IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: March 11, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix

It’s a special episode this week as we’re in the Performance Center instead of at Full Sail due to an event at the university. We’re getting ready for Takeover, assuming the show stays on the schedule given the Coronavirus. Either way, we’re in for some good stuff on the way to the show so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

The arena looks great and other than the PERFORMANCE CENTER sign, you wouldn’t know it wasn’t Full Sail.

North American Title: Keith Lee vs. Cameron Grimes

Grimes is challenging and tries for a leg pick to start. That’s blocked with straight power and Lee isn’t all that impressed. An Irish whip doesn’t work for Grimes either so he hits Lee in the face, only to get knocked hard out to the floor. Lee follows him out but Grimes escapes the powerbomb by grabbing the ropes and stomps him in the face for a unique counter.

The suicide dive is pulled out of the air though and Lee nods at him before trying the powerbomb again. Grimes grabs the rope again so Lee knocks his leg out this time instead. Back in and Grimes’ hat is knocked off the post but a superplex is broken up. Grimes nails a high crossbody but can’t cover off the impact.

Back from a break with Lee powering out of a waistlock and crushing Lee with a crossbody. The Spirit Bomb is escaped and Grimes hits the Superman forearm. A superkick rocks Lee and Grimes kicks him in the head again. There’s a rather impressive bridging German suplex to give Grimes two and he slips out of the Spirit Bomb again. Not that it matters as the Pounce sets up the Big Bang Catastrophe to retain the title at 11:57.

Rating: B-. Grimes got to show off here and Lee was on his usual ridiculous level. It was nice to see Lee switching things up a bit and fighting a smaller opponent rather than the usual monsters. What we had here was good, though I’m still curious about what we’ll be seeing at Takeover. Maybe it means another Lee vs. Dijakovic match, but you never can tell.

Post match here’s Damian Priest to jump Lee with a pipe. Dominick Dijakovic runs him off and helps Lee up but Lee powerbombs him instead. It isn’t clear if Lee saw that it was Priest who jumped him.

The #1 contenders ladder match at Takeover will be a six way. I don’t think the number had been confirmed until now.

#1 Contenders Qualifying Match: Dakota Kai vs. Mia Yim

Kai has Raquel Gonzalez in her corner. Yim kicks her down to start and grabs some early near falls but Kai is back up with a slap to the face. That earns her a running basement dropkick and Yim hammers away for two. Gonzalez trips Yim down though and drops her onto the apron as we take a break.

Back with Yim getting in a shot to the knee, plus a superkick to the jaw. A running neckbreaker gives Yim two but Kai sends her throat first into the middle rope. The Kairopractor gets two so Kai goes with the Kawada kicks, only to get rolled up for two more. Kai’s running boot in the corner misses so Yim powerbombs her out of the corner. Gonzalez breaks up the pin so the referee yells at her, meaning there’s no count off Kai’s rollup. Yim Codebreakers Kai for the pin at 9:42.

Rating: C. Yim winning here was a surprise as Kai has been a much bigger deal as of late. That being said, there are still four spots to be filled in and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Kai get one of them. Gonzalez is a good enforcer though I’m not sure what she is going to be able to do on her own. She’s fine at the moment though and doesn’t need to mix things up just yet.

Post match Gonzalez powerbombs Yim to leave her laying. Yim gets a big ovation as she gets up. Off a single powerbomb? Really?

Tommaso Ciampa arrives and doesn’t think much of doing things Johnny Gargano’s way tonight.

We get another creepy video of various signs of destruction, including the words “tick tock”.

Kushida vs. Raul Mendoza

They go straight to the forearm exchange to start until Mendoza dropkicks him into the corner. A springboard is knocked out of the air though and Kushida hits a springboard flip dive to the floor. Back in and Mendoza grabs a swinging suplex to put him down, setting up a Lionsault for two. Kushida scores with a Tajiri elbow but a rolling DDT is blocked. Instead Kushida hiptosses him down into a basement dropkick (ala Jay Lethal) before going up. Mendoza is right there to catch him so Kushida grabs the Hoverboard Lock up there. With that broken up, Kushida flips him down into a cross armbreaker for the win at 4:00.

Rating: C+. I’ve been a Kushida fan for a long time and while he’s nowhere near what he was in New Japan, at least he got to show up here and win a match for a change. Mendoza continues to be one of the best hands in the whole company as you can put him out there against anyone and get at least a watchable match. That’s a very valuable thing to have on your roster and why Mendoza appears on so many shows.

Tyler Breeze was at the Performance Center earlier today and talks about how the Performance Center built the wrestlers. Austin Theory comes in to say he used to watch Breeze on Breaking Ground when he was in high school. Breeze doesn’t seem impressed so he takes a picture of Theory. Breeze: “You look great, for a flash in the pan.”

Here’s Rhea Ripley for a chat. She isn’t going to be intimidated by Charlotte because she loves the idea of knocking the Queen down. Cue Charlotte (fans: “YOU DON’T GO HERE!”) to say that Rhea has guts….and there’s a GO BACK TO RAW chant. Charlotte doesn’t think the bright lights or 80,000 people in the stands are going to distract Ripley.

It’s going to be Charlotte that takes Ripley out of her game because she’s going to take Ripley into deep waters. Charlotte gets in the ring and the fight is on in a hurry, with Charlotte kicking her in the face (painful considering those heels are tall enough to ride the scrambler at the fair) and putting on the Hartbreaker around the post. That’s probably your story of the match.

Video on Walter vs. Finn Balor. Finn holds up a passport, suggesting that he’s coming to NXT UK.

Mia Yim is in the parking lot when a car drives up. Two masked men jump out and kidnap Raul Mendoza. Probably the same guys who kidnapped Samoa Joe in TNA about ten years ago.

#1 Contenders Qualifying Match: Tegan Nox vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Nox has a bad shoulder coming in so Purrazzo goes right after it. A takedown by the arm gets two but Nox sends her into the corner for the Cannonboar. Purrazzo is right back with a bicycle kick into the Fujiwara armbar but Nox reverses into a crucifix for two. The Shiniest Wizard finishes Purrazzo at 2:27.

The Undisputed Era comes out for a match but hold on though as here’s Velveteen Dream in the crow’s nest. Dream holds up the tights with Strong’s family on the, saying they’re just tights and Strong is just dumber than he looks. He wants a title shot at Takeover but Cole says he hasn’t earned anything. Didn’t Dream lose last week inside that cage? Next week, Cole is officially the longest reigning NXT Champion of all time so they can end this tonight. Dream snaps his fingers though and it’s time for a match.

Tag Team Titles: Broserweights vs. Undisputed Era

Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish are challenging for the Era and the rest of the team is at ringside. Riddle and Fish start things off and I try to keep the song out of my head. Fish gets slammed down in a hurry and Riddle does a bit of a dance. Everything breaks down in a hurry and the champs hit stereo gutwrench suplexes to send us to a break. Back with Riddle kicking at O’Reilly’s chest and forearming at his head, only to get sent to the apron.

A Fish distraction lets O’Reilly get in a kick to the face to knock Riddle outside. We settle down to Riddle in trouble and not being able to strike his way to freedom. Fish’s slingshot hilo gets two and it’s a double suplex to start on the back. Riddle shrugs off some kicks though and it’s off to Dunne to clean house. That includes taking out O’Reilly’s leg and X Plexing him into a failed Cross armbreaker attempt.

Instead it’s a triangle choke to send Fish straight into the ropes and outside, allowing Riddle to nail a big running flip dive onto the Era. Strong and Cole try to interfere again but get ejected, with Riddle miming all the cheating that they did. We take a break and come back with Dunne blocking another hilo and making the second hot tag to Riddle. More striking abounds, plus a pair of Brotons for two.

Everything breaks down and the champs flip out of stereo German suplexes so they can kick the Era in the heads. We settle down to Fish escaping the Bro to Sleep but walking into the Final Flash. A blind tag lets O’Reilly come in with a top rope knee to the ribs for two with Dunne making his own save. Cue the Grizzled Young Veterans as Riddle knees Fish again. The referee is with the Veterans though, meaning it’s a backdrop to send Fish onto the two of them. That leaves O’Reilly to get kneed in the head, setting up the Bro To Sleep/enziguri combination to retain the titles at 20:01.

Rating: B. Another good match between these four, which isn’t all that surprising. All four can do the striking and the champs have that weird chemistry that you just stumble upon from time to time. That’s the kind of thing you can’t build up and NXT is capitalizing on it as they should. Solid back and forth match here, with the Veterans waiting in the wings for the Broserweights.

Here’s Tommaso Ciampa, who wants to know why Johnny Gargano did everything he did. Gargano pops up on screen to talk about how horrible of a person Johnny is, but since Ciampa knows the building well, he storms to the back and the fight is on. They fight down the hallway with Ciampa hitting him with a framed poster. It heads into the medical area with both guys beating up other people to keep the fight going.

Gargano throws him through the window of the gym door and they fight into the exercise equipment, with Gargano throwing him over a big tire. Gargano grabs a weight but Ciampa kicks it away and grabs some smaller ones. He THROWS them at Gargano but destroys a mirror instead, sending Gargano down another hall. They finally make it into the arena and Ciampa hits a running chair shot to the side of the head.

Gargano is back up though and they go up to the crow’s nest with Ciampa following him. They slug it out up there with Gargano pulling him into the Gargano Escape. The referee gets knocked down and Gargano superkicks Ciampa, who pops right back up with the Air Raid Crash off the balcony and through the announcers’ table to end the show. This was a lot of fun as they used their environment, which isn’t something you get to see them do very often. I know the two of them have done this to death, but sweet goodness they can take it to another level at times.

Overall Rating: B. I liked this one rather well as, aside from the big main event angle, there was nothing that would suggest that this was anything more than a regular Full Sail show. It was another solid episode as the focus shifts towards Takeover, though right now everything seems up in the air. The good thing is they might just be able to do the show at the Performance Center or Full Sail if necessary, but dang things are all over the place at the moment. Anyway, rather awesome show this week as NXT gets going towards Tampa.

Results

Keith Lee b. Cameron Grimes – Big Bang Catastrophe

Mia Yim b. Dakota Kai – Codebreaker

Kushida b. Raul Mendoza – Cross armbreaker

Tegan Nox b. Deonna Purrazzo – Shiniest Wizard

Broserweights b. Undisputed Era – Bro to Sleep/enziguri combination to O’Reilly

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Takeover: Portland
Date: February 16, 2020
Location: Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

We’re back with the big show and making the Sunday debut, which hopefully isn’t a trend. This is the first Takeover since November and it’s going to be an interesting one since we are only about six weeks away from the next one. As usual they’ve done a good job with building the card so let’s get to it.

Poppy performs the theme song live.

North American Title: Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic

Lee is defending. They stare each other down to start and neither can get anywhere off a headlock. Lee goes with a hurricanrana to pop the crowd for the first time and shrugs off some shoulders for a bonus. The cyclone boot works a bit better and puts Lee on the floor, setting up the Fosbury Flop, which Lee catches in a powerbomb. That’s escaped as well and Dijakovic suplexes him onto the apron.

Back in and Dijakovic talks trash and slowly pounds Lee down but Lee blocks a suplex. Instead it’s a release German suplex to drop Dijakovic on his face but Dijakovic is back with another cyclone book. A corkscrew moonsault gives Dijakovic two and it’s time to strike it out again. An exchange of standing clotheslines puts them both on their knees and neither can get up. Lee is on his feet first and heads up top but Dijakovic is right there wit him with a super spinning Samoan drop for two. That looked awesome, though it wasn’t the top rope Feast Your Eyes that commentary called it.

Lee is back up with a Pounce into the corner and it’s time to head outside. Dijakovic gets knocked into a chair and Lee chops him rather hard but Dijakovic puts him in the chair for a superkick. It’s time to show off again though as Dijakovic hits a springboard flip dive onto Lee in the chair and they head back inside. Back in and the Big Bang Catastrophe is countered, as is the sitout chokeslam.

Instead Lee hits the Spirit Bomb…and Dijakovic pops up to his feet. Another Spirit Bomb gets two and Lee almost looks sad. Lee goes up top but Dijakovic shoves him out to the floor in a crash. Dijakovic pulls him back up for a super Spanish Fly but the back gives out on the Feast Your Eyes attempt. The Big Bang Catastrophe connects to retain Lee’s title at 20:17.

Rating: A-. This is the definition of spectacle, as the match was built around the idea of one huge spot after another until one of them couldn’t get up anymore. That’s always incredible to watch and neither comes out looking anything close to bad. It was an awesome match and somehow not even their best one ever. It’s going to take someone special to take the title off of Lee and that’s a great situation to be in.

Lee helps him up post match, as he should.

We recap Dakota Kai vs. Tegan Nox. They were best friends and went through everything, including knee rehab together. Then Kai didn’t make it onto the WarGames team but was added as a replacement. Therefore, she turned on Nox and went after her bad knee in a rather evil moment. Tonight it’s a street fight.

