Monday Night Raw
Date: July 3, 2023
Location: CFG Bank Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

We’re back stateside after Money In The Bank in London and the big story around here is Damian Priest being the new Mr. Money In The Bank. That means there is officially a threat over a few champions’ heads and that could make things interesting for a long time to come. Let’s get to it.

Here is Money In The Bank if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of pretty much everything that happened at Money In The Bank.

Here is Seth Rollins to get things going. After a long serenade, Rollins talks about retaining the title at Money In The Bank but now he has to worry about that pesky briefcase. Cue Cody Rhodes to interrupt….but he can only get a “So…” out, here Brock Lesnar interrupts. Cody immediately goes outside for the fight but Lesnar takes him side. The F5 is countered and a Cody Cutter sends Lesnar running.

Post break, Rollins is still in the ring but here is Judgment Day (minus Finn Balor) to interrupt. Damian Priest recaps the Money In The Bank concept and Rollins offers him a match tonight. Priest says Rollins can fight someone standing next to him. Rhea Ripley: “Well I’m already defending my World Women’s Title against Natalya.” So it’ll have to be Dominik Mysterio instead. Rollins smells a trap but listens to the fans and says he’ll do it.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Damian Priest

Ripley and Mysterio are here with Priest. Nakamura takes him down fast to start and fires off the knees to the ribs, only to have Priest hit him in the face. Back up and Priest stomps away in the corner, setting up the running elbow. Nakamura manages to put hum on top for the running knee to the ribs as the fans are all over Dominik. They head outside with Priest dropping him onto the barricade as we take a break.

Back with Nakamura striking away and hitting an STO. The sliding German suplex drops Priest and lets Nakamura…go outside to hit on Ripley. With that odd visual out of the way, Priest knocks a diving Nakamura out of the air and hits a good looking spinning kick to the head for two. Nakamura hits a kick of his own and adds the middle rope knee to the chest. Not that it matters as Priest hits a HARD clothesline, setting up South Of Heaven for the pin at 11:00.

Rating: C+. Well Priest is already off to a better start than some Money In The Bank winners as he’s not losing after slipping on a banana peel. Priest has been treated seriously for months now and it is nice to see that continue after he gets his big win. Keep it up and WWE might actually have a star on their hands if they’re not careful.

We recap Shayna Baszler turning on Ronda Rousey to cost the team the Women’s Tag Team Titles at Money In The Bank.

Here is Rousey for a chat but Baszler interrupts, saying people are sick of hearing her trying to talk. Rousey wants an explanation, saying she is owed one. That sets Baszler off, saying she is the reason Rousey got into wrestling so she owes Rousey nothing. The only thing she owes ANYONE is an apology for getting Rousey into the business. Rousey says they worked to become champions, which sets Baszler off again.

Baszler doesn’t remember Rousey building rings to work in front of 30 people or having to fill out an application. Rousey came in and went straight to Wrestlemania. Baszler loves this and owes Rousey the reality that there is someone here who can shut her up. The fight is on with Rousey getting the better of things until Baszler gets an ankle lock. With Rousey slowed, Baszler gives her a running knee and leaves, even as Rousey tells her to get back here. That’s not exactly an explanation, as Rousey and Baszler were a successful team. So Baszler waited until they were a success together to let out all of this anger? That’s a bit odd.

Maxxine Dupri is ready to make her in-ring debut and is ready to prove that Chad Gable is a heck of a trainer. Gable is ready to give the Viking Raiders a dose of patriotism.

Tag Team Turmoil

For a Women’s Tag Team Title shot against Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez (at ringside). Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville are in at #1 and Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell are in at #2. Hartwell goes after Deville to start but everything breaks down quickly. Green gets sent to the apron but comes back in with UnprettyHer to LeRae. Deville’s running knee is enough for the pin at 1:32.

Emma/Nikki Cross are in at #3 with Cross Checking on the banged up LeRae. Green comes in and gets Russian legsweeped, but Cross is still worried about LeRae (who is gone). The UnprettyHer and another running knee finishes Emma at 4:55 total. Tegan Knox/Dana Brooke are in at #4 and clear the ring rather quickly as we take a break. Back with Deville pinning Nox with the running knee at 7:54 so it’s Kayden Carter/Katana Chance in at #5.

Carter drops Deville for a fast two but she has to fight out of the corner. Green is taken up top but Carter goes up with her. Chance tags herself in and hits a super hurricanrana for two with Deville having to make the save. The After Party is broken up and Deville gets in a cheap shot from the floor. UnprettyHer gives Green the pin and the title shot at 11:49.

Rating: C. Deville and Green are a good enough team to get a title shot out of all of this, but a match like this one really shows you just how shallow the division is. Other than the winners, it’s three thrown together teams and Carter/Chance, who have mainly been treated as losers since getting called up. There might (and I emphasize that word) be a decent division between all three brands, but this really didn’t do the division any favors.

Video on the women’s Money In The Bank match.

Video on Bronson Reed.

Here is a ticked off Becky Lynch who didn’t win Money In The Bank, but wants to finish this with Trish Stratus RIGHT NOW. Cue Stratus and Zoey Stark, with Stratus sporting a face mask to protect a broken nose. Lynch: “HAHA LOOK AT HER FACE!” Stratus: “You think this is funny?” Lynch: “I DO!” Stratus isn’t medically cleared to fight so Lynch will beat up Stark instead.

Lynch isn’t impressed but Stratus calls herself the greatest of all time. Lynch says Stratus is just back to plug some low level show and appear on the cover of a local magazine that she paid to be in. Once she leaves, is she taking Stark back to be the secretary of her yoga studio? Why is Stratus still here? Stratus talks about being the face of the women’s division and Lynch is jealous of all of the attention that Stratus gets. Now Stark is going to break her face….or not as Stratus has a medical appointment right now, so they have to leave Balti-less right now (Graves liked that one). Lynch vs. Stratus at Summerslam should work.

Cody Rhodes comes out, welcomes new interviewer Jackie Redmond, and says Brock Lesnar is back. Rhodes will fight him anywhere anytime…and that’s that.

Alpha Academy vs. Viking Raiders

Six person tag here, with Otis wasting no time in hitting the Caterpillar on Ivar. We take a very fast break and come back with Gable coming in to clean house. A dive to the floor hits Erik and a top rope headbutt hits Ivar. Erik takes Gable down though and it’s the women coming in, with Dupri managing the suplex. Valhalla breaks up the Caterpillar from Dupri though, as Gable moonsaults onto the Vikings at ringside. A sunset flip out of the corner gives Dupri the pin on Valhalla at 7:58.

Rating: C-. I do kind of like the fact that WWE isn’t hiding what they’re doing with Dupri. She is far from a skilled star in the ring but she has nice gear and a bunch of charisma. If they keep her doing low level, mostly non-serious stuff like this, she’ll be fine as someone who can be brought up slowly. Not much of a match but they were smart enough to keep the women’s part short.

Ricochet isn’t happy that Logan Paul was in Money In The Bank so how about they settle it face to face next week.

Raw Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya

Ripley is defending and gets jumped from behind during the entrance. They go inside for the opening bell and they go straight back to the floor, with Ripley sending her face first into the announcers’ table. Back in and Ripley forearms her in the back, followed by a headbutt out of the corner. A low superkick keeps Natalya down as this is one sided so far.

Natalya fights out of the corner and hits a high crossbody for a double knockdown. Ripley is back up with a basement dropkick for two and we take a break. We come back with Ripley hitting a kick to the head for a double knockdown. Natalya hurricanranas her way out of a powerbomb but Ripley gets up top for a missile dropkick.

The Prism Trap goes on but Natalya sends her into the corner for the escape. Ripley drops her again and goes up for a frog splash (complete with Eddie dance) only to hit raised knees. A powerslam into the Sharpshooter sends Ripley to the ropes but she’s right back with a headbutt. Riptide retains the title at 13:06.

Rating: B-. This got a lot better after the break and they had a pretty good match despite the lack of uncertainty over the winner. Natalya’s problem has never been her abilities in the ring so it’s no surprise that she can get going in a long match. Just stop trying to have her involved in stories and she’s a lot better. Ripley isn’t likely to lose the title anytime soon, so giving her a nice win like this is a good way to go.

Post match Ripley stays on her until Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez make the save.

We look at Miz attacking Tommaso Ciampa last week.

Ciampa says he fought Miz face to face but Miz attacked him from behind. There is a silver lining in this though: Ciampa saw that look in Miz’s eye. He’s happy to have that Miz back and now he can face the good one.

Miz says he’s feeling better than he ever before so he’ll face Ciampa in a no DQ match next week.

Video on the Bloodline Civil War at Money In The Bank with Jey Uso finally pinning Roman Reigns.

Rhea Ripley is in the back and runs into Ms. Money In The Bank Iyo Sky. Ripley says try her, because it would be a huge mistake. Sky leaves and Dominik Mysterio/Damian Priest come in. They haven’t heard from Finn Balor but Ripley threatens Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez. Dominik Mysterio is ready to hurt Seth Rollins, which has Ripley approving.

Matt Riddle vs. Giovanni Vinci

The rest of Imperium is here with Vinci. Riddle kicks away at the chest but Vinci goes after the still banged up ankle. The middle rope moonsault connects for Vinci but Riddle grabs a rollup for the pin at 1:20.

Post match the beatdown is on until Drew McIntyre makes the save. The Claymore drops Vinci and McIntyre stares Gunther down.

We recap Seth Rollins retaining over Finn Balor at Money In The Bank.

Matt Riddle thanks Drew McIntyre for the save and they’re going to face Imperium next week. For tonight, they’re hitting the town.

Seth Rollins vs. Dominik Mysterio

Non-title and the rest of Judgment Day (minus Finn Balor) are here with Dominik. Rollins takes him over with a headlock as the fans are all over Dominik. Rollins’ headlock is reversed into another headlock but he’s right back up with a running clothesline. With Dominik on the floor, Ripley offers a distraction but Dominik gets tossed outside again anyway.

We take a break and come back with Rollins snapping off Three Amigos but another Ripley distraction lets Priest shove him off the top. Dominik hits the frog splash and then does it again but doesn’t bother covering. A third only hits raised knees though and Rollins first off some running forearms in the corner. The running knee drops Dominik again and a clothesline sends him outside. Rollins hits a dive onto Dominik and Priest, the latter of whom comes in with the South of Heaven for the DQ at 9:50.

Rating: C+. This was the right way to go as Dominik isn’t going to be a threat to Rollins straight up, but Dominik with Ripley and Priest could be. It’s also good to not have Dominik take another fall, as you don’t want to run him into the ground. Priest coming in for the DQ to set up a cash in tease worked fine and it was nice to see the champion getting to beat someone up for a bit.

Post match Priest loads up the Razor’s Edge through the announcers’ table but Rollins slips out. Dominik gets in a briefcase shot though and Priest teases cashing in. Cue Finn Balor though, and he knocks Rollins into Priest to break up the cash-in attempt (Priest didn’t do it). The argument lets Rollins escape, albeit after a Pedigree on Dominik on the floor. Judgment Day argues a lot to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show had quite the level of HHH efficiency going on and that’s a great thing to see. You had the Judgment Day/Seth Rollins stuff going on throughout the show, plus some things being set up for the future. While not officially announced, you can probably guess most of the Summerslam card from a month out and that’s not bad. Keep doing stuff like this and Raw should be in a good place on the way to Detroit.

Results
Damian Priest b. Shinsuke Nakamura – South Of Heaven
Sonya Deville/Chelsea Green won Tag Team Turmoil last eliminating Kayden Carter/Katana Chance
Alpha Academy b. Viking Raiders – Sunset flip to Valhalla
Rhea Ripley b. Natalya – Riptide
Matt Riddle b. Giovanni Vinci – Rollup
Seth Rollins b. Dominik Mysterio via DQ when Damian Priest interfered

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

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

AND

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

We’re back to one of WWE’s signature shows but this time they have taken it overseas to London (I think it’s in Paraguay) to spice it up a bit. As usual there are two namesake ladder matches but in this case we also have the Bloodline Civil War and some other stuff that probably won’t feel anywhere near as important. The show will certainly be a big one so let’s get to it.

Intercontinental Title: Gunther(c) vs. Matt Riddle

Gunther is in a weird place as while he is only a few months ago from breaking the all time record for longest Intercontinental Title reigns but it doesn’t feel like this must reach achievement. Gunther has long since been established as a big star and even losing the title won’t particularly hurt him. It might not be what happens here, but it’s something that feels like it’s possible.

Now that being said, no I won’t pick Riddle to dethrone the monster here as it doesn’t feel like the right change. Riddle has been built back up a bit as a serious fighter and the MMA stuff could give Gunther trouble, but ultimately this feels like a way for Gunther to get another nice win on his resume as the roster continues to be cleared out on the way to….whatever is next for him. Gunther retains, as he should.

Women’s Tag Team Titles; Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler vs. Raquel Rodriguez/Liv Morgan

This is a match that could go either way, though that might not be a good thing. Rousey and Baszler feel like a team who could dominate the division for a long time to come, but WWE LOVES itself some thrown together teams ala Rodriguez and Morgan. They only lost the titles in the first place so putting the titles back on them here would hardly be some big shock.

Perhaps for the sake of my own sanity, I’ll go with the champs retaining here. Rousey and Baszler haven’t even had the titles for a month and I would hope they don’t lose them to the combined forces of Rodriguez’s back and Morgan’s spunkiness. The villains winning here makes sense and dethroning them this soon would feel like a really bad idea. That makes me think I’m wrong, but I’ll hope that the champions retain.

World Heavyweight Title: Seth Rollins(c) vs. Finn Balor

Here we have a rather WWE dilemma: do you go with the title change that makes Balor a star all over again and give him the chance that he never really had, or do you stick with the guy who makes the crowd “sing” and has a gimmick that is so odd that it really can’t be explained? I think you know where this is going and unfortunately there isn’t much of a way around it.

