Backlash 2023
Date: May 6, 2023
Location: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We are off the mainland with this show as WWE heads to Puerto Rico for its first major show in over eighteen years. The card is more than a little different this time as we have a double main event, featuring Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes and Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest in a street fight. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the double main event, with Bad Bunny talking about how he is stepping out of his world but wanting to fight. The rest of the card gets some highlights as well.

We get the awesome drone shot, with the camera coming from outside and into the arena. That’s just sweet.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Iyo Sky

Sky, without Damage Ctrl, is challenging. Feeling out process to start with Belair getting a headscissors before dropkicking Sky down. Back up and Sky snaps the arm across the top rope before adding a top rope double stomp to the arm. Sky kicks the arm out again and works on an armbar, sending Belair crawling into the corner. Belair avoids a charge but what looked to be a Glam Slam is countered into a double stomp to the chest.

A headscissors is countered into a backbreaker but Belair bangs up the arm again. The delayed suplex drops Sky and Belair pounds away in the corner. The good arm is ok enough to hit a one armed gorilla press, though Belair drops Sky hard onto her face. Belair’s handspring moonsault gets two but Sky avoids a charge in the corner. The arm gets snapped over the top again and there’s the springboard missile dropkick to send Belair outside.

Belair shoves her off the top but the 450 hits raised knees. Sky crabs a Crossface but Belair powers up to her feet and muscles Sky up. The powerbomb is countered into an X Factor for a rather near fall. Belair tries another Glam Slam but has to counter another double stomp. The KOD is reversed as well with Sky sending her outside, setting up another kick to the arm. There’s the middle rope moonsault to drop Belair again and Sky drives shoulders into the ribs back inside.

Belair knocks her off the ropes to the apron but Sky is right back up. Her super hurricanrana is blocked and countered into a super sitout powerbomb….for two in a heck of a kickout. Cue Damage Ctrl for a distraction but Belair forearms Sky in the face. Dakota Kai gets knocked off the apron but Sky reverses the KOD into a rollup for a very close two. Bayley’s interference lets Sky send Belair into the ropes and Kai gets in a kick to the face. Bayley holds Belair’s hair as Over The Moonsault is loaded up. The referee cuts that off and the moonsault misses, allowing Belair to hit the KOD to retain at 17:57.

Rating: B+. Oh man they were ROCKING out there until the interference brought things down a bit. I know that’s going to be part of the Damage Ctrl split but these two were having one of the best matches of their careers. Awesome opener in front of a red hot crowd and you can’t ask for much more than that.

Rey Mysterio gives Bad Bunny a pep talk when Savio Vega of all people (that gets a heck of a reaction) to bring him a Puerto Rico themed kendo stick.

We look at the post Draft rosters.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. Omos, which isn’t much of a feud. Basically Rollins is on a roll, Omos is a monster, they’re having a match.

Omos vs. Seth Rollins

MVP is here with Omos, who breaks up Rollins conducting the fans before the bell. Rollins is ready to go and gets knocked down as the match officially starts. A chest first whip into the corner drops Rollins again and Omos mockingly conducts the crowd. They fight outside with Rollins managing to slip away and get in a posting. The second suicide dive is cut off though and Omos chokeslams him onto the apron.

Back in and Snake Eyes into the big boot drops Rollins again, with Omos not being able to hear the fans again. Rollins manages a superkick but the Pedigree attempt is easily blocked. Something like a bulldog onto the post rocks Omos again and a tornado DDT puts him down. The frog splash gets one, with the kickout sending Rollins flying. Rollins tries the Stomp but Omos just doesn’t go down, blocking it through straight power.

A chokeslam gives Omos two and the kickout leaves him stunned. Rollins flips up into a sleeper to slow Omos down but he shrugs things off. MVP tries to throw in the cane, allowing Rollins to hit a Stomp. The superkick knocks MVP off the apron and a second Stomp only gets two. That leaves Rollins stunned for a change so it’s a top rope Stomp (looked pretty good) to finish Omos at 10:31.

Rating: B. This match had me flashing back to HHH vs. Great Khali at Summerslam 2008 and that is a good thing. Omos doesn’t have the best reputation in the ring but he and Rollins had a pretty awesome match here. Rollins can hit the Stomp on anyone but he had to bust out the big one to survive here. Good stuff here as Rollins sold rather well and Omos is clearly getting better in the ring.

We look at Damian Priest and Bad Bunny getting into a fight at the press conference.

US Title: Bronson Reed vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Austin Theory

Theory is defending. Lashley slugs away at both of them to start and sends Theory into Reed. A clothesline to Reed makes him DDT Theory, who has to save Reed from the Hurt Lock. Lashley is back up with the one armed delayed vertical suplex on Theory, who is smart enough to take Lashley’s leg out. Reed adds a splash to Lashley’s back and the basement rolling body block hits him again.

The double teaming doesn’t work for Reed, who runs Theory over instead. Lashley fights up and runs both of them over, setting up the spear to Theory. Reed breaks it up and superkicks Lashley on the floor. With that not working, Reed Vader Bombs down onto a standing Lashley on the outside (GEEZ that could have gone badly).

Back in and Theory breaks up the Tsunami but Lashley grabs the Hurt Lock on Theory. A climb up the ropes gets Theory out of it, allowing Reed to Tsunami Lashley, with Theory having to make the save. Theory hits a rolling Blockbuster on Reed but A Town Down is countered into a powerslam. Reed misses a moonsault and get speared down by Lashley, only to have Theory send Lashley outside and steal the pin to retain at 6:53.

Rating: B. It was a fast paced match with all action and Reed looked like a star, but the almost textbook ending didn’t help. I like Theory retaining the title here though, as he is rapidly improving in a lot of areas. Letting him steal a pin to retain the title fits in well and I want to see where he goes. Reed and Lashley will be fine going forward, and now I’m curious about what kind of role Lashley will play in the World Title tournament. Good stuff here again, as the show has been on a roll so far.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Zelina Vega

Vega, with Puerto Rico flag themed gear and tears in her eyes during the Big Match Intros, is challenging. The fans are entirely behind Vega as she starts fast but gets sent outside. Vega grabs a shoe, which apparently has some local significance, and throws it at Ripley. Back in and Ripley powerbombs her down hard to cut everything off.

A whip into the corner lets Ripley hit the Eddie Dance and the fans aren’t pleased. Ripley grabs a backbreaker into an over the shoulder backbreaker but Vega sends her shoulder first into the post. Some running clotheslines rock Ripley and Riptide is countered into a DDT. A 619 sets up a middle rope Meteora for two (as the Sasha Banks similarities build up) but Ripley kicks her in the face. Riptide retains the title at 7:14.

Rating: B-. This whole match was built around the idea of Vega only having a miracle chance at winning and that’s about all she had here. They tried and the comeback near the end was good, but it never hit that level that they were aiming for. To be fair, Vega was a fairly rushed challenger and this is probably the biggest match of her career, so it isn’t like she had anything to lose.

Post match Ripley leaves and Vega gets the crazy strong home island reception.

We recap Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest. Bunny saved Rey Mysterio from Dominik’s cheating at Wrestlemania so Priest beat Bunny up on Raw. That isn’t cool with Bunny and it’s time for a street fight.

Damian Priest vs. Bad Bunny

Street fight and Bunny is the hometown boy to a major reaction. Bunny brings the kendo stick but whips out a shopping cart full of weapons. Priest powers him into the corner to start but gets slapped in the face, with Bunny hitting a Michinoku Driver for two. Bunny grabs the kendo sticks but Priest knocks him down and breaks one of them. Back up and Bunny hammers away in the corner, only to get taken down again.

South Of Heaven connects but Priest pulls him up at two. It’s time to bring in an ax handle (single this time) but instead Priest loads up the springboard dive…which is cut off by a chair being thrown into his face. Bunny hits a big dive and drops him with a bunch of trashcan lid shots, giving us a Flair Flop on the floor. Back in and another Michinoku Driver gives Bunny two more but it’s time to head back outside.

Priest gets the better of things this time and smashes the Puerto Rico kendo stick across Bunny’s back. They head into the crowd and over to the tech area, where a Falcon Arrow sends Bunny crashing HARD through some tables. Adam Pearce comes out to say this needs to stop but Priest carries Bunny back to ringside. Priest misses a kick to the post and can barely stand, so Bunny blasts said leg with a kendo stick.

Bunny hits something like a Stunner to the leg out of the corner and the leg is wrapped around the post. A chain is wrapped around the leg to send it into the post again (with Priest begging him not to do it). Priest begs off from a chair shot and gets in a kick of his own, only to get hit low for his efforts. Cue Judgment Day to go after Bunny, with Rey Mysterio making the save.

With Rey beaten down, Carlito makes the save to an explosion, including the Backstabber and apple spit. Judgment Day gets back up but here is Savio Vega, who brings out the LWO to keep up the fight. With everyone else gone, Priest’s leg gives out on a kick to the head attempt, allowing Bunny to grab a Figure Four. Priest gets out so it’s a Sliced Bread for two (with Bunny almost landing on his head). A Canadian Destroyer finishes Priest at 25:05.

Rating: A. Yeah this was a total blast and played to the live crowd as well as anything else was going to. Bunny is as over as free beer in a frat house around here and they brought in the legends/current stars to make it feel that much bigger. It was fun and Bunny put in an all time celebrity performance, but Priest deserves all kinds of credit for holding it all together. Great stuff here, but egads how is anything supposed to follow this?

We recap the Bloodline vs. Matt Riddle/Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens. The Bloodline is showing cracks, including the Usos losing the Tag Team Titles to Owens/Zayn at Wrestlemania. Now it is more or less a “win here or you’re in real trouble” for the Bloodline as the other three are out to end the team.

Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn/Matt Riddle vs. Bloodline

No Paul Heyman or this one. Jey takes Sami down to start but Sami is right back up with a shot to the face. Jimmy comes in and gets taken down into the corner, allowing Riddle to come in and hammer away. It’s off to Sikoa though and this time Sami gets beaten down, with Jimmy getting to do the same. Sikoa has to tag himself back in to hammer away before Jimmy grabs a chinlock. Sami manages a shot to the face though and sends the now legal Jey outside.

Jey pulls Owens off the apron and slams him HARD into the steps (YOWCH). Sami has to fight out of the corner but can’t get around the numbers game, meaning Sikoa can come back in. A tornado DDT plants Sikoa though and the hot tag brings in Riddle to clean house. Everything breaks down and Riddle hits the backsplash, only to have what looked to be a Buckshot Lariat cut off by a superkick.

Riddle gets in another shot though and hands it back to Owens, with the Swanton hitting Jimmy for two. Jimmy superkicks Jey by mistake though and it’s a pop up sitout powerbomb for two on Jey, leaving Owens stunned. Owens and Jey slug it out but the Stunner is broken up. They trade shots to the face until Owens hits a big clothesline for the double knockdown.

Sami comes back in with the Blue Thunder Bomb for two but he has to fight off both Usos on top. The double superkick knocks Sami out of the air for two more and Jey has to yell at him a bit. Sikoa tags himself in before Jey can launch the running Umaga attack, only to have Jey tag himself back in as well.

The Helluva Kick knocks Sikoa to the floor and another hits Jey, with Sikoa having to make a save. Riddle comes back in and Sikoa takes him down, followed by a Spike to Owens. Sikoa almost Spikes Jey but Sami is back in. The Superfly Splash hits raised knees to give Sami two so here is Riddle to clean house instead. Sikoa tags himself in though and the Spike finishes Riddle at 22:03.

Rating: B. It was a main event level six man tag and they go the time, but anything was going to feel like a letdown after the previous match. They were all working hard, which is always nice to see, but it feels like we’re retreading past stories with this one. Though that being said, there is something entertaining about Riddle’s continued destruction, which certainly feels like punishment.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes. Cody lost in the biggest match of his life at Wrestlemania and tried to team with Lesnar the next night. Lesnar turned on him in a heck of a beatdown, setting up this fight.

