Royal Rumble 2014
Date: January 26, 2014
Location: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 15,715
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

This is one of the Rumble I wanted to look at this year as it is one o the most influential of all time while also being one of the most infamous. There are some other matches on the card, but this is all about the Rumble itself, or at least someone who isn’t taking part this year. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Tag Team Titles: New Age Outlaws vs. Goldust/Cody Rhodes

Rhodes and Goldust are defending in a match that is almost bizarre to see today. Cody takes Dogg down to start as commentary immediately ignores the match to hype up the Royal Rumble. Gunn comes in and gets clotheslined outside, setting up a dive from Cody as we take a break.

Back with the referee checking on Goldust as JBL notes that this is NOT a classic match but rather fresh content. I’m not sure that sounds as good as he thinks. Goldust fights out of the corner and hits a sunset bomb as commentary says Gunn never ages. A clothesline takes Gunn down and it’s Cody coming in to clean house. Cody scores with a springboard double missile dropkick (JBL: “Great move by Dusty’s other son!”) and Cross Rhodes gets two, with Gunn making the save. Gunn comes in off a blind tag and hits a Fameasser for the pin and the titles at 6:31

Rating: C. This was nothing of note from an in-ring perspective but they did something big here by having the titles change hands. The Outlaws winning again is a a big surprise and while it’s little more than nostalgia, it still felt kind of cool. Then again, it’s a shame to see the brothers lose, as they certainly had some potential to be a bigger deal down the line. Not much of a match, but the moment made up for it.

The opening video looks at how this night means everything, with the Royal Rumble being about becoming the one. Tonight, the Road To Wrestlemania begins.

Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt

Bryan is the hottest thing in the world right now but recently joined/turned on the Wyatt Family. That wasn’t cool with Bray (who has Erick Rowan and Luke Harper with him) so let’s have some revenge. Luke Harper and Erick Rowan are here with Wyatt. The bell rings and Wyatt yells about Bryan trying to make a fool out of him. The fans aren’t quite in sync with their YES/DANIEL BRYAN chants as Bryan hammers away to start.

Wyatt runs him over with an elbow to the face as they’re going physical early. Bryan goes for the leg but the other Wyatts offer a distraction to break it up. That earns Harper a big dive so Rowan goes over but the referees eject the Wyatts first. Wyatt tells them that he doesn’t need them to fight this war…which lets Bryan dive onto Wyatt for the big crash. Wyatt dumps him outside but a charge hits the steps to bang up the leg even more.

Back in and Bryan ties up the leg for a stomp as we’re in Vicious Bryan mode here. They fight to the apron where Wyatt twists him down by the arm as commentary talks about how bizarre Wyatt really is. Back in and we hit the chinlock, followed another toss to send Bryan right back out to the floor.

Wyatt puts the head against the post and slugs away, with commentary pointing out Bryan’s recent concussion worries. The backsplash crushes Bryan, with Wyatt asking why the fans didn’t help Bryan. Back in and the chinlock goes on again, with looking bored yet eerie at the same time. Wyatt busts out the spider walk, leaving commentary cracking up about the Exorcist as they completely miss the point of a spot like that. The chinlock goes on again but Wyatt misses an elbow.

Bryan fires off the kicks and sends a charging Wyatt face first into the middle buckle. The super hurricanrana gives Bryan two and he moonsaults over Wyatt, who cuts him off hard with the running body block. Bryan manages to knock him back to the floor and there’s a heck of a diving tornado DDT. A running dropkick against the barricade sets up the YES Kicks back inside as Wyatt is in trouble.

Some running dropkicks in the corner connect but Wyatt has to go for one more, allowing Bray to hit one of the biggest clotheslines I’ve seen in a long time. The YES Lock goes but Wyatt is too close to the ropes. Instead Bryan kicks him out to to the floor, where Wyatt pulls the suicide dive out of the air. Sister Abigail to the barricade and another in the ring finish Bryan off at 21:34.

Rating: A-. These guys beat the fire out of each other and it was a heck of a match as a result. What matters is Wyatt getting the win, which was quite the rarity of him at this point. Bryan lost clean with the Family being sent out early, which gives Wyatt one of the biggest wins of his career. This was about two guys having a fight because they can’t stand each other and it made for a great one.

Paul Heyman wants Brock Lesnar to challenge the winner of Randy Orton vs. John Cena for the World Title, but Big Show is standing in his way. Not that it matters of course though, because Lesnar is going to conquer.

We go to the Kickoff Show panel (Ric Flair, Jim Duggan and Shawn Michaels), with Shawn saying Bray Wyatt and Daniel Bryan are the future of WWE. Shawn is putting his chips on Bryan in any match and when it turns, it’s turning big time. Flair on the other hand will pick Brock Lesnar over Roman Reigns any day. Duggan is just kind of there.

Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

They got in a fight a few weeks ago and Show tossed Lesnar around, setting this up. Then they did it a few more times to really prove the point. Lesnar jumps him before the bell and takes Show down, followed by a bunch of chair shots. As Lawler seems to remember Show giving Lesnar his first defeat at the 2002 Royal Rumble (about two and a half months before Lesnar debuted), Lesnar kicks Show down again and gets in another loud chair shot. Lesnar finally fires the chair up the aisle…so Heyman hands him another one.

Show gets up so we ring the bell, with Show managing a KO Punch to send Lesnar outside. Some more shots knock Lesnar around at ringside before they get back inside, where Show drops him with a shot to the ribs. The KO Punch misses though and Lesnar muscles him up (almost dropping him but roaring until he gets it) for the F5 and the pin at 2:02. This was more of an angle than a match but screaming Lesnar is a terrifying human being.

Post match Lesnar unloads on Show with the chair for a rather good while. The chair actually breaks so Heyman tosses in another to keep up the beating.

Shield is ready to win the Royal Rumble but they won’t tell each other their numbers.

Randy Orton is ready to beat John Cena one more time and send him to the back of the line. Renee Young brings up the list of people who want the title but Orton shrugs all of it off.

We recap John Cena vs. Randy Orton. They unified the two World Titles last month at TLC with Orton taking them both, mainly due to a variety of weapons. Now Cena gets a clean rematch, so Orton attacked Cena’s dad to make it personal, because THESE TWO need a reason to fight.

WWE World Title: John Cena vs. Randy Orton

Cena is challenging and takes him down into a quickly broken headscissors. Orton grabs a headlock into a suplex, followed by some headbutts to keep Cena down. Another headlock is reversed into a Liontamer attempt of all things but Orton kicks him outside without much trouble. The chinlock goes on again and we hit the BORING chant about five minutes in. They go outside with Orton sending him into the barricade, followed by some posing back inside.

Orton takes too long posing though and it’s an electric chair off the top to cut him down. Cena initiates the finishing sequence but the AA is countered. Instead Cena grabs a nice neckbreaker and the top rope Fameasser, but the AA is countered again. This time Orton takes him outside for the hanging DDT onto the floor, which of course doesn’t finish a thing (as it’s just a DDT onto the floor).

Back in and Orton….eventually loads up the RKO but Cena pulls him into the ST. The rope is quickly grabbed so Cena tries the AA again, but this time the referee gets bumped. Cena gets the STF again and this time Orton taps, with no referee around. The delay lets Orton get in a belt shot and the delayed cover gets two. Orton again spends WAY too much time posing, allowing Cena to grab the AA for two more.

A quick RKO gives Orton two of his own as they’re firmly in the trading finishers portion. The fans chant what sounds like WE WANT DIVAS but Orton mixes it up with his own STF. Cena slips out and grabs a crossface, which is reversed into an AA from Orton for two more. As you might guess, Cena’s ensuing RKO gets two so he puts Orton up top. The super AA is blocked so Cena grabs a tornado DDT into the STF. Orton is in trouble….and we’ve got Wyatts. Cena fights them off and that’s enough of a distraction for Orton to grab the RKO for the pin at 20:55.

Rating: B. This feels like a match that is much better if you’re away from the feud. Orton and Cena feuded for so long that it stopped having any kind of interest and the fans were pretty clearly sick of them. I can’t say I blame them either, as Orton vs. Cena was done to death for a very long time. The worst part is they had a good match with the trading finishers being something different from them. The Wyatts’ interference was certainly a surprise, and you can pretty clearly see a Wrestlemania showdown coming from here. Good match though, even if the fans weren’t interested.

Post match the Wyatts wreck Cena again to lave him laying. The Wyatts leave, with a bewildered Cena following.

Mae Young tribute video and you better believe Stephanie McMahon is narrating.

The New Age Outlaws show Renee Young how to do their introduction. They have two words for her: new champs.

Miz is going to win the Royal Rumble because he’ll do whatever it takes.

The Usos are ready to go on to main event Wrestlemania.

Big E. Langston (when he had a last name) is winning because that’s where it’s at.

Fandango says his name rather breathily.

Batista: “Exactly.”

Damien Sandow isn’t going to make mistakes.

Ryback is a human wrecking ball in a match full of superstars.

Rey Mysterio is going to win the Royal Rumble again.

The pre-show panel give their picks:

Jim Duggan: Dolph Ziggler

Shawn Michaels: the Shield or CM Punk

Ric Flair: Batista

Royal Rumble

90 second intervals, CM Punk is in at #1 and Seth Rollins is in at #2. Punk slugs away to start and strikes away but they trade running shots in the corner. They’re both down and it’s Damien Sandow in at #3. Punk fights out of a double team with a DDT/neckbreaker combination but can’t get Rollins out. Cody Rhodes is in at #4 and goes right at it with Sandow (they don’t like each other), including Cross Rhodes. Punk tosses Sandow (who is shocked) and Kane (now corporate) is in at #5.

Rollins grabs Punk’s leg so Kane can get in a cheap shot…but Punk escapes a chokeslam and tosses Kane. Alexander Rusev (still from NXT) is in at #6 and spinwheel kicks Rollins down. Rhodes manages to hang on as Sandow is still sitting at ringside. Rusev can’t get rid of anyone and it’s Jack Swagger (with Zeb Colter, holding an “every 90 seconds, another illegal sneaks across the border” sign) in at #7.

Swagger and Rusev have the big showdown until a bunch of people go after the latter. Kofi Kingston is in at #8 and goes after Punk, who is down on the apron. With no one getting anywhere, Jimmy Uso is in at #9. Uso headbutts and strikes away but can’t toss anyone either. Goldust is in at #10, giving us Punk, Rollins, Rhodes, Rusev, Swagger, Kingston, Uso and Goldust at the one third mark.

A bunch of people get together to toss Rusev, who pulls Kofi back out (not eliminated). Kofi is laid on the barricade….which he walks down and then dives onto the apron to get back in with a heck of a leaping save. With the collective gasp over, Dean Ambrose is in at #11. That doesn’t exactly go anywhere so it’s Dolph Ziggler in at #12 with a missile dropkick to Ambrose. The ring is getting full and R-Truth is in at #13 to make it even worse.

Ambrose wastes no time in getting rid of Truth and Uso is out as well to clear the ring a bit. Kofi is sent to the apron but hangs on by his feet, even pulling off Swagger’s boot in the process. A boot to the head lets Kofi pull himself back in and it’s Kevin Nash (oh dear) in at #14. Nash knocks Swagger out before going after the Shield, who gets even stronger with Roman Reigns in at #15.

The apron dropkick hits Rhodes and a spear takes him down as well. Reigns headbutts Nash in the chest and dumps Kofi, only to get DDTed by Ziggler. That earns Ziggler a spear and he’s out rather quickly. Reigns low bridges Nash out and it’s Great Khali in at #16. The Shield wastes no time in getting rid of Khali, followed by Reigns tossing Rhodes and Goldust back to back. The TripleBomb is loaded up on Punk but the returning Sheamus is in at #17.

The ten forearms to the chest have Ambrose in trouble and the Irish Curse hits Rollins. There’s the Brogue Kick to Reigns as Sheamus is the only one let standing. The numbers have Sheamus in trouble though and it’s Miz in at #18. That doesn’t go anywhere (much like Punk, who is down in the corner holding his head with a referee talking to him) and it’s Fandango in at #19. El Torito is in at #20, giving us Punk, Rollins, Ambrose, Reigns, Sheamus, Miz, Fandango and Torito at the 2/3 mark.

Torito goes after the once again standing Punk, wh grabs him by the head but gets headscissored. A springboard missile dropkick actually eliminates Fandango but Reigns throws Torito out without much trouble. Antonio Cesaro is in at #21 (with Zeb Colter, whose sign says “you could time it yourself but they stole your watch) and starts with the Swinging. Rollins gets the big extended version and it’s Luke Harper in at #22. Rollins survives an elimination attempt and Reigns spears Cesaro. Rollins and Cesaro slug it out until Jey Uso is in at #23.

Everyone brawls near the roles and it’s JBL in at #24, with Cole getting in the cringe worthy line of “the JBL character has never entered the Royal Rumble”. JBL tells Cole to come take his coat and is quickly tossed by Reigns. Erick Rowan is in at #25 as the fans are a bit quiet here. Harper gets rid of Miz and Uso quickly follows suit. We get the big Shield vs. Wyatts showdown as Ryback is in at #26.

The GOLDBERG chants begin as Sheamus and Cesaro trade forearms. JBL: “That wasn’t a move. That was I’M GOING TO THROW MY FIST INTO YOUR FACE!” Alberto del Rio is in at #27 and no one goes anywhere. Batista (there’s the reaction, albeit not the most positive) is in at #28 and gets rid of Rowan, setting up a showdown with Ryback. A charge into the corner goes badly for Ryback, who gets backdropped out.

Del Rio kicks Batista in the face and is eliminated or his efforts. Big E. Langston is in at #29 for a bunch of backbreakers to Sheamus, who manages to hang on. The brawling on the ropes continues until Rey Mysterio is in at #30. That gives us Punk, Rollins, Ambrose, Reigns, Sheamus, Cesaro, Harper, Batista, Langston and Mysterio.

