Smackdown
Date: October 24, 2008
Location: Entertainment Center, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tazz

It’s the last show before Cyber Sunday and Smackdown has the more interesting parts of the pay per view card. That includes Big Show vs. Undertaker in a violent match with rules to be determined, which is oddly the most interesting thing on the card. Other than that, WWE is begging you to care about Vladimir Kozlov in the World Title scene and I’m really not sure it’s clicking. As for tonight, Undertaker vs. HHH should do just fine. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Lia Maivia, the Rock’s grandmother.

Opening sequence.

Here is HHH to get things going, asking if everyone is as sick of Vickie Guerrero as he is. He lists off some of her annoying habits, including being an annoying hag. This time though, he can get away with it because a Twinkie truck was outside so she’ll be grazing for hours. For tonight though, he has to face Undertaker, because it favors Vickie Guerrero. If he doesn’t make it through Undertaker tonight, he might not make it to Cyber Sunday and all of the votes will mean nothing.

This brings out Jeff Hardy to interrupt, saying he knows the audience a bit better than HHH. Hardy thinks he’ll get the title shot and win at Cyber Sunday, which brings out Vladimir Kozlov. He thinks he’ll get voted in and be champion, but HHH has no idea what Kozlov said. HHH also doesn’t care who he faces and then Pedigrees Hardy.

In the back, HHH runs into the Undertaker. Unfortunately he doesn’t apologize.

Maryse/Natalya vs. Maria/Michelle McCool

Hurricane Helms pops in to suggest the women are attractive and McCool works on Maryse’s arm. Natalya’s distraction lets Maryse get in a shot of her own…but here are Jesse & Festus with a mariachi band (Erg, again?). Maria is distracted and misses the tag, allowing Maryse to roll McCool up for the pin. This was in the category of “here’s a Divas segment disguised as a match”.

Colons vs. Bam Neely/Chavo Guerrero

Non-title. Primo takes Guerrero down to start and Guerrero is already looking frustrated. Neely comes in and gets sent into the corner, allowing Carlito to get the tag for a suplex. It’s already back to Guerrero, with Neely distracting Primo so Guerrero can get in a Liger kick. Back up and Neely hits Guerrero by mistake, allowing Carlito to come in with a springboard flipping afro to the face. Something like Cross Rhodes gets two with Guerrero making the save, but Neely goes after Guerrero, who runs away. The Backstabber gives Carlito the pin on Neely.

Rating: C. Oh no. Not the end of Guerrero and Neely! I had basically forgotten that Neely was even on the roster at this point as he hasn’t done anything important in months. It doesn’t help that he wasn’t any good on his best day so this felt more like a way to write off a team who was pretty much already gone.

Post match Hurricane Helms pops up to suggest that Guerrero and Neely could split, ending that amazing team.

Kizarny is coming.

John Cena is returning and celebrities like him a lot.

Michelle McCool yells at Maria about her lack of focus but she’s off to find Festus. Wouldn’t McCool want Maria unfocused before their title match?

Primo hits on Brie Bella but Carlito interrupts, seemingly with no idea what he did. Then Jesse & Festus chase the mariachi band by them, with Maria following them all. Can you tell they don’t have much to talk about on this show?

R-Truth/Kung Fu Naki vs. MVP/Shelton Benjamin

During the entrances, Hurricane Helms pops up to mock MVP for the loss of his tunnel? I like Helms, but is he ever going to actually wrestle? MVP and R-Truth start things off but MVP wants Funaki, with Tazz immediately starting the rhymes. Funaki strikes him into the corner and it’s already off to Benjamin. A belly to back suplex drops R-Truth and it’s back to MVP for the overhead belly to belly. R-Truth clotheslines his way out of trouble and the tag brings Funaki back in to strike away. The Crane Kick puts MVP down for the pin.

Rating: C. Odds are that’s about it for Funaki winning matches like this and that’s not a bad thing. He’s a goofy guy who is going to be doing comedy segments and this one win gives him a bit of credibility. At the same time, MVP continues to have issues getting to his big money bonus and that could lead to some interesting desperation.

Primo goes to hit on Brie Bella and she is suddenly not interested at all. Carlito consoles him but Great Khali comes in to say watch the Kiss Cam.

Here is Khali, with Runjin Singh, for the Kiss Cam. Apparently Khali has gotten some love letters from various fans, including Bruce from San Francisco. With that out of the way, one woman gets to kiss Khali, but Singh brings in a second, heavier, woman. Singh has Khali kiss her because that would take a real man, so kissing ensues. And that’s it. Sweet goodness this is a fillery show.

Kizarny is still coming. We’re not even an hour and a half into this show and we’ve seen this guy twice.

Cyber Sunday rundown.

Undertaker is ready to seal Big Show and Vickie Guerrero’s face on Sunday. As for tonight, he’s ready for HHH as well. Believe it or not, he didn’t have much to say on this show.

The Brian Kendrick vs. Super Crazy

Kendrick’s tickle has been defeated and he still has Ezekiel Jackson with him. Crazy jumps him to start fast and gets in a quick backdrop, followed by a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Kendrick gets in a cheap shot though and finishes in a hurry with the Kendrick.

Post match Jackson lays Crazy out.

Video on the recent tour of Mexico.

HHH vs. Undertaker

Non-title. Undertaker shoulders him down a few times to start but HHH is back up with the right hands in the corner. Naturally you don’t do that to Undertaker, who unloads with right hands and the corner clothesline. Undertaker grabs an armbar and a half nelson of all things to stay on the arm.

Old School is broken up though and it’s a double clothesline to leave both of them down. Undertaker is back up with Snake Eyes but the big boot is cut off with the jumping knee. The Pedigree is countered as well though and now the big boot gets two. Another Old School attempt is broken up and HHH superplexes him right back down.

They head outside with HHH being sent hard into the steps but the Last Ride doesn’t work. A jumping clothesline gives Undertaker two more and HHH is right back with a spinebuster. The Pedigree and Tombstone are countered so HHH hammers away in the corner, earning himself a Last Ride. That’s enough to bring in Big Show to jump Undertaker for the DQ.

Rating: B. They did a good job here, as the DQ ending came at the right time. They had me wanting to see who was going to win and while the interference was the only good option, it would have been nice to see these two have a big time match. This did feel big and while it’s not enough to save the show, it was by far the best part.

Post match Show lays both of them out with fists and chair shots.

Post break Undertaker and Show are gone so here is Vladimir Kozlov to beat HHH down to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. Oh my goodness they have got to get past Cyber Sunday. The problem is there are either no specific rules to build matches around or no matches at all. That’s basically saying we find out everything on Sunday and then the matches can take place. It’s not working, because these television shows have nothing to do and you get stuck with a show like this one. Nothing show here, with even a forgotten HHH vs. Undertaker match not being enough to save it.

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

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ECW On Sci Fi
Date: October 21, 2008
Location: Entertainment Center, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Todd Grisham, Matt Striker

We’re almost to Cyber Sunday and that means we have a total of one thing happening here. In this case that means a trio of wrestlers are coming after Matt Hardy’s ECW Title at the pay per view. That’s not the easiest way to present an hour long show but it isn’t like they’re inexperienced with this stuff. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here is Matt Hardy to get things going. He has a bunch of people coming after his title, including a tough man in Finlay and an incredible athlete in Evan Bourne. Then there’s Mark Henry, who wants one more shot at Hardy. Well Hardy wants one more shot at Henry, who has his vote. This brings out Finlay and Hornswoggle, with the former saying he’s coming for the title in their first singles match on Sunday.

Evan Bourne joins them, with Finlay making short jokes (while standing next to a leprechaun). Mark Henry and Tony Atlas join us as well, with the latter threatening to hurt everyone in the triple threat tonight (as apparently there’s a triple threat tonight). Hardy doesn’t care who he is facing, because he’s keeping the title on Sunday.

Jack Swagger vs. Brett Badery

Badery tries to go after the leg to start and is quickly run over. The Red White And Blue Bomb finishes Badery fast.

Post match Swagger is asked about Tommy Dreamer. Swagger: “Tommy Who?” Something something Pinball Wizard.

Miz and John Morrison want to get voted in to face Cryme Tyme. Miz thinks he would have been a better running mate for John McCain than Sarah Palin.

Shad Gaspard vs. The Miz

JTG and John Morrison are here too. Gaspard backs him into the corner to start but misses a charge to give Miz an opening. A powerslam gets Gaspard out of trouble but he gets low bridged to the floor, with Miz’s baseball slide connecting. Back in and Gaspard fights out of an armbar, meaning it’s time to hit Miz in the face over and over. Morrison’s distraction is cut off by JTG and Gaspard gets in a spinebuster. Morrison kicks Gaspard in the back of the head…and that’s a DQ. I’m not sure if that’s how it was supposed to go as they seem a bit confused.

