Monday Night Raw
Date: October 9, 2023
Location: Chi Health Center Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Fastlane and that means things are moving on towards Crown Jewel and Survivor Series next month. That should make for some big matches being set up in the coming weeks, though it might take some time for those to come together. For now though, Seth Rollins is still the World Heavyweight Champion. Let’s get to it.

Here is Fastlane if you need a recap.

We open with a Fastlane recap.

Here is Seth Rollins to get things going by bragging about his victory in the Last Man Standing match over Shinsuke Nakamura. He didn’t know if he was going to get back up, but he did. He didn’t know if he was going to keep Nakamura down, but he did. Then he went to the back and the adrenaline wore off, which is when he realized his back was still broken.

Being the World Heavyweight Champion has been one of the best honors of his career…and then he pauses for a good bit. He wants us to know that he is JUST GETTING STARTED. He’ll fight anyone anytime anywhere but maybe he can go one week without having to fight for his life out here. Maybe we could sing and drink a bit, but here is Drew McIntyre to interrupt. Rollins: “You want a World Heavyweight Title shot don’t you?”

McIntyre nods so Rollins says he’s ready to go get his gear on but McIntyre says he’s willing to wait for Rollins to be 100%. Maybe at Crown Jewel? Rollins: “So you’re not out here to jump me?” McIntyre: “Nope.” Rollins: “And you want me at 100%?” McIntyre: “Bingo.” That works for Rollins, so they’re on at Crown Jewel.

McIntyre is fine with that and says if you see him out tonight, buy him a pint and a shot, and then he’s out. Cue Damian Priest from behind to jump Rollins, with McIntyre watching from the aisle. Priest waves out Dominik Mysterio with the briefcase but McIntyre cuts him off. The briefcase is tossed at the Titantron and Rollins is back up to clear the ring.

Kofi Kingston vs. Ivar

Viking Rules match, meaning there are viking shields around the apron. Ivar starts fast and knocks him to the floor, where Kofi hits a big dive (and almost lands on his head). The table is loaded up but Ivar knocks him onto the apron for quite the splash. Kofi kicks him away though and hits a splash onto Ivar’s back for two on the floor. We take a break and come back with Ivar missing a flag shot and being sent through one of the shields. The SOS gives Kofi two but it’s too early for the Boom Drop.

Instead Ivar grabs a Jeff Cobb Tour of the Islands for two, followed by a tiger driver for the same. Ivar kicks him in the face and goes up, only to be thrown down (by the beard) through a table at ringside. Cue Valhalla to dive onto Kofi so here is Xavier Woods to…be scared by Valhalla. Ivar crushes Woods against the barricade but Kofi kicks him in the face. Back in and Ivar counters Trouble In Paradise into a drive through the table, setting up the moonsault to finish Kingston at 11:05.

Rating: B-. Good brawl here with both of them beating the other up well enough. Ivar FINALLY wins a singles match as he’s in the middle of his singles run, which is pretty long overdue. Other than that, this wasn’t as good as their surprisingly awesome match from a few weeks ago, but the right person won.

Shinsuke Nakamura has no comment on the Last Man Standing match but here is Ricochet to jump him for the brawl.

Damian Priest yells at JD McDonagh and the rest of Judgment Day for not having his back out there. Rhea Ripley calms him down because she has gotten Priest and Finn Balor a rematch for the Tag Team Titles next week. And Priest still has the briefcase! Priest backs off, but McDonagh needs to deal with Drew McIntyre.

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Nia Jax

Nia runs her over to start and slams Rodriguez’s head into the mat a few times. Rodriguez fights up and unloads in the corner but can’t manage a slam. Jax throws her outside and into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Rodriguez fighting out of a chinlock and knocking Jax down. A Samoan drop doesn’t work for Rodriguez either but it works just fine for Jax. The Annihilator takes too long though and Rodriguez hits a rather impressive powerbomb. Cue Rhea Ripley to throw Rodriguez outside for the DQ at 7:09 so she can go after Jax.

Rating: C+. The powerbomb looked great but this was a means to set up the ending of the match and that’s perfectly fine. We’re either setting up Ripley vs. Jax (probably the long term goal) or a triple threat match for the title. Either way, Ripley continues to feel like a star and having her slay the giant would work great for her. Rodriguez handled herself well enough here and that’s all you can ask in a situation like this one.

Post match Ripley kicks Jax down but gets jumped by Rodriguez. Shayna Baszler runs in to go after Jax but Ripley breaks that up and yells. Baszler drops Ripley with a German suplex and running knee as Jax bails. This is already more interesting than a lot of what we’ve seen around the women’s division in recent months.

Seth Rollins tells Drew McIntyre that they’re officially on for Crown Jewel, but what’s up with him cutting off the cash in? McIntyre says he hasn’t told a single lie because last week he said if it’s not his business, he doesn’t get along. He has a title shot at Crown Jewel and doesn’t want someone messing with it. Rollins says McIntyre isn’t taking the title from him and leaves.

Shayna Baszler says no one jumps her from behind in her ring and gets away with it.

Michael Cole brings out new Tag Team Champions Jey Uso and Cody Rhodes for a chat. Cole puts over their win but asks Rhodes what this means for his original goal of finishing the story. Will defending the Tag Team Titles deter him from winning the WWE Title, or is he scared of trying again after failing in his first attempt? Rhodes says Cole is right that he did bring Uso back to Raw and he’s happy with being a Tag Team Champion. Cole doesn’t let his question go but cue Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens (to different music) to interrupt.

Sami says everyone is talking about finishing the story. One story is the Usos holding the Tag Team Titles longer than anyone in history, but then he and Owens took the titles in the main event of Wrestlemania. The story now though is Cody and Uso winning the titles and Sami is happy for them.

Sami has mixed emotions though as he thinks they should be holding the titles. Owens is a little more to the point, saying he’s not happy that Rhodes and Uso are holding the titles. Owens wants them back so he wants to challenge them for tonight, but he doesn’t think Uso can handle losing to them twice. Cody says they’re on and Uso is in too.

Otis chops Chad Gable to ire him up for his #1 contenders match tonight. Bronson Reed (also in the match tonight) comes in to say Gable isn’t getting near the Intercontinental Title, because Reed is getting the shot tonight. Maybe Gable shouldn’t let his daughter watch tonight because it’s going to be another heartbreaking loss.

Ricochet vs. Bronson Reed vs. Chad Gable

For an Intercontinental Title shot next week. Ricochet comes out first but Shinsuke Nakamura jumps him from behind and bets him down, including a GTS. Maxxine Dupri is here with Gable. Reed starts fast and knocks Ricochet into the corner but Ricochet is fine enough to cut off a suplex attempt. They go outside with Ricochet kneeing Reed out of the air but Gable suplexes Ricochet and we take a break.

Back with Reed breaking up Gable’s sleeper and splashing both of them in the corner. A Samoan drop crushes both Ricochet and Gable but Ricochet manages a kick to Reed’s head. Ricochet’s missile dropkick sends Reed to the floor but Gable is right back up. A springboard spinning crossbody puts Gable down and a running shooting star press gets two.

Gable manages a German suplex to send Reed right back to the floor, where Ricochet hits a running flip dive. Back in and the ankle lock has Ricochet in trouble but he escapes rather quickly. Gable loads up a German superplex but Ricochet flips out, only to hurt his knee again. Gable’s Rolling Chaos Theory hits Ricochet but Reed crushes both of them. The Tsunami crushes Ricochet to give Reed the pin and the title shot at 11:02.

Rating: B-. They kept things moving here and it was an entertaining match throughout. Reed vs. Gunther is certainly a fresh match and has some serious hoss fight potential. If nothing else, it’s not to see Reed getting a move up the ladder, which has been teased for a long time now. Gable not getting pinned gives him an out for later as his obsession can continue. Finally there is Ricochet, who seems primed for a match with Shinsuke Nakamura down the line.

Becky Lynch has 11 stitches in her arm but she’ll be ready to fight tonight because that’s what a fighting champion does. Xia Li of all people comes up to say she wants a shot, with Lynch saying she’s not a hard person to find.

Drew McIntyre vs. JD McDonagh

Dominik Mysterio is here with McDonagh. McIntyre starts fast with one of the highest backdrops I’ve ever seen. Dominik offers a distraction though and McDonagh starts in on the leg. Back up and McIntyre avoids a charge, setting up the Future Shock. The Claymore finishes McDonagh at 3:59.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to go anywhere but what matters is getting McIntyre a win and giving McDonagh another failure. McIntyre is still in a weird place and I’m not sure where it is going to wind up. That makes things more interesting on the way to Crown Jewel and things could get all the more fun on the way there.

Post match Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley are not pleased.

We get a sitdown interview from earlier today with Wade Barrett talking to Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa. This reunion was seven years in the making and now they’re looking to the future. Gargano says he has been ready to return for a long time and saw what happened last week. He wasn’t about to let that happen but here is Imperium to jump them. A big beatdown ensues.

Video on Tegan Nox, looking at her history of terrible knee injuries.

Nox is ready for the biggest match of her career. Natalya pops in to wish her luck.

Ricochet is given a match with Shinsuke Nakamura next week, falls count anywhere. Of note, Drew McIntyre and Rhea Ripley appeared to be talking in the background.

NXT Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Tegan Nox

Lynch is defending. Nox takes her down to start but misses an early kick to the face. They trade some rollups with neither getting very far, though Lynch does seem to lose some extensions. Some armdrags have Nox down and they’re back up for a stalemate. Nox kicks her out of the corner and Lynch gets sent into some buckles.

They head outside with Lynch’s arm getting banged up again, allowing Nox to get two back inside. We take a break and come back with Lynch snapping off a suplex for two. Nox’s high crossbody gets the same but Lynch throws her down into a failed cross armbreaker attempt. Nox sends her into the corner for the reverse cannonball, followed b a kick to the head.

Lynch gets tied in the Tree of Woe for a regular Cannonball and another near fall. A cross armbreaker doesn’t work for Nox either and Lynch is up with a missile dropkick for two of her own. The Manhandle Slam and Disarm-Her are blocked and Nox gets a rollup for two. The Disarm-Her goes on this time though and Nox has to tap at 14:29.

Rating: B. They’re doing something interesting here with Lynch being the fighting champion who helps give a bunch of people their best match to date. That’s similar to the John Cena US Open Challenges from back in the date and it’s working well. Lynch is going to drop the title in a big deal but she gave Nox and Tiffany Stratton a nice platform on the way there. Good match here, with Nox getting in a lot.

Post match, respect is shown.

Indi Hartwell and Candice LeRae are in Adam Pearce’s office when Rhea Ripley comes in to throw them out. She needs to make an example of Shayna Baszler next week so Pearce needs to make it happen.

Natalya, Kayden Carter and Katana Chance console Tegan Nox after their loss when Piper Niven and Chelsea Green come in to mock her. Green and Natalya go face to face, with Niven doing the threatening. Natalya vs. Niven is made for next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Drew McIntyre gets in Jey Uso’s face and Uso is ready to go. Sami Zayn plays peacemaker again. With McIntyre gone, Uso says he appreciates Zayn having his back but it’s go time tonight. Zayn doesn’t have to be told twice.

Video on Ludwig Kaiser of all people.

Tag Team Titles: Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso vs. Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens

Zayn/Owens are challenging. Sami and Cody start things off but we get an early four way staredown to take us to a quick break. Back with Sami getting frustrated as Uso comes in, meaning it’s off to Owens. Everything breaks down and the four way brawl is on outside. They break it up before the double DQ/countout but the fight goes outside again and we take another break.

