I’m not sure how to process this but yeah that just happened.  CM Punk actually returned at the end of the show, coming out after WarGames to the thunderous reaction you would expect, though he didn’t do anything but his catchphrase and hug fans.

I have no idea where this is going but I was genuinely shocked at the whole thing.  It’s probably not a long term situation due to his health, but he’s actually back after almost ten years away and this is a big deal for WWE.  Nice job, especially keeping it a secret.

Smackdown
Date: November 24, 2023
Location: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Kevin Patrick

It’s the last show before Survivor Series and as usual that means the best thing WWE can do here is not screw anything up. Becky Lynch is the last member of Team Not Damage CTRL but her issues with Charlotte could create a problem. Other than that, the Street Profits get a Tag Team Title shot so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a long recap of Becky Lynch joining the opposition to Damage CTRL last week.

Here are Lynch, Charlotte, Shotzi and Bianca Belair for a chat. Lynch steps around the idea that she is teaming with Charlotte and is rather excited about getting in a cage. Belair is ready to make it violent against Damage CTRL and Shotzi is WAY too excited about the violence. Charlotte: “Yeah what Shotzi said.” Cue Bayley, who brings up Becky and Charlotte’s issues and points out that Becky was a last resort. Becky wants a fight so let’s do the tag match main event tonight. Bayley is in, with a partner to be named.

We look at the announcement (or close enough to one) of the return of Randy Orton on Raw. At least Orton is shown in this package.

Damage CTRL picks Bayley and Asuka for the main event.

Tag Team Titles: Judgment Day vs. Street Profits

Judgment Day, with Rhea Ripley, is defending. Priest knocks Dawkins down to start but Ford comes in with a dropkick to take over. A clothesline puts Priest on the floor and Ford dives onto Balor. That’s fine with Priest, who throws Ford over the announcers’ table as we take a break.

Back with Priest missing a charge into the corner and the diving tag bringing in Dawkins to clean house. A Doomsday Blockbuster gives Ford two but Balor grabs a Sling Blade. The Revelation doesn’t quite connect perfectly for two on Priest but Ripley breaks up the frog splash. Something close to a Bro Derek into the Coup de Grace retains the titles at 9:48.

Rating: B-. I was thinking there was a chance of a title change here to get the belts away from the stable before WarGames but instead they mostly played it straight. The Profits losing again is a bit weird but it might lead to more angry Bobby Lashley. On the other hand, Judgment Day has some momentum heading into the pay per view and that is a smart way to go about things.

Becky Lynch and Charlotte aren’t seeing eye to eye but Bianca Belair plays peacemaker.

Video on Dragon Lee, the future of lucha libre.

Here is Grayson Waller for the Grayson Waller Effect. He gets to the point by bringing out his guest Kevin Owens, which is Austin Theory in a costume. Cue the real Kevin Owens to say he is unsuspended and has never looked better. Waller says Owens cost him a match against LA Knight. Cue Knight to say he was going to let them talk, but then his name was brought up. That made him come out here and violence ensues with a tag match feeling likely.

Video on Cody Rhodes helping LA Knight against Judgment Day last week.

Austin Theory/Grayson Waller vs. Kevin Owens/LA Knight

We’re joined in progress with Owens running Waller over and handing it off to Knight to do it again. Theory is taken outside for some rams into the announcers’ table but Waller gets in a clothesline. We take a break and come back with Knight still in trouble on the floor. That’s broken up and the diving tag brings in Owens to clean house. The Swanton gets two on Waller but it’s too early for the Stunner.

The rolling dropkick hits Owens but Knight distracts the referee. A rolling Blockbuster gets two on Owens and a backbreaker keeps him down. Waller takes too much time following up though and Owens is able to get over to Knight for the needed tag. Everything breaks down and Knight powerslams Theory into the LA Elbow with Waller making the save. Back up and the BFT finishes Theory at 12:34.

Rating: C+. This was the latest step in rehabbing Knight after his loss to Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel and the process seems to be mostly complete. Knight has won on the last three Smackdowns and should be in for something big after Survivor Series. It’s a little weird for him to not be on the show, but at least he was in a big enough match the night before. That should wrap up this feud, as Owens has dominated it since the start and got another win here.

Bianca Belair talks to Becky Lynch and asks her to be on the same page as the rest of her team for tomorrow night.

