gets rid of Sonya.

Bayley is in at lucky #27 and gets her own house cleaning segment, including a clothesline to get rid of Riott. That’s not all though as she knocks Ripley out as well as Lana is in at #28. Well not in really as she can barely walk due to her ankle injury from earlier. The trainer comes out to check on her in the aisle as Shirai saves herself from an elimination. Lana is still being checked on as Nia Jax is in at #29, only to jump Lana in the aisle for a bonus.

Fit Finlay comes out to tell her to go to the ring and it’s time for the giant to wreck some people. Shirai makes the mistake of trying a moonsault and gets knocked out in a hurry. Natalya somehow gets Jax up for a fireman’s carry but can’t do anything else with it and gets eliminated after 56 minutes. Carmella is in at #30 (an honor she won in Mixed Match Challenge), giving us a final group of Moon, Charlotte, Bliss, Bayley, Lana, Jax and Carmella, though Lana hasn’t gotten anywhere near the ring.

Carmella gets in a dropkick on Moon but Jax runs her over. Hold on though as Lana is still down so here’s Becky Lynch to say she wants the spot instead. Finlay says do it and the fans are WAY into this again. Becky gets the long awaited showdown with Jax but Charlotte breaks it up and sends Becky to the apron. That doesn’t work either and it’s Becky coming back in with a missile dropkick to Jax. Bliss goes after Moon and pulls her to the apron by the hair (freaking ow man) and then chokeshoves her out after a rather ridiculous 53 minutes.

Carmella hits a Bronco Buster on Bliss and there’s a Buckle Bomb from Bayley. Carmella and Bayley team up to throw Bliss out so Jax clotheslines them both. Charlotte saves Becky from Jax’s facebreaker so Carmella gives Becky a Downward Spiral instead. For some reason Charlotte goes up top so Carmella tries a running headscissors, only to get sent to the apron.

That lasts all of two seconds but Charlotte puts her out there again and a big boot gets us down to four (Bayley, Jax, Charlotte and Becky). Bayley dropkicks Charlotte and Jax against the ropes but Jax is right back with a big boot to eliminate Bayley, leaving us with three. The three way showdown is on with Jax splashing both of them in the corner. That sends Becky to the floor (not out) and it’s a Charlotte vs. Jax showdown that is a little more interesting than it sounds.

Something like a slow motion AA has Jax in trouble but Charlotte can’t follow up. Charlotte gets her onto the apron and Becky pulls her out, leaving us with Charlotte vs. Becky in the rivalry that won’t end. Hold on though as Jax shoves Becky off the steps and we have a knee injury. Referees check on her but Becky pulls herself back in for the fight. Well kind of at least as Becky falls straight back down as soon as she’s inside.

Becky says it’s her time and Charlotte has already taken enough from her. Charlotte, obviously, goes right after the knee but Becky kicks her in the face. She sends Charlotte to the apron but another kick to the leg cuts off the rally. Charlotte misses a charge though and a forearm sends Becky to Wrestlemania at 1:11:23.

Rating: D+. The Becky parts made it better but WOW this was badly laid out. There were far too many instances of people just standing around and doing nothing with several people staying in there too long. Ember for 52 minutes? Natalya for 56? Mandy Rose for nearly 26? You don’t need everyone in there for that long and it’s ok to come up with something other than “everyone stays on the ropes while two people do something in the middle” over and over. They got the right winner but it was a heck of a chore to get there.

Becky can barely stand but is very pleased with the results. The celebration goes on for a LONG time.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan for the Smackdown World Title. Bryan turned heel to steal the title and became the crazy environmentalist so, after losing to Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series, it’s time for a (second) rematch. AJ is out to show that he isn’t complacent, which included attacking Vince McMahon in a story that went nowhere.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan

AJ is challenging. We get the Big Match Intros and AJ hammers him down in the corner so the champ bails for a bit. Back in and they fight on the mat for a bit with AJ’s wristlock not getting him very far. A headlock works a bit better as the first gear work continues. Bryan bails to the floor again but comes back in….to get punched in the face. An uppercut puts Styles in the corner and he gets dropped chest first onto the post to give Bryan a target.

Bryan starts in on the shoulder and cranks on a hammerlock on the mat with Styles having to use his foot to reach a rope. A cross armbreaker is broken up as well so Bryan punches him in the face to even the score. AJ scores with a dropkick and the pinfall reversal sequence gets some near falls each. Bryan tosses him hard into the corner and that means the running dropkick.

A dragon suplex has AJ (with his bloody nose) rocked again and Bryan kicks him off the top and out to the floor. Bryan goes out after him but it’s the moonsault off the barricade into the perfect reverse DDT (that’s one of the best he’s ever hit). Back in and the springboard 450 hits Bryan’s knees, meaning the LeBell Lock goes on. Not to be outdone, AJ escapes and reverses into the Calf Crusher to stay on the knee.

That’s broken up as well and they’re both down for a bit. Bryan gets up first and kicks away at the arm, setting up the big kick to the head for two. AJ catches him on top and they slug it out up there, with Styles backflipping out of a belly to back superplex. The Calf Crusher goes on again before AJ switches to a cradle for two instead. Neither can get a backslide so AJ grabs a brainbuster for two more.

The Phenomenal Forearm is broken up with a kick to the arm but AJ kicks him away. The bad arm means he can’t use the regular springboard so he tries another version, only to get kicked out of the air again. They’re both down again…so here’s Erick Rowan of all people. Bryan knocks the referee down by mistake though, allowing Rowan to come in with a claw slam to Styles so Bryan can retain at 24:33.

Rating: B+. I’m not wild on the ending but you can’t have AJ lose a clean fall here. They were working a heck of a match here with both of them going with their own style and having the other broken down. I don’t particularly care for Rowan interfering, but he and Bryan would wind up being a nice enough team so well done, even if it wasn’t the best feeling at the time.

Post match Rowan holds AJ up for the running knee from Bryan so things can continue.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Brock Lesnar for the Raw World Title in a match hyped up as David vs. Goliath. Balor is small but can do extraordinary stuff so he wants to fight Lesnar. This isn’t the Demon for reasons of Balor wanting to do it himself, even though the Demon IS Balor, meaning the whole thing doesn’t make a lot of sense. Or they just don’t want Lesnar losing because that wouldn’t be very Lesnarish.

Raw World Title: Finn Balor vs. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar is defending and we get the Big Match Intros. Balor dropkicks him at the bell to start and another running dropkick sends him into the corner. The first belly to belly cuts him off in a hurry though and we settle down for the first time. Another belly to belly on the floor rocks Balor again and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table.

Balor sends him ribs first into the corner of said table though and he does it again for painful measure. Brock can barely stand up as he throws Balor back inside for the shoulders in the corner. Another belly to belly has Balor flying but Lesnar is wincing a bit. Lesnar gets in yet another suplex but this time Balor is up with a Sling Blade. That’s it for the offense though as Lesnar BLASTS him with a clothesline.

Lesnar can’t hit a German suplex though as the stomach gives out. The F5 is countered into a DDT and Balor gets smart by stomping at the ribs. The big flip dive to the floor puts Lesnar down again and Balor hits a second for good measure. A third flip dive takes Lesnar down again but Renee says we’re having a new champion to end Balor’s hopes. Back in and Balor kicks him in the face, setting up the Coup de Grace for two, with Lesnar spinning into the Kimura on the kickout, making Balor tap at 8:36.

Rating: C+. Well that was short. They had some moments in there but at the same time, Lesnar wasn’t exactly doing much for the first half of the match. It got better once he was selling but there are only so many things you can do in less than nine minutes. The stuff with Lesnar’s stomach being messed up was enough to go somewhere, but this was only so good.

Post match Lesnar beats Balor up a few more times. This is something else that went nowhere.

Jerry Lawler and JBL join commentary.

Men’s Royal Rumble

90 second intervals again and Elias is in at #1, meaning it’s time for a song. Well make that insulting Phoenix until he’s interrupted by Jeff Jarrett of all people at #2. Jeff gets to strut and say ain’t I great as Elias is rather pleased by being interrupted by someone who brings something to the table. For now though, they need to sing together. And yes, they really are doing this three hours and forty minutes into a show with an hour long match to go. Jeff goes to spell his name so Elias hits him in the face to get things going.

Elias hammers away on the ropes and hits a clothesline so he can get in another catchphrase. A guitar shot to the back is enough to get rid of Jeff. Shinsuke Nakamura, last year’s winner, is in at #3 and he wastes no time in kicking Elias down. For some reason Elias goes up top for Old School, though it’s just an armdrag instead of a shot to the back. Kurt Angle is in at #4 to a big reaction and he starts in with the suplexes. Elias gets him in the corner though and it’s Big E. in at #5, with his gear including Kofi’s best Rumble moments. That’s rather cool….I think.

The Warrior Splash hits Nakamura but an Angle Slam takes Big E. down. Nakamura is back up with the running knee to Angle’s ribs and another running knee gets rid of Kurt. Honestly, it’s better to have him out that fast before he hurts himself again. Johnny Gargano is in at #6 and gets to clean house on Nakamura and Big E. The slingshot spear cuts Elias down and it’s Jinder Mahal in at #7. After he knocks everyone down, Gargano knocks Mahal out in about thirty seconds. The Singh Brothers get beaten up for a bonus and now it’s back to something that actually matters.

