Summerslam 2023
Date: August 5, 2023
Location: Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re back with one of the most important shows of the year and the card is rather stacked again. The main event is likely going to see Smackdown World Champion Roman Reigns defending against his cousin Jey Uso in Tribal Combat, with the title of Tribal Chief on the line as well. Raw has a double main event of Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes III and Finn Balor challenging Seth Rollins for the Raw World Title. Let’s get to it.

The opening video features Kid Rock (because of course) and a bunch of wrestlers around cars as the focus is on Detroit. We look back at the first Summerslam in 1988 and some other famous moments. It’s time to rock in Detroit though, complete with noted Kid Rock masterpiece Bawitaba. Oh and Born To be Wild by Steppenwolf because…reasons.

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet

Ricochet knocks him to the floor to start and teases the dive before they run the ropes and trade some dives. Ricochet misses the big kick to the head and gets elbowed in the face. Paul takes him down into the quickly broken chinlock before they head to the apron, with Paul hitting a hanging neckbreaker. Back in and a running powerslam (apparently a shot at Ricochet’s injured partner Braun Strowman) sets up the cupped hand to the ear.

A big boot and splits legdrop (the Hogan Paul, seriously) get two but Ricochet drops him again. That means the People’s standing moonsault for two on Paul and they’re right back on the apron. A standing Spanish Fly from the apron doesn’t work as Ricochet lands on his feet, setting up a regular Spanish Fly on the floor. Back up and Paul hits a Buckshot Lariat to the floor (cool), followed by a standing moonsault for two back inside.

Paul misses a charge into the post though, setting up a super swinging neckbreaker for a huge crash. A springboard clothesline hits Paul and a standing shooting star press gets two. Ricochet misses the big kick but Ricochet ducks the big right hand. One heck of a tornado DDT gets two on Ricochet, who is right back with the Recoil. Ricochet goes up but has to pause because of the bad ribs, allowing Paul to get his knees up to block the shooting star press.

Paul grabs an Alley Oop and nips up to show off a bit more. A frog splash hits Ricochet for two but he’s right back with the Benedriller into a top rope springboard moonsault for another near fall. Ricochet’s 630 misses and cue one of Paul’s goons to give him some brass knuckles. The big right hand finishes Ricochet at 17:52.

Rating: B. Gah that ending hurt it a lot as they just kind of fell apart at the finish. They had a heck of a game of “can you top this” going here and then the ending felt like it came out of nowhere. Paul had to get a win here as he hadn’t won anything since last year at Summerslam and it hut things a lot. Good, fast paced opener here and it did exactly what you would have expected.

Sheamus arrived via monster truck.

Long recap of Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes. Lesnar turned on him the night after Raw and they have traded wins since, with Lesnar breaking Rhodes’ arm at least once.

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

Cody jumps him before the bell but gets caught with a quick suplex. A neck snap across the top staggers Brock and a pair of Disaster Kicks make it worse. Cody tries it again though and this time gets rammed into the corner for his efforts. Brock is knocked to the floor for a hard suicide dive though and Cody has an opening. Back in and Brock hits a trio of suplexes to send Cody down and it’s time to bounce a bit.

Another German suplex sets up another suplex and Cody falls out to the floor. Brock knocks him off the apron and tells Cody to save himself but Cody beats the count again. That means an overhead belly to belly and Brock clotheslines him outside again. An F5 on the floor gets nine and Brock is mad. Another F5 through the announcers’ table gets nine and now Lesnar looks more confused than angry.

More suplexes wake Cody up for some reason and he heads outside, where some postings slow Brock down and a steps shot (DQ anyone?) makes it worse. The Disaster Kick and Cody Cutter drop Lesnar back inside and a double springboard Cody Cutter gets two. Lesnar pulls him into the Kimura but Cody makes the rope. Back up and Lesnar is sent into an exposed buckle, setting up Cody’s Kimura. That’s broken up so Cody hits three Cross Rhodes for the pin at 17:32.

Rating: B. They were trying for an epic match here and it just didn’t get that far. Cody surviving and surviving was a rather Lesnar style story and it worked well enough, but I still can’t buy Lesnar losing to the Cross Rhodes, which just isn’t a very good finisher. This was the way the feud had to end though as Cody gets a huge win to defeat Lesnar for good and should be on his way back to the title picture sooner than later.

Post match Lesnar actually shows respect and even high fives some fans as he walks away.

Slim Jim Battle Royal

Erik, Ivar, JD McDonagh, Rick Boogs, Otis, Chad Gable, Ludwig Kaiser, Giovanni Vinci, Ridge Holland, Butch, Sheamus, Riddle, Grayson Waller, Shinsuke Nakamura, Bronson Reed, Tommaso Ciampa, Apollo Crews, LA Knight, Santos Escobar, AJ Styles, The Miz, Austin Theory, Karrion Kross, Cameron Grimes, Omos

We get a quick look at the history of battle royals but hold on because here is MVP to introduce Omos as the final entrant. Omos comes to the ring and throws out Crews plus McDonagh in short order. Boogs is out as well but it’s time for a bunch of people to gang up on Omos. The Brutes hit the triple forearms to Omos’ chest but it’s not enough to get rid of him.

Imperium gets rid of Otis as the ring is clearing out a bit. Gable tosses Vinci and the Vikings are both out. Ciampa’s Willow’s Bell gets rid of Nakamura but Reed tosses Ciampa without much trouble. Theory eliminated Holland and Grimes in an impressive short run, only to get clotheslined out by Escobar. Kross gets rid of Escobar rather quickly and Gable tosses Kaiser. Omos dumps Riddle and Butch at the same time and knocks down a bunch of people.

Knight goes at Omos with some clotheslines but gets booed down for his efforts. Everyone starts getting together to go after Omos though and he’s finally out. Miz and Waller get together for a kind of perfect alliance and toss Gable…at least to the apron. Miz tosses Knight to the apron but gets tossed out by Knight for his efforts. Sheamus gets rid of Waller (gah that was my pick) and it’s Sheamus vs. Knight. Reed cuts that off with a double clothesline before AJ Pele’s Kross out.

We’re down to Gable, Styles, Knight, Reed and Sheamus until Reed tosses Gable out. Knight is sent to the apron again but manages to leverage Reed out to get us down to three. Styles ducks the Brogue Kick but gets sent to the apron by Knight. Kross is back to grab Styles’ leg though and the Brogue Kick gets rid of him. We’re down to Knight vs. Sheamus, with the former hitting a quick powerslam. Blunt Force Trauma is broken up so Sheamus goes up top, with Knight jumping to the top for a belly to belly superplex. Knight hits a running clothesline and actually wins the thing at 12:41.

Rating: B-. Not a great match but that’s how it should have gone. Knight has been needing a big win and he got it right here, with WWE not even to have anyone get pinned to give him the victory. The follow up is going to be even more important, but what matters here is that Knight got the big win after being set up for it. The fans wanted him to win and now we see where he goes from here. Other than that, it was nice to see some feuds advanced in the same match, with Omos looking like a monster again. They didn’t go too long here either and it was a rather entertaining match.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Shayna Baszler. Rousey has been the star for years but Baszler has always been there with her. Baszler is tired of Rousey being the star and it’s time to fight.

Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey

This is under MMA rules, meaning knockout, pass out or tap out to win (no pins, DQ’s or countouts). They go with the grappling to start with Rousey taking her to the mat and hammering on the back. Baszler gets up and kicks Rousey in the head to knock her to the floor. Back in and Rousey hits a heck of a running knee to the head as the fans are NOT impressed so far.

Rousey hammers away at the back some more and they crash out to the floor, with Baszler favoring her arm. We pause for the medics to look at her but Rousey clears them out. Baszler gets a suplex but Rousey grabs an armbar. That’s reversed into the ankle lock on Rousey before switching to the Kirifuda Clutch to knock Rousey out at 7:24.

Rating: D+. Yeah this didn’t work. It felt a lot longer than it really was and the fans absolutely did not care. They would have been much better off with a submission match and a sprint, but instead it was plodding and waiting around for anything to happen. Baszler winning is the absolute right idea, but dang the execution couldn’t have been much worse.

Tonight’s attendance: 59,194.

We recap Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre for the Intercontinental Title. Gunther is about a month away from breaking the record for longest reign in history but McIntyre is back and motivated to take the title.

Intercontinental Title: Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre

Gunther is defending and gets dropped by an early running shoulder. The Glasgow Kiss sends Gunther outside, where he manages a posting and drop onto the steps for a breather. Back in and Gunther drops him with the chops as the pace slows a lot. Gunther snaps off a German suplex but McIntyre comes back with a heck of a clothesline for a double knockdown.

McIntyre snaps off his own suplex into a neckbreaker but the Claymore misses. Instead Gunther dropkicks him into the corner but the powerbomb is broken up. Instead McIntyre powerbombs Gunther into the Futureshock for two and they slow down a bit. The threat of the Claymore sends Gunther outside and McIntyre hits the running flip dive, even landing on his feet.

Back in and a dropkick cuts off the Claymore, setting up Gunther’s powerbomb for two more. Gunther’s top rope splash gets two and slaps him in the back of the head a few times. They chop it out with McIntyre getting the better of things and scoring with the Claymore out of nowhere for two. McIntyre takes him up top for another chop off until Gunther manages a crotching. The top rope splash and a hard clothesline sets up a powerbomb to retain at 13:44.

Rating: B. This was another five minutes away from being a classic but it did do well for what it was. They had two people beating the fire out of each other and I’m a bit surprised that McIntyre came up short. At the end of the day though, Gunther is about a month away from breaking a 35 year old record and it would be quite the waste to not capitalize on that kind of number if WWE wants to. Heck of a match here, but it could have been that much better.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor for the Raw World Title. Rollins beat him at Money In The Bank, but Balor wants revenge on Rollins injuring him seven years ago at Summerslam so the rematch is on. The shadow of Damian Priest and his Money In The Bank briefcase hangs over the whole thing too.

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor

Rollins is defending and….he looks like a Christmas present wrapped by an unsupervised seven years old. With the coat off though, Rollins reveals the same vest he wore when he faced Balor at Summerslam 2016. They slug it out to start with Rollins getting the better of it and sending Balor into the corner. A kick to the arm slows Rollins down and Balor bends it around the rope in the corner. More arm cranking ensues and we hit the armbar as the pace has slowed a lot.

Balor hammers away in the corner but Rollins is back with some Kawada kicks and a clothesline for two. Balor uses the arm to send Rollins outside though and more shots to said arm keep him in trouble. There’s the buckle bomb against the barricade, followed by a Sling Blade back inside. Balor gets a cross armbreaker but Rollins slips out and hits a pair of buckle bombs of his own.

The frog splash gives Rollins two but the Stomps is blocked. Instead Balor hits his jumping double stomp and a shotgun dropkick into the corner. The Coup de Grace is countered with a superplex, but the Falcon Arrow is countered into a small package. An exchange of kicks leaves them both down for a needed breather. Balor drops him again but the Coup de Grace misses. Rollins is back with the Pedigree for two….and here’s Damian Priest with the Money In The Bank briefcase.

They trade rollups for two each, with Balor’s kickout sending Rollins into a right hand from Priest. Balor hits a Pedigree for two so here is Judgment Day. Priest offers the briefcase to Balor, who turns it down, allowing Rollins to hit a quick Stomp for two. Rollins dives onto Priest and takes out Dominik Mysterio but Balor hits the Sling Blade and another corner dropkick.

The Coup de Grace connects for a VERY close two and Balor is stunned. Balor tells Priest to do…something as the referee checks on Rollins. Priest throws in the briefcase and distracts the referee, allowing Rollins to hit the Stomp onto the briefcase (they telegraphed the heck out of that one) to retain at 18;25.