Back again with Owens and Uso trading superkicks until they both make tags. Sami Blue Thunder Bombs Cody for two and they both need a breather. Cross Rhodes gives Cody two with Owens making the save. Owens and Uso come back in to trade superkicks again with Uso getting the better of things. The Superfly Splash misses though and Owens hits the Stunner, with Cody having to make the save this time. Owens drops Uso and goes up but the Swanton hits raised knees. The elevated Cody Cutter drops Owens and the champs retain at 21:09.

Rating: B. This got a lot of time, though a good chunk of that was taken away due to the commercials. What matters here though is having a heck of a showdown and Cody and Uso getting a big win to make it clear that they’re legitimate champions, at least for the time being. Good main event here, and we’re likely going to be in for another big match next week against Judgment Day.

We get another preview of next week’s show.

Sami shakes the champs’ hands and Owens shakes Cody’s hand. He gives Uso an aggressive handshake to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Pretty nice show overall here, with good wrestling up and down and stuff being set up for both next week as well as Crown Jewel. I’m curious to see where some of these things go and that is a good sign at the end of a show. It can be hard to come off of a not so important pay per view but at least they’re off to a strong start on the way to Crown Jewel and then Survivor Series. Nice work this week.

Results
Ivar b. Kofi Kingston – Moonsault
Raquel Rodriguez b. Nia Jax via DQ when Rhea Ripley interfered
Bronson Reed b. Ricochet and Chad Gable – Tsunami to Ricochet
Drew McIntyre b. JD McDonagh – Claymore
Becky Lynch b. Tegan Nox – Disarm-Her
Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso b. Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens – Cody 1D to Owens

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

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

AND

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

Fastlane 2023
Date: October 7, 2023
Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re at the second of the not so important sounding pay per views here and coming into the show, we have a five match card. That either means we’re getting some bonus matches announced or things are going to go long this time. The main event would seem to be John Cena and LA Knight facing the Bloodline so let’s get to it.

I was sitting in the upper deck for this show, with the Titantron on my right.

The opening video features Pat McAfee (ok that makes sense) and talks about how Indianapolis is all about speed and moving forward, though sometimes you run into oncoming traffic. As you probably expected, the previews for the matches are included.

We recap the Tag Team Title match. Cody Rhodes brought Jey Uso back to WWE (after about two weeks) and is the only person to believe in him. The Judgment Day recruited Cody but got turned down, meaning it was a lot of fighting and an ensuing title match.

Tag Team Titles: Judgment Day vs. Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso

Rhodes and Uso are challenging and my goodness does Uso get an amazing reaction with the fans waving their arms along with him. Priest and Uso start things off with Priest running him over off a shoulder block. Uso ducks a right hand in the corner and slugs away though and Cody comes in to start on Priest’s knee. Priest blasts Uso with a clothesline to cut that off and it’s Balor coming in for his own stomping.

A headbutt gets Uso out of trouble and allows the tag to Rhodes, with a delayed gordbuster putting Uso down. Priest gets in a kick to the head from the apron but Balor’s chinlock doesn’t last that long. It’s back to Priest for a double arm crank and Rhodes is lured in so Uso can be kept in trouble. For some reason, about twenty minutes into the show, we see a wide shot of the arena and Cole talks about the show, almost sounding like he’s pitching it to new viewers.

Uso finally fights his way out of the corner and it’s Rhodes coming back in to clean house. The Disaster Kick hits Balor and Rhodes gives Priest a dragon screw legwhip over the rope. Balor is right back with 1916 for two but it’s too early for the Coup de Grace. A delayed superplex plants Balor but Rhodes can’t follow up. Uso comes back in with a high crossbody for two on Priest, who comes right back with a lifting Downward Spiral for two.

The limping Priest loads up a Razor’s Edge but gets low bridged to the floor for a ram into the announcers’ table. Back in and the Superfly Splash gets two on Priest, followed by a Cody Cutter to Balor. Uso spears Priest but cue Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio. Uso superkicks Dominik but gets quite the smile and wave from Ripley.

Back in and the distracted Uso gets hurricanranaed into a Coup de Grace from Balor, with Cody diving in for the save (after sitting at ringside until it was his cue for a terrible visual). Ripley briefcases Uso in the face for two but cue JD McDonagh to swing the case at Cody….but he hits Priest in the knee by mistake. Cross Rhodes on the table drops Priest and it’s a Cody Cutter/Downward Spiral combination to Balor. Another Cross Rhodes gives Cody the pin and the titles at 20:44.

Rating: B+. This went nuts in the end and I had a great time with the whole thing by the final moments. I wouldn’t have bet on the win after Judgment Day and the Bloodline joined forces last week but this was quite the twist. Good job on the surprise and the place went nuts on the win, even as McDonagh is probably about to get destroyed for screwing up again.

Booker T., Wade Barrett and Xavier Woods order pizza from Pizza Hut. This explains why I saw a Pizza Hut car driving into the arena as I was walking in.

We recap Bobby Lashley/the Street Profits vs. the LWO. Lashley and the Profits are being extra aggressive and have taken out part of the team. Rey Mysterio has an idea so it’s mystery partner time.

LWO vs. Bobby Lashley/Street Profits

It’s just Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar (with Zelina Vega) to start for the LWO. Escobar kicks away at Ford’s leg to start and then does the same to his head. A crossbody has Ford in more trouble but he manages a right hand to cut Escobar off. Escobar is back up with a super hurricanrana to drop Ford but he takes Escobar into the corner.

Lashley comes in for a running shoulder to the ribs and the one armed vertical suplex allows Ford to come back in for two. The beating doesn’t last long as it’s back to Mysterio to pick the pace way up. Lashley knocks Mysterio outside though, meaning it’s time for quite the grin. Ford’s running splash gets two on Mysterio and Dawkins drives in some more shoulders in the corner.

Mysterio avoids a big charge from Lashley but Ford is right there to pull Escobar off the apron in a smart move. That earns Ford a Meteora from Vega but there is no one for Mysterio to tag. The villains head outside….and Carlito of all people returns to be the LWO’s third man. Carlito dropkicks Dawkins to the floor so Mysterio and Escobar can hit dives. The Backstabber finishes Ford at 10:04.

Rating: C+. Not a great or blow away match but this was all about the Carlito return. Yes a lot of people figured it out in advance but it was still a cool moment with a familiar face returning and getting to be put into a nice slot. It’s nice to have Carlito back and we could be in for a longer feud with these teams as the other LWO members are likely to be out for the time being.

Post match, commentary gets Pizza Hut, as delivered by Xavier Woods.

We look at Jade Cargill’s debut on the Kickoff Show.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title triple threat. Iyo Sky won the title at Summerslam, then defended it against Asuka a few weeks ago. Charlotte got involved and Asuka lost, so now it’s time for everyone to fight.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Charlotte vs. Iyo Sky

Sky is defending. Asuka starts fast by misting Charlotte for an early two, leaving us with Asuka vs. Sky. With Charlotte on the floor to get her eyes fixed, Asuka cranks on an armbar back inside. Sky grabs some rollups for a VERY near fall on Asuka, who is right back with a kick to the chest. Asuka comes back in and takes both of them down before unloading on Asuka in the corner.

Charlotte gets double teamed down, leaving Sky to missile dropkick Asuka into a heap. Asuka is fine enough to grab a German superplex for two but Charlotte comes in with a high crossbody to both of them. Back up and Charlotte takes over on both of them again, including a double flipping clothesline for two each. Asuka is back up and sends Charlotte outside, where she sends Sky out onto her for a crash.

Sky manages to drop Asuka with a moonsault, allowing Charlotte to moonsault off the top onto both of them. Back in and Charlotte goes up top with Sky, only to get caught in the Tower Of Doom. Charlotte is able to grab a Boston crab to Asuka but Sky makes the save with a running Meteora.

Things get complicated as Asuka gets a leglock on Charlotte but Sky adds a crossface, leaving them commentary confused about what happens if Charlotte taps. That’s let go so Charlotte is back up (of course) with a spear. Cue Bayley (against Sky’s wishes) as Charlotte gets the Figure Eight on Asuka. Bayley’s distraction means the referee doesn’t see Asuka tap, right before Sky’s Over The Moonsault crushes Charlotte to retain at 17:14.

Rating: B. This got better as it kept going, even with Charlotte being the focal point and getting the tap, meaning she is all but guaranteed to get another title shot down the road. It’s good to see Sky retaining though, as she has more than earned a big win like this one. I’m just worried that it’s going to be the Charlotte show down the road, though that’s all but guaranteed most of the time.

We look at Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso winning the Tag Team Titles earlier tonight.

LA Knight arrived in a Slim Jim racing car. For some reason in the arena, we saw the car pulling up (though we couldn’t see that it was Slim Jim) and then the video pulled off before we saw who was in it.

We recap John Cena/LA Knight vs. the Bloodline. Cena returned a few weeks ago and got on the Bloodline’s bad side, so Knight stepped up to help him.

Here is Pat McAfee (sporting an Indianapolis Colts title belt) for a surprise. He wasn’t about to miss this show in this city and thinks Indianapolis would be a great choice to host Wrestlemania. This city never lets the energy go down and now he’s going to do commentary. Before that though, he introduces John Cena.

John Cena/LA Knight vs. Bloodline

Paul Heyman is here with Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa. Cena and Jimmy start things off with Cena powering him down, meaning Heyman’s guidance is needed. Heyman’s guidance seems to be “grab a headlock” but Cena is back up to run him over. Cena wants and gets Sikoa, who drops Cena with a single shot to the face. Jimmy comes in to stomp away, allowing Sikoa to tie Cena in the Tree of Woe for the running headbutt.

A missed charge doesn’t go so well for Jimmy but the tag to Knight is cut off. The chinlock has Cena in more trouble and he just can’t quite get over for the tag again. Back in and Sikoa hits the running Umaga Attack in the corner but Cena fights up. That earns him a running spinwheel kick and it’s right back to Jimmy.

A quick AA gives Cena a breather but Sikoa breaks up the tag again. There’s a headbutt to Sikoa, giving us a LET’S GO SOLO chant from Jimmy (it doesn’t catch on). A Banzai Drop hits raised knees though and the diving tag brings in Knight to clean house. Knight neckbreaker Jimmy and stomps away in the corner, followed by a DDT to Sikoa.

Everything breaks down and the LA Elbow hits Jimmy, setting up Cena’s high crossbody to Sikoa. Jimmy is right back up with a Superfly Splash to Cena and everyone is down. Knight is sent outside so Cena loads up the AA on Sikoa, only to be superkicked by Jimmy. That lets Jimmy go up, with Knight coming in to jump up for the superplex. The Five Knuckle Shuffle sets up the BFT to finish Jimmy at 17:22.

Rating: B. Nice match here, though it felt more like a big time Smackdown main event than something that needed to be on pay per view. Instead, this was more about giving Knight the big rub by having him team with Cena for a high profile win. Knight is going to have to deal with the Bloodline in the future and that could make for a big moment.

Post match, the winners show respect.

Damian Priest wants to cash in Money In The Bank tonight, but Rhea Ripley says he’s too banged up and won’t let him.

The Indiana Hoosiers football team is here, including Declan McMahon, Shane’s son/Vince’s grandson. I wonder how he got those tickets.

The Brawling Brutes like the new WWE toy truck.

We recap Seth Rollins defending the Raw World Title against Shinsuke Nakamura. Rollins beat him last month to retain but Nakamura won’t leave him alone. Therefore tonight, it’s Last Man Standing.

