IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: July 18, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson

Tonight we get to see one of NXT’s best features in action. The main event of this week’s show is a triple threat match for the #1 contendership to the Women’s Title. Around here, that’s something that can headline a show without blinking an eye. On any other show, such a thing would be insane. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Dakota Kai vs. Lacey Evans

Evans mocks Kai’s kicking to start so Kai rolls her up and rides her on the mat, freaking the heck out of Evans in the process. A shot to the ribs cuts Kai off though and Evans puts her in the Tree of Woe. That means more shots to the ribs, even after Evans uses the strings from Kai’s boot to tie her in the corner. Kai falls out of the corner so Evans kicks and stomps away, with Kai selling the heck out of it.

We hit a double arm crank with a knee in Kai’s back until Evans misses a moonsault. Rapid fire kicks to the face set up some running face wash kicks in the corner for two as Nigel screams about how you can’t hit Evans in the face. A pumphandle slam gets Evans out of trouble and the Woman’s Right is good for the pin on Kai at 8:58.

Rating: C+. This got better in the second half but the first part of this with all of the kicks and stomps to the ribs took away a lot of energy. I’m not sure if I like Evans or not as she has a character that can draw some good heat but I’m having issues getting past the right hand finisher and her not great in-ring skills. There’s something awkward about her and it’s a little much at times.

Ricochet is ready to come after the Undisputed Era because he’s going to eventually get his hands on Adam Cole and the North American Title.

The Street Profits are playing basketball and talking about getting even with The Mighty.

EC3 didn’t mean to show up Velveteen Dream when he interrupted him. After stopping for a picture and giving away a shirt, EC3 runs into Kona Reeves, who talks about the finest. A match is set up as Reeves doesn’t show me anything talking either.

Video on Tommaso Ciampa vs. Aleister Black before their title match next week. The idea is both of them can dip down into the darkness but Ciampa claims to only need one second to become the champion.

Kassius Ohno vs. Rick Ramirez

Discus forearm for the pin in 40 seconds.

The Undisputed Era brags about getting their titles back and calls Ricochet a joke who thinks he’ll get a title shot. These guys are really starting to find their groove.

Video on the War Raiders, including their history as a team. They met in a tournament (the Ring of Honor Top Prospect Tournament I believe) and beat each other so hard that they decided to hit opponents together just as hard. They’re modern day vikings and know that no one can stop them. Then Rowe had a serious motorcycle wreck in 2014 and was lucky to survive. If that can’t stop them, how could any tag team? Rowe is the smaller of the team but he’s the powerhouse while Hanson is the bigger one who flies. Nothing can stop them.

Video on Velveteen Dream and all of his experiences. The next experience in Brooklyn may be the greatest.

Nikki Cross vs. Candice LeRae vs. Kairi Sane

The winner gets a title shot at Takeover and Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler comes out for commentary (with Nikki waving at her in that crazy way). They exchange rollups to start as the fans are split between Kairi and Cross. LeRae gets knocked to the floor as Baszler says all three are bodies, meaning they’re submissions waiting to happen. That’s a great line. LeRae pulls Cross to the floor but the suicide dive is blocked with an elbow.

Back in and Cross grabs something like a Rings of Saturn before tying her in the Tree of Woe for some stompings. Sane comes back in with a spear to Cross and a double stomp for two on LeRae. Cross breaks up the Anchor but LeRae pops back up to take them both down. A Cannonball off the apron drops Sane but Cross plants LeRae with a reverse DDT on the ramp. Not to be outdone, Sane hits a suicide elbow to Cross and they’re all down on the floor.

Baszler isn’t impressed because the winner gets to face her, and that’s not really winning. Back in and Sane gets the worst of a Tower of Doom so it’s time for a slugout from their knees. LeRae takes over with a Downward Spiral/DDT combination, followed by a Lionsault for two on Sane.

Cross hits a hanging swinging neckbreaker onto the floor so Nigel asks if Baszler learned anything from her first match with Nikki. Baszler: “Yeah. That I can beat her.” Three straight belly to back suplexes knock Sane silly but LeRae is back in with a small package to slow Cross down. Another Lionsault hits Cross, only to have Sane drop the Insane Elbow for the save and the pin on LeRae at 10:30.

Rating: B-. The action was good but Baszler was the most impressive to me here with some outstanding lines that made her come off like a star. She’s so condescending and such a jerk that you want to see anyone beat the heck out of her and take the title. That’s an art that takes time to develop and she’s done it in such a short amount of time. Sane was the best choice here as Baszler has beaten Cross and LeRae feels like a longer term title project.

The staredown ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This is one of the most entertaining times in NXT: the night when you can see the next Takeover card taking form. You can pretty much guess what’s coming based on the last week or two of television and, as usual, that looks quite good from here. The next taping cycle can firmly establish everything so this is kind of the final preview, which has me wanting to see what we’re getting at one of the biggest shows of the year. In other words, everything is looking good around here, as usual.

Results

Lacey Evans b. Dakota Kai – Woman’s Right

Kassius Ohno b. Rick Ramirez – Discus elbow

Kairi Sane b. Nikki Cross and Candice LeRae – Insane Elbow to LeRae

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: July 17, 2018
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

We’re past Extreme Rules and officially on the way to Summerslam, meaning things should be getting a lot bigger in a hurry around here. AJ Styles is still the WWE Champion and is going to be needing a new challenger. There’s a good chance that’s going to be Samoa Joe, which should be good for everyone involved. Let’s get to it.

Here are Sunday’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a look back at Shinsuke Nakamura hitting Jeff Hardy low before the bell and winning the US Title in five seconds. The rematch is tonight.

Here’s Hardy to open things up. Hardy feels incomplete because he’s no longer US Champion. This Sunday he got ahead of himself because he wanted to get his hands on Nakamura so bad. Tonight he’s getting his title back and making Nakamura fade away and classify himself as obsolete.

Nakamura says Hardy is a sad clown and tonight he’ll makes Hardy cry again. God bless America.

AJ Styles vs. Andrade Cien Almas

Non-title. Almas headlocks him to start and has AJ in some early trouble, followed by a shoulder. AJ tries to send him into the ropes but Almas does his pose in the ropes to take us to a break. Back with AJ getting dropkicked and chopped as Almas is looking rather good so far. The running knees in the corner are countered into the fireman’s carry backbreaker for AJ’s first major offense.

The Phenomenal Forearm is broken up though and AJ is right back down. Almas’ missed moonsault into a standing moonsault gets two and Zelina Vega is losing it at ringside. Back to back Peles rock Almas but he’s fine enough to block a superplex. The top rope stomp sets up the running corner knees for a very close two. Almas loads up the hammerlock DDT but gets reversed into the Calf Crusher for the tap at 11:55.

Rating: B. Almas is clearly going to be a player on the main roster, which makes the long delay in actually giving him anything all the more frustrating. He can go in the ring and Vega is perfect as a mouthpiece. This was a lot of fun and I could see Almas getting a big match at Summerslam as a result.

We look back at Aiden English pulling the turnbuckle pad off and Rusev going into it by mistake.

Aiden asks Lana to smooth things over with Rusev. She says Rusev needs his space and English is the only one who cares about an apology right now. All English wants is a second chance, which Lana will take into consideration.

Becky Lynch vs. Mandy Rose

Mandy tries to start fast but gets kicked in the ribs for her efforts. A springboard kick to the chest has her in more trouble but a second attempt is pretty easily blocked. Mandy cranks on the neck for a bit before hitting a knee to the head for two. Becky already makes a comeback with a running forearm and the Bexploder into the Disarm-Her for the tap at 3:35.

Rating: D+. Becky’s road to redemption continues as there’s nothing left for her to do other than challenge for the title. Becky is on a roll right now and this kind of a push is long overdue. You can only beat up Mandy and Sonya so many times before it stops meaning anything though and now it’s time to move up.

Post match Becky says winning feels great and it’s time to bring the straight fire at Carmella.

Carmella comes in to see Paige, who asks how Carmella’s boyfriend James Ellsworth is. After correcting Paige on that, Carmella asks about her party next week. Paige makes Carmella vs. Becky instead and if Becky wins, she gets a title shot at Summerslam.

R-Truth of all people comes up to see Tye Dillinger. Tye is serious and doesn’t need a motivational speech. It turns out Truth is on a bluetooth and didn’t even hear Tye. I remember that joke about ten years ago so it’s perfect now.

Tye Dillinger vs. Samoa Joe

Joe jumped him before the show last week. Tye goes straight at him to start and even knocks Joe to the floor. The beating is short lived though as Joe sends him into the corner for the running enziguri. The Koquina Clutch knocks Tye out at 1:43.

Here’s the Miz to hold a funeral for HELL NO. Miz shakes some hands in condolence on the way to the ring before putting a masked Kane head on a pillow in the ring. After a quick plug for Miz and Mrs., Miz quotes N’Sync by saying it’s time for the team to go Bye Bye Bye. Miz recaps the team’s history, mainly focusing on their failures and Kane attacking Daniel Bryan over the years. We get a moment of silence before Miz says he told us so.

Kane was just a broken down demon and Bryan was never the star he claimed to be. This reunion was one last Hail Mary to recreate some of Bryan’s glory and it failed. Miz knows Bryan was never what he was cracked up to be so here’s Bryan through the crowd to go after Miz. He settles for beating up the pallbearers instead.

New Day is ready to beat up Sanity.

Eric Young vs. Kofi Kingston

Feeling out process to start with Kofi getting forearmed in the back a few times. The comeback doesn’t take long though and Young is knocked to the floor in a hurry as we take a break. Back with Young hanging him over the apron for some elbows to the back of the head. Kofi makes a quick comeback with a kick to the face and the Boom Drop but Trouble in Paradise misses.

Young heads up top so Kofi runs the corner for a belly to belly superplex. It’s time for a Sanity meeting on the floor, only to have Kofi hit a big no hands dive to take them out. Back in and the SOS gives Kofi two and it’s time to speed things up again. Another springboard misses though and Killian Dain throws Xavier Woods at Kofi, setting up the wheelbarrow neckbreaker to pin Kofi at 9:35.

Rating: C. These are two guys who can work their craft against anyone and it makes sense to have Young get his first win here. Sanity is almost the inverse New Day so you can see enough similarities to set up a good feud. It also helps that New Day is as made as you can get these days so losses like this don’t do them any harm.

We’ll find out AJ’s Summerslam opponent next week.

US Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Nakamura is defending. Hardy goes straight at him and avoids the early low blow attempt, instead dropkicking Nakamura into the corner. Back from an early break with Nakamura kicking him in the head for two and slapping on a chinlock. A front facelock has Hardy in more trouble until the sitout jawbreaker gets him out. The Russian legsweep gets two on Nakamura but he’s right back with a running knee to the head as we take a second break.

Back again with Jeff hitting Whisper in the Wind for two and frustration setting in. Jeff’s spinning kick to the chest sends Nakamura into the corner but he kicks Jeff in the face. The running knee in the corner gets two on Jeff and a one kneed Backstabber is good for the same. Kinshasa is blocked by the swinging sleeper drop but Nakamura is ready for the Swanton. Another Kinshasa is countered into the Twisting Stunner though and now the Swanton connects, only to have Randy Orton pull Hardy out for the DQ at 19:12.

