Clash In Italy
Date: May 31, 2026
Location: Inalpi Arena, Turin, Italy
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re overseas again and it’s weird to see this taking place on a Sunday afternoon stateside. There is something of a triple main event with the two World Title matches and the rematch between Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi. Throw in some women’s matches and we should be good to go. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the card and yeah I’m pretty sold on this one. All five matches look anywhere from good to great.

Smackdown World Title: Gunther vs. Cody Rhodes

Rhodes is defending and goes with some quick shots to the face to start but his springboard is chopped out of the air. Gunther misses a charge in the corner and can’t get the sleeper but he can boot Rhodes in the face to knock him down. Rhodes fires back with the elbows, including a Bionic Elbow, setting up a Pedigree for two. Back up and a shotgun dropkick knocks Rhodes down again, only to come back with a springboard kick to the head.

Cross Rhodes gives Rhodes two but the Cody Cutter lands in the quickly broken sleeper. The sleeper goes on again and Rhodes is in trouble, with Gunther hammering him down to keep it on. Rhodes finally gets out and strikes away, even getting his own quickly broken sleeper. The Cody Cutter connects and Rhodes hits his own clothesline. There’s Cross Rhodes for the sudden pin at 11:40…but Gunther immediately protests that he was under the rope.

Rating: B-. Uh, well ok. I was expecting this to go about twice as long though the ending pretty much guarantees that the rematch will get that chance instead. These two are capable of having a big, long match and this was more of a preview for one of those than the match itself. It’s far from bad, but I was expecting a lot more.

Post match the replay shows Gunther is absolutely right, as his foot was all the way out of the ring.

We recap Jade Cargill challenging Rhea Ripley for the Smackdown Women’s Title. Ripley beat her at Wrestlemania and Cargill wants to reestablish her dominance, which has included beating up Ripley’s associates.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill

Ripley is defending and seems a bit tentative to go after Cargill. A quick toss sends Ripley down but she’s right back up to send Cargill outside. Cargill blocks the cannonball and gives Ripley the fall away slam on the floor. Back in and Ripley is whipped hard into the corner, leaving Cargill to do some pushups. A suplex cuts off Ripley’s comeback attempt and we hit the chinlock.

Back up and Cargill hammers away but misses a charge into the post. Ripley fights back and hits a missile dropkick for two but the Razor’s Edge is countered into a backdrop. Cargill charges into a boot though and they’re both down. Jaded is escaped and Ripley hits a headbutt, only for Riptide to be blocked. Ripley hits something like a Razor’s Edge for two and she gets Cargill in an electric chair. They manage to flip over the top and crash out to the floor, where Ripley lands on her feet.

Cargill gets dropped face first onto the apron but she’s able to reverse Riptide into a DDT for two. Ripley catches her going up top and grabs a belly to back superplex for two more, leaving both of them down. Cue Michin and B Fab but Ripley hits Riptide anyway. The goons (eventually) put the foot on the ropes and that’s a double ejection, only for Charlotte to pop up and dive onto the two of them. Jaded connects but Charlotte puts the foot on the rope this time. Another headbutt and Riptide retain the title at 17:06.

Rating: B. That’s pretty easily Cargill’s best match ever and it shouldn’t be a surprise as Ripley can be something of a miracle worker. They played to Cargill’s strengths here and made it into a showdown of two powerhouses, with Ripley having to adjust in the middle. The interferences made sense, though Charlotte might want to get paid back for her efforts. Say with a title shot.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi. They fought at Wrestlemania and Femi beat him in short order. Lesnar retired but then decided he was going to fight anyway. Therefore, it’s time for another monster battle.

Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar

Paul Heyman is here with Lesnar, who jumps Femi from behind to start and hits three F5’s in less than thirty seconds. A fourth F5 gets two and Lesnar looks confused. The Kimura goes on but Femi powers up for the spinebuster and a break. Another Kimura is broken up with some rams into the corner but another F5 gets two.

Femi hits a not so great chokeslam for two and a Cactus Clothesline puts them both on the floor. The arm is sent into the post and Lesnar gets another Kimura, which is reversed with a posting. The fans want Suplex City but have to settle for another F5 through the announcers’ table. Femi just stands up though and charges back in, where the Fall From Grace is escaped. A seventh F5 gives Lesnar the pin at 6:23.

Rating: B-. I never know hot to rate these things. This was the finisher spamming Lesnar match of days gone by, though it did get more interesting when you wondered if Femi could come back. I wouldn’t have had Femi lose here, though at least it was to Lesnar, which is hardly some big terrible defeat. Odds are we get a third match, and that could be quite the spectacle again.

Commentary talks about last night’s AAA show and we look at the rather epic mask vs. mask main event.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Becky Lynch vs. Sol Ruca

Ruca is challenging after making her main roster debut shortly after Wrestlemania. Lynch wasn’t impressed and got laid out by Ruca, who is getting a chance to catch Lynch again. Ruca ducks a right hand to start and knocks her into the corner, setting up a kick to send Lynch face first into the middle buckle. A standing moonsault gives Ruca two but Lynch knocks her outside for a baseball slide.

Lynch misses a dive and Ruca hangs herself up in the Tree Of Woe, only to avoid a right hand to send Lynch’s hand into the post. Back in and Ruca gets two off a sunset flip but Lynch knocks her down again. They head outside so Lynch can whip her into the barricade a few times. Back in and Lynch wins a slugout but gets sent into the corner for the German suplex. A missile dropkick and running knee get two on Lynch but she reverses the Sol Snatcher into a cross armbreaker.

Ruca manages to flip over though and gets an STF. That’s broken up and Lynch kicks her in the face for two before going up top. A super X Factor brings Lynch back down for two but Lynch shoves the referee into the ropes to crotch Ruca on top. The superplex drops Ruca but she flips out of a DDT and nails a superkick to leave them both down.

A handspring moonsault doesn’t quite work as she gets caught in the ropes and just kind of crashes into Lynch instead. Back in and Ruca flips into a Manhandle Slam for two but Lynch tries a Sol Snatcher of her own. That doesn’t work either as Ruca pulls her into a Manhandle Slam for two more. Back up and Lynch tries an exploder into the corner, which is reversed into a quick Sol Snatcher to give Ruca the pin and the title at 13:54.

Rating: B-. There were the usual amount of mini botches that you kind of have to expect from someone who moves around like Ruca. What matters the most though is that Ruca got a big win clean to win a title on the main roster. That’s how you give someone new a major rub and Lynch knows exactly how to do that. I’m not sure where Ruca goes from here but she is certainly off to the right start.

We recap Jacob Fatu vs. Roman Reigns for the Raw World Title. Reigns retained over Fatu at Backlash but Fatu went after him again, setting up a rematch under Tribal Combat rules. Therefore, anything goes, with the title and head of the family on the line.

Raw World Title: Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu

Fatu is challenging in Tribal Combat, meaning anything goes. They stare at each other to start and trade the big shoves. Reigns’ headlock is broken up so he settles for a clothesline, followed by some rams into the buckles. The threat of the Tongan Death Grip sends Reigns outside and the suicide dive takes him down again. They fight into the crowd with Fatu firing off some headbutts to take over.

They wind up at the concession stand, where Reigns hits him in the head with a bucket. Reigns throws what I believe were some bananas into the crowd and it’s time to go back to ringside. Fatu fights back but gets dropped, allowing Reigns to pull out a table. Fatu jumps Reigns and takes that away, with the Reigns being knocked down outside. The steps are thrown inside, but Reigns fights back to knock Fatu outside.

The steps are launched over the top and onto Fatu’s head for the big knockdown and the fans certainly approve. Back in and Reigns fires off the ten clotheslines in the corner (with the fans counting along), followed by a big boot. The Superman Punch misses though and Fatu clotheslines him into the running backsplash. Fatu rains down the right hands in the corner but Reigns is back with a pop up Superman Punch to leave them both down. Back up and Fatu gets the Tongan Death Grip, sending Reigns outside.

That means another Superman Punch, with Fatu crashing outside next to him. Reigns whips out a toolbox and crushes Fatu’s hand, meaning there’s no Death Grip. The hand is crushed again, this time against the steps, but Fatu knocks him into the corner. The running Umaga Attack connects and they go outside, with Reigns nailing a Superman Punch. Reigns spears him through the barricade (knocking over two guards in the process) and they head back inside so a spear can connect for two.

With nothing else working, Reigns rips off three of the four top turnbuckle pads. That takes too long and Fatu tries the Death Grip, only to get sent into one of the exposed buckles. Fatu hits a spear of his own for two of his own but the triple jump moonsault misses. A pop up Samoan drop puts Reigns down again though and now the triple jump moonsault can connect, with the near fall hitting Fatu low. They slug it out until Fatu gets the Tongan Death Grip. That’s broken up with some rams into the exposed buckle and another spear sends Fatu through the table in the corner. A regular spear retains the title at 27:10.

Rating: B. It was a good fight, but it never reached that level that would have made it great. I could believe Fatu had a chance at winning but Reigns eventually just turned on the jets and blew him away. It wasn’t a bad match at all, though I was expecting this to get crazy and instead it was just a violent fight.

Post match the Usos come in to acknowledge Reigns, which Fatu has to do tomorrow. The Bloodline leaves as the MFT’s are watching from the crowd. Fatu looks over at them and eventually follows Reigns and the Usos up the aisle to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I would actually call this a bit of a disappointment, as I was expecting an awesome show and instead got one that was just good. There’s nothing bad about any of this and the main event did what it needed to do, but I never felt like I was seeing some huge fight. It’s in a weird place of stretching things out from the Wrestlemania season and stretching them towards whatever they’re doing in the summer, leaving this as a bit of a middle of nowhere show. It’s worth a glance if you have nothing else to do, but that’s about all.

Results
Cody Rhodes b. Gunther – Cross Rhodes
Rhea Ripley b. Jade Cargill – Riptide
Brock Lesnar b. Oba Femi – F5
Sol Ruca b. Becky Lynch – Sol Snatcher
Roman Reigns b. Jacob Fatu – Spear

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

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

We’re overseas again and that means we should be in for another white hot crowd. These shows have turned into a highlight of the WWE calendar, mainly due to how hot the crowds tend to be. That has me interested in what we’re going to be seeing, with the pair of World Title matches headlining the show. As usual, there are only five matches, but it means we could have a good show if the middle of the pack matches deliver. Let’s get to it.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley(c) vs. Jade Cargill

This is a Wrestlemania rematch, albeit with the roles reversed. That makes for an interesting situation, as Cargill has been on a rampage about wanting to get her title back. That has me wondering where this is going, as it feels like Charlotte is going to be waiting in the wings for the winner. You could go either way, as the two options here are looking pretty equal.

I’ll take Ripley to retain here, as it feels like we could be seeing Charlotte get the title showdown next, and probably winning (throwing Money In The Bank to Alexa Bliss could make for an interesting summer). This could absolutely go to Cargill again, but I’ll take Ripley to retain, as there isn’t much of a point in having Ripley lose the title back so fast. If nothing else, at least they should get more time than they got at Wrestlemania.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Becky Lynch(c) vs. Sol Ruca

Ruca has shown up in a big splash on the main roster and I’m digging her stuff thus far. She has something of a presence to her and when you throw in one of the flashiest finishers around, there is some potential for quite the push. At the same time, you can tell that she’s in for something special as she’s immediately going in against Lynch, which is quite the opening feud. But does she win the title here?

Yeah I think she does, as this feels like it could be the big surprise title change of the show. Ruca has already lost a fairly high profile match (at least given her status on the roster) and I’m not sure I would have that happen again. You don’t want her to lose her wings so quickly and a win over Lynch would be a huge deal. She doesn’t have to keep the title for a long time, but she needs to win it and I think we’ll see that here.

Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar

Here we have another Wrestlemania rematch and the way around the whole “Lesnar is retired” is “yeah he’s retired but he’s wrestling anyway”, which is hardly the best way to go. At the same time, I want to see the two of them beat the living daylights out of each other again, just like they did at Wrestlemania. Femi is feeling like he could be the next monster thing around here and it has me wondering just how much WWE agrees.

In a pick that could blow up in my face, I’m going to take Femi to beat Lesnar again. While there is little shake in losing to Lesnar, Femi losing so soon is not going to do him any good. Femi needs to be treated like the next unstoppable monster and have his first loss be in a major spot. In this case, he needs to go over to make it clear that he can beat even a souped up Lesnar. It’s the best way to go and hopefully WWE realizes that.

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes(c) vs. Gunther

Now this one has changed a good bit for me, as I wasn’t overly interested in the match until we got to the final Smackdown. These two had a heck of a face to face promo and it made me that much less sure about who was going to win the match. While Rhodes getting the big win feels likely, Gunther guaranteeing another big win left me unsure, as he has lived up to his word thus far. That’s not out of the question, but do they actually go in that direction?

I’m actually going to say yes they do, with Gunther winning the title. Gunther is the definition of a big bad who has to be slain and I’m thinking they’ll actually go with the title change. Rhodes is often better when he is chasing the title and that would be the right move here. Even if Gunther beats him clean, it gives Rhodes something to do over the summer, perhaps via the King Of The Ring.

Raw World Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Jacob Fatu

And now we have what should be wrapping the show up in the form of Tribal Combat. In other words, two big, strong Samoans are going to beat the living daylights out of each other over the title and the right to be the Tribal Chief. Basically that means the loser has to serve the winner, which could be kind of dull if Reigns wins but kind of amazing if Fatu wins.

I’m not sold on the idea but I think I’ll take Fatu to win the title. Raw needs something to really shake things up and Fatu could certainly be that thing. I’m not sure where things go after that, but Fatu could be the one who gets the big push and he could absolutely have it happen here. It’s a pick that doesn’t feel likely, but I want the craziness that comes with Fatu on top of the show.

Overall Thoughts

There is some serious potential with this show, as you have the two World Title matches plus Femi vs. Lesnar, all of which should be outstanding. That leaves the two women’s matches and they both have potential as well. If the crowd is a big factor, we could be in for something special. The other European shows have been that way and there is no reason this shouldn’t be as well.

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

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WWE Vault Grab Bag V
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, Lord Alfred Hayes, David Crockett, Jim Ross

It’s time to dip back into the randomness that is the WWE Vault (and various other WWE Youtube channels) as there is a lot of stuff I’d like to see. Today we’re going to look at some more random entries, which could be a mixture of matches and/or segments. Either way, they should be from all over the place so let’s get to it.

From a WWE house show in Jonesboro, Arkansas, August 26, 2017.

John Cena vs. Samoa Joe

From what I can find, this is only one of two matches they ever had in WWE, with the other one coming the previous night. Joe powers him down to start and Cena starts bouncing a lot. A headlock slows Cena down again before running the ropes, with Cena hitting a shoulder. Cena’s headlock doesn’t work very well as Joe backs him into the corner for the quick shot to the face.

Joe sends him outside and then kicks him down back inside, meaning we get what looks like a Hulk Hogan pose of all things. A quick AA attempt is blocked and Joe’s enziguri gets two, meaning it’s time to get frustrated. Joe puts him down again for two more and knocks Cena into the corner, leaving Joe to walk around for a bit. Cena avoids a charge in the corner, only to get elbowed in the face.

Joe misses the backsplash though and Cena starts the usual comeback. The AA is countered with a grab of the rope and the referee gets knocked outside. Cena gets the STF for the unseen tap and of course lets go, allowing Joe to get in a low blow. Joe grabs a chair but Cena ducks and hits the AA for the clean pin at 10:00.

Rating: C+. This was more of a “whoa that match happened” and that’s not a bad way to go. It’s one of the appeals of a house show as a few fans got to see the match, even if it was rather basic. That’s all it needed to be and while I could have gone with a far bigger stage, I’ll take getting to see them have a decent match.

From a WWF house show in Long Island, New York, October 24, 1997.

Tag Team Titles: D-Generation X vs. Legion Of Doom

LOD is defending and Michaels tells a fan to suck it as Animal shoves HHH into the corner to start. Animal powers both of them down at the same time as Chyna is not pleased on the floor. We settle back down to Hawk slamming Michaels, who bails outside, with HHH and Chyna massaging the back of his tights. Back in and Michaels bails straight to the floor, only to get gorilla pressed by in by Animal, where Hawk clotheslines him right back to the floor for a big pratfall.

We settle down a bit with Animal grabbing a headlock and grinding Michaels down again as it’s all LOD thus far. The bearhug goes on but Michaels gets out and hands it off to HHH, who gets bearhugged as well. That’s broken up a bit faster and it’s a high/low to take over on Animal. HHH knocks Animal into the corner and Michaels comes back in with a sleeper. A belly to back suplex puts Michaels down but he makes the tag at the same time, allowing HHH to come in for a sleeper of his own.