Rating: B+. I was getting into this one and the near falls near the end pulled me in. They went back and forth here with the rather modern WWE style, meaning it was quite the entertaining match, even if they didn’t do the best job of hiding the ending. This should wrap up Balor vs. Rollins and that opens the door for someone, perhaps Cody Rhodes, to come for the title. The ending is going to set up a lot of Judgment Day drama and that is a good thing, as Balor vs. Priest has potential.

Priest is NOT pleased and glares at Balor, who glares back.

The Alpha Academy and Miz shill Mike’s Hard Lemonade and argue over who is harder/a Mike. Miz is locked in an anvil case for his efforts.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title match. Asuka, Bianca Belair and Charlotte have all been fighting each other and cheating the other out of title matches, so snow it’s time for a triple threat.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Bianca Belair vs. Asuka

Asuka is defending. Everyone misses a shot to the face to start until Asuka rolls Belair up for two. With Asuka sent to the apron, Belair drops Charlotte but a handspring kick to the face is blocked by Asuka. Charlotte drops Asuka but gets stared down by Belair. That’s broken up and Asuka knees Belair for two, with Charlotte making the save. Asuka German suplexes Charlotte and slugs it out with Belair, until a heck of a Charlotte high crossbody takes them both down.

Double Natural Selection gives Charlotte some near falls before she boots Belair in the face. Asuka breaks up the Figure Four with a Codebreaker for two on Charlotte and everyone is down. They slug it out again with Belair taking over but her handspring moonsault hits quadruple knees. Belair is kicked to the floor and Charlotte gets caught in the Asuka Lock. Now Belair can hit the moonsault to break it up but Charlotte knocks both of them to the floor.

Charlotte moonsaults off the top in Belair’s direction, barely grazing her with her hands and handing about a foot and a half behind her. Asuka is kicked to the floor and Belair faceplants Charlotte, only to have Asuka come back in and steal the near fall. Belair powerbombs Charlotte but gets pulled into the Asuka Lock, allowing Charlotte to roll both of them up for two. Charlotte moonsaults onto both of them for two….and then tries a double Figure Four (Graves: “I don’t think the human anatomy will allow that to happen.”).

With that not working, Belair is sent over the top and lands knee first on the steps, which has her screaming on the floor. Medics come out to check out Belair, who is helped out (with a very, very bad limp, but on her feet). Asuka slugs away at Charlotte, who hits a spear for two.

Charlotte gets the Figure Eight but Belair is back with a 450 to break it up and cover Charlotte for two more. With Asuka on the floor, Belair loads up the KOD but gets armdragged out. Charlotte knocks Asuka to the floor and gets the Figure Four on the bad leg. Make that The Figure Eight until Asuka makes the save with the mist. Then Belair rolls Asuka up for the pin and the title at 20:48.

Rating: C-. Oh man this was rough. It picked up a bit at the end but there is only so much you can do with a bad match layout and a crowd that wasn’t interested. This felt like a match where they had every single thing laid out in advance and had to stick to the script throughout. Belair regaining the title is more than a bit weird, but at least they had a hotter finish than anything else in the rest of the match.

And here is Damage CTRL with the briefcase! Belair goes after Bayley but Sky briefcases her down. The cash-in is on!

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Iyo Sky

Sky is challenging and Over The Moonsault makes her the champion at 9 seconds.

Bayley and Sky celebrate, with Dakota Kai appearing to join them in a nice moment. I mean, as nice as it can be after you attacked an injured woman to take her title.

We recap Jey Uso challenging Roman Reigns for the Universal WWE Title and the title of Tribal Chief. This is the next step in the years long Bloodline Saga, with Jey splitting from Reigns earlier this year and pinning him at Money In The Bank. That was the first pinfall loss for Reigns in over three years and now Jey is coming for everything in Tribal Combat.

Smackdown World Title: Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso

Reigns, with Paul Heyman (Solo Sikoa was taken out on Smackdown), is defending and this is Tribal Combat, which basically means street fight. They stare at each other for over a minute until Reigns shoves him away. A hard shoulder drops Jey and Reigns hits him in the face. Jey slips out of a suplex though and hammers away, setting up a Rock spit punch. The Samoan drop doesn’t work and Jey kicks him in the ribs, setting up a clothesline to the floor.

The suicide dive mainly hits Reigns in the back and Jey loads up a table, but Reigns fights up and takes over without much trouble. The apron boot to the face connects for two but Jey scores with an enziguri. Reigns is knocked outside so Jey loads up a suicide dive, only to be cut off by a kendo stick shot. Reigns starts talking trash and knocks him into the corner for daring to try a comeback.

The rapid fire clotheslines connect but a Superman Punch is cut off with a kendo stick to Reigns’ ribs. Jey unloads with stick shots to the back to send Reigns outside and now the big running flip dive takes him out again. Back in and the Superfly Splash is Superman Punched out of the air for two. The spear is countered into a rollup for two and it’s a superkick into the Superfly Splash for two more, leaving them both down.

Jey gets in some chair shots to the back and throws in a bunch more chairs for a bonus. Heyman is begging for mercy for Reigns (“HE’S YOUR FAMILY!”) as Jey puts Reigns up top. The superplex is broken up and Reigns powerbombs him onto the chairs for two. Reigns brings a table inside (there is still one set up outside) but has to cut off Jey’s spear. Instead Jey is sent to the apron and manages a Samoan drop to send Reigns through the outside table.

Jey pulls out a strap and whips reigns into the crowd, where Solo Sikoa pops up to take Jey out. Sikoa puts Jey through a table and they head back to the ring, where Spinning Solo plants Jey again. Reigns spears Sikoa by mistake though, allowing Jey to hit his own spear for two. Jey gets in a bunch of chair shots to both of them but takes too long going after Reigns, allowing Sikoa to score with a superkick.

Reigns stops to yell at Sikoa for some reason, allowing Jey to spear Reigns through the barricade. Sikoa is put through the announcers’ table and Jey hits another spear back inside. Jey hits the Superfly Splash…..and Jimmy Uso pulls Jey out at two. Jimmy stares at Jey forever before superkicking him, allowing Reigns to hit the spear through the table in the corner to retain at 36:01.

Rating: C+. This was WAY too long and while the violence and carnage was good, there was a lot of standing around and waiting for something to happen. Shave about ten minutes off of this and it’s way better, but it only worked so well. At the same time, you have the Jimmy twist, which felt like a twist for the sake of a twist. It’s time for something big to happen in this story and that means Reigns needs to either be on his own for a bit or just lose the title. The battling Usos doesn’t seem like a long term story, but I’m not sure who is next for Reigns at the moment. For now though, not a great match, but it had its moments.

Jimmy doesn’t leave with Reigns and Heyman, suggesting that he isn’t back on the team.

The long highlight package takes us out.

Overall Rating: B. This is a rather good show with some rocky points holding it back. The women’s matches didn’t work and the main event was FAR longer than it needed to be and led to a rather lame surprise ending. Other than that though, this was a heck of a show with one very good (if not better) match after another. If some of those problems were corrected, this could have been a great one but as it is, it’s a solid show that went on too long and made some mistakes.

Results
Logan Paul b. Ricochet – Right hand with brass knuckles
Cody Rhodes b. Brock Lesnar – Cross Rhodes
LA Knight won the Slim Jim Battle Royal last eliminating Sheamus
Shayna Baszler b. Ronda Rousey – Kirifuda Clutch
Gunther b. Drew McIntyre – Powerbomb
Seth Rollins b. Finn Balor – Stomp onto the Money In The Bank briefcase
Bianca Belair b. Asuka and Charlotte – Small package to Asuka
Iyo Sky b. Bianca Belair – Over The Moonsault
Roman Reigns b. Jey Uso – Spear through a table

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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We’re up to one of the biggest events on the WWE calendar as it’s another stadium show in Detroit. As has been the case in Summerslams of yore, there isn’t one match that really stands above the others. Odds are Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso for the WWE Universal Title will headline, but there is at least one other option, which makes for a top heavy show. Let’s get to it.

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet

We’ll start with a match that is here to be a spectacle and nothing more. You have a pair of athletic marvels here and those are the kind of stars who can put on one heck of a showcase if given the chance. That is what they are going to get here, and the fact that Paul has done so well so far in his WWE career has me interested in seeing what they can put together here.

As much as I’d like to see Ricochet win, this one almost has to go to Paul. He hasn’t won a singles match since last Summerslam and that is going to have to change soon. Ricochet is a name but he isn’t someone with some kind of perfect resume that would be crushed with a loss. This is going to be all about putting together a highlight reel and if they don’t get too crazy, this should be a blast with Paul winning in the end.

Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey

This is under MMA rules, though we still don’t exactly know what that means. The interesting thing here is that Rousey is likely done with WWE in the near future, which should give you a good idea of where this is going. The hype for this video has done a great job of humanizing Baszler and that could make things a lot better for her going forward. You know, because she’ll be around.

I’ll go with Baszler here, as there is no reason to put Rousey over if she is on her way out of the company. It would be nice to have Baszler finally get a big win and then hopefully move into the title picture. The rules should make things a bit more interesting, but at the end of the day, this needs to be Baszler getting the biggest win of her career, which is long overdue to say the least.

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins(c) vs. Finn Balor

This one has me more interested than I would have expected and that is due to a mixture of Balor and Damian Priest. While Balor winning the title is not out of the question, WWE has set up the idea of Priest cashing in the Money In The Bank briefcase. While that is regularly done without going anywhere, it would be great to pull the trigger on the thing and get rid of it. But what happens with the title?

I think I’ll actually take Balor to win the title here, as WWE has built him up as a big enough threat to become champion that he almost has to win it here. That being said, I don’t think Priest cashes in here, but I do think he’ll do it soon. Either Balor or Priest feels destined to turn face soon and Balor winning the title would be a big step there if done in a certain way. Rollins very well may leave with the title, but Balor feels like the right move here.

Slim Jim Battle Royal

Now this one is extra tricky because we only know about half of the twenty five entrants. That means there is always the chance of a surprise entrant taking the whole thing, but for now we’ll have to settle on twelve entrants. There hasn’t been a ton of focus on this match, but that is kind of how a battle royal has to go most of the time. One name in particular stands out, though it wouldn’t stun me to see WWE go another way.

In my prediction sure to go wrong, I have a feeling that instead of LA Knight winning, as would make sense, Grayson Waller gets the nod instead. It would be very WWE to have him pick up the surprise win and then brag about it forever, even if Knight needs the win a lot more than anyone else right now. Knight being eliminated from a battle royal isn’t some death knell, but Waller winning would be a huge boost for him. I hope I’m wrong, but Waller winning feels like a real possibility.

Intercontinental Title: Gunther(c) vs. Drew McIntyre

This one has some extra weight to it, as Gunther winning could almost guarantee that he breaks Honky Tonk Man’s all time record for longest title reign (about five weeks away). McIntyre is probably the last big name standing to try to prevent him from braking the record and it would absolutely not be out of the question to see the title change hands here. I’m just not sure it’s going to.

It’s kind of hard to imagine WWE getting this close to Honky Tonk Man’s record and then just hitting the breaks a little over a month out. While it’s weird to think that McIntyre came back to lose in his first major match, that makes more sense here as Gunther can retain and move on into September to take the all time record. This should be a very hard hitting fight, but Gunther retains. I think. As he should. I think.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Asuka(c) vs. Charlotte vs. Bianca Belair

This is a match that got a lot more attention on Smackdown and that is a good thing. The build for this has been a bit all over the place, but the gist of the whole thing has been that everyone wants the title and to be the best. That is how wrestling is supposed to work and in that sense, it has gone rather well. In the other sense, it is a match that could go in any direction, which is always a good thing. The fact that I have almost no idea who leaves with the title makes it that much better.