Rollins retains here, as for some reason that weird conducting the crowd deal is one of the biggest things in WWE at the moment. I’m not sure what the point of the whole thing is, but the fans being into it is at least a sign that they’re doing something right. Unfortunately that means Balor continues to spin his wheels, even as they close one of the bigger stories that he has had in WWE.

Women’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match: Becky Lynch vs. Trish Stratus vs. Zoey Stark vs. Zelina Vega vs. Bayley vs. Iyo Sky

As is usually the case with these things, we’ll go with a process of elimination. First of all, we’ll drop Stark, Bayley and Vega. While the latter is at best a dark horse underdog, Bayley and Stark just aren’t winning the thing and shouldn’t. That leaves us with four options, and it’s hard to imagine Stratus getting there either. Therefore, it’s down to Lynch and Sky and that opens up some doors.

I’m going with Sky here, as the women’s division is in serious need of some fresh blood other than Rhea Ripley. The Horsewomen are WAY past their peaks, Bianca Belair has been the top star for so long that she needs a replacement, and Asuka can only carry things for so long. They need someone fresh and Sky would fit that bill. As a bonus, Bayley can get annoyed at Sky for winning the briefcase and their issues can continue. Sky wins here, as she should.

Men’s Money In The Bank Ladder Match: LA Knight vs. Logan Paul vs. Santos Escobar vs. Butch vs. Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Damian Priest

This is a trickier one as there are more options for potential winners. Again, we’ll take out some people who just aren’t going to win, meaning Butch, Ricochet, Nakamura and probably Escobar are out. That leaves us with three options, which has kind of been the case for the last few weeks. In other words, it depends on if you want to go with the logical choice, the people’s choice, or the “HE’LL GET VIEWS” choice.

I want this to be Knight and it almost NEEDS to be him. Knight’s reactions have been growing bigger and bigger and at some point, WWE needs to pull the trigger on someone that hot, being 40 years old or not. I’ll hope beyond hope that they do, but Priest makes some sense as well given his recent history with Rollins and Paul is Paul. Those are some solid options, but this would/could/should be Knight so we’ll go that way.

Roman Reigns/Solo Sikoa vs. Usos

And now for the real main event, despite WWE announcing something else as the main event. The Bloodline story has dominated WWE for a very long time now and it is almost impossible to imagine that anything else is going to be nearly as important. This story has gotten one huge reaction after another and this is a showdown that has been built up for a long time. But someone has to win.

There is absolutely no reason for the Usos to lose here so we’ll go with that. The Bloodline is falling apart right in front of your eyes and Reigns has to lose everything before the end. I don’t think that involves him taking the fall here, but Sikoa getting pinned and earning a yelling from Reigns before they split as well makes sense. This is all about the Usos, and they’ll go over in the end.

Dominik Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes

Well not really the end because THIS is the main event due to reasons that should makes sense later. This is giving me a Kurt Angle vs. Mark Henry from the 2006 Royal Rumble vibe, as the only reason for the match to headline is for something screwy to happen. That something is likely to be from the king of “here he is to end the show” and I think you know where this is going.

I’ll take Mysterio to win here, as a mixture of the crowd hating him so much and Brock Lesnar returning to screw Rhodes over would fit nicely. Rhodes vs. Lesnar III has to be set up and that can be done with one heck of a massacre to end the show. Rhodes flat out told Lesnar where to come to fight him again so Rhodes will have no one to blame but himself. Lesnar interferes and gives Mysterio the win to end the show, because Lesnar is more important than anything else. Again.

Overall Thoughts

As much as I can’t stand the build towards Money In The Bank most years (though this year’s has been a notable improvement), the show has a tendency to be good. The ladder matches will both work by definition and some of the other stuff involved should hold up as well. If that is the case on both ends we will be in for a strong night as the Road To Summerslam can begin almost immediately.

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.

Monday Night Raw
Date: June 26, 2023
Location: Enmarket Arena, Savannah, Georgia
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

It’s the last Raw before Money In The Bank and then it’s off to England. That might not make for the most thrilling Raw but there are some stories that could use a final push before the big show. If nothing else, Seth Rollins is going to want to get his hands on Finn Balor so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Finn Balor vs. Dominik Mysterio over the last few weeks.

Here are Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio to the reaction you would expect. Ripley promises that Dominik will end Cody at Money In The Bank so here is Rhodes (HUGE reaction) to interrupt. Cody welcomes us to the show and threatens Dominik, who bails to the apron. Just to make it worse, Cody quotes the Cat In The Hat, because Dominik is a scared little boy. Dominik leaves as Cody begs him to come in here and take a free shot. When Dominik won’t come in, Cody says he wants to see if Dominik is half the man his father is, or if he’s just Mami’s little boy.

Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Bronson Reed is at ringside. They trade strikes to start with Nakamura kicking him in the ribs, only to get kicked right back down. An exchange of kicks sent them both outside where they take turns kicking Reed. Before he can do anything it, Reed is ejected and we take a break.

Back with Nakamura blocking a running shooting star press and stomping at the ribs to keep Ricochet down. Kinshasa misses though and Ricochet kicks him down for two. Ricochet dodges some kicks and hits a standing Sliced Bread, setting up a shooting star press to finish Nakamura at 10:42.

Rating: C+. Seeing Ricochet getting a clean pin over a bigger name is nice to see, even if there is little reason to believe that this is going to last. We still need the triple threat match between these two and Reed, which very well may be coming next week. For now though, Ricochet getting a win is nice to see.

We recap Matt Riddle being beaten down by Imperium.

Riddle has challenged Gunther for the Intercontinental Title at Money In The Bank but cue Imperium to beat him down. The bad ankle is taken out again as Gunther accepts the challenge.

Dominik Mysterio wants Adam Pearce to give him a match tonight…..but Rhea Ripley whispers something to him, so he’ll get back to Pearce on an opponent.

And now, Money In The Bank By The Numbers.

93 Participants
7 WWE Hall Of Famers
28 Winners
78% Of Male Contract Holders To Successfully Cash In
100% Of Female Contract Holders To Successfully Cash In
13 Winners Who Cashed In For Their First World Title
3 People To Cash In Twice
30 Ladder Matches
5 Appearances For Natalya, The Most By A Woman
7 Appearances For Kofi Kingston And Kane, Tied For The Most By A Man
380 Ladders Used
287 Days Carmella Waited, The Longest Ever For A Cash In
50:15 Minutes Kane Waited, The Shortest Ever For A Cash In
5 People Who Cashed In The Same Night
1 Person To Cash In At Wrestlemania
17 Cities Have Hosted
12 States Have Hosted
8 First Timers This Year

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Ronda Rousey

Liv Morgan and Shayna Baszler are here too. They take turns throwing each other around until Rodriguez powers out of the ankle lock. Rousey gets tossed with a fall away slam as Morgan goes after Baszler. In the melee, Rousey grabs a rollup for the pin at 2:13.

Video on Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins, with Balor talking about how the man who beat Rollins seven years ago being dead. He had a horrible arm injury but had to vacate the Universal Title twenty two hours later. Then Rollins came out to laugh at him at his lowest point. Now Rollins has his crazy outfits and his song, but now, after seven years, Balor is taking it all back. Good stuff here from Balor, as he sold the story in just a few moments.

Here is Seth Rollins for a chat. The fans sing so long that we get a graphic of the title match again before Rollins finally speaks. Hold on though as he sees NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes in the front row and thanks him for having his back on NXT. Rollins tells Hayes to take care of Baron Corbin in their title match tomorrow night, just like he’ll do to Finn Balor. He has been wondering which Balor will show up, so why not have Balor come out here right now?

There’s no Balor, which doesn’t surprise Rollins, as Balor likes to hide in the shadows. Rollins isn’t 100% right now and he won’t be at Money In The Bank, but as good as Balor is, he doesn’t know what he’s getting into. Cue Balor with a chair but Rollins takes him down so the brawl can be on. Balor goes for the ribs and grabs the chair, only to get sent into the corner. The fight goes to the floor and Balor goes for another chair, which is taken away by Carmelo Hayes. Balor runs off and we might have a main event for later.

We recap Tommaso Ciampa returning last week to take out the Miz.

Ciampa talks about recovering over the last night months and never heard from Miz once. That gave him a lot of time to wonder why he played second fiddle to Miz, but now he is creating his own opportunities.

Carmelo Hayes vs. Finn Balor is set for tonight.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. The Miz

Miz jumps Ciampa from behind during the entrances and lays him out on the floor with the Skull Crushing Finale. No match, which is good in a way because the story should have been over and another match isn’t needed, but bad in a way because why is this continuing.

Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens run into Imperium in the back, with Sami having to explain to Owens that they’re mad because of what happened to Matt Riddle. Owens yells at Gunther and the result is Gunther vs. Sami tonight. Owens going from indifferent to yelling because Sami told him to was great.

Dominik Mysterio vs. Akira Tozawa

Tozawa is Dominik/Rhea Ripley’s (at ringside) handpicked opponent. Dominik jumps him to start but Tozawa hammers away with right hands. Tozawa’s top rope elbow sends Dominik outside and a suicide dive drops him again. A Ripley distraction lets Dominik crotch him on top though and the frog splash finishes for Dominik at 1:49.

The Viking Raiders are ready for violence.

Here are Trish Stratus, Zoey Stark, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Iyo Sky and Zelina Vega in the ring for the Money In The Bank Summit. Bayley calls everyone stupid and declares herself the favorite but Sky seems to interrupt. Vega knows there are some legends in the match but Trish has never been in a ladder match. Bayley laughs at the idea of Vega winning but Vega says the LWO is winning both briefcases.

Stark cuts the bickering off and Trish says she sees a bunch of girls in the ring. They should all thank her, but Becky doesn’t qualify as a woman because she’s the Man or whatever. The big brawl is on and Sky moonsaults onto everyone but Becky. That leaves Becky to climb up and grab the briefcase. You could guess everything that was going to be said here and the question was who got the briefcase at the end.

Carmelo Hayes says he was invited here by Seth Rollins and it is an honor to be on this show. Maybe he is going to go out there in a blaze of glory, but tomorrow, he’s taking out Baron Corbin. Sometimes you have to take shots to make shots, and tonight he isn’t missing.

Becky Lynch runs into Rhea Ripley and teases cashing in on her. Ripley promises violence if Lynch even tries. Lynch calls Ripley a main event side attraction and wants to get the briefcase just to make Ripley squirm.

Gunther vs. Sami Zayn

Non-title and Ludwig Kaiser/Kevin Owens (the latter on commentary) are the seconds. Gunther grabs a headlock to start but Zayn is back with an armdrag into an armbar. Cue Giovanni Vinci on crutches, allowing Gunther to snap off a German suplex as we take a break. Back with Gunther having to block the exploder suplex into the corner and knocking Zayn down hard. Owens applauds Gunther’s chop and the distraction lets Zayn fight back and grab a sunset bomb for a close two.

The pace picks up and Zayn hits a clothesline but the Blue Thunder Bomb is countered into the sleeper. Zayn powers up and gets the Blue Thunder Bomb for two more. Gunther chops him out of the air though and the top rope splash gets two, leaving Gunther a bit shocked. Owens cuts off an interfering Kaiser but gets kicked in the face by Gunther. Zayn hits a big flip dive though and the exploder sends Gunther into the corner. Vinci gets on the apron though and a crutch shot sets up Gunther’s powerbomb for the pin at 12:13.

Rating: B. This was what you would have expected from these two as they had the time to put a match together, even with all of the other moving parts. What matters here is Gunther had to break a heck of a sweat to beat Zayn, who is far from some nothing opponent. Vinci being back brings Imperium back to full strength and I’ll take that here over a surprise return so he can help cheat Riddle out of the title on Saturday.

Post match the big beatdown is on until Matt Riddle limps down for the save, complete with some crutch shots.

Video on Carmelo Hayes.

The Alpha Academy is ready for the Viking Raiders, thanks to Chad Gable’s coaching.

Natalya isn’t giving up after being knocked down so many times. She wants a title shot next week.

Finn Balor vs. Carmelo Hayes

Non-title. Balor takes him down to start and hits some forearms to the back. The chinlock goes on but Hayes knocks him outside or the big dive. We take a break and come back with Hayes fighting up but missing a crossbody out of the corner. Hayes fights up again but gets dropped with a hard clothesline.

A superkick sets up Hayes’ springboard DDT for two as Balor can’t keep him down. Nothing But Net (top rope Fameasser) doesn’t connect so Balor is right back with a gutbuster. The shotgun dropkick sends Hayes into the corner and it’s the Coup de Grace to give Balor the pin at 8:45.

Rating: C+. This is a good example of “well then why did you have the match?” Hayes has a big title match coming up tomorrow night so you don’t want him to lose. Balor has a big title match coming up this weekend so you don’t want him to lose. In other words, this is a match that shouldn’t have taken place here as there was no good way out of it, save for some kind of a screwy finish. Balor beating Hayes is fine, but it shouldn’t have taken place here.

Cody Rhodes, with his dog Pharaoh, is ready for Dominik Mysterio on Saturday and Damian Priest tonight.

Video on the Bloodline Civil War.

Money In The Bank rundown.

Cody Rhodes vs. Damian Priest

They fight over a lockup to start with Cody trying for the leg. That is broken up without much trouble as Priest powers him into the corner, only to get countered into a delayed gordbuster. Cue Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley though and the distraction lets Priest…well get pulled into the post though.

Rhodes hits a dive but another distraction allows Priest to grab a Downward Spiral as we take a break. Back with Priest hitting a flapjack to put Rhodes down but he’s able to run the ropes and super armdrag Priest off the top. Rhodes slugs away until a headlock driver gives Priest two.

A Pedigree cuts Priest off, only to have him come back with a jumping superkick for two more. Dominik’s distraction breaks up the Disaster Kick and South of Heaven gets two , leaving Ripley livid. Back up and Cody sends Priest into Dominik, setting up the Cody Cutter into Cross Rhodes for the pin at 13:34.