It’s already back to Michaels for a front facelock but he accidentally ax handles a cheating HHH. The tag brings Hawk back in and the fans certainly seem to approve. Everything breaks down and Michaels gets in a belt shot to Hawk for the pin and the titles at 13:01. And hang on as here’s another referee to say what happened so no title change, as it’s a DQ instead. Actually the brawl keeps going and NOW it’s a DQ. Ok then.

Rating: B-. This was a fun match and that’s all I can ask for with a match like this one. What mattered the most here was that they had two teams who were both working hard and it felt like a big match. You don’t get that kind of thing very often and it was better than I was expecting. Michaels and HHH were a good team in their own right and the LOD had so much experience that they could do this kind of match so easily. I’d call this a nice surprise and it actually lived up to some of its hype.

Post match Chyna gets in and jumps Hawk, leaving DX to have to break up a Doomsday Device. Michaels chairs Animal but Hawk takes it away and sends Michaels running to wrap it up. Somehow DX wins on a DQ, presumably because the LOD beat them up too much. You know, instead of the belt shot which was called.

From a WWE house show in Leeds, England, November 8, 2021.

Walter vs. Cesaro

That would of course be Gunther before the name change. Cesaro backs him up against the ropes to start and gets shoved away. Walter misses the big chop and it’s off to a test of strength, with Walter actually getting the better of things. Cesaro’s headlock takeover puts Walter down for a change and grinds away for a little while. Back up and they trade the shoulders, with Cesaro’s jumping version working a bit better.

A shot to the throat puts Cesaro down though and we lower the pace. The double arm crank goes on, with Walter knocking him down to cut off an escape bid. The chinlock has Cesaro in more trouble and this one stays on for a good while. Cesaro fights up and knocks Walter down, so naturally the fans want the Swing. That’s not happening so they strike it out instead until Walter hits the dropkick.

The powerbomb gets two and it’s off to the sleeper to put Cesaro down. That’s broken up in a hurry though and Cesar scores with Swiss Death. Now the Swing goes on and Cesaro follows with the Sharpshooter, sending Walter over to the rope. The springboard uppercut is blocked though and Walter kicks him in the face. A whip into the post sets up a German suplex into the top rope splash to give Walter the pin at 14:27.

Rating: B. This started slowly and the chinlock in the middle hurt it a bit, but this wound up being quite the hard fought match. That’s what the match needed to be as you kind of know what you’re getting when you have Cesaro vs. Walter. Cesaro wasn’t about to go over the up and coming monster, but they had a good fight here and that’s what it was supposed to be.

From a WWE house show in Dublin, Ireland, June 18, 2005.

Smackdown World Title: John Cena vs. John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Kurt Angle

Cena is defending and a certain Steve Austin is guest referee. This is also a rare outdoor match and it’s a cool visual with various buildings and trees in the background. JBL yells about being a former champion before the match and shadow boxes/kicks while Angle makes his entrance. We’re clipped to Angle elbowing Cena as JBL is down on the floor. A backdrop sends Angle outside so JBL is in to boot Cena in the face.

We’re clipped a few times to Cena fighting out of JBL’s sleeper but a big boot drops him again. We’re clipped again to Cena superplexing JBL and making the comeback. Cena initiates the finishing sequence and hits the FU for two on Angle. We’re clipped again to JBL countering the ankle lock and sending Angle outside. Cena loads up the finishing sequence on JBL but Angle is back in with an accidental belt shot to Austin.

Angle is kicked outside and the Clothesline From JBL drops Cena, with another referee running in to count two. Cena kicks a chair into JBL’s face so Angle grabs the chair, only to get cut off with a Stunner. Austin pokes JBL’s eye into the AA to retain the title at about 5:00 shown. I’m not going to rate it due to the cuts but it felt like a house show match with Austin there to spice it up a bit.

Post match Austin and Cena celebrate.

From WCW Saturday Night, May 14, 1994.

WCW World Title: Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair

For the vacant title after they went to a draw at Spring Stampede. They go to the mat to start and Steamboat grabs an armbar, with Flair having to escape. Steamboat reverses a headlock into a hammerlock but Flair is back with the half crab. That’s broken up as well and Steamboat grabs a gorilla press to send Flair to the apron, where a suplex brings him back inside.

Cue Colonel Robert Parker with a briefcase full of money as Flair is sent outside again. Back in and Steamboat drops him with a shoulder but runs into a right hand to the ribs. Flair knocks him into the corner and slowly hammers away as we take a break. We come back with Flair sending him outside and then back inside for some near falls. Steamboat can’t armdrag his way out of an armbar but he can chop the skin off of Flair’s chest.

An atomic drop out of the corner gets Flair out of trouble and he grabs a chinlock. Yes he puts his feet on the ropes and no that shouldn’t be a surprise whatsoever. Back up and they chop it out again with Steamboat getting the better of things, allowing Flair to be rocked even more than usual. Steamboat’s dropkick misses though, as does Flair’s big elbow drop. Flair is back with a poke to the eye and Steamboat needs a breather on the floor. Back in and a sunset flip gives Steamboat two but he charges into a boot in the corner.

As usual Flair goes up top and as usual he gets caught and superplexed for two. Flair plants him down for a breather though and we slow the pace a bit. A poke to the eye lets Flair grab a sleeper, with Flair even on Steamboat’s back. That’s finally broken up and Steamboat chops away again as we take another break.

We come back again with Steamboat winning another chop off (it works, so keep going back to it) but getting his dive punched out of the air. Back in and Flair misses a knee drop, allowing Steamboat to wrap the knee around the post. The Figure Four has Flair in trouble, with Heenan screaming how to break out. Flair finally makes the rope (now what Heenan said to do but it did work) so Steamboat is right back on the leg. Steamboat chops him so much that Flair falls down for two and we take a third break.

We come back again with Steamboat missing something off the top and they’re both down again. Steamboat comes up favoring his own knee, allowing Flair to grab a delayed vertical suplex. His own leg is hurt as well though and it’s another double down. Flair is up and on Steamboat’s leg, with the Figure Four going on. The ropes makes it even worse, but the referee finally catches Flair to break it up. Steamboat knocks him back down but Flair is still up first, only to get caught with a chop. A gorilla press brings him crashing down but they’re back up with another collision.

Steamboat’s sleeper is countered into a belly to back suplex so he goes up again, with Steamboat top rope superplexing him for a crash. A big chop off the top gives Steamboat two and he tries the high crossbody but hits both Flair and the referee. Back up and they trade rollups for two each as they’re somehow still moving at a high speed about 45 minutes into the match. Steamboat tries a leapfrog but seems to get headbutted low, giving Flair the pin and the title at 47:06. Parker never got involved at all.

Rating: A-. There’s a reason these two wrestled each other so many times for the better part of twenty years. Sweet goodness this was amazing stuff with both guys staying crisp throughout and a sense that the match really could have ended multiple times. It’s just high level, technically incredible wrestling between two guys who could do this stuff in their sleep. It says a lot when this is pretty firmly on the low end of their series, as it’s an instant classic with only the kind of sudden ending holding it back. Definitely check this out, plus pretty much anything else they’ve done, ever.

From a WWF house show in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, January 16, 1989.

WWF Title: Randy Savage vs. Bad News Brown

Savage, with Elizabeth, is defending in a Harlem Street Fight and they’re both in street clothes. Brown jumps him on the way in and they’re quickly outside with Savage striking away. A headbutt cuts Savage off though and a chair is thrown inside so Brown can use it to choke. Brown takes him back outside but punches the post, allowing Savage to ax handle him back inside.

Savage takes off his weightlifting belt and blasts Brown in the ribs. Brown is back up with another chair shot and sends Savage crashing over the barricade. A table (remember, this is 1989) is set up in the corner but Savage sends Brown into said table. There’s no referee as Brown hits the Ghetto Blaster for no count. A slam gets the same result so brown yells at the referee, allowing Savage to grab a backslide to retain (with the count from a second referee) at 6:49.

Rating: B. This didn’t last long and no it wasn’t as smooth as the kinds of street fights etc. that you would see in the future, but these guys beat the fire out of each other and it felt like a fight. The big thing here was that Brown basically beat him up and then got caught in the end. There was absolutely something to Brown, who was WAY ahead of his time and could have been incredible about ten years later. Still though, good stuff here, with Savage being more than capable of doing this kind of thing.

Post match Brown kicks Savage outside and then ties the original referee up in the Tree Of Woe. Brown easily takes Savage down into the corner but Savage is back up with a running ax handle. Some other wrestlers come in to break it up, or at least they do after a few misfires.

From WCW Worldwide, May 14, 1988.

NWA United States Tag Team Titles: Midnight Express vs. Fantastics

The Express, with Jim Cornette, is defending and after their usual pre-match hugs, we’re ready to go. Fulton and Lane start things off with Fulton knocking him down without much trouble. A running shoulder drops Lane again and it’s time for the champs to regroup. Lane wrestles him down and quickly gets a hammerlock, which works so well that he does it again.

We take a break and come back with Lane getting double hiptossed, allowing Rogers to work on an armbar. Rogers sends Lane outside so it’s off to Eaton for a change. Eaton gets in a standing chinlock but charges into a headscissors. Lane teases coming off the top for the save but Fulton shakes the ropes to bring him down and then chills on the top in a great spot.

We take another break and come back with Lane on the floor before coming back inside to headlock Fulton. That’s broken up and it’s back to Rogers to work on Lane’s leg. That earns him an enziguri though and Eaton comes back in, only to get taken down as well. Eaton is knocked to the floor and sent into the post as the Midnights are all discombobulated. Back in and Eaton takes over on Fulton, who comes off the middle rope with a kind of hip attack for two.

A hurricanrana takes Eaton down again and we take another break. We come back with Eaton getting in a shot to the throat, followed by Lane’s karate kick to the chest. The hammerlock goes on and the fans get behind Rogers, with Cornette losing his mind on the floor as only he can. Rogers gets sent into the wrong corner again, with Lane grabbing a Russian legsweep for two more.

We take another break and come back again with Eaton working on the arm. Rogers fights up and brings Fulton back in, only for the Midnights to pull him down into a seated abdominal stretch. Fulton’s throat is pulled across the top rope and an elbow gives Lane two. We take yet another break and come back with the bleeding Fulton getting neckbreakered for two. Eaton goes up top and drops the elbow for two more, followed by Lane kicking away in the corner.

The referee stops to check on Fulton’s cut but Rogers bets him not to stop the match. Fulton grabs Anderson’s leg to beg as well so Lane kicks Fulton in the face. Cornette is up on the apron to demand the match be stopped…and Rogers missile dropkicks Eaton into a rollup to give Fulton the pin and the titles at 36:48.

Rating: A. This has been called the greatest tag match to ever air on television in the United States and….yeah it’s kind of hard to argue. The Midnights were as good of an in-ring team as you could get at this point (if not ever) and the Fantastics could go move for move with them. There is nothing in here remotely bad or even less than good, as everyone is working hard and looks incredibly crisp. Throw in that Eaton hat a 100+ degree fever and was so sick that Cornette was asking him if they needed to cancel the match and it’s even better. Absolutely check this out as it’s a tag team wrestling clinic.

From a WWE house show in New York City, New York, December 26, 2017.

Intercontinental Title: Roman Reigns vs. John Cena

Reigns is defending and I guess this works if it’s all you’ve got. They fight over a lockup to start as the fans are split, as usual in a big cena match. Reigns backs him up against the ropes so Cena grabs a headlock as they’re taking their time to start. That’s switched into a chinlock as Reigns can’t get very far early on. Back up and they go to a test of strength, with Reigns powering him out to the floor. Cena gets back in and is pretty easily knocked down, followed by a headbutt back outside.

We hit…I’m really not sure as it’s a one camera shoot and the fans are in the way but Cena takes over on the floor. Back in and the AA attempt is broken up but Cena grabs a tornado DDT. Reigns fights back with some big right hands and Cena’s comeback is cut off with the corner clotheslines. A big boot drops Cena again but he’s right back with the usual finishing sequence. The AA is countered into a sunset flip to give Reigns two, as does the Samoan drop.

The Superman Punch is pulled into the STF, only for Cena to let go to pull him back to the middle. Now the Superman Punch gets two, as does the AA, with the fans losing their minds on these near falls. Cena goes up but dives into a sitout powerbomb to leave them both down. Back up and they slug it out until Cena tries the AA again. That’s escaped though and the spear retains Reigns’ title at 17:59.

Rating: B. They had the big fight feel going here and that’s what it needed to be. This was the main event with the biggest star of the previous generation coming back to go after one of the biggest stars of today. That’s a main event level match and Cena knows how to bring it as well as anyone else. Good stuff here, especially for a house show with a red hot crowd.

From a WWE house show in Lafayette, Louisiana, March 10, 2024.

Kevin Owens/Becky Lynch vs. Grayson Waller/Nia Jax

Ok then. Waller’s running shoulder can’t get anywhere with Owens and a stomp on the foot doesn’t do much better. For some reason Waller shoves him in the face before handing it off to Jax. A shove actually puts Owens down and it’s off to Lynch for a high crossbody. Lynch kicks her way out of the corner and hits a Diamond Dust for two. The Disarm-Her is blocked so Lynch dropkicks her out to the floor instead.

Waller gets ping ponged between the two of them and a double suplex puts him down again. Jax is back in to run Lynch over though, setting up a reverse Stinkface in the ropes. The regular version makes it even worse as Lynch is gagging. Owens even gives her some water to wake her back up. Lynch fights out of the corner but Waller is right there to cut off the tag.

A Samoan drop gives Jax two and she can’t believe the kickout. Jax’s charge hits the post though and it’s off to Owens to beat up Waller. The backsplash gives Owens two but the Stunner is blocked. Jax forearms Owens into a rollup for two but misses a charge. Lynch Stunners Jax and Owens does the same to Waller, setting up the Manhandle Slam for the pin at 9:44.

Rating: C+. This was the definition of a fun house show match and that’s always nice to see. They didn’t do anything too complicated here and it was all about giving the fans something unique. Owens and Lynch worked well together and they beat up some annoying villains. What else do you want?

From Over The Limit 2012.

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan

Punk is defending. Feeling out process to start with neither being able to get anywhere on the ropes. Instead Bryan grabs a headlock and hits a running shoulder, only to get hiptossed down. Punk takes him into the corner and starts in on the leg, including some cranking on the mat. Back up Bryan is able to flip over him out of the corner but the leg is kicked out again.

An Indian Deathlock is broken up as Bryan forearms him in the head, only for Punk to come back with a curb stomp. Bryan gets sent crashing out to the floor but drives Punk back first into the barricade. Punk is draped ribs first across the barricade and we hit the seated abdominal stretch back inside (with commentary reminding us that Kane recently injured Punk’s ribs).

Bryan switches into a surfboard with a dragon sleeper, followed by a heck of a running knee to the back. The Swan Dive gives Bryan two but Punk gets up for a double collision. Punk leg lariats him and hits the swinging neckbreaker as the comeback is on. A backdrop sends Bryan outside and the knee is banged up again. The suicide dive connects but Bryan is able to dropkick him out of the air.

One heck of a kick to the head gives Bryan two so he goes up, only to get crotched. A springboard clothesline gives Punk two and they go into a pinfall reversal sequence. Bryan can’t get the LeBell Lock but he can get kicked in the head for two. The top rope elbow connects but Punk’s knees are banged up again. Bryan gets the LeBell Lock in the middle of the ring, only for Punk to stack him up for the pin at 24:14. Punk taps a second after the pin but it is clearly after.

Rating: A-. This was every bit of the technical masterpiece that you would expect, with the hard strikes and some high flying thrown in. Punk winning clean is a bit of a surprise and thankfully they didn’t do anything screwy by having him tap at the same time. Naturally this didn’t headline the show because it wasn’t…let’s see here…John Cena vs. Johnny Ace. No wonder Punk had a chip on his shoulder.

From a WWF TV taping in Lowell, Massachusetts, August 18, 1993.

Mr. Hughes/Giant Gonzalez vs. Mr. Perfect/Randy Savage

This is the biggest “well ok” match I’ve seen in a bit and Harvey Wippleman is with the villains. Savage gets an interesting introduction with Mike McGuirk telling the fans to “give it all you got” for him. Hughes shoves the rather popular Perfect into the corner to start and then easily punches him down.