I think I’ll actually go with Asuka to retain here, in an overdue win. Charlotte winning the title would be the most cliched result imaginable, which means it is a rather strong possibility. Belair winning would make sense given that she has been more aggressive as of late, which would make a title win all the more logical. That leaves Asuka, who would seem likely to lose, but by WWE logic, I’ll take her winning and retaining. Makes sense right?

Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes

It’s the rubber match between these two and oddly enough there is no stipulation. This match has felt like it needed to be something violent so the two of them could go to war, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see the rules lightened up at last a little bit. Either way, it should be a heck of a test for Rhodes, who needs another big win to get him back to the main event scene.

I can’t picture a result where this goes to Lesnar so I’ll take Rhodes instead. It makes all the sense in the world for Rhodes to win here, as Lesnar is likely going away again until Wrestlemania season. Rhodes on the other hand could very well be back in the World Title picture after a win. Give this one to Rhodes and let him get the boost, which seems to be the entire point of the feud (not a bad idea at all).

Smackdown World Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Jey Uso

This is Tribal Combat, which seems to mean Street Fight. It’s also the latest big step in the Bloodline Saga, and in this case, you can all but guarantee that Jimmy Uso is going to return here. That makes the question what Jimmy does and how it will impact the ending, as you almost have to imagine it going in that direction. At the same time though, there is another direction that is hard to fathom as well.

No matter what though, I can’t imagine Jey wins the title here. It is just hard to imagine him actually winning the title, no matter what story is being told. It’s going to be a heck off a fight with both of them working and he weapons evening things out a bit but this it Reigns and I don’t think that will be the biggest surprise. Jey has been playing with the house’s money for a long time now and he will do it again here, even as he loses.

Overall Thoughts

The more I look at this card, the more interested I am in seeing the show. There are a lot of matches on the card that have me curious and that is a nice feeling to have. There is a little bit of everything on the show and that should make for a good Summerslam. The show has an up and down history over the years but there is a real chance that this show brings the quality.

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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Smackdown
Date: August 4, 2023
Location: Nutter Center, Dayton, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the night before Summerslam and that means we are in for the final push before tomorrow’s big show. The big main event this week is a brother vs. brother showdown between Jey Uso and Solo Sikoa, which should make for a heck of a main event. Other than that we’ll be seeing some of the other matches, including the battle royal, getting some focus. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is LA Knight to one heck of a roar, with Cole saying that Knight is getting support like never before and it is becoming a groundswell. Knight talks about how it is Summerslam weekend and he is ready to be in the 25 man battle royal. He looks at some of the entrants and sees a bunch of stooges. One of the people is Sheamus, who he gets to face tonight. Sheamus has done it all, but tonight he gets another item added to his resume: losing to LA Knight! To say Knight was over here is an understatement.

LA Knight vs. Sheamus

The other Brawling Brutes are here too. Knight starts fast and knocks him into the corner before they crash out to the floor. Sheamus fights back and knocks him down as a bunch of people (all in the battle royal) come to ringside. Sheamus hits White Noise onto the apron and we take an early break.

Back with Knight fighting out of a chinlock and hitting the spelling elbow. A torture rack faceplant gets two but Blunt Force Trauma is countered into the Irish Curse. The super White Noise gets two on Knight and the Texas Cloverleaf goes on, sending Knight to the ropes. They both go up and crash down to the floor but here is Austin Theory to jump Santos Escobar. The big fight is on outside, leaving Sheamus to grab Miz. The Brogue Kick puts Miz down, allowing Knight to hit Blunt Force Trauma to finish Sheamus at 12:45.

Rating: C+. And that’s all you have to do. It’s not hard to give someone a simple push and the easiest way is to just have them win matches. Knight beat Sheamus, who is pretty much bulletproof, and it makes him look like a bigger deal. His momentum is starting to build and it’s a good sign that commentary is acknowledging Knight’s reactions. Now just give him the battle royal, or at least a hot feud coming out of it, and they’re rolling.

Post match the ring is cleared, with Knight running off from the numbers game (smart).

Post break the Club and the Brawling Brutes are about to fight when Adam Pearce seems to make a tag match for later. Sheamus and AJ Styles have a staredown and that could be interesting.

Long video on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Brawling Brutes vs. OC

Michin is here with the OC. Gallows kicks Holland to start and an assisted big boot takes him down. Anderson comes in but gets his fingers bent backwards by Butch. The armbar doesn’t do much for Butch and everything breaks down quickly. We take a break and come back with Anderson chinlocking Holland, who powers out and brings Butch back in. Everything breaks down…and the Street Profits, in suits, run in for the no contest at 8:15.

Rating: C. The match was only good enough until the run-in, which is a lot more interesting. Neither of these teams has exactly been doing much in recent weeks so it’s nice to see a talented team getting a fresh coat of paint. Not a bad match, but it wasn’t the point here in the slightest and that isn’t a bad thing.

Post match the Profits beat both teams down and the fans seem VERY interested (fair enough). Bobby Lashley comes out to celebrate with the Profits and gets quite the positive reaction. The fans really like this one.

Video on Charlotte, who is having champagne on a yacht and is ready for the biggest women’s match in Summerslam history. She has won at Summerslam before and knows she is better, so raise a toast to the fifteen time champion.

Here is Paul Heyman who doesn’t know how we got here with Jey Uso vs. Roman Reigns. After tomorrow night, you probably won’t see Uso again and everything that happens to him at Summerslam will be because of Reigns. When Reigns enters this ring tomorrow night, he will be cognizant of the fact that it will be Tribal Combat.

We get a video (narrated by Heyman) talking about the importance of tribal combat on the island of Samoan. Rikishi, Afa and Sika talk about the importance of the lei, which represents the tribal chief. Only one man can carry that honor and tomorrow night there will be a winner and a loser.

Back in the arena, Heyman talks about how Reigns has been Universal Champion and Tribal Chief for nearly three years. Jey Uso will never be either and yeah he could say that’s a spoiler but here is Uso to interrupt (with Heyman knowing he’s in trouble). Jey talks about the violent things he’s going to do to Reigns tomorrow and it is going to result in him becoming the new Universal Champion and the Tribal Chief.

Cue Solo Sikoa (facing Jey tonight) but Jey says he can forgive his brother for what he has done. Heyman tells Jey to stop, but Sikoa glares at him. We get a quick sidebar but Sikoa says something we can’t hear to Jey. Sikoa tells Heyman to get out, allowing Jey to drop Sikoa with a superkick.

We look back at Rey Mysterio being hurt last week, resulting in Santos Escobar moving on to the US Title match against Austin Theory next week. Apparently Rey suffered whiplash and he is day to day.

Austin Theory doesn’t get how Escobar won, but next week, he is dedicating his victory to Rey Mysterio. Tonight, Cameron Grimes is getting his dreams crushed.

Austin Theory vs. Cameron Grimes

Non-title. Theory knocks him down to start and here is Santos Escobar for a distraction, allowing Grimes to hit the Cave In for two as Theory’s foot is on the ropes (they got me with that one). Grimes sends him into the barricade a few times and a high crossbody gets two back inside. The flipping powerslam gives Grimes two more as Theory is totally rocked so far. Theory avoids a charge though and manages to knock Grimes off the top. A Town Down finishes Grimes at 3:02.

Rating: C. This was a very fast paced match and Theory barely got in any offense throughout. I’m not wild on Grimes losing here and he is already feeling a lot colder than he was not too long ago. Theory shouldn’t be losing but was there no one else he could have beaten here? Either way, not much of a competitive match and not the best sign for the champ going into a big title defense.

Post match Escobar comes back in to Phantom Driver Theory. He almost has to win the title at this point.

Video on Asuka, who is ready to defend her title at Summerslam despite not having a champion’s advantage.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect. Just like in life, one woman isn’t enough for Waller on this show so he brings out both Bayley and Iyo Sky as his guests. Waller asks Sky if she is going to cash in Money In The Bank at Summerslam but Bayley cuts her off and says they’re not telling their strategy (Sky isn’t looking pleased).

With Bayley laughing, Shotzi’s voice pops up to scare Bayley out of her wits. That was a joke from Waller…..but here is Shotzi’s tank, which isn’t from Waller. Cue Shotzi from behind to chase Bayley off, complete with hair clippers for a threatened haircut. It’s Zelina Vega (scheduled to face Sky tonight) in the tank.

Iyo Sky vs. Zelina Vega

Joined in progress with Vega firing off forearms, setting up the top rope Meteora. The Code Red is blocked though and Vega hits a butterfly backbreaker. The running knees in the corner set up the Over The Moonsault but we cut to Shotzi going after Bayley’s hair on the stage. Bayley gets away but the distraction lets Vega hit the Code Red for the pin at 2:58.

Bianca Belair is getting her gear ready to win the title back at Summerslam. If you want her to jump through hoops, tell her how high.

Summerslam rundown.

Edge is back in two weeks for his 25th anniversary celebration in his hometown of Toronto.

Solo Sikoa vs. Jey Uso

Paul Heyman is here with Sikoa. Jey grabs a headlock to start and is promptly knocked down. The fight heads outside rather quickly with Sikoa not being able to hit Spinning Solo through the announcers’ table. Instead Jey hits a superkick and a suicide dive to send him onto the table for a big crash.

We take a break and come back with Jey fighting out of a nerve hold but having his suicide dive cut off by a shot to the face. Back in and the Samoan drop plants Jey but the running Umaga attack misses in the corner. Jey slugs away and kicks him in the ribs, only to get blasted with a clothesline. Another shot staggers Sikoa though and a high crossbody gives Jey two. Jey’s running Umaga attack is cut off by a spinwheel kick and now Spinning Solo connects. The Samoan Spike is ducked though and they trade superkicks until Jey hits a spear. The Superfly Splash finishes Sikoa at 10:41.

Rating: B-. Ignoring that this was the same way they set up Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns on the Raw before Wrestlemania, this was a good way to give Jey some momentum heading into the title match. Beating Sikoa still feels like a big deal and thankfully it was off the splash and not Jey’s lame spear. This wasn’t exactly inspired storytelling but it did what it needed to do.

Post match Sikoa goes after Jey again but gets a chair superkicked into his face. Jey takes Sikoa out with the chair, with Barrett pointing out how valuable this could be for Jey tomorrow night (nice point).

Overall Rating: B-. As tends to be the case on WWE go home shows, there wasn’t much in the way of action here, but they did a good job of making me care about Summerslam. The battle royal, the Women’s Title match and Tribal Combat all got some attention and that is what this show needed to cover. It’s certainly not a must see show and it was only pretty good, but I’m more invested in Summerslam than I was coming in so they are definitely doing something right.

Results
LA Knight b. Sheamus – Blunt Force Trauma
OC vs. Brawling Brutes went to a no contest when the Street Profits interfered
Austin Theory b. Cameron Grimes – A Town Down
Zelina Vega b. Iyo Sky – Code Red
Jey Uso b. Solo Sikoa – Superfly Splash

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

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

Smackdown
Date: July 28, 2023
Location: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are eight days away from Summerslam and that should make for a pretty big show. At the very least, Roman Reigns is here and that will boost things up a lot, as we now know he’s in for Tribal Combat against Jey Uso. Other than that, we need a #1 contender to the US Title so let’s get to it.

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

Here is Jey Uso to get things going but Roman Reigns and the Bloodline cut him off. Reigns says this is his show so he’ll kick it off. Reigns says he made Jey the right hand man because he has that kind of power. Does Jey think he can run this place? Jey says he stood beside Reigns for years but now Reigns has broken the family, the Bloodline and Jimmy Uso. Reigns says that’s Jey’s fault and Jey was only the right hand man because Jimmy was hurt. After Summerslam, Jey is wiped off the face of the earth and no longer part of this legacy.

