Smackdown – July 14, 2023: GOT HIM!

Smackdown
Date: July 14, 2023
Location: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

Things got even more interesting last week as Jimmy Uso was taken away in an ambulance, leaving Jey Uso to challenge Roman Reigns for the Universal Title. Odds are that’s the Smackdown main event at Summerslam, but they are going to need some more than that. There is a good chance we get something new tonight so let’s get to it.

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

Jey Uso is in the back and….walking!

Here is Bianca Belair to one heck of a reaction. She is finally getting her rematch for the Women’s Title tonight and she has been waiting for that since Jeddah. Tonight it’s the KOD and she’s winning the title back, but here is Charlotte to interrupt. Charlotte talks about how Belair has gotten her fired up and she stumbles over saying Belair is walking out champion. Belair likes that and Charlotte says she’s next in line after Belair wins the title. That sounds good to them for Summerslam, and Belair is ready for Asuka. Kind of a weird way to start the show but I guess it’s the “hey, stick around!” promo of the night.

Sheamus is ready to beat up Pretty Deadly.

Brawling Brutes vs. Pretty Deadly

Sheamus chases Prince out to the floor to start and then pulls Wilson inside for a bonus. Back to back Regal Rolls have Pretty Deadly in more trouble so it’s off to Holland, who is beaten down. Holland comes back with a double backdrop and it’s right back to Sheamus. The Brutes hit stereo forearms to the chest and we take a break.

Back with Wilson hitting a running elbow to Sheamus and the double teaming keeps him down. Sheamus gets in a shot though and it’s back to Holland to clean house. Sheamus Brogue Kicks Wilson outside but Prince takes off a turnbuckle pad. Holland misses a charge into it, setting up the top rope legdrop to give Prince the pin at 10:21.

Rating: C+. Maybe it’s the disco ball but I love Pretty Deadly. They are such goofy fun and the good thing is they don’t have a rocket attached to them. They’ll come in, get a win, get their comeuppance, and then go right back to what made them work in the first place. More good stuff here as they continue their near Honky Tonk Man style run.

We look at Grayson Waller vs. Edge.

Waller is in a US Title #1 contenders match tonight and no he isn’t surprised. Even the Rock has been talking about him because he has that effect.

We look back at Tribal Court last week. Jimmy Uso has messed up rib cartilage and will be out indefinitely.

Charlotte says she’ll leave for the Women’s Title tonight. Bayley and Iyo Sky come in to tease a cash-in so Charlotte says she’ll stay.

Zelina Vega vs. Bayley

They go outside fast with Bayley sending her into the announcers’ table a few times. Zelina gets in a quick posting and a top rope Meteora back inside. A Twist of Fate gets two on Bayley but Bayley kicks her down and stomps away. The flip flop shot misses for Bayley though and Zelina gets to slap her with it a bit. Not that it matters as Bayley snaps her throat across the ropes and hits the Rose Plant for the pin at 1:46.

Shotzi pops up on screen to say she can’t be controlled before shaving her own head. Well that got intense fast.

Here is Jey Uso to say he has two brothers but there is something special about a twin. When one of them is hurt, both of them are hurt and now one of them is hurt bad. Jey respects all of his family, except Roman Reigns. Oh and Solo Sikoa. Or Paul Heyman, who has latched onto his family for 40 years.

Cue Heyman and Sikoa to interrupt, with Heyman saying Sikoa is here to keep the peace. Next week, Jey and Reigns can meet to discuss the rules of engagement for their match, but for now, Heyman just wants to talk. Heyman doesn’t see a Tribal Chief in Jey, because what happened to Jimmy was Jey’s fault after he tried to go against Reigns. None of the family will ever forgive Jey, with Sikoa blaming Jey for what happened to Jimmy as well.

Sikoa goes after Jey but gets kicked to the floor, leaving Heyman all alone. Sikoa gets back in but misses the Spike, allowing Jey to superkick Heyman, who winds up looking like a turtle on his back. Jey grabs a chair but Sikoa is back in and gets chaired down instead. This was a great way to make Jey look like a star who might be ready for Reigns, though Heyman stole the show as usual (partially by referring to himself as a “Jew-so”).

Grayson Waller vs. Butch vs. AJ Styles vs. Santos Escobar

The winner faces the winner of another four way for a US Title shot, so Austin Theory is on commentary. Waller is sent outside and into Theory to start, leaving Styles and Butch to slug it out inside. A rollup is countered into a double rollup to give Waller two but Escobar is back in for the save. Styles is back up with a Pele and we take a break. We come back with Butch breaking up Styles’ cover on Waller and everyone needing a breather. Escobar goes up but gets caught by Waller.

The other two go up as well and it’s Escobar diving over them for a Tower of Doom. The Phantom Driver gets two on Waller as Butch and Styles make the save. Butch enziguris Styles but Waller sends him outside. That’s fine with Butch, who hits a quick moonsault, only to have Escobar take them both out with a suicide dive. Back in and Styles loads up the Styles Clash on Waller but we cut to Karrion Kross choking out Karl Anderson. Styles gives chase but gets decked by Waller. The rolling Stunner hits Butch but Escobar hits a high crossbody to finish Waller at 12:21.

Rating: B-. It was fun while it lasted and I can go for Escobar winning. He’s still a long way from the title shot, but at least he wasn’t pinned and actually beat someone for a change. The Kross/Styles/Anderson thing is far from inspiring, but maybe this sets up AJ vs. Kross in a match that actually gets some time for a change.

Post break, Styles says he’ll get Kross.

The Street Profits are waiting for someone to get here. A limo arrives and….Bobby Lashley is back. The three get in the limo together and leave. Uh, thanks for coming Lashley.

Rey Mysterio is ready to get the US Title.

Cameron Grimes is ready to get the US Title.

Sheamus is ready to get the US Title.

Here is LA Knight for a chat. Knight talks about how all of a sudden, he is everywhere and now people are using his name to get views and clicks. He is the best decision this company ever made and now he is coming for the US Title. You can call him the Mega Star, you can call him the Goat, but sooner or later, you’ll call him champ. There’s a thing called “it”. LA Knight has “it”.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Bianca Belair

Asuka is defending but hold on as here are Iyo Sky and Bayley, ticket in hand. Asuka kicks away until Belair powers back….and here is Charlotte with her own ticket as we take a break. Back with Belair suplexing her down and hitting the handspring moonsault. Asuka tries the namesake lock but Belair flips back for two and the break. They go outside with the KOD driving Asuka onto the table as Sky, Bayley and Charlotte hop the barricade. Charlotte boots Bayley in the face and spears Belair down, drawing the DQ at 8:44.

Rating: B-. There was a lot going on here but at least they didn’t waste a lot of time setting things up. This match was all about setting up the triple threat at Summerslam and that is about the only way they can go now. Let the three of them beat each other up on the big stage, as that is where this whole thing needs to go next. What makes it interesting is there are four ways to go and that isn’t something you see often.

Post match Charlotte is dropped as well so Sky loads up the moonsault on Asuka….who mists Bayley and runs away to avoid the cash in.

Overall Rating: C+. Things almost had to slow down a bit after last week, as everything went coconuts on the previous show. This was more about setting things up for the future, as Summerslam will be starting to take more shape in the next week or two. You can see a lot of the card from here, but there is a lot that needs to actually be announced. Not a great show, but it did what it needed to do.

Results
Pretty Deadly b. Brawling Brutes – Top rope legdrop to Holland
Bayley b. Zelina Vega – Rose Plant
Santos Escobar b. AJ Styles, Butch and Grayson Waller – High crossbody to Waller
Bianca Belair b. Asuka via DQ when Charlotte interfered

 

 

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

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

AND

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

 




Smackdown – June 16, 2023: The Dandy Highwaymen, A Decision, And Happy Birthday Mama KB

Smackdown
Date: June 16, 2023
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

Now stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but it’s time for Jey Uso to make a choice. This time around, Roman Reigns is in the house and wants Jey to decide if he’s with the Bloodline or if he’s with his brother Jimmy. Other than that, we have some Money in the Bank momentum building to do so let’s get to it.

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

I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the upper deck on the right side of the stage.

We open with a recap of last week, with Jey Uso being left conflicted over which side to choose. More on this later.

The Bloodline arrives and no one will talk about Jey Uso.

Tag Team Gauntlet Match

The winners get a Tag Team Title shot in two weeks. The Street Profits are in at #1 and the Brawling Brutes are in at #2 to get things going. Ford dropkicks Sheamus down to start as Pretty Deadly is not impressed on the floor. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker puts Ford in trouble for a change and it’s off to Holland for a swinging front facelock (ow). Back up and a jumping enziguri drops Holland and a diving tag brings Dawkins back in (despite a dive not being necessary). A blind tag brings Sheamus back in though and it’s a Brogue Kick to finish Dawkins at 2:32.

The OC are in at #3 and the reverse 3D gets two on Sheamus as we take a break. Back with Sheamus still in trouble as Anderson elbows him in the head. Gallows grabs a chinlock but Sheamus fights up, only to have Anderson come in and knock Holland off the apron. That just earns him a Brogue Kick for the pin at 9:06 total and it’s the LWO in at #4.

They don’t waste time in hitting stereo flip dives onto the Brutes, followed by a good looking moonsault to give Del Toro two on Sheamus. An enziguri knocks Sheamus into the corner and it’s Holland starting the comeback. A Dominator spun into a DDT finishes Del Toro at 10:59. Hit Row is in at #5 and the Brogue Kick finishes Dolla at 11:14. That leaves Pretty Deadly in at #6 (last team) and we take a break.

Back with Holland in trouble and Prince hammering away at his face. Wilson grabs the chinlock but Holland fights up and knocks him away without much effort. Sheamus comes back in and cleans house with Irish Curses but the Brogue Kick misses. Instead it’s an Alabama Slam, with Prince making the save. Everything breaks down and Pretty Deadly winds up on the apron, with Prince taking ten forearms to the chest and Wilson taking about twenty more. The Celtic Cross is loaded up but Prince tags himself and hits a top rope legdrop to steal the pin on Sheamus at 21:40.

Rating: B-. This got some time but thankfully didn’t go insane like some gauntlet matches have done before. Pretty Deadly kind of stole the win by coming in at the end but it was a perfectly legal way to get a fall on Sheamus. The Brutes continue to look good in defeat, though Hit Row might want to avoid answering their phones anytime soon, as it’s clear that the team does not have anything going for it at the moment, which isn’t likely to get better.