It’s off to Gonzalez, who looks even weirder than usual slowly hammering on Perfect. Hughes is back in and gives up the tag to Savage (who could pass for a Captain America knockoff), who is choked down by Gonzalez. A clothesline drops Savage again and it’s back to Hughes to miss a charge into the corner. Perfect comes back in to slug away, including a backdrop. Savage adds a top rope ax handle and Perfect gets a small package for the pin at 7:10.

Rating: C. The weird thing is this match actually made me feel bad for Gonzalez. There is only so much he could do against people literally a foot and a half shorter than him and that became quite the problem. Savage and Perfect couldn’t do much more than punch him, leaving Hughes as the only one they could do anything against. It’s not good, but it certainly had the spectacle.

From a WWE house show in Sydney, Australia, March 3, 2006.

Smackdown World Title: Mark Henry vs. Randy Orton vs. Kurt Angle vs. Undertaker

Angle is challenging. Orton bails to the floor to start, where some women are VERY excited to see him. We’re clipped to Orton back inside, with Undertaker hammering away. Orton bails outside so Angle rolls Undertaker up for two, earning himself a shot to the face. Henry comes back inside to choke Undertaker, as does Henry’s manager Daivari. Angle ankle locks Orton over the barricade, sending him into the crowd.

The other two join them, with Undertaker popping Orton with some right hands, sending him onto a woman who certainly does not seem to mind. Back in and Undertaker chinlocks Angle until Orton rather slowly rolls in for the save. Henry comes in to beat up Undertaker but Orton has to save him from the ankle lock. Undertaker is back up to stomp on Orton, who breaks up Old School.

A superplex puts Undertaker down for two and we’re clipped to Orton breaking up a superplex to Angle. The RKO is blocked but the Angle Slam hits Undertaker instead. We’re clipped again to Undertaker sitting up and chokeslamming Orton for two with Henry making a save. The Angle Slam finishes Orton to retain the title at about 9:00 shown. I won’t rate it due to the clips but what we saw looked good.

Post match Undertaker goes after Orton but has to beat up an invading JBL.

As has been the case with many shows over the years, we’ll wrap it up with a small package. This one features a collection of Mortis dark matches in WWE.

Velocity dark match, August 16, 2003.

Mortis vs. Austin Aries

Or “Austin Arius”, who is billed from St. Louis, where the match happens to be taking place. Aries strikes away to start but misses a high crossbody, allowing Mortis to strike away in the corner. A reverse Walls Of Jericho sends Aries over to the ropes and he gets some boots up in the corner. Aries is back with a discus forearm and a clothesline out to the floor. The slingshot dive misses but Aries is right back up for a missile dropkick. A sitout Dominator finishes Aries at 3:38.

Rating: C. I’m kind of surprised Aries didn’t get a closer look, as he was aggressive here and had some good looking high flying. You could tell he had the athleticism and balance that let him move around rather well. On the other and you have Mortis, who certainly looked cool and could have been fine enough without the Mortal Kombat stuff.

Velocity dark match, August 23, 2004.

Mortis vs. Truth Martini

Mortis punches him down to start but misses a springboard legdrop. Martini’s springboard spinning legdrop misses as well, allowing Mortis to hit a superkick. Back up and Mortis sends him into the corner for a middle rope Boston crab before sending Martini into the post. The crossarm choke goes on and a suplex drops Martini again. A tornado DDT gives Martini two of his own but he gets caught in an electric chair faceplant for the pin at 4:37.

Rating: C-. Ah now this was more like it, as there was nothing to Mortis here other than the look. Mortis does look cool, but his offense was “do a move, stand there, do another move, stand there again”, and so forth. That only works for so long and made a four and a half minute match feel a heck of a lot longer.

Velocity dark match, August 30, 2004.

Mortis/Funaki vs. Jack Bull/Mike Knox

Mortis strikes away at Bull to start so it’s off to Funaki, who gets beaten down by Knox. Bull comes back in to strike away. A reverse tornado DDT gets Funaki out of trouble and it’s back to Mortis. Everything breaks down and Mortis finishes Knox with a lifting Downward Spiral at 4:32.

Rating: C. Again, there’s just not much to say about these matches. Mortis is creepy looking but is teaming with the eternally likable Funaki against a pair of big bald guys. There was nothing to the match and Mortis certainly didn’t stand out, which is kind of the point of the whole thing.

Velocity dark match, October 25, 2003.

Mortis vs. John Walters

This is joined in progress for some reason with Walters flipping over him and hitting a clothesline for two. Walters’ neck crank doesn’t last long as Mortis is back up with a corner clothesline and a middle rope bulldog out of the corner. The superkick gets two and a sitout Alabama slam finishes Walters at 3:07.

Rating: C. Much like the previous matches, there’s something to the idea of this weird looking guy who does unique moves, but the whole Mortis deal was played so slowly. It was like Chris Kanyon was thinking “ok so I’m Mortis now” rather than getting into doing anything. This was another weak match and I’m not surprised WWE didn’t do anything with Mortis as a result.

Overall Rating: A-. The Mortis matches aren’t great, but they’re about the only things close to weak in this set. When you have the Flair vs. Steamboat match, that incredible Midnights/Fantastics match and the rather awesome Punk vs. Bryan match, almost anything else is going to be fine. I got lucky this time with a great set of matches and some actual rarities, which made for a rather fun (albeit crazy long) viewing. Check out those three matches for sure though, as they’re all worth your time.

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

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

Smackdown
Date: May 22, 2026
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

It’s the night before Saturday Night’s Main Event and the show is not exactly looking huge. There isn’t much to be said about the card and I’m not sure we’re going to get anything else added here. On the other hand, Clash In Italy is just over a week away and is already looking strong. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s contract signing between Cody Rhodes and Gunther. That was broken up by Royce Keys, whom Gunther had to beat to get the title shot anyway.

Here is Rhea Ripley to get things going. She got jumped by Jade Cargill last week and wants to face Cargill at Clash In Italy. Cue Charlotte and Alexa Bliss, with Charlotte saying they have a six woman tag at Saturday Night’s Main Event. Before that though, Charlotte gets on Ripley for not being there to help last week. Ripley says she was visiting her family and the bickering is on, with Fatal Influence interrupting them. Jacy Jayne laughs at them and says they take opportunities where they can. The result is a tag match against Bliss/Charlotte tonight.

We look back at Talla Tonga attacking Shinsuke Nakamura last week and Solo Sikoa getting taken out by Royce Keys in the main event.

Sikoa won’t let the MFT’s talk about Talla’s match with Shinsuke Nakamura. Keys comes in to yell but Sikoa says Keys was the one who got physical. Keys is going to need someone to have his back and since Sikoa is family, who could be better?

Alexa Bliss tells Charlotte that she’s sick so Charlotte and Rhea Ripley are teaming together. Charlotte is less than pleased.

Talla Tonga vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

The MFT’s are with Talla, who shoves the popular Nakamura into the corner to start. Nakamura gets choked in the corner and a hard whip sends him into another corner. Back up and Nakamura knocks him to the floor, where Talla reverses into a whip to the barricade. We take a break and come back with Nakamura grabbing a triangle choke. With that broken up, a middle rope knee to the back hits Talla, who misses a charge into the corner. Scorpio Rising gives Nakamura two but a Solo Sikoa distraction lets Talla grab a powerslam. The chokeslam finishes Nakamura at 9:20.

Rating: C+. This was pretty to the point, with Nakamura’s strikes still looking good despite not being in the ring very much as of late. Talla continues to look like a monster and that is exactly what he should be doing. You don’t see Talla get in the ring very often and that makes sense, but having him beat someone like Nakamura should help him a bit.

Post match the beatdown is on with Tama Tonga teasing turning on Sikoa but knocking Nakamura out anyway. Damian Priest makes the save with a chair.

Video on Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu.

Cody Rhodes comes in to see Nick Aldis and wants Gunther to sign the contract for Clash In Italy. Aldis says the match is made but he’ll get Gunther to sign. Sami Zayn comes in offer Rhodes his help with Gunther but Rhodes passes, leaving Zayn annoyed. Zayn rants to Aldis and Rhodes comes back in and says he’ll fight Zayn tonight.

Tama Tonga wants to take care of Damian Priest and Solo Sikoa seems to agree.

Women’s US Title: Tiffany Stratton vs. ???

Stratton is defending in an open challenge, as answered by…Lash Legend. Nia Jax is here with Legend and they promise to win both this and the Women’s Tag Team Titles on Saturday. Legend shoves her down to start but Stratton strikes away out of the corner. A dropkick doesn’t do much to Legend but a running version sends her outside. Stratton hits a dive, only for Legend to knock her down. Cue Chelsea Green to cheer Stratton on as we take a break.

We come back with Legend grabbing a chinlock until Stratton gets up and avoids a charge into the post. Stratton’s handspring elbow and handspring Stunner combine for two and a hurricanrana sends Legend into the corner. Legend is right back with a heck of a powerbomb but the Lash Extension is countered into a crucifix for two. Jax has to be kicked away so Green goes after her, leaving Legend to hit a pump kick. Legend grabs Green, allowing Stratton to get the rollup to retain at 9:04.

Rating: C+. They did this well, with Stratton escaping to keep the title again. Green helping Stratton is interesting as she seems to be the next important challenger, which is an interesting way to go. At the same time, enough with the open challenges. The idea has been done to death and it doesn’t exactly add anything. Just figure out something else.

Nick Aldis says the building has a power issue coming from a certain room. That seems to be Danhausen’s laboratory, with Aldis going in to yell at him. There is something under a sheet and Aldis goes to look. Danhausen: “DON’T TOUCH THAT!” Oh dear.

We look at Danhausen uncursing the New York Knicks…who then went on a nine game winning streak.

The Miz and Kit Wilson don’t care about what is in Danhausen’s laboratory and insist there IS NO CURSE. Miz complains about Danhausen causing the Cleveland Cavaliers their playoff series and sitting courtside. Cathy Kelly: “Why aren’t you sitting courtside?” As the fans give that a big OOOOOHHHHH, Fraxiom comes up to mock the idea of a curse. Miz vs. Axiom is set for next week.

Here are Trick Williams and Lil Yachty for a chat. They mock the Miz for losing last week, with Yachty putting down Miz’s accomplishments (Williams: “7 time Tag Team Champion.” Yachty: “7 times he was carried.”). Cue Carmelo Hayes, who says they knew this day was going to come. Hayes praises what Williams has done around here but the fans want to see them go at it for the US Title.

Yachty says Williams has a messy schedule and it won’t be easy. Hayes: “Can anyone understand what this guy is saying?” Hayes brings up Williams always being better playing second fiddle, which has Williams’ attention. The match is on, but Williams makes it clear that it isn’t for the title.

Carmelo Hayes vs. Trick Williams

Lil Yachty is here with Williams, who grabs a slam to start. Hayes chops him into the corner but Williams reverses into a chop of his own and stomps away. The Rock Bottom gives Williams two and he puts Hayes down again. A drop across the top rope has Hayes in trouble but he manages to send Williams outside. Yachty gets in the way of a dive though and we take a break.

We come back with Hayes fighting out of a chinlock but getting dropped with a jumping neckbreaker. Hayes’ springboard clothesline connects as Ricky Saints is here to sneer. Hayes strikes away as we hear some noise in the background, which doesn’t seem to be intentional. The Trick Shot is countered into the First 48 for two and they go outside, where Saints is knocked down. Back in and Hayes rolls Williams up but the referee is with Saints. Hayes goes to deal with him but walks into the Trick Shot to give Williams the pin at 13:24.

Rating: B. Believe it or not, two talented guys who have a history together were able to have a good match. That’s what we got to see here and Saints vs. Hayes gets to continue. I liked the match rather well, with multiple people getting to advance stories at once. That’s not bad for a pair of segments and it gave the midcard a boost.

Sami Zayn is livid in the back and runs into a still silent Johnny Gargano. Zayn talks about how things have changed, but he and Gargano have never changed. Gargano responds by…weakly knocking over a bottle of water.

Carmelo Hayes jumps Ricky Saints in the back.

We look at Brock Lesnar returning on Raw and attacking Oba Femi, setting up their Clash In Italy rematch.

Fatal Influence vs. Charlotte/Rhea Ripley

Jacy Jayne and Alexa Bliss are here too. Henley mocks Charlotte’s strut to start and gets clotheslined as a result. Ripley comes in to kick Reid into the corner and it’s right back to Charlotte. This time doesn’t go as well, with Charlotte being sent outside so Fatal Influence can pose over her as we take a break.

We come back with Charlotte still in trouble and Henley coming in for a chinlock. Back up and Charlotte kicks Henley off the top and out to the floor but Reid gets in a chop block. Charlotte kicks Reid away though and it’s back ti Ripley to clean house. A Razor’s Edge hits Reid, with Henley having to make a save. Ripley superkicks Charlotte off the apron by mistake before hitting Reid with Riptide. Charlotte tags herself in though and Natural Selection finishes at 10:56.

Rating: B-. They’re not hiding that this is setting up a big Charlotte vs. Ripley showdown and that’s a good idea. There are only so many stars who can really give Ripley a challenge and Charlotte is up there. It would be nice to see this version of Charlotte getting a chance and it might be happening in the next few months. Other than that, Fatal Influence continues to feel like they belong here, and now we get to see what happens after losing like this.

Post match Bliss tries to calm things down but here are Jade Cargill, B-Fab and Michin to lay all of them out.

Cody Rhodes is ready for Sami Zayn tonight and would love to have Gunther there in some way.

We look at Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu setting up Tribal Combat on Raw.

Jade Cargill and company are ready to win their six woman tag and prove how dominant they really are.

Damian Priest vs. Solo Sikoa

The MFT’s are here with Sikoa, who gets jumped to start things fast. They get inside with Priest hitting a jumping elbow to the face but getting pulled into a Samoan drop. We take a break and come back with Priest clapping Sikoa’s ears on the top. That’s enough to set up a superplex before they trade forearms.

Sikoa misses a charge into the post and the Broken Arrow gives Priest two. The MFT’s offer a distraction though and Spinning Solo connects for two more. Back up and Priest kicks him in the head, followed by a lifting Downward Spiral. Talla Tonga gets up for a distraction though and the Samoan Spike finishes Priest at 9:43.

Rating: C+. Priest continues to not have the most success and it seems likely that he and R-Truth don’t have the longest future. The team never really felt like it was going to be the big champions of the future and we’re probably getting close to the time they drop the titles. The fact that Priest is already doing something on his own isn’t a great sign, but it’s not like this is a shock.

Post match the beatdown is on but Royce Keys runs in for the save. Priest grabs Keys by the throat but Keys says he’s here to help, which calms Priest down.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown. That card looks dire.

Blake Monroe debuts and doesn’t think much of Chelsea Green. Monroe leaves and the Irresistible Forces jump Green to lay her out.

Royce Keys wants to know what Damian Priest’s problem is but Priest yells at him for getting in his business. A match seems likely.

Sami Zayn vs. Cody Rhodes

Non-title. Zayn shoves him into the corner to start but doesn’t want to follow up. Rhodes tells him to bring it, earning himself a headlock. Rhodes knocks him down but a way too early Cody Cutter attempt is broken up. We take a break and come back with Rhodes still in trouble but managing a suplex. The Cody Cutter gets two but Rhodes’ knee is banged up. Rhodes is sent to the apron and knocked HARD onto the announcers’ table (that was a nasty bump).

That’s good for a nine count before Rhodes makes it back inside, where another Cody Cutter gets another two. The banged up knee lets Zayn grab the Blue Thunder Bomb for two of his own and they both need a breather. Zayn goes after a knee and grabs the Figure Four. That’s reversed with a turn into the ropes and Rhodes gets up for the Disaster Kick. Cue Gunther for the sleeper from the apron but Zayn knocks him down by mistake. Cross Rhodes finishes for Rhodes at 11:50.

Rating: B. Much like Williams vs. Hayes, there was no shock to these two being able to work well together. Zayn continues his downfall, with one more loss to add onto his failures. At some point he is going to hit his absolute rock bottom and it’s going to be interesting to see where it goes from there. In theory it is going to result in him winning the World Title, but we could be a long way from that happening.

Post match Gunther sleepers Rhodes again and Zayn looks at them and….eventually….walks away. Gunther poses over Rhodes and Zayn looks on from the aisle to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. You had a pair of good matches here and a lot of stuff being moved towards Clash In Italy. That’s a nice thing to see, as you don’t have a lot of time left before the show. Clash In Italy got a positive boost here and I’m a lot more interested than I was coming in. Oh and Saturday Night’s Main Event exists too. Yeah exists. That’s as high as we’re getting with that one and that’s pretty clear.

