Say it with me: Old Glory.

https://411mania.com/wrestling/halls-wcw-thunder-review-10-14-99/

Call it fantasy booking, but Paul Heyman could be busier than normal.

https://www.smarkdownsblog.com/paul-heyman-cody-rhodes-oba-femi-wwe

WWE Vault Grab Bag VIII
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Bruno Sammartino, Gorilla Monsoon, Lord Alfred Hayes, Stan Lane, Rodger Kent, Superstar Billy Graham, Rod Trongard, Michael Cole

It’s time for another batch of randomness as thrown on the WWE Vault channels (and its assorted spinoffs). While I have a list of matches I’ve picked, there’s no theme here as I’m just doing them at random. You never know what you’re going to get here and that can make it a lot of fun. Let’s get to it.

From East Rutherford, New Jersey, January 5, 1987.

Honky Tonk Man/Randy Savage vs. Hulk Hogan/Ricky Steamboat

Why yes, I’m shocked that this is from 1987 too. Jimmy Hart and Miss Elizabeth are here with the villains. Hogan and Steamboat clear the ring without much trouble to start as we’re still in the suspenders period for Honky Tonk Man. Savage throws in a chair and manages to hit the referee but he’s back up, with Steamboat taking over on Honky Tonk Man, who is sent into Hogan’s raised boot.

Savage goes up but Hogan is right there to warn Steamboat, actually being a good partner for once. Steamboat even takes Honky Tonk Man over to the corner so Savage can tag but we’ll save that for later. A less than clean crossbody gives Steamboat two and it’s off to Hogan, who does make Honky Tonk Man tag out. Savage bails to the floor and is pulled right back inside for a tag back to Honky Tonk Man. Steamboat and Hogan take turns knocking Honky Tonk Man down, this time into a chinlock, as Savage keeps running around.

Honky Tonk Man gets out and actually takes over on Hogan, with some right hands connecting in the corner. It’s back to Steamboat, who grabs a sleeper as Honky Tonk Man can’t keep anything going. Steamboat hits the ropes but Savage gets in a knee to the back to cut him off. NOW Steamboat is willing to come in for some shots to the back, allowing Honky Tonk Man to get in some offense for a change.

Another Savage distraction lets Honky Tonk Man get in a slam on the floor but this time Hogan is over there to go after Savage. The fans certainly approve, even as Savage runs away again. Steamboat chops his way out of trouble and it’s back to Hogan, who knocks Savage down without even getting in the ring. That and some regular right hands are enough work from Hogan, who hands it back to Steamboat for the chops.

Honky Tonk Man shoves him off the top and gets punched on the floor for his troubles. Savage grabs the bell but gets slammed off the top, allowing Steamboat to pick it up. That’s enough for Savage to run off and the good guys beat up Hart and Honky Tonk Man. Hogan and Steamboat win via DQ at around 12:30.

Rating: B-. This wasn’t so much a great match as much as it was a blast by having two of the best villains against the two goodliest good guys of all time. They got to have an easy tag match with Honky Tonk Man getting beaten up and Savage running around all over the place. It’s no surprise that the fans went nuts throughout the whole thing because, well, why wouldn’t they?

From New York City, New York, July 12, 1986.

Tito Santana/Bruno Sammartino vs. Randy Savage/Adrian Adonis

In a cage, Jimmy Hart and Elizabeth are here too, and both members of the team have to escape. The villains jump them on the way in but Sammartino avoids a belt shot to start the early comeback. Sammartino unloads on Savage in the corner as Adonis elbows Santana into the corner. Adonis is sent into the cage and immediately tries to escape, which doesn’t exactly work.

The pairs trade off and Savage goes to escape, which doesn’t work either. Adonis still can’t get out the door as Sammartino pulls Savage down for a big crash. Sammartino flips Savage upside down in the corner and stomps away but has to stop and crotch Adonis on top. Back up and Savage sends Santana into the cage, as Sammartino does with Adonis. The ax handle hits Santana, who is busted open to make this feel more serious.

Sammartino easily cuts Savage off by trying to escape so Adonis rakes Santana’s face over the cage. The big rights and lefts have Adonis rocked in the corner and Santana is back up to slug it out with Savage. Santana knocks Savage out of the air and Adonis actually breaks the steps as he tries to get outside, pulling the top off as Sammartino pulls him back inside.

It’s so 80s as you can see the nails sticking out of the things. Savage is sent into the cage and is busted open as well but catches Santana low on the way out. Adonis gets all the way to the top of the cage and dives down, only to miss (not really) Sammartino. Savage tries to escape again and gets punched down by Santana. Sammartino sends Adonis into the cage and leaves, with Santana dropping down to win at 9:52.

Rating: B+. Good grief this was a blast, as you had two teams who felt like they wanted to do nothing more than hurt the other guys. Adonis might not have looked the part all the time, but he could more than hang in there with anyone. Sammartino was old but still in better shape than most of the roster and the fans worshipped him. Awesome stuff here, as it felt like an all out fight.

From Stockton, California, March 13, 1995.

Bull Nakano/Hakushi vs. Alundra Blayze/Bob Holly

Yeah I’d call this different and Shinja is here with the villains. Monsoon: “My pal Sparky!” Nakano glares at Blayze for daring to chop her so Blayze goes with a middle rope shoulder instead. That and a standing moonsault are good for two but Nakano easily powerbombs her out of the corner. One heck of a hair toss has Blayze in more trouble and it’s off to the men for a change.

A running shoulder and hiptoss both put Hakushi down and it’s time to work on the arm. Back up and Hakushi backs him into the corner and adds a running dropkick. The chinlock goes on but Holly is back up to bring Blayze back in. A sunset flip doesn’t work as Nakano sits down on her for two, followed by a clothesline out to the floor. Blayze does get in a missile dropkick and it’s back to Holly for two off a suplex.

Nakano trips Holly down though, with Monsoon saying “yeah the big fat one there, she pulled the leg” in a comment that was bad then and has aged even worse. Back in and the villains are sent into each other, leaving them crashing out to the floor. A pair of dives take them out again so Shinja offers a distraction so Hakushi and Nakano can get in some cheap shots. The men head outside again and Blayze grabs a German suplex for the pin at 7:11.

Rating: C-. Uh, yeah. This certainly was a tag match that happened and no it wasn’t very good. The men’s stuff was a bunch of dropkicks and basic stuff and pretty much nothing else. It’s certainly a unique match but that doesn’t mean it’s something that you want to see. Nakano and Blayze were doing ok, but it’s nothing that is overly memorable in any way.

Now we’re going to mix it up a bit, a collection of Hardcore Title matches to showcase the 24/7 Rule. For the sake of time/insanity, I won’t be listing the time or dates.

The Mean Street Posse attack Crash Holly in a Days Inn room, with Tim White diving onto the bed to count the pin. The Posse keeps getting in arguments over who gets the pin, with a lamp being busted over Rodney’s head, allowing Crash to escape. And then Pete Gas steals some room service.

Next up, the Posse, with referee Teddy Long, go to a laundromat to find Crash, who throws detergent in Rodney’s eyes. A broom to the head gives Abs two so Rodney starts swinging the Cheer. Pete Gas goes after Rodney for missing and Long is knocked down too. Crash escapes again and Rodney gets doused with Tide.

We’re off to the baggage claim at the Newark airport, where the posse jumps Crash again, with Pete actually getting the pin and the title. Then Crash hits him with a scale and gets the title back before running off to….do I really want to know? What I do: Crash’s music playing in the arena when he won the title before the show at an airport is great.

It’s time for a change of pace as the Headbangers track Crash (I feel like I’m playing Carmen Sandiego) to Funtime USA, an indoor game place. Crash was last seen playing laser tag but he’s actually found at a ball toss. Mosh slams him for no count as there’s no referee so Crash escapes and throws balls at him. Then he escapes down a slide, with the cameraman following him.

Thrasher is right there with a trashcan shot for two but Mosh breaks it up. They head over to the test your strength game but Crash avoids the big hammer smash. Crash runs into the ball pit, with the Headbangers sending Earl Hebner in first (Mosh: “Get him in the balls.”). The Headbangers can’t decide who goes in first and Crash gets in a clothesline off the monkey bars. A hurricanrana off the zipline lets Crash escape, with the Headbangers blaming Hebner.

Then one day Crash went to the circus, only to run into a clown and a referee, who appears to be thuggin and buggin, despite the fake nose and mustache. The clown jumps Crash and another joins in to help with the beating. Another clown shows up but Crash escapes and of course it’s the Posse, who decide to go “mess with the midgets”.

Later, Gerald Brisco goes into the APA’s office to find a sleeping Crash (Lawler: “Be very very quiet. I’m hunting wabbits.”) so of course commentary is quiet. Brisco has a referee count the pin but the referee trips over something and Crash chases Brisco out. Brisco runs into the ring and actually punches Crash down, only for Crash to grab the weapons. A broom is broken over Brisco’s back so here is Pat Patterson, with Brisco demanding a Stinkface. Crash breaks that up and the chase continues.

Yeah this was a blast and you could tell it was a bunch of guys being given a camera and told to go have fun.

From Evolution.

NXT UK Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Dakota Kai

This is a dark match from the original show and Ripley (in between the original blonde and what would become her trademark look) is defending. Ripley picks her up to start but Kai is right back with a quick double stomp to escape. That earns her a big toss, followed by a delayed vertical suplex to give Ripley two. Kai escapes another suplex but Ripley is right back with the Prism Trap. That’s broken up with a roll into the corner and Kai hits a Scorpion Kick, followed by a running boot in the corner. The circling Helluva Kick gives Kai two but she misses a top rope double stomp. Ripley hits a quick Riptide to retain at 3:57.

Rating: C. This wasn’t supposed to be a big, epic match and was just there to get some action in the ring. A the same time, you could see the star growing in Ripley, as she had those little mannerisms that made her feel like someone to watch. That’s the kind of charisma that you either have or don’t and to say Ripley would wind up having it in spades is an understatement.