Rating: B-. I might as well have had the finish written down a good three minutes before the match ended. It’s nice that they got to have the longer match and hopefully Jeff gets some time off instead of setting up some triple threat match at the pay per view. Orton vs. Hardy doesn’t do much for me but adding Nakamura into the feud to make it for the title would probably make the most sense.

Post match Orton destroys Hardy by sending him into the steps over and over. Just to go especially insane, Orton sticks his finger through the gauge piercing in Hardy’s ear and pulls at it, making a lot of people cringe. The hanging DDT off the announcers’ table ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. They’re certainly in Summerslam mode now and that’s a good thing after a pretty lackluster build towards Extreme Rules. The ending was good and made Orton look like a psycho again, but Hardy sticking around when he’s very banged up isn’t the best idea in the world. AJ’s opponent being revealed should make for some interesting TV next week, giving us a rare instance of something I want to see being announced early. Good show here as they start setting up the Summerslam pieces.

Results

AJ Styles b. Andrade Cien Almas – Calf Crusher

Becky Lynch b. Mandy Rose – Disarm-Her

Samoa Joe b. Tye Dillinger – Koquina Clutch

Eric Young b. Kofi Kingston – Wheelbarrow neckbreaker

Jeff Hardy b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Randy Orton interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 16, 2018
Location: Keybank Center, Buffalo, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Jonathan Coachman

Now it’s time for a big show with the possibility of Brock Lesnar showing up. With the UFC return looming and Lesnar still as the Universal Champion, there’s a very good chance we’ll find out what he’s going to do next tonight. I could go for having him lose the title on TV but I don’t think WWE would actually do it, even if it would fix a lot of their problems. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Masa Saito. I still want to know why Matt Cappotelli was ignored.

General Manager Kurt Angle is in the ring to start and gets straight to the point about Brock. Angle says he hasn’t heard from Lesnar or his representatives so he is stripping Lesnar of the title….and here’s Paul Heyman to interrupt. Kurt: “Everybody knows who you are Paul.” Heyman does his reigning, defending bit before saying Lesnar isn’t here tonight. Angle again is ready to strip him but Heyman cuts him off a second time. A very loud STRIP THE TITLE chant starts up as Heyman is sounding nervous.

Heyman thinks Angle and the fans have it all wrong when they think Lesnar only cares about being UFC Champion again. Angle: “Then why doesn’t he show up???” What Lesnar wants to do is challenge for the UFC Title with the Universal Title around his waist so he can represent WWE. Angle appreciates the goal but Lesnar is going to defend the title at Summerslam or he’s no longer champion. Heyman panics but agrees to the title match.

He’s not done though as he calls Angle a highly intelligent General Manager. All that is left now is to determine the #1 contender so here’s Bobby Lashley. When he came back to WWE, he had two goals: beat Roman Reigns and beat Lesnar. He accomplished one of those last night and now it’s time to accomplish the other. Hang on though as here’s Drew McIntyre (without Dolph Ziggler) to interrupt. He didn’t come back to make up roster numbers or stand in Ziggler’s corner.

Phase one was keeping the Intercontinental Title around Ziggler’s waist but now it’s time for phase two. Next up is Seth Rollins to a big reaction to say he’s right here to be Lesnar’s opponent. Now it’s Elias with the guitar to a weaker reaction but the catchphrase gets a roar. Elias likes the sound of being Universal Champion and since his album comes out next Monday, he should be facing Lesnar at Summerslam.

We’re not done yet though as it’s Finn Balor coming out to say he was the first Universal Champion and deserves another shot. Then it’s the one you’ve been waiting for as Reigns is here to the incredible heat you would expect. Reigns doesn’t have any excuses and just wants to fight someone tonight. Angle makes two triple threat matches for tonight with the winners facing off next week for the Summerslam shot. First up it’s Elias vs. Rollins vs. Lashley. The other will be Reigns vs. McIntyre vs. Balor and that’s right now.

Post break Baron Corbin complains to Angle about not having Stephanie’s permission to make those matches and not putting Corbin in one of them. Angle says Corbin lost last night and leaves.

Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Finn Balor

McIntyre chops both of them to start but Balor knocks them both to the floor for a big flip dive. Back in and McIntyre takes over again, including a big boot to the corner on Reigns. Balor gets knocked to the floor and McIntyre hammers on Reigns as he’s been by far the most dominant so far.

We come back from a break with McIntyre still in control but Reigns makes the fired up (well the Raw version of Reigns being fired up) comeback. The apron dropkick hits McIntyre but Balor stomps him down. McIntyre follows it with a big flip dive over the top so Balor double stomps him as well. Back in and the Coup de Grace is loaded up but McIntyre chairs Balor off the top. Reigns gets sent into the post and we take another break.

Back again with Reigns’ Superman Punch being countered into a spinebuster for two. Balor is back in with the chair to McIntyre though and then unloads on Reigns with the chair. Instead of covering him though, Balor goes outside to dropkick McIntyre, who gets speared through the barricade. Back in, Reigns Superman Punches Balor for two but Balor dropkicks him into the corner.

The Coup de Grace gets two with McIntyre making a last second save. Reigns and McIntyre mistime a sequence where the Claymore was supposed to be Superman Punched, instead making it McIntyre stopping to get punched. The spear ends Balor to give Reigns the pin at 22:01.

Rating: B. I’m trying really hard to believe that Reigns won’t be getting the title shot and while I’m still not convinced that he will be, you never can put it past WWE. I do like the idea of McIntyre moving up to the main event scene, even if this is just a one off time. At least he didn’t take the pin and it’s not like anyone buys Balor as a top star anymore. Reigns winning was pretty obvious though and while it’s annoying, you have to know it’s coming.

Bayley is in Angle’s office but Sasha Banks won’t come in. She thinks the friendship counseling failed but Angle disagrees. Say it with me: THEY’RE TEAMING UP TONIGHT IN A TAG MATCH! If they can’t get along, one of them is being traded to Smackdown. So yes, trades can officially happen in WWE. Remember that when someone is floundering and desperately needs to be moved to another show. Maybe a loser leaves Raw match at Summerslam?

Here’s Dolph Ziggler with something to say. He did everything he said he would do last night because he is IRON MAN and still the Intercontinental Champion. Last night the Intercontinental Title main evented a pay per view for the first time in seventeen years and it wasn’t because of Rollins. Ziggler respects what Rollins did for the title but last night, he beat Rollins five times.

Cue Bobby Roode (egads I had forgotten he existed) to say he didn’t hear Ziggler thanking McIntyre for getting him through last night’s match. Ziggler laughs it off because Roode wasn’t even on the show and Roode agrees that the sidelines suck. That’s why Roode is here with a challenge for a title match right now. Ziggler says get a referee out here right now.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Bobby Roode

Non-title by Ziggler’s orders. Roode headlocks him down and Ziggler reverses into one of his own. A trip to the floor goes nowhere so Ziggler scores with a dropkick for two. Ziggler’s swinging neckbreaker gets the same and it’s off to a break. Back with Ziggler holding a chinlock until Roode throws him off without much effort.

The Blockbuster looks to set up the Glorious DDT but Ziggler reverses into a rollup for two. More rollups get more twos until the Zig Zag gets a close two. The superkick is countered into a catapult into the corner and Ziggler is rocked again. Roode tweaks his knee coming off the middle rope so Ziggler “hits” a superkick (it wasn’t even close) for the pin at 13:36.

Rating: C+. Roode is such a weird case as he screams heel and has good matches but can never come close to getting anywhere as a face. There’s just nothing there for him and aside from a forgettable US Title run, I can’t really picture him getting anywhere else without switching to the other side where he belongs.

Lashley says he’ll win.

Roode is in the back when Mojo Rawley comes up with a slow clap.

Mojo Rawley vs. Tyler Breeze

Breeze dropkicks him to the floor to start but gets run over with a football block to take him down. Back in and the chinlock keeps Breeze in trouble until he fights up and sends Mojo outside. Mojo jumps from the floor to the apron and then over the top, setting up another tackle. The running corner right hand set sup an Alabama Slam for the pin at 3:09.

Rating: D+. I know he’s not the most popular guy in the world but I still like Rawley and they seem to at least be giving him a little something. Rawley vs. Roode isn’t much to see and while I would imagine Roode losing, Rawley has the bigger upside, if nothing else just due to age and more charisma.

Bayley/Sasha Banks vs. Alicia Fox/Dana Brooke

Bayley sends Fox into the corner to start as Cole gets a text from Goldust of all people who wants to be Banks and Bayley’s therapist. Dana misses a handspring elbow and everything breaks down with Fox jumping Bayley on the floor. A very fired up Banks goes over for the save and beats the heck out of Fox and Brooke until it’s a double countout at 2:33.

Post break Sasha is trying to storm off and yells at Bayley about how she can’t handle anyone else being mean to her. She knows Bayley is a good person and has always cared about her. Banks says she loves her and leaves. I’m not sure if they’re going where it seems that they are, but that would be a heck of a big step if they do.

Braun Strowman doesn’t care about the triple threats because he can cash in his briefcase anytime.

Ascension vs. B-Team

Non-title. Joined in progress with Konnor being sent shoulder first into the corner but kicking Axel away for the tag to Viktor. Everything breaks down and Konnor gets sent to the floor, leaving Viktor to take the belly to back suplex neckbreaker combination for the pin at 2:18.

Post match Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt pop up to say their rematch is next week.

Video on Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss from last night.

Here are Bliss and Mickie James to brag about beating Jax again last night. Bliss says it wasn’t hard to outsmart Jax last night and she has now beaten everyone in that locker room. Ronda Rousey doesn’t count because she’s suspended and therefore not in the locker room. Cue Rousey through the crowd to cut them off before they can leave though, meaning it’s the spinning Samoan drop to James.

Bliss pulls her away from the armbar just in time but Rousey isn’t done and jumps onto the two of them and the referees. That means an armbar for Bliss but Angle comes out to calm things down. Angle tells her to go home and sit out her suspension so here’s Corbin to say make a decision. Kurt extends the suspension by a week but Corbin freaks, saying he’ll call Stephanie RIGHT NOW. Well he will once he finds his phone. Angle has the phone and says Rousey can have the match with Bliss at Summerslam for the Women’s Title, provided she doesn’t attack Bliss again before then.

We recap the opening segment and the first triple threat.

Rollins is ready for tonight, next week and Summerslam.

Authors of Pain vs. Titus Worldwide

The Authors waste no time in sending Titus into the post to the floor. Back in and an atomic drop/big boot combination drops Crews, followed by a double gutbuster. The Last Chapter ends Crews at 2:07.

No Way Jose and the Conga Lina meet the Riott Squad and nothing happens.

Ember Moon vs. Sarah Logan

Logan takes her down to start as Cole talks about Logan thinking she’s a viking. A running forearm knocks Moon to the floor and Morgan gets in a cheap shot from the floor. Moon gets two off a small package before getting pulled down into a chinlock. Ember fights up after a long while and kicks Logan in the head for two of his own. The Eclipse is loaded up but Morgan offers a distraction so Logan can pull Moon down into a crash for the pin at 3:57.