Rating: C. That’s a weird way to end the match as it seemed to come out of nowhere. Having a simple cheap shot be enough for the DQ was an odd way to go and it’s not like Gaspard gets much out of winning this way. Miz wasn’t good enough to carry a match on his own yet and it was kind of showing here, though at least it didn’t go that long.

John Cena is coming back. People like him.

Cyber Sunday rundown.

Ricky Ortiz is in the back with Tiffany when Hornswoggle and Finlay come trick or treating. The payoff: Teddy Long as Shad. Long: “There goes one bad….” Tiffany: “Shut your mouth.” I’ve seen dumber. Like Ricky Ortiz.

Finlay vs. Evan Bourne vs. Mark Henry

Striker explains the rules, saying all three “entertainers” are in the ring at once. Finlay and Bourne’s early double teaming doesn’t work as Henry fights back. A low bridge puts Henry on the floor so Finlay drops Bourne with a clothesline for two. Back up and Bourne sends Finlay into Henry on the floor but Henry is back in for the save.

We take a break and come back with Henry crushing Bourne in the corner, followed by a neck crank to Finlay. That’s broken up with Henry being sent outside, leaving Finlay to powerbomb Bourne for two. Henry is back in to block Finlay’s crucifix and World’s Strongest Slam Bourne at the same time, because that can be done. Finlay is back up with a DDT for two on Henry but seems to have hurt his pectoral muscle. Tony Atlas goes after Hornswoggle on the floor but the distraction lets Finlay grab the shillelagh to drop both of them. Bourne kicks Finlay down though and Air Bourne finishes Henry.

Rating: B-. Bourne is the best choice for the title match, as Finlay is only so interesting and Henry vs. Hardy has already been done. Hopefully the fans see it the same way, but that’s part of the point of Cyber Sunday: allowing the fans to be sent in the direction WWE wants. It might not work in the end, but at least the setup is working well enough.

Overall Rating: C. The main event was ok enough, but the rest of the show was just stuff filling in the card. It’s more of the same problem from ECW, as almost nothing but the title picture matters. The tag feud is more about Smackdown/Raw and Swagger vs. Dreamer…come on already. As usual, this show is so much easier to watch because it’s short, but that certainly doesn’t make it interesting.

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

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As we take a look at one of my favorites in Sheamus.

https://www.smarkdownsblog.com/sheamus-leaves-wwe

Summerslam 2006
Date: August 20, 2006
Location: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 16,168
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz, Joey Styles, John Bradshaw Layfield

We’re finally here and just like all the other times I’ve seen this show, it still doesn’t feel all that big. Nothing on the card really stands out above the rest as some major match, but instead we are getting a bunch of important matches at once. That isn’t a bad thing, but it did make for kind of an odd setup. Let’s get to it.

The opening video talks about the history of the show….and then the DX logo pops up as we talk about DX vs. the McMahons, followed by everything else.

Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero

They’re fighting over Eddie Guerrero’s memory, so we look at both videos from Smackdown, focusing on both of their relationships with them. So yes, it does come off as a pay per view match based on people arguing over who was Eddie’s real best friend. This is also Chavo’s return from retirement, despite the fact that he was on almost every TV show since retiring. Rey hammers away to start fast as JBL goes on a rant about the Guerrero family as only he can.

Chavo tries a shoulder breaker but gets sent outside, where he manages to avoid Rey’s dive. Chavo’s dive connects and it’s time to choke away back in to the corner. Rey comes back out of another corner and kicks away at the leg, only to be sent head first into the buckle. The fans chant for Eddie as Rey is knocked outside but comes back up top, right next to Chavo. They both hit a big facebuster back to the mat and it’s a bit of a breather. Rey is back up with a kick to the head and there’s the 619.

Chavo counters the seated senton though, meaning Rey has to hurricanrana him over the top for a double crash to the floor. Cue Vickie Guerrero to yell at Chavo and slap him in the face. Rey takes him down with a dive and they head back inside to exchange Three Amigos each. It’s Rey going up top but Vickie crotches him down, allowing Chavo to hit a brainbuster. The frog splash finishes Rey off.

Rating: C+. The match was good, as you would expect from these two, but egads the battle of these two over Eddie’s memory was hard to watch. I know it’s the logical way to go, but at the same time it feels like it’s being designed to set up some big Eddie return, which doesn’t seem that likely. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of these two together and hopefully that does not include hearing Eddie’s name every fourth word.

Queen Sharmell and King Booker are ready to face Batista but here are Edge and Lita to interrupt. They argue over who is the most powerful couple, with Booker calling him a squire. The champs make a bet: if Edge loses his title, he has to kiss Booker’s feet but if Booker loses his title, Booker he has to be Edge’s servant. I’m still not sure if these champion vs. champion scenes matter quite as much as WWE thinks they do.

ECW World Title: Big Show vs. Sabu

Big Show is defending under ECW Rules. Sabu chairs him down to start and hits a quick Arabian facebuster for two. Show isn’t having that and knocks both Sabu and the chair down. The bearhug goes on for a few seconds, followed by a fall away slam to send Sabu flying. Sabu finds another chair though and knocks Show silly, followed by a top rope chair shot to do it again. It’s table time, but first Sabu hits a top rope bulldog. Sabu drives him through the table in the corner but Show is right back up to run him over.

A Vader Bomb connects, with Sabu rolling outside as Show grabs the steps. Two sets of steps are thrown in and a table is bridged between them. Sabu uses the breather to climb onto the table, which falls down, then reset it and DDT show through it for….well nothing as he doesn’t bother to cover. Instead, Sabu sets up another table and is quickly chokeslammed through it to retain Show’s title.

Rating: C. They did what they had to do well enough here, as they didn’t stay out there too long and had Sabu use all of his weapons to cover up all of the issues. I’m not sure how much of a doubt there was about who was leaving as champion, but now I’m curious to see who is next for Sabu. This could have been much worse so I’ll call that a win.

We look at Layla winning the Diva Search.

Layla comes into the locker room where some of the women brag about her cover on a magazine. Trish Stratus goes on a rant about what everyone else had to do to get here. But it’s ok because Layla is one of them now. Then they take her into the shower and soak her for her initiation. I know the idea of a bunch of Divas in the shower is a simple concept, but it loses its steam when they are in their usual clothes.

We recap Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Orton. Legend meets Legend Killer, who was also hitting on the Legend’s daughter.

Randy Orton vs. Hulk Hogan

They lock up to start with Hogan shoving him down to hit the posing. Orton has some more luck with a headlock, but he gets shoved away again without much effort. Hogan powers out of another headlock and shoves Orton down again but this time Orton gets in a cheap shot and stomps away. You don’t try to ram him into the buckle though as Hogan blocks the shot and hammers away in the corner, as only he can. A thumb to the eye and more right hands set up a clothesline to keep Orton in trouble.

There are the back rakes as JR talks about Hogan’s heeling days in the AWA. Orton bails to the floor where he grabs Hogan’s knee and rams it into the apron. Back in and the circle stomp keeps Hogan in trouble but he ducks the high crossbody. The big boot misses though and Orton nails the dropkick. The RKO connects for three but Hogan’s foot is on the rope just in time. There’s the Hulk Up and the big boot into the legdrop finishes Orton.

Rating: D+. I’m always going to be a Hulkamaniac but what in the world was this? Hogan comes in, shrugs off almost everything Orton has, and wins in about eleven minutes? It’s a feel good moment and such but this serves Hogan and Hogan only, which makes me think he probably had a lot to do with the decision. Orton could have used this win and while it won’t destroy him, the loss doesn’t exactly feel like the smartest move. The match wasn’t even that good, as Hogan dominated for the first half, got beaten down for a bit and then went to the finish with some pretty limited drama.

Posing ensues post match.

Melina gives Mick Foley a pep talk but Mick is worried about the kind of mood Flair is in. She also doesn’t want Foley to lose and damage her reputation as the manager of champions. Foley is fired up too though and seems ready to go.

Mick Foley vs. Ric Flair

I Quit match so Foley brings in a trashcan full of weapons. Foley starts fast and hits the running knee in the corner. The Mandible Claw goes on about a minute in but Foley lets go to ask Flair if he quits. Since Flair can’t speak at the moment, Foley puts barbed wire around Mr. Socko, allowing Flair to grab him low. Flair puts on the barbed wire Socko and chops him out to the floor.

There’s the big whip into the steps but Foley grabs a barbed wire board to hack Flair up as well. The fans sound like they want fire as Foley chokes with a boot. There’s another barbed wire board shot to the face and then one to Flair’s back but he still won’t quit. Flair is COVERED in blood and Foley pouring out the thumbtacks isn’t going to make it better. Foley slams him onto the tacks but Flair still won’t quit, so let’s bring in a barbed wire baseball bat.

Thankfully Flair gets in a low blow and sends Foley shoulder first into the post. Flair hits Foley’s arm with the bat but Foley won’t quit, even with threats of Flair killing him. A big shot knocks Foley off the apron and into the Nestea Plunge, onto a trashcan for a cushion. The trainer comes out to say Foley can’t continue but Flair isn’t having that. Instead he throws Foley back inside, sending him right through the thumbtacks.

