I took in the Undertaker Axxess panel after Raw. It was the final event of Wrestlemania weekend and something that WWE hasn’t tried before. While I bought the ticket thinking it was one of the Axxess meet and greets, it wound up being a chance to sit in a room and listen to Undertaker answer fan questions. When I say answering, I mean going into a variety of stories, which is one of my favorite things in all of wrestling. This was much more a fan event for me so I didn’t take notes, but rather just sat back and listened. I won’t bother trying to remember every question and answer, but here are some highlights (not in order).

• The event began at 11:30 with Byron Saxton introducing Undertaker, who was straight up Mark Calaway this time.

• His Mount Rushmore of wrestling is Steve Austin, Andre the Giant, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels.

• His Mount Rushmore of his own Wrestlemania matches are Shawn/Shawn/HHH #2/HHH #3. Felt like a bit of a stock answer but you can imagine how many times he has been asked.

• When he changed into the biker, he always knew he would become the Deadman again because those are his roots.

• When asked about his favorite attire, Undertaker went into an explanation of his favorite titles, saying his first WWF Title was his most important. Then he wasn’t sure why a lot of the crowd was snickering or why Saxton couldn’t stop smiling.

• He was asked about how hard it was to keep kayfabe over the years and said it was his own choice. It made the character feel that much more special, plus got him out of a lot of things he didn’t want to do, such as interviews and appearances.

• The closest anyone ever got to cracking him up was JBL. Undertaker has decided to get an RV and drive around the country (which he admitted was a boneheaded move) and it was a disaster, with his RV being such a lemon that he sued the company that sold it to him. One night, JBL got a mic and said they didn’t need to fight. Instead, Undertaker needed to get an RV and drive around the country. Undertaker said he had to bite a hole in his lip to keep from cracking up and then gave JBL quite the beating for getting him that close.

• He had a lot of praise for Yokozuna, going into a discussion of how great he was more than once. When Yokozuna worked a dark match shortly after debuting, Undertaker begged Vince to let him work with Yokozuna first. Vince said in due time, because he had someone else in mind. Then Giant Gonzalez came walking down the hall, which is what Vince meant. Undertaker said he partially left WCW to avoid working with Gonzalez (El Gigante there), plus they didn’t think he could draw anymore.

• Funny exchange (fan’s lines paraphrased):

Fan: “You’re best known for your Wrestlemania Streak, but some of the matches didn’t quite live up to expectations.”

Undertaker: “SECURITY!”

Fan: “Matches like the Brock Lesnar one and the Roman Reigns one could have gone better.”

Undertaker: “Do you not get that this is Put Taker Over Weekend???”

Of the two, he would rather do the Reigns match over, but he doesn’t remember anything about the Lesnar match due to the concussion.

• He is excited about the Texas Longhorns and Dallas Cowboys’ future prospects.

• When asked how he would react to his children getting into the business, he said his nine year old daughter was the most likely candidate. If she wanted to get into the business, he would support her, just as he would no matter what she did. Undertaker: “As long as it doesn’t involve a pole right? Dang Michelle is going to kick my a** for that one.”

• He had never heard of the Undertaker wine until Steve Austin pulled it out on the Broken Skull Sessions and thought it was terrible.

• His favorite drink is Jack Daniels, because if it is good enough for Frank Sinatra, it is good enough for him.

• When asked if he could face Sting or the Fiend, he picked the Fiend, but says it would have been different if they meant in everyone’s prime. He was worried about doing the match with Sting because it might not have lived up to expectations.

• He was asked at least twice about the Never Say Never deal and said he was only trying to be cute at the end of his induction speech. After the speech, he and Vince were sitting in Vince’s office and reminiscing a bit.

Vince: “So what did you mean by that “never say never”?

Undertaker: “No. Stop it.”

• His heart and mind are still into get into the ring but his body can’t do it anymore.

• A fan asked about the rumor of him threatening Shawn Michaels during Wrestlemania XIV.

Undertaker: “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Fan explains the whole thing.

Undertaker: “Yeah I knew what you mean. I’m making fun of you. Without saying anything, things were going to happen that night one way or another.”

• When asked about how they filmed the inside the casket promo from Royal Rumble 1994, Undertaker said “none of your d*** business”, saying that he had to keep a few secrets because he is the old school guy.

• And finally, because it is one of those stories that has been rumored forever, he does indeed hate cucumbers. When he was about eight, he came inside and his mom was making a big vat of cucumbers in vinegar and he ate the whole thing. His stomach was so messed up that anything with any cucumbers in it has messed him up for the rest of his life. This has led to him yelling at more than one sushi chef for ignoring his NO CUCUMBERS orders. Also, Paul Hearer would put cucumbers into his drinks/food as a rib. Undertaker: “I love that man but he is the devil.”

All in all, I was hoping that this would be a lot longer, but I could listen to wrestlers tell stories all day. It was pricier than I would have gone ($150, which did include unlimited free admission to Axxess (normally $10 a session)) and I probably wouldn’t have bought it had I not thought it was the usual Axxess VIP deal, but it was certainly a unique experience, just to hear Undertaker talk about kayfabe and heels/babyfaces.

NXT
Date: April 6, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

We’re done with Stand & Deliver and while a lot of things happened at the show, the bigger story came on Raw, as Bron Breakker defeated Dolph Ziggler to retain the NXT Title. That should open up a few new doors in the main event scene and I’m curious to see which one they take first. Let’s get to it.

Here is Stand & Deliver if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of Stand & Deliver, plus Bron Breakker getting the title back last night on Raw.

Here is Breakker to get things going. After waiting out some WE WANT ZIGGLER/NO WE DON’T chants, Breakker talks about the things that he got to do over the weekend. He went to Wrestlemania for the first time and got to see some of the biggest stars. It made him realize that he was going to headline Wrestlemania one day, but also that he wasn’t going to let Dolph Ziggler leave Dallas with OUR NXT Title.

Now the title is home…and here is Imperium to interrupt. Gunther says that was a nice story but it doesn’t mean anything until Breakker faces Gunther one on one. That’s cool with Breakker so the match is set for tonight. Cue the Creed Brothers behind Imperium and we take a break.

Creed Brothers vs. Imperium

Joined in progress with Julius suplexing Barthel and sneering down at him. It’s off to Aichner for an armdrag into an armbar, plus some knees to the arm. Brutus punches his way out of a slam attempt but gets shouldered down hard. Barthel comes back in and gets gator rolled, allowing the tag off to Julius for an exchange of headlock takeovers. Aichner hits a Regal Roll and grabs a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker.

That doesn’t last long as it’s quickly back to Brutus, who gets kicked in the head. Some forearms get Brutus out of trouble and he sends Barthel outside. Aichner is back up with a slam to send Brutus’ legs into the ropes though and we take a break. Back with Aichner still working on Brutus’ leg until a belly to belly cuts him off. The tag brings Julius in to clean house but a cheap shot from behind saves Barthel.

The double running dropkick in the corner is loaded up but only Barthel (who is bleeding from the eye after an injury from Saturday has been opened up) hits, as Aichner walks away instead. That leaves the Creeds to hit a kind of torture rack slam into the sliding lariat for the pin on Barthel at 11:38.

Rating: C. You can see the Creeds getting more and more confident in the ring as they are starting to look more Steinerish every week. That is the kind of formula that is always going to work and they looked good here. I liked what we had here, but Imperium splitting isn’t exactly an appealing prospect for the individual members not named Gunther.

Post match the Creeds celebrate but two guys in hoods come down and nail them with chairs. They unmask as….Pretty Deadly, former NXT UK Tag Team Champions. I like them in the UK, but I’m not sure how well they’re going to do here. The fact that they name themselves Elton Prince (formerly known as Lewis Howley) and Kit Wilson (Sam Stoker) doesn’t bode well for them either.

Toxic Attraction is ready to get their Tag Team Titles back. They aren’t just Toxic Attraction, because they are THE attraction.

Here is Cameron Grimes for his first chat since winning the North American Title. Grimes says that they finally did it and he knows his father is looking down and smiling ear to ear because his boy did it. People talk about climbing the ladder to success in this business and he has worked hard to prove his dad right. That’s how he got here, as the new North American Champion. He isn’t going to become complacent though, because this title is going to go up and down on multiple trips TO THE MOON!

Cue Solo Sikoa to interrupt and congratulate Grimes on the promises he made to his father. Now we get to the hard part of keeping the title, because championships run through Sikoa’s blood. Man to man, Sikoa issues the challenge and Grimes says he respects that. Challenge accepted, with Sikoa pulling him in off the handshake but not getting violent.

Joe Gacy, with Harland, talks about the need to have someone you can trust. Family is inherent to success and not having it only leads to self destruction.

Draco Anthony is watching Gacy in the back when Xyon Quinn comes in to tell him to not watch that. Anthony says not to tell him what to do and a match is teased.

We recap Dexter Lumis/Indi Hartwell being named a hotter couple than Duke Hudson/Persia Pirotta at Stand & Deliver.

Tiffany Stratton is mad about Sarray costing her a match last week and promises to destroy her. And the necklace.

Dexter Lumis vs. Duke Hudson

Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta are here too. Barrett thinks the votes on Saturday were rigged (North Korea is mentioned) as Lumis hits the Thesz press and some running elbows to start. Joseph brings up Ezekiel debuting on Raw, with Barrett thinking he means Ezekiel Jackson (which did cross my mind when the Titantron video aired on Monday) as Hudson takes over and stomps away.

The chinlock goes on as Barrett is now on about Beth Phoenix not being a real minister so Lumis and Hartwell might not even be married. Lumis fights out and hits the spinning legdrop while getting what he would consider fired up. A running corner clothesline sets up the spinebuster as we shift to a long shot of Pirotta’s face. Hudson heads outside and Lumis follows him so the women can cause a double posting for the double countout at 4:55.

Rating: D+. This feud continues to be just a step above a bad infection on the level of enjoyment. The wrestling isn’t good, the story continues to be stupid, and Lumis/Hartwell stopped being interesting a LONG time ago. I’m not sure what NXT sees in this going forward but it is far from good and they need to come up with something better for everyone else involved.

Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez aren’t worried about facing Toxic Attraction again tonight.

Gunther tells Marcel Barthel to not worry about Fabian Aichner because the NXT Title match is what matters tonight. Barthel doesn’t seem happy.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Toxic Attraction vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Toxic Attraction is challenging. Jayne tries to choke Gonzalez to start and Dolin makes a blind tag, only to have her crossbody pulled out of the air. Kai comes in for a double stomp and a dropkick gets two. Dolin gets in a cheap shot though and Jayne adds a clothesline so Kai can get caught in the wrong corner. A ducked right hand allows the hot tag to Gonzalez though and it’s time to clean house.

There’s a fall away slam to Jayne but she counters a Vader bomb into the Tree of Woe. Gonzalez’s bad knee is banged up again and we take a break. Back with Gonzalez sending Jayne to the floor so Kai can tag herself back in. The running kick to the face rocks Dolin and Kai does it again for two. Everything breaks down and some double teaming lets Dolin hit a running neckbreaker to drop Kai. Gonzalez gets kicked to the floor before Kai can kick out at two.