Post break, Pretty Deadly is still in the ring and here are Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens to interrupt. Sami says the match ended five minutes ago and Pretty Deadly is still in the ring, so they have overstayed their welcome by about five minutes. Pretty Deadly doesn’t like the disrespect towards…..the Dandy Highwaymen and the Two Tastiest Snacks (among other names). They’ll win the titles in two weeks and then they’ll celebrate even longer and then they’ll do it even longer, and just when you think they’re done, they’ll do it EVEN LONGER.

Owens isn’t impressed and goes on a rant about how he wants to go in there and punch them in their stupid faces. Sami: “I think we should do it.” Owens: “Yeah???” Sami: “YEAH!” The champs chase Pretty Deadly off and glare at them (Sami and Kevin would go on to beat the daylights out of Pretty Deadly in a post show street fight).

Paul Heyman is rather nervous as he asks Roman Reigns if he has spoken to Jey Uso. Of course Reigns hasn’t, because he’s the Tribal Chief and Jey should be reaching out to him. Reigns orders Heyman to go talk to Jey NOW and doesn’t seem happy at all.

Iyo Sky vs. Zelina Vega

Bayley is here with Sky and Vega hands a flip flop to a fan on the way to the ring. Sky shoves her in the face and gets hammered in the head for her efforts. A headscissors doesn’t do much to Sky, who sticks the landing and scores with a dropkick to take over. Sky starts cranking on a hammerlock but Vega rolls over or a kick to the head. Bayley gets on the apron or a distraction but Sky avoids the contact. Instead Sky rolls Vega up but the referee is yelling at Bayley. The ensuing argument lets Vega hit a 619 for the pin on Sky at 2:25. Short and to the point here, as Damage CTRL is in trouble.

We recap Charlotte returning last week to throw her hat into the Women’s Title picture, which doesn’t sit well with previous #1 contender Bianca Belair.

Belair comes up to Adam Pearce in the back and asks about her rematch. Pearce says it’s being talked about, but he can’t give her an answer tonight. Belair says she got the title match the right way (Pearce agrees) so now she’s going to do this her way.

Iyo Sky yells at Bayley over the loss when Shotzi comes in. Shotzi talks about how Bayley cost her a spot in Money in the Bank but Bayley doesn’t care. If that’s the case, then Bayley can put up her own spot against Shotzi. Sky accepts for Bayley so Shotzi is off to make it official. Sky: “I’m just trying to help.”

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect, with special guest Charlotte, whose outfit is….uh….well the best description (unfortunately not mine) is that it looks like a bad couch from the 70s (the matching gloves sleeves are a great touch). Waller gets to the point by asking about Charlotte’s upcoming title shot in two weeks. The idea of Charlotte vs. Asuka makes her think of big matches, like the time where she ended Asuka’s undefeated streak at Wrestlemania.

Charlotte asks for a question, and says that it’s not about the number of title reigns, but the fact that she has Asuka’s number (good line). Cue Bianca Belair to interrupt (Cole says that Belair is in an awful mood as she skips down to the ring), saying that she has her own accolades and wonders why Charlotte is getting the shot. Charlotte says she isn’t apologizing because the line starts and ends with her. Belair says she got defeated and stayed (ouch) so she’s not understanding what’s going on here.

Charlotte talks about how she has picked herself up fourteen times and is a champion without the title. Belair bring sup being the longest reigning women’s champion of this era so put some respect on her name (yep). The past is the past but the future is that she’ll be ringside for Charlotte’s title shot. No matter who wins, she’s coming for the title. Belair was bringing the fire here and she’s absolutely right with pretty much everything she said.

Paul Heyman comes up to Jey Uso and says he’s sorry that Jimmy Uso kicked him in the face last week to cost him the US Title. Of course that was intentional because Jimmy has the most accurate kick of anyone but Jey himself. Jey deserves better than that and Heyman is sorry. Jey says he’s sorry too, but if he’s in, Heyman is still out.

AJ Styles/Michin vs. Karrion Kross/Scarlett

Styles wastes no time in striking away at Kross and it’s quickly off to the women, with Michin firing off strikes of her own. A spinning kick to the face sets up a release German suplex and it’s back to Kross. That’s fine with Styles, who hits the Styles Clash but Scarlett breaks it up and hits on him. Styles points out his wedding ring and says “I’m married” and what sounded like “b****” but might have been “witch”. Kross uses the distraction to grab the Krossjacket and hits a pumphandle powerslam swung into a kind of F5 (that’s different) for the pin at 2:20. That was quick.

Paul Heyman comes back to Roman Reigns, who does not seem thrilled at the lack of progress. Solo Sikoa scares Heyman off and Sikoa asks if Reigns wants him to handle this. Reigns says they have plenty of time.

Baron Corbin jumps Cameron Grimes in the back.

Here is Rey Mysterio for a chat. He talks about how happy he is to reform the LWO and is happy to bring out the next Mr. Money in the Bank: Santos Escobar. Cue Escobar, who thanks Rey for believing in him and could go a long way with the briefcase. Cue LA Knight, who shoves Rey down and the fight is on before the scheduled Knight vs. Escobar match.

LA Knight vs. Santos Escobar

Joined in progress with Escobar fighting out of a chinlock and hitting some running forearms. Knight hits a powerslam though and the jumping elbow gets two (and a heck of a reaction). Back up and Escobar tries a victory roll but Knight sits down on it and grabs the ropes for two, as Escobar rolls him up again for the pin at 2:18 shown.

Post match Knight jumps Escobar but Rey Mysterio runs back in for the save. Knight was getting some incredible reactions here and my goodness the push could be ready to go anytime now.

Jey Uso runs into Sami Zayn, who just looks at him, nods, and walks away.

Here is the Bloodline, or what’s left of it, to get Jey’s answer. After a break, Reigns tells Lexington, Kentucky (not the University of Kentucky, no matter what WWE keeps saying) to acknowledge him. And then Jey Uso interrupts (Reigns tells Solo Sikoa to keep calm) as we’re getting to the point fast. Reigns says the people want answers so Jey says it’s either him or Paul Heyman.

That doesn’t work for Reigns, who says that when Jey is Tribal Chief, he can pick his own wise man. Reigns talks about how he got them to the promised land but Jey is here to keep them there. They have been grooming him for years now and the only problem is Jimmy Uso….who comes out to interrupt. Jimmy tells Jey that Reigns is just using him, but Reigns says it took ten years just to get the Usos to Wrestlemania and NOW THEY MAIN EVENTED IT!

Reigns calls Jimmy an anchor while Reigns himself is the wings. Jey can’t be a Tribal Chief and a twin at the same time, but remember one thing: the only person who had a problem with Jey becoming the Right Hand Man was Jimmy himself. That sends Jey into a rant against Jimmy not believing him and how he has always told to be like his big brother, with Jey even saying his own first name (Joshua). Jey: “So guess what? You out! AND I’M OUT TOO!”

Jey superkicks Reigns’ head off and the Usos superkick Sikoa to the floor as the roof comes off the place (this was a genuine standing ovation and by far the loudest reaction all night). Reigns is livid and gets up but a double superkick puts him down again to end the show as Heyman is in tears.

That is the kind of major move that the story has been needing, as there is not likely to be any coming back from this. The Usos are out of the Bloodline, which is now down to Roman Reigns, Solo Sikoa and Paul Heyman. You can all but pencil in the Money in the Bank main event tag match from here, and that is a big deal in its own right. This was a moment and my goodness did the fans eat it up.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a weird show as the ONLY thing that really matters is the big closing segment (the gauntlet match was good, but it’s 20+ minutes to get to the comedy team winning in the end). That being said, my goodness did that segment deliver as the best story WWE has told in a VERY long time gets cranked up and sent in a new direction. Money In The Bank is going to be a huge show and now you can see most of what is coming on the card. Throw in LA Knight getting some monster reactions and a good women’s segment and this could be one heck of a summer for WWE.

Results
Pretty Deadly won a tag team gauntlet match last eliminating the Brawling Brutes
Zelina Vega b. Iyo Sky – 619
Karrion Kross/Scarlett b. AJ Styles/Michin – Swinging faceplant to Styles
Santos Escobar b. LA Knight – Rollup

 

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 – June 9, 2023: That’s Not What They Said Would Happen

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 – May 26, 2023: Family Drama

Smackdown
Date: May 26, 2023
Location: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, South Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are less than twenty four hours away from Night Of Champions and that means this week’s show is taped in advance. Tomorrow’s show is all but set and that should make for a card built around getting everything finalized. I’m sure there will be some extra stuff pushed as well so let’s get to it.

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

US Title: Sheamus vs. Austin Theory

Sheamus, with the Brawling Brutes, is challenging. The power game drops Theory early but Theory goes to the leg to take over. Theory tries his own forearms to the chest and gets cut out almost immediately. Sheamus gets posted hard and dropped onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Theory elbowing him in the face for one, followed by the chinlock.

Sheamus is right back up with a running corner clothesline and the Irish Curse gets two. A torture rack powerbomb puts Sheamus back down but a rolling something is cut off by Sheamus’ knee. The ten (and more) forearms to the chest rock Theory and the Brogue Kick is loaded up. Cue Pretty Deadly to go after the Brutes though and Theory rolls Sheamus up to retain at 12:18.

Rating: C+. Not a bad title defense for Theory and a six man isn’t out of the question as a result. Sheamus might not have felt like the biggest threat to take the title, but he’s still a former World Champion so it wasn’t completely out of the question. What matters is Theory gets another win over a big name to add to his rapidly growing resume in a completely watchable match.

Post match Sheamus chases Pretty Deadly off.

We look at the Bloodline’s recent issues.

The Bloodline is in the back, where Paul Heyman says the Usos won’t be at Night Of Champions but they can join Roman Reigns for the 1,000 day title celebration next week. Jimmy Uso doesn’t know what Reigns’ problem is and goes to leave but Reigns tells him to sit down.

Jimmy doesn’t sit, so Reigns gets up in front of him and asks if Jimmy is standing up to him. Reigns tells him to let it out and reminds him of the whippings he gave Jimmy back in the day. He can give Jimmy another one now but Jey gets up and says he and Jimmy will see Reigns next week as the Usos leave. This is the kind of thing that actually feels like we’re getting somewhere, but the big stuff is tomorrow and next week.