Flair goes for the eyes with the barbed wire bat as Melina is out here begging for mercy. The bat is driven into Foley’s face so Melina throws in the towel to quit for him. Flair kicks Foley low and demands that Foley be the one to quit. With nothing else working, Flair grabs the bat and goes for Melina, which is enough for Foley to quit.

Rating: B-. This one is likely going to have a lot of different opinions, but the biggest problem is that I didn’t exactly enjoy the match. Above all else, it was too violent (and yes I know that was the point) for and there was so much blood between two people who probably shouldn’t be doing this to themselves anymore. Then there is the Melina thing which is a real life friendship, but it came out of almost nowhere on WWE TV. I get why Foley quit to save her, though it isn’t like some big epic moment or friendship between the two. They did what they were supposed to do, but it wasn’t something I could really enjoy.

Foley is COVERED in blood and can barely stand.

The McMahons are warming up with Armando Alejandro Estrada in their office. Estrada promises that Umaga will be there to hold them against DX.

Smackdown World Title: Booker T. vs. Batista

Booker is defending. They take turns shoving each other into the corner to start until Booker slaps him in the face. That earns him a big push down so Booker chops away. It doesn’t exactly work though as Booker grabs a Stunner over the to rope and nails a hot shot to keep Batista down.

We hit the chinlock for a bit, with Batista fighting up for a belly to belly. They head outside, where Sharmell slips Booker the scepter to hit Batista in the face. Booker takes him back inside to crank on the arm and then switches back to the chinlock. The fans talk about a certain disease they claim Sharmell has as Batista fights up to crotch Booker on the top.

It’s back to the floor with Batista being distracted by Sharmell and sent into the steps. The Book End gives Booker two but the ax kick misses, setting up a Jackhammer for two on the champ. The Batista Bomb is loaded up but Sharmell comes in for the DQ. You can’t even say it was a long match for that lame of an ending.

Rating: D+. I’m not sure if you can call this a clash of styles but they didn’t have much of a flow to the match and the ending was even worse. This will set up a rematch on the next pay per view but I’m not sure I want to see it again. The match wasn’t the worst but it isn’t the kind of match I want to see again. If nothing else, you would think the World Title match would get more than eleven minutes but it doesn’t even hit that, leaving this feeling like a match that they had because it was required instead of something they wanted to feature.

Post match Batista wrecks Booker again to set up the rematch.

DX is talking to someone in the men’s locker room. They seem to have backup.

We recap D-Generation X vs. the McMahon, DX has tormented Vince and Shane for months now so now the McMahons (and their band of mercenaries, meaning Umaga and the Spirit Squad) are dealing with this here.

Vince McMahon/Shane McMahon vs. D-Generation X

DX does their usual intro and we’re ready to go. Actually hold on as the McMahons stay on the stage and send out the Spirit Squad. DX dispatches them in a hurry so here are Mr. Kennedy, Finlay and William Regal, who are beaten up after just a bit more time. Now it’s Big Show to take Shawn out while the other three beat up HHH on the floor. HHH gets put through the announcers’ table and NOW the McMahons are willing to head to the ring.

Vince slams Shawn down as we officially start, setting up Shane with the jabs. The bosses take turns beating Shawn down, though Shane is smart enough to hit the floor and stomp HHH down. A double suplex sets up a Paisan elbow and Shane takes HHH down again. There’s a Demolition Decapitator (JR: “They think they’re Demolition.”) into a Hart Attack into a Doomsday Device for two on Shawn, with Shane being stunned.

Shawn fights up and hits a double clothesline, allowing the hot tag to HHH. House is cleaned in a hurry and Shawn beats Shane up on the floor. Cue Umaga though and Shawn gets taken out, leaving the McMahons to beat on HHH. With Umaga ready to wreck DX even more, cue Kane to fight him to the back. HHH is down in the corner as Shane loads up Coast To Coast but Shawn is back up to superkick it out of the air. Sweet Chin Music into the Pedigree finishes Vince.

Rating: ;C-. It was another nicely done story with the execution lacking. As has been the case for the entire feud so far, DX never felt like they were in trouble. Having the army there helped a good bit and DX was at least down here, but we are reaching kind of a goofy point where you can only throw so many people before it stops mattering. An army of midcarders is a big update over the Spirit Squad though so it’s a step forward, but the match, again, wasn’t much to see.

A lot of celebrating ensues, with a trainer checking on Shawn.

We recap John Cena vs. Edge for Edge’s Raw World Title. Edge cashed in Money in the Bank to win the title at New Year’s Revolution but then Cena took it back at the Royal Rumble a few weeks later Then Rob Van Dam took the title and Edge got it back, with Cena giving chase. Edge slapped Cena’s father on Raw, so you know it’s personal.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Edge

Edge, with Lita, is defending and loses the title if he is disqualified. Cena wastes no time in shoving Edge hard into the corner to begin the destruction. The referee has to cut things off and Cena misses a charge into the post. That means Edge can hammer away and send Cena outside for a nine count. A spinwheel kick gives Edge two but Cena’s release fisherman’s suplex gets the same. Cena gets tossed over the top and out to the floor for a breather.

Back in and Cena misses a crossbody and we hit the chinlock. Cena eventually powers out so Edge boots him in the face for two. Edge heads up top and gets crotched, though he is fine enough to shove Cena down and score with a top rope clothesline for two. The camel clutch goes on until Cena fights up with a slam for the double knockdown. It’s Cena back up with the Throwback and it’s time to pick up the pace.

Lita throws in a chair because she forgot the rules but Cena gets rid of it just as fast. Cena fires off his clotheslines but Edge cuts him off for two. Cena’s victory roll gets two so Lita gets on the apron, only to get knocked down again. A double clothesline gives us a double knockdown until Edge is up with the Edge-O-Matic for two.

The spear is loaded up but Cena counters into the STFU. Edge grabs the rope, allowing Lita to slip him some brass knuckles. Cena doesn’t mind and loads up the FU, which draws Lita in. Again, that’s fine with Cena who puts them on his shoulders at the same time. Lita gets flipped down but Edge slips out and uses the knuckles to the back of the head to pin Cena and retain.

Rating: B. It’s the best match of the show, but that isn’t exactly clearing a high bar. They were starting to feel things at the end before the screwy finish but at least Edge got a pin instead of having Lita come in for the DQ. Cena was starting to have the Superman vibe here as he was fired up and unstoppable, which makes the ending seem a little more impressive. They did well here, though the mic work is still the high point of the feud.

Edge and Lita celebrate as Cena wakes up to stare down down and end the show.

Overall Rating: C. I’m not sure if it’s the lack of one match standing above the rest or the lack of anything really changing but I still don’t care for this show all that much. It also doesn’t help that nothing really jumps off the page as far as quality, leaving this to be a not exactly memorable show. This felt like they were gearing up for their next brand exclusive shows. That is a way to go, but then why should I want to watch this? The show does feel big, but nothing happens here and that leaves you with no real reason to watch it, which isn’t exactly what you expect from a show usually this important.

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

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

AND

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

Summerslam 2005
Date: August 21, 2005
Location: MCI Center, Washington DC.
Attendance: 18,156
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Tazz, Michael Cole, Jonathan Coachman

It’s a big show here with a card that doesn’t quite live up to the hype. We have a huge main event between Hulk Hogan and Shawn Michaels, but after that it’s kind of a downgrade with Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero with a kid (symbolically) above the ring. The World Title matches see John Cena defending against Chris Jericho and JBL challenging Batista in a No Holds Barred match. Maybe they can make it work though so let’s get to it.

Lilian Garcia sings the Star Spangled Banner.

The opening video looks at the big matches, which works a bit better. Granted that might be because it’s set to Remedy by Seether and I always liked that song. Shawn vs. Hogan gets its own section of the video, because nothing on this show comes close to it (fair enough).

US Title: Chris Benoit vs. Orlando Jordan

Jordan is defending and it’s a German suplex into the Crossface to make Benoit champion in 25 seconds. Now THAT is how you wake a crowd up while giving Jordan exactly what he deserved in Honky Tonk Man style.

Vickie Guerrero comes in to see Eddie and asks him to calm down. This isn’t about Dominic because it’s all about Eddie not being able to beat Rey. Eddie wants someone to carry on the Guerrero legacy and Vickie talks about him having a heart of gold. But there’s also an evil inside of him that won’t leave Rey alone. Eddie: “So now you don’t think I can beat Rey?” Eddie throws her out and reassures himself that he’ll win.

We recap Matt Hardy vs. Edge. Lita left Matt for Edge while Matt was hurt and then he was released. Matt invaded Raw a few times to get at Edge but then he was rehired and it was just Matt Hardy again. Tonight is the big fight.