Results
Talla Tonga b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Chokeslam
Tiffany Stratton b. Lash Legend – Rollup
Trick Williams b. Carmelo Hayes – Trick Shot
Charlotte/Rhea Ripley b. Fatal Influence – Natural Selection to Reid
Solo Sikoa b. Damian Priest – Samoan Spike
Cody Rhodes b. Sami Zayn – Cross Rhodes

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

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

Smackdown
Date: May 15, 2026
Location: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, South Carolina
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

We are on the way to Saturday Night’s Main Event and then Clash In Italy, with Gunther set to come after Cody Rhodes and the World Title. That should be enough to make the latter show work, but there isn’t much time to get the rest of the two shows set up. We’ll need to do some work in that area this week so let’s get to it.

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

Long Backlash recap.

Here is local hero Trick Williams to quite the reaction (having the University of South Carolina mascot with him helps). Williams talks about his time at the local high school, university and restaurant. That’s where he dubbed the shoes the Lemon Pepper Steppers and now his family is here to watch him.

Cue the Miz and Kit Wilson, with Miz mocking the mascot and thinking Big Bird is next. Lil Yachty mocks them for being cursed so Wilson busts out the slam poetry book. After mocking Williams and Yachty, it turns out that trying to outrhyme a professional rapper is a bad idea, as Yachty destroys them both. Miz wants a fight right now so Williams smacks Wilson in the face and knocks Miz outside.

Quick sidenote here: Yachty continues to work well as Williams’ associate because he’s just that: an associate. Yachty is NEVER the main focus of these segments and is mainly there as a hype man for Williams, who is the real star. Compare this to Jelly Roll or Pat McAfee, who were regularly given so much more focus and became the biggest parts of some segments. That’s a key difference and it’s why Yachty hasn’t overstayed his welcome.

Miz vs. Trick Williams

Non-title. Miz is wrestling in a shirt as Williams starts fast with a jumping clothesline. Miz gets in a shot of his own and goes up top but dives into a right hand to the ribs. The comeback cuts Williams off again and Miz gets to rip the shirt off before mocking the parents. Williams gets in a neckbreaker and unloads with stomps in the corner. The threat of a Trick Kick sends Miz bailing to the floor, where Williams sends him into the barricade

Wilson gets in a cheap shot though and Miz kicks Williams through the ropes as we take a break. We come back with Williams striking away and getting two off a Rock Bottom. Miz’s short DDT gets one and he fires off the kicks to the chest. A flapjack cuts Miz off but he grabs the Skull Crushing Finale for two more. The frustrated Miz grabs a kendo stick but Yachty takes it away and beats up Wilson. The Trick Shot finishes Miz at 11:19 (and Williams is VERY fired up).

Rating: B. That might be high but I do love listening to a crowd carry a match to a much higher level. That was the case here, as the fans loved seeing Williams and he was clearly having the time of his life in front of his hometown crowd. Miz can still make someone look good and Williams kicking out of an established finisher is only going to help him. Good stuff here with Williams winning as a special moment.

Carmelo Hayes is ready to face Ricky Saints because when he shoots, he doesn’t miss. Saints comes in to say the world has changed since Hayes was here. Hayes is ready to humble him.

Sami Zayn apologizes to Nick Aldis for his recent actions and wants one more shot at Trick Williams. Aldis says Zayn has to earn it, which has Zayn losing his mind about how everything is changing. Rey Fenix comes up and doesn’t want to hear it.

Paige and Brie Bella are ready for anyone, including the invading Irresistible Forces.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Brie Bella/Paige vs. Giulia/Kiana James

Giulia and James are challenging. James easily shoves Bella down to start so Paige comes in for a kick to the ribs. A bulldog gives Bella two and it’s off to Giulia, who unloads on Paige in the corner. Back up and Paige hits a kick of her own, followed by the rapid fire knees in the ropes. James posts Paige though and we take a break.

We come back with Paige sunset bombing Giulia out of the corner and making the tag off to Bella. The running knees in the ropes and YES Kicks connect on both of them followed by the Bella Buster for two on James. A facebuster sets up Giulia’s northern lights bomb for two, with Paige making the save this time. The Rampaige finishes James to retain the titles at 9:01.

Rating: C+. They kept this fairly short when you factor out the commercial time and that makes sense. Giulia and James didn’t feel like major challengers for the titles so don’t stretch the match out any longer than it needed. At the same time, Paige and Bella don’t feel like a long term team so they feel a bit vulnerable every time they defend the belts. That helps a bit and it was a fine enough balance here.

We look at Gunther trying to jump Cody Rhodes last week and not having the most success.

Tiffany Stratton is interrupted by Kiana James and Giulia arguing. With that out of the way, Chelsea Green interrupts but Stratton isn’t impressed.

Here is Cody Rhodes with the contract to face Gunther. He builds his own contract signing set and Rhodes calls Gunther out. Cue Gunther who talks about how much time he put into planning this, but Rhodes was a typical American who has to make it all about himself. All Gunther wants Rhodes to do is ask nicely and not make it weird. Gunther tries to walk him through it but Royce Keys of all people interrupts.

If Gunther won’t say it, he will, and Keys goes to sign. Gunther cuts that off so here is Nick Aldis to say Gunther didn’t sign, so tonight it’s Keys vs. Gunther for the title shot. That’s fine with Rhodes, who respects Keys, but gives him the same “easy to find, hard to beat” line. Of note: Keys’ shirt looks a bit like an old Nasty Boys design so he’s on the right track.

Solo Sikoa tells Tama Tonga to deal with Damian Priest tonight and then leaves with Talla Tonga. Shinsuke Nakamura comes up to Tama…and gets jumped by Talla, who puts him through a table.

Gunther yells at Nick Aldis about the Keys match but Aldis says Gunther can only blame himself.

Carmelo Hayes vs. Ricky Saints

Saints hammers away to start fast before they trade armdrags. Hayes’ dropkick connects but Saints is right back with the strutting Old School. Hayes is fine enough to tie him in the ropes for the Fadeaway and there’s the running flip dive to the floor. We take a break and come back with Hayes tossing him off the top, where Hayes’ frog splash can launch for two. The First 48 is countered into a Snowplow for two and we hit a chinlock while going split screen for a movie trailer.

Hayes fights up and scores with a springboard shot to the face. The La Mistica faceplant gives Hayes two more but so does Saints’ Deep Six. Another First 48 attempt connects but Nothing But Net misses, allowing Saints to grab a tornado DDT for two of his own. The frustrated Saints sends him into the corner and a rollup with feet on the ropes gets two. Saints spends so much time yelling at the referee that Hayes gets a rollup (with his own feet on the rope) for the pin at 12:10.

Rating: B-. This was a good back and forth match, with the two of them trading near falls and big moves until Hayes gave Saints the same thing right back. I wasn’t sure who was going to win here so the result was something of a surprise. It’s also nice to see Hayes getting a win after a bad stretch so maybe he has a future around here.

R-Truth thanks Royce Keys for helping with the MFT’s and says he can get Keys in the Judgment Day. Damian Priest comes in to suggest he doesn’t trust Keys, who Solo Sikoa hasn’t touched. R-Truth can go with that, but he has to stay in the back tonight as he isn’t medically cleared.

Danhausen goes into his lab and answers his old phone. Then he wheels out what looks like a Frankenstein’s monster and types a lot.

Tama Tonga vs. Damien Priest

They slug it out to start until Priest gets in a big boot to the head. Tonga is sent outside but comes off the steps with a clothesline to put Priest down as we take an early break. We come back with Tonga reversing a Razor’s Edge attempt into a sleeper. That’s broken up as well so Tonga switches to a dragon screw legwhip.

Priest fires up and strikes away again, with the Broken Arrow connecting for two. The threat of the rebound lariat sends Tonga outside, where Priest sends him crashing over the announcers’ table. Back in and Tonga crotches him on top, setting up a neckbreaker for two. Priest gets fired up though and grabs the South Of Heaven for the pin at 9:56.

Rating: B-. This was a nice power match, with Priest taking what Tonga threw at him and getting the win. Priest is doing fine enough as part of a team but he needs some success on his own again. That was what he got here, and it made him look like that chokeslam is quite the weapon if used right.

Post match the MFT’s run in to beat Priest down.

Sami Zayn rants to Johnny Gargano, who still won’t move. Candice LeRae comes in and isn’t impressed, though Zayn rants some more.

We look back at Jade Cargill returning last week and laying out Rhea Ripley.

Here are Cargill and her lackeys for a chat. Cargill isn’t surprised that people change their tunes when she is in their face. At Clash In Italy, she gets her title back but here are Charlotte and Alexa Bliss to interrupt. Charlotte is ready to go after Cargill, who doesn’t seem impressed. Instead, Charlotte and Bliss are ready for their scheduled match.

Blake Monroe? Still on her way.

Charlotte/Alexa Bliss vs. B-Fab/Michin

Charlotte and Michin start things off, with Michin heading outside rather quickly. Back in and Charlotte easily wrestles her down, with Michin going after the leg. A headscissors drops Charlotte again and Michin kicks away. Charlotte is right back to knock her into the corner, meaning Bliss and B-Fab come in for a double change. Bliss takes her down but misses the flipping splash and dives into a swinging Downward Spiral.

We take a break and come back with Bliss still in trouble and Charlotte being suckered in. Bliss fights out of the double teaming and grabs a DDT. That’s enough to bring in Charlotte and house is quickly cleaned. Back to back fall away slams send B-Fab and Michin flying but Cargill distracts Charlotte. That’s enough for a double big boot to put Charlotte down but she’s fine enough to get the Figure Eight on B-Fab. Michin’s save doesn’t work, though Charlotte lets go anyway. It’s back to Bliss for a wind up DDT, only for Cargill to pull her out for the DQ at 11:59.

Rating: C+. Things got a bit wild at the end but it was the right way to go, as Cargill continues to annoy Charlotte, which is likely setting up a big showdown. B-Fab and Michin are at least more in their element as lackeys, though it felt like Charlotte could have wiped either of them out at any time. Bliss and Charlotte continue to work well together, and a lot of that is due to not splitting the team up far too early.

Post match Charlotte clears out the lackeys but Cargill doesn’t seem interested.

Fatal Influence doesn’t seem impressed because they’re a real team who will get all of the gold. And yes that’s a threat.

Charlotte isn’t happy with Rhea Ripley for not being here and isn’t used to needing help. Alexa Bliss doesn’t seem thrilled but says they need help no matter what.

We look back at the Roman Reigns/Jacob Fatu brawl from Raw, with Fatu smashing Reigns again.

Solo Sikoa still tries to get Royce Keys on his side and threatens violence otherwise. Keys still doesn’t buy this.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Here’s what’s coming at Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Gunther vs. Royce Keys

For the title shot at Clash In Italy. Gunther flips him into the corner and shouts a lot, earning a shove out to the floor. Back in and Gunther grabs a headlock but loses an exchange of shoulders. Gunther charges into a powerslam for two, which had Gunther outside again. This time Keys sends him into the barricade a few times and then over the announcers’ table.

We take a break and come back with Gunther getting caught with a clothesline to leave them both down again. Keys wins a fight over a suplex but gets knocked down with the chops. Gunther gets pulled off the apron and dropped onto the announcers’ table but is fine enough to hit the big clothesline back inside. The top rope splash is cut off for a superplex though and they’re both down again.

Gunther is able to get the sleeper though…and here is Solo Sikoa. Keys gets up and wins a battle of the clotheslines but gets caught in the sleeper again. That’s broken up as well and Keys Pounces Gunther right into the referee. Sikoa throws Keys a chair, which he throws right back into Sikoa’s face. The distraction lets Gunther hit a clothesline and the powerbomb for the pin and the title shot at 15:52.

Rating: B. This was a solid back and forth power match, with Keys being able to hang with the monster Gunther. Not many people are able to say that but Keys made it work pretty well here. You can tell Keys still has a lot of polishing to go in the ring, though having Gunther there to walk him through things had to help a lot. It’s not some classic, but it did show that Keys can do something like this in the right situation.

Post match Cody Rhodes runs in to lay Gunther out with the Cross Rhodes to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. As has been the case a lot of the time with these three hour shows, it really does lose some steam in there, even with a pretty good main event. There just comes a point where fans are ready to do something else though and three hours is usually beyond that ending. It’s not even a bad show, but it would be so much better with less time to fill.

Results
Trick Williams b. The Miz – Trick Shot
Paige/Brie Bella b. Kiana James/Giulia – Rampaige to James
Carmelo Hayes b. Ricky Saints – Rollup with feet on the ropes
Damian Priest b. Tama Tonga – South Of Heaven
Charlotte/Alexa Bliss b. Michin/B-Fab via DQ when Jade Cargill interfered

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

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

Smackdown
Date: May 8, 2026
Location: VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Joe Tessitore, Wade Barrett

It’s the night before Backlash and that should mean a pretty big Smackdown. WWE has turned the shows before the pay per views into a big preview, which is quite the use of three hours. Hopefully it’s quality to go with quantity this year, though it’s hard to make that work with such a long show. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Ted Turner. That’s a nice touch.

We open with a long recap of Jacob Fatu vs. Roman Reigns.

Here is Fatu for a chat. Tomorrow, he’s taking the title from Roman Reigns. Since they were kids, everyone has seen Reigns as the future and Fatu as nothing. Everyone has had it in for him but it’s been to protect Reigns. This brings out the Usos to interrupt, who say they aren’t out there to change Fatu’s mind. Jimmy understands that Fatu needs this, but what happens if he loses? Has he ever thought about that?

Jey doesn’t believe Fatu thinks like that but Jey has been there. Tomorrow night, Fatu’s family will be there to see him lose, and his wife and children will have to acknowledge the Tribal Chief. That doesn’t work for Fatu, because this isn’t just a main event. This is about his family because they are going to see him win the title. Oh and if the Usos try to interfere, he’ll burn this whole place down. I don’t think he’s going to win, but Fatu has sold me on him being a threat to Reigns.

We look at Gunther attacking Cody Rhodes last week.

Nick Aldis doesn’t like what Gunther has done, but here is Ricky Saints to interrupt. Matt Cardona comes in and doesn’t like Saints so they’re set for tonight.

Post break, Nick Aldis shakes Jacob Fatu’s hand and Fatu seems ready to leave in peace. As he’s leaving, Fatu runs into Royce Keys, who gives him a pep talk about winning the title. With Fatu gone, Keys runs into Solo Sikoa, who says Keys was in the wrong place at the wrong time last week. Sikoa needs an answer from Keys soon.

Women’s US Title: Tiffany Stratton vs. Kiana James

James, with Giulia, is challenging. We get a video from Chelsea Green, who is bedridden (in a lot of pink of course) and can’t be at the show tonight. James grabs a headlock to start but Stratton is right back with a clothesline. Stratton gets caught in the ropes though and a kick to the head knocks her down. The leg gets wrapped around the post and Stratton is in trouble and we take a break.

We come back with James grabbing a rather logical half crab, sending Stratton over to the ropes. The leg is fine enough to hit the handspring elbow in the corner and a handspring Stunner connects. A basement dropkick gives Stratton two but James sends her into the corner for a handspring (popular in this match) kick to the head. James misses a charge into the post though and Giulia gets on the apron, meaning the referee doesn’t see James grabbing a rollup for two. Stratton knocks Giulia down and hits a Regal Roll into the Prettiest Moonsault Ever to retain at 8:04.

Rating: C+. Oddly enough, Giulia gets my attention the most here as she feels like she is just falling lower and lower every single week. Hopefully they have something for her going forward as this hasn’t worked thus far. As for the people in the match, this felt like a way for Stratton to get a win over a challenger who didn’t feel like the biggest threat.

We go to the funeral for the Gingerbread Man (oh boy) where Sami Zayn asks Nick Aldis how he is letting this happen. Aldis says everyone needs some closure and Zayn is close to losing his mind when R-Truth comes up with a flower for him. R-Truth can see the resemblance between Zayn and Gingerbread Man, who talked about Zayn all the time. Zayn is ready to burst, mainly due to how ridiculous this whole thing is. To be fair, he has a point.

Video on Fatal Influence.

Rhea Ripley, Charlotte and Alexa Bliss are ready to take out Fatal Influence, but Charlotte and Ripley get into it all over again. Bliss has to calm them down, again.

R-Truth is sad about the Gingerbread Man but Damian Priest is more annoyed at Talla Tonga. R-Truth will be out there with him, but Priest wants him to stay in the back due to his shoulder injury. That’s good enough for R-Truth.

Talla Tonga vs. Damian Priest

Solo Sikoa is here with Tonga, who gets jumped by Priest to start fast. Tonga is knocked out to the floor but Priest’s spinning kick is sent into the post. Priest gets slammed onto the announcers’ table and we take a break. We come back with Tonga missing an elbow, allowing Priest to slug away.