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

Cody dives onto Lesnar to start fast on the floor before the bell. Some steps and chair shots have Lesnar in more trouble and they head inside for the official start. Lesnar drives him hard into the corner to take over and it’s a German suplex to make it worse. There’s a fall away slam and now Lesnar is starting to look back to normal. More suplexes send Rhodes into the corner and Lesnar starts in on the leg. Lesnar fires off even more suplexes and a turnbuckle pad is ripped off.

Lesnar grabs a bearhug to stay on the ribs but Cody manages to send him into the exposed buckle. A Cody Cutter and the Disaster kick rock the bleeding Lesnar, setting up a knee to the face. Another Cody Cutter connects and a pair of Cross Rhodes gives Rhodes two. Cody tries it again but gets reversed into the F5 for two. The Kimura goes on but Cody stacks him up for the pin at 9:40.

Rating: B-. I wasn’t getting into this one as well as some others, but Cody getting the big win absolutely had to happen. They can play up the idea that Lesnar got caught rather than defeated, but it isn’t like it matters all that much for him anyway. Cody needed this one a lot more than Lesnar and they went with the right direction rather than Lesnar smashing him until the ending. The Lesnar dominance in the middle was annoying, but they got the ending right and that is what matters.

Cody immediately leaves and Lesnar isn’t happy.

Overall Rating: A-. For a show with little in the way of expectations and even less in the way of meaning as the rosters reset the day after tomorrow, this was a heck of a show with the crowd elevating it by several notches. The Bunny match stole the night and was a smash hit, but the two matches after that were never going to be able to live up to that hype and it became clear very fast.

That all being said, this whole show was a blast with nothing bad and a bunch of matches elevated by the audience. I had a great time with the whole thing, starting with an awesome opener, Vega’s emotional loss, the great Bunny ordeal and Cody winning as he should have. Awesome show here and they hit on almost every possible cylinder.

Results
Bianca Belair b. Iyo Sky – KOD
Seth Rollins b. Omos – Super Stomp
Austin Theory b. Bobby Lashley and Bronson Reed – Spear to Reed
Rhea Ripley b. Zelina Vega – Riptide
Bad Bunny b. Damian Priest – Canadian Destroyer
Bloodline b. Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens/Matt Riddle – Samoan Spike to Riddle
Cody Rhodes b. Brock Lesnar – Rollup

 

 

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It’s time for the official Wrestlemania fallout event and this time the card is looking rather stacked. There are multiple matches set up, some of which are not things you might have expected to see. We have two matches which could be headlining the show but catering to the Puerto Rican crowd, one of those matches would be a much more logical choice. Let’s get to it.

Seth Rollins vs. Omos

We’ll start here, which feels like the “here’s how we get these people on the show” match. There is no reason for the two of them to be fighting, but they’re having a match on this show anyway. Omos’ size is still enough to make him the monster, though coming off the loss to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania does not make him feel like quite the same level of threat.

I’ll go with Rollins to win here, as he is coming off a big win at Wrestlemania and very well be in line for the new World Title. If nothing else, giving him a victory over Omos would make him feel like that much more of a threat to win the title. Omos can absorb a few losses because you can just have him chokeslam people over and over until he is a monster again. Rollins should win here, as he could be in for a much bigger spot in the near future.

US Title: Austin Theory(c) vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Bronson Reed

This is the kind of match that could go in a variety of ways and that makes things more interesting. Theory has come a long way in the last few months as he has gotten a good bit more serious. At the same time, Reed has turned into a monster and I could see him taking the title to make him seem that much more legitimate. Then there is Lashley, but odds are he is going to wind up in the World Title mix (as he should).

With those options, I’ll go with Theory retaining, as I don’t think WWE wants to have him lose here, only to put him into the World Title scene where he would lose again. Give him the win here and let his title reign keep going, as he has held the title for about six months. That is the kind of reign that could last for a long time, as Theory gets closer and closer to being a big thing in WWE.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair(c) vs. Iyo Sky

I’m not sure what to think about this match, as both of them are on the way to Smackdown so the title only means so much in the first place. Belair has run through every major star in the division and now she needs to find someone new, so points for trying Sky in there instead of the same people over and over. I don’t know how much of a chance Sky has, but at least she is a fresh challenger.

I don’t see much of a reason to believe that Belair is losing here so we’ll go with what should be the easy retain. Belair is a win away from the longest Women’s Title reign in the modern era and unless they want a big shakeup, the title isn’t changing hands here. The match should be good and Sky should get a lot out of it, though she isn’t going to get the title this time around.

Matt Riddle/Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn vs. Bloodline

The Bloodline continues to have issues and now the question is what happens here. They need a win to right the ship, but it makes more sense to not have the ship righted. The Usos losing the all while Solo Sikoa does his thing is going to open up some more options, as Roman Reigns is not going to be happy with the Usos losing another huge match. At the same time, Reigns has shown that he needs the Usos and that could go in a variety of ways. Or maybe the Bloodline wins and the problems go away.

Nah I can’t imagine the Bloodline losing here, as it doesn’t make sense to reverse course in that way. Owens or Zayn can pin one of them while Sikoa is incapacitated for some reason. Riddle needs a win of his own, even if it is just being on the winning team. The Bloodline doesn’t need to win here and it opens up more doors if they lose, so we’ll go with the logical choice of Riddle/Owens/Zayn winning.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley(c) vs. Zelina Vega

This is an interesting way to set up the match, as commentary has more or less told us that Vega has no chance to win the title. Instead they are saying she more or less needs a miracle to have a chance against the monster Ripley. That is what they teased this week on Smackdown, and somehow it wound up working well. Vega is going to have a huge reaction from the fans, but that might not be enough to give her the title.

Of course it isn’t, as Ripley isn’t going to lose her first major title defense. Vega is going to have the fans in her corner, but at some point that isn’t going to be enough. That some point is likely going to be as soon as Ripley hits Riptide and gets the pin to retain. Ripley’s title reign has the potential to be huge, and it is going to start with a successful defense here against Vega.

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

There is a case to be made for this to headline the show and it very well may. That being said, this is an important match for Rhodes, who really needs a win after losing to Reigns at Wrestlemania. I don’t know if that is where WWE is going to go though, as someone other than Reigns beating Lesnar one on one is almost impossible to fathom. Rhodes is a big star, but I don’t know if he’s that big.

I can absolutely see Lesnar winning here, but I’ll take Rhodes as he is someone who will likely be in line for the new World Title. Lesnar isn’t going to wrestle on Monday Night Raw anytime soon so there is no reason to believe that he is going to be in the title picture. I’ll go with Rhodes winning here, as he needs the win and will be around a lot more frequently than Lesnar. Rhodes wins, with a grand total of no confidence in the pick.

Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest

This is a street fight and it is the best choice for a main event on this show. Bunny is a legitimate major star and will be given the ultimate hero’s welcome in Puerto Rico. The fact that he has shown he can hang in the ring with the right circumstances makes this better and we should be in for a very fun match here. I would say there is some doubt about the winner but…come on.

Unless WWE wants Puerto Rico to burn the building to the ground, this is going to be Bunny winning and winning handily. There are going to be all kinds of interference and shenanigans, which is exactly what needs to be the case here. All that matters is Bunny gets the pin in the end, likely with a few kendo stick shots. Bunny wins here, as he has to do to blow the roof off instead of a good chunk of the building being wrecked.

Overall Thoughts

Backlash is not the most traditional looking WWE show but we should be in for a good card based on what we have set up. The build for Backlash has been done a bit differently but I’m wanting to see the show. What matters is everyone executing things well, with the main event being rather tricky. It’s kind of beneficial that everything resets two days later as it takes so much pressure off of this card. Now just make it work well.

 

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Rampage
Date: May 5, 2023
Location: CFG Bank Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

It’s a special show this week, as we have both an earlier airtime and the Firm Deletion match from the Hardy Compound. Other than that, we have the push towards Double Or Nothing, which may or may not be addressed this week. I’m almost scared to see what they have planned for the Firm Deletion match so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

QT Marshall/Aaron Solo/Powerhouse Hobbs vs. El Hijo del Vikingo/Lucha Bros

Vikingo flips around to avoid Marshall to start, allowing Marshall to try his own flip and fall on his face. A springboard missile dropkick sends Marshall into the corner, setting up the inverted flip into the hurricanrana out of said corner. The middle rope Phoenix splash gets two on Marshall so it’s off to Fenix vs. Solo. Fenix walks the ropes in the corner for a wristdrag, followed by a roll into a failed kneebar.

Penta comes in with a high crossbody to Hobbs, followed by a superkick. Hobbs runs him over with a clothesline and forearms Fenix out of the air. There’s a shot for Vikingo as well before Hobbs gets to plant Penta again. Marshall posts Penta and we take a break. Back with Penta kicking his way out of trouble and handing it back to Fenix. Vikingo comes back in with a springboard hurricanrana, setting up the triple dives to the floor. Back in and the wheelbarrow splash gets two on Solo, who flips Fenix face first down.

Marshall suplexes Vikingo into a powerbomb but Penta is back with a running Canadian Destroyer off of Vikingo’s back. Everyone is down so commentary talks about the Double Or Nothing main event. The villains are up first but Fenix knees his way out of Solo’s suplex. Vikingo tags himself back in but gets caught n top by Marshall. That’s fine with Vikingo, who hits a super Canadian Destroyer. The big lip dive through the table is broken up by Harley Cameron, leaving Solo to get caught with the spike Fear Factor for the pin at 12:24.

Rating: B. Take six people and let them go nuts. Marshall was doing his thing well and Hobbs still looks like a monster and Solo was fine enough in what she did. For now it was nice to see the Bros and Vikingo wreck some people, especially after rumors of Fenix needing some time away due to injuries.

We see a clip from after Dynamite with MJF losing it backstage after the Double Or Nothing main event became a four way.

Chris Jericho is worried about Adam Cole attacking him, hence him not doing commentary tonight. He is working on various assurances to keep himself safe and we’ll hear more about that on Dynamite.

Jade Cargill vs. Gia Scott

Non-title. Jaded finishes the screaming Scott at 33 seconds.

Mark Briscoe….doesn’t get to talk as Jeff Jarrett and company. The team wants Briscoe to get FTR to give them a Tag Team Titles shot but he has a match. Jay Lethal thinks Briscoe will do the right thing.

Mark Briscoe vs. Preston Vance

Briscoe knocks him to the floor to start and scores with the running Blockbuster off the apron. A posting drops Vance again and Briscoe sits him in a chair, only to miss a middle rope flip dive, sending him into said open chair (OUCH). Vance whips him into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Briscoe having to climb the corner to escape a full nelson. A German suplex drops Briscoe but he pops back up and kicks Vance in the face.

They forearm it out, including a running version each, until Briscoe drops him with a running clothesline. Vance is right back with a shot of his own and goes for a chair, but settles for a slingshot spear. The chair is brought in again but it gets kicked out, allowing Vance to hit him low for two (JR: “He’s got testicles of steel!” Excalibur: “Well he has eight kids.” Schiavone: “That was terrible.”). Briscoe knocks him outside and uses the chair as a springboard to drop Vance again. Back in and the Jay Driller finishes Vance at 11:54.

Rating: B-. Vance might not ever be a star but he is good for a hoss fight like this, as the two of them beat each other up rather well for what they had the chance to do. Briscoe’s weird charisma is able to carry him a long way, but the stuff with Jarrett and company is only working so well. Then again, if that is what he wants to do right now, good for him.

Post match Briscoe’s family get in the ring to celebrate with him.

Dustin Rhodes is looking forward to AEW coming to his hometown of Austin, Texas on May 17. Brian Cage jumps him though and Swerve Strickland comes in for trash talk. Keith Lee makes the save.

Video on Anna Jay vs. Julia Hart, who are fighting on Dynamite.