Matt Hardy vs. Edge

Hardy runs to the ring and starts the fight on the floor as it feels like Matt wants to kill him. They get inside with Matt hammering away and a loud HARDY chant. Matt grabs a rear naked choke but Edge gets to the ropes and then back outside. Back in and Edge hits a headbutt to put Matt on the ropes as the fans are all over Lita.

A spear through the ropes puts them back on the floor but Matt hammers away with right hands to the head. More right hands in the corner have Edge in trouble so he drops Matt face first onto the post to knock him silly. Even Lita looks concerned as Matt is busted open. Matt can barely stand so Edge kicks him in the head….and the referee stops it.

Rating: D+. So yeah Matt comes back, gets in a few shots, and then gets busted open for a referee stoppage in five minutes. The first minute or so felt like a war but then it was little more than a hard hitting match with one big spot. This is the kind of thing that needed to go about eighteen minutes with both of them bleeding, but that would suggest that Matt was something important, rather than just a way to get Edge over. I can go with that as Matt is Matt and Edge has been a near main eventer for a long time now, but this was a major disappointment after the setup.

We recap Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio. Eddie can’t beat Rey and has been driven completely crazy over jealousy and his failures. Therefore, Eddie is going to try something else so he brought up that Rey’s son Dominic was really Eddie’s biological son. Eddie wanted Dominic, but a social worker said they had to settle this, so a ladder match was made instead.

Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero

Tony Chimel: “The following contest is a ladder match for the custody of Dominic!” And that’s your most ridiculous ring introduction of all time. Dominic and the social worker are in the front row so Eddie goes over to them for a rather evil smile. Rey comes out and hugs Dominic so Eddie goes over and shakes the social worker’s hand. We’re ready to go and Eddie talks a lot of trash as they stare each other down to start.

Eddie gets in a cheap shot to knock Rey into the corner but Rey monkey flips him out to the floor. A whip sends Rey into the ladder though and he has to springboard in with a dropkick to knock Eddie off. Eddie goes to get another ladder so Rey dropkicks that one into his face, followed by a springboard seated senton to the floor. Back in and Eddie saves Rey’s climb with a sunset bomb but he can’t hold on, making it look rather messy. Eh to be fair that’s a pretty tricky spot.

Eddie hits him in the ribs and face with the ladder before sandwiching Rey between some ladders. The fans know what’s coming and are rather pleased with the slingshot hilo onto a ladder onto Rey onto another ladder. Rey gets up and uses a ladder to bridge his way up top to cut Eddie off, including a backdrop onto the bridged ladder. The crash bangs up Rey’s knee so he climbs rather slowly, allowing Eddie to dropkick the ladder out and hurt the knee even more.

Eddie reverse powerbombs him ribs first into the ladder on the top rope and there’s that evil smile again. That’s enough for another climb but Dominic comes in to shake the ladder. That just annoys Eddie so he yells at Dominic and demands a hug. Eddie: “I’m your new daddy now!” Eddie goes to hit him but Rey makes the save as Dominic is back with the social worker who let him jump the barricade and interfere in a violent match.

Rey sends him into a ladder and then 619s said ladder into Eddie’s face, only to hurt the knee again. The knee is ok enough to Drop The Dime onto a ladder onto Eddie and then load up the ladder again. Eddie climbs up the same side for an electric chair but Rey shows him how to do the sunset bomb for the huge crash. Rey goes up again and grabs the case but Eddie kicks the ladder out and pulls Rey down into a big spinebuster.

With Rey pinned under the ladder, Eddie goes up but stops to talk a lot of trash. He can’t unhook the thing anyway, allowing Rey to wiggle free and kick the ladder over. Apparently Vickie was supposed to run in there and missed the cue, explaining why Eddie couldn’t understand how a hook worked. Eddie is back up with Three Amigos, including the third onto the ladder. That means another climb but this time Vickie comes out for the save as she shoves the ladder over. Vickie pulls Eddie back so Rey can climb p and win.

Rating: B. It’s rather good with some big crashes, but the Vickie/Dominic stuff was too much and brought the match down. Rey vs. Eddie is something you can watch all day, especially if Eddie is all evil, but they could have come up with something better than a ladder match for custody papers. It was too far and became dumb rather than dramatic, which defeats a lot of the purpose.

Post match Vickie is relieved and Rey hits Eddie with a briefcase for a bonus.

Chris Jericho doesn’t like John Cena’s theme music and promises to make him as forgettable as the New Kids On The Block. He beat the Rock and Steve Austin on the same night and Cena isn’t on their level.

Eugene vs. Kurt Angle

For Eugene’s (Or Angle’s?) Gold Medal with no time limit and Christy Hemme is here with Eugene. Angle goes off on him to start and stomps Eugene down into the corner. Eugene comes back with a Faarooq spinebuster but Angle breaks up the People’s Elbow attempt with a hard clothesline. The fans are very pleased with this as they don’t seem all that into Eugene here.

Angle rolls the German suplexes for two and the fans are happy again. Eugene gets sent into the buckle a few times so the comeback is on, including a Rock Bottom for two. The Stunner gets the same and Eugene takes down the non-existent straps. Angle reverses the ankle lock by rolling him into the corner though and it’s the Angle Slam into the ankle lock for the win.

Rating: D. This could have been on Raw as Eugene was completely overwhelmed. The charm is long past gone now and it’s just Eugene doing Austin and Rock moves with almost nothing in between. It was just a squash anyway as Eugene is treated like the glorified jobber that he is. Angle needs to move on to something else and Eugene needs to become something else entirely.

Post match Angle stands on a chair so he can be awarded the medal again.

The Divas, in swimsuits, wash a limo with the Presidential seal on the door. The window goes down to reveal Vince McMahon. Vince: “Hey, why not?” There’s a McMahon For President bumper sticker on the limo for a bonus.

Undertaker vs. Randy Orton

Rematch from Wrestlemania because Orton isn’t happy with his loss. It’s weird to see Undertaker come out first. Orton bails to the floor to start so Undertaker takes a second before shoving him down. A slap gets in Orton’s head a bit but he’s back up to dodge some right hands. Undertaker grabs a headlock (that’s a rare one) but Orton is right back with a hiptoss into a clothesline. That just earns him a big boot to the face and Orton is stunned in a hurry.

Undertaker goes technical with a keylock into Old School but Orton somehow understands what it means when Undertaker stands on the top while holding an arm. Old School is broken up with an armdrag back down but Undertaker LAUNCHES him into the corner to hammer away. The big boot and jumping clothesline give Undertaker two but the big boot in the corner only hits….well corner really and Orton grabs a DDT for his own two with Undertaker putting a foot across the rope.

Flashing back to his Evolution days, Orton cannonballs down onto the leg and then wraps it around the post. The leglock goes on so Undertaker punches his way to freedom, only to earn a knee drop to the ribs. Undertaker limps into the powerslam for two and it’s time to go to Texas with a spinning toehold.

That’s broken up as well and Undertaker starts kicking at Orton’s knee, earning a one off BORING chant. That doesn’t last long either as Orton is right back to the knee as the slow pace continues. Undertaker kicks him out to the floor for a ram into the steps and the apron legdrop as this isn’t exactly hitting a high gear. Old School connects back inside and it’s the Downward Spiral to Orton, who is right back with a dropkick for the double knockdown.

The RKO is blocked so they fight over a Tombstone until Orton gets two off the backbreaker. Orton goes up but Undertaker rolls through the high crossbody and grabs him by the throat. The chokeslam connects but a “fan” comes in. The distraction lets Orton hit the RKO for the fast pin.

Rating: C+. It was a struggle to get this high as there was no sense of urgency or any time until the end where either of them seemed close to going to a finish. At least the Wrestlemania match had an awesome near fall of the RKO but this was a bunch of leg work until they got to the finish. It could have worked if they had gone to a better ending but this never got into a higher gear.

And it’s Cowboy Bob Orton. You can book the rubber match already.

Some members of the Republican National Committee are here.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. John Cena. They’ve been having issues since Cena made his Raw debut on the Highlight Reel. Then they got in an argument over who was the bigger rock star, which turned into Cena’s Steve Austin vs. Eric Bischoff’s Vince McMahon with Jericho and Carlito as the chief lackeys. The former story was better but why do that when you can do the same thing you’ve done so many times before?

Bischoff wishes Jericho’s luck.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Chris Jericho

Cena is defending. They go nose to nose to start and a lockup doesn’t go anywhere. Jericho’s headlock is just as ineffective but he grabs a suplex to take over. There’s the spinwheel kick to drop Cena again but the springboard crossbody only lands on the floor. Back in and Cena hammers away, only to charge into a dropkick in the corner. A suplex gives Jericho two and a basement dropkick to the headsets up the chinlock.

They go outside with Jericho choking away with a cord but Cena is back with right hands. This isn’t exactly blowing the roof off the place so far. The big flying shoulder misses though and Jericho hits the running bulldog. Jericho has to bail out of the Lionsault so he tries the Walls, which is kicked out to the floor in a hurry. Cena drops the middle rope Fameasser over the ropes for two on the way back in but the FU is countered into a DDT for two. It’s time to start in on the back with a backbreaker and some elbows as the fans are loudly split.