Now this bring us to the important part of the match: Rey Mysterio is not Daniel Bryan. The fans were doing the YES pose before Mysterio came out, and then it just fell apart. You could see fans looking around, wondering why this was anyone but Bryan as it is clear that this is NOT the right spot. Mysterio is an all time legend, but the fans do not want to see him here right now and the DANIEL BRYAN chants are on.

Mysterio and Punk both have to hang on to get back in as the booing continues. Sheamus gets rid of Big E., leaving Harper and Cesaro to strike it out. The 619 hits Rollins and the fans are just openly booing now. Rollins is back up with an enziguri to get rid of Mysterio and for one of the only times ever, the fans are happy to see Mysterio eliminated. The fans are chanting for Bryan as Reigns Superman Punches Harper out….but Ambrose tries to toss Reigns.

That lets Cesaro almost eliminate Rollins and Ambrose but Reigns tosses all three of them at once in a pretty awesome visual. That ties the single match elimination record for Reigns, while leaving us with Reigns, Punk, Sheamus and Batista. Cue Kane to eliminate Punk though and unload on him next to the barricade. The beating is on and Kane chokeslams Punk through the announcers’ table, giving us what would wind up being Punk’s last appearance for almost ten years.

The fans are still chanting for Bryan as the other three pull themselves up. Batista powerslams Reigns and the fans chant NO as they know where this is going. Sheamus gives Batista a Regal Roll but misses the Brogue Kick as Batista falls down, with the ans booing even more. Batista backdrops Sheamus to the apron and Reigns gets the record as we’re one on one. The fans are suddenly WAY behind Reigns but Batista cuts him off with a spear. Batista tosses Reigns for the win at 55:08.

Rating: C+. Where do you start with this one? The match certainly has its moments and there is star power throughout, with Reigns feeling like the biggest monster in the world. While some of those eliminations might have felt a little cheap, Reigns did set the record and it was quite the impressive feat. Other than that, you had the Shield vs. the Wyatts and it was a good enough Rumble.

Except for that one big thing. I have never heard a crowd turn on a match like that and it was a fascinating thing to see. At the end of the day, this was the fans outright rejecting what WWE was presenting them and there is no way around it. The fans wanted Bryan and rejected everything else when they didn’t get him. It also doesn’t help that Batista was slotted into the spot no matter what the people wanted and this was the result. It would only get worse, leading to an all time Wrestlemania. At the time though, it was one of the most tone deaf moments WWE could have had and brought a pretty good Rumble WAY down.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a VERY weird show as the main event outweighs everything else, even though the rest of the show was rather good. The World Title match was better than average and the opener was a smash, with Lesnar wrecking Big Show stuck in the middle. Then there’s the Rumble, which is overshadowed by the last five or ten minutes. It’s a show, and main event, unlike any other and that is why I wanted to see it again.

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Royal Rumble 2013
Date: January 27, 2013
Location: US Airways Center, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 13,00
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

This show was only a year ago and I can barely remember anything about it. Aside from the Rumble the big matches are the Rock challenging CM Punk for the WWE Title in the most obvious ending ever and Alberto Del Rio defending his newly won World Heavyweight Championship against Big Show in a last man standing match. Other than that we’ve only got HELL NO vs. the Rhodes Scholars to complete the card. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: US Title: The Miz vs. Antonio Cesaro

Cesaro is defending. This is just after Flair passed the Figure Four to Miz, starting the worst period of his career. Miz grabs a headlock to start and gets two off an elbow to the jaw. The headlock takes Cesaro down to the mat but he fights up and grabs one of his own. Back up and Miz tries a leapfrog but gets caught in midair with a tikt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. The champion takes over and cranks on both of Miz’s arms before getting two off a Michinoku Driver.

A hard European uppercut sets up the gutwrench suplex for two and it’s back to the double arm. Back up again and Miz slips out of a slam and hooks the Reality Check for two. There’s the running clothesline in the corner and Miz goes up but hurts his knee on the top rope ax handle. Cesaro gets caught with his feet on the ropes, allowing Miz to get two off a rollup. Antonio misses a running knee in the corner but is still able to roll away from the Figure Four. Cesar takes him to the floor and rams Miz into the metal underneath the ring. Miz is out cold so Cesaro Neutralizes him for the pin to retain.

Rating: D+. Miz just doesn’t work in a lot of these matches and the Figure Four doesn’t work in the slightest. Thankfully he wouldn’t be featured very prominently for awhile as there was just nothing to him for the most part. Cesaro still needs to get a push as he’s more talented and marketable than half the roster but instead we get people like Miz.

The opening video is about time passing and how no one has enough. This ties into Punk’s time as champion with Rock saying the reign ends tonight.

Smackdown World Title: Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio

Last man standing match, which is a rematch with the same stipulations from when Alberto won the title a few weeks ago. Del Rio turned the announce table on top of Big Show so Big Show turned it on top of him a few weeks later. Alberto is shown in the back and he runs into Bret Hart for no apparent reason whatsoever. Bret says Alberto reminds him of a Mexican version of himself. Alberto calls Bret a Canadian Del Rio and Ricardo gushes, earning him Bret’s sunglasses. What a bizarre cameo.

Some hard chops have Del Rio in early trouble and a slam gets a five count. Alberto chops away but jumps off the middle rope right into a chop to change control right back. The champion dropkicks the giant’s knee out but the low superkick actually knocks Big Show up from his knees to his feet. A hurricanrana and a seated senton put Big Show down and Alberto gets a breather. It’s amazing how much more intersting Del Rio is by doing this lucha stuff instead of his arm work. The arm stuff is good but this is such a nice change of pace.

Big Show blocks the armbreaker with one arm and slams Del Rio down, sending him outside. Del Rio gets back in as Big Show gets a chair but the champion dropkicks him in the ribs to knock it out of his hands. A series of chair shots (crowd: “SI! SI! SI!”) has Big Show down but Alberto dives into a chokeslam for an eight count. We head outside again with Del Rio getting chopped to the floor with ease. This is a very slow paced match so far.

A pair of low blows puts Big Show down in the aisle but he’s up at nine. Show hits something resembling a DDT on the floor before sending Del Rio into the set. He rips a piece of the set, resembling a light tube, and blasts Del Rio over the back. Since this is WWE there’s a table readily available and Big Show takes the champion on top of the set for a chokeslam through the table. The bump looked awesome but he’s again on his feet at nine.

The beating takes Del Rio back to the ring and Show loads up the WMD. Alberto sees it coming and rolls outside, only to have Big Show throw Ricardo around for fun. Big Show misses a charge through the barricade (clearly heavily padded) for five but a long series of chair shots has him down again. Del Rio crushes the arm between the steps and a chair, but Alberto follows up with a fire extinguisher blast to the face for no apparent reason. Back in and the armbreaker goes on, but Ricardo ups the ante by duct taping Big Show’s legs to the ropes. The giant can’t get up and Alberto retains the title.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t the worst match in the world but it was very slowly paced and the ending made Del Rio look more clever than tough. It also doesn’t help that the match was the same gimmick they did less than a month ago. Face Alberto was a nice guy but they cut the cord just six months after this. Not bad, but Del Rio winning the title here would have been much better.

Send Slim Jims to the military!

Ziggler isn’t worried about being in the Rumble and AJ threatens Matt Striker with Big E. Langston for implying Ziggler can’t win. Langston does one of the most mind blowing imitations of an annoying reporter while asking Ziggler for his thoughts on the main event. Dolph has little of note to say but no one was hearing him after Big E.’s bit anyway.

Cesaro says he’ll continue the streak of non-Americans winning the Rumble.

The Prime Time Players……WE’RE GETTING RUMBLE PROMOS!!!! Anyway they say anyone that thinks they’ll eliminate either of them is getting a penalty flag.

Orton says he’s perfect for the Rumble because it’s every man for himself.

Cena is ready for the Rumble because it means he can be champion again.

Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett says he’ll restore credability to the Rumble.

Sheamus says he won the Rumble last year and he’ll do it again tonight.

Ryback isn’t any catchphrase and he doesn’t eat Fruity Pebbles, but he’ll see food every 90 seconds. Feed him more.

We recap Miz vs. Cesaro on the pre-show.

Tag Titles: HELL NO vs. Rhodes Scholars

The Scholars are challenging. Cody kicks Bryan in the ribs as Cole references Queen lyrics. Bryan spins out of a wristlock and the fans chant for Cody’s mustache. Cody’s leapfrog is countered into a surfboard and it’s off to Kane for a low dropkick and a two count. Rhodes scores with a dropkick of his own and drives Kane into the corner for the tag off to Sandow. Kane easily powers Sandow into the corner because, you know, he’s Damien Sandow and it’s off to Bryan for the YES Kicks.

JBL rants about Cole and Lawler hugging as Kane kicks Sandow in the face, knocking him out to the floor. The FLYING GOAT takes out the challengers but Cody low bridges Bryan to the floor to take over. Back in and a half crab has Daniel in trouble but he reverses into a small package to escape. Damien comes in again and drops an elbow for two before dropping the Wind-Up Elbow.

After some knees to the back it’s Cody in again but he charges into a boot in the corner. Sandow breaks up a hot tag attempt and Cody puts Bryan in an over the shoulder backbreaker. Daniel slides down to escape and makes the tag to Kane. Sandow is tossed around like a rag doll but a Cody distraction prevents the top rope clothesline. Kane grabs both guys by the throat and Bryan tags himself in. The Scholars double suplex Kane but Bryan shoves Cody into a chokeslam and Daniel YES Locks Sandow to retain.

Rating: C. Nothing you wouldn’t see on Raw around this time which means it was fine. The Scholars were a nice idea for a team but it was clear that they had no chance at this point given how low their individual stocks were. Kane and Bryan gelled perfectly well as a team and Bryan would get far bigger very soon.

Rumble By The Numbers which I’ve typed many times already.

HELL NO celebrates in the back when Vickie Guerrero comes up and gives them their Rumble numbers. Daniel shows Kane his but Kane won’t show Bryan.

We look at the Royal Rumble Fan Fest which is another name for Axxess. This included a tournament of NXT wrestlers for a spot in the Rumble, won by Bo Dallas.

Royal Rumble

Ziggler is #1 which he picked (the other option was #2) after winning a Beat the Clock Challenge on Raw. Dolph says he’ll win and doesn’t care who he faces first, bringing out a returning Chris Jericho at #2. This was a complete shock and the roof is blown off the building. Also remember that Ziggler beat Jericho to send him out of the company to give us some history. The clock is at 90 seconds between entrants this year.

Jericho is quickly sent to the apron but comes back with a top rope ax handle. Now it’s Dolph on the apron as the fans tell Jericho he still has it. When did Jericho ever come close to losing it? A superplex brings Ziggler back into the ring and Cody Rhodes is in at #3. Jericho hammers away on him but Ziggler gets in a cheap shot as the double teaming begins. Chris knocks Ziggler down and puts Cody in the Walls but Dolph makes the save.

Dolph catapults Jericho throat first into the bottom rope as Kofi Kingston is in at #4. Kofi immediately speeds things up and pounds away on Cody but can’t hit Ziggy with Trouble in Paradise. Ziggler is thrown to the apron and all four guys try to eliminate each other at the same time in the same spot. Santino Marella is #5 and he sends all four to the apron before loading up the Cobra. Everybody is back in and even though Santino takes Kofi down with the sock, it’s Cody backdropping Marella out.

Drew McIntyre of 3MB is #6 and gets to fight Kofi as everyone else takes a breather. Back up and it’s time to lay on the ropes while trying to eliminate people. Jericho is sent over the ropes but he keeps his feet off the ground and gets back in. Titus O’Neil is in at #7 to add some power, including taking Cody and Kofi down with a double clothesline. Cole finally tells us that the bark is a shout out to his fraternity from Florida. Thank you for explaining that to us after two years.

Jericho throws out McIntyre but can’t do the same to Ziggler as Goldust is #8. Cody gets ready for the showdown and the fans are WAY into this. They trade the kneeling uppercuts and Goldie stomps on Cody for a bit. The fans chant for Goldust and it’s David Otunga (remember him?) is in at #9. The announcers ignore the match to talk about the commentators being in the Rumble last year as people start to pair off.

Nothing much happens until Heath Slater is in at #10. That gives us Ziggler, Jericho, Rhodes, Kingston, O’Neil, Goldust, Otunga and Slater at the moment. Slater fires off right hands to Kofi as Jericho calls spots to Ziggler. Dolph gets stuck on the apron again and Sheamus is #11 to clear out some bodies. He destroys everyone with his usual stuff before sending Titus to the apron for the ten forearms. Otunga is thrown onto Titus to get rid of O’Neil before ten forearms and a Brogue Kick get rid of the lawyer. Tensai, still the Japanese lunkhead, is #12.

Everybody goes after Tensai to make a big cluster in the corner. That goes nowhere at all so Brodus Clay comes in at #13. We get a Tons of Funk preview before Goldust backdrops Cody to the apron, only to get pulled to the apron as well. Cody gets back in and sends Goldust into the post for the elimination and a lot of booing. Rey Mysterio is #14 to make the crowd happy again. Ziggler and Jericho get quick 619s and the top rope splash crushes Jericho. Things slow down a bit until we reach the halfway point with Darren Young at #15.

A bunch of guys join forces to dump Brodus and Kofi puts out Tensai a few seconds later. Now we get to the part that everybody was waiting on as Kofi is knocked off the apron, only to land on Tensai’s back. He jumps onto the announcers’ table as he tries to figure this out. Why he doesn’t just jump two feet to get onto the steps is beyond me. Bo Dallas is #16 as this is going on. Instead of the steps, Kofi gets JBL’s office chair and pogos his way back to the ring. Kingston pulls Darren out of the ring but gets caught with the Disaster Kick for the elimination before he can get back inside.

Godfather gives us the nostalgia pop at #17 and is dropkicked out by Ziggler four seconds later. He seems ok with that and leaves with his women. The whole point was the entrance anyway so I have no issue with that. Wade Barrett is in at #18 as the ring is getting too full. Everything slows down again and John Cena is #19 to clear out some tired people. Everybody gets ready for him so Cena comes a charging. John fights them all off and throws out Slater and Cody but can’t dump Jericho.