A Codebreaker into an STO gets the same and this time Gonzalez makes another save. The big boot drops Jayne but Gonzalez’s knee gives out and she can’t follow up. Gonzalez tries a powerslam but gets reversed into a flipping Stunner. Cue Wendy Choo but Mandy Rose follows her out and sends her into the steps. The Chingona Bomb is loaded up but Jayne breaks it up with a chop block. Kai gets kicked to the apron and it’s Toxic Shock to give us new champions at 10:29.

Rating: C+. This got going in the middle but I’m rather confused by the ending. Other than Gonzalez possibly going to the main roster, why bother giving them the titles if you are going to change them again three days later? What’s kind of amazing is that the three day reign is far longer than their original reign, which didn’t even last a day.

Joe Gacy and Harland talk about how chaos can control you while still mentioning family. This is going somewhere isn’t it?

AJ Galante is here to introduce Tony D’Angelo as the new Don of NXT. D’Angelo comes to the ring for some bragging and Galante has a special card with D’Angelo’s blood. If D’Angelo breaks the code, may he burn forever. Galante puts a ring on D’Angelo’s finger, some wine is consumed and that’s that. I think I get the BORING chants during the segment.

MSK is glad to get their titles back after five months and now it is time to defend them. Grayson Waller (with his arm in a sling) and Sanga come up for the challenge. Game on for next week.

Dakota Kai is mad and throws over a bunch of tables.

Nikkita Lyons vs. Lash Legend

This could be rough. They go with the power lockup to start until Lyons hits some elbows and a running clothesline. The kick misses in the corner though and Lyons bangs up her foot. A pump kick gives Legend two and we hit a chinlock with Legend’s knee in the back. Legend’s running flip splash gets two but she misses…I don’t think you can really call it a charge but she hits the corner and Lyons can power up. Lyons kicks away and powers her into the corner for a superplex and a near fall. Back up and Lyons hits another kick into the splits splash for the pin at 4:40.

Rating: D. Yeah what were you expecting here? Lyons is better than Legend but that’s not exactly an impressive feat. Legend just does not feel like she is ready to be out of the Performance Center but here she is on national TV. It’s hard to screw up a charge into the corner yet she managed to make it happen. Not a good match, and I don’t think that’s a surprise.

Tony D’Angelo and AJ Galante are leaving when they run into Legado del Fantasma. Santos Escobar says stay out of Legado’s business and they’ll be fine.

Kushida is ready for revenge on Von Wagner for Wagner attacking Ikemen Jiro and RIPPING UP HIS JACKET!

NXT Title: Bron Breakker vs. Gunther

Gunther is challenging. Feeling out process to start as Gunther thinks better of a test of strength. Gunther drives him up against the ropes for a shot, only to get headlock takeovered down. Back up and Breakker shrugs off a chop but can’t shrug off a big boot. Breakker gets to his feet and drives him into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs.

Some right hands and a spear drop Gunther but Breakker hurts his shoulder trying the gorilla press powerslam. Another chop puts the champ on the floor and the bad shoulder is sent into the steps. We take a break and come back with Gunther staying on the shoulder. Breakker escapes and grabs a German suplex, setting up the running clothesline for the double knockdown.

Gunther is right back on the arm though and puts on a keylock. Breakker slams his way to freedom and there’s an overhead belly to belly. Gunther cuts off a charge with a dropkick though and the powerbomb gets two. The top rope splash connects for the same and Gunther hits that hard clothesline for two more. With nothing else working, Gunther goes up top but gets speared out of the air. The gorilla press still doesn’t work so Gunther chops away, only to have Breakker punch right back. Gunther’s sleeper is escaped though and it’s a big clothesline into the gorilla press powerslam to retain the title at 13:07.

Rating: B. This came out of nowhere and yet they had a hard hitting power match with Breakker fighting through the injury and eventually overcoming Gunther. That being said, this is the kind of a match that should be built up a long time in advance. Maybe Gunther is main roster bound, but otherwise this is a very strange decision. One other note: the fact that Breakker has lost before makes another loss seems that much more possible. It helps with the drama and that is a great addition.

Post match Breakker celebrates but Rick Steiner pops up on screen to say he’s proud. It just so happens that he is tied up and in a cage, with Joe Gacy saying maybe they can teach the old dog some new tricks. If Gunther isn’t being called up now, this is a rather head scratch inducting choice.

Overall Rating: C. The main event helped a lot but egads there wasn’t much to get into on this show. They hit the ground running on this show, but it felt like they were trying to get a lot onto one card. The title change was a little weird and Legend doesn’t belong on TV. Throw in Lumis/Hartwell/Hudson/Pirotta continuing and there wasn’t much to like here outside of Breakker vs. Gunther. I’m curious to see how things go in the future, but it seems that there might be some roster changes coming sooner than later.

Results
Creed Brothers b. Imperium – Sliding lariat to Barthel
Dexter Lumis vs. Duke Hudson went to a double countout
Toxic Attraction b. Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai – Toxic Shock to Gonzalez
Nikkita Lyons b. Lash Legend – Splits splash
Bron Breakker b. Gunther – Gorilla press powerslam

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

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Dynamite
Date: April 6, 2022
Location: Agganis Arena, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, Excalibur

It’s pretty rare to have a lot of things going on when a company hasn’t had a major show, but that is the case this week. Ring of Honor’s Supercard of Honor event was basically AEW’s Wrestlemania weekend show and included the debut of Samoa Joe. He’ll be here tonight, and that means things could get a lot more interesting. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Adam Cole vs. Christian Cage

They stare at each other for a bit until Christian grabs a headlock to grind away a bit. Cole breaks that up and sends him into the corner to take over. Christian knocks him outside though and it’s a baseball slide out to the floor. That means some chops up against the barricade but Christian’s foot gets caught in the ropes, allowing Cole to take over again. A hard whip into the corner rocks Christian and we take a break.

Back with Christian knocking him to the floor again and diving over the top to….I think it connected but it was more grazing Cole’s hands/arms. Back in and Christian hits the pendulum kick in the corner, setting up the tornado DDT for two. Cole’s Backstabber out of the corner gets two more and the low superkick into the running knee (knee pad still up and to the face instead of the back of the head) is good for the same. The Boom is countered into a rollup for two, followed by Christian hitting a spear for two more. With nothing else working, Cole pokes him in the eye and hits the Boom for the pin at 14:50.

Rating: B-. This is where Christian can help a lot, as he has a reputation that means a win over him still means something and can make anyone look good. Cole gets a nice win and Christian has been a made man for a long time so it isn’t like he is hurt here. Good choice for an opener and the kind of win that gives Cole an actually important win.

Post match ReDDragon comes out for the beatdown but the Jurassic Express makes the save. Christian walks off to the side of the stage as the other four brawl (After rolling outside pretty fast after the pin. Hopefully nothing is wrong.). With everyone else gone, Hangman Page comes down to get in Cole’s face. Page issues the challenge for a Texas Death Match for the title next week on Rampage (not Dynamite), while telling him to get his affairs in order.

We look back at Jay Lethal challenging Jonathan Gresham for the World Title and beating him down, only for Samoa Joe to return and take out Lethal’s associate Sonjay Dutt.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Samoa Joe vs. Max Caster

Anthony Bowens is here with Caster, whose rap talks about how Samoa Joe is an overweight X-Division wrestler who was NXT Champion when Dynamite beat NXT in the ratings. Joe starts fast and hammers away in the corner, even throwing in a dance. Caster gets knocked to the floor for the suicide dive and it’s the MuscleBuster for the pin at 2:53. Total and complete destruction, as it should have been.

Post match Jay Lethal and Sonjay Dutt pop up on screen to say they aren’t scared of Joe. They had a change of heart last week and now it’s about doing what they want. The might not have needed one had Joe just answered his phone in the last four months. Joe clearly has a phone, but he’ll only answer calls from billionaires. It’s not too late to roll out the red carpet for Joe though, so next week Lethal promises him a present. Next week, Joe is getting a present that he’ll never forget. Dutt is quite the odd addition to this story. I know he and Lethal have history together but there was no one else to pair up with Lethal?

William Regal is happy with the Blackpool Combat Club, as Wheeler Yuta will face Jon Moxley on Friday. Regal feels sorry for Yuta, and Moxley promises violence.

Shawn Spears vs. Shawn Dean

MJF is on commentary as commentary points out that Dean has beaten him. Spears throws Dean over the top for a big crash, only to stop and point at the security posters for Wardlow. Back in and Spears hits a pumphandle driver onto the knee for two, with Spears pulling him up. We cut to the back where security has been taken out and the fans know what’s up. Now we see Wardlow beating up security and coming into the arena, where he beats up even more security. In the melee, Dean rolls Spears up for the pin at 3:48.

Rating: C-. The match was a squash with a fluke ending and that’s fine as a way to keep pushing Wardlow as a major threat to MJF. The destruction is coming and it is going to be awesome once we get there. Dean could have been anyone here but giving him a pair of wins over Dean and MJF is a nice bit of continuity.

Wardlow is very happy as security takes him out of the arena.

The Best Friends aren’t happy with Wheeler Yuta finding new friends. Chuck Taylor even bought him his tights and Yuta lives on his couch. Trent is less forgiving, calling him a scumbag before leaving.

Earlier tonight, Eddie Kingston/Santana/Ortiz beat down the Jericho Appreciation Society in the back. The Society bailed away in a car.

Here are Kingston/Santana/Ortiz in the arena for a chat. Eddie talks about how he’s coming for the Society and threatens to show up at Daniel Garcia’s door. Santana and Ortiz say they’ll be ready when Jericho stops running, say next week for example.

Here are Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling for a chat. Cargill introduces her Baddie Section, which is what she describes as a bunch of beautiful women with power. She’s ready for Marina Shafir to be her 30th victim.

MJF and Shawn Spears aren’t happy with Wardlow but MJF promises more security next week. As for Dean, he can face MJF next week, where he’ll get a Purple Heart for being injured worse than he ever could have been in the military.

Hardys vs. Butcher and the Blade

Tables match. It’s a brawl to start with Blade clotheslining Jeff down inside. Blade misses a charge through a table in the corner, which doesn’t count as it wasn’t an offensive move (as made clear by the pre-match announcement of the rules). Butcher and Matt come in, where Butcher can’t suplex Matt through a table. A double DDT drops Butcher but Blade breaks up what looked to be the Swanton through the table. That leaves Jeff to get suplexed/high crossbodied through a table for the elimination.

We take a break and come back with Matt chairing Butcher, setting up a top rope legdrop through the table for the elimination. That leaves Matt vs. Blade but Matt puts himself through a table off the apron. Butcher sticks around to help double team Matt, who is thrown over the barricade.

A double suplex brings him back over but Jeff has moved the table. What looks to be Poetry In Motion into a clothesline against the barricade doesn’t look great so Jeff makes up for it with the Twisting Stunner to Blade. Matt hits a Twist of Fate on the floor and the Hardys set up two tables underneath a ladder (you knew it was coming). The Swanton off the top drives Blade through the table to give the Hardys the win at 11:55.