Here is Carlito for a chat but first we look at Santos Escobar turning on the LWO and Rey Mysterio in particular. Back in the arena, Carlito rants against Escobar in Spanish and says turning on Mysterio was a mistake. Cue Escobar to argue over who was the REAL member of the LWO. The fight is on until referees break it up, only to have Escobar get in a cheap shot to leave Carlito laying with a bad shoulder.

Post break Escobar jumps Carlito again but Dragon Lee makes the save.

Pretty Deadly vs. Brawling Brutes

The Brutes have been having issues in recent weeks. Holland cleans house to start but gets knocked into the corner where Butch tags himself in. The stereo ten forearms to the chest are broken up, with Holland not looking pleased. Holland walks out, meaning it’s an assisted gutbuster for two on Butch. The comeback is on and Butch kicks Prince in the face for two. The Bitter End is broken up though and Wilson gets the rollup pin at 3:30.

Rating: C. This wasn’t so much of a competitive match as much as it was a way for Holland to walk out on Butch. The team has been teasing a split for a good while now and it makes sense to all but pull the trigger. I would assume that Sheamus is going to be back soon because he either has to pull them together or side with one of them, as he has always been the focal point of the group.

Shotzi wants Charlotte to talk it out with Becky Lynch.

Nick Aldis says Carlito is hurt and his match with Santos Escobar is postponed. Dragon Lee comes in to say he’ll take Carlito’s place so Aldis signs off on the idea.

Judgment Day promises to win WarGames.

Bayley/Asuka vs. Becky Lynch/Charlotte

All of the partners are here too. The villains are sent outside with Charlotte moonsaulting onto everyone less than a minute in. Back from a break with Asuka working on Becky’s arm until Becky fights up. The tag bring sin Charlotte to clean house with a boot to the face into a slingshot rollup gets on Bayley. Asuka breaks up the Figure Four with a Codebreaker, followed by a middle rope elbow/reverse DDT combination.

Becky makes the save so Charlotte kicks her way to freedom for the big tag. Everything breaks down and Becky hits a double DDT for two. A missile dropkick into the Disarm-Her has Bayley in trouble but Asuka makes the save. There’s the Manhandle Slam to Bayley but Charlotte spears Asuka onto the cover for the unintentional break. Becky yells at Charlotte so Bayley rams them together and rolls Lynch up for the pin at 11:44.

Rating: B-. And that’s how you build more tension going into the big match tomorrow. Becky and Charlotte have a long, long history together and bringing up the short form version of it here is a good idea. If nothing else, it would make them getting along tomorrow feel all the more important as they couldn’t even hold it together here. The heels get momentum going into WarGames again, and that should spell well for them tomorrow.

Becky yells at Charlotte some more and walks off to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. While the wrestling wasn’t entirely the focus here, they did a very nice job of firming up some of the Survivor Series card. The men’s WarGames match is the big feature so giving the women some time made sense. The good thing is Santos Escobar vs. Dragon Lee got some focus, along with some things that have nothing to do with Survivor Series. This show had a nice balance and it flowed by quickly so we’ll call it a win.

Results
Judgment Day b. Street Profits – Coup de Grace to Ford
Kevin Owens/LA Knight b. Austin Theory/Grayson Waller – BFT to Theory
Pretty Deadly b. Brawling Brutes – Rollup to Butch
Bayley/Asuka b. Becky Lynch/Charlotte – Rollup to Lynch

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

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

AND

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: July 7, 2008
Location: New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

It’s probably not a good sign that I haven’t done one of these in so long that I barely remember what is going on. The big story is CM Punk cashing in Money In The Bank last week on Edge to win the World Heavyweight Championship, bringing a World Title to Raw. We’re also on the way to the Bash and that is going to need a card. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Punk winning the title and his first title defense against JBL last week. JBL declaring martial law is not exactly the most interesting idea, and John Cena/Cryme Tyme seem to agree.

Stephanie McMahon asks everyone to pull together in Vince McMahon’s absence.

Here is Vickie Guerrero in the ring to get things going. She is here to protest CM Punk being the World Heavyweight Champion and is not leaving until the title is surrendered to her. An apology is demanded and here is Punk to respond. Vickie yells at him and says Edge is so close to falling apart that he has called off their wedding! Punk says he probably did them a favor and explains the Money In The Bank concept. Maybe Vickie can find someone cute on Smackdown, like the Great Khali! Vickie stands up and slaps him, so Punk wheels her into the corner.