Samoa Joe is in at #8, just as Nakamura is surrounded in the corner. Elias gets kicked down and Joe just walks away from Gargano’s middle rope dive (that will always be cool). Joe dumps Big E. and it’s Curt Hawkins in at #9, still in the middle of his horrible losing streak. Hawkins gets in a few shots but bails to the floor in what is probably a smart move. The fans get behind Hawkins, even as Joe grabs him in the Koquina Clutch. For some reason Elias breaks that up and Hawkins bails to the floor again, this time hiding underneath the ring.

Seth Rollins is in at #10, giving us Elias, Nakamura, Gargano, Samoa Joe, Hawkins and Rollins. The springboard clotheslines hits Elias and there’s the Falcon Arrow to Gargano. Elias gets sent to the apron and then into the post for the elimination. It’s Titus O’Neil in at #11 and he crosses himself before charging to the ring, only to stop himself before getting to the apron in a funny moment. Titus sees Hawkins hiding underneath the ring and chases him inside, only to be eliminated almost immediately. Joe throws Hawkins out a second later to end the harmless comedy segment.

With the ring a little more cleared out, Kofi Kingston is in at #12 and things settle down a bit. As everyone fights by the ropes, Mustafa Ali is in at #13. Joe is waiting on him so Ali scores with a dropkick, only to get grabbed by Nakamura. That’s fine with Ali, who slips over the back and tells Nakamura to COME ON. Nakamura does just that and gets tossed out by Ali in quite the upset. Ali isn’t done either as he hits a tornado DDT on Gargano, only to get planted by Joe. Dean Ambrose, still in his pretty disastrous heel run, is in at #14 and goes right at it with Rollins, as expected.

With that broken up, Dean sends Kofi over the top but Kofi keeps one foot off the ground and rolls over to the steps to save himself. That’s not as good as his others, but maybe he’s crashing underneath the expectations. Kingston comes back in with a DDT to Dean, who is right back up to get rid of Gargano. No Way Jose, with the Conga Line, is in at #15 and Joe literally eliminates him in two seconds. No worries though as he and the Conga Line dance to the back as that was quite the use of an entrance.

Drew McIntyre is in at #16 and headbutts Jose for dancing too close to him. After cleaning some house, Joe and McIntyre slug it out for the hoss fight. The Claymore drops Joe and there’s one for Rollins as well as Xavier Woods is in at #17. As he is coming in, Kofi is knocked off the apron but sunset flips Woods, allowing him to keep one foot up.

Woods stands up with Kofi on his back (Cole to JBL: “I remember when you and Ron used to do this.”) and walks over to the steps for the real save of the year. Then McIntyre eliminates Woods and Kingston a second later because this show doesn’t like fun to last too long (completely appropriate for McIntyre of course). Pete Dunne is in at #18 and that gets a nice reaction. Dunne goes after Joe and Graves is rather pleased with everything going on at the moment.

Ali hangs on after being thrown to the apron and it’s Andrade in at #19. Andrade goes after Dunne in a match that sounds rather interesting indeed. With no one close to an elimination, Apollo Crews is in at #20, giving us Joe, Rollins, Ali, Ambrose, McIntyre, Dunne, Andrew and Apollo. McIntyre is sent to the apron and it’s Aleister Black (without the riser) in at #21. He goes right after Dunne in another match that sounds awesome (it’s almost like Dunne is great or something) but switches to Ambrose, with Black Mass connecting for the elimination.

Shelton Benjamin is in at #22 and goes at it with Crews for the athletic freak off. Crews saves himself from being eliminated as Shelton gets Koquina Clutched. That’s broken up and Ali dumps Joe in an upset. Baron Corbin is in at #23, fresh from his shift at *insert restaurant joke of the day here*. Deep Six drops Ali but he hangs onto the rope so Corbin knocks out Crews instead. Black and McIntyre slug it out and it’s Jeff Hardy in at #24 to keep the talent field high.

The Twisting Stunner hits Shelton and the Whisper in the Wind hits several people at the same time. Dunne bends Black’s fingers and Corbin tosses Black, followed by McIntyre doing the same to Dunne to clear some space. Rey Mysterio is in at #25 and charges into a chokebreaker from Corbin. With everyone fighting by the ropes, it’s Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley in at #26…and Rollins eliminates him in about fifteen seconds. How many times do they need to do that in one match?

Lashley pulls Rollins, who low bridged him out, to the floor and beats the heck out of him to let off some steam. Rollins is spinebustered through the announcers’ table and it’s Braun Strowman in at lucky #27 for a possible (though unlikely) winner. Strowman knocks Corbin out in a hurry and there goes Benjamin a few seconds later. McIntyre dumps Hardy as Dolph Ziggler, his recent rival, is in at #28. That means a superkick to get rid of McIntyre and it’s Randy Orton in at #29 for the slow walk to the ring.

Strowman is right there for the showdown and the RKO is blocked in a hurry. Andrade loads up a superplex on Ali, so Strowman puts them BOTH on his shoulders with Mysterio diving off the top to take them down in your HOW CAN HE DO THAT spot of the match. R-Truth (also here because of the Mixed Match Challenge) is in at #30….but hang on as Nia Jax of all people jumps him from behind to take his spot, continuing the near trolling levels of a push. That gives us a final group of Rollins, Ali, Andrade, Orton, Strowman, Ziggler, Orton and Jax.

Nia gets to wreck some people and Ali is out in a hurry after a surprising thirty plus minutes. Orton stares Jax down but can’t hit the surprise RKO attempt, earning himself a shoulder down. Jax tells Rey to go for the 619 on Orton but cuts him off, only to get superkicked by Ziggler. The 619 hits Jax and Orton connects with the RKO, setting up a baseball slide from Mysterio to get rid of her.

Orton tosses Mysterio and Andrade dumps Orton, leaving us with Ziggler, Andrade, and Rollins and Strowman on the floor. Strowman comes back in and splashes Andrade and Ziggler in the corners to send them outside again. Hold on though as Strowman needs to go to the floor again to run Rollins over.

Everyone goes after Strowman in a 2004 flashback but he gets rid of Andrade and Ziggler. Rollins uses the momentum to put him on the apron but charges into a chokeslam. Back in and Rollins grabs a guillotine to pull Strowman to the apron and sends him into the post. A kick to the ribs sets up the Stomp on the apron to get rid of Strowman to give Rollins the win at 57:34.

Rating: B. This was much more like it with a nice mix of brawling, comedy, action and an only somewhat guaranteed winner. I know you can’t really hide the fact that someone is a shoe in winner but it’s nice to see them at least giving it a little bit more drama. Rollins winning made sense here as he had been on fire for the last year and needed something like this. Good Rumble, though there have been a lot better.

SIGN POINTING, yes I said SIGN POINTING, ends the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I’m curious to see how this one holds up against the original rating as the length was driving me crazy this time around. There is a lot of good stuff on here but EGADS it’s a two hour Kickoff Show and then four hours and forty minutes of the main show. You really needed to have the weird Tag Team Title deal on the Kickoff Show and then put Miz and Shane on the main show? That, plus Bryan vs. Styles, could have been on a big Smackdown at worst and this show could have been trimmed down by 45 minutes.

The only bad thing on here is the women’s Royal Rumble, but when that one match is nearly an hour and fifteen minutes long, it has quite the negative impact on the rest of the show. The men’s match makes up for it and the card is much better than worse, but they really, really need to stop with these shows getting close to (or over in Wrestlemania’s case) seven hours. It doesn’t matter how good it is. If you’re going three hours over the length of Wrestlemania X7, the time is going to cause a lot of problems. Anyway, good show, which could have been great with a big editing job.

Ratings Comparison

Chad Gable/Bobby Roode vs. Scott Dawson/Rezar

Original: D+

2020 Redo: D+

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

Original: C

2020 Redo: C-

Buddy Murphy vs. Hideo Itami vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Kalisto

Original: C+

2020 Redo: B-

Asuka vs. Becky Lynch

Original: B+

2020 Redo: B+

The Bar vs. Shane McMahon/The Miz

Original: D

2020 Redo: C

Sasha Banks vs. Ronda Rousey

Original: B+

2020 Redo: B

Women’s Royal Rumble

Original: B

2020 Redo: D+

AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: C-

2020 Redo: B+

Brock Lesnar vs. Finn Balor

Original: C+

2020 Redo: C+

Men’s Royal Rumble

Original: D

2020 Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: D+

2020 Redo: B-

WOW. I was actually shocked by the original ratings of those Rumbles and the Styles vs. Bryan match. I’ve mellowed a lot since then as the show really isn’t that bad.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

https://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/01/28/royal-rumble-2019-i-almost-had-a-birthday-watching-this-show/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AAA On FOX
Date: January 24, 2026
Location: Gimnasio Olimpico Juan de la Barrera, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Corey Graves, John Bradshaw Layfield, Rey Mysterio

It’s the second week of the show after last week’s premiere. The big story coming out of last week was El Hijo del Vikingo becoming the new #1 contender to the Mega Title, at least partially due to an assist from Omos. There is a good chance that is going to lead to a major showdown in the near future so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening recap.