Rating: C+. It was pretty good, though I’m trying to get my head around the Hardys being hyped up for their history in tables matches. The Hardys are certainly stars, but it doesn’t feel like they are a big deal at the moment. Maybe that’s FTR being on another level and the Hardys not being anywhere the title picture, but it feels like they’re still waiting to take off. They certainly can do that, though it hasn’t happened yet.

Post match here is Andrade, flanked by the AFO, but here is sting with the baseball bat to beat them down. The AFO didn’t do anything, so maybe Sting just broke up the presentation of a lovely bowling trophy.

Christian Cage is ticked off and walks away from Jurassic Express’ interview. The Express doesn’t think much of ReDDragon’s records but they can have a title shot next week anyway.

Thunder Rosa is ready for Nyla Rose at Championship Fight Night on April 16.

Jamie Hayter isn’t shaking Toni Storm’s hand because she wants to win the Owen Hart tournament.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Hikaru Shida vs. Julia Hart

Hart still has the eye patch and sends the Varsity Blonds to the back. Hart gets in a shot in the corner which has Shida mad as we take an early break. Back with Shida pounding away and hitting a running knee in the corner. Hart rakes the eyes to get off of Shida’s shoulders though and a splits bulldog gets two. What looked to be Twisted Bliss only has Hart’s knees hitting the mat though and Shida elbows her down. Shida hits a spinning knee though and the Falcon Arrow is good for the pin at 7:40.

Rating: D+. Yozwa this didn’t work very well, as they felt like they were on different pages at times. The moves weren’t connecting very well, they didn’t seem to be communicating and it was just awkward throughout. It’s rare to see a match go this badly in AEW but this was a pretty bad showing.

Post match Serena Deeb comes out for a kendo stick/chair showdown with Shida before bailing. This feud MUST CONTINUE you see.

Shane Strickland had a good time at the Grammys but here is Team Taz to jump him. Keith Lee makes the save and drives Powerhouse Hobbs through a wall.

AAA Tag Team Titles/Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles: FTR vs. Young Bucks

The Bucks are challenging. Harwood headlocks Matt down to start and it’s off to Dax to do the same to Nick. An armdrag into an armbar keeps Nick down but everyone comes in for the big staredown. We settle down to Dax taking Matt down with a headlock, setting up double Sharpshooters from FTR. Nick rakes the Wheeler’s eyes for the break and it’s Matt hitting a middle rope elbow on Wheeler.

The Bret Hart pose sets up the tag off to Nick and we take a break. Back with Wheeler suplexing his way out of trouble but Matt cuts off the tag attempt. Harwood Matt outside though and kicks his way over for the tag off to Harwood. House is cleaned with Harwood chopping away in the corner and getting two off a small package. Matt’s backslide (with Harwood’s shoulder not on the mat) gets two, as does Harwood’s piledriver. The PowerPlex is loaded up but Nick cuts off Wheeler with a super hurricanrana.

A dropkick/bulldog combination connects but Harwood brainbusters Nick on the floor. Wheeler Gory Bombs Matt for two but what looks like a low blow takes Wheeler down. The Big Rig gets two on Wheeler and More Bang For Your Buck connects for the same. Nick gets in a belt shot for two more on Wheeler but Harwood dives in for the save.

There’s a double superkick to Harwood and the BTE Trigger gets….a Dusty Finish, as Wheeler gets his foot on the ropes just before three, meaning the pin is called off. The Meltzer Driver is loaded up but Harwood makes the save, setting up a slingshot powerbomb to Matt. The Tombstone plants Matt and, after the double kiss, the Big Rig retains the titles at 20:00.

Rating: A. This is what you can get when you tone the Bucks down. Two superkicks, one or two flips. It was much, much better than their usual stuff and a high quality match instead of their usual junk food wrestling. The Bucks are very impressive athletes, but there are times where they want to remind you of that a bit too much. Have someone to keep them on more of a leash and you get an instant classic like this.

At the same time, FTR can do absolutely no wrong at the moment. They did this in NXT and they are doing it in AEW. These guys are just great and are becoming must see television. That isn’t something that has been the case in tag wrestling since probably Edge and Christian vs. the Hardys vs. the Dudleyz and that was 20+ years ago. Awesome stuff here and absolutely worth seeing.

Overall Rating: B+. The main event absolutely lifted this show up as, aside from maybe the opener, it wasn’t exactly great. This was the week where they moved things forward for later though and you can see a lot of what they are going for at the next Battle of the Belts. FTR is an amazing team at the moment though and that’s about all you need to remember from this show. Check out that main event for sure.

Results
Adam Cole b. Christian Cage – Boom
Samoa Joe b. Max Caster – MuscleBuster
Shawn Dean b. Shawn Spears – Rollup
Hardys b. Butcher and the Blade – Swanton Bomb through a table to Blade
Hikaru Shida b. Julia Hart – Falcon Arrow
FTR b. Young Bucks – Big Rig to Matt

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.

Stand & Deliver 2022
Date: April 2, 2022
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett

Somehow this is NXT’s first time on the road in over two years. It might not be Takeover, but it is one of NXT’s rare big shows and the card could look worse. NXT hasn’t had the chance to do something like this very often and at some point you need to just let them go out there and do their thing in front of a lot of people. Let’s get to it.

I was in attendance for this show, sitting in the lower level and facing the Titantron.

Kickoff Show: Women’s Tag Team Titles: Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Toxic Attraction

Toxic Attraction is defending and are in matching green/black gear. Jayne goes after Gonzalez’s injured knee to start but Gonzalez drops her throat first across the top. It’s off to Kai for a crucifix and a near fall on Dolin as the fast start continues. As Barrett tries to figure out how, Gonzalez adds a swinging neckbreaker so Kai can get two. Dolin gets in a cheap shot from behind to take over but Kai slides between her legs to make the tag.

House is cleaned and a big boot into the spinning Vader Bomb gets two. Kai and Jayne kick each other down and we get the loud NXT chant. Toxic Shock (high/low) gets two on Kai, which seems to be a big deal (though I’m not sure I remember the team using it before). Cue Wendy Choo to throw her drink in Dolin’s face, allowing Gonzalez to add a big boot. Back inside, Kai’s scorpion kick sets up the Chingona Bomb for the pin and the titles at 7:57.

Rating: C. The title change was what mattered here but the bad part was how scripted everything felt. It came off like everything here was timed and staged all the way through and that isn’t a good thing. The match wasn’t supposed to be a classic or anything, but they got the important part right.

The opening video features a lot of the people on the show talking about how they are standing to deliver on their promises. I’ve heard worse ideas.

North American Title: Santos Escobar vs. Solo Sikoa vs. Cameron Grimes vs. Grayson Waller vs. Carmelo Hayes

Hayes is defending in a ladder match (because of course) and Sanga, the rest of Legado de Fantasma and Trick Williams are all here too. Only Hayes and Grimes get entrances in what I’m sure won’t mean a thing. Hayes talks trash to everyone else and gets beaten down until we settle to Grimes hitting a running kick to Escobar in the corner. Williams’ interference is cut off so we’re down to Escobar vs. Hayes for a change.

Grimes breaks that up though and takes turns beating on Hayes with Sikoa. It’s time for the first ladders to be brought in, with Escobar dropkicking one into Grimes. Waller sends Sanga to get the big ladder so Sikoa dives onto Sanga, earning a dive from Escobar. Grimes and Hayes hit dives of their own, leaving Waller to climb up to little avail. Back in and Sikoa crushes Waller with a ladder in the corner but Escobar crushes Hayes in front of Waller, making a bit of a sandwich.

Sikoa adds the running Umaga attack to crush everyone, which doesn’t seem that smart given the BIG LADDERS that he’s crashing into. Grimes cuts Sikoa off and avoids a superkick, leaving Sikoa’s leg tied in the ladder. Hayes is back up with a superkick to drive the ladder into Grimes but gets caught in Waller’s fireman’s carry. That’s fine with Hayes, who jumps onto the ladder and kicks Waller down. It’s Sikoa making a save but Escobar goes up top to slug it out on the ladder.

That means a sunset bomb to drive Sikoa into the ladder in the corner, because that’s the kind of crash you need to see. Grimes’ flipping powerslam plants Escobar…so Williams loads up a ladder of his own. Sanga comes in and chops the braces in half, leaving Wilde and Mendoza to grab a piece of the ladder each. Lopez hits a big dive off the top and it’s time to bridge some ladders between the ring and the barricade.

Sikoa tries a double Samoan drop on Wilde and Mendoza but just falls forward instead. Williams is back in and tries his own climb, which opens up a whole new bag of weird rules. That’s broken up as Grimes tilts the ladder over and out onto the pile on the floor for the big crash. Waller, Escobar and Grimes slug it out on top of the ladder until Waller is left alone, only to have Escobar make the save.

Another big knockdown leaves Sikoa to go up with Grimes making the save this time. In your “well that was dumb” moment of the match, Waller goes up on a ladder on the floor but elbows the bridged ladder only as Williams pulls Hayes out of the way. The crash leaves Waller laying, allowing Waller to go up and pull down the title for the win at 21:06.

Rating: B. This was the latest big match with everyone flying around and little more than one stunt after another. Some of the sports were good, but there is only so much you can get out of having five people (plus seconds) going nuts for twenty minutes. It was certainly fun and hopefully Waller is ok, but this was just another entry on a long list of ladder matches over the years.

Tommaso Ciampa talks about the long road he took to get here and everyone has helped him survive. Things like winning a title are great but having his wife suffer five miscarriages was a lot, though his daughter helps a lot. Together they made black and gold, so let’s do it one more time. He turns his chair around, showing the dates of the beginning and end of his NXT career.

Tony D’Angelo vs. Tommaso Ciampa

D’Angelo comes to the ring in a car with real like mobster AJ Galante (from a Netflix series). Ciampa one ups him though with a pretty cool highlight package of his career, which is one of the best in NXT history. In his own nice tribute, Ciampa fist bumps commentary, spits water like HHH and poses like Shawn Michaels because he knows who helped get him here.

Ciampa starts fast with a spinebuster but D’Angelo knocks him down and stomps away. That’s not going to work for Ciampa, who takes him outside and sends him into the barricade, setting up Ciampa’s apron applause. The floor mat is pulled back but D’Angelo is able to stomp away back inside as Ciampa takes too long. The chinlock goes on, prompting the fans to ask about the location of their pizza.

Ciampa fights up but misses the running knee, allowing D’Angelo to hit a Falcon Arrow. The Fairy Tale Ending is broken up so D’Angelo grabs a rollup (with trunks) for two more. Back up and Ciampa chops D’Angelo out of his singlet and then dropkicks him out of the air for a bonus. They slug it out with Ciampa getting the better of things so D’Angelo whips out the crowbar.

With that taken away, D’Angelo hits him low for two. Ciampa is back with Willow’s Bell into the Fairy Tale Ending for two so here’s the Gargano Escape (no name mentioned of course). D’Angelo makes the rope so they head outside, where D’Angelo hits a DDT onto the exposed concrete. Back in and D’Angelo kicks him in the head for the pin at 13:10.