From Rome, Italy, November 15, 2005.

Undertaker vs. Randy Orton

Bob Orton Jr. is here with Randy. We’re joined in progress with Orton ducking some shots in the corner and grabbing a headlock. That doesn’t work either as Orton is knocked outside, where he looks rather shaken. We’re clipped to Undertaker stomping away in the corner and working on the arm.

We’re clipped again to Old School being broken up and Bob’s distraction lets Orton rake the eyes. That sets up the superplex and we’re clipped to Orton hitting a powerslam for two. We’re clipped again to Undertaker sending him into the post and clipped again (we get it already) to Undertaker beating up Bob. Orton breaks up the big legdrop on the apron to save his daddy and we’re clipped again to Undertaker getting pounded in the chest. As Bob dramatically puts his cowboy hat back on as Orton sends him back inside and hammers away.

We’re clipped again to Orton diving into a raised boot, sending him sprawling into the corner. Snake Eyes sets up the big boot and legdrop for two and we’re clipped again to Old School connecting. A Downward Spiral gets two more, with Bob’s near interference not pleasing Undertaker. The running knee (because Undertaker uses a running knee in this match) in the corner hits Orton again so Bob offers another distraction, earning an ejection. The running bit boot misses for Undertaker though, as we pan over to Bob still leaving.

With that out of the way, Orton gets a DDT out of the ropes (not the hanging DDT) for two before starting in on the leg. A chop block sets up a spinning toehold but we’re clipped again to the referee down and replaced by another and Undertaker sitting up. One might think that would have been a part of the match we needed to see but apparently Bob leaving was more important. The chokeslam connects and here is Bob to pull the referee. This time Bob gets in and, after the RKO is blocked, Undertaker gives him a Tombstone. Another Tombstone finishes Orton at 10:56.

Rating: B-. There was a lot of clipping here but the good thing is you can mostly tell what was going on. Granted it helps when you’re at a house show because it’s not like any of them are going to do anything out of the ordinary. The match was good enough but Orton not even hitting an RKO left it a bit lacking. Still though, Undertaker being on the card was a big enough deal and the fans were way into it.

From Glasgow, Scotland, November 1, 2017.

Shield/??? vs. Bray Wyatt/The Bar

Roman Reigns isn’t here so Seth Rollins says he and Dean Ambrose need a partner. This was a phone call he never thought he would make but he knows he always needs a Plan B. That would apparently be HHH, in Shield gear, or at least something close to it, for quite the reaction. HHH and Rollins have the big staredown until Rollins offers him a vest, which HHH accepts.

Rollins starts with Cesaro, who grabs a headlock for the traditional grinding. Back up and Rollins hits a crossbody and superkick to the ribs before it’s off to Ambrose. A basement clothesline sets up a splash from Rollins, followed by a top rope ax handle to send Cesaro over to the corner. The mohawk with Sheamus attached (that thing has to be sentient) comes in and gets crossbodied as well, with Rollins adding a top rope shot to the head. Sheamus is back up and hands it off to Wyatt, who takes over on Rollins in the corner.

The upside down stare freaks Rollins out so it’s off to HHH for the staredown. Wyatt actually wins the slugout and does the spider walk so HHH gives him a running clothesline. Ambrose comes in to stomp away, allowing his partners to double team Wyatt like good heroes should do. Wyatt gets over for the tag to Sheamus, who is quickly kneed in the ribs and kicked to the floor. An invading Wyatt has to bail from the threat of a Pedigree, leaving HHH and the Shield to load up dives.

Rollins and Ambrose dive but HHH would rather just jump from the apron and go after Wyatt, which you could see coming but it still worked. The big brawl breaks out on the floor until Sheamus blocks Dirty Deeds to take over. Cesaro grabs a chinlock and it’s back to Wyatt for a running clothesline of his own. Ambrose manages a neckbreaker so Sheamus knees him into the ropes, only to have Ambrose hit the rebound lariat. Rollins springboards in with a clothesline (popular move here) and a Blockbuster but Cesaro gets in a cheap shot from the apron (yes it was a clothesline) to take over again.

Sheamus’ middle rope ax handle sets up a chinlock and an Irish Curse gets two. Wyatt hits a gutbuster for the same and we’re off to a chinlock. A knee from the apron lets Cesaro get two and Rollins is sent outside to keep up the beatdown. Cesaro goes outside and gets chopped, only to come back with a front facelock inside. With the hold almost broken, Cesaro boots HHH off the apron and then uppercuts Rollins to give Sheamus two.

We pause for the Bar to yell at the referee….who pulls an Earl Hebner and yells right back at Sheamus. That’s enough for Rollins to chop and kick back at Sheamus, who misses a charge into the post. The jumping tag brings in HHH for the comeback, including a facebuster to Cesaro. The big knee drop gets two and HHH hits a spinebuster as everyone else gets back inside. They’re cleared out and the Neutralizer is countered, with the Pedigree getting two as Sheamus makes the save. Dirty Deeds drops Sheamus and the TripleBomb finishes Cesaro at 20:47.

Rating: B+. I wasn’t that interested coming into this one when it came up on the list but it wound up being a heck of a match. HHH didn’t do much until the end, but that’s the point of a guest star like this. The fans got to see something rather cool and it cool to see everyone putting in some hard work at a house show. Rather good stuff here and a very nice surprise.

Post match HHH joins in the Shield pose.

From Boston, Massachusetts, June 4, 1988.

Demolition/Mr. Fuji vs. Strike Force/Ultimate Warrior

Well this is certainly something. The bell rings and we pause for Fuji to throw the salt until Martel slugs away at Smash. That’s not a good idea with Smash, who pounds away to take over and tags in…Fuji, which doesn’t seem overly intelligent. Shockingly enough, Fuji is quickly beaten down and slammed, allowing Warrior and Ax to come in. They stare at each other for awhile until Ax’s running shoulder has no effect.

Ax’s forearms don’t do much as Warrior is right back with a clothesline so we’ll try Smash instead. Warrior actually takes over on the arm and it’s off to Santana for both a change and a right hand to the head. The good guys take turns working on the arm but Warrior misses a Stinger Splash (I wonder where he learned that). Demolition gets to take turns beating on Warrior and Fuji hits a falling headbutt to the ribs.

Ax charges into a raised boot in the corner though and it’s off to Martel to fire off the right hands. Santana comes in with the flying forearm and grabs the Figure Four as everything breaks down. Warrior drops a salt wielding Fuji with a clothesline and Fuji is rather out of it. The hold is broken and Fuji is taken out, leaving Strike Force to work on the leg. Ax gets in a shot to Santana though and it’s back to Smash to choke on the ropes.

The villains keep trading off, with Ax grabbing a chinlock. Smash’s neck crank does about the same but Ax misses a headbutt. Smash misses an elbow as well and a crawling Santana gets over to Martel to the hot tag. The Boston crab goes on so Ax makes the save and Warrior comes in for the save. Warrior actually gets sent outside but comes back in with a top rope ax handle to pin Ax at 16:28.

Rating: B-. This was a weird match with Fuji being injured and not really dropping much as a result. If nothing else, you don’t want to see one of the reigning Tag Team Champions take a pin, which almost had to be Fuji otherwise. It wasn’t a great match but it was certainly a unique one, which is a nice thing to see.

From Rome, Italy, November 15, 2005. I really wasn’t expecting to go to Italy twice (and the same show at that) in a single set but oh well.

Cruiserweight Title: Nunzio vs. Juventud Guerrera

Nunzio is challenging and gives us a quick introduction. We start with a pose down and the handheld camera running around is giving me ECW flashbacks. Guerrera takes him into the corner to start but gets knocked down, sending Guerrera bailing to the floor. Nunzio goes outside as well for a ram into the apron but misses a Sicilian Slice back inside. A basement dropkick knocks Nunzio silly and a clothesline cuts him off.

We hit the dragon sleeper for a bit, followed by an elbow, which seems to fire Nunzio up. That just earns him a dropkick for two and Guerrera is already getting frustrated. A rollup out of the corner gets two on Guerrera and Nunzio makes the clothesline comeback. Nunzio grabs a headlock of all thing and they go to the mat, which seems like a mistake of some kind. Back up and the Sicilian Slice gets a very close two as Guerrera gets the foot on the rope. The Juvy Driver plants Nunzio but Guerrera stands up, allowing Nunzio to grab a backslide for the pin and the title at 6:45 to blow the roof off the place.

Rating: C+. The match was about what you would have expected from a 2005 Cruiserweight Title match at a house show but dang the crowd was into everything they were doing. Giving Nunzio the title match was absolutely the right call in front of a crowd like that and given that he dropped it back a week later on Smackdown, this wasn’t the biggest disaster. Nice moment here, albeit in just an ok match.

Post match Nunzio celebrates in Italian.

From New York City, New York, January 23, 1989.

Rockers vs. Brainbusters

Michaels and Anderson start things off with Michaels quickly complaining about a hair pull. I mean he’s telling the truth but toughen up man. Anderson runs the ropes but gets threatened out to the floor, with Jannetty throwing him back inside. Everything breaks down and the Rockers clear the ring, with Anderson coming back in to slap Michaels in the face. Blanchard comes in and Michaels is smart enough to bail to the floor to avoid a double teaming.

Back in and Michaels armdrags Blanchard into an armbar and Jannetty drops a splash on said arm. Anderson tries to make a save and the Rockers get to trade places behind the referee’s back in a spot that always works. A double Japanese armdrag takes both Busters down and Michaels saves Jannetty from the double suplex. The double superkick sends the Busters outside and Anderson wants a timeout (a signature thing for him).

Back in and Blanchard grabs the rope to avoid Michaels’ dropkick but Michaels hurricanrana Blanchard. Everything breaks down again and the Busters are double dropkicked to the floor. Blanchard gets back inside, where Michaels escapes the slingshot suplex and follows him to the floor. That’s enough for Anderson to catch Michaels with a clothesline as the Busters finally take over.