Here’s what’s coming on Dynamite.

Video on Daniel Garcia vs. Orange Cassidy.

Hardys/Isiah Kassidy/Hook vs. The Firm

This is the Firm Deletion match, meaning cinematic, at the Hardy Compound with Hardy/Kassidy’s freedom from the Firm on the line. The Firm (Big Bill/Lee Moriarty/Ethan Page/Stokely Hathaway) break the mailbox before going through the gates, where they are met by Vanguard1 (the drone). Matt Hardy’s face is projected to say they are going through the space time continuum. Then it’s night and the Hardys and company are shoot fireworks at them.

We actually have commentary as a bunch of referees pop up to try and keep track of things. Kassidy gets chokeslammed against a tree as Matt beats up Page. The Twist of Fate is broken up and Page drops Matt for two. Jeff breaks a tree limb over Bill’s back and chokes him with another one. Hathaway is left alone and we see clips of his walk of shame from a few weeks ago. Then two of Matt’s kids almost run him down with a miniature car. Bill hits Jeff in the head with a limb as Matt and Ethan fight into a well lit barn, complete with a ring, as we take a break.

Back with Matt kicking out and Page yelling about the count. The Twist of Fate drops Page for two as we cut to Hathaway in a lounge, watching the match on a couch. Matt’s family pops in, with Senior Benjamin (the odd gardener) tazing him. We cut back to the Firm covering the Hardys in gasoline. Bill pulls out a lighter but Brother Zay (Kassidy, in different gear), dives onto them (Matt: “Brother Zay, I KNEW YOU’D COME!”).

Back in the barn, Reby Hardy (Matt’s wife) sends Stokely into the ring for a Twist of Fate and Matt’s son Maxel adds a Swanton, but Reby sends him to bed. Zay legdrops Bill off a ladder through a table and we cut back to the barn, where everyone beats up Page. The Twist of Fate into the Swanton finishes Page at we’ll say 14:00 (there was no opening bell).

Rating: B-. I have no idea what to say about something like this as it’s kind of in its own little universe. While they did go nuts with a lot of the stuff, they didn’t go completely over the top like the previous versions. It was more a match in the woods/the barn with a few Deletion match elements thrown in, making it a lot less insane.

On the negative side though, this is still about Matt Hardy vs. Ethan Page, which has been going on since October and never got all that interesting in the first place. It’s kind of hard to buy the Firm, who has never been treated as anything serious, as a threat to the Hardys and an undefeated Hook, though granted it was never quite presented as an even standoff. I didn’t dislike it, but this is still the definition of “not for me”, though there is certainly an audience for the Hardys’ totally out there antics.

Jeff leaves and goes outside to light a huge Hardys symbol on fire in the yard. Jeff thanks God and we’re done.

Overall Rating: B. While your mileage may vary on the main event, this was the most entertaining Rampage in a good bit. The biggest thing here is the fact that while insane and not the biggest story, the main event actually felt special. So often Rampage will start with its biggest thing and then meander around for the next 45 minutes. They went in the opposite direction here and it made for a good show, though that main event may be a complete and total miss for a lot of people.

Results
El Hijo del Vikingo/Lucha Bros b. QT Marshall/Aaron Solo/Powerhouse Hobbs – Spike Fear Factor to Solo
Jade Cargill b. Gia Scott – Jaded
Mark Briscoe b. Preston Vance – Jay Driller
Hardys/Hook/Isiah Kassidy b. The Firm – Swanton to Page

 

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Smackdown
Date: May 5, 2023
Location: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Michael Cole

We are in Puerto Rico for the first time ever as Backlash will be held in the same venue tomorrow night. In addition, this is the final night for the old Smackdown roster as the Draft takes effect starting on Monday. We should be in for a big show tonight though, with what will likely be a red hot crowd. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a camera shot from outside, through the doors and into the arena (seemed like it was from a drone). That was a very cool shot and the arena looks GREAT (as well as packed).

Here is the LWO (with no huge video screen, making it look more like a house show for a change of pace) to get things going. Rey Mysterio addresses the crowd in Spanish and hypes up Bad Bunny and Zelina Vega. The latter goes to speak but is a bit overwhelmed, only to be interrupted by Judgment Day.

After the fans go nuts on Dominik, we get an argument in Spanish between the Mysterios. Rey switches to English and challenges Dominik to a Wrestlemania rematch but Ripley is between them. She’ll fight Rey, but Vega gets involved as well. A mixed tag seems to be made and Dominik gets in a cheap slap on Rey before bailing.

Viking Raiders vs. Good Brothers

Valhalla and the rest of the OC are here too, including AJ Styles on commentary. Erik and Anderson go to an early standoff so it’s off to Ivar vs. Gallows. Ivar knocks him into the corner but Gallows fights out and hands it back to Anderson. That earns him a knock out to the floor, giving us a Michin vs. Valhalla showdown as we take a break.

Back with Gallows coming in to clean house, much to the fans’ delight. Everything breaks down and Ivar’s top rope splash gets two on Anderson. Gallows makes the save but is ready for Valhalla’s attempted interference. Michin takes Valhalla down and Gallows kicks Ivar. Erik gets knocked outside and the Magic Killer finishes Ivar at 8:07.

Rating: B-. This was your often required hoss fight and the Good Brothers showed that they can still do their thing when they’re able to get in the ring. I’m not sure why they needed to be held out while AJ was gone as they are perfectly serviceable as a middle of the road tag team. The Vikings continue to lose and again I’m not sure why, as they could easily be used closer to the titles.

There will be a tournament for the inaugural World Heavyweight Title, with a pair of triple threats on each show. The winners will face off with each other, with the winners of the singles matches will face each other at Night Of Champions for the title.

We look at the recent European tour.

Here is Bianca Belair for a chat. She is happy to be here in Puerto Rico but she is focused on Iyo Sky. Belair has faced the best of the best and she will do it again right here tomorrow night at Backlash. That victory will make her the longest reigning Women’s Champion of the modern era but here is Damage Ctrl to interrupt. Bayley talks about how Sky is going to end the title reign and Belair will need a ticket out of the ring. The fight is on with Belair getting to stare down Sky, only to get jumped from behind. Bayley escapes the KOD and Sky dropkicks Belair down. Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan make the save.

Karrion Kross, with Scarlett, is ready to take out Shinsuke Nakamura tonight.

We look back at the Usos losing last week.

Solo Sikoa ignores Jimmy Uso and Jey Usos isn’t happy about it. Sikoa heard him, but says he’ll be doing his part tomorrow. They better do theirs, and he looks at the taped thumb before leaving.

Street Profits vs. Imperium

Imperium starts with a blind tag and Kaiser is able to kick Ford down. The referee didn’t seem to see the tag so Vinci goes up top and dives onto both Profits. Back in and Vinci moonsaults Ford for two but he suplexes his way out of trouble. The hot tag brings in Dawkins to clean house. Dawkins plants Vinci and the Cash Out finishes for Ford at 2:41. They packed a lot into a short match here, to the point where I was surprised at how short it lasted.

Long video on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. After addressing the fans in Spanish, Cody talks about some of Brock Lesnar’s accomplishments. His old coach Double A talked about how the goal was to claim the Kingdom and Brock is the one guarding the door to that kingdom. There are ways to avoid facing Lesnar but Lesnar came after him. Lesnar still hasn’t said why he did that but maybe Cody can beat it out of him tomorrow night as he claims his kingdom. Short and to the point here but Cody sold it hard.

Shinsuke Nakamura tells Karrion Kross to COME ON.

Riddle talks about beating the Bloodline at Backlash as Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens kind of stare. Riddle: “Am I talking too much?” Sami says there is nothing left for the two of them to say so they’re ready for tomorrow.

Karrion Kross vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Scarlett is here with Kross, who knocks Nakamura outside for a powerbomb against the post. We take a break and come back with Nakamura kicking away and hitting the running knee in the corner for two. Scarlett offers a distraction though, allowing Kross to grab the Doomsday Saito for two of his own. Nakamura slips out of a sleeper and kicks Kross in the head. Kinshasa is cut off with a clothesline but Nakamura is back with more kicks to the head. The second Kinshasa attempt finishes Kross at 8:48.

Rating: B. These two had some nice chemistry together and they beat each other up rather well in Nakamura’s Smackdown farewell. Nakamura is someone who could easily be reheated for a run at a title sooner than later and he looked good in one of his first matches back after his hiatus. Kross was his usual self: looking intimidating and losing in a match, as he still can’t really get going.

Video on the NXT stars coming up via the Draft.

Adam Pearce welcomes Cameron Grimes to Smackdown when Baron Corbin interrupts. Corbin mocks Grimes for being the last pick, but Grimes brings up the Corbin wasn’t picked at all. The match is made for next week.

Backlash rundown.

Bad Bunny and Damian Priest got into it at the Backlash press conference.

Zelina Vega/Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio/Rhea Ripley

Finn Balor is here with Judgment Day. Vega ducks some shots to the face to start and hits Ripley in the jaw, which does not seem to be the best idea. Ripley misses a big stomp and gets taken down with a hurricanrana, allowing Vega to wave at her. It’s off to Rey vs. Dominik, with the fans not liking the latter. Rhea’s cheap shot from the apron doesn’t do much as Vega comes in and loads up a 619 on Dominik, only to get kicked in the face by Ripley.

We take a break and come back with Vega hitting Ripley in the face, followed by a rolling kick to the head. Ripley drops her again and we hit the chinlock as Dominik hits the Eddie dance. Vega jawbreaks her way out of a powerbomb attempt and kicks Ripley off, allowing the diving tag to Rey.

Dominik comes in as well and gets hit in the head for his efforts. A big spinning springboard crossbody drops Dominik again but he manages to send Rey face first into the buckle. Dominik hits a Michinoku Driver for two, with Vega having to make the save. Dominik tries the Three Amigos but Rey reverses the last one into a small package for the pin at 9:27.

Rating: B-. I don’t think there was any secret about how this one was going to end as Rey had to win and Ripley wasn’t going to take the all. Vega was doing her thing here and the evasive stuff and using her smaller stature to her advantage worked against the much bigger Ripley. She still doesn’t have a real chance at the title, but points for giving her that little, tiny glimmer of hope.

Post match the beatdown, including Damian Priest, is on but Bad Bunny (in a sweet old WWF logo jacket), with kendo stick, and the LWO, come in for the save. Priest runs off as the good guys clean house. Bunny puts on the LWO shirt to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show was about getting everything ready for Backlash and they made me interested in seeing the show. If nothing else, the crowd reaction and energy this show had made it feel that much more important and we should be in for a big night tomorrow. The place came unglued for Bad Bunny and if he can back that up in the ring, we should be in for a heck of a Saturday. There wasn’t a bad match on the show and you can tell the fans were into what they were seeing, making this a rather fun and quality show.

Results
Good Brothers b. Viking Raiders – Magic Killer to Ivar
Street Profits b. Imperium – Cash Out to Vinci
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Karrion Kross – Kinshasa
Rey Mysterio/Zelina Vega b. Dominik Mysterio/Rhea Ripley – Small package to Dominik

 

 

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Impact Wrestling
Date: May 4, 2023
Location: Cicero Stadium, Cicero, Illinois
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

The road to under Siege continues and we should be in for a fun ride on the way there. With the main event already set up, there are still some spots that need to be filled in and some of those are likely to be covered this week. That should make for an interesting and important show so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

BREAKING NEWS: Trinity (formerly known as Naomi) has signed with Impact Wrestling and will be here with a live mic tonight.

Bhupinder Gujjar/Yuya Uemura vs. Brian Myers/Moose

Gujjar takes over on Myers to start and sends him into the corner. Uemura comes in to take Myers down and a knee drop gets two. It’s off to Moose, who gets knocked outside with Myers being sent into him. Gujjar and Uemura hit stereo dives to the floor to take them both down, followed by a middle rope bulldog to drop Moose back inside.

