Monday Night Raw – February 17, 2014: Going Home After A Good Night’s Work

Monday Night Raw
Date: February 17, 2014
Location: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

It’s the go home show for Elimination Chamber and it’s not a good time to be Randy Orton. He’s 1-3 in his gauntlet so far and tonight he gets to face Sheamus before getting to face all five challengers at once on Sunday. Other than that we can look forward to more from the Shield vs. the Wyatt Family after the Wyatts backed out of a physical confrontation last week. Let’s get to it.

Cena opens us up for the first time in a good while. He talks about how this Sunday is the Elimination Chamber and winning inside the Chamber is a guaranteed main event at Wrestlemania against Batista. Cena has been on the road to Wrestlemania several times and the only person on that road that doesn’t have any momentum is Randy Orton. A few weeks ago Randy Orton was beaten by Daniel Bryan and then last week he was beaten by Cena.

The odds say that we’ll be having a new WWE World Heavyweight Champion and here are Colter and Cesaro to cut him off. Cesaro says he’ll be the new face of America and he gets in the ring to face Cena. John says that Cesaro won on Friday but all that means is that Orton is on a losing streak. Cesaro is in for a fight he’s never experienced on Sunday so don’t write checks that your body can’t cash.

This brings out Sheamus who says that he’ll be kicking both of their teeth in on Sunday and there’s a Brogue Kick waiting on Orton tonight. Cue Christian who says Sheamus should have saved the Brogue Kick for Dean Ambrose instead of kicking Christian like he did. Christian knows it was an accident, but on Sunday the Killswitch won’t be an accident.

Orton gets us up to five people with microphones and thanks the Authority for the chance to beat them all on Sunday. He knows Cena beat him last week but Cena can’t beat him when it counts. Orton and Christian have had some great matches but Orton has won every one of them. Sheamus’ Brogue Kick isn’t getting anywhere near him tonight….and here’s Bryan for another interruption. There are going to be five other people in the Chamber, but the entire arena is going to be chanting YES.

Cue Kane to a big YOU SOLD OUT chant. Apparently the Authority has left him in charge tonight and since Sheamus is facing Randy Orton, perhaps the other four of them should be in action as well. Therefore it’s Cesaro vs. Cena and Christian vs. Daniel Bryan and Kane will be staying at ringside for the latter of those, because it’s right now.

Kane looks at Bryan and Daniel gets distracted but Christian jumps him from behind in a very heelish move. He sends Bryan to the floor and throws him into the barricade as the fans aren’t pleased. Bryan goes shoulder first into the steps and we take a break before the match actually starts.

Christian vs. Daniel Bryan

The bell rings after a break with Bryan nursing a sore shoulder. Bryan starts with a quick knee to the ribs and some European uppercuts to knockt he Canadian to the floor. The FLYING GOAT is blocked with a shot to the jaw as Kane watches from ringside. Back in and Christian does the smart thing by going after the bad arm with a wristlock and a shoulder block for two.

Bryan elbows out of a hammerlock but Christian nails him in the jaw for two. Christian channels his inner Rocky Marciano and punches the shoulder but has to escape a half crab attempt. He drops knees on the arm and shouts that he should be the champion Bryan knocks him out to the floor and hits the FLYING GOAT, only to injure his shoulder as we go to a break.

Back with Bryan hitting a knee to Christian’s ribs and the crowd YESes him on. The YES Kicks set up the big one to the head for two but the swan dive hits knees, injuring the shoulder again. The running dropkick connects in the corner but Christian blocks a second with his feet. Christian scores with the middle rope back elbow but the Killswitch is countered into the YES Lock but Christian fights out. Another Killswitch attempt is countered into a rollup for the pin at 11:12.

Rating: C+. Well so much for buying Christian as a contender on Sunday. The match was fine and Bryan sold the arm quite well as you would expect him to do. Christian turning heel for the Chamber is fine as you don’t want to have four faces and two heels and Christian can turn as fast as anyone else. Nice opener.

Post match Kane congratulates him on the win but says Bryan isn’t done yet. He has one more match tonight, against Kane. The monster gets in the ring and easily knocks Bryan to the floor before their match after the break.

Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

Joined in progress with Kane in an undershirt and sending Bryan shoulder first into the buckle. A suplex gets two on Daniel and it’s back to right hands on the arm. The arm is wrapped around the rope and the fans think this is boring. Daniel comes back with a quick missile dropkick and starts having his usual seizure of a comeback. Some very weak looking YES Kicks are countered with a choke shove over the top. Daniel is sent shoulder first into the barricade before being bent around the post for a five count and the DQ at 4:00 shown.

Rating: D+. This was angle advancement instead of a match and there’s nothing wrong with that. They’re stacking the deck even more against Bryan on Sunday which is likely setting up HHH vs. Bryan at Wrestlemania. Again though, I can’t imagine they’re crazy enough to not put him in the title match at the biggest show of the year.

Kane stays on the arm post match and crushes it against the steps.

After a clip of Henry vs. Ambrose last week, Ambrose brags about the beating he gave Henry last week. Reigns calls him out on this and says that he’ll show Dean how it’s done tonight. Seth says that the Shield is on the same page and they’re bred for war on Sunday. Dean calls the Wyatts an illusion and they don’t experience fear. Believe in the Shield.

Santino Marella vs. Fandango

Emma is with Santino and we get some clips of her time in NXT. Fandango takes over with a quick elbow to the jaw and a headbutt. Santino avoids a middle rope knee drop and hits his facebuster before loading up the Cobra. Emma intercepts Summer Rae and puts her in an airplane spin of all things. Santino and Emma have their romantic moment but Fandango breaks up the kiss and ends Santino with a falcon’s arrow at 2:42.

Renee Young asks Henry how he’ll do against Roman Reigns.  Henry says tonight is about inducting Reigns into the Hall of Pain because that’s what he does.

Mark Henry vs. Roman Reigns

The fans are behind Reigns as he hammers away on Mark to get us going. Henry blocks an Irish whip so Reigns casually picks him up in a Samoan drop for two. Reigns kicks him out of the corner and hits the Superman Punch followed by the spear for the pin at 2:45. Basically a squash.

Post match Rollins congratulates Reigns on his win but Ambrose stomps on Henry for last week. Reigns asks Dean what he’s doing but we’ve got Wyatts. Bray is singing a children’s Christian song about having the joy down in his heart as we get closer to Elimination Chamber. The Shield’s shattered bones will pave the streets of his kingdom but he wants to know if this was all worth it for the Shield.

Harper asks if they’re willing to die for this and Bray says if not, then they’ve already lost. Reigns grabs a mic and says come out here and say that. Bray says it’s funny he should say that because the Wyatts were thinking the same thing. Rowan speaks for the first time and says run. The Wyatts come to the aisle and get on the apron but only Bray gets inside. Reigns smiles and steps forward as Harper and Rowan join their leader. Ambrose and Rollins are ready to go but Bray calls off the monsters and the Wyatts leave.

The kickoff match for Sunday is Goldust/Cody Rhodes vs. Ryback/Curtis Axel.

Cody and Goldust play with new WWE toys and have a bizarre family moment talking about trying to make hamsters fly. Bad News Barrett comes in and kicks the toys away.

Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger

Jack pounds Kofi down in the corner to start and gets two off a suplex. The fans almost immediately start chanting for JBL and then CM Punk as Swagger hits the Vader Bomb for two. Kofi gets a boot up in the corner to stop a charging Swagger and hits a few forearms and dropkicks. Jack counters a sunset flip but Kofi comes back with Delirious’ Shadows Over Heck of all things for two. An SOS out of nowhere gets two but Swagger had his foot on the ropes. A high cross body gets two but Swagger rolls through into the Patriot Lock for the submission at 4:40.

Rating: D+. This was just a way to give Swagger some momentum going into Sunday and that’s the right idea. Jack is just another challenger of the month for Big E. and that’s something that can be set up in just a few matches like it has been here. Kofi is a good hand to have in this roll as he’s not going to lose anything by getting beat here.

Big E. comes down for his match and stares at Swagger.

Big E. vs. Drew McIntyre/Jinder Mahal

3MB is easily pounded down as Zeb gets on the mic and talks trash during the match. Colter insults the Broncos and calls Big E a moron as 3MB double teams him for a few moments. The champ easily fights back and sends McIntyre to the floor before belly to bellying both guys. The Warrior Splash crushes both of them and the Big Ending to both guys is enough to pin McIntyre at 4:15.

Rating: C-. Just like the previous match, this was exactly what it needed to be. Big E. (he needs the Langston back already) hasn’t been doing his best lately and this is the kind of win that he’s been looking for to get back to form. Beating a former world champion on PPV isn’t going to hurt him at all either.

Alexander Rusev is still coming.

Ron Simmons Black History Month video.

Video on the Elimination Chamber match.

Cena says we’ll see what Cesaro is made of.

John Cena vs. Cesaro

Cesaro grabs a headlock to start but Cena comes back with a hiptoss to send Cesaro outside. Back in and they do the same sequence but Cesaro counters Cena’s leapfrog into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. An abdominal stretch goes nowhere but Cesaro knocks Cena to the floor with ease. John is sent into the barricade as this has been one sided so far. A middle rope elbow gets two for Cesaro but Cena comes back with his lift into a neckbreaker for two. Cesaro comes back with a hard whip into the corner and baseball slides Cena out to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Cesaro putting on a sleeper but Cena rams him into the corner to escape. A running clothesline gets two on John and we hit the chinlock. Cena’s comeback is thwarted again but he counters the Swing into an STF attempt, only to have Cesaro counter into the gutwrench for two. Cena has had barely any offense here. Another comeback bid is stopped with Swiss Death for two.