Reigns asks what happens if things get crazy and Jey beats him….but nah because Jey can’t do it. So why does he think he can? Jey: “Because I already beat you.” He says he’ll do it again at Summerslam and walks off, leaving Reigns bewildered. This was Jey countering the mind games that have destroyed him for years now and that’s a smart road to take.

Post break Jey runs into Grayson Waller, who offers to give him the Grayson Waller Rub after he loses at Summerslam. Jey slaps him in the face and walks off.

Rey Mysterio vs. Santos Escobar

For a future US Title shot. They shake hands to start with Escobar taking him down by the leg. Back up and they trade slaps until Rey sends him outside for a big running flip dive. We take a break and come back with Escobar hitting a running forearm as US Champion Austin Theory is watching in a sky box. Escobar kicks him in the head and hits a high crossbody for two, followed by a rollup for the same.

The tilt-a-whirl backbreaker gives Escobar two more but Rey sends him outside. The sliding splash misses though and Escobar hits a big dive as we take another break. Back again with the match paused and a trainer checking on Rey. Apparently he hit his head on the landing from the dive before the break. The referee calls the match at 14:13 and Escobar gets the win and the title shot.

Rating: B-. This is a hard one to rate but we’ll go with what we got to see here. What matters with this one is that Rey is ok, and the fact that he seems to have gotten his bell rung more than anything else is a good sign. In theory, Escobar was moving on anyway here and we do have a #1 contender. They were starting to rock near the end, but there is nothing else you can do when someone is hurt.

Post match Escobar checks on Rey and pays homage to him. Escobar stares at Theory, who he will face for the title in two weeks.

Bianca Belair is ready to win her title back but Chelsea Green and Sonya Deville interrupt to make fun of her for not having a title anymore. Belair offers to fight both of them but here is Charlotte to call Deville and Green bullies. Charlotte wants Belair at 100% so we’ll do the tag match thing later.

Here is Hit Row to mock the fans but LA Knight interrupts, apparently for a scheduled match. Knight didn’t know Uncle Phil was a rapper and thinks B Fab has a thing for him. For now though, Ashante Thee Adonis can be the next to get dropped on his head.

LA Knight vs. Ashante Thee Adonis

Adonis starts fast and Top Dolla gets in a cheap shot. With Dolla dispatched, Knight hits a powerslam, the spelling elbow and Blunt Force Trauma for the pin at 1:32. That’s how Knight should be used at the moment if they don’t have anything bigger for him.

Adam Pearce tells Jey Uso he has to face Grayson Waller tonight. Works for Jey.

Bobby Lashley is with the Street Profits in a rather nice looking lounge. He likes the team, but thinks they need to dress better. Well, that Angelo Dawkins does at least. Courtesy of Lashley, here are some rather nice suits. Dawkins seems appreciative and I continue to be curious about where this is going.

Bianca Belair/Charlotte vs. Sonya Deville/Chelsea Green

Non-title. Belair and Green start things off with Belair easily taking over. Charlotte comes in for the figure four necklock faceplants before handing it back to Belair. The handspring knocks Green off the apron and there’s a dropkick to Deville for a bonus. We take a break with the champs in trouble and come back with Belair suplexing both of them at the same time.

The crawling tag brings in Charlotte to clean house, including a clothesline for two on Green. Charlotte spears Green down and Belair adds a delayed vertical suplex to Deville. Some right hands in the corner miss for Belair but she breaks up the Unpretty-Her. The KOD is loaded up but Charlotte tags herself in and kicks Green in the face for the (delayed) pin at 10:25.

Rating: C. Why does WWE insist on doing this? They act like they want the titles to mean something and then do something like this. I get that Belair and Charlotte are more talented than the champs, but that doesn’t mean the match has to be booked. Just leave the champs out of this or have some kind of screwy finish that doesn’t involve them being pinned clean. That shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.

Post match the argument is on.

Iyo Sky asks Bayley why she left so fast last week. Bayley says something about wanting to leave quickly before finding a note from Shotzi in her bag. They rush to leave but Asuka comes in and promises to retain at Summerslam. Sky teases the briefcase and leaves with Bayley.

There is going to be a Summerslam Battle Royal, featuring stars from Raw and Smackdown.

LA Knight tells Adam Pearce that he wants in the battle royal. The Brawling Brutes come in and mock Knight, earning them spots in the battle royal and Sheamus vs. Knight next week.

Karrion Kross vs. Karl Anderson

Before the match, Anderson asks the rest of the OC to stay in the back because this is personal (they’re cool with that). Kross takes him into the corner to start but Anderson gets a boot up to stop a charge. The middle rope neckbreaker gets two but Kross suplexes him down. A powerslam swung into a DDT (the Final Prayer) finishes Anderson at 2:04. I’m still not sure why Anderson and Gallows remain employed other than maybe HHH feeling sorry for how they were cut so fast last time.

Post match Kross stays on Anderson until AJ Styles makes the save.

Jey Uso vs. Grayson Waller

They circle each other a bit to start until Waller manages to knock him into the corner for a running knee. Back up and Jey kicks him into the corner but cue the Bloodline for a distraction. Waller runs him over again and we take a break. Back with Jey fighting out of a cravate but getting dropped again as the fans seem rather interested in this Roman fellow.

Waller hits the springboard elbow and a spinebuster, setting up a People’s Elbow (with some personalized features) which takes way too long. The rolling Stunner is cut off by a superkick and Jey hits a spear (which might replace Christian’s as the least convincing ever). The Superfly Splash finishes Waller at 11:17.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t about the match itself but rather about a way to get Reigns and Jey out there at the same time again. In that sense it worked well and gave Jey a bit of momentum, but it isn’t like this was some kind of great main event. Jey is going to need all of the momentum he can get and this gave him just enough to get by this week.

Post match Solo Sikoa runs in to beat Jey down but the Spike misses. Jey hits the superkick so Reigns comes in, only to get speared as well. Sikoa breaks up the Superfly Splash and lays Jey out and a spear/Spike combination puts him down again. It works so well that they do it again to end the show. That’s a nasty combination and thankfully it made me forget that I’m supposed to buy a Jey Uso spear putting Reigns down for more than half a second.

Overall Rating: C+. Not their greatest show but they’re also in a weird place with most of Summerslam already booked. There isn’t much left for them to do before the show so there wasn’t much to cover here. Reigns vs. Jey is still built around a lot of mind games and Charlotte vs. Belair vs…..oh yeah Asuka is in there too. Other than that, Summerslam is fairly light on the Smackdown side, but that battle royal is promising. They did what they needed to do this week and I’ll take that so close to Summerslam.

Results
Santos Escobar b. Rey Mysterio via referee stoppage
LA Knight b. Ashante Thee Adonis – Blunt Force Trauma
Charlotte/Bianca Belair b. Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville – Big boot to Green
Karrion Kross b. Karl Anderson – Final Prayer
Jey Uso b. Grayson Waller – Superfly Splash

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.

Smackdown
Date: July 7, 2023
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Money In The Bank and about a month away from Summerslam. Things have changed in a big way though, as Jey Uso pinned Roman Reigns last weekend, marking the first time anyone has done so in nearly 1,300 days. That should give us a Summerslam main event and it could be amazing. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Bloodline Civil War and Jey Uso pinning Roman Reigns.

Here are the Usos for the trial of Roman Reigns. They talk about how it was said it could never be done and he was unbeatable but they did it. Cue Paul Heyman, with Solo Sikoa, to say he has the evidence here. Heyman is told to stop talking, but he says only one person in WWE can make him do that. Sikoa covers up the mic (Heyman is stunned/scared) and goes to stand in the corner as Roman Reigns joins us.

After a break, Reigns is greeted with YOU GOT PINNED chants and yeah, the fans are right, but he’s still the Tribal Chief. Reigns looks at the Usos and says they aren’t the Chief (or yet, in Jey’s case). Since he didn’t call for Tribal Court, this isn’t official. So who called it? The Usos aren’t going for this because they aren’t going to be manipulated. We see Exhibit A: a package of Reigns turning on Bloodline members and talking about how he’s the top of everything. Fans: “YOU FU**** UP!” Reigns: “No I didn’t.”

Reigns goes on a rant about how he does everything for the family and was forced to be like that to carry everyone else. He was a Wrestlemania main eventer before the Bloodline and the Bloodline needs him. The weight of the world is on his back when he already has five children of his own. You think he needed Jey’s family on his back too? Umbrella service sounds real nice to him right now and he doesn’t need this from Jey. He’s done, and hands the lei over to Jey. Reigns throws down the title and bows to Jey, as Heyman is barely understanding this.

Jey kneels down to check on Reigns and gets hit low, prompting Jimmy to go after Reigns. Sikoa breaks that up and stands between them, with the lei in the middle. The Spike drops Jimmy and Sikoa picks up the lei (fans: “PUT IT ON!”), which he…..almost hands back to Reigns (Sikoa didn’t seem sure) as Jey jumps them both.

Jey gets planted as well and is tied in the ropes as Reigns massacres Jimmy, including the steps to the head. Jey gets free and goes for Reigns but Sikoa cuts that off fast. Sikoa puts Jimmy through the announcers’ table to FINALLY wrap up an incredibly captivating 30+ minute segment. This stuff is still incredible storytelling and I want to see where it is going more and more every week. I don’t remember the last time I’ve seen that, but it’s been a long time.

Post break Jimmy is taken away in an ambulance.

United States Title: Austin Theory vs. Sheamus

Theory is defending and gets clotheslined to the floor to start. We take a break and come back with Sheamus having to block ten forearms to his own chest. Theory knocks him down again and stomps away for two. Sheamus catches him on top but gets caught in a spinning torture rack bomb for two as we take a second break.

Back with Theory’s rolling dropkick being countered into a powerbomb. We hit the Cloverleaf but here is Pretty Deadly for a distraction. Now the rolling dropkick can hit Sheamus but A Town Down is countered into a knee to the head for two. Now the Brawling Brutes come out to clear out Pretty Deadly. Sheamus hits a Brogue Kick but gets rolled up (with trunks) to retain the title at 12:30.

Rating: B-. Sheamus was a good choice for a challenger here as he can make Theory look good while being just enough of a threat to win the title. That being said, Theory has held the title for about eight months now and it’s easy to forget a lot of that time. He needs a big rivalry or a challenge of some kind because this meandering title reign has lost a lot of steam.

We get some classic Garden shots, which are rather cool.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect with Edge as this week’s guest. Waller wants to talk about some big deal but Edge isn’t sure what he means. Waller goes into how Edge had a great career and hopefully saved his money, so why is he back? Edge talks about his career here in the Garden and how he works in this city because they’re both hard working people.

Waller says that Edge is retiring and this is the last time the Garden will ever see him. Not so fast actually, as Edge talks about how someone sees something in Waller but he’s dog paddled his way into some deep water. The reality is that Edge isn’t retiring, but rather having a match tonight…..against Waller.

Karrion Kross vs. AJ Styles

Scarlett and Michin are both here too. Kross (with a taped up leg) jumps Styles to start and hits the forearm to the back of the head. The Krossjacket is broken up and the women get in a fight on the floor. That leaves Styles to hit a quick shot to the head, setting up the Phenomenal Forearm for the pin at 1:40.

Here is Asuka for a chat, with Bianca Belair and Charlotte hitting the ring for the big brawl almost immediately. Cue Iyo Sky and Bayley to jump Asuka though and it’s a Rose Plant onto the case. Over The Moonsault connects but Belair breaks up the cash-in, allowing Charlotte to kick the case into Sky’s face (no cash-in).