Rating: B-. This was a good way to close the show as Cody still doesn’t get his hands on Dominik. You have to wait for Saturday to see that happen and it should be one heck of a beating when it finally takes place. Here though, it was Cody having to get through the pesky Dominik while still dealing with Priest, which is already a task in its own right. Priest got in his offense here and still looks great, but Cody probably isn’t losing to anyone named not named Lesnar anytime soon. Or maybe Dominik on Saturday.

Dominik gets in a cheap shot on Cody and runs off to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. There was good wrestling mostly throughout the show, but there were also things that brought it back down. Stuff like Hayes losing for no apparent reason, the long stretches between matches and a not exactly inspiring women’s Money In The Bank segment didn’t leave me wanting to see the show. It wasn’t a bad show, but you could definitely feel a different style in a lot of ways, which isn’t exactly encouraging to see.

Results
Ricochet b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Shooting star press
Ronda Rousey b. Raquel Rodriguez – Rollup
Dominik Mysterio b. Akira Tozawa – Frog splash
Gunther b. Sami Zayn – Powerbomb
Finn Balor b. Carmelo Hayes – Coup de Grace
Cody Rhodes b. Damian Priest – Cross Rhodes

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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Joey Janela’s Spring Break 2
Date: April 6, 2018
Location: Pontchartrain Convention & Civic Center, Kenner, Louisiana
Attendance: 1,500
Commentators: Denver Colorado, Emil J

I’ve done parts of this series before so I figured I might as well knock off the rest of them. This show features a match that I’ve always wanted to see as it started one of the strangest comeback stories in wrestling history. Other than that, we’re in for a total mess and that is absolutely by design. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is designed after what looks to be a 16 bit video game, with Joey Janela and Glacier going after Marty Jannetty on the streets….where Jannetty lights Dink on fire to clear the stage. The second stage features Janela and Jannetty shooting at a Barber Shop (which can shoot back). With the shop destroyed, Shawn Michaels pops out of a DeLorean and superkicks Jannetty. That was different.

James Ellsworth is in a toy store and talks about working in WWE before coming here in his return to the independent scene. Tonight he’s ready to fight Matt Riddle, who doesn’t think much of Ellsworth.

Nick Gage music video. Is this just a really long pre-show?

David Starr talks about what wrestling has done for him and tonight, he’s ready for Mike Quackenbush. This is a really long pre-show isn’t it?

Quackenbush is in, and says so to Starr’s face.

Video on the Great Sasuke vs. Joey Janela, the show’s main event.

There’s going to be a Clusterf*** Battle Royal.

We start the series of videos from the beginning again as I guess we’ve got some time to kill before the show starts.

After 24 minutes of the videos looping, we’re ready to go, meaning we get to hear the commentators getting ready for the show and going over the match order.

The opening video is modeled after the WWF Attitude Era intro.

We open with a video on Joey Janela, which is basically a recreation of The Wrestler.

Teddy Hart vs. KTB vs. Tony Deppen vs. Eli Everfly vs. Gringo Loco vs. DJZ

One fall to a finish and DJZ would go on to become Joqauin Wilde in WWE. It’s a brawl to start (duh) with Everfly being sent outside. Deppen clears the ring but gets anklescissored down by Loco. Everfly is back in to snap off a headscissors before he and Loco come to a standoff. Hold on though as DJZ is back with his air horn but gets cleared out again. Hart walks on KTB’s back before pulling him into a sunset flip for two.

A torture rack backbreaker sends Deppen outside and a Project Ciampa hits Everfly. With a helping hand from the referee, Hart moonsaults onto a bunch of people on the floor. KTB dives onto everyone (Hart doesn’t go down) and Everfly hits a dive of his own. Back in and a springboard tornado DDT plants KTB and a super hurricanrana gives Everfly two on Loco. KTB comes off the top to dive onto everyone but Hart, who DDTs KTB down.

A Lionsault misses for KTB and Loco hits a springboard cutter to bring him down again. DJZ is back up and sunset bombs Loco into a moonsault onto KTB before hitting them both with a rolling DDT. Everfly hurricanranas Hart to the floor and takes Deppen up top for a…..super flipping Jay Driller (commentary: “He can’t do that!”) and the pin at 11:06.

Rating: B-. I’m not big on scrambles like this one, but there is something to be said about doing this kind of acrobatics and flips all over the place. It was certainly a fun match and the right way to fire up the crowd to start the show. Everfly’s finisher was completely nutty, making it perfect for a show like this one. Very fun stuff here and believe it or not, the fans loved it.

James Ellsworth vs. Matt Riddle

Ellsworth’s intergender title isn’t on the line (and I’m assuming Riddle’s unidentified title isn’t either). Ellsworth chop blocks him from behind before the bell but Riddle snaps off a gutwrench suplex to drop him as well. Fans: “WHERE’S YOUR CHIN?” Riddle hits a running forearm in the corner and the backsplash makes it worse. Riddle’s running knee just misses….because Ellsworth doesn’t have a chin. A superkick gives Ellsworth one but another is countered into the Bromission to give Riddle the win at 3:38.

Rating: C. Well yeah, what were you expecting? This was always going to be total destruction and it shouldn’t have been anything else. Ellsworth was always a joke and that’s how he was treated here, with Riddle, the indy prodigy, running through him. The missed knee was funny and then Riddle finished him off, as he should have done. That’s oddly logical from a show like this but I’ll take it.

Ellsworth flips off the crowd on the way out in a nice touch.

The ring announcer is ready to introduce the next match and….Virgil interrupts? He calls someone out (the audio isn’t exactly clear), gets no one, and leaves.

PCO vs. Walter

PCO isn’t the monster just yet. Before the match, Walter offers a chance to walk out but PCO gives him a crotch chop and we’re ready to go. They circle each other to start and PCO takes him into the corner for some taps to the chest. Walter works on the arm and gets kicked away without much trouble. PCO knocks him outside and loads up the dive, only to get run over with a shoulder.

The chop off ensues until Walter grabs a slam and sits on his chest. Some choking on the ropes keeps PCO down but he chops his way out of trouble. A kick to the head and short DDT put Walter down and it’s time to head outside. PCO loads up the first table but takes too long and gets dropped down onto the apron. Walter blocks a powerbomb off the apron and sends PCO hard into the steps, but the big chop only hits post.

As he’s a bit off, PCO goes up top and moonsaults down onto Walter and the referee for the big triple knockdown. Granted there was almost no length to the dive so it’s a wonder that he hit the two of them as well as he did. Walter is up first and powerbombs PCO through the table before doing it again (sans table) inside.

The second referee comes in for the two count so PCO gets booted in the face. The chops just wake PCO up though and he opens his own shirt so Walter can chop him again. PCO wins a chop off and the fans are actually on their feet as Walter looks scared. A discus forearm puts Walter on the floor for a suicide dive and a running flip dive takes him down again.

Back in and a super hurricanrana gives PCO two but Walter flips him over with a release German suplex. PCO is right back with a Regal Roll into a split legged moonsault for two (and another standing ovation). Back up and PCO hits a top rope Swanton to finally put Walter away at 18:29.

Rating: B+. Oh yeah this was rather awesome as it was all about two big guys beating each other up and hitting each other really hard. Walter was already a big deal but this would be a nice boost to his career. At the same time, it kicked off one of the most improbably career resurgences as PCO would turn this into an incredible second act to his career. It’s easy to see why too, as this was just hard hitting pain for the sake of beating on each other, with those chops making my skin crawl.

Post match they trade another chop each and shake hands before Walter leaves.

GCW World Title: Penta El Zero M vs. Nick Gage

Gage is defending and swears a lot before the bell. We get a CERO MIEDO vs. MDK chant off until Gage knocks him outside. The dive is cut off with a chair to the head and Penta chairs him again for a bonus. Penta’s chop hits the post though (with commentary pointing out that it’s two matches in a row) but is fine enough to grab some doors. Gage hiptosses him through a door in the corner and grabs a Falcon Arrow for two.

The boot scrape is cut off though and Penta Death Valley Drivers him through another door. A piece of the door over the head rocks Gage again and Penta puts some pieces onto Gage onto a table. The backsplash off the barricade doesn’t put Gage through said table in a nasty crash. Back in and Penta bridges a door over some chairs and Pentagon Drivers him through the door for two. Penta sets up another similar structure but gets powerbombed off the ropes through it instead. The chokebreaker retains Gage’s title at 9:27.

Rating: D+. This felt like a match where the idea was “Gage vs. this guy” and they didn’t have any more thought put into it. Gage didn’t do much of anything here and then retained in the end after Penta had done so much. That didn’t make for an interesting or even fun match from the usual freak show standards, so this was kind of a wreck.

Respect is shown post match. Penta leaves and Gage yells at the fans, who don’t seem to like him. Then he high fives a bunch of fans on the way out so he’s quite an odd duck.

Mike Quackenbush vs. David Starr

Starr does his long introduction and commentary (featuring Walter for this match) will not shut up, saying no one cares what Starr has to say. They fight over arm control to start until Starr gets two off a Thesz press. Back up and they shake hands before Mike climbs the rope and armdrags him into a leglock which he rolls over for what appeared to be a Crossface attempt, sending Starr to the rope.

Mike stomps on the foot and sweeps the leg, setting up some double knees to the ribs. The abdominal stretch goes on and even Walter is impressed by the series of twists it took for Mike to get it on. With that broken up, Starr Death Valley Drivers him into the corner twice in a row, followed by a springboard clothesline to the floor. Starr doesn’t want the countout so he throws Mike back in and gets tossed off the top for his efforts.

A Swanton gives Mike two but his hurricanrana is countered into a powerbomb for two. Starr kicks him in the head for two, which has Walter wanting Mike to win because Starr is “acting like a d***.” A nice tornado DDT sends Starr outside but the big dive is cut off, with Starr driving him into the apron. Back in and Mike grabs a double arm crank but Starr slips out and blasts him with a clothesline for the pin at 11:37.

Rating: B-. This was the technical match of the night so far, with Starr being just enough of a villain to make it a little uneven. What mattered here was getting in something different on the show and they made it work. These two worked well together and you could hear Walter being impressed on commentary so there had to be something to this one.

Commentary: “Walter is it fair to say that the better man won?” Walter: “No.” Starr grabs the mic and puts Mike over before saying how glad he was for being on this show.

Clusterf*** Battle Royal

This is a Royal Rumble with pinfalls, submissions and over the top eliminations, though the entrance intervals are going to be shaky at best. We see some people in the back trying to check into the match, including MJF in a blonde wig disguise. Jimmy Lloyd is in at #1 and Session Moth Martina (she likes beer) is in at #2. Martina dances a lot and gets kissed for her efforts as Orange Cassidy (still just an indy guy and not a phenomenon yet) is in at #3.

Cassidy takes so long to come in that Wheeler Yuta (looking about 17 years old) comes in at #4 and Curt Stallion comes in at #5 for the grapple off. Yuta rolls him up for two and it’s Facade in at #6 to strike away at Stallion. Facade sends him outside and adds a rope walk moonsault onto everyone outside (as no one has been eliminated yet). Back in and a running kick to the head pins Stallion for our first elimination. Swoggle is in at #7 and snaps off some German suplexes.

With Swoggle cleaning house, Grado is in at #8 and he seems immune to German suplexes. Apparently Grado is quite intoxicated and Kikutaro is in at #9 and crotches himself while trying Old School. As some other wrestlers come back in….the Invisible Man is in at #10. House is cleaned and Kikutaro is tossed before Swoggle taps to a Fujiwara armbar. Joe Gacy is in at #11 and slugs it out with Yuta, including the handspring cutter. Bryan Idol is in at #12 and gets to clean some house before Chris Dickinson, in a mask, smoking a cigarette, and coming out to Real American, knocks out Facade.

Gacy is tossed and Yuta is Razor’s Edged out onto the pile (some are still in, some aren’t) at ringside. Dickinson hits Hulk Hogan’s finishing sequence to get rid of Grado and is left alone (I think). Dan Severn is in at #13 and they go with the grappling (after issues at yesterday’s Bloodsport). Alabama Doink (sure) is in at #14 and gets tossed by Severn, who is eliminated by Dickinson. Rickey Shane Page is in at #15 and beats up Dickinson….as well as the still in Lloyd.

With that not working, Marcus Crane comes in at #16 and gets beaten up by Dickinson. Aeroboy (a masked luchador with another masked man apparently named Crazy Boy….who looks like Excalibur) is in at #17 and starts cleaning house, with a Swanton into a double pin getting rid of Dickinson. Rory Gulak (or Drew, according to the rather drunk commentary team) is in at #18 and doesn’t like the idea of the match (with the sign to prove it). Nate Webb is in at #19 and walks through the crowd as Rory beats people up inside.

Everyone gets out of the ring as the fans sing Webb’s song. After taking over the camera, Webb gets inside and plants Gulak with something like a spinning Big Ending for the elimination. Ethan Page is in at #20 so Gulak kicks him in the head. That earns Webb a trip into the corner and it’s MJF (no wig) in at #21.

The masked men go after Page and MJF, with the villains tossing out the luchadors. With them gone, MJF Codebreakers Page into a rollup for the elimination. Martina (hey she’s still in this) comes back in and puts a condom on her face for a Mandible Claw on Page. She also wraps her legs around MJF’s hand for the female version of Joey Ryan’s penis suplex. Then Page rolls her up for the elimination. Cassidy finally gets in for the lazy strikes (the fans approve) and a double chokeslam pus the villains down.

That lets Cassidy go up….and fall off the top so MJF and Page can pin him at the same time. The Invisible Man beats both of them up until Lloyd gives him a piledriver…..which is illegal in Louisiana so Lloyd is eliminated. Page and MJF double team Webb for a double two count so they beat up referee Bryce Remsburg. That results in a beating from Remsburg, who gets sent outside.

Mikey Whipwreck is in at #22 (oh yeah this is a battle royal) and beats the villains up until MJF elbows him in the face. The Whippersnapper (Stunner) sends Page into a spinning faceplant from Webb for the pin and we’re down to….however many are still in this thing. MJF shoves Mikey off the ropes and hits a splash for the pin. A poke to the eye stuns Webb and MJF throws him out….but the Invisible Man rolls MJF up for the win at 39:38.