Cruiserweight Title: Laredo Kid vs. Mini Vikingo vs. Octagon Jr.

Kid is defending and we get the handshakes to start. Vikingo flips around to start and an assisted dropkick puts Kid on the floor. That doesn’t last long as Vikingo winds up in an electric chair, with Kid hitting a big suicide dive to take Vikingo down in a crash. Back in and Kid strikes it out with Octagon until Octagon grabs a springboard anklescissors. Vikingo is back in and gets crucifix bombed for two more.

Kid takes Vikingo up top for a gorilla press…and just kind of drops him for a nasty crash (you can tell Mysterio didn’t like that) and a near fall. Back up and Vikingo dives onto Kid on the floor, only to get cuttered from the apron by Octagon. A super headscissors gives Octagon two on Vikingo, who grabs a poisonrana to Kid. The Meteora misses in the corner though and Kid’s super Spanish Fly pins Vikingo to retain at 6:54.

Rating: B-. This was a lot of high flying with everyone looking decent, but it felt more like the three of them just doing moves until someone won. That’s not the best way to put together a match but at least it was entertaining. Vikingo was being treated as some big newcomer and while he’s athletic, there wasn’t much to him to stand out. Good enough opener, but nothing you haven’t seen done far better elsewhere.

El Fantasma is here so we recap his son, Santos Escobar, returning last week to take out El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr.

Latin American Title: El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Mecha Wolf

Wolf is challenging. Wagner knocks him outside to start but misses a dive off the apron, allowing Wolf to hit a running dive. Back in and Wagner hits him in the back of the head to put Wolf back on the floor. The big running flip dive connects and a spinning sitout powerbomb gives Wagner two. Wolf is fine enough to hit a running knee for two but gets dropped with a discus lariat. The Wagner Driver retains the title at 4:44.

Rating: C+. I’m still not sure I get the appeal of Wagner. I know he’s part of a big wrestling family in Mexico, but that isn’t making me care about him very much thus far. At least he has someone coming after his title and he has a story going on, though hopefully he gets to stand out a bit more in the match with Escobar.

Post match Wagner calls out Santos Escobar, telling him to come get the title.

We get a sitdown interview with Penta. He was ready to reform the Lucha Bros here where they started but the injury stopped the plans. After a year on Raw, the best is yet to come. With that being said, he has an announcement about this year’s Rey de Reyes tournament: it’s taking place, and the winner gets a Mega Title shot. There will be four fatal four way matches, with the winners facing off in the finals. The first will be between Jack Cartwheel, Aerostar, Apollo Crews and La Parka and the big announcement is that Penta will present the winner with the sword (the regular prize for the winner). And yes that’s the big reveal.

La Hiedra comes up to Mr. Iguana and hits on him, but Lola Vice interrupts. Vice hits on him as well and the women don’t like each other. Pimpinela Escarlata comes in and is disappointed she doesn’t get a kiss, but does give Iguana a referee shirt. I’m thinking that’s a match for next week.

Tag Team Titles: Psycho Clown/Pagano vs. Tokyo Bad Boys vs. Motor City Machine Guns vs. Nueva Generacion Dinamita

Clown/Pagano are defending and this is one fall to a finish. Clown takes Kento (partner of Takuma in the Bad Boys) down with a headscissors to start but Shelley tags himself in to face Forastero (partner of Sanson in Dinamita). Shelley takes over and they trade chops, only for Pagano to tag himself in. Takuma knocks Pagano down but a running Blockbuster gives Pagano two.

A cutter connects as well but Sabin and Sanson tag themselves in. Sabin’s crucifix gets two and a dropkick sends Sanson into the corner for a tag back to Clown. The Guns and champions have a staredown but all four are pulled to the floor to start the brawling. We cut to the back where Panic Clown has been attacked and come back to Dinamita double kicking Kento down for two. Forastero’s top rope double stomp hits the arm but it’s quickly back to Takuma.

A shooting star press gives Takuma two and he knocks the Guns down as well. Shelley comes in and the Guns get to start the double teaming on Kento, which actually only works so well as Kento suplexes Sabin. Pagano is back in with a double Blockbuster to the Bad Boys but Shelley tags himself back in for the Dream Sequence to Kento. Sabin’s suicide dive hits a pile on the floor but the champs cut off the Bad Boys for stereo Psycho Drivers. Clown pins Kento to retain the titles at 12:40.

Rating: B-. As usual, there is only so much you can do with eight people in the match at once, including so many blind tags and people running all over the place. Pagano and Clown have been featured on a few AAA shows from WWE and it’s pretty obvious that they’re a big deal around here. It’s also nice to remember that the Guns exist, as they’ve been away from WWE TV for a good while now. Maybe try getting them back to television already.

Post match Pagano and Psycho see Panic Clown being taken away in an ambulance to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Last week’s show was more about the big debut for the show, while this week felt like it was more about getting fans used to the bigger names. This show featured three title matches and a big announcement for the Rey de Reyes tournament. I’m still not sure why having Penta presenting the sword is that big of a deal, but AAA seems to think it is. The good thing is that this show still came off as something important, even if it was just a bunch of successful title defenses. It was less than an hour and featured dome important stars, so nice job on a second week of the show.

Results
Laredo Kid b. Mini Vikingo and Octagon Jr. – Super Spanish Fly to Vikingo
El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. b. Mecha Wolf – Wagner Driver
Psycho Clown/Pagano b. Tokyo Bad Boys, Motor City Machine Guns and Nueva Generacion Dinamita – Psycho Driver to Kento

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Collision
Date: January 24, 2026
Location: Addition Financial Arena, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Paul Wight, Excalibur

This is kind of a weird one as the show was originally going to air live but the weather forced a double taping after Dynamite. That could mean a bit of a rushed show but hopefully the talent can make it work out. The big main event this time is for the CMLL World Title as Claudio Castagnoli defends against Roderick Strong. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Hangman Page vs. Katsuyori Shibata

They go straight to the slugging to start and head outside, with Shibata being sent into the announcers’ table. Shibata misses a running big boot and gets booted over the barricade, meaning it’s time to brawl in the timekeeper’s area. Page keeps hammering away and takes him inside for a fall away slam. The triangle clothesline is cut off with an elbow to the face though and Shibata starts in on the leg. An early Figure Four is reversed, with Page making it to the rope.

We take a break and come back with Page cutting off the kicks the chest so they can chop it out. Shibata hits a running boot in the corner and they trade release German suplexes. They knock each other down for a double breather and the fans approve, as usual. The referee misses Shibata’s low blow and they head to the apron, where Page hits the Deadeye (that low blow didn’t exactly do a lot of damage). The moonsault to the floor hits Shibata but he’s right back with some kind of a neck crank. That’s broken up and Page hits a clothesline into the Buckshot Lariat for the pin at 13:23.

Rating: B-. It was a hard hitting fight as Page and JetSpeed continue their battle against the Opps. Odds are we’ll see a big showdown as a Dynamite main event in the near future, though the Trios Titles still don’t feel overly important. At least Page is getting some nice wins, as he feels like one of the biggest stars in the company and is coming off like one, which is something he has been needing.

Earlier this week, Don Callis and Ricochet were on a golf course and seem to be on the same page. Davis and Doyle beating people up in the background was funny.

Isla Dawn vs. Kris Statlander

Non-title and the Grizzled Young Veterans are here with Dawn. Statlander forearms away in the corner to start and a catapult sends Dawn into the corner. Dawn avoids a charge though and forearms away, followed by a Saito suplex for two. Statlander is right back with a Falcon Arrow into Staturday Night Fever for the fast pin at 2:49.

Post match Thekla pops up on screen wearing a Statlander shirt, which she takes off, spits on, and makes a Star Trek reference.

Jack Perry, holding his knife, says he wants Ricochet’s National Championship. Ricochet took Perry’s friend from him and now he’s taking the title, but it won’t be enough. Nice promo here.

We actually talk about Ace Austin winning on Ring Of Honor but he can’t be here due to travel issues (I’m guessing due to not being there for Dynamite, which is fine), so we have a replacement.

Don Callis Family vs. Billy Gunn/Austin Gunn

Don Callis is on commentary. Fletcher backs Austin up against the ropes to start and then throws him down without much trouble. Austin is back up with a running neckbreaker and it’s off to Billy, who is starting to look his age. Billy tells Fletcher to suck it so it’s off to Takeshita instead. Takeshita powers him into the corner and then out to the floor, where Callis offers a distraction. That means a cheap shot to put Billy down and we take a break.

We come back with Fletcher avoiding the Fameasser, only to get caught with the second attempt. The 3:10 To Yuma drops Fletcher, with Takeshita having to make the save. The Quick Draw is blocked though and Fletcher hits a dragon sleeper to put Austin down. Takeshita comes in with the Blue Thunder Bomb and Billy has to make the save. The running knee misses so Fletcher kicks Austin in the corner, setting up Raging Fire for the pin at 10:20.