We look at Damian Priest winning the Money In The Bank briefcase.

Edge vs. Grayson Waller

Edge starts fast with a gutbuster and a kick to the ribs, followed by a gutwrench suplex. The fans tell Edge that he still has it but Waller gets in a shot, saying he has it too. Waller takes over as we go to a break. Back with Waller hitting a tornado DDT and hammering away. Edge catches him on top but gets shoved down for a crash.

Waller’s middle rope elbow hits raised knees and a powerbomb to the floor plants Waller again. Edge’s high crossbody gets two but Waller is back with a running flipping Unprettier (cool….I think) for two of his own. Waller keeps trash talking and walks into the Edgecution for a rather delayed near fall. The rolling Stunner is loaded up but Edge spears him out of the air for the pin at 14:24.

Rating: C+. They could have gone either way with this one and they made the right choice by having Waller come close but lose in the end. I get the appeal of having Waller get the big upset win in his debut, but having someone who was never even a champion in NXT beat Edge in a straight match is a bit much to take. Edge gave him a lot here and Waller should be fine, but that rolling Stunner needs to go far away. It takes so long to set up and looks ridiculous. Pick something else. Other than that, rather solid debut.

Post match Edge says Waller swam (after saying Waller would sink or swim in his first match).

Roman Reigns is told Jey Uso is back and says Jey won’t have to look for him.

The Bloodline is in the ring and here is Jey Uso through the crowd. Jey takes Solo out on the floor and grabs a chair, which takes Reigns down with a few shots. A heck of a lot more shots leave Solo laying….and Jey picks up the title (the fans approve). Reigns: “PUT IT DOWN!” Jey calls himself the judge, jury and executioner in the trial of the Tribal Chief. It’s trial by combat now and Jey wants Reigns one on one. Jey issues a challenge but Reigns says nothing to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I know I say this a lot but this was a very different kind of show. You had the Bloodline dominating everything and taking up so much time, but the rest of the stuff did feel like it mattered as well. The problem though is that the Bloodline stuff just towers over everything else and it doesn’t feel anywhere close to equal. You absolutely can’t present a show like this every week, but every so often, it can work very well, like it did here.

Results
Austin Theory b. Sheamus – Rollup with trunks
AJ Styles b. Karrion Kross – Phenomenal Forearm
Edge b. Grayson Waller – Spear

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.

Smackdown
Date: June 30, 2023
Location: 02 Arena, London, England
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are less than a day away from Money In The Bank and that means it is time for the final push towards a pair of ladder matches and a Bloodline Civil War. That should make for a safe but secure night, though Charlotte is challenging for the Women’s Title, which could go bad in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s a preview of what’s coming tonight.

Tag Team Titles: Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn vs. Pretty Deadly

Home country boys Pretty Deadly are challenging. Sami cranks on Wilson’s arm to start and armdrags him into an armbar. Prince gets in a cheap shot from the apron though and Wilson gets to choke away on the ropes like a cowardly villain should. We take a break and come back with Sami caught in a chinlock and Prince cutting off a tag attempt. Granted the save lasts all of three seconds before Sami gets to Owens anyway, meaning house can be quickly cleaned.

The backsplash crushes Wilson on the floor and there’s a Cannonball to Prince back inside. The Swanton hits Prince for two but Owens is favoring his leg/ankle. Owens can’t hit the Stunner and the leg gives out, allowing Prince to go after the leg. An assisted Codebreaker sets up Spilled Milk for two, with Sami having to make the save. It’s right back to Sami to pick up the pace, including a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Wilson’s rollup gets two on Sami but he exploders Wilson into the corner. Owens drops Prince and the Helluva Kick retains the titles at 11:12.

Rating: C+. Well what else were you expecting here? Pretty Deadly are the kind of team who can steal the win over beaten down opponents, but they’re not taking the titles from a team who won them in the main event of Wrestlemania. Owens and Zayn had to work to retain, but this wasn’t exactly a stunning come from behind win. Nice opener though, as the fans are starting off hot.

We recap Sheamus vs. Solo Sikoa last week.

Ridge Holland wants Sikoa but gets a Championship Contenders match against Austin Theory instead. Works for Holland.

Austin Theory vs. Ridge Holland

Non-title but if Holland wins, he’s in the title hunt. Theory takes him into the corner to start but a shoulder to the ribs is countered into a swinging front facelock (the Yorkshire Merry Go Round) for two. Another shot puts Holland back down but Theory spends too much time talking. That means Holland can fight up with a suplex, only to have Theory slip out of a powerslam. A shot to the throat and a throat ram into the top rope sets up Theory’s rolling dropkick to finish Holland at 2:53. Bad start for the Brits on this show.

Post match the beatdown stays on but Sheamus runs out for the save.

Karrion Kross, with Scarlett, promises to checkmate AJ Styles next week.

Long video, complete with awesome voiceover, on the Bloodline Civil War. As usual, this is what WWE does really, really well.

Bayley vs. Shotzi

Bayley’s Money In The Bank ladder match spot is on the line and she has Iyo Sky in her corner. Bayley gets caught with a reverse Sling Blade to start as the fans sing about Bayley being their girl. The Bayley To Belly gets two but Shotzi is right back with a DDT for a breather. An enziguri misses for Shotzi but she’s fine enough for the reverse Cannonball. Sky puts Bayley’s foot on the rope, which is enough of a distraction for Bayley to rake the eyes. The Rose Plant secures Bayley’s spot at 3:32.

Rating: C. I’m not sure how what the point was if Bayley was going to win this quickly, but at least they went with something involving a story over the “building momentum” nonsense. Shotzi continues to be rather energized but she hasn’t ever really gotten over the hump. That might change some day in the future, though getting over said hump might need a little more than a tank.

Video on the men’s Money In The Bank ladder match.

Shotzi goes after Bayley and Iyo Sky in the back and gets put through a table. They throw in a hair cut for inconvenience as well.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect and Waller wastes no time in bringing out his guest: Logan Paul. Waller gets to the point again, by asking what winning the briefcase would mean. Paul says it would mean a lot in London because being the champ is the ultimate goal. Maybe he cashes in tomorrow, or maybe he just hits LA Knight with the briefcase.

Cue Knight and my goodness the reactions continue (with commentary flat out saying the fans love him). Knight knows Paul can go viral but he’s in the middle of Knight’s ring. Paul says he sees someone who was supposed to be a manager but Knight tells him to listen to the fans. Paul to the fans: “You’re drunk. Go home.” Cue Santos Escobar to say he needs the briefcase but now it’s Butch to interrupt and the fight is on fast.

Butch vs. LA Knight vs. Santos Escobar

Joined in progress with Knight stomping on Butch in the corner and Logan Paul at ringside. Butch misses the big kick to Knight, who drops him down HARD instead. Escobar sends them into the corner for a running knee and Knight has to make a save. Knight loads up the spelling elbow but Butch breaks it up and hits the Bitter End to pin Escobar at 3:30.

Rating: C+. It was energetic and done in a hurry, as something like this should have been. Butch is about as long of a shot as you can get to win the briefcase tomorrow but points for at least throwing him the tiniest of bones here. Knight and Paul have to be the heavy favorites, but Money In The Bank is the definition of anything could happen. For now, Butch gets a nice win, which will mean all of nothing tomorrow.

Post match Butch gets to pull down the briefcase.

AJ Styles is down to face Karrion Kross and has Michin to deal with Scarlett.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Charlotte

Charlotte is challenging and Bianca Belair is sitting in the front row. Asuka cuts off a charge with some knees to the face for two, followed by a Backstabber as we take an early break. Back with Charlotte’s moonsault missing but the spear connecting for two. Asuka bails to the floor where the moonsault in her general vicinity puts her down again. Charlotte accidentally drops Belair with a big boot, which is enough to draw Belair over the barricade to go after Asuka (smart) for the DQ at 8:38.

Rating: C+. It was nice while it lasted but this was all about keeping the story going. I’m sure Charlotte will get to whine about how unfair everything has been to her as the triple threat is set for some point in the future. For now though, it was a hard hitting match that served its purpose.

Post match Belair stays on Asuka but gets dropped by Charlotte. Back up and Belair takes them both out and stacks them up on the announcers’ table.

Money In The Bank rundown. Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio is set for the main event.

Here is the Bloodline to wrap things up. Roman Reigns says for the last two or so years, he has allowed the Usos to call themselves the ones. The truth is that Reigns is the only one because he is the Tribal Chief. He is the only one who loves the Usos and lifted them into the promised land.

The fans say Reigns sucks but he says family betraying you is what really sucks. A good father, or Tribal Chief, will give his family chance after chance, but now they need to come out here and bow down in apology. Cue the Usos to say this is about consequences, like the ones that hit Reigns if he loses. When Reigns loses the war tomorrow, he’s the only one out. There will be a new Tribal Chief and that would be…..Solo Sikoa!

Reigns cracks up in laughter but gets a look, which earns the Usos some yelling. Jey and Reigns yell at each other until Jimmy superkicks Reigns. Sikoa gets taken down and the big fight is on, with security being taken out as Jimmy hits a big dive to wrap things up. This feud has been built up for years now and this was just one last “here’s the next big step” for tomorrow.

Overall Rating: C+. The final show before Money In The Bank is always a weird one as the show is set and there isn’t much to do. This show offered a pair of title matches to fill in the time and they worked well enough, but the ladder matches and the Bloodline stuff is what matters most. Neither had much to add, but tomorrow is ready to launch. As usual, this was more about “don’t screw anything up” and they managed to avoid that problem just fine.

Results
Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn b. Pretty Deadly – Helluva Kick to Wilson
Austin Theory b. Ridge Holland – Rolling dropkick
Bayley b. Shotzi – Rose Plant
Butch b. Santos Escobar and LA Knight – Bitter End to Escobar
Asuka b. Charlotte via DQ when Bianca Belair 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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Smackdown
Date: June 23, 2023
Location: Cajundome, Lafayette, Louisiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are in a new reality this week as the Usos superkicked Roman Reigns last week to officially break away from the Bloodline. That has set up a huge tag match next week at Money In The Bank, which very well may headline the show. Other than that, we need to finish up the build for Money In The Bank and unify the Women’s Tag Team Titles this week so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Usos turning on the Bloodline last week to an insane reaction.

Here are the Usos to say the Bloo……the USOS are in your city! Jey is very emotional about what happened and says they always have each other’s back. That has Jimmy saying Jey made the absolute right choice. Jey says they still love Roman Reigns but he disrespected them. It’s always about respect and when they fell in line, the Bloodline was the most dominant faction in WWE. But when Reigns started showing how little he respected them, it was time for him to be alone on the Island of Relevancy.

They can always forgive their brother Solo Sikoa, but not so much with a snake like Paul Heyman. He has spent years talking about how much he loves their family, but then how could he take orders from someone who would cause this many problems between them? Now it’s time for the Bloodline Civil War and the Usos are ready to show why they’re the best ever. Fired up promo here, and the fans were WAY into the team.

LA Knight vs. Rey Mysterio

Knight sends him hard into the corner to start and hits a slingshot shoulder for two. As we hear about Wade Barrett picking out Rey’s gear tonight (ok then), Rey hammers away and hits a quick 619. It’s too early for the frog splash so Rey baseball slides him to the floor instead. There’s the sliding splash and we take a break with Knight in trouble. Back with Knight face planting Mysterio and hitting his jumping elbow for two. Rey’s tornado DDT cuts Knight off but Knight pulls him out of the air and hits Blunt Force Trauma for the pin at 8:30.

Rating: C. They kept this short but the only thing that matters is getting Knight another win. Knight feels like he is on the brink of a huge breakthrough moment and that might come at Money In The Bank. For now though, it is nice to see him winning some matches, including what might be the biggest win of his WWE career so far.