Rating: D. This right here? It was dumb. I get the idea of having a bunch of people involved and all that jazz but my goodness did this not hold my interest. I’m sure the live crowd (plus a lot of alcohol) really enjoyed it but it was a bunch of indy stars coming in, doing a little something and then moving on. It’s also one of those battle royals where it is virtually impossible to keep track of who is in there and who isn’t as people will stand outside for such long stretches. These things can be fun, but this didn’t have any big surprises or cool moments, leaving it as something that just kept going.

Joey Janela vs. Great Sasuke

Penelope Ford, in a Mardi Gras mask, is here with Janela. Sasuke comes to the ring with what looks like holy water to bless fans. A quick takedown doesn’t get either of them very far so they go to a grappling sequence with Janela twisting the fingers around. Sasuke nips up though and sits in the middle of the ring, which has Janela worried. Back up and Sasuke…apparently hypnotizes Janela and then spins his hand around, causing Janela to flip himself over.

Sasuke puts him in a chair at ringside and loads up a ladder, only to be whipped into it instead. Back up and Sasuke sends him flying off the top and onto the table for a nasty crash. Sasuke brings it back inside and puts Janela on the ladder for a missed Swanton, leaving Sasuke’s heck caught in said ladder. Janela grabs an inflatable alligator to crush Sasuke before loading up six chairs back to back.

With Janela going up top, Sasuke powerbombs him down onto the chairs in one of those STOP DOING THAT bumps. Sasuke hits him in the head with a door and then whips him through another in the corner. They slug it out on the apron and there’s a Death Valley Driver to plant Sasuke (Janela: “F*** YOU JIM CORNETTE!”). With Sasuke in a chair at ringside, Janela misses a top rope flip dive, only hitting the chair instead.

Janela is laid on a table and a big running flip dive drives him through it, which draws in Ford. A dance distracts Sasuke and Janela grabs a figure four. Sasuke gets to the rope, which rightly has commentary asking “IN THIS MATCH?” Janela misses a moonsault and gets laid over another table at ringside, allowing Sasuke to try and put a trashcan over himself and climb up.

This proves rather difficult (as you might have guessed) so he just throws it at Janela instead, setting up a Swanton onto Janela onto the table for the huge crash. Back in and Janela gets two (as Sasuke is mostly dead) but can’t believe the kickout. A Michinoku Driver onto the side of the ladder gives Janela two more, followed by a top rope double stomp onto a chair onto Sasuke for the pin at 25:16.

Rating: D+. To say this just kept going would be an understatement. It turned into little more than a hardcore brawl and that isn’t the most thrilling thing to see. Sasuke did a bunch of flips, but it didn’t exactly feel like a special match. Chop this in half and have some more wrestling and it’s much better, but it didn’t work for the most part, mainly due to the length and feeling like an indy street fight.

Post match Janela puts Sasuke over huge and thanks the fans, talking about how he can’t believe all this happened. Sasuke gets in a quick thank you of his own and they do a quick karaoke version of It’s My Life by Bon Jovi (sure) to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This is a show where it depends on your viewing location. Watching this live in person would have been a blast, though watching it back at home just doesn’t work so well. The Quackenbush vs. Starr and PCO vs. Walter matches are both good (the latter being very good) but the rest of the show is mostly skippable. These shows would get better, but it took some time to get the formula of “fun indy show” down. For now, it isn’t quite working yet, but it could have been a lot worse. Just kind of a not great show that went on too long.

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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Monday Night Raw
Date: June 19, 2023
Location: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

We are about two weeks away from Money In The Bank and we now have a World Title match for the show. Finn Balor will be challenging Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Title in London and that should be good enough to carry a lot of things this this week. Logan Paul is back too so let’s get to it.

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

Here is Seth Rollins for the open challenge title match but Finn Balor jumps him from behind. The beatdown is on outside, with referees and agents holding Balor back. That doesn’t matter, as he manages three Coup de Graces off the steps to crush Rollins as we take an early break.

Post break Balor jumps Rollins again in the back and has to be held back again.

Here is the Miz to say he’s mad about not getting to accept Rollins’ open challenge. Instead, he’s issuing his own open challenge….and we have someone to accept.

The Miz vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Ciampa jumps Miz to start fast and takes the beating outside. Ciampa drops him onto the cover of the announcers’ table and says he was out nine months and didn’t hear from Miz once (there’s a fast explanation. Back in and some corner clotheslines sets up a missed running knee, allowing Miz to grab a short DDT for two. Miz kicks away in the corner and goes up but gets kneed out of the air. The Fairy Tale Ending gives Ciampa the pin at 4:15.

Rating: C. Get Ciampa out there, let him run through someone, have the fans go nuts, get him out of there. This was about Ciampa making an impact and wrapping up a not so great story with Miz. I could go for more of this version of Ciampa, though unfortunately it wouldn’t shock me to see him back with Johnny Gargano sooner than later. That’s not a bad thing, but this would be better.

Here is Judgment Day for a chat. Finn Balor says Seth Rollins’ open challenge is canceled because of him. If the fans like to sing that song so much, they can sing it at Rollins’ funeral. Rhea Ripley promises Judgment Day domination at Money In The Bank and Damian Priest says Cody Rhodes needs to keep Dominik Mysterio’s name out of his mouth. After getting booed out of the building, Dominik gets out a challenge for a six man tag to Cody and anyone he can find.

We recap the Usos turning on Roman Reigns and the Bloodline.

Sami Zayn tells Kevin Owens that he has an anger problem and makes him a bet: if Owens can go the rest of the night without snapping once, Zayn will leave it alone. If Owens blows up, he has to admit he has a problem. Deal.

Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville vs. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance

Before the match, we get a Tiktok reel of Chelsea Green going nuts on a lot of people. Chance knocks Green down into the corner to start so it’s quickly off to Carter to beat up both villains. Deville gets dropped quickly and it’s a springboard moonsault/springboard spinning legdrop combination for two. With Green send outside, the Afterparty (450/neckbreaker combination) finishes Deville 2:00.

Here is Cody Rhodes for a chat on the stage. He accepts Dominik’s challenge. And that’s that.

Indus Sher vs. Cedric Alexander/Shelton Benjamin

Cedric and Shelton start fast and send Sanga outside. A slingshot dive doesn’t work for Alexander so Shelton adds a Blockbuster off the apron to take them down. Alexander gets dropped onto the barricade, leaving Benjamin to get caught with a side slam/middle rope elbow combination for the pin at 2:05.

In the back, Kevin Owens gets doused with some very cold water but manages to keep himself calm. Owens says he has an idiot problem….and runs into Matt Riddle. As Owens bites through his hand because he knows he’s in trouble, Riddle asks if he has seen Honey I Shrunk The Kids. Owens somehow manages to only lose it for a few seconds before wishing Riddle good luck and leaving.

Here is the returning Logan Paul, sitting on a ladder under the Money In The Bank briefcases. Paul talks about how great people come from Cleveland and then they leave. He came back and it still smells like industrial steel and the Browns are still terrible. He and his brother lost their last fights and Miz lost earlier tonight. Now though it is time to put some respect on Cleveland’s name, because he is getting a special invitation into the Money In The Bank ladder match.

Cue Ricochet to interrupt, saying he made Paul go viral at the Royal Rumble. Not that it matters, as he says he’ll win the briefcase anyway. Shinsuke Nakamura, LA Knight and Santos Escobar all interrupt until Butch comes out to start the fight. Paul knocks them to the floor and hits the big flip dive to take them down. Paul gets to climb the ladder, as is custom.

Matt Riddle vs. Ludwig Kaiser

Gunther is here too. Riddle goes for the leg to start but Kaiser takes him into the corner for a right hand. Some chops put Kaiser on the floor but Riddle stops to glare at Gunther, allowing Kaiser to suplex Riddle off the apron to the floor. We take a break and come back with Riddle hitting a top rope superplex for a double knockdown. Riddle strikes away, including a kick to the face. Kaiser is sent outside for a springboard Floating Bro but he comes back with a suplex for two back inside. The middle rope elbow is pulled out of the air, setting up the Bro Derek to give Riddle the pin at 9:09.

Rating: C+. This is why someone like Gunther has lackeys, as Riddle can beat someone with a bit of credibility and build momentum for his eventual title shot. While I can’t imagine Riddle wins the title, it is nice to see someone built up to come after Gunther. The match has potential, and this went well as a way to make Riddle look like a threat.

Post match Gunther goes after Riddle and sweeps the leg without much trouble. Gunther and Kaiser take out Riddle’s knee and leave him laying.

Post break, Riddle is helped to the back.

Imperium interrupts Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, with the latter getting rather annoyed. Zayn gets a message though and they have to leave.

We see an Alpha Academy training session, with Maxxine Dupri being taught the power of hip abilities.

Alpha Academy vs. Viking Raiders

Maxxine Dupri and Valhalla are here too. Gable suplexes Erik down to start so it’s quickly off to Ivar vs. Otis. A corner splash crushes Ivar but the Caterpillar is broken up with a spinning kick. Otis suplexes his way out of trouble though and it’s right back to Gable to strike away at Erik. Gable clotheslines Erik to the floor and moonsaults onto both Vikings. A top rope headbutt gives Gable two back inside and Maxxine suplexes Valhalla. In the melee, Erik hits a knee to Gable for the pin at 4:09.

Rating: C. That ending is certainly a choice as they had the feel good moment with Maxxine using the training to do the suplex and then the Academy, in particular the coach, takes the pin. It’s a weird way to go but for some reason that is the best they have for a match with no stakes. Maxxine feels like a star in the making though and the reactions are getting stronger, so maybe they have something with her.

Damian Priest and Finn Balor are cool with each other but Rhea Ripley has to go deal with Natalya.

Natalya says tonight is another chance to show she still belongs here.

Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya

Ripley jumps her before the bell and the beatdown is on outside. Natalya is whipped into various things and hit with Riptide inside. No match.

Raquel Rodriguez is ready to get into Money In The Bank and runs into Rhea Ripley. Rodriguez says Ripley isn’t ready for her so hope that she doesn’t win.

Akira Tozawa offers to be Cody Rhodes’ partner so he’ll keep that in mind. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn come in, with Zayn saying he got Cody’s text. They’re in.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Raquel Rodriguez vs. Trish Stratus

Zoey Stark is here with Trish. Rodriguez grabs a bearhug to start and throws her down with ease. A missed charge sends Rodriguez into the post though and Trish gets in some strikes to the head to take over. Rodriguez misses a kick in the corner and Trish gets to slug away some more. A camel clutch is broken up and Rodriguez hits a running splash in the corner. Stark’s interference takes Rodriguez down so here is Becky Lynch to go after her. Lynch gets too fired up though and sends Trish into the barricade, drawing the DQ at 5:49.

Rating: C+. These two worked well together, but the match felt like more of a storyline advancement than anything else. Becky knows she screwed up and is going to have to head into Money In The Bank outnumbered by Stratus and Stark. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Rodriguez get in there somehow either, as there might be a spot left in the match if they want to keep even with the men. For now though, we get Trish in a ladder match, which is almost hard to imagine.

The fight continues post match.

Bron Breakker (NXT star facing Seth Rollins for the title tomorrow on NXT) isn’t happy that Rollins might be too hurt to face him. What happened to Rollins tonight is nothing compared to what is coming tomorrow. Maybe the doctors can prescribe him some courage. Either way, get used to seeing Breakker around here.

Becky Lynch is mad at herself, but thinks that having a match with Trish involving ladders could be a lot of fun. She’s either winning, or going down in a blaze of glory and bringing Zoey Stark and Stratus with her.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bronson Reed

Nakamura strikes away to start and does it again in the corner until Reed drops him with one shot. Back up and Nakamura hits the sliding German suplex but here is Ricochet to yell at him as we take a break. We come back with Reed slugging away and hitting a powerslam for two.

Nakamura grabs a choke but Reed powerbombs his way out of trouble. A forearm puts Nakamura on the floor and one heck of a running shoulder drops him again. Hold on though as Reed goes after Ricochet, allowing Nakamura to kick Reed in the head. Nakamura’s charge hits Ricochet though and Reed drops Nakamura fast. The Tsunami gives Reed the pin at 8:28.

Rating: C+. These two work well together and that was on display again here. What matters is having a match that keeps both of them looking strong, though you can probably pencil in the triple threat match with these two and Ricochet for next week. Reed winning gets him some steam back, though it’s a bit strange to have him go over the person actually in Money In The Bank.

Seth Rollins doesn’t care what the doctors say. He’ll defend against Bron Breakker tomorrow night, but as for Finn Balor, Money In The Bank can’t come soon enough.

Cody Rhodes/Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens vs. Judgment Day

Balor works on Rhodes’ arm to start but gets caught in a headlock. Some shoulders in the corner have Rhode sin trouble though and it’s Dominik coming in for a slap to the back. Rhodes scares Dominik away and it’s off to Priest to kick Zayn in the corner. A middle rope elbow to the head gets Zayn out of trouble and it’s Dominik coming back in. Zayn kicks him in the face but Rhea Ripley gets in a cheap shot to put Zayn down as we take a break.

Back with Priest missing a charge into the post but Dominik cuts off the hot tag bid. Zayn fights out of trouble again though and the hot tag brings in Owens to clean house (with the fans going fairly nuts). Dominik tries to run off but gets pulled back inside for the Cannonball. Cody comes back in and powerslams Priest, followed by the Disaster Kick for two.

A Ripley distraction lets Priest hit South of Heaven for two, with Zayn making the save. Hold on as we get a Zayn vs. Ripley staredown, with Ripley having to drop down so Zayn’s dive can hit Dominik. The Cody Cutter gets two on Priest so it’s a Helluva Kick into a Stunner to Dominik. Cross Rhodes finishes Priest at 13:33.