Rating: C+. This was little more than a nice moment with Billy teaming with his son under bad circumstances. There wasn’t much else they could have done so this was about as good as it could have gone. Fletcher and Takeshita weren’t going to lose a match to the regular Bang Bang Gang lineup so this was actually a slight upgrade.

Post match Takeshita and Fletcher seem to be ok but here is Kazuchika Okada. Fletcher has to hold Takeshita back, which can’t be good.

Ricochet says Jack Perry will get his National Title shot in Las Vegas, which is the only place with enough luck for a Jack to have a chance against a King.

The Grizzled Young Veterans are still mad at Eddie Kingston and Ortiz and weapons are teased. Why in the world would this feud continue? The Veterans have lost every time. Why?

Alec Price/Jordan Oliver vs. Davis and Doyle

Doyle runs both of them over without much trouble to start and Davis comes in for a German suplex. Price and Oliver are tossed at each other in a nice idea and we settle down to Davis dropping Oliver. The kickout just annoys Davis so it’s off to Price for a running boot in the corner. Oliver and Price are thrown at each other again and a piledriver/swinging Boss Man Slam get the double pin at 3:53.

Rating: C. I can go with an entertaining squash as Davis and Doyle got to run through these two, with the toss spots being rather fun. Davis and Doyle are a good example of what happens when you do what should be obvious, as they’re big guys who look alike. Don’t make this more complicated than it should be and you’ll be fine. Unlike Price and Oliver, who are losing so much that they’re reaching levels of pitiful.

Post match Callis talks about having a vision of destroying FTR and owning the Tag Team Titles.

FTR and Stokely Hathaway pop up on screen, with Hathaway saying Callis lies a lot so FTR is keeping the titles.

Darby Allin goes to see Bam Margera and they skateboard a lot.

TBS Title: Julia Hart vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale is defending and they start with some running, followed by blocking the other’s hiptoss attempt. Hart bounces off of her, which doesn’t seem to be a great idea. A fisherman’s suplex gives Nightingale two so Hart strikes away to some more success. An Old School hurricanrana drops Nightingale, who pops right back up.

Cue Skye Blue for a distraction so here is Harley Cameron to cut her off. Nightingale’s Cannonball misses though and Hart grabs a neckbreaker for two. We take a break and come back with Hart hitting some running corner clotheslines. Nightingale hits a much harder clothesline (Wight: “She started swinging in Florida and stopped in Nebraska.”) but Hart superkicks her off the corner.

They head outside, where Nightingale pulls her off the barricade for a suplex and the Cannonball gets two back inside. Hart is right back with something like a Black Widow, which is broken up just as quickly. The Babe With The Powerbomb is countered into a hurricanrana for two, only for the second attempt to retain Nightingale’s title at 10:43.

Rating: B-. Hart continues to look smooth in the ring and she’s good at this kind of a match, where there is only so much drama about a title change but it’s an entertaining match anyway. Nightingale getting to beat someone is a good thing to see and the fans still love her. That’s a fine use of time on this show and I was never bored so call it a success.

The Rascalz are eating and talking about the nice couch they have. They’re ready to fight the Cru and Myron Reed is eventually out after losing some Rock Paper Scissors. This wasn’t as funny as the team usually is but they’re still new.

Magnus vs. Andrade El Idolo

Andrade chops him up against the ropes to start and a backdrop puts Magnus down again. A very loud chop connects for Andrade but Magnus knocks him outside. The dive is cut off, allowing Andrade to seemingly give a woman his number. We take a break and come back with…Andrade having lost his pants. Dang it that’s never good.

Andrade hits Three Amigos into an Eddie Dance but pulls Magnus up at two. The double arm crank goes on and Andrade gets to start untying the mask, which isn’t overly nice. Magnus fights back and hits a dive into the announcers’ table, followed by a Swanton for two back inside. Andrade sends him hard into the corner though and the running knees set up the DM for the pin at 11:08.

Rating: C+. This was about what you would expect from Andrade, as he had a fine match that didn’t exactly offer much in the way of interest. It was just Andrade doing his stuff and getting a win over someone who doesn’t mean much around here. Magnus got in a bit of offense but at least he only dragged this a bit beyond a squash.

Post break Andrade says he wants the World Title and is coming for Swerve Strickland on Dynamite.

CMLL World Title: Roderick Strong vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Castagnoli, with Wheeler Yuta, is defending, Jon Moxley is on commentary and Strong has Orange Cassidy with him. Castagnoli jumps him during the entrances but Strong chops back and tells Castagnoli to hit him harder. A headlock works a bit better for Castagnoli but Strong is back up with some right hands in the corner. They go outside with Strong striking away, only to get dropped hard onto the barricade.

Back in and Castagnoli starts in on the leg with some cranking, plus a slam to send the leg into the rope. A neckbreaker doesn’t work for Castagnoli as Strong sends him outside, only for Castagnoli to ram the leg into the barricade. We take a break and come back with Castagnoli staying on the leg but Strong kicks him to the floor. A dropkick through the ropes connects and Strong is back in with the belly to back faceplant for two.

Castagnoli goes right back onto the leg but the Neutralizer is blocked. Instead Castagnoli goes with an uppercut for two and kicks away at the leg in the corner. They go up top where Strong manages a super Angle Slam for two, setting up the Stronghold. The rope is grabbed (Moxley: “Oh boy.”) and Castagnoli Swings him into the half crab.

Strong gets out so the knee is wrapped around the post, with Yuta getting in a cheap shot. Cassidy Orange Punches him, only for Castagnoli to drop Cassidy right back. They head back inside, with Strong hitting a knee to the face but Castagnoli goes back to the leg. A one legged Swing sets up the Neutralizer to retain the title at 18:20.

Rating: B. This was a solid main event with Castagnoli getting to avenge his loss to Strong in the Continental Classic. That’s a good way to set up the main event of Collision and while the title doesn’t mean much around here, it’s at least something with a bit of a connection to AEW. The leg stuff worked well too, with that swinging single leg crab looking awesome. Nice job here.

Overall Rating: B. Maybe they should tape the show after Dynamite more often. This was a rather entertaining show and while it felt like it was another case of setting up Dynamite, it did so well enough. That’s mostly what Collision tends to be and while it didn’t have anything you really needed to see, it did a nice job of making me more interested in Dynamite. Throw in a good main event and I’ll take that week to week.

Results
Hangman Page b. Katsuyori Shibata – Buckshot Lariat
Kris Statlander b. Isla Dawn – Staturday Night Fever
Don Callis Family b. Billy Gunn/Austin Gunn – Raging Fire to Austin
Davis and Doyle b. Jordan Oliver/Alec Price – Double pin
Willow Nightingale b. Julia Hart – Babe With The Powerbomb
Andrade El Idolo b. Magnus – DM
Claudio Castagnoli b. Roderick Strong – Neutralizer

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Saturday Night’s Main Event XLIII
Date: January 24, 2026
Location: Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

This show has kind of snuck up, as it feels like a lot of it was thrown together without much thought. That includes two of the four matches being added last night on Smackdown. The (likely) main event will be a four way match for the #1 contendership to the Smackdown World Title at the Royal Rumble. Other than that, Jacob Fatu has a grudge match with Cody Rhodes so let’s get to it.

Stephanie McMahon welcomes us to the show (Joe Tessitore is stuck in an airport in Detroit) and asks if we’re ready in both English and French.

The opening video hypes up the importance of the show over the years and looks at tonight’s card, as is customary.

Jacob Fatu promises to destroy Cody Rhodes, as he has gone from EBT to WWE. That’s a great line.

Cody Rhodes vs. Jacob Fatu

Fatu (who is looking ripped) jumps him during the entrance and the brawl is on before the bell. The referee gets bumped and Nick Aldis and agents come out to intervene. This goes as well as you would expect, with Fatu hitting a big flip dive off the top (and nearly missing the pile). They keep fighting in the aisle and come back to ringside, with Rhodes clotheslining him over the barricade.

The brawl goes into the crowd with Fatu fighting back but getting a drink spat into his face. They’re out in the concourse now with Rhodes throwing a trashcan and Fatu putting someone through a table. They come back into the arena with Fatu hitting some superkicks to knock him down to the barricade.

A security guard gets throw off the barricade and onto a pile….and here is Drew McIntyre to send Fatu through a table. McIntyre hits Rhodes low and powerbombs him off a platform through a table to stand tall as Nick Aldis is upset in the crowd. McIntyre walks into the ring and then away to wrap this up. The bell never rang, so it was just a ten plus minute brawl rather than a match.

Post break, McIntyre calls that a statement that anyone who messes with him will get.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Rhea Ripley/Iyo Sky vs. Roxanne Perez/Liv Morgan

Sky and Ripley are defending. Perez and Sky start things off with Sky kicking her down to take over rather quickly. Sky gets taken into the corner though and it’s off to Morgan for Three Amigos and the Eddie Dance. It’s back to Perez, who gets rolled up for a quick double stomp to the ribs. Ripley is rather enthusiastic on the apron and the diving tag brings her in, with a menacing wave to Morgan.