Post match Knight goes for the mask but Santos Escobar makes the save.

Ridge Holland runs into Solo Sikoa and Paul Heyman in the back. That’s not nice for Sikoa, who Samoan Spikes him down, leaving Heyman to call Roman Reigns.

Post break, Sheamus tells Adam Pearce to give him Sikoa tonight.

Cue Sheamus in the arena to say he wants to fight Sikoa tonight.

Women’s Tag Team Titles/NXT Women’s Tag Team Titles: Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler vs. Isla Dawn/Alba Fyre

For the unified titles and Raquel Rodriguez is at ringside. Dawn superkicks Baszler down for a fast two to start so Rousey demands she come in instead. Rousey judo throws Dawn down but gets kicked in the face to break up the armbar. Fyre hits a running Meteora for two and kicks Rousey’s leg out. Baszler offers a distraction though and Rousey plants Fyre down with a poisonrana as we take a break.

Back with Fyre breaking out of an ankle lock but Baszler comes in to knee her in the face. Fyre kicks her away though and the hot tag brings in Dawn to clean house. The Kirifuda Clutch goes on but Dawn breaks it up with a Swanton. Fyre takes Rousey out at ringside but Rousey and Baszler grab the Clutch/armbar for the stereo taps at 9:49.

Rating: C+. This was a weird one as Dawn and Fyre dominated until they got pulled into the holds out of nowhere. What matters here though is getting rid of the NXT version of the titles, which never really needed to exist in the first place. Having the champs go to all three brands is the best option and now we should be in for something fascinating: Ronda Rousey in NXT.

Post match Rodriguez goes to leave but gets called back in. Rodriguez is here to issue a challenge for a rematch, because Liv Morgan is back.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect with special guests Pretty Deadly. They love the show, which is SO much better than the KO Show. After insulting America, Pretty Deadly talks about how they’re looking forward to winning the titles in the greatest city in the world next week. They’re taking this pretty deadly seriously and promise to be running the tag team division for the next ten years. They talk about dominating the gauntlet match last week, even though they weren’t sure they could keep going. We hear about the teams they beat so here are the Street Profits to interrupt. They’re here on Smackdown too so let’s do this.

Street Profits vs. Pretty Deadly

Dawkins beats on Wilson to start as we hear about Pretty Deadly being voted some of the most beautiful people in England. Prince comes in and gets punched out of the air, allowing Ford to come in for some dropkicks. Hold on though as Ford takes off….whatever Prince wears and puts it on before the Profits hit stereo flip dives.

We take a break and come back with Ford fighting out of trouble, allowing Dawkins to come in with the Anointment for two as Prince has to make the save. Wilson is sent outside and Ford hits a Rock Bottom for two on Prince. Ford is knocked off the apron, leaving Prince to grab a rollup (with Wilson grabbing the foot) for the pin at 8:58.

Rating: C. Pretty Deadly are already becoming what made them work in NXT and NXT UK: the pesky team that you know shouldn’t be winning these matches but sneak up on you to steal one win after another. They’re so good with their goofiness and don’t try to be anything remotely serious. That makes for a very entertaining presentation, including as the Profits continue to crumble week after week.

Charlotte vs. Lacey Evans

Charlotte chops away to start but gets sent into the corner for her efforts. Evans orders the fans to salute her but Charlotte takes over, demands a salute of her own, and grabs a suplex. The Tranquilo pose sets up a big boot and the Figure Eight to make Evans tap at 2:30. So Charlotte was the good one here? Am I getting that right?

Post match Asuka runs in to jump Charlotte and throws in a salute to Evans.

Bianca Belair comes in to see Adam Pearce, who asks if she’ll behave next week when she’s ringside for Charlotte vs. Asuka. Belair says she’ll defend herself if someone comes after her, which is why Pearce is barring her from ringside. Believe it or not, she isn’t pleased.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows, including Roman Reigns returning next week.

Solo Sikoa vs. Sheamus

Paul Heyman is here with Sikoa. They slug it out in the corner to start until Sheamus kicks him to the floor for a clothesline. Back in and Sheamus hits a top rope shot to the head for one but the forearms to the chest are broken up. Sikoa fights out of a fireman’s carry on the apron though and posts Sheamus, setting up a Samoan drop on the floor as we take a break.

Back with Sheamus clotheslining his way out of trouble, followed by the Irish Curse. Sheamus back is banged up but he’s fine enough to hit the forearms to Sikoa’s chest. The running knee to the face gives Sheamus two and White Noise is good for the same. The back gives out on the Celtic Cross attempt though and Sikoa kicks him in the back. They go the floor for a release Rock Bottom onto the announcers’ table to leave Sheamus laying. Sikoa puts Sheamus against the barricade, meaning it’s the Umaga Attack to knock him silly. The referee calls it at 14:27 when Sheamus can’t continue.

Rating: B. Sheamus s firmly in the “you know what you’re going to get” and that was on display here. Sheamus is a big, power guy who is going to hit someone hard enough to give them a problem. At the same time, the ending made Sikoa look like a killer and the Usos might have bitten off more than they can chew. Good match here, as they had a hard hitting fight.

Post match the Usos come out and superkick Sikoa a few times. The stereo Superfly Splashes connect as Heyman calls Roman Reigns to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Last week was the show that really mattered and this week’s show was more along the lines of “save it for London next week”. Reigns wasn’t here but his presence was felt, as Heyman was rapidly losing control and only Reigns can save things. We’ll have to see if he can do it, but the cracks are already there and things are falling apart. Other than that, the title change and Morgan return mattered the most, but now we’re just waiting or the pay per view next week, which is the next big step in everything. Completely watchable show, but there wasn’t much in the way of big stuff.

Results
LA Knight b. Rey Mysterio – Samoan Spike
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler b. Isla Dawn/Alba Fyre – Double submission
Pretty Deadly b. Street Profits – Assisted rollup to Ford
Charlotte b. Lacey Evans – Figure Eight
Solo Sikoa b. Sheamus via referee stoppage

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.

Smackdown
Date: June 9, 2023
Location: Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines, Iowa
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Michael Cole

It’s a big night this week as we have the decision of Jey Uso. Last week Jey was put in the middle of Roman Reigns/Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso, but now he has to actually make a choice. Other than that, we have more Money In The Bank qualifying matches, which should at least be good. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a long recap of the Bloodline’s issues from last week, with Roman Reigns saying Jey would fall in line, as always.

Here are Paul Heyman and Solo Sikoa but Jey Uso interrupts almost immediately. Jey says he has let a lot of things slide but he doesn’t know if he can forgive Solo for stabbing his big brother in the back. Jey tells Solo to say what he has to say and throws the mic down. Heyman says Jey has this all wrong because it is all Jimmy Uso’s fault. It was Jimmy who turned on Reigns, and now Heyman has Sikoa step back.

Heyman is taking a chance by standing face to face with Jey, who wasn’t in on Jimmy’s plans to turn on Reigns. Jimmy is in on the fact that Reigns wants to groom Jey to be the next Tribal Chief. Tonight, Jey has a chance to bring gold back to the Bloodline, but it’s not the Tag Team Titles. Instead, he can become the United States Champion by beating Austin Theory. That will be the start of his path to being the next Tribal Chief, but Heyman needs his answer now. After thinking a bit, Jey says he’ll get back to him on that.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Santos Escobar vs. Mustafa Ali

Rey Mysterio is here with Escobar as LA Knight joins commentary as Ali and Escobar yell at each other. They go to the floor for a slugout until Escobar snaps off a hurricanrana from the steps. Escobar hits a suicide dive and a regular dive off the top and we take a break with Ali in trouble.

Back with Ali dropkicking him out of the air but getting sent HARD into the middle buckle for his efforts. A poisonrana gives Escobar two but Ali snaps off his tornado DDT for the same. Ali gets caught on top though and it’s a super Phantom driver to give Escobar the pin at 9:04.

Rating: B-. I could have gone with the full version of the match here as they put on a heck of a back and forth match here. It was all about the fast pace and the energy and that’s how you want an opening match to go. Escobar winning isn’t a big surprise but it’s nice to see the LWO actually getting some wins after losing so much when they started.

The LWO comes out to celebrate.

Sami Zayn comes up to an anxious Jey Uso and wants to tell him something. Their time in the Bloodline was some of the best times of his career but when the Tribal Chief (who he specifies is different than Roman Reigns) takes over, bad things happen. He had to be pushed and had his loyalty tested over and over, just like Reigns is doing to Jey. Whatever happens though, there are consequences, such as no more Usos, and that’s Jey’s decision. Do what is in his own heart rather than what is being put in his head. Jey looks at Sami and walks off with a serious glare on his face.

Kayla Braxton brings out Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn for a chat. Before they can say a word though, here are Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler to interrupt. Baszler talks about how those titles were created for her, but Rousey says this division isn’t big enough for two sets of champions. They want those titles too, which Dawn finds cute. She accepts and the fight is on, with Rousey and Baszler being cleared out. Unifying the titles is a great move and if that’s where this leads, we’re heading in the right direction.

Tribute video to the Iron Sheik, who really was awesome at what he did.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Bayley vs. Michin

AJ Styles is on commentary as Michin is sent outside to start. Bayley mocks Styles’ entrance pose and gets taken out by Michin’s dive (Styles approves). Back in and Michin fires off Kawada kicks (Styles approves again) but Bayley sends her face first into the buckle. The Rose Plant finishes Michin at 2:27.

Post match Scarlett comes out to blow smoke in Styles’ face, allowing Karrion Kross to choke Styles from behind.

Bianca Belair isn’t happy with Asuka getting a new Women’s Title but once she’s told she’s in line for a rematch, she’s willing to let the presentation go without getting involved.

AJ Styles is livid over the powder.

Here is Asuka for the new title presentation. Adam Pearce unveils the new title, which is more or less the same as Roman Reigns’ new title, but with a white strap….and then Charlotte returns. Pearce tells her to get in line, but Charlotte says she is the line. Asuka misses with the mist and rolls away.

Paul Heyman comes in to see Jey Uso, who left him hanging out there. After tonight, Jey needs to get his passport ready to go to Money In The Bank. Then next week, we can have a public celebration of the new US Champion Jey Uso being named as the next Tribal Chief. Jey says count him in for the celebration, but he doesn’t know why Heyman is so happy. See, if Jey is in, Heyman is out!

Bianca Belair comes in to see Adam Pearce, who says he’ll figure it out. Belair: “You better.”

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Butch vs. Baron Corbin

NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes (who Corbin has been going after in NXT) and his friend Trick Williams are here. Before the match, Corbin tells Hayes and Williams to sit down like the fans they are. Butch starts fast and hits a tornado DDT for an early two. Corbin’s fingers get snapped but he manages a shot to Butch for a breather. More yelling at Hayes lets Butch counter a left handed chokeslam (because of the snapped fingers) into a rollup for the pin at 1:48.

Post break, Butch is rather happy with his win but Corbin interrupts to complain about Hayes. Cameron Grimes pops in to deck Corbin.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Shotzi vs. Iyo Sky

Bayley is here with Sky and the early distraction doesn’t work. Shotzi suplexes her into the corner but Sky starts in on the arm to take over. A middle rope dropkick misses though and Shotzi grabs a tiger suplex. A big suicide dive drops Sky again but Bayley shoves Shotzi off the top (with her head hitting the buckle on the way down. Over The Moonsault finishes Shotzi at 2:38.

Austin Theory is ready to beat Jey Uso like he bat John Cena at Wrestlemania.