Damien Sandow is #20, giving us Ziggler, Jericho, Sheamus, Mysterio, Dallas, Barrett, Cena and Sandow. Mysteiro and Barrett fight to the apron and a big forearm puts Rey out. Sheamus goes right after Wade as Jericho tries to put Cena in the Walls. Daniel Bryan is #21 and fires off kicks to Sandow. Now it’s Barrett getting the kicks as everyone else is down. Sheamus and Bryan try to put Jericho out but he slides back in under the ropes.

Antonio Cesaro is in at #22 and gets in a fight with Sheamus as the fans start the dueling Cena chants. Everybody is back up now and Great Khali is #23. It’s chops all around until things calm a bit. Kane comes in at #24 to fire things up again (get it?) but the ring is too full. It gets even worse with Zach Ryder coming in at #25 but HELL NO dumps Khali. Bryan dumps Kane but Cesaro dumps Bryan into Kane’s arms. Daniel: YES! Kane shouts no and drops Bryan for the elimination in a funny bit.

Randy Orton is #26 and it’s powerslams all around. Ziggler and Dallas get a double Elevated DDT and it’s an RKO for Ryder, followed by the elimination. Jinder Mahal gets lucky #27 as Cesaro lifts Cena up, only to be eliminated himself. Ziggler gets launched to the ropes but slides back in as Miz is #28. He gets in a fight with Cesaro in the aisle and limps into the ring to sell the ankle injury from earlier. Sheamus dumps Mahal and Sin Cara is #29.

Cara tries an enziguri on Ziggler which misses by four inches but Ziggler sells it anyway. Bo Dallas pulls Barrett out in an elimination that should have led further than it did. Miz sends Jericho to the apron as Barrett pulls Dallas out from the floor. Ryback is #30 to give us a final grouping of Ryback, Ziggler, Jericho, Sheamus, Cena, Sandow, Orton, Miz and Sin Cara. Damien is out first and Sin Cara quickly follows. Miz tries to power Ryback out and is tossed as well to get us down to six. Jericho is somehow still alive and hits a Lionsault on Cena but the springboard dropkick doesn’t eliminate Sheamus.

Ziggler backdrops Jericho to the apron and superkicks him out (missed as well but he’s spent at this point) but walks into an RKO. There’s one for Cena as well and Sheamus gets the third. That leaves Ryback to fight Orton but the monster gets taken down with an Elevated DDT. Ryback fights off the RKO and clotheslines Randy out to get us down to four. Ziggler DDTs Cena down but a Brogue Kick puts Dolph on the floor.

It’s Sheamus, Ryback and Cena with Ryback getting double suplexed down. Cena and Sheamus make things serious by LOOKING AT THE SIGN. John takes over but Ryback runs him over with a clothesline. Sheamus escapes the Shell Shock, looks at the sign, and hits White Noise on Ryback. The Brogue Kick is countered with a backdrop to eliminate Sheamus and we’re down to two.

They LOOK AT THE SIGN and do their signature taunts before Ryback spinebusters Cena down. The Meathook is countered into the STF and Ryback passes out, leaving him as dead weight. Ryback fights out of the corner and Cena’s head into the mat. He loads up a powerslam but Cena slips out the back and shoves Ryback out for the win and title shot at Wrestlemania.

Rating: B. It’s a good but not great Rumble. That being said, there was almost no other option to win here, even though it set up the rematch that no one wanted to see. There’s certainly some good stuff in it and there were no down spots, but you would expect more big moments than we got here.

Coming Home ad for Wrestlemania. That still should have been Wrestlemania XXX.

We recap CM Punk vs. The Rock. It’s a basic story: Punk has been champion for 434 days and Rock is getting a title shot because he’s the Rock, which was kind of a lame reason, especially when the shot was announced six months ago. That began a countdown that made everything Punk did meaningless, because there was no way it would be anyone but Rock taking the belt from him here. Yeah Punk got in some shots on Rock before the match, but this was as much of a layup as you could get. Also if Shield or anyone interferes, Punk is stripped of the title.

Rock, after waiting for them to chant his name, says he isn’t worried about Shield, even though they busted up his lung recently. He goes on a rant about how many hard things he’s been through, but redeems himself a bit by talking about his mom getting cancer but beating it to be here tonight. Punk has said that the people don’t count but Rock says every single one of them count to him. He reaches his hand out to everyone that believes in the Rock so he can get their power, if you smell what he’s cooking.

Raw World Title: The Rock vs. CM Punk

Punk of course has Heyman with him. He charges right into the brawl and actually pounds Rock down into the corner. A quick Rock Bottom is countered but Punk is sent outside. Rock follows him outside and sends the champion into the barricade before loading up the announce table. Punk comes back with a shot to the ribs and puts the table back together in a great bit. Back in and Rock scores with more right hands to knock Punk to the floor again.

Punk is whipped into the barricade one more time but he gets a boot up to stop a charging Bull. He finishes fixing the announce table instead of following up on Rock before dropping Rock ribs first on the barricade. They head inside again for a body vice from CM followed by a knee to the ribs for two. Off to a freaky looking hold where Punk pins Rock’s shoulders down but pulls back on his head to crank on the shoulders and back.

More choking follows and a knee to the back has Rock on the apron, followed by a springboard dropkick to send him outside. Punk tries a top rope ax handle to take Rock down but injures his knee in the process. Rock scores with some kicks to the knee but the champion easily sends him out to the floor to stop the comeback. Back in and Punk misses the springboard clothesline and reinjures the knee, giving Rock his opening.

A DDT gets one on Punk but he fights out of the Rock Bottom. The GTS is countered into a Sharpshooter attempt but Punk counters into the Anaconda Vice in a nice sequence. Rock rolls over into a cradle, forcing Punk to let go of the hold. Back up and tries the Rock Bottom but Punk counters into a rollup for two, only to be countered into a low seated Sharpshooter. Punk is next to the rope so naturally he takes thirty seconds to get the break.

Rock takes him to the floor and loads up the announce table again. They fight on top but Rock counters a GTS attempt into what was supposed to be a Rock Bottom but was really more like the table collapsing with Rock’s arm around Punk’s chest. Rock comes up holding his knee and both guys make it back in at an eight count. Punk scores with a high kick but both guys are down.

Back up and Rock wins a slugout before scoring with the spinebuster. He loads up the People’s Elbow and there go the lights. Cole can see Shield pulling Rock to the floor and powerbombing him through the table. The lights come back up and Rock is laid out as the referee has no idea what’s going on. The announcers try to tell Mike Chioda what happened and Punk feigns innocence.

He throws Rock back in for the pin and celebrates but here’s Vince to say Punk is stripped of the title for the interference. Rock says no and to restart the match. The bell rings again and Punk stomps away as JBL threatens to put Cole through a table for playing cheerleader. The Macho Elbow gets two but the GTS is countered into a spinebuster, setting up the People’s Elbow to end Punk’s reign.

Rating: B. It’s another good match but it felt like they were dancing around for twenty three minutes before we got to the obvious ending. The Shield stuff was a decent fake out but it really didn’t need to be there. Rock winning was obvious though and that really put a ceiling on how high this was going to get.

Rock celebrates for about three minutes to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Yeah it’s a good show overall, but the major problem is obvious: there was no other possibly ending other than Rock vs. Cena at Wrestlemania 29 and almost everyone knew it. The show is definitely entetaining and actually really good at times, but it was so telegraphed up and down the card that it offers almost no excitement at all, even on the initial viewing. Still though, worth checking out if you have nothing else to do.

Ratings Comparison

Antonio Cesaro vs. The Miz

Original: C-

Redo: D+

Alberto Del Rio vs. Big Show

Original: B

Redo: C-

HELL NO vs. Rhodes Scholars

Original: C

Redo: C

Royal Rumble

Original: C+

Redo: B

The Rock vs. CM Punk

Original: B

Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: A-

Redo: B

That original overall rating is too high for what I gave everything else. Also I think the original last man standing match rating is closer to the accurate one. It just didn’t hold up as well on a second viewing, but it was good.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/01/27/royal-rumble-2013-by-the-book-and-still-awesome/

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Shotgun Saturday Night
Date: January 18, 1997
Location: Denim & Diamonds, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Jim Ross

This is the third episode of the show and it’s back when Shotgun was actually VERY different. The original format saw the show airing from a bar (like this one, the night before the Royal Rumble) with some far less family friendly content. This one has a pretty infamous segment and it should be fun to see it again. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence, which does make the show look rather awesome.

We run down the card, featuring the logo saying it’s live from New York City, which is quite the unforced error. Also of note, Vince praises JR’s black hat, which wasn’t quite a regular thing yet.

Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Rocky Maivia

Helmsley’s Intercontinental Title isn’t on the line and he promises to win both of his matches at the Royal Rumble. Oh and he’ll steal Marlena from Goldust too. The fans are VERY pro-Rocky, which was a rare thing at this point. Some armdrags send Helmsley into the corner (of the far smaller than usual ring) to start and some right hands make it worse.

Another armdrag sets up the armbar but Helmsley gets up for some knees to the ribs. That’s fine with Maivia, who armdrags him right back into the armbar. This time it’s broken up with an atomic drop…and here is Jake Roberts with the snake to clear the ring. We take a break and come back with Helmsley holding a chinlock and Roberts on commentary, saying he was just testing both of them.

Maivia fights up and makes the comeback, including a crossbody. Helmsley knocks him down for a quick two and we hit the chinlock again. This one doesn’t last as long and it’s Maivia fighting back with the right hands into the corner. A powerslam drops Helmsley and they both need a breather. Cue Marlena as Maivia strikes away, including a dropkick out to the floor. Helmsley sends him into the barricade but stops to look at Marlena, who says something we can’t hear. Cue Goldust to chase Helmsley for countout at 13:06.

Rating: C+. You could see some chemistry developing between these two but this was a long time before Rocky was the star he would become. At the same time, Helmsley’s feud with Goldust really did not work, with their Royal Rumble match being one of my all time least favorites. This was a fine enough match though, with the still brand new Maivia doing well enough.

Earlier this week on Raw, Sid talked about how he was going to have to become a monster at the Royal Rumble to retain the WWF Title. Shawn Michaels would say the same thing, but Sid promises to grab Michaels by his throat. Michaels’ mother will see the look on his face and Jose Lothario will stay out of it this time because he knows better. The friends and Mexicans (whom Lothario will summon) will know that Sid is the master and ruler of the world. This was in an empty arena and the echoing of Sid’s voice was great.

Bob Backlund is walking through the streets of New York and shouting a lot.

Mini Mankind/Histeria vs. Mascarita Sagrada Jr./Venum

Venum and Histeria (the non-minis) start things off with McMahon mocking JR’s descriptions of their gear. Venum’s springboard headscissors takes Histeria down but he misses a charge. A springboard flip dive drops Histeria outside and it’s off to the minis, with Sagrada sending him outside. That means a big dive to the floor as Steve Austin joins commentary (Vince: “And I don’t know why.”).

Back in and the non-minis take over with Venum being tossed outside as Austin isn’t sure why they’re here. Austin: “These guys in the Royal Rumble?” Sagrada comes back in to take over on Mankind as Austin is just going off on commentary, saying there are going to be 29 pieces of trash in the Royal Rumble and one Superstar.

Sagrada hits a dive to the floor as Austin complains about his chair being too small and offering McMahon an elbow in the face if he keeps insulting him. Venum comes back in and misses a corkscrew moonsault, allowing Histeria to hit a powerbomb for the pin at 5:53 (this is listed as 12 minutes on most online sources I can find, and unless there is some incredible editing, that’s not accurate).

Rating: C+. This is a weird case where the commentary is the focus. Austin was an absolute force out there, with an incredible run of lines. There is no question about why he became such a star, as the intensity he brought was second to no one. The match itself was an interesting enough idea, but as usual, it’s just random wrestlers having a match, which isn’t quite enough.

Super fans George and Adam are at the Alamodome. They’re the only fans there, because apparently the building has no security.

Here is Terry Funk for a chat and Austin isn’t pleased. Vince: “Texas’ own!” That is too far for Austin, because Funk is just from Texas. Funk: “This is my state!” Austin: “Wrong.” Funk: “This is my town.” Austin: “Wrong.” Funk: “I’m in the heart of Texas!” Austin: “Wrong.” Funk is a wristlockin, toe holdin, knee dropping (and other things) son of a son of a gun and tougher than a rattlesnake. He wants to know what number he is, but he wants to start at #1. Maybe he can rumble with Todd Pettingill!

Where are all the cowards from WCW? Where is Vince McMahon? Now he wants Jim Ross, calling him something censored. Or maybe….Steve Austin? You can see the look change in his eyes and Austin gets in the ring to go toe to toe with him and the brawl is on. Unfortunately it doesn’t last long and we go to a break, which is a shame as that was starting to get awesome. Well, more awesome as Funk was incredible here, with Austin being able to hang with him, which was impressive given what he was up against. Outstanding stuff and worth a look, though find the uncensored version, which is even nuttier.

Faarooq vs. Jesse Jammes

The Nation Of Domination is here with Faarooq. Jammes does his singing on the way to the ring but we miss part of it due to a microphone issue. The Nation stands there to start so Jammes jumps one of them, only to get hammered into the corner by Faarooq. A missed charge in the corner lets Jammes get in an armdrag, followed by a headlock. The lefts and rights in the corner don’t do much to Faarooq so Jammes goes with a belly to back for two. Back up and Faarooq hits a spinebuster, followed by the Dominator for the pin at 1:54.

Goldust vs. Steve Austin

HHH is here watching as well, which isn’t a great sign. They stare at each other to start and lock it up into the corner. Austin stomps him down with the exact style you would expect but Goldust is back with an elbow to the face. A low blow cuts Goldust off and it’s time to drive the shoulders in the corner. Goldust comes back with an oddly times hammerlock and we take a break. We come back with Terry Funk coming in to brawl with Austin for the DQ at 5:20. Not enough shown to rate but they weren’t being lazy in the time they had.