Moose powers him down and hands it back to Myers. The Roster Cut is countered into a belly to belly though and the double tag brings in Gujjar to plant Moose for two. The Gargoyle Spear misses but so does Moose’s spear. Gujjar hits a Sling Blade for two with Myers making the save. The spear gives Moose the pin on Gujjar at 6:47.

Rating: C+. Moose and Myers are actually turning into a nice heel team and I would not have bet on that being the case. Neither of them have much else to do so putting them together is a fine enough way to go. Gujjar continues to feel like a star in the making and Uemura is as solid of an up and coming hand as they have around here. Nice opener and better than I was expecting.

Steve Maclin/Champagne Singh/Shera are ready for whomever is dumb enough to team with PCO. Singh gives the interviewer money as she leaves (she seems surprised).

Dirty Dango is trying to figure out who attacked Santino Marella (he has a chart with strings attacking pictures, including who looks to be Tony Chimmel, Vladimir Kozlov and Tyler Breeze among several others). Dango summons Joe Hendry, who has a magnifying glass and asks about the hair Dango found at the crime scene last week. Worry not because Dango lost it (the 16 energy drinks in 36 hours might have caused the problem). Dango has a prim suspect though: Mike Tenay. Hendry thinks it might have been Trey Miguel, who doesn’t like Santino. A hug ensues.

Sami Callihan vs. Deaner

The rest of the Design is here with Deaner, who says Sami made a huge mistake by hitting him in the face with the baseball bat (which Sami has here). The fans think Deaner deserved it, which he says is giving Sami a false sense of hope. We’ll change things up instead.

Sami Callihan vs. Kon

The chokeslam plants Callihan and Angels stomps away behind the referee’s back until we get the opening bell. Sami quickly fights back and sends Kon the floor, where Kon trips him down to take back over. Kon runs him over and we take a break. Back with Kon dropping a knee for two and grabbing a bearhug. Callihan fights out and takes over but has to take out Angels. Deaner gets up on the apron with the baseball bat and gives Callihan the thumbs down, allowing the army of violence (the guys in yellow hoodies) to jump Callihan for the DQ at 10:21.

Rating: C-. Yeah I knew this feud wasn’t going to be over yet because I’m not that lucky. I still have no idea what is seen in either the Design of this feud in general but it has been going on for months now with no real end in sight. I’m sure Sami will have to go through all of them one by one before getting to face Deaner in what will be the most thrilling fight ever. Just get away from this stuff already and move on entirely.

Post match Deaner stares at Sami, who calls him a b****. The baseball bat to the face knocks Sami out.

Trey Miguel isn’t happy with being accused of attacking Santino Marella and thinks Dirty Dango had something to do with it. Joe Hendry wants to check Trey’s hair but finds nothing, leaving a confused Miguel to talk away.

Nick Aldis wants the World Title and he’s willing to work to get there. He doesn’t just get handed a title shot around here because the title is more valuable than that. Kenny King comes in to ask if Aldis is on the fast track or the easy train. Aldis thinks King is acting like a gatekeeper so Aldis will knock on that gate on his way to proving a point. King says he isn’t Scott D’Amore but seems interested.

Alisha Edwards vs. Jody Threat

Threat hits her in the face to start and hits some corner clotheslines. Threat misses a charge into the ropes but is right back with a German suplex. The F416 finishes Edwards at 2:56. That’s quite the defeat for someone who was being pushed a bit with Eddie Edwards.

The Motor City Machine Guns are excited that Chris Sabin will be getting an X-Division Title shot at Under Siege. They’ll always be a team but they can be successful on their own as well. Sabin is cool with getting a title shot at Under Siege (Sabin: “Which must be named after my second favorite Steven Segal movie.” Shelly: “What’s your first?” Sabin: “Under Siege II.” Shelley has to cover his face off that one.). With Sabin going after the X-Division Title, Shelly is going to go win the World Title.

We get the second part in the series of sitdown interviews with Frankie Kazarian, who talks about what he did when he left Impact in 2014. He went to Ring Of Honor and had to prove himself again, which was fine with him. Then he went to what would become AEW, but after having some success there as a team, it was time to prove himself back where he started, but on his own. He bet on himself and his future is here. These have been good and this worked too.

Steve Maclin/Champagne Singh/Shera vs. PCO/???/???

PCO is ready to go it alone but here are Heath and Rhino to say they’ll be the partners. Singh tags himself in to save Maclin from having to face PCO, earning a stomping in the corner. Rhino comes in and actually gets punched into the corner, only to chop his way to freedom. It’s off to Heath, who gets sent into the corner by Shera to take over.

Maclin comes in to stomp away but walks into a powerslam. That’s enough for a double tag to bring in PCO to beat up Singh, including a running flip dive through the ropes. Everything breaks down and Rhino Gores Maclin, leaving Heath to Wake Up Call Singh. The PCOsault finishes at 6:57.

Rating: C+. Nice match here and Singh played his role of designated loser rather well. Heath and Rhino are a good choice to put in here as the fans like them and they work well together as a team. Stringing out Maclin vs. PCO is a good idea, as Maclin can be scared of him until the title match and then escape with a win. This was a perfectly fine use of about ten minutes and that’s always nice to see.

The Coven is using magic on Deonna Purrazzo and Jordynne Grace.

The Death Dollz summon James Mitchell, who says the Coven isn’t powerful enough to block their access to the Undead Realm. He’ll fix it but won’t say what it costs. Rosemary, cleaver in hand, gives Jessicka an hourglass, saying they’ll be back before the sand runs out.

Jonathan Gresham vs. Mike Bailey

They shake hands to start but there seems to be some tension. Both catch the other’s kick before Gresham grabs a headscissors on the mat to take over. That’s broken up and they grapple against the ropes as we take a break. Back with Gresham kicking him in the face before snapping off an armdrag on what seems to be a banged up arm.

They go to a test of strength with Gresham getting him to the mat and cranking away on the hands. Bailey’s legs are fine enough to kick away but misses the big one to the head. Bailey goes for the arm as well before hitting the moonsault knees. The rapid fire kicks to the chest rock Gresham to send him outside, setting up the moonsault to the floor.

We take another break and come back again with Bailey kneeing him down for two. Gresham starts back in on the arm but gets kicked in the face for his efforts. They trade forearms until Bailey scores with the tornado kick. The Ultimate Weapon misses and Gresham slaps on the Octopus for the tap at 13:24.

Rating: B. Commentary kept hyping up how good these matches have been and yeah they’re not wrong. There is a chemistry that works here and it is amazing how much better a Bailey match can be when he doesn’t spend half of it not selling a leg injury. Gresham taking him down and getting him into the Octopus for the win worked, though I could go with not seeing these two together again for a bit.

Rich Swann comes up to Sami Callihan in the back, which doesn’t have Sami happy. Sami gets to the point: is Swann going to help him or not?

Steve Maclin complains to Scott D’Amore about Rhino, so he can defend the title against Rhino next week.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Here is Trinity (formerly Naomi, not the Trinity from the old TNA days) for a debut chat and the fans seem happy to see her. She’s glad to be back and is happy to be in Impact, where she can glow. The reason she chose Impact is the most storied women’s division in wrestling and she wants a piece of it. She’s hear to make an impact and wants the Knockouts Title.

Cue Deonna Purrazzo, who says Trinity invoked her. She knows what it is like to be in a new place, so if Trinity wants a title shot, it isn’t something she can just walk out on. Trinity says facing her will make Purrazzo wish she got fired. Cue Jordynne Grace to say everyone wants to see the two of them fight, but she has the next title shot. Grace and Purrazzo argue but Trinity says she’s waiting on the winner. Trinity leaves them to stare each other down to end the show.

It was a good way to debut, but they treated Trinity like this huge arrival and….she’s just not that big of a star. She’s certainly a name, but this isn’t Becky Lynch showing up. That is one of the good signs for the Knockouts division: it has the depth and history that this isn’t the single most important moment that has ever happened. It’s still a cool moment though, if nothing else because of how she left WWE.

Overall Rating: B-. Another solid show here as they did their thing and started boosting up Under Siege. I’m curious to see where a lot of these stories are going and that makes for a good sign, as things are interesting enough that I want to keep watching. Considering Under Siege is a lower level show, Impact seems to be on something of a roll and the Trinity debut should be a nice boost that will get some extra attention. Good show this week, which is a long running trend.

Results
Moose/Brian Myers b. Bhupinder Gujjar/Yuya Uemura – Spear to Gujjar
Sami Callihan b. Kon via DQ when the Army of Violence interfered
Jody Threat b. Alisha Edwards – F416
PCO/Heath/Rhino b. Steve Maclin/Champagne Singh/Shera – PCOsault to Singh
Jonathan Gresham b. Mike Bailey – Octopus

 

 

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Ring Of Honor
Date: May 4, 2023
Location: FLA Live Arena, Sunrise, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman, Nigel McGuinness

The shakeup of this show continues as there was no Dark or Dark: Elevation this week, meaning those shows’ futures might be in question. That could certainly change the way this show is presented and I’m not sure what that is going to mean. For now though, we should be in for something interesting as the show tends to be good. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Lee Moriarty vs. Rocky Romero

Pure Rules and Big Bill is here with Moriarty. Romero goes straight for an armbar and Moriarty has to use his first rope break. A hammerlock doesn’t work for Romero so he grabs a flying mare to stagger Moriarty instead. Romero goes right back to the arm so Moriarty goes for the second rope break. This time though he ties Romero’s arm in the ropes and elbows him in the head to take over.

Back up and Romero punches him in the face, which is enough for the official warning. Romero kicks the legs out to take over and a springboard tornado DDT plants Moriarty again. The cross armbreaker has Moriarty using his final rope break so it’s the standing Sliced Bread to give Romero two more. Romero tries it again gets countered into a suplex DDT for two. The cross armbreaker goes on again and since the rope won’t save him, Moriarty taps at 9:28.

Rating: C+. The Pure Rules only played so much of a role here, as Romero kept getting the same hold until Moriarty tapped. One thing that does help is that Big Bill was little more than a distraction for the most part. Romero isn’t likely to become a big star around here, but he should be able to beat Moriarty, who is talented but means little in AEW.

Athena vs. Angelica Risk

Proving Ground, meaning Risk gets a title shot for winning or going to a time limit draw. Athena kicks her down and dances to start, followed by a wheelbarrow faceplant. Risk gets in a few forearms but only earns herself a chinlock with a knee in the back. Athena stops to yell at the referee and gets enziguried for her efforts. A 619 looks to set up a high crossbody but Athena pulls her out of the air. Some rolling Wastelands set up a Gory Bomb spun onto the knees. Athena grabs a crossface for the tap at 5:09.

Rating: C+. Athena is getting a lot better at this destruction stuff and it’s fun to see her slaughtering people. The problem with having her be around this often while being this good though is the risk of turning her face, as the fans are going to get more impressed with her. Skye Blue seems to be the next big challenger and that could go rather well.

Post match Athena hits Skye Blue’s Skyfall onto the title.

TV Title: Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels

Joe is defending in a rematch from a few weeks back. Daniels grabs a headlock and gets absolutely nowhere. Joe hammers him down with right hands in the corner and we hit the nerve hold. Back up and Daniels fires off some forearms, only to get run over again. Daniels manages a middle rope swinging Downward Spiral for two but Joe isn’t having anything of the Angel’s Wings. Instead he sends Daniels into the corner and hits the MuscleBuster to retain at 5:51.

Rating: C+. It was fine enough while it lasted, but there wasn’t much drama in Daniels as the challenger. Not only is he not someone who is going to be a threat to the title, but Joe has been pretty much a wrecking ball in ROH. The problem is that he has kind of floated around though, as aside from Mark Briscoe, it feels like it has been months since he had a serious challenger for the title.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Robbie Eagles

Castagnoli is defending. Eagles snaps off a running hurricanrana to start and then wins a strike off. That’s fine with Castagnoli, who goes to the eyes and stomps away in the corner. The armbar goes on but Eagles fights up and starts in on the knee. A springboard missile dropkick staggers Castagnoli and a 619 to the knee drops him in the corner.