Cue JBL in his limo to interrupt and say Punk’s reign is coming to an end. JBL challenges for the title, saying Vince McMahon would give him the shot. Punk brings up that Vince isn’t here, but John Cena certainly is. Cena mocks JBL for blaming a variety of things on not being champion and doesn’t really want to hear about it. Maybe Cena should listen to Punk, who shakes Cena’s hand.

In reality, there is no one in charge around here, so we need to figure out Punk’s next challenger. Cena thinks he and JBL should have some kind of #1 contenders match, but here is Batista who wants in as well. Batista says Punk deserves the title after last week and also says hi to Vickie, who made him miserable on Smackdown. He feels sorry for her…but nah, because he really can’t stand her.

As for the title, Punk cashed in after Batista took Edge out but JBL cuts Batista off instead. Cena calms things down by suggesting a triple threat #1 contenders match tonight. JBL doesn’t like it so Cena says that means JBL is out entirely. That gets JBL in the triple threat, but now it’s Kane interrupting. He wants in too so Punk thinks we have a fatal four way. And that’s finally it!

Rey Mysterio vs. Santino Marella

Rey sends him into the corner to start but a faceplant gives Marella a breather. A camel clutch is broken up but Rey misses a 619, only to knock Santino down without much effort. Rey hits a jumping double stomp of all things and the 619 into the top rope splash gives Rey the fast pin.

CM Punk is…interrupted when a light falls down. Anyway, he’ll face anyone but Snitsky of all people comes in to say he wants a fight. Works for Punk.

John Cena and Mickie James are talking about last night when Kelly Kelly comes up to talk about their tag match. Cena is amazed that Kelly got out of her ECW contract, but apparently it didn’t exist.

Kelly Kelly/Mickie James vs. Jillian Hall/Layla

Jillian grabs Mickie’s arm to start and is quickly pulled into a headlock. Kelly comes in with a sunset flip for two and a hurricanrana gets the same. Layla gets in a cheap shot though and Jillian rams Kelly’s face into the mat over and over. They go to the corner and Kelly manages a victory roll for the fast pin.

Rating: C. This was about all you could expect from this match as Mickie was barely involved. It seems that Kelly might be the next in line to get a push but she is going to need a lot of work in the ring to really make that happen. She has to start somewhere though and the whole gymnast thing can get her at least a few steps forward.

Here is JBL’s limo…with JBL walking beside it. He can’t open the doors….so here is John Cena, holding a crowbar, to pop out instead. Cena says Louisiana has strict laws involving limousines and this one will never pass inspection. Fortunately for JBL, Cena knows two guys who can help get parts quick. We hear about some of those limo laws, with Cryme Tyme (carrying some large bats/pipes) helping to fix the limo up a bit. One more thing though: it needs a custom paint job! Spray painting ensues as a bonus. Cena: “Fine work by the Cryme Tyme Body Shop. It is sure worth the drive.”

We look at the cash-in again.

CM Punk vs. Snitsky

Non-title. Punk strikes away to start but dives into a bearhug, allowing Snitsky to drive him into the corner. Snitsky’s elbow gets two and the bearhug goes on again. More strikes get Punk out of trouble again and the running knee in the corner sets up a bulldog. The GTS gives Punk the pin.

Video on Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho, with Michaels’ eye being heavily damaged.

Here is Michaels to say he accepts Jericho’s challenge for the Great American Bash. Cue Jericho with Lance Cade, with Jericho saying he knew Michaels would accept. Michaels can’t help himself because all of the beatings haven’t taught him anything. Now Michaels is going to get beaten up again, even though he’s just another legend fighting for one more chance. Does Michaels want to be a martyr for all of these people? Are they going to pay for him if he loses everything?

Like every other martyr, Michaels is going to be swept underneath the rug and forgotten. Michaels talks about how he could leave wrestling today and be remembered forever. No matter what he has done, the fans seem to keep giving him a pass. Jericho doesn’t think that’s fair, but Michaels talks about what Jericho has done in his career. In spite of all that though, Jericho will never have peace because he will never be Michaels. And there’s the core of the story and that makes the story so much better.

Kofi Kingston vs. Charlie Haas

Non-title. Haas grabs a headlock to start but can’t get very far as Kofi strikes away. A cravate with knees to the face have Kingston down for two and we hit the chinlock. Kofi fights up with some dropkicks into the Boom Drop and the spinning kick to the face finishes Haas off in a hurry.