Kevin Owens asks Sami Zayn if they can focus on the Tag Team Titles now. Pretty Deadly, the Brawling Brutes, the OC, the LWO and the Street Profits all come in to say they want a title shot. Adam Pearce comes in to try to calm things down but Owens snaps because THEY’RE ALL STANDING TOO CLOSE TO HIM. Pearce makes a gauntlet match for next week.

Video on Grayson Waller.

US Title: Jey Uso vs. Austin Theory

Theory is defending and gets clotheslined to the floor to start. A whip over the announcers’ table takes us to a break with the champ in trouble. Back with Jey fighting out of a chinlock, setting up the slugout. Theory hits a rolling dropkick but A Town Down is countered. Jey kicks away but Theory gets knocked into the referee.

The Superfly Splash connects but there is no referee. Cue Pretty Deadly (friends with Theory) to go after Jey but Jimmy Uso makes the save. Solo Sikoa runs in to Spike Jimmy but Jey makes a save of his own. Jimmy’s superkick hits Jey by mistake and Theory gets the pin to retain at 8:37.

Rating: C+. One of the good signs of this whole Bloodline saga is the idea of Jey winning the title didn’t feel too out there. The fact that I could believe in a career tag team wrestler winning the US Title is a nice feeling of anything could happen and that has been missing from WWE for a long time. Theory shouldn’t have lost the title but having him be in there as a side piece to the story was a good way to go.

Jey is all conflicted and angry to end the show. He walks away from Jimmy and past Sikoa and Paul Heyman, the latter of whom calls Roman reigns to end the show. So that whole “Jey will make a decision thing” was just straight up false advertising. Got it.

Overall Rating: C+. While I don’t like the stringing us along to next week with the Jey deal, I do like a show that has some set goals and accomplishes (most of) them. This show added a bunch of people to the Money In The Bank matches, had a surprise return and even tied an NXT feud into things. The opener was good and the middle section of the show was too short to be that bad. All in all, a nice show as we’re getting closer to the big stuff next month in London.

Results
Santos Escobar b. Mustafa Ali – Super Phantom Driver
Bayley b. Michin – Rose Plant
Butch b. Baron Corbin – Rollup
Iyo Sky b. Shotzi – Over The Moonsault
Austin Theory b. Jey Uso – Superkick

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.

Smackdown
Date: June 2, 2023
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Night Of Champions and while there wasn’t a big Smackdown title change, the major story came at the end, as Jimmy Uso superkicked Roman Reigns to seemingly remove himself from the Bloodline. Tonight just so happens to be the 1000 day celebration for Reigns’ Universal Title reign so we should be in for some fireworks. Let’s get to it.

Here is Night Of Champions if you need a recap.

Barrett and Cole welcome us to the show and throw us to a rather cool video on Roman Reigns, looking at his entire reign. The video includes a timeline as he rises up the ranks and passes various people and looks at some milestones. If there is one thing WWE knows how to do, it is look back at its own history.

Austin Theory is in the ring…and we look at Reigns retaining at Wrestlemania XXXVII, which was already looked at in the video.

Theory says this is the celebration of Reigns reaching 1000 days as Universal Champion. What is even more impressive than that though is if you combined his title reign with Reigns’ it would be 1,209 days. He’ll probably have his own 4000 day reign or so, especially if he is given challengers like Sheamus. For now though, he’ll introduce his partners for tonight, so here is Pretty Deadly to be rather happy about Theory.

Brawling Brutes vs. Pretty Deadly/Austin Theory

Holland jumps Prince to start and it’s quickly off to Wilson. Butch comes in as well but gets taken down into a chinlock. That doesn’t work for Butch who stomps on the fingers. The big kick misses though and it’s Theory coming in and wanting Sheamus (the fans agree). We take a break and come back with Butch in trouble and Theory getting to pose.

Butch DDTs his way out of trouble and it’s Sheamus coming in to clean house. A triple White Noise sets up the Brogue to Theory but Prince pulls him outside. Back to back drives drop the villains and we take another break. Back again with Sheamus hitting a top rope knee to the chest for two on Prince and everything breaks down.

We get a parade of strikes to the face until Butch is backdropped to the floor. Sheamus knees Theory in the face for two and Holland powers Pretty Deadly over. The triple forearms to the chest have the Brutes in even more control but Wilson and Prince switch places, setting up Spilled Milk to Holland. Theory gets the pin at 17:35.

Rating: B-. This got a good bit of time (maybe too much) and seems to wrap up Theory vs. Sheamus. Theory has already beaten Sheamus in a singles match and now he has beaten his team in a six man. Exactly what else is there for them to do at the moment? Pretty Deadly continues to be their goofy selves, but the Brutes could use a win sooner than later as the bad run continues.

We look back at Jimmy Uso turning on Roman Reigns and leaving the Bloodline at Night Of Champions.

Paul Heyman tells Solo Sikoa that he’s going to make sure the Usos aren’t here tonight.

We look at Seth Rollins beating AJ Styles to win the World Heavyweight Title at Night Of Champions.

AJ Styles (the birthday boy) is here and wants the OC to take out Hit Row.

Roman Reigns beat Brock Lesnar to retain at Summerslam 2022.

Hit Row vs. OC

All of their associates are here and apparently this is over a Hit Row rap about the OC. Hit Row jumps them to start and it’s Adonis taking over on Anderson with a chinlock. AJ/Michin argue with B Fab on the floor, followed by Anderson hitting a spinebuster to get a breather. Gallows comes in to clean house, including a suplex to Adonis. The Magic Killer gives Anderson the pin at 2:58.

Post match Top Dolla goes after the OC, earning himself a Phenomenal Forearm.

Paul Heyman comes in to see Adam Pearce, who says the Usos’ travel has been canceled and there is double security. Heyman calls Reigns, whose locker room he was in about five minutes ago.

Breaking News: Seth Rollins defends against Damian Priest on Raw.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect, with new Raw Women’s Champion Asuka as the special guest. We look at Asuka defeating Bianca Belair to win the title at Night Of Champion, allowing Asuka to do her celebratory dance. Waller says he couldn’t have said it better himself and points to the Money in the Bank briefcases. Asuka has to know that Belair is coming for her, but here is Iyo Sky to yell at Asuka.

Cue Bayley (Cole: “There go the ratings.”) to says she’s won before so she’ll win again. Then it’s Shotzi, Lacey Evans (looking like Sgt. Slaughter mixed with Rhea Ripley) and Zelina Vega interrupting and promising to win. The arguing is on, with Waller declaring it the best day of his life, but Asuka slips away. Cue Belair for the brawl to end this really, really bad segment. It was a bunch of people coming out to say “I’ll win!/No I’ll win!/NO I’LL WIN!” until they ran out of women.

We look at Baron Corbin going after the NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes on NXT.

Cameron Grimes will be waiting whenever Corbin gets back.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Zelina Vega vs. Lacey Evans

Evans punched her during the break so Vega is rocked. An early slingshot Bronco Buster hits Vega and the chinlock is on. Evans even swings her around to make it worse before going with the normal thing. Vega fights up and sends her into the corner, setting up Code Red to finish Evans at 2:48. This was nothing.

Roman Reigns beat Sami Zayn this year at Elimination Chamber.

Legado del Fantasma praises Zelina Vega for winning her match. Escobar will do it next time and Rey Mysterio pops up to say they’ll win the briefcases.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: LA Knight vs. Montez Ford

They trade arm control to start and Knight doesn’t seem pleased. A shove off goes to Ford so Knight sends him to the apron for a hard forearm to the floor. Back from a break with Ford hitting a belly to back suplex but Knight knocks him down again. A springboard moonsault of all things misses for Knight and they clothesline each other down. Ford shoves him off the top but misses the Cash Out. Instead they trade rollups, with Knight grabbing the ropes for the pin at 9:10.

Rating: C. Knight continues his singles winning streak and that should be a good sign for his future. At the end of the day, a win over Ford and a spot in the ladder match only gets you so far, but Knight has at least shaken off a lot of his loser persona. That is a big first step and if he does win the briefcase, it won’t feel like it comes so out of nowhere.

Video on Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn, who speak a bunch of Latin and promise doom. They’re leaning way into the magic stuff here.

Roman Reigns retained at Wrestlemania XXXIX as well.

Here is HHH to introduce Roman Reigns for his 1000 day celebration. After comparing him to Michael Jordan, HHH brings out Reigns, with Paul Heyman and Solo Sikoa. With Reigns in the ring, HHH unveils a new title belt, which is again the big WWE logo but with a gold background and mainly black around the strap. Reigns is about to tell Pennsylvania to acknowledge him but switches it to the entire WWE Universe. Cue the Usos to interrupt though, making that Adam Pearce segment from earlier rather worthless.

We take a break and come back with Jimmy Uso and Reigns staring each other down. Reigns to Jey Uso: “Kick him in the face.” Reigns tells him to do it right now like Jimmy did to him at Night Of Champions. He tells Jey to fix this, but Jimmy says Reigns is what needs fixing. Jimmy did what he did because he was being a brother. Jimmy talks to Sikoa and says Reigns will turn on him, drawing an USO chant.

Reigns says that’s because of him so let’s ask what Sikoa thinks. Sikoa acknowledges Reigns….but the Usos are his brothers. Sikoa goes to stand next to the Usos (the place goes NUTS for that) and Reigns/Heyman look scared. Jimmy says the Island of Relevancy is going to be lonely so Reigns goes for him, earning a shove in the face. Jey isn’t happy with what and we have to shut down the audio for the HOLY S*** chant.

Jey says he needs both of them and they can’t fight like this. Jimmy: “He’s right.” They’re all brothers and let’s do this together with respect like they’ve been doing. Reigns is thinking about it as Jimmy asks if they’re still the ones. Jimmy and Reigns have the big emotional hug and Jey looks incredibly relieved. As the hug continues, Reigns says no, and Solo Spikes Jimmy. Jey checks on Jimmy and Sikoa leaves with Reigns/Heyman. As they leave, Heyman asks Reigns about Jey. Reigns: “Jey’s gonna do what he always does: fall in line. He’ll fall in line.”

This was another emotional roller coaster and it absolutely worked, as this always tends to do. At the end of the day, this has turned into a battle for Jey Uso and that could make for some very interesting different paths as we go forward. You can probably pencil in the tag match for Money In The Bank, but after that, it seems like it’s a wide open slate of options.

Overall Rating: C+. This was one of those shows that was divided in two. You had everything else, and then the Bloodline segment. At the end of the day, the Bloodline is the biggest story in WWE at the moment and this was the next step in that story. Things are entering into a meltdown stage and that should be very interesting. Other than that, you have some Money in the Bank qualifying matches and that six man. This wasn’t a very good show, but egads the final segment had the audience eating out of its hand for good reason.

Results
Pretty Deadly/Austin Theory b. Brawling Brutes – Spilled Milk to Holland
OC b. Hit Row – Magic Killer to Adonis
Zelina Vega b. Lacey Evans – Code Red
LA Knight b. Montez Ford – Rollup while grabbing the rope

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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Night Of Champions 2023
Date: May 27, 2023
Location: Jeddah Super Dome, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re in Saudi Arabia again and this time around the focus is on championships. That should give us some interesting possibilities as more than one title could change hands here. The show features a triple main event, with the new World Heavyweight Champion set to be crowned. Let’s get to it.

The opening video, narrated by HHH, talks about how important it is to be a champion and how it can change your life.

Video on the World Heavyweight Championship, which has been brought back to give Raw its own World Title. Seth Rollins and AJ Styles both want the title and want the other at their best.

World Heavyweight Championship: AJ Styles vs. Seth Rollins

For the inaugural title and they’re starting big here. They take their time to start with Styles sending him to the apron but it’s too early for the Phenomenal Forearm. Styles rolls out of a headlock but Rollins is right back with a kick to the head to take over. Back up and Styles drives him into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs. The chinlock doesn’t last long and Rollins is back with a Downward Spiral into the middle turnbuckle.