Rating: C+. This was a weird one as while it made more sense to have D’Angelo go over, it was still hard to see Ciampa losing on his way out of NXT. It also doesn’t feel exactly right for D’Angelo to get the big win over Ciampa, but the farewell did feel like a special moment. It helps that the match was good, though I’m not sure how far D’Angelo is going without getting a bit more serious.

Post match Ciampa gets the big sendoff….and here’s HHH for the surprise appearance, his first on TV since his heart issue. HHH hugs Ciampa and says something to him, leaving Ciampa to get the moment. Granted it’s with HHH’s music and Titantron, but it is a moment.

Chase University is here.

Tag Team Titles: MSK vs. Creed Brothers vs. Imperium

Imperium is defending. Lee kicks Barthel into the corner to start and it’s Carter coming in to fire off his own kicks. Aichner comes in as well though and runs MSK over but Brutus comes in to run Aichner over as well. Carter gets Pounced against the ropes and the Creeds start throwing their suplexes.

MSK finally gets it together and kicks Brutus down before a combination stomp the chest gets two on Barthel. That doesn’t last long as Barthel is back up with a middle rope elbow, meaning Carter needs to be saved as well. Everyone but Lee gets sent outside so Lee hits the big dive, followed by a Spiral Tap for two back inside.

MSK gets creative by double superplexing Julius onto Imperium to send them outside. Brutus is fine enough to come off the top with a cannonball to Imperium but gets sent into the steps. Barthel tries to come back in but Lee hurricanranas him into a sitout powerbomb from Carter to give MSK the titles back at 11:32.

Rating: B-. It was a fun match and they had a bunch of big spots, but there is only so much that you can get out of another match with all those people running around. What we got here was good and MSK getting the titles back is a way to go, but the Creed Brothers are going to get the titles sooner rather than later.

Nikkita Lyons loves music and knocking people out. She’s a whole lotta woman ready to do a whole lotta whoopin.

Cameron Grimes is in tears over his win, which honors his father.

Joe Gacy and Harland are in Daley Plaza, where Gacy talks about how the Kennedy assassination brought people together. Gacy wants to bring people together and hopes they do so willingly rather than having to result to violence.

We look at the Women’s Tag Team Titles changing hands on the Kickoff Show.

We recap the Women’s Title match. Mandy Rose is the champion and the star, Cora Jade is the underdog who has always wanted to be champion and Kay Lee Ray/Io Shirai are two of the best in the world and want another title reign.

Women’s Title: Cora Jade vs. Io Shirai vs. Kay Lee Ray vs. Mandy Rose

Rose is defending (with a redesigned title) in our third multi-challenger match in less than two hours. Jade comes out with a fleet of skateboarders, but Rose tops her by descending down like an angel (or Shawn Michaels in 2009). Everyone goes after Rose to start (just like Carmelo Hayes in the opener) and the champ gets kicked out to the floor. Shirai and Ray go after Jade, who gets pulled outside, setting up the double suicide dives.

Back in and we get the Shirai vs. Ray showdown, with Shirai having to roll her way out of the KLR Bomb. Rose pulls Shirai to the floor and gets to pound on Jade, including a suplex for two. Jade low bridges Rose to the floor and it’s Ray hitting a big dive. Shirai adds a moonsault to the floor before taking Ray back inside for a stomp. A missile dropkick gets two on Ray with Rose making a save. Everyone gets back inside, with Ray grabbing a Koji Clutch on Rose and Shirai putting Jade in a Texas Cloverleaf at the same time (with Shirai falling backwards to crank Jade’s back very hard by mistake).

Both holds are broken up and Jade hits a running springboard stomp to Rose’s back. Shirai 619s Jade to the floor and adds a missile dropkick to Rose. A German suplex gives Shirai two and a super C4 to Rose gets the same, with Jade diving in off the top for the save. Sliced Bread gives Jade two on Rose but Shirai knocks Jade down. The Moon Over Moonsault hits Jade but Rose hits a running knee to pin Shirai and retain the title at 13:28.

Rating: C+. The more I think about this, the more I like Rose retaining the title. She isn’t a top of the world worker, but that isn’t what they’re going for with her. Instead, this is more about Rose driving everyone crazy and holding onto the title while still being a good enough worker. The other three put in most of the work, but Rose is the right choice to retain here and is turning into a nice long term evil champion.

We recap Dexter Lumis/Indi Hartwell vs. Persia Pirotta/Duke Hudson in a showdown over who can be the best dressed. After a montage of the guys getting clothes from a western store, Lumis/Hartwell win a fan vote 89% to 11%. This was as dumb as you would expect.

Gunther vs. LA Knight

Gunther doesn’t like Knight running his mouth so much so they’re going to fight about it. They fight over a lockup to start until Knight wins a slugout and takes him to the floor. That goes better for Gunther, who hits an apron powerbomb and poses inside. The chinlock keeps Knight in trouble but he avoids a corner clothesline and hits a jumping neckbreaker.

Gunther knocks him down again though and the Boston crab goes on. Make that an STF as Gunther is smothering him so far. Knight manages a suplex for a breather, setting up the slingshot shoulder. Some stomping away in the corner sets up a slam into the jumping elbow and the running superplex gets two on Gunther. Back up and the big chop is blocked, setting up Gunther’s sleeper. That’s reversed into a Burning Hammer for two but Gunther catches him on top. A clothesline knocks Knight off the top and it’s the big splash to crush him. The powerbomb gives Gunther the pin at 10:27.

Rating: C+. It wasn’t a classic and there wasn’t much drama to it, but Knight was good enough to make Gunther break a bit of a sweat. Gunther is on his way to something a lot bigger in NXT and beating Knight can get him closer to the title picture. I don’t think there was any real doubt about the winner, but it was a good way to get Gunther on the card.

We recap Bron Breakker vs. Dolph Ziggler for Ziggler’s NXT Title. Ziggler came down to NXT and took the title from Breakker while bragging about all of his star power. Now Breakker wants to take the title back for the REAL NXT.

NXT Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Bron Breakker

Ziggler is defending and has Robert Roode in his corner. Breakker goes after Roode to start and then jumps Ziggler, only to get cheapshotted down. The spinebuster/belly to belly plants Ziggler though and there’s the overhead belly to belly. The spear is loaded up but Roode grabs Breakker’s leg, setting up the big ejection (allowing Ziggler to pull off a turnbuckle pad behind the referee’s back).

Breakker is fine enough to hit a belly to back suplex, only to get crotched on top. Ziggler puts on the chinlock and a jumping elbow sets up chinlock, the sequel. Back up and Breakker fights out but gets caught on top. That means a chinlock with a bodyscissors, including Ziggler flipping over in a spot he hasn’t used in a long time. Breakker fights up again and fires off the series of shoulders. The super hurricanrana gets two and a big spear gets the same with Breakker looking frustrated by the kickout.

Ziggler knees him down but the superkick is countered into a suplex. The gorilla press powerslam connects…but Roode is back to pull Ziggler out. Breakker hits a running flip dive to the floor (with his foot getting caught on the top, thankfully not leading to a big crash) but Breakker comes back in with the Fameasser and Zig Zag for two of his own. The top rope elbow gets two more on Breakker, who hits another spear. The gorilla press powerslam is loaded up, only to have Ziggler rake the eyes. Breakker gets sent into the buckle and a superkick retains the title at 16:12.

Rating: B-. Well ok. This seemed to be the biggest layup of the weekend but they went in another direction. Breakker didn’t lose clean, but it’s weird to see him losing in any way at this point. Ziggler retaining is certainly a way to go and he has done some good things as champion, but I’m not sure if this was the right move.

Overall Rating: B. This isn’t a Takeover and isn’t close to being one, but it was the kind of show that made me want to see more from NXT and that is a great thing to see. NXT has taken some long steps forward and I’m liking it a lot more than was just a few months ago. At some point you have to go out there and get in front of some people and that is what they did here. The fact that they delivered made it even better.

Results
Cameron Grimes b. Carmelo Hayes, Grayson Waller, Santos Escobar and Solo Sikoa – Grimes pulled down the title
Tony D’Angelo b. Tommaso Ciampa – Fisherman’s neckbreaker
MSK b. Creed Brothers and Imperium – Hurricanrana/powerbomb combination to Barthel
Mandy Rose b. Io Shirai, Kay Lee Ray and Cora Jade – Running knee to Shirai
Gunther b. LA Knight – Powerbomb
Dolph Ziggler b. Bron Breakker – Superkick

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.

Finally back home and things should be normal going forward.

Backstage News On The Reason For A Strange WrestleMania Surprise.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/backstage-news-reason-strange-wrestlemania-surprise/

Big Match And Special Speech Take Place After Monday Night Raw.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/big-match-special-speech-take-place-monday-night-raw/

Long Awaited Return Takes Place On Monday Night Raw.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/long-awaited-return-takes-place-monday-night-raw-2/

Two Surprising Names Possibly Joining Edge’s New Stable.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/two-surprising-names-possibly-joining-edges-new-stable/

AEW Star Receives Very Special And Unique Honor.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/aew-star-receives-special-unique-honor/

WATCH: WWE Hall Of Famer Involved In Angle On NXT.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-wwe-hall-famer-involved-angle-nxt/

How WWE’s WrestleMania Plans Would Have Looked Without Ronda Rousey.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/wwes-wrestlemania-plans-looked-without-ronda-rousey/

Turnaround: Surprise Title Change Takes Place On NXT.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/turnaround-surprise-title-change-takes-place-nxt/

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

So I’ve been stuck in Houston for about nine hours and won’t be getting back to Louisville until around 11:15 local time, followed by about an hour and fifteen minute drive back to the house.  Since I’m on about 90 minutes sleep, odds are NXT won’t be up tonight.  I apologize in advance in a hope to avoid further emails saying:

Wrestlemania is over. Get up off yo lazy a** and get back to work!!!!

For clarification, I believe that was due to me not answering a question in less than six hours.  And yeah it’s probably petty to mention this but it’s been a long day.

I’ve got most of Stand & Deliver up and then I’ll start plowing through the pile again tomorrow.

Thank you again for your patience with me.

KB

I’m flying home today and regular reviews will be back starting with NXT tonight.  Then I can start the pile of Wrestlemania weekend shows/other shows I’ve missed in recent weeks.  Thank you again for your patience.

Make sure you check out some recent reviews.