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Rollins is defending in a Last Man Standing match. Cole brings up that Rollins has not been pinned in a singles match since January before remembering that pins mean nothing here. Nakamura bails to the floor to start and sends a chasing Rollins’ bad back into the barricade. The fans want tables but will have to settle for Rollins suplexing him on the floor and peeling back the ring mats.

Rollins can’t send Nakamura into the exposed concrete but he can hit him with the steps. It’s time to throw in a bunch of weapons, which gives Nakamura quite the extended break. Nakamura is able to come back with some hard knees, allowing him to grab some nunchucks. A few hard shots keep Rollins down and Nakamura covers him with a trashcan. Kendo stick shots have Rollins in more trouble and there’s a knee to put him down for nowhere near a ten.

Rollins fights out of the reverse exploder though and scores with the Sling Blade for a needed breather. Some stick shots have Nakamura in trouble for a change and there’s the suicide dive to the floor. Back in and a frog splash crushes Nakamura, with Rollins having to pull himself up. Nakamura gets up as well and knees Rollins down, meaning a table can be set up in the corner.

Rollins is able to send him into (not through) the table and the Stomp gives Rollins eight. The announcers’ table is loaded up and it’s time to bring out a ladder. Nakamura is laid on the table but gets up and rolls away before Rollins can jump off of said ladder. They fight into the crowd with Rollins knocking him over towards the entrance. Nakamura knocks him off the stands and onto a well placed pad though, leaving Rollins to have to beat the count.

Some chair shots knock Rollins back to ringside, where he can’t hit a Pedigree on the concrete. He can hit it back inside though, allowing another table to be set at ringside while Nakamura beats the count. Nakamura puts him on the table and hits a top rope double knee for eight. More chair shots have Rollins in trouble as Cole is begging him to stop. Rollins manages a posting and loads Nakamura onto the announcers’ table before climbing the ladder.

Nakamura gets up and climbs the other side, where the mist knocks Rollins off the ladder and through the table. That’s good for nine so they go back inside. Kinshasa through the table gets nine more, with Rollins having to roll to the floor to survive. Nakamura takes him into the crowd again and they go up onto a small platform. Rollins manages a Pedigree and Stomp onto said platform for nine of his own, followed by a Falcon Arrow through a table (good thing it was there) to retain at 28:24.

Rating: B. That was a hard hitting match and Rollins felt like a star when he won, but it was also kind of a paint by numbers Last Man Standing match. I’m not sure how many times I’ve seen someone do the roll to the floor spot to save themselves in this kind of match but it’s hardly anything more. This should finish their feud though and now Rollins can move on to something else while Nakamura does….I’m not sure at this point.

Rollins celebrates and a highlight package wraps us up.

Overall Rating: B. I liked the show, but it felt like a big time special edition of Raw than a pay per view. The Tag Team Titles changing hands was a surprise, but other than that, the main event was the only thing that felt like it really belonged on a major show. It wasn’t bad by any means and the worst match was completely fine. I just need something more than this, as five matches doesn’t even feel like a card that matters all that much. It’s worth a look if you want an easy show (that doesn’t even last three hours), but they weren’t hiding that this was just setting the table for the big stuff next month.

Results
Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso b. Judgment Day – Cross Rhodes to Balor
LWO b. Bobby Lashley/Street Profits – Backstabber to Ford
Iyo Sky b. Charlotte and Asuka – Over The Moonsault to Charlotte
John Cena/LA Knight b. Bloodline – Blunt Force Trauma to Uso
Seth Rollins b. Shinsuke Nakamura when Nakamura could not answer the ten count

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

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

AND

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

We’re wrapping up the dead period of the pay per view calendar before we get to Crown Jewel and Survivor Series next month. That means we could be in for something interesting here and the card does look better than last month’s Payback. At the same time though, as of the night before the show, there are only five matches announced so far. While we are probably going to get a bonus match, this is all we have to work with at the moment. Let’s get to it.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Iyo Sky(c) vs. Charlotte vs. Asuka

We’ll start with a match that has a bunch of options and that could make for an interesting showdown. While it does feel like we’ve had more than a few triple threat matches for the title in recent months, it’s nice to see Sky getting to hold the title for a little bit. At the end of the day, almost nothing matters until you beat Charlotte and that might be what we see happen here. Maybe.

As nervous as I always am about the idea of Charlotte getting the title back, I’ll go with Sky retaining here. Asuka was champion not too long ago and Charlotte has been champion far too many times already. Sky needs the win a lot more than the other two and it would help establish her as a bigger deal. Hopefully it doesn’t take Damage CTRL helping her, but what matters is Sky leaving with the gold, which she should.

Tag Team Titles: Judgment Day(c) vs. Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso

This was a match that got a big boost from Smackdown, as Rhodes and Uso made a big save to help fight against the seemingly united Judgment Day and Bloodline. That spiced things up a bit more, though Rhodes and Uso do make for interesting challengers. While they might not be a regular team, they are the perfect choice to come after the titles right now.

That being said, I can’t imagine the titles change hands here, as the Judgment Day have just started something a lot bigger. I’m not sure if the whole thing is going to be a success, but it would be a surprise to see them losing the title so fast. It wouldn’t surprise me to see some interference to keep the titles on the champs here, but it’s going to come at the end of a heck of a fight.

Latino World Order vs. Bobby Lashley/Street Profits

This is a match where we are going to be in for a surprise as Rey Mysterio and Santos Escobar are going to need a new partner after Lashley and the Profits obliterated the rest of the LWO. There is a name rumored that I’ll leave out to avoid spoilers but it would be quite the sweet moment if the prediction is right. Other than that, we are going to be seeing a strong six man tag, as Lashley and the Profits are already clicking and the LWO works well together.

While it would make sense for the new member of the LWO to get the win, Lashley and the Profits feel like they could be a big deal in the near future. That would involve them winning here and we’ll go with that as the pick. Escobar would likely be the one to take the fall, as I can’t imagine the newcomer or Mysterio taking the fall, but I’m curious to see what that means for the team. For now though, Lashley and the Profits win.

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins(c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

This is a rematch from Payback where Rollins won, but this time it’s Last Man Standing. In other words, this one is going to be about the violence, which is where something like this should go. Rollins can have that kind of match and Nakamura has shown the ability to go extreme if need be. We should be in for a heck of a fight here, and the title being on the line makes it even better.

I’ll play it safe and go with Rollins to retain here, as it is hard to fathom the idea of Rollins losing here, with Survivor Series right around the corner. Maybe they do a quick loss here to give Nakamura a bit win before Rollins wins it back, but I’ll stick with Rollins winning. And again, no Money In The Bank cash-in, because they pushed it a bit too hard this week on Smackdown.

John Cena/LA Knight vs. Bloodline

Odds are this is going to be the big main event as it has all of the star power. Knight is on a roll, Cena is Cena, and the Bloodline, even without Roman Reigns, feels important. The Judgment Day tying in with the Bloodline this week should make things more interesting and now we get to see what could be a big step on the way to one heck of a story later on this year.

While I could see the Bloodline winning here with the help of their new friends, Cena and Knight winning here is a better way to go. Knight can get a win over Uso and move even further into the main event. Reigns is going to be back next week on Smackdown and that should be enough to make things more interesting in the big picture. Or now though, Cena and Knight win to send the fans home happy.

Overall Thoughts

They more or less have to add in another match or two, as a five match pay per view is either going to have a few forty minute matches or be done in about two hours. We do have a good card as it stands though and that means we could be in for a pretty nice B (or even C) level show. WWE is doing well right now and it would be great to continue that momentum on the way into one of their busier seasons.

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

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Smackdown
Date: October 6, 2023
Location: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Kevin Patrick

It’s the night before Fastlane and that means we’re in for the final push towards the show. There is a lot going on here, with John Cena and LA Knight officially teaming up to fight the Bloodline, but Judgment Day is lurking around as well. Other than that, we might be seeing something new added to the card as there are only five matches set. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of LA Knight saving John Cena from the Bloodline last week and agreeing to team with him at Fastlane.

Opening sequence.

Here is LA Knight to get things going but the Bloodline cuts him off almost immediately. Paul Heyman gets annoyed at the WHAT chant before saying that Knight will be the next megastar in this business. Him being that impressive is an achievement but now Knight has Heyman’s attention.

The Bloodline is going to have to do something about it, but Knight asks if Heyman is done running his mouth yet. Knight pulls out his receipt and indeed he didn’t buy any of Heyman’s BS. Jimmy Uso is ready to fight but John Cena runs in for the save. The Bloodline leaves, with Knight accusing them of not having Roman Reigns’ permission. Knight is thinking about tonight though and wants to face Jimmy.

The Judgment Day, with JD McDonagh, arrives.

Charlotte/Asuka vs. Damage CTRL

Dakota Kai is here with Damage CTRL. Charlotte and Sky start things off with Sky flipping out of a suplex. Asuka comes in to chop away as we hear about the stacked lineup for this week’s NXT. Bayley saves Sky from a running dropkick in the corner. Asuka missile dropkicks both of them down and we take an early break.

Back with Bayley suplexing Asuka and Sky coming in to grab a bodyscissors. Asuka fights up but gets kicked into the corner for her efforts. A shot to the face finally gets Asuka out of trouble though and it’s back to Charlotte with a high crossbody. Charlotte’s front flip clothesline gets two and everyone goes to the corner and it’s a Tower Of Doom to leave them down. Charlotte boots Bayley in the face but gets kneed down by Sky. Another big boot accidentally hits Asuka but Charlotte kicks Bayley into Sky and hits Natural Selection for the pin at 13:20.

Rating: C. This wasn’t the smoothest match in the world, with Natural Selection being more of a shove to Bayley’s back than a flipping cutter. Other than that, it was a great way to make Charlotte look dominant again as she took out her partner, plus both opponents before getting the pin. Not an awful match and it set things up for tomorrow, but more Charlotte is not exactly an interesting way to go.

The Bloodline goes into their locker room but runs into the Judgment Day, who say they’re right where they should be. Post break Solo Sikoa and Damian Priest are having a staredown, but Rhea Ripley says everyone out so she and Paul Heyman can have a chat. Ripley and Heyman assure them that they’re fine and everyone else leaves. Ripley: “Let’s talk.”

Bobby Lashley vs. Rey Mysterio

Non-title and the Street Profits and the LWO are here too. Lashley powers him into the corner to start but Rey manages to kick him down. A Lionsault gives Rey two with a rather strong kickout and we take a break. Back with Rey caught in a bearhug and then being tied up in the Tree of Woe. Rey manages to slip out and starts going after Lashley’s knee, followed by a spinning DDT for two.

The 619 is cut off and Lashley goes after the LWO at ringside. Rey’s dive is pulled out of the air but Rey manages to post Lashley for a breather. Back in and the 619 hits the ribs and there’s the regular version to the face. Montez Ford offers a distraction though and the fight is on outside. Rey intervenes but walks into the spear for the pin at 12:44.

Rating: C+. Good stuff, though the LWO might have actually been destroyed right in front of our eyes. Much like the first match, this was designed to build towards tomorrow’s match, though I could have gone without the champion getting pinned. It helps that it was to a former WWE Champion, but there’s something wrong about a reigning champion losing like that.

The LWO is mostly destroyed on the floor.

Rhea Ripley has apparently proposed an alliance with the Bloodline and Paul Heyman likes the idea. He hasn’t been himself lately, but this is really good. If Ripley will excuse him for a moment, he’ll make a phone call and get this authorized. Ripley asks what he means by authorized, with Heyman saying the Tribal Chief needs to authorize it. Heyman says it’s authorized for the Judgment Day, but not for the Bloodline. Ripley: “Paul, acknowledge me.”