House is quickly cleaned as everything breaks down, with Perez’s super hurricanrana sending Ripley into Morgan’s middle rope Codebreaker. Perez dives onto Sky on the floor and Morgan gets two off a rollup. Sky is back in to take Morgan down but Over The Moonsault hits raised boots. Pop Rox connects and the referee just stops counting as Ripley is late on the save (that looked BAD).

Ripley hits the Riptide into Over The Moonsault…but Raquel Rodriguez runs in to trip Rhea, who lands on the referee (that’s creative). The referee gets bumped and the brawl is on, with Sky getting powerbombed on the floor. Cue Stephanie Vaquer to brawl off with Rodriguez and Perez gets a rather delayed two on Sky. Back up and Oblivion connects but Ripley comes in off the blind tag and hits Riptide to retain at 13:20.

Rating: B-. I liked the action here and the ref bump was a clever way to go, but that botched kickout really dragged things down. It just looked so fake and took me out of what they were doing. At the same time, good job of having actual teams fighting over the titles, as it’s how you make the titles feel that much more important. Just fix the timing issues with the save/kickout.

Video on Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles, who had some great matches over the years and are doing it here one more time.

AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Feeling out process to start with Nakamura grabbing a headlock and hitting a knee. Nakamura backs him to the ropes and does the head on the chest, setting up COME ON. Styles knocks him down and fires off some strikes to put Nakamura on the floor. There’s the slingshot forearm to drop Nakamura, though Styles comes up favoring his ribs. Nakamura is right back with a knee to the ribs and we hit the chinlock.

Styles is back up with a neckbreaker onto the knee for two so Nakamura kicks him in the chest for the same. The middle rope knee gives Nakamura two more but Styles takes the leg out. The Calf Crusher goes on and stays on for a LONG time, with Nakamura following over into a cross armbreaker. That’s reversed into a Styles Clash but Nakamura slips out, only to charge into a knee to the face. Nakamura is back up with a quick knee of his own but the knee gives out on the Kinshasa attempt.

Styles’ running knee gets two and Nakamura is back up, with the sliding German suplex not working. Instead Styles sends him to the floor for a knee to the face but Nakamura is back with the Landslide for two, with the referee slowing his count on the three again. The Pele Kick connects for Styles and they get back up for the big strike off. The cross armbreaker is blocked again but the Kinshasa is countered into a Styles Clash, which is countered into a knee to the face. Nakamura misses a kick though and gets his leg tied up in the ropes. The Phenomenal Forearm into the Styles Clash gives Styles the pin at 21:17.

Rating: B+. Yeah this was rather awesome as they were able to go out and have a great match. It’s nice to see Styles getting a chance to show off what he can still do with someone like Nakamura. The match was quite the spectacle and I had a great time with it, as they built it up well and had their best match in WWE. Pretty great stuff here.

Stephanie McMahon hypes up the show and the main event.

Randy Orton vs. Sami Zayn vs. Trick Williams vs. Damian Priest

For a shot at Drew McIntyre at the Rumble. The fans of course go nuts for Zayn, who soaks it in as Williams bails to the floor. Everyone goes to the floor and Priest hits a running dive off the steps to take them all down. Orton fights back and takes Zayn into the corner for some right hands to the head. Zayn reverses into some right hands of his own and it’s Williams coming in to stomp away.

A neckbreaker gets two on Zayn but Priest is back in with the lifting Downward Spiral to drop Williams. Zayn’s tornado DDT gets two on Priest and now it’s Orton coming back in to clean house. That’s cut off with a Blue Thunder Bomb but Williams kicks Zayn down. A running dive drops Williams on the floor and Zayn suplexes Orton onto the announcers’ table.

Back in and the Helluva Kick hits Priest, with Williams pulling the referee at two. Orton isn’t having this and drops all three onto the table before doing it again to Williams (despite him shaking his head NO). Back in and the RKO to Zayn is blocked and Orton misses a charge into the post. Another RKO attempt is blocked but the Helluva Kick is countered into the RKO.

Williams tries to steal the pin, which is broken up by Priest at two. Orton is back in with a double hanging DDT to Priest and Williams but the latter blocks the RKO. Priest gives Orton the South Of Heaven, with Williams rolling Priest up for two. The Helluva Kick to Williams misses and Priest is back in to take Williams out, only to walk into the Helluva Kick to give Zayn the pin and the title shot at 17:01.

Rating: B. It was either Zayn wins in his hometown or the people of Montreal burn the arena down to get warm. Zayn vs. McIntyre could be interesting and I’m curious to see if they actually go with the big title win in Saudi Arabia. Either way, they had a good main event here, with Williams more than hanging in there in his first big match. That bodes really well for him and he didn’t even take the pin! Nice stuff here.

Post match Drew McIntyre tries to jump Zayn but gets sent outside to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. They had three matches and an extended brawl in about two hours, with a nice feel good moment at the end with Zayn winning. The problem here is this show is only a week before the Royal Rumble so it didn’t feel that important. Hopefully they have something hot to set up next weekend’s show, as this only got them so far. This show worked rather well, though it only did so much for the Rumble. Just do a bit more for that, as it’s pretty badly needed at the moment.

Results
Rhea Ripley/Iyo Sky b. Liv Morgan/Roxanne Perez – Riptide to Morgan
AJ Styles b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Styles Clash
Sami Zayn b. Trick Williams, Randy Orton and Damian Priest – Helluva Kick to Priest

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Smackdown
Date: January 23, 2026
Location: Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re back on this side of the Atlantic but not quite back to America, as it’s time to stop in Montreal before tomorrow’s Saturday Night’s Main Event. The big Smackdown match for that show is a four way for a shot against Drew McIntyre at the Royal Rumble, so tonight is time for some buildup. That’s a nice enough way to fill some time so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here is hometown star Sami Zayn to get things going and yeah they like him. We pause for the OLE chants, which do indeed go on for a bit. Zayn greets the fans in French before switching to English to talk about the momentum he feels he has right now. Right here in his hometown…he is interrupted by Trick Williams.

He calls Zayn Mr. Almost, while Williams knows how to get it done. Williams brings up Zayn losing to Roman Reigns here in his hometown, which Zayn says did happen. Yeah Williams looks like a million bucks, but they aren’t on the same level. Williams is brand new but he is just not as good as Zayn. That’s a NO from Williams, who says they can take care of this later.

Cue Damian Priest (facing Williams tonight) to say that Williams talks a lot but he sounds afraid. If Williams doesn’t want to talk here, he can do something, so Williams hits Zayn with the microphone. Williams goes after Priest but Zayn is back up and goes after Williams, with Priest breaking it up. They’re shoved together, allowing Williams to escape.

Randy Orton is asked what he thought about that and goes on quite the rant about how he’s going to beat all three of them and then go on to Saudi Arabia for the Royal Rumble.

Earlier today, Carmelo Hayes told Ilja Dragunov that he can have the US Title shot tonight, which works for Dragunov. Miz came in to say he doesn’t like this whole “everyone is friends era” and says Hayes is what the French call “les incompetants” (points for a Home Alone line) but Hayes isn’t overly bothered.

US Title: Carmelo Hayes vs. Ilja Dragunov

Hayes is defending and misses an early First 48 attempt. Dragunov German suplexes him down and grabs a waistlock but Hayes is back up with a double clothesline. We take an early break and come back with Dragunov favoring his arm but getting into an exchange of strikes anyway.

Hayes La Misticas him for two but Dragunov elbows him into the Constantine Special for two. Dragunov loads up Coast To Coast but has to stop to cut off First 48. Hayes is knocked down hard and we take another break. We come back with Dragunov hammering away in the corner, setting up an apron superplex to leave them both down.

They go out to the apron to chop it out until Hayes grabs the suplex cutter. Back in and Dragunov grabs the Death Valley Driver into the corner for two more. Dragunov goes up top but cue the Miz to shove him off the top, setting up the First 48 to retain Hayes’ title at 16:36.

Rating: B. These two work well together but this feels like their ceiling to what they’re able to do. You kind of know what they’re going to be doing and while the matches are good, it’s time to move on already. Like to an actual feud rather than just “here’s a title match and here’s another title match and hey, let’s have a title match”. Miz vs. Hayes is already set up so hopefully we get their big blowoff sooner than later.

Post match Hayes figures out what is going on and yells at Miz. That sounds like the setup for a triple threat at the Rumble.

We recap Cody Rhodes vs. Jacob Fatu, with the latter costing Rhodes the title against Drew McIntyre.

Earlier today, Michael Cole sat down with Rhodes on the bus, with Rhodes talking about the Royal Rumble. Cole shifts him over to Fatu, who comes in with Nick Aldis and some security. Fatu says he was locked in on Drew McIntyre but Rhodes attacked him. Rhodes says that Fatu didn’t look like he was thinking, which is why he was put in prison in the first place.

That gets Fatu on his feet to go off about how he came from nothing and is now a different man. If Rhodes thinks Fatu is like any other Samoan he’s faced before, he has no idea what he’s doing because Fatu is in control. As usual, Fatu can bring the intensity, though having him go over would be a big step.