Back in again and a suplex gets two on Michaels, setting up a chinlock. That’s broken up and Michaels tries a sunset flip, with Anderson falling into a tag to keep him in trouble. Michaels is able to get up top for a high crossbody, only for Anderson to pull him into an abdominal stretch. The Busters try to switch without a tag and get caught (playing off the earlier spot) so it’s back to Anderson for a reverse chinlock.

Michaels gets up and backslides Blanchard for two but still can’t get the tag. Anderson is back in for the “body to body suplex” (also known as an Anderson Drop and later, the spinebuster). A sitdown splash hits raised knees though and it’s FINALLY back to Jannetty so house can be cleaned. The top rope punch gets two on Blanchard with Anderson making the save. Jannetty tries a suplex but Anderson sweeps the leg from the floor and grabs the lace to give Blanchard the pin at 16:20.

Rating: B+. I for one am shocked that two of the best teams of the 80s were able to have a really good match with a lot of time in front of a crowd that appreciated the match. These teams had great chemistry and of course the Busters knew exactly how to wrestle this kind of a match with a fast paced team. Heck of a showcase here, which would be the case any time these teams got together.

Post match the brawl is still on, with the Rockers clearing the ring.

From Superstars, May 14, 2009.

Big Show vs. Hornswoggle

You know, call it a hunch but I think we might have a theme show here. This is billed as an exhibition match and Show is blowing off steam after losing to John Cena back at Wrestlemania. The bell rings and they stare at each other (one in fear) for over a minute before Show easily picks him up. A gorilla press to the floor is teased before Show puts him on top. Show actually lays down and offers to let him hit the Tadpole Splash but then moves, with Hornswoggle knowing he’s in trouble. The KO Punch is loaded up but Goldust runs in to save Hornswoggle at 3:01.

Rating: D. I mean, what am I supposed to say here? This was an angle disguised as a match and little more than a joke. You could see how far Superstars was already falling with this as the big idea and there was no point to trying anything else. At least they kept it short, which is the point, even though it felt like quite the waste of time overall.

Post match Show lays Goldust out without much trouble.

Overall Rating: B. This was the kind of mixture that I wanted to see as we had a little bit of everything. The fun part about this kind of a mixtape is that you get a little something from all over the plat. You certainly got that here, with house show matches, TV matches and the rather hilarious Hardcore Title stuff. That’s the beauty of the Vaults and it was on full display again with these picks. More to come of course.

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

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

It’s hard to believe but we’ve back to the biggest show of the year around here. That should be a good thing though the show only feels so important. Hopefully they have something to expand beyond the hype, though that isn’t exactly the company’s strong suit. The good thing is that the action should work out, which is indeed the company’s strong suit a lot of the time. Let’s get to it.

Moose vs. Max Caster

So this is the result of Moose’s open challenge as Caster seems to have officially jumped over to TNA. Granted I’m not sure if it’s a permanent move, but Caster is someone who could do well around here. If nothing else, he already has some star power and the rapping entrance could work on anyone. It pretty much has to be better than whatever Elias is doing anyway.

I’ll actually go with Caster winning here, likely with an assist from AJ Francis, who has been having issues with Moose in recent weeks. Francis and Caster seem like they could get together to do something good and it has to be better than whatever the other guy Francis has with him all the time can do. Anyway, Caster wins here and hopefully sticks around, as I’ve been missing him in AEW.

Knockouts Tag Team Title: Allie/Kiera Hogan(c) vs. Zoey Serrano/Shayna Baszler

This is a new one as Baszler appeared on the phone earlier this week and agreed to be Serrano’s partner. That makes sense as the two of them teamed together well enough in WWE and it’s not like there are a bunch of teams around here to challenge for the titles. That’s in addition to Allie and Hogan not even being the original champions after Rosemary’s latest…whatever it is this time.

I’ll go with the title change here, as it makes more sense to have the new team get the gold. If nothing else, it’s not like Allie and Hogan really need to be champions anyway, as they’re barely even a regular team. Go with some people who should have some better chemistry, which is something the division can use. Whenever Rosemary gets back, she and Allie can go for the belts again, but for now we need them to change hands.

Hardys vs. Syx

Ok it’s Syx. I keep getting the spelling wrong but it’s easier to think of them as just slightly less than Sean Waltman. Or does that make them the British pop band Five? Anyway, this is falls count anywhere as the Hardys have shifted from one weird cult team to another weird team with violent tendencies. They certainly have a type and now it seems like we’ll be in for a violent match.

Give me the Syx to win here, as there is no reason to think they should lose just after debuting. They’re the fresh act around here and need the win, which is what I’m thinking we’ll be seeing. Hopefully the company has learned from how things went with the Righteous, but you never can tell. Either way, it can be violent and entertaining, but the Hardys need to, and should, lose.

X-Division Title: Fabian Aichner vs. KC Navarro vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Rich Swann vs. Ryan Nemeth vs. BDE

This is for the vacant title and while I’d usually do an elimination deal and figure out who would be the best option, that’s really not the case here. Other than BDE, I could see any of them winning here, which makes things a lot more interesting. In this case you could see a few different options and I’m really not sure where to go. That’s a nice feeling, but not the easiest for predictions.

I think I’ll actually take Navarro, who has been built up for a long time but needs that big win. Getting the X-Division Title would be a good way to go and that would make for quite the upset. Aichner might make more sense and odds are it’s someone else entirely, but I’ll take Navarro to win here as the big underdog. Well not the biggest but bit enough to win here.

Ricky Sosa vs. Eddie Edwards

Sosa is in an interesting spot as he’s been around for a few months but hasn’t really gotten over the hump. That needs to change as he feels like he could be something bigger around here, as the company certainly needs the boost. In theory, the idea of putting him in there with Edwards will help him get that far, as it’s hardly some stretch of an idea. So will they go that way?

Yeah I think they will, as there’s pretty much no reason to have Edwards win here. Sosa is someone who has felt like a big prospect and it would be great to see him get a chance. Beating Edwards won’t turn him into the biggest star in the company, but it will give him some credibility and he can move on to something else. That’s what we should be seeing here as Sosa wins.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

If Tommy Dreamer is in this thing, I’m going to…well probably complain about it in the review and keep watching. This isn’t a match that I tend to like most of the time, mainly because it’s for their version of the Money In The Bank contract. I’m assuming we know most of the people involved here and hopefully it doesn’t involve two winners like they did last year, which just made my head hurt.

Out of the names confirmed here, I think I’ll actually go with AJ Francis to win. He’s someone who could do something fun with the briefcase as the rather annoying villain and it’s not like many of the other options stand out. Oh yeah and Avery Styles is making his debut here. I would make a chair joke here but given the ticket sales, they probably don’t want that many chairs around.

Knockouts Title: Xia Brookside(c) vs. Indi Hartwell

This has been built up for a long time now and most of that has been about Hartwell finally getting her big moment to win the title on the most important stage. At the same time, that’s kind of depressing as Brookside has been getting better and better during her time as champion. I’m sure Daria Rae will be involved here somehow, because of course she is, but I’m not sure that’s enough.

Yeah it probably will be, as there is no reason to believe that Hartwell is going to lose here. She’s been built up as a big fan favorite and that has all of the makings of a title win. While I’d rather see Brookside get to keep going with the belt, it doesn’t seem likely to happen here. All roads seem to lead to Hartwell vs. Rae, for some reason, but Hartwell has to win first to make that happen (for the title at least) so we’ll assume that’s what happens here.

International Title: Mustafa Ali(c) vs. Jason Hotch vs. John Skyler vs. Special Agent Zero

I actually have no idea where this is going and I love that feeling. This is the match that has me the most confused, as it could go any of the four ways. Ali winning makes all the sense in in the world, but Zero winning feels like a possibility too. I’m not sure I can imagine either of the Great Hands actually winning the title (again in Skyler’s case) so that narrows things down a bit. I think.

As much as I’d like to see Zero win, I’ll go with what feels like the more realistic answer and say Ali wins. I’m not sure where that leaves him, but hopefully it points him more towards the main event scene. Then again I’ve been saying that for what feels like ever now and it hasn’t happened yet. For now though, Ali wins, even though that might be the least interesting of the four options.

TNA World Title: Nic Nemeth(c) vs. Leon Slater

Now, I don’t think there’s any secret to the story they’re telling here. The idea is that Slater is the young star who is getting the chance to take over the top spot in the company from the established veteran. It feels like a passing of the torch moment, but at the same time it really just does not feel like it has that much heat. That’s a really bad feeling going into this spot, but how important has this match really felt? I’m not sure if that’s enough to change the title, though that seems to be where we’re going.

I think I’ve talked myself out of it and I’ll take Nemeth retaining. It’s not interesting and it’s not something I want to see, but I don’t think Slater is quite ready yet. Having Slater win is certainly a possibility and it wouldn’t shock me if he did it, but this is hardly Josh Alexander or Mike Santana’s coronations as champion. Nemeth retains here, in a prediction that is already feeling wrong.

Overall Thoughts

As much talent as TNA has, they are not great at getting the hype going. Nothing on this show really feels that hot and that is a problem they’ve had for years now. The catch though is they have certainly figured out a way to make the shows work anyway, which will probably be the case here. This show has the importance baked in and if they can make the stuff they have work, it should be a good night. Just don’t have the gauntlet match go on forever, which has killed several Bound For Glorys past.