Heyman says she’s in the wrong locker room to say that, but Ripley says he’ll acknowledge her just like Jey Uso did. Ripley says we’ll see which team is stronger, and authorizes him to make his phone call. She leaves, and a slightly shaken Heyman calls Reigns. If you didn’t realize Ripley was a top level star, this is about all the proof that you need.

Isla Dawn and Alba Fyre tease us with magic.

Dragon Lee vs. Austin Theory

Before the match, Theory brags about how big of a star he really is. Lee snaps off a hurricanrana to start but here is Grayson Waller for a distraction. Lee’s German suplex sends Theory outside but Waller’s distraction cuts off a dive. Theory scores with a rolling dropkick and we take a break.

Back with Lee hitting a superkick and rolling into a powerbomb for two on Theory. Waller offers another distraction though and Lee gets crotched, setting up a powerbomb into a faceplant (cool) to give Theory two. Lee cuts him off on top for the double stomp but Theory rolls out to the floor. Of course that means the big running flip dive to take out both villains but Waller cheap shots Theory. Cue Cameron Grimes to take Waller out, allowing Lee to roll Theory up for the pin at 9:17.

Rating: B-. Lee is one of those guys who is so smooth in the ring and it makes sense for him to move up tot he main roster. With not much room for growth in NXT, putting him up here where he can be the new high flier is a good idea. He’s looked good in his two matches so far and he very easily could turn into a much bigger deal rather quickly.

Rhea Ripley and Jimmy Uso have a talk that we can’t hear.

Joaquin Wilde and Cruz Del Toro are out of tomorrow’s six man tag, but Rey Mysterio has an idea.

Video on Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Seth Rollins. Damian Priest is shown watching with his Money In The Bank briefcase.

LA Knight vs. Jimmy Uso

Paul Heyman is here with Uso, who runs Knight over to start. Knight gives him an elbow to the face but it’s too early for BFT. Instead Uso enziguris him to the floor and we take a break. Back with Knight hitting a sunset flip into a Backstabber (cool) and stomping away. The LA Elbow connects but Solo Sikoa runs in for the DQ at 7:42.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to go anywhere with the break cutting off about half of the match. What I did like here was they didn’t hand either of them a loss before their big match. I get that you don’t want to do that in all three matches, but it was nice to see before what is likely going to be the pay per view main event.

Post match John Cena runs in for the save but here is Judgment Day to uneven the odds. Cue Jey Uso and Cody Rhodes and the fight is on, with Sikoa superkicking Cena. Knight clotheslines Sikoa to the floor and hits BFT on JD McDonagh. A bunch of other big moves lay out JD and the good guys glare at the villains to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was about getting things ready for Fastlane and they have done that well enough. In addition to all of the matches, we also have the mystery of who Rey Mysterio is going to get to join the team in the six man tag. On top of that, there is the Bloodline/Judgment Day alliance which could go a very long way in the future. Fastlane should be good and while this wasn’t a blow away show, it accomplished its goal and that is no easy task.

Results
Charlotte/Asuka b. Damage CTRL – Natural Selection to Bayley
Bobby Lashley b. Rey Mysterio – Spear
Dragon Lee b. Austin Theory – Rollup
LA Knight b. Jimmy Uso via DQ when Solo Sikoa interfered

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

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Monday Night Raw
Date: October 2, 2023
Location: SAP Center, San Jose, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the last Raw before Fastlane and thankfully the card has crown a bit. Granted by grown I mean there are now four matches so there are still quite a few slots that need to be filled. There is a good chance that some of those spots can be filled this week, as they’re kind of out of time otherwise. Let’s get to it.

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

We join the show with a fight in progress between Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax, who are scheduled to face each other tonight. They get in the ring with Baszler grabbing the Kirifuda Clutch but being driven into the corner to break it up. Raquel Rodriguez runs in to brawl with Jax but stops to go after Baszler, allowing Jax to drop her.

Cue Rhea Ripley (looking like a superhero) to double leg Jax but Rodriguez jumps her as well. Agents and security run in to break it up, with Ripley being left in the ring to a heck of a MAMI chant. She says she’s not done yet and orders Judgment Day to get out here for a talk. Cue Judgment Day (minus Finn Balor) and after a break, Ripley says they have some business to tend to.

There is no leader in the Judgment Day but they all have responsibilities. Right Dom? She left her responsibility to Priest, and look what happened. He’s not medically cleared to compete tonight, Finn Balor is hurt, and Dom LOST at No Mercy. Priest says people are coming for the titles but he’s going to shove back harder. He has his titles and his briefcase, but where is Dom’s title? The fans want to know as well, but Ripley says you’re welcome for his rematch tomorrow night on NXT.

Either win the title, or don’t bother coming home. Cue Jey Uso to interrupt but Priest isn’t interested. Jey says Ripley has more testicular fortitude than Roman Reigns ever did, but Priest is tired of hearing him open his mouth. Dominik says he’s got this so Priest goes to the floor, leaving Jey to drop Mysterio for a superkick. Cue JD McDonagh to jump Jey and the double teaming is on. House is cleared, and Adam Pearce comes in to make Judgment Day vs. Uso/Rhodes for the Tag Team Titles at Fastlane.

Alpha Academy vs. Imperium

Maxxine Dupri is here too. Gable and Kaiser trade headlocks to start with Kaiser getting the better of things. Vinci comes in and gets suplexed but Kaiser pulls him to the floor. Otis backdrops Gable most of the way to the floor (that didn’t look great) and we take a break. Back with Gable being sent shoulder first into the post so a running dropkick can put him on the floor.

Vinci drops Gable with a hard clothesline and Kaiser grabs the chinlock. Gable fights up and grabs the ankle lock before handing it off to Otis to clean house. The Caterpillar is broken up by Vinci but Otis plants him down and Caterpillars Kaiser anyway. Vinci breaks up a super fall away slam though and Kaiser kicks Otis in the face for the pin at 10:38.

Rating: C+. Imperium gets back on track after some rough weeks and it would be nice to see them built up for a title shot once Judgment Day loses the titles. For now though, beating Alpha Academy is a good way to go, though they need to beat some bigger teams as well. I’m not sure how many options they have though.

We look at Becky Lynch retaining the NXT Women’s Title at No Mercy. Lynch has suffered an elbow injury and she needed eleven stitches to close it. As a result, she is not medically cleared to compete tonight.

Tegan Nox is disappointed that her match with Lynch is off, but Chelsea Green comes in to say Nox should be happy that she isn’t going to lose. A match seems to be made for later.

Bronson Reed vs. Cedric Alexander

Alexander jumps him to start and manages a knock out to the floor. Back in and Reed knocks him out of the air, only to get caught with the Neuralizer for two. Reed is back with a crossbody into a backsplash. The Tsunami finishes Alexander at 2:14.

Drew McIntyre doesn’t want to hear about the right thing because he doesn’t remember anyone doing “the right thing” when the Bloodline was beating him down.

Here are Tommaso Ciampa and Gunther for a contract signing for their Intercontinental Title match next week. Ciampa is about to sign but stops to talk about how Gunther has been served five star meals since he got here. On the other hand, Ciampa is the kind of guy who is expected to turn roadkill into fillet and then makes it happen. Next week Ciampa gets to fight for something he has wanted since he was five years old and he will have his family in the front row. Ciampa is fighting for himself and signs the contract.

Gunther, wearing a suit, criticizes Ciampa for wearing less than professional clothes and says the title is the most prestigious in all of wrestling. Ciampa is ready to beat him tonight, so Gunther says Ciampa should prove it. Gunther signs and the match is on for tonight. A slap to Ciampa is enough to make him jump the table, which Gunther throws over the top. Ciampa chucks a chair at Gunther’s face and Gunther bails. Heck of a promo here from Ciampa, and he can back it up in the ring as well.

Damian Priest is yelling at the rest of Judgment Day but Rhea Ripley calms him down and JD McDonagh says focus on the Tag Team Titles and dividing their opponents. Priest says that’s not bad but needs to think about it.

Xavier Woods vs. Ivar

Kofi Kingston is on commentary and Valhalla is here with Ivar. Woods goes after him to start but Ivar gets a drive into the corner. Ivar crushes him and takes it to the floor, where Ivar misses a charge. A dropkick off of the barricade hits Ivar and we take a break. Back with Woods getting planted again but avoiding a top rope splash. A small package finishes Ivar at 7:35.

Rating: C+. I know they’re going for Ivar as a monster, but it might be better if he wasn’t losing every singles match he has. Pushing Ivar as a singles star is an interesting idea, but that doesn’t work so well without winning something. Woods winning here only makes so much sense anyway, as Ivar already lost to Kofi a few weeks back. Not a bad match, but kind of a puzzling decision.

Post match Ivar jumps Woods and takes out Kofi for trying to make the save. Ivar stacks them up and hits a moonsault for a double crushing. As always: this might be a bit more impressive if he hadn’t just lost.

Video on Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura.

Here is Rollins for a chat. He’s rather fired up (as usual) and even praises Michael Cole for conducting the interview. Cole talks about calling most of Rollins’ career but thinks that Shinsuke Nakamura is playing Rollins this time. He asks what Rollins is doing, because Rollins might not understand what he’s getting himself into. Cole brings up Rollins’ bad back and how many weapons Nakamura will have at his disposal.

Rollins asks how many years Cole has been behind that desk (26) and how many shows he has missed (2). After some applause for those numbers, Rollins says Cole is addicted to this. That’s what he’s going through as well, because this ring is how he makes a living, how he met his wife and why he has a beautiful baby girl. That’s the best he has because it’s a feeling instead of words.

Shinsuke Nakamura pops up on screen to accuse Rollins of faking his back injury. As Nakamura keeps talking, the real Nakamura comes in to jump Rollins from behind. Kinshasa connects as the taped Nakamura counts…..until Rollins gets up. Nakamura puts him through a chair and hits another Kinshasa before counting his own ten. In other words, the same way every segment before a Last Man Standing match ends.

Becky Lynch’s arm is in a sling but she tells Tegan Nox she’s ready for a fight later on. Natalya comes in to say Nox will get her chance.

Chelsea Green vs. Tegan Nox

Piper Niven is here with Green, who jumps Nox to start and goes for a tag. With that not working, Nox fights back but Niven offers a distraction. Cue Natalya, allowing Nox to knock Green off the ropes. The Shiniest Wizard finishes for Nox at 1:59.

Jey Uso is good with teaming with Cody Rhodes. He darts away.

Here is Drew McIntyre for a chat. Drew: “San Jose….what should we talk about?” He’s tired of getting involved in other people’s fights so he’s done with that. Cue Miz to suggest he was right, but McIntyre tells him to shut up again. Miz thinks McIntyre is taking a stand, so why not embrace who he really is? McIntyre: “Shut up Miz.”

McIntyre isn’t going to be the bad guy and suggests a match right now. Miz says that isn’t going to happen because they aren’t dressed for it. They don’t like each other, with Miz saying McIntyre isn’t worth his time. McIntyre says time’s up and it’s time to fight, so the kilt goes off and he’s ready to go. Miz goes for a cheap shot but gets drives into the corner as referees come in to break it up.

