Monday Night Raw
Date: May 19, 2025
Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, South Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We’re officially in Money In The Bank season, but before we get to that show, we have this weekend’s Saturday Night’s Main Event. That show alone should be quite the presentation, with a fairly stacked card already coming together. Other than that though, we need to get ready for the Money In The Bank ladder matches with some qualifying matches taking place this week. Let’s get to it.

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

We look at the actions of Seth Rollins/Bron Breakker/Paul Heyman from last week.

Here is Logan Paul to get things going. He gets right to the point by saying he’ll be the next World Heavyweight Champion by beating Jey Uso at Saturday Night’s Main Event. After the YEET chants get on Paul’s nerves, Paul goes on about how he has knocked Uso out a few times and is ready to do it again. Cue Gunther to interrupt and Paul knows this isn’t good. Gunther thinks that Paul’s statements make him sound confident and that is what drives them in life.

The people here should show Paul (who looks very nervous) more respect. Gunther talks about all of Paul’s successes and says he could learn from Paul. That works for Paul, who is willing to talk to Gunther anytime. Gunther can imagine the headlines if Paul becomes the World Heavyweight Champion and Paul says Gunther knows business. Gunther says this may be business to Paul, but to Gunther, this is personal.

Taking the title from Uso is personal for Gunther and just ask Pat McAfee what he does to non-wrestlers. At least McAfee showed some heart, but if Paul wins the title, Gunther will eat him alive. Gunther goes to leave but Paul talks trash about him, only to get superkicked by an invading Jey Uso. This was a promo about making Paul feel like a bigger threat to win the title, which was needed after the Gunther title shot was announced.

We look at Giulia and Roxanne Perez splitting up after last week’s loss.

Perez is officially signed to Raw (as Giulia is officially signed to Smackdown).

We look back at NBA stars Tyrese Haliburton and Jalen Brunson getting into it last June on Smackdown before they play in the NBA Playoffs this week.

Jey Uso runs into Paul Heyman, who wants to give Uso some facts. Everyone says that Heyman betrayed CM Punk and Roman Reigns, which means stabbing them in the back. The fact is that Bron Breakker is facing Uso in a non-title match tonight because it isn’t about the title. Instead, Breakker is out to slow Uso down so Seth Rollins can win the title soon.

Penta/AJ Styles vs. Judgment Day

Styles sends McDonagh into the corner to start but misses the drop down dropkick. Not that it matters as Styles knocks him into the corner for some chops from Penta. Cue Balor, who is taken down as well with the villains being sent outside. Penta and Styles hit stereo dives and we take a break (with a great slow motion replay of the dives).

Back with Penta in trouble and being sent up top. McDonagh gets knocked down but Balor is right there to cut off the tag attempt. Penta fights out of trouble and hits the reverse Sling Blade on Balor, allowing the tag back to Styles. The Calf Crusher goes on so McDonagh tries to make the save, only to frog splash Balor by mistake. The belly to back faceplant gives Styles two and he hits the moonsault DDT on the floor. Carlito gets in a posting to cut Styles off though and we take a break.

Back again with Styles fighting out of trouble and handing it off to Penta, with McDonagh coming in as well but stumbling on the ropes. Penta superkicks an upside down McDonagh in the corner but charges into a Spanish Fly. Balor Sling Blades Penta, who is back up with another superkick. Carlito’s distraction earns him a shot from Styles and a Canadian Destroyer off the steps plants McDonagh on the floor. Cue El Grande Americano though with a headbutt to the back of Penta’s head and the Coup de Grace finishes him off at 17:08.

Rating: B. This was a match that I wouldn’t have expected much from and it wound up being a heck of a showdown. That’s quite the success for a match that shouldn’t have been much on paper and it even keeps El Grande Americano vs. Penta going. Good stuff here and a very nice surprise.

Iyo Sky is ready for anyone to win Money In The Bank so here is Becky Lynch to remind Sky that Sky has never beaten her. Sky is ready anyway.

Seth Rollins interrupts Logan Paul, who is trying to get out of this place. Rollins says Jey Uso is going to get hurt tonight and that means Paul has a real chance on Saturday. If Paul gets past Uso and Gunther, Rollins will be waiting for him. Maybe they run it back from Wrestlemania two years ago with the title on the line. Think about it.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Becky Lynch vs. Roxanne Perez vs. Natalya

Lynch tries to get the alliance going with Perez to start and then tries to throw her outside. It’s Lynch outside instead, leaving the other two inside. This time Lynch pulls Natalya outside for a ram into the barricade before coming back inside where Perez can get two off a rollup. Natalya suplexes Lynch for two but the Sharpshooter is countered into a Disarm-Her. Perez breaks that up but Natalya blocks the Manhandle Slam attempt. A basement superkick sends Perez outside, only for her to come back with a dive onto both of them.

We take a break and come back with Natalya discus lariating both of them but the double Sharpshooter doesn’t work. Everyone gets knocked down until Natalya and Lynch are back up to slug it out. Perez sunset flips Natalya to suplex Lynch at the same time, with Lynch having to jump back up for the save. Perez goes up but Natalya grabs a slingshot powerbomb to plant Lynch for two.

The Sharpshooter has Perez in trouble until Lynch makes the save. That earns Lynch a discus lariat and the double Sharpshooter sends Lynch and Perez to the ropes. The Manhandle Slam drops Perez but here is Lyra Valkyria to brawl with Lynch. A quick Pop Rox gives Perez the pin on Natalya at 14:35.

Rating: B. They got rolling here, even if Natalya was pretty clearly there to take the fall. The good thing is that while Natalya might be little more than a jobber to the stars, she can still do rather well in the ring. Putting her out there while Valkyria intercepted Lynch was a good way to go and I had fun with the match, despite Natalya’s obsession with the Sharpshooter.

Sami Zayn comes in to see Jey Uso, telling him to worry about Logan Paul. Zayn will deal with Seth Rollins and company and he has Uso’s back tonight if the numbers game comes up.

We look at John Cena beating Michael Cole on Raw in 2012. Cole: “Not quite as embarrassing as Heidenreich.”

Akira Tozawa gets to face Rusev next week. Chad Gable comes in to promise destruction and Tozawa (and Maxxine Dupri) leave. With them gone, Gable wants a Money In The Bank qualifying match for himself and Ivy Nile. New Day comes in (Pearce: “DOES ANYBODY KNOCK AROUND HERE???”) and isn’t thrilled with the Creed Brothers getting a title shot in a triple threat next week, also involving the War Raiders. Pearce throws them all out, with Xavier Woods saying it smells like a midlife crisis in here.

Sheamus vs. Grayson Waller

Austin Theory is here with Waller, who slaps Sheamus in the face to start. Sheamus works on the arm and it actually turns into a technical off on the mat. Back up and Sheamus goes with the power to send Waller flying a few times. Waller is sent outside but slides back in, where he hits a quick clothesline as we take a break. We come back with one heck of an AUSTIN THEORY chant going and Sheamus getting annoyed at Waller for hitting him in the chest. Sheamus pounds away (Theory winces) but gets caught in the rolling Downward Spiral for two.

Theory accidentally distracts Waller though and Sheamus hits a knee to the face. Sheamus grabs the Dublin Smile but a discus forearm puts him on the apron. For some reason Waller decides to try the ten forearms to the chest, which Sheamus reverses into…something that looked like White Noise onto the apron but was more Waller being dropped onto the rope. Waller tries to leave but Theory won’t let him, allowing Sheamus to hit the ten forearms. The Brogue Kick puts Waller away at 10:53.

Rating: C+. I wasn’t quite feeling this one, as the idea was that Waller didn’t want to do this but he wound up having a pretty competitive match against a monster like Sheamus. The good thing is that Theory seems to be taking a step towards having more of a personality, which could be interesting if he is given the chance. Theory has long since shown the talent to do something but it isn’t going to happen as he’s stuck with Waller.

Michael Cole and Pat McAfee make a bet on the NBA Eastern Conference Finals (if the Pacers win, Cole will call Raw in a tank top but if the Knicks win, McAfee will call Raw in a suit). They talk to Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, who will be a playable character in WWE2K25. It’s a big rivalry with the Knicks and Haliburton is ready to go. Cole hypes up the Knicks (McAfee: “YOU BIASED PIECE OF TRASH!”) before Haliburton picks Jey Uso to beat Logan Paul. You can tell Haliburton is a big fan and the commentators being fans of the teams was a nice way to tie it together.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

Gunther is interrupted by Seth Rollins, who says it’s been awhile. Rollins thanks Gunther for doing things with his title, but Gunther says the reality is Rollins is not the long term game around here. Rollins says that if Gunther gets in the way, he’ll make himself a target. Gunther says he is eagerly awaiting it.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Rhea Ripley vs. Zoey Stark vs. Kairi Sane

This is Sane’s first match in several months after a hand injury. Sane goes after Stark to start but gets caught with a nasty German suplex. Ripley gets sent into the ropes and Sane takes her down with a hurricanrana but Stark tries a missile dropkick…and may have blown her knee out. We pause for the doctor to check on Stark and the camera goes to the briefcases as we take a break.

Back with Stark gone and Ripley hitting a fall away slam on Sane. Ripley sends her flying again so the referee can talk to her a bit, likely as this is being called on the fly. Sane is back up to knock her into the corner for the running forearm and they slug it out from their knees. Ripley ducks a shot to the face and hits the headbutt, setting up Riptide for the pin at 9:25.

Rating: C+. There is a HUGE asterisk next to this one as it is pretty clear that Stark was there to take the fall but then got hurt. Ripley moving on is fine and it’s a shame to see Sane have to lose on her first night back, but the bigger story here is Stark. That looked absolutely terrible and hopefully Stark is able to come back WAY down the line.

Rusev is ready to destroy Akira Tozawa. Next week he will forgive Tozawa’s stupidity and forget his existence.

Finn Balor introduces Roxanne Perez as a potential member of the Judgment Day. She’s even got presents: chicken tenders for Dominik Mysterio and apples for Carlito! Raquel Rodriguez throws her out, saying Liv Morgan will not like this. Balor trying to appeal to Dominik’s sleaziest tendencies to get revenge on him is some brilliant stuff.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Jey Uso vs. Bron Breakker

Non-title and Paul Heyman is here with Breakker. Some shoulders in the corner have Uso in early trouble but he’s right back to knock Breakker outside. The suicide dive connects and we take an early break. Back with Breakker running multiple ropes to hit a hard clothesline. Breakker powers him around and hits an overhead belly to belly, which doesn’t get all of the rotation. Uso fights up and knocks him into the corner for the running Umaga Attack and a near fall.

They fight out to the floor and Breakker hits the bulldog off the apron onto the announcers’ table. We take another break and come back with Uso fighting back, including a jumping enziguri. The pop up Samoan drop gets two but Uso gets caught on top, meaning it’s the super Frankensteiner for another near fall. A quick superkick gives Uso two so Breakker grabs a chair. Uso superkicks him down again but Heyman grabs Uso’s leg, allowing Seth Rollins to jump him from behind for the DQ at 14:58.

Rating: B-. As annoying as a DQ ending can be, they didn’t have a better option here with Breakker being an up and coming monster and Uso being the champion. Rollins has made it clear that this match is just about slowing Uso down anyway so it makes perfect sense for Rollins to jump him. These two have some chemistry together too so this worked well.

Post match the beatdown is on until Sami Zayn and CM Punk come in for the save. After the fans get done singing Cult Of Personality, the brawl is on. The fight heads into the crowd with Punk diving in with a double ax handle. The four of them go into the back…and Logan Paul knocks Uso out again to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show was all about setting up Saturday Night’s Main Event and that was pretty well done. Paul vs. Uso got a nice boost, but there was also quite a bit of looking forward to other stuff. Not only did they set up some Money In The Bank participants, but you can see some title matches either already being announced or teased for down the line. This was the big preview night and that worked very well. The action was good too, but this was all about setting things up for later and that has me intrigued.

Results
Judgment Day b. Penta/AJ Styles – Coup de Grace to Penta
Roxanne Perez b. Natalya and Becky Lynch – Pop Rox to Natalya
Sheamus b. Grayson Waller – Brogue Kick
Rhea Ripley b. Zoey Stark and Kairi Sane – Riptide to Sane
Jey Uso b. Bron Breakker when Seth Rollins interfered

 

 

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: February 24, 2025
Location: Heritage Bank Center, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

It’s the last Raw before the Elimination Chamber and that is going to make things a bit complicated this week. The problem with this show is that Elimination Chamber is set up and that isn’t going to leave much to accomplish this week. In addition, there is a Women’s Title match to build towards next week. Let’s get to it.

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

A bunch of people came to work today.

Here is Logan Paul to get things going. Paul talks about how much he hates this city and how he knows what a pathetic place this is. He was flying in today and told his pilot to turn around so he could go home to Cleveland, but then he decided to perform for these losers because he is humble. The last time Paul was on Raw, he beat Rey Mysterio to make it to the Elimination Chamber and this Saturday, he will punch his ticket to Wrestlemania.

Cue CM Punk (in a Chicago Teachers Union shirt) to interrupt, with McAfee telling a story of Punk trapping him in a portable toilet earlier today. Paul doesn’t get why neither the fans nor Punk don’t like him. He thinks Punk might be jealous, but Punk talks about how Paul is nothing but a bunch of one liners to incite a reaction. The fans deserve better than that, which Paul finds funny. Paul talks about Punk coming back in a great moment (Punk: “Yep.”) and then he tore his wittle tricep.

Now the fans are chanting for Paul, with Punk admitting that the names do change. The names Paul has been mocking, including himself, are legends and history makers. Paul is a flash in the pan and the people aren’t going to remember who he is. On Saturday, Punk will go on to win the Elimination Chamber and go on to Wrestlemania where he will make history. On the other hand, Paul will be history. They go face to face and Paul gets in a slap before bailing to the floor. Paul feigns innocence, but Punk tells him to run while he can. This was two talented talkers going after each other and it worked well.

We look at Penta dealing with Ludwig Kaiser and Pete Dunne, who are now fighting each other over wanting to fight Penta.

Ludwig Kaiser vs. Pete Dunne vs. Penta

Dunne kicks Kaiser to the floor to start but Kaiser is back in, where Penta hits a Backstabber out of the corner. Penta’s dive is teased but Kaiser gets out of the way, allowing Dunne to hit a knee off the apron to take him down. Penta dives onto both of them and we take an early break.

Back with a Tower Of Doom, leaving Penta to chop them into reverse Sling Blades. Kaiser and Dunne are sent outside and taken out with a dive each, leaving Dunne to make the save back inside. The Bitter End gets two on Penta with Kaiser making the save. Penta is back up and gives Penta the Sacrifice but Kaiser breaks up the Penta Driver. Kaiser hits the wind up DDT to pin Dunne at 7:22.

Rating: B-. This was about putting some good wrestlers with different styles in a match and letting them do their thing. Penta not taking the fall is a good thing to see and the ending might set up Kaiser vs. Penta down the line. It was a good way to go here and they crammed a lot into the time they had.

Video on John Cena wanting to win the Elimination Chamber so he can go on to win his 17th World Title.

Here is Rhea Ripley for a chat in the crowd. In theory she is going to defend the title against the winner of the Elimination Chamber at Wrestlemania, but she has to face Iyo Sky next week. They haven’t faced each other in five years and Ripley has gotten a lot better since then. We hear some of the names Ripley has beaten but here is Sky to say she’ll beat Ripley again and go on to Wrestlemania. Respectful staring ensues.

The Road Dogg will be on LFG this Sunday.

New Day vs. LWO

Before the match, New Day brags about how the fans should be glad they’re here but the LWO comes out to cut them off. Wilde stomps on Woods in the corner and grabs an upside down choke in the ropes. A springboard missile dropkick pulls Woods down again and it’s off to Del Toro for a kick to the head in the corner.