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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AAA On FOX
Date: October 10, 2026
Location: Domo de la Feria de San Luis Potosi, Leon, Mexico
Commentators: John Bradshaw Layfield, Corey Graves

We are two weeks away from Heroes Inmortales and the main event seems to be set, with Dominik Mysterio getting his rematch against El Grande Americano for the Mega Title. That should be enough to carry things to the event, though we’ll need some more matches in there. We should get some of them this week, which should be good. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Los Americanos vs. Tokyo Bad Boys

Rayo and Takuma start things off with Rayo flipping around and escaping for some dancing. Bravo comes in to dance Takuma into the corner for a tag off to Kento. A running shoulder and atomic drop have Kento in trouble and a wristlock lets Bravo dance some more. There’s the big dive to take the Boys out but Takuma makes a blind tag. That means a springboard missile dropkick can hit Bravo, who is fine enough to suplex both Boys at the same time.

Rayo comes back in to clean house and Crash Landing Takuma onto Rayo for two. Rey Mysterio joins commentary as Bravo spins both Boys at once. Rayo adds a Swan Dive for two but Takuma uses Bravo as a launchpad to moonsault onto Rayo for a tornado DDT (GEEZ that was awesome).

Everyone is knocked down until Bravo and Takuma slug it out from their knees. Kento helps knock Bravo down so Takuma can hit a great looking shooting star press for two more. Some superkicks have Los Americanos in more trouble but Bravo is back with a handspring clothesline. A super hurricanrana has Kento in trouble but Takuma grabs one of his own for a nice save. Los Americanos are right back up with a Russian legsweep/top rope headbutt combination to finish Takuma at 10:15.

Rating: B+. This was rather fun and I wasn’t sure how it was going to go in the end, even if there was no reason to believe the Boys were going to pull it off. Some of the spots in there were great and the Boys looked the best I’ve ever seen them. Los Americanos’ dancing made it even better and this was a blast all around.

We recap El Carnicero attacking the Psycho Circus before revealing that he was in league with Pagano.

Here are El Carnicero and Pagano for a chat. Pagano says that of course he was behind the attacks on the Psycho Circus. The best part is that Psycho Clown knew it was Pagano but he stopped believing in his own mind. Pagano showed up here ten years ago and wanted to take Psycho’s mask. The two of them teamed up and accomplished quite a bit, but it was always about Psycho.

We pause for Pagano to smack Carnicero to…well completely fail to calm him down. Then one day Pagano stopped recognizing himself and he knew that he didn’t need anyone, including the Clowns or the fans. Cue the Psycho Circus, with Carnicero taking them out in short order. Now it’s Psycho Clown himself to show up and attack Pagano as Carnicero keeps up the beating. Security is beaten up as well as Psycho and Pagano seem to have fought off. They didn’t exactly have any mind blowing news here but it told the story well enough.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

We look at Mini Vikingo and Chazz Hall’s success in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic.

Jack Cartwheel vs. Nobu San vs. Joaquin Wilde vs. Mini Vikingo

For a future Cruiserweight Title shot. They trade flips to start and get in some leapfrogs until San and Wilde are sent out to the floor. Back up and San clears the ring, only to get kicked down by Vikingo. Hold on though as Wilde has to get his hair spray in, setting up the big running flip dive.

We see Rey Fenix watching in the back as Wilde and San get together to double team Vikingo. This lasts until San’s assisted moonsault gets two, much to Wilde’s annoyance. Back up and Vikingo hits a missile dropkick, followed by a Michinoku Driver for two on San. Cartwheel gets back up and misses his corkscrew moonsault, leaving everyone down. San is back up to stand on Wilde’s back for a superplex to Vikingo but gets sent into Cartwheel.

That lets Wilde get in a running poisonrana to Cartwheel but Nobu catches Wilde on top. Naturally Cartwheel is up with a double flipping kick to the head and there’s the Sasuke Special to the floor. Vikingo dives in to make a save of his own and a springboard crucifix driver gets two on Cartwheel. The big springboard corkscrew dive takes out Cartwheel and Wilde on the floor, meaning it’s the 630 to give Vikingo the pin on San back inside at 11:27.

Rating: B. You’ve seen a bunch of these for months on here and while this was just another one of them, it was still awesome to see Vikingo get to fly all over the place like this. San isn’t someone who has been around very often but he more than held up here. Vikingo had to get the win as he’s ready for a big title shot and it was a lot of fun on the way there. As usual, this worked very well.

Fenix is ready for the title match at Heroes Inmortales.

Overall Rating: A-. This show was more about the two rather awesome matches and setting things up for the big show in a few weeks. That’s quite the hour and the big promo segment in the middle moved the story forward too. AAA does its shows differently and as usual, just keeping it down to an hour is quite the change of pace in a positive way. I want to see where things are going and that’s the big point around here, so well done.

Results
Los Americanos b. Tokyo Bad Boys – Russian legsweep/top rope headbutt combination to Takuma
Mini Vikingo b. Nobu San, Jack Cartwheel and Joaquin Wilde – 630 to San

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: October 10, 2026
Location: Adidas Arena, Paris, France
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re still in Paris for the second half of Grand Slam, which should be quite the card. Dynamite already worked well enough and the Collision side has a big lineup as well. We have a Clockwork Carnage qualifying match, as well as Chris Jericho vs. Nick Wayne part two. Let’s get to it.

Here are is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Conglomeration vs. Death Riders

Tornado rules and Jon Moxley is on commentary. Yuta jumps Nightingale to start, which doesn’t seem to be quite fair. Yuta and Cassidy are left in the ring to trade rollups and a Stundog Millionaire has Yuta in trouble. Shafir comes in to go after O’Reilly’s leg and they pop up to a standoff. Nightingale is in to shove them together but Shafir gives her a rolling German suplex.

Back up and Nightingale takes Shafir out before getting into a chop off with Castagnoli. Yuta is up with a suicide dive to Nightingale and Castagnoli reverses Cassidy’s dive into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. We take a break and come back with O’Reilly surrounded and triple teaming him down. Yuta hits a big springboard dive to the floor but Castagnoli is sent outside with him. That leaves Nightingale to clothesline Shafir in the corner and then Pounce Yuta to the floor.

Back in and Cassidy Orange Punches Castagnoli and tries his own Swing, which is countered into the real version. Strong is back in with a backbreaker to Garcia but can’t hit one on Shafir. The Dragontamer has Nightingale in trouble but O’Reilly ankle locks Shafir at the same time. The women, both in holds, slap each other until both of them are broken up. Some running elbows in the corner have O’Reilly in trouble and a spike Neutralizer finishes him off at 14:36.

Rating: B. Rather hot opener here and that’s all you could hope for, even with the wacky rules. This was more about getting a bunch of combinations together and letting them have some fun, which is one of those things AEW does rather well. The teams can trade wins forever and it won’t do much damage, plus you had the women in here to mix it up a bit. Nice match.

Chris Jericho is ready to bring Collision to his cruise next month.

Chris Jericho vs. Nick Wayne

Rematch from Jericho beating him a few weeks back. Wayne jumps him from behind to start fast but Jericho (wearing beads around his neck to mock Wayne) fires off some chops. A backdrop puts Jericho on the floor for a dive but Wayne takes his sweet time getting up. That means a triangle dropkick off the apron and there’s the dive to put him down again.

Jericho goes some beads to a fan but gets caught with a Sliced Bread on the floor (McGuinness: “Or would you call that a Sliced Baguette?”). Jericho is right back with an AA onto the announcers’ table and we take a break. We come back with Jericho hammering away on top and snapping off a super hurricanrana.

It works so well that Jericho does it two more times and aw heck, let’s make it four. Jericho loads up the Judas Effect but charges into a running neckbreaker. Back up and Jericho hits a Codebreaker but the Lionsault is broken up. The Walls go on instead so Wayne bites the ankle to escape. A kick to the head and Wayne’s World finish Jericho at 13:19.

Rating: B-. Well, at least Wayne got the win back and that’s what he has been needing. Odds are this sets up a third match between the two of them and there is no reason for Jericho to go over there. The four hurricanranas were a cool moment, but the result is what matters here, as Wayne gets a pretty big win in front of a rather invested crowd.

Wayne is rather stunned by the win.

Kazuchika Okada wants in the Clockwork Carnage match.

Clockwork Carnage Qualifying Match: Lee Moriarty vs. Mike Bailey

Moriarty’s ROH Pure Rules Title isn’t on the line. Moriarty takes him down to start but gets caught with a hurricanrana. Bailey misses something off the top and gets pulled into a headscissors to slow things down. A hot shot and swinging neckbreaker have Bailey down again and we’re off to the crossarm choke. Bailey is back up to send him outside for a triangle moonsault and we take a break.

We come back with both of them being knocked down on the floor. They dive back inside and lock hands to strike it out, setting up an exchange or rollups for two each. Moriarty pulls him into the Border City Stretch, which is broken up just as fast as Schiavone runs through matches as fast as he can. Bailey gets up and kicks him down, setting up the Ultimate Weapon for the pin at 9:42.

Rating: C+. That’s a good example of a match where you didn’t have much in the way drama, as not only is Bailey a bigger star but he’s also an ROH champion, which doesn’t give you the best odds. Bailey was his usual self here, with a bunch of strikes and the cool finish. They had to hurry to get Bailey qualified though and this worked, even with another RO….oh you get the idea by now.

Post match Will Ospreay comes in to celebrate with Bailey.

Ricochet wants in Clockwork Carnage.

Swerve Strickland vs. Carlie Bravo

New Level and Shane Taylor Promotions are here too. Strickland starts fast by kicking him down and a basement dropkick gets an early near fall. An Octopus hold goes on and a string of neckbreakers have Bravo in more trouble. Back up and a quick Zig Zag lets Bravo hammer away, followed by the chinlock.

Strickland is right back up and hits the rolling Downward Spiral. The Promotions offer a distraction and pull Strickland outside, with Taylor himself taking out the New Level. A slingshot cutter gives Bravo two so Strickland kicks him in the face. The Swerve Stomp finishes Bravo at 6:42.

Rating: C+. Bravo got in a lot of offense here and Strickland’s win was delayed by the interference. If nothing else it’s nice to have Strickland win here so we don’t have to continue attempting to make the Promotions feel important. We’ve been there before far too often and there isn’t much of a reason to try it again at the moment.