Miz vs. Drew McIntyre

Miz is in a suit and bails to the floor to start. Back in and Miz scores with a quick shot, allowing him to rip at McIntyre’s face. The running corner clothesline connects but Miz takes too long unhooking a buckle. The Glasgow Kiss looks to set up the Claymore….but McIntyre grabs the sword instead. McIntyre rips off a buckle pad, sends Miz into it, and hits the Future Shock for the pin at 3:49.

Rating: C. This was more of an illustration of the new McIntyre than anything else and that made for an interesting situation. McIntyre seems to be on his way to a big heel turn and that might be a very good thing for him, as he has felt a bit stale for awhile now. He certainly has the skill to make it work, though it appears to be a bit of a slow process.

Post match McIntyre says he’s a different man than he was 30 seconds ago. McIntyre: “Now I’m on my way to being forgiven! YEAH!” Then he leaves, high fiving fans along the way.

We look at Trick Williams becoming North American Champion.

Trick Williams introduces himself but Judgment Day interrupts, promising that Dominik Mysterio gets the title back tomorrow night.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. He is ok with teaming with Jey Uso, because the Judgment Day got themselves into this trouble. The team’s plan is to be at Smackdown this week, so Cody will be there too, along with Jey. Then they’re on to Fastlane to win the titles.

Fastlane rundown, still with only five matches.

Chad Gable gets very intense when swearing revenge for the Alpha Academy’s setbacks.

Intercontinental Title: Tommaso Ciampa vs. Gunther

Ciampa is challenging and goes right after him to start. Some clotheslines against the ropes look to set up a jumping knee but Gunther reverses into a Boston crab. Ciampa makes the ropes and gets to the floor where he hits a Thesz press. Back in and Ciampa grabs some kind of a choke and it’s Gunther bailing to the floor this time as we take a break.

We come back with Ciampa being sent into the corner, followed by the sleeper. Gunther breaks the grip as the fans are doing Bray Wyatt’s fireflies deal for some reason. Gunther scores with a big boot for two and the sleeper goes on again. Ciampa fights up again, only to get sent hard into the corner as we take another break.

Back with Gunther taking it to the floor but chopping the announcers’ table by mistake. That’s enough for Ciampa to hit Willow’s Bell for two but the Fairy Tale Ending is blocked. Instead, Ciampa stomps away but the running knee is cut off by Gunther’s big dropkick for two. Ciampa hits the running knee, only to have Gunther come back with the sleeper suplex for two.

The big clothesline is cut off with a shot to the bad hand and the Sicilian Stretch goes on. Gunther can’t stack him up for a cover so Ciampa cranks away again until a boot gets the rope break. They chop it out but Gunther’s hand is done and he falls back into the corner. Gunther manages a gutwrench powerbomb though and the regular version plants Ciampa again. The sleeper goes on and Ciampa is out at 22:49.

Rating: B. I know Gunther gets praise for his power and overall demeanor, but he is a heck of a seller too. He looks like he is being tortured in there and that makes his ability to survive all the more impressive. When he hits that other level, it’s a special moment and the kind of thing that makes him feel like that much bigger of a star. Heck of a performance from both here, with Ciampa throwing everything he had at Gunther but coming up short, like so many others have.

Post match Imperium comes in to beat down Ciampa as Gunther leaves. Cue Johnny Gargano for the save and Ciampa is very happy. They load up Meet In The Middle…and the show ends before it happens.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling was mostly just ok though until the main event bailed it off. At the same time, they st up something for Fastlane and nothing on here was anything resembling bad. Three hours is still a very long show, but when it’s moving at this pace and has Rhea Ripley looking like the biggest star around, it’s a pretty good night.

Results
Imperium b. Alpha Academy – Kick to the face to Otis
Bronson Reed b. Cedric Alexander – Tsunami
Xavier Woods b. Ivar – Small package
Tegan Nox b. Chelsea Green – Shiniest Wizard
Drew McIntyre b. The Miz – Future Shock
Gunther b. Tommaso Ciampa – Sleeper

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

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AND

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 18, 2023
Location: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re less than three weeks out from Fastlane and that means it might be time to start announcing something for the show. So far there are no matches officially announced, though you should be able to figure out a few of them without much trouble. Other than that, Becky Lynch is he new NXT Women’s Champion and we’ll likely hear something about that. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Cody Rhodes to get things going. Before he can get very far though, here is Dominik Mysterio (Cody’s scheduled opponent) to interrupt. Dominik talks about how Jey Uso is going to join the Judgment Day and mentions that Rhea Ripley is out tonight after the attack at the hands of Nia Jax last week.

Cody asks if the fans heard that and thinks that the Dominik/Rhea relationship has some Steve Urkel/Laura Winslow vibes, because Rhea isn’t that into him (he must not have seen the last few seasons). Besides, if you watched last week, it seems that Rhea has eyes for Jey Uso. Cue Finn Balor and Damian Priest to join Dominik before the match.

Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio

Non-title. Cody starts fast and suplexes Dominik and grabs a quickly broken Figure Four. Dominik gets in a few shots of his own but walks into the Cody Cutter. Cross Rhodes finishes Dominik at 2:10. That’s a fast lost for Dominik, even against Cody.

Post match Judgment Day stares down Cody but Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn run down to even things up. Judgment Day backs off and leaves. Please not another six man main event. Cody goes to leave again but Owens says cut the music. Owens asks him to get back in the ring because they need to talk about something.

Post break Owens says that Jey Uso is back on Raw because of Cody, which Cody says is correct. Owens talks about everything Jey did to a lot of people, so why is Cody willing to bring him back? Cody says there are people in the back who need to hear this but there are people here who probably already know this. His job is to make these people happy and Jey deserves a second chance. And besides: now the Bloodline is down a member.

Sami tries to play peacekeeper and asks Owens to give Cody and Jey a chance. Owens says he sees where this is going and says sure, he’ll pretend Jey didn’t cost them all the Universal Title and is just one shade of eye liner away from joining the Judgment Day. He won’t trust Jey, but he’ll trust them and they better be right. This is getting interesting and I can always go for that.

We look at Rhea Ripley retaining the Women’s Title over Raquel Rodriguez but getting crushed by Nia Jax after the match was over.

Ripley has bruised ribs and is day to day, the same as Rodriguez, who has whiplash.

Kofi Kingston vs. Ivar

This was going to be a tag match but Erik is out so we’ll do it solo. Kofi can’t headlock Ivar (with Valhalla) down to start so Ivar runs him over with a clothesline. Back up and Kofi hits the jumping elbow, only to get crushed with a seated senton out of the corner. Elbows and right hands get Kofi out of the corner and a top rope shot to the head staggers Ivar.

There’s a running clothesline but it’s too early for the Boom Drop. Instead Kofi kicks him in the head for two but Ivar hits a backdrop to the floor. The big splash off the apron crushes Kofi again and we take a break. Back with Ivar hitting a powerslam and a crossbody drops Kofi for the third time. The top rope splash misses though and Kofi runs the corner for a spinning high crossbody.

The SOS gets two but Ivar tiger bombs him down for the same. Ivar nails a spinwheel kick and hits a Bronco Buster so he goes up top. The top rope splash is loaded up but Valhalla tells him to go bigger, meaning it’s a moonsault (not a bad one either) for two. Kofi fights up and hits a sunset bomb out of the corner, setting up Trouble In Paradise for the pin at 13:04.

Rating: B. That was a heck of a match as Kofi is still good for a pretty awesome performance when he is given the chance. Ivar was more than holding his own here though as the power vs. speed was rolling. Sometimes you find two guys who have surprising chemistry and that was absolute the case here. Rather good stuff.

We look back at Shinsuke Nakamura attacking Ricochet.

Ricochet says he’s the cheat code for Nakamura and tonight it’s game over.

Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Hold o though as here is Seth Rollins to charge at Nakamura and the chase is on, with agents and security breaking it up. Back with the bell ringing and Ricochet backing him into the corner. Nakamura gets in a cheap shot to take over but the kick to the chest is blocked. Instead Nakamura hits a running knee for two and we hit the seated abdominal stretch.

Ricochet fights up but gets kicked back into the corner for a choke. The sliding German suplex is blocked though and Ricochet hits the middle rope moonsault to the floor as we take a break. Back with Ricochet kicking a charging Nakamura down and a handspring elbow does it again. The running shooting star press gets two on Nakamura and a springboard high crossbody does it a second time. Nakamura knocks him outside and Ricochet hits an enziguri before chairing Nakamura down for the DQ at 12:58.

Rating: B-. Well at least Ricochet didn’t get pinned, though having him beat Nakamura down like that at the end was a little weird. Either way, Nakamura is all but guaranteed to go to Fastlane for a rematch with Rollins while Ricochet can continue to be the star of the future, as he has been for years now. It’s kind of his thing and that isn’t likely to change anytime soon.

Post match Ricochet yells at the referee but Nakamura takes his knee out. Ricochet’s knee is destroyed with a chair and the post until Rollins runs in for the save. Nakamura backdrops his way out of a Pedigree attempt though and security breaks it up. Well they do for a bit at least as Nakamura gets in another cheap shot to the bad back to leave Rollins laying.

Post break Rollins needs help getting into the trainer’s room.

Piper Niven and Chelsea Green are ready for Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark because they’re friends. Niven doesn’t buy that, as Green doesn’t even know where she’s from.

Piper Niven/Chelsea Green vs. Shayna Baszler/Zoey Stark

Non-title. Stark and Green start things off with Stark slugging away and hitting a basement clothesline. A slingshot hilo connects and it’s Baszler coming in for a reverse DDT backbreaker. Stark comes back in, though things seem a bit testy between her and Baszler. A missed charge in the corner staggers Stark though and Niven comes in to plant her for two. Stark gets up and hands it back to Baszler, who takes Niven outside. Cue Nia Jax to send Niven into the steps for the DQ at 3:52.

Rating: C. This was short and more about Jax than anything else. That may be here or there, but it is interesting to have her go after a bunch of different women rather than focusing in on just one to start. Other than that, good for not having the champs lose so soon, as they aren’t exactly the most firmly established in the first place.

Jax wrecks everyone post match and puts the division on notice.

Chad Gable comes up to Adam Pearce and asks for one more shot at Gunther but Pearce says he has to earn it. Bronson Reed comes in and says he’ll be glad to help. The match is on.

We look back at the Rock and Pat McAfee’s surprise cameos on Smackdown.

Damien Priest tries to talk Jey Uso into joining the Judgment Day, which is family instead of relatives. Priest wants an answer tonight.

Chad Gable vs. Bronson Reed

Otis and Maxxine Dupri are here with Gable. Some forearms stagger Reed to start and a missile dropkick does it again. It’s too early for the German suplex so Reed is right back with a powerslam. Reed catches him on top for a gorilla press toss onto the turnbuckle. We take a break and come back with Gable going after the knee. Reed blasts him with a clothesline but Gable grabs the cross armbreaker over the top. Reed’s backsplash only hits knees though and Gable can’t follow up. Gable grabs a sleeper so Reed drops backwards onto him, setting up the Tsunami for the pin at 9:35.

Rating: C+. That’s more than a bit surprising as you wouldn’t expect Gable to lose again so soon. That being said, it’s nice to have Reed get a win, as he is someone who has been in need of that kind of a moment for a good while now. I don’t know if he’s going to get a big showdown moment with Gunther, but I’ll take him getting an important win like this one.

Tommaso Ciampa is done with waiting and is ready to take out Imperium to get what he wants.

Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens still don’t see eye to eye about Jey Uso. Cue Jey, which has Owens walking off but Sami knows he has a big decision to make about Judgment Day.