Some running knees in the corner give Eagles two and the Eagle Lock (something like a reverse Figure our) sends Castagnoli to the floor. The standing shooting star press gives Eagles two but he charges into a Michinoku Driver for two of his own. Castagnoli blasts him with a clothesline and pulls him up into the Riccola Bomb to retain at 8:21.

Rating: B. Now this was a nice showcase for Eagles, as he had Castagnoli staggered more than once and had the unique offense to make it interesting. While there was no threat of a title win, it was cool to see Eagles getting so show off out there. He’s a talented guy and if AEW/ROH can keep him around, it would be a nice addition to either roster.

Skye Blue wants to face Athena for the Women’s Title. That was pretty much a formality of a challenge so nice job of not wasting time.

The Kingdom/Varsity Athletes vs. Stu Grayson/Action Andretti/Darius Martin/Best Friends

Maria Kanellis-Bennett and Mark Sterling are here too. Taven and Andretti start things off with Andretti hitting a pop up dropkick before handing it off to Martin. Everything breaks down fast and the good guys clear the ring, setting up a series of running corner clotheslines to Taven. Nese comes in and whips Trent hard into the corner to take over, only to have Trent knee his way out of trouble.

Grayson comes in and we hit the parade of shots to the face. Grayson goes up but Woods runs the corner to superplex him back down. Trent superplexes Taven down onto the pile at ringside (egads), leaving Grayson to kick Daivari down back inside. Andretti goes up top…and here is the Righteous again for a distraction. Andretti hits his torture rack neckbreaker to finish Daivari at 6:24.

Rating: B-. This was the “just go nuts” match with ten people getting a few minutes to go out there and squeeze in whatever they could. They didn’t bother trying to make this into a back and forth match and it would have been nuts to see them try. This was the kind of entertaining chaos that you need sometimes on a show and they didn’t make the mistake of trying to stay out there too long. Nice job with a rather fun match.

Post match everyone is mad at the Righteous but the winners have the big hug.

Athena is in for the title match with Skye Blue.

Preston Vance vs. Rich Adonis

Vance sends him outside to start and the whips into the barricade ensue. Adonis gets in a few shots but charges into a slingshot wheelbarrow suplex. Vance hits a discus lariat for the pin at 2:19.

Action Andretti and Darius Martin are happy with their win but the Kingdom jumps them from behind. The Code of Honor is forcibly enforced.

Skye Blue vs. Robyn Renegade

Blue starts fast with a sunset flip for two and we hit the pinfall reversal sequence. Renegade heads outside and pulls Blue off the apron for a crash to the floor. Back in and Blue forearms away before snapping off a hurricanrana. It’s too early for Skyfall so Renegade knocks her down for two. Blue is back up and hits a superkick, setting up Skyfall for the pin at 4:15.

Rating: C. There wasn’t much drama here as Blue is already set for the title shot but Renegade got in some offense of her own. Renegade continues to look fairly polished in the ring and I could see her becoming something around here. Blue is getting the push right now though and the title match against Athena should be a nice showdown.

Brian Cage vs. Brock Anderson

Cage runs him over to start but Brock avoids a charge and hammers away. A powerslam puts Cage down for all of two seconds before he’s back with the Texas Cloverleaf. That’s broken up via the rope but Cage Drill Claws him for the pin at 3:15.

Rating: C. It still feels like AEW wants to push Cage as something and it is easy to see why, but squashing people on ROH and carrying the Gates of Agony isn’t enough. He continues to be able to do all kinds of things in the ring and looks solid doing it, but you can only get so far on potential. They need to figure out a story for him already, because his age and body aren’t going to hold out forever.

Willow Nightingale vs. Steph de Lander

They trade shoulders to start, with Nightingale getting the better of things and stopping to pose a bit. Back up and de Lander sends her into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs. Nightingale avoids a charge into the corner though and hits the Cannonball. The spinebuster gives Nightingale the pin at 3:40.

Rating: C-. They didn’t have time to do anything here but it was the usual Nightingale win over a lesser name before she probably loses her next big match. That has been her pattern for a long time now and there is little reason to believe that she is going to break the cycle. Not an awful match, but it was short and nothing new from Nightingale.

Kommander vs. Angelico

Serpentico is here with Angelico. Kommander sends him to the floor to start but Angelico is right back in to cut off the dive. Angelico’s chinlock doesn’t last long so he misses a running knee in the corner instead. With Angelico down on the floor, Kommander hits a big dive, followed by another dive, complete with a springboard.

A top rope sunset flip gives Kommander two back inside but Angelico grabs a suplex for the same. The Fall of the Angels is broken up and Kommander’s sunset bomb gets two. A hurricanrana gives Kommander two and there’s the big rope run flip dive to drop Angelico on the floor. Back in and a rope walk shooting star press finishes Angelico at 6:02.

Rating: B-. The flips and the dives are all impressive but there is something missing from Kommander that makes it hard to stay interested. His dives feel so much more focused on the setup/running the ropes than anything else and that doesn’t have quite the impact. It was still a nice spectacle, but when you have El Hijo del Vikingo around here as well, Kommander just doesn’t feel nearly as special.

Post match Serpentico comes in for the beatdown but Orange Cassidy and Bandido make the save.

Overall Rating: B-. Pretty solid show here with the Castagnoli/Eagles match being the highlight. It was another mostly all action show as they set up the Women’s title match, plus probably a six man given the ending. Other than that, they might have wanted to cut one or two of the short matches to not have it be stretched out so much, but it was still another completely watchable hour and a half.

Results
Rocky Romero b. Lee Moriarty – Cross armbreaker
Athena b. Angelica Risk – Crossface
Samoa Joe b. Christopher Daniels – MuscleBuster
Claudio Castagnoli b. Robbie Eagles – Riccola Bomb
Stu Grayson/Action Andretti/Darius Martin/Best Friends b. The Kingdom/Varsity Athletes – Torture rack neckbreaker to Daivari
Preston Vance b. Rich Adonis – Discus lariat
Skye Blue b. Robyn Renegade – Skyfall
Brian Cage b. Brock Anderson – Drill Claw
Willow Nightingale b. Steph de Lander – Spinebuster
Kommander b. Angelico – Rope walk shooting star press

 

 

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Make sure you check out some recent reviews.

Dynamite – April 26, 2023

Ring Of Honor TV – April 27, 2023

Impact Wrestling – April 27, 2023

Smackdown – April 28, 2023 (WWE Draft)

Rampage – April 28, 2023

Monday Night Raw – May 1, 2023 (WWE Draft)

NXT – May 2, 2023

Dynamite – May 3, 2023

---

 

Not So Fast? WWE Canceled Title Change During Match.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/not-fast-wwe-canceled-title-change-match/

New Home: Former WWE Star Wrestling First Match In Nearly Nine Months.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/new-home-former-wwe-star-wrestling-first-match-nearly-nine-months/

LOOK: Edge And Christian Reunite In Cool Moment.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/look-edge-christian-cage-reunite-cool-moment/

Oh No: NXT Star Suffers Torn ACL, To Miss Several Months.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/oh-no-nxt-star-suffers-torn-acl-set-miss-several-months/

He’s Himself: WWE Star Undergoes Long Overdue Name Change.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/hes-wwe-star-undergoes-name-change/

WATCH: WWE Releases Incredible History Of WWE Championship.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-wwe-releases-incredible-history-wwe-championship/

It Works: One Superstar Credited With NXT Spring Breakin Audience Boost (And It Might Surprise You).

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/works-one-superstar-credited-nxt-spring-breakin-audience-boost-might-surprise/

Special Occasion: WWE Hall Of Famer Set For SmackDown And Monday Night Raw Returns.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/special-occasion-wwe-hall-famer-set-smackdown-monday-night-raw-returns/

Home Of The Big One? First Time Ever City Discussed To Host WrestleMania XLI.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/home-big-one-first-time-ever-city-discussed-host-wrestlemania-xli/

The Champ Is Here (In Pickle Form): Maxwell Jacob Friedman Selling A Signature Pickle Line.

That’s A Problem: Some NXT Stars Reportedly Unhappy With Training, Blame For Recent Injuries.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/thats-problem-nxt-stars-reportedly-unhappy-training-blame-recent-injuries/

They’re In: Full List Of First Night Of WWE Draft, Plus Saturday’s Supplemental Draft/Free Agents.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/theyre-full-list-first-night-wwe-draft-plus-saturdays-supplemental-draft-free-agents/

Step Up: Seven NXT Names Officially Moving To Main Roster.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/step-seven-nxt-names-officially-moving-main-roster/

Run? New Report On What Bray Wyatt Is Saying About WWE Return.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/run-new-report-bray-wyatt-saying-wwe-return/

Over There? CM Punk Reportedly Backstage At Very Surprising Wrestling Event.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/cm-punk-reportedly-surprising-wrestling-event/

It’s Over? Long Reigning WWE Champion Hints At Her Title Reign Ending (And She Seems Fine With It).

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/long-reigning-wwe-champion-hints-title-reign-ending-seems-fine/

The Boss: Former WWE Creative Director Reveals How He Made Vince McMahon Break Down In Tears.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/boss-former-wwe-creative-director-reveals-made-vince-mcmahon-break-tears/

Going Nowhere: RUMOR KILLER On Former WWE Champion Requesting Release.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/going-nowhere-rumor-killer-former-wwe-champion-requesting-release/

WRESTLING RUMORS: Former WWE Champion Planned For Roman Reigns’ Next Feud.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/wrestling-rumors-former-wwe-champion-planned-roman-reigns-next-feud/

LOOK: Monday Night Raw Star Seen Wearing Walking Boot Following Scary Injury.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/look-monday-night-raw-star-seen-wearing-walking-boot-following-scary-injury/

WATCH: Rhea Ripley Explains Her Love Of…..The Miz? (This One Might Surprise You).

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-rhea-ripley-explains-love-miz-one-might-surprise/

They’re In: Son And Daughter Of Former WWE Stars Star Their Wrestling Careers.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/theyre-son-daughter-former-wwe-stars-star-wrestling-careers/

WATCH: Seth Rollins’ Theme Song Takes Over Paris Subway.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-seth-rollins-theme-song-takes-paris-subway/

LOOK: Gunther And Former WWE Star Get Married.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/look-wwe-star-former-wwe-star-get-married/

WATCH: 30 Year Old Wrestling Star Reveals That His Cancer Is In Remission.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-30-year-old-wrestling-star-reveals-cancer-remission/

Overdue: AEW Star Announces That Her Contract Has Expired.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/overdue-aew-star-announces-contract-expired/

Beast Mode: Update On Brock Lesnar’s WWE Status Following 2023 Draft.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/beast-mode-update-brock-lesnars-wwe-status-following-2023-draft/

Over There? Controversial Former World Champion Signs New Contract.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/controversial-former-world-champion-signs-new-contract/

They’re Done: Full WWE Draft Results From Monday Night Raw.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/theyre-done-full-wwe-draft-results-monday-night-raw/

To The Next Level: Several NXT Stars Promoted On Monday Night Raw And Raw Talk.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/next-level-several-nxt-stars-promoted-monday-night-raw-raw-talk/

And More: Full WWE Supplemental Draft Results From Raw Talk, 22 More Names Announced.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/full-wwe-supplemental-draft-results-raw-talk-22-names-announced/

WATCH: Alexa Bliss Sings Blink-182 On That’s My Jam, But With A Twist.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-alexa-bliss-sings-blink-182-thats-jam-twist/

WATCH: What Happened After Monday Night Raw Went Off The Air.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-happened-monday-night-raw-went-off-air/

Huh? Alicia Fox Reveals Her Contract With WWE Ended This Month (Seriously).