Rating: C. Not much to this one as they only had a few minutes. It doesn’t help that Haas hasn’t meant anything in a long time now so there was only so much drama about anything happening. I’m sure Kingston will get an opponent worthy of a title shot soon enough, but that isn’t Haas right now and they didn’t treat him as anything else.

Post match Paul Burchill runs in and lays Kingston out.

Batista is walking….and a fan randomly runs in to do his pose before running off again.

Batista vs. John Bradshaw Layfield vs. John Cena vs. Kane

For the World Title shot at the Great American Bash. The brawl starts fast with JBL booting Cena down for an early two. All four of them slug it out and we take an early break. Back with Kane elbowing Cena in the face and ripping at said face in the corner. Batista hits a spinebuster for two on JBL with Kane making the save and planting Batista with a chokeslam. JBL breaks up the FU to Kane and everyone is left down.

It’s Cena up first to clean house, including an FU to Batista for two. We take another break and come back again with Kane breaking up the Shuffle to JBL. Batista starts cleaning house and kicks a downed Kane in the face. The Clothesline From JBL hits Batista but Cena pulls JBL into the STFU. That’s broken up so Cena and JBL double team Kane down. Everyone but Cena fight to the floor, with Kane knocking JBL over the barricade. Back in and Batista spears Kane for the fast pin and the title shot.

Rating: B-. This wasn’t some kind of a classic or anything but they kept things moving here and it made for an entertaining match as a result. I had fun with this and giving Batista the title shot is an interesting way to go. Punk vs. JBL isn’t interesting, Cena would be an overwhelming favorite over Punk and Kane doesn’t feel like a World Title challenger. That leaves Batista as the just right choice and he got there in an entertaining fight.

Post match Batista leaves so Kane can snap and beat up people working at ringside. Kane yells at commentary and drags Cole inside, telling Cole to ANSWER ME. Jerry Lawler chop blocks Kane to save Cole but gets beaten up to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. They don’t have much time to get ready for the Great American Bash at this point so moving rather quickly like this is a good idea. The World Title match is now set and Michaels vs. Jericho got a nice boost. This show felt like it got some things done in the span of two hours and that is not something you often see with Raw. Good enough show here, as the Bash is coming together rather quickly.

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

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

AND

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 20, 2023
Location: Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the final Raw before Survivor Series and that means WarGames needs an advantage. As luck would have it, that’s the big featured match this week as a member from each team will face to see who gets the advantage at Survivor Series. Other than that, it’s probably going to be a lot of final pushes towards the show so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s main event, where Drew McIntyre cost Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso the Tag Team Titles as part of an alliance with Judgment Day. Cody and pals are going to need some backup of their own.

Here is Drew McIntyre for a chat, saying he isn’t Dominik Mysterio so the people will listen to him talk. No one is more upset about what he did last week than he is. If you turned on him, you were never a fan in the first place and he doesn’t care about you. Last week he looked Jey Uso in the face and then laid him out, which is more than Jey ever did for him. Yeah Cody Rhodes was caught in the crossfire but Cody brought Jey to Raw. McIntyre rants about Clash At The Castle again before clarifying that he has NOT joined Judgment Day but he’ll team with them at WarGames.

Rhea Ripley let him have Jey in a cage…and here is Jey to interrupt. Jey says McIntyre needs to let it go but here is Judgment Day to back things up. Seth Rollins, Cody Rhodes and Sami Zayn come out to even a lot of this up but Adam Pearce says WarGames is on Saturday. If anyone throws the first punch, their team automatically loses the advantage. Pearce says Cody and company need a fifth team member tonight and by 9:00 (about 50 minutes from now), they need to decide on their participants in the advantage match.

Post break, Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley chat about Drew McIntyre being added to the team. Priest likes the move, but she should have consulted with him because he’s the leader going into WarGames. Ripley gets that and they seem cool. Priest also thinks he should be in the advantage match, but she says they should wait for Drew. Works for Priest as well.

Nia Jax vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Rodriguez charges into the corner and hammers away to start but a release Rock Bottom puts her back down. Jax is knocked outside but manages a posting as we take a break. Back with Jax grabbing a chinlock until Rodriguez powers up. Her back gives out though and Jax hits a backsplash to crush her again. The Annihilator is countered into a powerbomb attempt but the back gives out a second time. Now the Annihilator can finish for Jax at 9:03.