Rating: B. The crowd was on FIRE for this and it made the match that much more entertaining. Priest taking the fall was a little bit odd but Balor is the #1 contender and Dominik is such a heat magnet that I guess they want to protect him. What mattered here was giving the fans a red hot match to end the show and the crowd elevated it to that point, which made for a heck of a closing act. That being said, no payoff to the Owens anger deal? They built that up for most of the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Other than the main event and maybe Paul/Ciampa’s returns, there wasn’t much to be seen this week. What mattered here though was they didn’t do anything stupid and haven’t spent weeks focusing a bunch of time on “building momentum” towards the ladder matches. It felt like a circling the field show before they go to London next week and it did well enough to keep me entertained for three hours. Not a show you need to see, but it could have been a lot worse.

Results
Tommaso Ciampa b. The Miz – Fairy Tale Ending
Kayden Carter/Katana Chance b. Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville – Afterparty to Deville
Indus Sher b. Shelton Benjamin/Cedric Alexander – Side slam/middle rope elbow combination to Benjamin
Matt Riddle b. Ludwig Kaiser – Bro Derek
Viking Raiders b. Alpha Academy – Knee to Gable
Bronson Reed b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Tsunami
Cody Rhodes/Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn b. Judgment Day – Cross Rhodes to Priest

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: May 29, 2023
Location: MVP Arena, Albany, New York
Commentators: Corey Graves, Kevin Patrick

We’re done with Night Of Champions and that means it is time to deal with the fallout. The show featured a triple main event, including Seth Rollins being crowned as the new World Heavyweight Champion. In addition, Brock Lesnar beat Cody Rhodes and Jimmy Uso seems to have walked out on the Bloodline. Let’s get to it.

Here is Night Of Champions if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of Night Of Champions.

Here is new World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, coming through the crowd, to open things up. After taking his sweet time to get to the ring, with streamers and a lot of singing, Rollins says it was a long road here. Finally now, Raw has a champion that wants to be here and a champion that is ready for a fight. After some more conducting, here is AJ Styles to interrupt.

Styles talks about how he gave Rollins everything he had and now the fans are saying Rollins deserves it. That’s not how Styles sees it though, because the reality is Rollins earned it. Rollins shakes his hand and here is the Judgment Day to interrupt. The team talks about how they run WWE and know that it’s going to be one of them that takes the title from Rollins. Ripley: “It could even be my Dom Dom!” After Rollins and Styles crack up laughing, a tag match is made for tonight.

Adam Pearce is on the phone and says that yes he gets why the tag match feels like it goes against the Raw and Smackdown being separate but it’s what the fans want to see. Pearce goes over to Rollins and Styles, who are down for the match. Of note: Pearce was talking to someone above him who had to approve the match, which isn’t something he usually has to do.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: The Miz vs. Ricochet

Ricochet starts fast and sends Miz outside, only to have Miz come back with a running hurricanrana (!) and a big boot. With Ricochet on the floor, Miz drops him onto the announcers’ table, followed by a top rope ax handle back inside. We take a break and come back with Miz hitting a springboard (Miz: “I SPRINGBOARDED!”) crossbody to knock Ricochet down for two more. A Codebreaker out of the corner and a DDT get two on Ricochet, who comes back with a kick to the face. The standing Sliced Bread sets up a shooting star press to finish Miz at 8:40.

Rating: C+. Miz was trying some different stuff here, to the point where it almost felt like he was trying to show off a bit. There’s nothing wrong with mixing it up a bit and Miz bragging about what he was doing fit in perfectly. At the same time, Ricochet going forward is the right call, as you need someone to do a bunch of flips from the ladders.

We look at Zoey Stark helping Trish Stratus beat Becky Lynch at Night Of Champions.

Here is Trish to soak in some THANK YOU TRISH chants, but they mean nothing to her coming from you people. Trish talks about how she told us she would win and says this is what you do when you are the best ever. Now Becky can go away for a bit and let the real stars shine through. Trish is proud of someone who wanted to help her and reminds her of herself from years ago.

Cue Zoey Stark to says he is here to be behind someone as legendary as Trish. They bring up the bruise on Trish’s chin, with Trish threatening Becky Lynch if she shows up. Cue Becky, who says let’s do it again, with Trish sending Zoey after her. That doesn’t work and Becky gets in to hammer on Trish, at least until Zoey cuts it off. The Z360 knocks Becky silly and they put a THANK YOU TRISH shirt up against her in the corner. Solid heel heat here and the feud will have some legs going forward.

Indus Sher vs. Javier Bernal/???

Jinder Mahal is here with Indus Sher (including Veer, who slips off the apron as they get in), who jump them before the bell. Bernal gets sent into the corner and the bell rings, with Veer kicking him in the head. It’s off to the unnamed one, who is tossed into Bernal, setting up a legdrop/side slam combination for the pin at 1:14.

We look back at Jimmy Uso turning on Roman Reigns at Night Of Champions, seemingly leaving the Bloodline. Jey Uso’s future remains to be determined.

Here are Kevin Owens (in an Usos shirt) and Sami Zayn for a chat. Sami is so happy about winning, by which he means ruining Roman Reigns’ life. He has nothing to say about Roman but here is Imperium to interrupt. Ludvig Kaiser brags about Gunther but Owens snaps, shouting about what Kaiser’s problem is. Sami says there is an unwritten rule that Imperium’s name wasn’t mentioned so they shouldn’t be out here.

They have a match later with “American Alpha” but Sami brings up the two of them and Riddle beating Imperium. Kaiser calls Riddle an embarrassment but Owens is tired of hearing from Slender Man (Kaiser) and “the one with the ears” but they never hear from baldy (meaning Giovanni Vinci. That’s not cool with Kaiser, who is cut off by the Alpha Academy and one heck of a SHHHHHHHUUUUUUUUSH. Owens wants to hear the other thing, giving us a big THANK YOU. And now we’re ready to go.

Video on Katana Chance/Kayden Carter, who like to party.

Alpha Academy vs. Imperium

Maxxine Dupri and Gunther are here too, while Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens are on commentary. Gable is taken into the corner but comes out with a flying headscissors and a headlock takeover/flying headscissors combination. Cue Valhalla to chase Dupri off (and scare Owens to death), with the distraction letting Imperium take over with the double dropkick to Gable in the corner.

Gable armdrags his way to freedom and kicks Vinci away, setting up the diving tag to Otis. The Caterpillar hits Kaiser, with Vinci making the save and low bridging Otis to the floor. It’s back to Gable, who gets caught with a spinebuster. The Imperial Bomb is enough to finish Gable at 5:15.

Rating: C. This was the usual completely watchable Academy match while Imperium continues to establish themselves around here. That can take some time to do but what matters is WWE actually has an accomplished team who can be elevated that quickly. Other than that, the Valhalla interference was kind of amusing due to Owens’ reaction, so it was kind of hard to get bothered here.

Shotzi and Raquel Rodriguez are ready for their match when Damage Ctrl comes in to mock them. Rodriguez points out that Bayley is the only member of the team who hasn’t won gold since they got together, so it’s time for her to look in the mirror. After they lose of course.

Video on Candice LeRae, who wears fairy wings because of the fairy tale her life has become.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Damage Ctrl vs. Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler vs. Raquel Rodriguez/Shotzi vs. Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville

For the vacant titles. Rodriguez powers Bayley around to start until an elbow to the face cuts her off. Bayley tags in Green, who really doesn’t want to be involved. Green gets thrown into Baszler and out to the floor as we take a break. Back with Rodriguez coming in to clean house until Rousey gets the tag.

Rousey takes Rodriguez down into the armbreaker but Bayley makes the save with a top rope elbow. Green tags herself in and sends Rodriguez into the post, setting up I’m Prettier to Rodriguez. A running knee gives Deville two but it’s Sky coming in for the running knees in the corner.

Shotzi makes the save and hits a heck of a suicide dive on Bayley. Rodriguez tags Shotzi in and it’s a Tower Of Doom, with Rousey taking the worst of it. The top rope backsplash is pulled into the armbreaker though and Shotzi immediately taps to make Rousey/Baszler champions at 11:35.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure how much of a surprise that it was to have Rousey and Baszler win the titles but that is what should have happened. They have long since felt like the most dominant team around and they probably would have won the titles earlier if not for Rousey’s injury. Sometimes you need to go with the logical move and that is what they did here.

Dolph Ziggler vs. JD McDonagh

Ziggler takes him into the corner to start but McDonagh sends him throat first into the rope. They head outside with McDonagh sending him into the steps. It’s enough of a beating that McDonagh is disqualified at 1:13.

Post match the beatdown stays on Ziggler until referees break it up.

Here is Cody Rhodes, with his arm in a sling, to talk about the Brock Lesnar match. Cody’s contemporaries talk about how he shouldn’t have fought Lesnar but he did it anyway. No he didn’t tap out, because that isn’t the kind of man he wants to be. Rhodes talks about John Cena saying Never Give Up, which hurts a lot when you’re stuck in a Kimura for three straight minutes.

He wants to talk to Lesnar, but since Lesnar isn’t here, he’ll have to talk to the camera. Rhodes issues an open challenge to fight Lesnar anywhere anytime, and even lists off the cities where he’ll be soon. He also wants this to be the last time that he lists off all of Lesnar’s accomplishments but says that while Lesnar is Beast enough to break his arm, he isn’t man enough to make Rhodes tap out. Lesnar is afraid of him, and that’s your mic drop.

Matt Riddle wants to win Money in the Bank but Gunther interrupts. Gunther wishes him good luck because he wants Riddle to be able to cash in on him. It would be fun to beat and humiliate Riddle.

Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler are happy with their win, because they are here to hurt people. Loyalty is everything and now they are the champions.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Bronson Reed

Nakamura manages to knock him outside to start but Reed is back in with a big shoulder. The rolling splash crushes Nakamura but he’s right back with the kicks. The sliding German suplex is blocked though and Reed kicks him in the face. A legsweep on the apron takes Reed down though and there’s the running knee to the face.

We take a break and come back with Reed running him over again for two and there’s a backsplash to crush Nakamura again. Back up and Reed misses a charge, allowing Nakamura to hit the running knee. Reed is back with a powerslam but the Tsunami misses. Nakamura knocks him to the apron and knees him down, followed by Kinshasa for the pin back inside at 9:48.

Rating: B-. This was a hard hitting match with Nakamura striking away for all he was worth to slay the monster. I’m rather surprised that Reed, who has been presented as a beast in recent weeks, lost to Nakamura, who has been around to put people over more than anything else. Good match here, with quite the surprise result.

Judgment Day is proud of Rhea Ripley for winning at Night Of Champions, but they won’t say which two of them will be in tonight’s tag match (they’re all in gear, including Rhea).

Memorial Day video.

AJ Styles/Seth Rollins vs. Judgment Day

It’s Dominik Mysterio/Damian Priest for the team….or not as Finn Balor jumps Styles, with Dominik going to the floor. Rollins slips away and runs to the floor, where he puts his arm around Rhea for some rather nice annoyance. Back in and Priest elbows Rollins down and we hit the armbar. Rollins kicks him off and brings Styles in to clean house, including a running forearm in the corner.

Dominik breaks up the Phenomenal Forearm though and Priest knocks Styles over the announcers’ table as we take a break. Back with Styles trying to fight out of trouble but getting sent outside instead. Rollins gets into it with Ripley on the floor, leaving Styles to Pele his way out of trouble. The tag brings in Rollins, who small packages Balor for two but is quickly knocked down for the same.

Priest comes back in and is superplexed, only to come back with the Falcon Arrow. Balor misses the Coup de Grace though and gets superkicked, heaving Balor and Rollins down. Everything breaks down and Rollins and Balor go over the announcers’ table. The Phenomenal Forearm doesn’t work as Priest backs up (that’s so simply brilliant) and the Razor’s Edge plants Styles. Rollins cuts Priest off though and the diving tag brings in Rollins for the Stomp to finish Priest at 13:09.

Rating: B. Nice main event tag match here, even if nothing of note really happened. They had some time to work though and the stuff with Ripley getting involved and feeling almost on equal footing with the men was a nice touch. It wasn’t a classic, but it was a rather good match and better than a lot of what you see on Raw on a regular basis.

Overall Rating: B-. They kept things moving here and got some stuff ready for Money in the Bank, but a lot of this felt like a bit of a holding pattern after Night Of Champions. McDonagh looked like a monster though and we have some new champions, so they did advance enough stuff. It’s not a great show, but it’s also good enough that you wouldn’t have been miserable. I’ll take that more often than not.

Results
Ricochet b. The Miz – Shooting star press
Indus Sher b. Javier Bernal/??? – Side slam/middle rope legdrop combination to ???
Imperium b. Alpha Academy – Imperial Bomb to Gable
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler b. Raquel Rodriguez/Shotzi, Chelsea Green/Sonya Deville and Damage Ctrl – Cross armbreaker to Shotzi
Dolph Ziggler b. JD McDonagh via DQ when McDonagh sent him into the steps
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Bronson Reed – Kinshasa
AJ Styles/Seth Rollins b. Judgment Day – Stomp to Priest

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.

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 22, 2023
Location: Giant Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

It’s the go home Raw for Night Of Champions and that means it is time for the final push towards the show. That might be a little tricky since there are three main events, all of which are only half Raw stars. Maybe they have a way to draw in some interest tonight otherwise so let’s get to it.

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

We open in the back with Brock Lesnar beating down Cody Rhodes. The beating goes on for a bit and Rhodes is left laying, including his arm being crushed against a door with a keg (similar to what he did to Undertaker about 20 years ago).

Here is Paul Heyman in the ring to say he had nothing to do with that beating. That’s just the kind of thing you can expect to see at Night Of Champions (Note that Heyman said the show is on Saturday at 1pm. That’s more detail than you often get from WWE and I have no idea why it’s that much to ask. You want people to watch the show. Let us know when we can do so.), where there will be three main events.

This includes the Bloodline taking the Tag Team Titles from Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, who come to the ring as Heyman leaves. Zayn: “Where did Heyman go?” Sami talks about their title defense on Saturday but he has already said everything he has to say to Reigns’ face. Tonight they have a six man tag match and here is Imperium to interrupt. Matt Riddle runs in to even things up and Gunther calls the troops off. Imperium charges back in and are promptly kicked out to fight another day. Or probably later tonight.