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/huh-alicia-fox-reveals-contract-wwe-ended-month/

WATCH: Rhea Ripley Makes Very Specific Demand At WWE Live Event.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-rhea-ripley-makes-specific-demand-wwe-live-event/

Long Time Coming: Several Details On WWE’s World Title Plans, Originally Set For Last Year.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/long-time-coming-several-details-wwes-world-title-plans-originally-set-last-year/

Silver Screen: Chris Jericho Announces New Movie Role.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/silver-screen-chris-jericho-announces-new-movie-role/

Fair Play: USA Network Hilariously Trolls WWE Star Over Horrible Gimmick.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/fair-play-usa-network-hilariously-trolls-wwe-star-horrible-gimmick/

Return? Former WWE Star Spotted At Performance Center.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/return-former-wwe-star-spotted-performance-center/

They’re Doing It: AEW Reportedly Puts Up Incredible Ticket Sales For All In.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/theyre-aew-puts-incredible-ticket-sales/

He’s Up: Positive News For Cody Rhodes’ Current WWE Status.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/hes-positive-news-cody-rhodes-current-wwe-status/

His Take: AEW President Tony Khan Makes Fiery Response To Reporter’s Statement About All In.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/take-aew-president-tony-khan-makes-fiery-response-reporters-statement/

VIDEO: Gunther Cuts A Rug With Some Awesome Dancing At His Wedding Reception (This Is Great).

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/video-gunther-cuts-rug-awesome-dancing-wedding-reception-great/

It’s A Messy Situation: WWE Reportedly Dealing With “A Lot Of Chaos” Backstage.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/messy-situation-wwe-reportedly-dealing-lot-chaos-backstage/

RUMOR: Vince McMahon Pitched Ideas For Roman Reigns And It Didn’t Go Well.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/rumor-vince-mcmahon-pitched-ideas-roman-reigns-didnt-go-well/

WRESTLING RUMOR: AEW Reportedly Ending Another Weekly Series.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/wrestling-rumor-aew-reportedly-ending-another-weekly-series/

Had To Be Done: WWE Star Vacates Championship, Tournament Set Up For New Champion.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/done-wwe-star-vacates-championship-tournament-set-new-champion/

Welcome Back: WWE Rehires 37 Year Old Former Star To New Role In Company.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/welcome-back-wwe-rehires-37-year-old-former-star-new-role-company/

That Would Be Different: WWE Originally Had Very Different Plans For Major Backlash Match.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/different-wwe-originally-different-plans-major-backlash-match/

Pay Up: Details On Puerto Rico Paying WWE For Backlash.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/pay-details-puerto-rico-paying-wwe-backlash/

As always, hit up the comments section to chat about what is going on and get on the Wrestling Rumors Facebook page.

Dynamite
Date: May 3, 2023
Location: CFG Bank Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Double Or Nothing and tonight we should get the final announcement of the main event. This week’s main event will see Jungle Boy and Darby Allin vs. MJF/Sammy Guevara. If the former win, the Double Or Nothing World Title match is a four way. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Orange Cassidy/Roderick Strong/Bandido/Adam Cole vs. Jericho Appreciation Society

That would be Jake Hager/Matt Menard/Angelo Parker/Daniel Garcia for the Society. Chris Jericho himself joins commentary as Cole hammers away on Parker to start. Cole stomps Parker down in the corner and chokes away before Bandido comes in for a snap powerslam. Everything breaks down and we get a big brawl on the floor, with the Society taking Cassidy down.

Bandido hits a big flip dive to take them down and Cole goes after Jericho. With that broken up by the Society, Bandido’s delayed vertical suplex is broken up. He suplexes Parker and Menard at the same time instead and we take a break. Back with Hager bearhugging Cassidy, who slips out and hits a Stundog Millionaire on Menard.

Everything breaks down and Strong hits an Angle Slam for two on Hager. Garcia gets Cassidy in the Dragon Slayer but it get broken up, setting up the parade of secondary finishers. Cassidy’s Beach Break gets two on Garcia, followed by the lazy tags. It’s back to Strong for a jumping knee to Parker’s face and Cole hits The Boom for the pin at 14:19.

Rating: B. This was the kind of fun opening match that you often need to have. It was a bunch of wrestlers who the fans like beating up wrestlers they don’t like and that is almost always going to work. Cole gets the win to start his revenge on the Society, which is likely setting up a violent match at Double Or Nothing. Good opener here and the fans seemed to like it a lot.

Post match Cole charges up the barricade to go after Jericho and even breaks the set down while jumping him.

Jungle Boy and Darby Allin are ready to get their main event title shot at Double Or Nothing.

Security takes Adam Cole out of the arena as Chris Jericho shouts about how dangerous Cole is. Britt Baker comes in to slap Jericho down.

The Blackpool Combat Club talks about (after starting with the volume down) how Kenny Omega thinks he is a legend. Bryan Danielson is better than him though and is the best wrestler in the world today. If not, it’s one of his teammates. The future of wrestling is better because of him though and he wants someone like Wheeler Yuta to be better. They’re willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen. Jon Moxley talks about how they work to make each other better and next week, he’s facing Omega in a cage.

Saraya vs. Willow Nightingale

The rests of the Outcasts are here with Saraya. Nightingale heads outside to yell at the other two, allowing Saraya to grab a choke back inside. With that broken up, Nightingale sends her into the corner and then out to the apron. This time, the rest of the Outcasts get in some cheap shots and we take a break. Back with Willow hitting a spinebuster for two, followed by a Death Valley Driver for…nothing, because the Outcasts break it up. Nightingale Pounces Soho and drops Storm, only to get the Midnight (Rampaige) for the pin at 6:39.

Rating: C. In a shock, the Outcasts use their numbers advantage to win a match over someone they have beaten before. This story has been running in place for months now and I’m almost worried about where it is going. The problem continues to be that the team isn’t that interesting and they have such a revolving door of opponents. Find something more concrete for them to fight over and it could work, but until then, stop trying to recreate the NWO without what made the NWO work.

Post match the beatdown stays on but Hikaru Shida runs in for the save….and then joins the Outcasts. Jamie Hayter and Britt Baker come in for the save….and Shida helps them beat down the Outcasts.

The House Of Black throw down the Trios Titles and want them to mean more. We hear about the Open House: any three people can come challenge for the belts, but under House Rules, it’s a 20 count on the floor, no rope breaks and DQ is enforced under Dealer’s Choice. The House Always Wins, including having black titles. Sure why not, as these titles continue to suck the life out of the tag division.

Tres de Mayo Trios Battle Royal

El Hijo del Vikingo/Lucha Bros, Varsity Athletes, Dark Order, Butcher and the Blade/Kip Sabian, QTV/Powerhouse Hobbs, Billy Gunn/The Acclaimed

All three members have to be eliminated. It’s a brawl on the floor to start (because of course) before everyone gets inside for the start. Scissoring/CERO MIEDO leads to a standoff and Evil Uno gets rid of Daivari. Uno is kicked out just as fast and Fenix runs the ropes to kick Nese out. Vikingo eliminates Woods and the Athletes are all gone. Marshall knocks Reynolds out but the Lucha Bros toss Marshall and Solow.

Hobbs goes after the Bros and shrugs off their kicks, only to have QTV offer a distraction. Now the Bros are eliminated but Vikingo goes after Hobbs. That earns Vikingo a toss out and it’s Hobbs running Gunn over. The Acclaimed dumps Hobbs but Butcher breaks up the scissoring to get rid of Caster.

We’re down to Butcher/Blade/Sabian vs. Gunn/Bowens vs. Silver, with the villains taking over without much trouble. Silver grabs a delayed vertical suplex on Blade but he’s back up to get rid of Silver, leaving us at 3-2. Blade Stuns Gunn but Bowens tosses him as well to even it up. Bowens gets thrown over the top but Gunn makes a save. Stereo Fameassers set up the double elimination to give Gunn/Bowens the win for their trio at 9:31.

Rating: C+. It was a team battle royal, which is one of AEW’s favorite weird matches. It also shows you how far things have shifted from a regular tag teams to the trios stuff, which still doesn’t hook me as well. Maybe this is something else for the Acclaimed, but I would still like to have the two divisions more merged together. Or just get rid of the Trios Titles altogether, though that doesn’t seem likely.

Sammy Guevara isn’t happy with MJF, who interrupts him to say they’re still friends. For tonight, they’ll make sure the Double Or Nothing main event is just them. MJF has a bad back from carrying the company, which is enough for Guevara to buy his excuse.

Kenny Omega and Don Callis are ready for Jon Moxley next week. Moxley is a crazy man and Omega will be ready for him. Even if Moxley makes Omega bleed it won’t be enough, because Omega is ready to end it next week.

Wardlow vs. Logan Laroux

Non-title and the Powerbomb Symphony finishes Laroux at 1:27. Lash would have done better.

Post match Wardlow wants to finish this with Christian Cage and Luchasaurus. Cue the two of them, with Cage saying not tonight. Oh and Luchasaurus isn’t challenging, but rather Cage. Interesting enough.

Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal come to see Mark Briscoe to calm things off. Mark puts them to work on the farm, along with Sonjay Dutt and Satnam Singh. They wind up sitting around with Jeff playing guitar but Papa Briscoe comes in to glare. With everyone down, Papa tells him to be worried about all of them. The team has a peace offering though: a singles match for Briscoe on Rampage. This was hilarious, with the villains playing wannabe hillbillies just fine.

Ricky Starks vs. Juice Robinson

Robinson slaps him out of the corner to start so Starks hammers him in the face. They fight to the floor with Robinson whipping him into the barricade but not being able to add a piledriver. Starks gets sent hard into the steps but Starks manages a quick posting. A slam off the steps drops Robinson on the floor as we take an early break.

Back with Starks hitting a clothesline and a tornado DDT getting two on Robinson. Starks sends him into the corner for the running Cannonball, followed by a hard clothesline of his own for two. The forward DDT is countered a few times and Starks hits the spear. The Roshambo finishes Robinson at 9:16.

Rating: C+. Nice match but it’s still not exactly a great feud. Starks was red hot for a little while now but instead he is here with what feels like the New Japan refugees. Robinson and Jay White are talented stars, though they don’t have much in the way of success around here. At the same time, Starks did get the pin, but I have no reason to believe that this story is anywhere near done with Double Or Nothing less than a month away.

Post match Jay White runs in to help beat down Starks, who still needs another partner.

Video on the Firm Deletion match.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

MJF pitches an alliance with Jungle Boy, who he says he loves like a brother. Jungle Boy isn’t sold because he wants the title. Darby Allin comes in and looks suspicious.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman/Sammy Guevara vs. Darby Allin/Jungle Boy

If Allin and Jungle Boy win, they’re added to the Double Or Nothing World Title match. Guevara’s headlock on Jungle Boy doesn’t last long so he shoulders Jungle Boy down for some early posing. It’s quickly off to Allin vs. MJF, with the former getting two off a rollup. MJF drives Jungle Boy into the corner, where Guevara gets knocked to the floor. A double elbow drops MJF but Guevara comes back in to choke away on Allin.

More choking (with the scarf) is made worse by the referee dealing with the other two on the floor. Allin reverses into his own choke though and hits MJF with a flipping Stunner. MJF is fine enough to cut Jungle Boy off before the hot tag though and we take a break. Back with Allin fighting his way out of trouble, and diving between the villains for the hot tag to Jungle Boy. Everything breaks down and Allin dives onto MJF.

Jungle Boy’s tiger driver drops Guevara on the back of his head for two but MJF cuts Jungle Boy off again. It’s back to Allin to clean more house but a Code Red is countered into a sitout powerbomb to give MJF two. Jungle Boy comes in off the blind tag and Snare Traps MJF, with Guevara making a save. The villains tease a double dive, with only Guevara diving onto the other two.