The Swing is loaded up again but Cena does a HUGE situp into a DDT for another close two. Cena goes up for the Fameasser but Cesaro hits a running uppercut to knock him all the way to the floor. Cesaro hits the awesome superplex from the apron for two as the fans are WAY into this.

Cena grabs a quick STF but pulls Cesaro away from the ropes, allowing Cesaro to hook the Swing for about fifteen revolutions and a two count. The Neutralizer is countered into an AA attempt but Cesaro lands on his feet in an amazing counter. Cena takes his head off with a clothesline and immediately rolls forward and picks up Cesaro for the AA and a fast pin at 19:05. Colter: “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Rating: A. This is the match I’ve been wanting to see for years now and it worked as well as I was hoping it to. Cena had almost no offense the entire match and made Cesaro look like one of the fastest rising stars you’ll see in years. Outstanding match here and more evidence that people who say Cena can’t wrestle have no idea what they’re talking about.

HHH and Orton are in the back and Orton implies that HHH will help him on SUnday.  Orton runs his mouth about HHH carrying Batista through Evolution and of course Big Dave is behind him.  Orton leaves and here’s Alberto Del Rio in a neckbrace to threaten Batista on Sunday.  Batista shoves him into some carts and walks away, leaving HHH looking dismayed.

Darren Young vs. Titus O’Neil has been added to the PPV. Titus cuts off Renee Young and asks her if she can spell champion. “C-h-a-….” but Titus cuts her off again and says it’s “T-I-T-U-S!”. On Sunday he’ll run Young over and the entire locker room will have to witness the rise of Titus O’Neil.

Wyatt Family vs. Los Matadores/Sin Cara

This should be quick. Diego tries his luck on Rowan to start but his shoulder block winds up hurting him more than Erick. Off to Luke for a hard forearm before Bray comes in for some creepy shouting and a suplex. Back to Harper for the Gator Roll but Diego finally scores with an enziguri.

The hot tag brings in Sin Cara who leaves a springboard clothesline a bit short but still hits a headscissors to knock Bray off the apron. The handspring elbow gets two as everything breaks down. Torito tries to go after Rowan but Los Matadores make the save. Sin Cara misses the Swanton on Harper and the discus lariat sets the table for Sister Abigail and the pin at 5:34.

Rating: D+. Just an extended squash here and thankfully Torito wasn’t a big factor in this. The good thing for the Family is how awesome Harper and Rowan look, meaning they’ll have a future when the group breaks up. The showdown on Sunday is going to be insane and it’s easily the match I’m looking forward to the most.

Billy Gunn vs. Jey Uso

Roadie and Jimmy are on commentary and the Tag Title match is made official for Sunday. Billy is quickly sent to the floor and Dogg gets up to check on him. Back in and a running clothesline gets two on Jey as Roadie shrugs off jokes about his age. The camera stays on the commentary table as Billy pounds away in the corner. Road Dogg brings up singing With My Baby Tonight to bring us back to the mid 90s. The Fameasser is countered into a quick rollup for the pin at 3:13. Too much of the match was spent on the commentary table to rate but this was angle advancement more than wrestling.

The Usos lay out the champions post match.

Sheamus is looking forward to the Chamber because he can be as aggressive as he wants.

Randy Orton vs. Sheamus

Non-title of course. The fans immediately start chanting for Punk as Sheamus takes Orton into the corner and shoulders him to the floor. Sheamus follows him out and is sent into the post but Orton is sent into the announce table to even things up. Back in and a knee drop gets two for Sheamus but he misses an early Brogue Kick attempt and is sent into the post again as we take a break.

Back with Sheamus fighting out of a chinlock and taking it to the floor for a whip into the barricade. Orton comes right back with a whip into the steps but Sheamus counters the superplex into a top rope battering ram to put both guys down. Randy bails again and goes after a monitor, only to catch Sheamus in the belly to back onto the announce table in a big crash.

Sheamus dives in at nine and avoids a knee drop, allowing the pale one to come back with forearms, only to walk into the powerslam for two. Orton is sent to the apron and there are the ten forearms. White Noise is countered into the backbreaker and the Elevated DDT looks to set up the RKO. Sheamus casually shrugs it off and hits three straight Irish Curses before loading up the Brogue Kick, only to have Shield run in for the DQ at 14:50.

Rating: C+. I feel sorry for these guys. They were in the match at the post Raw Wrestlemania with the New Jersey crowd and now they have to go on after Cena and Cesaro have their classic. The ending has me thinking something changes on Sunday and Reigns gets inside the Chamber but it’s a long way off.

The rest of the Chamber guys run in and we’ve got Wyatts. They stare down the Shield and the brawl is on to end the show. The fans went NUTS for the two teams fighting.

Overall Rating: A. Now THAT is how you do a go home show. Every match for Sunday got some time, the wrestling was good, the showdown between the Wyatts and Shield had me ready to hand over my money to see the payoff and we got a huge rub for Cesaro. This is the show that WWE has been needing for a few weeks, and I’m sure the fact that HHH was limited to a cameo had nothing at all to do with the quality going up. Awesome show this week that has me ready for Sunday.

Results

Daniel Bryan b. Christian – Rollup

Daniel Bryan b. Kane via DQ when Kane wouldn’t stop bending Bryan’s arm around the post

Fandango b. Santino Marella – Falcon’s arrow

Roman Reigns b. Mark Henry – Spear

Jack Swagger b. Kofi Kingston – Patriot Lock

Big E. b. Jinder Mahal/Drew McIntyre – Big Ending to McIntyre

John Cena b. Cesaro – Attitude Adjustment

Wyatt Family b. Sin Cara/Los Matadores – Sister Abigail to Sin Cara

Jey Uso b. Billy Gunn – Rollup

Sheamus b. Randy Orton via DQ when Shield interfered

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Smackdown – February 14, 2014: Kofi Kingston As A Bald Muscular European

Smackdown
Date: February 14, 2014
Location: Citizens Bank Business Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

It’s Valentines Day and we’re getting a nice gift in the form of Cesaro (now minus the Antonio) vs. Randy Orton in the fourth part of Orton’s Elimination Chamber gauntlet. Cesaro is rapidly gaining popularity and it would seem a face turn is imminent. Other than that we might get more on the Daniel Bryan vs. Kane feud. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Shield vs. Daniel Bryan/Christian/Sheamus

Christian and Rollins get things going but Seth quickly takes him into the corner for the tag off to Reigns. Roman catches a cross body attempt but gets popped in the face with a right hand. Sheamus comes in for the big power showdown and they slug it out for a bit before Sheamus hits the rolling fireman’s carry for two. Reigns comes back with a knee to the ribs and brings in Ambrose who gets taken down by a running ax handle.

The fans demand Bryan and get their wish, followed by some rapid fire kicks in the corner. A top rope hurricanrana gets two and there’s the YES Lock but Shield comes in for the save and we have a standoff. Back from a break with Bryan fighting out of a chinlock and sending Rollins into the top turnbuckle, allowing him to tag off to Sheamus.

The pale one slides to the apron and comes back with the ten forearms to the chest but the other Shield members get involved to take over. Reigns does that awesome dropkick from the floor to the apron before LAUNCHING Sheamus into the barricade. That’s not something you see too often. Ambrose comes back in to stomp away in the corner before it’s off to Reigns again for hard shots to the head and ribs.

We hit the front facelock for a bit but Reigns lets it go to knock Bryan off the apron but walks into the Irish Curse. Rollins comes in and takes a swing at Christian but only hits air before missing a backsplash to Sheamus. Hot tag brings in Christian to face Ambrose and a tornado DDT gets two on the US Champion.

Everything breaks down and Bryan takes out Reigns with the FLYING GOAT. Rollins takes him down with a suicide dive of his own though and it’s Christian hooking the reverse DDT for two on Dean but the Brogue Kick misses Ambrose and takes out Christian. Reigns spears Sheamus down and Ambrose pins Christian at 12:45.

Rating: C+. This was more about the good guys building drama amongst themselves before they head into the Chamber in a little over a week. There weren’t any problems for Shield this time which is a good thing before their big six man tag. This was the usual Shield six man so it was fine all around.

Zeb Colter asks Vickie Guerrero to be his valentine but she’s not falling for it. Colter wants an Intercontinental Title shot for Jack Swagger but Vickie says he has to beat Rey Mysterio. That’s fine with Zeb but Vickie makes it a fourway with Kofi Kingston and Mark Henry filling the other spots. Vickie shoves the chocolates into Zeb’s chest, meaning she’s a face now?

Cesaro (officially without the Antonio) says he’ll win tonight and then take the title at Elimination Chamber.

Lita Hall of Fame video.

Jack Swagger vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Mark Henry vs. Kofi Kingston

One fall to a finish and the winner gets Big E. (on commentary) for the Intercontinental Title at Elimination Chamber. Henry quickly throws Swagger to the floor but gets taken down by Kofi and Rey. The two speed guys get to have a showdown with Rey dropkicking Kofi for two but they have to eliminate Swagger again. Kofi dives over the top to put Jack down again and Rey hits a running seated senton from the apron. Henry is back in and loads up a dive of his own, only to have Swagger take out his leg.