Priest avoids a kick into the ropes and now the spinning kick to the face connects. After taking out Sikoa, the top rope clothesline gives Priest two but here is Tama Tonga for a distraction. Talla hits the discus lariat for two and here is R-Truth to even things up a bit. Priest sends Sikoa into Tama but gets dropped by Talla, who hits a chokeslam for the pin at 9:16.

Rating: B-. This was a big man fight and it seems like Priest and R-Truth are having some issues. That makes sense as the team never felt like it was supposed to be anything long term. At the same time, the MFT’s aren’t exactly doing well either, though it seems like we’ll be seeing a title match between the two sides sooner or later.

Post match the beatdown is teased but Royce Keys comes out to stare the MFT’s down, though he doesn’t get physical.

We recap Danhausen getting beaten down last week.

Danhausen is sitting at a table trying to find a partner when Miz and Kit Wilson interrupt. They’re not worried about the match because Danhausen doesn’t have any friends. Wilson holds up a mirror, saying the only person who would team with Danhausen is Danhausen. This gives Danhausen an idea, even though he goes the wrong way at first. I’m terrified.

Paul Heyman goes into Nick Aldis’ office.

We look at the Gingerbread Man being at various famous moments over the years.

Nick Aldis gives Paul Heyman a contract. Gunther comes in and Heyman hands him the contract, with Aldis welcoming Gunther to the Smackdown roster. They’re interrupted by Cody Rhodes coming to the ring, with Heyman saying he’ll handle this.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. Rhodes wants to talk about Gunther but gets Heyman instead. Heyman has a solution in the form of the contract but Rhodes is ready to fight right now. That’s not going to work for Heyman, who makes it clear that this contract is the favor he owes Gunther (that’s interesting and nice job of wrapping up the point).

Heyman says he’s a fan of Rhodes and gets in the ring, saying that the title shot is for…Clash In Italy (later this month). By handing Rhodes the contract, Heyman’s part is done as Rhodes has to get Gunther to sign it himself. Rhodes stops him though and asks if he’s doing this because he’s out of options. Heyman says he’s not the one who’s out of options, because “sooner or later they all need the Wise Man.”

Heyman leaves and here is Gunther, who jumps Rhodes but gets knocked to the floor. Rhodes rants about how he doesn’t sweat Gunther because Rhodes is easy to find and hart to beat. Now that is a heck of a tease from Heyman, though Rhodes kind of forgetting that Heyman has the Vision with a healthy Bron Breakker is kind of odd.

Tama Tonga and Solo Sikoa argue about Royce Keys, with Tonga saying he’s going to go deal with Keys on his own. Sikoa won’t let Talla Tonga go too, because Tama needs to deal with this.

Matt Cardona vs. Ricky Saints

Cardona backs him into the corner to start and hits a running shoulder to annoy Saints again. A running forearm in the corner and a flapjack have Saints down again and he goes to the floor to kick the barricade. We take a break and come back with Saints in control but Cardona making a quick comeback. The Reboot gets two but Saints hits a spinning Downward Spiral for the same. Cardona is right back with Radio Silence as the fans seem to be thrilled that a fan is being ejected. Saints pops up with a tornado DDT into Roshambo to finish Cardona at 8:36.

Rating: C+. This was pretty much booking 101 as Saints lost a competitive match in his debut last week but came back to win here over an established name. Saints should be fine going forward as a midcard hand and this showed he can hang in there just fine. Cardona is pretty much resigned to his fate at this point, which is kind of a shame but he had to know what he was signing up to do.

Sami Zayn is still at the funeral and ranting about how he’s losing everything…to Johnny Gargano, who is still laying there in shock. Rey Fenix comes in and Zayn can’t believe he’s here.

Brie Bella and Paige are almost crushed by a falling piece of the set and Danhausen runs by. And we move on.

Blake Monroe is still on her way here.

Here are Brie Bella and Paige for a chat. Bella talks about how there are a lot of teams coming for the titles so bring it on. Paige has heard them referred to as a retirement tour but they’ve never been better. This brings out Fatal Influence, who say the champs should be worried about them. They’re about to have all the gold but here are the Irresistible Forces to say this isn’t NXT. The fans chant for Trick Williams, with Lash Legend laughing it off. The Forces lay the champs out while Fatal Influence stares on. This brings out Rhea Ripley, who stares at Legend on her way to the ring.

The Gingerbread Man was at other classic moments.

Fatal Influence vs. Rhea Ripley/Charlotte/Alexa Bliss

Henley and Bliss start things off with Henley dodging her and getting in a little dance. Bliss knees her in the face and does her own dance, which seems more popular. Bliss’ knee drop and flipping splash get two but Henley takes her into the corner. Jayne comes in for a boot choke and Reid mocks Bliss, who rolls over and brings in Ripley to start wrecking people. The flip dive off the apron connects and we take a break.

We come back with Reid hitting a neckbreaker on Ripley, who is back with that cool kick from the mat. Charlotte gets the tag and comes in to fire off the chops. The Flair Flip in the corner lets Charlotte hit a double high crossbody and Natural Selection gets two on Jayne. Bliss comes back in but walks into a superkick, as does Charlotte. Cue Jade Cargill to pull Ripley off the apron, allowing Cargill to hit the Rolling Encore to pin Bliss at 9:56.

Rating: B-. This was a good match, with the six person formula working as it usually does. You don’t get enough six person tags, as it worked rather well, allowing multiple combinations to keep things fresh. Cargill being back is good, but I don’t really need to see her going after Ripley again, at least not immediately. At the same time, Fatal Influence, with Jayne in particular, have hit the ground running on the main roster and that is rather impressive as that’s not something everyone can do.

Post match Cargill glares Fatal Influence away. Cargill goes after Bliss but Charlotte gets back in, only to be beaten down by Michin and B-Fab. Ripley tries to make a save and is beaten down as well.

Royce Keys is on his way to the ring but runs into the Usos. They talk about their history together and warn him to stay away from the MFT’s, or risk catching the eyes of Roman Reigns.

Gingerbread Man, classic moments, again. Do you get the joke yet?

Tama Tonga vs. Royce Keys

Solo Sikoa and Talla Tonga are here with Tama, despite what Sikoa said earlier. Tama hammers away to start and gets caught in a running powerslam. Keys punches him down in the corner but Tama slips out of a suplex and goes after the leg. Tama knocks him to the floor but a slide is countered into a World’s Strongest Slam onto the apron. A missed charge sends Keys into the steps though and we take a break.

We come back with the two of them slugging it out until Tama grabs a rolling neckbreaker for two. Keys gets up to fire off some clotheslines, meaning the straps can come down. Another powerslam gets another two but Tama’s reverse DDT gets the same. The comeback is on almost immediately and Tama is clotheslined outside, where Sikoa tells Talla to let Tama figure it out. Back in and the USB (Ultimate Spinebuster) finishes Tama at 7:53.

Rating: C+. This was about Keys getting to beat a name and it worked out well enough, though Keys still needs some more ring time to really polish things up (using the same running powerslam twice in a seven minute match isn’t a good idea). At least Keys keeps winning and, for now at least, he isn’t joining the MFT’s. The team needs some new recruits, though I’m not sure if Keys is the right choice.

Danhausen goes to his laboratory, where he has some chemicals, a microwave, and a cloning machine. This would be in the “well of course he does” category.

Shinsuke Nakamura comes up to Tama Tonga and asks if he’s still an MFT. Talla Tonga comes in to warn Nakamura about talking this brother. We’re still doing this?

Backlash rundown.

Trick Williams runs into Nick Aldis, who is letting the funeral have the rest of the broadcast.

It’s time for the funeral, with the casket and a choir in the ring as Trick Williams comes out to join them. Williams pours out a drink for the Gingerbread Man and hopes he can get through this. He speaks a song (with the choir joining in) about how the Gingerbread Man was destroyed and asking if someone can tell him why.

We get a package on the life of the Gingerbread Man, including him signing with the University Of South Carolina to play football, climbing a mountain, going to various national landmarks with Williams and Lil Yachty and participating in a dunk contest. Sami Zayn comes out to say this is ridiculous and asks if he’s losing his mind for this to go on so long. Closing Smackdown used to mean something and he asks why Williams spent this much money on one idea.

Zayn gets in the ring to yell at Williams about how he’s been doing this for twenty years and isn’t leaving. Zayn decks Williams and shouts about how the title is his life. Then the Gingerbread Man gets out of the casket and it’s Lil Yachty, who beats Zayn down with a kendo stick. The Trick Shot lays Zayn out to end the show.

So Zayn was right yes? Williams spent all this time and money for the sake of knowing that Zayn would interrupt (fair) and get beaten down for fifteen seconds to end the show? That’s quite a bit of effort and resources spent for not much of a payoff. And Aldis and everyone else hates Zayn enough to go with this? This feels like something from the Vince McMahon era and that’s not a good thing to see.

Overall Rating: C. It was a good enough show for the most part, but dang I didn’t care for that ending segment. The whole thing went on way too long and the lack of a big Smackdown match at Backlash made this a bit less than thrilling. Rhodes vs. Gunther being set up (pretty much) for Clash In Italy is fine, but it doesn’t make for the best build to Backlash. Fatal Influence continues to feel like a big deal and Heyman teasing Rhodes needing him in the future is interesting, but this show didn’t really have a big moment to go out on, which hurt things a lot.

Results
Tiffany Stratton b. Kiana James – Prettiest Moonsault Ever
Talla Tonga b. Damian Priest – Chokeslam
Ricky Saints b. Matt Cardona – Roshambo
Fatal Influence b. Rhea Ripley/Charlotte/Alexa Bliss – Rolling Encore to Bliss
Royce Keys b. Tama Tonga – USB

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

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

Wrestlemania XLII Night One
Date: April 18, 2026
Location: Allegiant Stadium, Paradise, Nevada
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Michael Cole

We have arrived. After a less than great build and some questionable choices, it’s time for the biggest weekend of the wrestling year. No matter what happens here, this is a special event and we have Cody Rhodes defending the Smackdown World Title against Randy Orton in the main event. Let’s get to it.

The opening video, as narrated by Lin-Manuel-Miranda, talks about the memories and moments that are made at Wrestlemania. Years from now, our children will ask us where we were when things happened at this show. Heck of an opener here and it still worked even though it aired on Smackdown last night.

Here is John Cena as the host. He seems actually taken aback by the reception and then talks about how the Road To Wrestlemania has been rough this year. As Michael Cole has said, it’s been polarizing, but the important thing is that we’re here now. Cena getting emotional was a great thing to see as you can tell this means a lot to him.

Usos/LA Knight vs. Vision/IShowSpeed

The Usos come through the crowd and Knight comes to the stage in a customized truck. The Vision and Speed have a unique entrance of their own, as they have nine different camera angles shown at once to cover everything. We officially start and the Vision is knocked to the floor, leaving Speed alone with Knight. Speed’s headlock doesn’t work as Knight just stands up and walks around with him, sending Speed running off.

Knight stomps on Paul in the corner and it’s back to the Usos for a double elbow. Theory comes in off a blind tag though and jumps Jimmy so the villains can take over. The stomping has Jimmy in trouble but he fights back on Paul and gets over to Jey. Theory comes in as well and gets punched in the face, followed by the spear. Paul dives in for the save and everything breaks down, with Speed snapping off a headscissors. Speed accidentally knocks Paul down so Theory tells at him, only for Knight to send them into each other. The BFT finishes Theory at 7:07.

Rating: C+. It’s no classic, but it did exactly what it needed to do. They go the celebrity in there and he didn’t embarrass himself, with Knight getting the pin in the end. It’s just a basic match, but I do like the idea of taking something simple and doing it well. Nice enough here and that’s a good way to start the show.

Post match Paul yells at Speed and drops him with the metal fist. Paul loads up the announcers’ table but Jimmy and Knight make the save. Knight helps him up and Speed goes up top for the huge splash through the announcers’ table.

Drew McIntyre vs. Jacob Fatu

Unsanctioned. Fatu comes out with fire dancers while McIntyre knocks down a stone wall and walks through the hole. The entrances take a long time so Fatu dives onto McIntyre to start fast. The weapons are thrown in early on but Fatu is smart enough to knock McIntyre down again. It takes too long to get a toolbox though and McIntyre decks him from behind. A catapult sends Fatu face first into the bottom of the ring and it’s time for a table.

Actually it’s time for McIntyre to continue his tradition of tweeting during a match, which allows Fatu to fight back. A pop up Samoan drop gives Fatu two but McIntyre knocks him down again. The chair is loaded up in the corner but they both avoid going into it. Instead Fatu misses a charge and goes face first into the post, allowing McIntyre to suplex him down. McIntyre gets knocked back down though and Fatu’s triple jump moonsault connects….for two.

McIntyre finds a piece of metal to jab into Fatu’s head and then sends him onto some open chairs for two more. That’s not ok with McIntyre, who grabs the referee’s belt, only to walk into a superkick. Fatu chairs him in the back a few times and now it’s his turn with the belt. The whipping ensues so Fatu goes to grab the toolbox, allowing McIntyre to hit a Claymore for two.

McIntyre screams at the referee some more but loses a slugout with Fatu, who fires off some headbutts. Fatu puts him on a table and hits him with a chair to keep him down. That doesn’t really work either as McIntyre is right back up to hit him with a chair as well. Fatu is shoved off the top and through a table at ringside, which somehow doesn’t do much to slow him down. Back in and Fatu hits him in the head with the toolbox, setting up the triple jump moonsault through the table to finish McIntyre at 14:17.

Rating: B. That’s what this should have been, as Fatu survived everything a former multiple time World Champion threw at him and then finished him off. Some of the no selling and things that were shrugged off were a bit much, but that was how the match needed to go. Fatu gets probably the biggest win of his career and can move on to…whatever is next, just like McIntyre. Good brawl.

We run down the remaining card.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Charlotte/Alexa Bliss vs. Bella Twins vs. Irresistible Forces vs. Bayley/Lyra Valkyria

The Forces are defending, there is one from each team in at all times and it’s one fall to a finish. Actually hang on as Nikki Bella says she can’t get medically cleared so she’s called in an old friend. And PAIGE is back, which is great to see after how bad her neck has been over the years. It’s a brawl to start with Jax taking over, only to get knocked outside by Charlotte.

Brie’s chops don’t get her very far as Valkyria hits a dropkick. Back up and Brie kicks away at Valkyria and Charlotte but the tag to Paige is cut off. Legend takes Brie outside for a drop onto the apron, leaving Bayley to middle rope elbow Bliss. Legend is back in to start taking over but she gets pulled out of the corner, allowing Brie to hit a middle rope dropkick. The tag brings in Paige, who strikes away at Jax and cleans house as everything breaks down.

The Paige Turner connects with Bayley making the save. A Lash Extension hits Valkyria so another save is made. Legend is knocked outside so it’s off to Paige vs. Charlotte for a big showdown. Paige wins the slugout and gets two off a small package. Charlotte is sent outside where Nikki beats on her with the crutch. Bliss tries Twisted Bliss but hits raised knees. The Rampaige gives Paige the pin and the titles at 8:29.

Rating: C-. Well that happened. As usual, these matches are kind of all over the place and it’s just a collection of spots that only kind of tie together. The ending was all about the big moment of the Bellas and Paige getting a special win. I’m not big on the Bellas, but it is good to have Paige back. Other than that, this was just kind of a mess with way too much going on to have a coherent match.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: Becky Lynch vs. AJ Lee

Lee is defending and comes out with an army of school girls dressed like her and carrying replica belts. On the other hand, Lynch is played to the ring live for a pair of cool entrances. Lynch is ticked off to start and gets sent outside, with Lee’s dive being powerslammed into the barricade. Back in and Lynch puts her down again and goes to take the turnbuckle pad off. The referee (Jessika Carr, who has had issues with Lynch) calls her insane and ties it back up.

Lee uses the delay to fight back for two but the Black Widow is countered. Lee’s standing Sliced bread connects but the Shining Wizard is countered into a powerbomb for two. A quick Black Widow attempt is swung into the corner and the Manhandle Slam gives Lynch two. Lynch gets into it with the referee again and they shove each other, allowing Lee to grab a Manhandle Slam for two of her own.

Lee grabs the Black Widow so Lynch pulls the hair to escape. The referee checks on Lee so Lynch gets the buckle off and pulls the referee over. That’s enough of a distraction for Lee to be sent into the buckle, setting up the Manhandle Slam to give Lynch the title back at 8:18.