Ricochet vs. Bronson Reed

Earlier today, Reed blamed Ricochet for losing the battle royal last week. Suffering is promised. Reed misses a charge into the corner to start so Ricochet kicks the knee out to stagger him. Ricochet scores with an enziguri but gets run over, setting up the rolling splash to crush Ricochet down.

We take a break and come back with Ricochet slipping out of a suplex to hammer away at the head. The standing moonsault gets two but Ricochet gets knocked to the floor. Reed’s dive off the apron misses though and they head back inside, where Ricochet’s springboard is broken up. That’s enough to set up the Tsunami for the pin at 8:29.

Rating: C+. There’s always room for a big man vs. little man match and that’s what we had here. These two worked well together and had a nice match, as Ricochet tried to keep the pace up but ultimately got crushed by Reed. There is some serious potential for a monster with Reed’s athleticism and we very well may be seeing him get a heck of a push sooner rather than later.

Apollo Crews is back but gets cut off by Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley. Dominik isn’t happy that Crews is getting this time, but Ripley is apparently scheduled next. Dominik: “Apollo who?” Crews isn’t impressed, only to have Ripley talk about how she is going to beat Natalya at Night Of Champions. Crews still isn’t cool with this and seems to get a match with Dominik tonight.

We get part three of the Seth Rollins interview. Rollins loves Roman Reigns but doesn’t like him. We see some clips of the Shield days (or at least 2/3 of them) but that’s not the Reigns that we’re seeing today. Rollins has no respect for this Reigns, who has been poisoned by his own ego. Raw can be a different place with Rollins on top. Someone has to take his place when he’s gone or when Reigns is gone and that’s who he wants to rise up. He’s ready for AJ Styles at Night Of Champions. He also sounds like he’s ready for some major showdown with Reigns down the line. Maybe even after Reigns costs him the title?

We look at Shinsuke Nakamura arguing with Judgment Day last week on Raw Talk.

Damian Priest yells in Spanish about Nakamura.

Video on Zoey Stark, who trains a lot and is ready to end our heroes.

Zoey Stark vs. Candice LeRae

Stark drives her into the corner to start and hammers away on the mat. The chinlock goes on but here is Nikki Cross to cheer LeRae on. LeRae knocks her to the floor and hits a springboard dive, only to have Nikki celebrate with her (against LeRae’s will). The distraction lets Stark send them both into the steps. Back in and the Z360 (Stark picks her up and backflips her into a knee to the chest) finishes LeRae at 2:29. Solid squash for Stark.

Mustafa Ali can’t bring himself to say anything positive about Night Of Champions. He has always tried but only come close over and over. No one believes he can do it….and Brock Lesnar walks past him on the way to the ring. Lesnar: “Get a life kid.” And with that, Lesnar heads into the arena, as Ali should probably hope he has a shovel to get out of the grave Lesnar just buried him inside.

Lesnar asks what we want to talk about. The thing is, Cody Rhodes is not going to be able to wrestle at Night Of Champions, but don’t worry. Lesnar is going to issue an open challenge for Night Of Champions, and all you have to do is step up right now. Cue Cody Rhodes with his arm in a sling and a big bag of ice under it but referees and Adam Pearce beg him not to do it. Cody gets in anyway, but Brock quickly Kimuras him and seems to break the arm. Lesnar steps on the arm to make it worse before leaving (and drops his hat on the way out).

Alpha Academy vs. Viking Raiders

Maxxine Dupri and Valhalla are here too. Erik blocks Gable’s flying headscissors (complete with a THANK YOU) to start but gets armdragged into an armbar. The Vikings be clubbering on Gable as the fans want Otis. Instead they get Gable taking another beating from both Vikings until he rolls over for the hot tag to bring in Otis. House is quickly wrecked and the Caterpillar hits Erik. Gable gets kneed in the face but knocks Ivar off the top as Valhalla chases Dupri off. A bridging rollup finishes Erik at 4:54.

Rating: C. So I guess Otis is just going to be with both Gable and Dupri, which is better than picking a side….I think? Either way, it’s more of the best thing they can do with Otis as he’s really only succeeded at oddball comedy. Other than that, this was another run of the mill Academy match, which they have perfected by being on TV pretty much every week for what feels like the last ninety four years.

Cody Rhodes refuses medical attention and still wants to fight Brock Lesnar.

Indus Sher is menacing and threatening.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Finn Balor

Damian Priest is here with Balor. Feeling out process to start with Balor taking him down and working on the wristlock. A headscissors keeps Nakamura in trouble and Balor slams his leg down onto Nakamura’s face. Back up and Nakamura hits the running knee to the ribs in the corner but Priest gets in a clothesline on the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Nakamura fighting out of a chinlock and screaming at Balor a bit. Nakamura sends him into the corner for the sliding German suplex and then tells Priest to COME ON. Priest chases him back inside, where Nakamura hits a spinning kick to the head for two.

The Sling Blade looks to set up Kinshasa but Balor reverses with the standing double stomp. It’s too early for the Coup de Grace though and they’re both down for a breather. Priest pulls Balor away from Kinshasa though, earning himself a clothesline into the timekeeper’s area. Balor scores with a quick dropkick and now the Coup de Grace finishes Nakamura at 11:21.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of “well, what were you expecting?”. Was there any doubt that Balor and Nakamura were going to have a good match together? I’m not wild on Nakamura losing again, but there are certain things you just get used to in wrestling. Balor gets a boost back up the ladder, but there is little reason to believe that anything he does is going to stick these days. For now, I’ll settle for just having a nice match.

We look at Liv Morgan’s shoulder injury, which forced the Women’s Tag Team Titles to be vacated.

Raquel Rodriguez vs. Sonya Deville

Chelsea Green is here with Deville and offers a quick distraction so Deville can jump Rodriguez from behind to start. A middle rope knee to the face drops Rodriguez for two but she runs Deville over. The corkscrew Vader Bomb connects and the Texana Bomb finishes for Rodriguez at 1:48.

Post match the double team beatdown is on but Shotzi runs in for the save.

Trish Stratus is here for the contract signing and suggests that Adam Pearce put a no touch clause in effect for her contract signing with Becky Lynch. That’s a negative actually.

Video on Matt Riddle.

It’s time for the contract signing between Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch. Becky, in some odd sunglasses (they look like hands covering her eyes), signs before Trish comes out and then tells her to get out here. Cue Trish to say Becky was a lot more eager to sign than it was to come back to Raw after she kicked Becky in the head.

This is Trish’s first contract signing and she wants to savor it here….wherever we are. Trish is back to be the biggest star again and she won’t need a broken nose to do it (Becky is still sitting still and not looking at Trish whatsoever). We’re not done as Trish talks about how Becky’s worst enemy was herself. Trish signs, saying that this is going to be Becky’s last contract signing. Becky says Trish is scared of time passing her by, because the fans remember her being better than she is.

If Trish wants her flowers, Becky says “Thank You Trish”, for being everything Becky doesn’t want to be. Trish can stab people in the back and Becky will hit them in the face. Becky has had a career that Trish can only dream of, while Trish has done things that would embarrass Becky horrible. If she thinks barking like a dog was embarrassing, just wait for what Becky does at Night Of Champions. Trish turns the table over and leaves. This made it feel a lot more personal and that is what the feud needed.

We look at Brock Lesnar beating Cody Rhodes down earlier tonight (twice).

Adam Pearce is on the phone with someone and reiterates that Cody Rhodes will not accept any medical attention.

Shotzi and Raquel Rodriguez are a team and they’ll win the Tag Team Titles next week.

Dominik Mysterio vs. Apollo Crews

Rhea Ripley is here with Dominik. Crews starts fast with a suplex into a delayed gorilla press for two. Dominik catches him on top though and takes Crews down for the stomping. A suplex gives Dominik two and we’re off to the chinlock. Crews fights up and hits something close to a Blockbuster, followed by a middle rope crossbody for two of his own. They head to the floor where a clothesline hits Dominik but Ripley offers a distraction. Dominik trips him into the steps for a nine count, followed by the frog splash to give Dominik the pin at 4:56.

Rating: C. This is the kind of match that makes me wonder how far Dominik can go. While he’s not his dad in the ring, he’s certainly able to wrestle a competent match and is far from some joke that was turned into a heat magnet. Dominik gets amazing reactions from the crowd and does well enough in the ring to back it up. You don’t get that kind of a combination very often and he is making it work.

Video on AJ Styles.

We get the final part of the Seth Rollins interview. As Rollins said when he started, he but he wants to change things around here and this is his moment to do something special. He’s going all in for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Night Of Champions rundown. Rhea Ripley vs. Natalya is official.

Imperium vs. Matt Riddle/Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens

Kaiser strikes Zayn into the corner to start but Zayn takes him over for the tag to Riddle. Vinci comes in as well and strikes away at Riddle, who sends him flying with a gutwrench suplex. It’s off to Gunther, who blocks Riddle’s double leg but can’t block the kicks to the chest. We take a break and come back with Gunther blasting Riddle for two before hitting a heck of a clothesline. Riddle enziguris his way to freedom though and the tag brings Owens in.

House is cleaned, including a Cannonball to Vinci, but Owens is knocked off the apron for a crash as we take a break. Back with Owens hitting a frog splash to Vinci, setting up the desperation tag to Zayn. The Helluva Kick is blocked though and Gunther chops the heck out of Zayn. A Blue Thunder Bomb gives Zayn two on Gunther as everything breaks down again. Owens Stuns Vinci but Gunther cuts off the Helluva Kick with a sleeper. Riddle breaks it up with the Floating Bro before throwing Gunther over the announcers’ table. That leaves Zayn to Helluva Kick Vinci, setting up Owens’ Swanton for the pin at 15:18.

Rating: B. I could have gone for a more complete version of this without losing so much time due to the two breaks. Owens and Zayn get some momentum heading into Night Of Champions, Gunther still looks like a monster and the match was good as a bonus. Not a bad use of a main event match and everyone did what they needed to do.

HHH comes in to see Cody Rhodes, who still refuses medical attention. They both know Cody’s arm is broken but he is NOT afraid. No one is questioning Cody’s bravery but he brings up what HHH has done before. Cody is going to Night Of Champions to fight Brock Lesnar. HHH finally accepts it and leaves to end the show. They’re pushing this Cody match hard but him winning on another fluke sounds pretty insane.

Overall Rating: B-. The show wasn’t bad at all but there were some dull stretches that dragged it out. In other words, it’s what I once dubbed the Raw Special: a solid two hour show that was stretched out to three hours and lost a lot of steam as a result. Night Of Champions should be a good show, but there are some matches that haven’t quite made it to must see, or even want to see, territory. This Raw didn’t exactly help that and while the action was good, it needed something else to really make it a smash.

Results
Bronson Reed b. Ricochet – Tsunami
Zoey Stark b. Candice LeRae – Z360
Alpha Academy b. Viking Raiders – Bridging rollup to Erik
Finn Balor b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Coup de Grace
Raquel Rodriguez b. Sonya Deville – Tejana Bomb
Dominik Mysterio b. Apollo Crews – Frog splash
Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn/Matt Riddle b. Imperium – Swanton Bomb to Vinci

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.

Backlash 2023
Date: May 6, 2023
Location: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We are off the mainland with this show as WWE heads to Puerto Rico for its first major show in over eighteen years. The card is more than a little different this time as we have a double main event, featuring Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes and Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest in a street fight. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the double main event, with Bad Bunny talking about how he is stepping out of his world but wanting to fight. The rest of the card gets some highlights as well.

We get the awesome drone shot, with the camera coming from outside and into the arena. That’s just sweet.

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

Sky, without Damage Ctrl, is challenging. Feeling out process to start with Belair getting a headscissors before dropkicking Sky down. Back up and Sky snaps the arm across the top rope before adding a top rope double stomp to the arm. Sky kicks the arm out again and works on an armbar, sending Belair crawling into the corner. Belair avoids a charge but what looked to be a Glam Slam is countered into a double stomp to the chest.

A headscissors is countered into a backbreaker but Belair bangs up the arm again. The delayed suplex drops Sky and Belair pounds away in the corner. The good arm is ok enough to hit a one armed gorilla press, though Belair drops Sky hard onto her face. Belair’s handspring moonsault gets two but Sky avoids a charge in the corner. The arm gets snapped over the top again and there’s the springboard missile dropkick to send Belair outside.

Belair shoves her off the top but the 450 hits raised knees. Sky crabs a Crossface but Belair powers up to her feet and muscles Sky up. The powerbomb is countered into an X Factor for a rather near fall. Belair tries another Glam Slam but has to counter another double stomp. The KOD is reversed as well with Sky sending her outside, setting up another kick to the arm. There’s the middle rope moonsault to drop Belair again and Sky drives shoulders into the ribs back inside.

Belair knocks her off the ropes to the apron but Sky is right back up. Her super hurricanrana is blocked and countered into a super sitout powerbomb….for two in a heck of a kickout. Cue Damage Ctrl for a distraction but Belair forearms Sky in the face. Dakota Kai gets knocked off the apron but Sky reverses the KOD into a rollup for a very close two. Bayley’s interference lets Sky send Belair into the ropes and Kai gets in a kick to the face. Bayley holds Belair’s hair as Over The Moonsault is loaded up. The referee cuts that off and the moonsault misses, allowing Belair to hit the KOD to retain at 17:57.

Rating: B+. Oh man they were ROCKING out there until the interference brought things down a bit. I know that’s going to be part of the Damage Ctrl split but these two were having one of the best matches of their careers. Awesome opener in front of a red hot crowd and you can’t ask for much more than that.

Rey Mysterio gives Bad Bunny a pep talk when Savio Vega of all people (that gets a heck of a reaction) to bring him a Puerto Rico themed kendo stick.

We look at the post Draft rosters.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. Omos, which isn’t much of a feud. Basically Rollins is on a roll, Omos is a monster, they’re having a match.

Omos vs. Seth Rollins

MVP is here with Omos, who breaks up Rollins conducting the fans before the bell. Rollins is ready to go and gets knocked down as the match officially starts. A chest first whip into the corner drops Rollins again and Omos mockingly conducts the crowd. They fight outside with Rollins managing to slip away and get in a posting. The second suicide dive is cut off though and Omos chokeslams him onto the apron.