Two straight Vader Bombs have Henry in trouble but Jack has to clothesline Rey down for two. Mysterio comes back with a top rope seated senton for two followed by the sitout bulldog for two more with Kofi making the save. Rey is sent into the post before Kofi bounce up the ropes and dropkicks Swagger down before hitting the Boom Drop. Rey gets knocked off the apron again and Swagger loads up Kingston in a superplex. Henry tries to make it a Tower of Doom but Kofi holds on, meaning it’s only a powerbomb to Swagger.

Henry cleans house but Swagger takes out the leg again and puts on the Patriot Lock, only to have Mark kick him off. Rey hits a 619 to Mark’s ribs and Kofi adds Trouble in Paradise but Jack is on his feet again. Kofi grabs a German suplex on Rey but Jack suplexes both of them at once in a nice power display. Kingston is sent to the floor but slides back in to break up a 619 attempt. Henry makes the save but gets kicked to the floor by Kofi. The distraction lets Swagger catch Kofi in the Patriot Lock for the submission at 8:35.

Rating: C+. Nice match here with everyone doing their job perfectly. I didn’t see the Mysterio knee injury but I’d guess it was on the seated senton from the apron as he went off camera for a few minutes as a result. Swagger getting the shot is a good enough choice as he was the only heel here and Henry vs. Big E. does nothing for me.

Raw ReBound covers Betty White and the Outlaws.

Bad News Barrett says American women are going to gain several pounds by tomorrow morning and be ashamed of what they see in the morning. Is there a point to this character coming anytime soon?

Goldust/Cody Rhodes/Usos vs. Ryback/Curtis Axel/New Age Outlaws

Billy and Goldust get things going with Gunn taking an atomic drop and the uppercut for a quick two. Off to Road Dogg vs. Cody with the sunset flip out of the corner getting two on Roadie. A clothesline gets the same and it’s off to an armbar from Rhodes. Jimmy comes in off the tag to stay on the arm and a double elbow gets two for the twins. Road Dogg takes Jey into the corner and it’s off to Axel for a dropkick. Ryback comes in for some driving shoulders in the corner and a hard slam as we take a break.

Back with Ryback elbowing Jey in the face and handing it off to Billy again. The Stinger Splash hits buckle and a double tag brings in Road Dogg and Jimmy. Everything breaks down with Jimmy cleaning house and hitting the running Umaga attack in the corner. Cody dives over the top to take out Axel but Ryback throws him into the barricade, only to walk into a Golden cannonball off the apron. A double superkick drops Road Dogg, Jey dives on the other heels and Jimmy hits the Superfly Splash for the pin at 11:00.

Rating: C-. This did its job but wasn’t the most interesting match in the world. Most importantly of all though it gets us closer to the Usos getting their Tag Titles which they earned about two years ago. Ryback and Axel have nowhere to go at this point and I have no idea what’s next for Goldust and Cody. The tag division has a lot of names in it right now but it’s not a very deep talent pool.

Randy Orton says this gauntlet is just to make him better and all that matters is him being champion. Tonight, Cesaro gets the Viper.

Lana says Alexander Rusev isn’t coming to make friends.

Darren Young vs. Damien Sandow

Titus O’Neil is on commentary. Young catches Sandow in a quick atomic drop and clotheslines him out to the floor. Back in and Damien gets a knee to Darren’s ribs but You’re Welcome is countered into a rollup for the pin by Young at 1:07. So much for rebuilding Sandow.

Titus goes after Darren post match but Young rips his pants off. I’ll let you make your own jokes.

The Bellas show us how to use the WWE Network.

Fandango vs. The Miz

Miz dropkicks the knee out to start and rains down left hands in the corner but Fandango comes back with an atomic drop. A nice dropkick gets two and we hit the chinlock on Miz. It’s quickly broken and Miz fights back with some basic stuff and the Reality Check but gets kicked shoulder first into the post. This brings out Santino and Emma for a distraction and a cat fight between Emma and Summer. Distraction, Skull Crushing Finale, pin on Fandango at 3:47.

Rating: D. At least it was the better finisher. I’m not sure how I’d react if we got through a week of shows without the distraction finish. Santino and Emma are a decent enough cute pair but Emma is going to have to get away from him if she wants to get over. Santino is going to overshadow whoever he’s with due to how over the top he is and there’s not much of a way around that.

Bobo Brazil video.

Cesaro vs. Randy Orton

In the sitdown interview of the week, HHH said he thinks Cesaro might be the wildcard in the Chamber. Cesaro chases Orton to the floor to start but doesn’t go after him. They do the same thing again before Cesaro takes him to the mat and hits the gutwrench for two. A running European uppercut in the corner gets two more and they both head outside. Orton reverses a whip into the barricade and clotheslines Cesar as we take a break.

Back with Orton ramming Cesaro into the announce table and taking him inside for a chinlock. The fans chant WE THE PEOPLE and Cesaro fights out, only to lose a fist fight and get elbowed to the mat. Cesaro rolls outside and catches Orton with a big clothesline of his own and counters the Elevated DDT into the Swing. Randy can barely get to his feet but is able to backdrop out of the Neutralizer. Cesaro lands on his feet but runs into the powerslam for two.

Now the Elevated DDT connects and Orton points to the sign to make this serious. He spends too much time walking around though and it’s Swiss Death for two. They head to the corner where Orton tries a superplex but Cesaro counters into a sunset bomb. A discus uppercut sets up the Neutralizer for the completely clean pin at 12:44.

Rating: B-. Well you can’t give much more of a rub than that. However I’d be much happier with this if Kofi Kingston hadn’t gotten the same kind of a win just a month ago. Cesaro is a guy that could be world championship material with a good push (meaning getting away from Swagger) but I have a feeling this is just for the Chamber and then it’s back to nothing for not-Antonio.

Cesaro waves to Orton to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Another good Smackdown tonight with some nice action and angle advancement which is all you can ask for anymore. Unfortunately I don’t think tonight is going to mean much. Cesaro isn’t winning the title and while Sheamus and Christian had some problems, I can’t imagine it’s anyone but Orton, Bryan or maybe Cena walking out of the Chamber with the title. Randy has to be the favorite even though he’s lost three out of his last five matches and might even lose to Sheamus on Monday, making him look like a lame duck champion heading into Wrestlemania.

The rest of the show was good stuff with a nice six man, a good four way, a watchable eight man and a short Miz match that involved good looking women fighting. That’s not bad at all when you consider what Smackdown means in the grand scheme of things anymore. Cesaro winning made me smile, but I can’t imagine it’s anymore more than false hope.

One more note: the spoilers I read said there was an Eva Marie vs. Alicia Fox match taped with Eva winning via rollup but there was no sign of it at all here.

Results

Shield b. Christian/Sheamus/Daniel Bryan – Ambrose pinned Christian after a Brogue Kick from Sheamus

The Miz b. Fandango – Skull Crushing Finale

Jack Swagger b. Kofi Kingston, Rey Mysterio and Mark Henry – Patriot Lock to Kingston

Usos/Cody Rhodes/Goldust b. New Age Outlaws/Ryback/Curtis Axel – Superfly Splash to Road Dogg

Darren Young b. Damien Sandow – Rollup

Cesaro b. Randy Orton – Neutralizer

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Monday Night Raw – July 22, 2013: A Night Of Wrestling

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 22, 2013
Location: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

We’re coming off an awesome Raw last week so there are good hopes for another solid show tonight. The main stories tonight will be Punk vs. Heyman/Lesnar and Cena vs. Bryan as we head towards Summerslam. The key different with these stories is the people have been clamoring for them for months now and we’re FINALLY getting to see them. It’s not some idea that is being shoved down our throats but rather something logical and story driven which is the right idea. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

We open with the contract signing between Cena and Bryan with Maddox as the moderator. Brad wants to know why Cena picked Bryan and Cena says it was because of Maddox. Maddox wanted to listen to the fans and they were all chanting YES. Brad suggests that Cena picked Maddox because it’s an easy win, but here’s Bryan to defend himself. Cena goes into a rant about how it isn’t size that makes a competitor and he picked Bryan as the challenger because he deserved it. If size is what makes a champion, Maddox can hand the title to Great Khali, but Cena has names like HBK, Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio.

Cena says Bryan is giving him a chance to compete, because Cena is going to fight back. Bryan might be the best right now, but at Summerslam the best isn’t going to be good enough and Cena signs. Bryan signs and starts to talk but Maddox cuts him off. Bryan cuts Maddox off and says Brad doesn’t get to talk when Bryan wants to. Maddox asks Bryan if he deserves this because not everyone thinks he does. Tonight Bryan gets to prove himself in a few matches against opponents to be named.

Alberto Del Rio vs. Sheamus

Non-title again and Sheamus has a BIG bruise on his thigh from MITB. Del Rio kicks him in the bruised leg but Sheamus sends him into the corner for a quick shoulder into the ribs. A neckbreaker gets two on Del Rio but he superkicks Sheamus out of the corner to take over. Sheamus comes back with forearms out of the corner and a snap suplex for two more. Del Rio kicks the leg out again and stomps away as this is still a basic match so far.