Shotzi/Raquel Rodriguez vs. Damage Ctrl

Rodriguez powers Bayley around to start before it’s off to Sky. A chokeslam is broken up as Bayley comes in off a blind tag and a dropkick gives Sky two. We take a break and come back with Rodriguez fighting out of the corner and handing it back to Shotzi for the house cleaning. Shotzi dropkicks Bayley for two but Sky’s distraction lets Bayley rake the eyes. Stereo kicks to the head knock Shotzi silly with Rodriguez having to make a save of her own.

A tiger suplex gives Shotzi two and it’s back to Rodriguez, who is sent face first into the middle buckle. Rodriguez powers Sky into the corner where Bayley tags herself in. Bayley tries a middle rope sunset flip but Sky comes in off the top with a dropkick to Shotzi/backsplash that…lands on Rodriguez’s back as she was sitting on Bayley. Rodriguez stays on Bayley and gets the pin at 9:07. It was described as “miscommunication” so we’ll go with that.

Rating: C. That ending was kind of a mess but the result was the right way to go. Somehow Sky cost Bayley the pin and that is another step towards Damage Ctrl’s split. The team isn’t doing well right now and there is a good chance that they won’t be around that much longer. Shotzi is Rodriguez’s latest short term partner and I can’t imagine they’ll be a team long term anyway.

We see part of the Seth Rollins interview where he talks about what the World Title means to him.

Video on AJ Styles’ WWE career.

Video on Grayson Waller.

Cameron Grimes vs. Ashante Thee Adonis

The rest of Hit Row is here with Adonis. Grimes drops him to start and hits a running shooting star press for an early two. A Top Dolla distraction lets Adonis hammer away with some knees to the back. Grimes flips out of a suplex and hits some running forearms into a hurricanrana. The Cave In finishes Adonis at 2:10. Short and Grimes won so no complaints here.

Post match Baron Corbin jumps Cameron Grimes and lays him out.

Video on Asuka vs. Bianca Belair.

Here is Bianca Belair to talk about Asuka. She doesn’t like what Asuka has been doing and it isn’t the same Asuka from Wrestlemania. If Asuka wants to fight she can come do it, so cue Asuka….from behind, to jump Belair. Asuka gets a cross armbreaker but referees and agents break it up. Belair tries a KOD but the agents catch Asuka, who slips away. It’s better than their Wrestlemania build at least.

Rick Boogs vs. LA Knight

The Street Profits join commentary as Boogs throws Knight outside to start. Boogs drops him onto the announcers’ table but takes too long to get back inside, allowing Knight to hammer away. The running knee connects in the corner and Knight slams the back of Boogs’ head into the mat. Boogs powers him away again and hits a backdrop. The Boogs Cruise is broken up though and Blunt Force Trauma finishes for Knight at 3:17.

Rating: C. Much like Grimes, what matters here is that the result went the right way. Beating Boogs might not be the biggest victory in the world, but it is a lot better than Knight taking another loss. The fans are into Knight and seeing him get any kind of momentum is a good thing. He could use more, but I’ll take what I can get.

Post match Knight promises to smoke the Street Profits.

Karrion Kross is ready to hurt AJ Styles.

Video on Isla Dawn/Alba Fyre.

Karrion Kross vs. AJ Styles

Scarlett is here with Kross. Styles gets powered into the corner to start but comes back with a kick to the face. Scarlett breaks up a springboard though and Kross superkicks Styles off the apron. Cue Michin to chase Scarlett off and we take a break. Back with Kross elbowing him in the face and grabbing a chinlock. Styles fights up with the Pele into a basement forearm, followed by the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two. Kross misses his running forearm to the back of the head and gets knocked backwards, setting up the Phenomenal Forearm for the pin at 9:24.

Rating: B-. Good enough match here as Styles needed a win to get some momentum heading into Night Of Champions. Styles is a legend in his own right but he has been out of action for a long time and has more or less been the other guy as Rollins marches to his title. Kross continues to just be kind of there, and I’m not sure what can be done to fix that.

Post break Styles says he’s ready to win the title.

Night Of Champions rundown.

Video on Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes.

Here are Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the KO Show. They want Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa out here right now but here is Paul Heyman to interrupt. Heyman says Reigns will be here when he wants to be but here are the Usos to interrupt (Heyman isn’t sure about this). The Usos get in Owens/Zayn’s face but Owens points out that Zayn has been right about Reigns the entire time.

Owens says Reigns can call himself the head of the table, but the Usos are the heart of the table. The reality is that Reigns treats them more like the appendix. They went from being the best team ever to Reigns’ errand boy. Jimmy says that when it comes to the Usos, he is the Tribal Chief….and Heyman knows Jimmy just screwed everything up.

Cue Reigns and Owens can’t help but smile. Zayn: “Roman, you know it’s over right? The Bloodline is collapsing and it’s all your fault.” Reigns goes after Zayn but walks into a Stunner, meaning the fight is on. Solo Sikoa is here with the Spikes though and Reigns is back up to break a bunch of stuff. Zayn gets speared and Jey hands Sikoa some Tag Team Titles.

Jimmy won’t hand the others to Reigns but Jey takes them from him and hands them over. Reigns holds up all four titles as Jimmy walks around in the back (Jey does the pose) to end the show. That was another pretty big storytelling moment and the split is getting closer. Usos vs. Reigns/Sikoa down the line sounds like a pretty good main event.

Overall Rating: B-. There wasn’t any really great match on the show, but it hyped up Night Of Champions and gave us more of the Bloodline drama. The Night Of Champions Tag Team Title match and next week’s celebration are going to be interesting and we could be in for something big no matter what happens on Saturday. The rest of the show advanced enough stuff to stay interesting and while it wasn’t must see, it was good enough for a watch.

Results
Austin Theory b. Sheamus – Rollup
Raquel Rodriguez/Shotzi b. Damage Ctrl – Rollup to Bayley
Cameron Grimes b. Ashante Thee Adonis – Cave In
LA Knight b. Rock Boogs – Blunt Force Trauma
AJ Styles b. Karrion Kross – Phenomenal Forearm

 

 

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 – May 19, 2023: Meet The New Stars

Smackdown
Date: May 19, 2023
Location: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, South Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the last live Smackdown before Night Of Champions and the pay per view could use some extra build. Last week we got the big surprise of Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa getting to challenge for the Tag Team Titles, which shouldn’t exactly go well with the Usos. Other than that, AJ Styles needs to look sharp heading into the World Heavyweight Championship match and gets to be on the debut of the Grayson Waller Effect. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is the Bloodline (minus the Usos) to get things going. After we look at the announcement of the Tag Team Title match at Night Of Champions, Roman Reigns tells us to acknowledge him. Instead, cue Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, with Reigns telling them to acknowledge him, leave the titles there, and see themselves out. Owens seems ready to fight instead, which doesn’t surprise Reigns. Instead, Reigns talks about having a lot of success in life but only one regret: spending so much of his life on Zayn.

That makes Zayn laugh, because the only thing he regrets is not hitting Reigns in the back with that chair a lot sooner. Zayn says Reigns isn’t getting the titles because he and Sikoa aren’t as good as Zayn and Owens….or the Usos for that matter. Cue the Usos to jump Zayn and Owens, which doesn’t have Reigns happy. Reigns yells at them and accidentally bumps into Sikoa (barely grazing him)….which seems to have Reigns a little nervous as he leaves on his own. They’re making Sikoa into the boogeyman monster of the team and it’s really starting to work.

Post break, Reigns is still yelling at the Usos and asks who is the quarterback of the Bloodline. He had something to say to Sami Zayn but he didn’t get to because the Usos had to do their own thing instead of what has worked this far. Reigns is the guy and he makes these choices, NOW GET OUT.

Brawling Brutes vs. Pretty Deadly

Before the match, Pretty Deadly are in chef’s hats and go over the ingredients for success (including charisma and a dash of both of them). Wilson and Butch start with Prince coming in fast to stomp on Butch’s fingers. You don’t do that to him though as it’s Butch stomping on both of their hands to take over. It’s off to Holland for the power, but a quick cheap shot lets Pretty Deadly pose as we take a break.

Back with Holland still in trouble but finally managing a shot to the ribs to send Prince flying. Holland shrugs off Wilson and hands it back to butch to clean house. A double fireman’s carry drop lets Holland show off his rather insane power, setting up stereo forearms to the Pretty Deadly chests. Pretty Deadly gets out and sends Holland into Butch, allowing Spilled Milk to finish Holland at 8:09.

Rating: C+. Pretty Deadly is the definition of a team that needs time to grow on you and starting them off with an upset win is a good way to go. The Brutes seemed to get a bit cocky here, which is the point of Pretty Deadly being a team that everyone underestimates. They’re off to a good start here and hopefully that can continue, as they could be quite the entertaining team.

Video on Superstar Billy Graham. That’s one of the bigger ones and you really can see the influence years later, along with how far ahead of his time he really was.

Zelina Vega promises that after her match at Backlash, she is ready for Asuka.

Asuka vs. Zelina Vega

Zelina starts fast and they fight straight to the floor. That’s fine with Asuka, who drops her onto the announcers’ table as we take a break. Back with Vega hitting a running dropkick out of the corner, followed by a 619. The Meteora gives Vega two and she tries a rollup, only to get pulled into the Asuka Lock. Vega flips back but Asuka pulls her into the double arm crank for the tap at 6:08. Not enough shown to rate but Vega was trying hard.

Post match Asuka stays on Vega but Bianca Belair runs in for the save. Asuka tries to mist Belair but only grazes her with it this time.

We look at the World Heavyweight Championship match being set up.

Here is Grayson Waller with his Grayson Waller Effect talk show. For his first guest on Smackdown, we go big with AJ Styles. Waller asks what winning the World Heavyweight Title would mean to Styles, who talks about being out of action with his broken ankle. Now that he’s back, he’s going as hard as he can, and now he is getting his chance. He’s sure that he’s going to win, and Waller seems to believe him. Or not as he picks Seth Rollins to win, leaving us with a staredown.

The LWO is ready for the Usos tonight.

Street Profits vs. LA Knight/Rick Boogs

Before the match, Knight says he’s after titles, including the Tag Team Titles. That’s why he’s going to lead this team to victory. Boogs starts fast by gorilla pressing Ford (with reps) so Dawkins wants to try instead. Some pumphandle lifts (egads this guy is strong) has Dawkins in more trouble and Knight drops an elbow.