Back in and Snake Eyes into the big boot drops Rollins again, with Omos not being able to hear the fans again. Rollins manages a superkick but the Pedigree attempt is easily blocked. Something like a bulldog onto the post rocks Omos again and a tornado DDT puts him down. The frog splash gets one, with the kickout sending Rollins flying. Rollins tries the Stomp but Omos just doesn’t go down, blocking it through straight power.

A chokeslam gives Omos two and the kickout leaves him stunned. Rollins flips up into a sleeper to slow Omos down but he shrugs things off. MVP tries to throw in the cane, allowing Rollins to hit a Stomp. The superkick knocks MVP off the apron and a second Stomp only gets two. That leaves Rollins stunned for a change so it’s a top rope Stomp (looked pretty good) to finish Omos at 10:31.

Rating: B. This match had me flashing back to HHH vs. Great Khali at Summerslam 2008 and that is a good thing. Omos doesn’t have the best reputation in the ring but he and Rollins had a pretty awesome match here. Rollins can hit the Stomp on anyone but he had to bust out the big one to survive here. Good stuff here as Rollins sold rather well and Omos is clearly getting better in the ring.

We look at Damian Priest and Bad Bunny getting into a fight at the press conference.

US Title: Bronson Reed vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Austin Theory

Theory is defending. Lashley slugs away at both of them to start and sends Theory into Reed. A clothesline to Reed makes him DDT Theory, who has to save Reed from the Hurt Lock. Lashley is back up with the one armed delayed vertical suplex on Theory, who is smart enough to take Lashley’s leg out. Reed adds a splash to Lashley’s back and the basement rolling body block hits him again.

The double teaming doesn’t work for Reed, who runs Theory over instead. Lashley fights up and runs both of them over, setting up the spear to Theory. Reed breaks it up and superkicks Lashley on the floor. With that not working, Reed Vader Bombs down onto a standing Lashley on the outside (GEEZ that could have gone badly).

Back in and Theory breaks up the Tsunami but Lashley grabs the Hurt Lock on Theory. A climb up the ropes gets Theory out of it, allowing Reed to Tsunami Lashley, with Theory having to make the save. Theory hits a rolling Blockbuster on Reed but A Town Down is countered into a powerslam. Reed misses a moonsault and get speared down by Lashley, only to have Theory send Lashley outside and steal the pin to retain at 6:53.

Rating: B. It was a fast paced match with all action and Reed looked like a star, but the almost textbook ending didn’t help. I like Theory retaining the title here though, as he is rapidly improving in a lot of areas. Letting him steal a pin to retain the title fits in well and I want to see where he goes. Reed and Lashley will be fine going forward, and now I’m curious about what kind of role Lashley will play in the World Title tournament. Good stuff here again, as the show has been on a roll so far.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Zelina Vega

Vega, with Puerto Rico flag themed gear and tears in her eyes during the Big Match Intros, is challenging. The fans are entirely behind Vega as she starts fast but gets sent outside. Vega grabs a shoe, which apparently has some local significance, and throws it at Ripley. Back in and Ripley powerbombs her down hard to cut everything off.

A whip into the corner lets Ripley hit the Eddie Dance and the fans aren’t pleased. Ripley grabs a backbreaker into an over the shoulder backbreaker but Vega sends her shoulder first into the post. Some running clotheslines rock Ripley and Riptide is countered into a DDT. A 619 sets up a middle rope Meteora for two (as the Sasha Banks similarities build up) but Ripley kicks her in the face. Riptide retains the title at 7:14.

Rating: B-. This whole match was built around the idea of Vega only having a miracle chance at winning and that’s about all she had here. They tried and the comeback near the end was good, but it never hit that level that they were aiming for. To be fair, Vega was a fairly rushed challenger and this is probably the biggest match of her career, so it isn’t like she had anything to lose.

Post match Ripley leaves and Vega gets the crazy strong home island reception.

We recap Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest. Bunny saved Rey Mysterio from Dominik’s cheating at Wrestlemania so Priest beat Bunny up on Raw. That isn’t cool with Bunny and it’s time for a street fight.

Damian Priest vs. Bad Bunny

Street fight and Bunny is the hometown boy to a major reaction. Bunny brings the kendo stick but whips out a shopping cart full of weapons. Priest powers him into the corner to start but gets slapped in the face, with Bunny hitting a Michinoku Driver for two. Bunny grabs the kendo sticks but Priest knocks him down and breaks one of them. Back up and Bunny hammers away in the corner, only to get taken down again.

South Of Heaven connects but Priest pulls him up at two. It’s time to bring in an ax handle (single this time) but instead Priest loads up the springboard dive…which is cut off by a chair being thrown into his face. Bunny hits a big dive and drops him with a bunch of trashcan lid shots, giving us a Flair Flop on the floor. Back in and another Michinoku Driver gives Bunny two more but it’s time to head back outside.

Priest gets the better of things this time and smashes the Puerto Rico kendo stick across Bunny’s back. They head into the crowd and over to the tech area, where a Falcon Arrow sends Bunny crashing HARD through some tables. Adam Pearce comes out to say this needs to stop but Priest carries Bunny back to ringside. Priest misses a kick to the post and can barely stand, so Bunny blasts said leg with a kendo stick.

Bunny hits something like a Stunner to the leg out of the corner and the leg is wrapped around the post. A chain is wrapped around the leg to send it into the post again (with Priest begging him not to do it). Priest begs off from a chair shot and gets in a kick of his own, only to get hit low for his efforts. Cue Judgment Day to go after Bunny, with Rey Mysterio making the save.

With Rey beaten down, Carlito makes the save to an explosion, including the Backstabber and apple spit. Judgment Day gets back up but here is Savio Vega, who brings out the LWO to keep up the fight. With everyone else gone, Priest’s leg gives out on a kick to the head attempt, allowing Bunny to grab a Figure Four. Priest gets out so it’s a Sliced Bread for two (with Bunny almost landing on his head). A Canadian Destroyer finishes Priest at 25:05.

Rating: A. Yeah this was a total blast and played to the live crowd as well as anything else was going to. Bunny is as over as free beer in a frat house around here and they brought in the legends/current stars to make it feel that much bigger. It was fun and Bunny put in an all time celebrity performance, but Priest deserves all kinds of credit for holding it all together. Great stuff here, but egads how is anything supposed to follow this?

We recap the Bloodline vs. Matt Riddle/Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens. The Bloodline is showing cracks, including the Usos losing the Tag Team Titles to Owens/Zayn at Wrestlemania. Now it is more or less a “win here or you’re in real trouble” for the Bloodline as the other three are out to end the team.

Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn/Matt Riddle vs. Bloodline

No Paul Heyman or this one. Jey takes Sami down to start but Sami is right back up with a shot to the face. Jimmy comes in and gets taken down into the corner, allowing Riddle to come in and hammer away. It’s off to Sikoa though and this time Sami gets beaten down, with Jimmy getting to do the same. Sikoa has to tag himself back in to hammer away before Jimmy grabs a chinlock. Sami manages a shot to the face though and sends the now legal Jey outside.

Jey pulls Owens off the apron and slams him HARD into the steps (YOWCH). Sami has to fight out of the corner but can’t get around the numbers game, meaning Sikoa can come back in. A tornado DDT plants Sikoa though and the hot tag brings in Riddle to clean house. Everything breaks down and Riddle hits the backsplash, only to have what looked to be a Buckshot Lariat cut off by a superkick.

Riddle gets in another shot though and hands it back to Owens, with the Swanton hitting Jimmy for two. Jimmy superkicks Jey by mistake though and it’s a pop up sitout powerbomb for two on Jey, leaving Owens stunned. Owens and Jey slug it out but the Stunner is broken up. They trade shots to the face until Owens hits a big clothesline for the double knockdown.

Sami comes back in with the Blue Thunder Bomb for two but he has to fight off both Usos on top. The double superkick knocks Sami out of the air for two more and Jey has to yell at him a bit. Sikoa tags himself in before Jey can launch the running Umaga attack, only to have Jey tag himself back in as well.

The Helluva Kick knocks Sikoa to the floor and another hits Jey, with Sikoa having to make a save. Riddle comes back in and Sikoa takes him down, followed by a Spike to Owens. Sikoa almost Spikes Jey but Sami is back in. The Superfly Splash hits raised knees to give Sami two so here is Riddle to clean house instead. Sikoa tags himself in though and the Spike finishes Riddle at 22:03.

Rating: B. It was a main event level six man tag and they go the time, but anything was going to feel like a letdown after the previous match. They were all working hard, which is always nice to see, but it feels like we’re retreading past stories with this one. Though that being said, there is something entertaining about Riddle’s continued destruction, which certainly feels like punishment.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Cody Rhodes. Cody lost in the biggest match of his life at Wrestlemania and tried to team with Lesnar the next night. Lesnar turned on him in a heck of a beatdown, setting up this fight.

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

Cody dives onto Lesnar to start fast on the floor before the bell. Some steps and chair shots have Lesnar in more trouble and they head inside for the official start. Lesnar drives him hard into the corner to take over and it’s a German suplex to make it worse. There’s a fall away slam and now Lesnar is starting to look back to normal. More suplexes send Rhodes into the corner and Lesnar starts in on the leg. Lesnar fires off even more suplexes and a turnbuckle pad is ripped off.

Lesnar grabs a bearhug to stay on the ribs but Cody manages to send him into the exposed buckle. A Cody Cutter and the Disaster kick rock the bleeding Lesnar, setting up a knee to the face. Another Cody Cutter connects and a pair of Cross Rhodes gives Rhodes two. Cody tries it again but gets reversed into the F5 for two. The Kimura goes on but Cody stacks him up for the pin at 9:40.

Rating: B-. I wasn’t getting into this one as well as some others, but Cody getting the big win absolutely had to happen. They can play up the idea that Lesnar got caught rather than defeated, but it isn’t like it matters all that much for him anyway. Cody needed this one a lot more than Lesnar and they went with the right direction rather than Lesnar smashing him until the ending. The Lesnar dominance in the middle was annoying, but they got the ending right and that is what matters.

Cody immediately leaves and Lesnar isn’t happy.

Overall Rating: A-. For a show with little in the way of expectations and even less in the way of meaning as the rosters reset the day after tomorrow, this was a heck of a show with the crowd elevating it by several notches. The Bunny match stole the night and was a smash hit, but the two matches after that were never going to be able to live up to that hype and it became clear very fast.

That all being said, this whole show was a blast with nothing bad and a bunch of matches elevated by the audience. I had a great time with the whole thing, starting with an awesome opener, Vega’s emotional loss, the great Bunny ordeal and Cody winning as he should have. Awesome show here and they hit on almost every possible cylinder.

Results
Bianca Belair b. Iyo Sky – KOD
Seth Rollins b. Omos – Super Stomp
Austin Theory b. Bobby Lashley and Bronson Reed – Spear to Reed
Rhea Ripley b. Zelina Vega – Riptide
Bad Bunny b. Damian Priest – Canadian Destroyer
Bloodline b. Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens/Matt Riddle – Samoan Spike to Riddle
Cody Rhodes b. Brock Lesnar – Rollup

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.

It’s time for the official Wrestlemania fallout event and this time the card is looking rather stacked. There are multiple matches set up, some of which are not things you might have expected to see. We have two matches which could be headlining the show but catering to the Puerto Rican crowd, one of those matches would be a much more logical choice. Let’s get to it.

Seth Rollins vs. Omos

We’ll start here, which feels like the “here’s how we get these people on the show” match. There is no reason for the two of them to be fighting, but they’re having a match on this show anyway. Omos’ size is still enough to make him the monster, though coming off the loss to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania does not make him feel like quite the same level of threat.

I’ll go with Rollins to win here, as he is coming off a big win at Wrestlemania and very well be in line for the new World Title. If nothing else, giving him a victory over Omos would make him feel like that much more of a threat to win the title. Omos can absorb a few losses because you can just have him chokeslam people over and over until he is a monster again. Rollins should win here, as he could be in for a much bigger spot in the near future.

US Title: Austin Theory(c) vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Bronson Reed

This is the kind of match that could go in a variety of ways and that makes things more interesting. Theory has come a long way in the last few months as he has gotten a good bit more serious. At the same time, Reed has turned into a monster and I could see him taking the title to make him seem that much more legitimate. Then there is Lashley, but odds are he is going to wind up in the World Title mix (as he should).

With those options, I’ll go with Theory retaining, as I don’t think WWE wants to have him lose here, only to put him into the World Title scene where he would lose again. Give him the win here and let his title reign keep going, as he has held the title for about six months. That is the kind of reign that could last for a long time, as Theory gets closer and closer to being a big thing in WWE.

Raw Women’s Title: Bianca Belair(c) vs. Iyo Sky

I’m not sure what to think about this match, as both of them are on the way to Smackdown so the title only means so much in the first place. Belair has run through every major star in the division and now she needs to find someone new, so points for trying Sky in there instead of the same people over and over. I don’t know how much of a chance Sky has, but at least she is a fresh challenger.

I don’t see much of a reason to believe that Belair is losing here so we’ll go with what should be the easy retain. Belair is a win away from the longest Women’s Title reign in the modern era and unless they want a big shakeup, the title isn’t changing hands here. The match should be good and Sky should get a lot out of it, though she isn’t going to get the title this time around.

Matt Riddle/Kevin Owens/Sami Zayn vs. Bloodline

The Bloodline continues to have issues and now the question is what happens here. They need a win to right the ship, but it makes more sense to not have the ship righted. The Usos losing the all while Solo Sikoa does his thing is going to open up some more options, as Roman Reigns is not going to be happy with the Usos losing another huge match. At the same time, Reigns has shown that he needs the Usos and that could go in a variety of ways. Or maybe the Bloodline wins and the problems go away.