The springboard hurricanrana drops Woods again but Kingston low bridges him to the floor to take over. The alternating stomps in the corner sets up a running dropkick to give Woods two. Del Toro gets away and brings in Wilde to pick up the pace, including a tornado DDT to Woods. Kingston breaks up what looks like a Doomsday Device though and a backbreaker/top rope double stomp combination finishes at 5:28.

Rating: B-. Another match with good action and New Day gets a win to let them look strong. They still have their heat but they are going to need to do something bigger than beating up the LWO. I’m not sure if winning the titles again will matter as this is still all about Big E. and the reaction, though that is only going to get them so far without Big E. himself being around.

Post match the beatdown stays on until Dragon Lee runs in for the save. New Day beats him down as well.

We go to the Judgment Day clubhouse where Finn Balor is yelling at Dominik Mysterio, with Carlito trying to call him off. Mysterio calls out Balor for losing last week as well and again suggests another new member. That’s still not happening and Balor still says he’ll fix this. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez comes in to say things will look up tonight after they win the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Balor says he’s happy with anyone winning but aren’t they worried after what they did to Jade Cargill? Morgan says they didn’t do it and they both agree to handle their own business. Carlito is happy with finding a yellow apple.

We see wrestlers opening Topps cards and being rather excited about what they’re finding.

Here is Gunther for a chat. Gunther understands that the fans are excited to see him because he is going to wrestle tonight. Before we get there though, he wants to talk about facing Jey Uso at Wrestlemania. As the weeks go by, he is warming up to the idea because he will get the chance to humiliate Jey and end the Yeet circus for good. That’s why today, he offered Adam Pearce the chance to have the World Heavyweight Champion in action tonight against a handpicked opponent.

Gunther vs. Akira Tozawa

Non-title. Before the match, Gunther points out that he came into the building and saw the Alpha Academy doing a TikTok dance for the people (which we saw as the show opened for a nice bit of continuity). They have a few things in common, such as picking up their lives to come to America and wrestle for WWE. Tozawa has wasted his chance, just like Jey Uso is going to do at Wrestlemania. Last week, Pat McAfee said anything can happen on one night and tonight, Tozawa has the chance to do that as well.

Gunther tells him to earn respect so Tozawa strikes away, only to get kicked in the face. Cole references WKRP In Cincinnati as Gunther just obliterates Tozawa with a chop. Tozawa slips out of the powerbomb and hits a spinning kick to the head. That earns him a dropkick in the corner but Tozawa reverses the powerbomb into a sunset flip for two.

A missile dropkick is countered into the Boston crab but Tozawa makes the rope. Another chop sets up the powerbomb but Gunther pulls him up at two. The sleeper, with Tozawa lifted into the air, finishes for Gunther at 2:48. They were going for something like HHH vs. Taka Michinoku from 2000 and while it wasn’t quite to that level, Tozawa was trying here and it fit the story well.

Post match Gunther goes after Tozawa again but Otis makes the save. Gunther sleepers Otis as well but here is Jey Uso (to a ROAR) for the save.

We see a clip of Michael Cole on the ImPaulsive podcast and talking about his chemistry with Pat McAfee.

Back in the arena and McAfee praises Cole for everything he has done…but then he mocks Cole’s clothes on the podcast, with his shirt being unbuttoned and accidentally showing his stomach.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Dakota Kai vs. Lyra Valkyria

Valkyria is defending in a rematch from the match for the inaugural title. They start fast and go to the apron with Kai knocking her to the floor and hitting a flip dive off the apron. We take a break and come back with Valkyria fighting out of the Tree Of Woe. A delayed superplex drops Kai but Valkyria is banged up as well. They strike it out until Kai hits a scorpion kick but Valkyria muscles her up with a powerbomb for two. Kai is back up with the Kairopractor for the same, only for Valkyria to grab Nightwing to retain at 7:40.

Rating: B-. This was good enough, though Valkyria is going to need a bigger challenger going forward. That’s one of the bigger dangers of a new title, as you can only do so much with something that fresh. It’s good to see Valkyria as a champion, but facing the same person twice for the title is only going to get her so far.

Post match respect is shown but Ivy Nile runs in to jump both of them.

Video on Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn, showing just how long this story has gone.

We get a sitdown interview with Sami Zayn from earlier today and he reveals that something else happened over the weekend. A somewhat shaken Zayn says he went to Owens’ house and no one was home but he did run into Owens’ mom. They caught up a bit and had a nice chat but when he got home, he was ashamed of himself for going over there in the first place.

Zayn and Owens have a long history and this is the first time that family has gotten involved. That has Zayn wondering what the two of them are capable of right now and while people are looking forward to the match, they should be worried about what Owens is going to go through. This was really intense stuff despite Zayn staying relatively quiet. They’re selling this as a personal feud and that’s exactly what it is.

Bianca Belair and Naomi are ready to beat up Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez.

We look at Bron Breakker and AJ Styles brawling last week.

Bron Breakker vs. Dominik Mysterio

Non-title and Judgment Day is here with Mysterio. Breakker wastes no time in tossing him outside, followed by a clothesline back inside as Mysterio is in big trouble. Mysterio wins a chase and stomps away, only to get suplexed down. Carlito’s distraction lets Mysterio hit a dive and another distraction sets up the 619. Breakker breaks up the frog splash though and hits the super Frankensteiner. That’s enough for Judgment Day to grab Breakker for the DQ at 3:13.

Rating: C+. Breakker was smashing him when things were fair but Mysterio got in some offense when his friends interfered. That’s all this needed to be as Breakker is getting to smash through someone and the fans are still liking what he’s doing. They didn’t have much time here, but Breakker looked like a monster throughout.

Post match the beatdown is on but Breakker fights back and hits a super spear on Carlito. Breakker and Balor have a staredown as we might have both a face turn (it wasn’t far from happening anyway) and a new challenger. Along with AJ Styles that is.

We look back at Rock’s really long speech on Smackdown, where he tries to get Cody Rhodes to go corporate. How in the world Rhodes could be MORE corporate is beyond me.

Ivy Nile is ready to take out Lyra Valkyria and the Creed Brothers want the Tag Team Titles. The War Raiders run in to brawl with the Creeds.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. He talks about the Rock offering him to join forces at Elimination Chamber and that’s a complicated situation. It isn’t just about him either, as he has his wife, his daughter, and his various family members. On top of that, he has the legacy of his father…and here is Seth Rollins to interrupt.

Rollins says he would love to welcome Rhodes back to his show with open arms and congratulate him on his success and get ready to face him at Wrestlemania. He can’t do that though, as he has to ask Rhodes what he’s thinking. A year ago, they were getting ready to face the Rock and Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania and now Rhodes is considering this?

The fact that Rhodes didn’t slap Rock in the face on Smackdown is an insult to Rollins. What does Rhodes get out of this? Bit parts in movies and social media followers? If being WWE Champion is that much of a burden on Rhodes, it’s not too much of a burden on Rollins. Rhodes says Rock asked him for his soul because Rollins’ might already be compromised.

We hear about Rollins’ history of turning on people, but he was also Rhodes’ shield at Wrestlemania. With one leg and a scrambled back, Rollins was the MVP of Wrestlemania XL and helped the Rhodes Family achieve their greatest victory. Rollins seems a bit taken aback and says that he has made some mistakes, which can eat you up with hate. He does not want to hate Rhodes so don’t make him do it.

At the end of the day, Rhodes can make his own decision but Rollins wants to face the Rhodes that has beaten him so many times. He wants to face the Rhodes that he helped crown as WWE Champion last year. Rollins isn’t coming for his soul, but he’s coming for the title. Good stuff here, but it’s making me wonder who is going to turn, because it’s hard to imagine Rhodes being the one to do so.

We get a preview of an interview with Logan Paul which will air in full on the Elimination Chamber Kickoff Show.

Elimination Chamber rundown.

We look back at Jade Cargill being attacked, resulting in Naomi getting her share of the Women’s Tag Team Titles. There is a chance that Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez did it, though they’ve denied any involvement. Either way, they get the title match tonight.

Jey Uso checks on Akira Tozawa in the trainer’s room and runs into A-Town Down Under. They mock him for his friends getting hurt over and over so Jey goes to leave, only to have them mock the Yeeting. Jey tries to leave again, only for Waller to say Gunther is going to destroy him at Wrestlemania. Jey promises to win at Wrestlemania and even Theory gets in on the Yeeting. Then Jey superkicks Waller.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez vs. Naomi/Bianca Belair

Naomi and Belair are defending. The brawl is on before the bell with the challengers being rammed into/over the barricade and it’s Morgan coming in to officially start. A double hiptoss sets up the standing moonsault/legdrop combination for two as Morgan is in trouble early. Rodriguez is back up to pull Belair outside though and we take a break. Back with Naomi coming in to clean house, including a slingshot X Factor for two on Rodriguez. The Blockbuster puts Rodriguez down again and Belair drops a 450 for two more.

Back up and Rodriguez books Naomi off the apron before breaking out of the KOD attempt. Something like a super Shatter Machine gets two on Belair (that’s the second time they’ve ever sued that move and the second time it’s only been good for two). Cue Dominik Mysterio for a distraction to break up the double KOD but the Tejana Bomb into Oblivion gets two with Naomi making the save.

A spear drops Rodriguez and everyone needs a breather. Morgan reverses a suplex into a small package for two on Belair, who is back with the KOD. Rodriguez makes another save so Naomi gives her a hanging Pedigree on the apron. The double KOD kind of hits so Mysterio puts the foot on the ropes. Rodriguez drops Belair onto the announcers’ table so Naomi takes her down with a dive. Back in and Oblivion is blocked, only for Morgan to roll Naomi up for two. The Rear View hits Morgan but Naomi has to go after Mysterio, allowing Rodriguez to post her so Morgan can get the pin and the titles at 12:12.

Rating: B+. There was a lot of interference here but they were rolling by the end and the fans were going insane with the near falls and even bigger with the title change. It’s also the right move to make, as Naomi and Belair didn’t exactly feel like the most serious champions. It felt like they were more interested in wearing matching outfits and “having fun Maggle” than being champions and that got a bit annoying. They can move on to the Cargill mystery now anyway so this helps in multiple ways.

The champs and Mysterio celebrate to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Rather good show here as they are making Elimination Chamber, and ultimately Wrestlemania, feel so important. That’s what you need to do with a show like this and it worked well here. I had a good time with this show and the talking was right there to back up the action. Much like last year, they are hitting their stride at the most important time and if they can keep that going for several weeks, we should be in for a heck of a Wrestlemania season.

Results
Ludwig Kaiser b. Pete Dunne and Penta – Wind up DDT to Dunne
New Day b. LWO – Backbreaker/Top rope double stomp to Del Toro
Gunther b. Akira Tozawa – Sleeper
Lyra Valkyria b. Dakota Kai – Nightwing
Bron Breakker b. Dominik Mysterio via DQ when Judgment Day interfered
Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez b. Naomi/Bianca Belair – Morgan pinned Naomi after Rodriguez sent her into the post

 

 

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

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

 

Smackdown
Date: February 7, 2025
Location: FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

We’re done with the Royal Rumble and that means Jey Uso and Charlotte have a choice to make. Having won their respective Royal Rumbles, they get to choose their Wrestlemania title matches, though we could be waiting a long time before we get there. Other than that, Cody Rhodes is still WWE Champion and is going to need some new challengers. Let’s get to it.

Here is the Royal Rumble if you need a recap.

A bunch of people came to work today.

Long Royal Rumble recap.

Here is Jey Uso, naturally coming through the crowd, for a chat. Just like on Raw, we get a YEET encore because the fans demand one. He’s on his way to the main event of Wrestlemania but he has some decisions to make. On Raw, he talked to Gunther so tonight, he would like Cody Rhodes to come out here.

Cue Cody, who knows what Uso wants to talk about, and we pan out to show the Wrestlemania sign. Uso has choices to make, but Cody talks about the various medical issues he is having at the moment. They can go hit Beal street together to have some fun, but it will be the last time if Uso chooses him.

We get a handshake, but here are Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga to interrupt. Fatu says Cody took the title from his family and now it is time to get it back. That doesn’t mean Jey though, and the fight is on, with the good guys clearing the ring. We probably won’t have an answer anytime soon, but at least we got a nice tease here.

Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match: Bianca Belair vs. Piper Niven

Naomi and Chelsea Green are here too. Belair wastes no time in slugging away in the corner before low bridging her out to the floor. That’s fine with Niven, who hits a crossbody against the barricade and a backsplash as we take a break. Back with Niven blocking the KOD and getting two off a Boss Man Slam. The Cannonball connects and a Vader Bomb gives Niven two but Belair avoids a charge in the corner. Now the KOD can finish Niven off at 8:04.

Rating: C+. Belair throwing Niven around is awesome to see and even though we’ve seen it a few times, it still works so well. Belair very well could be in a title match at Wrestlemania and hopefully it is a singles match rather than for the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Not a great match or anything, but it did what it needed to do.

Carmelo Hayes interrupts new Smackdown stars Kayden Carter and Katana Chance before being told how he is going to face another Raw star tonight. That would be Akira Tozawa, which Hayes thinks will be a layup. He could use one.

Here is DIY for a chat. They brag about beating the Motor City Machine Guns twice in one night and now it’s time for a moment of silence for the Guns. Cue Pretty Deadly to interrupt, with Pretty Deadly annoying the champs. Nick Aldis comes in to make a non-title match, but if Pretty Deadly wins, they get a future title shot.

Pretty Deadly vs. DIY

Non-title, Pretty Deadly get a title shot if they win, and DIY is in street clothes. Ciampa stomps Prince in the corner to start but misses a charge into the corner, allowing Wilson to come in and clean house. Everything breaks down and a Codebreaker out of the corner gives Prince two. Ciampa tries a rollup while grabbing the ropes but Wilson breaks it up, allowing Prince to grab a rollup, and the rope, for the upset pin at 2:59. Nice result here, as the division getting bigger is a good thing.

Miz tries to suck up to Andrade, who isn’t impressed. Cody Rhodes comes in and isn’t impressed either. Miz suggests that Jey Us might be turning on Cody, which has him thinking a bit.

John Cena is set for the Elimination Chamber.

Here is Drew McIntyre, who is officially back on Smackdown. He slept in his own bed in Nashville and realized that he is a jacked and handsome man. McIntyre is a product of his own atmosphere, which is due to Raw being so toxic. He’s here for Cody and the WWE Championship but Jimmy Uso interrupts, saying McIntyre sounds like an ex girlfriend. McIntyre: “I’m cool Jey. I mean Jimmy.”

That doesn’t mean much to Jimmy, who is ready for their Elimination Chamber qualifying match. Cue LA Knight, the other person in the match, who says there is nothing wrong with crying if something gets to you and it doesn’t make you any less of a man (amen). McIntyre whining is one of those things you can guarantee in life though and it’s time to beat him up. Yeah.

Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match: Drew McIntyre vs. Jimmy Uso vs. LA Knight

We’re joined in progress with McIntyre getting stomped down in the corner but the other two get in a fight of their own. McIntyre fights up and takes both of them down but they all go outside. Knight rams McIntyre into the announcers’ table over and over again as we take a break.

Back with Jimmy breaking up McIntyre’s superplex and tying him up in the Tree of Woe for some stomping. Naturally McIntyre pops up for a superplex to both of them, leaving all three down. Knight plants McIntyre and drops the top rope elbow for two, with Jimmy making the save. McIntyre spinebusters Knight for two before Knight tries the BFT on Jimmy. That’s broken up with a Claymore though and McIntyre pins Knight at 12:41.