Chelsea Green, with Alba Fyre, runs into Jordynne Grace and calls her a star. She can even be the newest Slaygent in the Secret Hervice. Grace can even start tonight and she…actually agrees? I’m sure.

Roman Reigns is back at the Royal Rumble.

Chelsea Green vs. Jade Cargill

Non-title and Alba Fyre and Jordynne Grace are here with Green (who is in some Mountie inspired gear). Cargill yells at Grace during her entrance but Green gets in a suicide dive to start it fast. They get inside with Cargill whipping her hard into the corner, meaning it’s time for some pushups. A fall away slam sends Green rolling to the floor, where Cargill gets into it with Grace again. Green uses the distraction to get in a dive and a rollup gets two. Cargill isn’t having this and superkicks her into a powerbomb. Fyre gets kicked off the apron and Jaded finishes for Cargill 3:16.

Rating: C. This was basically a squash with Green being great as the delusional heel who can’t hang with these bigger stars. She’s just so over the top and goofy that it’s hard to not like her at least a bit. That being said, I’m almost scared to see what happens when Grace and Cargill face off. Either way, this was entertaining enough, as is everything Grace does.

Post match Grace gets in the ring to issue the challenge but Cargill walks off instead.

Charlotte and Alexa Bliss have a bit of tension before the Rumble, with Charlotte talking about how great it was because she won. Oh and Bliss returned! This time though, it’s about the team. Even though Charlotte won.

Solo Sikoa, with the MFTs and the Lantern, is ready for the Wyatt Sicks.

Tag Team Titles: Wyatt Sicks vs. Solo Sikoa/Tama Tonga

The Wyatts are defending and both of their respective stables are here too. Tonga slams Gacy down to start and it’s quickly off to Sikoa, who wants the titles. A shot puts Gacy down again but it’s off to Lumis for some double teaming on Tonga. The Wyatts hit stereo flip dives off the apron and we take an early break.

We come back with Sikoa hammering away on Lumis in the corner but missing a charge. Lumis suplexes him down and Gacy comes back in to deck Tonga. Everything breaks down and Lumis goes up top to splash Tonga for two. Erick Rowan brawls with the MFTs on the floor as Talla Tonga comes out with the lantern. The MFTs offer a distraction though and Talla gets in the big boot to drop Rowan. Uncle Howdy Mandible Claws Talla but gets Samoan Spiked by Sikoa. The lantern to Lumis sets up the Cutthroat to give the MFTs the titles at 9:57.

Rating: B-. This was a big fight in the first place but it feels like it was designed to set up a big wild brawl at some point. It was more of a first act of a match and that’s a good idea. This feud feels like it has some more legs, at least partially because I have no idea what else the Wyatts are supposed to do after it’s over.

R-Truth wants to be in the Royal Rumble and gives Nick Aldis his balls again. AJ Styles comes in and is rather confused but Aldis gets to the point: he’s not sure about Styles putting his title on the line against Gunther. Aldis respects his opinion, but he has someone else here to speak to him. Shinsuke Nakamura comes in to say he wants Styles to prove he still has it. Say on Saturday Night’s Main Event. The match is on and they shake hands.

Nathan Frazer vs. Johnny Gargano

Axiom and Candice LeRae are here too and we actually get a tribute to Bobby Duncum Sr., who passed away earlier this year. They trade armdrags to start with Frazer taking him down into an armbar. With that broken up, Frazer hits a running forearm and puts Gargano on top. A super hurricanrana is dropped into a face first drop onto the buckle. Frazer gets knocked hard out to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Frazer hitting a reverse layout DDT to leave both of them down. A springboard ax handle drops Gargano again and a sling blade sets up the frog splash for two. Gargano is back with a knockdown of his own but Frazer runs the corner for a superplex into a suplex neckbreaker for two more. LeRae’s distraction lets Gargano avoid the Phoenix splash but the distraction lets Axiom get the stolen mask back….and put it on her. The blinded LeRae accidentally knocks Gargano into a rollup to give Frazer the pin at 10:07.

Rating: B-. The story of the mask is a fine enough one to go as there is always something to stealing a personal object. That being said, Gargano is going to need a partner to make this feud work since Tommaso Ciampa seems gone. I’m not sure who that could be, but otherwise it isn’t exactly working.

Post match LeRae steals the mask again and runs off with it, making Axiom look like a moron.

Nia Jax and Lash Legend are ready to get a Women’s Tag Team Title shot. They’re ready to get the titles and go all the way to Wrestlemania.

Here is Drew McIntyre for a chat. He gets right to the point by mocking the Montreal Canadiens but he can’t wait to see Cody Rhodes and Jacob Fatu destroy each other. If Rhodes wants the title back, he has to go through the Royal Rumble to make it happen. Before then though, there’s the fatal four way match tomorrow night.

That means Trick Williams (go get em kid), Damian Priest (McIntyre already wasted a year of his career on him), Randy Orton (who has already lost a title to McIntyre and can’t get a win when it counts)…and then there’s Sami Zayn. After the OLE chants, McIntyre says Zayn’s son is going to be disappointed that Zayn is his father. It doesn’t matter who wins because he’ll retain the title. Smirking ensues. There wasn’t much to this but McIntyre did his job well enough.

Trick Williams runs into Rey Fenix and says Fenix can thank him for the fame. Let’s talk about it. Fenix says Williams will remember him.

We recap Kit Wilson’s crusade against toxic masculinity, which isn’t going well.

Matt Cardona interrupts Wilson, who rants about MEN LIKE YOU, but Cardona doesn’t understand any of this. A challenge is issued, which Wilson says is choosing violence. Wilson is making me chuckle.

Charlotte/Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax/Lash Legend vs. Giulia/Kiana James

Charlotte and James drive Legend into the corner to start before Charlotte Buckshot Lariats James down. Legend is sent outside and it’s Bliss coming in for the dive onto the big group of people standing outside so she can dive onto them. We take a break and come back with Charlotte’s high crossbody dropping Legend for two with Giulia making the save.

Charlotte fights Giulia off so James comes in to load up a double suplex. That’s reversed into a double DDT to put Legend and James down but Jax is in to cut her off. A super Samoan drop is loaded up but James turns it into a powerbomb for two on Charlotte in quite the power display.

Charlotte is able to bring in Bliss to clean house, including a messy tornado DDT for two on Jax. Legend’s pump kick gets two on Bliss with Giulia making another save. James is in with the 401K but Legend gives Bliss the Lash Extension. Charlotte spears Legend outside and James steals the pin and the title shot at 10:58.

Rating: B. I was getting into this one by the end as they went with a bunch of saves and near falls. The surprise winners are a good way to go as well, as it gives us a fresh match and saves the bigger showdowns for a major show. That’s what we’re getting with Giulia and James, as James can take the fall to protect the champion. Either way, I liked this more than I was expecting and I’ll take the surprise.

Sami Zayn comes up to Damian Priest and says he’ll be watching the main event in case Trick Williams cheats. Priest cuts him off and says stay out of it. Zayn: “Or what?” Priest seems angry and walks off, with Zayn going over to slap the taste out of Drew McIntyre’s mouth (that looked great).

AJ Styles runs into Cody Rhodes, who says Styles will be at his best when his back is against the fire. Rhodes wishes him good luck and Styles leaves, with Rhodes seeing an autographed picture from Drew McIntyre on the bus door. The photo is signed “THE REAL AMERICAN DREAM” in a nice jab.

Giulia and Kiana James are ready to win the Women’s Tag Team Titles, with Giulia wanting to then go on and become a triple champion. Well it’s not like she’s doing anything as US Champion anyway.

Damian Priest vs. Trick Williams

Williams takes him down to start and they lock up against the ropes. Priest actually gets knocked into the corner and here is Sami Zayn to watch at ringside. Priest’s comeback lets him yell at Zayn, who doesn’t want to leave. Old School is broken up though and Williams kicks him out to the floor. Williams talks some trash to Zayn and we take a break.

We come back with an exchange of strikes leading to Williams hitting a kick to the face. Priest can’t hit South Of Heaven and they trade spinning kicks to the face for a double down. Williams’ swinging Rock Bottom gets two, as does Priest’s lifting Downward Spiral, meaning they need another breather. Williams heads outside and yells at Zayn but stops to drop Priest onto the announcers’ table. That’s not enough as he sends Priest into Zayn before heading back inside. Zayn runs in to jump Williams for the DQ at 15:33.

Rating: B-. Well, they couldn’t have Priest win and kill Williams’ momentum right off the bat so this was their best option. You don’t want one of the four people involved in the #1 contenders match taking a loss so this was about as good of an idea as they had. Williams more than hung with Priest too, which is rather impressive for someone still so new on the main roster. He hit the ground pretty much ready to go and that’s a good thing to see, as it gives him some promise for the future.

Post match Williams is knocked into the corner so Priest and Zayn can fight. Williams knocks them outside and obvious RKO is obvious. Zayn gets up and takes an RKO of his own to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show felt like a last second push to make Saturday Night’s Main Event feel more important, which is what that even has been needing. Saturday’s show hasn’t felt very big and while this helped, I’m not sure it did enough. There was good action this week though and it did its intended job. Next week is the last show before the Royal Rumble so things are going to pick up even more, so hopefully expect more like this going forward.