Rating: D+. Well that was surprising. Logan being pushed as the new star of the team while Riott is out makes more sense than having the inexperienced Morgan. The match was short and the ending wasn’t clean, but my goodness tell me they’re not already hitting the brakes on Moon. She came in hot and it’s only been three and a half months. Pull the trigger on someone already.

Seth Rollins vs. Elias vs. Bobby Lashley

Elias jumps Rollins on the floor before the bell but Rollins says start it up anyway. Rollins sends him outside so Lashley headlocks Rollins down. That goes nowhere so Elias gets knocked off the apron again, leaving Lashley to send Rollins to the floor. The springboard is kicked out of the air, only to have Elias come back in with a jumping knee. Another knee gets two on Rollins and we take a break.

Back with Elias getting beaten up by both guys until Lashley snaps off a belly to belly. Rollins and Elias are sent to the floor with Lashley following, only to be sent into the post to slow him down for the first time. Elias gets two off a top rope elbow and Rollins follows with the frog splash.

Lashley rolls outside, leaving Elias to counter the superplex attempt. There’s no followup though as Lashley takes Rollins’ place on top, only to get buckle bombed by Rollins. Now the superplex into the falcon Arrow can get two on Elias so there’s the delayed vertical suplex on Rollins. The spear hits post so Rollins rolls him up for two. The Stomp is loaded up but Elias pulls Rollins to the floor. That delay allows Lashley to spear him down for the pin at 17:36.

Rating: C+. Much like in the first match, they got the ending right and Lashley vs. Reigns should be good again. I mean, assuming they don’t go with the triple threat, which wouldn’t be a surprise in the slightest. Rollins has been on enough of a roll that he deserves a chance, but I could see him facing Ziggler in a ladder match for the Intercontinental Title.

Overall Rating: C+. Now that’s a bit more like it. It’s remarkable to see how much easier this show is to watch when there’s an actual point and something to build towards. Just having the goal of getting the title shot against Lesnar felt like a breath of air and it made the show so much better. They got a lot of stuff in there too with short matches, which is a good way to get things going when you’re starting fresh. Nothing may have been great on here, but just having a goal made it that much better though and it actually felt refreshing. Just keep things going until you get to Summerslam, which is the hard part.

Results

Roman Reigns b. Finn Balor and Drew McIntyre – Spear to Balor

Dolph Ziggler b. Bobby Roode – Superkick

Mojo Rawley b. Tyler Breeze – Alabama Slam

Bayley/Sasha Banks vs. Alicia Fox/Dana Brooke went to a double countout

B-Team b. Ascension – Belly to back suplex/neckbreaker combo to Viktor

Authors of Pain b. Titus Worldwide – Last Chapter to Crews

Sarah Logan b. Ember Moon – Small package

Bobby Lashley b. Elias and Seth Rollins – Spear to Elias

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: July 12, 2018
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness, Vic Joseph

It’s the go home week for Extreme Rules and my goodness that doesn’t exactly bode well for the things they’ll be recapping here. This show has been one of the weakest builds in recent memory and while Smackdown was better this week, Raw was its usual horrid self. How often do I have to say something like this anymore? Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Titus Worldwide vs. Authors of Pain

Crews does what he can with Akam but gets tossed into the corner, followed by Rezar tossing him right back out of said corner. It’s back to Akam for a cobra clutch and a t-bone suplex but Crews sends him into the corner as well. The hot tag brings in Titus to show off some power, including a powerslam for two on Akam. Not that it matters as the Last Chapter is good for the pin at 4:22.

Rating: D+. Actually not too bad here as they kept it moving and the Authors got to look good. The important thing here is to have the Authors establish themselves on the main roster and beating up teams like this is a great way to start that process. It’s nothing great and it won’t mean anything, but at least they’re getting the idea right.

Video on Bobby Lashley vs. Roman Reigns.

From Raw.

Lashley and Reigns are in the back, arguing about Reigns going to the ring. Lashley wants Reigns to call him out as a DANIEL BRYAN chant drowns out some of whatever they’re saying. Lashley steps to the side and tells Reigns to carry on.

Here’s Reigns in the ring for a chat and he wastes no time in calling Lashley out. Before anything can happen though, here’s Kurt Angle, flanked by Baron Corbin, to interrupt. Angle wants them to save it for Sunday but the brawl is on anyway. A bunch of midcarders can’t break it up and the fight breaks out over and over again. Reigns is finally taken to the floor as Finn Balor gets in a shot on Corbin for a nice bit of continuity.

The fight keeps breaking out with even more people coming out and failing to separate them. Lashley keeps punching and throws Reigns inside but is finally pushed to the back. Reigns isn’t done though and hits the BIG dive over the top to take out about twenty people at the same time. Reigns’ music plays but he comes back AGAIN and dives at Lashley. Really, really solid segment here but it’s going to be annoying when this headlines again over the World Title. Also, they need to bring this intensity to the match instead of the boring match Reigns and Samoa Joe had at Backlash.

Again from Raw.

Nia Jax/Natalya vs. Mickie James/Alexa Bliss

Natalya wastes no time in trying a Sharpshooter on James but gets kicked away, allowing the tag to Bliss. The same Sharpshooter attempt sends Bliss bailing to the floor so Natalya baseball slides both villains down. Back from an early break with Natalya being sent into the corner so Bliss can hit her running slap. We hit the chinlock so IT’S TIME FOR AN INSET PROMO FOR SUNDAY! Sweet, I was worried that we wouldn’t get these stupid things again. Back to full screen with Natalya getting over for the hot tag to Nia, who starts wrecking Mickie. The splash in the corner sets up the big leg to give Nia the pin at 8:09.

Rating: D. Well what we saw was decent, but the inset promo felt like a second commercial. That and Nia just running over everyone has been done, especially since it’s a near guarantee that she loses on Sunday, allowing Bliss to go to Summerslam and hang with Ronda Rousey for a long match. Just not enough content here to make it work.

Immediately after the pin, Bliss hits Jax in the back with a kendo stick. The stick is quickly taken away and broken as Bliss runs away in a hurry.

Video on Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman.

Curt Hawkins vs. Chad Gable

Hawkins takes him down with a wristlock and actually gets a LET’S GO HAWKINS chant. Gable easily wins the second wristlock battle and armdrags him into an armbar. A monkey flip sends Hawkins flying but he rams Gable throat first into the rope. Back from a break with Hawkins getting two off a Michinoku Driver in a near fall. A powerbomb is loaded up but Gable slips out and sends him into the corner for Rolling Chaos Theory and the pin at 8:30.

Rating: C-. I know it’s not likely to go anywhere anytime soon but Hawkins is getting closer to actually winning a match. I’m not sure if they’ll ever actually pull the trigger and have him win something but at least they’re not having it be squash after squash. Hawkins can put on a good enough match and that’s what he did here, with Gable getting to look good in the end.

We see the big brawl that opened Smackdown and set up the main event.

New Day/HELL NO vs. Bludgeon Brothers/Sanity

In kayfabe, that’s some pretty awesome timing for the production staff to know when the match is going to grind to a halt so these videos can air. Back to full screen with Dain hitting a backsplash, just in time to go to a commercial. We’re not even nine minutes into this match and we’ve had two commercials and an inset promo. I know this is crazy for a fan to say, but I’d actually like to watch the match instead of an ad every three minutes.

Back with Woods still in trouble and Harper’s Michinoku Driver getting two. New Day makes the save, allowing Woods to hit his springboard tornado DDT on Harper. The hot tag brings in Bryan to hammer on Young as everything breaks down. We hit a parade of secondary finishers until Big E. spears Dain off the apron. Back in and Bryan knees Young down for the pin at 16:41.

Rating: C+. Well what we saw of it was good. A match that isn’t even eighteen minutes long doesn’t need two breaks and an inset promo as a mini break, but WWE has too much stuff to advertise to do a match like this uninterrupted. If nothing else Sanity getting this kind of push (two months after being announced) out of the shoot is nice, and odds are they win on Sunday.

And from Raw one more time.

Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre

If Rollins wins, Drew is banned from ringside on Sunday. McIntyre powers him into the corner with ease to start, allowing McIntyre to do his kneeling pose. A dropkick has almost no effect and McIntyre runs him over with a shoulder. It’s off to an armbar with McIntyre in full control so far. A chinlock keeps Rollins in trouble and McIntyre chops him back down to set up another armbar.

McIntyre drives him back first into the apron and we take a break. Back with Rollins flying off an overhead belly to belly and some stomps to the arm setting up yet another armbar. Rollins fights up and finally gets a breather by sending McIntyre face first into the middle buckle. McIntyre heads to the floor for back to back suicide dives, followed by the middle rope Blockbuster for a near fall of his own.

A charge in the corner goes badly for Rollins though as McIntyre grabs a reverse Alabama Slam, sending Rollins face first into the mat on a nasty looking landing. A sitout powerbomb gets two more but McIntyre gets caught up top, allowing Rollins to kick him into the Tree of Woe. That’s fine with Drew, who sits up and superplexes Rollins back down.

The Claymore is blocked with a superkick into the Falcon Arrow to rock McIntyre. It doesn’t rock him enough though as McIntyre scores with a headbutt, which seems to fire McIntyre up all over again. Rollins is fine enough to hit a Buckle Bomb and low superkick, followed by a curb stomp to an invading Ziggler. The distraction is enough for McIntyre to hit the Claymore for the pin at 21:06.

Rating: B. Now that’s more like it as this show was needing a long, good match to really boost things up. Thankfully they seem to have started planting the seeds for McIntyre to split from Ziggler but that needs to happen around Summerslam or so because Ziggler is already getting way too much focus by comparison. At least McIntyre won here though, as a loss would have been a rather bad idea.

Overall Rating: D+. Holy sweet merciful goodness what has happened to Smackdown? I mean I know it’s just Smackdown being Smackdown but egads this was basically the Raw highlight show with Smackdown being thrown in at the end. That was the case with Extreme Rules as well and it’s becoming more of a problem every week. Just pretend it matters. Is that too much to ask.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

I was struggling for a topic this week. Then I realized the perfect topic was staring at my face almost literally every time I watched a show that wasn’t WWE. Pentagon Jr holds quite the unique privilege. He along with his brother Fenix appear in more televised wrestling promotions than any other wrestler. And by quite the insane margin too. This week alone Pentagon was featured in MLW Fusion, AAA Worldwide, CMLL Viernes Espectacular, Lucha Underground & Impact! Wrestling. That’s FIVE shows! The only reason Fenix isn’t in the same amount of shows is because he was “killed” last week on Lucha Underground. But he was there for the other four. Hijo del Fantasma/King Cuerno, Drago, Aerostar & Killer Kross get to appear for 3 of those 5 with CMLL & MLW being the excepcions. Think about that for a second. Outside of that group of people, the most other people can do is work 2 shows with ROH & NJPW. And I’m not even counting Video On Demand shows like PWG & AAW (guess who are there?).

After being bashed over the head with Pentagon, I figured I should talk about him as I had the privilege of watching him and Fenix from their debuts in 2012 for AAA. Like a total hipster. Except I’m very glad of how these two have exploded in popularity. But Pentagon stands above, especially after this week’s Lucha Underground and Impact! Wrestling. Impact had him and Fenix in the main event but in Lucha Underground, he shocked the crowd by being seated with them and attacking Cage. Afterwards cutting a very confident promo. Pentagon felt like a Megastar. But where did it begin?