Dakota Kai vs. Tegan Nox

Street fight. Kai jumps her during the entrances and they fight through the barricade with Kai hitting a DDT on the floor. They head inside for the opening bell and a two count on Nox, meaning it’s time to bring in the weapons. Nox hits a crossbody off the steps to knock the cricket bat away from Kai and adds a Cannonball against the steps. A table is pulled out but Kai cuts her off with a kick to the face.

Nox is back with a trashcan though, including a nasty German suplex to put Kai onto the can for two. The Kairopractor gives Kai her own two but Nox sends her face first into the apron. They go to the top with Nox chokeslamming her down and busting out a Molly Go Round for two. Nox puts Kai’s head in a chair and loads up a Punt of all things but Kai slips away and throws the chair at her to send Nox outside.

Kai tries to duct tape her to the rope but Nox is back out again and hits her in the knee with a laptop. It’s time for…chains of all things with Nox hitting her in the knee with the steel. The chair is wrapped around the knee for a stomp and the Shiniest Wizard connects. Nox brings the table in instead and wraps the chair around Kai’s neck. It’s time to go up but here’s Raquel Gonzales (Reina Gonzales) to make the save and throw Nox onto (not through) the table. Kai pins what’s left of Nox at 13:40.

Rating: B. They made the right call with Kai winning here as there was nothing to be gained with Nox winning. Gonzales being the big surprise is a different way to go and it keeps Nox looking like the great sympathetic face that she is. You can imagine that this isn’t done yet, or at least Nox isn’t done with trying to get revenge.

Gonzales helps Kai up and Kai isn’t sure what is going on.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Johnny Gargano. It’s a battle of old vs. new as Balor is one of the legends around here and Gargano has taken up the NXT mantle in his absence, leading NXT to new heights. Balor doesn’t like what NXT has become and is back to show that he’s still the best while also taking out Gargano late last year in the process.

Finn Balor vs. Johnny Gargano

They go technical to start with Balor not being able to take over on the arm and getting rolled up for two instead. Balor takes him down with a headscissors and even does some pushups at the same time for a bonus. Gargano fights out and gets a headlock on the mat before kicking Balor in the chest. The rolling kick to the head stuns Balor again but he’s back up with a whip into the corner for some running chops.

Balor goes to the apron but Gargano follows him out and hits a spear to knock them outside. Gargano loads up a running dropkick, only to have Balor Sling Blade him down. Back in and Balor grabs an armbar while rubbing his forearm over Gargano’s face. The chinlock/armbar stays on until Gargano fights up and pulls Balor down by the arm. Gargano goes to the apron but gets his leg snapped over the top rope.

Balor works on the leg and stomps on it in the corner, followed by the cannonballs down onto said leg. Gargano can’t quite kick him over the top so he pulls Balor back inside and gets two off a small package instead. Back in and Balor ties up the leg again until Gargano fights his way up one more time. An enziguri and dropkick put Balor on the floor but the suicide dive is countered. 1916 is blocked though and Gargano sends him into the steps, setting up the running flip dive off the apron.

The Lawn Dart is broken up and Balor hits a Nightmare on Helm Street for two. Gargano gets in a superkick followed by the Lawn Dart and they exchange kicks to the head. They slug it out with Gargano getting the better of it from the apron. The slingshot spear is blocked but the slingshot DDT connects for two. Back in and Balor cuts off the running superkick with the Sling Blade. That works so well that they do it again and Balor dropkicks him into the corner.

The Coup de Grace misses and Gargano pulls him into the Gargano Escape. That’s reversed into a standing double stomp but 1916 is countered into the Gargano Escape again. This time Balor dives for the rope and bails to the floor, allowing Gargano to hit the John Woo dropkick into the barricade. Gargano loads up the announcers’ table but Balor knocks him down, setting up his own John Woo dropkick off said table. Back in and the Coup de Grace connects hard, setting up a heck of a 1916 to finish Gargano at 27:19.

Rating: A-. These guys beat the heck out of each other and Balor won definitively, which should set him up for a huge match in Tampa, say against Lee perhaps. Gargano shrugging off the knee work was the only significant problem as it was fun to watch these two beat each other up until Gargano could keep going any longer. Heck of a match and Balor continues to look like a huge star around here.

Roderick Strong is ready to destroy Velveteen Dream on Wednesday. That’s next week though because tonight, the rest of the Undisputed Era is ready to prove why they are the best in the world.

We recap Rhea Ripley vs. Bianca Belair for the Women’s Title. Ripley became the biggest deal in the division and finally ended Shayna Baszler’s title reign. Belair won a battle royal and doesn’t like Ripley overlooking her to face Charlotte at Wrestlemania.

Women’s Title: Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley

Ripley is defending and goes for the arm to start but gets reversed into a waistlock to the mat. That doesn’t last long though as Rhea is up with clotheslines and a dropkick but Belair grabs a cravate. A standing moonsault gives Belair two and she nearly drops Ripley on a Jackhammer attempt.

Belair goes full He Nan with a seated full nelson but Belair powers out again. The standing Cloverleaf is countered as Belair sends her shoulder first into the post. A spinebuster gives Belair a few near falls and she puts Ripley on top. That means an exchange of hard slaps to the face until Belair uses the hair whip to take over. The gorilla press drop shows off Belair’s power but the KOD is countered.

Ripley kicks her in the chest but Belair pops up with the spear for the double knockdown. They slug it out from their knees but Ripley avoids the hair whip. Belair backdrops her over the top so Belair hits a big running flip dive. Ripley gets in a whip to the steps but blocks a sunset bomb back inside. That’s fine with Ripley, who switches to the Riptide to retain at 13:33.

Rating: C+. Belair continues to be an athletic freak and she’s grown on me in recent months. Her problem at the moment is that she is developing a reputation for not being able to win the big one, though it’s hard to imagine that she won’t be Women’s Champion one day. Ripley now has a clear path to Wrestlemania and Charlotte, which should be a heck of a showdown.

Post match Charlotte runs in and decks Ripley. She accepts the match at WrestleMania and sends Belair into the steps for a bonus.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era vs. Broserweights

The Broserweights are challenging after winning the Dusty Classic. They drive out in a golf cart with the trophy in the back, plus matching “How Much Fish Could Bobby Fish Fry If Bobby Fish Could Fry Fish?” shirts. Matt Riddle isn’t done and leads the fans in a singalong of the line, drawing the champs up to start the fight. Riddle kicks at O’Reilly to start so it’s off to Fish, who gets suplexed down. Dunne comes in and blasts Fish with a clothesline before stomping on the arm.

Fish is sent outside for the middle rope moonsault but Fish sweeps the leg back inside. That allows the tag off to O’Reilly as the champs take over for the first time. O’Reilly twists the leg around the ropes and Fish kicks the other leg out to keep Dunne down. The champs collide though and it’s off to Riddle to clean house. That means kicks and Brotons to both, plus a Bro To Sleep into a German suplex for two on O’Reilly.

Some knees to the face give Dunne two on O’Reilly but Dunne kicks the post by mistake. Riddle knees O’Reilly again and the Final Flash sets up a release German suplex. O’Reilly strikes him right back and they both go down to a nice reaction. Back up and Riddle gets in a spear on O’Reilly but Fish is back in with a chop block to Riddle. Double knees put the champs down and it’s Dunne coming back in to strike it out with O’Reilly.

Dunne reverses O’Reilly’s ankle lock into one of his own but gets reversed into a Scorpion Deathlock. Fish sleepers Riddle at the same time but Riddle knees O’Reilly and drops back onto Fish for the double escape. What looked to be a Doomsday Device is broken up and O’Reilly t-bone superplexes Riddle down.

O’Reilly kneebars Riddle but Dunne bends Fish’s fingers and stomps onto O’Reilly’s for a save of his own. Things settle down with Dunne bending O’Reilly’s fingers but Riddle is drawn in to accidentally spear Dunne. Chasing the Dragon gets two and the fans are WAY into the kickout. Riddle is back up and makes a blind tag so it’s time to knee a lot of people. The Bro To Sleep/enziguri combination gives us new champions at 16:58.

Rating: A-. This is the kind of wild tag match that makes NXT work so well and that’s the kind of match you can always use on any show. I’m a bit surprised by the title change but the Undisputed Era has held the titles for the better part of ever so having them drop the things to a new team is a good idea. NXT doesn’t have the deepest tag division in the world so this is the right way to go, if nothing else as the Undisputed Era continues its slide.

We recap the NXT Title match between Tommaso Ciampa and Adam Cole. Ciampa had to vacate the title due to a neck injury and now he’s back to get the title he never lost. Cole is on the verge of becoming the longest reigning champion in the title’s history but Ciampa is coming for Goldie because daddy’s home.

NXT Title: Adam Cole vs. Tommaso Ciampa

Cole is defending and we’re ready to go after the Big Match Intros. Ciampa puts him against the ropes and mocks Cole’s pose, followed by a headlock for a bonus. It’s too early for Willow’s Bell so Ciampa goes with another headlock. That stays on for a bit until Ciampa gets up and chops him in the corner. Cole’s Backstabber misses so he kicks Ciampa down instead and gives himself the applause.

Ciampa throws him over the announcers’ table though and now we get the real self applause. A jumping enziguri misses Ciampa and he drops Cole across the barricade. That means a running knee to the head and a bunch of chops in the timekeeper’s area. The big running knee makes it worse and Ciampa even hugs a fan. Ciampa misses a kick though and gets suplexed into the edge of the announcers’ table for a delayed two. Cole kicks him in the face for two more but takes too long going up, meaning he has to block a sunset bomb.

A Backstabber out of the corner sets up a chinlock but Ciampa is up again. The Panama Sunrise is countered with a dropkick and they both need some time to get up. Ciampa grabs a torture rack bomb for his own two but Cole is right back with the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two. Cole ties him in the corner but a sunset bomb is countered into the super Air Raid Crash for the VERY near fall and Ciampa is stunned. They head outside again with Ciampa powerbombing him onto the announcers’ table (again, not through), followed by another to put Cole through it.

Back inside and Cole hits a quick superkick, only to get caught with Project Ciampa for two. They slug it out with Cole knocking him to the floor but a suicide dive is kneed out of the air. Back in again and Cole snaps off the brainbuster onto the knee for two as the fans are split again. They slowly fight up with Cole getting the better of it and hitting a Last Shot. Ciampa is smart enough to roll straight to the rope though, meaning it’s time to head to the apron.

Another Air Raid Crash onto the apron puts them both down on the floor but Ciampa can’t hit the Fairy Tale Ending. Cole can hit a Panama Sunrise off the announcers’ table though and Ciampa is….not done as he’s back up for Willow’s Bell. The Fairy Tale Ending connects for two and Ciampa has nothing left. Cole changes pace with a Crossface but Ciampa reverses into one of his own. It’s too close to the rope though and Cole bails outside after the break.

Cue Roderick Strong for a distraction though and O’Reilly and Fish take Ciampa down with a High/Low on the floor. That’s only good for two as well so Ciampa hits Willow’s Bell on Strong and nails a big corkscrew dive onto the other three. Back in and Cole hits a quick Last Shot for two and I let out an “oh come on”. The ref gets bumped and Ciampa hits another Fairy Tale Ending for no count so here’s Johnny Gargano (Where was he five minutes ago?) to throw the title to Ciampa….and then hit him with it instead. Cole retains the title at 33:23.

Rating: B+. I enjoyed it but these Cole main events are getting out of hand on a ridiculous level. They could have cut out probably seven to ten minutes of kickouts here and done the same thing, which isn’t a good sign. That being said, the action was good and Gargano vs. Ciampa part whatever number we’re at should be good with a new twist on the whole thing. This pretty much leaves Velveteen Dream as the most likely challenger to Cole in Tampa as there aren’t many other ways to go, save for Lee dropping the title in a hurry. Anyway, entertaining main event that could have been better with a few cuts.

Overall Rating: A. It never ceases to amaze me that this is probably considered one of the weaker Takeovers and it’s still an incredible show. There’s nothing close to bad on it and several very good matches, though it didn’t have the big blow away one. You can piece together some of Takeover and it wouldn’t surprise me to see a few cameos from NXT UK to really bump up the quality. What we got here was great though and it was an awesome show as Takeover continues to be the untouchable one.

Results

Keith Lee b. Dominick Dijakovic – Big Bang Catastrophe

Dakota Kai b. Tegan Nox – Toss onto a table

Finn Balor b. Johnny Gargano – 1916

Rhea Ripley b. Bianca Belair – Riptide

Broserweights b. Undisputed Era – Bro To Sleep/Enziguri combination to O’Reilly

Adam Cole b. Tommaso Ciampa – Belt shot to the head

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

This is a different kind of show for more ways than you almost ever see. In this case, we have a show on a Sunday, a Takeover without a major event from WWE and a six match card. I’m not sure if those things are better or worse for what we’ll be seeing but NXT has not been as strong as usual of late. This is where they get their reputation from though so let’s get to it.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley(c) vs. Bianca Belair

I’m not sure what to expect from this one and that’s a hard thing to pull off. What makes this so much better is the fact that while they are certainly teasing Charlotte vs. Ripley at WrestleMania, they might be going a swerve in the form of a triple threat match with Belair vs. Ripley vs. Charlotte. Now I’m not sure how great that would be, but it’s a possibility.