Results
Carmelo Hayes b. Ilja Dragunov – First 48
Jade Cargill b. Chelsea Green – Jaded
Solo Sikoa/Tama Tonga b. Wyatt Sicks – Cutthroat to Lumis
Nathan Frazer b. Johnny Gargano – Rollup
Kiana James/Giulia b. Charlotte/Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax/Lash Legend – Lash Extension to Bliss
Trick Williams b. Damian Priest via DQ when Sami Zayn interfered

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Royal Rumble 1991
Date: January 19, 1991
Location: Miami Arena, Miami, Florida
Attendance: 16,000
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Roddy Piper

It’s been a minute (or about eleven years) since I’ve done this show so we might as well take advantage of it being uploaded. It’s the height of the WWF using the Gulf War as a top story, which is why the evil Sgt. Slaughter is getting the WWF Title shot against the Ultimate Warrior. And there’s that whole Royal Rumble thing. Let’s get to it.

We open with a shot of a massive American flag because it’s going to be one of those shows. This takes us to the Star Spangled Banner.

The opening video hypes up some potential Royal Rumble winner, though thankfully we do hear about the rest of the card.

Roddy Piper gives quite the promo about how much he cares for the military.

Orient Express vs. Rockers

Mr. Fuji is here with the Express (Tanaka/Kato version), who jump the Rockers to start but are quickly cleared out. The Rockers go up so Kato pulls Tanaka to the floor, meaning it’s time for stereo suicide dives (a really big spot back in the day). We settle down to Jannetty headlocking Kato down, which doesn’t last long.

Instead Kato takes him into the corner, where Jannetty’s leapfrog leaves the Express crashing into each other. Michaels comes in to start on the arm but Tanaka is back up with a leg lariat. The chinlock keeps Michaels down, which doesn’t last long either as he’s on his feet for the jumping knee. Now it’s Michaels grabbing his own chinlock, followed by a sleeper to mix it up a bit.

That doesn’t last very long and everything breaks down, with the Express actually getting the better of a do-see-do. The Rockers backflip out though and stereo dropkicks have the Express on the floor. The big planchas take them out again and it’s a double back elbow for two on Kato. Jannetty slaps on the chinlock for a bit before handing it back to Michaels, who is taken into the wrong corner.

The nerve hold goes on for a good while before a double clothesline gives Tanaka two. Michaels kicks Tanaka down so the Express tries to use their belt…which Michaels dives onto sent them into each other. See he’s not just good, but he’s smart. Jannetty comes in to clean house, even with some not great dropkicks.

Everything breaks down and Tanaka kicks Jannetty into a backslide for two as we slow back down. Michaels trips Kato down for two but Jannetty gets catapulted into a chop. Back up and the catapult is loaded up again but Michaels makes a save, allowing Jannetty to sunset flip Tanaka for the pin at 19:13.

Rating: B. Good stuff here, with the Rockers getting to show just how talented they really were. Their eventual split is what gets the attention but they could do some great stuff in the ring as well. It’s nice to see a match like this getting some time and it made for an awesome opener. Throw in the underrated Express getting their chance to showcase themselves and it made for a heck of an opener.

Randy Savage says he’s the best WWF Champion of all time and it’s time for Queen Sherri to bait the Ultimate Warrior into giving Savage a title shot.

We go to the arena where Gene Okerlund is on the platform with Sherri, who wants to challenge the Ultimate Warrior. She knows Sgt. Slaughter would give Randy Savage a title shot because he’s brave, but she’s not sure in Warrior’s case. Sherri calls Warrior out for a chat but he won’t say anything about the challenge. She then talks about his lips, chest and hair while walking around him.

With that not working, she opens his jacket and kneels before him, asking if Warrior will be honorable and a great champion by giving Savage a title shot. Warrior starts shaking and screams NO in her face and we cut to the back where Savage is livid and swears revenge. He runs into the arena but Warrior is gone. This segment has always been kind of cringey and that was the feeling again here.

Big Boss Man vs. Barbarian

This is part of Boss Man’s march through the Heenan Family (meaning Bobby Heenan is here too) to get revenge on Heenan himself. Barbarian bails to the floor to start and walks around a bit, getting inside for the lockup about 1:45 in. Boss Man boots him in the face and hits an elbow which has Barbarian out on the floor and Boss Man spinning in circles. You can criticize Boss Man about a few things, but in this era, he was never phoning it in.

Back in and Barbarian gets in a shot to go up top, only for Boss Man to knock him out of the air. A Cactus Clothesline sends Barbarian outside for another breather, with Boss Man rather fired up (shocking I know). Back in and Barbarian muscles him up with a suplex and hits a clothesline as commentary talks about how strong these two really are. Well, yeah, they’re power wrestlers.

They head outside, with Boss Man’s back being sent into the post to leave him down for a bit. Even Heenan can get in a few shots before Boss Man is sent inside for a bearhug. The comeback doesn’t last long as the bearhug goes right back on. Boss Man fights out again and manages a knockdown to get a bit of a break.

A clothesline gives Boss Man two as the foot is on the rope, meaning it’s a collision to leave them both down again. Barbarian gets up top for the clothesline but walks into the Boss Man Slam….for two, as he gets a hand on the rope. Boss Man is knocked back again so Barbarian goes up for a high crossbody, with Boss Man rolling through for the pin at 14:15.

Rating: C+. Boss Man was doing some of his best work around this point and it was interesting to see him face someone who could match him with power. This was just another step in the Heenan Family story for Boss Man and that’s not a bad way to go. The fans were behind him here and that isn’t a surprise given the effort he was putting in every time he was out there.

Sgt. Slaughter and General Adnan promise to create even more turmoil. The people here need a leader and he will provide that, as Ultimate Warrior’s time as champion is no longer even measured in hours.

Ultimate Warrior isn’t so convinced.

WWF Title: Sgt. Slaughter vs. Ultimate Warrior

Slaughter, with General Adnan, is challenging and Piper goes off about the love of the military again. A cheap shot with the flag pole doesn’t work as Warrior knocks Slaughter outside and rips up the Iraqi flag, sending Piper into overdrive. The flag is shoved into Slaughter’s mouth (that isn’t sanitary) and there’s his big bump over the corner.

Cue Sherri to watch at ringside as Warrior sends him back inside for the running shoulders. Sherri trips the leg so the chase is on, with Savage jumping Warrior near the entrance. A shot with a light stand leaves Warrior down and he takes his sweet time getting back to the ring. Thankfully Slaughter is smart enough to keep breaking up the count, as otherwise he can’t win the title.

Back in and Slaughter hits a backbreaker and spits on him before sending Warrior face first into the curled boot. A double clothesline gives them a double breather, with Slaughter popping up first…and falling right back down. Warrior gets up as well and walks right into a bearhug. That’s broken up so Slaughter drops him again, this time for the camel clutch. The feet are underneath the ropes though and Warrior starts another comeback, only to have to pull in the invading Sherri. Cue Savage with the scepter to shatter it over the Warrior’s head (because this referee is blind), giving Slaughter the pin and the title at 12:45.

Rating: C. They had to do it. Slaughter was the top heel in the company, but more importantly, Warrior just wasn’t clicking as champion. It was clear that there was nothing going on there and while you could put part of that on things beyond Warrior’s control (Hogan still being around), he wasn’t working in the spot. Yeah the result is there to set up Hogan triumphing for America, but what choice did they have?

Warrior chases after Savage and Slaughter is announced as champion, sending Monsoon and Piper into some awesome rants about how he didn’t earn it.

The Mountie vs. Koko B. Ware

Jimmy Hart is here with Mountie. They start slowly with Ware chasing him out to the floor, meaning it’s time to hit the stall button. Back in and Ware takes him down by the arm and cranks away, earning himself a right hand. Mountie avoids a charge and sends him out to the floor, followed by what looks like a claw back inside. Naturally Hart goes over to mock Frankie the bird, because Hart is amazing.

The piledriver is loaded up but Ware backdrops his way to freedom. Ware fights back and hits the missile dropkick (sticking the landing of course) but he makes the mistake of going after Hart. The distraction lets Mountie grab something like a chokeslam (uh, ok then) for the pin at 9:12.

Rating: C-. This was the filleriest of filler matches you could ask for, with pretty much nothing of note happening, saves for Ware’s always awesome dropkick. That being said, Hart yelling at Frankie was one of the best things I’ve seen in a long time, as Hart was always fine with looking goofy. Somehow, Mountie would be Intercontinental Champion a year later. The biggest surprise? The gimmick lasted for A YEAR.

Randy Savage isn’t sorry for costing Ultimate Warrior the title. Then he and Sherri run away at the sound of someone at the door.

Sgt. Slaughter and General Adnan are proud of their victory because they told you so. Unlike the rest of the military, he has no boundaries. We must be in intermission.

Piper goes on another rant about Slaughter. If there was a February PPV, Piper getting a title shot would have been ALL the money.