Wrestlemania XXXVIII Night One

Wrestlemania XXXVIII Night Two

Ouch: Top AEW Star Dealing With Injury.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/ouch-top-aew-star-dealing-injury/

LOOK: Another Special WrestleMania Entrance Was Cut From The Show.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/look-another-special-wrestlemania-entrance-cut-show/

Something Happened At WrestleMania That Has Never Happened Before.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/something-happened-wrestlemania-never-happened/

Multiple Titles Change Hands At WrestleMania 38 Night Two.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/multiple-titles-change-hands-wrestlemania-38-night-two/

New WWE Stable Seems To Begin At WrestleMania 38 Night Two.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/new-wwe-stable-seems-begin-wrestlemania-38-night-two/

Vince McMahon Has A Match At WrestleMania 38 And Then Things Go Bad.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/vince-mcmahon-match-wrestlemania-38-things-go-bad/

WATCH: A Special Look Back At Triple H’s Career.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-special-look-back-triple-hs-career/

WRESTLING RUMORS: Roman Reigns Possibly Injured At WrestleMania 38.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/wrestling-rumors-roman-reigns-possibly-injured-wrestlemania-38/

Update On Confusing Injury At WrestleMania 38.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/update-odd-injury-wrestlemania-38/

Another Backstage Name Leaves WWE After WrestleMania.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/another-backstage-name-leaves-wwe-wrestlemania/

NBCUniversal Developing A New Scripted Wrestling Series.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/nbcuniversal-developing-new-scripted-wrestling-series/

WWE Star Returns On Monday Night Raw…..Kind Of.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/monday-night-raw-star-returns-kind/

Title Changes Hands For The First Time Ever On Monday Night Raw.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/title-changes-hands-first-time-ever-monday-night-raw/

Two WWE Teams Violently Split Up On Monday Night Raw.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/two-teams-violently-split-monday-night-raw/

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

Wrestlemania XXXVIII Night Two
Date: April 3, 2022
Location: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Attendance: 78,453
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves, Jimmy Smith
America The Beautiful: Jesse James Decker

We’re back for night two and that means the other half of the card gets their chance (plus one match from the original night because of timing issues). The main event is the latest biggest match ever as Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar have their unification match to make one World Title for all of…eh maybe they make it to Summerslam. Let’s get to it.

Here is Night One if you need a recap.

Note that I was in attendance for this show, sitting in the third level off the floor in the end zone corner with the stage on my right.

Jesse Jane Decker sings America the Beautiful.

We get a recap from last night.

Mark Wahlberg narrates the opening video, but unlike last year it’s a fresh one for the second night. Wahlberg talks about how it is tough to do it again so we’re running Wrestlemania back. He hypes up the main event to wrap it up. Again, just having a star do this makes it feel more important.

Here is HHH for a surprise appearance to get things going. After taking a long time to soak it all in (fair) and hugging his daughters in the front row (also fair), he puts his boots in the middle of the ring to confirm his. He does have one thing for us though: WELCOME TO WRESTLEMANIA! More daughter hugging ensues.

Gable Steveson is presented to the crowd. Again.

Raw Tag Team Titles: RKBro vs. Alpha Academy vs. Street Profits

RKBro is defending and these teams have been fighting back and forth for weeks. The champs also have what sounds like a mash up of their themes and that isn’t the best idea. Ford, Riddle and Gable start things off, with the latter giving us some SHUSHING. That doesn’t go well for Riddle, who knocks Gable outside and rolls Ford up for an early two. Ford is back with a running clothesline to drop Riddle but Gable is back in to go after Ford as well.

Everything breaks down and Otis clears the ring without much trouble. The six way staredown leads to three brawls at once but quickly settles down to Ford vs. Gable. That works for Ford, who hits a HUGE running flip dive over the top onto the pile. Gable adds a moonsault onto the same pile and everyone is down on the floor. Back in and Otis runs Riddle over before hitting a splash for no cover, which doesn’t seem to be the best idea. Instead Otis knocks Riddle into the corner and brings Gable back in for two off a northern lights suplex.

Ford comes in with a dropkick to Gable, who monkey flips him over and onto Ford’s own face for two. It’s off to Dawkins to clean house and cover Riddle for two, with Otis hitting a splash to break it up. Riddle knees his way out of an ankle lock and gives Dawkins a Bro To Sleep (that’ll get some reactions), allowing the hot tag off to Orton. Everything breaks down and Orton drops Gable and Dawkins onto the announcers’ table.

Back in and RKBro hits stereo hanging DDTs onto the Profits but the Academy makes stereo saves. The Academy hits a Steiner Bulldog for two on Ford but Otis’ Vader Bomb is broken up. The Profits get Gable up for a Doomsday Blockbuster and another near fall as the fans declare this awesome. Orton can’t RKO Dawkins, who gives him the Sky High. Ford goes up for the frog splash but Riddle springboards in with the RKO to pull him back down. Orton pulls Gable out of the air with another RKO for the pin to retain the titles at 11:30.

Rating: B-. This was a great choice for an opener as the fans love RKBro and the action made it a very entertaining match. It also didn’t overstay its welcome and got out after getting its stuff in. RKBro retaining works here, but that split is coming and it is going to be a heck of a hot feud if they do it right.

Post match the Profits offer RKBro some yum yum juice, but hold on as Gable Steveson is invited in too. Chad doesn’t like that and cuts them off, slapping the cup from Steveson’s hand. That’s too far for everyone else, so Chad is left alone with Steveson. The belly to belly suplex sends Chad flying and drinking ensues. Steveson had to start somewhere.

Remember last night? It happened.

Omos vs. Bobby Lashley

Omos issued a challenge and Lashley accepted it. Lashley’s kick to the ribs is easily blocked and Omos forearms him down without much trouble. Lashley fights back and tries a suplex, which doesn’t work either. A head vice is broken up so Omos forearms Lashley down again. Some running splashes in the corner connect but Omos misses another one, allowing Lashley to try a failed Hurt Lock attempt.

Omos gives him a gorilla press drop and tells Lashley to get up so the bearhug can go on. A drive into the corner sets up another bearhug but Lashley slugs his way out. More slugging sets up a suplex to drop Omos and a spear to the back does it again. The regular spear finishes for Lashley at 6:32.

Rating: D+. I’m sorry what now? You build Omos up as this unstoppable force and then just have him lose clean in a six and a half minute match? Lashley getting a big win is nice to see and he’s probably in the title picture already, but Omos losing is going to take away just about everything he had. He’ll be around, probably as a bodyguard again, but if they want him as a singles guy (which they might not), this was bizarre. It wasn’t a very good match either, as Omos did a bunch of basic power guy stuff which is hardly interesting.

WWE does charity stuff.

We recap Johnny Knoxville vs. Sami Zayn. Knoxville decided he wanted to wrestle but Zayn didn’t like it. This set off a way of pranks/general annoyances, including Zayn eliminating Knoxville from the Royal Rumble and Knoxville putting Zayn’s phone number on a banner in Los Angeles. A match must ensue.

Johnny Knoxville vs. Sami Zayn

Anything goes and some of Knoxville’s Jackass friends are in the front row (popular place to be tonight). Zayn wastes no time in hitting the Helluva Kick and knocking Knoxville to the floor where more stomping can ensue. That isn’t enough as Zayn goes after the Jackass crew, allowing Knoxville to spray him with a fire extinguisher. Knoxville busts out some of the weapons but Zayn hits him in the back with the cookie sheet.

A crutch shot does it again and Zayn throws a trashcan at him for two, allowing commentary to get in some Sanford And Sons references. It’s table time…but this one has mousetraps all over it, because of course it does. That takes too long though and Knoxville is back with some trashcan lids to the head. A regular table is loaded up in the corner but Zayn suplexes him through it for two.

The Helluva Kick is cut off by a blast from an air horn, allowing….some other Jackass guy (Party Boy Pawnius?) to come in and take his clothes off. Zayn knocks him outside and kicks him underneath the ring, only to have Wee Man (he’s small) come out and beat Zayn up. Wee Man kicks away at Zayn and hits a slam, setting up a tornado DDT from Knoxville for two. It’s time to bring out something that appears to be a way to launch a boot for automatic low blows, meaning Zayn fights out to break it up.

Zayn goes up but Knoxville pulls out a remote to make pyro go out, causing Zayn to crotch himself. Knoxville grabs a bowling ball to crush Zayn low in the corner and now its taser time. Zayn runs…right into a giant hand which slaps him down. That’s too much for Zayn as he drops Knoxville and goes up, only to get crotched and thrown through the mousetrap table. Back in and Knoxville busts out….a giant mousetrap. Zayn is tased onto it and, after some effort, Knoxville gets it to go off and crush Zayn for the pin at 14:25 (ignore Zayn’s shoulders being on the trap rather than the mat).

Rating: C+. This is going to be a weird one. You know what this felt like? Home Alone as a wrestling match. Zayn was trying to do something but Knoxville busted out so many elaborate traps and pranks (read as violence) to stop him at every turn. Of course Knoxville’s friends were here as they should have been in a situation like this, but it’s much more a big stunt show than a match.

It’s also a good case of something not being for me but having an impact. The stadium was ROCKING during this match and the energy was very high. I don’t watch Jackass and the concept is REALLY not something I care for but the reaction was there and that is why these guys were brought in. Whether it made business sense is hard to tell, but a lot of the fans loved this and that is enough to carry it beyond….whatever it was.

Remember Drew McIntyre beating Happy Corbin and cutting the ropes up with his sword? It happened last night.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Naomi/Sasha Banks vs. Liv Morgan/Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya/Shayna Baszler vs. Carmella/Queen Zelina

Carmella/Zelina are defending and Naomi/Banks come out in a VERY expensive looking car. Ripley/Morgan have a Batman or Catwoman theme going to at least have something in common. Corey wastes no time in praising Carmella, who is in part of a wedding dress for her entrance gear.

Carmella masks up so Ripley wants to face her. That brings Carmella in but she hands it off to Banks, who actually tries a test of strength with Ripley. With that not working, Banks tries a Backstabber, which falls apart too. Everything breaks down and some dives leave us with Banks vs. Morgan. A Codebreaker staggers Banks and Oblivion drops her but Natalya tags herself in for a save. Baszler comes in to stomp on Morgan’s ankle until an enziguri breaks it up.

Carmella tags herself in as well and everything breaks down and it’s time for the parade of finishers. Ripley’s superbomb is countered into a hurricanrana from Carmella and we get stereo Towers of Doom out of the corners, leaving everyone down again. Back up and Morgan knocks Naomi into Riptide for two with a save being made.

Baszler’s running knee to Naomi’s face gets two with Morgan making the save this time. Carmella superkicks Baszler and Naomi for two each, meaning screaming ensues. Back up and Naomi kicks Carmella in the face, setting up Banks’ frog splash for two. Banks hits a Meteora to drop Zelina on the floor and Naomi elevates Carmella for a Codebreaker from Banks for the pin and the titles at 10:48.

Rating: D+. This was all over the place and as usual, there is no reason to care about these teams. They were thrown together and given next to no story other than “we want the titles too”. I was having trouble remembering who was on what team as they might as well have drawn names from a hat. In other words, it’s a WWE Women’s Tag Team Title match.

Remember Miz and Logan Paul beating the Mysterios and then splitting up after? It happened last night.

Some Dallas Cowboys are here to a mixed reaction.

We recap Edge vs. AJ Styles. Edge wanted someone to step up so Styles did, with Edge saying he wanted the bulldog version of Styles. Then Edge went nuts and beat down Styles with a Conchairto, putting Styles out of action for a few weeks. Now Styles is back for revenge.