Rating: C. The commercial in the middle hurt this a good bit as we really just saw a bunch of Jax cutting Rodriguez off and then sitting on her chest for the pin. That’s the kind of monster Jax is and in theory it’s setting up a showdown with Ripley for the title. While that might make sense on paper, it doesn’t make for the most interesting match as Jax is….well she’s Jax.

Video on Xia Li.

Judgment Day, now with Drew McIntyre, has a chat about the advantage match. McIntyre and Damian Priest don’t see eye to eye on this, but Priest eventually relents. Priest even tells McIntyre to go show his worth.

We look at how the women’s WarGames match was set up.

Cody Rhodes and company aren’t sure who should face Drew McIntyre but Jey Uso wants to hurt him most and gets the match. With that out of the way, they still need a fifth member and apparently Smackdown guys are NOT off limits. Cody has an old friend he can call as well.

Becky Lynch vs. Xia Li

Lynch takes her down without much trouble to start and snaps off some armdrags. Li gets in a shot in the corner but Lynch sends her outside without much trouble. A kick to the face knocks Lynch off the apron though and we take a break. Back with Lynch unloading with forearms and managing to knock her into the corner.

The Bexploder gets two but Li is back with a spinning kick to the back for two of her own. The Manhandle Slam is blocked so Lynch goes for a cross armbreaker but Li slips out again. Li grabs something like a torture rack airplane spin for a crash and two, followed by some choking in the corner.

Another trip to the top is countered into a superplex to give Lynch two more, with Barrett saying this is a Wrestlemania main event. No. The Manhandle Slam is blocked and Li manages the big spinning kick to send Lynch outside. Lynch is back up and gets in a posting but the both beat the count back in. A quick Manhandle Slam finishes for Lynch at 13:38.

Rating: B-. While I wouldn’t have had a #1 contender to the NXT Women’s Title take a clean loss, Li got in a lot here and made Lynch work for it. There isn’t much shame in losing to Lynch, though it would have been nice to not do it the night before Li challenges for the title. Anyway, good match here and pretty easily the best of Li’s career.

Post match Damage CTRL and the rest of Becky’s team come in for the brawl until referees break it up.

Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci argue in the back, with Kaiser telling him to stay here while Kaiser takes care of Johnny Gargano.

Video on Zoey Stark.

Ludwig Kaiser vs. Johnny Gargano

Tommaso Ciampa is here with Gargano. Kaiser chops away in the corner to start but Gargano snaps off a running hurricanrana. They trade kicks to the head in the corner with Kaiser being knocked outside. Gargano’s big dive is cut off though and we take a break. Back with Kaiser punching One Final Beat out of the air but getting caught with the slingshot spear instead.

Gargano kicks him in the head and grabs a middle rope spinning Downward Spiral for two more. The rolling kick to the head is cut off and a tilt-a-whirl faceplant gives Kaiser his own near fall. A Death Valley Driver connects on Gargano but here is Giovanni Vinci to distract Kaiser. Said distraction lets Gargano hit One Final beat for the pin at 9:53.

Rating: C+. The back and forth between these guys continues but the issues for Imperium are making things more interesting. While Gunther doesn’t need them to win, the underlings having their own problems might come back to cause him trouble later on. For now though, I can go with Gargano winning, though unless DIY wins the blowoff match between the teams, it might not matter much.

Earlier today, a bunch of teams argued over the next Women’s Tag Team Title match so it’s a four way #1 contenders match tonight. Chelsea Green is going to call Nick Aldis about this. Adam Pearce: “Tell him I say hi.”

Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio run into Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark, sitting in the Judgment Day’s clubhouse. Stark loves all of the decorations, especially the Women’s Title. Ripley kind of respects the guts it took to do this, but the beating is coming at Survivor Series.

Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell vs. Tegan Nox/Natalya vs. Maxxine Dupri/Ivy Nile vs. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance

Chelsea Green and Piper Niven are on commentary. Natalya and Nile start things off as Green things Cole’s first name is Matthew. Nile dropkicks Natalya into the corner and hands it off to Dupri, who actually takes Natalya down. Nile comes back in and gets Russian legsweept but Hartwell tags herself in to take over.

The rapid fire tags continue and everything breaks down, with Chance and Carter taking over. Nox and Natalya are sent outside so Carter can dive onto a bunch of people. Dupri hits her own dive and poses as we take a break. Back with Chance striking away at Natalya, who Michinoku Drivers her for two.