The armbreaker across the top rope cranks on Sheamus’ arm but he punches Del Rio to the floor as we take a break. Back with Del Rio getting two off a German suplex and Sheamus winning a slugout. He hits a series of ax handles to the head and a knee lift for two. Del Rio hits the Backstabber for two and a hard kick to the back keeps Sheamus down.

Alberto misses a charge and gets caught in the ten forearms to the chest followed by the Irish Curse for two. The champion comes back with a running enziguri to knock Sheamus off the top and a superkick to the bad leg. The armbreaker is easily countered but Sheamus’ leg buckles as he goes for White Noise, giving Del Rio the pin at 13:23.

Rating: C+. I liked this more than I thought I would due to the psychology. Del Rio working over the arm here would have been idiotic but thankfully he went after the bad leg up until the end and that leg work played into the finish. That’s what I mean when I talk about building on a story and it worked fine here. Also Del Rio actually won a match against a big opponent!

Booker T and Teddy Long bicker over who was more surprised by Vickie being named permanent GM of Smackdown. Teddy suggests that Booker left him holding the bag but Booker says he was out with an injury. Long also suggests that Booker should have been fired if Teddy was getting the job full time.

Christian vs. Titus O’Neal

Christian pops him in the jaw with a right hand but gets caught by a shoulder block. The Canadian’s middle rope cross body is caught in a backbreaker to send him to the floor. Titus picks him up on his shoulder and walks Christian back in the ring for two in an impressive power display. Off to an abdominal stretch for a few moments but Christian fights back with some hard right hands. A jumping back elbow off the middle rope looks to set up the Killswitch but Christian has to dropkick Young to the floor. Titus gets two off a big boot but Christian escapes a slam into the Killswitch for the pin at 4:38.

Rating: C. Titus looked much better here than he has before but unfortunately he appears to be stuck int his jobber role because of being part of a team. It doesn’t help that he’s in his late 30s and got into the sport pretty late in life. Still though, nice performance here and there’s definitely some potential in the guy.

After a clip of him destroying Jericho, Ryback says he enjoys attacking people because he hates average. It seems that we’re dropping the whiner gimmick.

Here’s Mark Henry with something to say. He’s proud of the effort he put into his match with Cena, but he’s not proud of the beating Shield gave him last week. If they want to fight him, he’s right here. Cue Shield to easily destroy Henry until the Usos come out for the save and to send Shield running.

Cena comes up to see Bryan in the back and offer his support in the three matches tonight. Bryan appreciates it but politely declines. Tonight is Bryan’s chance to prove himself and he’s going to win on his own. If Cena comes out there at all, it proves that Cena didn’t mean a thing he said earlier tonight.

Darren Young vs. Dolph Ziggler

The fans chant for Ziggler who gets a quick rollup for no cover. A dropkick gets two on Young but he drops Ziggler with a hot shot to take over. Off to a chinlock on Dolph as this appears to be one of those short matches that needs a rest hold for some reason. Ziggler escapes with a jawbreaker and hits a splash in the corner followed by a hard clothesline for two. Dolph gets caught on Young’s shoulders and driven face first into the mat for a close two, but Young spends too much time talking trash and gets caught in the Zig Zag for the pin at 4:30.

Rating: D. Did we really need a chinlock in a match that didn’t even make it five minutes? Young continues to be as generic as any guy you could pick up off the street, which makes me wonder why that team is still together. Either way this wasn’t interesting at all and it never felt like Ziggler was in jeopardy. With Titus’ match, there was a chance of Christian losing which made it more interesting.

Post match Langston runs out to beat down Dolph but Ziggler beats him to the punch and sends him to the floor.

Here’s a walk through of how to download the WWE App for the idiots in the audience.

It’s time for MizTV with the cast of the Total Divas as the guests. We get a clip of the show with one of the Divas DOING HER HAIR! Miz introduces the cast and then turns it over to Lawler to emcee this nonsense. Eve Marie, one of the new chicks, doesn’t like how Lawler is looking at her and slaps him to make a name for herself. And that’s it.

HHH tells Maddox that he doesn’t care what Vince thinks because Bryan might be the future of the WWE. He didn’t stop Maddox’s decisions earlier because Bryan can overcome anything thrown at him. Maddox needs to pick which train he’s on because one is the future and the other is a dead end. HHH leaves and Stephanie pops in with an idea which we’ll hear about later.

Video on the Wyatt Family so far.

Fandango vs. Cody Rhodes

Sandow is on commentary. Feeling out process to start with Fandango hitting a shoulder block and dancing a lot. He dances a bit too much and gets caught by a dropkick to send him into the corner. Cody charges into a boot in the corner for one and it’s off to a cravate. Fandango pulls at Cody’s mouth and it’s right back to the cravate. Cody comes back with a right hand and a kick to the low abdomen before loading up a moonsault press which barely connected at all. Sandow tries to interfere but Cody sidesteps a charging Fandango to send him into Damien. The Disaster Kick sets up Cross Rhodes for the pin at 3:17.

Rating: D+. This wasn’t much to see but it was nice to see Cody getting a win again. The guy had so much potential a few years ago and it stopped dead for well over a year. Sandow vs. Rhodes is a good way to get Cody back on track and the fans are going to be into it when it happens if it’s done right.

Here’s a limping Punk to talk about Lesnar’s attack last week. Punk says last week he felt Lesnar’s power and took Lesnar’s best shot. He felt the power of Lesnar and has an injured ankle and staples in his head, but he’s still standing here today. Lesnar is a beast who has dominated people like HHH and John Cena because of one thing: fear. It’s not his power or his speed but the fear that Lesnar puts into people that make him so dominant. Punk isn’t afraid of Lesnar’s power, he’s not afraid of Lesnar’s size and he’s not afraid of Brock Lesnar at all.

This brings Punk to Paul Heyman. Punk talks about being a relentless man who is going to keep fighting until Lesnar is left laying like Punk was last week. This is Punk’s ring and he has proven it against John Cena, the Rock and Undertaker. There will not be another beatdown from Lesnar and Punk is going to get his hands on Heyman to make him pay. Brock Lesnar is a monster who was put on this earth to be slayed at CM Punk’s hands and Punk wants to do it at Summerslam in the Best vs. the Beast.

Heyman pops up on screen and talks about the tagline of Best vs. Beast. Punk cuts him off and asks if Heyman is really on satellite, because if he’s really back there then Punk is going to go backstage, drag him out here and destroy Heyman in front of the people of Austin. Heyman talks to Brock off screen and makes fun of Texas before asking Punk if he’s a coward or a fool. Punk says he’ll answer that at Summerslam and wants to know where Heyman is right now so he can take him out tonight. Heyman accepts the challenge for Summerslam and says the Best is the Beast, and Punk will learn that at Summerslam.

Wade Barrett vs. Rob Van Dam

Barrett takes over to start with a knee lift and a big boot to the face to send Van Dam into the ropes for two. The announcers make stupid jokes about Barrett’s nose as Barrett gets two more off a chinlock. Wade charges into a foot in the corner followed by a top rope kick to set up Rolling Thunder. A top rope front flip gets two for RVD and the Five Star is good for the pin at 4:15.

Rating: C-. This was just a step above a squash with Barrett getting in some decent offense before taking the loss. I don’t remember anyone falling as far as Barrett has while holding a title as long as he did. He hasn’t won anything close to a big match in months and is nothing but a jobber to the stars at this point.

Daniel Bryan vs. Jack Swagger

This is the first of an undetermined amount of matches for Bryan. Colter says that Stephen F. Austin isn’t the father of this country as he didn’t fight for the right to allow people to chant YES. Bryan isn’t a Real American because he took a handout last week from John Cena and tonight he gets to face a Real American in Swagger. Bryan gets a quick rollup for one but Swagger takes out his leg to put him down.

Swagger pounds on him in the corner but walks into a dropkick to send him to the floor. The FLYING GOAT is countered with a forearm to the face and Swagger drops the Vader Bomb for two. He loads up the Patriot Lock but gets caught in the YES Lock for the first submission at 2:57.

Antonio Cesaro vs. Daniel Bryan

This is joined in progress after a break with Cesaro holding Bryan in an armbar. Lawler tells us we need to download the App so we can see action like he’s showing us right now. Cesaro whips Bryan into the corner for two and puts on the standing chinlock. Bryan takes him down and hits the double leg stomp out of the surfboard. Cesaro comes back with a pure power suplex and another hard chinlock but Bryan easily fights up and hits the running clothesline followed by the kicks to the chest. A running dropkick in the corner gets two on Cesaro but Swagger shoves Bryan off the top into the uppercut for two.

Back from a break with Cesaro getting two off the gutwrench suplex. A kind of Death Valley Driver gets two but Bryan comes back with a hard kick to the head for two of his own. Cesaro takes him to the corner for a superplex but gets forearmed and kneed down, only to have Cesaro come back with a top rope superplex attempt. Bryan slips through his legs and gets Cesaro in the Tree of Woe for a bunch of kicks, capped off by the delayed running dropkick to the face.