Nah I can’t imagine the Bloodline losing here, as it doesn’t make sense to reverse course in that way. Owens or Zayn can pin one of them while Sikoa is incapacitated for some reason. Riddle needs a win of his own, even if it is just being on the winning team. The Bloodline doesn’t need to win here and it opens up more doors if they lose, so we’ll go with the logical choice of Riddle/Owens/Zayn winning.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley(c) vs. Zelina Vega

This is an interesting way to set up the match, as commentary has more or less told us that Vega has no chance to win the title. Instead they are saying she more or less needs a miracle to have a chance against the monster Ripley. That is what they teased this week on Smackdown, and somehow it wound up working well. Vega is going to have a huge reaction from the fans, but that might not be enough to give her the title.

Of course it isn’t, as Ripley isn’t going to lose her first major title defense. Vega is going to have the fans in her corner, but at some point that isn’t going to be enough. That some point is likely going to be as soon as Ripley hits Riptide and gets the pin to retain. Ripley’s title reign has the potential to be huge, and it is going to start with a successful defense here against Vega.

Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar

There is a case to be made for this to headline the show and it very well may. That being said, this is an important match for Rhodes, who really needs a win after losing to Reigns at Wrestlemania. I don’t know if that is where WWE is going to go though, as someone other than Reigns beating Lesnar one on one is almost impossible to fathom. Rhodes is a big star, but I don’t know if he’s that big.

I can absolutely see Lesnar winning here, but I’ll take Rhodes as he is someone who will likely be in line for the new World Title. Lesnar isn’t going to wrestle on Monday Night Raw anytime soon so there is no reason to believe that he is going to be in the title picture. I’ll go with Rhodes winning here, as he needs the win and will be around a lot more frequently than Lesnar. Rhodes wins, with a grand total of no confidence in the pick.

Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest

This is a street fight and it is the best choice for a main event on this show. Bunny is a legitimate major star and will be given the ultimate hero’s welcome in Puerto Rico. The fact that he has shown he can hang in the ring with the right circumstances makes this better and we should be in for a very fun match here. I would say there is some doubt about the winner but…come on.

Unless WWE wants Puerto Rico to burn the building to the ground, this is going to be Bunny winning and winning handily. There are going to be all kinds of interference and shenanigans, which is exactly what needs to be the case here. All that matters is Bunny gets the pin in the end, likely with a few kendo stick shots. Bunny wins here, as he has to do to blow the roof off instead of a good chunk of the building being wrecked.

Overall Thoughts

Backlash is not the most traditional looking WWE show but we should be in for a good card based on what we have set up. The build for Backlash has been done a bit differently but I’m wanting to see the show. What matters is everyone executing things well, with the main event being rather tricky. It’s kind of beneficial that everything resets two days later as it takes so much pressure off of this card. Now just make it work well.

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: May 1, 2023
Location: Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, Texas
Commentators: Kevin Patrick, Corey Graves

It’s a double shot this week as we have the second night of the Draft, plus the go home Raw for Backlash. On the first hand, there were already some big moves in the Draft and it’s going to be even bigger this week. On the second hand, Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar are both here. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the first night of the Draft, with both shows picking up some big names.

Here is HHH to get things going. He explains the rules, saying that all of the remaining roster is eligible to be drafted. Since Roman Reigns is officially on SmackDown, the World Heavyweight Title is coming to Raw. Brock Lesnar is officially a free agent and can appear on both shows. Finally, there are select NXT names who can be drafted as well. Here are the first picks:

Monday Night Raw
Rhea Ripley
Seth Rollins

Smackdown
Austin Theory
Charlotte

With the picks out of the way, HHH brings Paul Heyman to the ring (after a quick stop to look at the World Heavyweight Championship) for a chat. Heyman is here to address some issues that Roman Reigns wanted him to bring up. First of all, the Bloodline (minus the Usos) has been drafted to Smackdown, meaning tonight we find out the fate of the Usos.

That would be the Usos who did NOT win back their Tag Team Titles from Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Heyman will address that with them in private, but on Saturday, there is a six man tag between the Bloodline and Zayn/Owens/Matt Riddle. Either way, Reigns will be at Smackdown next week to take care of a lot of things…..including the World Heavyweight Title. Or not, as Reigns can’t compete on Raw.

The worst thing about that is how many people think they can be the man but just can’t beat Reigns. Heyman says FREAKIN a few times so here is Seth Rollins to interrupt. After the conducting of the fans, Rollins says he thinks Reigns is gone so he can finally stop running from Rollins. Heyman doesn’t like Rollins suggesting he’ll win the title and gets on the phone to Reigns. The fans start singing and Heyman says he can’t hear his Tribal Chief. Rollins threatens Heyman with a Stomp but here is Solo Sikoa to interrupt. Heyman says Reigns has pulled the strings to make the match for tonight. Rollins is in, Reigns or not.

Earlier today, Cody Rhodes arrived and Adam Pearce asked him to not let it get out of hand with Brock Lesnar.

Damage Ctrl vs. Raquel Rodriguez/Liv Morgan

Non-title with Iyo Sky the odd Ctrl member out. Morgan takes over on Bayley to start before Rodriguez drives her into the corner with straight power. A distraction results in Morgan being low bridged to the floor though and we take a break. Back with Morgan getting over to Rodriguez for the tag as everything breaks down. Morgan gets dropped onto Rodriguez’s knees but she’s able to hit Oblivion on Kai anyway. Bayley is right back in with a sunset flip into a rollup to pin Morgan at 8:01.

Rating: C. This feels like a way to set up a title match at Backlash with the drama of where the titles are going to go after next week. It isn’t like there are a ton of options to come after the titles in the first place so this worked as well as anything else. I don’t think the titles will change hands, but at least they have a little something going on, assuming that is where they go.

Brock Lesnar arrived earlier today and Adam Pearce said he wanted to keep the peace. Lesnar: “Good luck with that.”

Here are Booker T. and Sharmell to announce the next picks.

Monday Night Raw
Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens
Judgment Day

Smackdown
Usos
LWO (Joaquin Wilde/Cruz del Toro/Zelina Vega/Santos Escobar/Rey Mysterio)

Well there goes the drama over the Usos and the Bloodline being on different shows. And why was Ripley a different pick from the rest of Judgment Day if they’re going to be on the same show?

Ricochet/Braun Strowman vs. Alpha Academy

Ricochet flips away from Gable to start but the fans would rather see Otis. Rolling Chaos Theory out of the corner plants Ricochet though, meaning it’s a double tag to bring in Otis and Strowman. They trade running shots in the corner until Strowman runs him over with a big crash. The Swanton off of Strowman’s shoulders gives Ricochet the pin on Otis at 2:26. I’m surprised it went that short.

Video on Damien Priest vs. Bad Bunny.

Here are Shawn Michaels and Adam Pearce to announce the next picks but Brock Lesnar interrupts. Pearce tries to calm him down but Lesnar gets in the ring and asks how it feels to look at the only real cowboy in Texas. Pearce sends security out but Lesnar says that’s not enough. More security comes out for the staredown until it’s Cody Rhodes to drop Lesnar from behind with a single right hand (that was weird). Security separates them, with Lesnar not exactly trying to get to Rhodes.

Post break, here are those picks:

Monday Night Raw
Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez (Women’s Tag Team Champions)
New Day (Kofi Kingston/Xavier Woods)

Smackdown
Asuka
Brawling Brutes

Matt Riddle is really excited to be on the same show as Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Riddle goes off for his match as Owens wonders if they can go to Smackdown instead of being around him.

Matt Riddle vs. Jimmy Uso

Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens and Jey Uso are here too. An early Jey distraction lets Jimmy take over but Owens and Zayn fake a chair shot, earning Jey an ejection. We take an early break and come back with Jey hitting a pop up Samoan drop for two. They head outside with Riddle being sent into the barricade before Jey kicks him in the face for two back inside. Jimmy takes the turnbuckle pad off but a Sami distraction lets Owens send him into it instead. That’s enough for the Floating Bro to finish Jimmy at 7:31.

Rating: C. This was another storyline match rather than anything else and it worked well enough. The idea over the last few weeks is that the Bloodline is a lot weaker on their own without the numbers advantage and that was on display here. Riddle needed the win too, as he hasn’t been doing much since his return.

Video on Iyo Sky.

Rob Van Dam is here to present the picks but runs into Elias and Rick Boogs, who get along with him.

Paul Heyman gives Solo Sikoa a pep talk when Jimmy Uso comes in. Jimmy wants to know where Sikoa was but Heyman says Sikoa had an assignment from Roman Reigns. Heyman and Sikoa leave, with the former still buttering up Jimmy as he walks out.

Here are Rob Van Dam and Eric Bischoff for the next picks:

Monday Night Raw
Trish Stratus
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler

Smackdown
Karrion Kross (with Scarlett)
LA Knight

It’s time for MizTV to recap the Draft so far before bringing out Shinsuke Nakamura. Miz thinks Nakamura could be a great World Heavyweight Champion but Nakamura brings up Miz’s testicle. Kinshasa drops Miz rather quickly and Nakamura gets to take a bow.

Omos vs. Anthony Alanis

Chokebomb finishes Alanis at 48 seconds.

We look back at the debut of the World Heavyweight Title.

Road Dogg (actually named Jesse James for what feels like the first time in forever) and Molly Holly handle the next picks.

Monday Night Raw
Braun Strowman/Ricochet
Bronson Reed

Smackdown
Shotzi
Pretty Deadly (NXT)

Pretty Deadly handled what seemed to be dying pretty well.

Here is Judgment Day to brag about sticking together and promising to win at Backlash. Rhea Ripley isn’t overly nervous about facing Zelina Vega because she always comes out on top. Finn Balor promises that Bad Bunny will be turned into little pieces of fluff and Damien Priest threatens Bunny in Spanish. Dominik Mysterio can barely get a word in over the booing, eventually saying he can’t wait to see what happens on Saturday.

He’s ready for a six person tag tonight but here is the LWO to interrupt. Rey Mysterio promises to win tonight and for Vega to win at Backlash. He can’t wait to see what Bad Bunny does either, but tonight it’s time to beat up the whole team. Dominik’s heat was off the charts here and it took him a long time to not say much.

Video on Gunther.

LWO vs. Judgment Day

Rey Mysterio/Santos Escobar/Zelina Vega vs. Dominik Mysterio/Damien Priest/Rhea Ripley. Rey starts with Dominik but Ripley tags herself in to try Riptide on Vega. That’s broken up so Priest comes in to forearm the heck out of Escobar. Dominik comes in but gets dropped with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. It’s quickly back to Rey, who knocks Priest outside for a dive as we take a break.

Back with Rey getting to beat up Dominik but Zelina has to save Rey from Ripley. Vega knocks Ripley outside and Rey loads up the 619. Finn Balor offers a distraction though and Dominik cuts Rey off. Vega and Ripley get knocked down on the floor, leaving Balor to take the 619 for Priest. South of Heaven finishes Rey at 8:48.

Rating: B-. The end result is the right way to go, as it makes Priest feel that much bigger. It is going to feel like something that matters if Bad Bunny beats him at Backlash. Priest needed a bit of a build like this and it helps things out a lot. The other four were doing their thing as well, with Vega especially doing a nice job of making herself feel like a bit more than a foregone conclusion to Ripley.

Bianca Belair is ready to beat Iyo Sky next week but here is Damage Ctrl to mock her. Belair doesn’t think much of them but does think Sky can become a huge star. After she loses at Backlash of course. Sky yells at her in Japanese, with Belair not wanting the translation.

JBL and Teddy Long handle the next picks:

Monday Night Raw
Alpha Academy
Katana Chance/Kayden Carter (NXT)

Smackdown
Rick Boogs
Cameron Grimes (NXT)

It’s about time for Grimes.

Backlash rundown.

Seth Rollins vs. Solo Sikoa

Paul Heyman is here with Sikoa. Rollins has to duck a right hand in the corner to start and let’s conduct the fans a bit. Sikoa gets frustrated as Rollins picking up the pace and headbutts him down in a simple comeback. A low bridge puts Sikoa on the floor but he cuts off the dive as we take a break.

Back with Rolling knocking him to the floor for a series of suicide dives. They get back inside where Sikoa hits a Samoan drop into Spinning Solo for two. Sikoa rains down right hands before they head outside, where Sikoa posts himself by mistake. Back in and Rollins hammers away but the Usos run in for the DQ at 10:39.

Rating: B-. They might as well have held that ending up on a big sign during the match as WWE isn’t going to want either of these two to take a fall here. Rollins continues to be presented as someone who could be a special kind of threat to Reigns and that could be interesting long term. It was a hard hitting back and forth match, but neither was getting pinned here and neither should have been.

Post match Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn join the fight to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. There was a lot going on with this show and it only kind of worked. The matches were mostly good but this was almost all about the Draft. That makes things more complicated as the show becomes more of a preview than anything else. For now though, things are looking good on paper, but there is a lot left to find out in the coming weeks. This show was a big special feature, which didn’t lend itself as well to a three hour format. Good enough show for a one off, but the important stuff starts next week.

Results
Damage Ctrl b. Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez – Rollup to Morgan
Braun Strowman/Ricochet b. Alpha Academy – Swanton to Otis
Matt Riddle b. Jimmy Uso – Floating Bro
Omos b. Anthony Alanis – Chokebomb
Judgment Day b. LWO – South of Heaven to Rey Mysterio
Seth Rollins b. Solo Sikoa via DQ when the Usos interfered

Final Draft Picks

Monday Night Raw
Rhea Ripley
Seth Rollins
Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens
Judgment Day
Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez (Women’s Tag Team Champions)
New Day (Kofi Kingston/Xavier Woods)
Trish Stratus
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler
Braun Strowman/Ricochet
Bronson Reed
Alpha Academy
Katana Chance/Kayden Carter (NXT)

Smackdown
Austin Theory
Charlotte
Usos
Asuka
Brawling Brutes
LWO (Joaquin Wilde/Cruz del Toro/Zelina Vega/Santos Escobar/Rey Mysterio)
Karrion Kross (with Scarlett)
LA Knight
Shotzi
Pretty Deadly (NXT)
Rick Boogs
Cameron Grimes (NXT)

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