Rating: B-. Gah I could go for not seeing Knight take the loss, but McIntyre in the main event scene is a good thing to see. McIntyre continues to be one of the best things about WWE at the moment though and it is nice to see him heading back into the title scene. Other than that, Jimmy can find something else to do, though I’m not sure what that is.

Braun Strowman interrupts Damian Priest. They’re in an Elimination Chamber qualifying match next week with Jacob Fatu and they argue a bit first.

We look at Kevin Owens attacking Sami Zayn on Raw.

From his car, Owens can’t believe that Zayn didn’t help him but did help Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble. Makes sense, at least from him.

Akira Tozawa vs. Carmelo Hayes

Tozawa jumps him to start and hits a middle rope hurricanrana. We take an early break and come back with Hayes working on an armbar. The spinning faceplant gives Hayes two and Tozawa is up with a knockdown of his own. A sunset bomb gives Tozawa two but Hayes his him in the face. Nothing But Net finishes Tozawa off at 7:32.

Rating: C. It might have been a bit longer than it needed to be, but dang it is nice to see Hayes get a win other than a countout. What matters the most here is that Hayes gets some elevation, as having him lose over and over again stops meaning anything after a bit. This isn’t going to fix him, but it’s better than getting pinned again.

We look at Roman Reigns being attacked by Seth Rollins after they were both eliminated from the Royal Rumble.

Jerry Lawler is here.

R-Truth is checking on Akira Tozawa but then drops him upon seeing Jey Uso. R-Truth thinks Jey won King Of The Ring but Cody Rhodes comes in, with Jey still not being sure who he is facing at Wrestlemania.

Here is Charlotte for a chat. She hears money when people boo her because everyone is obsessed with her. Of course she came back and won the Royal Rumble because she’s just that great. Now it’s her time, which is why she has been on all three shows this week. Cue Tiffany Stratton to interrupt, saying she’s a big Charlotte fan but look at how big WWE has gotten with Charlotte gone.

Charlotte says Stratton can speak when spoken to, but Stratton wants Charlotte to pick her for Wrestlemania. Charlotte says Stratton can beg her but here are Nia Jax and Candice LeRae to interrupt. Jax is getting a title shot next week so Charlotte says she’ll be here to watch. Cue Alexa Bliss to interrupt and after a break, here we go.

Elimination Chamber Qualifying Match: Candice LeRae vs. Alexa Bliss

Bliss shoves her down to start and hits some knees to the ribs. LeRae knees her in the back though and grabs a backbreaker to slow Bliss down. They fight to the apron with Bliss being knocked to the floor. We take a break and come back with LeRae cranking on the arms. Bliss fights up and hits some knees to the back, only to get neckbreakered over the ropes. They fight over a small package until Bliss grabs an Abigail DDT for the pin at 10:41.

Rating: C. Bliss being back is nice but at the end of the day, she’s only so good in the ring and it holds her down. At the same time, having her still doing stuff with the Wyatt inspired deal is a bit annoying and has me worried. It was a lot to take before and now we get to see just how well it is going to go again, assuming that is what takes place.

Chelsea Green is ready to qualify next week but B-Fab, Michin and Zelina Vega come in to say they want the Women’s US Title.

The Street Profits interfered at the Royal Rumble because they want the Tag Team Titles back.

The Motor City Machine Guns are ready for the Profits to try and kick them out of their yard. Los Garza comes in and argue as well, with Santos Escobar making the tag match for next week.

Video on Damian Priest vs. Jacob Fatu vs. Braun Strowman next week.

Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso vs. Tama Tonga/Jacob Fatu

Tonga slips out of Cody’s suplex to start and it’s quickly off to Fatu for a backsplash. We take a break and come back with Fatu staying on Rhodes, who avoids Tonga’s charge in the corner. The tag brings in Uso to clean house The running Umaga Attack gets two on Tonga as everything breaks down.

We settle down to Us getting double elbowed in the face and the Samoan drop puts him down again. A double clothesline gets Uso out of trouble though an it’s back to Rhodes to clean house. Rhodes goes up top but gets shoved down by Fatu. Uso pulls Fatu to the floor and hits a dive, leaving Rhodes to hit Cross Rhodes for the pin on Tonga at 11:04.

Rating: B-. I was expecting this to be a bit longer but I’ll take what I can get here. Fatu being in there with bigger names, including the WWE Champion, is a good sign for his future. Other than that, Rhodes gets a nice win over someone with some status, though I’m not sure what is going on with the former Bloodline at the moment. They need something to do and that could take some time to set up.

Post mach Solo Sikoa runs in to Samoan Spike Rhodes to end the show. That might help.

Overall Rating: C+. We’re reaching the point where the three hour time span is hurting the show, as it’s becoming less fun and just feeling long most weeks. That was the case here, as it felt like the show was being stretched out to cover the time, which held Raw back for years. It was still good, but this feels like a show which could have been great if it was an hour shorter. It’s not good to copy Raw’s formula for so long, but at least they should only have a few more months of this schedule.

Results
Bianca Belair b. Piper Niven – KOD
Pretty Deadly b. DIY – Rollup to Ciampa while holding the rope
Drew McIntyre b. LA Knight and Jimmy Uso – Claymore to Knight
Carmelo Hayes b. Akira Tozawa – Nothing But Net
Alexa Bliss b. Candice LeRae – Abigail DDT
Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso b. Tama Tonga/Jacob Fatu – Cross Rhodes to Tonga

 

 

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Monday Night Raw
Date: December 23, 2024
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

We’re almost to the end of the year and since it’s the holiday week, we have a taped show from last week. We are also two weeks away from the show’s big debut on Netflix and that means it is time to finish building up the card. Everything is already looking big enough and now we could be in for some more additions tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Drew McIntyre to get things going. McIntyre talks about how banged up he has been since the Cell, but he has also been gone due to the death of a close family member. There are some people who are probably saying they didn’t know, but they also never asked. McIntyre’s brother John would never stab him in the back, but people like the Usos and Sami Zayn certainly would. He has given so much time over the years and kept fighting, only for those people to forget about him.

From now on, he is going to take and tell the truth, like the fact that the real villains are people like Roman Reigns and CM Punk. After Reigns did everything to those people, he snapped his fingers and they came running back. Cue Zayn to interrupt, saying he didn’t know what was going on with McIntyre’s family.

Zayn knows about losses and having to go to work, with missed birthdays, weddings and funerals. He knows exactly what it is like because this is the life that they have chosen. They are lucky to be here, but everyone in these stands have their own stories of losses and sacrifices. Those people keep getting up every day and doing what they have to do, but McIntyre thinks he’s different because someone called him the Chosen One.

What the Usos or Zayn do has nothing to do with him, but if McIntyre wants to blame them, that’s fine. It’s also fine with Zayn to face McIntyre right now. McIntyre talks about his family being far away but Zayn has never beaten him. Instead, McIntyre thinks Zayn needs to go to the back with his family and leave before things get worse. Zayn swings away but gets dropped. Cue Jey Uso for the save. This was McIntyre getting to explain everything wrong with him and why he was so angry, which is all you need for his situation. He’s arguably the biggest villain on the show and now we know why, which should do him good.

The Pure Fusion Collective suggests that Sonya Deville take Kairi Sane’s place in the Women’s Intercontinental Title tournament. That’s a no from Adam Pearce, who has put Iyo Sky in the spot instead.

Women’s Intercontinental Title Tournament First Round: Alba Fyre vs. Iyo Sky vs. Natalya

Fyre jumps Natalya to start but gets sent outside. Natalya’s basement dropkick to Sky is broken up with a basement dropkick and Sky takes them both out as we take a break. Back with Sky slipping between the ropes and springboard dropkicking Fyre. A tornado DDT drops Sky and Fyre pulls Natalya into a Koji Clutch. That’s broken up and Natalya puts both of them into a double Sharpshooter. That doesn’t last long either so Sky sends both of them outside and hits a springboard moonsault. Back in and Over The Moonsault to Natalya gives Sky the pin at 8:08.

Rating: B-. Pretty to the point here, with Sky getting to do her thing and move on to the final four. Her getting the spot over Kairi Sane makes for an interesting option, as there is always the chance that Sky had something to do with it. For now though, Sky has a real chance of getting the title, which would be a nice way to go.

Judgment Day bickers over their loss last week and Dominik Mysterio volunteers to face Damian Priest this week to step up. Things still aren’t good, with everyone sneering.

Sami Zayn and Jey Uso are glad they’re together again and they both want to take out Drew McIntyre tonight. Zayn has this, with Uso having next. They’re good.

We look at the Netflix Kickoff Show last week, with Logan Paul officially coming to Raw.

Chad Gable vs. Akira Tozawa

American Made and the Alpha Academy are here too. Gable wastes no time in chopping him down to start but stops to yell at Otis. That’s enough for Tozawa to snap off a spinning kick to the head but Gable pulls him into an armbar over the ropes. A slap to Otis lets Tozawa kick Gable in the face, only for the top rope backsplash to hit knees. Rolling German suplexes into a powerbomb into the ankle lock finish Tozawa at 2:10.

Post match the hold stays on but Otis makes the save.

New Day runs into Dominik Mysterio, and even he thinks what they did to Big E. was “crazy”.

Dominik Mysterio vs. Damian Priest

Mysterio bails to the floor to start as a good coward should do. Back in and Priest grabs a torture rack to crank out some aggression but Mysterio gets outside again. Priest throws him over the announces’ table but has to stop to go after a Santa Claus. That would be JD McDonagh, who is thrown over the announcers’ table. Carlito gets in a distraction but it’s Finn Balor jumping Priest for the DQ at 2;53.

Post match the brawl is on but the Viking Raiders make the save.

We get a sitdown interview with Seth Rollins, who is asked about the driving force behind his feud with CM Punk. Rollins talks about how he wants to cut Punk out and they’ll fight on January 6. He was sick of Punk after Survivor Series and now it’s time to wrap everything up for good. It’s going to be violent, but Rollins has to stop this. This was a fine way to bridge one of the weeks before the showdown.

The Miz vs. Dexter Lumis

They go outside in a hurry with Lumis sending him into the apron, followed by a running flip dive off said apron. Back in and Lumis hits a Thesz press into a running elbow but has to dive on the AOP on the floor. Then Karrion Kross jumps Lumis for the DQ at 2:25. Sweet goodness I know it’s a Christmas show but you can actually have a match get some time.

Post match the Final Testament surrounds Lumis but the lights go out and we’ve got Wyatts. The Wyatts quickly clear the ring and Nikki Cross is powerbombed onto the Testament.

Damian Priest thanks the Viking Raiders, who said they owed him one from last week. They’ll go to war with the Judgment Day together.

We recap the fans’ issues with the New Day, who come out to complain about commentary. They claim biased commentary, with Joe Tessitore not being around long enough to know how things work. Xavier Woods accuses Wade Barrett of being just like Big E., meaning not man enough to get back in the ring. New Day gets in the ring and says the fans shouldn’t be upset when they didn’t hurt Big E. again.

Tonight is a homecoming for Kofi Kingston and his mother is in the front row after a 20 hour flight from Ghana! Kingston says his mom doesn’t deserve this and goes over to her for a hug….but she just walks away instead. That’s a great visual and the heat on New Day is great. Turn that into something and they could go a very long way.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

New Day runs into Rey Mysterio, who thinks they should apologize if they want to start fixing things. Kofi Kingston says they didn’t do anything wrong, so Rey says he tried. Just get used to NEW DAY SUCKS chants.

Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn

Zayn chops away in the corner to start and knocks McIntyre to the floor. That means the tease of the dive with a flip back into the corner as we take a break. Back with McIntyre suplexing him back inside, setting up a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Zayn manages a tornado DDT for a needed breather, with McIntyre bailing out to the floor. The slingshot dive is pulled out of the air though and Zayn is sent into various hard objects.

A side slam onto the apron has Zayn screaming in pain and McIntyre looking all giddy as we take another break. Back again with McIntyre missing a shoulder into the post but he catches Zayn on top. The super White Noise gets two but the Claymore is cut off with a clothesline. Zayn’s back gives out on a Helluva Kick attempt though and the Claymore finishes him of at 15:45.

Rating: B. To the point match here, as they played up the idea that Zayn can’t beat McIntyre, which could make for a big payoff down the line. For now though, McIntyre working over the back and then having Zayn’s back give out at the end is a nice story for the match. McIntyre being all vicious and violent is good stuff and I could go for seeing just how far they can take it.

Post match the beatdown is on but Jey Uso runs in with a spear. Cue the Bloodline to lay Uso out, with McIntyre just walking away. Uso and Zayn fight back

Overall Rating: C. Oh they were phoning this one in and there was no hiding it. Other than McIntyre and Zayn, there was very little here that you needed to see and a good chunk of the matches were barely getting started when they wrapped up. WWE knew this show wasn’t going to get an audience this week and didn’t bother trying. That didn’t make for the best show, but it’s probably what they should have done here.

Results
Iyo Sky b. Natalya and Alba Fyre – Over The Moonsault to Natalya
Chad Gable b. Akira Tozawa – Ankle lock
Damian Priest b. Dominik Mysterio via DQ when Finn Balor interfered
Dexter Lumis b. The Miz via DQ when Karrion Kross interfered
Drew McIntyre b. Sami Zayn – Claymore

 

 

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Monday Night Raw
Date: December 16, 2024
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Saturday Night’s Main Event and there wasn’t much of a change on the Raw side. Gunther is still the World Heavyweight Champion and we are officially on the road to the first Raw on Netflix. This week will see a pair of title matches as both the Intercontinental and Tag Team Titles are on the line. Let’s get to it.

Here is Saturday Night’s Main Event if you need a recap.

We open with a quick Saturday Night’s Main Event recap and a preview for tonight.

Here is CM Punk to get things going. Punk: “Careful. Some people might get mad if you chant my name.” A few weeks ago, he told Seth Rollins that he doesn’t think about him while Rollins always thinks about Punk. While Punk is out here talking to his people, he knows that the stupid music is going to play and he’s going to come tiptoeing out here like Liberace (who Punk loves) but wearing Elton John sunglasses doesn’t make him Elton John. Just like growing up wanting to be CM Punk doesn’t make you CM Punk.

If Rollins wants Punk to be the bad guy, that’s fine. There are no such thing as bad students but just bad teachers, because 16 year old Rollins is Punk’s failure. If Punk still wants that lesson he can come and get it, but the last person who did that was Drew McIntyre. Punk has the fans chant his name, which has driven Rollins nuts for years.

Cue Rollins in the crowd, saying he’s taking a good hard look at Punk. Rollins: “Nah, even from out here, you’re still an a******.” Punk: “You still belong out there with all of the other CM Punk fans.” Rollins talks about carrying the company while Punk was gone and this “fan” has more Wrestlemania main events than Punk ever will. The fight is on with referees and security barely being able to break them up. They get into the crowd and brawl some more. Good segment here, which should set up a big match between them down the line.

The Judgment Day gives Finn Balor a pep talk but Balor wants to know where they were at Saturday Night’s Main Event. They praise him instead and things seem cool….but Balor sneers as some of the team leaves.

Seth Rollins yells at Adam Pearce to make the match with CM Punk as soon as possible. That sends Pearce away, with Drew McIntyre popping in to say that Rollins told him to get over it. Well Roman Reigns seems to be on the way back up to the top and they need to stop this. Rollins says he already stopped Reigns and did it with Jey Uso and Sami Zayn by his side. They’re his friends but the jury is still out on McIntyre. For now though, Rollins is off to do what McIntyre never could: beat Punk.

Intercontinental Title: Bron Breakker vs. Ludwig Kaiser

Breakker is defending and drives him into the corner to start for a quick overhead belly to belly. For some reason Kaiser slaps him in the face and the beating continues, with Kaiser being sent outside as we take a break. Back with Breakker hammering away in the corner, with the fans being rather behind him. Kaiser starts to go after the arm to limited avail but a ram into the corner works a bit better.