A belly to back superplex is countered into a crossbody to give Antonio two as this is getting really good. Back up and Cesaro DESTROYS Bryan with about 25 uppercuts in a row followed by a huge clothesline for two. Bryan backdrops out of the Neutralizer and starts firing off forearms before putting on a leg lock and pounding away with driving forearms to the face. Cesaro is sent to the floor and the FLYING GOAT takes out the Real Americans. Back in and Cesaro tries to throw Bryan in the air for the uppercut but Bryan comes down into a small package for the pin at approximately 15:00 shown.

Rating: A-. Someone explain to me why Cesaro isn’t one of the three top heels in this company right now. He could EASILY being in Del Rio’s spot and blowing away everything he does. Both guys looked great here and this is probably a match of the year candidate. Great stuff and I want more Cesaro right now.

Maddox is in the back with Alex Riley next to him of all people. Bryan has a third opponent after the break.

Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback

Bryan goes right for Ryback’s bad leg but Ryback easily knocks him down. Ryback shouts that Bryan is a little man in a big man’s world and chokes him him with a boot. The stupid fans chant that Ryback can’t wrestle so Ryback suplexes Bryan down for two. We hit a quick chinlock with Ryback shouting that this is too easy. Ryback’s Thesz press is countered into a wicked looking half crab but he’s right in front of the ropes. A splash gets two for Ryback but the Meathook is blocked by a knee to the chest.

Bryan hits some corner dropkicks but Ryback clotheslines him down for two. Ryback heads to the floor to set up a table but Bryan comes flying through the ropes to send Ryback into the announce table with a thud. Ryback sends him into the steps and gets back in, only to have Bryan fire off the kicks. The YES Lock is countered by a throw but Bryan drop toeholds him into the buckle. A missile dropkick gets two and there’s the YES Lock but Ryback finally makes the ropes. Ryback heads to the floor but catches Bryan coming off the apron in a powerbomb. Another powerbomb through the table is good for a DQ at 9:10.

Rating: B-. This was a great David vs. Goliath match and I like that they didn’t make Ryback lose clan here. Bryan beating the Real Americans is fine but having him win against a fresh monster after nearly half an hour in the ring is too much of a stretch. This worked very well though as Ryback can still be a monster when he isn’t a whiny jerk.

Post match Ryback loads up another powerbomb but Cena comes out to make the save. He chases Ryback off and challenges him to a tables match next week.

In the back Maddox makes the tables match official but Vince comes in to make Bryan vs. Kane next week.

Overall Rating: B+. This show took awhile to get going but the final forty minutes is a Daniel Bryan showcase with some AWESOME wrestling that made him look like a monster against Cena. You couple that with an excellent Heyman/Punk segment and some short matches that didn’t overstay their welcome and this was a very solid show. I can’t wait for Summerslam and the show is going to rock.

Results

Alberto Del Rio b. Sheamus – Cradle

Christian b. Titus O’Neal – Killswitch

Dolph Ziggler b. Darren Young – Zig Zag

Cody Rhodes b. Fandango – Cross Rhodes

Daniel Bryan b. Jack Swagger – YES Lock

Daniel Bryan b. Antonio Cesaro – Small Package

Daniel Bryan b. Ryback via DQ when Ryback powerbombed Bryan through a table

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at:

 




Money in the Bank 2013: Can I Get My Money Back?

Money in the Bank 2013
Date: July 14, 2013
Location: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

This is one of the funnest shows of the year more often than not so I have high hopes for tonight. The main events are of course the two ladder matches along with Henry challenging Cena for the Raw Title. This is one of those shows where you can just turn your brain off and enjoy some wild action so hopefully things are as fun as they have the potential to be. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Tag Titles: Usos vs. Roman Reigns/Seth Rollins

Shield is defending. Rollins starts with Jey with the Uso quickly getting two off a backslide. Off to Reigns who gets chopped down and caught with a double suplex for two. The fans are already chanting for RVD. A double spinebuster gets two for Jey as this is one sided so far. Seth pulls Roman out of the way of a superkick as we take a break during the pre-show. Back with the Usos still in control but Rollins avoids a charge and brings in Reigns to take over.

A clothesline sends Jey off the apron and out to the floor as Shield starts making fast tags. Rollins kicks Jey in the back for two and puts on a chinlock. Jey keeps fighting back but can’t make the hot tag. Seth is sent to the floor and Reigns is kicked away but Rollins dives to break up the hot tag. Jey is knocked tot he floor for a hard clothesline from Reigns. We take ANOTHER break and come back with Jimmy diving over the top to take out the Shield. Not that we got to see the hot tag or anything, but we needed a trailer for Dead Man Down right?

Jimmy gets a VERY close two off a high cross body and the Samoan drop gets two on Rollins. Seth comes back and loads up a superplex on Jey but the other two come in to make it a Tower of Doom with Jimmy taking the worst of it. Jimmy superkicks Rollins down and hits the Superfly Splash but Reigns makes a last second save. The fans correctly think this is awesome. Rollins counters a middle rope Samoan drop into an across the ring buckle bomb, setting up the Reigns’ spear for the pin to retain at 14:50.

Rating: B. WOW this was better than I was expecting. The near falls in this were off the charts and the Usos actually had me believing they were going to win. The Shield has insane chemistry out there and the Usos proved that they can hang with them move for move. Excellent stuff here and by far the best pre-show match they’ve ever had.

The opening video is of course about money with the briefcases being loaded into an armored car. Cena and Henry get a generic video package as well.

Fandango vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Damien Sandow vs. Jack Swagger vs. Antonio Cesaro vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Wade Barrett

Colter does his usual anti foreigners rant about being in one of the founding cities of America. “Maybe Betsy Ross should have put a taco and a burrito on the flag.” It’s a huge brawl to start and I’m not going to be able to keep up with most of the action in the ladder matches tonight. The two teams lay everyone else out and bring in a ladder each. Cesaro hits the gutwrench suplex to send Cody into the ladder before shouting WE THE PEOPLE. The Scholars take Cesaro the floor but Ambrose stops Swagger from climbing.

Ambrose, the crowd favorite, is left alone in the ring but Barrett makes the save. Barrett kicks Ambrose in the face, knocking the ladder on top of him in the process. Fandango kicks the ladder into Barrett’s face and hits a slingshot legdrop onto the ladder onto Barrett. Sandow makes the save as Dean knocks Rhodes off the top rope with another ladder. Fandango is sent face first into the ladder and suplexed onto the one in the corner for good measure. Cesaro makes a climb but has to stop Ambrose with a hanging chinlock off the ladder.

Cody makes the save and hits a Samoa Joe MuscleBuster to send Cesaro into a ladder. Barrett makes the save with a broken rung of a ladder in a new idea. He and Swagger go up now with Wade BLASTING him with the elbow to knock Swagger off. Fandango makes the save but Ambrose catches him with the bulldog driver off the bottom rung. Dean does the windmill spot with the ladder on his head but the Real Americans grab either end to break it up. They lift Ambrose in the air to choke him out but Ambrose skins the cat in mid air in an AWESOME spot. The Americans dump him to the floor but there’s no ladder left.

Cesaro gets on Swagger’s shoulders but Cody hits a springboard dropkick to take them both out. Cross Rhodes lays out Fandango and Barrett but he shouts instead of getting a ladder. He finally gets the big ladder but is met on top by Ambrose for a slugout. Cody rams him face first into the ladder over and over but Rollins and Reigns come out to break it up.

They run interference of everyone else in the match but here are the Usos to take the tag champions out. Cesaro and Swagger get in on the brawl as well but Ambrose is going up. Rhodes makes the save and shoves the ladder over, sending Ambrose onto everyone else. Cody is all alone but Sandow comes in out of nowhere to steal the case at 16:40.

Rating: B. This was solid but it was a step below a lot of these matches. The Ambrose and Shield stuff was great but I’m really not feeling the winner. Sandow hasn’t won a thing of note in like a year but he wins one match and we’re supposed to buy him as a main event level guy now? It doesn’t work that way but WWE can’t get that through their thick heads. Fans don’t forget wins and losses like the writers do.

Here’s Brad Maddox with something to say. He’s glad to be the GM and even though he can’t replace Vickie (“I don’t look good in high heels”) he’s put Vickie on the expert panel. She gets a spotlight followed by a video tribute to her on the Titantron. It’s a lot of her embarrassing moments followed by a standing boo for her. This is finally broken up by the start of the next match.

Intercontinental Title: The Miz vs. Curtis Axel

Axel is defending. Miz gets a quick cover off a shoulder block but Axel takes him into the corner for control. Curtis is sent to the floor and caught by a baseball slide before Miz sends him back inside. Miz stares Heyman down, claps his hands and falls down. The referee looks at Heyman and ejects him for allegedly hitting Miz. Smart move there. Axel takes over with a dropkick but the fans are MUCH quieter now. The Hennig necksnap gets two and we hit an armbar.

Back up and Miz avoids a charge in the corner but the fans do not care at all. A big boot puts Axel down and the corner clothesline sets up the top rope ax handle for two. Axel comes back with a PerfectPlex for two but Miz hits his one kick to the leg and puts on the Figure Four. Curtis reverses but gets turned over again, only to be right in the ropes for the break. Axel bails to the floor for a second before coming back in for his neckbreaker into a cutter for the pin to retain at 9:20.

Rating: D+. The match wasn’t bad but it had no heat at all. People just don’t care about Miz at all and the Figure Four is a big reason why. It’s just a horrible move for him and comes off like a lame Ric Flair tribute, which is pretty much what it is. Nothing to see here but it was a way to let the fans breathe a bit after the big match.