The Death Riders are ready to work hard and keep going, with Jon Moxley being ready for Mark Davis at WrestleDream. Gabe Kidd wants to fight the Don Callis Family on Dynamite. Marina Shafir says the Death Riders are against the world.

National Title: Andrade El Idolo vs. Michael Oku

Oku, with Amira, is challenging. An early knockdown isn’t enough for Oku to get in his half crab so he knees Andrade down instead. That earns him the tranquilo pose in the rope so Oku knocks him outside. Andrade cuts off a charge with an overhead belly to belly into the barricade.

We pause for the photo, which allows Oku to get another shot and a photo of his own. We take a break and come back with Oku getting the rather enthusiastic half crab, which is broken up rather quickly. Oku hits a frog splash to the back but misses one to the chest. Instead Dia de los Muertos and the DM finish Oku at 8:17.

Rating: C+. Oku is a technically sound star but this was more about getting Andrade in the ring, which isn’t a bad idea. The good thing is that Andrade’s roll continues, though I’m more curious about how he’ll execute the World Title contract. It would be nice to see him do that after losing the title, though that only makes so much sense as you don’t want a #1 contender losing. Good enough match here, even without much time.

Post match Andrade holds up the contract and says he’ll defend the title every week. The catchphrase is loaded up but the lights go out and it’s Tommaso Ciampa interrupting. I’ve heard worse ideas. They shake hands and Ciampa kisses him on the cheek before hitting Willow’s Bell.

Sisters Of Sin vs. Kris Statlander/Harley Cameron vs. Megan Bayne/Lena Kross

For a shot at the Brawling Birds, who are on commentary. Kross, Bayne and Statlander fight to the floor to start and we get the opening bell. Cameron elbows Blue in the corner and Statlander is back in with a slingshot hilo. Hart breaks up Cameron’s half crab but Kross and Bayne are back in to take over. Bayne clears the ring and we take a break.

We come back with Statlander planting Hart for two but the Sisters’ double basement superkick gets two on Cameron. Kross and Bayne hit stereo Towers Of Doom and a dropkick/German suplex combination gets two on Hart. Statlander counters Divine Intervention into a double hurricanrana and Staturday Night Fever finishes Hart at 8:21.

Rating: B-. I do like some fresh blood in the title picture, even if it’s Cameron and Statlander as something of a random team. If nothing else, it’s better than having Bayne and Kross get another shot. The Sisters continue to be in the middle of the pack, as they’ve been for the better part of ever, Stardom titles or not.

Tag Team Titles: The Dogs vs. Young Bucks

The Bucks are defending and get jumped before the bell. That doesn’t last long as the Bucks are back with their high five bulldogs. The Dogs are sent outside for the suicide dives but Finlay crotched Matt on top. Nick is in with a flying clothesline to Finlay and it’s time for the rolling northern lights suplexes. The hanging Swanton connects for the Bucks but Connors is up with a running shoulder on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Matt hitting a dive on the floor but the big tag is cut off. A rolling tag works a bit better as it’s Nick coming back in to clean house. The top rope Swanton and elbow give the Bucks two each and a sunset flip into a German suplex has Finlay in trouble.

We’re off to the stereo Sharpshooters, both of which are broken up. Some superkicks only get the Bucks so far as Finlay clotheslines both of them down. The Meltzer Driver is broken up with a spear and a high/low gets two on Matt. The Full Clip gets two more with Nick having to make the save. A superbomb is broken up with a super hurricanrana and the BTE Trigger retains the titles at 13:28.

Rating: B-. This was in a weird spot as there is only so much you can do with a match that isn’t exactly in doubt. There was no way the Bucks were going to lose here, but at the same time, that’s how the match was set up. The match was more about the Bucks getting on the show and in front of the Paris fans, which was a perfectly fine way to go. Good enough main event here, Dogs aside.

Post match the Don Callis Family runs in to jump the Bucks before their title shot at WrestleDream. The Family stands tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was another good show, even if it didn’t feel as important as the rather awesome Dynamite. They are going to be going into a rapid fire build towards next Saturday’s pay per view and we’ll likely get that on the three hour AEW block next week. For now though, at least they gave the fans what they wanted and it was far from bad, even if it felt a bit more like a house show than anything else.

Results
Death Riders b. Conglomeration – Spike Neutralizer to O’Reilly
Nick Wayne b. Chris Jericho – Wayne’s World
Mike Bailey b. Lee Moriarty – Ultimate Weapon
Swerve Strickland b. Carlie Bravo – Swerve Stomp
Andrade El Idolo b. Michael Oku – DM
Kris Statlander/Harley Cameron b. Megan Bayne/Lena Kross and Sisters Of Sin – Staturday Night Fever to Hart
Young Bucks b. The Dogs – BTE Trigger to Finlay

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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Money In The Bank 2026
Date: October 10, 2026
Location: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s one of the bigger shows of the year and in this case it involves a bunch of ladders. Naturally the show is built around the namesake ladder matches but we also have Roman Reigns defending the Raw World Title and a triple threat for the Raw Women’s Title. This is one of the shows where things can change in a hurry so let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at how important the briefcase can be to someone’s career.

Raw World Title: LA Knight vs. Roman Reigns

Reigns is defending and they walk around a bit to start. Knight gets in some nice middle fingers and knocks Reigns outside, where Reigns wants a breather. Back in and Reigns knocks him down before grinding away on a headlock. That’s broken up and Knight gets in a clothesline and hammers away in the corner, which has Reigns ticked off. Now Reigns gets in his own corner clotheslines and a big boot but Knight jabs his way out of trouble.

They head outside where Reigns is sent into various things but Reigns throws him into the announcers’ table. Knight’s head is cut a bit and they head back inside where Reigns keeps up the slow beating. Back up and a powerslam drops Reigns for the spelling elbow, allowing Knight to stomp away in the corner. That just earns Knight a Superman Punch for two but the spear hits the post.

The top rope superplex drops Reigns and Knight is up with a Burning Hammer for two more. The BFT is countered but Knight takes him down with an inverted DDT, setting up the top rope jumping…well nothing as Reigns moves. Reigns’ release Rock Bottom gets two and they head outside, where Knight has to avoid going through the announcers’ table. Back in and Reigns drops him again but the spear is countered into a jumping BFT for a rather close two.

Knight loads up his own spear but charges into the most obvious spear in years for two more. Back up and Knight hits his own spear for two, with Reigns bailing out to the floor. Knight avoids the spear though and Reigns crashes through the barricade. A powerbomb (on the second attempt) puts Reigns through the announcers’ table and now the jumping top rope elbow connects for two. Back up and Reigns hits a Superman Punch, setting up the spear to retain at 26:31.

Rating: B+. The crowd was white hot and they managed to turn it into an entertaining match with some drama despite Knight not feeling like a huge threat to take the title. That’s hard to do and they pulled it off here, with Reigns continuing to bring the big fight atmosphere like no one else. I’m not sure where Knight goes from here though and that’s a problem, but 946 will likely be coming after Reigns to give him something else to do.

Post match 946 pops up in the crowd and the Bloodline and Solo Sikoa appears behind them to start the brawl. They fight into a bar and then the concourse, with a cameraman picking up the camera and running to get a shot in a nice touch. The brawl heads outside, with 946 getting into a car and driving away.

Women’s Money In The Bank

Tiffany Stratton, Sol Ruca, Lash Legend, Roxanne Perez, Lola Vice, Jacy Jayne

Everyone gets together to go after Legend, who fights off and drags a ladder and Perez inside. The ladder is sat up on the floor and Stratton tries a big flip dive, with the back of her head slamming onto the floor. The fans clearly know that didn’t work and quiet down so much that commentary has to acknowledge it. Jayne loads up a ladder but Stratton is up for the save.

Vice is in with a bunch of kicks and hip attacks but Perez grabs a mini ladder to take out various women. Legend hits a pump kick to drive the mini ladder into Perez but Ruca missile dropkicks a big ladder into Legend. Perez seesaws a ladder into Ruca’s face and then Lionsaults onto Ruca onto Legend onto the ladder. Ruca and Stratton go up top but get shoved down, leaving Ruca hanging above the ring.

Another ladder is bridged into the standing ladder, with Legend chokeslamming Perez and Stratton onto the bridge. Another bridged ladder is crushed at ringside, leaving Jayne to go up. Vice goes up to choke her and they crash down onto another bridged ladder and fall to the floor. that leaves Stratton and Perez to slug it out inside with Perez getting the better of things. Ruca cuts her off and hits a Sol Snatcher off of the ladder. Legend is in for another save though and powerbombs Ruca onto a bridged ladder in the corner. Stratton cuts Legend off and hits her with the briefcase to win the case at 15:37.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure what to think of this one, but it was the usual carnage with everyone flying all over the place and crashing into things. I wasn’t expecting Stratton to win but at least she has a ready made story with Chelsea Green. It worked well enough but they overdid the bridged ladder stuff and it was only so good. Ruca’s Sol Snatcher off of the ladder was awesome at least.

Bronson Reed vs. Oba Femi

Paul Heyman is watching in the back. Reed knocks him into the corner to start but a clothesline just annoys Femi. A big shoulder drops Reed but he gets a foot up in the corner. Femi is right back with a toss suplex and Reed is already on the floor. That doesn’t work for Femi, who goes after him for a slugout on the apron. A belly to back suplex drops Femi onto the apron though and he comes up with a bad arm.

Reed is right there with the suicide dive and the backsplash gets two back inside. Something like a Cannonball to the back gives Reed two more and he wins a slugout. Another backsplash looks to set up the Tsunami, with Femi rolling away. Femi gets knocked down again and now the Tsunami can launch, only to miss completely. Femi is back up with the running uppercuts in the corner.