Here is Becky Lynch to brag about winning the NXT Women’s Title. She wants to be champion that matters though and that means it is time to test herself tonight. Therefore the open challenge is on so here is Natalya to answer. This isn’t what Becky had in mind but Natalya says she deserves it and shoves her down. Ring the bell.

NXT Women’s Title: Natalya vs. Becky Lynch

Lynch is defending and gets sent outside hard to start as we take an early break. Back with Becky hitting a running forearm into the Bexploder for two. Natalya snaps off a release German suplex but the Sharpshooter is countered into a small package. A superplex gives Natalya two more but another Sharpshooter attempt is broken up. Becky hits the missile dropkick, only to have Natalya come back with a discus lariat. The Disarm-Her is countered into a rollup for two but Lynch reverses into a rollup of her own for the pin at 6:14.

Rating: B-. That’s about as Natalya of a match as you’re going to get: she comes in, she isn’t the most thrilling choice, she has a completely fine if not better than that match and then loses again. While she’s the perfect choice to guarantee at least a passable match. On the other hand, it doesn’t matter all that much as the fans don’t seem interested in her no matter what she is able to do in the ring. For a one off match, it high quality, but rather low on the interest levels.

Dragon Lee is in Adam Pearce’s office when Dominik Mysterio comes in to yell at both of them. Lee promises to win the North American Title next week.

Giovanni Vinci vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Ludwig Kaiser is here too as Vinci uppercuts Ciampa into the corner. A clothesline puts Ciampa down again as we see Gunther watching in the back. Vinci gets two off a belly to back suplex but Ciampa strikes away. Ciampa comes back with a Thesz press and a reverse DDT but Kaiser offers a distraction. That doesn’t work for Vinci as Ciampa pulls him into the Sicilian Stretch for the tap at 3:28.

Rating: C. As has been the case with LA Knight in weeks past, what mattered here was that Ciampa got another win. That is how you make someone feel like a bigger deal and they are making it work with him. He’ll have to move up the ladder sooner than later if he is going to, but at least he has a place to start.

Seth Rollins says he’s tired and in a lot of pain but he’s trying to keep it together. He’s tired of these games though and he’s willing to do anything to get Nakamura in the ring. Nakamura can name the time, the place and even the stipulation if he wants. Now Nakamura needs to decide who defines his legacy.

Video on Drew McIntyre vs. Jey Uso.

Drew McIntyre vs. Jey Uso

They talk trash to each other to start until McIntyre shoves him into the corner and asks if this is all he has. Jey ducks a shot in the corner and strikes away but McIntyre is right back with the chops. A snap suplex gives McIntyre two but Jey sends him outside, setting up the dive. Another dive hits McIntyre and here is the Judgment Day as we take a break.

Back with McIntyre hitting the top rope superplex, followed by the Glasgow Kiss. Jey manages a quick Samoan drop for two but the suicide dive is cut off. Back in and McIntyre’s spinebuster gets two, only to have Damien Priest offer a distraction on the floor. Jey get in a hard shot of his own for two but kicks all of Judgment Day down. The distraction lets McIntyre hit the Claymore for the pin at 14:12.

Rating: B-. This was all about the angle rather than the match and McIntyre gets a nice rub with a pin in Raw’s main event. He hasn’t had many such wins for a bit so maybe things are turning around now. On the other hand you have Jey loses, but he should have his hands full with Judgment Day for the time being. Not a great match, but the kind that opens up a lot of doors in a variety of directions.

Post match McIntyre leaves and Uso gets beaten down. McIntyre thinks about making the save but stands still until Cody Rhodes runs in for the real save to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show felt more like the NXT of old and that is a good thing. You could almost feel the list of things that they wanted to accomplish being checked off one by one. There were some things set up for the future, but none of those were set up for Fastlane. They still have two Raw’s left before the pay per view, but I’m getting tired of the matches being announced so late in the show’s buildup. Either way, good enough show here, as they got a lot done.

Results
Cody Rhodes b. Dominik Mysterio – Cross Rhodes
Kofi Kingston b. Ivar – Trouble In Paradise
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Ricochet via DQ when Ricochet used a chair
Piper Niven/Chelsea Green b. Shayna Baszler/Zoey Stark via DQ when Nia Jax interfered
Bronson Reed b. Chad Gable – Tsunami
Becky Lynch b. Natalya – Rollup
Tommaso Ciampa b. Giovanni Vinci – Sicilian Stretch
Drew McIntyre b. Jey Uso – Claymore

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

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Monday Night Raw
Date: September 11, 2023
Location: Scope, Norfolk, Virginia
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We have less than a month to go before Fastlane and there isn’t much set for the show so far. In a bit of a confusing way to go, there is a Women’s Title match this week, along with the return of Cody Rhodes. There is something a bit more historic to this show though, as it is the last WWE event before Endeavor officially takes over the company tomorrow. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Here is Jey Uso to get things going and my goodness that’s a star’s reaction. Jey says it feels good to be here on Raw but here is Kevin Owens to interrupt. Owens says Uso should be saying he’s on the Kevin Owens Show. There are a bunch of people backstage who do not trust Owens, but a lot of people are saying not to trust Jey. Sami Zayn trusts him but that’s about it, and it’s going to take time to earn Owens’ trust.

Cue the Judgment Day, with Finn Balor saying no one talks to him like that. They respect Jey and Owens doesn’t speak for the locker room. Jey has said no to their offers to join and that’s ok, as Dominik Mysterio said no time after time but here he is. Damian Priest said he thought they were facing Owens and Sami Zayn tonight, but Owens says Sami isn’t here tonight. Owens is ready to fight them all himself, even if it’s one on three. Jey: “Hey Kevin. I’m here too.” Owens is in and Judgment Day is cleared out.

Judgment Day vs. Jey Uso/Kevin Owens

Non-title and Dominik Mysterio is here too. Jey takes Balor down to start and hands it off to Owens for two off a DDT. Priest comes in and stomps away in the corner but it’s right back to Jey with a high crossbody. Jey sends them outside for the dive but Dominik takes out Owens’ bad knee as we take a break.

Back with Owens fighting out of trouble and bringing Jey back in for an enziguri. The running Umaga Attack misses though and Balor kicks him down. Jey grabs his pop up neckbreaker on Balor and fires off superkicks but the Superfly Splash hits raised knees. Owens comes back in with a tornado DDT for two and the spinning brainbuster gets the same on Balor. Jey accidentally superkicks Owens and fights to the floor with Priest, leaving Balor to Coup de Grace Owens for the pin at 12:28.

Rating: B-. The action worked but as you might have expected, this was more about the storytelling elements. Owens doesn’t trust Jey and even though Jey did something nice, he got burned in the end. This feels like another step in a long story, and the good thing so far is Jey feels like a big star who isn’t in over his head.

Post match Owens doesn’t trust Jey at all and limps off on his own.

We look at Raquel Rodriguez vs. Rhea Ripley for the Women’s Title later tonight.

Post break, Kevin Owens doesn’t want to hear from Jey Uso. Of note: Wade Barrett implies that Cody Rhodes had Jey brought to the show.

We look back at last week’s Gunther vs. Chad Gable Intercontinental Title match.

Video on September 11.

Miz vs. Akira Tozawa

Tozawa snaps off a hurricanrana to start but charges into a big boot to cut him off. Miz kicks him down again and sneers, setting up a running knee. Three straight Skull Crushing Finales finish Tozawa at 3:02.

Rating: C. This was what it needed to be as Miz got to wreck Tozawa to get his win back while also looking like a bigger threat to LA Knight this week. That’s part of the serious Miz and it makes for a good moment, as that version of Miz can be rather effective. Now just make it work this Friday.

Raquel Rodriguez is ready to win the Women’s Title because she’s bigger, stronger and angrier than Rhea Ripley.

Shayna Baszler is praising Zoe Stark for her effort last week when Chelsea Green comes in. Green offers her a spot as the new partner since Piper Niven isn’t medically cleared. Baszler offers to hurt her tonight but Green promises to find a new partner. Baszler leaves and here is Niven to say she’s back and cleared.

Here is Imperium for Gunther’s championship celebration. Cue Gunther, in one heck of a suit, to say that to the shock of no one, he is now the longest reigning and greatest champion in history. It means a lot to him, even if the legends who held the title before him contributed nothing. He is running out of competition and from now on he is only competing against himself.

Cue Chad Gable to interrupt and say they had a classic last week. After Gunther won, Gable saw the realization in Gunther’s eyes that he just had the toughest title defense of his career. Gable promises to get the title after having to see his family cried last week. Gunther praises Gable’s abilities but calls him a bad father. The fight is on with Otis’ interference not getting him very far. Tommaso Ciampa chases the three off.

We recap the New Day/Drew McIntyre/Riddle/Viking Raiders ordeal.

Drew McIntyre apologizes to Xavier Woods for throwing the chair at him but Woods is cool with it. Woods brings up the insults to Kofi Kingston from last week and thinks it’s jealousy. Kofi got his big Wrestlemania moment in front of tens of thousands of people, while McIntyre was in front of no one. McIntyre promises pain tonight.

Tommaso Ciampa says he doesn’t like Gunther and Imperium using their numbers advantage, so Otis suggests a six man carnage tonight. Ciampa doesn’t say anything.

Drew McIntyre vs. Xavier Woods

McIntyre starts fast and Glasgow Kisses Woods down. Woods tries to pick up the pace but gets knocked down again, only to send McIntyre to the floor. The dropkick through the ropes connects but the slingshot dive is pulled out of the air. McIntyre throws him over the announcers’ table and we take a break.

Back with Woods slipping out of what might have been a superplex and hitting a powerbomb. A guillotine legdrop gets two on McIntyre but he snaps off the belly to belly. McIntyre neckbreakers him down but walks into a kick to the face for two. The reverse Alabama Slam is countered into a victory roll to give Woods two, followed by a penalty kick for the same. They slug it out and run the ropes until McIntyre nails a heck of a Claymore for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: B-. This was a much edgier McIntyre and that is a good thing. McIntyre has been kind of stale for a long time now and shifting towards a heel turn could be exactly what he needs. At the end of the day, he has the background and abilities to make it work and I’m curious to see how it could go. For now though, I’ll settle for a pretty awesome looking Claymore for the pin.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat. Cody wants to talk about Jey Uso but here are Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh to interrupt. Dominik says Jey is going to join the team and there isn’t a thing Cody can do about it. The fight is on and Cody cleans house without much trouble.

In the back, Drew McIntyre runs into Jey Uso and says they have unfinished business. McIntyre doesn’t trust him. Jey says cool, but McIntyre says Jey can’t stand on his own two feet. A match is set for next week.

Chelsea Green vs. Shayna Baszler

Piper Niven is here with Green. Baszler wastes no time in taking her down and going after the arm, only to get kicked in the head. The threat of a cross armbreaker sends Green outside but some damage has been done. Back in and the Kirifuda Clutch is countered into a victory roll for two but Baszler Pipers Pit’s her for the pin at 1:50.

Post match Niven goes after Baszler but Zoe Stark comes in for the save.

Shinsuke Nakamura says Seth Rollins isn’t honorable and brings up some of he horrible things Rollins has done. Nakamura will challenge him when he feels like it.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. Rollins agrees with all of the bad things Shinsuke Nakamura has said about him and is ready to fight for the title right now. Nakamura’s music plays but we cut to the back where Nakamura is beating up Ricochet. Nakamura will be around.

Finn Balor comes up to Jey Uso in the back and says he likes what he’s been seeing tonight. Jey isn’t sure what to think about this but the Judgment Day’s doors are always open.