Jake Roberts, Earthquake, Greg Valentine, the Texas Tornado, the Legion Of Doom, Undertaker (with Brother Love), Jim Duggan, Rick Martel, Mr. Perfect and Tugboat are ready for the Royal Rumble.

Roddy Piper doesn’t think much of Virgil being Ted DiBiase’s servant.

DiBiase says Virgil does everything for him for the almighty dollar. Virgil looks ready to kill him.

Ted DiBiase/Virgil vs. Dusty Rhodes/Dustin Rhodes

No polka dots for Dusty here. The villains are cleared out to start and DiBiase tells Virgil to go take them out. Back in and Dustin takes over on Virgil without much trouble, followed by a clothesline out to the floor. Virgil gets sent outside again and now DiBiase is willing to do it himself. That means taking over on Dustin, so it’s quickly off to Dusty for the elbows in the corner.

The sleeper has DiBiase in more trouble so Virgil has to make a save. Dustin comes back in and gets his knee taken out, allowing Virgil to actually take over for once. DiBiase wraps the knee around the post and it’s time for some double teaming…but Virgil clotheslines DiBiase by mistake. That’s too much for DiBiase, who beats Virgil up and sends him outside, only for Dusty to miss a charge and get rolled up (with trunks) for the pin at 9:58.

Rating: C. The match was pretty much just a backdrop for Virgil finally having enough of DiBiase, to the point where it got physical between them. They had a great run but you had to do the turn at some point and this made sense. At the same time, this was pretty much it for Dusty and Dustin, with the former heading back to (kind of) run WCW, where he was much better suited.

Post match DiBiase berates Virgil again and orders him to put the Million Dollar Title around his waist. Instead, Virgil throws it down, with DiBiase telling him to pick it up. Virgil does so, and blasts him with the belt for the big turn and monster pop. And then after Wrestlemania, they never could follow up on it.

Hulk Hogan promises to win the Royal Rumble for the troops. We’re told that Sgt. Slaughter is planning to deface the American flag and you might as well just make Wrestlemania right now. Then Hogan forgets Sadaam Hussein’s name and the whole thing goes off the rails.

Royal Rumble

Two minute intervals and Bret Hart is in at #1 (second time in four years) and Dino Bravo is in at #2. Piper does his job as a commentator and makes sure to go over the rules (remember that this is only the third time with the 30 man variety so it was still pretty new) as Hart takes over with an early atomic drop. Bravo knocks him down and starts stomping away but misses the elbow as Greg Valentine is in at #3. Valentine goes after Bravo as we’re still in his bizarre face run. That works as well as…well as well as Valentine’s face turn, though he does toss Bravo out.

Hart goes to toss Valentine out but it’s Paul Roma in at #4 (with Slick running after him for a weird visual) to break it up. The three slug it out until Kerry Von Erich is in at #5, giving us a tag match which would leave Hart wondering what in the world he’s supposed to do. They pair off for a bit until Rick Martel is in at #6. That means more general brawling until Saba Simba is in at #7 to add some muscle.

Even more brawling ensues with no one even getting close to an elimination until Butch is in at #8. Martel dumps Simba to clear the ring out a bit and it’s Jake Roberts (who cannot stand Martel) in at #9 to go right after him to a huge reaction. The short arm clothesline sends Martel under the ropes to the floor, with Valentine cutting Roberts off on the way back inside. Roberts can’t quite knock Martel off the apron and it’s Hercules in at #10. That gives us Hart, Valentine, Roma, Von Erich, Martel, Butch, Roberts and Hercules for rather unique midcard lineup.

That means more standing around on the ropes and brawling until Tito Santana is in at #11. Roma misses a charge and crashes out to the floor and Von Erich grabs a Claw on I believe Hercules. Undertaker is in at #12 and immediately gets rid of Hart before doing the scary faced choking. Jimmy Snuka (with his crazy afro) is in at #13 and Undertaker tosses Butch as they’re doing a better job of keeping things moving. Davey Boy Smith is in at #14 and the ring is starting to get full.

There’s nothing else going on at the moment so we’ll stop to look at fans who realize they can get on TV near the front row, leaving the security guard to clear them out. There’s nothing in particular about these fans, but it’s talking about them or talking about Hercules and Von Erich in the Royal Rumble. Smash is in at #15 and the nothing continues. Roberts is tossed out and Hawk is in at #16, with a bunch of people going after him.

That’s broken up and it’s Shane Douglas (looking like Brian Pillman) in at #17. Von Erich and Snuka are out back to back and #18….is no one, as nobody comes through the curtain. More on this later so we’ll go with Undertaker hitting Smith low without doing much damage. The person who didn’t enter is officially eliminated and Animal is in at #19. The LOD gets rid of Undertaker but Hawk is thrown out as well, with Crush coming in at #20.

That gives us Valentine, Martel, Hercules, Santana, Bulldog, Smash, Douglas, Animal and Crush. Demolition double teams the Bulldog and Jim Duggan is in at #21. Animal’s bearhug on Martel doesn’t last long and it’s Earthquake in at #22. Animal fires off some running clotheslines but misses a charge and gets dumped. Mr. Perfect is in at #23 and takes a heck of a bump off Duggan’s whip into the corner. It might not make sense from a physics standpoint but it looked good. Duggan’s missed charge puts him out as well and none of that matters as Hulk Hogan is in at #24.

A bunch of people jump him but Smash is the first one out. Some right hands rock Earthquake but Perfect comes over to cut Hogan off. Smith makes a save of his own and it’s Haku in at #25. Hogan tosses Valentine to little fanfare after almost 45 minutes and Jim Neidhart is in at #26. Santana is out and Luke it in at #27, lasting a then record 4 seconds before marching right back to the back (and it’s still funny).

Brian Knobbs is in at #28 and things are slowing down a big. Hogan sends Perfect into the corner, likely jealous over Perfect wearing the yellow singlet. Knobbs actually tosses Hercules and it’s Warlord in at #29. Hogan tosses Crush and gets pummeled by Knobbs, with Perfect coming over to help. Perfect chops Warlord by mistake so Hogan is back over to go after Warlord as well. A clothesline gets rid of Warlord and it’s Tugboat to complete the field (meaning Randy Savage was #18 who didn’t show up, likely out of fear of the Ultimate Warrior).

We have a final grouping of Martel, Bulldog, Douglas, Earthquake, Perfect, Hogan, Haku, Neidhart, Knobbs and Tugboat, which isn’t exactly great. Douglas is tossed and Tugboat actually splashes Hogan in the corner, which is good for a toss to the apron. Back up and Hogan dumps Tugboat, which is actually deserved for once. Bulldog dropkicks Perfect out and Martel actually dumps Neidhart.

Bulldog backdrops Haku out as the ring is clearing in a hurry. That leaves us with five, as Martel goes up, which just seems dump. Bulldog crotches him on top and hits a clothesline, leaving us with Bulldog, Hogan, Earthquake and Knobbs. Earthquake and Knobbs get rid of Bulldog and Earthquake splashes Hogan, which means it’s time to celebrate.

The Earthquake crushes Hogan, who pops up and kicks Knobbs out without much trouble. The big boot drops Earthquake and Jimmy Hart’s interference is easily cut off. Hogan tries a slam but Earthquake falls on top of him and the big elbow crushes Hogan again. Earthquake powerslams Hogan, which triggers the Hulk Up. Hogan hits the slam and knocks him out to win at 1:05:18.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t exactly a thrilling Rumble, but it was best known as the one where Brian Knobbs was there at the end. What else do you really need to know about it? The last two years have ended with Hogan facing a pair of villains. Last year it was Rick Rude and Mr. Perfect, while this year it was Earthquake and Knobbs. There were a few ok parts to the match, but Hogan had to win after the big soul crushing loss from Warrior. They were still figuring out the Rumble formula here and this didn’t work very well.

Hogan poses a lot, including holding a bunch of signs to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. It was not a good time for the WWF and this show was a good illustration of why. You had a good opener, but the rest of the show is just totally mediocre, with something of a transition from the Golden Era taking place. Things wouldn’t get much better anytime soon, though Savage vs. Warrior would be rather excellent. Unfortunately that didn’t happen here, as instead we got a bunch of matches which were just kind of there, plus the good opener. Skip this one, as you probably have.

Ratings Comparison

The Rockers vs. The Orient Express

Original: A
2013 Redo: B+
2026 Redo: B

Big Boss Man vs. Barbarian

Original: B
2013 Redo: C
2026 Redo: C+

Sgt. Slaughter vs. Ultimate Warrior

Original: D
2013 Redo: D+
2026 Redo: C

The Mountie vs. Koko B. Ware

Original: D
2013 Redo: D
2026 Redo: C-

Ted DiBiase/Virgil vs. Dustin Rhodes/Dusty Rhodes

Original: B
2013 Redo: D+
2026 Redo: C

Royal Rumble

Original: D+
2013 Redo: D
2026 Redo: C-

Overall Rating

Original: C-
2013 Redo: D+
2026 Redo: C-

Geez and I thought I was being harsh on the show this time.

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

It’s a bad sign when I got half an hour into this and realized it wasn’t the show I meant to watch.

 

https://411mania.com/wrestling/halls-wwe-survivor-series-1994-review/