Summerslam ad, which is basically All Grown Up from Wrestlemania a few years ago.

Divas Title: Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee

AJ is defending and this has been a very well built feud. They used to be friends but Kaitlyn went after the title instead of helping AJ when she was having relationship issues, so AJ turned on her and has taken everything Kaitlyn cares about. Kaitlyn has a bad elbow coming in and is with Layla here. Kaitlyn gets a quick two off a gutbuster but is sent into the post on the floor. AJ works on the arm with a bridging armbar (almost a one arm Cattle Mutilation) before hooking a crossface chickenwing of all things.

Back up and Kaitlyn fires off a dropkick and a big shoulder followed by the reverse DDT for two. AJ slaps her in the face so Kaitlyn takes her head off with a clothesline. Kaitlyn knocks her off the apron but Langston catches her in midair. The spear connects back inside but Kaitlyn hurts her elbow again. AJ hooks the Black Widow submission out of nowhere and Kaitlyn taps at 7:03.

Rating: C. Very basic match here but it worked well enough. Kaitlyn looked good with the power stuff (and the tight outfit) while AJ needed to be a bit more evil. I doubt this is over yet because that’s how WWE works, but the matches and story have been WAY better than anyone expected them to be.

The expert panel (Big Show, Kofi Kingston and Vickie) talk about the show so far.

Chris Jericho vs. Ryback

The fans go back and forth from Jericho to Goldberg chants. Ryback bails to the floor because he’s a coward now and Jericho takes him down with a baseball slide. Back in and Jericho hits a forearm to the back of the head but Ryback drills him with a shoulder. Jericho goes after the formerly bad leg but gets his neck snapped across the top rope for two. We hit the chinlock before Ryback gets two off a middle rope splash. Jericho is punched off the apron and lands between the two announce tables.

Back to the chinlock but Jericho escapes into a northern lights suplex and a failed Walls attempt. A top rope ax handle is caught in a Ryback belly to belly overhead suplex. The Meathook puts Jericho down and the Codebreaker is countered into a kind of spinebuster. A powerbomb gets two on Jericho but he comes back with an enziguri for two.

Ryback rolls to the apron and gets caught in a Codebreaker but he’s back in at nine. A high cross gets two for the Canadian but he walks into a gorilla press. Ryback drops him down into a fireman’s carry but Jericho counters into a DDT for two. Jericho misses the Lionsault and Ryback grabs a quick rollup for the pin at 10:20.

Rating: D+. The match wasn’t terrible but man alive it’s pathetic what they’ve done to Ryback. They took everything good and interesting about him and turned it completely around to make sure the fans didn’t care about him at all. This was also the first match he’s won on PPV since last year’s MITB, yet WWE still wonders why no one cares about him.

Video on the opening of the WWE Performance Center.

We recap Ziggler vs. Del Rio. Ziggler won the world title through his MITB case the night after Wrestlemania then got injured on Smackdown. Del Rio went after Ziggler’s head to win the title at Payback so tonight it’s about revenge and the title for Dolph.

Smackdown World Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio

Ziggler gets an AMAZING pop. Feeling out process to start until Ziggler gets two off a dropkick. Ten straight elbow drops (with the fans counting along) have Del Rio in trouble and he falls out to the floor. Back in and Del Rio scores with a running enziguri before sending Ziggler hard into the barricade. We hit the chinlock as the fans are nearly comatose for Del Rio. Can you blame them? There’s NOTHING interesting about him at all. Ziggler misses a splash in the corner and Del Rio does that stupid smile of his.

Del Rio pounds on the back but misses a charge, sending him out to the floor. He tries to come in off the top but gets caught in a top rope X Factor for two. A Ziggler neckbreaker gets two and a Del Rio German suplex gets the same. The corner enziguri misses and Ziggler gets a close two off the Fameasser. It’s amazing how much the crowd is into Ziggler. Del Rio gets two off a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker but Ziggler gets the same by dropkicking Del Rio off the top.

Cue AJ to skip around the ring before Ziggler counters another tilt-a-whirl into a jumping DDT for two. Ziggler tells AJ to leave but the distraction allows Alberto to crotch him on the top. A reverse superplex gets two on Dolph and the low superkick gets the same. Del Rio lowers his knee pad to reveal the knee brace but Ziggler avoids the shot…..and AJ hits Del Rio with the Divas Title for the DQ at 14:27.

Rating: C+. This was getting good until the stupid ending. I have no idea what WWE’s obsession is with dragging out stories for as long as they can anymore but they need to get over it. This feud isn’t doing anything for anyone and it just keeps going. Either split up AJ and give Dolph the title or move on to something else. The match was good though.

Dolph yells at AJ post match and walks away, making Ziggler look like the jerk in the whole thing.

Video on WWE supporting the military.

Recap of Henry vs. Cena with Henry faking retirement and laying Cena out. He said the WWE Championship is the only thing he’s never won and he wants that one big run with the title. One thing WWE has done right in the last few years is make the WWE Championship seem like a MUCH bigger deal.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Mark Henry

Cena is of course booed out of the building. The champion charges at Henry and bounces off of him like a wall. Henry shoves him into the corner and a running splash gets two. Cena is front suplexed onto the steps for two as this is one sided so far. The fans chant Sexual Chocolate because that’s what smark crowds do for a Henry match as Mark drops a leg on the back of Cena’s neck. Henry throws Cena down and then out to the floor as the domination continues.

Back in and Henry stands around but misses a charge in the corner. Cena can’t slam him so Henry cranks on the neck a bit. John gets back up and hits the shoulder blocks followed by the Shuffle but Cena still can’t hit the AA. Henry falls on top for two but Cena counters a slam into most of a spinning DDT. Cena FINALLY hits the AA but it’s only good for two. The high cross is caught in a World’s Strongest Slam for two so Henry pulls the turnbuckle pad off. He also brings in a chair but as the referee is dealing with that, Henry pulls off another buckle.

Cena counters a whip into the buckle and hooks the STF but Mark easily gets to the rope. Henry gets two off a low blow but another World’s Strongest Slam is countered into the STF with Cena dragging Henry back to the middle of the ring. Henry taps out to retain Cena’s title at 14:40.

Rating: C. This was exactly what you would expect from this match. Henry came off like a monster of the month for the entirety of the buildup and that’s exactly what he was here. Nothing in this match made me care about it because no one believed Cena was in any real danger. It wasn’t horrible or anything but it came and went and nothing more.

We hear from the expert panel who have nothing interesting to say.

Video on the Wyatts attacking Kane.

CM Punk vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Christian vs. Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton

RVD, Bryan and Punk get good reactions but the fans aren’t impressed with the others. Everyone goes after RVD to start and knock him to the floor. The remaining four go after Sheamus before pairing off themselves. We’re quickly down to Bryan vs. Punk and the fans go nuts in a hurry. Van Dam is knocked off the apron and into a ladder as the two stars go at it. Bryan almost botches the backflip but counters the GTS into a YES Lock attempt, only to have everyone not named RVD make the save with a ladder.

Van Dam is back in now to clean house and pose a bit. Some baseball slides drop Punk and Sheamus before Rob drops Christian onto a ladder. Rolling Thunder onto Bryan onto the ladder takes Daniel out but it’s Orton sending Van Dam to the floor. Rob kicks him down and loads up the Five Star onto Orton onto the ladder but Christian breaks it up with a short ladder. Christian loses a fight to Sheamus over a full sized ladder but Van Dam breaks up the pale one’s climb with Sheamus landing on the ladder on the way down.

Sheamus is up almost immediately and rams various people into the barricade before bridging a ladder between the apron and the announce table. Bryan escapes a powerbomb through the ladder and hits a running knee to the face from the apron. Punk is loading up a ladder but Orton makes the save. Another ladder is brought in and all six climb up on two ladders with the briefcase being knocked away. All six fall down and Orton is holding his knee.

It’s Sheamus on his feet first and cleaning house before going up, only to be caught by Bryan. We get the ten forearms on the top of the ladder but Punk stops Sheamus from pulling down the case. Sheamus and Punk slug it out in the corner but Punk hits the running knee to take him down, followed by riding the ladder down onto his back. Orton comes back in and suplexes Punk into the ladder followed by the Elevated DDT.

Christian comes back in and spears Randy down but Van Dam knocks him off the ladder. The fans of course want tables as Christian goes up again. Van Dam is cut on the forehead. They both go up but Van Dam jumps to another ladder as Christian falls. The splash off the top of the ladder crushes Christian but Sheamus shoves Rob off the ladder. Bryan is back in to kick both of them before going into his usual insane rush.

He throws Sheamus THROUGH a ladder and goes up top…..but Curtis Axel of all people comes out with a chair to beat him down. He lays Bryan out with his finisher on the floor but walks into a GTS. Heyman comes out to yell at Axel because he wants Punk to win. CM starts a very slow climb while holding his neck….and Heyman of course screws him by ramming another ladder into him. Punk is busted open BAD and here’s Van Dam going up the ladder, only to have Orton make the save with an RKO. Orton pulls down the case to win at 26:31.

Rating: B-. Well that happened. Seriously that’s about all there is to it. Everyone was about the same but the winner wasn’t terribly obvious for most of the match. It wasn’t bad or anything but you expect more when you have this level of talent in the match. At the end of the day though there was no hatred between these guys and that makes for a duller match. The Heyman stuff was pretty obvious but it sets up Lesnar vs. Punk at Summerslam.