Pentagon first appeared in AAA as ‘Dark Dragon’. He almost looked like Super Dragon from PWG and was nothing more than a filler wrestler for its insane amount of ‘Trios’ and ‘Atomicos’ tag team matches. He did nothing of note until ‘Guerra De Titanes 2012’. The year-end show for AAA where heel group ‘La Sociedad’ promised to exterminate two legends, Octagon and La Parka II. The legends duo recruited help from a wrestler who debuted earlier, Samuray Del Sol. And under Octagon’s tutelage, he was re-branded ‘Octagon Jr.’. Today you might know that wrestler as Kalisto. But who were their opponents? La Sociedad ordered Silver King to team up with two new recruits. The first one being La Parka Negra and the other was none other than Pentagon Jr. Rebranded after his stint as Dark Dragon.

AAA has a tradition of creating “dark” counterparts for crowd favorite wrestlers. Very much like NJPW has done with Tiger Mask/Black Tiger and Jushin Liger/Super Liger. This would be the fourth incarnation of a ‘Pentagon’, the opposite to Octagon and the first for La Parka with Parka Negra. Pentagon Jr got his “Jr” because of the debuting Octagon Jr. Pentagon and Fenix are not second generation wrestlers.

At first, Pentagon was nowhere near as captivating as he would become by his Lucha Underground debut. Being an evil counterpart to Octagon and Octagon Jr, he dressed similarly. Using very baggy ‘kung-fu’ inspired gi. He didn’t have facepaint, just a villanous looking version of Octagon’s mask with a few highlights. He looked dull. In contrast, Parka Negra (who was then played by ex-AAA Megachampion El Zorro) had an incredible look. A pure black style of La Parka’s look with red eyes and silver highlights as well as what looked like a satanic looking staff. Parka Negra breathed cool and his attitude was impressive. Every single match he was in, he would do his entrance before just charging to the ring and attacking his opponents at ringside. You could say he was Pentagon Jr before Pentagon Jr himself. It wasn’t until mid-2013 that he just started to find his look. And the look became a big thing for him as he became far more attractive to the crowds. The mix of facepaint and mask gave him his signature skeleton look and changing his gi for a far more modern look only aided that. He slowly started to find his confidence. Then Lucha Underground happened.

KB and guys in the WrestleZone Forums can attest. When Pentagon first appeared on the second episode of Lucha Underground and lost to Chavo Guerrero, I told everyone “watch that guy”. Most guys weren’t immediately impressed but others could see it just from his look. Weeks later he said he had a “Master” and started breaking people’s arms. So it started. Pentagon’s popularity sky-rocketed as the mystery grew. This amazing looking wrestler with such an intimidating character. It peaked with his amazing, bloody match against Vampiro at Ultima Lucha. Once the TV show started being more lenient with the US dates for its roster, many took advantage right away. PWG, AAW, Pentagon started to spread through the US. But it wasn’t all rainbows for the skeleton faced guy.

See, AAA is a curious company. If people think WWE’s creative seems to be in a weird bubble, shielded by their ego, AAA is ten times worse and without any of the success WWE has. Despite Pentagon’s popularity, AAA NEVER showed the interest in pushing him higher than being a midcarder or a guy to headline in Trios matches. Headlining Triplemania seemed out of Pentagon’s reach given AAA’s obsession with veterans and Psycho Clown (you could say he’s Mexican Roman Reigns, except not as talented in the ring). 2016 came and Pentagon’s contract was coming up. So to entice him to stay by 2017, he was given a feud with Psycho Clown and won Clown’s Latinamerican title. Except Psycho Clown headlined Triplemania. Pentagon defended the title in the midcard against Johnny Mundo. And lost. As the months went on, AAA positioned Pentagon and his group Los Perros Del Mal (inherited from the late Hijo del Perro Aguaya) became the top rudos of the show. He and Joe Lider won the Tag Team titles but was still not in the plans for headlining Triplemania. That was already locked to be Psycho Clown vs Dr Wagner Jr. So Pentagon left.

The parallels to Roman Reigns and CM Punk are somewhat scary.

Leaving AAA just seemed to open more doors for him as he started to be on high demand now in Mexico too. But he wouldn’t take the next step until the present. When Lucha Underground and Impact! Wrestling reached a working agreement. It was that and Alberto El Patron’s constant personal issues that opened the door for an unexpected occurrence when Pentagon won the Impact World title. Impact has put massive power on top of Pentagon, routinely headlining TV shows and even naming a pre-taped PPV after him. On top of that he and Sami Callihan are now the semi-main event of their upcoming Slammiversary show. In the revived MLW, Pentagon was the first challenger to it’s World title and then with Fenix became their first Tag Team Champions. In Lucha Underground, he’s World Champion and has been pushed stronger than any other character on the show. He’s been AAW Champion and it’s where said rivalry with Sami Callihan first started. In PWG he’s been Tag Team Champion with Fenix too. His popularity is such that both AAA and CMLL agreed to hire him while allowing him to work for the other company. And more over, he’s finally slated to headline Triplemania by being a part of it’s rather contrived ‘Poker of Aces’ match with he, LA Park, Hijo Del Fantasma and [that dang] Psycho Clown will face each other gambling their masks.

As such, Pentagon’s career comes full circle. His growth has been amazing. He is the biggest star not in WWE or NJPW/ROH today. From finding his way out of AAA’s constant booking turmoil to becoming a sensation through a new project in Lucha Underground, to breaking through and almost literally being in every wrestling promotion you can think of. What will the future hold for the man with Zero Fear? We will see, but it feels he can only get bigger from here.

====

Thank you for reading. My name is AB Morales, Puertorican Dirt Sheet writer, a friend of KB for years. You can find and follow me here:

Facebook | Where I have my own personal blog with daily wrestling updates and even cover anime and videogames once in a while.
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Twitter | Where I do….., well it’s Twitter.
Impacto Estelar | My own little Spanish Dirt Sheet site.

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Lucha Underground
Date: July 11, 2018
Location: Lucha Underground Temple, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Vampiro, Matt Striker

We’re starting to pick up steam on the Aztec Medallions as a lot of them have been awarded in short order. That’s a good idea when you have so many of them to be collected and hopefully we continue moving forward. Other than that there’s the prospect of Cage vs. Pentagon, which could be a lot of fun. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at the Rabbit Tribe trying to worship Mascarita Sagrada, the Aztec Medallions and Matanza being even more murdery than usual. The last one should be rather worrying.

Cortez Castro is in the ring with a kendo stick but here’s Antonio Cueto to say Castro is really a cop. Now why did it take so long to find this out? It’s sacrifice time.

Matanza vs. Cortez Castro

Wrath of the Gods, 12 seconds.

Castro disappears. I could go for more of this story as it’s a good way to get rid of some of these lower level performers who aren’t doing anything important.

Aztec Medallion: Joey Ryan vs. Ivelisse

Rating: D. Remember when Ryan actually played a different character on this show and wasn’t just Joey Ryan from the indies? Well apparently Lucha Underground doesn’t either as this was every Ryan match from everywhere else. At least Ivelisse won, as it could be interesting to see what she could do around here if she’s healthy for once.

Aztec Medallion: Killshot vs. The Mack vs. Son of Havoc

Yes the Trios Champions are fighting again. Hang on though as here’s Antonio to say there will be two medallions given out here with only the person taking the fall not getting one. Works for me. Killshot starts fast and kicks both guys down, setting up a showdown with Mack. With Mack on the floor, Havoc hits the required suicide dive before Asai moonsaulting onto both of them.

Back in and Mack elbows Havoc down, setting up the big flip dive to take both guys out again. They’re certainly moving at a very fast pace so far. Havoc stays down so Killshot kicks away at Mack’s arm to slow him down, which Vampiro doesn’t like. He’d rather have them all just hit each other everywhere because Vampiro is kind of an out there guy. Havoc comes back in and gets hit in the head a few times, which you just don’t do to a masked biker. A tornado DDT gets Havoc out of trouble but Mack is back in to Pounce him down.

Killshot’s German suplex is no sold so he no sells Mack’s clothesline and dropkicks him before collapsing as well. Havoc replaces Killshot so Mack kicks him in the face a few times, followed by a standing moonsault for two. Havoc is right back up for the shooting star but Killshot pulls him down BY THE BEARD and hits a Death Valley Driver on the apron. Mack Stuns Killshot and has to pick which one to pin, eventually choosing Killshot at 9:25.

Rating: C+. This was fun with all three moving at a frantic pace. I’m still not big on the Trios Titles in general as they’re all over the place at times and I can barely remember who has them more often than not. There’s a good chance that this thrown together team doesn’t last again, which tends to be a recurring theme for these titles. You might wan to work on that a bit.

Post match Killshot yells at his partners and leaves.

Aztec Medallion: Cage vs. Mil Muertes

Catrina, now in red after last week, is in Muertes’ corner. They waste no time with the power game, knocking each other down without pretty reckless abandon. Muertes gets the better of it off a clothesline and a headscissors (!) to send Cage outside. Cage is thrown into the barricade but comes back with a series of hard forearms to the face. Back in and Cage’s apron superplex gets two but the referee eats a spear.

Cage’s discus lariat gets a very delayed two from a second referee, followed by the Flatliner giving Muertes two from the third referee. Muertes lays him out as well and I don’t think we have any more available. They fight outside where Muertes hits a wind up lariat but Cage finds a chair. He drops Muertes….but Pentagon is dressed as a fan in the crowd and caves Cage’s head in with a chair. Back in and the Flatliner gives Muertes the pin at 7:26.

Rating: B-. Take two monsters and have them beat the heck out of each other for a little while for some instant entertainment. The Pentagon cameo helped a lot as Cage doesn’t lose clean (as he shouldn’t) and Muertes gets another win to get him back on track (as he should). I liked this a lot as they didn’t try to do anything more than they should have here.

Post match Catrina won’t give Cage the lick. Muertes leaves and Pentagon says he’ll defend the title against Cage next week. Pentagon continues to look like a total star.

Post credits the Rabbit Tribe is being their usual bizarre selves when Mascarita Sagrada comes in. They follow him out and meet the unnamed Killer Kross, who is willing to be their god. To achieve this, they have to kill Sagrada, so Paul London caves his head in with a staff, sending blood everywhere to end the show. As usual, these people come off as the creepiest, most insane guys I’ve seen in years.

Overall Rating: B. I love it when they have a goal to accomplish and accomplish that goal with such precision. They didn’t waste time here and got the point across, meaning most of the Aztec Medallions are now set. That’s better than spending the better part of two months doing one at a time so hopefully we can get to something big with Pentagon soon. He’s a star here and looks like one of the biggest things on the show, which is about as accurate as you can get. Good show here and the old feeling is back.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Extreme Rules 2018
Date: July 15, 2018
Location: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Michael Cole, Jonathan Coachman

It’s the extreme pay per view that forgot its extreme. Tonight’s show features ten matches and only a handful have any kind of gimmick attached, including the likely main event of the completely standard Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley. WWE hasn’t done much to make the show feel special but maybe they’ll surprise me. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Sin Cara vs. Andrade Cien Almas

Rematch from Smackdown. Cara starts fast with a headscissors to send Almas outside but the suicide dive reinjures the elbow that kept Almas out for about a month. An elbow to the face puts Cara on the floor again and we get the double pose in the ropes/on the apron from Almas and Zelina Vega. Back from a break with Cara fighting out of an armbar and grabbing a hurricanrana out of the corner. Cara shoves him off the top and hits a frog splash but Vega offers a distraction. Back up and Almas hits a charge in the corner, setting up the running knees. The hammerlock DDT finishes Cara at 7:00.