Rating: C+. This felt like it should have been a Raw main event more than big time Wrestlemania title match. The stuff with the referee did fit well with the story, but these two just don’t have the best chemistry. Lee can go away for a bit again and come back to do something fresh, as anything she does now is pretty much bonus money. Lynch has a bunch of people who can come after the title, so this is the right result after an ok match.

Gunther vs. Seth Rollins

Rollins’ eyes are blacked out for a cool look. Gunther jumps him from behind before the bell though and hits the dropkick into the powerbomb to send him outside. Rollins goes to the eyes when they get outside and throws some chairs at Gunther as the bell hasn’t rung yet. Rollins flips him off and they get inside, with the bell ringing and Rollins taking over. Gunther gets knocked down again and stomped in the head but knocks Rollins down for a breather.

The pace slows way down and Gunther stands on Rollins’ head before trying a delayed vertical superplex. That’s broken up though and Rollins somehow gets him up for the Buckle Bomb. It’s too early for the Stomp so Rollins hits a clothesline and they’re both down. They kick away at each other until Rollins wins a chop off, only to get powerbombed for two more.

Gunther slowly hammers away but the clothesline is countered into a failed Pedigree attempt. Rollins hits a knee but the Pedigree is blocked again, only for tries it again and connects (though it didn’t look great). A Stomp gives Rollins two but Gunther pulls him into the sleeper. Rollins manages to get out and they trade big shots, with Gunther’s clothesline putting Rollins down.

Gunther takes too long going up though and gets superplexed into a Falcon Arrow for two. Rollins gets his own sleeper to send Gunther to the ropes and then out to the floor. The suicide dive is blocked and Gunther powerbombs him onto the apron and announcers’ table. Rollins shakes that off and counters the powerbomb into a Pedigree on the table. The Stomp drives Gunther into the table…and Bron Breakker is back with a Super Spear to Rollins. Back in and the sleeper finishes Rollins at 15:53.

Rating: B+. This took time to get going but they wound up having a heck of a fight. Gunther winning is fine as Rollins can get back to Breakker, where he belongs. Gunther is probably getting ready to retire Brock Lesnar at Summerslam so he needs all the build he can get. Good match here, despite a slow start.

Post match Breakker glares at Rollins…and runs all the way down the ramp to spear him again. Breakker hugs Paul Heyman as he leaves.

We meet the Hall Of Fame class:

Hulk Hogan vs. Andre The Giant (biggest match ever so that fits)
AJ Styles (yep)
Demolition (as overdue as it gets)
Dennis Rodman (someone had to get the celebrity spot)
Sycho Sid (how was he not in already)
Bad News Brown (put him in or he might hurt you)
Stephanie McMahon (yeah she’s probably still talking too)

Raw Women’s Title: Liv Morgan vs. Stephanie Vaquer

Morgan is challenging and basically does the music video to Trouble down the ramp. Vaquer goes after after her to start and Morgan is in early trouble. The Devil’s Kiss is blocked though and Morgan is right back up with a Backstabber. Morgan loads up her own Devil’s Kiss but Vaquer is grabs an SVB for two.

Vaquer hits her own Oblivion for two but here is Roxanne Perez for the distraction, allowing Raquel Rodriguez to knock Vaquer off the top. Oblivion gives Morgan two but Vaquer is back to dive onto Rodriguez and Perez. Morgan is up to send her into the steps though and a middle rope Codebreaker knocks Vaquer silly. Another Oblivion gives Morgan the title back at 6:52.

Rating: C+. Well that was quick. I’m not sure why they were flying through this match so fast but it didn’t feel like they had time to really do anything. At the same time, Vaquer only had so much of a chance in this one as Morgan has been on fire as of late. You could only stretch that out so far, as this was pretty much all about Morgan getting her coronation and it wasn’t a secret.

Here is John Cena for the attendance announcement: 50,816. Last year both nights had over 60,000.

Hold on though as here is Bianca Belair for a surprise. Belair says they need to add one more to that list and opens her rather feathery blue attire to reveal that she’s pregnant. Yeah ok that’s awesome.

We recap Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton. They were close back in the day and Rhodes considers him his mentor. Then Orton won the Elimination Chamber to get the title shot and Rhodes wants the old Orton, who listens to those voices. Orton turned evil thanks to someone calling him, who was revealed to be Pat McAfee of all people. This resulted in Orton attacking Rhodes to quite the positive reaction and beating up Jelly Roll. Yeah see why this has been kind of a mess?

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton

Rhodes is defending and his entrance is…a lot. He has basically a museum of his previous ring gear and clips of him in it before rising up through the stage as he does for big matches. Pat McAfee is here with Orton and handles Orton’s entrance. Also of note, not counting the Big Match Intros or the pre-match video, from the time McAfee’s name appeared on the Titantron to the end of Rhodes’ music: 15:18, or 35 seconds shorter than the longest match of the show.

McAfee jumps Rhodes before the bell but Rhodes fights back and sends Orton outside. Cross Rhodes takes McAfee out and here is Jelly Roll to put him through the announcers’ table. McAfee is taken out on a stretcher as Cole talks about Orton possibly having a back injury. As McAfee is wheeled out, he gives a thumbs up in a great moment. The bell actually rings and they fight over a top wristlock, which is quite the way to go for this kind of a feud.

Back up and Orton tries the over the back backbreaker…but he’s hurt. A poke to the eye lets Orton grab a chinlock but Rhodes fights up and puts him down again. That sends Orton out to the floor for a breather so Rhodes sends him back inside for a half crab. With that broken up, Rhodes switches to a waistlock but Orton fights out and…needs some time. Orton takes him up top for a superplex and then hits the powerslam, allowing him to shake his back a bit.

The hanging DDT slows Orton down again but the RKO is blocked. Rhodes sends him outside, where Orton cuts off a suicide dive. Orton drops him onto the announcers’ table for another breather but Rhodes stops him with a posting. Back in and Rhodes starts in with a few stomps (it looks like he’s trying a Garvin Stomp but doesn’t quite know how to do it). The Disaster Kick gets two so Rhodes rubs the blood on his own chest. A hanging DDT gives Rhodes two but Orton is back with a Cross Rhodes for two of his own.

The RKO is countered into a backslide to give Rhodes two, followed by an RKO to Orton for two more. They head outside again with a ticked off Rhodes being dropped onto the announcers’ table. Back in and a quick RKO gives Orton two and they slowly slug it out. Rhodes goes to the eye so Orton RKO’s the referee but the low blow is blocked. Rhodes kicks Orton low but the Cody Cutter is countered into an RKO. Cue Pat McAfee with a referee shirt (and a neck brace) to count two. That means an RKO to McAfee, allowing Rhodes to hit Cross Rhodes to retain at 23:40.

Rating: C. Well, it got better near the end (it couldn’t have gotten much worse) and Rhodes seemingly got rid of McAfee for good so we’ll call that a win. I still have no idea what is going on or how this is supposed to make sense, but I don’t think WWE is quite sure either. This felt like “throw a bunch of stuff out there and hope they’re confused enough by the time we’re done”, which is quite the way to go for the main event. It turned into a better match near the end and that was enough to save it (kind of) but wow this was a mess.

The problem is that’s just the insanity that went with it, as you also have the majority of the match being Rhodes working on the back in slow motion. I’d assume there’s a bit of truth to Orton being hurt but nothing terrible, which just leaves me wondering why they went in this direction. It’s not some terrible match overall, but sweet goodness it’s an amazing spectacle of nuttiness.

Post match Rhodes celebrates but Orton takes the title from him. A belt shot drops Rhodes and Orton Punts him before holding the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was ok enough for the most part, but as usual these two night Wrestlemanias just feel incomplete when you watch them this way. It’s a mixture of there being too much for one night but not enough for two and that leaves you with stuff like this, with short matches and some very questionable nuttiness.

Rollins vs. Gunther and Fatu vs. McIntyre were both good, but wow those things were few and far between. It’s not awful, but as usual it leaves you with a “that’s it?” feeling as there is so much left tomorrow. Overall, the good outweighs the bad and….whatever that main event was supposed to be, but just barely.

Results
LA Knight/Usos b. IShowSpeed/Vision – BFT to Theory
Jacob Fatu b. Drew McIntyre – Triple jump moonsault through a table
Brie Bella/Paige b. Irresistible Forces, Bayley/Lyra Valkyria and Charlotte/Alexa Bliss – Rampaige to Bliss
Becky Lynch b. AJ Lee – Manhandle Slam
Gunther b. Seth Rollins – Sleeper
Liv Morgan b. Stephanie Vaquer – Manhandle Slam
Cody Rhodes b. Randy Orton – Cross Rhodes

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

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

Well, here we go. It’s the biggest weekend of the year and…yeah the build for this one hasn’t been great. There are good parts to it, but a lot of what we’ve been seeing has been a bit less than a success. The ticket sales haven’t been great either, likely due to a variety of reasons. Hopefully they can make the wrestling side of things work and that’s what we’re looking at here. Let’s get to it.

Vision/IShowSpeed vs. Usos/LA Knight

So we’re starting with the celebrity match as Speed is dealing with Danhausen’s curse (assuming there is one) and accidentally got himself into this match as a result. Speed thinks he’s ready despite not being a wrestler, though almost everyone else thinks he’s going to get destroyed. This feels like a way to just get people on the show and I’ll take that over some multiman mess.

In theory (as opposed to Theory), this is one sided on paper and while Speed will get to do a thing or two, I can’t possibly imagine the villains win. I’ll take Knight and the Usos winning here as a way to get the crowd going in the right way. They’re a combination of popular stars against some unliked villains and that should be a simple enough formula. Knight and the Usos win a fun one here.

Jacob Fatu vs. Drew McIntyre

For the second year in a row, McIntyre is in a match with a monster which should be incredibly physical. Last year it was a street fight and this year it’s unsanctioned, meaning things should get nuts. That’s where Fatu should thrive and McIntyre can more than hang in a hard hitting match. They hate each other over previous brawls and it’s time for revenge all around.

I’ll go with Fatu here, as he needs the win a lot more than McIntyre, who has had all kinds of moments. Fatu is getting a chance for his first big personal feud match on the major stage and it wouldn’t make a ton of sense to have him lose. These two should beat the fire out of each other until one of them can’t get up anymore and in this case, the one who can’t get up should be McIntyre.

Women’s Intercontinental Title: AJ Lee(c) vs. Becky Lynch

This feud has shown just how good Lynch can be when she goes insane and acts like a raving lunatic, but she has more recently switched into someone who just wants her title back. On the other hand you have Lee, who returned last week and is basically playing with the house’s money. That makes for a good enough story, as this feels like a personal feud where two people want to get at each other, however they choose to do that.

I’m really not sure who wins this one. Lee is doing well in her return and while it makes sense for her to keep it going, I’m not sure I can imagine Lynch losing again. I’ll go with a tentative pick of Lee winning, but this one has me rather confused. It could go either way and while that is usually a good feeling, I’m really not sure how this is going to go. It might wind up being one of the weaker matches, though we’ll say Lee retains either way.

Raw Women’s Title: Stephanie Vaquer(c) vs. Liv Morgan

Morgan won the Royal Rumble (after coming close so many times) and it wasn’t clear which champion she would choose. Eventually she and Vaquer argued enough that Morgan made her choice and it’s turned into a heck of a heated feud, as Morgan seems ready to smash through Vaquer. At the same time Vaquer is just kind of there, feeling like a total afterthought most of the time.

In what might be the easiest pick of the weekend, I’ll take Morgan to win the title here. There is pretty much no reason to believe that Vaquer is going to keep the title. As much as I like Vaquer, Morgan is just that much bigger of a star and it fits so much more to have her win. It’s a good match, but the fans want to cheer Morgan and they’ll get a chance when she wins the title here.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Irresistible Forces(c) vs. Charlotte/Alexa Bliss vs. Bayley/Lyra Valkyria vs. Bella Twins

So here we have a question mark, as Nikki Bella is injured and might not be able to work the match. That leaves things a lot more wide open, as the Bellas winning the titles felt like the logical ending. If they can’t go though, it makes things a lot more interesting. It helps that you have three teams who could all conceivably leave as champions and the match has been put together rather well.

I’ll throw in an asterisk here, saying that if the Bellas are in then they win, but if they aren’t then the champions retain. The good thing here is I could easily see any of them leaving with the titles, which is more than you get to say about a lot of matches. Bayley and Valkyria feel like dark horses, but I’ll take the Bellas as the favorites but the Forces as the best alternative option. Somehow, this is one of the best built matches on the card and that’s a nice thing to see.

Seth Rollins vs. Gunther

Gunther jumped Rollins to save Paul Heyman a few weeks back, setting up the proverbial “you owe me a favor”. While that sounds like Gunther vs. Brock Lesnar in the latter’s retirement match this year at Summerslam, there is a bit more to it. Gunther has said that he wants to face Rollins because Rollins was all goofy while Gunther wanted to face the best competition in the world and it offended him. That might sound a bit ridiculous, but it makes complete sense for Gunther.

As for a winner…geez this could go either way. Rollins is fresh off his injury and in theory you would want to see him get the big win, but I’m also not sure how logical it is to have Gunther lose here. I’ll go with Rollins winning, as in theory Gunther will be rebuilt on his way to the match with Lesnar (assuming it happens, which it should) later on this year. This could go either way though and it has a lot of potential to be awesome.

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes(c) vs. Randy Orton

We had to get here eventually. This is a match that was going in a weird direction as the fans did not want to boo Orton no matter what. Then Pat McAfee was revealed to be the man influencing Orton and…well they still wouldn’t boo Orton, but they certainly would boo McAfee. I’m not even sure if WWE knows what they’re doing with this story but it’s what we’re getting for a main event. There is also a stipulation that if Orton doesn’t win, McAfee leaves wrestling. Just in case you needed anything to tip this further.

Yeah of course I’m taking Orton here, as there is no reason to suggest that Rhodes retains and gets rid of McAfee. Rhodes has been in something of a holding pattern for a long time as he isn’t doing anything different lately and that needs a shake up. The fans want to see Orton win and while I’m not sure where it goes after that, Orton should win here and move on to whatever he’s doing next.

Overall Thoughts

As risky as it might be to say this, I’m kind of digging this show’s card. They’ve got some interesting stuff here and if these matches deliver, it could be an awesome first half. That being said, the main event has all the signs of being a train wreck and could drag things way down. We’ll call this one cautious optimism though and hope for the best, which has gotten me in trouble before.

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

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

Wrestlemania XLI Night One
Date: April 19, 2025
Location: Allegiant Stadium, Paradise, Nevada
Attendance: 58,538
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett, Pat McAfee
God Bless America: Jelly Roll

It’s kind of hard to fathom that we’re a whole year removed from this show but here we are again. The show is in (or near) Las Vegas and as usual it’s a double night spectacle, with the first main event seeing Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins vs. CM Punk in a rare non-title match. Gunther vs. Jey Uso will handle the title match aspect so let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the influence of Wrestlemania and how many people talk about wrestling. HHH narrates about these legendary stories, but sometimes they’re true.

Here is HHH to welcome us to the show and let us know we are being seen worldwide.

A DJ and some dancers are here.

Raw World Title: Jey Uso vs. Gunther

Uso is challenging after winning the Royal Rumble. We get some people waving YEET flags on the ramp and the Las Vegas Raiderettes as Uso comes into the stadium with tens of thousands of people doing the YEET dance. There is a great shot from just over Uso’s shoulder showing what he’s seeing and my goodness it’s always cool to see this kind of thing happening because of one person.

After they Big Match Intros, they take their time to start until Gunther powers him into the corner. That earns Gunther a heck of a shot to the face to send him outside. Back in and Gunther takes him down with a headlock takeover, which doesn’t last long either. The threat of an enziguri sends Gunther outside again and we slow back down. Gunther gets back in and Uso grabs a slam before going up, where Gunther chops his soul out to the floor.

The slow chopping ensues but Uso hits a quick spear for two. Gunther is back up to try a powerbomb, which is countered into a Samoan drop. Uso goes up again and gets superplexed down, setting up the powerbomb for two. That leaves Gunther more than a bit surprised and Uso spears his way out of trouble again. The Superfly Splash gives Uso two so Gunther teases walking out.

It’s enough of a distraction for Gunther to get in a belt shot and the top rope splash for two. NOW Gunther is getting serious and we hit the sleeper. Somehow Uso makes the rope and Gunther is just mad. Uso is down in the corner so Gunther chops him anyway, which has Uso laughing (must be a family thing).