Imperium vs. Alpha Academy/Tommaso Ciampa

Maxxine Dupri is here with the Academy and Ciampa. A Thesz press takes Vinci down to start and it’s off to Gable vs. Kaiser. Gable gets the better of things so it’s back to Vinci, with Kaiser low bridging Gable to the floor. Gable gets sent into the corner for the triple kick and we take a break.

Back with Gable not being able to dive over for a tag as Gunther knocks his partners to the floor. Gable finally takes Gunther down and brings Ciampa back in to pick up the pace. A reverse DDT gets two on Vinci, who is back up with a heck of a clothesline. Otis comes in and gets to clean house, including the Caterpillar to Kaiser. A missed charge sends Otis into the post though and it’s a double tag to bring in Gable and Gunther for the showdown.

Gunther snaps off a German suplex but the powerbomb is rolled through into an ankle lock. Vinci comes in and gets ankle locked as well, setting up Chaos Theory for two. With everyone else fighting on the floor, Gable ankle locks Vinci. Gunther tries to dive in for the save but Ciampa grabs the Sicilian Stretch to slow Gunther down and make him watch Vinci tap at 13:06.

Rating: B. This was a fast paced almost non-stop action match, especially after they went nuts after the break. Otis continues to have that weird charisma to him that makes even his goofy stuff look good, but this was again about Gunther vs. Gable. They’re likely to have another match at Fastlane and Gable almost has to win the title after this much hype.

Judgment Day is ready for the main event.

NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton is in the back to complain about how Becky Lynch isn’t here. Cue Lynch, so Adam Pearce wants to get the contract signed. First though, Stratton says she has been nothing but nice to Lynch, who is coming after the title anyway. Lynch says she sees all of the potential in Stratton so it’s time to bring her to the big time. Lynch signs as Stratton says she’s ready to prove she’s the best. Stratton signs as well and walks off.

Raw Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Ripley is defending and they take turns showing off the power to start. A powerslam gives Rodriguez two and we hit the bearhug. Ripley slips out and sends her outside for a dive off the steps, followed by some right hands back inside. Ripley misses a charge into the corner though and Rodriguez hits a big boot as we take a break.

Back with Ripley tying up the leg while hammering away at the same time. With that broken up, Ripley drops her in the corner, setting up a headscissors choke. Rodriguez powers up and drops Ripley on the corner for the break. They trade running forearms until stereo big boots put them both down.

Back up and they slug it out until Ripley gets two off a northern lights suplex. Riptide is blocked though and Rodriguez plants her down for two. Ripley knocks her down again and hits a frog splash for two and they head outside again. This time Ripley’s cannonball is countered into a swing into the announcers’ table, followed by an apron powerbomb. Ripley is thrown back in…..and Nia Jax returns to take out Rodriguez. Back in and Riptide retains the title at 15:43.

Rating: B-. They were having the hoss fight here and Rodriguez was going step for step with Ripley but then the ending happened. It’s a big shock to have Jax return, but unless she has improved a good bit since the end of her last run, it might not be the best addition. If she can move out there well enough and is a good bit safer then cool, but otherwise I’m not sure about this.

Post match Jax hits a Banzai Drop on Ripley to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. There was enough good action on this show to make the three hours go by pretty quickly and that’s the best thing that can be said about most Raw’s. The ending is the big moment of the show, along with what feels like a Drew McIntyre heel turn. I’m curious about where some of these things are going and Jey Uso feels like an actual high level star as he is sprinkled throughout the show. This week was more about setting things up for later and on that front, it was a good success.

Results
Judgment Day b. Kevin Owens/Jey Uso – Coup de Grace to Owens
Miz b. Akira Tozawa – Skull Crushing Finale
Drew McIntyre b. Cody Rhodes – Claymore
Shayna Baszler b. Chelsea Green – Piper’s Pit
Alpha Academy/Tommaso Ciampa b. Imperium – Ankle lock to Vinci
Rhea Ripley b. Raquel Rodriguez – Riptide

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

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AND

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 4, 2023
Location: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We’re done with Payback and Seth Rollins has retained the Raw World Title over Shinsuke Nakamura. However, Nakamura attacked him again after the show was over so we might be in for a rematch. That would likely be at Fastlane in a little over a month, but we have some time to set that up. Let’s get to it.

Here is Payback if you need a recap.

Payback recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Jey Uso, through the crowd, for his Raw debut. He talks about being introduced by Cody Rhodes and some people aren’t going to be happy that he’s here. Cue Sami Zayn to say that’s true, but Sami is indeed happy that he’s here. Sami extends his hand but Jey doesn’t move. That’s cool with Sami, who says he’s happy to wait and will talk whenever Jey is ready. Sami goes to leave but Jey says that wasn’t very Ucey of him. Jey holds out his hand and Sami hugs him, so everything is cool. As they leave, Jey runs into Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle, both of whom stare at him but nothing gets violent.

We look at Seth Rollins vs. Shinsuke Nakamura from Payback.

Ricochet is asking Adam Pearce for an opportunity when Seth Rollins comes in. Pearce isn’t happy he’s here because of the medical report on his back and Jey Uso. Rollins: “Uso schmuso. Medical schmedical.” Ricochet says Rollins doesn’t have to carry the show himself when he has help but Rollins insists he’s fine.

Of note: we cut back to McIntyre and Riddle waiting in the ring for their match to start, with McIntyre being heard saying “we’ve been out here forever”.

Drew McIntyre/Matt Riddle vs. Viking Raiders

Tornado tag and Valhalla is here with the Vikings. They start fast and the Vikings get dropped, allowing McIntyre to flip Riddle onto Erik for two. The Vikings are sent outside, with McIntyre suplexing Riddle onto them. It’s already time for the table (why there is a monitor under the ring isn’t clear) and we take a break. Back with McIntyre saving Riddle from a splash through a table. A double superplex to Ivar misses the table as well but Erik is back up.

McIntyre suplexes his way out of trouble and hits a Death Valley Driver on Ivar. Another suplex on the floor drops Erik but Ivar dives off the announcers’ table with a splash to McIntyre. Riddle is back up to clean house but the Vikings are back up thanks to Valhalla interference. Cue Kofi Kingston to break up Ragnarok but he accidentally hits Riddle with Trouble In Paradise. Kofi is tossed at McIntyre and a double powerbomb through the table finishes Riddle at 9:40.

Rating: B-. It was the usual wild brawl as this was basically another version of a street fight. The Kofi interference going the wrong way opens up some doors as we are likely heading towards a triple threat tag team match. It’s a story that has been going for a few weeks now and isn’t losing steam so well done on putting things together well enough.

In honor of tonight’s main event, we look at some legends who held the Intercontinental Title over the years.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. Shinsuke Nakamura brought it on Saturday and Rollins didn’t know if he could continue the fight, but he’s still the champ. Then Nakamura attacked him after the match, meaning Nakamura walked out of the arena but Rollins was wheeled out by his wife. So Nakamura can get out here right now and we’ll finish this.

Cue Nakamura, who won’t get in the ring. Therefore, Rollins offers to put the title on the line right now. Nakamura responds in Japanese, which Rollins takes as a yes, so let’s ring the bell. Nakamura: “No.” Rollins is confused so Nakamura says it again, which makes it even more confusing. That doesn’t work for Rollins, who charges up the aisle and the fight is on. Security is here to break it up but Nakamura gets in some knees to the back. Ricochet makes the real save.

Post break Adam Pearce tells Rollins that he’s going too fast and Pearce is just trying to protect him.

Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura bails tot he floor to start but Ricochet throws him back in. A suplex doesn’t work for Ricochet and Nakamura hits a middle rope knee to the face. Nakamura hits the sliding German suplex and we take a break. Back with Nakamura striking away as Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest are watching backstage. Ricochet hits a running boot in the corner and the running shooting star press gets two. Nakamura kicks him in the head but Ricochet hits the Recoil for two of his own. They head to the floor with Ricochet being driven into the barricade. Then Nakamura hits him with a chair for the DQ at 9:32.

Rating: C+. They only had so much time here but there is something to be said about Ricochet as Rollins’ buddy, as he can hold his own against a lot of people. One thing that helps that theory is the lack of a pin here, as Ricochet was in trouble but lost via DQ. That helps quite a bit and for some reason it is often overlooked.

Post match Nakamura wraps a chair around Ricochet’s neck but Seth Rollins runs in for the save. Security can’t break it up so Nakamura drives him into the steps. Ricochet makes the real save with a chair. We cut to the back where Rhea Ripley tells Damian Priest “not tonight”.

We look at Becky Lynch beating Trish Stratus at Payback, with Zoey Stark turning on Trish after the match.

Zoey Stark says she respects Stratus, but no one pushes her around. Shayna Baszler (oh yeah she’s supposed to be a thing now) comes in to say she’s glad Stark got rid of the dead weight. Stark wants a match tonight so Baszler says show her something.

Here is Judgment Day for a chat. Dominik Mysterio is of course booed out of the building as he tries to go over what the team managed to do at Payback. Finn Balor thanks the team for everything they have done, including Damian Priest, who has had some issues with him, but now they’re the champs. Balor thanks JD McDonagh for having his back but also himself, as he is now Grand Slam Finn. Rhea Ripley is proud of the team for rising to the occasion, but now people are talking about Jey Uso instead of the team.

Cue JD McDonagh to say that the team needs some kind of a change. That would be a new briefcase for Priest, with the new version being blue and saying Senor Money In The Bank. Cue Sami Zayn to say he hears a bunch of talking but wants Mysterio tonight. McDonagh steps in instead though and the match seems to be set.

More Intercontinental Champions.

Gunther is ready to be in the history books and he’ll prove it tonight.

Adam Pearce gives Raquel Rodriguez something. Chelsea Green comes in to say the Women’s Tag Team Titles are NOT cursed and someone like Rodriguez isn’t getting them. The thing that Pearce gave her by the way? A match with Green.

Zoey Stark vs. Shayna Baszler

Baszler takes her down fast and starts in with the strikes to the arm. They fight to the floor where Stark has to get out of a choke. The big dive drops Baszler again and we take a break. Back with Stark kicking Baszler down and hitting a springboard dropkick for two. Baszler kicks her down for two more but has to block the Z360. Instead Stark knocks her to the floor and hits a splash off the apron. Back in and Stark misses a springboard splash, allowing Baszler to grab the Kirifuda Clutch for the (eventual) knockout at 8:52.

Rating: C. This is a good example of a match that probably shouldn’t have been made. You had Baszler get the big win at Summerslam but then Stark had her big moment two days ago. With both of them needing to follow up on things, having the match means one of them is probably going to have to lose. Why do it in the first place then?

Respect is shown post match.

Judgment Day wants JD McDonagh to prove himself and Finn Balor agrees. They’re off to keep an eye on things. Rhea Ripley tells Dominik to go take care of this.

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Chelsea Green

Green tries to bail to start and is quickly ragdolled. Some shots to the face don’t do much to Rodriguez, who catches a crossbody and plants Green. A hard clothesline sets up the Tejana Bomb for the pin on Green at 1:40.

More famous Intercontinental Champions.

Chad Gable, with the Alpha Academy, is ready to win the Intercontinental Title.

It’s time for MizTV and Miz isn’t happy about that loss to LA Knight. He accuses Knight of being in league with John Cena and wants an explanation. Cue Cena….or at least the invisible version. Miz yells at him as they have a seat, and Miz apparently gets a confirmation that Cena cheated. Therefore, the loss to Knight should NOT count.