Rating: C+. Nice cruiserweight style match here with the right ending, though they covered this already on Smackdown. I’m rarely a fan of having a match added to a card for the sake of having a match added to a card and that feels like what we got here. Almas needs to move up to something bigger now though as he has the complete package to really make a run up the ladder.

Kickoff Show: New Day vs. Sanity

Tables match. New Day clears the ring just after the bell and it’s already time to look for a table. Big E. gets double teamed inside until Young hits Wolfe by mistake. The spear through the ropes is broken up and Young drops the top rope elbow. Back from a break with Big E. still getting double teamed until Woods and Kofi send Wolfe and Young to the floor. Stereo suicide dives take them out but Killian Dain hits a dive of his own to crush them against the barricade.

Two more tables are set up on the floor and one is stacked upside down on top of another. Woods and Big E. fight their way out though and it’s a modified Tower of Doom with Kofi hitting a top rope double stomp instead of getting superplexed. Dain comes back in to flatten Woods and Big E. until Trouble in Paradise puts him back on the floor. Kofi and Wolfe fight on the apron above a table until Young comes off the top to drive Kofi through for the win at 7:36.

Rating: C. They moved a lot out there and it was entertaining while it lasted but that wasn’t exactly very long. Much like the other match, the right person won without much trouble, though at least this one was over some more successful opponents. I’m not sure where Sanity goes from here but they’re the kind of act that can go up against anyone and be tailored to make it work.

The opening video looks at a little bit of everything tonight, almost none of which feels like an important match in the slightest.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt vs. B Team

The B Team is challenging. Matt takes Dallas down to start with his zany screaming offense and Bo is already rolling to the floor. Back in and it’s off to Bray for the showdown with Dallas, who immediately tags instead. Bray has no problem pounding Axel down and Matt comes back in for his ten rams into the buckle. Matt gets two off a clothesline but runs into a boot to give the B Team their first opening. It also gives us our first dueling chant of the evening as the fans are split on the challengers.

Dallas whips Hardy into a DDT for two and it’s off to a neck crank. The comeback doesn’t take long and it’s Wyatt coming in to clean house. The release Rock Bottom plants Dallas but Axel breaks up the Kiss of Deletion. Dallas sends the champs together and the hanging swinging neckbreaker is enough to pin Hardy for the titles at 7:58.

Rating: D+. The ending is probably the right call as somehow the comedy team is the best thing that we can get for the titles instead of someone like Revival, who have already shown that they can wrestle a great match against a variety of teams. I’m sure someone finds them hilarious (and they are funny) but my goodness what happened to Hardy and Wyatt? They were a big deal just a few weeks ago and now they’re jobbing clean in an opening match.

The B Team compares this to Stretch Armstrong landing on the moon. Ok maybe I do like these two a bit more.

General Manager Kurt Angle is in the back and talks about how tired he is of Brock Lesnar refusing to defend the title. Therefore, Lesnar needs to show up tomorrow night to set up his next title defense or he’ll be stripped of the belt. I’m not sure what it says to think of that as a big relief.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

Another “I’m better because I’m bigger feud”. Balor starts fast but gets caught in the corner for some running clotheslines. Corbin punches him down for two and stomps on the back while making sure to mention that he’s bigger. It works so well that Corbin breaks up a springboard with another right hand for two more and it’s off to the chinlock.

Balor slugs away for a breather and kicks Corbin down but it’s way too early for the Coup de Grace. Instead it’s a chokebreaker for two and Deep Six is good for the same. A quick double stomp stuns Corbin but Balor can’t follow up. The End of Days are reversed into a small package to give Balor the fast pin at 8:20.

Rating: D. There was no need for this to be on pay per view and there was even less need for Balor to win. I like Balor, but he’s ice cold at the moment while Corbin had been getting a nice boost thanks to the Constable thing. The story was Big Cass warmed over and that’s not exactly something that was worth watching in the first place. These two didn’t have any chemistry together and there’s no reason to see it happen again.

In the back, the Bludgeon Brothers attack HELL NO with Kane taking a mallet shot to the knee.

We recap Asuka vs. Carmella. Asuka got cheated out of the title last month by the returning James Ellsworth (who just had to be cast in the role) so tonight he’s locked in a shark cage to ensure a fair fight.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Carmella

Asuka is challenging and starts kicking away as soon as the shark cage goes up. Ellsworth is already dropping a chain down less than thirty seconds in but Asuka kicks it away. Carmella gets in a few shots so this time Ellsworth drops some mace. That doesn’t work either as the hip attack gets two and the Asuka Lock sends Carmella straight to the ropes.

Ellsworth manages to pick the lock but his pants get caught in the door, leaving him hanging upside down. Asuka beats on him like a punching bag and let’s stop the match so Ellsworth can be put back in the cage. Instead of letting the production people do their jobs, Asuka beats them up and leaves the cage hanging there. Carmella sneaks in, rams her into the cage, and gets the pin to retain at 5:37.

Rating: F. I don’t think this needs an explanation do you? Instead we’ll look at how fast everything is going for the sake of trying to cram all of this into the time limit, which isn’t likely to happen anyway because WWE will manage to over run anyway. This felt like a bad Smackdown angle, but at least Asuka got pinned again.

Asuka beats up Ellsworth to blow off some steam.

Quick recap of tonight’s happenings.

US Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Hardy is defending and gets hit low before the bell. He says he can go so the bell rings and Kinshasa gives Nakamura the pin and the title at 5 seconds. That has to be an injury or something.

Post match Randy Orton is back….to stomp Hardy low as Nakamura is stunned.

We recap Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman. Owens tried to get everyone to go after Strowman in Money in the Bank so Strowman destroyed Owens’ car, then locked him in a portable toilet. The result: a cage match of course.

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Pin, submission or escape. Owens bolts for the cage early on but Strowman pulls him back down. Strowman: “YOU SAY FIGHT OWENS FIGHT! FIGHT ME!” Owens slugs away and actually drops Strowman with a superkick. The frog splash gets two so Owens goes for the door, only to be pulled back in screaming for mercy. Strowman throws him into the cage a few times and stands over Owens as the fans want someone to GET THESE HANDS.

A Stunner of all things gets Owens out of trouble and back to back superkicks put Strowman down on one knee. Owens busts out some handcuffs to attach Strowman to the ropes but hammers away instead of leaving. I really don’t see this ending well. A chokeslam drops Owens again but he rolls away and mocks Strowman before going up. Strowman breaks the handcuffs and runs up the wall to catch Owens, who he chokeslams off the cage onto the announcers’ table (with the crash pad showing), giving Owens the win at 8:50.

Rating: D. Well the crash was great, but I could go for a match actually getting some time tonight. A long stretch of this was spent on the handcuffs bit and that was hardly revolutionary. I hope they don’t try to keep Strowman the face if this feud continues, but for some reason that seems to be the most likely outcome. If nothing else has made him the heel in this thing, this won’t either.

Post match Owens is taken out on a stretcher while Strowman laughs about how Owens won.

We look at the US Title match and Orton’s return.

We recap the Smackdown Tag Team Title match. Bryan annoyed the Bludgeon Brothers so they beat him down a few times. Kane made his return to help his former partner, setting up the title match here. It’s pure nostalgia but it’s been fun.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: HELL NO vs. Bludgeon Brothers

Bryan, with bad ribs, is challenging on his own as Kane is too injured to compete. The rapid fire kicks give Bryan some early hope and Rowan gets knocked outside. A hurricanrana sets up the YES Lock on Harper but Rowan makes a quick save. Rowan gets two off a running splash and rips at Bryan’s face. Harper comes back in and eats some kicks, only to have Rowan catch the Flying Goat. He can’t hold Bryan long enough though and Harper’s suicide dive hits Rowan instead.

Cue Kane with a cast on his foot to limp down the aisle and take a diving tag. A pair of weak chokeslams drop the Brothers but Harper kicks him in the leg. Bryan tags himself back in for a missile dropkick and it’s time for the YES Kicks to Harper. A blind tag brings Rowan in and he spinwheel kicks Bryan down. Rowan whips Bryan into Kane, setting up a powerbomb/top rope clothesline combination to pin Bryan at 8:18.

Rating: C. They were flying through this (just like everything else tonight) but this was actually getting somewhere with Kane’s injury being a nice little story. That being said, Kane doesn’t quite have it in the ring anymore and it’s showing more and more every time. Bryan taking a fall after coming in injured and fighting most of the match on his own doesn’t hurt anything and the Brothers shouldn’t be losing the titles yet anyway. It was short, but this was one of the best things on the show so far.

Roman Reigns is walking in the back when he runs into the still celebrating B Team. He can be part of the team tonight if he Beats Lashley and they can all celebrate together. Roman walks away and the booing intensifies.

We recap Reigns vs. Lashley (which actually isn’t main eventing). It was about the #1 contendership but Lesnar wasn’t feeling that so it became the two bickering about who should fight Lesnar. Reigns called Lashley out for leaving and Lashley bragged about being awesome. They had a huge brawl on Raw which went very well but other than that, it feels like two kids arguing about beating up the bigger kid who would probably flatten them.

Roman Reigns vs. Bobby Lashley

Reigns powers him into the corner to start and shrugs off the first suplex. The apron dropkick sets up an early chinlock as they’re going fast but not really at a high pace if that makes sense. Reigns takes it outside again and they fight over the steps with Lashley (minus the headband) getting the better of it.

Back in and the fans call this boring as Lashley hits a belly to belly suplex but charges into a boot in the corner. Reigns is favoring his ribs as he hits the corner clotheslines so Lashley grabs a powerslam to hurt the ribs even worse. An ax handle from the top puts Reigns down again but he’s back up with something like an AA to put Lashley on the floor in a big crash. Back in and a legdrop gives Reigns two, followed by Lashley’s vertical suplex for the same.

Lashley’s spear is cut off by a Superman Punch, sending him rolling to the floor. Reigns tries a charge but gets caught in a belly to belly onto (not through) the announcers’ table. That doesn’t have much of an effect though as he Superman Punches Lashley off the top. The spear is loaded up but Lashley spears him down instead for the pin at 14:54.

Rating: C+. Well that’s certainly a thing that happened. Lashley winning was the only logical call as he needed something to energize his return, especially after that horrible Sami Zayn feud. I still expect the possibility of Reigns getting to beat Lesnar somehow, but at least they gave Lashley the win he needed here.

We recap Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss. Jax was defending against Ronda Rousey at Money in the Bank when Bliss cashed in her briefcase. Rousey snapped and attacked Bliss, earning herself a suspension. Therefore, tonight Rousey is in the front row instead of being in the ring but it might not matter as Bliss is defending in an Extreme Rules match.