Breakker sends him outside though and the apron clothesline over the announcers’ table rocks Kaiser again. They get back in and Kaiser goes after the arm again, allowing him to stomp away on the mat. The arm is wrapped around the rope for a running dropkick in the corner and we take another break.

Back again with Kaiser going after the arm again to cut off a comeback bid. The armbar goes on again but Breakker is up with a jumping knee for a breather. The top rope Frankensteiner gives Breakker two but the spear is countered into the Kaiser Roll for two more. Kaiser sends him outside to try Breakker’s running dropkick, only for Breakker to cut him off with a running shoulder. Back in and a gutbuster into the super spear retains the title at 18:15.

Rating: B-. Nice match here, with Kaiser working on the arm to slow Breakker down but Breakker was just too much to overcome. The idea of Breakker just muscling through everyone is a good way to go, but he is starting to put a bit more together to make himself more well rounded. It helps when the fans are getting into him, as that could be the sign of Breakker moving up the card in a hurry, likely on the good side.

Rey Mysterio doesn’t want New Day in the locker room, saying they crossed the line. It would be better for them if they found another place to change, but they don’t want to be in that locker room anyway.

We look at Cody Rhodes retaining over Kevin Owens at Saturday Night’s Main Event but Owens laid him out with a package piledriver after the show. Rhodes has a cervical injury but it’s not clear how long he’ll be out.

The War Raiders talk about how they’re back after their injuries and they’re ready to get the titles.

Adam Pearce announces CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins for the Raw debut on Netflix.

Here are Dominik Mysterio, Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez for a chat. The fans boo a lot but Rodriguez has brought a bullhorn so Morgan can brag about how great she has been as champion. Morgan is ready to lead WWE into the future but here is Rhea Ripley to interrupt. This has gone on lone enough and it’s time to finish it for good. Ripley is officially the #1 contender and she is ready to get the title back. Then Morgan will only have her little “chicken tender sl*t.” That’s a great insult.

Seth Rollins is being asked about his match with CM Punk when Drew McIntyre comes storming up from behind. Before McIntyre can get to him though, Sami Zayn jumps McIntyre and the fight has to be broken up.

Miz tries to get away from the Final Testament but Karrion Kross does not accept that. This whole thing with the Wyatt Sicks isn’t over because it is time to take the first step against them. That’s why Miz is going to fight Dexter Lumis one on one next week. Paul Ellering says Miz has saved him twice so Miz owes the team. Kross reminds Miz that he is a 22 time champion so he can do this. With Miz gone, Kross says Miz is going to have to learn what happens if you make a deal with the devil.

Women’s Intercontinental Title Tournament First Round: Zoey Stark vs. Kayden Carter vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Rodriguez throws them around to start and gets an early two on Carter. Stark breaks it up and sends Carter outside, followed by a DDT to Rodriguez. Back in and Carter sends Rodriguez outside, leaving Stark to hit a basement superkick for two. With the other two outside, Carter hits a quick corkscrew dive through the ropes and we take a break.

Back with Carter tying up Rodriguez’s legs and hitting a fisherman’s neckbreaker on Stark at the same time. That’s broken up and Stark hits a dive out to the floor, only to get powered over the top by Rodriguez. Carter’s springboard basement dropkick gets two on Rodriguez, who is back up with a fall away slam to Stark. The twisting Vader Bomb hits Carter but Stark is back in to break up the Tejana Bomb. A not exactly smooth Z360 finishes Carter to advance Stark at 9:20.

Rating: C+. They were trying here, with Stark being a bit of a surprise winner, but there were a few not so great spots in there. Rodriguez felt like the more logical choice for the winner here but going with Stark shakes things up a bit. Carter doesn’t get to do this on her own very much and she worked fairly well here.

R-Truth is talking to the Alpha Academy and refers to Pete Dunne as Butch again. Cue Dunne to yell at R-Truth but American Made comes in to mock what the Alpha Academy has become. Chad Gable is sick of the entire team and it’s time to finish them off, starting with Akira Tozawa.

We see a weird red symbol with a slash going through it. The circle was round. Like a zero. Like Penta El Zero Miedo perhaps?

New Day has their bags ready to go but the Pure Fusion Collective has crushed Kairi Sane’s arm in an anvil case. Damage CTRL runs in for the save.

Tag Team Titles: War Raiders vs. Judgment Day

Judgment Day is defending. McDonagh kicks away at Ivar to start and gets knocked outside without much effort. Erik comes in to slam Ivar onto McDonagh and we take an early break. Back with McDonagh still in trouble but Ivar gets taken into the corner. That’s broken up in short order and Erik comes in to start cleaning house.

Erik drops McDonagh with a forearm and sends him outside but Balor cuts off a dive. The champs send Erik into the steps and then do it again as we take another break. Back again with Erik still in trouble but he’s able to get over for the tag to Ivar without much trouble. Ivar takes too long to go up though and gets crotched by Balor. McDonagh tries to pull Ivar down but gets caught with a super World’s Strongest Slam for two.

Balor breaks up the War Machine and McDonagh gives Erik the headbutt. There’s the Sling Blade to Erik as well with the moonsault into the Coup de Grace connecting. Ivar makes the save so McDonagh brings in a chair. That’s a distraction so Balor can grab one of his own….but Damian Priest grabs it as well. The War Machine gives us new champions at 16:10.

Rating: B. This was the feel good moment that the show needed and I was wanting to see the Raiders pull it off. Commentary was making a big point out of the idea that the Judgment Day were rather horrible champions who never defended the belts. Ivar getting the win as the hometown star was a good choice and the match worked rather well. Nice job here, with the title change that needed to happen.

Overall Rating: B. This was a show without a ton of matches but the two title matches combined for almost thirty five minutes and the title change felt like a big moment. The other important part was adding the Punk vs. Rollins match to the Netflix premiere, as the show is instantly feeling bigger. The two hour run time worked well here, as the show never felt like it was dragging in the slightest. That’s nice to see for any show and it made for a nice week here, with the title change feeling rather nice. Good show here, with the big one coming in just a few weeks.

Results
Bron Breakker b. Ludwig Kaiser – Super Spear
Zoey Stark b. Kayden Carter and Raquel Rodriguez – Z360 to Carter
War Raiders b. Judgment Day – War Machine to Balor

 

 

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

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Survivor Series 2019
Date: November 24, 2019
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Attendance: 13,271
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Vic Joseph, Jerry Lawler, Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix

This year’s show is all about the Battle For Brand Supremacy, but NXT is involved as well and the invasions have been red hot for a change. They have set up a pretty awesome looking show, even with the amount of triple threat matches, including triple threat elimination matches. Let’s get to it.

I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the end zone straight across from the Titantron in the upper deck.

Kickoff Show: Tag Team Battle Royal

Raw: OC, Street Profits, Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder

Smackdown: Revival, Robert Roode/Dolph Ziggler, Lucha House Party, Heavy Machinery

NXT: Forgotten Sons, Breezango, Imperium

When one member is out, the team is out. Where to begin? First of all, there are no graphics to tell you which brand the teams are on. I get expecting people to know that at the time, but WWE knows that they have the Draft every year and that the Network is a thing here. Throw up a show graphic.

Second, a year later and five of these teams are gone, with four of them out of the company. Third, Hawkins and Ryder are “glad to still be here.” These people were the Tag Team Champions at Wrestlemania seven months and a half months earlier. That’s a heck of a fall. Oh and I had forgotten about that Tag Team World Cup deal the OC had from Crown Jewel. I’ve heard worse ideas.

It’s a brawl to start (shocking I know) with Jaxson Ryker saving Gran Metalik for no reason. General stupidity maybe? The Sons are out in a hurry as I try to get over Dolph Ziggler wearing a Smackdown hat in the match. Yeah they need graphics on their name but it’s Ziggler so by definition it’s a stupid thing to do. Angelo Dawkins throws out Gran Metalik to get rid of the Lucha House Party as Ziggler (now minus the hat) is thrown to the apron for his traditional save fest.

Hawkins is sent through the middle rope but Ryder is thrown over the top and onto him for the elimination. Barthel catapults Ziggler over the top for the skinning of the cat and Roode gets rid of Aichner to eliminate Imperium and save Ziggler (again). Otis falls trying the Caterpillar and gets dumped by OC/Revival. Breezango is out thanks to Revival and that’s it for NXT.

We’re down to Revival, OC, Roode/Ziggler and the Profits, with the Profits dropkicking Revival out in a hurry. Ziggler saves Roode from the Magic Killer and superkicks Gallows out to get us down to two. The brawl is on with Roode busting Dawkins’ spine but Ziggler superkicks Roode through the ropes by mistake. The Sky High looks to set up the frog splash but Roode saves Ziggler (that man needs a lot of saving). Ford hits the frog splash on Ziggler instead, only to be thrown out by Roode for the win at 8:19.

Rating: D+. It’s a battle royal and a tag team one at that, with the teams barely being identifiable outside of commentary throwing out a brand here and there. It will get better later on and since this was a bonus match, it’s hard to get that upset. What impresses me the most is how much the tag team division changes so quickly, as this feels like it could have been four or five years ago. That probably shouldn’t be happening and yet it doesn’t seem out of place.

Smackdown – 1

Raw – 0

NXT – 0

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Akira Tozawa (Raw) vs. Kalisto (Smackdown) vs. Lio Rush (NXT)

Rush is defending and gets double teamed to start but Tozawa and Kalisto waste no time in turning on each other. That means it’s time for Rush to start his bobbing and weaving, which always looked awesome. Kalisto pulls Rush to the floor and cuts off Tozawa’s dive before walking the rope to kick Rush in the face.

A spinning wristdrag takes Tozawa down but Tozawa shoves Kalisto into Rush’s raised boot. Rush hits a double handspring elbow to take both of them down but Tozawa punches him in the face. Kalisto gets kicked to the floor and Tozawa’s sliding boot gets two on Rush. Tozawa and Kalisto take Rush to the top but he double armdrags both of them down for a huge crash.

A circle chop off is capped off by Tozawa German suplexing Rush but Kalisto dives in to roll Rush up for two. Tozawa is back up with a Shining Wizard to send Kalisto outside and the top rope backsplash hits Rush. Kalisto dives in for the save and the slugout is on, with Kalisto hitting the Salida del Sol on Tozawa. That’s fine with Rush, who comes in with the Final Hour to pin Tozawa and retain at 8:20.

Rating: C. It’s a match that has been done before but what we got worked out just fine with the three of them flying around and doing their high flying stuff. That’s something that is always going to work because it is a style that never gets old and Rush retaining is a fine way to get NXT on the board. I know he might have some issues, but dang Rush can do the flying thing.

Smackdown – 1

NXT – 1

Raw – 0

Kickoff Show: New Day (Smackdown) vs. Undisputed Era (NXT) vs. Viking Raiders (Raw)

Non-title (with all three as respective champions) and it’s Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly, fresh off WarGames the previous night, for the Era. Big E., Ivar and O’Reilly start things off, which may be a little harder to keep track of but it makes a lot more sense than having two people in there at once instead. O’Reilly is taken down in a hurry so it’s Fish coming in, earning himself a beating of his own from Ivar. Both parts of the Era come in and get dropped by Ivar and Big E. before they turn on each over.

They take turns flipping away from each other until Big E. runs Ivar over in the power display. O’Reilly comes back in for the rapid fire knees to Big E. but the Raiders knee O’Reilly down without much effort. It’s back to Fish, who gets Ivar slammed onto him to make it even worse. Kingston comes in to slug away on Erik and it’s New Day double teaming O’Reilly down for two.

The Era is sent outside and it’s the New Day/Raiders showdown. The slugout goes on until Kofi is left alone, meaning it’s time for the Era to come back in and take over on Kingston’s leg in the corner. Ivar dives in with a splash to break up a kneebar so O’Reilly and Kingston slug it out on the apron instead. Big E. misses his spear through the ropes so Kofi and the Era join him, meaning Erik can slam Ivar onto the other four.

Back in and Fish starts taking over on Erik’s knee before handing it off to O’Reilly for the same. Erik manages to suplex O’Reilly into the corner to take Fish down, allowing the hot tag to Ivar. House is cleaned and O’Reilly kicks Fish in the corner by mistake. Big E. gets kicked in the face as well and Erik hits the shotgun dropkick on Fish. Ivar’s Bronco Buster misses though, meaning Kofi can come in with a standing double stomp to Erik.

Big E. suplexes the Era and it’s a powerbomb/top rope double stomp to crush Erik. Kofi’s big dive over the top takes out Ivar and the Era, with Big E. hitting the spear to take Erik down as well. Everyone gets back up and Erik knees Big E. in the face, setting up the springboard clothesline/German suplex combination (always cool), sending Big E. outside again.

Kofi takes the High/Low on the floor meaning it’s the Era vs. the Vikings for a change. Erik is knocked outside so the Era kicks Ivar…who doesn’t seem to mind. The handspring double elbow (second in two matches) connects for Ivar and it’s the Viking Experience to drive O’Reilly into Fish to give Ivar the pin at 14:42.

Rating: B. This was the kind of all action match that they should have been having and it got enough time to make it work really well. New Day is a team who can be put in there at any time to make other teams look good and the Era can work with anyone. The Raiders needed the win most and it worked out well all around. Good stuff here and a nice way to wrap up the Kickoff Show.

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

NXT – 1

The opening video looks at how this is usually Raw vs. Smackdown but then NXT jumped in to make it a lot more interesting in a hurry. There are some other matches thrown in but this is ALL about the three way brand fight, which did have a heck of a build.

Raw Women vs. Smackdown Women vs. NXT Women

Raw – Charlotte, Asuka, Kairi Sane, Natalya, Sarah Logan

Smackdown – Sasha Banks, Dana Brooke, Carmella, Nikki Cross, Lacey Evans

NXT – Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, Candice LeRae, Io Shirai, Toni Storm

The NXT team was announced after last night’s Takeover and some of them are coming off of WarGames so they’re a little banged up. Storm, Evans and Logan start things off with Lacey taking over early on. That earns her a double flip out to the floor and it’s Cross tagging herself in to take her place. Logan hits a cartwheel knee to Storm’s back for….well nothing actually as she talks trash until Cross jumps on her back for the choking.

They’re both a bit odd so that fits well. Back up and Storm German suplexes both of them at once so it’s off to Sane, Carmella and Shirai. The fans get rather excited about two of these people and I’ll let you guess who they are. Carmella hands it off to Brooke, who is fine with just standing in the corner while the other two trade headscissors and clotheslines. Shirai hits a running basement dropkick to Sane’s face but Brooke sends them both into the corner for a double handspring elbow.

The Swanton hits both of them for two on Shirai so Evans comes in for a double hiptoss instead. Candice gets the tag and strikes away at Evans as Asuka comes in as well. A quick snapmare drops Asuka so Candice can hit a step up backsplash and there’s a middle rope faceplant for two on Evans. It’s off to Ripley, who gets caught in Asuka’s armbreaker so Belair makes the save, triggering the parade of secondary finishers. Banks is left alone in the ring with everyone else down…including Shirai and LeRae need medical attention.

Everything pauses as Raw and Smackdown wave goodbye to them instead of, I don’t know, trying to eliminate each other. We settle down to Banks vs. Ripley vs. Charlotte, which does sound like a heck of a match. Ripley doesn’t seem to be very impressed and since this feels big, it’s off to Belair, Logan and Cross instead. Cross hits a neckbreaker on Logan but gets sent to the apron for her efforts. A dive to the floor takes Ripley down and Cross hammers away on Storm against the apron.