Dawkins slips out of a double belly to back though and the hot tag brings in Ford. A high crossbody takes Knight and Boogs down and Ford kicks them both in the head. Boogs is rammed into Knight and Ford clotheslines Boogs to the floor. Ford hits the big flip dive to take them out again, setting up the Cash Out to finish Boogs at 3:57.

Rating: C+. I don’t think anyone was expecting this to be any kind of a big time team with Boogs and Knight, so getting the mess up and likely split out of the way makes sense. At the same time, Boogs continues to look like a force out there and that could be useful down the line. Knight didn’t take the fall though, which gives me a bit of hope for his future.

Post match, Knight lays out Boogs.

Cameron Grimes is rather happy with his win last week and now he’s living the dream here on Smackdown. He’s ready to go TO THE MOON.

Karrion Kross is coming for AJ Styles.

Valentina Feroz/Yulisa Leon vs. Alba Fyre/Isla Dawn

Non-title. Leon gets taken down by Fyre rather quickly. Dawn comes in and knees her in the face before handing it off to Feroz. The Gory Bomb/Downward Spiral combination finishes Feroz at 1:01. That was a nifty squash.

Liv Morgan is injured rather seriously and the Women’s Tag Team Titles have to be vacated. There will be a four way for the titles in two weeks on Raw to crown new champions.

Raquel Rodriguez, who will be in the four way with a partner to be named, says Morgan isn’t replaceable….and here is Damage Ctrl to interrupt. They’re not happy that Dakota Kai was injured last week to, but they’ll fight Rodriguez and anyone she can find next week (Iyo Sky still doesn’t look pleased with Bayley’s decision).

Here is Austin Theory for a chat. He isn’t happy because he was double teamed last week by Bobby Lashley and Sheamus, who knew he would go on to be the World Heavyweight Champion. Lashley has an obsession with it, but Theory doesn’t get it with Sheamus. They’re both tough and strong and they’ve both beat John Cena….though Sheamus did it when Theory was 12. Cue Sheamus to Brogue Kick theory and then walk out again.

Paul Heyman tells the Usos that Roman Reigns has forgiven him….but Reigns won’t be out there with them tonight. Heyman tries to explain why Reigns has so much to do before going with “come on, it’s the LWO!”. The Usos leave but they don’t seem happy. Heyman gets his phone out as they leave.

Usos vs. Rey Mysterio/Santos Escobar

Jimmy takes over on Rey to start but it’s quickly off to Escobar, who sends the Usos outside. Rey jumps onto Escobar’s shoulders to pose as we take an early break. Back with Escobar in trouble but managing to knock Jimmy down for a breather. Jey breaks up the tag attempt though and the running Umaga Attack connects. Escobar knees his way out of trouble, which this time is enough for the hot tag to Rey.

Everything breaks down and a headscissors gives Rey two, only to have Jey grab a pop up belly to back neckbreaker for the same. Rey knees his way out of a double suplex and hands it back to Escobar for the running knee in the corner. A super hurricanrana gets two on Jimmy and Rey adds a legdrop for the same. The 619 is cut off by a superkick though and the frog splash gives Jey two. The double Superfly Splash is loaded up but here is Kevin Owens for a distraction. Sami Zayn breaks up the splash, allowing Escobar to drop a frog splash for the pin at 14:20.

Rating: B. This got rolling by the end and the Usos’ downfall continues, as they no longer have the unbeatable mojo to carry them through their problems. That is the kind of thing that can take a long time to recover from and it should be interesting to see where it goes. At the same time, it was nice to see Escobar get a win, as it feels like something rather rare for him. Rather good main event here, as Rey can still bring it with the best of them.

In the back, Roman Reigns is mad but tells Solo Sikoa to stay and doesn’t look pleased to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Pretty nice effort this week with a good main event and what feels like the next step in the Bloodline’s downfall. That could make for a very interesting future, as Night Of Champions and beyond are looking a lot more intriguing. Other than that we had some new stars getting their chance to establish themselves and LA Knight didn’t lose, so we’ll call this a win.

Results
Pretty Deadly b. Brawling Brutes – Spilled Milk to Holland
Asuka b. Zelina Vega – Double armbar
Street Profits b. Rick Boogs/LA Knight – Cash Out to Boogs
Alba Fyre/Isla Dawn b. Valentina Feroz/Yulisa Leon – Gory Bomb/Downward Spiral combination to Feroz
Rey Mysterio/Santos Escobar b. Usos – Frog splash to Jimmy

 

 

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 – May 12, 2023: Works As A One Off

Smackdown
Date: May 12, 2023
Location: Thompson-Bowling Arena, Knoxville, Tennessee
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s tournament week again as we have the Smackdown half of the World Heavyweight Championship tournament. That means two more triple threat matches with the winners having a singles match, with the winner of that facing Seth Rollins at Night Of Champions for the title. Other than that, Roman Reigns is back so let’s get to it.

Here is Backlash if you need a recap.

World Heavyweight Championship Tournament First Round: Rey Mysterio vs. Edge vs. AJ Styles

Only Edge gets an entrance and they start with Edge’s sunset flip to Styles sending Rey flying. After that fairly complicated start, a more simplistic Edge-O-Matic gets two on Styles. Back up and Styles hits the sliding forearm on Edge, followed by a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two on Rey. Barrett points out that these three have NINETY YEARS of experience between them and now I just feel old. Rey gets in a few kicks of his own, only to get fall away slammed by Edge.

The spear is broken up by a double kick to the face before Rey hurricanranas Styles into the corner. A Code Red gets two on Edge but AJ sends Rey to the floor. Edge catches Rey in a hanging DDT, with AJ hitting a dropkick to drive them both down as we take a break. Back with Edge hitting a double spear through the ropes and to the floor for the crash. With Edge down, Styles grabs the Calf Crusher on Rey but Edge adds a Crossface at the same time. Edge and Styles headbutt each other to break it up and the non-Mysterio guys slug it out.

Mysterio tries a 619 but gets caught with a double dropkick to leave everyone down again. Back up and they go to the corner for the sunset bomb into the Tower of Doom and a big crash. Edge is up first and Edgecates Mysterio before switching it over to Styles. The rope is reached (means nothing in a triple threat) so Rey hits a 619 to Edge. Rey goes up and gets….kind of speared out of the air (Edge wasn’t ready so it looked like Rey tried a top rope DDT and Edge didn’t go down instead of a spear). Styles hits the Phenomenal Forearm to finish Edge at 16:12.

Rating: B. I was getting into this one by the end and it felt like a major match. That is no surprise given who was in the match as you have three people with this kind of talent and success over the years. Styles going forward is a bit of a surprise as I would have bet on Edge, but there was no bad option here.

We recap the Usos’ recent losses, though they did win at Backlash, albeit with Solo Sikoa on the team as well.

World Heavyweight Championship Tournament First Round: Bobby Lashley vs. Austin Theory vs. Sheamus

Non-title and Theory rolls outside to start, only for the other two to send him back inside. Back in and Theory gets clotheslined to the floor again, allowing Lashley to knock Sheamus into the corner for a running shoulder to the ribs. Sheamus is fine enough to knock Lashley to the apron for the forearms to the chest, followed by even more to Theory.

We take a break and come back with Lashley sending Theory into the post. Back in and Lashley drops Sheamus with a clothesline but runs into a raised boot in the corner. Lashley is right back with a belly to belly suplex but Theory comes back in to clean house. Sheamus shrugs that off and runs Theory over, setting up a super White Noise for two.

Back in and a bleeding Lashley spears Sheamus but gets sent into the post so Theory can get two. Theory elbows Lashley in the head but A Town Down is countered into a spinebuster. The Hurt Lock goes on until Sheamus Brogue Kicks Theory. Lashley sends Sheamus outside and pins Theory at 12:58.

Rating: B-. Not quite as good as the opener but Styles vs. Lashley should make a heck of a showdown later tonight. Sheamus vs. Lashley worked with the power and Theory was there to be a bit more than a pest, who was trying to steal the win where he could. I would have thought Sheamus was there to take the pin but why do that when you can have a champion who is starting to put it together do it instead?

Grayson Waller comes up to Adam Pearce and asks to have the winner of Styles vs. Lashley on the Grayson Waller Effect (talk show) next week. Sure.

Baron Corbin vs. Cameron Grimes

Before the match Corbin says in about two minutes, Grimes is going to want to go back to NXT. The Cave In (standing double stomp) finishes Corbin at 6 seconds. Well that worked.

Here is the Bloodline in full force to open things up. Reigns is rather happy here and says the people in this ring main evented both nights of Wrestlemania, which will never be done again. He’s also very pleased with Solo Sikoa for stepping up at Backlash. There was some worry about bringing Sikoa up to the main roster so fast because you can sink or swim. Sikoa swims like a shark though, because he deals with problems. Look at the Riddle problem! Sikoa mentions Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, which has Reigns pleased because Sikoa is still thinking ahead.

We pause for the SAMI chant but Reigns says Sami and Owens aren’t a problem anymore. There is a problem though, and that is Sikoa’s brothers. Reigns wants to know what they thought was going to happen. Were they just going to lose in the main event of Wrestlemania and then lose the rematch (dedicated to Reigns) and not talk about it? Why are they dedicating a tag match to a singles wrestler? There are Hall of Fame tag teams in their family but they dedicated it to him?

Reigns doesn’t want to hear anything from them but an apology, though the fans aren’t sure about that. If Reigns was the Usos, he would just apologize, though Jimmy starts to laugh. Reigns shoves him in the face and Paul Heyman gets (halfway) out of the ring. The fans chant something that has to be censored but Jey gets between Reigns and Jimmy. Jey apologizes for the team and says they’ll bring the titles back with one more shot.

Reigns likes the idea and has Heyman fill the Usos in: at Night Of Champions, it’s Reigns/Sikoa vs. Zayn/Owens for the Tag Team Titles (Jey spinning around at the announcement is great). Reigns dedicates the victory and the title reign to the greatest team of all time: the Wild Samoans (his uncle and father). Cool surprise, though undermining the Draft less than two weeks in is something even for WWE.

Damage Ctrl is ready to win the Women’s Tag Team Titles, though Iyo Sky is not thrilled at first.