More chops don’t keep Uso down as he comes back with a headbutt. Uso has to counter a sleeper into a German suplex but Gunther is right back with the big dropkick. Another powerbomb is countered into one from Uso though and he drops Gunther with a spear. Back to back to back Superfly Splashes set up a sleeper and Gunther actually taps (and quickly too) to make Uso champion at 16:20.

Rating: B. This turned into a heck of a match with Uso throwing everything back at Gunther and beating him at his own game. At the same time, I couldn’t believe that Uso actually won the title but that is exactly what happened. They made a new big star with a clean submission in the middle of the ring. Good opener here but an awesome moment which had to happen after the way Uso was built up in the previous weeks.

Post match Jimmy Uso is the first person out to celebrate with Jey and they leave through the crowd.

We recap the War Raiders defending the Raw Tag Team Titles against the New Day. After New Day had some issues, Big E. tried to get them back on the right track but they turned him down, with New Day’s heel turned earning them a full on shunning from the crowd. This included their FAMILIES, as everyone hated them over their actions, down to Kofi Kingston’s mother walking out on him. They got a title shot anyway so here we go.

Raw Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. War Raiders

New Day is challenging and jump the champs tost art fast. Erik doesn’t care for being punched in the face and rams Kingston into Woods. That’s enough to send New Day outside, where Erik slams Ivar onto the two of them. Ivar crushes both of them against the ring video board and it’s back to Erik vs. Woods inside.

A belly to back suplex/top rope splash combination gets two on Woods but he’s able to cut off Erik’s dive. Kingston adds a top rope backsplash to Erik and we settle down to Kingston hammering away. Woods’ top rope double stomp hits Erik in the ropes but Erik fights out of the corner. It’s back to Ivar to clean house, including sitting on Kingston’s chest out of the corner. Kingston comes back with a spinning kick to the head but Ivar runs Kingston over without much trouble.

The Honor Roll connects for Woods and the Daybreak is loaded up. Erik cuts that one off and Erik kicks Kingston in the face. The Doomsault hits Kingston so Woods makes the save with the Limit Break Elbow. Another Honor Roll is broken up though and Erik hits a heck of a running knee. The springboard clothesline/German suplex combination is broken up though and the Daybreak finishes Ivar for the pin (with Kingston holding the leg) and the titles at 9:17.

Rating: B-. This was better than I remembered, though that might be due to not having to watch a dull build up to the match. The tag division was just nothing and unfortunately there wasn’t much of a reason to care. The big heel turn came from the turn on Big E., but that was several months ago. You can only get so far after that much time and it didn’t help that Big E. had no involvement. It’s a rare case where the time has helped a lot and that’s a nice relief.

Post match New Day runs out before they get destroyed again.

We recap Jade Cargill vs. Naomi. Last fall, someone attacked Cargill and put her out of actions for months. She came back at Elimination Chamber and it wound out that it was Naomi. Cargill was ready to wreck Naomi, while Bianca Belair was rather upset by everything Naomi did too. Now, as expected, it’s time for revenge.

Naomi vs. Jade Cargill

We get a celebrity cameo as….a meteorologist from the Weather Channel says we have a perfect storm in Las Vegas. From Muhammad Ali to this people. Cargill powers her into the corner to start and gets in a slam off the top. Naomi gets in a shot to the eyes though and snaps the throat across the ropes. A ram into the steps has Cargill staggered, with Naomi hitting a Blockbuster onto the floor.

Back in and Naomi grabs a chinlock while cranking on the arm as well. Cargill gets up and tosses her into the corner for a splash but charges into a raised boot. Naomi tries another Blockbuster but gets pulled out of the air into a Jackhammer, because that’s something a human can do.

Naomi fights back and goes up again but gets caught again. This time Naomi is able to bulldog Cargill off the top though and a split legged moonsault gives Cargill two. Jaded is reversed into a rollup and Cargill powers out of the Rings Of Saturn. Cargill pulls her into an electric chair and spins it into a powerbomb, followed by Jaded for the pin at 9:25.

Rating: B-. There were some sloppy moments in there, but Cargill looked like an absolute star. The power game she has is off the charts and she looks like a Greek statue come to life. Naomi was in over her head here with the power and athleticism, as the experience wasn’t enough to carry her. Nice stuff here, as Cargill felt like a monster in a great way.

We recap LA Knight vs. Jacob Fatu. Knight is the very popular US Champion and Fatu is the new smashing machine. I don’t know Knight’s chances.

US Title: LA Knight vs. Jacob Fatu

Fatu is challenging and Knight rides onto the stage in a rather expensive looking card. Knight grabs a neckbreaker for two but Fatu grabs a backbreaker to take over. The pace slows down a lot with Fatu hammering away, only to be knocked outside. Knight’s dropkick through the ropes connects but Fatu suplexes him out of the air for two back inside. The running backsplash hits raised knees though and Knight hits a standing top rope elbow for two.

Fatu runs him right back over and goes up, with Knight breaking up the moonsault. That lets Knight grab a top rope flipping German superplex for the big crash as Fatu is actually reeling. Naturally he shrugs that off and huts the running Umaga Attack in the corner, followed by a Swanton for two more. The triple jump moonsault is loaded up but Knight grabs him out of the air with the BFT (and nailed it) for the rather near fall. Knight is stunned and goes up, only to get Samoan dropped down. A pair of moonsaults makes Fatu champion at 10:40.

Rating: B-. That BFT alone made this one pretty memorable as the timing required to make that work was outstanding. At the same time, it made a lot more sense to have Fatu win here as he’s the kind of monster who had to win something at some point. It came after a good enough match too, with Fatu getting through to the next level, which Knight needs to do again.

We recap El Grande Americano vs. Rey Fenix. Americano is basically mocking the idea of lucha libre and Mysterio doesn’t like it so it’s time to stand up for the sport’s heritage. Chad Gable has been accused of being Americano but insists it is NOT him. Then Mysterio got hurt and he’s replaced by Rey Fenix. This needs more Mike Tenay’s Lucha Libre And The Mexican Luchadors.

El Grande Americano vs. Rey Fenix

Americano gets the sepia tone entrance ala the old newsreels about his career and is played in by a mariachi band. Hold on though as Americano goes outside and gets into it with AAA’s El Hijo de Vikingo, who kicks him in the head. Americano gets back inside for the opening bell and a hurricanrana for two.

They fight over a test of strength and go to the mat for a double bridge up. Fenix’s super hurricanrana sets up a missile dropkick to put Americano on the floor, meaning the big dive can follow. As commentary continues to bicker about whether it’s Americano or Gable, he suplexes Fenix for two but gets kicked in the face for his efforts. Back up and Americano LAUNCHES him into the corner with an overhead belly to belly for the huge crash.

A moonsault backsplash (commentary tries to figure out the degrees) hits Fenix for two more and Americano goes after the mask. That earns him a hurricanrana and the mask is loaded up. Fenix tries a springboard kick and hitsthe metal in the mask to leave him injured. The ankle lock goes on but Fenix rolls his way out. That means a springboard headbutt hits Americano but with Gable getting knocked out. A loaded Swan Dive finishes Fenix at 7:57.

Rating: C+. This was more about getting Americano on the show but it would have made a lot more sense against Mysterio. At the same time, this was about as good of an option as they had as a substitute, with Fenix being able to fly around so well. Americano had to win as he was still a pretty new idea and the goofiness was still working rather well.

Post match Vikingo checks on Fenix.

We look at the WWE Bought AAA announcement from earlier.

Here is Shawn Michaels to announce the attendance: 61,467. The number being written on the card in big numbers is rather amusing.

We see some celebrities, including UFC CEO Dana White for the second time.

We recap Charlotte challenging Tiffany Stratton for the Smackdown Women’s Title. Charlotte won the Royal Rumble and Stratton is rather cocky and believes she deserves everything she has. Charlotte also has her usual “I’m awesome” going and they’ve been rather nasty to each other in recent weeks.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Tiffany Stratton vs. Charlotte

Charlotte is challenging. Stratton has a rather cool entrance where she appears as three different kinds of Barbies in big pink boxes and walks out of the middle one. Charlotte charges at her to start and they go to the mat to slug it out. The fight goes outside with Charlotte still in control but Stratton gets in a shot to take over.

Back in and the Flair Flip is broken up with a running elbow and a double stomp takes Charlotte out of the corner for two. They head outside with Charlotte dropping her onto the barricade and then the apron as things slow down. Charlotte takes her back inside for what would become the Devi’s Kiss, followed by the rolling figure four neck lock rolling slams. The Liontamer goes on until Stratton reverses into a rollup for two.

Some handspring elbows connect for Stratton in the corner but Charlotte gets in a neck snap across the top rope. Stratton knocks her back down but the moonsault hits knees. Instead Stratton hits a basement dropkick for two and we pause for a double breather. A big boot gives Charlotte two and they chop it out with Stratton winning the exchange of strikes. Stratton misses a charge in the ropes though and Charlotte kicks her down.

Natural Selection is blocked though and Charlotte hits a nice sitout powerbomb for two. Stratton catches her up top and hits a spinebuster for two and they’re both down again. A high crossbody hits Charlotte but she’s able to knee Stratton outside. The moonsault to the floor is broken up though and Charlotte’s recently repaired knee is banged up. Stratton kicks away at the leg so Charlotte kicks away at the head for two.

Charlotte wraps Stratton’s knee around the post and crashes down onto it in the corner. The Figure Four goes on but Stratton gets smart by hammering on the bad knee to escape. Stratton’s Prettiest Moonsault Ever hits raised knees so the banged up Charlotte gets two and they’re both down again. Charlotte goes up and knocks her off the top, setting up a super Natural Selection for two. Another Figure Eight attempt is blocked and Charlotte misses a charge into the corner. An Alabama Slam sends Charlotte into the corner and the Prettiest Moonsault Ever retains the title at 19:12.

Rating: B. They accomplished the big goal here by having Stratton win over the most successful star in women’s wrestling history. Stratton was a star but needed something like this to really make her feel like a bigger name. She’s a big part of the new generation of women’s wrestling and Charlotte put her over, which happened to come after quite the athletic display. They worked well enough together and the result was the right call.

We look at the Hall Of Fame induction ceremony.

Here is the class:

Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin from Wrestlemania XIII (doesn’t get much better than that)
Natural Disasters (they needed a tag team)
Michelle McCool (you knew it was coming)
HHH (that’s a top level headliner)

That’s about as much of a mixed bag as you can get but I do like the smaller number. Lex Luger was also in the class but apparently suffered a fall the morning of the show and couldn’t be there.

Iyo Sky was on the Goodyear Blimp over Las Vegas.

We recap Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins vs. CM Punk. Reigns and Rollins have a long history due to the Shield and subsequent betrayals, while Punk is here because he hates both of them. The match has been made, with the caveat that Punk is FINALLY a Wrestlemania main eventer. As a bonus, Paul Heyman is in Punk’s corner to pay back the favor owed to Punk for being on Reigns’ team at Survivor Series. They also had a big fight at the Royal Rumble and then Reigns cost Punk a cage match against Rollins.

Seth Rollins vs. CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns

Rollins has a flamethrower, Reigns has white shoes and Punk has Heyman. Advantage: Reigns. Punk also gets a special video on his career, showing his rise from OVW to ECW to Raw and all the way to the main event. Tonight is his night and his main event. Yeah that’s well deserved after it was such a big deal to him. And of course Punk is played to the ring because we need to stretch this out even longer.

The bell rings and Punk heads outside to chat with Heyman, leaving Reigns to go after Rollins. Punk gets back in and Reigns clotheslines both of them, including one to send Punk outside. Reigns gets posted and suicide dived, with Rollins sending him into the steps. Punk and Rollins go into the crowd with Punk firing off some chair shots to take over. That’s broken up with a metal stand to the ribs and a trashcan to Punk’s head but he suplexes Rollins onto a trashcan.

They head back towards ringside, where Reigns dives over the barricade to take them both out. Reigns loads up the announcers’ table (Heyman is worried) but instead takes Punk back inside for a Samoan drop. Punk fights back and cuts Reigns off, which brings Punk quite the smile. Punk’s running knees in the corner set up a DDT/neckbreaker combination to drop both of them.

The top rope elbow hits Rollins but he’s able to catch Punk on top. Reigns breaks that up and gets Rollins on his shoulder, setting up Punk as Hawk in a Doomsday Device. Reigns and Punk slug it out with Punk getting the Anaconda Vice. Rollins dives in with a suicide dive to make the save and even covers Reigns for two. Back up and Rollins hits a buckle bomb to both of them but Punk tries the GTS.

That’s broken up by Reigns’ spear but Rollins reverses another into a Pedigree (they LOVE that spot). A Stomp connects but Rollins stops to get rid of Punk, allowing Reigns to kick out. Rollins’ phoenix splash misses Reigns so he spears Rollins down. A quick GTS gives Punk two on Reigns as Heyman is looking frustrated. Rollins is back in with a Pedigree for two on Punk, allowing him to yell at Reigns about how useless Reigns is without him. Rollins goes outside and the other announcers’ table is loaded up.

Rollins teases the DoubleBomb but Reigns punches him in the face and powerbombs Punk through the table. Rollins is powerbombed through the other but the spear to Rollins is only good for two. Reigns yells at Heyman about the favor and then grabs a guillotine choke on Punk, even jumping up onto him. That’s reversed into the Anaconda Vice but Rollins is in with a Sharpshooter to Punk. Reigns breaks that up with the guillotine, which is broken up for a GTS to Rollins. Heyman is now sitting on the steps as only Punk can get up.

Another GTS hits Rollins but Reigns spears Punk, only to get Stomped by Rollins to leave everyone down. That’s enough for Heyman to grab a chair, but he isn’t sure if he should give it to Punk or Reigns. He slides it to Punk and gets in the ring (and you can see it coming from here).

The chair shot is loaded up and it’s a low blow to Punk, leaving Reigns smiling (those are some amazingly white teeth). Heyman offers Reigns the chair so he can go after Punk but points Reigns at Rollins. Reigns loads up the chair and of course Heyman hits him low as well, revealing his real allegiance. Rollins gets the chair and blasts Reigns in the back (there’s your call back), setting up a Stomp for the pin at 32:41.

Rating: B+. This went on for a good while but once they started trading finishes, it got rather good. The question became how Heyman would get involved, but at the same time the action they had was rather good. It was a grudge match built around the idea of Heyman making his choice in the end, with everyone hating each other and wanting to beat the living daylights out of each other on the way there. I’m not sure if it’s a classic Wrestlemania main event, but dang it wound up working.

Overall Rating: B. I did like it and it feels like a big show, though I’m not sure if it felt all the way up to a Wrestlemania level show. The main event was rather great and most of the rest of the show worked, though the Americano vs. Fenix match could have probably been dropped. For a first half of the biggest show of the year it’s good enough, but it needed that one great match to put it up to the next level.

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Wrestlemania XXXIX Night Two
Date: April 2, 2023
Location: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves
Attendance: 67,553
America The Beautiful: Jimmie Allen

After a rather long intermission, we’re ready to wrap up the show and this night has a lot to live up to. The first night was outstanding and now we have the real main event, as Roman Reigns defends the WWE Universal Title against Cody Rhodes. In addition, Gunther defends the Intercontinental Title against Sheamus and Drew McIntyre and we have a Cell match as a bonus. Let’s get to it.

Jimmie Allen sings America The Beautiful.

Kevin Hart gives us the cold open again, this time talking about how the sequel has to be bigger and better. Points for not just redoing the same video from the night before and keeping up with the theme.

Miz and Snoop Dogg welcome us to the show with a quick recap and preview. Snoop is ready to get us going.

Brock Lesnar vs. Omos

The story here is that Lesnar can’t overpower Omos (with MVP). Seriously that’s about it. Lesnar can’t double leg him to start and gets tossed around. Running shoulders don’t do much for Lesnar so Omos hits a headbutt and grabs a slam. Omos throws him around again and hits some forearms to the back. We hit the bearhug, followed by another slam, and another bearhug to keep Lesnar in trouble. Lesnar fights out and is quickly chokeslammed for a near fall. Back up and Lesnar rolls some German suplexes but his back gives out on the F5 attempt. Then Lesnar hits the F5 for the pin at 4:56.

Rating: C-. Well they definitely did the right thing in keeping this short, as the whole thing was about Lesnar doing his power moves but not doing them all that well because Omos is that big. It’s a very basic story and while Omos got in some impressive stuff, it felt more like a way to get Lesnar on the show more than anything else (which granted that’s more or less what it was). Not a great match but the fans liked the big throws so points for that.

Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez vs. Natalya/Shotzi vs. Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville vs. Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler

It’s the women’s match of the showcase tag match from last night. Baszler and Rousey (the bullies) didn’t have to qualify here and were just thrown into the match. Morgan Backstabbers Sonya to start and a one kneed Codebreaker makes it even worse. Natalya comes in for the sling shot belly to back drop. The basement dropkick puts Morgan down again but she hurricanranas her way to freedom.

Rodriguez comes in and gets to throw Natalya around, leaving Natalya to hand it off to Green. A missile dropkick has no effect so Sonya comes back in, allowing Green to grab some hair. Shotzi comes in so Baszler throws her outside, where Rousey is waiting on her. That leaves Baszler to get caught in a triplebomb, meaning Rousey has to get on the apron…but the three on one is broken up by Green and Sonya.

Shotzi dives onto people in the ring and on the floor, but Green stops to tell us to get our cameras ready. Rather than face Rodriguez, Green dives onto a bunch of people at ringside. With no one else left inside, Rodriguez powerbombs Morgan onto the pile for the big crash. Back in and Rodriguez fall away slams Shotzi, setting up the corkscrew Vader Bomb. Sonya comes in for the save though and some double teaming puts Rodriguez on the floor.

Green and Sonya celebrate until Natalya and Shotzi are back in for an assisted double Sliced Bread. A Hart Attack gets two on Sonya with Green making the save. There’s the double Sharpshooter to Sonya and Green until Morgan dives off the top for the save. Morgan takes Shotzi down but Rousey and Baszler (now with one boot and limping) come back in to break it up. Rousey armbars Shotzi for the win at 8:22.

Rating: C+. I don’t know if Baszler’s injury put she and Rousey on the floor for so long but they were almost not around whatsoever for a good chunk of the match. The match was pretty similar to its male counterpart but two of these teams felt thrown together and it hurt a lot. Rousey and Baszler winning should set them up as the monsters of the division and they would win the Tag Team Titles in about a month and a half…after Rodriguez and Morgan won them first. As usual, those things are a mess.

We look at Bobby Lashley winning the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal on Smackdown.

Lashley comes out and shows off the trophy.

Xavier Woods and UpUpDownDown preview the Intercontinental Title match.

We recap Sheamus vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Gunther for the latter’s Intercontinental Title. Gunther is a monster champion and his fellow Europeans want to hit him really hard and win the title. Sheamus and McIntyre are friends but both want the title, meaning they’re willing to fight each other. This falls into the “do we need to draw you a picture here” category. It also falls into the “we saw this video (or something really similar to it) last night” category.

Intercontinental Title: Sheamus vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Gunther

Gunther is defending and Titus O’Neil is on commentary. Sheamus and McIntyre waste no time in knocking the champ to the floor before starting to lay into each other. Sheamus hits a clothesline and takes McIntyre into the corner for some uppercuts. McIntyre is sent to the apron for the forearms but Gunther is back up with chops for both of them. Gunther sends McIntyre into the post for a crash out to the floor, followed by a big boot to Sheamus’ face.

The Boston crab has Sheamus in more trouble until McIntyre comes in to break it up. McIntyre and Gunther chop it out (and they’re loud chops too) but Sheamus is back in with the uppercuts all around. With Gunther getting back up, Sheamus ties him in the ropes for the forearms to the chest, mixed in with chops from McIntyre. That leaves Gunther down so Sheamus ties McIntyre up in the ropes for almost thirty forearms to the chest.

Gunther is back in to break up the Celtic Cross though and a German suplex drops Sheamus again. The big clothesline gives Gunther two but McIntyre is back up to suplex Sheamus into Sheamus in the corner. There’s a Futureshock to Gunther but the Claymore misses. Gunther powerbombs McIntyre down and goes up but Sheamus is right there with a super White Noise. The Celtic Cross sets up the Cloverleaf so Gunther makes the rope, which means nothing because it’s No DQ.

Sheamus lets go and puts the hold back on anyway, only to have McIntyre come in for the break. That doesn’t go well either as Sheamus knees both of them down but McIntyre cuts off the Brogue Kick. McIntyre headbutts him out to the floor and busts out the big flip dive, leaving everyone down on the floor. Cole to O’Neil: “You never did that!” O’Neil: “AND I NEVER WILL!”

Back in and Sheamus Brogue Kicks McIntyre for two, followed by the Claymore to give McIntyre two of his own. Sheamus drops McIntyre again and covers but Gunther dives in with a top rope splash. Gunther’s powerbomb to Sheamus onto McIntyre leaves them both down, followed by another powerbomb to pin McIntyre and retain at 16:35.

Rating: A. It’s rare that I’ll watch a match back on its own but I’ve seen this one more than a few times now as it’s that kind of brutal. These guys beat the fire out of each other and that is exactly how it was advertised. They didn’t stop and for once it felt like three people having a match. There were stretches where it was two in and one out, but it was a brutal and hard hitting enough match to make up for it. Excellent stuff here, as you probably should have expected.

WWE did charity work this week.

We recap Asuka vs. Bianca Belair for the latter’s Raw Women’s Title. Belair won the title last year at Wrestlemania and has become a huge star during her reign. Then Asuka showed up as an evil clown and Belair is all scared, at least somewhat due to Asuka spraying her with the mist over and over. It’s a simple story but it didn’t exactly work and this never felt like a big feud.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Asuka

Asuka is challenging and comes out with a team of masked Asukas, while Belair counters with an all girl kids dance troupe. Eh point to the champ. Belair kicks her down at the bell and hits a dropkick into the corner, setting up the right hands. That’s broken up and Asuka kicks her down, setting up the big missed kick to the head. Asuka puts her on top but Belair flips over her and hits a spinebuster for a fast two.

Something close to a triangle choke has Belair in trouble before Asuka switches to the Asuka Lock. It’s not on quite full though and Belair rolls outside, where she PLANTS Asuka with a sitout powerbomb. Back in and Belair misses a charge into the post, allowing Asuka to pull her into a heel hook. Belair powers out but Asuka grabs an ankle lock, which is rolled away for the break. Asuka is right back up with a missile dropkick for two and things slow down a bit.

They go to the apron where Asuka hits a hard dropkick into the post. Belair sends her into the post to even things up a bit, setting up a deadlift superplex to bring them back inside. Asuka’s kick to the face gets two but a Codebreaker is blocked. A running Blockbuster into a handspring moonsault gives Belair two and frustration is setting in. They go to the corner with Asuka slipping out of a fireman’s carry and hitting a Codebreaker for two of her own. Back up and the mist misses but Asuka slips out of the KOD. The cross armbreaker doesn’t quite work for Asuka though and Belair powers up for the

Rating: B-. This was good but it never hit that next level, save for maybe the final sequence. The story just wasn’t that compelling coming in and it didn’t really feel like a major showdown. Belair retaining the title over a top level challenge is good though as beating Asuka is still an impressive feat.

We look at Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens beating the Usos for the Tag Team Titles in Night One’s main event.

Here are Miz and Snoop Dogg to announce tonight’s attendance of 81,395, giving us a two day total of 161,892. That’s great, but Miz isn’t happy with Snoop for putting him into an impromptu match last night. Dogg: “So you want to do it again?” Of course not, because Miz doesn’t like being humiliated in his town. Snoop says this is the people’s city and introduces….Shane McMahon, because SHANE MUST BE A THING. Shane thanks the fans and sounds like he can barely breathe after his entrance. Time for a match

Shane McMahon vs. Miz

Shane punches him in the corner and yeah they’re as bad as before. Then he drops down, leapfrogs over Miz and….tears his quad on the landing less than thirty seconds in. That brings Snoop in to hit Miz in the face and apparently we have a replacement. Snoop knocks him down again and drops a People’s Elbow for the pin at 2:11. This seems to have been completely impromptu with either the referee telling Snoop to get in there or Snoop coming up with the idea on his own. Either way, major points to Snoop who had no idea what he was doing and gave the fans a very fun moment out of nowhere.

We recap Edge vs. the Demon Finn Balor inside the Cell. Balor threw Edge out of the Judgment Day the night he joined, setting off a feud between the two of them. This led to Judgment Day attacking both Edge and his wife Beth Phoenix, meaning it’s time for the big, violent fight.

The Cell is lowered and we get a voiceover (from Russell Crowe of all people, as part of a movie tie-in) talking about how evil it is as well.

Edge vs. Finn Balor

Inside the Cell and this is Brood Edge (and yes, his Titantron literally says BROOD EDGE), who comes out of the Brood ring of fire with a shiny mask that makes him look like the Terminator while wearing wings, against the Demon. They waste no time in getting the weapons, with Edge grabbing a red chair and Balor grabbing a purple kendo stick (because not only do you need weapons in the Cell, but you need COLOR COORDINATED weapons).

Balor gets the better of things and knocks him to the floor, only to get hammered back inside. Edge knocks him off the apron and grabs a bunch of kendo sticks (two purple, one red), some of which he uses to pin Balor into the corner of the Cell. A dropkick off the apron hits Balor to make it worse, meaning it’s time to set up the table. Balor uses the delay to get out and sends Edge hard into the steps. They get back inside where Edge hits a quick Impaler but the spear is countered with a Sling Blade.

They go outside with Balor being dropkicked through a table, only to come back in with an Unprettier. The Edge-O-Matic gets two more and it’s time to grab a ladder. Edge throws said ladder at Balor’s face and Balor is busted open BAD, meaning we pause for the medic to come inside to check on him (this led to a hilarious reaction from Mick Foley, because apparently YOU CAN PAUSE A CELL MATCH DUE TO AN INJURY).

Edge uses the delay to get a bunch of weapons ready but Balor is back up with 1916. The spear only hits ladder and Balor hits another Slind Blade. Coup de Grace connects for two and Balor climbs the ladder, only to get countered into a super Edgecution for a slightly delayed two.

That takes too long again and Balor is back up with his own weapons shots, including a bunch of chair shots to Edge. Balor climbs up but instead climbs the cage and gets onto the camera platform. This adds a full nine inched above the top rope but the Coup De Grace only hits table. Edge’s spear gets two so he unloads with chair shots to the back. The Conchairto finishes Balor at 18:10.

Rating: B-. This was the modern Cell match and that is not a good thing for the most part. The bell rang and they went straight for the weapons, which didn’t exactly make the Cell itself feel important. It was a violent and hard hitting match but other than one or two spots, I’m not sure how much the Cell was needed. Either use the Cell or don’t, because this was a street fight with the cage blocking the camera view.

We look at the Wrestlemania trailers.

Backlash is coming to Puerto Rico. You should too!

We look at the Hall Of Fame induction ceremony.

Here is the class in the stadium:

Stacy Keibler (who has not aged a day)
Andy Kaufman (represented by his family)
Great Muta (that’s a nice addition)
Tim White (Warrior Award, and his brother looks identical to him)
Rey Mysterio (that’s about as perfect of a choice for an active headliner as you could pick)

Mysterio shakes the other inductees’ hands (bowing to Muta).

We look at Set Rollins’ entrance from last night. Feel free to get on with the show at any time.

We recap Roman Reigns defending the WWE Universal Title against Cody Rhodes. The big idea here is Rhodes wants to finish his story, meaning winning the title in his dad’s honor while also completing his long rise to the top of WWE. Reigns has been champion for two and a half years and isn’t going away that fast, so it’s time for the big showdown. It feels like a main event and Cody is almost the last man standing to fight Reigns.

Smackdown World Title: Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns

Reigns is defending and has Paul Heyman/Solo Sikoa with him. Rhodes gets his big entrance and goes over to say hi to his family, including giving his weightlifting belt to an unmasked Negative One (the son of the late Brody Lee, who makes occasional AEW appearances). Reigns gets a special entrance of his own, with a team of pianists playing the start of his entrance live. We get an ACKNOWLEDGE ME from Reigns before the bell finally rings.

Rhodes hammerlocks him over to the ropes to start and Reigns isn’t impressed. A headlock takeover and a right hand has Reigns a bit more annoyed so he bails out to the floor. Heyman’s advice is that Reigns isn’t here for Rhodes because Rhodes is here for him. Heyman: “NOW SMASH HIM!” Back in and Reigns elbows him in the face, meaning it’s time to raise up a finger. Rhodes manages a dropkick (Reigns is stunned again) for two, with commentary saying that cover wasn’t about getting a pin but rather sending a message to Reigns. What that message is isn’t clear but I’d guess “Eat At Joe’s”.

The Disaster Kick is pulled out of the air though and Reigns hits a powerbomb for two. Some suplexes have Rhodes in more trouble but he’s back up to send Reigns out to the floor. That goes badly for him as well as Reigns drops him face first onto the apron. A hard slam puts Rhodes down onto the ramp but Rhodes gets in one of his own. Rhodes sends him back inside but Sikoa gets in a chair shot to the ribs, allowing Reigns to come back with the apron boot.

The cravate slows Rhodes down back inside until he fights up, only to have Sikoa interfere again. This time it lets Reigns hit a hard clothesline before whipping Rhodes into the corner to stay on his bad ribs. They go back outside with Reigns loading up the announcers’ table but getting backdropped through the other one for the big hope spot. Back in and Rhodes hits the drop down uppercut into the snap powerslam.

There’s the Cody Cutter for a big near fall so Reigns rolls outside, meaning it’s a suicide dive to hit him again. They try to get back in but Sikoa gets in a weightlifting belt shot….which the referee hears for an ejection. The distraction lets Rhodes hit Cross Rhodes for two (with Heyman looking on in fear for a nice visual). Reigns is back with some shots to the head and a release Rock Bottom gets two.

The Superman Punch is countered into a Pedigree (Heyman even reaches through the ropes this time) for two and it’s time to start the comeback. Said comeback is cut off with a Superman Punch to knock Rhodes out of the air for two more. The spear is countered into a sunset flip for two and Rhodes whips out a Figure Four for a change of pace. Reigns turns it over (while slapping the mat on the way there), with Rhodes getting over to the ropes for the break.

A big spear connects for two and now Reigns is stunned for a change. With nothing else working, Reigns hits him in the face over and over before grabbing the guillotine choke. Rhodes can’t spinebuster his way to freedom but he can slip his head out and hammer away at Reigns for a change. The referee gets bumped though and a double knockdown gives us quite the breather. Cody is back up for the Cross Rhodes but the Usos run in to break it up. The 1D drops Rhodes but here are Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn to take out the Usos.

A Stunner into the Helluva Kick leave Reigns down and the other four brawl out into the crowd. Rhodes gets the big dramatic near fall (and thank goodness that wasn’t the pin as Rhodes winning thanks to Owens and Zayn wouldn’t have worked) and they’re both down again. Back up and the slug it out with both of them being staggered off the shots. The Superman Punch is countered with the Flip Flop And Fly into the Bionic Elbow. Rhodes hits back to back Cross Rhodes….but Sikoa comes in with the Samoan Spike. The spear retains the title at 34:36.

Rating: B+. A year removed from this and my goodness I’m still amazed at the guts it took to not pull the trigger here. This was Cody’s chance to win the whole thing and they kept it on Reigns, which is quite the way to go. They beat the fire out of each other and it had the big match feel, but not pulling the trigger here still feels way off. Heck of a main event, but man they had the fans ready for the moment and just didn’t do it.

Replays and a highlight package wrap us up.

Overall Rating: B. There were some weak parts here and there but the good stuff is more than enough to carry this. Much like Night One, you can’t fault the atmosphere and the look/feel of the show, which made for a heck of a showcase for everyone involved. The main event was very good (ending aside perhaps) and the Intercontinental Title match was great, mixed in with some other strong stuff along the way. I liked this one a lot and the slightly shorter running time helped, but it’s just a few ticks below Night One’s instant classic status.

Overall Overall Rating: A-. Wrestlemania has a complicated history but this was going along with the big, epic show feel and it worked to near perfection. It’s one of the best Wrestlemanias ever and what matters is the show feeling as big as possible. Granted it helped that there was some great action, though that ending is one of those things that is going to stick in a lot of fans’ memories for a very long time. I loved the show overall, and my goodness WWE knows how to make these things work so well.

Ratings Comparison

Brock Lesnar vs. Omos

Original: C+
Redo: C-

Women’s Tag Team Showcase

Original: C
Redo: C+

Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus vs. Gunther

Original: A-
Redo: A

Asuka vs. Bianca Belair

Original: B
Redo: B-

Shane McMahon vs. Miz

Original: N/A
Redo: N/A

Edge vs. Finn Balor

Original: B
Redo: B-

Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes

Original: B+
Redo: B+

Overall Rating

Original: B+
Redo: B

Overall Overall Rating:

Original: A
Redo: A-

At least most of them are in in the ballpark. Either way, excellent show.

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