That being said, I don’t think it’s a possibility that is going to become a reality so we’ll say that Ripley retains here. NXT clearly sees something huge in her and I don’t think they’re going to take the title off of her in her first Takeover defense. Unless there is something surprising like Charlotte interfering to cost Ripley the title, and I’m not sure I see that happening, I think we’ll be seeing Ripley retain.

Tag Team Titles: Undisputed Era(c) vs. Broserweights

The Undisputed Era is reaching the Shayna Baszler point of “someone has to beat them”. Granted that has been the case for a long time now and yet it never seems to end. Now that’s an interesting point as you start to wonder who that team is, because there isn’t a very deep tag division in NXT. Hence the Broserweights being put together to get this spot after winning a handful of matches.

I’ll take the Undisputed Era to retain here, as I think we’re coming up on the dream match at Takeover: Tampa where DIY takes the titles off of them. The Broserweights can keep teaming together, but there isn’t a need to switch the titles here. The Undisputed Era has held them for so long now that another six weeks isn’t going to matter, so switch them in Tampa instead of here.

Johnny Gargano vs. Finn Balor

Here’s your showcase match and it’s a very good one at that. The story makes perfect sense here as you have the former star against the new one, with Gargano needing to prove that he’s as good as he seems to be. Balor is someone with main roster credentials and having Gargano beat him would be a huge moment for him. You could see this one going either way though and that’s what makes it fascinating.

I think I’ll go with Balor here, as there is a case for both of them. First and foremost, Balor is Balor and someone who brings instant main roster credibility to NXT. At the same time though, Gargano has one of the best resumes and legacies in NXT, but he also has a reputation for losing. He’s a lot better when he’s losing though and it’s not like another loss is going to hut him that much. Gargano winning wouldn’t shock me, but I’ll take Balor.

Dakota Kai vs. Tegan Nox

This is a good example of a match where the extra time for the build may have hurt it a bit. The whole thing is built on Kai being the most horrible person ever by taking out the adorable Nox’s already injured knee. The problem is that was three months ago and a lot of the steam has gone away. The heat will be back as soon as we see a clip of the attack, but it doesn’t feel as important as it once did.

Again you could go either way here, but if they want Kai to go anywhere, she needs to win here so I’ll say that. Nox is someone who has that underdog/never say die aspect to her and that is going to be enough to carry her a long way. Kai is still new to this massive heel turn deal and having her lose (again) wouldn’t leave her with much to do going forward. Let her win here and see where she can go with it.

North American Title: Keith Lee(c) vs. Dominick Dijakovic

I don’t think I’m alone when I say this is the match a lot of people have wanted to see again. These guys showed a completely new aspect to big man matches and they were some of the most exciting things I’ve seen in a long time. I had wanted them to do it on a bigger stage and that is what they are getting here, with a title on the line to boot.

I’ll take Lee to retain, as he seems in line to become the next big thing in NXT. Therefore, you don’t take the title off of him here (barring what would be a very surprising turnaround to give him the title shot at Takeover: Tampa), though Dijakovic winning it would hardly be the worst thing in the world. But yeah Lee retains here, as it is going to take a Herculean effort to get the belt off of him.

NXT Title: Adam Cole(c) vs. Tommaso Ciampa

This is the match that got me into the show because Ciampa’s promos have been outstanding. He never lost the title and pinned Cole to win WarGames so there is already a story built in. Should Cole retain, there is a strong chance he sets the record for the longest NXT Title reign in history, which is a pretty big deal given the history the title has. I’m more curious what happens if Ciampa loses though, as this is pretty much his life.

I think we’re going to find out though, as I’ll take Cole to retain. It leaves open the question of who is left to fight him (though a certain Dreamy one would seem to be an option) but for now, Ciampa doesn’t get Goldie back. I’m not sure if he ever does, but I don’t think he does here. It’s another coin flip (dang NXT is good at setting those up), though I’m going with Cole retaining.

Overall Thoughts

I’m not sure what to expect from this show as the television shows haven’t been as great lately. What matters the most though is that we’ll get down to just the wrestling here and that’s where NXT shines. I do not believe they are capable of a bad (or even average) Takeover and I don’t see this one going any differently. Just give us a good show and everything will be fine. Make it a great one and NXT is back, which is what I’d bet on happening.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: February 10, 2020
Location: Toyota Arena, Ontario, California
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

We’re less than two months away from Wrestlemania and less than three weeks away from Super ShowDown. What matters most is that it feels like we are, with WWE seemingly turning on the jets last week to get us ready for the big shows. In this case we have Becky Lynch defending against Asuka in a Royal Rumble rematch. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here are Seth Rollins and company for a chat. Rollins talks about how he has embraced the Monday Night Messiah name and the future is bright. We look at last week’s six man tag (complete with Phillips referring to Murphy as Buddy and then having to correct himself, because it’s a mistake to call him something he was called a week ago) with Rollins’ guys winning beating Kevin Owens and the Viking Raiders. That wasn’t enough for Owens and company though though as they later cost Rollins a shot at the WWE Championship. Rollins has a message for them so here’s Owens in person to deal with it.

Rollins has already made the preparations to set things up for revenge on Owens, who says Rollins sounds stupid. Rollins says Owens can always find partners but he can’t keep them upright. Cue the Viking Raiders, with Owens testing Ivar’s shoulder. It seems solid and the fight is on in a hurry. Rollins is alone in the ring so here’s Samoa Joe from behind with the Koquina Clutch, triggering the brawl in the ring (with Samoa Joe running around looking for someone to hit). Rollins and company bail in a hurry but here’s Becky Lynch to replace them as we get ready for the big title match.

Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Asuka

Asuka is challenging and has Kairi Sane in her corner. A headlock and running shoulder have Becky in early trouble but she’s up with her own headlock. Sane offers a distraction though and Asuka gets in a kick to the floor as we take a break. Back with Becky making her comeback with a spinning kick to the ribs and a flying shoulder for two. It’s too early for the Disarm-Her so Asuka grabs a sitout spinebuster for two of her own.

They head outside with Becky forearming Sane (who shoved Asuka out of the way) down but getting shoved down. Back in and Asuka Codebreakers her out of the air for two before sending her shoulder first into the post. Asuka’s running hip attack misses though and Becky gets the Disarm-Her in the ropes. They fight on the apron with Becky hitting a layout reverse DDT as we take another break.

Back again with Asuka getting two off a superplex but her cross armbreaker is broken up. Instead Asuka goes with a triangle choke but Becky muscles her up for a powerbomb and a near fall. Becky’s middle rope legdrop misses and Asuka grabs the Asuka Lock. They spin into the middle but Becky slips out to set up a few rollups for two each. Becky grabs a Rock Bottom out of nowhere to retain at 17:53.

Rating: B. They really got going near the end here and the near falls were awesome. I don’t think there was any secret to who was going to win as all signs would seem to point to Becky vs. Shayna Baszler at Wrestlemania. The match was very good and maybe now Asuka and Sane can get back to actually defending their titles.

Post match Shayna Baszler runs in and jumps Becky from behind. She even BITES BECKY’S NECK to draw a bunch of blood for a scary visual. Medics come out and check on Becky, taking her to the back as we go to a break.

Post break Becky still insists on not wanting to go to the hospital but seemingly being in a bit of shock.

Street Profits vs. Riddick Moss/Mojo Rawley

The Profits make fun of the two of them and finish with the spinebuster into the frog splash (the Cash Out) for the pin at 46 seconds.

Post match Mojo yells at Moss, who rolls him up for the pin and the title.

Becky agrees to go to the hospital, though she steals the ambulance and drives off herself.

Here’s MVP for the return of the VIP Lounge. His guest is the man who single footedly eliminated Brock Lesnar from the Royal Rumble to earn his spot at Wrestlemania: Drew McIntyre, who isn’t interested in seeing if he is on the list. MVP talks about Drew going to Wrestlemania, which means Drew must point at the sign. With that out of the way, MVP tells him to not listen to the non-VIP people who have been saying Drew isn’t ready to be WWE Champion.

MVP is ready for the two of them to change that, but Drew doesn’t remember “we” winning the Royal Rumble. Drew isn’t sure on this offer of MVP being his business manager, advocate, or Paul Heyman (MVP: “A much better looking version perhaps.”). That’s not something Drew needs so a fight is teased, earning MVP the Glasgow Kiss and Claymore onto the couch. The countdown to the Claymore is getting some traction.

Angel Garza vs. Cedric Alexander

Garza is proud of his recent attacks but here’s Humberto Carrillo to go after him. Security breaks that up and we actually get the match. They exchange cross arm chokes until Alexander hits a running forearm in the corner. A basement dropkick to the back of the head sends Garza outside so Alexander loads up the baseball slide. That’s reversed into the reverse powerbomb onto the floor but Cedric sends him into the steps. Back in and Garza kicks a springboard out of the air, TAKES OFF HIS PANTS, and finishes with the Wing Clipper at 2:45.

We look back at Rhea Ripley challenging Charlotte for Wrestlemania.

Rhea is ready to do whatever she needs to do to get the match. Sarah Logan comes in to say Rhea can’t just come to Raw. Who does she think she is? Rhea: “I’m Rhea Ripley. Who are you?”

Lana doesn’t appreciate Bobby Lashley being interviewed while he’s warming up. She calls Ricochet a thief for stealing Lashley’s dream of facing Brock Lesnar at Super ShowDown. Lashley will deal with Ricochet tonight because he’s not some scrawny kid with big dreams.

Sarah Logan calls out Rhea Ripley so she can prove who she is.

Rhea Ripley vs. Sarah Logan

Non-title and hold on because here’s Charlotte to watch. Big boot, clotheslines, dropkick, Riptide for the pin at 40 seconds.

Post match Rhea calls Charlotte out for not answering a challenge. Charlotte says she isn’t answering because Rhea might not even be the champion after Sunday.

We look back at Ricochet becoming #1 contender last week.

Ricochet isn’t scared of Lashley because nothing is stopping him from going to Super ShowDown.

Bobby Lashley vs. Ricochet

Lana is at ringside with Lashley. Ricochet goes straight at him but has to slip out of a gorilla press attempt. Lashley kicks him in the ribs and hits a springboard missile dropkick (with the cameraman barely surviving). The big running flip dive takes Lashley out again and we take a break. Back with Ricochet being sent over the corner and out to the floor for a big crash. Ricochet is fine enough for a moonsault off the steps and Lashley is rocked again. He’s fine enough to send Ricochet HARD into the post though and Ricochet is down on the floor again.

Back in and we hit the neck crank and go split screen for a quick ad for the new Sonic the Hedgehog movie. Ricochet fights up again and flips forward with a dropkick into the corner. The springboard high crossbody into the running shooting star press gets two. One heck of a spinebuster gives Lashley the same but Ricochet flips out of a belly to back superplex attempt. Some running corner dropkicks put Lashley down and the 630 gives Ricochet the pin at 11:32.

Rating: C+. The action was a little hit and miss as they seemed to be jumping from spot to spot instead of having the match flow. That’s not the point here though as the idea was to have Ricochet beat someone who is similar to Brock Lesnar and that’s what they should have gone for. Good enough match here and what matters is that they’re getting Ricochet ready, even if it’s basically for an In Your House title shot.

We look back at Becky/Shayna.

Here’s Randy Orton to explain his attack on Edge but he still isn’t looking too sure. After taking his time, he says he owes everyone an explanation but here’s Matt Hardy to interrupt. Matt wants to hear it too but he knows Orton is wondering why Matt would care about Edge. There was a time when Matt hated Edge more than anyone else and everyone knows the history. Before that though, Matt and Edge were best friends and they shared hotel rooms with Jeff Hardy and Christian.

Then they revolutionized the ladder match and went on to steal the show at Wrestlemania. Edge was forced to retire due to his injuries but he kept asking what if. Then he came back nine years later but Orton took it away. Orton goes for the RKO but Matt fights back, only to take the RKO a few seconds later. The One Man Conchairto crushes Matt, possibly sending him off to AEW.

We look back at Ruby Riott returning to attack Liv Morgan.

Riott says she knows the real Morgan, who is someone you have to walk around on a leash. This isn’t the real Morgan because she is always a follower. Riott is back to put Morgan in her place because Morgan strikes when Riott says so.

Akira Tozawa vs. Aleister Black

This could be good. Black elbows him down to start but Tozawa is back with a middle rope dropkick. That just earns him a pop up knee to the chest and Black Mass (with the referee cringing) finishes Tozawa at 1:29.

Post match Black thanks everyone for being here tonight. Everyone tries to escape your given paradise, which is something he knows about very well. He is starting to feel like a caged animal though and everyone is in here with him.