The running crotch attack to the back only hits ropes though and they’re both down again. Cena is back up with that hard clothesline into the ProtoBomb. The Shuffle is countered into the Walls in the middle though, sending Cena on the long crawl to the ropes. Jericho pulls him back in but Cena makes the rope on the second attempt to a rather loud reaction. Cena’s back is good enough to try a super AA but Jericho slips out and grabs another suplex for another two. An argument with the referee lets Cena grab the FU to retain.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going but they drew the crowd into it and it turned into a heck of a match by the end. Cena is showing some signs of brilliance in these big matches and Jericho has more than shown that he can hang with anyone so this was a benefit to both of them. Good match here as Cena is becoming a bigger and bigger star every single week.

We recap JBL vs. Batista (hometown boy) for the Smackdown World Title. JBL beat him by DQ last month so now it’s No Holds Barred. Not much more to it than that as JBL isn’t quite the believable challenger.

Smackdown World Title: Batista vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Batista is defending and it’s No Holds Barred. We get the JBL dollars raining from the ceiling during JBL’s entrance. The fight starts at the entrance with Batista ramming him into various things. A fire extinguisher into the face drops Batista though and JBL punches him around the barricade, only to have Batista spear him through said barricade.

They get inside for the first time with JBL kicking him in the head, followed by some whipping with a belt. Back up and Batista charges into a boot in the corner, setting up the Clothesline From JBL for two. JBL slides in the steps and this isn’t going to end well. The powerbomb off the steps is countered into a backdrop off of them and Batista hits the spinebuster. There’s the Batista Bomb but Batista doesn’t cover. Another Batista Bomb onto the steps retains the title.

Rating: D+. This wasn’t much but it was way better than their previous match as it didn’t go on forever, though the stipulation wasn’t exactly used. They went with the definitive ending here as Batista completely beat him, which is all it should have been. JBL was never a threat to Batista and now they can both move on to something else, with both of them going in the proper direction.

We recap Shawn Michaels vs. Hulk Hogan. They teamed a handful of times and then Shawn superkicked him on the Fourth of July. Shawn said he had to know and the match was made. Everything went spiraling out of control after that though, with Shawn turning it into a weird near shoot on Hogan’s career while Hogan just referenced Bret Hart and screwjobs a few times. Shawn has carried this feud on his back and it’s going to be interesting to see how they get to the big boot and legdrop.

Hulk Hogan vs. Shawn Michaels

Hogan has the big flag out for the entrance. It’s a long staredown to start before Hogan shoves him away and shows off the biceps. Hogan shoves him down a few more times and Shawn is already frustrated. A headlock works a bit better for Shawn until a shoulder sends him into a backflip through the ropes as the overselling is already strong. Back in and Shawn knees him in the ribs but gets put on top so Hogan can kick him in the ribs.

Shawn bounces as high into the air as he can for a crotching, before a ram into the buckle gives us a bump that Mr. Perfect would think is too much. A clothesline puts Shawn on the floor where he rolls backwards again, gets up and falls back down. Shawn manages a kick to the face though and starts chopping away in the corner. The slap to the face does not go well so Shawn does it again before chopping even more. A third slap earns Shawn a right hand out to the floor but they both get posted with Hogan staggering around a lot.

Shawn posts him again but still can’t put Hogan down so it’s time for some left hands to the head. Some right hands in the corner get Shawn shoved down again (make it twice), only to have him finally punch Hogan down (you don’t see that too often). Hogan is finally busted open and Shawn grabs the sleeper to follow the Randy Savage formula from Wrestlemania V. Shawn’s arm is covered in blood as Hogan suplexes his way to freedom.

The forearm into the nipup lets Shawn drop the elbow (OH YEAH indeed) but this one misses (leave it to Savage kid). Hogan slugs away but Shawn tries another forearm, which takes out the referee. The fans want Bret (fair enough after the promos building this up) but Shawn is up first and heads to the top, only to come back down for a terrible Sharpshooter (even Rock’s is better than that).

Another referee comes in and Hogan very slowly makes it to the rope. Hogan kicks him into the second referee and everyone is down again. A low blow drops Hogan and a chair to the head finally lets Shawn hit the elbow. Sweet Chin Music connects for two but Hogan kicks out, Hulks Up, punches away and finishes with the big boot and legdrop. So that’s how they got there.

Rating: B-. The match was a weird one (YOU THINK?) as Shawn was doing his over the top selling and turning it into a joke at first but then it settled into a match with a pretty simple formula that hit the high points but didn’t exactly break the mold. Hogan was the definitive winner here and Shawn hit everything he could without being able to finish Hogan off. I liked it well enough and it’s certainly a dream match, but it’s two matches in one and that’s a little distracting.

Post match Hogan poses but Shawn stops him to make everything nice. Shawn says he had to know and, as usual, wrestlers are rather forgiving about the whole situation. It’s more posing to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was all over the place with some good wrestling and action but a lot of things that felt like they should have been so much more. It’s an enjoyable show and something I’d watch again down the line, but it felt like they were going for a stacked show and as it is, it’s just pretty good. Fix some of the bigger holes and it’s a great one, but I’ll take what I can get after a build that wasn’t their best work.

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

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AND

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AAA On FOX
Date: July 11, 2026
Location: Arena Potosi, San Luis Potosi, Mexico
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Corey Graves

We’re on to a new taping cycle and the big story coming out of last week was the debut of Damian Priest. That’s quite the big name for AAA and it should be interesting to see what he does in his new surroundings. Dominik Mysterio is supposed to be here as well, but that has been somewhat misleading before. Let’s get to it.

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

Dragon Lee vs. Jack Cartwheel vs. Mini Vikingo

For a future Cruiserweight Title shot. Cartwheel is knocked down to start and Vikingo snaps off a running hurricanrana to Lee. Cartwheel dives onto both of them before backflipping into a standoff with Vikingo back inside. Another big dive hits Vikingo on the floor but Lee catches Cartwheel going up. Vikingo breaks up Lee’s double stomp with a super Spanish Fly, leaving Cartwheel to get caught with the running knees in the corner.

Lee is back up to stomp Vikingo but Cartwheel’s slingshot splash gets two. Cartwheel escapes Lee’s Styles Clash attempt and Vikingo cuts off Lee’s dive. Vikingo is sent over the announcers’ table, leaving the other two to brawl. Back in and Cartwheel Spanish Flies Lee for two, only to miss a shooting star press. A sitout powerbomb drops Cartwheel for two but Lee hits the Styles Clash. Vikingo is back in with a 630 to steal the pin on Cartwheel at 8:19.

Rating: B. I’m running out of ways to talk about how much fun these three ways have been. You know exactly what you’re going to get with them but they wind up being all kinds of entertaining anyway. That’s all it needed to be and they seem to be trying something with Mini Vikingo. It’s a good way to start the show and it worked again here.

Post match respect is shown.

Rey Mysterio goes to see El Grande Americano and warns him about Los Perros del Mal. Americano isn’t backing down but he can’t win this alone. Dominik Mysterio comes in to say Los Perros view Americano as weak and they might be right. Rey is glad to have Dominik here again and leaves. Dominik is ready to face Americano at TripleMania but warns him that it won’t happen if Americano is taken out by Los Perros. Don’t worry though, because Dominik will have his back. Americano isn’t quite impressed.

Mini Vikingo stops Dorian Roldan and Omos, saying they bet on the wrong Vikingo.

Here is El Ojo to deal with the fate of the Latin American Title after the injury to El Hijo del Vikingo. Dorian Roldan says he is here for some sad news, as El Hijo del Vikingo is out for weeks after surgery. Once he gets back, they’re going to sue Rey Mysterio (JBL: “Good.”). For now though, there is going to be a new Latin American Champion and it’s…Omos. Well that got more complicated.

This brings out Rey Mysterio to interrupt, saying he knows what Vikingo is going through as he has had a bunch of knee surgeries in his own right. For now though, Omos has one change to hand over the title…and he does just that. The title is officially vacant and he’ll have an announcement about the crowning of a new champion next week. That was a good head fake but just handing the title to an unstoppable monster wasn’t a great idea.

Damian Priest wants in on the Latin American Title.

It’s time for the weekly Rey Mysterio press conference. Verano de Escalando will be a three week event with a main event each week. First up, Mini Vikingo challenges Rey Fenix for the Cruiserweight Title. Also at the show, Lady Shani and La Catalina are challenging Flammer for the Reina de Reinas Title. Finally, we’ll have a #1 contenders match for the Mixed Tag Team Titles, with Faby Apache teaming with Joaquin Wilde against La Hiedra/Laredo Kid, with the title match at Verano de Escalando. More coming next week.

Money Machine vs. Noisy Boy/Epydemius Jr.