Ripley picks Cross up though and puts her on the apron, allowing Belair to grab a rollup (with Ripley holding the feet) for the elimination at 9:39. Carmella comes in with a big headscissors to Belair and a superkick to Logan, only to walk into Belair’s KOD. That sends her into the ropes but Logan sends both of them out to the floor. Running knees takes Carmella and Belair down again with Natalya having to make a save back inside. Belair punches Logan down though and hits the 450 to get rid of her at 12:10.

That puts us at Raw and Smackdown with four each and NXT with three as Charlotte comes in to face Belair and doesn’t seem impressed. Belair gets clotheslined but Carmella comes back in to kick Charlotte down. The big boot drops Belair again but Carmella breaks up the moonsault that will never hit no matter what anyway. Charlotte pulls Carmella up for a powerbomb, which is countered into a hurricanrana onto Belair to give Carmella a pair of two’s each on both.

Carmella grabs Belair by the ponytail but takes too long, allowing Charlotte to hit Natural Selection on Carmella for the elimination at 15:38. Sane, Storm and Banks come in with Storm kicking Banks in the face. Storm Zero to Shirai is broken up though and the Insane Elbow connects, with Sasha breaking up the pin and….then pinning Sane herself at 16:48. Asuka gets so frustrated that she comes in and wrecks the place, including kicking the now legal Brooke in the face to get rid of her at 17:25.

We’re down to Ripley/Belair/LeRae/Shirai (with the latter two backstage) for NXT vs. Evans/Banks for Smackdown vs. Charlotte/Asuka/Natalya for Raw. Charlotte tags herself in and gets into a shoving match with Asuka as a result, eventually slamming Asuka down by the hair. Lacey tries to jump Charlotte but Asuka is back with the green mist (BIG pop for that) to blind Charlotte before walking out. The Woman’s Right gets rid of Charlotte at 19:09 and Raw is down to just Natalya. I’ll take that over Asuka taking another loss and Charlotte is going to be the focal point of everything she does so a tainted loss doesn’t mean a thing.

Since Natalya is the only one left for Raw, she comes in with the discus lariat to Storm and then rolls Evans up for a fast elimination at 19:51. That leaves us with Storm/Belair/Ripley for NXT, Banks for Smackdown and Natalya for Raw and Ripley is rather pleased. Banks and Natalya get smart and take Storm down for a Sharpshooter/Banks Statement combination for the tap at 20:47.

Belair comes in and Natalya tries to talk trash before going with the smarter move of playing Jim to Banks’ Bret on the Hart Attack for the pin at 21:16. So it’s down to Banks vs. Natalya vs. Ripley….or at least it is until Banks decks Natalya for the pin at 21:57, eliminating Raw completely.

The fans REALLY like the idea of Banks vs. Ripley though and it’s Ripley hammering away and getting two off a dropkick. Back up and Banks can’t hit a tornado DDT so it’s a sleeper to limited avail instead. Banks hits the running knees in the corner and the middle rope Meteora gets two. More knees to the back of the head send Ripley into the corner again but this time she superkicks the Meteora out of the air.

The Prism Trap (dang that looks awesome) is on but Banks rolls into the Bank Statement instead. Ripley is in trouble so here are LeRae and Shirai, who were never officially eliminated, to pull Ripley to safety. That earns them a dropkick through the ropes each and they head back in, where Banks has to slip out of Riptide. Shirai hits her with a springboard missile dropkick though and now Riptide can give Ripley the final pin at 27:53.

Rating: B-. They got some time here and the important thing is NXT wins a major match. That’s an awesome thing to see and it’s really cool that it actually happened on a big stage. You want to set things up well for the rest of the night and having an NXT all star team lose to teams involving Logan, Brooke and Carmella wasn’t going to work. Above all else, Ripley looked like a total star here, eclipsing almost everyone else in the match and the fans treated her like one. I wouldn’t have had Shirai and LeRae save her at the end, but Ripley pinning Banks for the win is all that matters.

NXT – 2

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

We look at the closing moments of WarGames last night when Kevin Owens became the final member of Team Ciampa and helped them win.

Seth Rollins, Raw Team Captain, comes up to Owens to ask where his loyalties lie. Owens says last night was just to get back at the Undisputed Era so tonight, he’s Team Raw. He also finds it funny that SETH ROLLINS is questioning loyalty. A mock Shield pose takes us out.

Shinsuke Nakamura (Smackdown) vs. Roderick Strong (NXT) vs. AJ Styles (Raw)

Battle of the midcard champions and Sami Zayn is in Nakamura’s corner. Nakamura strikes away at both of them to start but AJ gets them into the corners for some running elbows. Strong’s backbreaker gets him out of trouble but AJ knocks him to the floor and hits a shot to the face. Back in and Nakamura breaks up AJ’s springboard and kicks Strong to the floor for a bonus. A knee gets two on Styles and there’s the running knee in the corner.

The gutbuster fireman’s carry gives Strong two on Nakamura but AJ comes back in with a sleeper to give Nakamura a breather. Strong fights back up and runs them both over a few times, including the alternating running forearms to AJ in the ropes. AJ fights up and gets in a few shots, only to be monkey flipped into a shot to the face from Nakamura. A slugout puts Strong down in a hurry and Nakamura hits the sliding knee for two.

The Styles Clash to Nakamura is broken up and Sami pulls Nakamura outside for a break. Strong unloads on Styles in the corner but gets caught in an Electric Chair, with Nakamura coming in off the top with a kick to the chest. AJ breaks that up as well but Sami pulls him outside, leaving Strong to hit a jumping knee for two on Nakamura. Back in and AJ cuts off Kinshasa, setting up the circle of strikes to the face.

Nakamura drops AJ and hits a reverse exploder on Strong (whose knee got very close to AJ’s face), setting up Kinshasa….for two as AJ makes another save. AJ and Nakamura slug it out so Nigel can talk about their Japanese rivalry. The Landslide gets two on AJ but Kinshasa is countered with a shot to the face. AJ hits the Phenomenal Forearm but Strong comes in to get rid of AJ and steal the pin at 16:43.

Rating: B. This was the action packed match that you would have expected and the cool thing is that it made Strong look like he was on their level. Strong isn’t someone who has been proven on the big stage before and seeing him win here, especially by outsmarting the other two, is great to see. Again: it’s not like Nakamura or Styles are going to be hurt by the loss, especially to another champion. Throw in the fast paced action and having commentary boosting it that much more than this was a great time.

NXT – 3

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

Miz comes up to Daniel Bryan in the back and says they’re both family men. That’s why Miz wants Bryan to stop the Fiend once and for all, because he is an evil that must be stopped. Bryan doesn’t want to hear it from Miz.

NXT Title: Adam Cole vs. Pete Dunne

Cole is defending, but the interesting thing here is the lack of Mauro Ranallo, who apparently blew his voice out last night at Takeover. This would be code for “did not like Corey Graves calling him out for making too many Chicago rap music references and not letting Phoenix and McGuinness talk enough. He would be gone for a little while before returning, but it was clear that something wasn’t quite right. Cole has bad ribs and Dunne has a bad knee coming in.

The wristlocking doesn’t work well on Cole as Dunne flips out before going straight after the bad ribs. Dunne starts in on the hand before taking it outside to stomp the elbow in the steps. Back in and Cole kicks him down to stomp away before a dropkick cuts off Dunne’s knee. Dunne grabs the X Plex for a breather and Cole lands hard on the ribs again. There’s an enziguri into the corner to set up a release German suplex.

A sitout powerbomb gets two on Cole and he heads outside, with Dunne hitting a middle rope moonsault to the floor. Back in and Dunne’s moonsault hits knees, setting up the Last Shot to give Cole two. The Panama Sunrise misses so they take turns hitting each other in the face. The brainbuster onto the knee gives Cole two but another Last Shot misses and Dunne grabs the Bitter End for a close two. They slug it out again and Dunne unloads with chops but Cole superkicks his moonsault out of the air.

That’s good for two as well, as is Dunne’s sitout X Plex. They fight to the apron (because of course they do) and Cole busts out the Panama Sunrise to put them both down on the floor. Back in and Cole kicks him in the head and the kickout has Cole panicking. Dunne talks trash as they get up and snaps the finger but the Bitter End is countered into a Panama Sunrise (that looked great). The Last Shot retains the title at 14:09.

Rating: B+. Now that’s what you were hoping to see from these two and it was an awesome match throughout. Dunne is an absolute star and Cole looks like someone who should be the future whenever he is in the ring. This is one of those matches that makes you drool when you hear it announced and then they delivered on top of it. Great stuff here and worth seeing for that NXT style that works so well.

Team Smackdown argues over who should be the captain.

We recap the Fiend taking the Smackdown World Title from Seth Rollins at Crown Jewel. Then Miz questioned if Daniel Bryan was the same person he used to be, which got the Fiend involved as well. Bryan finally said YES again and that’s just what Fiend wanted as Bryan brought back the YES Movement.

Smackdown World Title: The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan

Fiend is defending and there is something so creepy about watching him in person. The red lights are on and Bryan hits the running dropkick into the corner. A running clothesline cuts him off though and they head outside with Bryan being sent into the post. Back in and Fiend hits the release Rock Bottom and there’s the toss suplex to drop Bryan again. We hit the neck crank as Fiend laughs a lot.

They head outside again with Bryan hitting a running knee from the apron. A top rope dive takes Fiend down again and there’s a missile dropkick back inside. Bryan nips up and the YES chants set up the YES Kicks. The big kick to the head just makes Fiend laugh but another one keeps him down for a change. The running knee connects for two but Fiend grabs the Mandible Claw. Bryan manages to reverse into an armbar but another Mandible Claw finishes Bryan at 10:01.

Rating: C+. The point here was to have Fiend get over as a monster in his first title defense and that’s what he did. They made Fiend feel like a movie monster and that’s the kind of thing you want to do in this situation. Bryan not being able to win, even with the most successful stuff he has, is a good way to go and it told they story they wanted. Fiend is an unstoppable monster and that’s how it should be.

Rey Mysterio says it has been fifteen years since he first faced Brock Lesnar. A few months ago, he was ready to hang up his mask but his son Dominik made him keep going. Tonight, Rey is swinging his lead pipe for Lesnar’s knees and hopes his son is watching when he becomes WWE Champion.

Raw Men vs. Smackdown Men vs. NXT Men

Raw: Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Kevin Owens, Randy Orton

Smackdown: Roman Reigns, King Corbin, Mustafa Ali, Shorty G., Braun Strowman

NXT: Tommaso Ciampa, Walter, Keith Lee, Damian Priest, Matt Riddle

The NXT team was announced on the Kickoff Show again. The fans are way into Walter, more or less sealing his fate. Strowman, Ciampa and Rollins start things off and Strowman dropkicks both of them down. Walter and McIntyre come in and Walter is all over a three way battle of the big men. The double teaming works on Strowman this time before slugging it out themselves. A big boot into the running seated senton hits McIntyre and there’s a German suplex to drop him again.

Walter chops Strowman to make him mad, tells him to bring it, and hits a dropkick into the corner. McIntyre hits the Claymore to finish Walter at 2:59 and the fans are MAD, as they should be in that spot. Priest comes in to strike away at McIntyre and Strowman. Shorty comes in to moonsault Priest and it’s Ricochet coming in as well. That earns him a Chaos Theory from Shorty and it’s off to Riddle for the grapple off. Both ankle locks miss and neither can hit a spinning kick so we’ll go with the standoff. Ciampa comes in so Ricochet kicks both he and Shorty down at once. Owens frog splashes Shorty for the pin at 6:27.

Reigns and Corbin both come in with Corbin hitting him in the face like the horrible teammate that he is. Owens heads outside to superkick Corbin and hit the Cannonball on Reigns against the barricade. Back in and….Ciampa grabs Willow’s Bell to get rid of Owens at 7:42. Orton slides in behind Ciampa and the fans really like this one. The RKO is blocked and Ciampa clotheslines him outside but Willow’s Bell is blocked as well. Orton drops him onto the apron and it’s time for the circle stomp back inside. Priest gets a blind tag as Orton RKOs Ciampa, so it’s an RKO to get rid of Priest at 10:16.

Riddle comes in and rolls Orton up for the fast pin at 10:30. Riddle is SHOCKED at the win….until Orton hits him with an RKO so Corbin can steal the pin at 10:56. We’re down to Rollins/McIntyre/Ricochet for Raw, Reigns/Corbin/Ali/Strowman for Smackdown and Ciampa/Lee for NXT. Lee comes in to face Corbin but Strowman tags himself in as the fans are recommending that we BASK IN HIS GLORY.

Strowman runs Lee over and starts cleaning house, including the freight train around the ring. He does it again but this time Lee Pounces him, followed by a Claymore from McIntyre for the countout at 13:14. Ricochet comes in to kick Corbin down and the big flip dive drops Reigns on the floor. That just earns him the End of Days from Corbin for the pin at 14:30. Ali, the hometown boy, comes in to clean house and soak in some cheers. The wicked tornado DDT plants Rollins and Ali hits a suicide dive…but Corbin yells at him, allowing Rollins to hit the Stomp on Ali for the elimination at 16:10.

Reigns and Corbin get into it on the floor as a quick CM PUNK chant starts and stops just as fast. Back in and McIntyre hits the reverse Alabama Slam on Ciampa. Reigns spears McIntyre down for the pin at 17:39 though, leaving us with Rollins vs. Reigns/Corbin vs. Ciampa/Lee. Rollins rolls Reigns up for two but gets kicked in the face. Willow’s Bell drops Reigns but the Fairy Tale Ending is blocked. Corbin cuts off Lee and drags Reigns over for the tag, only to have Reigns spear Corbin. Ciampa will take that pin at 19:54 and Smackdown is down to Reigns.

Rollins and Reigns go after Ciampa, who is fine with these odds. Rollins throws Ciampa outside though…and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table. Lee breaks up the DoubleBomb though and Ciampa hits Project Ciampa for a close two on Rollins back inside. The Fairy Tale Ending is countered so Ciampa hits a running knee, only to eat the Superman Punch from Reigns. The Stomp gets rid of Ciampa at 24:01 and we’re down to one man each.

Lee comes back in to throw Rollins around and he crossbodies both of them at the same time. Rollins is back with an enziguri into a low superkick and the frog splash gets two, with Lee LAUNCHING him off the kickout. Rollins is all fired up but walks into the Big Bang Catastrophe to give Lee the pin and get rid of Raw at 26:36. Lee smiles down at Reigns, who hits back to back Superman Punches for a VERY close two. The spear is countered into the Spirit Bomb for a nearer fall but the moonsault misses. Reigns hits the spear for the final pin at 29:18.

Rating: A-. I came to Survivor Series wanting to see one of the classic elimination matches and that’s what I got here, with one elimination after another and some crazy drama near the end. Lee looked like a STAR here and pinning Rollins clean is as big of a moment as he was going to get. There is no shame in being pinned by Reigns and what we got here was great stuff. I loved this match, save for the way Walter was put out, and it’s all I could have asked for.

NXT – 3

Smackdown – 2

NXT – 1

Becky Lynch is ready for Shayna Baszler and there is no one who can keep her down tonight. She has been traveling the world and every day out means one day out of the gym. Becky sees something of herself in Bayley, so tonight she is going to show both of them what she is.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Rey Mysterio for Brock’s Raw World Title. Brock came after Rey and his family so Rey brought in Cain Velasquez. That didn’t go so well as Brock destroyed him, leaving no one to protect Rey. That’s why Rey grabbed a lead pipe and started swinging, setting up this No Holds Barred title match.

Raw World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Rey Mysterio

Lesnar, with Paul Heyman, is defending and it’s No Holds Barred. Rey is the Joker here for no apparent reason. Heyman says Lesnar weighs about two and a half Rey Mysterios. Rey grabs a pipe to start so Lesnar drops to the floor. He comes right back in though and blasts Rey with a clothesline. Rey is thrown over the announcers’ table and an overhead belly to belly sends him into the announcers’ table covering.