Becky and the ambulance are back.

Here’s Becky, with a taped up neck, to calls out Shayna. She’s ready to break Shayna down week by week so come find her because she finds you.

There will be a gauntlet for the Tuwaiq Cup at Super ShowDown featuring Andrade, Erick Rowan, Rusev, Bobby Lashley, R-Truth and AJ Styles. That’s quite the interesting lineup given how things have been going lately.

Kevin Owens/Samoa Joe/Viking Raiders vs. Seth Rollins/Murphy/AOP

Rollins runs his mouth before the match but it’s a big brawl before the bell. We’re joined in progress with Murphy in trouble, including Joe hitting an enziguri in the corner. Owens hits a Vader Bomb elbow and throws in a crotch chop for good measure. Erik slams Ivar onto Murphy for two but it’s off to Akam to pound Erik down. Rollins comes in for the chinlock and there’s the Sling Blade for a bonus.

Erik jumps over Murphy out of the corner though and it’s Ivar coming in to wreck Murphy in various ways. A heck of a clothesline drops Murphy and we take a break. Back with Owens in trouble on the floor, meaning it’s actually not a chinlock for once (I could certainly go for that being a trend.). Rollins gets in a cheap shot on the floor but Owens manages a fall away slam to send Murphy into the barricade.

It’s still too early for the hot tag though as Rezar cranks on Owens’ neck instead. A DDT drops Murphy and it’s Joe coming in to hammer on Rollins. The AOP cuts off Joe’s dive so the Raiders cut off the AOP. Joe and the Raiders dive onto Rollins and the AOP and a Rock Bottom gets two on Rollins. Everything breaks down and Owens hits a huge flip dive to the floor. That leaves Murphy to tap to the Koquina Clutch but an AOP distraction lets Rollins hit the Stomp on Joe for the pin at 14:44.

Rating: B-. I liked this one as they’re using the big tag matches to make things more interesting. They worked a good formula here and the match wound up being good as a result. Rollins stealing another win lets the good guys have a reason to fight him again and I’m looking forward to when we get to the singles matches with Rollins facing Joe and Owens. It’s a good story and they’re doing well with keeping this story alive.

Overall Rating: C+. There is something so nice to see when they try to make things interesting for Wrestlemania season. That being said, it is far from a perfect show with some of the stories just not being that great. What matters is that they’re moving forward though and they’re doing so in an effective way. If nothing else, these short matches are nice to see because there are some matches that just don’t need to go long. I’m looking forward to what they have coming up and if they can keep that going for a few weeks, Wrestlemania could be great.

Results

Becky Lynch b. Asuka – Rock Bottom

Street Profits b. Riddick Moss/Mojo Rawley – Cash Out to Moss

Angel Garza b. Cedric Alexander – Wing Clipper

Rhea Ripley b. Sarah Logan – Riptide

Ricochet b. Bobby Lashley – 630

Aleister Black b. Akira Tozawa – Black Mass

Seth Rollins/Murphy/AOP b. Viking Raiders/Samoa Joe/Kevin Owens – Stomp to Joe

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: February 6, 2020
Location: Vivint Smart Home Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Mickie James

We’re coming up on Super ShowDown because we’re just that lucky. Things are starting to take shape as we now have a WWE Championship match, meaning it is time to recap everything that got us here. I’m not sure how much there was to recap but that has never stopped this show before. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

OC vs. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder

Gallows shrugs off a headlock attempt to start and shows Hawkins how it’s done. That means a big shove to put Hawkins down but he’s smart enough to kick away rather than go for a test of strength. Ryder comes in for a slingshot dropkick through the ropes to take both of them down but Gallows kicks him in the face.

Back in and Gallows unloads on Ryder in the corner, followed by a chinlock from Anderson. Gallows’ snap suplex sets up some elbows to the chest and another chinlock. Ryder fights up and makes it over to Hawkins for the hot tag so the pace can pick up. A Michinoku Driver gets two on Anderson but Ryder misses a dive and get sent into the barricade. The Magic Killer finishes Hawkins at 5:11.

Rating: C. This was a snappy little tag match and that’s better than you would expect from this show. That’s one of the things I like about Main Event: sometimes you get a surprisingly good match from people who have little reason to try. The reason they do have though is pride, and it’s nice to see people working hard just to make the fans happy in a match that means nothing in the slightest.

From Smackdown.

Usos/Roman Reigns vs. King Corbin/Robert Roode/Dolph Ziggler

The losers must eat DOG FOOD, which Cole has repeated about 37 times tonight. Corbin punches Jey down for an early two and a low bridge puts Jey on the floor. Roode, now in long tights, hits a spinebuster on the floor as Cole puts over how bad the dog food smells. We take a break and come back with Roode cranking on Jey’s arms. Jey slips out so Ziggler comes in, only to miss a Stinger Splash in the corner.

Corbin gets the tag and breaks up the hot tag though, allowing him to make Jey look at the dog food. That’s enough to make Jey get over for the hot tag to Reigns as everything breaks down. A big boot connects for Reigns but Corbin is back with a chokeslam for two. Ziggler adds a superkick and it’s the Deep Six for two more on Reigns. Jimmy is back in and sends Roode over the announcers’ table, setting up another dive to Ziggler. Reigns misses the spear but rolls Corbin up for the pin at 9:56.

Rating: C-. Yeah it’s another watchable match but it’s everything else that is making it bad. Between Cole shouting about the dog food over and over and over again and the fact that we’ve seen these people fight for months now and how this was nothing new as far as a six man formula goes, this wasn’t exactly thrilling. It’s fine for a house show stipulation where the kids can laugh, but when you have to hear about it all night long, it’s way too much.

Post match Corbin tries to leave but he gets speared down and handcuffed, meaning he gets chained up like he did to Reigns months ago. The buckets of dog food are poured over him so Reigns and the Usos can pose to end the show. It’s a poetic way to go about things with Corbin, but the feud has gone on for so long now that the impact is really, really weakened. Also it’s not exactly brilliant, cutting edge stuff in the first place.

From Raw.

Here’s Charlotte to announce her Wrestlemania decision. She has held the Raw and Women’s Titles more than once and….there’s a Rhea chant. Charlotte says she’s done that too and yes NXT has love for it’s queen but….here’s Rhea herself. Rhea says Charlotte has beaten Bayley and Becky, but Rhea has beaten her. She holds up the NXT Women’s Title and Charlotte smiles at her, only to walk around and leave. Charlotte throws in one more WOO for good measure. I’m not sure where they’re going with this and I like that.

Shelton Benjamin vs. Cedric Alexander

Shelton suplexes him down to start and a backdrop cuts off Cedric’s early comeback attempt. The anklescissors is blocked as well with Shelton kicking him in the ribs for two instead. The chinlock goes on and of course brings Cedric back to his feet, only to get hit in the face again. Cedric is sent to the apron and tries a springboard but gets kneed out to the floor.

Back from a break with Shelton grabbing another chinlock until Cedric fights up with some rapid fire strikes. A dropkick to the back of the head has Shelton in more trouble…until he kicks Cedric in the face for two. Shelton goes up so Cedric runs the ropes for a super Spanish Fly and another near fall. Cedric is right back up with the Neuralizer for the pin at 10:51.

Rating: C+. Another nice match here with both guys working. Cedric continues to be the guy who can do anything you ask from him in the ring and if he ever has the slightest bit of charisma to back it up, he’d be a star in the blink of an eye. I could go for a lot more of him, but I can also see why WWE is a bit hesitant to push him.

We look at Randy Orton attacking Edge last week.

From Raw.

Here’s Orton to explain himself. Orton takes his time before posing on the roles and the fans are not thrilled to see him. He thinks he owes an explanation but the fans are booing him out of the building in a hurry. That turns into an Edge chant and Orton still can’t bring himself to say anything. He finally says he can’t do this, puts the mic down, and walks away.

From Raw again.

Seth Rollins vs. Ricochet vs. Bobby Lashley

Lashley is sent outside early and Rollins is right there with a Sling Blade to Ricochet. Another shot knocks Lashley off the apron so Rollins can get a quick two. Lashley is back in though and hits a DDT to Rollins and a neckbreaker on Ricochet at the same time. A clothesline puts Rollins on the floor but Ricochet gets in a kick to Lashley’s head. The rolling dropkick puts Lashley outside again and there’s the big flip dive.

Another one hits Rollins and it’s time for the 630…but Buddy Murphy and the AOP run out to wreck Lashley and Ricochet. This brings out Kevin Owens for the save with the Viking Raiders following to clean house as we take a break. Back with Lashley coming back in to run Ricochet over and plant Seth with a spinebuster. Ricochet hits a high crossbody on Lashley though and scores with the springboard clothesline to Rollins.

The running shooting star press gets two with Lashley having to make a save. Another spinebuster hits Ricochet and a lifting Downward Spiral gets two on Rollins. A Blockbuster gives Rollins his own two on Lashley with Ricochet making a save this time around. The Buckle Bomb hits Ricochet but he’s back up with an enziguri to catch Rollins on top. There’s the Tower of Doom, though Lashley lets go of the two of them so it was more like Ricochet superplexing Rollins as Lashley just fell. The 630 hits Lashley for the sudden pin at 13:33.

Rating: B. Ricochet makes sense as the big winner as we’ve seen Rollins and Lashley vs. Lesnar isn’t exactly thrilling to anyone but Lashley. Ricochet may not have a chance to win but there’s a great Jeff Hardy factor him where there might be a .01% chance that he could win, but it’s very fun to think about. The match was good and it had the right winner so I can’t really complain.

Post match Lesnar runs in for a quick F5 to end the show. Lesnar might have been on screen for fifteen seconds and got a full payday for it. That’s why he’s smarter than we are.

Overall Rating: C+. Oh yeah you can tell it’s Wrestlemania season as they’re trying a little harder with both the wrestling and the story. It’s a show where you can tell the effort is a little harder and that’s the kind of thing you can’t fake. I’m looking forward to Wrestlemania and if they keep this up for the next few weeks, we’re in for a big night in Tampa.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Worlds Collide
Date: January 25, 2020
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Nigel McGuinness

It’s a big night in Texas, and not just because I finally remembered that the show isn’t called When Worlds Collide. This is NXT vs. NXT UK and the card is actually stacked, with a bunch of matches that could be awesome. If they live up to the hype, it’s a show of the year contender. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Mia Yim vs. Kay Lee Ray

Non-title. Mia knocks her into the corner to start and hits a Cannonball for two. Ray gets chopped against the ropes but Mia takes her down by the leg and gets two off a kick to the head. A faceplant gives Ray her own two and the chinlock goes on. Mia fights up and chops her way out of the corner so Ray superkicks her for two. The Swanton misses though and Yim scores with her own superkick.

The springboard DDT gives Yim two more and Ray gets hit with a suicide dive. Ray is right back up with a top rope flip dive of her own and they’re both down on the floor. Back in and Code Blue gets two but Ray is right back with Eat Defeat for her own near fall. It’s Yim’s turn now and a Batista Bomb give her two more. A Canadian Destroyer is good for the same but they go to a series of rollups. Yim gets two more but gets reversed, with Ray grabbing the rope for the pin at 9:18.

Rating: C+. It was good action and a fine finish, though I still can’t bring myself to care about Yim. She just isn’t interesting and there is nothing that she can do to fix that. Maybe she’ll catch fire later on but so far it has been a lot of dull stuff from here where they push her well but nothing clicks. Ray is better, though I’m still waiting on her to step up to another level.

The opening video features narration by Winston Churchill, talking about how we will fight everywhere over video of Imperium and the Undisputed Era. The rest of the card gets some attention as well, but the eight man tag is the focal point, as it should be.

The announcers welcome us to the show.

Finn Balor vs. Ilja Dragunov

Dragunov comes out to some near silence. Balor grabs a headlock to start and takes Dragunov down, only to get reversed with a headscissors. Dragunov starts slugging away but gets sent outside for a baseball slide through the ropes. Back in and Dragunov knocks him down, setting up a backsplash for two. The armbar is broken up as Balor makes the rope but he misses his apron enziguri.

Balor bails to the floor so Dragunov hits a crossbody from the apron. A top rope ax handle misses though and Balor stomps away, setting up an elbow for two back inside. Balor stomps away in the corner and the fans are VERY pleased. A running chop gets two and we hit the chinlock to keep Dragunov down. 1916 is countered into a suplex though and Dragunov hits a running knee in the corner.

Dragunov hits a bunch of knees to the chest and a big one to the face gets two. Balor is one step ahead of him though and hits the jumping double stomp to the ribs. They slug it out until Dragunov hits an enziguri. The Pele is caught but Balor is back with a Nightmare on Helm Street.