Cue the Vision for a distraction, allowing Reed to get the brass knuckles. The big right hand doesn’t even drop Femi so Reed has to hit him again, setting up the Tsunami for two. Reed’s moonsault misses so Femi hits another running elbow. Austin Theory is dispatched and Reed gets tossed, setting up the Fall From Grace for the pin on Reed at 11:40.

Rating: B. This was another good one, with the two of them beating the daylights out of each other. It didn’t quite get to the high point I was expecting but Femi kicked out of the monster finish and overcame the odds. That’s the entire point of the match and it went well, which is all you can want here. Good stuff.

Raw Women’s Title: Stephanie Vaquer vs. Becky Lynch vs. Liv Morgan

Vaquer is defending and Morgan is sent outside to start. Back in and Vaquer gives Morgan a belly to back suplex, setting up the Devil’s Kiss. Lynch breaks that up and Vaquer cuts off Oblivion before hitting a big dive onto the two of them. Morgan is able to powerbomb Lynch onto the apron but and Vaquer is whipped into the steps. Back in and Morgan grabs Three Amigos before tying Lynch in the Tree Of Woe.

The stomping ensues, only for Vaquer to get one off a rollup. The Devil’s Kiss has Morgan in trouble and the SVB puts her down again. Lynch is back up with a Bexploder to Vaquer and a suplex to Morgan. The double DDT drops Morgan and Vaquer and it’s time to grab a table. Morgan gets double suplexed on the floor and it’s time for the other two to set up a table. That takes too long so they go back inside, where a Tower Of Doom (I think) is broken up.

Morgan can’t half crab Vaquer, who pulls Morgan into the same thing. Lynch grabs a Disarm-Her on Morgan at the same time but both holds are broken up. Lynch and Vaquer kick it out until Morgan gets two off a rollup. Vaquer knocks Lynch outside for a running knee into the steps and the Vaquer Inferno gets two on Morgan, with Lynch pulling the referee. Back in and Lynch is knocked off the top and onto the table at ringside, leaving Morgan to hit Oblivion for the pin at 15:37.

Rating: C+. They had a bunch of spots and hard hitting stuff in here, but it felt kind of all over the place. Morgan getting the title back is a bit of a surprise as she feels like she’s had the thing forever, but that’s certainly a big moment. Vaquer got her big moment in Chile, so hopefully we get to Lynch vs. Vaquer one on one sooner than later, as that has the potential. Not a bad match at all, but it didn’t really click.

Men’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match

CM Punk, Bron Breakker, Trick Williams, Je’Von Evans, Kevin Owens, Penta

They stare at each other to start and then start hitting each other in the face. Williams tries a double flapjack but Penta….I think tries to take it like a backdrop and takes a nasty crash. Lil Yachty helps Williams with a ladder but Punk is right there with a suicide dive. Another ladder is loaded up but Penta is right there with a running flip dive. That means the ladder is brought inside but Punk (who might have taken a ladder to the face) comes in to cut Penta off.

Punk’s bulldog to Owens is dropped onto the ladder and here is Penta for the slingshot dropkicks in the corner. Breakker suplexes Punk and Penta at once, with Owens making a save. Punk goes for the ladder until Owens cuts him off by ramming Punk’s knee into the ladder. Breakker throws them outside and takes his time going up, allowing Penta to get back in. That earns Penta a knee to the chest and Breakker gets a running start on the floor to drive Williams into the ladder (that didn’t look great).

Owens pulls Breakker down and it’s time for the hockey fight with Punk. A bunch of people wind up in the timekeeper’s area and instead of climbing into the empty rung, Evans tries a dive onto them. That’s broken up with a spear into the barricade and referees have to check on Evans. Back in and Punk Russian legsweeps Breakker off the ladder for a nasty landing. Evans is being loaded onto a stretcher as Punk’s leg is tied up in the ladder.

Owens drops a ladder onto Punk’s arm to tie him up even more as Evans is carried out. Punk is dropped on another ladder but Penta is up to take Owens out, as well as go after Williams. We cut to the back where Evans is put in the ambulance, with both GM’s watching. Punk is back up, only to get caught with a Penta Driver. Breakker gives Penta a gorilla press gutbuster but Lil Yachty is there to cut Breakker off.

It’s a Stunner to Williams and another to Yachty so Owens goes up, with Punk knocking him down. Penta cuts Punk off but gets taken down with a GTS. Owens cuts Punk off and gets knocked down as well, leaving Breakker to start spearing various people. That includes a double spear to send Owens and Punk through the barricade…and here is the ambulance coming into the arena and down the aisle, naturally with Evans driving. He pops out to jump Breakker as I try to figure out why so many wrestlers are good at commandeering ambulances.

Evans takes out almost everyone else and takes multiple minutes to set up a gigantic ladder (it almost touches the briefcase) but Breakker is back up. Breakker’s Super Spear is cut off and Evans goes up, with the ladder nowhere near the briefcase. Instead Breakker shoves him off the top and through the for some reason wooden roof of the ambulance. Penta is back up and bridged a ladder into the big one, setting up a Mexican Destroyer to Breakker onto the ladder. Penta climbs and wins the briefcase at 31:54.

Rating: B-. Well that was….lengthy. There were far too many spots in here that had me shaking my head at how ridiculous they looked, with the ambulance spot being as contrived of a spot as I can remember (or it was just a big commercial for that new Slambulance thing). Penta winning is a good pick as he’s red hot right now, so keeping him in the title picture is smart. I certainly didn’t hate this, but it was too long and had too many of the ladder match tropes that I can’t stand to see.

Overall Rating: B. This show started off rather good with the opener and then didn’t really have anything to follow it up. The problem with Money In The Bank is the same as it has always been: you’re not really getting anything here, but rather setting up for something later on. What we got here was good, but only the opener really stood out and it hit a pretty firm ceiling. Overall I’ll take it, though it’s definitely not worth going out of your way to see.

Results
Roman Reigns b. LA Knight – Spear
Tiffany Stratton won the Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match
Oba Femi b. Bronson Reed – Fall From Grace
Liv Morgan b. Stephanie Vaquer and Becky Lynch – Oblivion to Vaquer
Penta won the Men’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match

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It’s time for another one of the big pay per views and that means we should be in for a hot show. The big deal here is of course the show’s namesake matches, with both a men’s and women’s version. That should give us more than enough carnage and we have a few other matches out there with all of the potential. I’m hoping the show lives up to the hype so let’s get to it.

Raw World Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. LA Knight

This match is officially opening the show, which doesn’t have me feeling great. Knight has talked his way into being something outstanding for a long time now but I’m just not sure I can imagine him winning the title. If by some miracle he does, he’s not going to be the top star for a long time. The problem is winning the title is the only thing left for him to do, but I don’t know if I can see it happening.

So yeah, I’ll take Reigns to win and retain. At the end of the day, Knight has been built up as a big challenger but this is Reigns on the big stage. That takes something special and while he’s been in trouble more than once in title defenses, I’m not sure if Knight is the one who is going to be able to take him out. Outside of 946 taking Reigns out, I don’t think it happens here. As much as I’d love to see Knight win, I just can’t picture it happening.

Raw Women’s Title: Stephanie Vaquer(c) vs. Becky Lynch vs. Liv Morgan

I have no idea what to think here as I could see it going any way. Vaquer jumped both of them to intentionally set up the match and that’s not something you often see. The problem for me is more being sick of triple threat matches, as we’ve had so many of them to set up Money In The Bank. While that’s what the story has been building towards, good grief I do not want to see another one right now.

As for a winner…..geez……you know, I think I’ll actually take Lynch. I can’t imagine the title going back to Morgan so soon and that leaves Vaquer or Lynch to win. Somehow Lynch might need the win as she hasn’t had much to brag about lately and this might be it. There’s a very good chance that Vaquer wins but I’ll go with a likely wrong pick and take Lynch to get the title.

Oba Femi vs. Bronson Reed

Now this one has me interested, as it has the potential to be quite the war. It very well could be the two of them beating the living daylights out of each other until one of them can’t get up again. What has me intrigued is the Paul Heyman factor, as he seems to want to work with Femi. That might not play a factor, but it makes me wonder where it could go and that’s a nice feeling to have.

I’ll take Femi, as I can’t imagine Reed, who feels like a side trip on the way back to facing Bron Breakker in a big rematch. For now though, Reed should serve as a great choice for an opponent, as he’s just enough of a monster to feel like he could hurt Femi but not big enough to beat him. Heyman is going to mean something in this in the end, though I don’t think he’ll matter enough to change the ending here.

Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match

The previews for these matches tend to follow the same path every year and that involves getting rid of some names. There are six women involved in this match and you can probably write some of them off without much thinking. In this case, I can’t imagine Jacy Jayne or Tiffany Stratton gets the briefcase. Stratton has had it before and Jayne already has the Women’s US Title. I’ll probably write Lola Vice off too as she’s still so new and not winning a ladder match isn’t going to hurt her.

That leaves us with three options and I’ll go with….I’ll take Lash Legend to win. Sol Ruca is an option as well but she doesn’t feel like someone who needs the briefcase. Roxanne Perez is certainly an option and it could be interesting to see her get the title rather than her Judgment Day stablemate in Morgan. She’s probably the second strongest option, but WWE seems interested in pushing Legend right now and this would be a great way to make it happen.

Men’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match

We’ll go with the elimination theory again, with Je’Von Evans and Trick Williams not likely to win here. Evans isn’t ready for a title run yet and Williams already has the US Title to deal with, leaving us with four. That leaves us with Bron Breakker, Penta, CM Punk and Kevin Owens. The problem here is it really could go any way and that makes for a rather interesting situation.

I think I’ll take Owens to win here, as it’s just too easy to follow the idea of Owens chasing Zayn for the title. While there is a very good chance that Zayn costs Owens the briefcase (which would certainly fit for him), I’m not sure if anyone really stands out. Punk is always an option but him winning it a third time seems unnecessary, even almost twenty years after his previous win. Breakker or Penta….yeah I just can’t see it. I’ll take Owens, but I don’t have much confidence in it at all.