Raw Women’s Title: Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss

Bliss is defending, anything goes, and Natalya and Mickie James are the seconds. Nia goes into stalking mode to start so it’s time for weapons, all of which Nia throws away without much effort. Bliss’ chair is pulled out of her hands and a gorilla press drop puts her onto a trashcan. Some trashcan shots have Nia down and Bliss wedges a chair in the corner.

Mickie and Natalya get in a fight on the floor with Bliss heading outside to send Natalya into the barricade. Rousey jumps the barricade and sends Mickie inside for a twisting Samoan drop (not bad). James gets sent over the announcers’ table and Rousey runs Bliss down but James is back up with a kendo stick. Back in and James hits Jax in the back to break up a Samoan drop. Bliss chairs Nia down and DDTs her on the chair to retain at 7:21.

Rating: D. This show is feeling more and more like a Vince Russo show every match. They flew through this again and the Rousey stuff was the focus (as it should have been) but it felt like it could have been a big TV angle instead of a pay per view match. It was as much as you were going to get out of hitting each other with weapons for a few minutes until the angle started and that’s all you really could have expected here.

Rousey chases Bliss and James off.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Rusev because the Intercontinental Title match really is main eventing. Rusev Day has become one of the hottest things in the company but Styles is still the Phenomenal One. It’s Rusev’s first ever singles match for the title and he’s ready to make the most of it.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Rusev

Rusev is challenging and has Aiden English singing him to the ring. AJ starts fast with some kicks to the leg but gets kneed in the ribs to cut him off. A backdrop puts him down and a belly to back suplex works on the ribs a bit more to start the setup for the Accolade. We hit the bearhug for a few moments until Rusev puts him on top. You don’t do that to AJ though as he slips between Rusev’s legs and kicks him to the floor with Rusev holding his leg.

Back in and a running seated forearm has Rusev in trouble, followed by a reverse DDT for two. AJ gets sent to the apron but doesn’t seem to mind as he snaps off a kick to the head. The springboard 450 misses and neither submission hold can go on. Instead AJ kicks him down but the running forearm is countered by a kick to the head from the mat (that’s kind of impressive).

A belly to belly on the floor sets up the Machka Kick for two and the roundhouse kick to the head gets the same. Rusev loads up the Accolade but the leg gives out from earlier. The one legged version of the Accolade doesn’t work very well so Aiden English rips off a turnbuckle pad. AJ slips out of another Accolade attempt and Rusev charges into the buckle. The springboard 450 gets two so Styles decks English and hits the Phenomenal Forearm to retain at 15:35.

Rating: B. Easily the best thing on the show so far, mainly because they didn’t rush through the thing. Rusev gets to save a little bit of face thanks to the messy ending too and that’s a good sign for his future. AJ wasn’t really in a lot of danger here and now he can move on to the biggest threat of all, which should be Samoa Joe.

Seth Rollins is ready to burn it down and get his Intercontinental Title back.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Thirty minute Iron Man match with Ziggler defending and Drew McIntyre in his corner. Feeling out process start with Rollins taking it to the mat and working on a hammerlock. That goes nowhere so Rollins tries a rollup for two instead. Ziggler takes him to the mat as well but Rollins pops back up with a Buckle Bomb. La majistral gives Rollins the first fall at 4:35.

1-0 Rollins

Rollins hits a slingshot dive to the floor as Coach talks about John Cena and Shawn Michaels having an Iron Man match (wrong). The fans have a new annoying idea: counting down the time like the Royal Rumble clock, but on every minute. Back in and Ziggler hits an elbow but Rollins slips out of a suplex, setting up Stomp for the second fall at 7:57.

2-0 Rollins

Ziggler is rocked so McIntyre comes in to jump Rollins for the DQ at 8:45.

3-0 Rollins

McIntyre beats on him even more and gets ejected but there’s no second DQ, not even after a Claymore to Rollins as we hit ten minutes. Ziggler covers to get a fall back at 10:28.

3-1 Rollins

A superkick gives Ziggler another fall at 11:09.

3-2 Rollins

The fans aren’t happy that the clock has been taken off the Titantron (I’ll be happy for them) so Ziggler hits a Zig Zag to tie things up at 12:09, hopefully getting their attention back.

3-3 Tied

We get a WHERE’S THE CLOCK chant because fans don’t understand the concept of having something taken away from you if you abuse it. Therefore, they just start randomly counting down, even if it doesn’t match the clock on the screen. Rollins sends him outside but the suicide dive hits a forearm, allowing Ziggler to get a rollup with feet on the ropes for the pin at 14:07.

4-3 Ziggler

Ziggler grabs an armbar as we’re halfway through. With Rollins running out of time, Ziggler grabs a long sleeper with a grapevine to eat up a few minutes. Rollins fights up and sends him outside for a suicide dive and a springboard clothesline gets two as we have ten minutes left. The clock comes back on so we get a YES chant as Ziggler dropkicks Rollins off the top. Normally a big bump like that would get a reaction, but the fans were too busy counting down again.

They fight to the corner and on top until Rollins headbutts him back down. The frog splash gets two on the champ so Ziggler gets smart by grabbing the bottom rope. Rollins kicks him free and loads Ziggler up for the superplex into the Falcon Arrow for two with four minutes left. Ziggler breaks up the Stomp but gets sunset flipped to tie it up at 26:51.

4-4 Tied

Rollins wastes no time in pulling him down into a Sharpshooter and then a Crossface. With that not working, Rollins misses a Stomp and Ziggler rolls outside with a minute left. Back in and a quick Fameasser gets two to put them both down. Ziggler tunes up the band but walks into a superkick, setting up the Stomp but time expires on Seth at 30:10 (not sure how they messed that up) and it’s a draw.

Rating: B. REALLY annoying crowd aside (“We came up with something clever! Let’s do it thirty times in a row!”), this was a rather good match that never felt long in the slightest. I did like the idea of doing that many falls at the beginning as it gave the match a hot start and took away some of the dragging that comes with Iron Man matches. Better than I was expecting here so that’s a nice surprise.

Actually hang on a second here as Kurt Angle comes out to say we’re going to overtime.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

McIntyre runs in for a distraction and Ziggler hits the Zig Zag to retain at 14 seconds.

Overall Rating: D+. The last two matches came close to saving it but this was a prime example of WWE not taking the time to plan out their shows and cramming in WAY too much stuff to make them work. This show needed to have a few matches changed (drop Almas vs. Cara, move the Raw Tag Team Titles to the Kickoff Show, do the US Title match on Smackdown and cut Balor vs. Corbin) so that you don’t have to rush through everything else.

The show felt so rushed and while I REALLY appreciate them being out at a more reasonable time (show ended at 10:42), they needed to trim things down a good bit. Not everyone belongs on pay per view and that couldn’t have been more true here. I really would have been fine without some of these matches and the show would have had a lot more breathing room if they weren’t slapped on there.

Lesnar and the title being back will help a lot though as we now have a target for Summerslam. It’s not the worst show in the world, but they would have been in some serious trouble had the last few matches not completely bailed them out. Just cut down on some of this stuff and it would be a lot better.

Results

B Team b. Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt – Hanging swinging neckbreaker to Hardy

Finn Balor b. Baron Corbin – Small package

Carmella b. Asuka – Carmella rammed her into the cage

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Jeff Hardy – Kinshasa

Kevin Owens b. Braun Strowman – Owens escaped the cage

Bludgeon Brothers b. HELL NO – Powerbomb/Top rope clothesline combination to Bryan

Bobby Lashley b. Roman Reigns – Spear

AJ Styles b. Rusev – Phenomenal Forearm

Dolph Ziggler b. Seth Rollins 5-4

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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IMG Credit: WWE

It’s another pay per view and WWE isn’t exactly hiding the fact that this is just a pit stop on the way to Summerslam….whatever that’s going to be. The show isn’t exactly extreme with a cage match, an Extreme Rules match and an Iron Man match. It’s also a ten match card (plus two matches on the Kickoff Show, because this needed two matches on the Kickoff Show), one of which is guaranteed to go thirty minutes, that they claim will be ending at 10:30pm. Last time that meant 11:20 so maybe they can make it even later this time. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Sanity vs. New Day

This is a tables match for the sake of trying to make the show live up to its name. Ignore the fact that this isn’t actually on the show of course. Sanity was called up back in April but didn’t debut until June because….uh, reasons. New Day makes perfect sense for a first feud so this is as good about as good as things are going to be at the moment. That being said, Sanity has looked good so far so maybe there’s some hope.

I’ll take Sanity to win here as there’s no reason for them to lose. New Day has nothing to gain by winning here and Sanity has yet to actually win a big match. The violence would seem to suit Sanity quite well and a win over one of the best trios ever would do them some good. Killian Dain gets to look like a monster and overpower Big E. while Eric Young probably gets the win. That’s how it should go and New Day will put in a good performance in the process.

Kickoff Show: Andrade Cien Almas vs. Sin Cara

Here’s another match on the Kickoff Show which was added for the sake of adding something else. They already did the match on Tuesday and while it seemed quite good, a lot of it took place during the commercial. I’m not sure why they felt the need to cram something else in but that’s the way WWE tends to go.

Of course I’ll take Almas to win here because even WWE isn’t crazy enough to have him lose to someone as low level as Cara. Almas could become a top star in a very short amount of time around here and having him lose to Cara would be one of the dumbest things that WWE could do to him. If the match is as good as the one on Tuesday was though, we’ll be fine.

US Title: Jeff Hardy(c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

This was supposed to happen a few weeks ago but Nakamura was bitten by a police dog (wrestling writers wish they could come up with something that out of nowhere) and the match had to be postponed. Hardy has been champion for about three months now and all of his injuries have really held his reign back. What could have been a stepping stone to the main event has been every lame midcard title reign all over again.

Nakamura winning the title here is really the only result that makes sense here and somehow, despite being in the World Title match at WrestleMania earlier in the year, he kind of needs it. Hardy has shown that he can bounce back almost immediately from any loss but Nakamura has won a grand total of one important match (when he beat AJ Styles, allowing him to pick the stipulation for the next match, which he also lost) in the last few months. Give him the title and let people chase him for a few months.

SmackDown Women’s Title: Carmella(c) vs. Asuka

Speaking of people who have fallen through the floor since WrestleMania, we have Asuka, who went from someone who was being talked about as a big time Ronda Rousey opponent to….this. Earlier this week I was worried that they might have James Ellsworth go over her and had to be relieved when he tapped. Carmella is getting better as a character, but when you go from Charlotte vs. Asuka to her very tired act with Ellsworth, it’s a bit of a drop.

I’ll go with Carmella retaining here, likely through some major shenanigans. Asuka can go off to beat up the Iconics again and either Becky Lynch or Charlotte can come up to challenge for the title. I’m really not feeling Carmella as champion long term and she needs to lose the title, but that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.

Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens

This was put inside a cage as Owens kept running away from Strowman and maybe because there was only one match involving anything EXTREME on the EXTREME Rules card. Strowman has had it in for Owens since Owens tried to get everyone against Strowman during Money in the Bank. For some reason this has sent Strowman over the edge, to the point where he’s destroyed Owens’ car and knocked him off the stage in a portable toilet. And we’re supposed to cheer for him.