The Usos don’t like the Latino World Order laughing at them so Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar come up to laugh even more. Jey has to walk away while hitting things.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Damage Ctrl vs. Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez

Morgan and Rodriguez are defending and Rodriguez powers Kai into the corner to start. Morgan comes in for a running shot in the corner, followed by the same from Rodriguez. We see Isla Dawn and Alba Fyre watching in the back as Bayley comes in with a clothesline for two. We take a break and come back with Rodriguez fighting out of trouble and bringing Morgan back in.

Rodriguez uses Morgan as a battering ram (with Morgan waving at the fans) but Kai manages to come off the top with a Meteora/powerbomb from Bayley combination to plant Morgan for a rather delayed two. Rodriguez cuts off Sky bringing in a belt, allowing Morgan to roll Kai up to retain at 8:47.

Rating: C. The match went fine as Damage Ctrl’s issues continue. That could lead to something interesting and I’m curious to see where it does go. At the same time, the tease of the two Women’s Tag Team Champions facing off and hopefully unifying their titles is a nice possibility and something that needs to happen. If nothing else, it would be nice to have a fresh match for the bigger stage.

Sheamus is upset at his loss when Pretty Deadly comes in. Pretty Deadly introduces themselves but are filling out forms to figure out who everyone is. The rest of the Brawling Brutes aren’t pleased with various insults to their intelligence, so a match seems imminent.

Here is Bianca Belair for a rather orange and white (University of Tennessee colors) championship celebration. Before she can say anything though, here is Asuka to mist her, because the Wrestlemania loss meant nothing. A trainer comes out to check on Belair.

Post break, Belair is still being checked on.

World Heavyweight Championship Tournament Semifinals: AJ Styles vs. Bobby Lashley

The winner gets Seth Rollins for the title at Night Of Champions. Lashley, with a big bump on his head, tries to back Styles into the corner but Styles bobs and weaves away. Styles finally gets caught in the corner for some elbows to the neck as Lashley takes over. They head outside with Lashley posting him as we take a break.

Back with Styles grabbing the Calf Crusher before switching to a DDT for two. Lashley muscles him up with a lifting Downward Spiral for two but his knee might have given out. Styles hits the sliding forearm but misses a charge and gets Hurt Locked. The rope breaks that up as Lashley is busted open again. Styles is able to post Lashley for a change and knocks him into it again for a bonus. The Phenomenal Forearm is cut off back inside and Lashley’s running powerslam gets two more. The spear only hits post though and now the Phenomenal Forearm can send Styles to Night Of Champions at 12:01.

Rating: B. Another good back and forth match here and we should be in for a heck of a showdown between Styles and Rollins at Night Of Champions. Styles is someone you can slot into any title match and have it work out well and that was the case here. Beating Lashley still means a lot and it felt like a big time main event to set up the even bigger title match.

We run down the Night Of Champions card.

The OC comes out to celebrate with Styles to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Much like Raw and NXT, this show was about the tournaments with the new stars being slipped in where they could. That worked rather well here with three rather good TV matches and a fun debut for Grimes. At the same time, Pretty Deadly and Fyre/Dawn seem to have something ready to go, making this another efficient show. They won’t be able to do something like this every week, but I’ll certainly take it as a very good one off.

Results
AJ Styles b. Edge and Rey Mysterio – Phenomenal Forearm to Edge
Bobby Lashley b. Austin Theory and Sheamus – Brogue Kick to Theory
Cameron Grimes b. Baron Corbin – Cave In
Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez b. Damage Ctrl – Rollup to Kai
AJ Styles b. Bobby Lashley – Phenomenal Forearm

 

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 – May 5, 2023: A Really Big Preview

Smackdown
Date: May 5, 2023
Location: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Michael Cole

We are in Puerto Rico for the first time ever as Backlash will be held in the same venue tomorrow night. In addition, this is the final night for the old Smackdown roster as the Draft takes effect starting on Monday. We should be in for a big show tonight though, with what will likely be a red hot crowd. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a camera shot from outside, through the doors and into the arena (seemed like it was from a drone). That was a very cool shot and the arena looks GREAT (as well as packed).

Here is the LWO (with no huge video screen, making it look more like a house show for a change of pace) to get things going. Rey Mysterio addresses the crowd in Spanish and hypes up Bad Bunny and Zelina Vega. The latter goes to speak but is a bit overwhelmed, only to be interrupted by Judgment Day.

After the fans go nuts on Dominik, we get an argument in Spanish between the Mysterios. Rey switches to English and challenges Dominik to a Wrestlemania rematch but Ripley is between them. She’ll fight Rey, but Vega gets involved as well. A mixed tag seems to be made and Dominik gets in a cheap slap on Rey before bailing.

Viking Raiders vs. Good Brothers

Valhalla and the rest of the OC are here too, including AJ Styles on commentary. Erik and Anderson go to an early standoff so it’s off to Ivar vs. Gallows. Ivar knocks him into the corner but Gallows fights out and hands it back to Anderson. That earns him a knock out to the floor, giving us a Michin vs. Valhalla showdown as we take a break.

Back with Gallows coming in to clean house, much to the fans’ delight. Everything breaks down and Ivar’s top rope splash gets two on Anderson. Gallows makes the save but is ready for Valhalla’s attempted interference. Michin takes Valhalla down and Gallows kicks Ivar. Erik gets knocked outside and the Magic Killer finishes Ivar at 8:07.

Rating: B-. This was your often required hoss fight and the Good Brothers showed that they can still do their thing when they’re able to get in the ring. I’m not sure why they needed to be held out while AJ was gone as they are perfectly serviceable as a middle of the road tag team. The Vikings continue to lose and again I’m not sure why, as they could easily be used closer to the titles.

There will be a tournament for the inaugural World Heavyweight Title, with a pair of triple threats on each show. The winners will face off with each other, with the winners of the singles matches will face each other at Night Of Champions for the title.

We look at the recent European tour.

Here is Bianca Belair for a chat. She is happy to be here in Puerto Rico but she is focused on Iyo Sky. Belair has faced the best of the best and she will do it again right here tomorrow night at Backlash. That victory will make her the longest reigning Women’s Champion of the modern era but here is Damage Ctrl to interrupt. Bayley talks about how Sky is going to end the title reign and Belair will need a ticket out of the ring. The fight is on with Belair getting to stare down Sky, only to get jumped from behind. Bayley escapes the KOD and Sky dropkicks Belair down. Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan make the save.

Karrion Kross, with Scarlett, is ready to take out Shinsuke Nakamura tonight.

We look back at the Usos losing last week.

Solo Sikoa ignores Jimmy Uso and Jey Usos isn’t happy about it. Sikoa heard him, but says he’ll be doing his part tomorrow. They better do theirs, and he looks at the taped thumb before leaving.

Street Profits vs. Imperium

Imperium starts with a blind tag and Kaiser is able to kick Ford down. The referee didn’t seem to see the tag so Vinci goes up top and dives onto both Profits. Back in and Vinci moonsaults Ford for two but he suplexes his way out of trouble. The hot tag brings in Dawkins to clean house. Dawkins plants Vinci and the Cash Out finishes for Ford at 2:41. They packed a lot into a short match here, to the point where I was surprised at how short it lasted.

Long video on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. After addressing the fans in Spanish, Cody talks about some of Brock Lesnar’s accomplishments. His old coach Double A talked about how the goal was to claim the Kingdom and Brock is the one guarding the door to that kingdom. There are ways to avoid facing Lesnar but Lesnar came after him. Lesnar still hasn’t said why he did that but maybe Cody can beat it out of him tomorrow night as he claims his kingdom. Short and to the point here but Cody sold it hard.

Shinsuke Nakamura tells Karrion Kross to COME ON.

Riddle talks about beating the Bloodline at Backlash as Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens kind of stare. Riddle: “Am I talking too much?” Sami says there is nothing left for the two of them to say so they’re ready for tomorrow.

Karrion Kross vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Scarlett is here with Kross, who knocks Nakamura outside for a powerbomb against the post. We take a break and come back with Nakamura kicking away and hitting the running knee in the corner for two. Scarlett offers a distraction though, allowing Kross to grab the Doomsday Saito for two of his own. Nakamura slips out of a sleeper and kicks Kross in the head. Kinshasa is cut off with a clothesline but Nakamura is back with more kicks to the head. The second Kinshasa attempt finishes Kross at 8:48.

Rating: B. These two had some nice chemistry together and they beat each other up rather well in Nakamura’s Smackdown farewell. Nakamura is someone who could easily be reheated for a run at a title sooner than later and he looked good in one of his first matches back after his hiatus. Kross was his usual self: looking intimidating and losing in a match, as he still can’t really get going.

Video on the NXT stars coming up via the Draft.

Adam Pearce welcomes Cameron Grimes to Smackdown when Baron Corbin interrupts. Corbin mocks Grimes for being the last pick, but Grimes brings up the Corbin wasn’t picked at all. The match is made for next week.

Backlash rundown.

Bad Bunny and Damian Priest got into it at the Backlash press conference.

Zelina Vega/Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio/Rhea Ripley

Finn Balor is here with Judgment Day. Vega ducks some shots to the face to start and hits Ripley in the jaw, which does not seem to be the best idea. Ripley misses a big stomp and gets taken down with a hurricanrana, allowing Vega to wave at her. It’s off to Rey vs. Dominik, with the fans not liking the latter. Rhea’s cheap shot from the apron doesn’t do much as Vega comes in and loads up a 619 on Dominik, only to get kicked in the face by Ripley.

We take a break and come back with Vega hitting Ripley in the face, followed by a rolling kick to the head. Ripley drops her again and we hit the chinlock as Dominik hits the Eddie dance. Vega jawbreaks her way out of a powerbomb attempt and kicks Ripley off, allowing the diving tag to Rey.

Dominik comes in as well and gets hit in the head for his efforts. A big spinning springboard crossbody drops Dominik again but he manages to send Rey face first into the buckle. Dominik hits a Michinoku Driver for two, with Vega having to make the save. Dominik tries the Three Amigos but Rey reverses the last one into a small package for the pin at 9:27.

Rating: B-. I don’t think there was any secret about how this one was going to end as Rey had to win and Ripley wasn’t going to take the all. Vega was doing her thing here and the evasive stuff and using her smaller stature to her advantage worked against the much bigger Ripley. She still doesn’t have a real chance at the title, but points for giving her that little, tiny glimmer of hope.