The Sling Blade looks to set up the John Woo dropkick but Dragunov grabs a bridging German suplex for two more. Dragunov’s discus lariat puts Balor on the floor for another crossbody. Back in and Balor is draped over the ropes for a missile dropkick to the side of the head. Balor’s nose is busted but he’s fine enough to get his knees up to block a backsplash. The John Woo dropkick sets up the Coup de Grace into the 1916 for the pin at 13:50.

Rating: B. The best sign of the match is that they overcame an apathetic crowd to start. The fans did not care about Dragunov and were cheering Balor throughout, but the important part here is that they got the fans caring. Dragunov isn’t ready to defeat someone like Balor so the loss isn’t a bad thing, but what matters is that he was competitive and they had a heck of a match. Really good opener.

The Broserweights and the Grizzled Young Veterans are in the front row. They’re told that the winners will receive a Tag Team Title shot at Takeover: Portland and Gibson isn’t pleased. He’s seen the Broserweights’ resume and there’s nothing there. The Veterans should win the tournament because they’re the best team in the world.

Matt Riddle talks about how they should be happy over the new prize for the winners. Dunne is stone faced, but Riddle says that’s his happy face. Dunne: “I’ll be blunt.” That makes Riddle VERY happy and we even have to pause for his mini celebration. Dunne promises to smoke the Veterans next week because it’s their trophy to win. Riddle came off like a star here.

Cruiserweight Title: Isaiah Scott vs. Jordan Devlin vs. Travis Banks vs. Angel Garza

One fall to a finish with Garza defending. The fans are behind Scott and all four grab hands to start. Garza asks for a pause so he can TAKE OFF HIS PANTS but it’s a triple suplex to cut him off. Devlin Rock Bottoms Scott and Banks and moonsaults onto both of them. Scott is back up with the rolling Downward Spiral on Banks, followed by the dropkick to Devlin. Devlin and Scott go outside so Garza hits the big flip dive, leaving Banks to hit a stomp from the apron.

Banks kicks at Scott’s chest back inside but Garza joins in, earning himself some Banks kicks as well. Scott kicks Garza into the corner but gets suplexed into a different corner as banks continues to dominate. Scott is sent into Garza in the corner and Banks hits a suicide dive on Devlin. Back in and Banks sends Devlin into the corner onto the other two. Devlin is back up with a crazy spinning tornado DDT on Scott and a Spanish Fly to Garza, only to have Banks dive in with a double stomp for the save.

They slug it out from their knees until Garza sends Banks into Devlin. That means GARZA CAN TAKE OFF HIS PANTS before catching Banks’ crossbody. Devlin can’t hit a hurricanrana on Garza, who holds them both up at once. Scott dives in with a double stomp to Devlin and everyone is down. The House Call to Garza is broken up by Devlin but Banks is back up with a Canadian Destroyer to plant Devlin and everyone is down.

Garza and Scott go up top but get pulled down with a double super Spanish Fly from Devlin. Banks is right back up with the Slice of Heaven into the Kiwi Crusher for two on Devlin to put everyone down again. Banks tries a headscissors out of the corner but Scott flips him forward into something like an Iconoclasm for two. Garza hits a reverse hurricanrana on Scott and the Wing Clipper connects, only to have Devlin headbutt him down. The Devlin Side finishes Scott for the pin and the title at 12:08. Devlin’s celebration is awesome as he looks like he just won the World Title in the main event of Wrestlemania.

Rating: B. I had this one wrong but I can go with this as the Cruiserweight Title doesn’t mean anything on NXT. Devlin has needed a big win for a long time now and that’s the right call here. He’s lost several big matches now so giving him a major win and a title is a good move, especially when there isn’t much for Garza to do with the title in NXT. If nothing else, this might put Devlin on 205 Live, though I’d get a chuckle out of him just never showing up there and having 205 Live pretend the show serves any purpose (like it does now).

Post match Devlin says he told you all and you should believe him. Never bet against the Ace.

Keith Lee, Mia Yim, Chelsea Green and Robert Stone are here.

We recap DIY vs. Moustache Mountain. There isn’t much of a story but they’re both the signature teams of their brands so it’s time to have a dream match.

DIY vs. Moustache Mountain

This could be good. Maybe. Possibly. Gargano and Bate start things off with Gargano taking him down for an armbar. A headlock keeps Bate down and he can’t power out of a front facelock. He can however flip out of a hurricanrana attempt and try the Tyler Driver 97, only to have Gargano slip out this time. Gargano misses the rolling kick to the head so Bate grabs his leg on an attempted kick to the ribs.

Bate is nice enough to put the foot down and it’s a double tag to Seven and Ciampa. They have a moustache off and then a pose down with Seven conceding the second round. Ciampa takes him t the mat but the flip over armbar is countered into a rollup for two. Bate comes back in and he’s willing to pose with Ciampa. We go old school with a test of strength and the taller Ciampa gets the better of things.

They flip over to the mat and bridge up at two each. Bate loads up Bop and Bang but gets hit in the face in a hurry. Ciampa knees Bate to the floor and Gargano superkicks Seven out with him. The Brits are sent over the announcers’ table and DIY have a seat on the apron. Back in and Gargano mocks Bate’s pose before kicking him in the back of the head for two. Ciampa elbows Bate down and we’re off to the chinlock.

Bate finally fights up and flips out so he can tag Seven in for the chops. A DDT drops Gargano and the powerbomb into the Seven Star Lariat gets two on Ciampa. Another lariat is blocked with a jumping knee to the face, which may have knocked out Seven’s tooth. Gargano is back in with a Downward Spiral/DDT combination, followed by the slingshot spear for two on Bate.

Willow’s Bell hits Seven and Gargano’s slingshot DDT gets two on Bate. Gargano and Seven fight to the floor and Ciampa knees Bate in the head. Project Ciampa and the Tyler Driver 97 are countered so Bate hits the rebound lariat instead. Now the Tyler Driver 97 can connect for two with Gargano making the save and kicking Ciampa into a rollup for another two on Bate. Everyone is down until Bate muscles Gargano up into a suplex.

The standing shooting star press gets two and it’s off to the airplane spin. That’s reversed into the Gargano Escape and it’s Ciampa coming in with the flip over armbar to Seven at the same time. Both are reversed into stereo airplane spins, setting up a belly to back suplex/clothesline combination for two on Gargano. Bate is knocked down in the middle so Seven has to save him from Meet In The Middle.

DIY tries it anyway but walk into Bop and Bang, setting up the Birminghammer for two on Ciampa. A double Birminghammer hits Ciampa so Bate goes up for Spiral Tap, with Ciampa pulling Seven into the path to steal his own near fall in a great spot. They slug it out with DIY getting the better of it and superkicking Bate out of the air. That leaves Seven to take Meet In The Middle for the pin at 22:54.

Rating: A-. The beginning felt like it was going to be a comedy match but then things got serious and they beat the fire out of each other for the next fifteen or so minutes. Moustache Mountain can hang with anyone, including DIY, but it only makes sense to have DIY go over here when they’re likely going after the Tag Team Titles over Wrestlemania weekend. Either way, incredible stuff here with no clear winner almost the entire way through.

Post match, respect is shown.

Mercedes Martinez and Dakota Kai are here….and Tegan Nox jumps Kai from behind. They fight to ringside until security breaks them up, much to the fans’ annoyance.

We recap Toni Storm. They’re old rivals with Storm having beaten her twice and now wanting a shot at the new champ. Storm leads the series 2-1 so Ripley wants to even things up and keep her title.

#1 contender Bianca Belair is here.

NXT Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Toni Storm

Ripley is defending. They fight over a lockup to start and the fans are split. That goes nowhere so Storm forearms away, only to get blasted with a chop. A staredown sets up some clotheslines from Ripley but she walks into a superkick in the corner. Storm suplexes her into the corner and Ripley needs a breather on the floor. With her neck seemingly ok, Storm grabs a suplex for two and it’s off to an STF variation. That’s broken up so Storm hits a DDT for two more.

The chinlock doesn’t last long but some shots to the back have Rhea in more trouble. They slug it out with Ripley getting the better of it and kicking her into the corner. The standing Cloverleaf goes on but Ripley can’t get it on in full because of her neck. Riptide is countered into a crossbody to give Storm two. Storm’s German suplex drops Ripley on her head for two more but they hit heads for a double knockdown. It’s Storm up first but she misses a frog splash, setting up Riptide for the pin to retain Rhea’s title at 10:09.

Rating: C. Well that was….short. I’m not sure if Ripley was actually banged up in there or not because that’s a pretty fast ending to what could have been a much longer match. What we got was nice enough and Ripley winning is the best way to go, but that was very short for what could have been a longer match. The fans weren’t exactly into it though and that disappoints me a good bit.

During the previous match, Johnny Gargano was doing an interview when Finn Balor jumped him. Tommaso Ciampa and Moustache Mountain made the save.

We recap Imperium vs. Undisputed Era. The Era jumped them at the end of Takeover: Blackpool II and then Imperium cost them their Dusty Classic match. They’re the big faction in both companies and it’s time for a showdown.

Undisputed Era vs. Imperium

Aichner throws O’Reilly around a bit to start so O’Reilly goes for the arm. That’s broken up so it’s a kneebar instead, with Aichner making the rope in a hurry. Back up and O’Reilly hammers away in the corner, only to walk into a powerslam. Barthel comes in for two off a pop up uppercut, only to have O’Reilly knee him in the chest. It’s off to Strong, who gets chopped into the corner for a bit. That’s broken up so Fish comes in for half of a double gordbuster on Wolfe. Fish and O’Reilly hit stereo kicks…and Wolfe is down.

The medics come in and take him to the floor so it’s Walter vs. Cole instead. Walter throws him down so Cole decides to slap him for some reason. The threat of the big chop sends Cole bailing into the corner but Walter gets knocked into the Era’s corner. Walter is right back up with a leapfrog over Strong into a big boot, meaning Aichner can come in to stand at attention. Cole saves Strong from a powerbomb and takes over on Barthel with some elbows to the head.

It’s O’Reilly unleashing the strikes in the corner and Strong blasts Barthel so hard in the jaw that it brings Walter in for a few seconds. There’s the slingshot hilo from Fish and Cole slaps on the chinlock. O’Reilly kicks Walter on the apron and Walter just glares at him. The distraction lets Barthel get in a Russian legsweep though and it’s Walter coming in, meaning O’Reilly hits the panic button. The strikes are countered into a German suplex but O’Reilly reverses the powerbomb into a guillotine.

Just to show off, Walter suplexes Strong and O’Reilly at the same time. Barthel elbows O’Reilly in the face for two and it’s Aichner putting on a chinlock. It’s back to Walter for a running seated senton and the LOUD chop takes the spirit out of O’Reilly’s eyes for two. The running double dropkick in the corner rocks O’Reilly again but he dives around Walter for the tag off to Strong. He chops it out with Walter and actually knocks him into the ropes for the running elbows.

That’s broken up with a single clothesline so Aichner comes in. A heck of a tiger bomb sets up the Strong Hold but Aichner is out in a hurry. White Noise gives Barthel two but Fish gets away and brings in Cole to pick up the pace. The Panama Sunrise is blocked so it’s a fireman’s carry neckbreaker for two on Barthel instead. Walter comes back in so everyone but Cole pounds him down at the same time.

The announcers’ table is loaded up but Walter fights them off and loads up another table. O’Reilly and Strong have to break up a powerbomb and it’s the Angle Slam to put Walter through the table in a huge crash. Back in and it’s an exchange of strikes to the face, including Cole superkicking Aichner out of the air. Cole hits the brainbuster onto the knee to Barthel for two and the running knee to the face gets the same. Aichner comes back in and gets kicked down in a hurry.

O’Reilly gets Barthel in a kneebar but a crawl makes the rope. The hold is still on so Aichner moonsaults in to break it up. Aichner gets beaten down on the floor but Walter is back on the apron. An enziguri allows the hot tag to Walter to wreck everything in sight. Cole hits a superkick but the Last Shot is broken up with the huge chop.

The powerbomb hits Strong and the frog splash crushes him but Cole breaks it up with the Last Shot. Aichner and Barthel break that up at two and everyone is down again. Everyone gets up for the staredown and the fight is on. Walter gets taken down by High/Low and Strong flip dives over the top onto Cole, O’Reilly and Barthel. Aichner follows that with a dive of his own but Fish’s moonsault misses Walter. The powerbomb finishes Fish at 29:53.

Rating: A. Even with one of the eight people out of the match, these guys put on a clinic with great drama throughout with the Era using a strategy of divide and conquer. The problem with that is they had no answer for Walter, who came back up and wrecked the place, which is how you should have presented him here. It’s going to take a monster to take the title from Walter and I’m not sure who that is right now. This was a showcase for everyone involved though and the match was great up and down. Hopefully Wolfe is ok though because that’s the most important thing.

A highlight package wraps us up.

Overall Rating: A. The women’s match is the only thing on here that isn’t great and even that was completely watchable. This is one that actually lived up to the hype and that is hard to do given how good the show was looking on paper. It even added something to the future because NXT is smart enough to do something like that. This show flew by at about three hours total, making it an easy sit with some amazing matches. Check this one out for sure.