Brock posts him but Rey does the same to him, meaning it’s pipe time. Back in and Brock suplexes him onto the pipe and then adds another suplex. Cue Dominik to try to throw in the towel but Rey uses the distraction to hit a low blow. Some pipe shots from Rey and a chair shot from Dominik set up stereo 619s. Back to back frog splashes into a double cover gets two on Lesnar, who is back up with a suplex on Dominik. The F5 retains the title at 6:53.

Rating: C+. The whole point here was that one moment of drama and it worked a lot better than I was expecting. I don’t think anyone was realistically expecting Rey to win here but they managed to get in that little bit of drama and that was a great surprise. Lesnar was running out of opponents so having him wreck Mysterio was as good of a move as they had here, with Rey knowing how to sell this perfectly.

We recap the Women’s Champions triple threat. Becky Lynch said being the champ was all that mattered but Shayna Baszler just wanted to snap a limb. Bayley wanted to know why she was an afterthought and now it’s match time.

Bayley (Smackdown) vs. Becky Lynch (Raw) vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT)

Non-title again. They stare each other down to start and Bayley shoves Baszler into Becky. The brawling continues to the floor so Becky dives onto both of them. Back in and Bayley avoids the running spinning legdrop but Becky kicks her in the head. Baszler is back in as well and starts cleaning house until Bayley knocks her outside. Bayley stomps on Becky but charges into an elbow in the corner. With Baszler being dropped to the floor again, Bayley drops onto Becky’s back for two.

All three are back in with Becky kicking Baszler down and starting the Bexploders. A DDT gets two on Bayley and the top rope legdrop is good for the same with Baszler making the save. Becky gets sent outside so Bayley can hit a running knee for two on Baszler. Back up and Baszler sends Bayley outside, meaning it’s time for the big showdown with Becky. Bayley crossbodies both of them at once though and Becky is back outside. Bayley has to elbow her way out of a gutwrench superkicks but Becky breaks up the Kirifuda Clutch.

A powerbomb out of the corner gives Becky two on Baszler, who knocks Bayley off the apron. That means the Disarm-Her on Baszler but Bayley makes a save. They all head outside again with Becky tweaking her knee, allowing Baszler to drop her onto the announcers’ table. Becky gets dropped onto the table again but Bayley runs Baszler over. Back in and Bayley hits the top rope elbow, only to get pulled into the Kirifuda Clutch for the tap at 18:05.

Rating: C. Another viewing helped this a lot but it was longer than it needed to be and the action was only so good. Bayley was obviously there to take the fall and there is nothing wrong with that. If nothing else this should set up Becky vs. Baszler in a mega showdown later as Becky is unstoppable and Becky looks that way. Not overly great, but it did its job, albeit in the very long form.

Final Standings:

NXT – 4

Smackdown – 2

Raw – 1

Overall Rating: B+. The two last matches drag this down a bit but otherwise it’s a heck of a show with nothing bad and some good drama/shock as NXT runs away with things. What matters most here is they took some chances (some good some bad) and gave us a special moment with NXT. The wrestling was good throughout and it felt like the Survivor Series I had wanted to see for such a long time. Awesome show here and proof of what NXT can offer when they get the chance (and win the trophy).

Ratings Comparison

Tag Team Battle Royal:

Original: D

Redo: D+

Lio Rush vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Kalisto

Original: C+

Redo: C

New Day vs. Viking Raiders vs. Undisputed Era

Original: B

Redo: B

Raw Women vs. Smackdown Women vs. NXT Women

Original: B-

Redo: B-

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Roderick Strong vs. AJ Styles

Original: B

Redo: B

Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole

Original: A-

Redo: B+

The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: B

Redo: C+

Raw Men vs. Smackdown Men vs. NXT Men

Original: B+

Redo: A-

Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: C+

Redo: C+

Bayley vs. Shayna Baszler vs. Becky Lynch

Original: D+

Redo: C

Overall Rating:

Original: B+

Redo: B+

Other than the main event, the memories seem strong with this one.

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

https://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/12/01/survivor-series-2019-they-really-did-that/

 

 

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

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

AND

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 29, 2024
Location: Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, Minnesota
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s the last Raw before Summerslam and that means it is probably time to firm everything up before the show. While there is a chance that we could see another match or two added, this week is probably going to be focused on things already set up. In particular, Seth Rollins will give the official referee instructions to CM Punk and Drew McIntyre. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Seth Rollins in his referee gear (even his boots have stripes) for the official instructions to CM Punk and Drew McIntyre (“these two morons”). Punk and McIntyre come out and, according to Adam Pearce, any physical contact means the match is off. That makes Punk head to the floor, because he doesn’t trust himself. Rollins tells him to get back in the ring so Punk says enjoy being able to lord his authority over him while he can. McIntyre likes this but Rollins says he hates both of them.

The only rule is that he runs everything. Countouts will go as long as he wants and DQ’s are at his discretion. Punk hopes Rollins referees better than he dressed, but he doesn’t want Rollins’ help at all. McIntyre says he hates everything about Punk and Rollins is going to have to stop it because McIntyre will never want to stop hurting Punk. And it’s in a stadium so he’ll get paid a fortune to do something he would do for free!

Punk talks about how the fans chanted his name while he was gone for ten years. The best thing McIntyre did was hurt Punk but the worst thing he ever did was hurt Punk because he keeps dumbing himself out of position. Punk isn’t as big or strong as McIntyre but he has heart, which will be on display at Summerslam. They to face to face and McIntyre even has the bracelet to keep it personal. This was the big final push to the match, but I do like the explanation for why it is going to be more physical without officially making it a street fight or something.

Liv Morgan has wrecked the Judgment Day clubhouse. Rhea Ripley wants them to focus…but why is Carlito still here? Post break, the team regroups and Carlito is going to take care of Sami Zayn.

Creed Brothers vs. Akira Tozawa/Otis

Chad Gable and Maxxine Dupri are here too and we actually hear about the Creeds appearing in Bloodsport over the weekend. Otis fights out of the corner to start and it’s off to Tozawa for a kick to Brutus’ head. A suicide dive drops Brutus but he gets in his own clothesline as we take a break. Back with Otis sending Julius into the corner and hitting a World’s Strongest Slam. The Caterpillar connects but Gable’s distraction lets the Creeds hit a double belly to back suplex for the win at 7:45.

Rating: C. So Otis is getting more and more popular after splitting from Gable and he is getting a strong reaction here but takes the fall anyway. I’m not sure why you would do that when you have Tozawa right there, but he was basically gone for the second half of the match anyway. Granted it doesn’t really matter when the Wyatts are going to be the bigger story, but Otis didn’t need to take the loss.

Post match the beatdown is on but Maxxine Dupri slaps Gable. Dupri hides in the corner but we’ve got Wyatts. The team shows up and, after taking off the masks, clear out the Creeds. Gable runs as well but has to avoid Uncle Howdy in the entrance.

Carlito has dealt with Sami Zayn…by getting him a match with Dominik Mysterio. Rhea Ripley says that means Carlito can deal with Jey Uso, on his own.

Sheamus vs. Bronson Reed

They slug it out to start with Sheamus knocking him to the floor and hitting a top rope clothesline. Reed knocks him over the announcers’ table though and we take a break. Back with Sheamus hitting a bunch of standing clotheslines until a running knee gets two. Reed’s Death Valley Driver gets the same so he goes up, only to get pulled down with a super White Noise. Sheamus hits the 16 forearms to the chest but cue Pete Dunne with a shillelagh to knock Sheamus silly. The Tsunami gives Reed the pin at 9:57.

Rating: B-. That’s a good way to go with Reed finally getting a nice win. That has been missing from his resume for the last few weeks and even though it came with an assist, it’s better than taking another loss. As for the match itself, they had the kind of hoss fight that you would expect them to have and that always works. Good match here.

Damian Priest talks about having to earn everything he has while Gunther was given everything he wanted. Priest fought for everything he got and now he’s willing to fight for everything he has. This was a much more traditional “talk to the camera” promo and it worked well for Priest as they’ve turned this into a match I want to see.

Bron Breakker respects Sami Zayn but now he’s seeing Zayn as a stand up comic. Zayn is already preparing for a life after WWE and after losing to Breakker. That’s why the joke is on Zayn and the Intercontinental Title is on Breakker.

Jey Uso vs. Carlito

Uso wastes no time in knocking him down for an early two and Carlito is sent outside for an early dive. A missed charge goes into the post though and Carlito grabs a neckbreaker as we take a break. Back with Carlito missing a charge into the corner, allowing Uso to hit the jumping enziguri. Uso knocks him down again and hits the spear for the pin at 7:47.

Rating: C. Not much to this one as Carlito is only going to be so much of a threat to any bigger names. It gave Uso a win to keep up his battle against Judgment Day, though I’m not sure how that is supposed to go anywhere. It’s also almost nice to see the match end without any shenanigans, as sometimes you just need a clean win.

Zelina Vega is glad Shayna Baszler, Zoey Stark and Sonya Deville attacked her as it served as a wakeup call. Then the three of them jump her again.

Miz announces that he will be the host of Summerslam, which is in his hometown of Cleveland. R-Truth comes in to think that Miz is hosting the show at his own house. An hors d’oeuvre discussion ensues.

We look at the recent Japan tour.

Xavier Woods vs. Karrion Kross

Woods is on his own while Kross has the rest of the Final Testament. Hold on though as Kross says that it’s interesting that Kofi Kingston “re-injured his shoulder” during the Japan tour when the spotlight is on Woods for the first time. He wants Woods to join the team right now and admit that the Power Of Positivity was a lie. Woods hits him in the face to start fast instead and we take an early break.

Back with Woods fighting out of a chinlock but getting knocked back down for two. Woods fights up but gets punched in the face by Rezar. The Final Prayer is broken up and Woods hits a superkick, only to go after the AOP. The Limit Breaker misses as a result and Kross hits the Final Prayer for the win at 6:23. Not enough shown to rate but they got a good deal in.

Jesse Ventura was backstage earlier today and met with HHH. That’s just great to see.

Sami Zayn did a comedy show the night before Money In The Bank and he beat Bron Breakker anyway. He’ll just do it again at Summerslam, but this time it’s about taking Breakker out rather than teaching a lesson.

Liv Morgan burns a bunch of Dominik Mysterio stuff and promises to complete the revenge tour at Summerslam.

Sami Zayn vs. Dominik Mysterio

Non-title. Dominik hammers away to start but Zayn punches his way out of the corner. They head outside where Zayn hits the Arabian moonsault as we take an early break. Back with Zayn fighting out of a chinlock and hitting a clothesline. Dominik’s Three Amigos connect but the frog splash misses. Zayn exploders him into the corner but cue JD McDonagh and Carlito for a distraction and then the DQ at 8:15.

Rating: C+. The DQ was the right way to go here as you can’t have the champion take a fall before he’s coming up on an unrelated title match. At the same time, you don’t want to have Dominik look weak before he’s going to be a centerpiece of a title match of his own on Saturday. The match was just a bit better than ok, but they didn’t have the time to really go anywhere.

Post match the beatdown is on when Jey Uso makes the save. Cue Bron Breakker to go after Zayn, who suplexes him into the corner. Breakker bails before the Helluva Kick can connect.

We get another Wyatt Sicks interview, this time focusing on Dexter Lumis, who says people should run when the buzzards stop circling.

Chad Gable and the Creeds get a match against the Wyatt Sicks next week.

Lyra Valkyria/Kayden Carter/Katana Chance vs. Shayna Baszler/Zoey Stark/Sonya Deville

Valkyria and Deville start things off with Valkyria slipping between the legs and hammering away. Stark comes in and gets taken down into a wristlock. The villains are sent outside and we take a break. Back with Valkyria getting stomped down in the corner but managing to get over for the tag off to Carter. Everything breaks down and Valkyria hits a gutwrench powerbomb, only to have the After Party broken up. Stark gives Carter the Z360 for the pin at 8:35.

Rating: C. This went as it should have, with Valkyria not taking the fall as the villains get a nice boost. The team is starting to get a little somewhere and hopefully they get the chance to change the division up a bit. I’m not sure where that’s going since none of them are going to go after Liv Morgan or Rhea Ripley, but at least Valkyria didn’t take the fall.

Post match Damage CTRL comes in to beat up the villains. Oh yeah. That’s who they could fight.

Gunther talks about how Damian Priest is a weird man who is using his childhood trauma as an excuse. Tonight, Gunther is facing Finn Balor and wants to see if there is any of the great wrestler left in there.

Damage CTRL says they’re back, with Dakota Kai wanting Shayna Baszler next week.

Judgment Day gives Finn Balor a pep talk.

Gunther vs. Finn Balor

Somehow this is their first singles match. Balor tries to chop away but Gunther shows him how it’s done. The powerbomb is blocked so Balor stomps away, only to get booted in the face. We take a break and come back with Gunther’s belly to back suplex getting two. The Boston crab goes on, with Balor reaching over to make the rope.

Gunther chops him again and tries a belly to back superplex, only to be reversed into a crossbody. Balor’s Sling Blade is countered into a choke but he reverses the powerbomb into a DDT. They chop it out and now the Sling Blade can connect for Balor. The Coup de Grace misses though and Gunther is back with the sleeper. Now the powerbomb can connect for two and the sleeper goes on again…and Balor is out at 12:06.

Rating: B-. This felt like a big time match but the ending was a bit of a surprise. You don’t often see someone win a match with a sleeper, but it does continue Gunther’s trend of finishing with whatever is appropriate at the time. Balor put up a fight before falling here, which makes Gunther look strong on the way to Cleveland.

Post match Gunther goes after Balor again but Damian Priest runs in for the brawl. Gunther gets knocked to the floor and over the barricade to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a tricky show as they didn’t add much of anything new to Summerslam and the wrestling here was only so good. The Priest/Gunther stuff was good and the midcard feuds got some attention, but this was another show that you could have skipped without missing much. Summerslam is what matters, but there was only so much of interest here.

Results
Creed Brothers b. Akira Tozawa/Otis – Double belly to back suplex
Bronson Reed b. Sheamus – Tsunami
Jey Uso b. Carlito – Spear
Karrion Kross b. Xavier Woods – Final Testament
Sami Zayn b. Dominik Mysterio via DQ when Carlito and JD McDonagh interfered
Shayna Baszler/Zoey Stark/Sonya Deville b. Lyra Valkyria/Kayden Carter/Katana Chance – Z360 to Chance
Gunther b. Finn Balor – Sleeper

 

 

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

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

AND

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

 

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 22, 2024
Location: Resch Center, Green Bay, Wisconsin
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We are less than two weeks away from Summerslam and if the card isn’t set, you can see a lot of the matches coming together. We might get something big this week as CM Punk is back and might get to make an announcement involving his future. Other than that, Rhea Ripley is wanting to get her hands on Liv Morgan so let’s get to it.

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

Commentary runs down what we’ll be seeing.

Here is Gunther to get things going and the fans are NOT happy to see him. He took some time to think about what he said to Damian Priest last week and….he meant that every single person here is a bum! Why is he out here first rather than Priest? It’s because Priest isn’t up to this level. There is a saying in German: show me your friends and I’ll show you who you are.

Gunther judges Judgment Day as street trash so Priest has one more chance to come out here and give Gunther the title. Cue Priest who hits Gunther in the face to start the brawl. Security comes in and as usual, are completely ineffective at their jobs. They’re turning this into a grudge match and that is a smart way to go as I want to see these two fight.

Post break and Priest jumps Gunther again backstage with Priest getting the better of things before it is broken up.