Post match the beatdown, including Damian Priest, is on but Bad Bunny (in a sweet old WWF logo jacket), with kendo stick, and the LWO, come in for the save. Priest runs off as the good guys clean house. Bunny puts on the LWO shirt to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show was about getting everything ready for Backlash and they made me interested in seeing the show. If nothing else, the crowd reaction and energy this show had made it feel that much more important and we should be in for a big night tomorrow. The place came unglued for Bad Bunny and if he can back that up in the ring, we should be in for a heck of a Saturday. There wasn’t a bad match on the show and you can tell the fans were into what they were seeing, making this a rather fun and quality show.

Results
Good Brothers b. Viking Raiders – Magic Killer to Ivar
Street Profits b. Imperium – Cash Out to Vinci
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Karrion Kross – Kinshasa
Rey Mysterio/Zelina Vega b. Dominik Mysterio/Rhea Ripley – Small package to Dominik

 

 

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.

 




NXT – November 8, 2022: They Need To Figure That Out

NXT
Date: November 8, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T.

We are a little over a month away from Deadline and for reasons I don’t quite grasp, Von Wagner is next in line for the NXT Title shot. The good thing is that match is set for next week so it won’t drag down a major show, but we could be in for a rough two weeks. Hopefully the rest of the show can balance it out. Let’s get to it.

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

Joe Gacy vs. Cameron Grimes

Gacy, now in regular trunks instead of his full body gear, has the rest of Schism with him and gets knocked into the corner to start. Grimes fights his way out of some quick trouble and elbows Gacy in the face. Back up and Grimes slips out of a fireman’s carry and knocks Gacy outside as we take a break.

We come back with Gacy stomping away (he likes doing that) and we hit the Crossface. That’s broken up and Grimes gets in a knockdown. After stomping on Reid’s hand at ringside, Grimes hits a high crossbody for two. Gacy bails to the floor and there’s the big running flip dive to take out a bunch of Schism. Back in and an Ava Raine distraction lets Gacy hit the handspring lariat for the pin at 10:45.

Rating: C. It’s amazing to see how things are getting so bad for Grimes. One might think that it’s bad to feud with the lamest thing in all of NXT, as has been the case for Grimes for a long time now. Other than that, you had a pretty basic good guy vs. bad guy match with lackeys interfering. What else was there to get out of this?

Nathan Frazer tells Axiom that he’ll be out of action a bit longer due to his injuries. JD McDonagh comes in to say Frazer knows nothing about pain so Axiom mocks McDonagh for losing a lot. A match is made for later.

And now, to the Barber Shop with Carmelo Hayes not worrying about the haters saying he didn’t get his North American Title back. He and Trick Williams aren’t worried about Wes Lee and don’t care for their barber being something of a fan. Apparently the contract signing is in two weeks.

Scrypts is coming to watch NXT fall.

Sol Ruca vs. Elektra Lopez

Lopez gets knocked outside to start but she’s right back with a heck of a clothesline to take over. Ruca tries to fight back with some shots to the face and manages to stagger Lopez, only to get slammed off the top. A chokebomb finishes for Lopez at 2:58. Not quite a squash but Lopez didn’t feel like she was in danger.

Post match Indi Hartwell runs in to brawl with Lopez.

Duke Hudson and Thea Hail want to take Charlie Dempsey apart. Hudson will be at ringside tonight against that BESMIRCHING (chuckle) Charlie Dempsey but only for support.

We get a video call between Toxic Attraction with Jacy Jayne being worried about showing up because Alba Fyre might hurt them. Then Fyre (who Jayne thought was a cop) pulls her out of the car and promises to come for Mandy Rose next week.

Charlie Dempsey vs. Andre Chase

The rest of Chase U is here too. Dempsey takes him to the mat to start but Chase is back up with a front facelock. Chase can’t get an armbar but he can hit the spelling stomps. That’s broken up and Dempsey pulls him into a leglock, followed by an STF. That’s enough for Duke Hudson to throw in the towel at 2:48, despite Chase being right next to the rope.

Kiana James and her assistant come into Fallon Henley’s bar where Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen are in lust. James is trying to buy the place (Wasn’t she trying to do that to Chase U for about thirty seconds a month ago?) but Henley isn’t interested. She has a lot of memories and isn’t taking the deal, as James wants to build an apartment complex.

Hank Walker vs. Stacks

Tony D’Angelo is here with Stacks. Walker gets taken down to start and hammered in the back as commentary talks about Logan Paul. A knee to the head gives Stacks two but Walker gets fires up and runs Stacks over. Stacks pokes him in the eye and gets two off a rollup before dropping Walker with a running knee to the back of the head for the pin at 3:11.

Rating: C-. What were you expecting here? Walker is a wrestling security guard and Stacks is a lackey to a Mafia boss. There was only so much to get out of something like this and they hit their ceiling pretty hard here. I still don’t quite get the appeal of Walker, as he’s a bit similar to Briggs and Jensen, but he’s unique enough to have a spot, as long as it doesn’t get much higher than this.

It’s time for the Grayson Waller Effect with Von Wagner, with Mr. Stone, and Bron Breakker as guests. The fans writing in don’t seem to like Wagner and he doesn’t care what they think. Wagner brags about how great he is but Breakker says try jumping him face to face. Breakker lists off all of the people who have been impressed by him or taken out (Breakker: “Apollo Crews. There I said your name, you happy now?”) and violence is teased but they just stare at each other instead. And yeah it’s still Wagner so he still isn’t interesting.

Wes Lee wanted to win the Tag Team Titles last week but he’s ready to beat Carmelo Hayes next week.

Cora Jade isn’t scared of Wendy Choo, who doesn’t have any friends and no one cares about her.

Apollo Crews is in Nigeria as part of a WWE talent search but he hasn’t forgot about Bron Breakker.

JD McDonagh vs. Axiom

Axiom takes him down for an early double arm crank to start and McDonagh is looking frustrated early. McDonagh tries to fight up but can’t get anywhere with him. A trip to the floor has McDonagh even more annoyed and we take an early break as seething ensues. Back with Axiom hitting a heck of a springboard moonsault to the floor but he comes up holding his knee.

Back in and McDonagh gets caught in an armbar and has to go to the ropes for the break. McDonagh starts going after the leg but Axiom is able to get back up with a shot to the head for a double knockdown. It’s McDonagh up first anyway but his moonsault is pulled into a triangle choke.

That’s broken up as well but Axiom’s knee gives out on a superkick attempt. This time Axiom pulls him into a choke, which is reversed into a VERY bendy kneebar, which is enough for the referee to break the hold because Axiom is screaming so hard. Axiom begs him not to stop it but the doctors say it’s over at 13:45.

Rating: B. This was a technical vs. high flier match and a lot of fun for the most part. That ending was nasty (though not quite as nasty as when it happened to A-Kid in NXT UK) and a good way to make McDonagh look dangerous. I don’t need to see him get another title shot, but they are doing a great job of making him feel big.

Brutus Creed vs. Damon Kemp

The rest of Diamond Mine is here and we have a five minute time limit. Brutus jumps Kemp in the aisle to start the fight fast before heading inside for the bell. The fight is on fast with Brutus knocking him around and then outside. Kemp gets pulled back to the floor and hammered onto the announcers’ table before they head back inside. Brutus sends him shoulder first into the post before grabbing a chair. That’s taken away though and Brutus blasts him for the DQ at 2:46.

Post match Creed hits him with the chair again but Veer and Sanga are looking at Diamond Mine from the balcony.

T-Bar is still coming back and promises his form of justice.

Roxanne Perez offers an ear to Indi Hartwell if anything is wrong but Hartwell says there are no friends in this business. It doesn’t work that way.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Nikkita Lyons/Zoey Stark vs. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance

Carter/Chance are defending. Chance takes Stark down to start but Stark sticks the landing on a monkey flip. Lyons comes in to work on Carter’s arm but Carter is back up with a running dropkick to send Stark outside. We take a break and come back with Stark holding Chance in a Stretch Muffler. That’s broken up and it’s back to Carter, who hits a big dive to take out both challengers at once.

Chance comes back in and kicks Lyons into the corner for the tag off to Stark. A suplex gets two on Chance, even with Lyons cutting Carter off from making a save. Chance Stundog Millionaires herself out of trouble and everything breaks down. Stark almost clothesline Lyons by mistake and Lyons even takes the bullet of a double superkick for her. A superkick drops Carter but the champs are back up and the 450/neckbreaker combination retains the titles at 11:04.

Rating: C. I’m still not sure what I’m supposed to see in Starks and Lyons as a team as they seemed to be nothing more than two women thrown together to have an NXT team in the Women’s Tag Team Titles tournament. They’re ok enough but it feels like you could sub someone else into either spot with little to no change.

Post match respect is shown but Stark hits Lyons with a title to split the team up. This would be one of those splits that is supposed to be a big deal but they’ve been a team for….have they even had five matches together on TV?

Overall Rating: C. As has been the case for a pretty long time now, there isn’t anything that feels like a big deal right now. I’m sure there will be a new challenger for Breakker after he beats Wagner next week, and the way they are going, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a multi-man match at Deadline. What we got here was another ok show, but it felt like it was setting up more stuff in the future. That has to happen sometimes, but it happens a lot in NXT these days.

Results
Joe Gacy b. Cameron Grimes – Handspring lariat
Elektra Lopez b. Sol Ruca – Chokebomb
Charlie Dempsey b. Andre Chase when Duke Hudson threw in the towel
Stacks b. Hank Walker – Running knee to the back of the head
JD McDonagh b. Axiom via medical stoppage
Damon Kemp b. Brutus Creed via DQ when Creed used a chair
Kayden Carter/Katana Chance b. Zoey Stark/Nikkita Lyons – 450/neckbreaker combination to Stark

 

 

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.

 




NXT – October 18, 2022: Fast Forward

NXT
Date: October 18, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T, Vic Joseph

It’s the go home show for Halloween Havoc and that means it is time for the final push towards the show. In this case that means we have some main roster stars in some Pick Your Poison matches for Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez. Other than that, we need one more night to set up the triple threat NXT Title match, which certainly needs the help. Let’s get to it.

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

Rhea Ripley vs. Roxanne Perez

The rest of Judgment Day is here with Ripley, who is Cora Jade’s pick to face Perez. The fans are glad to see Rhea and think she is going to kill Perez, rather enthusiastically really. Perez goes for the wristlock to little avail and the spinning headscissors doesn’t work. A chop just makes Ripley mad so she headbutts Perez in the ribs. Ripley forearms her into the back and is starting to look rather comfortable.