Results

Finn Balor b. Ilja Dragunov – 1916

Jordan Devlin b. Angel Garza, Isaiah Scott and Travis Banks – Devlin Side to Scott

DIY b. Moustache Mountain – Meet In The Middle to Seven

Rhea Ripley b. Toni Storm – Riptide

Imperium b. Undisputed Era – Powerbomb to Fish

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Leave it to NXT to make it work. A few months back, it was announced that we would not be having a Takeover during Royal Rumble weekend. Instead we were getting a Worlds Collide special, which didn’t exactly have people excited. The previous editions hadn’t been anything interesting, but this one was different. This time we’re getting NXT vs. NXT UK, which hasn’t been done before. As luck would have it, NXT UK is on a roll at this point and it should be a blast as a result. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Kay Lee Ray vs. Mia Yim

This is non-title and that’s a good thing as I don’t have to worry about Yim winning a title. I’m not sure what it is about her but something has fallen way down with her and it’s almost impossible to make myself care about what she does. Ray hasn’t blown me away as champion yet either, but she can do more interesting things than Yim so far.

As for the match, I’ll go with Ray as well, since I just can’t imagine them having a champion lose in a non-title match without some surprise plan to make a surprise turn into Yim in NXT UK. The match should be a fine way to warm up the crowd (note to WWE: ONE Kickoff Show match can do that very well) but it isn’t something that I’m exactly excited to see in the first place.

DIY vs. Moustache Mountain

And we have a dream match that you never knew you needed to see. DIY is one of the best tag teams that NXT has ever seen and Moustache Mountain is the biggest tag team that NXT UK has ever seen. We could be in for a match of the year candidate here and that’s only if they’re having an off night. I know DIY might not be at their peaks but sweet goodness we could be in for an awesome one here.

I’ll take DIY, who have said that this is just a one off reunion, but I think you know where they’re heading at Takeover, likely over Wrestlemania weekend. Moustache Mountain is going to be tearing the house down too though and I’m drooling over the idea of the false finishes that Gargano and Bate could have. Throw in Ciampa and my goodness this could be something incredible. But yeah DIY wins here.

Finn Balor vs. Ilja Dragunov

The more I think about this one, the more interested I am in seeing these guys beat the fire out of each other. Balor is a star and Dragunov has more raw intensity than anyone I’ve seen in a long time (never look into his eyes). This one doesn’t need to be that long as they’re going to beat the fire out of each other, though I’m not entirely sure which way they’re going to go.

As much as I want to say Dragunov wins in an upset here, I can’t go against Balor, not when he’s primed for a match against Gargano at Takeover. Dragunov is the kind of guy who can come back from a loss in the blink of an eye but he’s not ready to beat someone the caliber of Balor. The upset wouldn’t shock me here, but I just can’t go with Dragunov in this spot.

Cruiserweight Title: Angel Garza(c) vs. Jordan Devlin vs. Isaiah Scott vs. Travis Banks

This is one of those matches where you could see several possible outcomes. Garza is such a ball of charisma who can do all kinds of things in the ring (though I’m still not wild on his finisher) but the other three are all serious threats. That’s how you can tell there’s a good match to be had here: you really could see any of the four walking out as champion, which isn’t something that happens very often.

I’ll go with Garza to retain here, though much like so many other matches on this show, I could see it going multiple ways. Someone taking the title over to the UK wouldn’t be a bad idea as it isn’t doing anything in NXT at the moment, but odds are it stays down in Florida, where there are several challengers ready to come after it. Then again that’s the same in the UK so I’ll move on before I change my mind again.

NXT Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Toni Storm

These two are turning into a thing and that’s great for everyone involved. The two of them work well together and while Ripley has turned into the big star on the bigger stage, Storm has had her number more often than not, which gives the match a good story. We already know they can make the action work, so going with the story that makes sense is what matters in the end.

While I expect Storm to come over to NXT full time (assuming she wants to), this is Ripley’s to win. There’s no need to give Storm another win over her and Ripley has become a major star in a hurry down in NXT. Given that she already has a title defense set up for next month in Portland, it would be very out of the NXT nature to have her lose here. Ripley wins to even the feud.

Imperium vs. Undisputed Era

Back on the August 21, 2019 episode of NXT, the Undisputed Era stood on the stage where Adam Cole mentioned NXT UK. There was nothing I wanted to see more than Imperium come out, just for the sake of seeing Cole’s head explode at the thought of what he had gotten himself into. Well, since NXT is awesome, that’s what we’re getting now and it’s going to be great.

I’m going with Imperium getting the win here, as they get to make up for part of losing the overall competition to NXT. Imperium is one of the coolest things going in WWE today and giving them the big win like this should be a great step up for them. You can even have Roderick Strong take the fall without a champion getting pinned. What more could you ask for than that in a situation like this? These guys are going to tear the house down and it’s going to be outstanding in a modern dream match that I’ve known I’ve wanted to see for a long time now.

Overall Thoughts

When did this turn into such a great looking card? This thing is absolutely stacked and blows away a lot of recent WWE shows. I’m actually looking forward to this one and have every confidence that they’re going to blow us away. You have multiple matches on here that could show up on a lot of lists near the end of the year and that doesn’t happen every day. This is going to rock and I’m really excited for it.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: January 8, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo

It’s back to Full Sail for the first time this year after things went in a bit of a different direction last week. This time around it’s time to crown a new #1 contender to the North American Title. In addition to that, it’s time to start the annual Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, which can be a bit hit and miss. Let’s get to it.

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

We get a quick preview, talking about Rhea Ripley’s first appearance as Women’s Champion and looking at the Dusty Classic.

Here’s Rhea Ripley to soak in the YOU DESERVE IT chants. She talks about memories, including being in this ring to become the new Women’s Champion. Cue Toni Storm to cut her off though and she has a question: “Remember that time when I beat you?” Toni promises to win the NXT UK Women’s Title at Sunday’s Takeover and she likes the idea of having two titles. The challenge is thrown out for When Worlds Collide and Rhea wastes no time in accepting.

Cue NXT UK Women’s Champion Kay Lee Ray to say Toni isn’t winning on Sunday but here’s Io Shirai to cut them all off. She points at the Women’s Title and says it’s hers but here’s Bianca Belair because it’s been too long since she choked in a title match. Belair says she has 2020 vision and knows she’s better than everyone. Now it’s Candice LeRae and the fight is on. William Regal sends in word to make a six woman tag. That’s a very main roster style booking and I really hope that’s not going to be the norm. At least it didn’t take long though.

Candice LeRae/Toni Storm/Rhea Ripley vs. Kay Lee Ray/Bianca Belair/Io Shirai

The bell rings and Storm hits a dive onto all three villains as we take an early break. We come back with LeRae hitting some running elbows in the corner, only to dive into a superkick for two. Shirai hits a flapjack and a running dropkick to the side of Candice’s head to set up a chinlock.

A seated abdominal stretch keeps LeRae in trouble and it’s off to another chinlock. Candice finally gets up and low bridges Belair to the floor but Belair dives around the side and cuts off the tag in a smart move. Storm breaks up a cover and everything breaks down and everyone is on the floor/mat as we take another break. Back again with Candice hitting her reverse hurricanrana on Ray, only to have Belair throw her back into the corner.

A missed charge knocks Shirai off the apron though, meaning it’s Storm coming in off the hot tag to clean house. Shirai sends her into the corner though and grabs a butterfly backbreaker to drop Storm. The moonsault is loaded up but Belair tags herself in, only to have Shirai springboard in with a missile dropkick to break up the KOD. Shirai walks out and Ripley comes in for a big boot to Belair. Riptide is good for the pin on Belair at 16:16.

Rating: B-. Good match here as they set up a bunch of people to come after Ripley while also giving Storm vs. Ray a needed boost. I’m curious to see where Ripley goes as you have to build up her challengers in the right way. She’s big and dominant, which makes it a little difficult to set up a challenger. It can be done, but it has to be done the right way. Storm is a good choice for the first one though, even if it’s at a special instead of Takeover.

Post match Toni and Rhea stare each other down but Candice picks up the title and looks at it as well. Everything winds up being ok though as Candice hands it over to Rhea and everyone poses.

Help victims of the Australian wildfires. Nothing wrong with that.

Tommaso Ciampa wants the NXT Title back because he was the best NXT Champion of all time. It was the best 238 days of his life but then it was stopped. He’s coming for Adam Cole, which is a match they have to do sooner or later.

Keith Lee is ready to become #1 contender tonight with a big Pounce.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Forgotten Sons vs. Imperium

Cutler/Blake vs. Aichner/Barthel. During their entrance, Imperium says this is the first step to dominating NXT. The Sons start fast and take Aichner, with a face mask on, down for an early two. Aichner takes Blake into the corner though and it’s Barthel hanging him upside down over the middle rope for a double running dropkick. A DDT gets Blake out of trouble and it’s off to Cutler and Aichner for the slugout. Cutler’s butterfly backbreaker gets two and it’s a very fast Boston crab as Cutler is showing some fire early on.

That’s broken up and Cutler is sent outside with Blake making a blind tag. Blake raises his knees to block a moonsault but his moonsault gets the same fate to put them both down. It’s Blake going to the middle rope and getting tossed into a delayed vertical suplex from Aichner (awesome) for two. Cutler dives back in and it’s a knockdown to put everyone down at once. Blake dropkicks Barthel into the corner and then dropkicks Aichner out of the air. The reverse DDT/middle rope stomp is broken up though and it’s the European Bomb for the pin on Blake at 5:11.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a match as they only went five minutes but never stopped the entire time. The Sons got to showcase themselves rather well here, even though it isn’t likely going to go anywhere for them. They just went out there and had an exciting match and that’s a great use of five minutes.

Matt Riddle talks about how he and Pete Dunne don’t know each other very well, which makes them perfect for the Dusty Classic. They posed at each other and the team was born.

Gallus is ready to win the Dusty Classic.

Austin Theory vs. Joaquin Wilde

Wilde slugs away to start and anklescissors him out of the corner, only to get dropped throat first across the top rope. A slingshot stomp and a fisherman’s suplex give Theory one and it’s off to a cobra clutch. Wilde fights up and hits a hurricanrana to put Theory on the floor, only to have Theory roll back in with a rolling dropkick. A TKO finishes Wilde at 2:59. Theory looked good again and Wilde was working hard as usual.

Damian Priest is ready to make his name live forever.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Undisputed Era vs. Gallus

Non-title and it’s Kyle O’Reilly/Bobby Fish vs. Wolfgang/Mark Coffey. The rest of the Era is at ringside as well. Wolfgang runs O’Reilly over to start so it’s off to Coffey for a slugout. Fish comes in as well and gets powered into the corner, setting up a big toss right back out of it for a crash. It’s already back to Wolfgang and it’s something like a double monkey flip into the corner to keep Fish in trouble.

With Fish having been destroyed thoroughly so far, it’s O’Reilly coming in so he can get whipped around as well. Wolfgang’s running backsplash gets two and a clothesline puts the Era on the floor. All four members get on the apron for a staredown and we take a break. Back with the Era double kicking Wolfgang down for two. Fish’s chinlock doesn’t work either as Wolfgang flips him forward for the escape. Fish pulls Coffey off the apron to break up a tag so, of course, the tag goes through about five seconds later.

Coffey gets to come in and start cleaning house with backdrops but more kicks take him down for two. Running knees in the corner have Mark in more trouble until he ducks a running big boot, causing O’Reilly to kick Fish by mistake. Everything breaks down again and some shots to the face put the Era on the floor. Wolfgang throws Mark onto the Era but Cole gets in a cheap shot onto Wolfgang. That’s enough to set up High/Low to finish Wolfgang at 12:25.

Rating: B-. Another entertaining match here with the Era using the numbers game to win as there was no Joe Coffey to even things up a bit. I’m curious to see how the Era is going to do in the tournament as you don’t want your champions losing but there are ways around it, which should be interesting to see. Good match though and that’s always nice to see in the tournament or not.

We look back at Finn Balor turning on Johnny Gargano and laying him out. Gargano then returned and cost Balor the NXT Title, plus gave him a beating with a chair.

Video on Flash Morgan Webster/Mark Andrews.

Here’s Johnny Gargano for a chat. He isn’t wasting time this week and talks about everything Finn Balor did to build this place. Then Balor put him out for three months, which made Johnny Takeover miss a Takeover. Yeah Balor did a lot of things around here, but then he bailed as soon as he got that phone call. Gargano got his in August but he turned it down because he wanted to stay here.

When Balor left, Gargano took up the NXT mantle, threw out Balor’s game plan, and took NXT to new heights without him. That must eat Balor up, but here’s Balor to interrupt. Balor says maybe we should call him Johnny Promo because that’s all Johnny can be cleared to do. That being said, if Johnny wants his Takeover moment, go talk to Regal and Balor will see him in Portland. If Johnny can make it that far. Another match where you had to go there and going with the logic is the right call.