Nile powerbombs Nox and Natalya out of the corner, allowing Carter to flip Chance onto both of them for two more. Maxxine comes in to clean house, setting up a Caterpillar to Nox. A bridging suplex gives Maxxine two so Nile and Maxxine hit a double suplex to drop Nox again. Maxxine goes up top for a high crossbody but Nox rolls through for the pin at 11:45.

Rating: C+. This was pretty much all about Maxxine and she did well enough as the fun star who is playing above her skills. I’m not sure I would have had her take the pin when there were so many others out there, but at least Nox and Natalya have a bit of a history together. The action was what you would expect for a four way tag match, but at least one of the better (I guess?) options won.

Gunther isn’t pleased with Ludwig Kaiser and thinks maybe he should have put Giovanni Vinci in charge instead.

A bunch of tag teams argue over who should get a Tag Team Title shot so Adam Pearce makes Tag Team Turmoil for next week. Akira Tozawa comes in for the comedy. With the teams gone, Nick Aldis pops up to talk with Pearce.

Here is Miz for a chat about Gunther. Miz has been called the underdog…and here is Gunther to interrupt. Gunther doesn’t like him and doesn’t think anything of Miz, but Miz talks about the past Intercontinental Champions he loved as a kid (Savage, Michaels, Rude, Hart). He worked and tried for twenty years to become what they were because they’re memorable and not a one note robot like Gunther.

Miz will do whatever it takes to survive and win because that is what he does. He is tired of the disrespect and is ready to beat a lesson into Gunther. That sounds good to Gunther, but he sees it differently. Miz was a fan who got made fun of because he loved wrestling so he tried to get into the business. Then other wrestlers bullied him because he doesn’t belong in this sport. Instead, he belongs behind the barricade with other weirdos like these people.

The fans chant USA, which Gunther mocks before saying Miz hasn’t been bullied enough. Gunther gets in his face and tells Mike to stand up for himself so Miz slugs away…and is promptly booted down. Gunther mocks him with the title so Miz kicks him low and hits the Skull Crushing Finale. Cole: “DO IT FOR ALL OF US WEIRDOS MIZ!” This was a heck of a promo battle as Miz can still talk with just about anyone. You don’t get that from Gunther very often but he more than held up his end here and sold the story of the match.

Seth Rollins gives Jey Uso a pep talk.

Ivar and Valhalla want revenge on Bronson Reed next week.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Chad Gable

The rest of Alpha Academy is here too. They go with the grappling to start until Nakamura kicks him into the corner. Gable fights back up and dumps him to the floor as we take a break. Back with Nakamura in control and grabbing a chinlock. That’s broken up so Nakamura elbows him into the corner and hits a kick to the face for two.

Kinshasa is countered into Chaos Theory for two and a dragon suplex drops Nakamura again. Gable’s moonsault hits raised boots but he’s able to get the ankle lock. Nakamura makes the rope as Cole says Kurt Angle made the ankle lock famous. Back up and Gable has to stop himself from going into an exposed buckle, allowing Nakamura to roll him up for the pin at 12:22.

Rating: B-. there are instances where you know a match is going to be good if the people involved are given the chance to make it work and that was the case here. Gable as a more serious amateur style wrestler works well and Nakamura’s striking balanced it out nicely. They had a good match as Nakamura’s star continues to rise, though I have no idea where they’re going with him.

Damian Priest tells Drew McIntyre to not blow it.

Bronson Reed is in for next week because Ivar is a cosplayer instead of a true warrior.

Survivor Series rundown.

Video on WarGames.

Sami Zayn couldn’t get anyone from Smackdown, but Cody Rhodes’ friend answered the phone and he’s in. His partners are thrilled.

Jey Uso vs. Drew McIntyre

For the WarGames advantage. They slug it out to start with McIntyre getting the better of things. An elbow to the face gives McIntyre two but Uso fights back and they head outside as we take a break. Back with McIntyre slugging away in the corner but getting kicked in the head for his efforts. A high crossbody gives Uso two and they head outside again, this time with McIntyre ramming him into various things.

Uso’s head gets crushed against the post and McIntyre gets to taunt him a bit. McIntyre tosses him over the announcers’ table and we take a break. Back again with Uso taking McIntyre down as Cole goes over the rules of WarGames. Uso misses a discus lariat though and gets neckbreakered down. The Claymore is cut off by a superkick to give Uso two but McIntyre is back with Futureshock for the clean pin at 18:34.