A quick hurricanrana sends Ripley outside but she moves before Perez can dive. Instead Perez tries another hurricanrana off the apron, earning herself a HARD face first drop onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Ripley holding her in a waistlock and driving in forearms to the back of Perez’s head. Perez fights up and fires off some kicks to the leg but an armdrag is blocked.

One heck of a missed charge sends Ripley shoulder first into the post, setting up Perez’s suicide dive. Perez slips out of a superplex attempt back inside and grabs a super hurricanrana for two. Another charge is countered into a faceplant for two and Ripley is stunned off the kickout. Riptide and Pop Rox are both broken up so Dominik Mysterio distracts Perez, allowing Riptide to give Ripley the pin at 12:47.

Rating: B-. Perez is looking more and more like a star every day as she is hanging in there with big names, from Bayley on Smackdown last week and Ripley here. Ripley winning, especially via cheating, is a fine way to go and she got to look dominant again in doing so. What mattered here was making Perez look good and they pulled that off rather well.

The OC aren’t sure about teaming with Cameron Grimes. Then Grimes pulls out a bunch of money and now they’re ready to go to the moon.

Here are Tony D’Angelo and Stacks, with the former having a mystery opponent. We’ll see who that is….after a break.

Grayson Waller is ready to get rid of Apollo Crews. Then Chucky from Child’s Play pops up on screen to taunt him about Spin The Wheel, Make The Deal. Waller is freaked out.

Stacks vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Now there’s a surprise and the fans are rather glad to see him. Stacks grabs a headlock to start and hammers away to little effect. Nakamura remembers that he’s fighting Stacks and kicks away without much trouble. Some right hands actually put Nakamura down though and the chinlock goes on. That’s broken up and Nakamura wins the strike off without much effort. The sliding German suplex gives Nakamura two but he can’t keep a cross armbreaker. Stacks is back up with another shot but Nakamura kicks him in the head. Kinshasa sends Stacks outside, followed by another to finish him off at 5:22.

Rating: C. Nakamura being back is a nice surprise, but it’s more than a little weird to see Stacks getting in that much offense on him. This actually wasn’t a squash, but rather Stacks being overwhelmed by someone on a much higher level. I’m not sure I get the story here, though hopefully it doesn’t involve Stacks being split off on his own.

Nathan Frazer and Axiom reminisce on their best of three series when Von Wagner, with Mr. Stone, comes in. Wagner mocks them and gets a match with Frazer as a result.

Sonya Deville vs. Alba Fyre

Deville has Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin with her. Neither can hit a kick to start so Fyre headbutts her into the corner. Deville pulls Fyre off the middle rope though and the crash is good for two. A faceplant drops Deville though and Fyre goes up top. That doesn’t work as she has to beat up Toxic Attraction, with Deville accidentally helping by kicking Dolin in the face. A rollup gives Fyre the pin at 2:09.

Post match Toxic Attraction gets back in to go after Fyre, with Mandy Rose making her return to say she she’s ready for Fyre. That’s enough for Fyre to come back with the bat on the other two, before shoving an invading Rose out to the floor.

Oro Mensah and Wes Lee are in the back when Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams come in to start a brawl. They fight into the arena and you know what that means.

Oro Mensah/Wes Lee vs. Carmelo Hayes/Trick Williams

We’re joined in progress with Lee headlocking Williams, who fights up with some forearms. Hayes comes in and gets missile dropkicked down by Mensah. Williams trips Mensah down though and Williams gets to stomp away. That doesn’t last long and it’s Lee coming back in to strike away on Hayes. Everything breaks down and Hayes hits a top rope ax kick to finish Lee at 2:52. Short and to the point here, which was “these people are in a ladder match on Saturday so here they are”.

Post match the brawl stays on, with Nathan Frazer running in. Some dives leave everyone laying.

Schism doesn’t like Cameron Grimes running from them over to the OC. No one is stopping them of course.

Bron Breakker is ready to go through JD McDonagh and Ilja Dragunov. As for tonight, he is looking forward to being on the KO Show, because he knows something is going to happen.

Schism vs. OC/Cameron Grimes

Grimes throws Reid around to start and kicks him in the face so it’s off to Fowler, who has about the same luck. Fowler gets taken into the corner and Anderson comes in to work on the arm. Some elbows from Gallows make it worse but a blind tag brings in Reid, who knees Anderson from the apron. Anderson gets beaten down on the floor, meaning it’s time for some Schism hugs. Back in and Anderson wins a slugout with Reid, which is enough for the hot tag to Grimes. Everything breaks down and Schism is knocked outside and we take a break.

We come back with Grimes crossbodying Gacy for two but getting elbowed back down. Grimes can’t quite suplex his way to freedom but he can crawl through Fowler’s legs and bring Gallows in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Reid has to save Fowler from the Magic Killer. Gacy hits Grimes with a backbreaker but Anderson drops him with a neckbreaker. Grimes hits a Cage In and the Magic Killer finishes Reid at 11:56.

Rating: C+. Now LET IT BE OVER. There is no reason for Grimes to be dragged down any more than he already has been by this stupid feud and it needs to end. Gacy is fine enough as a midcard heel but Grimes is someone who could be a big deal in more than one place. That isn’t going to happen with Schism so move on already.

Veer Mahaan isn’t going to say what he said to Sanga last week. Sanga comes in and is ready to talk.

Video on Katana Chance/Kayden Carter vs. Zoey Stark/Nikkita Lyons.

We get the contract signing for the Women’s Tag Team Title match, with Lyons and Stark signing while saying they’re ready to take the titles. Carter and Chance sign as well, saying they’re a real team.

We get a split screen interview between Julius Creed and Damon Kemp, with Julius being ready to fight for his brother’s career. He isn’t intimidated by Kemp and is ready to take him out in an ambulance for what he did to Diamond Mine. Kemp says Creed may be great, but he’s also jealous. That has Julius chuckling, because Kemp isn’t willing to put in the work to be great. Kemp says this is about violence and not skill, but Julius promises to put Kemp in an ambulance on Saturday before storming off.

Shotzi is back to host Halloween Havoc again this year. The fans are rather glad to see her again and she is ready to be all weird and evil. She needs a co-host though so here is Xyon Quinn to say it should be him. Quincy Elliott is here to say the same, so let’s just have a match for the gig.

Quincy Elliott vs. Xyon Quinn

Joined in progress with Quinn hitting a clothesline as Shotzi sits in on commentary. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Elliott is back up with a running elbow. Quinn tries a Samoan drop but Elliott falls on him. Elliott’s splash misses though and Quinn tries for a chair, only to have Hank Walker cut him off. Back in and Elliott hits a splash, setting up a Banzai drop for the pin at 2:53.

Thea Hail is upset over her loss to Kiana James and freaks out in need of a rematch. Andre Chase says they’ll talk about it later and goes over the history of Halloween Havoc, with moments like Hulk Hogan beating Ric Flair, Goldberg vs. Diamond Dallas Page, Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero and Mandy Rose winning the NXT Women’s Title. Their homework is to watch Halloween Havoc, but Chucky pops up on screen to threaten them via swearing, because that is a teachable moment. Hail: “What the F***???” Chase and Bodie Hayward are stunned. As usual, funny stuff.

Pretty Deadly sign their contract for the Tag Team Title match next week. Edris Enofe and Malik Blade aren’t so sure that Pretty Deadly is leaving with the titles.

Cora Jade vs. Raquel Rodriguez

This is the other Pick Your Poison match. Rodriguez backs her into the corner to start so Jade chills on the top. Jade gets dropped face first onto the top turnbuckle and the chops against the announcers’ table make it worse. Back in and Jade manages to get in a few shots before grabbing the baseball bat. Rodriguez takes it away so Jade slaps her in the face. That’s enough for a bat shot to Jade and the DQ at 2:43.

Post match Roxanne Perez comes in and beats Jade up to send her running. Rodriguez puts Perez on her shoulder to celebrate.

Halloween Havoc rundown.

Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs are hosting a party in the back to watch the KO Show and put down some bets on what various people are going to say about Saturday. Sol Ruca walks by on her hands and it’s time to drink. This was a weird collection of cameos.

It’s time for the KO Show for the big finale. Without any introductions, here are Bron Breakker, JD McDonagh and Ilja Dragunov for a chat. Owens talks about how Shawn Michaels wanted him here, oddly enough to keep the peace. McDonagh is asked why he stirs the pot so much but McDonagh says Breakker and Dragunov are the ones who attacked each other last week. Dragunov doesn’t think much of Breakker and promises to take the title from him on Saturday. Breakker: “Over my dead body.”

Owens tries to calm things down, but he doesn’t want McDonagh as the NXT Champion. Owens: “I talked to his mom earlier and SHE doesn’t want him to be NXT Champion!” Dragunov says McDonagh can be great but NEVER a champion. Breakker wants Dragunov in the same category, but Dragunov brings up Breakker actually losing his title.

The challenge is on for right now so Owens takes his leave. Dragunov clears house….and Austin Theory comes out, points at the title, and holds up the briefcase to end the show. Now there’s a twist, and it might be a good thing for Theory. Better this than losing over and over on Raw/Smackdown and eventually becoming a lame champion who is seen as a failure when he doesn’t get over with the title. Good segment overall, as this match needs all the help it can get.

Overall Rating: C+. They were flying through this show and the guest stars didn’t exactly do much, which made the show a bit strange. I get that they were trying to hype up Halloween Havoc and fight back against AEW at the same time, but maybe advertise these names a bit better? The other thing here was that they were moving from one match to another as fast as they could here and little had a chance to set in. I’m not overly excited about Halloween Havoc, but the last segment did make me more interested in the main event. Pretty good show, but I’m not sure how much impact it had.

Results
Rhea Ripley b. Roxanne Perez – Riptide
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Stacks – Kinshasa
Alba Fyre b. Sonya Deville – Rollup
Carmelo Hayes/Trick Williams b. Wes Lee/Oro Mensah – Top rope ax kick to Lee
OC/Cameron Grimes b. Schism – Magic Killer to Reid
Quincy Elliott b. Xyon Quinn – Banzai drop
Cora Jade b. Raquel Rodriguez via DQ when Rodriguez hit her with a baseball bat

 

 

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.

 




NXT – October 11, 2022: It’s Not Looking So Scary

NXT
Date: October 11, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Booker T.