Back in and MJF’s lifting DDT gets two on Jungle Boy, leaving quite the angry reaction. Guevara’s Swanton gives MJF two, but hold on as Guevara isn’t happy with that cover. MJF isn’t happy and slaps Guevara in the face. The argument earns MJF a superkick, allowing Jungle Boy to roll Guevara up for two, followed by the basement superkick. Allin tags himself in and hits the Coffin Drop to pin Guevara at 15:55.

Rating: B. This match had a tricky job to pull off, as the result wasn’t exactly in doubt but they had to draw in some interest anyway. To their credit, they did in fact make it work, as this was a good match with a lot of storytelling elements included. Instead of just having three people who want to get rid of MJF, you have three people who also want to beat each other. Rather strong main event here, which is even more impressive given the not exactly stunning result.

Jungle Boy and Allin have some words but seem pleased to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show started to get Double Or Nothing more together, though they are going to need to make some matches official before too long. Doing so with the main event was the important part here and that part worked, along with some other fun matches at the same time. Now just turn the potential into something worthwhile and we could be on to something for the big show later this month.

Results
Orange Cassidy/Bandido/Roderick Strong/Adam Cole b. Jericho Appreciation Society – Boom to Parker
Saraya b. Willow Nightingale – Midnight
Acclaimed won Tres de Mayo Trios Battle Royal last eliminating Butcher & the Blade/Kip Sabian
Wardlow b. Logan Laroux – Powerbomb Symphony
Ricky Starks b. Juice Robinson – Roshambo
Darby Allin/Jungle Boy b. Maxwell Jacob Friedman/Sammy Guevara – Coffin Drop to Guevara

 

 

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

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

 

NXT
Date: May 2, 2023
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T., Vic Joseph

We are in for the final night before everything changes up next week. The NXT roster was gutted by the WWE Draft and now we get to see everyone have one last night around here. This is going to include multiple champions, so we could be in for some last minute title changes, which could be quite the shakeup. Or WWE will just do something stupid. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the NXT Draft picks.

North American Title: Wes Lee vs. Drew Gulak

Lee, with Tyler Bate (as evened out by Charlie Dempsey), is defending. An early dropkick puts Gulak on the floor but he’s back in with a sunset flip for two. Back up and Lee takes him to the top, only to get knocked to the mat for a top rope clothesline. Gulak cranks on both arms at once but Lee slips out and wins a slugout. A German suplex out of the corner is blocked and Gulak heads outside, where he is taken down by a dive. Dempsey’s interference is cut off by Bate and the Cardiac Kick retains the title at 5:23.

Rating: B-. They didn’t have a lot of time here but they crammed in what they could for a nice opener. Lee is a great choice to open the show as he can excite the fans rather easily no matter who he is in there against. Gulak is going to be around as long as he wants to as he can always be a trainer, plus actively wrestling on the side. Nice opener here and I could have gone for a longer version.

We look at Carmelo Hayes retaining the NXT Title last week against Carmelo Hayes. After the match, the challenge was thrown out to Bron Breakker, who then wrecked Hayes and Trick Williams.

Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn are ready to retain the NXT Women’s Tag Team Titles before they leave NXT for good after tonight. They’re leaving the place in darkness.

Here is Trick Williams for an angry chat. He has known Carmelo Hayes since high school and they have been friends for years. Last week he took a spear for Hayes and he would do it again in a heartbeat because it’s his instinct. Cue Bron Breakker to say Williams must be tougher than Hayes because he’s actually here. The match is on for Battleground, but Williams wants to face Breakker as well. Breakker does it on his time so they can fight next week.

JD McDonagh is ready to move up to Raw but Noam Dar comes in to tell him to take out Dragon Lee tonight. McDonagh says stay away from him or he’ll take the Heritage Cup with him to Raw.

Gigi Dolin vs. Jacy Jayne

Jayne knees her in the ribs to start and trips Dolin face first onto the apron. Back in and Dolin’s half nelson attempt is blocked and it’s a superkick to stagger her again. Dolin is back with a kick to the head though and an STO gets two on Jayne. They head outside again (where Dolin’s brother is watching in the crowd) and some Kawada kicks send Jayne’s head into the steps. They get back inside where Dolin is sent into the turnbuckle bar, allowing Jayne to hit a spinning kick to the face for the pin at 3:22.

Rating: C. Again they didn’t have much time here but this was about giving Jayne a pin over Dolin to even things up a bit. It was a quick beating and Dolin didn’t get in a ton of offense, but at least there were some shenanigans setting up the finish. There will probably be a rubber match at Battleground, but this feud has gone ice cold since Jayne got injured.

Post match Jayne keeps up the beating and even mocks Dolin’s brother for a bonus.

Axiom vs. Scrypts

Scrypts (no entrance) jumps Axiom to start but gets armdragged down. A northern lights suplex drops Scrypts again but he sends Axiom outside. The big dive drops Axiom and a top rope moonsault press gives Scrypts two back inside. Scrypts dropkicks him out of the air but Axiom knees him in the face for two. Axiom gets dropped again but he manages to superkick Scrypts out of the air as well. The Golden Ratio finishes Scrypts at 4:17.

Rating: C+. Now just move on to something else for Axiom already. He’s a talented guy who has been stuck in this weird/not interesting feud with Scrypts for a good while now. They did some nice things here with the flips and dives, but I’m still not sure what the point of Scrypts is supposed to be and I don’t know if NXT knows it either.

Post match Scrypts goes after Axiom and gets exposed as….well the fans chant Reggie but no name is given. This is up there with Doom’s reveal for non-surprises.

Earlier today, Brooks Jensen joined Josh Briggs and Fallon Henley at the bar and thanked them for dealing with him. They say he doesn’t need to apologize, but he did learn enough from Kiana James to help the bar make more money. Some women come up to hit on Jensen but he politely declines because he’s with his friends.

Dragon Lee vs. JD McDonagh

Lee works on the arm to start but gets driven into the corner. That doesn’t work for Lee, who hits some rapid fire dropkicks in the corner. Cue Noam Dar for a distraction though, allowing McDonagh to tie Lee up in the Tree of Woe. A charge misses Lee and sends McDonagh crotching himself into the post as we take a break.

Back with McDonagh holding a bodyscissors to keep Lee in trouble. Lee isn’t having that though and goes up top for a high crossbody, setting up the big flip dive to the floor. The top rope double stomp gives Lee two and they head to the apron, where McDonagh gets struck in the chest a lot.

They both crash down to the floor and beat the count, with Lee snapping off a fast German suplex. The poisonrana plants McDonagh again but he’s back with a hard clothesline as Noam Dar is here. Lee heads up but gets cut off by a super Spanish Fly. The brainbuster gives McDonagh two, only to have Lee Canadian Destroy him to the floor. Back in and the Devlin Side finishes Lee out of nowhere at 15:03.

Rating: B. These two got a lot more time and had a much better match, which shouldn’t be surprising given the talent involved. McDonagh gets a nice showcase on the way on the way out of NXT and onto Raw with some momentum. At the same time, Lee needs to win something around here and I’m not sure why he keeps losing so often. The talent is there, but those losses pile up.

Post match Lee and Dar brawl to the back.

Katana Chance and Kayden Carter are ready to win the Women’s Tag Team Titles because they’re a better team.

Joe Gacy is ready to sacrifice his body to Joe Coffey to get the Dyad a Tag Team Title match.

We look at various women being attacked in recent months.

Joe Gacy vs. Joe Coffey.

If Gacy wins, the Dyad gets a Tag Team Title shot against Gallus and the rest of Schism is here. Coffey knees him into the corner to start and stomps away but Gacy hits a knee to the face. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Coffey fights up and hits an elbow for two. Gacy’s belly to back gets the same but gets caught with All The Best For The Bells. The Dyad puts a foot on the rope though and Gacy hits the Upside Down for the pin at 3:21.

Rating: C-. Well Gacy wasn’t going to lose here, even if he should have. Putting the focus on the Dyad is a better idea than focusing on Gacy, though it wouldn’t surprise me to see that coming sooner rather than later. At the end of the day, Schism is still the same level of bad that they have been since they came in and I don’t see it getting any better anytime soon.

Sol Ruca (via phone), Tank Ledger and Hank Walker give Dani Palmer a pep talk. Oba Femi comes in to scare the guys.

Eddy Thorpe was training earlier when Damon Kemp came in to tell him to take out the trash. Kemp called him a young boy too, making a match seem imminent.

Dani Palmer vs. Tatum Paxley

Palmer flips around to start, including flipping out of a wristlock and into a rollup for two on Paxley. Back up and Paxley knocks her into the corner to take over, setting up a chinlock with a knee in the spine. Palmer slips out of an abdominal stretch attempt and avoids a splash, followed by something like a standing Sliced Bread to drop Paxley again. A frog splash gives Palmer the pin at 3:59.

Rating: C+. This was a showcase for Palmer and that’s what it needed to be. She has the athleticism and some charisma to go with it so there is certainly potential there. Paxley is far from a top star but she is someone who has been around long enough to have a bit of a reputation. That makes her perfect to put Palmer over to start and that is all it needed to be here.

Andre Chase is too banged up from facing Bron Breakker, meaning he can’t teach this week. Instead, Duke Hudson takes over the teaching and says we have no more pop quizzes. Hudson: “Duke University?”

Von Wagner and Mr. Stone are going through a photo album but Wagner doesn’t want to talk about one of the photos. Wagner leaves, and Stone sees a baby dealing with a lot of medical issues (presumably Wagner himself).

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Alba Fyre/Isla Dawn vs. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance

Carter/Chance are challenging and both teams are main roster bound. The champs jump them to start fast and the fight is on the floor before the bell. Chance dives onto both of them and we get the bell, allowing Chance to sunset flip Fyre for two. Carter clears the ring and hits a few kicks from the apron as we take a break.

Back with Chance snapping off a hurricanrana to Fyre, followed by a flipping legdrop to the back of the head for two. A springboard moonsault/legdrop combination gets two on Fyre but she kicks Chance into the corner. The Backstabber/Swanton combination gets two, with Carter having to make the save.

Everything breaks down and the 450/neckbreaker combination hits Dawn for two more and it’s time for the big double slugout. Dawn gets sent outside and a super Spanish Fly gets two on Fyre. A high crossbody hits Dawn but Fyre is back in with a Gory Bomb/Downward Spiral combination (that looked sweet) to retain at 9:14.

Rating: B-. Another fun match here, but they didn’t do it any favors with the break in the middle. It still gets very old having that cut out such a big chunk of the match but what we did get to see worked well. Now I’m curious to see what happens to the titles, though I could go with seeing them unified with the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Dijak blames Ilja Dragunov for the beating he received last week.

Apollo Crews runs into Trick Williams in the parking low and gives him a pep talk.

Here is Women’s Champion Indi Hartwell, with the fans telling her that SHE DESERVES IT (likely meaning the promotion to the main roster, not the walking boot and crutches). She talks about her path here and what it meant for her to become champion. Then she got hurt in a title defense, but the title reign wasn’t ending on the medical table. Now she is on the way to Raw, but the most important thing right now is NXT.

Starting next week, there will be a tournament to crown a new Women’s Champion, with the new champion being crowned at Battleground. Hartwell leaves the title in the ring….and Dexter Lumis pops out from underneath said ring. Dexter takes her away and Tiffany Stratton comes in to pick up the title. A bunch more women come in and the big brawl ends the show. Makes sense, as Hartwell doesn’t seem able to lose the title right now and you don’t want her getting beaten on the way to the main roster. It also gives a bunch of people something to do so this is the right way to go.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a very different kind of show, as NXT is finishing up a bunch of stars and there isn’t much that can be done with them as a result. Instead, you had some farewells and some things being set up for once everyone is gone. That doesn’t leave you with many options, but at least they got through the show with some good action and an important development in the end. The new NXT starts next week, but for now their latest finale went well.