Plata and Noisy start things off with Noisy working on an early wristlock. Plata easily sends him down but Noisy backflips away into a quick pose. Oro comes in to headlock Jr., who flips away into a similar pose as the team seems to have a trend. Jr. grabs an armbar to hand it off to Noisy, whose assisted spinning backsplash gets two.

Plata grabs Noisy from the apron though and a suicide dive cuts off Jr. on the floor. A double big boot gets two on Noisy, who rolls underneath a double clothesline and dives over to tag Jr. Noisy’s spinning super hurricanrana brings Plata down so Jr. adds a big running flip dive. Oro gets dropped with a poisonrana but Plata is back in to elbow Jr. Everyone is down…and here are Los Perros del Mal for the double DQ at 8:00.

Rating: B-. This was a weird choice for a main event but AAA can be a weird show at times. There’s nothing wrong with going in a different direction, though it felt like a matter of time until the real story took place. That’s not a bad thing either, as I wasn’t sure where the whole thing was going. At least we got some nice flips and dives in the meantime.

Post match the beatdown is on and Los Perros call out El Grande Americano. Cue Americano with Los Americanos but the three of them are beaten down as well. Dominik Mysterio runs in with a chair for the real save and issues the challenge for a tag match. JBL is stunned as Americano and Mysterio shake hands to end the show. This doesn’t sound logical for Americano but it’s a long way to TripleMania.

Overall Rating: B-. The point of this show was to set up some things for the future, with Verano de Escalando starting to come together. The good thing is that even those special shows aren’t overly long so there is only so much that needs to be done. As usual, this show didn’t wear out its welcome, which makes even the less important shows like this one easy to watch.

Results
Mini Vikingo b. Jack Cartwheel and Dragon Lee – 630 to Cartwheel
Money Machine vs. Noisy Boy/Epydemius Jr. went to a double DQ when Los Perros del Mal interfered

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

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Collision
Date: July 11, 2026
Location: Berglund Center, Roanoke, Virginia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

So Hangman Page is back. You might not have heard about this because Tony Khan announced it in a livestream on Friday rather than on the big Dynamite earlier this week but Page is indeed back. That leads to the question of what he is going to do, but with about two weeks to go before Redemption, he has to figure something out. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Kenny Omega winning the World Title back from MJF on Dynamite.

Here is Hangman Page (with a not great haircut and recently having had a vasectomy) to say that he is….a gardener? He brags about his butterfly weed and talks about how fascinating it is to plant seeds and see what they become. Page wanted to be here in Roanoke because he needed to plant another seed.

Back in March, he lost a Texas Death match to MJF and maybe that was overconfidence, but he did lose. He’ll be a man of his word and never challenge for the World Title again. There are other titles to come after though and he’s coming for some of them. This felt like “Oh well, Page is nearby, let him show up and say something.”

Beach Break recap.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Bandido vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Bandido is defending and thankfully we hear about Shibata’s undefeated streak in Ring Of Honor rather than his success in AEW. Shibata backs him into the ropes to start and we get a clean break. Bandido gets wrestled to the mat without much trouble and has to go to the ropes to escape a kneebar.

Back up and they trade some running kicks in the corner with Shibata getting the better of things. Bandido pops up for a frog splash crossbody, only to get crotched on top. A running boot puts Bandido on the floor and we take an early break. We come back with Shibata knocking him out to the apron for a DDT, followed by a suplex on the floor.

They go back inside for the exchange of chops until Bandido grabs a gorilla press. A shooting star press of all things gives Bandido two but the X Knee is blocked. Back up and another X Knee connects but Shibata reverses the 21 Plex into a suplex of his own. Shibata hits a clothesline and tries a low blow, which is reversed into la majistral to retain at 12:33.

Rating: B-. This was your latest random Bandido title defense and as usual, it worked fine. If nothing else it’s nice to see Bandido winning a match on AEW TV, as he hasn’t had the best record around here. He’s rather talented, but it would be nice to see him have a feud over the title rather than one off matches with the title on the line. Just to mix it up for a change.

Earlier today, Hikaru Shida bragged about winning the TBS Title and ignored Harley Cameron’s praise before their title match.

Mike Bailey is ready to win the National Title.

TBS Title: Harley Cameron vs. Hikaru Shida

Shida is defending and jumps her before the bell. The bell rings and Shida sends her face first into the mat but Cameron gets in some kicks to the face. One of them sends Shida outside and a DDT on the floor has Shida in trouble for a full 17 seconds. With that out of the way, Shida hits a backbreaker into a running knee and we take a break.

We come back with Cameron hammering away in the corner but a sunset bomb is countered. Naturally Cameron bites the leg and grabs a half crab. Shida makes the rope and hits a running knee, setting up the weird surfboard hold to make Cameron tap out at 9:41.

Rating: C+. I can go for Shida getting a win in her first title defense but at the same time, it would be nice to not see Cameron lose so often. She can only be so bulletproof with her insane charisma and having her win something important would be nice for a change. That doesn’t seem likely anytime soon, but at least they’ve Shida’s reign is off to a nice start.

Post match Shida hammers on Cameron until Queen Aminata runs in for the save.

The Lethal Twist and Demand surround Matt Sydal. Threats are made but Sydal calls Ricochet bald and runs off.

Kyle Fletcher is happy with his International Title win but wants to see Brian Cage destroy the Rascalz.

We look at Brawl In The Ballpark, which saw some AEW matches take place at a Minnesota Twins game. Tying AEW to something big like Major League Baseball is a great thing.

Here is the Conglomeration for a chat. They liked Brawl In The Ballpark but know someone who wants to be a champion. This brings out Willow Nightingale, who is sad because she was out of action but she’s ready to go to Wembley. She’s going to prove that she’s ready to be the best and at Redemption, she’ll carry the Women’s Title around her waist.

Skye Blue is ready for Thekla to take out Willow Nightingale. And the Sisters Of Sin aren’t happy with Megan Bayne/Lena Kross.

Death Riders vs. Top Flight/AR Fox/Komander

Garcia takes Darius down to start so Darius takes Garcia down as well. Fox comes in for a spinning suplex but gets dragged into the corner for the tag to Moxley, with the fans rather approving. A quick takedown is enough for Moxley, so it’s off to Castagnoli to backbreaker a diving Komander. That’s shrugged off and Komander fights up to clean house with a hurricanrana. Everything breaks down and we take an early break.

We come back with Dante in trouble and getting stomped down for an early one count. Dante is sent outside for the stomping so Komander is there with the rope walk dive. Back in and Fox grabs a cutter, followed by the dives to the floor. The Swanton hits Garcia but Castagnoli swings Fox. Top Flight armdrags Moxley to the floor for a dive, leaving Komander to slug away on Garcia and Yuta. Fox is back in for the save but misses a 450, meaning it’s the running uppercuts in the corner. The Scorpion Deathlock has Fox in trouble and Moxley adds a Stomp to give Garcia the pin at 12:29.

Rating: B-. This got fun for a bit, though I’m not sure why the Death Riders needed so long to beat a thrown together team of people without the most success. That being said, it was good enough action and that’s about all you can ask for on a lot of Collisions. What else is Moxley going to do? Not appear on every show?

Post match Moxley declares it as the Death Riders against the World.

Lena Kross/Megan Bayne are sick of the tag team division, especially the Sisters Of Sin. Just keep carrying Thekla’s bags.

Thekla doesn’t think much of anyone but the Triangle Of Madness. Willow Nightingale can keep talking about her happiness but Thekla is going to take her out.

The Bang Bang Gang continue to offer their neutering services. I think we get the joke already.

Zachary Wentz vs. Brian Cage

Wentz knocks him to the apron to start and hits the handstand kick to the head, setting up the required dive. Cage fights back and hits the apron superplex and we take an early break. We come back with Wentz hitting a missile dropkick to leave both of them down. A handspring knee to the face gets two and a middle rope cutter drops Cage for two more. Cage blasts him with a discus lariat though and an apron German superplex sets up the Drill Claw to finish Wentz at 7:53.

Rating: C+. This was a pretty basic formula match with the fast paced guy against the monster and that’s all it should have been. Cage cuts Wentz off to get revenge for Kyle Fletcher and the Don Callis Family gets to celebrate for a bit. That being said, Cage’s return makes me wonder why the Family needs so many monsters, especially when a lot of them just stand around in the back.

Post match Trent Beretta gets in the ring and declares himself the winner over Darby Allin. Cue Allin and we’re having a match.

Darby Allin vs. Trent Beretta

Allin knocks him outside to start but gets distracted by Cage, allowing Beretta to take over. Back in and a quick Coffin Drop attempt is blocked, with Beretta hitting a backdrop into a faceplant. Allin fights up and dives onto Cage, only to get Strong Zeroed onto the apron for two. Beretta takes him up top but gets caught in a super Code Red. The Coffin Drop finishes for Allin at 4:20.