Styles is right back with a suplex into the corner and the Phenomenal Blitz. The middle rope moonsault into a reverse DDT plants Rollins again but he’s right back up with a buckle bomb. The frog splash gives Rollins two but the Pedigree is reversed into an enziguri. With nothing else working, Styles loads up the super Styles Clash but Rollins slips out to avoid quite a bit of pain.

Instead, Rollins puts him on top for a reverse superplex into a reverse sitout suplex for two. The Phoenix splash misses and they fight to the apron, where Styles hits a brainbuster to knock Rollins silly. Back in and Styles tries the Phenomenal Forearm (instead of covering) but Rollins breaks it up and sends him back to the floor. The suicide dive hits Styles but Rollins comes up favoring his knee.

Back in again and Styles grabs the Calf Crusher but Rollins grabs a choke for the escape. Styles kicks away until he has to duck the Pele. Rollins’ Pedigree is countered into one from Styles for two as Styles is bleeding a bit from the head. The Phenomenal Forearm is superkicked out of the air but the knee gives out on the Stomp attempt. The knee is fine enough to hit a Pedigree, followed by the Stomp to give Rollins the pin and the title at 20:37.

Rating: B. This was a different kind of match as there was no personal issue and they were just out there fighting for the title. It worked well as the two are both incredibly talented and know how to work the main event style match. The knee injury was a nice way to go and gave the match some drama, but it was hard to imagine Styles having a real chance here. Rather awesome opener though and Rollins is the best choice possible for the first champion.

We recap Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch. Stratus turned on Becky as she took issue with her for not being thankful enough. It has turned into something of a battle of the generations, with Trish saying Becky should be grateful to her and Becky saying she has surpassed Trish.

Trish Stratus vs. Becky Lynch

Becky doesn’t wait long and charges at Trish as the fight heads outside. Trish gets in a shot of her own and takes over, including a kick to the ribs back inside. After Trish thanks herself a bit, Trish snaps off a tornado DDT for two. The reverse chinlock goes on for a bit before Trish hammers away. A neckbreaker gives Trish two but Becky fires up and starts striking away.

Becky’s legdrop to the back of the neck gets two but Trish gets in another shot to cut her off. A not so great Stratusphere connects, only to have Stratusfaction broken up. Becky hits Diamond Dust into a middle rope legdrop but Trish breaks up the Manhandle Slam. The Boston crab out of the corner doesn’t work so well and Trish scores with the Chick Kick for two.

The Disarm-Her goes on but Trish is too close to the ropes. Becky manages the Manhandle Slam but those pesky ropes get Trish out of trouble again. Trish sends her outside and cue Zoey Stark of all people with a Z360. Back in and Stratusfaction connects to finish for Trish at 14:48.

Rating: B-. The ending was a smart way to keep the story going, as Becky can now beat up Stark (who gets thrown straight into a big story) before getting to fight Trish again. The match was good too, save for a short stretch where things did not exactly go so well. Trish is still incredibly polished all things considered and it was a completely fine match which should keep the story going for awhile to come.

Video on Mustafa Ali visiting Mecca.

Intercontinental Title: Mustafa Ali vs. Gunther

Gunther, with Imperium, is defending. Ali kicks away at the leg to start but has to fight out of an early sleeper. Some running dropkicks stagger Gunther, who is right back with a slam. The pace slows as Gunther chops and pounds Ali down, setting up the Boston crab. Ali gets out and is sent out to the apron, where Gunther kicks him out to the floor.

Back in and Gunther chops away but Ali fires off some desperation shots of his own. Gunther catches him up top but gets knocked down, setting up a 450 for a near fall. A hard clothesline gives Gunther two so he tells Ali he doesn’t belong. The powerbomb is countered into a kick to the head and the tornado DDT plants Gunther. The 450 misses though and Gunther dropkicks him into the corner. That’s enough to set up the powerbomb to retain at 8:30.

Rating: C+. This was exactly how it should have gone, as Gunther dominated, Ali made a nice comeback and then got beaten down by the force that is Gunther. I’m not sure if anyone believed that Ali had a chance coming in here and that is all it needed to be. Gunther is going to lose the title one day but it is going to be in a huge spot, which wasn’t the case here. Perfectly fine way to go, even if there was no doubt about the result.

Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens recap their issues with the Bloodline. Owens gets all fired up and is ready to go.

WWE did Make A Wish in Saudi Arabia.

We recap the Raw Women’s Title match with Bianca Belair defending against Asuka. Belair survived Asuka going all evil and misting her at Wrestlemania, so now we’re doing it again.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Asuka

Belair is defending and gets taken down to start. Asuka hammers away but Belair reverses and slugs right back. Some stomps to the face keep Belair in trouble but a dropkick puts Asuka on the apron. The handspring kick to the head sends Asuka outside, where she sends Belair into the steps. Back in and Asuka kicks her in the face before driving a boot into Belair’s head.

More stomping has Belair in trouble and Asuka grabs an armbar to mixed it up a bit. Belair fights back up and hits a running Blockbuster for a double knockdown. The comeback is on including the standing moonsault but Asuka kicks her off the top. A missile dropkick gives Asuka two and we hit the Fujiwara armbar. With that broken up, Belair plants her with a spinebuster for two.

The Asuka Lock is broken up and they trade rollups for two each. They head outside with Asuka being sent into the steps, allowing Belair to hammer away back inside. The KOD is countered into a cross armbreaker but Belair rolls out and powerbombs her down. Asuka bails to the ropes and sprays the mist on her own fingers. Back in and Asuka rubs the mist in Belair’s face, setting up the kick to the head to make Asuka champion at 14:50.

Rating: C+. They had to do this one as there was nothing left for Belair to accomplish. She had been champion for over a year and had cleaned out the division, so it was time for some kind of a change. If nothing else, you don’t have Asuka built up as this new heel and then beat her twice, so she more or less had to win here. The title scene needed some fresh blood and Asuka certainly applies.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya

Ripley, with Dominik Mysterio, is defending. An early Dominik distraction lets Ripley jump her to start and they’re quickly on the floor. Ripley sends her face first into the announcers’ table and then the steps as the beating is on early. Riptide retains the title at 1:04. Ok that worked, as Ripley running over Natalya is a much better fit than having them go fifteen minutes.

Seth Rollins is very pleased with his win and is ready for whatever is next.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes. Lesnar attacked Rhodes for still unexplained reasons (him being Brock Lesnar might have something to do with it) and laid him out. Rhodes then beat Lesnar at Backlash so Lesnar broke Rhodes’ arm before their rematch here.

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

Cody is coming in with a broken arm. They go a bit tentative to start until Lesnar starts snapping off the belly to belly suplexes. Cody manages to knock him outside though and there’s the suicide dive. Back in and a top rope ax handle hits Lesnar, followed by a pair of Cross Rhodes. A third is countered into the Kimura though and Rhodes is in big trouble. Rhodes stacks him up for two but can’t get out.

Lesnar rolls him over and is sitting on Rhodes, who can’t make the rope. The referee raises Cody’s arm but he’s still in, only to have Lesnar pull him closer to the middle. Somehow Cody turns it around and makes the rope, leaving Lesnar stunned. Another Cross Rhodes gets another two and they’re both spent. Cody hits him with the cast but gets pulled into the F5 for two. The Kimura goes on again and Cody passes out at 9:36.

Rating: B. This was all about storytelling and it worked very well as a result. What mattered here was keeping Cody strong but not going too far. There was almost no way you could have him survive again here as he came in injured against a ticked off Lesnar. Cody looked strong in defeat (and didn’t tap), but he had to lose here. The trilogy match should be good, especially if one of them is champion by the time it rolls around.

We recap Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns/Solo Sikoa for the Tag Team Titles. Owens and Zayn are defending, but more than that they are trying to take the Bloodline apart once and for all. The Bloodline is starting to crumble and the Usos are not happy that they aren’t getting this shot. Instead Reigns is trying to show them how it is done and that should make for an interesting match.

Tag Team Titles: Roman Reigns/Solo Sikoa vs. Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens

Zayn/Owens are defending and Paul Heyman/Sami (the latter in Arabic) handle the introductions. Owens and Reigns start but it’s off to Zayn before anything happens. More staring ensues as the fans are very hyped for all of this. Reigns tags Sikoa in and we get our first contact about three minutes in. Zayn sends him into the corner and hits a few chops, which doesn’t leave Reigns pleased.

An elbow to the face is more to Reigns’ liking so it’s off to Owens. Some chops rock Sikoa but it’s back to Zayn off the blind tag for a drop toehold. Reigns comes in for a cheap shot to Owens ad then quickly heads back to the floor. Back in and Sikoa drops a headbutt on Zayn before it’s back to Reigns as the pace slows. Zayn chops away but gets dropped with a single shot. Reigns: “You think you’re the Nature Boy now?”

After Owens chases off an invading Sikoa, Reigns slowly pounds Zayn down again. Sikoa comes back in and we hit the nerve hold. They head outside again with Sikoa getting taken down but being fine enough to cut Zayn off before the tag. A tornado DDT is enough to drop Sikoa, allowing the double tag to Owens and Reigns. Owens cleans house and knocks Reigns outside for a backsplash but Sikoa cuts him off again.

Reigns hits a clothesline but walks into a sitout powerbomb. Owens’ frog splash hits for two but he can’t follow up. The Stunner is broken up and the Superman Punch gives Reigns two. Another Stunner connects but Reigns bounces off the ropes and hits a spear before falling down. The double tag brings in Zayn to hammer on Sikoa, setting up the big flip dive to drops Sikoa on the floor. The Blue Thunder Bomb gets two back inside but the Helluva Kick is cut off with a superkick.

Zayn is fine enough to suplex him into the corner so the Helluva Kick can connect, with Reigns making the save. Reigns hammers away and loads up the spear but takes the referee out by mistake. Owens is back in to jump Reigns and they head outside for a whip into the steps. Cue the Usos (not supposed to be here) go jump Owens and a pair of superkicks rock Zayn….but the double superkick hits Sikoa.

Reigns sees what happened and is REALLY not pleased. Reigns yells at the Usos….and Jimmy finally superkicks him. Jey screams at Jimmy, who superkicks Reigns again. Jimmy says that it’s him and Jey now, leaving Jey looking very perplexed. Jey goes towards Reigns but Jimmy gets him out before he can do anything. Sikoa is back up but it’s a Stunner into the Helluva Kick for three (from a second referee) to retain the titles at 26:27.

Rating: B+. This was an interesting mix as it was a very good match but the storytelling was glorious. Jimmy FINALLY snapping and turning on Reigns after the months of abuse takes things in a new direction and we could be in for something very good in the near future. I’ve heard people talk about how Jey should be the one to take the title from Reigns. I’m not there yet, but it’s not sounding as crazy these days, which is one of the most impressive things I’ve seen in a good while. Awesome main event here, and things are going to get bigger as we keep going.

Reigns doesn’t know what to do to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. The middle portion is a big weak, but the three main events were one hit after another. What matters here is they have set the stage for some big stuff going forward and now we get to see where things go as we head into the summer. The Bloodline is imploding, Rollins is champion, and Lesnar vs. Rhodes III is likely on the horizon. Another rather good show here, as WWE is on quite the roll at the moment.

Results
Seth Rollins b. AJ Styles – Stomp
Trish Stratus b. Becky Lynch – Stratusfaction
Gunther b. Mustafa Ali – Powerbomb
Asuka b. Bianca Belair – Kick to the head
Rhea Ripley b. Natalya – Riptide
Brock Lesnar b. Cody Rhodes via referee stoppage

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.