Post match the brawl stays on and here are a bunch of people for a big fight, with Austin and Funk fighting into a bar. HHH beats up Goldust with a pool cue and Funk is sent into a beer tub to end the show in wild fashion.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling really wasn’t the point here and it still made for a really awesome show. Obviously the Funk/Austin interaction was the one that really stood out here, but the whole aura of the show was so different. After years in the New Generation, this show had some energy and edge. That’s not something that was common back in the day but it worked here. Check out that Funk/Austin bit for sure, as it’s two masters going at it in a great segment.

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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https://www.smarkdownsblog.com/nxt-next-generation-wwe-stars

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 19, 2026
Location: SSE Arena, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s another afternoon show as we wrap up the European tour. That’s a big deal as we are less than two weeks away from the Royal Rumble. As a result, it is time to start getting ready for the show’s namesake matches, as only Cody Rhodes has announced himself for the Rumble. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Gunther to get things going. The fans are NOT pleased with him and tell him that he tapped out. Gunther says AJ Styles made a mistake last week because he forgot who he was facing. We hear Gunther’s accomplishments and he is officially in the Royal Rumble. Cue Styles, who gets right to the point: he wants a rematch with Gunther at the Royal Rumble.

Gunther doesn’t want to wrestle twice that night so it’s a no, but Styles calls him a little b****, which actually isn’t enough for a yes. As Gunther goes to leave, he says hang on as there is one way he’ll do it. The fans at Gunther, who eventually says he’ll do it if Styles puts his career on the line. Gunther tells Styles he has until the end of the night to decide.

Maxxine Dupri runs into Natalya, who is here to support her against Becky Lynch.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Maxxine Dupri vs. Becky Lynch

Dupri is defending and has Natalya with her. Dupri wrestles her down to start but it’s too early for the ankle lock. A dropkick puts Lynch on the floor instead but she’s back with a hard forearm as we take a break. We come back with Dupri hitting a step up legdrop to the back of the head for two but she misses a kick and gets caught in the Disarm-Her. That’s reversed into the ankle lock, which is broken up as well.

Dupri gets crotched on top and superplexed back down, with Lynch rolling into a DDT for two. Lynch pulls the turnbuckle pad off but almost gets sent into it, allowing Dupri to hit a high crossbody. That’s rolled through for two and Dupri gets the ankle lock again. Lynch gets out again so Dupri kicks her in the head…and Natalya puts Lynch’s foot on the rope. Dupri is stunned and walks into the Manhandle Slam to retain the title at 11:33.

Rating: B-. This might as well have had a countdown until Natalya turned on Dupri, as they weren’t even hiding what was going on. That being said, it was a good way to get out of the match while protecting Dupri. This really needs to be it for Dupri vs. Lynch, as Dupri needs to get revenge on Natalya while Lynch just needs a fresh opponent. Dupri has come a very long way in this feud though so well done indeed.

Post match Natalya jumps Dupri and lays her out, including the Sharpshooter. It’s broken up but Natalya does it again.

We recap Adam Pearce suspending Bron Breakker last week but also putting his hands on him, which Paul Heyman didn’t like.

Pearce asks AJ Styles what he’s doing about Gunther and Styles says he’s going to call his wife. With Styles gone, Paul Heyman comes in to ask how Pearce’s week went. Pearce said it was good and Heyman is surprised, but Pearce says they’re in Belfast. Heyman: “Couldn’t find an arena in London?” Pearce: “What do you want?” Heyman: “A lot.” Anyway, the Vision has a six man tag tonight and they’ll both be ringside.

Video on CM Punk vs. Finn Balor.

Raquel Rodriguez says Stephanie Vaquer is still out of action but she’s ready to win the Women’s Title when she gets the chance. Liv Morgan says this is going to be the Judgment Day’s year because they’ll all win titles.

Here is Jey Uso to announce that he’s in the Royal Ru

IMG Credit: WWE

mble as well. And that’s that.

New Day and Grayson Waller want their Tag Team Title shot, with Adam Pearce agreeing. But that’s if they win a four way next week. Ranting ensues.

Vision vs. Rey Mysterio/Penta/Dragon Lee

Paul Heyman and Adam Pearce are both here too. Lee takes over on Theory to start and it’s quickly off to Paul vs. Penta for a strut off. Penta takes him down by is quickly dropped by Paul, meaning it’s off to Mysterio vs. Reed. Mysterio is knocked down with the power but manages a kick to the head. It’s back to Penta to take over and the three good guys hit big stereo dives (that looked great) to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Lee not being able to lift up Reed but avoiding the sitdown splash. A powerslam gives Reed two but he misses the running backsplash. It’s back to Mysterio to pick up the pace and hammer away at Theory in the corner. Penta comes in for a scary Penta Driver to Theory as everything breaks down. Paul is sent outside and Lee’s big flip dive hits Reed.

Back in and Theory brainbusters Penta onto the knee for two and it’s time for Heyman and Pearce to get on the apron. Paul tries to slide Theory the knuckles but Pearce breaks it up, earning some yelling from Heyman. Pearce yells at him, allowing Mysterio to pick up the knuckles and knock Theory silly. The Destroyer finishes for Penta at 15:03.

Rating: B+. This was a heck of a match with a bunch of stuff going on but it stayed coherent. The stuff with Heyman and Pearce is interesting and I’m curious to see where it goes. At the same time, Mysterio using the knuckles was a bit of a surprise but it still worked. Pretty awesome stuff here.

Post match the winners celebrate as Heyman has his phone out.

CM Punk’s plan to beat Finn Balor: be the best in the world.

Paul Heyman yells at Adam Pearce and suggests he’ll be fired. He suggests that Pearce answer a phone call, which Pearce does, though we don’t hear who it’s from.

Here are Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky for a chat. They’re ready for their title defense at Saturday Night’s Main Event, but then they’re both in the Royal Rumble. Cue Liv Morgan and Roxanne Perez to interrupt, with Morgan saying Ripley will turn on Sky, as she always does. Perez says the two of them, and Raquel Rodriguez are going into the Rumble as well, which has Ripley mockingly laughing. Cue Rodriguez and the fight is on, with Perez chop blocking Sky. Oblivion leaves Ripley laying.

Lyra Valkyria talks to Bayley, saying it’s hard to be positive when she has let her best friend down. Bayley can’t believe that idea because Valkyria can’t let her down. Now one of them is going to win the Royal Rumble! A hard hug ensues.

IMG Credit: WWE

Je’Von Evans vs. El Grande Americano

Los Americanos are here too. Evans gets an early rollup for two and flips around a bit before they head outside. A jump onto the steps lets Evans knock him down again and we take an early break. We come back with….the match ending at 6:21 as Evans was injured during the break. He seems to be favoring his shoulder or pectoral muscle. Not enough shown to rate but dang that’s discouraging. Hopefully it’s not too bad.

Finn Balor is ready to win the World Title.

Preview of Unreal season 2.

Video on Oba Femi.

Adam Pearce talks to the Vision, saying that he won’t be lifting Bron Breakker’s suspension but he wants Breakker here next week to talk things over. Heyman says Pearce better be on his best behavior. With the Vision gone, AJ Styles comes in and he’s in for the match with Gunther, so it’s official.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

The Kabuki Warriors aren’t happy, with Asuka blaming Kairi Sane for their recent losses. Sane says she’ll help Asuka win the Royal Rumble, which seems to soothe things over.

IMG Credit: WWE

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. Finn Balor

Punk is defending and Balor has the old theme song for a great entrance. Feeling out process to start with a takedown going nowhere so they trade posing. Balor loads up the Sling Blade but instead grabs a jumping chinlock for a bit of a weird spot. That’s broken up and Balor is sent outside for a suicide dive as we take a break.

We come back with Balor fighting out of a chinlock and the two trading shots to the head. Balor strikes him into the corner but he seems to come up favoring his leg. The Coup de Grace takes too long and Punk catches him on top for the superplex. Their legs lock for two so Punk drops him with a running clothesline.

Back up and Balor hits the Sling Blade, followed by a running clothesline out to the floor. The big running flip dive connects but the Coup de Grace misses back inside. Punk hits a quick GTS for two but another attempt is escaped. The shotgun dropkick sends Punk into the corner and Balor does it again, setting up the Coup de Grace for a VERY close two. Punk manages to get back up and another GTS retains the title at 16:12.

Rating: B. Yeah this was good, with Balor feeling like enough of a threat to make the match work. It was interesting to see Balor as the clear good guy in the match, though Punk was basically neutral rather than being a heel. That’s not something you see very often but it made for an interesting dynamic here. Good main event, and now Punk can move on to something a bit bigger for the Rumble.

Post match respect is shown and they’re cool with each other.

Overall Rating: B+. This was the wrestling heavy show, with a pretty awesome main event, an outstanding six man tag and enough stuff being set up for the Royal Rumble to make the show feel more important. I had a great time with this one, as the crowd made it even better. Heck of a show here as the European run comes to a close.

Results
Becky Lynch b. Maxxine Dupri – Manhandle Slam
Rey Mysterio/Dragon Lee/Penta b. The Vision – Canadian Destroyer to Theory
El Grande Americano b. Je’Von Evans via injury stoppage
CM Punk b. Finn Balor – GTS

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: January 17, 2026
Location: Gimnasio Olimpico Juan de la Barrera, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Corey Graves, John Bradshaw Layfield, Rey Mysterio

No not that FOX. Well kind of, but the one for Latin America. This is a big deal for AAA, and WWE as a result, so the show is being streamed on WWE’s YouTube channel. The main event features El Grande Americano vs. El Hijo del Vikingo for a future Mega Title shot. I’m sure we’ll have some surprises as well so let’s get to it.

Please note that my Spanish is limited at best so I apologize in advance for not understanding some of the promos.

We start with some rather enthusiastic fans outside. Nothing wrong with that.

Here is Rey Mysterio to get things going, which is always going to work. Mysterio welcomes us to the show and talks about it being a new era on Fox. I believe he thanks the Pena family (former owners) for giving him his start here and this is his home. Now that AAA is on Fox, millions of people will get to see what lucha libre means to the wrestlers, as it is part of their culture.

He mentions that the main event is for the title shot against his son Dominik, and the fans are NOT pleased. Granted they’re even less pleased with El Hijo del Vikingo, but they do seem to like El Grande Americano. Mysterio heads outside and greets some fans before joining commentary.

La Parka/Mr. Iguana/Nino Hamburguesa vs. Los Vipers

Hamburguesa and Taurus slug it out to start with Hamburguesa dropping him with a clothesline. The running seated senton crushes Taurus but Hysteria trips Hamburguesa from the floor. Negro comes in with something like a dropkick version of What’s Up but the rather large Hamburguesa blocks the double superplex.

Instead it’s a double middle rope splash, allowing the tag off to Parka. House is cleaned and the Thriller connects, with Hysteria making the save. Iguana comes in for a very spinning headlock takeover to drop Negro as everything breaks down. Hamburguesa hits a big dive to the floor and a spinning faceplant gives Iguana the pin on Taurus at 4:35.

Rating: C+. This is a simple, easy to understand match as a trio of fun guys come together to beat three villains. It might not have been a great match or anything close to it, but they had fun and got the crowd going. That’s all this needed to be, as it’s basically a little taste of what you’ll get here to bring the new audience along.

Penta El Cero Miedo is in the back and talks about how he was here fifteen years ago and he was the Rey de Reyes. I believe he says he’ll be watching the main event.

Flammer vs. Lady Shani

Flammer’s Reina de Reinas title isn’t on the line and the rest of Las Toxicas are here with her. Shani rolls her up to start but Flammer is back with a double stomp to the ribs. Flammer hits a basement dropkick for two but Shani is back with a kick to the head. A tumbleweed (eventually) rolls Flammer around for two as Lola Vice comes out to brawl with La Hiedra, leaving Lady Maravilla to trip Shani. Flammer’s running dropkick in the corner is enough for the pin at 3:33.

Rating: C. This was another “here’s what you’ll get around here”, albeit with a bit more storyline involvement. They had some stuff here based on stories that had been going for awhile and that made it a bit more complicated. Featuring a long running champion makes sense, though why not make it a title match to add a bit of spice to the show?

El Hijo del Vikingo doesn’t seem to care about the fans and isn’t worried about the main event. He does however seem rather cocky.

Here is Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. for a chat. He talks about the importance of the Latin American Title and how much he wants to make lucha libre better. Apparently he’s throwing out a challenge and here is a man in a purple mask to drop Wagner and pick up the title. The purple mask comes off and it’s….Santos Escobar.

Dominik Mysterio says the celebrities aren’t the reason AAA is so hot right now, because it’s all about him. He beat John Cena, which his father never could do, and he’ll be the king of luchadors.

El Hijo del Vikingo vs. El Grande Americano

For a future Mega Title shot and Dorian Roldan is here with Vikingo. Rey is impressed by Americano, having “been a babyface all my life.” Americano works on the arm to start but Vikingo goes after the eye to get out. Some shots to the head keep Americano down until he slugs right back. Roldan offers a distraction though and Vikingo stomps away in the corner but American powers out with a suplex.

Another distraction lets Vikingo dropkick him out to the floor and Americano gets sent into the steps. Vikingo hits a 450 back inside, which seems to wake Americano up for some reason. Americano fights back and hits a middle rope clothesline, followed by a modified camel clutch. Roldan offers another distraction but this time Americano drops Vikingo.

Americano loads up the disc but throws it away, instead opting to throw on the camel clutch again. With that broken up, Americano puts him on top but Roldan grabs the leg to block a superplex. Roldan is ejected, leaving American to go after the disc on the floor. Cue Omos to cut him off though, allowing Vikingo to hit a dive. Back in and the 630 finishes Americano at 13:46.

Rating: B. This felt like a bigger match, with Omos making everything feel more important. The idea of having Vikingo as part of a big heel stable works well, as the fans absolutely cannot stand him. Just go with what is working and the rest should figure itself out, which might be where we’re going from here.