AJ Styles vs. Edge

Styles comes to the ring with a pretty nasty cut on the side of his face that has commentary (and me) confused. Edge appears on an elevated throne sitting on a slightly burning platform, which is at least a cool visual (though I thought it was a statue in the stadium). Styles backs him into the corner to start and then does it again for a bonus. The drop down into the dropkick sets up some armdrags to put Edge in trouble and some kicks to the leg make it worse.

We settle down a bit with some staring before Edge gets sent to the floor. That lets Styles hit a sliding knee but the springboard 450 only hits knees back inside. Edge starts going after the ribs as the pace slows down a lot. The abdominal stretch is broken up but Edge takes him down with a shoulder breaker to change up the pace. Styles hits a right hand but seems to have to stop and pop his shoulder back in. A suplex sends Edge hard into the corner and they’re both down again.

Edge grabs a double arm crank but has to avoid the Styles Clash. That works out well enough for him though as it’s off to an STF to put Styles in more trouble, though he’s straight over to the rope. A slingshot DDT plants Edge for two, though he’s fine enough to catch Styles on top. Styles slips out and gets a torture rack, which he swings over into a powerbomb for two more. Back up and Styles snaps off a German suplex and they’re both down again.

Styles wins the slugout and adds a Pele kick, setting up the Calf Crusher. Edge reverses that into the Crossface so Styles gets to the ropes again. A slingshot Batista Bomb gives Edge two so they both go up top. This time Styles superplexes him down onto the apron, because WE MUST HAVE AN APRON SPOT.

Now the springboard 450 connects on Edge’s back for a delayed two and they need a breather. Back up and Edge misses the spear, setting up the Styles Clash for two more. With nothing else working, the Phenomenal Forearm is loaded up….and here is Damian Priest for a distraction. Styles tries the Forearm but gets speared out of the air to give Edge the pin at 24:32.

Rating: B-. The action was good, but there were so many delays between that action that it was hard to build anything up. It felt like a main event level match and Styles was hardly crushed, but the Saturday version was much better with Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes doing a similar match. This was by no means bad, but it needed to be about eight minutes shorter to cut out a lot of the down time between moves.

Post match Edge and Priest stare at each other, pose and then leave together.

Tonight’s attendance is 78,453, though the announcer says 77,453. Get it together people.

Sheamus/Ridge Holland vs. New Day

Butch is here with the villains. We see the Big E. injury during the entrances, which isn’t something that should be aired that often (by which I mean ever). In a great touch, New Day wears Big E. style singlets, even in the colors Big E. was wearing when he won the WWE Title. Sheamus and Holland jump them during the entrances and rip off the coats, leaving Butch to throw them around.

Trouble in Paradise hits Holland for two at the bell but Sheamus makes the save. Sheamus has to keep Butch from going nuts though, leaving Woods to drop Holland. The Brogue Kick drops Kingston and Butch distracts the referee so Sheamus can Brogue Woods as well. Holland’s Northern Grit finishes woods at 1:39. So Holland (unintentionally) injures Big E. and then gets the pin here, as Butch is now some near feral boy? Right.

Post match Butch has to be pulled off of Woods again, because Pete Dunne is now a crazy man who needs supervision.

Remember when Cody Rhodes returned and beat Seth Rollins? It happened last night.

We honor the Hall of Fame inductees again…including the Undertaker coming out to wave to the crowd. This is the same thing he did last night and here it is again. On a show that is going to be about eight hours combined over two nights, this gets five minutes.

You can bet on the main event!

You can buy Undertaker gear!

You can watch Yellowstone on Peacock!

Long recap of Pat McAfee vs. Austin Theory, which was set up when Vince McMahon told McAfee he could have a match. Then Theory started messing with McAfee, who got serious. For some reason, this required Theory to beat both the United States and Intercontinental Champion but show no interest in winning either title. We do get some very cool clips of McAfee training before he came to WWE, just because he wanted to. That’s some serious dedication, and a Rip Rogers cameo always helps.

Austin Theory vs. Pat McAfee

Vince McMahon comes out to introduce Theory, his new….protege? I guess? McAfee on the other hand gets an introduction from the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders and even punts a football into the crowd during his entrance. McAfee punches him down to start but Theory comes out of the corner with a shot to the throat. A jumping elbow out of the corner and a hurricanrana get McAfee out of trouble as Vince isn’t pleased at ringside.

Theory is back with a snap suplex and then he does it again for a bonus. The third attempt is blocked though and McAfee hits one of his own. They go outside where McAfee does the Rock’s commentary on his own match bit, including a mention of his parents. Back in and McAfee takes WAY too long setting up a Swanton and crashes down hard.

Theory goes up top but McAfee cuts him off and tries a superplex. That’s broken up so McAfee backflips off the top and lands on his feet, only to jump back to the top for the superplex (dang) and a near fall as Cole is WAY behind McAfee here. The Punt misses though and Theory knocks him down again. Theory loads up the ATL…and gets reversed into a rollup to give McAfee the pin at 9:37.

Rating: C+. That’s on quite the sliding scale as McAfee is in his third WWE match and hasn’t been in the ring in well over a year. I know Theory is going to be fine and it’s a special situation, but this doesn’t exactly make him pinning Finn Balor and Ricochet look very worthwhile. Again though, the fans were WAY into this and that’s all that matters in this case. Not a great match, but McAfee has put in the work and looked competent out there.

Post match Vince glares at Theory and looks up at McAfee….who challenges McMahon for a fight right now. Vince takes off the jacket and shirt, revealing his signature wrestling look (which matches McAfee). Cole is panicking as Vince gets in the ring but then gets even worse when a referee shows up.

Vince McMahon vs. Pat McAfee

Austin Theory jumps McAfee from behind to start so McMahon hits some clotheslines. McAfee gets fired up though and stares at Vince…until Austin pulls him down and crotches him against the post. Theory isn’t done though as he throws Vince a football. Vince teases punting it into the crowd before punting it into McAfee’s ribs (that didn’t really work, though I don’t think it was supposed to be anything more than a final insult) for the pin at 3:42.

Rating: D+. This was barely a match (Vince wasn’t touched) and I thought about not even rating it. McAfee gets cheated out of the win but much like last night in the main event, the point of this is having him in the same ring as a legend like McMahon. This is probably going to be (and should be) Vince’s last match ever so there is definitely some awesome historical significance, but it was just Vince hitting some clotheslines and taunting. That being said, WHY DID THEY NOT ANNOUNCE THIS IN ADVANCE??? At least Austin made it clear that a fight was coming, but Vince wasn’t even listed in Theory’s corner.

Post match Theory gets to pose and we have the big hug. Theory’s music starts and Vince panics, which is a warmup for CUE GLASS SHATTER as Steve Austin is here (as you might have guessed). Theory goes after him and gets punched into the corner to set up the Stunner. That leaves Austin alone with Vince, meaning it’s time to get scared. Beer is offered though and Vince accepts, despite looking terrified.

They drink together until Austin tries the Stunner, which goes horribly, horribly wrong. Vince basically falls down and then into the ropes, bounces back, and then goes down first, leaving Austin to land on Vince’s legs. Look this up, as it was so bad that I was unable to speak from laughter. Austin has some beers with McAfee, who gets Stunned as well. The big beer bash is on, with McAfee being shown sneaking in a drink while down on the floor. This was one more farewell for Austin, though it’s a good thing the timekeeper had that much beer around.

Remember when Bianca Belair beat Becky Lynch to win the Raw Women’s Title in a pretty great match? It happened last night.

Wrestlemania XXXIX is in Los Angeles.

We recap Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar in the World Title unification match. They have been fighting for months (this time, as it’s really more like years) and now it is decided that there can only be one World Champion. Reigns and the Usos laid Lesnar out in Madison Square Garden to make this even more serious/personal. What better place than right here?

Universal Title/WWE Title: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Winner take all and Reigns has Paul Heyman with him for a very long entrance. Reigns also gets to tell Wrestlemania to acknowledge him so we can get in another catchphrase before we actually start. Hold on again as we need Big Match intros, with Heyman and Lesnar taking care of the work.

Lesnar hammers away to start and drives Reigns into the corner for some shoulders to ribs. Three overhead belly to belly suplexes have Reigns in more trouble and they head outside. That means Heyman has to panic (Heyman: “I love you! It was all Reigns’ idea!”), which is enough of a distraction for Reigns to sear Lent through the barricade (as tends to happen a lot). Back in and Reigns hits the spear for two, followed by the Superman Punch.

That’s too far for Lesnar, who starts rolling the released German suplexes. Lesnar is holding his ribs, but keeps coming back because this is serious. Another German suplex is countered into another Superman Punch and Lesnar is rocked again. Reigns tries another spear but gets reversed into the F5 for two more.

Another F5 is countered with a rake to the eyes and Reigns knocks Lesnar into the referee. A low blow and belt shot cut Lesnar down for two and frustration is setting in. The spear hits Lesnar in the back so Reigns tries it again, only to get pulled into the Kimura. The rope (which is shoved forward by Heyman) is grabbed for the break but they’re both down. Reigns says it’s out, meaning his shoulder, but comes back with a spear for the pin and the unified titles at 12:14.

Rating: C+. This was a slightly extended version of the stereotypical match that these guys have. You had an exchange of finishers and then someone won, which might be a bit exciting but has been done to death in recent years. Reigns winning was hardly a surprise, but it would have been nicer to see it come in a match with some more drama or intrigue instead of the same formula Lesnar has used for so long.

Reigns poses with Heyman and the titles as Lesnar glares at them to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. It wasn’t a disaster like last year’s night two, but this was just ok for the most part. The biggest flaw should be obvious: the amount of time that this show spends on recaps or ANYTHING but getting to the matches advertised. I don’t need to see the matches from last night in fairly long recaps, as I was there to see the show live. Contrary to what WWE thinks, it might be a good idea to cut some things out, but that might not let them fill in so much time that they can brag about later.

As for the wrestling itself, nothing really stands out. There are some good matches, but nothing that is really worth going out of your way to see (your individual mousetrap enjoyment may vary). The show felt like such a rehash of last night, with Austin and Undertaker getting that much time each. It isn’t terrible, but I had fun with the first night and this felt like a followup that you didn’t need to watch.

Overall Overall Rating: B-. Overall, the lesson here continues to be simple: Wrestlemania does not need to be a two night event as WWE does not have the amount of content necessary to make it work. There is SO MUCH FILLER on here that it feels like it could have been trimmed down by about four hours. They hit about eight hours combined, and that isn’t even counting in the four hours of Kickoff Shows.

Now that being said, there is more than enough good in here to make it a show worth seeing (or at least flipping through). This year was all about Austin, Undertaker and McMahon, with Reigns vs. Lesnar feeling almost secondary to what Austin was doing. That won’t sit well with some, but the atmosphere for Austin makes up for so much. Trim it down and it’s great, but as it is, it’s just good.