Overall Rating: C. This show wasn’t terrible but aside from maybe the ladder matches, there’s nothing interesting on here at all. Everything felt like it was just there to fill in a spot on the card which isn’t what you expect from a show like this. It’s not a horrible show but there’s nothing worth going out of your way to see here. Believe it or not, Payback blew the doors off this show.

Results

Shield b. Usos – Spear to Jimmy

Damien Sandow b. Cody Rhodes, Antonio Cesaro, Jack Swagger, Fandango, Dean Ambrose and Wade Barrett – Sandow pulled down the briefcase

AJ Lee b. Kaitlyn – Black Widow

Ryback b. Chris Jericho – Rollup

Alberto Del Rio b. Dolph Ziggler via DQ when AJ Lee interefered

John Cena b. Mark Henry – STF

Randy Orton b. Rob Van Dam, Sheamus, CM Punk, Christian and Daniel Bryan – Orton pulled down the briefcase

 

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Smackdown MITB Winner

It’s not who you would think.Sandow won.  This falls under the “let’s have them lose every match for months but give them one win and expect people to care” category.




Money in the Bank 2013 Preview

We’ve arrived at one of the biggest shows of the year and for once I’m excited.  The card is STACKED and the feuds have all been well built.  Let’s get to it.We’ll start with the pre-show.  I’ll take the Shield to retain.  I’m a fan of the Usos but come on.  It’s been two months since Shield won the belts and they’re not about to lose them to a team who was release fodder for the majority of last year.

Cena to retain of course.  This is the WWE’s bread and butter: take a superhero and put him against a big old monster, enjoy the crowd reactions.  Well in most cities but you get the idea.  Cena wins here and I don’t think there’s a cash-in yet.

Del Rio keeps his belt but it likely sets up another match in this feud.  Ziggler is popular and will be a god in Philadelphia, but WWE seems obsessed with keeping the title on Del Rio for some reason.  The match should be good but I have zero interest in Del Rio whatsoever.

In the surprise of the show, AJ keeps the belt via interference from Layla.  It’s not a surprise that AJ wins, but that I actually care about the match.  They’ve done a great job at actually setting up the feud and giving us a reason to care about Kaitlyn getting her revenge on the evil AJ.  Those INSANE spears that AJ sells so well help a lot too.  This should be entertaining though, which I can’t believe I’m saying.

Axel beats Miz.  I don’t think this needs an explanation.

Ryback over Jericho.  Ryback hasn’t won a PPV match since last year’s MITB, yet WWE still wonders why no one is interested in him.  It appears that Ryback is going to hook up with Vickie which might make people care about him a little bit so at least he has some hope.  The match should be good and there’s no need for Jericho to win.  This is a classic case of putting two guys in a match because they have nothing else to do and there’s nothing wrong with that thinking at all.

Now for the important matches.

I’ll go with the seemingly obvious choice and say Bryan wins the Raw MITB match.  RVD will be RVD, Sheamus and Orton would seem to cancel each other out, Christian just isn’t winning this match, and Punk will likely be taken out by Brock or Heyman to set up the Summerslam match.  There are rumors that Bray Wyatt will be replacing Kane but for the life of me I can’t see that happening.

That leaves us with the BIG wildcard of the show: the Smackdown MITB match.  However we do have a major clue: Ambrose hasn’t interacted with the other participants for the majority of the buildup, and in WWE terms that’s the cue for him to win.  Looking at the other contestants, we can immediately eliminate the Scholars for obvious reasons.  Fandango simply isn’t ready and has cooled WAY down since his concussion.  The Real Americans intrigue me but I could only put Cesaro at a distant second best option.  Barrett is interesting as well as WWE has been ready to pull the trigger on him for years now and it’s normal for them to job a guy to death before giving him something like MITB.  That leaves Ambrose which would be the right move.

 

Overall MITB looks very good for the most part.  There isn’t a match I’m not interested in other than the IC Title, the crowd is going to be white hot all night and the ladder matches are always entertaining.  WWE has turned it way up in the last few weeks and the shows have been the most fun they’ve been all year.  This should be a solid way to keep the summer rolling before we get to the important stuff at Summerslam.

 

Thoughts/predictions?




NXT – July 3, 2013: They’re Cheering For The White Supremacist

NXT
Date: July 3, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tony Dawson, William Regal

It’s another big week on NXT as the Wyatt Family now has William Regal to deal with in addition to Graves and Ohno. On the singles side we have Leo Kruger looking like the first challenger for Bo Dallas, which is an odd choice as Dallas seems to be ready for a heel turn but he’s facing a heel in Leo. Let’s get to it.

Here’s Bo Dallas in the back for an interview. Renee asks him about Leo Kruger coming out and holding up the title after Dallas’ match last week. Dallas says the Bo-lievers (Renee: “Bo-lievers?” Dallas: “Yes the Bo-lievers.”) will be behind him against anyone. He brags about meeting Bret Hart at Wrestlemania and having a match at Wrestlemania Axxess, which he earned just like when he beat Big E. Langston.

Antonio Cesaro comes in and says Dallas hasn’t earned anything. Tonight he’ll take Dallas’ title in the name of We The People. Dallas introduces Cesaro to Renee, calling him the most insignificant US Champion in WWE history. Dallas was acting much more heelish here and it helped him a lot.

NXT Women’s Title Tournament Semi-Finals: Alicia Fox vs. Paige

Fox takes it to the mat in a headscissors with her long legs but Paige counters into a headlock. Fox pulls her down by the hair and immediately bails to the floor. Back in and Paige fires off rapid fire elbows in the corner but Fox sweeps her legs out and gets two off a northern lights suplex. Off to a chinlock with a knee in Paige’s back but she escapes with a jawbreaker. Paige throws her around by the hair and hits a knee to the face, only to walk into a dropkick for two. Not that it matters though as Paige kicks her in the ribs and hits the Paige Turner to send her to the finals at 4:44.

Rating: C-. This was much better for Paige than the match against Snuka a few weeks back as Paige looked competitive against a former Divas Champion. Fox is good in a role like this as she’s been around for awhile and is a name in the division (granted not a huge one) so a win like this makes Paige look better. You can only dominate the other NXT girls for so long before it stops meaning anything.

Andy Baker vs. Conor O’Brien

O’Brien now has Rick Victor with him as Kenneth Cameron’s replacement. Conor runs Baker over and shouts YOU’RE DEAD. Baker tries to fight back with some shots to the ribs but a flapjack and a legdrop from O’Brien are enough for the pin at 1:00.

Kassius Ohno was injured by the Wyatt Family last week and can’t compete for the tag titles. Corey Graves and Adrian Neville ask William Regal to join them.

Scott Dawson vs. Xavier Woods

The fans chant for Woods but Dawson kicks him in the ribs to take over. Woods comes back with a quick dropkick for a one count and it’s off to an armbar on Dawson. Scott backdrops him over the top, sending Woods face first into the apron. The fans are all over Dawson as he elbows Xavier in the face and drops a leg for two. We hit the chinlock for a few seconds but Woods fights up, hits the Honor Roll (front flip clothesline) and Lost in the Woods is good for the pin at 4:11.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t much to see but I’m glad Dawson isn’t on a winning streak anymore. Woods continues to be so high energy that it’s hard not to notice him. His antics are funny enough and having a nostalgia character is a good way to get your foot in the door. The match didn’t have long enough to go anywhere but it was hard hitting and energetic enough to not suck.

Bray Wyatt talks about people judging him for the way he looks. He’s a wolf and sheep’s clothing and if you knew what was behind his eyes, you would know why people are scared of him.

Enzo Amore vs. Mason Ryan

Enzo continues to be incredibly annoying and therefore a great new heel. He has 7’0 Colin Cassady with him…..and the match is over in 12 seconds with a single right hand from Ryan. Best part of the match is a line from Regal: “Is Amore the love child of DDP?”

Amore wants Ryan to fight Cassady RIGHT NOW.

Mason Ryan vs. Colin Cassady

Ryan throws him around and ends Cassady in 33 seconds with a cobra clutch slam.

NXT Title: Bo Dallas vs. Antonio Cesaro

The fans don’t care for Cesaro but they can’t stand Dallas. Cesaro is even cheered a bit during the big match intros. There’s a WE THE PEOPLE chant as Cesaro and Dallas feel each other out. Dawson: “What does it mean if Cesaro can beat Dallas tonight?” Regal: “That he’ll be the champion.” Cesaro cranks on the arm and the fans are have a “Let’s go Bo” and “No more Bo” dueling chant going between the women and men.

A shoulder block gets two for Cesaro as Dawson has to explain who Tim Tebow is to Regal. Cesaro sends Dallas to the floor as we take a break. Back with Cesaro holding a chinlock as Leo Kruger is standing on the ramp. A kick to the back keeps Dallas down and the fans ask Cesaro to do it again. He loads the kick up but drops down into another chinlock to tease the people.

Dallas fights up again and pounds away in the corner before getting two off a bulldog. Cesaro’s slam is countered into a reverse DDT for two more but the corner climbing bulldog is blocked. Cesaro puts him on the top for a gutwrench superplex for a very close two. A middle rope knee drop gets two on the champion and it’s off to the swinging chinlock.