Cameron Grimes is ready to cave people in.

Video on the Grizzled Young Veterans.

We’ve covered most of the Dusty Classic teams but there is one left. Kushida needs a partner and he’s got…..ALEX SHELLEY as the Time Splitters are reunited next week.

Mia Yim vs. Kayden Carter

Yim blocks an early armdrag attempt and runs Carter over to start. A springboard dropkick works better for Carter but she can’t hit a running hurricanrana. Instead Yim counters it into a sitout powerbomb for two and a basement dropkick gets the same. We hit the bow and arrow hold to make it worse for Carter but she’s back up with some right hands against the ropes. A running boot to the face gets two and a low superkick gives Carter the same. Carter goes up but dives into Protect Yo Neck to give Yim the pin at 3:46.

Rating: C-. Just a match here as Yim gets some momentum back. She’s fine in a place like this but going up any higher than this doesn’t quite work for her. Maybe it’s her promos and backstory that don’t work for me but Yim has a pretty firm ceiling. I still like Carter though and she could be something if she is given a push.

Post match Yim helps her up but Chelsea Green debuts and jumps Mia. Robert Stone (Robbie E.) appears on the ramp and says 2020 will be the year of the Robert Stone Brand, starting with Green as his first signing. Green does her Tessa Blanchard pose.

Dominik Dijakovic is used to getting past obstacles and this match is nothing but a formality.

Video on Ciampa vs. Cole.

Keith Lee vs. Damian Priest vs. Dominik Dijakovic vs. Cameron Grimes

One fall to a finish and the winner gets a North American Title shot in two weeks. Lee invites us to bask in his glory as everyone stares at each other to start. Grimes goes after Lee and gets tossed into the corner. Dijakovic does the same to Priest and it’s time for Lee and Dijakovic to start beating people up. We get the huge staredown with Lee leapfrogging him so Dijakovic grabs the rope before things go too fast.

Lee misses a spinwheel kick and it’s another staredown until Grimes and Priest jump them both. Priest BLASTS Grimes with a right hand but Dijakovic tries his toss suplex on Priest…..so Lee catches him. He’s not done though as Lee SWINGS PRIEST AROUND LIKE A WEAPON, including a powerbomb onto Dijakovic’s back for two. Every time I think these two can’t do more things to impress me, they surprise me again.

Everyone winds up on the floor but Priest goes back inside, leaving Lee to get double teamed. He fights that off and tells Priest to dive on him, but Priest is too smart this time. Lee gets distracted though and now Priest dives onto all three of them to send us to a break. Back with Priest heading back inside for the showdown with Lee….who deadlift superplexes him off the apron.

Dijakovic moonsaults onto Lee’s back but Grimes grabs a bridging German suplex for two. Grimes goes up so Priest hurricanranas him into Lee’s arms, so Lee hands him off to Dijakovic for Feast Your Eyes. The Pounce puts Dijakovic on the floor but Priest grabs the Reckoning, only to have Dijakovic break it up with a big boot through the ropes. Back in and Priest kicks it out with Dijakovic until a double big boot puts them both down.

They both grab the other by the throat…and Lee rises up to chokeslam them both. Grimes hits his flipping belly to belly suplex and moonsaults onto Priest on the floor. Back in again and Grimes gets knocked out of the air, setting up the Spirit Bomb to give Lee the pin and the title at 14:02.

Rating: B. This was a well put together match and the right choice. Dijakovic and Priest are good and Grimes has a different style but Lee has been the star for a long time now. He needs to actually win something though and the North American Title should work just fine. As long as they actually pull the trigger for once though, and there is good reason to believe they will.

Lee celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was one of those shows where they built up some obvious stuff and didn’t have anything bad, making it a rather awesome two hours. I’m not as big of a tournament fan as some are but the action was good enough to make it work. Couple that with Lee’s coronation (or as close as he’s going to get to one at the moment) being set up and some major matches being scheduled and we should be in for a nice future to go with a good present here.

Results

Rhea Ripley/Toni Storm/Candice LeRae b. Kay Lee Ray/Bianca Belair/Io Shirai – Riptide to Belair

Imperium b. Forgotten Sons – European Bomb to Blake

Austin Theory b. Joaquin Wilde – TKO

Undisputed Era b. Gallus – High/Low to Wolfgang

Mia Yim b. Kayden Carter – Protect Yo Neck

Keith Lee b. Cameron Grimes, Dominik Dijakovic and Damian Priest – Spirit Bomb to Grimes

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: December 18, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness

It’s a double title night here with both the NXT Title and Women’s Title on the line. First up Adam Cole will defend against Finn Balor and odds are the main event will see Rhea Ripley challenging Shayna Baszler. NXT knows how to do these big shows so it should be interesting to see how things go. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at last week’s show.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Adam Cole

Cole is defending. They go to the mat to start with Balor getting the better of things off a headlock. Back up and Cole takes over on the arm, only to get caught with a basement dropkick for one. This time it’s Balor working on the arm instead before stomping away. Cole gets knocked outside but he’s fine enough to superkick the leg before Balor can kick him from the apron.

Back in and we hit the chinlock to keep Balor in trouble as the announcers talk about Cole’s mind games. Another kick to the leg takes Balor down again and a neckbreaker gets two. Balor bridges out of a Figure Four necklock and the Eye of the Hurricane gets two on the champ. Cole is right back with a Backstabber, only to have Balor grab a Sling Blade. The superkick cuts off a running Balor for two but Cole is slow to get up. He walks into a Pele kick but Balor falls down as well, allowing Cole to get his own two.

The Panama Sunrise and 1916 are both countered so Cole grabs the brainbuster onto the knee for two more. We get the dueling UNDISPUTED/LET’S GO FINN chants as Balor fights up, only to get knocked off the top. The Panama Sunrise to the floor is countered with a backdrop though and Balor hits the John Woo dropkick against the barricade.

Back in and the Coup de Grace misses, allowing Cole to hit the Last Shot….for two, giving us an outstanding ARE YOU SERIOUS face. Balor clotheslines him down though and now the Coup de Grace connects. 1916 is loaded up….but here’s Johnny Gargano for the first time in nearly two months. The distraction lets Cole hit a low blow and the Last Shot retains the title at 15:17.

Rating: A-. This was another great match for Cole and another instance of him beating a big name to further solidify himself as one of the best in the world today. Gargano vs. Balor is going to be a huge deal and I’m curious to see where they go with Cole now. It would seem that it’s time for either Tommaso Ciampa or Keith Lee, but dang they could go a lot of different ways.

Post match Cole leaves and Gargano grabs a chair. Balor tries to get out but Gargano is right there with some chair shots to the back to send him outside. More shots send Balor bailing through the crowd to escape.

Video on Pete Dunne vs. Damien Priest vs. Killian Dain from Takeover: WarGames.

Killian Dain vs. Damien Priest

Priest has taped up ribs coming in. Dain shoves him into the corner to start so Priest comes out slugging. That just earns Priest the running crossbody and Dain grabs a waistlock. Priest gets sent into the corner so Dain hits a baseball slide to the ribs to put him on the floor. Back in and we hit the second waistlock with Dain quickly switching into a reverse chinlock with a knee in the spine.

Dain adds a backsplash and the tape is pulled off to make the ribs even more vulnerable. There’s a fisherman’s suplex for two more and a running dropkick puts Priest on the floor as we take a break. Back with Priest managing to hit a Flatliner for a breather. A jumping back elbow and some rapid strikes make it even worse for Dain, with a clothesline putting him down.

Priest somehow manages a suplex and the fans bring him back to his feet. Dain tries to bail so Priest is right there with a step up flip dive. Back in and South of Heaven gives Priest two in a great near fall. Dain manages a kick to the ribs and a powerbomb though, plus a big elbow for two. The Ulster Plantation is countered so Priest hits the spinning kick to the head but a powerbomb is too much for the ribs. Dain’s Vader Bomb hits raised knees though and the Reckoning finishes Dain at 14:18.

Rating: B-. This was all about two big, strong men hitting each other very hard with Priest’s ribs being the focal point of the match. Dain tried once too often though and Priest used the opening to get the win. Priest is someone who could go a long way around here (Say after the NXT Title?) and I’m for it, provided I can stop calling him Punishment Martinez.

Vote for the Year End Awards!

The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is back, with things getting started on January 1.

Kushida vs. Cameron Grimes

Kushida still has Grimes’ hat. They go to the mat for some grappling and Kushida gets the better of it to a rather nice reaction. Kushida pulls him down into a cross armbreaker before twisting both arms around at the same time. Grimes bails to the floor so Kushida hits him with a baseball slide and throws him back inside.

The Octopus Hold has Grimes in more trouble until he flips out, only to get caught in the same thing again. Back from a break with Kushida in trouble after Grimes hit his running belly to belly. There’s a big throw and Kushida is in even more trouble. Grimes stays on the back with a backbreaker and even bends Kushida over the knee for a bonus.

The back is fine enough for a handspring elbow to drop Grimes and it’s a cartwheel into the basement dropkick. Kushida goes after the arm again with a dropkick but the attempted Hoverboard Lock is countered into a sitout Rock Bottom for two. Kushida snaps off a German suplex so Grimes one ups him with a bridging version for two more. Grimes heads to the apron and that means a handspring kick to the face to put him on the floor.

The big flip dive to the floor nearly misses Grimes but they’re both down. Back in and Kushida goes for the Hoverboard Lock in the corner but gets shoved down. That just means another handspring kick and a super victory roll gives Kushida his own two. Grimes hits the enziguri but misses the Cave In. Kushida misses a kick of his own though and the Cave In connects to give Grimes the pin at 13:58.

Rating: B. The matches on this shove have been awesome at this point and this was another great one. Grimes just got a heck of a win as Kushida is a much more established name at this (or likely any) point. It’s clear that they’re giving Grimes something and that is an a big treat as he has been a HUGE surprise for me and someone I’m liking more every time I see him.

Grimes gets his hat back.

Video on Io Shirai.

Io Shirai vs. Santana Garrett

Shirai backflips to start and runs her over, only to get wristdragged out of the corner. That doesn’t sit well with Shirai so Garrett superkicks her instead. A flapjack works a bit better for Shirai but she misses some running knees in the corner. Garrett’s Russian legsweep gets two and a forearm rocks her again. There’s the handspring elbow in the corner and a floatover suplex gets two more on Shirai. The Last Chancery has Shirai in more trouble but she sends Garrett throat first into the top rope. Running knees in the corner set up the moonsault to finish Garrett at 4:01.

Rating: C. This was a step above a squash for Shirai as Garrett is someone who can have a good match with just about anyone but she hasn’t had the strongest career in NXT so far. She seems like someone who is biding her time though as she is too talented to be left on the sidelines for long. It’s Shirai’s town though and she should be moving higher up the card soon.

When Worlds Collide is coming.

Pete Dunne vs. Travis Banks

Dunne starts on the arm to start, as is his custom. Some rollups give Dunne two and it’s a standoff. Dunne tries to drop down but Banks is right there with a dropkick to the side of the head. They strike it out next to the rope and Dunne easily gets the better of things to put Banks down. A double stomp to the hands sets up the X Plex onto the apron and we take a break.

Back with Banks hitting a pair of running dropkicks in the corner to set up the Cannonball. Dunne bails to the floor and it’s the suicide dive to send him into the barricade. A missile dropkick sends Dunne back into the corner and there’s a middle rope double stomp for two. Dunne flips over him out of the corner and just sidesteps Slice of Heaven for a crash. Another X Plex gets two but Banks is right back with an enziguri.

Banks goes up top for a super sunset flip but Dunne lands on his feet. The Bitter End is countered so Banks tries the Slice of Heaven, which is countered into a leg tied stomp. Banks counters the Bitter End again and hits the Kiwi Crusher for two more. Dunne powerbombs him out of the corner and busts out a super X Plex. Now the Bitter End is good for the pin on Banks at 10:54.

Rating: B. This was the hard hitting, back and forth style that you expect from the NXT UK wrestlers. They beat each other up here and Dunne gets a win to get himself back on track. Banks is someone who looks good every time he’s out there and if he wants it, I’m sure he could be a big star in the regular NXT as well.

Post match Dunne shows some respect.

Dakota Kai isn’t worried about Mia Yim and wants the Women’s Title.

Next week: Lio Rush/Keith Lee vs. Damian Priest/Tony Nese and Roderick Strong issues an open challenge.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler

Ripley is challenging and we get the Big Match Intros again. They go with the grappling to start and Baszler takes her to the mat by the arm. The stomp to the arm is blocked though and Ripley gets back up. The threat of Ripley’s big right hands sends Baszler running into the corner and there’s a hard whip into the corner to send Baszler to the floor. Back from a break with Ripley hitting some clotheslines and knees to the head to put Baszler down.

A running dropkick sends Baszler into the corner again, meaning it’s the top rope superplex to make Baszler bounce off the mat. Rhea sends her outside so here are the Horsewomen, only to have them taken down by a Cannonball off the apron. Baszler uses the distraction to stomp the arm into the steps and it’s time to twist the arm around back inside. The arm gets twisted around again and we take another break.