Results
RKBro b. Street Profits and Alpha Academy – RKO to Gable
Bobby Lashley b. Omos – Spear
Johnny Knoxville b. Sami Zayn – Knoxville pinned Zayn while he was trapped in a giant mousetrap
Naomi/Sasha Banks b. Liv Morgan/Rhea Ripley, Natalya/Shayna Baszler and Carmella/Queen Zelina – Elevated Codebreaker to Carmella
Edge b. AJ Styles – Spear
Ridge Holland/Sheamus b. New Day – Northern Grit to Woods
Pat McAfee b. Austin Theory – Rollup
Vince McMahon b. Pat McAfee – Football to the ribs
Roman Reigns b. Brock Lesnar – Spear

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.

Wrestlemania XXXVIII Night One
Date: April 2, 2022
Location: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Attendance: 77,899
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Michael Cole, Pat McAfee
America the Beautiful: Brantley Gilbert

We have arrived at the biggest weekend in wrestling and this time it is back in the full capacity stadium. Again, this year’s show is split in two and again it feels like there is a good one night in between the two shows. That was the case last year though and the first night went well so maybe history can repeat itself. Let’s get to it.

Note that I was in attendance for this show, sitting in the third level off the floor in the end zone corner with the stage on my right.

Brantley Gilbert sings America the Beautiful.

Mark Wahlberg stars in the opening video and talks about how these people have a chance for a Texas sized helping of greatness. That is easier said than done though, as it is not easy to reach that level. Everyone has a chance though, so go catch greatness on the Wrestlemania stage. Nothing exactly profound here but having a star do the video is nice.

A lot of fireworks go off.

Here are the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders for an unannounced dance routine. I’m a Cowboys fan and I get the idea here, but does this add anything other than Texas flavor? It isn’t like anyone comes out or gets hyped up here.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Rick Boogs/Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Usos

The Usos are defending here but first, Pat McAfee has to lose his freaking mind dancing to Boogs’ guitar intro. You could see him on the announcers’ table from the seats and my goodness his voice makes it all the more over the top/better. We get a quick recap of Boogs faking an injury to help win a #1 contenders match so there is a bit of a backstory here. The Big Match Intros make this all the sweeter in something you don’t often see outside of the main event.

Nakamura starts fast by kicking Jimmy down and it’s already Good Vibrations in the corner. The running knee to the ribs gets two on Jimmy but Jey gets in a cheap shot to take over. A shot from the apron keeps Nakamura down and an enziguri gives Jimmy two. We hit the chinlock for a bit, only to have Nakamura fight up and hit the spinning kick to the head. The double tag brings in Boogs and Jey, with Boogs grabbing him in a bearhug.

That doesn’t last long as Boogs switches to the kneeling vertical suplex for two. A double Samoan drop….goes very badly for Boogs, as his knee buckles under the weight (apparently legitimately, putting him on the shelf for a LONG time). That leaves Nakamura to get the tag and dive onto both champs before striking away at Jey inside. The sliding German suplex looks to set up Kinshasa but Jey hits a superkick. Jimmy adds the Superfly Splash for two and it’s another superkick into the 1D to retain the titles at 6:55.

Rating: C. It’s kind of hard to grade something like this as the injury changed everything. The last two minutes or so were a handicap match and there is a strong chance that they had to come up with something on the fly, so we’ll go with right in the middle to play it safe. The match wasn’t great, but what are you expecting given the circumstances?

Video on Johnny Knoxville vs. Sami Zayn in an anything goes match tomorrow.

We recap Happy Corbin vs. Drew McIntyre. Corbin lost everything in one of the most entertaining stories in a long time, but then gambled his way back to financial security. Then he and Madcap Moss injured McIntyre, setting up a FAR too long feud to get us here. For some reason, Corbin and Moss stole McIntyre’s sword, named after his mother. Corbin: “What do McIntyre’s mother and sword have in common? Drew lost both of them.” Of course you know this means war, which started with McIntyre getting the sword back on Smackdown.

Drew McIntyre vs. Happy Corbin

Madcap Moss is here with Corbin, who is billed as UNDEFEATED, because we now keep track of wins and losses since a name change. McIntyre is wearing some dark gray trunks here for a change of pace. Corbin starts fast but gets clotheslined over the top for his efforts. A posting cuts McIntyre off and Smackdown rol….wrong show, never mind.

Back in and a whip into the corner gives Corbin two as McAfee recaps the Corbin saga. A belly to back suplex drops McIntyre for one but Moss gets on the apron for an inadvertent distraction, allowing McIntyre to grab a spinebuster. The overhead belly to belly into the neckbreaker lets McIntyre nip up as things get a bit more intense.

Corbin is right back with a quick Deep Six for two more but McIntyre knocks him down again. The threat of the Claymore sends Corbin outside so McIntyre hits the big flip dive to the floor (that’s not normal for his size). Back in and Corbin hits End of Days out of nowhere for two, with Cole trying to make that a lot bigger than it really is. The Futureshock gives McIntyre two but the Claymore gives him the pin at 8:42.

Rating: C. This could have been on any given of Smackdown and absolutely should have, as this feud was barely good enough for one pay per view match, let alone a months long feud. McIntyre should be ready to move back to the World Title scene and he needed to run these two over to do so. Maybe this leads to the team splitting, but I don’t know what Moss can do with this gimmick going forward.

Post match McIntyre loads up Angela and swings at Moss, hitting the ropes instead. The ropes are sliced in two, but I wonder why it caused an explosion. The Gordian Knot wasn’t that in your face.

We recap the Mysterios vs. Miz/Logan Paul. Miz has been feuding with the two of them and got Paul to help him out, because that’s the best Miz can do. Then Rey had his mask stolen, setting up a feud over respect that feels like it was chosen at random for Paul’s involvement.

Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio vs. Miz/Logan Paul

The bottom rope is out of sync with the others after the replacements were put in. Paul has a Pokemon card in a lanyard around his neck, which I’m assuming is something expensive. Miz takes Rey into the corner to start so Paul comes in pretty early. Some leapfrogs let Paul start well but he drops into the splits, allowing Rey to kick him in the head. That’s enough for Paul so it’s off to Dominik vs. Miz, with the former hitting a Lionsault for two. A dive to the floor takes Miz out but Paul gets in a cheap shot from behind to put Dominik down.

Back in and a pretty nice running powerslam gets two on Dominik, setting up some alternating YES Kicks. Dominik fights out of a chinlock and gets two off a backslide. That’s not enough for a tag though as Paul comes back in with a Blockbuster for two more. Dominik finally manages a tornado DDT to drop Miz and there’s the hot tag to bring in Rey. The big kick to the face gets two on Miz but Paul comes back in to load up a double superplex.

Dominik makes the save so Rey rolls Miz up for two, followed by another spinning DDT for two more. Rey hits some Amigos but gets sent into the post, allowing Paul to hit Three Amigos of his own to some serious booing as that is too far. To make it worse, Paul goes up, does something close to the Eddie dance, and hits the frog splash for a very near fall. Dominik is back in and it’s a double 619 to set up back to back frog splashes but Miz makes the save. The Skull Crushing Finale finishes Rey at 11:16.

Rating: C. The match was ok enough and Paul had clearly put in the effort to make this work out. He did very well with the limited spots he did and the athleticism is there. I’m not sure how well he would work long term, but there have been some far worse celebrity appearances at Wrestlemania (or anywhere for that matter).

Post match Miz and Paul pose…and Miz lays him out with a Skull Crushing Finale. Miz laughs at him and blows a kiss, making me wonder why I’d want to see Miz vs. Paul and what the green thing on Miz’s forehead is.

Video on Edge vs. AJ Styles as we get more and more filler.

Here is Stephanie McMahon to talk about what Wrestlemania means to her. She brings out Gable Steveson and….that’s the segment.

We recap Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair for the Raw Women’s Title. Belair won the Smackdown Women’s Title last year but then Lynch returned from a year plus away to win the title (completely fairly) at Summerslam. Lynch has since gone full villain and Belair wants the title back. They have traded throat injuries and Belair cut off a bunch of Lynch’s hair to make this even more personal.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch

Lynch is defending and gets a special intro (similar to the WWE TV intro as we look at moments from her career)….but Belair one ups her with the Texas Southern University marching band playing her to the ring. They both have special gear, with Lynch coming out in a kind of skirt/jacket combination and Belair in black and red with her top made to look like her lips logo. They both look like they’re on the big stage and it’s an awesome addition.

They both take the time to soak it in a bit but Lynch would rather punch than shake hands. The very early Manhandle Slam gets two and Lynch can’t believe the Summerslam plan didn’t work. Belair goes to the ropes to avoid the Disarm-Her so some covers give Lynch two. They trade rollups for two each and Lynch reverses a suplex into a DDT for two more. Belair tries….something but can’t get Lynch onto her shoulders so she switches to a rollup instead.

They head outside with Lynch slipping off the shoulders to send Belair into the steps to take over. Some Bexploders connect back inside and we hit the chinlock to slow things down a bit. With that broken up, Lynch switches to a cross armbreaker but Belair powers up and dumps her outside for the double crash. Back in and Belair drives some shoulders into the ribs in the corner, setting up a gutbuster for two. The handspring moonsault gets two more but Lynch catches her on top.

Belair gets creative with a Chicago Skyline of all things and a middle rope 450 gets another near fall. Lynch is back up with a Molly Go Round, with her feet hitting Belair in the face (OUCH) for two of her own. Belair is back with a spinebuster and a cradle but the kickout sends her into the corner.

The KOD is broken up but Belair KOD’s her to the floor. That doesn’t work for Belair so she tries to come back inside, only to have Lynch hit the Manhandle Slam onto the steps. Belair dives back in at nine and then kicks out at two, sending Lynch even further into hysteria. Another Bexploder is loaded up but Belair gets to the middle rope, moonsaults over Lynch, and hits the KOD for the pin and the title at 19:09.

Rating: B+. The action was good to great, but what mattered here was the feeling. This felt like the rise of a new champion, with Belair surviving what Lynch threw at her and then winning in the end, showing that she was the better woman when things were even. It came off like the Wrestlemania showdown with the special entrances and gear and I had a great time with the whole deal. Best thing on the show by a mile so far.

Post match Lynch falls out to the floor and collapses as Belair celebrates, giving us a great visual of the fallen former champion and the new queen.

Video on Sasha Banks to fill in more time.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. a mystery opponent. Rollins kept missing opportunities to get to Wrestlemania, which apparently is more important than what you actually do on the show. Finally the solution was “ask Vince McMahon”, who gave him a match against an opponent of Vince’s choosing, making about a month of stupid stories all the more pointless.

Seth Rollins vs. ???

Rollins comes out with a weirdly dressed choir singing his music for a rather Rollins style entrance. We get the big wait until……it’s Cody Rhodes, which was expected but MY GOODNESS the reaction. Rhodes rises up through the stage and comes to the ring as this is where they got me. Your feelings on Cody aside, that wait where I wanted to see who was coming out was the Wrestlemania Moment and it was outstanding.

They stare each other down for a bit and the energy is all back, even with some CODY chants. Feeling out process to start with Rollins grabbing a headlock and shouldering him down. Cody is fine enough to hit the drop down uppercut but neither can hit a finisher. A suplex over the top sends them both crashing to the floor (that’s always a scary one) and Cody pulls him into the post. Back in and Cody grabs the armbar, setting up a short armscissors.