Post match Americano decks Vikingo but gets taken out by Omos. Rey Mysterio gets in with a kendo stick and the villains bail to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show might not have been some instant classic, but it did a good job of giving the fans a taste of what you’ll get around here. You had a fun opener, a women’s match and a main event to set up a future title match. Throw in some WWE names for the star power and this was a good way to get the fans into things. It’s not a must see show, but it did what it needed to do and I’d call that a success.

Results
La Parka/Mr. Iguana/Nino Hamburguesa b. Los Vipers – Spinning faceplant to Taurus
Flammer b. Lady Shani – Running corner dropkick
El Hijo del Vikingo b. El Grande Americano – 630

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

Genesis 2026
Date: January 17, 2026
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

It’s the first pay per view of the year and it’s coming off the heels of a less than well received Impact debut on AMC. The main event was made that night, as new World Champion Mike Santana will defend against Frankie Kazarian in a Texas Deathmatch, with Nic Nemeth as guest referee. Granted that announcement didn’t make air, but that’s what social media is for these days. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: International Title: KJ Orso vs. Eric Young vs. BDE vs. Stacks

Stacks, with Arianna Grace, is defending and you might know Orso better as an unmasked Fuego del Sol. Stacks jumps BDE to start fast and Young follows BDE outside. That leaves Orso to take over in the corner, including a slingshot to send Stacks to the floor. We pause for Young to yell at some fans but BDE jumps him from behind. Stacks decks BDE and steals his phone for some live streaming, only for BDE to take Stacks down with a dive.

Orso gets in a knockdown of his own and stops to pose with BDE, with Rehwoldt not being pleased. The villains get hammered in the corner but fight back without too much trouble. BDE forearms his way back and Codebreakers Stacks, much to the fans’ delight. Orso is back up to cutter BDE as a handful of fans try a THIS IS AWESOME chant. The Orso Driver gets two on BDE with Stacks getting back up. BDE’s springboard cutter drops Stacks, only for Young to come back with a neckbreaker. Young piledrives Orso, only for Stacks to toss him outside and steal the retaining pin at 6:22.

Rating: C+. This was pretty by the book, with the ending being about what I was expecting with the story of Stacks having the deck, uh, stacked against him. That’s a fine way to go and this was a perfectly acceptable way to get the fans warmed up. Unfortunately it’s part of the battling authority figures, which doesn’t exactly bode well.

Santino Marella isn’t pleased but Daria Rae comes in to tell him to shut up. If Marella is going to make a match based on emotion, Rae might have to do something similar.

Here is the Personal Concierge to introduce the Elegance Brand, including Mr. Elegance. The Concierge does not think much of the way the fans around here smell. The Brand will not be wrestling tonight, but they will be sitting in the front row for this next match.

Kickoff Show: Indi Hartwell/Vicki Venuto vs. Mila Moore/Tessa Blanchard

The Elegance Brand is at ringside and Robert Stone/Victoria Crawford are here with the villains. Blanchard allows Venuto to grab a headlock to start and doesn’t like how aggressive things get. It’s off to Hartwell for a suplex so Venuto can get two, only to have her get taken into the wrong corner. Moore works on Venuto’s leg and the pace slows way down, with Moore and Blanchard taking turns with knees to said leg.

Back up and Blanchard slaps her in the face in the corner. That’s enough for Venuto to fight out of trouble and bring in Hartwell to clean house. Everything breaks down and Stone offers a distraction, allowing Crawford to crotch Venuto. Hartwell goes after them but gets into it with the Brand, leaving Blanchard to hit the Buzzsaw DDT for the pin at 7:51.

Rating: C-. Not much to this one, as there were so many people floating around and a lot of it was just slow motion work on Venuto’s leg. It doesn’t help that Venuto is brand new and Hartwell is only so good on her best day. Moore has a great look and putting her with Blanchard isn’t a bad idea. I’m curious to see where that winds up going so it’s certainly a start.

And now the show proper.

Romeo Vaughn sings the National Anthem.

The opening video is mainly a recap of the AMC debut, which serves as a preview for the pay per view.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling/Darryl Stewart

AJ Francis vs. Rich Swann

Swann has to fight out of an early Down Payment attempt and knocks Francis into the corner for some right hands. Francis gets knocked to the floor, where he can’t hit a Down Payment onto the apron. Back in and Swann’s handspring elbow is chopped out of the air and a crossbody is countered into a toss AA to send Swann flying.

Francis knocks him outside again for nine and the frustration is clearly setting in. Swann grabs a jawbreaker so Francis kicks him in the face for two. The chinlock doesn’t last long and Swann fires off his own kicks, setting up a cartwheel splash. A 450 gives Swann two so Francis knocks him down, only for a moonsault to be broken up. Swann bites him in the face to knock Francis back down but Francis Pounces Swann out of the air in a big crash.

Another Down Payment attempt is blocked so Francis grabs a Styles Clash for two more. Somehow Swann is back with a Canadian Destroyer into a splash for two of his own as Francis is in trouble. Another handspring is cut off though and a reverse Down Payment sets up the regular version for the pin on Swann at 12:14.

Rating: C+. This was a good example of a match where they didn’t make things too complicated. Swann wanted to put Francis out and used his speed but couldn’t get around the size and power. That’s a fine way to go as it’s about as classic of a wrestling story as you’ll get. Francis might not be the top star in the company, but he’s good at what he does.

We run down the card.

We look at Mike Santana regaining the World Title.

Mike Santana hopes Frankie Kazarian is coming for the fight of his life, because that’s what Santana is bringing this week. His daughter is glad he’s back and tonight he’ll show why he is the realest to ever do it.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling, Darryl Stewart

Elijah vs. Mustafa Ali

Order 4 is here with Ali, who is mad that Elijah tied him to a horse and rode away. Elijah takes out the Great Hands to start and goes after Ali, sending him hard into the corner. Ali tries to pick up the pace but walks into a sitout powerbomb for an early two. They go outside with Elijah chopping away before taking out the Great Hands again. This time it’s enough of a distraction for Ali to get in a cheap shot to take over for the first time.

Back in and Ali cranks on the arm but gets leveraged out to the floor. Ali is right back with the rolling neckbreaker and they slug it out until Elijah shrugs off a superkick. One heck of a clothesline drops Ali, followed by a jumping knee for two. Back up and Ali grabs a Death Valley Driver for two of his own but Elijah hits a quick Highwayman’s Farewell.

Ali bridges out before he passes out, which is a bit of a stretch but at least it looked cool. Elijah loads up a super Highwayman’s Farewell but Ali slips out and hits a dropkick. That’s fine with Elijah, who hits a super chokebomb but Special Agent Zero pulls the referee. The Great Hands are ejected as well, leaving Tasha Steelz to grab the guitar. Elijah goes after her but gets guitared in the back by Ali for the pin at 9:35.

Rating: C+. Ali’s push continues and I’m wondering what the next step is for him. It wouldn’t be out of the question to have him move into the main event scene, though I’m not sure I can imagine TNA pulling the trigger in that direction. Elijah fighting against a group of villains isn’t a bad thing, though in theory he’s going to want revenge.

We recap Eddie Edwards vs. JDC. They’re old friends but it’s JDC’s last match and he has requested to face Edwards, who accepted.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling/Darryl Stewart

JDC vs. Eddie Edwards

They come out at the same time to the same music in a nice touch. JDC (in Terry Funk style tights) tries an early rollup to start fast and Edwards applauds him. They fight over arm control to no avail so it’s time to run the ropes, with JDC hitting a dropkick. The armdrag into an armbar doesn’t last long as Edwards is back up with a clothesline. JDC’s snap powerslam gets two but Edwards catches him with an enziguri on top.

A super hurricanrana sends JDC outside and there’s the required suicide dive. JDC is back up with a drop onto the apron, followed by a nice spinwheel kick back inside to put both of them down. A running boot to the face sends Edwards outside and JDC is back up with a running flip dive to drop him again. Back in and a slingshot legdrop gives JDC two and a Falcon Arrow gets the same.

JDC charges into a Blue Thunder Bomb for two and we hit the chinlock. With that broken up, Edwards dives into a Liontamer, followed by a Codebreaker to give JDC two. They go up top with JDC grabbing a super Air Raid Crash for two more. Edwards is back with the Boston Knee Party for two, setting up the Diehard Driver. Another Boston Knee Party (with JDC telling him to do it) finishes JDC’s career at 17:12.

Rating: B. I’m really not sure what to say here, as the match was good enough, but it was just kind of a match. There was little in the way of heat or anything beyond two friends having a pretty good match. JDC isn’t exactly someone you think of getting a big sendoff, so while it was entertaining, it gets more of a “well, ok then” reaction.

Post match the System comes out to give JDC the big sendoff. JDC thanks the fans and commentary before leaving.

We recap Mara Sade vs. Ryan Nemeth in an intergender match. Well kind of as we’re told there is an issue and then go to the intros. Basically Sade keeps superkicking him, including after Nemeth hit on her.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling/Darryl Stewart

Ryan Nemeth vs. Mara Sade

Nemeth shoves her into the corner to start and quickly flips her away to escape a sleeper. The threat of a superkick sends Nemeth outside and Sade is right there with a dive. Back in and Nemeth sweeps the leg out so Sade slaps him in the face. Nemeth gyrates a bit and threatens a right hand, earning himself a tornado DDT. Nemeth counters a sunset flip into a rollup and grabs the rope for two, with the referee catching the cheating. Sade goes up but Nemeth dropkicks her down and grabs the rope for the pin at 5:20.

Rating: C-. Uh…ok then. I’m not sure what that was, as Sade got in a bit of offense but then got beaten with a quickly dropkick and some cheating. That’s all there was going on here and it wasn’t even entertaining. This felt like it should have been a big comedy match but instead it just kind of came and went. Weird choice here.

Stacks and Arianna Grace aren’t worried about Santino Marella and tell him to worry about losing his job instead.

Knockouts Title: Zaria vs. Lei Ying Lee

Lee is defending with Zaria serving as a replacement for Dani Luna, who had visa issues, and Sol Ruca/Xia Brookside are here as the seconds. Zaria goes with the power to start but Lee is back with a few kicks. Some choking in the corner drops Lee for two and it’s off to something like a Texas Cloverleaf.

Lee reverses into an STF, which is broken up so Lee strikes her into the corner instead. Some right hands in the corner have Zaria in more trouble but she’s able to block Warrior’s Way. Lee loads up a choke but Zaria reverses into a cannonball into the corner. They head out to the apron to strike it out, with Zaria driving her back first onto said apron.

Cue the Elegance Brand to watch as Zaria hits a spear into an F5, with the referee getting bumped. The Brand runs in so Brookside and Ruca cut them off for a brawl into the back. With them four of them gone, Zaria goes up top but gets caught with a super hurricanrana. They slug it out until another F5 is countered into a DDT. The Warrior’s Way retains the title at 14:23.

Rating: B. They were in a very tough spot here with a cold match (not their fault, as Zaria was a last minute replacement) and managed to turn it into something pretty good. While I usually don’t like all of the shenanigans, it makes sense to have the interference this time, as there was nothing else going on with the match. Zaria needs to win something sooner than later, though a heel turn doesn’t feel crazy either.

Post match Elayna Black comes out to suggest she’s next in line for the title.

Nic Nemeth talks about how his ten count decides who walks away with World Title.

We recap the Righteous challenging the Hardys for the Tag Team Titles. The Righteous came in acting like they were really friendly but it seems they want to take/replace the Hardys. Then they got violent on Impact (including a chain through Jeff’s gauge) to make it a bit more traditional.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling/Darryl Stewart

Tag Team Titles: Hardys vs. Righteous

The Hardys are defending and pull the Righteous outside to start the brawl on the floor. They fight until Matt and Vincent start things off with Matt taking him down and hammering away. Jeff comes in with a slingshot legdrop and Poetry In Motion makes it worse. Matt adds the Side Effect for two but Dutch grabs him from the apron.

Dutch comes in for some elbows in the corner, setting up Vincent’s running Downward Spiral for two. Matt manages a desperation Twist Of Fate to Dutch, allowing the tag off to Jeff. That means something like a weird reverse full nelson twist (it’s hard to describe), followed by the Plot Twist for two. Dutch trips Matt from the floor though and the villains take over again.

A Twist Of Fate into the Swanton gets two on Jeff, with Matt making the save. Dutch’s apron legdrop to the floor misses Jeff for a big crash, leaving Matt to go after Vincent. Hold on though as Vincent backs away, with Dutch saying this is what they wanted: to hurt. Matt has had enough of this and it’s the Twist Of Fate into the Swanton to finish Vincent and retain at 12:40.

Rating: C+. The Righteous feel like another team of wannabe cult guys and that’s only going to go so far. While they might stick around, this feels like the height of what they’re doing, though odds are we’ll get a violent rematch. At the same time, someone has to take the titles from the Hardys and I have no idea who is supposed to do that at this point.

We look at Leon Slater not being able to win the US Title on Smackdown. Slater can’t be here due to visa issues (fair) but he wants to thank Joe Hendry for taking his place in the triple threat. He’ll defend the title as soon as he can get back.

IMG Credit: TNA Wrestling/Darryl Stewart

Joe Hendry vs. Moose vs. Cedric Alexander

Hendry is replacing Slater so it’s just a triple threat with nothing on the line. Moose starts fast to clean house but Hendry snaps off a hurricanrana. Hendry gets knocked outside for a dive from Alexander and Moose is backdropped HARD onto the steps. We pause for the medics to check on Moose, leaving Alexander to roll Hendry up for two. A dropkick to the back of the head keeps Hendry in trouble and a Michinoku Driver gives Alexander another near fall.

Moose is still down and the other two hit stereo clotheslines for a double down. Somehow Moose is able to get up (while holding his back) and takes over on both of them, including quite the chop to Hendry. Moose superplexes Hendry, who rolls through into a suplex, only for Alexander to frog splash Hendry for two. Alexander goes up but Moose chokebombs him back down for two but Hendry’s pop up powerbomb drops Moose for another near fall.