Overall Thoughts

It’s Money In The Bank. The whole point of this is the ladder matches and they’re ready to go with all of their carnage. You have more than enough out there to make the show work and it opens up a new season for WWE with the briefcases being ready to go. Hopefully one, or both (we can only dream) are cashed in on the night of the show, as there is something great about getting rid of those things quickly. That’s the dream scenario though, and I’ll settle for just a good show.

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Smackdown
Date: October 9, 2026
Location: Cajundome, Lafayette, Louisiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

Twas the night before Money In The Bank and that’s the end of the poetry corner. As usual, this is the big show that comes before the pay per view and in this case we have a Women’s Tag Team Title match, with Charlotte and Tatum Paxley getting a shot at Fatal Influence. Other than that we have the big push towards tomorrow, which should be good enough. Let’s get to it.

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

Nick Aldis and Adam Pearce are here and have some friendly banter about Money In The Bank. Trick Williams comes in to say he wants to face Sami Zayn. Bron Breakker pops in to say he’s wasting his time here but Williams doesn’t like that. The GM’s make Breakker vs. Williams for the main event.

Here is CM Punk for a chat and the ladders are set up in the ring. After getting the catchphrase out of the way, Punk says some people have been asking him why he’s getting in this ladder match at this point in his career. He’s won this thing twice before and he’s taking a chance to make history, because that’s what he does. It won’t be a cakewalk and Punk goes over the other participants in the match.

Punk praises some of the younger stars but gets cut off by Kevin Owens, who Punk doesn’t sweat. Owens, calling Punk “Phil”, says he thinks tomorrow night gives him a chance to do the most important thing in WWE. More importantly though, it gives him the chance to stop Punk from getting the briefcase again. Punk calls that a fail safe for Owens and that’s why he’s on top of the ladder looking down at Owens.

Naturally Owens climbs the other ladder and says this is what he sees in Punk’s eyes. Owens promises to prevent Punk from winning and then taking the title from Sami Zayn, who comes out to interrupt. Zayn climbs a third, shorter ladder, so Owens says “hi shorty”. Zayn finds it symbolic that he’s on the smallest ladder and beneath the other two but they should both know he’s a survivor. He always finds a way, including beating Punk, who blames Owens for the loss.

Zayn says that wasn’t an accident but rather him being exceptionally intelligent. Punk is left looking at Zayn with the title and it drives him crazy and that kind of hatred is going to make sure neither of them win tomorrow. I can’t really picture either of them winning, but Punk knows how to paint a picture and the ladders were used well here.

Jacy Jayne/Lash Legend/Tiffany Stratton vs. Roxanne Perez/Sol Ruca/Lola Vice

Jayne and Ruca start things off with Ruca hitting an X Factor so Perez tags herself in for a fast two. Legend comes in and lunges for Perez, with Ruca and Vice dropping to the floor in a smart move. It’s off to Vice, who gets thrown into the corner but comes back with some more kicks. Ruca moonsaults to the floor to take Legend down and then hits another moonsault onto everyone else as we take a break.

We come back with Ruca fighting out of a chinlock and avoiding Jayne’s Cannonball. Perez isn’t about to tag though and Jayne gets in a clothesline to keep Ruca down. That lasts all of a few seconds, allowing Vice to get the tag and fire off kicks. The running hip attacks connect and now Perez is willing to tag herself in. Stratton comes in to take Perez down but Legend tags herself in as well. The Lash Extension is escaped and it’s Ruca back in with a dropkick. A DDT drops Legend again and it’s time for the parade of knockdowns. The Sol Snatcher accidentally hits Vice and the Lash Extension gives Legend the pin on Ruca at 11:14.

Rating: B-. Now this was more like it, as it was one match rather than having a bunch of “building momentum” matches for weeks on end. Since getting a pinfall over someone means pretty much nothing on the way to a ladder match, this only means so much. The good thing though is that the match happened and now we’re ready to move on to the ladder match, which is a much more streamlined build and far more appreciated.

Post match Legend takes out her partners, which shouldn’t be a surprise.

Chelsea Green is ready to face whomever wins the briefcase but Nikki Bella comes in to say she’s what Green should worry about. Bella calls Green a bootleg version of her and suggests that Matt Cardona wants her. As usual, Bella sounded as robotic as imaginable around here.

Hold on though as we cut to the Baddies jumping Charlotte.

Post break Charlotte’s shoulder is banged up but she’s not letting the title match be postponed. Alexa Bliss can take her spot instead, with Nick Aldis banning everyone from ringside, including Jacy Jayne.

MFT vs. War Raiders

Non-title and Haku is here with MFT. Erik and Talla start things off with Talla taking over Everything breaks down rather quickly and they go outside, with Ivar hitting a flip dive off the apron as we take an early break. We come back with Erik and Tama getting up to slug it out and Erik handing it back to Ivar.

Talla cuts off the Doomsault attempt and Tama’s hanging neckbreaker out of the corner gets two. Cue Shinsuke Nakamura and Kyoki and Ivar sits on Tama in the corner. Erik gets to come back in but is knocked down, leaving Tama to go after Kyoki. The Viking Experience (erg) plants Tama but Haku gets in a cheap shot from the floor. The Brother’s Keeper finishes Erik at 7:56.

Rating: B-. This was good enough as it was two teams beating the daylights out of each other. I was hoping for more brawling and time but the title match against Nakamura and Kyoki should be good. Good enough match here, with Haku being a nice addition to the MFTs. And getting them away from the Bloodline stuff, which wasn’t exactly working.

Post match Nakamura and Kyoki come in to clear the ring but the Raiders go after them, only to get knocked down as well.

Danhausen, with his Evil Detector, comes in to see Adam Pearce. Nick Aldis comes in and the detector beeps, but it beeps a lot louder when Finn Balor comes in. Pearce is off to drink while Aldis tells Balor that Gunther wants a match tonight. That’s fine with Balor, but Gunther wants to face Danhausen. Balor doesn’t think this is a good idea and leaves his detector behind, with Balor freaking out when it beeps a lot.

We look at John Cena making his 17th appearance on the Tonight Show and giving host Jimmy Fallon a belt as a thank you.

We look at Randy Orton costing Cody Rhodes a Money In The Bank qualifying match last week.

Earlier today, Miz was complaining that his birthday wasn’t celebrated enough but Nick Aldis went over to Orton. Aldis told him to leave because Aldis can’t have any more chaos. Orton said that he’s not worried because Cody Rhodes will hesitate to take him out again next time before leaving anyway.

Miz and Kit Wilson storm the arena, with Miz saying he deserves a birthday party. Wilson loads up Happy Birthday but Cody Rhodes interrupts instead. Miz doesn’t want this kind of interruption and tells Rhodes to stay out of his ring. Cross Rhodes drops Miz fast but Nick Aldis comes in to say he can’t let this keep happening. Rhodes and Orton are taking this show off the rails and wants to talk to Rhodes about how the feud can progress.

Instead Rhodes wants to stay in HIS office, meaning the ring. He recaps the feud with Orton and says he felt fear when he couldn’t pull the trigger. Now he’s taking that fear everywhere he can go and take out Orton for good. He wants to deal with the Michael Myers slow motion walking tramp stamp wearing Orton. That’s a good promo for a match tomorrow, if that’s what was actually happening.

Money In The Bank rundown.

Damian Priest says he should be Mr. Money In The Bank again but R-Truth ruined the whole thing. Priest goes over to Fraxiom, who don’t like what he’s been doing to R-Truth. That earns them a beatdown but R-Truth runs in for the brawl.

Danhausen vs. Gunther

Even Danhausen knows this isn’t going to go well. He stops the referee from calling for the bell and loads up the Curse but Gunther isn’t having any of this and boots Danhausen in the face. Some powerbombs and chops have Danhausen even more dead and Gunther lays him on top for the boot choke. Cue Finn Balor for the save and Gunther is knocked outside, where he runs through the crowd. Balor goes to check on Danhausen but Gunther is back to take Balor out. A powerbomb onto the announcers’ table has Balor laying. No match.

Sami Zayn rants to Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae again, with LeRae not being convinced. Bron Breakker comes in and looks at Zayn’s title. Breakker: “See you soon.”

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Fatal Influence vs. Tatum Paxley/Alexa Bliss

Paxley and Bliss are challenging. Bliss and Reid start things off with Bliss taking over but Henley is in off a blind tag. That means a Blockbuster can take Bliss down but it’s already off to Paxley, who gets superkicked off the apron. We take a break and come back with Paxley knocking Henley off the apron. That’s enough for the tag to Bliss so house can be cleaned. Sister Abigail is broken up and Reid’s running knee gives Henley two. Paxley gets in a jumping enziguri but Henley’s cheating rollup is broken up. Sister Abigail on the floor drops Reid and the Cemetery Drive finishes Henley for the titles at 8:16.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure what to think about this one, as I was liking Fatal Influence as champions but Paxley and Bliss winning is an interesting chance of pace. They might be a better choice than Bliss and Charlotte, though I’m not wild on seeing Charlotte possibly being a singles star again. Either way, goo enough match here, though the commercial taking up about half of the match hurt things.

Bron Breakker vs. Trick Williams

Non-title and Lil Yachty is here with Williams, who actually powers Breakker into the corner to start. Breakker is sent outside but pops up for the diving clothesline off the apron to knock Williams over the announcers’ table. We take a break and come back with Breakker hitting a German suplex to put Williams down again.

The Super Spear is blocked though and a double clothesline leaves both of them down. Back up and some side kicks have Breakker in trouble, followed by a spinning kick to the face. Breakker counters the Trick Shot into a gutbuster so Williams connects on the second attempt. Cue Austin Theory to jump Williams for the DQ at 6:46.