Results
Wes Lee b. Drew Gulak – Cardiac Kick
Jacy Jayne b. Gigi Dolin – Spinning kick to the face
Axiom b. Scrypts – Golden Ratio
JD McDonagh b. Dragon Lee – Devlin Side
Dani Palmer b. Tatum Paxley – Frog splash

 

 

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Monday Night Raw
Date: May 1, 2023
Location: Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, Texas
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

It’s a double shot this week as we have the second night of the Draft, plus the go home Raw for Backlash. On the first hand, there were already some big moves in the Draft and it’s going to be even bigger this week. On the second hand, Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar are both here. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the first night of the Draft, with both shows picking up some big names.

Here is HHH to get things going. He explains the rules, saying that all of the remaining roster is eligible to be drafted. Since Roman Reigns is officially on SmackDown, the World Heavyweight Title is coming to Raw. Brock Lesnar is officially a free agent and can appear on both shows. Finally, there are select NXT names who can be drafted as well. Here are the first picks:

Monday Night Raw
Rhea Ripley
Seth Rollins

Smackdown
Austin Theory
Charlotte

With the picks out of the way, HHH brings Paul Heyman to the ring (after a quick stop to look at the World Heavyweight Championship) for a chat. Heyman is here to address some issues that Roman Reigns wanted him to bring up. First of all, the Bloodline (minus the Usos) has been drafted to Smackdown, meaning tonight we find out the fate of the Usos.

That would be the Usos who did NOT win back their Tag Team Titles from Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Heyman will address that with them in private, but on Saturday, there is a six man tag between the Bloodline and Zayn/Owens/Matt Riddle. Either way, Reigns will be at Smackdown next week to take care of a lot of things…..including the World Heavyweight Title. Or not, as Reigns can’t compete on Raw.

The worst thing about that is how many people think they can be the man but just can’t beat Reigns. Heyman says FREAKIN a few times so here is Seth Rollins to interrupt. After the conducting of the fans, Rollins says he thinks Reigns is gone so he can finally stop running from Rollins. Heyman doesn’t like Rollins suggesting he’ll win the title and gets on the phone to Reigns. The fans start singing and Heyman says he can’t hear his Tribal Chief. Rollins threatens Heyman with a Stomp but here is Solo Sikoa to interrupt. Heyman says Reigns has pulled the strings to make the match for tonight. Rollins is in, Reigns or not.

Earlier today, Cody Rhodes arrived and Adam Pearce asked him to not let it get out of hand with Brock Lesnar.

Damage Ctrl vs. Raquel Rodriguez/Liv Morgan

Non-title with Iyo Sky the odd Ctrl member out. Morgan takes over on Bayley to start before Rodriguez drives her into the corner with straight power. A distraction results in Morgan being low bridged to the floor though and we take a break. Back with Morgan getting over to Rodriguez for the tag as everything breaks down. Morgan gets dropped onto Rodriguez’s knees but she’s able to hit Oblivion on Kai anyway. Bayley is right back in with a sunset flip into a rollup to pin Morgan at 8:01.

Rating: C. This feels like a way to set up a title match at Backlash with the drama of where the titles are going to go after next week. It isn’t like there are a ton of options to come after the titles in the first place so this worked as well as anything else. I don’t think the titles will change hands, but at least they have a little something going on, assuming that is where they go.

Brock Lesnar arrived earlier today and Adam Pearce said he wanted to keep the peace. Lesnar: “Good luck with that.”

Here are Booker T. and Sharmell to announce the next picks.

Monday Night Raw
Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens
Judgment Day

Smackdown
Usos
LWO (Joaquin Wilde/Cruz del Toro/Zelina Vega/Santos Escobar/Rey Mysterio)

Well there goes the drama over the Usos and the Bloodline being on different shows. And why was Ripley a different pick from the rest of Judgment Day if they’re going to be on the same show?

Ricochet/Braun Strowman vs. Alpha Academy

Ricochet flips away from Gable to start but the fans would rather see Otis. Rolling Chaos Theory out of the corner plants Ricochet though, meaning it’s a double tag to bring in Otis and Strowman. They trade running shots in the corner until Strowman runs him over with a big crash. The Swanton off of Strowman’s shoulders gives Ricochet the pin on Otis at 2:26. I’m surprised it went that short.

Video on Damien Priest vs. Bad Bunny.

Here are Shawn Michaels and Adam Pearce to announce the next picks but Brock Lesnar interrupts. Pearce tries to calm him down but Lesnar gets in the ring and asks how it feels to look at the only real cowboy in Texas. Pearce sends security out but Lesnar says that’s not enough. More security comes out for the staredown until it’s Cody Rhodes to drop Lesnar from behind with a single right hand (that was weird). Security separates them, with Lesnar not exactly trying to get to Rhodes.

Post break, here are those picks:

Monday Night Raw
Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez (Women’s Tag Team Champions)
New Day (Kofi Kingston/Xavier Woods)

Smackdown
Asuka
Brawling Brutes

Matt Riddle is really excited to be on the same show as Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Riddle goes off for his match as Owens wonders if they can go to Smackdown instead of being around him.

Matt Riddle vs. Jimmy Uso

Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens and Jey Uso are here too. An early Jey distraction lets Jimmy take over but Owens and Zayn fake a chair shot, earning Jey an ejection. We take an early break and come back with Jey hitting a pop up Samoan drop for two. They head outside with Riddle being sent into the barricade before Jey kicks him in the face for two back inside. Jimmy takes the turnbuckle pad off but a Sami distraction lets Owens send him into it instead. That’s enough for the Floating Bro to finish Jimmy at 7:31.

Rating: C. This was another storyline match rather than anything else and it worked well enough. The idea over the last few weeks is that the Bloodline is a lot weaker on their own without the numbers advantage and that was on display here. Riddle needed the win too, as he hasn’t been doing much since his return.

Video on Iyo Sky.

Rob Van Dam is here to present the picks but runs into Elias and Rick Boogs, who get along with him.

Paul Heyman gives Solo Sikoa a pep talk when Jimmy Uso comes in. Jimmy wants to know where Sikoa was but Heyman says Sikoa had an assignment from Roman Reigns. Heyman and Sikoa leave, with the former still buttering up Jimmy as he walks out.

Here are Rob Van Dam and Eric Bischoff for the next picks:

Monday Night Raw
Trish Stratus
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler

Smackdown
Karrion Kross (with Scarlett)
LA Knight

It’s time for MizTV to recap the Draft so far before bringing out Shinsuke Nakamura. Miz thinks Nakamura could be a great World Heavyweight Champion but Nakamura brings up Miz’s testicle. Kinshasa drops Miz rather quickly and Nakamura gets to take a bow.

Omos vs. Anthony Alanis

Chokebomb finishes Alanis at 48 seconds.

We look back at the debut of the World Heavyweight Title.

Road Dogg (actually named Jesse James for what feels like the first time in forever) and Molly Holly handle the next picks.

Monday Night Raw
Braun Strowman/Ricochet
Bronson Reed

Smackdown
Shotzi
Pretty Deadly (NXT)

Pretty Deadly handled what seemed to be dying pretty well.

Here is Judgment Day to brag about sticking together and promising to win at Backlash. Rhea Ripley isn’t overly nervous about facing Zelina Vega because she always comes out on top. Finn Balor promises that Bad Bunny will be turned into little pieces of fluff and Damien Priest threatens Bunny in Spanish. Dominik Mysterio can barely get a word in over the booing, eventually saying he can’t wait to see what happens on Saturday.

He’s ready for a six person tag tonight but here is the LWO to interrupt. Rey Mysterio promises to win tonight and for Vega to win at Backlash. He can’t wait to see what Bad Bunny does either, but tonight it’s time to beat up the whole team. Dominik’s heat was off the charts here and it took him a long time to not say much.

Video on Gunther.

LWO vs. Judgment Day

Rey Mysterio/Santos Escobar/Zelina Vega vs. Dominik Mysterio/Damien Priest/Rhea Ripley. Rey starts with Dominik but Ripley tags herself in to try Riptide on Vega. That’s broken up so Priest comes in to forearm the heck out of Escobar. Dominik comes in but gets dropped with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. It’s quickly back to Rey, who knocks Priest outside for a dive as we take a break.

Back with Rey getting to beat up Dominik but Zelina has to save Rey from Ripley. Vega knocks Ripley outside and Rey loads up the 619. Finn Balor offers a distraction though and Dominik cuts Rey off. Vega and Ripley get knocked down on the floor, leaving Balor to take the 619 for Priest. South of Heaven finishes Rey at 8:48.

Rating: B-. The end result is the right way to go, as it makes Priest feel that much bigger. It is going to feel like something that matters if Bad Bunny beats him at Backlash. Priest needed a bit of a build like this and it helps things out a lot. The other four were doing their thing as well, with Vega especially doing a nice job of making herself feel like a bit more than a foregone conclusion to Ripley.

Bianca Belair is ready to beat Iyo Sky next week but here is Damage Ctrl to mock her. Belair doesn’t think much of them but does think Sky can become a huge star. After she loses at Backlash of course. Sky yells at her in Japanese, with Belair not wanting the translation.

JBL and Teddy Long handle the next picks:

Monday Night Raw
Alpha Academy
Katana Chance/Kayden Carter (NXT)

Smackdown
Rick Boogs
Cameron Grimes (NXT)

It’s about time for Grimes.

Backlash rundown.

Seth Rollins vs. Solo Sikoa

Paul Heyman is here with Sikoa. Rollins has to duck a right hand in the corner to start and let’s conduct the fans a bit. Sikoa gets frustrated as Rollins picking up the pace and headbutts him down in a simple comeback. A low bridge puts Sikoa on the floor but he cuts off the dive as we take a break.

Back with Rolling knocking him to the floor for a series of suicide dives. They get back inside where Sikoa hits a Samoan drop into Spinning Solo for two. Sikoa rains down right hands before they head outside, where Sikoa posts himself by mistake. Back in and Rollins hammers away but the Usos run in for the DQ at 10:39.

Rating: B-. They might as well have held that ending up on a big sign during the match as WWE isn’t going to want either of these two to take a fall here. Rollins continues to be presented as someone who could be a special kind of threat to Reigns and that could be interesting long term. It was a hard hitting back and forth match, but neither was getting pinned here and neither should have been.

Post match Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn join the fight to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. There was a lot going on with this show and it only kind of worked. The matches were mostly good but this was almost all about the Draft. That makes things more complicated as the show becomes more of a preview than anything else. For now though, things are looking good on paper, but there is a lot left to find out in the coming weeks. This show was a big special feature, which didn’t lend itself as well to a three hour format. Good enough show for a one off, but the important stuff starts next week.

Results
Damage Ctrl b. Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez – Rollup to Morgan
Braun Strowman/Ricochet b. Alpha Academy – Swanton to Otis
Matt Riddle b. Jimmy Uso – Floating Bro
Omos b. Anthony Alanis – Chokebomb
Judgment Day b. LWO – South of Heaven to Rey Mysterio
Seth Rollins b. Solo Sikoa via DQ when the Usos interfered

Final Draft Picks

Monday Night Raw
Rhea Ripley
Seth Rollins
Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens
Judgment Day
Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez (Women’s Tag Team Champions)
New Day (Kofi Kingston/Xavier Woods)
Trish Stratus
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler
Braun Strowman/Ricochet
Bronson Reed
Alpha Academy
Katana Chance/Kayden Carter (NXT)

Smackdown
Austin Theory
Charlotte
Usos
Asuka
Brawling Brutes
LWO (Joaquin Wilde/Cruz del Toro/Zelina Vega/Santos Escobar/Rey Mysterio)
Karrion Kross (with Scarlett)
LA Knight
Shotzi
Pretty Deadly (NXT)
Rick Boogs
Cameron Grimes (NXT)

 

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

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.