Miz tells Cena to get out and the fight is on, with Miz hitting the Skull Crushing Final. Miz says there is nothing invisible about how unfair that loss was, so now he wants a rematch with Knight. That was certainly different and I’m not sure if that’s good or not. Knight vs. Miz doesn’t need to continue though and the fact that it is isn’t a good sign.

Video on Gunther vs. Chad Gable.

Jey Uso runs into Adam Pearce and says Smackdown is getting compensation for the trade for Jey (It was a trade?) and it’s going to tick people off. Jey leaves and Tommaso Ciampa comes in to see Pearce to continue some conversation they’ve been having.

JD McDonagh vs. Sami Zayn

McDonagh bails to the floor to start but takes over back inside. They trade chops in the corner before heading outside, where McDonagh rams him into the announcers’ table. We take a break and come back with Sami fighting out of a chinlock and hammering away in the corner. A backdrop sets up the Michinoku Driver for two on McDonagh. Sami loads up the Helluva Kick but cue Dominik Mysterio to break it up. The villains are both beaten up but McDonagh grabs a rollup with tights for the pin at 8:00.

Rating: C+. Not a bad match, with McDonagh getting a needed win. McDonagh has been up and down throughout his time on the main roster so maybe this is the next step for him. At the same time, that’s back to back falls for Sami, who is mostly bulletproof but doesn’t need to lose over and over.

Post match Sami fights up and hits the Helluva Kick on McDonagh as Mysterio leaves.

We look at Tiffany Stratton interrupting Becky Lynch after Payback.

More Intercontinental Champions.

Judgment Day is pleased with JD McDonagh but Dominik Mysterio goes over to see Jey Uso. They have a lot of things in common, like coming from a broken family. If Jey is interested, there are open arms in the Judgment Day. Jey doesn’t say no.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Intercontinental Title: Chad Gable vs. Gunther

Gunther is defending and after the Big Match Intros, a headlock takeover puts Gable down. Back up and Gable dropkicks him to the floor as we take a break. We come back with Gable cranking on the leg over the ropes. The leg is fine enough for a big boot and the hand is fine enough for a chop but Gable is right back up. Gable unloads in the corner but Gunther kicks him out to the floor as we take another break.

Back again with Gable reversing a powerbomb into a hurricanrana to the floor. Gunther kicks him down and goes up, only to have Gable run the corner for a superplex. The ankle lock is broken up but Gable suplexes his way out of a sleeper. Rolling Chaos Theory gets two and the grapevined ankle lock goes on. That’s broken up as well and Gunther gets the sleeper. With that broken up, Gunther hits a sleeper suplex into the powerbomb into the hard clothesline to retain at 16:03.

Rating: B. They were rolling by the end and made the most out of a rough situation. Gunther has gone over a year as champion and will break the record for longest reign ever later this week. There is no reason to take the title off of him here, so Gable was tasked with making the most out of a rough situation. It was a heck of a fight here near the end, but this was the only way it should have gone.

Gunther leaves but gives Gable a respectful look to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a bit of a tighter show, with multiple stories running throughout the show. That made for a good night, as you can see where multiple stories are probably going. On top of that, you had a heck of a main event as Gunther is all but guaranteed the record for longest Intercontinental Title reign of all time. Solid show here, which is even better coming off a pretty unimportant pay per view.

Results
Viking Raiders b. Drew McIntyre/Matt Riddle – Double powerbomb through a table to Riddle
Ricochet b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Nakamura used a chair
Shayna Baszler b. Zoey Stark – Kirifuda Clutch
Raquel Rodriguez b. Chelsea Green – Tejana Bomb
JD McDonagh b. Sami Zayn – Rollup with tights
Gunther b. Chad Gable – Lariat

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

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: August 11, 2023
Location: Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We’re done with Summerslam and the big story is those battling Usos again, as Jimmy returned and cost Jey the World Title against Roman Reigns. That is likely going to set up more than a few issues down the line, but for now we have less than a month to go before Payback. Let’s get to it.

Here is Summerslam if you need a recap.

Long recap of the Women’s Title situation at Summerslam, with Bianca Belair winning the title and Iyo Sky cashing in Money In The Bank on her to win the title immediately after.

Asuka vs. Charlotte

They trade shoulders to start with Asuka getting the better of things and kicking away. Charlotte pops back up but gets missile dropkicked back down, allowing Asuka to kick her in the head for two. We take a break and come back with Charlotte diving off the apron to take her down, followed by the spear. The Figure Four is loaded up but cue Damage CTRL to interrupt. The distraction lets Asuka get in a kick to the head and Bayley’s distraction lets Asuka hit a Codebreaker. Then Sky missile dropkicks them both for the no contest at 9:15.

Rating: C+. What are you supposed to do with a nine minute match that had a good portion of it in a commercial? The match was the usual nice stuff between these two but this was about the ending rather than anything else. At least Charlotte didn’t beat Asuka again, as that has happened enough for a few careers.

Post match Damage CTRL celebrates.

We look at Jimmy Uso returning to cost Jey Uso the World Title.

Video on Santos Escobar vs. Austin Theory.

Escobar is ready to win the US Title but here is Theory to jump him from behind. Theory slams an anvil case on his leg and the LWO makes the save.

Video on Karrion Kross, who wants to hurt AJ Styles and teases gaining disciples.

AJ Styles vs. Karrion Kross

Michin and Scarlett are here too. Styles starts fast and ties up the leg but Kross is back up with a backdrop. Kross sends him hard into the corner but Styles slips out of a superplex. A clothesline puts Kross on the floor but he’s fine enough to drop Styles on the announcers’ table as we take a break.

Back with Styles firing away but the Phenomenal Forearm is countered into the Krossjacket choke. That’s broken up and Styles hits the moonsault into a not so great reverse DDT. The springboard 450 connects but Scarlett puts the foo ton the rope. Michin goes after her and gets dropped, only to pop back up and pull Scarlett over the announcers’ table. The distraction lets Styles hit the Styles Clash to finish Kross at 9:52.

Rating: B-. This started to rock at the end, though having Kross lose when he had promised people coming to help him was a little weird. Styles winning felt like the end of the feud but if Kross has people coming, that would suggest it is going to keep coming. For now though, at least they had the best match they’ve had so far.

Video on Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar.

Here is Edge in a surprise. Edge knows he has his big moment in Toronto next week, but he wanted to be here in Calgary as well. He wants to have a match next week though, and he wants that to be against Sheamus. What you might not know is that Sheamus is the reason he is here again.

Sheamus is the one who lit the fire under him because they were on his Celtic Warrior Workouts together. Edge got Sheamus onto a mountain bike and Sheamus looked like a goof, but Edge fell off his own bike. He was fine enough off the crash, so he wondered why he couldn’t wrestle again. Then he called Sheamus to find out if he was ready to come back so he and Sheamus trained together and became family. So now he needs an answer, so here are the Brawling Brutes.

We see the footage of Edge falling off the bike and getting banged up. Edge puts up a picture of Sheamus sitting on a children’s bike, with Sheamus saying Edge has a weird chin. Sheamus talks about working at a bar in 2004 where he met Edge, who was the only wrestler to give him the time of day. Edge issues the challenge again, even offering post match alcohol. Sheamus agrees, but hopes Edge isn’t making a mistake. For a quick story behind a match between two people who are clearly friends, this was as good as it was going to get.

Happy 70th Birthday Hulk Hogan. Yeah you have to mention that.

Top Dolla vs. LA Knight

Ashante Thee Adonis and B Fab are here with Dolla, who chokes on the rope to start. Knight flips out o a Death Valley Driver though and hammers away. Adonis is dropped with a right hand and the spelling elbow sets up the BFT to give Knight the pin at 2:00.

Post match Knight says it doesn’t matter where he goes because everyone knows it and everyone says his name.

Santos Escobar is officially cleared but he can bare walk out of the trainer’s room.

Bobby Lashley and the Street Profits are having a drink, with Lashley saying he sees talent in them. He won’t call it untapped potential but now it’s time to see what they can do. The sky is the limit for them and Smackdown is ready to see some new people run this place.

US Title: Santos Escobar vs. Austin Theory

Theory is defending and Escobar is badly limping. Cue Theory during Escobar’s entrance to take the knee out again and then says he can’t defend the title against Escobar. We have a replacement though and let’s do this instead.

US Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Austin Theory

Theory is still defending and gets hammered to the floor before the bell. Rey dives off the apron to take him down and we take a break. Back with the match joined in progress and Rey getting to the top for the seated senton. A sunset bomb sends Theory into the corner for two and Rey scores with an enziguri. The 619 to the back staggers Theory but the regular version is caught. A Town Down doesn’t work due to Theory’s back and it’s the 619 into the springboard splash to give Rey the pin and the title at 2:39.

Post match Mysterio celebrates, including with the LWO.

Here is the Bloodline so Jimmy Uso can acknowledge Roman Reigns. There’s no Jimmy though, and Reigns asks Paul Heyman where he is. Heyman says he spoke to Jimmy this morning and Jimmy was very salty. Cue Jimmy through the crowd and Reigns tells him not to listen to the fans. Reigns says he owes Jimmy one so name whatever he wants. New care? Yacht? Jet? DONE! Heyman doesn’t seem sure, but Jimmy says he doesn’t want anything from Reigns.

Summerslam had nothing to do with Reigns, which has Reigns thinking means Jimmy wants power instead. If he wants to be the new right hand man….and here is Jey Uso to interrupt. The angry Jey demands to know why Jimmy did it, with Jimmy saying it was because of his love for Jey (that makes Roman laugh). If Jey won, what happens to the Usos? If Jey won, he would become the Tribal Chief and that would have made him just as corrupt.

Jimmy wasn’t going to let him turn into something terrible like Roman and understands if Jey is done with him. He closes his eyes and waits for the superkick but Jimmy walks away instead. Reigns cracks up laughing and says Jey is going to screw this up by being a hothead. This is about acknowledging him, but Jey superkicks Reigns.

Sikoa goes after Jey but gets superkicked, allowing Reigns to hit the Superman Punch. Reigns’ spear is cut off by a superkick and Jey hits the spear before….superkicking Jimmy in the aisle. Jey says he’s out of Bloodline, Smackdown and WWE. Jey: “Deuces Uces.” Well that’s…certainly a thing. I’m not sure what kind of a thing it was but it did happen. I can go for Jimmy not being the big bad villain and setting up a blood feud against Jey, but Reigns was kind of right about laughing at Jimmy’s lame explanation. It’s better than it could have been, but they need to find something fresh besides these same people over and over.

Overall Rating: B-. This was kind of a weird show as other than the title change, a lot of it felt like things were continuing on from Summerslam. Styles vs. Kross seems to be continuing, Knight gets a little win and the Women’s Title picture is still featuring a bunch of the same people. Edge is back for a likely one off match next week and the Bloodline…well it’s still going. I’m curious about some of these things, but they’re going to need to do something to spice it up a bit sooner than later.

Results
Charlotte vs. Asuka went to a no contest when Iyo Sky interfered
AJ Styles b. Karrion Kross – Styles Clash
LA Knight b. Top Dolla – BFT
Rey Mysterio b. Austin Theory – Springboard splash

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

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AND

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

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

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

Logan Paul vs. Ricochet

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

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

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

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

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

Sheamus arrived via monster truck.

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

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

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

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

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

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

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

Slim Jim Battle Royal

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey

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

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

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

Tonight’s attendance: 59,194.

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

Intercontinental Title: Gunther vs. Drew McIntyre

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

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

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

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

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

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Smackdown World Title: Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The long highlight package takes us out.

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

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

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