Hendry’s spinning pose lands him in a Death Valley Driver from Alexander, who grabs a crossface for a bonus. With that broken up, Alexander Styles Clashes Moose for two and everyone is down, with the fans approving. Moose spears Alexander for two but his back gives out. That earns him a Lumbar Check from Alexander, only for Hendry to grab the Standing Ovation to pin Alexander at 15:20.

Rating: B. Well that’s a choice. You have the former TNA guy, who has moved on to WWE, come back and show that he can beat two TNA stars at once. I get that Hendry hasn’t been gone from TNA for long and the fans still love him, but maybe don’t have the #1 contender to the X-Division Title get pinned before the title match?

Santino Marella brings out the Kickoff Show panel to make predictions for the main event. Everyone picks Mike Santana and it’s up to Tommy Dreamer but Daria Rae interrupts. Well she’s a hero as far as I’m concerned. Anyway, she says we don’t have time for this so let’s get to the video package.

We recap the main event, with Mike Santana defending the World Title against Frankie Kazarian in a Texas Deathmatch with Nic Nemeth as guest referee. Santana won the title but Kazarian used his Call Your Shot title shot to take it away. Then Santana won it back on Thursday so it’s rubber match time. Nemeth has his own Call Your Shot as well.

TNA World Title: Mike Santana vs. Frankie Kazarian

Santana is defending, Nic Nemeth is guest referee, and it’s a Texas Deathmatch, which is basically Last Man Standing but you have to score a fall before the ten count begins. Kazarian bails to the floor to start but Santana catches him coming back inside with some kicks. A big boot misses though and they fight to the floor, where Santana hits a dive off the steps.

It’s time for a table, but first Santana uses a chair for a step up cannonball against the barricade. The fight heads into the crowd with Kazarian sending him into some walls but a superplex off a balcony is blocked. Instead Santana hits a dive of his own and they fight into a back hall. Kazarian trashcans him in the back and a slam on the floor gets two. They come back to ringside, where Kazarian grabs a suplex but sets up some weapons rather than covering.

Some chairs to the back have Santana in more trouble and the fans tell Kazarian that he’s not overly popular. Fade To Black onto some open chairs is broken up and Santana piledrives him onto the chairs for the pin at 9:32. Kazarian beats the count at nine and he has to fight out of another piledriver from the apron. Santana goes up but the bleeding Kazarian cutters him down through a table at ringside for the pin at 12:04.

Santana beats the count as well so Kazarian knocks him into the steps and grabs a ladder. That takes too long and Santana is back up with a barbed wire baseball bat. A shot to the head makes Kazarian bleed even more and Santana plants him with a Samoan driver. Santana puts him on the table and hits a frog splash from the ladder for…two? Ok then. Santana yells at Nemeth but the replay shows that it was the right call. Back up and Kazarian spits at Santana, who wraps his arm with the barbed wire for Spin The Block. Kazarian is pinned 18:29 and Santana retains at 19:11.

Rating: B-. It was a fine brawl, but Nemeth changed absolutely nothing and Santana has already had his big moment twice now. I get that they wanted the title change for the AMC debut but it sucked the life out of the title change here. It was good enough though and Santana standing tall to end the show is absolutely the right call at the moment.

Post match Nemeth tries to cash in with a Danger Zone but Santana drops him with the Spin The Block. Santana celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. They were in a weird spot here and some of the results showed it. The biggest issue was they had their major show two days ago and this show was little more than follow up. It’s not a show that you need to see, but it is miles better than the disaster that was this week’s Impact. The problem though is a lot of the damage has already been done and I’m not sure how they can really make up for it anytime soon. This helped, though it only had so much impact.

Results
Stacks b. BDE, KJ Orso and Eric Young – Piledriver to Orso
Mila Moore/Tessa Blanchard b. Indi Hartwell/Vicki Venuto – Buzzsaw DDT to Venuto
AJ Francis b. Rich Swann – Down Payment
Mustafa Ali b. Elijah – Guitar shot
Eddie Edwards b. JDC – Boston Knee Party
Ryan Nemeth b. Mara Sade – Rollup while holding the rope
Lei Ying Lee b. Zaria – Warrior’s Way
Hardys b. Righteous – Swanton Bomb to Vincent
Joe Hendry b. Cedric Alexander and Moose – Standing Ovation to Alexander

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

Collision
Date: January 17, 2026
Location: Arizona Financial Theater, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re taped this week as the Arlington residency continues. There is at least a title match this week though as the Opps are actually defending the Trios Titles against Hangman Page and JetSpeed. Sure that might seem like a random combination, but they had one match together five months ago and that’s good enough. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Angelico vs. Andrade El Idolo

Don Callis is here with Andrade, who takes Angelico into the corner rather quickly. Some chops have Angelico in trouble and they go to the mat with Andrade in control. Andrade chops away in the corner again before charging into a boot to the face. Three Amigos put Angelico right back down but Andrade pulls him up at two. A twisting neckbreaker (the DM) finishes Angelico at 3:54.

Rating: C. Total squash here and yeah it’s about the same as always from Andrade. I just do not get the appeal of the guy, as while he’s fine, he’s just kind of there with nothing that makes him stand out. Having him be another member of the Don Callis Family doesn’t help either, but that has been the case with a lot of people.

The Rascalz come out of a smoky room and introduce the team: Zachary Wentz, Myron Reed and Dezmond Xavier. They want to be where the best wrestle, but like to smoke as well.

We recap the Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Eddie Kingston/Ortiz. Kingston has been having troubles with them, so Ortiz is back to help him out.

Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Ortiz/Eddie Kingston

Ortiz takes over on Drake to start and hits a spinning high crossbody to put him down. Drake gets taken into the corner and we actually get some alternating arm cranking. Kingston gets caught in the Veterans’ corner though and a leg lariat puts him down. That’s broken up and it’s back to Ortiz, who gets taken outside for some yelling and a suicide dive.

We take a break and come back with Ortiz still in trouble but managing to strike his way out. Kingston comes back in for the chops to both Veterans, allowing Ortiz to hit a sitout powerbomb for two on Drake. Kingston and Gibson argue a lot until Gibson goes after Ortiz, leaving Kingston to grab….the scarf. Gibson hits a middle rope Codebreaker and Drake grabs the Koji Clutch on Kingston. That’s good for two arm drops but Kingston raises a middle finger and survives. Ortiz takes out Gibson and the DDT finishes Drake at 12:45.

Rating: C-. So Kingston beat up the Veterans on his own and then beat them up again when he had a partner. There’s only so much you can get out of a story like this and it didn’t help that Ortiz didn’t quite look great. He hasn’t been around in a long time and I’m not sure how many people were begging to have him back.

The Babes Of Wrath and Kris Statlander are upset after their loss, with Statlander saying she would take a bullet for them to be out there with her best friends. As for Thekla, Statlander will give her a title shot because that’s what a champion does. She likes the taste of toxic.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Here is FTR, with Stokely Hathaway, for a chat. Hathaway congratulates Davis And Doyle for becoming the #1 contenders, who have all kinds of potential. Wheeler says the team (“Jake…something….Doyle”) is good but they’re not FTR good. Harwood, after greeting Nigel McGuinness, doesn’t like the people here because they live in a fantasy world. He doesn’t have an issue with Doyle And Davis but FTR is the team who built this division. They grew up in North Carolina and beat up guys like Davis And Doyle over and over. Now it’s time for Davis And Doyle to find that out the hard way. This was rather long.

Cru wants to welcome the Rascalz in a way they’ll never forget.

Video on Zayda Steel, who was made to do this.

Zayda Steel vs. Marina Shafir

Christopher Daniels is here with Steel while Jon Moxley is here with Shafir. Steel jumps on her to slug away to start and gets sent to the floor. Back in and Steel misses something off the top so Shafir takes her into the corner as we take a break. We come back with Steel hitting a Codebreaker into a running knee in the corner. Shafir gives her a release Rock Bottom and puts on a seated full nelson but Steel fights up. That’s cut off in a hurry and it’s Mother’s Milk for the tap at 5:40. Not enough shown but it’s another loss for the newcomer because that’s how you get someone over.

Don Callis Family vs. SkyFlight

Moxley stays on commentary and Don Callis joins in to bicker with Moxley, who isn’t impressed. Eventually Moxley chases him off, saying Konosuke Takeshita can come find him before leaving as well. Cue the rest of the Family (because there are multiple lineups of the team) to jump Moxley so the Death Riders run in for the save. SkyFlight comes in to go after the Family as well and we take a break before the bell.

We’re joined in progress with Darius working on Fletcher’s arm before it’s off to Sky. Fletcher takes him into the corner and Clon comes in to stay on said arm. That’s broken up and Sky gets over for the tag back to Darius. A springboard swinging Downward Spiral gives Darius two and he (eventually) gets Alexander up for a powerbomb. Alexander breaks out and German suplexes before Clon’s elbow gets two. Fletcher elbows Darius down as well and we take a break.

We come back again with Darius still in trouble as Alexander grabs the ankle lock. That’s broken up with an enziguri and a suplex allows Dante to come in for the comeback. The swinging full nelson slam is blocked and Clon kicks Dante in the head, allowing Fletcher to come back in. Everything breaks down and Fletcher is sent into the corner for the double DDT. Alexander World’s Strongest Slams Darius onto the apron and Clon gives Dante a step up Asai moonsault on the apron. Darius gets caught in the ankle lock and the torture rack bomb sets up an arm trap piledriver for the pin at 13:07.

Rating: C. This wasn’t event that long of a match but my goodness it felt like it went on forever. I like SkyFlight but they have been beaten into the ground so much that they mean nothing anymore. On the other side you have a pretty weak Family lineup, which says a lot as they are only so interesting in the first place.

Post match Konosuke Takeshita comes out to…hug Fletcher and then pose with the team.

Roderick Strong is ready to win the CMLL World Title but he doesn’t want the Conglomeration around him. Mark Briscoe wants to face El Clon next week. You know the old saying: If you’re ready to conglomerate, be ready to share your plate, and whether it’s English or Espanol, you best be ready to share your roll. Yeah Cassidy doesn’t know it either.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford vs. Danielle Kamela/Viva Van

Bayne clotheslines Kamela to start and then sends both of them flying. A Doomsday Device finishes Kamela at 1:35.

Post match the Timeless Love Bombs come out to promise revenge and remind us that God doesn’t wear lipstick.

Swerve Strickland’s plan to get back to the World Title: win. Kevin Knight comes in to remind Swerve about his advice. Knight thinks he is the current and seemingly wants to fight Swerve. That’s fine with Swerve, who tells him to go win the Trios Titles and then come see him about being a main eventer.

Jack Perry vs. Anthony Bowens

For a future shot against Ricochet, on commentary, for the National Title. We get a handshake to start and they go technical, with Perry getting the better of things. Bowens grabs a headlock and takes over, earning an offering of scissoring. That won’t be happening as Perry goes up, only to get crotched down, allowing Bowens to get in some scissoring. They go outside with Perry winding up on his shoulders, only to come down with a bulldog as we take a break.

We come back with Perry hitting a running DDT for two, meaning it’s time to be frustrated. Bowens ties him up with a rollup for two, followed by a clothesline. Perry is back with a jumping knee, though Bowens blocked a bit of it. A second running knee finishes Bowens at 10:13.

Rating: B-. The match was good enough and Perry winning is the more logical choice of the two, but we’ve already seen Perry vs. Ricochet for the title. It doesn’t help that the championship doesn’t exactly feel important in the first place and now the champion is already trading wins with Perry. Bowens getting a few serious matches is nice, but it’s hard to imagine him really going anywhere on his own.

Post match Perry chases Ricochet to the back.

Video on Hangman Page vs. Samoa Joe.

The Death Riders aren’t happy with the Don Callis Family. Pac: “Who the f*** do you think you are?” Daniel Garcia talks about what it means to be a family and Jon Moxley says he’s the worst thing anyone has ever seen in wrestling.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Trios Titles: JetSpeed/Hangman Page vs. Opps

The Opps are defending. Shibata and Bailey shake hands to start, with Shibata jumping him as a villain should. Hobbs comes in to take over on Knight, who slips out of a slam and brings Page in. The rapid fire forearms have Hobbs rocked but he runs Page over without much trouble. Bailey comes back in and gets suplexed onto the apron, followed by another on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Knight getting out of trouble and handing it back to Page. House is quickly cleaned, including the moonsault to the floor to drop Hobbs and Joe. Hobbs powers out of a Deadeye attempt but gets his leg swept out by Bailey. Knight springboards into a release Rock Bottom and Joe comes in for the snap powerslam. A backsplash gets two on Knight and Joe grabs the Koquina Clutch on Page…but Knight rolls Hobbs up for the pin and the titles at 11:15.

Rating: B-. This was dragging a bit in the middle, but the titles going to a fresh team should help them a bit. The Opps had already held the titles longer than any team in history and they hadn’t done anything with them in months. I can’t imagine Page and JetSpeed hold them for very long, but at least it’s something new.

Swerve Strickland comes out to watch to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. The show picked up in the last thirty minutes or so but the first stretch dragged things way down. It felt like a show built around the lowest level stories taking place in the company and that is hard to watch. Things did get better with the title match and setting up things for Dynamite, which is the main focus of Collision most of the time. It’s far from an awful show, but dang there were some dull stretches this week.

Results
Andrade El Idolo b. Angelico – DM
Eddie Kingston/Ortiz b. Grizzled Young Veterans – DDT to Drake
Marina Shafir b. Zayda Steel – Mother’s Milk
Don Callis Family b. SkyFlight – Arm trap piledriver to Darius
Megan Bayne/Penelope Ford b. Danielle Kamela/Viva Van – Doomsday Device to Kamela
Hangman Page/JetSpeed b. Opps – Rollup to Hobbs

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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Best Of Mike Awesome
Commentators: Joey Styles, Shane Douglas, Cyrus, Joel Gertner, Tony Schiavone, Mark Madden, Scott Hudson, Mick Foley

It’s another Best Of from the WWE Vault and that has me curious. This isn’t someone you often think of as having a long career, mainly because he didn’t, but he certainly did live up to his name. You can probably figure out some of the matches from here, but I’m wondering what they’re going to use to fill in all of the time. Let’s get to it.