That’s broken up so Rollins hits an enziguri and dropkicks Cody out of the air. There’s a gutbuster to stay on the ribs (Rollins: “Welcome back to the big leagues b****.”) Rollins grabs a bearhug, which looks as out of place as you might expect it to. Cody breaks that up like it’s a bearhug from a guy who isn’t known for his strength and hits the powerslam. With Rollins down on the floor, Cody hits a suicide dive but the Disaster Kick off the steps is countered into a powerbomb into the barricade.

Back in and the Falcon Arrow gives Rollins two but the Stomp is countered into Cross Rhodes for two (because a returning star’s finisher should always only get a near fall). Cody goes up but gets caught in a reverse superplex into D-Von’s lifting reverse DDT for two of his own. The Phoenix Splash misses so they both tease Pedigrees before Rhodes hits a tiger bomb for two.

The Cody Cutter gets the same as the fans are WAY into this. Rollins’ Pedigree gets its own near fall and some Kawada Kicks set up the forearm to the back of the head. Cody isn’t having that so he hits back to back Cross Rhodes…for no cover. Instead it’s the Bionic Elbow into a fourth Cross Rhodes for the pin at 21:34.

Rating: B+. Yeah this was WAY better here than it was watching it live as they had a more modern style match of trading big moves. Cody winning was the only way to go, if nothing else for the sake of not scaring off other AEW stars who might want to come over. I’m not sure what Cody’s ceiling is in WWE, but they absolutely stuck the landing with his return. Great match, after an even better reveal.

Cody gets to soak in some well deserved cheers and kisses the mat because he’s back.

We look at last night’s Hall of Fame ceremony, which featured a cool idea of walking through the wrestlers on the way to the ring. The wrestlers looking scared at the idea of Scott Steiner on a live mic is great, but not as great as Shad Gaspard’s wife telling her son how great Shad was. Vince McMahon introducing Undertaker as Mark Calaway is….just wrong to hear.

Here is the class in person:

Steiner Brothers (they were up there with Demolition for most overdue tag team)
Shad Gaspard (that was a hard one to sit through)
Queen Sharmell (harmless enough)
Vader (how was he not in before)
Undertaker (I’ve seen that Wrestlemania entrance a few times and it will never be anything less than awe inspiring, even with Undertaker in a suit and looking emotional as he thanks the fans)

Video on Pat McAfee vs. Austin Theory. The fact that I went to the restroom after it started and it was still going when I got back says this went on too long.

Rick Boogs has wrecked his knee and had to be carried out of the stadium. Apparently he has torn his quadricep patella and will need surgery.

The attendance is 77,899. Assuming reports were correct, that means they sold about 20,000 tickets in three days. I’m sure.

Long video on Ronda Rousey vs. Charlotte for the Smackdown Women’s Title. The video compares their successes in their main sports before showing the two of them being ready to clash here.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey

Rousey is challenging and strikes her way out of the corner to put Charlotte in the ropes. A cheap shot has Rousey in trouble but she grabs a rollup for two. That means it’s time for Rousey to adjust her shorts before she sends Charlotte into the corner. Charlotte lands on the apron so Rousey knees her in the face and chokes a bit. The ankle lock goes on with Charlotte still on the apron so she pulls Rousey outside for the break. A posting gives Charlotte two and we hit the front facelock.

Charlotte hits a forearm/clothesline (the replay looked nasty) for two more and the neck crank goes on. That’s broken up so Rousey hits a knee for two of her own, followed by…something mistimed out of the corner. Rousey’s middle rope bulldog gets two but Charlotte is back with a spear for the same. A belly to back suplex gives us a double knockdown but it’s Charlotte up first. The double moonsault kind of connects for two so Charlotte ties her in the Tree of Woe.

That means a Boston crab in the ropes of all things but Rousey escapes and judo throws her down. Piper’s Pit can’t connect so they trade some shots to the face for another breather. Another Piper’s Pit is countered but Rousey grabs the ankle lock. That’s reversed into one from Charlotte, who gets rolled into the corner for the escape. The armbar is countered into a powerbomb for two on Rousey but she’s right back with the ankle lock, complete with the grapevine.

Charlotte escapes that as well and we hit the Figure Eight, which is turned over for the escape before they both roll into the ropes. They go outside so Charlotte can hit a fall away slam into the barricade and it’s time for a slugout back inside. Piper’s Pit gives Rousey three but the referee waves it off because of the foot on the ropes. Natural Selection gives Charlotte a very close two but her spear hits the referee. The armbar goes on and Charlotte taps to no referee. Naturally the referee pops up as Rousey yells at him, allowing Charlotte to hit a big boot for the pin at 18:32.

Rating: B-. That was longer than it needed to be and are you surprised that Charlotte was the one to get the first singles win over Rousey? I’m not sure what this means for Rousey but I could go for seeing her turn heel. The smiling stuff just feels fake so let her bring back the Death Stare and be the Rousey that got her here in the first place. The match was a good, back and forth fight but there were some botches in there and Charlotte getting this latest honor made me roll my eyes pretty hard.

Video on Bobby Lashley.

We run down Night Two.

Video on Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns.

Wrestlemania XXXIX will be in Los Angeles on April 1 and 2, 2023. This is the new normal isn’t it?

We recap Kevin Owens vs. Steve Austin, which isn’t a match but that’s more or less what we’re seeing here. Owens spent weeks insulting Texas before realizing he needed a path to Wrestlemania. Therefore he invited Austin onto the KO Show, with Austin accepting and promising a fight.

Here is Kevin Owens for the KO Show and yeah the fans don’t seem too happy with him. Owens wastes no time in insulting Texas again, saying that if America was a person, Texas would be the a**. However, he does apologize…for speaking the honest truth about Texas. Owens knows the fans are wanting him to bring Austin out there but it’s going to be on his time. Austin is the worst role model and Owens knows this because he used to look up to him. When Austin comes out here, Owens is going to insult him and if Austin doesn’t like it, it’ll be a Stunner and beer poured over him.

Cue Glass Shatter and WOW that is a reaction. Austin is as over as free beer in a frat house and takes some extra time to soak all of this in, as he should. Hold on though as Austin goes to the back and brings out his ATV to ride to the ring, as he tends to do. The set is promptly destroyed, leaving the two of them and two chairs. Owens says cut the music, leaving Austin to fix his knee brace. This is Owens’ show, so take a seat.

Austin doesn’t like Owens talking trash about Texas, but Owens asks what is so great about this place. Owens rants on Texas clothes and says if he lived here, he would have moved to Mexico (Owens: “It’s right there.”). Austin: “In five seconds, you’re going to have 70,000 people calling you an a******.” That’s fine with Owens, who says he lied to get Austin here. Instead, he doesn’t want to talk, but because he is looking for a fight. Really, Owens is here to challenge Austin to a match. Yeah it has been 19 years and Austin’s knees, back and neck were shot back then and must be even worse here.

Owens is challenging him to a No Holds Barred match right now, which has Austin thinking about it. Austin’s facials here are outstanding as you can see him thinking about going to that place one more time. Owens says either get ready or get on the golf cart and ride out again. Austin says his first match was here in Dallas, and now his last match might be too. He leaves it to the fans and says bring him a referee out here, because this is actually happening.

Steve Austin vs. Kevin Owens

No Holds Barred and my goodness I can’t believe I’m seeing this. They talk trash and the slugout is on, with Austin naturally getting the better of things. A bunch of stomps in the corner have something mudhole related going on and Austin does it again for good measure. They head outside where Austin has a beer, followed by a clothesline and a drop onto the barricade. Owens is back with a posting though and he beats on Austin with a tripod.

It’s table time (that feels so wrong in an Austin match….because Austin is actually having a match) but Owens is sent through it instead. They fight into the crowd, where Owens actually hits a suplex onto the concrete (egads). Back to ringside and Austin is able to slam him off the barricade and onto (not through) the announcers’ table. More beer is consumed and Austin hammers away on the table, followed by more beer.

Owens manages a neck snap across the top but makes the mistake of going over to Austin’s ATV. Austin isn’t having that and jumps him before driving the ATV (with Owens on it) up the ramp. A pair of suplexes on the stage (one per side) have Owens in trouble and Austin throws him back down the ramp. Back in and Austin has some more beer but Owens grabs a Stunner for two. Owens gets a chair but the swing hits the rope and bounces back onto his own head, setting up the real Stunner to give Austin the pin at 13:52.

Rating: B. This is a weird situation as Austin could have come out there and juggled kittens to the biggest reaction of the night. What made this work was the fact that Austin wound up looking good, all things considered. He didn’t have the same explosiveness but that is to be expected after so long away. This was an actual match, albeit a garbage one, but it let Austin have one more moment and that is not something that is easy to pull off whatsoever. Above all else, this was a special moment and I still can’t believe it actually happened.

Post match Austin drinks even more beer and gives Owens another Stunner, leaving Owens to be taken out by some cops. Austin throws a beer to a guy in the crowd, who fumbles it for a funny moment. Austin is glad to be back in Texas…and for some reason Byron Saxton gets in the ring to celebrate with him. Corey Graves is downright giddy, knowing that Saxton is about to get Stunned, which is of course what happens (that was funny). Austin’s brother gets in the ring for a beer with him and Austin celebrates some more to end the show.

After the show was over, Austin celebrated some more and took some laps on his ATV before finally leaving.

Overall Rating: B+. This show took its time getting started but then got on a roll in a hurry by the second half. The last four matches are all good to great and they nailed the three important moments, with Cody’s return, Belair’s win (the whole match really) and then Austin to cap it all off. As usual, WWE knows how to make things work when they’re trying and that was the case here, though the first half was just ok. That being said, this was a pretty solid smash and night two has its work cut out.

Results
Usos b. Shinsuke Nakamura/Rick Boogs – 1D to Nakamura
Drew McIntyre b. Happy Corbin – Claymore
Miz/Logan Paul b. Mysterios – Skull Crushing Finale to Rey
Bianca Belair b. Becky Lynch – KOD
Cody Rhodes b. Seth Rollins – Cross Rhodes
Charlotte b. Ronda Rousey – Big boot
Steve Austin b. Kevin Owens – Stunner

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It’s Wrestlemania Day.  Again!

Several Titles Change Hands At NXT Stand & Deliver.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/several-titles-change-hands-nxt-stand-deliver/

WATCH: Possible Injury Takes Place After Scary Crash At NXT Stand & Deliver.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/watch-possible-injury-takes-place-scary-crash-nxt-stand-deliver/

WWE Makes Major Announcement About WrestleMania 39.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/wwe-makes-major-announcement-wrestlemania-39/

Title Changes Hands At WrestleMania 38 Night One.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/title-changes-hands-wrestlemania-38-night-one/

Surprise Twist Takes Place After WrestleMania 38 Match.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/surprise-twist-takes-place-wrestlemania-38-match/

WrestleMania Match Pulled From Show With No Explanation.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/wrestlemania-match-pulled-show-new-explanation/

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