Ilja Dragunov vs. Bron Breakker

For the Intercontinental Title shot at Summerslam. Breakker starts fast and knocks him outside but Dragunov scores with a running knee back inside. They head to the apron to slug it out and fight over a suplex until Dragunov is dropped ribs first onto the top of the post for a nasty crash.

We take a break and come back with Breakker holding a bearhug to stay on the ribs. A gutbuster gives Breakker two but Dragunov reverses a powerbomb into a DDT for a breather. Dragunov hits a running knee to the ribs in the corner and manages a powerbomb. With Dragunov up top, Breakker jumps up and snaps off the super Frankensteiner….a name which Cole thinks McAfee invented on the spot.

Breakker goes up but gets superplexed down, setting up the H Bomb to leave him down. They go to the apron where Breakker hits a Death Valley Driver to really rock Breakker. Not that it matters as Breakker spears him out of the air, sending Dragunov head first into the apron. That’s enough for the referee to call it for Breakker at 13:07.

Rating: B. I liked the ending a lot here as it made Breakker look like a killer without having Dragunov take another pin. It’s hard to imagine that Breakker doesn’t get the title at Summerslam, as there is little to no reason to not change it over at this point. Dragunov very well may be waiting in the rings for Breakker, but for now we have the Summerslam title match set, as we should.

Rhea Ripley gives Judgment Day a pep talk but Dominik Mysterio isn’t sure why she said yeet to Jey Uso. She’s just playing around, but Finn Balor wants Dominik to take care of Uso.

Adam Pearce and Drew McIntyre shake hands.

Damian Priest and Gunther have been ejected.

Lyra Valkyria vs. Sonya Deville

Katana Chance, Kayden Carter, Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark are here too. Deville takes her down to start but Valkyria is back up with some shoulders in the corner. Valkyria is sent outside but seems to have hurt her ribs as we take a break. Back with Valkyria striking away and getting two off a bridging suplex. A gutwrench powerbomb gets two and it’s time for everyone to brawl on the floor. The distraction lets Deville hit the Deville’s Advocate for the pin at 8:06.

Rating: C. I’m starting to get worried about Valkyria as she came in feeling special but is turning into just another member of the pack. She’s far from a lost cause, but putting her with a team who doesn’t have the best success rate isn’t helping. Hopefully she can turn it around because she feels like a rather strong prospect.

This week’s Wyatt Sicks video is about Nikki Cross, with Uncle Howdy telling her to look at herself, earning a loud scream.

Here is CM Punk for a chat. Punk says we’re in Green Bay and his shoes are pink so let’s turn both of them red with the blood of a Scotsman. The reality is he is medically cleared so let’s do this right now. Punk tapes up his fists and here is McIntyre who says he doesn’t want to. Punk: “Well I do.”

Security cuts it off so McIntyre holds up Punk’s bracelet. Cue Adam Pearce to say the match is on for Summerslam but they can’t fight until then, and if they do, the match is off. Pearce says he has a referee problem….so here is Seth Rollins, who shakes Pearce’s hand. Rollins says he’s here to solve the problem because he is going to be the guest referee between these two at Summerslam. That is a great way to go, as Punk vs. McIntyre has been the hottest feud for a good while. I don’t know if they need Rollins there at first, but I’ll absolutely take this over another triple threat.

Judgment Day is off to find Jey Uso when Liv Morgan flags Dominik Mysterio down. She says don’t worry about Rhea Ripley and here is Finn Balor to say he can’t leave Dominik alone for ten seconds.

Sami Zayn is taking Bron Breakker seriously but tells him to not make the same mistake at Money In The Bank. As he’s talking, he sees Judgment Day jumping Jey Uso and runs over for the save.

Otis/Xavier Woods/Akira Tozawa vs. Final Testament

Maxxine Dupri and the rest of the team are here too. Woods chops away at Rezar in the corner to start but gets dropped with the straight power. Akam comes in and gets kicked to the floor by Tozawa, who hits a suicide dive as we take a break. Back with Akam elbowing Tozawa in the face for two and it’s off to Kross, who launches him with a release F5. Tozawa manages to roll away though and it’s off to Otis to clean house, including the Caterpillar to Akam. Everything breaks down and Woods comes in with a missile dropkick, only to get caught in Kross’ Final Prayer for the pin at 8:36.

Rating: C+. The fans went coconuts for Otis but this whole Final Testament vs. Woods thing wasn’t interesting when Kofi Kingston was around and this isn’t making it much better. The Testament just isn’t interesting and giving them wins like this isn’t doing much good. I’m not sure what else there is for them to do, and that’s not a good sign for anyone.

Post match here are Chad Gable and the Creed Brothers for a chat. Post break the three of them are in the ring with the former Alpha Academy, who have already lost their first match back together without Gable. He gives them a chance to join the team for one night only, which could also keep them safe from the Wyatt Sicks. Otis turns them down again so the Creeds lay out Otis and Tozawa. The Creeds post Otis and send him into the apron….and we’ve got Wyatts. They pop up on the stage, save for Uncle Howdy, who hits Sister Abigail on Gable in the ring.

Pete Dunne vs. Bronson Reed

And never mind as Sheamus runs in and beats them both up. No match.

Rhea Ripley yells at Judgment Day for not taking care of Jey Uso. A tag match is on for tonight and next week it’s Gunther vs. Finn Balor. Ripley doesn’t like hearing that Liv Morgan was around Dominik Mysterio though so they’re going to the ring.

Sheamus is happy to have a pint with Pete Dunne and talk out whatever is going on, or they can deal with it in the ring if he’d prefer a banger.

Rhea Ripley drags Dominik Mysterio to the ring and says if Liv Morgan wants him, come get him. Morgan pops up in the crowd to say she can wait for Summerslam. Morgan says she and Dominik have feelings for each other but the reality is men like Dominik don’t wind up with women who look like Ripley. Dominik holds Ripley back and yells at Morgan that he can’t stand her because she ruined his life. Ripley licks his face in approval.

We look at the Damian Priest vs. Gunther brawl again.

Here is Zelina Vega, with her arm taped up, for a chat before her match. She is tired of being underestimated so it’s time to shut people up.

Happy Birthday Shawn Michaels.

Zelina Vega vs. Zoey Stark

Sonya Deville and Shayna Baszler are here too. Vega slugs away to start but Stark goes after the bad arm to cut that off in a hurry. A spinning elbow gets Vega out of trouble for a second but Stark snaps the bad arm over the rope. We take a break and come back with Stark hitting a springboard missile dropkick for two. The armbar is broken up in a hurry though and Vega enziguris her into a DDT. A moonsault gives Vega two but Baszler trips her up. Cue Lyra Valkyria/Katana Chance/Kayden Carter to brawl with the villains, allowing Vega to get in a cast shot. Code Red finishes Stark at 8:48.

Rating: C. Nothing much to this one as the new evil gets knocked back a bit. I can go for more of Vega, as she has an energy to her matches that make you want to see her out there more. That isn’t something you get very often and it worked well enough here, evil with her being banged up.

Xavier Woods demands and receives a match against Karrion Kross next week. Drew McIntyre comes in to complain about CM Punk but Adam Pearce doesn’t have time for it.

Isla Dawn and Alba Fyre are going to be on Smackdown to address their next challengers. Sonya Deville and company come in to say they’ll be the next challengers, but the champs aren’t convinced.

Video on Gunther.

Judgment Day vs. Jey Uso/Sami Zayn

Non-title, Dominik Mysterio and Carlito are here too and Uso/Zayn come in though the crowd. Uso knocks Balor into the corner to start and snaps off a jumping enziguri. Zayn comes in and gets taken into the corner, where McDonagh sends him face first into the buckle. Back up and Zayn sends both of them outside for the Arabian Moonsault but Carlito gets in a posting as we take a break.

We come back with Balor stomping on Zayn in the corner so McDonagh can get two. Balor’s elbow to the head gets two but Zayn manages a Blue Thunder Bomb. Uso comes in and gets to clean house, only to get dropped with a Sling Blade. McDonagh drops a springboard moonsault for two but Balor gets superkicked out of the apron for a needed breather.

The double tag brings in Zayn to suplex McDonagh into the corner. Mysterio’s distraction lets McDonagh grab a Spanish Fly for two as the fans find this awesome. Everything breaks down and Balor is sent outside for a dive. The Helluva Kick into the Superfly Splash finishes McDonagh at 16:20.

Rating: B. They weren’t wrong about the awesome part as this turned into a pretty awesome match. In theory this should set up a rematch for the titles, though if Balor is facing Gunther next week, it might take some time to get there. I’m not sure I get why the champions had to lose at this point, but maybe they can get a title match in somehow before Summerslam so that won’t be a distraction.

Bron Breakker runs in to spear Zayn in half to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This show had good action and did some solid work on the way to Summerslam. You had two matches officially set up and some important development for things already in place. The Gunther/Priest brawl was a hot opener and Ripley/Morgan/Dominik is still a blast. I had a really good time with this show, which took them a lot closer to a great Summerslam.

Results
Bron Breakker b. Ilja Dragunov via referee stoppage
Sonya Deville b. Lyra Valkyria – Deville’s Advocate
Final Testament b. Xavier Woods/Otis/Akira Tozawa – Final Prayer to Woods
Zelina Vega b. Zoey Stark – Code Red
Jey Uso/Sami Zayn b. Judgment Day – Superfly Splash to McDonagh

 

 

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

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

AND

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

 

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 13, 2024
Location: Bon Secours Wellness Center, Greenville, South Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

The tournaments continue as we are less than two weeks away from King And Queen Of The Ring in Saudi Arabia. That should make for a big night as the matches are starting to get interesting. Other than that, we could use some more matches on the card, which is only starting to come together. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Drew McIntyre to get things going. The fans chant for CM Punk but McIntyre talks about how Punk only makes the big town. The greatest trick that Punk ever pulled was looking like a drug addict despite never taking any drugs. Punk keeps messing with the fans but they keep taking him back. McIntyre is going to get his hands on him one day and he’ll beat Punk so bad that Punk will wish he had a torn tricep.

In other news Jey Uso lost another match so McIntyre will deal with him later. For now, McIntyre wants the World Heavyweight Championship and here is Damian Priest to interrupt. Priest says if McIntyre has something to say, say it to his face. McIntyre praises Priest for his success, but he doesn’t deserve to be champion. The title has made the man but now the title needs McIntyre to make it. Priest calls McIntyre delusional and accuses him of blaming everyone for his troubles.

The reality is Priest wanted to cash in on Seth Rollins and then they could have gone at it at Wrestlemania. But who stopped Priest from cashing in so many times? McIntyre! All he had to do was have his moment at Wrestlemania, take his wife by the hand, and then go about his business. Instead, he got beaten up by a guy with one arm. If McIntyre wants a title shot he can have one, but he better be ready to eat his words. That’s a match that needs to happen and this exchange was a good way to get us there. If nothing else, it’s weird seeing someone stand eye to eye with McIntyre.

We look back at last week’s first round of the Queen Of The Ring.

Earlier today, Shayna Baszler and Iyo Sky yelled at each other in the parking lot.

Queen Of The Ring Quarterfinals: Iyo Sky vs. Shayna Baszler

Damage CTRL and Zoey Stark are here too and Baszler gets in a cheap shot before the bell. We take a break and come back joined in progress with Sky missing a charge out to the floor. Commentary talks about these two fighting in Stardom and NXT but stop to notice the weird graphic popping up on screen again. Baszler sends her into the apron and wraps the arm around the structure underneath the ring skirt. Back in and Sky grabs a running hurricanrana before they go up top. Baszler’s leg gets tied in the corner so Sky sends her to the floor for the big springboard moonsault.

We take a break and come back with Sky snapping the leg over the middle rope, setting up some running knees to the back for two. A kick to the head sets up a very bridging rollup for two but Baszler pulls her into the Kirifuda Clutch. That’s reversed as well so Baszler hits a running knee to the head for two. Another knee is countered with a dragon screw legwhip and Over The Moonsault finishes for Sky at 10:38.

Rating: B-. I would have loved to see more of this one as they were starting to cook near the end. It’s no surprise that they have good chemistry together given their history as they’re both talented and know each other well. At the same time, it would be nice to see Baszler actually win something important on her own, though I’m not sure I can imagine it actually happening.

Post match Sky says something in Japanese.

Damian Priest comes into the Judgment Day’s clubhouse, with Carlito around again. Carlito thinks the team could use some help with all of their injuries. Priest is fine with him helping the boys, but not him. Carlito: “You don’t trust me?” Priest: “Nope.”

Chad Gable doesn’t like what the Alpha Academy has been doing lately but Otis has a chance to redeem himself against Sami Zayn. Akira Tozawa is facing Bronson Reed, but Gable DOES NOT want to see that dance. The men leave and Ivy Nile comes in to ask why Maxxine Dupri didn’t ask for help in training for the Queen Of The Ring (Perhaps that Dupri had only a few hours’ notice that she was competing?). Apparently Gable says no training outside of the Academy but Gable comes in to break it up. Gable advises Nile to stop talking to “Taylor Not So Swift, referring to Dupri.

We recap last week’s first round King Of The Ring matches.

Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods are fired up for Kingston’s match against Gunther, because Kingston can teach him a lesson.

Awesome Truth are in the back with Adam Pearce, who tells them that they won’t be defending the titles tonight. Kiana James comes in and says she’s here to adjudicate. R-Truth doesn’t know what that means but doesn’t think it’s PG.

King Of The Ring Quarterfinals: Kofi Kingston vs. Gunther

Lilian Garcia pops up in a cameo to introduce the match. Kingston jumps him before the bell and hammers away on the floor before going after Gunther’s knee in a smart move. The knee is rammed into various things and we get the bell with Gunther still down. Kingston comes off the top to send Gunther outside but a dive is cut off. Gunther drives him into various things, including the announcers’ table for a crash. The Boston crab on the table has Kingston in trouble as we take a break.

Back with Gunther stomping away as Cole says this is somehow only Kingston’s third King Of The Ring tournament. Kingston reverses a backbreaker into a rollup for two and Gunther is all the angrier as a result. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker hits Kingston but Gunther’s knee is banged up as well. The SOS is blocked so Kingston hits a high crossbody instead. That doesn’t work for Gunther either, as he grabs another Boston crab (minus the table).

Kingston slips out and knocks Gunther down so we can get a double breather. Gunther dropkicks him into the corner and hits a clothesline for two as some frustration is setting in. Kingston’s back is bent around the post but he slips out and hurricanranas Gunther into the post. Trouble In Paradise connects on the floor but they both beat the count back in. Another Trouble In Paradise misses back inside and Gunther powerbombs him into the Boston crab for the tap at 13:51.

Rating: B. These two have worked well together before and it’s nice to see Gunther adding something different with the submission wins. It makes him feel all the more dangerous and I’m curious to see who, if anyone, is going to be able to knock him off in the thing. At the same time, Kingston can still go in the ring and it’s kind of a shame that he doesn’t get some bigger singles matches, as he can more than hang in there. Rather nice match here, with Kingston holding his own against the monster.

We look at Liv Morgan challenging Becky Lynch for a Raw Women’s Title match last week. Lynch accepted, but then Lyra Valkyria had to save Lynch from Damage CTRL.

Valkyria says she has Lynch’s back anytime, with Lynch popping in to thank her. With Lynch gone, Morgan comes in to ask if Lynch has always been such a b****. Valkyria says ask her yourself, with Lynch returning to shove Morgan down. Lynch says she isn’t the one scared of a face to face fight.

Kofi Kingston is walking through the back when Karrion Kross pops in to say there’s always more time. Kross leaves and Xavier Woods shows up with some ice for Kingston, who isn’t sure what Kross wanted.