Rating: C. I’m not sure what the point was in having Allin just show up at the last second with no indication that he wouldn’t be around, but at least he won in a fun match. That’s all it needed to be and it’s not like Beretta losing is going to hurt her in the slightest. The fans are going to love Allin no matter what he’s doing and getting him on the show makes sense, pretty much no matter how he gets there.

Post match Cage is in to powerbomb Allin over and over, with Mike Bailey running in for the save.

Willow Nightingale meets Maya World and a six woman tag is set up for Dynamite, with the two of them and Hyan vs. Mercedes Mone/Lena Kross/Megan Bayne.

Andrade El Idolo is on a boat. How you know? Because that’s what the video shows him doing.

National Title: Mike Bailey vs. Mark Davis

Davis is defending and Kyle Fletcher is on commentary. Bailey can’t get a cross armbreaker to start so Davis slams him down for a backsplash. A big chop gives Davis two and he bites Bailey’s toe for a bonus. Bailey fights up and fires off the kicks in the corner, setting up a super hurricanrana. They go outside, where Davis piledrives him onto the announcers’ table and we take a break.

We come back with Bailey rolling out of a piledriver attempt and kicking him in the chest for two. A double knockdown leaves both of them getting a breather before Doyle bites the toe again. Bailey kicks him in the head and slightly overshoots the Ultimate Weapon for two. Jake Doyle offers a distraction and Davis gets in a kind of reverse Vertebreaker.

Bailey’s arm trap sunset flip gets two and Fletcher is panicking on the floor. The tornado kick sets up a missed Ultimate Weapon and Davis drops him with a running elbow. They fight to the apron, where Bailey’s moonsault knees miss, allowing Davis to clothesline him into the piledriver to retain at 14:13.

Rating: B+. This got rolling near the end and I wasn’t sure who was going to win, which is always a nice feeling. As usual, Bailey is a heck of a star in the ring and the stuff outside of the bells isn’t his best work. They kept that to a minimum here and things worked better as a result. Davis is doing rather well as a monster and that’s a lot more than I was expecting when he started his singles push.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event helped it a lot but there was quite a bit of the Don Callis Family on this show and that wasn’t a great thing. As usual, this show is entertaining enough while it lasts, but it always feels like it would be that much more effective at half of the length. Either way, it’s another perfectly good wrestling show without much going on and that’s pretty much Collision in a nutshell.

Results
Bandido b. Katsuyori Shibata – La majistral
Hikaru Shida b. Harley Cameron – Surfboard choke
Death Riders b. AR Fox/Death Riders/Komander – Stomp to Fox
Brian Cage b. Zachary Wentz – Drill Claw
Darby Allin b. Trent Beretta – Coffin Drop
Mark Davis b. Mike Bailey – Piledriver

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

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Monday Night Raw
Date: October 20, 2008
Location: American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

It’s the last Raw before Cyber Sunday and we have a question about who should be the guest referee of the World Title match between Chris Jericho and Batista. There really isn’t much else for Raw on the pay per view and that doesn’t leave us with a lot to do on this show. Well save for finding out which legend will challenge Santino Marella for the Intercontinental Title, which should be interesting. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Candice Michelle/Kelly Kelly vs. Katie Lea/Jillian Hall

Hall shoves Kelly down to start but it’s off to Michelle for a double elbow. Naturally Lawler spends the match talking about how excited he is at seeing the Divas in Halloween costumes on Sunday, because that’s what Lawler does. Michelle is sent outside and crashes to the floor, with Hall grabbing a seated abdominal stretch. That’s broken up and Kelly comes back in for her screaming headscissors. Everything breaks down and Kelly’s Fameasser gets the pin on Hall.

Rating: C. The best thing I can say here is that this was a match. There are so many times when the women are thrown out there to do whatever dumb thing they are asked to do (ala Fuzzy Dice On A Pole last week on Smackdown). This wasn’t a good match, but it was a totally standard match and it went fine. I’ll definitely take that as the slow steps towards turning the division into something serious slowly continue. That being said, this is how they opened the go home Raw for a pay per view?

We look back at last week, with Chris Jericho and Batista picking the other’s opponents, which did not go so well for Jericho.

Here is Jericho for a chat but first, he insists that Lilian Garcia give him a proper introduction. Jericho does not like the fans disrespecting him and suggesting that he is going to lose on Sunday. He might even have to add Mike Adamle to the list of people disrespecting him. Jericho goes over the options for guest referee at Cyber Sunday and talks about some of the times where he has overcome the odds.

This brings out Batista, who isn’t wild on a lot of this stuff. After mocking Jericho’s hair, Batista says you earn respect rather than demanding it. If Jericho beats him at Cyber Sunday, maybe he’ll earn some respect, but until then, he needs to stop whining. Cue Mike Adamle, who wants to talk about respect. They’ll both be performing tonight, but in a pair of gauntlet matches. Adamle doesn’t list any opponents but Jericho slaps Batista before leaving.

Here is JBL for a match and he’s not happy about having to face some lame impersonator. Yes we are in uncertain financial times but the reality is the rich will become richer and the poor (“That would be you.”) become poorer. And then the glass shatters, but it’s not what you might expect. Ok it probably is.

John Bradshaw vs. Steve Haastin

JBL: “You’ve got to be kidding me.” The bell rings and Haastin hits a Thesz press, followed by the corner stomping. The Stunner is blocked though and the Clothesline From JBL is enough for the fast pin.

Post match JBL says that is the bottom line because he says so.

Mike Knox seems to be coming to Raw. Uh, great.

Rey Mysterio vs. Snitsky

Snitsky powers him into the corner to start and grabs a gutbuster to work on the bad ribs. A big boot in the corner misses though and Mysterio gets in the top rope seated senton. The 619 and springboard splash finish Snitsky without much trouble.

John Morrison/The Miz vs. Kofi Kingston/CM Punk

Before the match, Miz and Morrison say there is still time for them to be on Cyber Sunday (somehow) because they are better than the Freebirds, the Legion Of Doom and DX. Miz: “Are you fifty? NO! I SAID ARE YOU FIFTY???” Punk and Morrison start things off because they were joined at the hip for a good while.

Morrison takes him into the corner so Miz can come in, earning himself a beating. It’s off to Kingston for a heck of a dropkick and Morrison is tossed outside with him as the good guys clear the ring. Back in and Punk’s running ax handle gets two on Punk but Morrison kicks Kingston off the ropes.

Morrison suplexes him into a chinlock and we take a break. We come back with Kingston kicking his way out of trouble, only for Miz to grab another chinlock. Said chinlock is broken up and it’s back to Punk so the pace can pick way up. The GTS hits Morrison but Miz comes in off the blind tag and gets the rollup for the clean pin on Punk.

Rating: B-. That was a snazzy finish as Miz and Morrison have turned into a heck of a team, with Miz pinning a former World Champion. That’s quite the big win and I could go for seeing more of them at a higher level. At the same time, Punk is kind of floating around without something specific to do. That needs to change, though I’m not sure what that could be at the moment.

Chris Jericho rants to Mike Adamle about his lack of respect but Adamle says this is so Jericho can earn respect.

Here are Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella, with the latter dressed as Roddy Piper, complete with Goldust paint and a guitar. Marella says any of the legends he could face are the same. Piper is fat, Goldust is dressed as a woman and Honky Tonk Man is….oddly obsessed with pork chops?

This brings out Jim Duggan of all people, who says Marella is on the last minute of his fifteen minutes of fame. Marella is the flashiest of the flashes in the pan, but he says Duggan only won a gold medal at the Goodwill Games. Duggan refers to Phoenix as Marella’s boyfriend so she throws the kilt at him, allowing Marella to hit him with the guitar. Oddly enough, the villains get to leave after standing tall.

We look at WWE in Puerto Rico.

Cryme Tyme vs. Cody Rhodes/Ted DiBiase

Non-title and Manu is here with Rhodes/DiBiase. Actually hold on as the three of them jump Cryme Tyme and lay them out before the bell. No match.

Cyber Sunday rundown.

Here are Mike Adamle, Batista and Chris Jericho for the double gauntlet match, as they will face the same three opponents.

Batista vs. William Regal

Regal has Layla with him and gets Batista Bombed for the pin in about 30 seconds.

Chris Jericho vs. William Regal

Non-title. Regal gets up and walks into the Codebreaker for the pin at about 6 seconds. I’m not sure how impressive that really is but I’m not sure how well they thought this out.

Chris Jericho vs. Mark Henry

Non-title and Tony Atlas is here with Henry. Jericho goes after the knee to start fast but the Walls are easily blocked. Henry misses a splash and gets Lionsaulted for two. With nothing else working, Jericho grabs the belt and hits Henry in the head with the belt for the DQ.

Batista vs. Mark Henry

The spinebuster finishes Henry at about fifteen seconds.

For some reason Jericho has to keep wrestling despite losing the second match as I have no idea what is going on here.