Rating: C+. There was barely enough to be shown here but that wasn’t the point. Not even WWE is crazy enough to have either of these two take a fall, especially the night before Money In The Bank. Either of them are options to win the briefcase and you don’t take away their momentum here. This is why you have stablemates around, as Theory saving his partner made perfect sense.

Post match Logan Paul is here to go after Yachty, with Je’Von Evans coming in for the save. Penta runs down as well but Bronson Reed runs in for the big beatdown to….actually not end the show.

A quick hype video for Money In The Bank really ends the show. Kind of odd there.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was in the not so great place as they had Saturday’s show ready and there wasn’t much else for them to do here. The matches designed to set up the ladder matches were fine, inoffensive, and standalone, which covers everything I needed. Other than that, there wasn’t much to do here outside of the title change, but Money In The Bank is a show that can change everything so they didn’t need to do anything here. Saturday is the big one and it should be more than good enough.

Results
Jacy Jayne/Lash Legend/Tiffany Stratton b. Roxanne Perez/Sol Ruca/Lola Vice – Lash Extension to Ruca
MFT b. War Raiders – Brother’s Keeper to Erik
Tatum Paxley/Alexa Bliss b. Fatal Influence – Cemetery Drive to Henley
Trick Williams b. Bron Breakker via DQ when Austin Theory 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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Impact Wrestling
Date: October 8, 2026
Location: Boeing Center At Tech Port, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the last show before Bound For Glory and that means we’re getting the last push to the biggest night of the year. In addition to the usual stuff, we also have the Tag Team Titles being defended, with the Nemeths putting the titles on the line against the Hardys. That should make for a big main event so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Here are the Hardys, with Matt holding a pipe. They’re ready to win the Tag Team Titles tonight and take them on to Bound For Glory to face the Syks. The challenge is on for the Syks right now but here are the Nemeths to interrupt instead. They promise to keep the titles tonight but Matt disagrees, and Leon Slater is winning the World Title too. This brings out Slater, who agrees with Matt. Nic brings up the no contact clause but Slater says he’ll be watching tonight and thinks the Hardys are going to do some deleting.

Allie and Zoey Serrano get into it backstage and are quickly held apart.

Moose issues an open challenge for Bound For Glory.

Allie/Kiera Hogan vs. Ki Vibez/Alex Gracia

Non-title. Hogan and Vibez fight over wrist control with Vibez sending her into the ropes for a running hip attack. Gracia comes in and gets elbowed in the corner so it’s back to Vibez, who takes over for a bit. That’s broken up with a jawbreaker and it’s Hogan coming back in for the running hip attack in the corner. Vibez hits Gracia by mistake and it’s Face The Music to pin Gracia at 3:12.

Rating: C. Not much to this one, though the jobbers got in some offense for a change. That made things a bit more interesting and it was nice to see the champs continuing to gel together well enough. If Rosemary is gone for the long term, it’s smart to let them have this kind of chance, as it can go a long way.

Post match Allie and Hogan send out the challenge to Zoey Serrano to find a partner for Bound For Glory.

Frankie Kazarian preps Avery Styles for the Call Your Shot Gauntlet.

Bear Bronson/Frankie Kazarian/Elijah/Trey Miguel vs. AJ Francis/Hometown Man/Brian Myers/Joe Alonzo

Random teams and whomever gets the pin is the #20 entrant in the Call Your Shot Gauntlet, while the person who take the fall is in at #1. Kazarian and Man start things off but Myers wants in, which is a rather smart idea for a change. Myers shoulders him down and Kazarian is back up with a chop…to Bronson for the tag. That doesn’t work for Bronson, who does the same chop to Miguel, earning himself a running hurricanrana.

Everything breaks down and the brawl goes to the floor with Elijah and Man hitting a dive each as we take a break. We come back with Elijah fighting out of Francis’ bearhug. The rope walk Destroyer is broken up though and it’s Elijah getting caught in the wrong corner again. Elijah knocks Alonzo down without much trouble though and it’s Kazarian coming in with the springboard spinning legdrop.

Alonzo and Avery Styles get into it on the floor, leaving Kazarian to give Alonzo a slingshot cutter for two. Everything breaks down and Styles actually gives Alonzo a Spiral Tap for two, with Francis having to make the save. Miguel comes in to strike away at Francis, including a DDT. We get the parade of knockdowns with Francis spearing Miguel but Alonzo tags himself in and steals the pin at 12:42.

Rating: B. Good stuff here and Alonzo getting the spot is interesting, as he’s done well enough in his limited time thus far. If there’s something to him, let him see what he can do and find out what might be there. Miguel as the #1 entrant in the match should go well too as he can do well enough in that kind of spot. Everyone else is just kind of there, but that’s the point of a match like this.

The Righteous offer Harley Hudson their help in the Call Your Shot Gauntlet but she’s good.

We look at ODB winning the Knockouts Title way back in the day before her Hall Of Fame induction this weekend.

Mustafa Ali has the final Order 4 meeting, saying this is everyone’s last chance to say something. Jason Hotch is ready to hurt Mustafa Ali once and for all. John Skyler is sick of Ali, who he really doesn’t like. Tasha Steelz is ready for Special Agent Zero to wreck all of them. Ali promises to win and this was a clever enough way to go for the push towards the four way.

Knockouts TV Title: Elayna Black vs. M By Elegance

Elegance is defending on her own and backs her into the corner. Black avoids a big boot though and sends Elegance outside, where it’s time for an early breather. Back up and Black misses a Stomp, jamming her knee in the process. Elegance is fine enough to suplex her on the floor and knocks Black down for two more back inside. A northern lights suplex gives Elegance two and gets in a knee to the back. The apron boot gives Elegance two but Black backdrops her out to the floor for a breather.

Black makes the clothesline comeback and a stomp to the back gets two. The Blackout is blocked with a ram into the corner and a Samoan driver gives Elegance two more. Black grabs a gutwrench suplex of all things for two and it’s time to chase each other around on the floor. Back in and Black sweeps the leg for two and now the Blackout connects, leaving them both down. Black finally gets over for the cover and time expires at 10:00.

Rating: C+. The ending was a nice surprise there as I had forgotten about the time limit and they didn’t tease it at all so Black looks like she would have won with five more seconds. Odds are we’ll see a rematch between them and that’s only so good, as Black is still only so good in the ring. There’s just something off about her and if it doesn’t get better, I’m not sure how far her career is going around here.

Ricky Sosa says this weekend is going to be the biggest match of his career and he’s ready for Eddie Edwards.

We look at Amazing Red winning the X-Division Title back in the day before his Hall Of Fame induction.

Eddie Edwards gets rather fired up about Ricky Sosa’s comments and says Sosa will need every bullet in the gun to take him out.

Fabian Aichner vs. KC Navarro

Cedric Alexander is on commentary. They show respect to start and Aichner backs him into the corner for a pat on the head. Navarro is able to send him into the ropes but misses the 305. A missed charge sends Aichner to the floor, where he cuts off a dive to suplex Navarro onto the apron. Back in and Aichner grabs a waistlock, followed by a wheelbarrow suplex for two. Navarro gets up for a kick to the head and a frog splash connects for two more. Aichner muscles him up for a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker though and a sitout Last Ride finishes Navarro off at 5:04.

Rating: C+. They didn’t have much time here but Aichner looked mostly dominant in his win. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him getting a bigger spot, including winning the title. At the same time, Navarro continues to feel like he’s the big underdog and him pulling off a bit upset wouldn’t be shocking.

Zoey Serrano calls someone to be her partner and the woman is in…and it’s Shayna Baszler.

We look at Konnan as the leader of LAX as he’s going into the Hall Of Fame this weekend as well.

Indi Hartwell talks about coming so close to winning the Knockouts Title last year at Bound For Glory but failed. Xia Brookside calls this an embarrassment and she’ll fail again this weekend. Hartwell promises to win, as does Brookside.

Bound For Glory rundown.

Tag Team Titles: Hardys vs. Nemeths

The Nemeths are defending and Leon Slater is on commentary. Matt elbows Ryan down to start and it’s off to Jeff for a basement dropkick. Nic comes in to save his brother but he gets sent into the wrong corner so Matt can take over. It’s already back to Ryan, who gets catapulted throat first into the bottom rope. Ryan gets the rams into various buckles and Nic comes in for the same as we take a break.

We come back with Matt fighting out of a chinlock and hitting a Side Effect to drop Ryan again. Jeff gets the tag to clean house, including a middle rope double clothesline for two. Poetry In Motion hits Nic, with Ryan making the save. Matt gets posted and it’s the Danger Zone to drop Jeff for two. Matt is back up with a Twist Of Fate each but the Syk’s flickering lights distract Jeff, meaning the Swanton is countered into a rollup to give Nic the pin at 13:18.

Rating: B-. This was more a matter of when would the Syk’s get involved rather than if and that’s…well it’s mostly ok at least, as you could go with them not caring about the titles. The violence should be fine enough on Sunday and while I would have liked Nic to not have two titles going into the main event of Bound For Glory, it’s probably better that he doesn’t lose. This was a big main event, but the interference was pretty telegraphed.

Post match Slater and Nic have a staredown and the lights go out, with Slater being knocked down. Nic denies doing it and the Syk are here to stand tall and end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show did a good job of getting Bound For Glory ready and that’s exactly what it was supposed to do. The card is all but set and now we’ll get to see what they are going to have at the biggest show of the year. TNA has had a lot of issues over the years but they have kept Bound For Glory strong, so hopefully that string continues this weekend. Good job here, which is a nice first step.

Results
Allie/Kiera Hogan b. Ki Vibez/Alex Gracia – Face The Music to Gracia
AJ Francis/Hometown Man/Brian Myers/Joe Alonzo b. Bear Bronson/Frankie Kazarian/Trey Miguel/Elijah – Spear to Trey Miguel
Elayna Black vs. M By Elegance went to a time limit draw
Fabian Aichner b. KC Navarro – Sitout Last Ride

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

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