Bronson Reed vs. Akira Tozawa

Chad Gable is here with Tozawa, who slugs away to start to little avail. A spinning kick to the head works a bit better and a missile dropkick actually puts Reed down. Gable is VERY happy as Tozawa goes up again, only to flip into the Death Valley Driver. The Tsunami finishes for Reed at 1:14.

Ludwig Kaiser is NOT happy with Gunther being interrupted with annoying questions. Gunther leaves and Kaiser is asked about Gunther’s loss to Ilja Dragunov and the interference that cost Jey Uso his match against Gunther. Kaiser lists off Gunther’s accomplishments and says he has nothing to prove.

As for Sheamus, he was delusional for thinking he can beat Gunther. Sheamus has never beaten Gunther despite a legendary career and it is never going to happen. In reality, Sheamus should be right here thanking Kaiser for last week. That’s the most fired up I’ve ever heard Kaiser before as he was sounding like a preacher for a bit.

Adam Pearce has an announcement about the Raw Tag Team Titles when the New Catch Republic comes in to interrupt. Pearce gives them a welcome to the show but Pete Dunne grabs Tyler Bate’s arm and leaves. Pearce’s announcement is a four way for the #1 contendership to the Tag Team Titles. With that out of the way, Pearce is asked why Bron Breakker wasn’t in the King Of The Ring. Breakker doesn’t have that kind of experience yet but here is Breakker to say his opponents would have been the ones in the deep end. He would have smiled while he watched them drown. That’s a bit much.

McAfee barks a lot.

We look at more of the Queen Of The Ring.

Queen Of The Ring Quarterfinals: Zoey Stark vs. Lyra Valkyria

Valkyria grabs some armdrags into an armbar to start as commentary talks about the inspiration behind Valkyria’s name. A hurricanrana takes Stark to the floor, where she drops Valkyria with a clothesline as we take a break. Back with Stark hitting a springboard missile dropkick for two and grabbing the cravate. That’s broken up and Valkyria manages a quick jumping enziguri for the needed breather.

Stark hits her in the face and adds a spinning kick to the ribs for two of her own. Something misses off the top though and Valkyria is back with a running spinwheel kick. Stark suplexes her into the corner for two and frustration is starting to set in. The Z360 is loaded up but Valkyria blocks the knee, setting up Nightwing for the pin at 8:57.

Rating: C+. They were starting to hit a wall near the end there and thankfully they went home when they did. Valkyria is getting a heck of a run in this thing and while it might end against Iyo Sky next week, it’s nice to see her getting a chance. They’re doing a good job with making the tournaments interesting and Valkyria is a part of that.

Post match Valkyria says something in Gaelic, promising that we’ll learn what that means. She only travels as the crow flies, which is straight to the top.

More from last week’s King Of The Ring first round.

Jey Uso is ready to give Ilja Dragunov a Yeetdown, just like Gunther is getting one next week.

Sami Zayn vs. Otis

Non-title and Chad Gable is here with Otis. The beating is on fast and Zayn is dropped through straight power, only to have Gable cut off the Worm attempt. Otis rips the shirt off anyway and drops the elbow, drawing Gable to the apron. The Vader Bomb misses for Otis and the Helluva Kick gives Zayn the pin at 2:03.

Post match Zayn leaves so Gable berates Otis, earning him a suplex from the returning Zayn. Otis helps Gable up but Gable blames him for everything. Gable slaps Otis and leaves on his own before stopping to say let’s go, with Otis following.

Braun Strowman (in a snazzy hat) gives the Creed Brothers a pep talk before their four way match tonight. JD McDonagh comes in to give him an official Judgment Day warning, which is quickly shrugged off.

Becky Lynch vs. Dakota Kai

Non-title and the rest of Damage CTRL is here with Kai. Lynch starts fast and stomps away in the corner with Kai falling out to the floor. There’s the baseball slide to drop Kai again, with Lynch adding a clothesline from the apron. Kairi Sane offers a distraction though and Kai manages quick kick to the head. Kai’s running kick in the corner….is mistimed as Lynch comes out of the corner and gets dropped by a regular kick to the ribs instead.

The chinlock goes on but Lynch fights up and we get a double knockdown as we take a break. Back with Kai striking away until Lynch catches her over the middle rope. Kai’s running kick in the corner connects for two but Lynch is back up with some rollups. Lynch finally pulls her into the Disarm-Her but Damage CTRL runs in for the DQ at 10:00.

Rating: C. This was a weird one as they didn’t feel like they were on the same page more than once. At the same time, it was a bizarre choice for an ending, as you would think Lynch should be able to beat Damage CTRL’s designated jobber in Kai. Not their greatest match, and I’m not sure why they did what they were doing.

Post match the beatdown is on but Lyra Valkyria runs in for the save. Liv Morgan sneaks in to send Lynch shoulder first into the post.

Ilja Dragunov is ready to beat Jey Uso to move closer to being the Czar of the Ring. He’s different because he beat Gunther….who comes in for the staredown.

Creed Brothers vs. Judgment Day vs. New Catch Republic vs. Authors Of Pain

For a future Tag Team Title shot against Awesome Truth, who are at ringside. Bate grabs a headscissors on McDonagh to start and drags him into the corner, where it’s off to Dunne for the finger snapping. The Creeds tag themselves in to start on McDonagh but the Authors come in to wreck everyone. McDonagh gets thrown over the top and onto the pile and we take a break.

Back with Balor stomping on Brutus in the corner before Judgment Day knocks the Republic off the apron. Brutus manages to get over for the tag to Julius, who double suplexes Judgment Day down. Balor is back up with the Sling Blade, setting up the dropkick to send Julius into the corner. The Republic breaks up the Coup de Grace, allowing Julius to grab a top rope superplex for two on Balor.

The Authors come back in with the Super Collider to Judgment Day. Now it’s the Republic cleaning house again but Brutus hits the Brutus Ball onto the pile at ringside. Bate airplane spins Akam and the Birminghammer hits Balor, with McDonagh making the save. Cue Carlito with a Backstabber to Dunne though, allowing Balor to hit the Coup de Grace for the pin and the title shot at 10:42.

Rating: B-. Total insanity here for the most part and that made for an entertaining match, even if there were so many people out there that it was hard to keep track of everything. The Judgment Day getting the shot makes things interesting as they have issues with Awesome Truth. The Authors can continue to be monsters, the Creeds can continue searching for charisma and the Republic can hope everyone forgets their rather awful name.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Ricochet wishes Ilja Dragunov luck.

Damian Priest asks Dominik Mysterio if he and Rhea Ripley are good but the rest of the team and Carlito come in. Priest tells Carlito that was cool, but makes sure that Carlito can handle his business with Rey Mysterio. The crew doesn’t roll with cowards.

King Of The Ring Quarterfinals: Jey Uso vs. Ilja Dragunov

Dragunov backs him into the corner to start and then fires off the chops. A discus chop puts Uso down, leaving Dragunov to try and get CZAR OF THE RING over. Uso catches him going up with a heck of a right hand though and there’s the suicide dive to send Dragunov into the announcers’ table. Dragunov fights back and puts him onto the announcers’ table, only to miss an H Bomb from the barricade. A spear sends Dragunov over the table and we take a break.

Back with Uso hiptossing his way out of the abdominal stretch to leave them both down. Uso wins a slugout and drops Dragunov with a jumping enziguri, only to get kicked in the face for his troubles. Dragunov’s Constantine Special gets two and they both need a breather. Uso hits a heck of a jumping superkick but the spear is cut off with a running knee. A toss powerbomb into the H Bomb gives Dragunov two but the Torpedo Moscow is countered with the spear. The Superfly Splash gives Uso the pin at 12:50.

Rating: B-. The ending kind of came out of nowhere but it was a hard hitting, back and forth match until the end. As disappointing as it is to not get Dragunov vs. Gunther, they might be saving that kind of a showdown for a bigger stage. Uso was putting in the work here and look good in the win, though beating Dragunov clean so soon is quite the choice.

Gunther comes in for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was another wrestling focused show and that worked again, with the matches being rather high quality (save for that weird Kai vs. Lynch match). They’ve also set up two big showdowns for next week and now we should be in for a hot show heading into the pay per view. They aren’t reinventing the wheel around here but what they’re doing is going rather well as the streak of good shows continues.

Results
Iyo Sky b. Shayna Baszler – Over The Moonsault
Gunther b. Kofi Kingston – Boston crab
Bronson Reed b. Akira Tozawa – Tsunami
Lyra Valkyria b. Zoey Stark – Nightwing
Sami Zayn b. Otis – Helluva Kick
Becky Lynch b. Dakota Kai via DQ when Damage CTRL interfered
Judgment Day b. New Catch Republic, Authors Of Pain and Creed Brothers – Coup de Grace to Dunne
Jey Uso b. Ilja Dragunov – Superfly Splash

 

 

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Smackdown
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Corey Graves

It’s the last show before Wrestlemania and that means the usual: the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, one other match that matters and a bunch of hype videos for Wrestlemania. Other than that it’s a big warmup for the night’s real main event in the Hall Of Fame so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look at the bigger Wrestlemania matches, which feels like a pay per view opening rather than a television show.

The entrance set is stripped down again and that’s a nice visual.

It’s time for the KO Show with Kevin Owens (featuring his traditional KO Mania shirt, now up to VII), who gets things started with some good old fashioned sign staring. With that out of the way, Owens brings out Randy Orton as his guest. Owens displays the chairs’ ability to spin before talking about their (Owens and Orton’s, not the chairs’) upcoming triple threat match at Wrestlemania as both of them want Logan Paul’s US Title.

Before Orton can get very far about how annoying he finds Paul, here is Paul live from the Wrestlemania stage at the stadium. Owens finds it interesting that they’re right across the street from the stadium so it’s time to head outside. With the two of them gone, Austin Theory and Grayson Waller pop out from underneath the ring, apparently having missed their cue to jump Owens and Orton. Ok that’s clever.

Back from a break and Owens has stolen a golf cart to head over to the stadium, with Waller and Theory following.

Video on Andre the Giant to set up his namesake battle royal.

Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal

Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, Angel, Berto, JD McDonagh, Elton Prince, Kit Wilson, Ricochet, Cruz del Toro, Joaquin Wilde, Jinder Mahal, Veer, Sanga, Cedric Alexander, Omos, Ashante Thee Adonis, Akira Tozawa, Otis, Ivar, Julius Creed, Brutus Creed, Apollo Crews, Cameron Grimes

Everyone surrounds Omos to start but only Pretty Deadly go after him. Omos tosses Wilson in a hurry and Prince jumps out to eliminating himself, thereby avoiding pain. Everyone else goes at it with Angel and Berto being thrown out. They pull out Wilde and del Toro (under the rope) as Grimes is tossed. Mahal is eliminated as well but Veer and Sanga throw out Crews. The Creeds get rid of Veer and Sanga, followed by Omos chokebombing McDonagh.

We take a break and come back with Omos wrecking the Creeds on the floor with all three of them gone. After we see Omos clotheslining both of them out but eliminating himself in the process, Alexander is thrown out as well with Adonis following quickly. That leaves us with Ricochet, Ivar, Reed, Otis and Tozawa as Reed and Ivar hit stereo crossbodies.

Reed sends Ricochet to the apron but here is McDonagh to pull Ricochet out. Tozawa eliminates McDonagh (who was still in), leaving Otis to clean house. The Caterpillar connects but Reed throws him out. Reed also throws Tozawa out (onto Otis), leaving him alone with Reed as the final two. They ram into each other a few times until Ivar hits a spinning kick to the face, only to miss the Doomsault. A running clothesline gives Reed the win at 10:08.

Rating: C+. This match hasn’t been the most special in a good while now but it is still something that means a bit for the wrestlers who win. That is what we saw here, as Reed gets a boost after weeks of not having the most success. Odds are it isn’t some big game changer, but it’s better than not winning the thing. It also helped set up McDonagh vs. Ricochet in the future, which should be good.

We look at the Bloodline attacking Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes.

Logan Paul is back in the arena.

The Final Testament is really interested in taking out Bobby Lashley and the Street Profits.

Here is Logan Paul to talk about how stupid everyone is around here, including Kevin Owens and Randy Orton. Paul has a camera at the stadium to show Austin Theory and Grayson Waller, who are there to take out Owens and Orton. That doesn’t work as they have escaped, meaning here are Owens and Orton to lay Paul out.

Dragon Lee has been attacked.

Zelina Vega vs. Elektra Lopez

Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar are here too. Cue Dominik Mysterio and Andrade to uneven things even more and Vega knows this isn’t good. We’re joined in progress after a break with Vega slugging away and hitting some running clotheslines. Running knees in the corner hit Lopez for two before she’s right back with a swinging Rock Bottom for two of her own. Vega is back up with a 619 in the corner and a hammerlock DDT but Dominik offers a distraction. That lets Lopez hit Elektrashock for the pin at 2:52.

Post match the beatdown is on but Andrade turns on Legado and helps Rey and Vega to their feet. So there’s Lee’s likely replacement.

Here are Naomi and Bianca Belair for a chat. Neither of them like Damage CTRL and it was Naomi who got Belair’s attention about them. They needed each other to fight Damaged CTRL and things have been going well, but then they met newest partner: Jade Cargill! She’s ready for Damage CTRL and sign pointing ensues.

Dragon Lee is officially out of Wrestlemania but Andrade takes his place. Carlito doesn’t seem pleased

New Catch Republic vs. Grayson Waller/Austin Theory

It’s a big brawl to start with the Republic sending them outside. That’s fine with the villains as they send Bate into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Bate suplexing his way to freedom, allowing him to hit a bunch of suplexes. Dunne comes back in to clean house, including a bunch of shots to Theory’s jaw. The Birminghammer finishes for Dunne at 7:23.

Rating: C. This was another one of those matches where you can’t get much out of the thing due to the limited amount of television time. It wasn’t much of a match as a result, with the break eating up so much of their time. The titles could go in any way or multiple ways) at Wrestlemania and the ladder match makes it even more complicated.

Post match Judgment Day IMMEDIATELY runs in for the big beatdown.

Long video on Bayley vs. Iyo Sky for the Smackdown Women’s Title. Bayley talks about the history she has made and it’s time to do it again.

Here is LA Knight for a chat. Knight is ready for Wrestlemania and says AJ Styles will be phenomenal at getting taken out on Sunday. Instead of crying like Styles has been doing he owes a thank you for Knight making people talk about him. Knight talks about how ready he is for Sunday to wrap it up.

B-Fab talks about how ready Bobby Lashley and the Street Profits are.

Wrestlemania rundown.

Solo Sikoa vs. Jey Uso

Jey slugs away to start and low bridges Sikoa to the floor. We take an early break and come back with Sikoa knocking him into the corner. The running Umaga Attack misses so Jey hits one of his own. Jey’s spear is cut off but the second connects, setting up the Superfly Splash. That’s enough for Jimmy Uso to come in for the DQ at 6:32. Not enough shown to rate but it was fine enough for a match that wasn’t going to have a finish.

Post match the beatdown is on but Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins run in for the save. Jimmy is left alone and takes the whipping ala Rock to Rhodes. That lets Rhodes talk about what it means to be a champion, which he will get to do on Sunday. When his story ends, a better one begins. That good line wraps us up.

Overall Rating: C. For a show that more or less makes it clear that it’s just there as a big commercial for Wrestlemania with a few matches thrown in, it worked well enough. The action was mostly skippable but it should help push fans all the way up to the brink of Wrestlemania. WWE knows what it has with this show and it doesn’t try to be anything else, which is what should be happening.

Results
Bronson Reed won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal last eliminating Ivar
Elektra Lopez b. Zelina Vega – Elektrashock
New Catch Republic b. Austin Theory/Grayson Waller – Birminghammer to Theory
Jey Uso b. Solo Sikoa when Jimmy Uso interfered

 

 

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

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AND

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