Chris Jericho vs. Kane

Non-title and we’re joined in progress with Kane getting two off a running DDT. Jericho takes him into the corner and works on the leg but the Walls are blocked again. Kane’s side slam sets up a missed elbow so he goes up, only to get crotched by Jericho. Kane shoves him off the top and hits the top rope clothesline as Batista is rather pleased. Jericho gets dumped to the floor, where Batista backs him right into Kane. A big boot finishes Jericho back inside.

Batista vs. Kane

Jericho distracts Kane and Batista hits a spear for the fast pin. Apparently this makes him the winner?

Rating: D-. There was barely any action, but the bigger problem is pretty obvious: I have no idea how the rules worked and I don’t think WWE did either. Why did Jericho have to face Kane if he had already been pinned? This wasn’t so much a gauntlet match as much as it was some weird “who can get the higher score” match and I have no idea who would have won if they both went 3-0. But hey, heck of a way to have all three villains get pinned in a row!

Overall Rating: D+. Yeah I have no idea what to make of this show, as the only interesting thing about Cyber Sunday, at least on the Raw side, is who gets to referee Batista vs. Jericho. The problem there is they have completely lost the plot on why Batista and Jericho are fighting, making the whole thing a mess. It’s something about Jericho wanting respect from Mike Adamle? I think maybe? Either way, total mess here, with an ok tag match not being nearly enough to save the thing.

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

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With their all time highlight.

https://411mania.com/wrestling/halls-tna-turning-point-2004-review/

Smackdown
Date: October 17, 2008
Location: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
Attendance: 6,500
Commentators: Tazz, Jim Ross

We’re getting close to Cyber Sunday and the question now is who will be challenging HHH for the World Title. That should make for an interesting choice, as we get to see just how high Jeff Hardy can run up the margin for his win. Hardy has his hands full already tonight though as he has to face Vladimir Kozlov. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the wild ending last week, with Undertaker costing Big Show a World Title shot. That left Vladimir Kozlov to jump HHH, with Jeff Hardy making the save.

Opening sequence.

Here is Big Show, with Chavo Guerrero, who Show saying this isn’t going to go well. Show can’t believe that Undertaker has been messing with him again because they are going to fight at Cyber Sunday. The fans are going to be able to pick the stipulation, with the choices of Last Man Standing, I Quit and a Knockout Match. Tonight, Show is going to demonstrate all three of these things.

Big Show vs. ???

KO Match. Commentary doesn’t know who he is (I do, as it’s Joey Ryan) but he’s knocked cold in about ten seconds.

Big Show vs. ???

I Quit match and it’s another unnamed wrestler (Ryan Taylor, who wrestled under a bunch of names, including Tyler Rust and Rust Taylor). Show makes him give up with a cobra clutch in about thirty seconds.

Big Show vs. ???

Last Man Standing and this would be none other than a VERY young Matt Jackson (with Hurricane Helms popping up to mock Jackson’s sideburns). Guerrero sets up a table and Show chokeslams Jackson through it for the win at a whopping minute and a half or so. Totally fine segment, but more importantly all three options are realistic choices. KO Match is the most likely, but the other two wouldn’t be insane and that’s great to see.

Post match, Jackson is put in a neck brace and Taylor is still out cold on the floor. The devastating was a success.

Tag Team Titles: Colons vs. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder

Hawkins and Ryder are challenging. Carlito takes Hawkins down for a legdrop to the back but Ryder’s distraction lets Hawkins take over. Hawkins’ waistlock has Carlito in more trouble but he’s up rather quickly for the tag off to Primo. The pace picks up with a jumping shot to the face getting two on Hawkins as everything breaks down. A quick missile dropkick retains the titles in a hurry.

Rating: C+. That was quick and I was half expecting a title change. The good thing is that the Colons are a fine team who work well together and they do well when they’re given the chance to get in the ring. There is still hardly a tag division around here and a match that only gets a few minutes isn’t that interesting, but at least the champions were out there.

Video on John Cena’s recovery from neck surgery, as he was at the arena about five hours after the operation to visit the wrestlers.

MVP is focused on winning one more match as it gives him a big incentive package.

MVP vs. R-Truth

R-Truth hiptosses him out of the corner to start but gets sent outside for a crash. Back in and MVP’s chinlock doesn’t last long so R-Truth is back up with the spinning forearm. A shoulder to the ribs and an ax kick finish MVP off in a hurry.

Funaki comes in to see Vickie Guerrero and Big Show, who throw him out. Maryse, in a French maid costume, comes in and wonders why she is in a match tonight. Guerrero suggests that it’s for a chance to get a title shot. With Maryse gone, Great Khali comes in and is given a match with Undertaker. That doesn’t work for Khali, so Show gets in his face for some less than subtle threats.

Kizarny says…I have no idea actually but he seems to be on his way to Smackdown.

The Brian Kendrick and Ezekiel Jackson come to the ring for a match but Kendrick has a TICKLE in his throat and can’t wrestle. Jackson can though.

Ezekiel Jackson vs. Super Crazy

After Hurricane Helms asks if Jackson’s tights come in the right size, Jackson runs Crazy over and finishes with a release Rock Bottom in rather short order.

Post match Kendrick celebrates and hits the Kendrick. On Crazy if that’s not clear.

HHH watches a clip of Vladimir Kozlov brawling with Jeff Hardy last week and says it shows him how much they want to be champion. If you want to do that though, you have to go through him and that’s not an easy task. Pretty simple promo here and I’ll take that over one of his long speeches.

Undertaker vs. Great Khali

Runjin Singh is here with Khali. Undertaker strikes away in the corner to start but gets reversed for the big chops. With those not really working, Khali knocks him down and grabs the vice grip. Undertaker breaks that up as well but here is Big Show to jump Undertaker for the DQ.

Rating: C. This was another match that didn’t have time to do anything, which is a theme tonight (granted that’s the point in some of the cases). At the same time, there is something to be said about keeping Khali’s matches short and WWE seems to understand that. This was about getting Undertaker vs. Show further along and it worked fine for a fast angle advancer.

Post match Show grabs a chair, but Khali slaps it out of his hand for Show costing him the match. Khali leaves but Undertaker gets the chair to crack Show in the back.

Next week: HHH vs. Undertaker. Ok then.

Maria vs. Maryse vs. Natalya vs. Victoria vs. Brie Bella

Say it with me: Fuzzy Dice On A Pole match and the winner gets a Divas Title shot against Michelle McCool. Natalya wastes no time in turning on Victoria and Maryse has to cut Bella off. Maria knocks Maryse down as well and gets the dice (which are bigger than her head) to win rather quickly. This was as dumb as it sounds.

Video on John Cena, who is just peachy. He’s on his way back.

Jesse & Festus vs. Ryan Braddock/Kenny Dykstra

The bell rings and Festus goes Festus, sending the rather big Braddock into the corner. Jesse comes in for an elbow and a headlock but Dykstra pulls him down without much trouble. The chinlock goes on and Hurricane Helms pops up to mock Dykstra a bit. Jesse gets up and brings Festus back in to clean house. The fireman’s carry flapjack ends Dykstra.

Rating: C. This was just a step above a squash with Jesse getting in his big move: the hot tag to Festus. That’s what he does as well as anything else but it’s not like they’re trying to say he’s anything better. I keep forgetting that Dykstra is around but he’s fine enough for a slightly named jobber.

Remember Kizarny? The one who was coming? He still is.

Maria runs into Michelle McCool, who is looking forward to their match. Maria doesn’t look overly convinced but Jesse & Festus come in. The latter has a flower for Maria, who seems appreciative. Scared, but appreciative.

Cyber Sunday rundown.

Jeff Hardy vs. Vladimir Kozlov

HHH is on commentary. After a quick promo about how he wants the title, Kozlov powers Hardy into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs. A powerslam gives Kozlov two and he sends Hardy into the post a few times. We take a break and come back with Hardy staying on the arm as this is totally one sided thus far. Some headbutts and a belly to belly give Kozlov two but Hardy is up for a quick Whisper In The Wind. Something off the top misses so Kozlov headbutts him in the chest for the fast pin.

Rating: C+. This was a total squash for Kozlov as Hardy got in a Whisper In The Wind and that’s about it. The idea here is an attempt to make Kozlov into someone that the fans want to see face HHH at Cyber Sunday so he squashed the person the fans REALLY want to see get the spot. That’s not likely to work, but at least they were trying.

Post match HHH gets in the ring for the staredown as WWE continues their efforts to try to make fans care about Kozlov. It won’t work, but they’re trying.

Overall Rating: C+. They weren’t exactly focusing on the wrestling here with a bunch of short matches. Instead the focus was on building towards the two big matches at Cyber Sunday and oddly enough, Big Show vs. Undertaker was WAY more effective. If nothing else, they had something kind of unique with Big Show demonstrating the matches and I’ll take that over another boring Kozlov match. Not a great show overall, but the big stories got the focuses that they needed.

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

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