Back again with Baszler stomping on the arm again, though this time with the Horsewomen having been ejected for working on Ripley’s arm again. She even had to get checked by the doctor during the break but was ruled able to continue. Baszler starts kicking at the ribs but Ripley hits the running dropkick to send her into the referee in the corner. Riptide connects for no count so Baszler rolls outside again.

This time the Cannonball off the apron misses but Rhea is able to slip out of a Kirifuda Clutch. Baszler throws in a chair and a DDT onto said chair gets two more. The fans believe all over again and Rhea flips out of another Kirifuda Clutch. The standing Cloverleaf is broken up and now the Clutch goes on for a VERY long time with Ripley not being able to get out.

We go old school with the referee checking the arm but she grabs the referee’s shirt to say she’s not done. She flips out again and stomps Baszler in the head, setting up the standing Cloverleaf (now dubbed the Prism Trap). Baszler kicks that away too and hits a running knee in the corner. They go up top but Baszler talks too much trash, allowing Ripley to get in a headbutt. The super Riptide gives Rhea the pin and the title at 20:50. Ripley nearly loses it on the celebration for a great moment.

Rating: A-. Above all else, this felt like a big changing of the guard. Baszler has been champion for the better part of a year and a half (save for Kairi Sane’s short reign) and she had beaten so many people that it was going to take a monumental effort to finally stop her. That’s what Ripley had and you could feel the energy in the whole thing. I had a great time watching this and they gave some awesome false finishes where I wasn’t sure they were going to pull the trigger. This should have been Ripley’s win and it feels like she had to earn every bit of it. Awesome main event and a better moment.

After all the replays, we come back to the locker room filling the ring (and I mean completely filling the ring) to celebrate with Ripley to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. Dang that was an awesome show with two great bookends and some very good stuff in the middle. The worst part of the show was Shirai vs. Garrett and even that was perfectly watchable. This show felt just shy of Takeover levels and they even have stuff to look forward to later. It’s one of the better weeks of TV they’ve ever done and it nailed just about everything. Great show and worth checking out in full.

Results

Adam Cole b. Finn Balor – Last Shot

Damien Priest b. Killian Dain – Reckoning

Cameron Grimes b. Kushida – Cave In

Io Shirai b. Santana Garrett – Moonsault

Pete Dunne b. Travis Banks – Bitter End

Rhea Ripley b. Shayna Baszler – Super Riptide

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: December 4, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

Things got more interesting last week with Finn Balor going after Adam Cole, though it isn’t clear if they’re going to be alone, as Tommaso Ciampa was in the mix too. They have something interesting with the NXT Title picture and that is going to make for some fun shows as we get ready for Portland. Granted that’s a long way off though and a lot could change by then. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Mauro Ranallo previews the show.

Killian Dain is in the ring to call out an opponent to replace the injured Damian Priest.

Killian Dain vs. Pete Dunne

They go straight to the fight with Dunne kicking him down and working on the arm. The fingers are bent back but a clothesline doesn’t put Dunne on the floor. Instead Dain hits a crossbody and crushes Dunne for two. The reverse chinlock goes on, followed by a running elbow to give Dain two more.

The second chinlock goes on, this time with Dain hammering away at the chest at the same time. Dunne fights up and hits a German suplex, only to get caught going up top. Dain pulls him to the apron, only to get stomped on the hand. A moonsault jams Dunne’s knee though and Dain hits a dive, with the camera missing most of it.

Back from a break with Dunne hitting a tornado DDT and stomping on the fingers again. A kick to the head gives Dunne two and now the moonsault to the floor connects. Dain drops him onto the apron though and a Cannonball against the steps makes it even worse. Back in and Dunne tries to catch him on top, only to get dropped backwards for the big crash to give Dain the pin at 14:46 (the same thing Dain did to Dunne at Takeover to accidentally give Dunne the pin on Priest).

Rating: B-. Nice match here with a good callback to the previous match at Takeover. Dunne losing is still something I’m not used to after watching him destroy people for so long but it’s what happens when you move up in competition. He jumped into NXT when the talent pool was crazy deep and it’s going to take some time for him to adjust himself.

Dakota Kai thinks Tegan Nox isn’t worth her time and now Rhea Ripley wants to play hero. Tonight, Dakota is taking her out, just like she did to Mia Yim.

Here’s the Undisputed Era, minus Bobby Fish, for a chat. They’ve been on a roll lately and the greatness is just beginning. However, they don’t like the way they were treated last week, as NXT allowed Bobby Fish to get hurt and then Keith Lee knocked Adam Cole around like a rag doll. Cole is NOT a rag doll and wants Lee out here right now for an explanation. Cole dubs him Mr. Moment Maker so the fans sing about basking in his glory.

Strong brings up Roman Reigns beating Lee at Survivor Series, because he’s a loser you see. Lee gets to the point and looks at all the gold. Cole: “My eyes are up here.” Lee: “I’m just deciding which of these championships I should take first.” The fight is on with Lee cleaning house. Tommaso Ciampa runs down to send Cole back in, but Strong saves him from the Spirit Bomb.

Xia Li wants revenge on Shayna Baszler.

Kushida is back from his broken wrist.

Xia Li vs. Shayna Baszler

Non-title. Li wins an early strike off and Baszler isn’t sure what to do. They go to the mat with Baszler not being able to hang in the striking. Instead she flips Li over, only to get kicked in the head. Baszler takes her down by the arm though and hits the big stomp to put Li in trouble. More strikes give Li a breather but she can only do so much with one arm. Li heads up top and strikes her way out of a superplex attempt. A powerbomb out of the corner gets two but Baszler pulls her into the Kirifuda Clutch for the tap at 4:06.

Rating: C+. Li was giving it everything she had here and got in some big shots that made her look good. It wasn’t like the ending was ever in doubt here as Baszler just won the main event of Survivor Series and isn’t going to lose something like this. Li got to show off a lot and I could see her being something in a few months.

Kassius Ohno is back from the UK and wants to be ready for Worlds Collide, when NXT meets NXT UK. That could be good if they treat it like something special, and it seems that they might.

Forgotten Sons vs. Adrian Alanis/Leon Ruff

Ruff and Alanis are from Evolve. Blake wastes no time in clotheslining Ruff in the back of the head and there’s the buckle bomb to make it worse. Alanis comes in and gets taken down by a running knee to the head. A release German suplex sets up the reverse DDT/middle rope stomp finishes Alanis at 1:21.

Post match Jaxson Ryker chokeslams Ruff onto the apron for a heck of a nasty crash.

Dakota Kai vs. Rhea Ripley

Kai’s new Titantron is the attack on Tegan Nox for an outstanding addition. Hold on though as Ripley has a mic and says not so fast. It was a great setup at Takeover, and now we have another one. Cue Mia Yim to run Kai over and the fight is on. Yim destroys Kai, sending her into the barricade over and over again. They eventually go into the crowd with Kai crawling away. No match of course.

With Ripley still at ringside, cue the Horsewomen for the other brawl. Ripley fights them off as well as she can but the numbers game eventually gets the better of her, allowing Baszler to choke her out. Ripley is out so Baszler talks trash about how Ripley can’t win when anything is on the line. Now Ripley wants a title shot, and so does Baszler. They’ll fight for the title in two weeks. Best thing about this: flowing from one story into another without having to go to the back and set things up. It feels MUCH more natural and that is the best thing that they could have done here.

Ciampa and Lee are ready to face the Undisputed Era. Dominick Dijakovic shows up and seems to be joining them tonight.

Video on Finn Balor, who wants the NXT Title back. He’s playing chess while Cole is playing checkers, so checkmate.

Video on Isaiah Scott.

Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno

The fans chant for Riddle in the Goldberg cadence for a fun moment. They go with the grappling to start until Riddle takes him down by the (right) arm. The cravate has Riddle in more trouble but he’s back out with a German suplex as the eyes get a bit more serious. Ohno gets sent outside for a kick to the chest and we take a break.

Back with Riddle kicking at the chest as the announcers keep hyping up When Worlds Collide. Ohno gets in a shot to the throat and a big boot to drop Riddle as he is willing to cheat to finally beat him. Or he’s just a villain in general. The cravate goes back on and is switched into a crossarm choke to keep Riddle in trouble.

That’s broken up as well and Riddle hits a Broton but has to bail out of a standing moonsault. The Bro To Sleep sets up a powerbomb to plant Ohno, and the Final Flash knocks him silly. Riddle’s Floating Bro gets two but Ohno is right back with a suplex. Ohno tries a cradle piledriver but gets reversed into a knee to the face and the Bro Derek to give Riddle the pin at 12:33.

Rating: B-. Yeah of course these two have good matches against each other because they work well together and have similar styles. At the end of the day though, Ohno exists to put Riddle over and that’s a great role for him. What matters more than anything else here though is the hype for When Worlds Collide, meaning it might actually be important for once. They have been watchable before, but it would be great to see the show have some meaning.

We look back at Baszler beating Ripley down. The title match is official for the 18^th.

Kushida vs. Raul Mendoza

Or not as here’s Cameron Grimes to jump Mendoza and take his place. This stuns Kushida for some reason.

Kushida vs. Cameron Grimes

As stunned as he is, Kushida is fine enough to hit a handspring kick to the face to put Grimes on the floor to start, setting up a big flip dive off the top to take Grimes down again. Back in and Kushida grabs something like the Black Widow and bends the arm WAY back for a nearly terrifying visual. Another handspring is countered into a German suplex to put Kushida down for the first time and the Superman forearm connects. Grimes tries his backflip into a German suplex but Kushida reverses into a rollup for the pin at 4:16.

Rating: C. This was a weird one as Grimes has been getting a pretty big push in recent weeks but then loses here to the returning Kushida. I get why Kushida gets the win to put himself back on track but why have him beat Grimes and not, say, Mendoza like you had planned? Just a weird moment but it came at the end of a fine match.

We recap Lio Rush vs. Angel Garza. They meet for Rush’s Cruiserweight Title next week.

Also next week: Yim vs. Kai.

Undisputed Era vs. Dominick Dijakovic/Tommaso Ciampa/Keith Lee

Strong gets taken into the corner for the early beating and Ciampa already has to give himself some applause. O’Reilly comes in for a standing guillotine on Dijakovic and is quickly tossed out of a suplex. A middle rope splash gives Dijakovic two and the standing knees to the back make it even worse. The Era is sent outside and we take a break. Back with Dijakovic fighting out of O’Reilly’s abdominal stretch and hitting one heck of a clothesline.

That’s not enough to get over for the tag though as O’Reilly grabs the leg. It takes all three members of the Era to pull Dijakovic back into the corner for a unique visual. Dijakovic fights up and makes the tag off to Ciampa so house can be cleaned. A jumping knee to the back of O’Reilly’s head sets up Project Ciampa for two.

The Fairy Tale Ending is broken up and it’s High/Low to give Strong two with Lee and Dijakovic making a double save. Strong drops Ciampa again as things settle into the normal structure again. Cole and Lee get the hot tags and it’s time for the real house cleaning. The threat of a big dive sends the Era scattering so Lee runs over O’Reilly and Strong.

Dijakovic hits a spinning springboard dive but Cole breaks up a superplex to put O’Reilly on the pile outside. Cue Finn Balor to dropkick Cole into the referee in the corner. 1916 plants Ciampa but Lee rises up behind Balor for a great visual. Lee hits the Spirit Bomb on Balor and, after avoiding the Last Shot, hits the Limit Breaker for the pin on Cole at 11:48.

Rating: B. This was the kind of match that NXT knows how to do very well as they had the interference but then gave us the big moment to end things as well. These guys beat the heck out of each other and had the big spots in there, with Lee continuing to get the rocket push. That being said, there are other people involved who could get the title shot as well, which makes for a lot of great possibilities.

Post match here’s William Regal to make Keith Lee vs. Finn Balor vs. Tommaso Ciampa for next week with the winner getting a title shot the following week. That really could go any of the three ways and that’s not something you see every day.

Overall Rating: B. Another night with the wrestling being good throughout, as well as setting up multiple things that I want to see later on. You don’t get that very often and they made it work here, which almost no one else can do. The future is crazy bright with Lee and Ripley getting the monster pushes, but what makes it so much better is you could see them winning, which is almost unthinkable. More good stuff here though, as NXT’s roll continues (for years now).

Results

Killian Dain b. Pete Dunne – Middle rope belly to back slam

Shayna Baszler b. Xia Li – Kirifuda Clutch

Forgotten Sons b. Adrian Alanis/Leon Ruff – Reverse DDT/middle rope stomp to Alanis

Matt Riddle b. Kassius Ohno – Bro Derek

Kushida b. Cameron Grimes – Cradle

Keith Lee/Tommaso Ciampa/Dominick Dijakovic b. Undisputed Era – Limit Breaker to Cole

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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