Quick opening video, as usual.

From ECW Heatwave 1998.

Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka

Joey Styles is right there to explain the history between these two, which is a nice way to spend entrances. Awesome runs him over to start and swears a bit before pulling Tanaka out of the air. An overhead belly to belly sends Tanaka flying and a slingshot shoulder puts him down again. Tanaka is sent outside and dropped with a big dive as the fans already want tables.

Back in and a nice looking top rope clothesline drops Tanaka but he pops back up with a suplex. It’s time for a chair (of course), which Tanaka takes down the ramp for a running start and a big shot to Awesome’s head. Awesome is right back up and they head outside for a chair duel (which looks cool despite being rather dumb).

Tanaka is knocked over the barricade so of course Awesome goes up and dives over the barricade to take him down again (that’s just not normal). Back in and the Awesome Bomb gets two, followed by a heck of an Alabama slam into the Awesome Splash. Some absolutely sickening unprotected chair shots to the head knock Tanaka silly and it’s time to set up a table on the floor.

Even Shane Douglas on commentary knows this is stupid so Awesome goes back inside with a top rope chair shot to the head (geez). Some Awesome Bombs through the table are blocked though and Tanaka instead powerbombs him over the top and through the table for a terrifying landing. Somehow that only gets two, as does the Roaring Elbow, leaving commentary stunned. A tornado DDT onto some chairs finishes Awesome at 11:51.

Rating: B. This is going to be a collection where you instantly get the idea of the featured star. Awesome could do things in and out of (and above) a ring that almost no one else could even approach and it looked great. That’s what we saw here and my goodness it was impressive to see. Some of those chair shots were terrifying, but that’s 90s ECW for you.

From Anarchy Rulz 1999.

ECW World Title: Taz vs. Masato Tanaka

Taz is defending and you might notice something missing here. We get the Big Match Intros and Taz, who is set to leave for the WWF, is told that he sold out. Hold on though as here is Mike Awesome in the crowd (with Judge Jeff Jones) and Taz says let him through. Paul Heyman comes in to break it up but Taz wants him in, so Heyman makes it a three way dance.

ECW World Title: Mike Awesome vs. Taz vs. Masato Tanaka

Taz is defending and Tanaka dives through the ropes to take Awesome out before he can even get inside. The two of them fight on the floor while Taz chills in the corner, which is rather funny for some reason. They get inside, where Taz clotheslines Tanaka, who is tossed with a Razor’s Edge. Awesome gets caught on top with a superplex but Tanaka Roaring Elbows Taz. That and an Awesome Splash pins Taz at 2:02, guaranteeing a new champion and rather popping the crowd.

This brings out Paul Heyman with the locker room for a big farewell to Taz as the fans realize what’s going on (though Taz would be around for about another month and a half). So we’re down to one on one with Awesome sending him to the floor for the big dive. The top rope clothesline and sitout Awesome Bomb get two each but Tanaka slips out of another powerbomb. A triangle clothesline sends Awesome outside again and the running chair shot knocks him silly.

Tanaka adds a tornado DDT to send him off the ramp, followed by another onto a chair back inside for two. A tiger bomb gets the same but Awesome is back with an Awesome Bomb over the top through the table at ringside. An Alabama slam into an Awesome Splash gives Awesome two so he cracks Tanaka in the head with a chair over and over. Awesome can’t believe it and charges into a boot in the corner.

Diamond Dust (flipping Stunner out of the corner, which always looks great) gets two on Awesome, who is right back with a spear for two. A table is thrown in and Awesome caves Tanaka’s head in with another chair shot. The table is set up and they head up top, where Awesome hits a super Awesome Bomb for the pin and the title at 13:49.

Rating: B-. This was a bit of a weird one as you had a mini match at first, which was all about getting rid of Taz. Then it broke down into something very similar to the first match, which was kind of the point. Awesome winning the title is a huge moment for him of course as he hadn’t been around ECW for a long time, but now he’s on top as Taz is leaving. That’s pretty awe…cool.

Post match Taz gives Awesome the belt to really put him over.

From ECW On TNN, October 22, 1999.

ECW World Title: Mike Awesome vs. New Jack

Awesome is defending and Joel Gertner does the introduction before bailing out of absolute fear. Well to be fair, he is a rather well educated man. Jack starts fast with an oar to the head and tries to choke with a rope. Awesome slugs back and gets bitten in the face for his efforts. A missed charge in the corner has Awesome in more trouble and they go outside, which can’t go well. The running chair shot from the apron only hits the barricade, followed by a top rope clothesline inside.

As you might expect, Jack comes back with some staple gun shots to the head, followed by a guitar to the same head. Jack goes up top but dives into a chair to the head, allowing Awesome to send him through the table at ringside. The Awesome Splash retains the title at 6:20.

Rating: C+. When you get the fun version of New Jack (work with me here), he’s kind of a blast to watch. There’s something great about having the some playing throughout and the various weapons he’ll use at any time. I don’t think there was much in the way of drama about the title changing, but Awesome having to get through him was good.

From ECW On TNN, December 10, 1999.

ECW World Title: Mike Awesome vs. 2 Cold Scorpio

Awesome is defending and shoulders Scorpio down to start. A superkick gets Scorpio out of trouble and they go outside, with Awesome hitting an ax handle off the apron. Awesome’s big diving clothesline over the barricade drops Scorpio again, followed by a big shoulder back inside. Scorpio gets in a kick to the head for a breather though, setting up a top rope splash for two.

A moonsault gets the same but Awesome launches him with a German suplex. Jazz tries to come in to help Scorpio, who has to save her with a crossbody. Another superkick drops Awesome and a table is set up in the ring. The moonsault takes too long though and the super Awesome Bomb sends Scorpio through the table (in a GREAT visual) to retain the title at 9:26.

Rating: B-. The ending alone boosted this one up, but it’s always fun to see Scorpio out there. He’s a good example of a guy who just worked every time he was in the ring and some of his best work came in ECW. Getting to see him with this kind of a special chance was nice, even though he was little more than a means to make Awesome look better.

From ECW On TNN, December 24, 1999. This is an impromptu match, but I believe it was advertised in advance due to the taping schedule. I was at my aunt’s house and wanted to watch it, but my cousin threw me out of her room for watching that “stupid wrestling”. Instead I went into their attic and sat for two hours without anyone noticing I was gone. Anyway.

ECW World Title: Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka

Awesome is defending in an impromptu match, with Tanaka in workout pants as he takes Awesome outside for the running chair shot. Awesome fights back as he is known to do and runs him over to take it back inside. The sitout Awesome Bomb gets two and Awesome drops him again as we take a break.

We come back with the Awesome Splash getting two and a table being set up in the corner. That takes too long of course and Tanaka suplexes him through the table, followed by the tornado DDT onto the chairs for two. A top rope chair shot gives Tanaka two and some chairs to the head just make him mad.

One of the scariest chair shots to the head I’ve ever seen puts him down, followed by the Awesome Bomb for two. We take another break and come back again with Awesome catching him on top. That’s reversed into a tornado DDT through the table, which allows Tanaka to hit the Roaring Elbow for the pin and the title at 17:02.

Rating: B. These guys fought a lot (as you can tell) and unfortunately it’s not a rivalry that holds up well when you see it over and over. You’re seeing a lot of the same spots here, though at least Tanaka won with his finisher for a change. Tanaka getting the title is quite the step for him, as beating Awesome was a pretty rare accomplishment.

Post match respect is shown. Awesome would get the title back the next week.

ECW World Title: Mike Awesome vs. Little Spike Dudley

Awesome is defending and the idea is that Spike keeps beating giants. Before the bell, Spike loads up a bunch of tables at ringside, even getting a production worker to help him. Spike grabs the mic and calls out Awesome for putting people through tables, including women. And it’s time to fight, which is going to be painful. Spike jumps him to start and gets sent through some tables at ringside, then does it again for a bonus.

They go outside, with Awesome throwing him over the barricade for the big flying shoulder. A slingshot splash gives Awesome two back inside but Spike manages to send him outside. The dive off the apron connects but Awesome throws him around, banging up Spike’s knee in the process. The crowd chants something that warrants an edit to the audio, leaving Awesome to go after the knee again.

Back in and Spike gets in a hurricanrana, only to have Awesome BLAST HIM with a clothesline. Spike knocks him right back down though and it’s a top rope double stomp to crush Awesome again. Awesome fights up with a chair shot and sends him over the barricade, setting up the big springboard dive. The landing sees Awesome slip a bit though and he seems to bang up his (awesome) elbow.

Another table is set up at ringside, with Spike managing a quick Acid Drop to send him through the table. A top rope chair to the head knocks Awesome silly again but he’s fine enough to send Spike over the top and through another table (which Spike barely hits). Awesome sets up another table inside but Spike catches him on top. That doesn’t last long though as it’s the super Awesome Bomb through the table to retain the title at 14:11.

Rating: B. This is not exactly a match designed for everyone, but rather a match where it’s all about seeing Awesome absolute wreck Spike. While Spike got in a few shots, it was hard to imagine him actually winning the title. That doesn’t make it any less entertaining though, as Spike’s pain was quite the sight to behold. Fun match, though the physicality and destruction might be a bit much to take.

From ECW On TNN, March 10, 2000.

Tag Team Titles: Mike Awesome/Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer/Masato Tanaka

Dreamer and Tanaka are defending and Dreamer Russian legsweeps Awesome to start. Raven mocks Dreamer though and it’s a belly to back suplex to put Dreamer down. Raven comes in to hammer away and then run, allowing Dreamer to bring in Tanaka. Awesome runs him over with a clothesline but Tanaka gets in a drop toehold into the corner. The tornado DDT is countered though and it’s back to Raven to slug away in a weird combination.

A running chair shot doesn’t do much to Tanaka, who is back up to bring in Dreamer. Everything breaks down and Dreamer puts Raven in the Tree Of Woe, only to get taken out by Awesome again. The middle rope elbow gives Awesome two and Raven grabs the mic to mock Dreamer (and hit him too). It takes too long and Dreamer gets in a shot of his own, only to have Awesome come back in for some rather physical violence. A table is brought in but Dreamer avoids the Awesome Splash.

The crash is enough for the tag back to Tanaka, meaning a bunch of elbows. Everything breaks down and more tables are brought in, with Dreamer giving Raven a neckbreaker. Back up and Raven pulls Dreamer off the top for a drop toehold through the corner of the table (even the ECW fans know that was rough). The Awesome Splash gets two and the Awesome Bomb through the table gets two, with Tanaka making the save. The Roaring Elbow drops Raven and Dreamer’s DDT gets two, with Awesome making a save of his own. A running Awesome Bomb sends Dreamer through a table for the pin and the titles at 12:11.

Rating: C+. Ok, we get it with Awesome vs. Tanaka. I get that this was a big deal for Awesome to become a double champion, but this is a lot to take in such short order. The match was good enough and it was nice to see some actual tag wrestling before the wildness got going. Things weren’t exactly going well for ECW at this point and Awesome would be gone in about a month.

From WCW Starrcade 2000.

Mike Awesome vs. Bam Bam Bigelow

Ambulance match and Awesome is now That 70s Guy. They start brawling as you would expect, with Bigelow clotheslining him out to the floor. Awesome fights back though and gets in a ring bell shot. Some chair shots to the back put Awesome down and they fight up the aisle with Bigelow chairing him in the ribs a few times. They go up to the ambulance, with Bigelow slamming the door onto him over and over.

Bigelow punches through a window by mistake but he’s fine enough to hit Awesome with the chair again. They go back to ringside with Awesome slugging away but the running…something is countered with a backdrop through a table. They go back up to the ambulance and fight with the lights from the top. A big shot knocks Bigelow through the roof for the win at 7:56.

Rating: C. WCW was obsessed with Awesome having ambulance matches, as he had something like seven of them in about as many months. There was no explanation of a story here, which says a lot for this kind of a gimmick match on a major show. Then again, that’s part of the reason why you don’t see WCW around anymore. See also Awesome getting to WCW in April and apparently doing nothing of note for eight months.

From One Night Stand 2005.

Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka

They chop it out to start and Styles goes on a crazed rant against Awesome for leaving for WCW and more money. You know, because ECW was known for its financial stability. Awesome comes back with a slingshot shoulder and a big dive over the top to the floor (Styles was hoping Awesome would have cracked his head open). Tanaka fights back with a running chair shot but gets powerbombed HARD through a table to knock him silly.

The Awesome Splash connects for two, followed by an even more sickening chair to the head. Tanaka is back with the tornado DDT onto a chair and something like a Conchairto. The top rope rope chair shot drives the chair onto Awesome’s face for two more so Awesome grabs the chair. That means a top rope chair shot to Tanaka and it’s time for yet another table.

Awesome takes too long loading him up though and a tornado DDT sends Awesome through the table for two more. Tanaka goes up but gets Awesome Bombed onto what’s left of the table…for two. Another Awesome Bomb through the table on the floor, followed by a slingshot Awesome Splash, gives Awesome the pin (on the floor, which is apparently legal) at 9:57.

Rating: B. These guys knew how to beat each other up, but seeing some version of it five times in less than two hours was a lot to take. At the same time, Joey Styles was REALLY annoying here, spending so much time complaining about Awesome leaving ECW. There have been reports that Awesome wasn’t being paid on time (which certainly wouldn’t be unique for ECW) but apparently he should have just stuck around. Anyway, another hard hitting fight here in what would wind up being Awesome’s last match.

Overall Rating: B-. Awesome is a VERY interesting case as there was pretty much no one like him at the time, but he never did much of anything outside of ECW. There have been reports that the bigger stars in WCW wouldn’t work with him and his physical style, though that doesn’t exactly excuse the That 70s Guy and the untouched Fat Chick Thriller. The fact that his time in WWE was basically ignored saved for the ECW reunion show is rather telling as well. Awesome was a force while he was around, but he just wasn’t around for that long.