We’re rapidly approaching Halloween Havoc and that means we might need some more matches added to the show. The main event is already set and tonight we get another name added to the North American Title match as Axiom and Nathan Frazer wrap up their best of three series. Let’s get to it.

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

Javier Bernal vs. Bron Breakker

Non-title and here is JD McDonagh to join commentary. Breakker wrestles him down with ease to start and grabs an armbar. A belly to belly drops Bernal but he’s back up with a shot of his own. A shove to the face annoys Breakker though and he throws Bernal down. The gorilla press powerslam finishes Bernal at 3:18.

Rating: C-. This was just a step above a squash as Bernal got in just as much offense as you would expect him to get in such a match. There is no reason to have it be anything else and it’s fun to see Bernal get beaten up. Breakker continues to learn in the ring so keeping it short against lesser proven names is a good idea.

Post match McDonagh gets in the ring for the showdown and Ilja Dragunov comes in to join them. The brawl is on and Dragunov’s Torpedo hits Breakker, despite looking like he was aiming at McDonagh.

NXT North American Title Match Qualifying Match: Axiom vs. Nathan Frazer

In addition to being a qualifying match, this is the rubber match in a best of three series. Feeling out process to start with Frazer taking him down and smirking a bit. Axiom gets in his own takedown and…..well I’m assuming smirks back. They go with some grappling and Axiom takes him down with a headlock to slow things down a bit. Back up and Frazer pulls him out of the corner as we take a break.

We come back with the fight heading outside, where Frazer hits a Nightmare on Helm Street to put them both down for a bit. Frazer takes him down back inside and goes up top but dives into a triangle choke. That’s broken up so Axiom switches to a rear naked choke. Frazer escapes again and they trade kicks to the face. A double clothesline leaves both of them down and the fans applaud. Back up and Axiom knees him in the head and they go to a pinfall reversal sequence. Frazer finally gets the better of it and cradles him for the pin at 12:50.

Rating: B-. These two work well together and it was nice to see them getting to do their thing for a third time. I was expecting some kind of a draw to put them both in the ladder match so it was a bit refreshing to have a twist. Frazer winning is probably the better choice, though Axiom came out of the series looking good as well.

Post match, respect is show.

Ilja Dragunov is leaving but gets cut off by Grayson Waller. After Waller is a bit annoying, Dragunov mocks Waller’s sunglasses and a match seems to be made for later.

Valentina Feroz wants Sanga in her corner tonight and of course he’ll be there. Indi Hartwell comes in to suggest that Feroz is in trouble.

Apollo Crews writes in his journal about how changing one detail can make a huge difference. He is ready to get his hands on Grayson Waller at Halloween Havoc. The vision seems to be a bunch of clips of Halloween Havocs past, plus Chuckie from Child’s Play. He promises to leave Waller in the dark.

Indi Hartwell vs. Valentina Feroz

Sanga is here with Feroz. The much bigger Hartwell powers her up against the ropes to start and slams her down a few times for two. Hartwell grabs the chinlock and here is Veer to take Sanga to the back with him. Feroz doesn’t notice at first as she grabs a short armscissors. That’s broken up so she puts it on again, only to realize that Sanga is gone. The distraction lets Hartwell grab a superplex for the pin at 3:32.

Rating: C-. Hartwell is at least starting to put something back together but she has still fallen a long way. Other than that you have Feroz, who seems to be more of a pawn in the Indus Sher reunion. That’s a shame as I like Sanga, but I guess we need an evil foreign menace team instead, because that’s what we have been missing.

Post match Pretty Deadly pops up on the platform in an overly large cowboy hat and one of those hats with two beer cans on the side. They mock fans cheering for sports teams and the idea of anyone being a real challenge to them.

Cora Jade is annoyed at her lack of respect and it gets even worse when she finds out that Roxanne Perez is going to be on Smackdown this week.

Malik Blade/Edris Enofe vs. Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen vs. Dyad

For the Halloween Havoc Tag Team Title shot. The Dyad takes over on Jensen to start but he punches his way to freedom and brings in Briggs to run the Dyad over. Enofe gets punched into the ropes, setting up the slides underneath the ropes and stereo right hands. The Dyad gets knocked to the floor for a meeting with Joe Gacy, allowing Fowler to come back in for a suplex on Enofe.

Briggs comes in to clean house and cuts off Reed despite a blind tag. Reed is thrown over the top and onto the pile at ringside, followed by Jensen hitting a big flip dive off the top for a wipeout. We take a break and come back with a Tower of Doom taking Blade down further than anyone else.

Briggs comes in and gets to clean house, including going to the floor, picking Enofe up, throwing him off the ropes, and clotheslining him out of the air (that was cool). Blade gets the tag and starts to clean house as everything breaks down. We hit a long string of strikes to the face until Enofe and Blade clear the ring. The back to back running dives take down the other four but Gacy drops Enofe with a discus lariat. Cue Cameron Grimes to take Gacy out and Enofe pins Reed at 12:29.

Rating: C+. This was all action and they didn’t try to do anything else. It makes sense to have something like this on a show just to spice things up a bit and the winner makes for an interesting setup. If nothing else, Blade and Enofe needed a win to get them somewhere and why not let them have a title shot? It isn’t like they have anything to lose.

Toxic Attraction want their Women’s Tag Team Title match and promise violence.

Kiana James wants to shut down Chase U because the land it’s on is really valuable.

Alba Fyre vs. Jacy Jayne

Gigi Dolin is here with Jayne and offers a distraction to start. Jayne knocks Fyre into the corner and looks a bit too cocky early on. Fyre fights back up and slugs away but can’t hit a Gory Bomb. A fireman’s carry slam gives Fyre two and some frustration is setting in. Instead it’s another Dolin distraction to annoy Fyre, meaning she hits a running dive to take both of them out at ringside. Back in and the Gory Bomb finishes Jayne at 3:32.

Rating: C. This is one of those stories that you know by heart as soon as the match is announced and that isn’t a bad thing. What matters is keeping Alba warmed up before her title match and so far, that is working well. You can pencil in the Gigi Dolin match from here and it should go rather well with the story they are telling.

Post match a fan jumps Fyre and it’s…..Sonya Deville. The beating is on with Fyre getting triple powerbombed through the announcers’ table.

Joe Gacy promises to end Cameron Grimes 3-1 because Grimes has no one to help him. Their follower in the red hoodie pops up behind the team as they leave.

Zoey Stark and Nikkita Lyons are ready to win the Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Quincy Elliott and Hank Walker are ready for a match next week. Walker gives him a quick spank and Elliott thanks him.

Wes Lee vs. Stacks

Stacks takes him down by the leg to start but Lee is right back up with a shot to the face. Back up and Stacks goes for the leg and grabs a leglock. A torture rack neckbreaker gets two on Lee so Stacks goes up, only to get pulled back down. The Spiral Tap gives Lee the pin at 3:58.

Rating: C. Well you can see why Stacks is the lackey to Tony D’Angelo rather than the other way around. Stacks is one of the more generic stars that you will see in NXT as he just didn’t have anything to make him stand out. He did everything fine, but the crowd didn’t seem interested and Lee’s Spiral Tap was about the only interesting part. Not bad, but dull.

Post match Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes come in to beat Lee down but Oro Mensah makes the save.

Sonya Deville likes Toxic Attraction and doesn’t like Alba Fyre. Next week, Deville will be waiting in the ring for her.

Roderick Strong, in a neck brace, is wheeled in to see the Creed Brothers and wants Julius to take out Damon Kemp at Halloween Havoc. Strong apologizes for ruining everything by bringing Kemp in and is forgiven. If you can’t see how this is going at Halloween Havoc, you aren’t paying enough attention.

Thea Hail vs. Kiana James

The bell rings and Mr. Stone runs in to say he can’t enjoy Von Wagner’s win last week because Thea Hail slapped him. Stone charges at him and gets backdropped but James hits a reverse Sling Blade (401K) to finish Hail at 1:18. Sounds like a teachable moment.

Tony D’Angelo on crutches comes in to say he’s disappointed in Stacks for losing and for not listening to him. Stacks has another match next week, but D’Angelo won’t say against who.

Von Wagner tells Mr. Strong that he needs to be serious for two weeks.

Cameron Grimes seems to have some friends for next week.

Cora Jade has an invitation from Rhea Ripley to come to Raw, so HA Roxanne Perez.

Ilja Dragunov vs. Grayson Waller

Dragunov takes him down to start and works on the armbar. A jumping backsplash and running knee in the corner put Waller down again as this is one sided so far. Back up and Waller gets in a shot to the face to take over and even mocks his conducting. Oh and he mocks the Spinarooni, which has Booker annoyed as well.

We take a break and come back with Dragunov hitting some shots to the back, setting up a jumping enziguri. Waller knocks him right back down though and hits the middle rope elbow for two. Dragunov comes back with the 6 1 Line but a takedown sets up Waller’s choke. A neck snap across the top has Dragunov down so he goes to the floor….where the Spin The Wheel Make The Deal wheel appears and starts spinning (on its own). Back in and Dragunov rolls some suplexes, setting up the Torpedo for the pin at 11:05.

Rating: C+. The wheel thing was a little weird but Apollo Crews is doing a lot of weird things as of late. Dragunov winning here helps establish him a bit more in NXT, where he is still brand new. This should give him a small boost on the way to Halloween Havoc and I’d like to see what happens to him in what could be a wild triple threat.

Post match Bron Breakker runs in and spears Dragunov down. JD McDonagh applauds to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Not exactly a strong week from NXT here as they don’t have anything that has me overly interested for Halloween Havoc. The NXT Title match should be good, but it doesn’t feel like a story that is head and shoulders above everything else. The problem is that nothing else on the show does either and I’m not exactly interested in what they’re doing so far. Maybe they can change that next week, and at this point, they need to. Decent enough action this week and it wasn’t bad, but it didn’t make me more interested in their big show and that’s not good.

Results
Bron Breakker b. Javier Bernal – Gorilla press powerslam
Nathan Frazer b. Axiom – Rollup
Indi Hartwell b. Valentina Feroz – Superplex
Malik Blade/Edris Enofe b. Dyad and Josh Briggs/Brooks Jensen – Rollup to Reed
Alba Fyre b. Jacy Jayne – Gory Bomb
Wes Lee b. Stacks – Spiral Tap
Kiana James b. Thea Hail – 401K
Ilja Dragunov b. Grayson Waller – Torpedo

 

 

 

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.