I know the logical answer here would be to have Strowman wreck Owens all over again, but I can’t shake the feeling that WWE would rather have Strowman destroy him until Owens finds a way to sneak out so Strowman loses by slipping on a banana peel. For some reason they love the idea of having Mr. Money in the Bank lose before cashing in, which seems to be destined for Summerslam next month. I have a feeling I’m wrong but I’ll take Strowman with what should be the logical ending.

SmackDown Tag Team Titles: Bludgeon Brothers(c) vs. Team HELL NO

Here’s the real SmackDown main event, which does suggest that WWE sees something more in Daniel Bryan’s future than him just leaving in September. The reunion with Kane has been some very good television (I can always go for N’Sync lyrics) and if they can back it up in the ring to any degree, there’s some money to be made there.

That being said, I have no reason to believe that the titles are going to change here so we’ll go with the Brothers retaining. There’s a good chance that Kane turns on Bryan for trying to make him into less of a monster and not doing things the way Kane wants to, setting up a match at Summerslam. With Kane having his election coming up next month, putting the titles on Kane and Bryan would be rather dumb, even more so with the Brothers being a strong monster team. No change here, but I don’t think Kane turns on Bryan just yet.

Raw Women’s Title: Alexa Bliss(c) vs. Nia Jax

This is the show’s namesake match, likely taking place for the sake of trying to make this match feel more interesting than the first two times they did it earlier in the year. The personal issues have long since been settled, leaving Ronda Rousey being at ringside as the lone point of interest. That being said, WWE managed to cool her off after her great performance when she snapped, so I have little faith that they’ll get this right either.

I’ll go with Bliss retaining here as there’s no one not named Ember Moon around to challenge Jax for the title at Summerslam. Just let Rousey get involved somehow to set up Bliss’ complete and utter destruction next month. This isn’t exactly a thrilling story in the first place though as their regular matches weren’t great and Rousey is the real focal point, even though there’s little reason to believe that she’ll even be on the upcoming episodes of Monday Night Raw. Bliss retains, in the only logical conclusion they have.

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

The fact that I can barely remember that this match is taking place tells you almost everything you need to know. I don’t really understand why they’re fighting in the first place but I have a feeling it has something to do with either something Stephanie McMahon wants or something unfunny that Balor said to set up a match for the sake of getting the two of them on the show.

Corbin wins here as he’s been built up far better over the last few weeks, but more importantly because Balor is ice cold right now. He has nothing going on at the moment and while Corbin isn’t very far ahead of him, at least he has a character with something to do. Just get this in and out because it’s a story that isn’t drawing any interest and really doesn’t need to be on the show.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Seth Rollins

This is the thirty minute Iron Man match, which was the long gimmick the show had on the card for a good while. We’ve already seen these two fight for about thirty minutes on Monday Night Raw a few weeks ago and the match wasn’t terrible, though I have little confidence in Ziggler being able to pull off another very good match.

I’m expecting a draw here actually, probably setting up WWE’s favorite blowoff match between smaller guys: the ladder match at Summerslam. Drew McIntyre can interfere a bit here and keep things even as Rollins would win on his own, so at least the guy who should have the title in the first place can be involved. The match should be fun, though it has the same issue that all Iron Man matches will have: you can skip the first twenty seven minutes or so and still get the important stuff. But hey, anything to fill in time.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Matt Hardy/Bray Wyatt(c) vs. B Team

Hardy and Wyatt had some potential a few months ago but my goodness it’s gone sailing out the window. This entire feud is built around the B Team parodying the champions week after week, making them more entertaining than the easy to mock champions. The B Team is just a comedy pairing and while they’re doing fine, it’s rather pathetic to see that they’re the best challengers WWE can come up with for these lame champions.

I’ll go with the champs to retain here while hoping to hear SAY YEAH as soon as they come to the ring the next night on Monday Night Raw. This should have been on the Kickoff Show for all the interest it has and while the B Team is funny, I can’t imagine them actually getting the titles. Go with what works (at least better than the other option) and keep the titles on Hardy and Wyatt until the Revival can take the titles they should have taken about a year ago.

SmackDown World Title: AJ Styles(c) vs. Rusev

I’ll spare you my well covered rant about how this should close the show because even I’m tired of hearing how stupid it is for the SmackDown World Title to be treated so badly. Rusev is finally getting some form of a reward after months of being one of the hottest things in the company, but at least Jinder Mahal got to pin him at WrestleMania. This is long overdue and somehow Rusev’s first ever one on one shot at the World Title.

Of course I’m going with Styles to retain here as Rusev is more of a Monster of the Month than anything else. Rusev can get a lot out of a match with Styles before moving on to something else, though I’m hoping he’ll be back to the main event scene (or two matches from the main event because the Tag Team Title match is SmackDown’s real main event) one day. Styles retains here and hopefully moves on to a showdown with Samoa Joe at Summerslam.

Bobby Lashley vs. Roman Reigns

That’s right. This is your main event. The match with nothing on the line and with no gimmick attached other than IT’S ROMAN FREAKING REIGNS. There’s a good chance that this is going to be the de facto #1 contender match because….well it’s a Reigns match….but naturally we can’t do that for the sake of making fans boo Brock Lesnar, which has worked so well before.

In something I’m going to regret, I’ll take Lashley to win here because he needs a major victory. That feud with Sami Zayn left a very bad taste in fans’ mouths so it would be rather beneficial to give him a win and a potential title shot at one of the biggest shows of the year. There’s no reason whatsoever to have Reigns win so you can probably pencil him in. I’ll take Lashley to win though and hope that WWE isn’t as stupid as they come off at times.

Overall Thoughts

Is it any real shock that this week’s Monday Night Raw audience was so absolutely terrible? Consider what we have on the red side: a match which will close the show that is built around a kind of personal issue but certainly not for the title shot because the champion has already said that neither of them are worthy of a shot. That’s the big deal around here and that’s supposed to be the big attraction. Oh and it’s a regular match of course because we can’t bother living up to the show’s title. This is one of the laziest builds I’ve ever seen and I can only hope that Summerslam is better. For some reason though, my hopes aren’t up.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/ask-wrestling-rumors-week-6-july-14-2018/

Another week of questions, including what I like on the WWE Network.  Check it out, watch the videos, and ask me more questions!

Oh and like it on Facebook and ask questions there too.

https://www.facebook.com/wrestlingrumors/posts/1818566021553379

No Way Out 2004
Date: February 15, 2004
Location: Cow Palace, San Francisco, California
Attendance: 11,000
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s the final pay per view before Wrestlemania XX and we’ve got a one match card. Well two if you stretch a bit. The main event is Brock Lesnar defending the Smackdown World Title against Eddie Guerrero, who has reached the point where he almost has to win the title. Other than that we have a triple threat match for the next World Title shot at Wrestlemania. Let’s get to it.

Here are Playboy cover girls Torrie Wilson and Sable to open things up. They’ve been enjoying San Francisco and now it’s time for you to enjoy them. There’s nothing the two of them won’t do so welcome to the show.

The opening video looks at Lesnar vs. Guerrero, focusing on Eddie’s family falling apart because of his addiction issues. Now he’s clean though and the title is the only thing left for him to win. Nothing else even gets a mention.

Tag Team Titles: Basham Brothers/Shaniqua vs. Scotty 2 Hotty/Rikishi

Scotty and Rikishi are defending. Danny and Scotty start things off as the announcers try to figure out if Shaniqua would be a champion if they win. That’s rather different than say at Wrestlemania V where Monsoon and Ventura knew the rules and said Mr. Fuji was just a partner for one night. Heaven forbid the announcers aren’t bumbling knuckleheads though and actually have to call the match.

Scotty dances a bit for a distraction and grabs a tilt-a-whirl headscissors to put Danny down. It’s off to Rikishi and Doug with a hard clothesline keeping the champs in control. Shaniqua gets pulled in but it’s too early for a Stinkface. Scotty comes back in but Shaniqua gets in a cheap shot from the apron to break up the Worm. Leave it to her to make sure there’s no fun to be had in a match.

She comes in legally for the first time and shows off that Tough Enough style of offense, consisting of a kick to the ribs and a slam before a backdrop allows the tag off to Rikishi. A bad DDT puts Danny down and Shaniqua jumps on Rikishi’s back. The Rump Shaker is broken up by a double powerbomb to give Shaniqua two. Scotty clotheslines both Bashams, leaving Shaniqua to take a Samoan drop and the Rump Shaker to retain the titles.

Rating: D+. That would be it for Shaniqua and I don’t know how many people are going to miss her. The dominatrix thing was a waste of a perfectly fine tag team and after two years, Shaniqua was little more than a not great manager. The match was all it needed to be and the fans liked the ending, but it wasn’t exactly in doubt. Now maybe the Bashams can be an acceptable team again.

We recap Nidia vs. Jamie Noble. Nidia was blinded by Tajiri’s mist so Noble started treating her like dirt. It turned out that Nidia had regained her sight and knew what was going on so she turned on Noble for being a jerk. Tonight, Noble will be blindfolded.

Jamie Noble vs. Nidia

Noble can’t see so he falls out to the floor, allowing Nidia to slap him in the face. Back in and Nidia hits a dropkick and jumps on the mat a bit to throw Noble off. Noble manages to back her into the corner and doesn’t realize that she’s a foot in front of her. With that out of the way, Nidia pulls his shorts down for the comedy. A grab of the leg doesn’t get Noble anywhere as Nidia sends him outside again. Back in and Nidia taunts him a bit before tripping Noble to the mat. Nidia finally starts beating on him and goes up, allowing Noble to pull the hood up to slam Nidia back down. A guillotine choke makes Nidia tap in a hurry.

Rating: F. You can tell Smackdown is in trouble as this is as good of a way as they can find to fill in the pay per view time. The comedy here was something a six year old might find funny and while Nidia is miles better than Shaniqua, she still looks like someone who has only been doing this for a short time. Just awful here and no reason to have it on pay per view other than a way to fill in a spot.

Kurt Angle says he’s ready to go to Wrestlemania but John Cena comes in to say not so fast. He’s the kind of guy who would knock Angle out like someone did on Smackdown, but he would do it to Angle’s face. The fight is on and referees break it up.

World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. APA

This was added on Smackdown and Bradshaw has a bad arm coming in. Shelton and Faarooq start things off and we flash back to 1999 with an APA chant. Benjamin takes him down to start so Faarooq elbows him in the face, which plays into the grapplers vs. strikers theme that the announcers were pushing at the start. It’s off to Bradshaw for some forearms to Haas’ back before Faarooq gets sent arm first into the post. So now both Faarooq and Bradshaw have bad arms and Benjamin drops a knee on Faarooq’s to keep up the momentum.

Back to back armbars have Faarooq in even more trouble but he gets in the spinebuster for a breather. The hot tag brings in Bradshaw to clean house with a big boot and a powerslam. A hard powerslam gets two on Benjamin as everything breaks down. Faarooq’s arm goes into the post but Bradshaw hits the super Last Call on Shelton. There’s the Clothesline to Haas but the arm gives out, allowing Shelton to nail a superkick for the pin.