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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Royal Rumble 2012
Date: January 29, 2012
Location: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Attendance: 18,121
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Booker T

This is a show that I remember liking at the time but aside from the ending to the Rumble itself, almost nothing springs to mind about the show. I’m curious to see what that means as this was kind of a weaker time for the company. Hopefully they can make this work, as the Rumble can be all over the place. Let’s get to it.

The opening video features a bunch of people saying they want to win the Royal Rumble and a voiceover asking who is going to Wrestlemania.

Smackdown World Title: Daniel Bryan vs. Mark Henry vs. Big Show

Bryan is defending in a cage and Cole cannot stand him. Also Bryan is mad at Show for running over his girlfriend AJ Lee, though it isn’t clear if it was a setup. Bryan gets sent into the corner to start, leaving Show to splash Henry against the cage. For some reason Bryan tries to kick at Show, who throws him against the cage for his efforts. The WMD hits cage, with Bryan dropkicking the leg out to take over.

Bryan kicks away at Henry as well but it’s way too early to escape the cage. Henry: “CLOSE THAT DOOR!” Bryan gets slingshotted into the cage but Show is back up with a superkick. That leaves Show to go after Bryan, with the big slow shots in the corner keeping Bryan down. Henry is back up to go after both of them as commentary discusses Bryan and AJ’s relationship.

Henry misses a charge into the cage and gets speared by Show to give Bryan two. Bryan’s tornado DDT plants Show (which has Lawler far too impressed) and the LeBell Lock goes on. Henry breaks that up but gets caught with the WMD. Bryan tries to escape and gets over, but Show grabs his hand. Show basically does some curls with Bryan, who eventually falls down to retain the title at 9:08.

Rating: C+. This was a nice story with Bryan having to escape from the two monsters who were basically playing with him. Bryan was still trying to get everything together at this point, as he certainly had the skill but he was making his transition into being a main event star. That took some time, mainly due to winning the title via the Money In The Bank briefcase, but that has been an issue with the concept for a long time. The match was entertaining though, even with Bryan almost retaining by accident.

Video on John Cena, who won’t change who he is, even as we hear from some fans who are on either side. We also see a bunch of his promotional work for WWE and my goodness the build to his match vs. Rock was outstanding. It makes me want to watch it again, so they’re doing something right.

Beth Phoenix/Bella Twins/Natalya vs. Kelly Kelly/Eve Torres/Alicia Fox/Tamina

Natalya headlocks Tamina down to start but it’s off to Eve for a dancing moonsault. Phoenix comes in and gets clotheslined down so Brie can come in for a chinlock. This lets commentary compare Twitter followers until Eve gets up for the tag off to Fox. The chinlock goes on again but Eve fights out and hands it off to Kelly. The screaming headscissors ensues and everything breaks down. Kelly gets beaten down on the floor and everyone joins in, allowing Kelly to get up top for a big dive onto the pile. Back in and Brie kicks Kelly in the face, allowing the Glam Slam to finish Kelly at 5:28.

Rating: D+. It’s a bad sign that the best thing you can say about a match is “at least it was short” but that’s about all this one had. The women’s division was not in a good place at this point, with Phoenix being one of the few bright spot. There were talented people in this match, but it doesn’t matter if they don’t get to do anything.

We recap Kane vs. John Cena, which has seen Kane being the unstoppable monster and wrecking Zack Ryder, who has come off like a total loser in the whole thing. Kane has left him in a wheelchair as well as the US Title, likely because Ryder got over on his own.

Ryder, in a wheelchair and a neck brace, arrives with girlfriend Eve Torres joining him. Johnny Ace is here too and mocks both of them a bit, with neither being impressed.

Kane vs. John Cena

Kane fires off the uppercuts to start but Cena is back up with a running clothesline. That’s enough to send them outside, with Cena whipping him knees first into the steps. Kane slugs him right back down inside and sends him into the corner, setting up a chinlock. The comeback is cut off with another uppercut and a bulldog attempt is casually shoved away.

A neck snap across the top rope doesn’t get Cena very far either, as Kane drops him again. The smother hold is countered into an STF, which is countered into a side slam to drop Cena again. The top rope clothesline connects and a big boot gives Kane two, meaning it’s frustration time. Kane’s superplex is broken up and it’s a super Five Knuckle Shuffle but the AA is broken up as well. They fight outside and that’s enough for a rather lame double countout at 10:57.

Rating: C-. This was a bad time for Cena, as he had the biggest match of his career coming up in a few months, but that didn’t leave him with much to do on the way there. That was on full display here, as this feud with Kane went on for a long time and never felt important in any way. Throw in the ending being about setting up a rematch and it was even worse.

Post match they brawl into the back with Kane being sent into various things. Kane comes back with a chair and breaks into Zack Ryder’s private room, knocks Ryder out, and kidnaps him. They go into the arena, where Kane Tombstones him, even with Eve Torres watching. Cue Cena for the save but Kane gives him a chokeslam and leaves everyone laying.

Video on The Rock, who is one of the world’s biggest movie stars. And he’s handsome. And charismatic. And did I mention a star?

Brodus Clay vs. Drew McIntyre

Clay dances to start, gets clotheslined in the corner, suplexes McIntyre and What The Funk finishes at 1:04. Sweet goodness him getting away from WWE was the absolute best thing he could have gone.

We recap CM Punk vs. Dolph Ziggler for the former’s Raw World Title. This is more about Punk vs. Johnny Ace, who Punk can’t stand for being such a miserable failure at everything. Ace caused Ziggler to pin Punk to earn the title shot and made himself guest referee. He’s guaranteed that he’s going to screw Punk over, which has officially put him UNDER REVIEW, which has him backpedaling. Oh and Ziggler is here too. The last part of the video features Ziggler saying not to forget him. It’s not a great look but here we are.

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler, with Vickie Guerrero, is challenging and Johnny Ace is guest referee. Hold on though as Ace says he’ll be the outside referee with a regular referee in the ring. Actually hold on again as Ace tosses Vickie, which follows a previously established stipulation. The threat of a GTS has Ziggler worried to start so Punk knocks him into the corner. Punk grabs an abdominal stretch and hammers on the ribs before sending him outside.

The dive misses though and Ziggler takes over back inside, including the jumping elbows. The sleeper goes on for a bit before the running Fameasser is countered into a sitout powerbomb. Punk hits a running neckbreaker but Ziggler reverses a high crossbody into a rollup for two. The top rope elbow gets two more but the referee gets bumped, which you knew was coming.

Punk grabs the Anaconda Vice for the tap, though Ace is checking on the referee. A rollup gets the same treatment so Punk goes after Ace, only for Ziggler to knock Punk into Ace. The GTS connects but Ace still won’t count, saying Punk jumped him on purpose. Another GTS is countered into a Fameasser (that was great) for two and they’re both down. Back up and Punk hits a second GTS for the pin, with both referees counting the three at 14:32.

Rating: B-. These two worked well together, though Ace being boring and unfair was quite the negative. The whole feud was built around the idea that Ace wasn’t interesting and they made that quite clear here. It was a good match, which shouldn’t be a surprise, but just drop the Ace stuff already.

Rumble by the Numbers:

30 Superstars
1 winner
31 Hall of Famers in the Rumble
21 main events those Hall of Famers have been in at Wrestlemania
695 entrants who have been eliminated
39 entrants eliminated by Michaels, a record (Kane is second at 35)
13 consecutive Rumbles for Kane
11 eliminations for Kane in 2001
194,107lbs that have been in the Rumble, or over 97 tons, or 430 Big Show
421,883 people who have attended the Rumble
62:12 Rey Mysterio spent in the Rumble in 2006, a record
3 wins for Austin
1 second that Santino lasted in 2009
2 women who have competed in the Rumble
1, the entrant that has produced the same amount of winners as #30 at two each
27, the entrant with more winners than any other at four
55 percent of winners that have won the title at Wrestlemania

Royal Rumble

Two minute intervals. Miz is in at #1 and Alex Riley (Miz’s former goon) is in at #2. They stare at each other to start and Riley goes after him but misses a charge. Miz stomps him down to start and gets the pretty easy elimination. R-Truth is in at #3 and hammers away, including a kind of powerslam. That’s enough to throw Miz to the apron but not out as Cody Rhodes is in at #4.

A Beautiful Disaster hits R-Truth and the double teaming is on, with R-Truth getting knocked down into the corner. Justin Gabriel is in at #5 and goes after Rhodes as the four of them pair off. We get a pair of brawls in the corner until Primo is in at #6 to continue a not so star studded start. R-Truth hits the running forearm on Rhodes but gets tossed by Miz, who goes to the floor (under the bottom rope) to go after him. That means a Little Jimmy to drop Miz on the floor while the other three are still inside. Mick Foley is in at #7 and tosses Primo before continuing the brawling.

Ricardo Rodriguez is in at #8, complete with Alberto Del Rio’s music, gear, and…that’s about it, as he drives out in a banged up car (bad paint, ugly seat covers, trash bag for a window) and isn’t in the best condition. Naturally the fans love him, even as Foley drops him with a right hand. Foley and Rodriguez actually get together to eliminate Gabriel and it’s Santino Marella in #9. Marella starts in with his usual and gets rid of Rodriguez. That leaves Marella vs. Foley so yes we do indeed get the Cobra vs. Mr. Socko showdown, with the expected reaction of the crowd going bananas.

Epico is in at #10 and is quickly tossed, leaving us with Miz, Rhodes, Foley and Marella. Rhodes gets up to toss Marella so it’s Socko to Miz, only for Rhodes to toss Foley as well. Kofi Kingston is in at #11, giving us quite the talented three way. Kingston takes over and hits a double Boom Drop but the numbers catch up with him in a hurry. Jerry Lawler is in at #12 (Booker is shocked and Cole is stunned) and ducks Miz’s left hand, which hits Rhodes by mistake. Lawler gets in his usual offense and goes up, only for Rhodes to knock him out.

Ezekiel Jackson is in at #13 as Booker praises Lawler, who has returned to commentary. Jackson gets to clean house and it’s Jinder Mahal in at #14. The entrance takes forever as Mahal has to get out of his gear before going after Jackson. Great Khali is in at #15 and gets rid of Jackson and Mahal without much trouble. Hunico (with Camacho and the gold bicycle) is in at #16 and does about as much as you would expect.

Booker T. is in at #17 and Cole absolutely loses it (You know where this is going, though neither Cole nor Lawler noticed that Booker wasn’t wearing pants?) as the fans go nuts. Miz throws Kingston over the top but Kingston skins the cat to stay alive. Kingston gets shoved out anyway….but LANDS ON HIS HANDS AND WALKS BACKWARDS TO THE STEPS in one of the most ridiculously awesome saved you’ll ever see. Dolph Ziggler (with Vickie Guerrero) is in at #18 as things start to slow down a bit.

Jim Duggan is in at #19 and the fans are rather happy to see him. As you might expect, Duggan certainly brings the energy as he throws those big right hands, only to get knocked out by Rhodes. Ziggler and Rhodes get rid of Booker and Khali at the same time and it’s Michael Cole in at #20 (you knew it was coming and the fan behind him freaking out makes it even better). His entrance takes forever and it’s the returning Kharma (Awesome Kong) in at #21 to immediately drop Cole (Booker and Lawler love it).

That’s enough to send Cole out to the apron, where Booker and Lawler pull him out for good. Kharma goes after Ziggler with a lifting Pedigree but has to stop for some yelling at Vickie. Hunico goes after Kharma but gets tossed, only for Ziggler to dump Kharma out. Sheamus is in at #22 as we have Sheamus, Miz, Rhodes, Kingston and Ziggler. Sheamus dumps Kingston and fires off the forearms to Miz and Rhodes.

Road Dogg is in at #23 and the fans go nuts all over again (even Cole is happy). Dogg gets in his usual dancing punches until things slow down and it’s Jey Uso in at #24. That means some dancing punches of his own until US Champion Jack Swagger is in at #25. The brawling continues on the ropes and it’s Wade Barrett in at #26. Barrett dumps Dogg to clear the ring a bit and it’s David Otunga in at #27 to clutter it right back up.

Randy Orton (hometown star) is in at #28 and goes right after Barrett, who put him on the shelf for a month. Uso is out and Rhodes and Ziggler get taken down with a double hanging DDT, followed by an RKO to Barrett for the elimination. Chris Jericho is in at #29 and tosses Otunga before things slow down a bit. Big Show is in at #30, giving us a final group of Miz, Rhodes, Ziggler, Sheamus, Swagger, Orton, Jericho and Show (not too shabby). Swagger is out before Show even gets in and gets WMD’d to make it even worse.

Show gets inside and tosses Miz, Rhodes and Ziggler in short order to get us down to four in a hurry. Jericho gets knocked down and it’s an RKO to Show, which doesn’t seem overly bright. Show gets up and Orton tosses him on his own, only to get dumped by Jericho to leave us with Jericho vs. Sheamus (quite the odd pairing). Jericho’s bulldog is countered but he’s right back with a dropkick.

Sheamus is sent out to the apron but hooks his leg around the ropes to survive. He’s able to get back inside, where Jericho catches him in a quick Walls. That’s broken up as well and Jericho gets sent to the apron, where he manages to get back inside as well. They both almost wind up crashing to the floor before getting inside just in time. A Codebreaker drops Sheamus, who is right back with a missed Brogue Kick. Jericho can’t hit the Codebreaker though and gets sent to the apron, where a Brogue Kick gives Sheamus the win at 55:25.

Rating: B. The ending alone here was rather good, with the drama of Jericho and Sheamus being worth a look. At the same time, this Rumble was heavy on the comedy, with the commentary entrances, plus Socko vs. the Cobra. It did have some good moments in between though and I had a good time watching this one back. I remembered liking it well enough back in the day and it was nice to see it live up to the hype.

Pyro and sign pointing take us out.

Overall Rating: B-. The Raw World Title and Rumble are the only things worth seeing here, unless you want to see Bryan in way over his head against some monsters. The problem here is the same as it always was around this time: with John Cena vs. the Rock looming at Wrestlemania, nothing else felt important. They do get some credit for trying something new with Sheamus though, as even though he was a former World Champion, winning the Rumble was a different level. Good enough show, but the Rumble carried the thing.

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