Dallas rolls the chinlock over into a cradle for two but Cesaro comes back with a fallaway slam for two more. Cesaro goes up top but Dallas runs the corner for a butterfly superplex to put both guys down again. Antonio is sent into Kruger to knock Leo off the apron, allowing Dallas to hit the belly to belly to retain at 10:15 shown of 12:45.

Rating: C+. Very interesting crowd reactions aside, this match really took off in the last three minutes or so. Kruger interfering sets up some interesting dynamics down the line and gives Dallas an extra challenger to face. They’ll need to move forward with that heel turn soon, because the fans were cheering for the protege of a white supremacist over the young face champion.

Post match Kruger lays out Dallas but Cesaro knocks Kruger to the floor. Cesaro pounds on Dallas until Kruger gets back in for a staredown. They double team Dallas until Sami Zayn comes in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show had a lot of filler, but the main event was solid and it sets up a very interesting four way feud for the title. Zayn is fitting right into this show and WWE sending big names down to Florida can only help things out. This was a good sign for the future and was an entertaining hour of wrestling.

Results

Paige b. Alicia Fox – Paige Turner

Conor O’Brien b. Andy Baker – Legdrop

Xavier Woods b. Scott Dawson – Lost in the Woods

Mason Ryan b. Enzo Amore – Right Hand

Mason Ryan b. Colin Cassady – Cobra Clutch

Bo Dallas b. Antonio Cesaro – Belly to belly suplex

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More on Zeb Colter’s Militia

Yes that’s the real name, as per Colter’s Twitter.So Cesaro is filling in for Swagger now due to Jack’s hand injury.  The first thing that comes to my mind is how good of an idea this is for multiple reasons.

 

1. Cesaro isn’t as broken as Swagger.  Jack has built a reputation as being someone who can’t win anything of note other than a fluke world title a few years back.  He chokes in every big match he’s been in for years and people don’t buy him as a threat.  While Cesaro is a jobber to the stars, he hasn’t been in many huge matches, meaning he isn’t viewed as a choker yet.

 

2. Colter looks like an even bigger hypocrite.  This idea that heels have to tell the truth or make sense all the time needs to die a very horrible death.  Having Colter say random nonsense and then not live up to it while still saying it is EXACTLY how heels can get heat without being boring.  Simply put, people will pay their money to see someone like that get what’s coming to them, thereby creating tension and a story that people want to see.  It’s called booking a story, which is a lost art anymore.  This should also shut up a lot of the fans that agree with his views in a double benefit.

 

3. Cesaro is better than Swagger.  He just is, in ever aspect of the word.




Zeb Colter Gets A New Client

Even Cole immediately buried this on commentary.It’s Cesaro, who completely misses the point of Colter’s speeches.  In other words, now he’s a jobber to the stars with a manager.  That’s an improvement for him at least.




NXT – May 22, 2013: Ole!

NXT
Date: May 22, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tony Dawson, William Regal

We’re a week away from the big NXT battle royal but tonight’s main event is Corey Graves vs. Bray Wyatt, as the Wyatt Family is apparently targeting people like Graves and Kassius Ohno for reasons yet to be named. This seems to be another filler episode before we get to next week where things start all over again, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Let’s get to it.

Welcome Home.

Curt Hawkins vs. Sami Zayn

Sami is independent mainstay El Generico minus a mask. The fans immediately start chanting OLE which is Generico’s trademark chant. Hawkins has short hair now, in case you’re not up to date on your Curt Hawkins news. Zayn takes him down with a set of armdrags and some chops in the corner for good measure. Hawkins elbows out of the corner and hits a quick enziguri for two.

Off to an early chinlock by Hawkins but an OLE chant gets Sami back up to his feet. Hawkins misses a forearm in the corner and gets caught in a belly to back suplex for no cover. A dropkick gets two but Hawkins comes back with a very excited slam. For the first time ever, we get a Let’s Go Hawkins chant but he can’t hook what looked to be a powerbomb. Instead Zayn grabs his wrist and runs up the corner into a tornado DDT for the pin at 4:14.

Rating: C. This was pretty much a squash but Zayn looked good out there. He has a solid presence to him and even though he’s a smaller guy, his offense comes off like it has some force behind it. Hawkins is as generic of a wrestler as you’ll ever find, but then again he has something resembling a resume and isn’t terrible in the ring so he makes for a good jobber. Good debut here for Zayn.

Video on Corey Graves, explaining why he has so many tattoos. There’s a CM Punk vibe to this and he closes with a good line: “I’m not here to leave a mark. I’m here to leave a scar.”

Antonio Cesaro vs. Yoshi Tatsu

Ok, Cesaro HAS to be able to beat Tatsu right? I mean, it’s Yoshi Tatsu. EVERYBODY beats Tatsu. Cesaro pounds him into the corner but gets caught by a quick cross body for no cover. Yoshi fires off some kicks but gets caught by a vicious European uppercut and the Neutralizer ends this in 52 seconds.

Post match Cesaro wants to know if that was the best competition he can get. There’s no one on any show that can challenge him, but here’s Sami Zayn to disagree. He speaks multiple languages, including Arabic which Cesaro doesn’t understand. Zayn goes to French instead and the match is on right now.

Antonio Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn

Cesaro quickly powers him down to start but gets spun around as Zayn leverages his way out of a test of strength. A springboard wrist drag sends Cesaro to the floor as take a break. Back with Zayn holding an armbar but being dropped throat first on the top rope. Zayn is whipped hard into the corner for two before it’s off to a chinlock. Sami fights up and tries a sunset flip but Cesaro does the DX crotch chop of all things before stomping onto his chest for two.

Off to another chinlock before Zayn comes back with a rollup out of the corner. A high cross body is caught by Cesaro in a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two and a running European uppercut gets the same. Off to some rights and lefts in the corner by Antonio before he loads up a suplex, only to have Zayn slide down his back and roll up Cesaro for the pin at 5:00 shown of 7:20.

Rating: C. Nothing of note here but it was good to see Zayn get such a solid push to start. He was in trouble for most of the match but it makes sense that a guy as strong as Cesaro could throw Sami around like he did. This is a really good debut for Zayn and I really liked what I’ve seen so far.

Emma is in the back but she’s apparently taking Audrey Marie’s interview time. Emma keeps screwing up Audrey’s name and suggests Audrey dance to relieve stress. Audrey says get out before I take you out. Emma: “Can we go to lunch? I haven’t eaten today.” She dances off and smacks Audrey in the head as she goes.

Video on Bray Wyatt which looks more like the old ones.

Here’s some guy named Enzo Amore to talk. Enzo is from New Jersey and has almost every stereotype you can think of. He sees a bunch of fake tough guys in NXT and talks about people being a bunch of G’s.

Enzo Amore vs. Mason Ryan

Ryan throws Amore around like he’s not even there before chopping him down. Running snake eyes sets up a running clothesline by Ryan before a torture rack neckbreaker ends Amore at 1:26. Ryan is still nothing of note.

The Raw ReBound talks about Ryback demanding an ambulance match.

Stephanie McMahon will be here next week for an announcement.

There’s also a #1 contenders battle royal next week.

Corey Graves vs. Bray Wyatt

Bray shoves him around to start and still has that gray mask on his face. Graves takes him into the corner and pounds away a bit before putting on a front facelock. The Wyatt Family looks concerned as Bray is in some trouble early on. Graves gets the mask off of Wyatt so Bray heads to the outside. Not that it matters as Wyatt puts the mask back on and pounds away on Graves back in the ring.

Graves gets up a knee to stop a charging Bray before putting on a figure four neck lock over the top rope to slow Wyatt down again. Bray is fine with that though as he hits a running cross body as we take a break. Back with Wyatt holding a chinlock, only to get up and miss a charge, sending him out to the floor. Graves misses a baseball slide though and Bray sends him into the steps. Bray kicks him in the chest a few times before taking it back inside for another chinlock.

There’s the splash in the corner but Graves escapes the dancing into a rollup for a close two. The mask comes off again so Bray hits another cross body to put Graves down. Back up and Corey punches the exposed face and makes a good comeback, sending Bray reeling. A clothesline in the corner staggers Bray and a chop block puts him down. The Family is knocked down and there’s the Lucky 13 leg lock, but Harper breaks it up via a distraction by Rowan. Sister Abigail ends Graves at 8:41 shown of 12:11.

Rating: C. I was digging Graves here as his comeback was working well, but the Family getting the win was probably the right idea. There’s only so much you can do for Graves here without making the Family look weak, so the cheating was probably the right call. Graves looked good though.

Post match Kassius Ohno returns to try to make the save but gets laid out by the Family. Bray talks about being a monster to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling here wasn’t great but they did a good job with the storytelling here. Next week we’ll have a new #1 contender to Langston’s title so we can have a new main event feud to build around. I was really impressed by Zayn tonight and he seems to have a feud set up with Cesaro already. Good show here but for different reasons than usual.

Results

Sami Zayn b. Curt Hawkins – Tornado DDT

Antonio Cesaro b. Yoshi Tatsu – Neutralizer

Sami Zayn b. Antonio Cesaro – Rollup

Mason Ryan b. Enzo Amore – Torture Rack Neckbreaker

Bray Wyatt b. Corey Graves – Sister Abigail

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