Rating: D. So you have Bradshaw come in with an arm injury and then work on Faarooq’s arm with Bradshaw’s arm only flaring up at the end? That sounds like it’s a little more complicated than it needs to be, especially in a match that could have been on Smackdown. Then again, if it aired there, we might only have an hour and fifteen minute pay per view.

Goldberg arrives, complete with a front row ticket. Even he doesn’t care about the lame first forty minutes.

Video on Lesnar vs. Goldberg.

With Goldberg in the front row, here’s Paul Heyman to yell at him about how great Smackdown is compared to Raw. Goldberg can only sit there because if he gets up, security will be taking him out and have him arrested. That brings Goldberg to his feet so here’s Lesnar to say he’s going to take care of Goldberg later on. Threats are made so Goldberg gets in the ring for the showdown. Heyman offers a distraction so Lesnar can drive Goldberg into the corner but the F5 is countered and the Jackhammer plants Lesnar as Heyman screams for security. They come out in short order and Goldberg is handcuffed.

Hardcore Holly vs. Rhyno

This was added on Heat and is a Smackdown rematch. Holly runs out while Lesnar is still down but security gets him out of there. Eh point for continuity, even if Holly stops almost immediately and waits for Rhyno. The fight starts in the aisle but Holly keeps up the aggression inside with a headlock. The announcers completely ignore the match (well duh) and for once it makes sense. Tazz: “This is Smackdown!” Actually it’s a pay per view but given that we’re seeing a Smackdown rematch, I can see how you would make the mistake.

Rhyno gets in a kick to the ribs to take over and drives a shoulder in the corner. We hit the bodyscissors with Rhyno getting two, earning a quick bit of attention from Cole. Rhyno shouts a lot and whips Holly hard into the corner to weaken the ribs even more. A double clothesline is good for a double knockdown and let’s go to Spanish commentary for a little flavor. It’s Holly up first with a running dropkick for two but Rhyno superplexes him down for two of his own. The Gore connects but sends Holly outside for a nine count. Back in and the Alabama Slam is good for the very fast pin. It’s as sudden as it sounds.

Rating: D. Was there any need to have this match go on for ten minutes? I mean, other than filling in time on a show that is going to be lucky to break two and a half hours? Holly’s push has at least cooled way down and if he’s just beating Rhyno, I think we’re going to be fine. It wasn’t exactly a great idea in the first place but at least it was only for one pay per view.

Long recap of Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr. Chavo turned on his uncle Eddie a few weeks back and has gotten a lot more aggressive as a result. This included getting in a fight with Mysterio, who accused (likely accurate) Chavo and Chavo Sr. of attacking Eddie backstage. Chavo showed his jealous of Rey, setting up the match for the Cruiserweight Title. Mysterio has boxer Jorge Paez in his corner to cancel out Chavo Sr.

Undertaker’s gong goes off and his video plays. The dead rise again in 28 days. Cole: “If my calculations are correct, it’s 28 days until Wrestlemania!” I miss the days when wrestling didn’t think fans were this stupid.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Mysterio is defending and has Paez in his corner while Chavo has his dad. After arm work goes nowhere, Rey speeds things up with a dropkick to the floor. Back in and Chavo gets serious with a gutbuster and he gets two off back to back slams. Chavo’s armbar doesn’t get him anywhere as Rey hits a quick 619 but Sr. breaks up the West Coast Pop. One heck of a left hand from Paez puts him down but that’s an ejection to get us down to 2-1.

A big dive takes Chavo down and Rey gets two off a rollup back inside. Rey goes up but Chavo reverses into Dean Malenko’s super gutbuster (not quite as good but still looked painful) to really bang up the ribs. We hit the abdominal stretch as the announcers talk about the history of wrestling in this building. Can we get someone who knows a bit more what they’re talking about and listen to that for an hour instead?

A half crab version of the Liontamer stays on the ribs and a tilt-a-whirl gutbuster makes things even worse. Rey finally gets in the sitout bulldog for two and you can see him having trouble breathing from the ribs. A headscissors sends Chavo shoulder first into the post and Rey gets two off a Stroke. They head to the apron with a DDT giving Rey two more (Tazz: “Hard part of the ring!” So what was the hardest part back in 2004? I need more information.) but Chavo starts ripping at the mask.

You don’t do that to a luchador to Rey hits a moonsault press for two more. Another 619 connects but the springboard seated senton is rolled through into another half crab. Rey grabs a rope for the break after a better false finish than you would have expected. The referee yells at Chavo for no apparent reason as Rey goes up, only to have Sr. shoves him down, allowing Chavo to grab a rollup with tights for the pin and the title.

Rating: B-. They were starting to cook there at the end and then went with the lame interference ending with Chavo Sr. You could just as easily have had Chavo pull the tights and win that way after his rib work wasn’t enough to finish the job but this came out of nowhere. Chavo had to win here though and while we did get the right ending, I wasn’t crazy on how we got there.

Post match, Chavo goes to Eddie’s dressing room door and says Eddie will always be a loser because he’s an addict.

We get a three way tale of the tape for the triple threat and it’s so weird to see Cena with nothing as far as career accomplishments.

Big Show vs. John Cena vs. Kurt Angle

Winner gets the title shot at Wrestlemania. Before the match, Cena says he didn’t attack Angle and says it was Big Show instead. Somehow that involved at least one gay joke. Cena chills in the corner as Show tosses Angle across the ring in a rather smart move. Show does it again and Cena is so fired up that he tries his luck with Show, only to be thrown down just as hard.

Angle gets smart by suplexing Cena but gets dumb by thinking Show is going to let him get a cover. A toss to the floor bangs up Cena’s bad knee, leaving Show to side slam Angle for two. Show beats them both up, allowing Cole to say that Show has never been this dominant. I’d again like to point out that during this dominant run, SHOW HASN’T WON ANYTHING! Oh yeah he beat Billy freaking Gunn. That warrants this kind of over the top praise? Angle posts Show to put him down, leaving Cena to take some right hands back inside.

The ProtoBomb drops Angle for two but Show is back in for more of that dominance. Show chops away, which Cole says is like hitting yourself with a skillet. I’d think it’s more like having someone else hit you with a skillet but I could see how Cole wouldn’t be able to understand that. Show misses a charge in the corner and Cena kicks him in the knee, setting up a top rope elbow to the head. Angle puts Show down with a missile dropkick and the FU drops Show again.

Cena DDTs Angle for good measure but Show sends him outside. That leaves Angle to get two off the Angle Slam, followed by the ankle lock to Cena. Show is back up with a chokeslam to both guys but Angle breaks up the cover on Cena with an ankle lock. That’s broken up as well and it’s Cena taking over, only to have Show punch him in the knee. The knee is sent into the buckle and an Angle Slam puts Show on the floor. The ankle lock with the knee bar makes Cena tap.

Rating: C+. Angle winning was the pretty clear ending as Cena is way too young to get that big of a spot and Show winning would go against the main principle of him being dominant: he can’t actually win anything important. The match was fine and the knee injury played a role, though a lot of it was the standard two in, one out formula. Trying to keep Show down made sense but it’s been done so many times before that it’s hard to get excited over seeing it again.

We recap Lesnar vs. Guerrero. Eddie won a Royal Rumble last month to earn the spot and Lesnar doesn’t seem to be taking him seriously. Brock is looking ahead to facing Goldberg at some point but Eddie is fighting to redeem himself after all of his addiction issues nearly ruined his life.

Smackdown World Title: Eddie Guerrero vs. Brock Lesnar

Guerrero is challenging. The confident Lesnar powers him around to start and knees Eddie in the ribs a few times. Some EDDIE chants fire him up but another right hand cuts Eddie back down. A powerbomb and then a swinging toss has Eddie thinking he might be in over his head and an overhead belly to belly makes things even worse. Brock knees him in the face as the announcers keep pushing the idea that Eddie has no chance.

Another suplex sends Eddie outside as it’s complete dominance so far. Eddie manages to snap Lesnar’s throat across the ropes and wraps the knee around the post for his first real offense. Brock posts him right back though and adds the Shell Shock (complete with a bit of marching) for two. A very hard clothesline sets up a German suplex to rock Eddie all over again but this time Lesnar is a bit slower to follow up.

Brock misses the running knee in the corner though and falls out to the floor, holding his knee off the bad landing. Eddie follows him out with a dive and you can feel the fans trying to get back into this. Back in and a hot shot sends Eddie’s ribs into the ropes as a group of security is dealing with someone in the crowd. Eddie is reeling but grabs the knee, pulling Lesnar down into an STF. He can’t hold on very long so he goes with a stomp to the knee instead.

The knee is fine enough for another belly to belly but Eddie dropkicks the knee again. A Figure Four has the knee in even more trouble until Lesnar realizes he’s next to the rope. Eddie isn’t done and goes back to the STF and this time Lesnar isn’t strong enough to power out immediately. He eventually rolls over and grabs a spinebuster for two. It’s off to something like a crossface chickenwing to keep Eddie down so the fans are right there with the cheers. Eddie fights out and goes up but whiffs on the missile dropkick.

A vertical suplex (with a quick leg sell) puts Eddie down and Lesnar’s nose is busted. Brock grabs a gutwrench on the mat as he’s figured out he’s not great toe to toe with Eddie due to the speed advantage so he sticks with the power game on the mat. Eddie finally slips out and dropkicks the knee again, which clearly takes away a lot of Lesnar’s fire in short order. The rolling suplexes have Lesnar down but Eddie misses the frog splash.

Lesnar is back up with the F5 but the referee gets bumped. With no one to count, Lesnar goes to get the title and heeeeere’s Goldberg (security around here sucks) with a spear. That gives Eddie two so he loads up the title but gets caught in an F5. That’s reversed into a DDT next to the title (really it was about a foot away), setting up the frog splash for the pin and the title.

Rating: A. I remember seeing this around the time that it happened live and it didn’t really have much of an impact on me. Watching it back though and seeing Eddie’s rise up the card and hanging in there against Lesnar, especially with all the psychology, was outstanding. Eddie winning feels special and that’s not something you get to see very often. Goldberg’s interference was fine and while Lesnar probably had him beat, it was Eddie’s own stuff beating Lesnar in the end instead of Goldberg doing the work to get the pin. Incredibly match and great storytelling with Eddie playing a great underdog.

A huge celebration, including Eddie hugging his mom, ends the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a really hard one to grade as the show doesn’t even run two and a half hours, which is ridiculous for what’s supposed to be a major pay per view. That includes the opening with Sable and Torrie, the long Heyman/Goldberg/Lesnar segment and the main event going thirty minutes. The first four matches ranged from watchable to a bad comedy segment and I need a little more than that for half of the card.

On the other hand though, the main event, which is over 20% of the show not even counting entrances and video package, was an instant classic and a feel good moment that had me smiling despite not being a huge Eddie fan. The triple threat was perfectly fine and Rey vs. Chavo was good, meaning the second half of the show bails the heck out of the card. If you turn this into an In Your House, it’s a near classic but for a three hour show, it’s very lucky that Eddie vs. Lesnar was that good. Wrestlemania is shaping up though and really, that’s what a big chunk of this show was supposed to do.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/08/05/no-way-out-2004-when-all-else-fails-give-them-more-eddie/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

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

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