Rating: B-. Well that was abrupt. The match went long and then just ended with a clean pin. It’s not a bad thing but you see it so rarely that it’s almost hard to process. The villains getting the advantage is WarGames 101 though and thankfully WWE understood that this year. Good main event, though it never really got to a higher level.

Post match Judgment Day comes in for the beatdown but Cody Rhodes and company come in with chairs for the ring clearing save. Cody gets the mic and says they have a fifth member. It’s someone Cody has a LEGACY with (the fans really like that one) and no they’re not prey, because they have the APEX PREDATOR.

You’re not just hearing voices inside your head because the people are right. And…..no one comes out to end the show. I guess that’s about as much of a confirmation as you can get, but Cody never said a name. Granted saying the people are right is about as much of a guarantee as you can get, but that was a really weird ending.

Overall Rating: C+. I’m not sure what to think of this show as this was about two parts of the same WarGames match. They covered the advantage, but they only kind of covered the fifth member reveal. I mean, unless there is some huge swerve coming at Survivor Series they’re fine, but it wasn’t exactly a smooth ending. The rest of the show was pretty much right in the middle, without much stuff that really mattered. Miz and Gunther were good, but this was about WarGames and what we got was a bit off. Then again, none of that matters after Saturday and the show is built up well enough.

Results
Nia Jax b. Raquel Rodriguez – Annihilator
Becky Lynch b. Xia Li – Manhandle Slam
Johnny Gargano b. Ludwig Kaiser – One Final Beat
Natalya/Tegan Nox b. Kayden Carter/Katana Chance, Maxxine Dupri/Ivy Nile and Indi Hartwell/Candice LeRae – Rollup to Dupri
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Chad Gable – Rollup
Drew McIntyre b. Jey Uso – Futureshock

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

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Smackdown
Date: November 17, 2023
Location: Ford Center, Evansville, Indiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Kevin Patrick, Road Dogg

We’re eight days away from Survivor Series and the women’s WarGames match seems all but set and announced. Both sides could still use some adjusting and we might be seeing some of that tonight. We also have to deal with the fallout from Santos Escobar turning on Rey Mysterio and the LWO last week. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week, with Asuka seemingly joining Damage CTRL as she turned on Charlotte and Bianca Belair. This is in no way similar to Drew McIntyre turning on Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso to seemingly join forces with Judgment Day because….well of course it’s pretty much the same thing.

Here is Damage CTRL, now with Asuka, for a chat. Bayley brags about how awesome it was to bring Asuka into the team and how powerful the team has become. She steals the NOT READY FOR ASUKA catchphrase, but Kai says not everyone in the ring is officially part of the team. Bayley looks scared, but Kai says it’s because Asuka hasn’t officially joined the team yet. Them she joins.

The challenge is officially on for WarGames against Shotzi/Charlotte/Bianca Belair, so here is Shotzi…..’s tank, as Shotzi comes in from behind. Charlotte and Belair come in as well but the numbers game catches up with them. Damage CTRL clears the ring without much trouble, despite Kai still being injured.

Post break Shotzi, Charlotte and Belair want revenge but need a fourth. Charlotte might know someone and Nick Aldis comes in to say he needs to know their fourth by the end of the night.

Street Profits vs. Brawling Brutes vs. Pretty Deadly

For a Tag Team Title shot next week. Prince, Butch and Ford start but Dawkins comes in to shoulder Butch down. Butch gets stomped in the corner as the Profits take over. Wilson is back up for some standing switches with Ford, leaving Butch to jump over them and bring Holland in. A DDT puts Wilson down but the ten forearms to the chest are broken up. Instead the Profits get hit with them until Pretty Deadly sends Holland into the steps. We take a break and come back with Butch cleaning house, including a tornado DDT off the steps to Prince.

Back in and a standing Sliced Bread gets two on Dawkins to leave everyone down. Holland superplexes Wilson but Prince tags himself in. Ford frog splashes the still down Holland, leaving Prince to hit the top rope legdrop for two. Bobby Lashley is watching in the back when B-Fab joins him. Back in the ring and Holland cleans house but Butch accidentally Brogue Kicks him down. The Revelation hits Holland to give the Profits the win at 10:57.

Rating: C+. You kind of had to tease some Brutes tension at some point as other than a one off win on NXT this week, I don’t remember their last important win. It also sounds like a way to bring Sheamus back to settle things, as he was always the focal point of the team anyway. For now though, the Profits winning a shot at Judgment Day the night before Judgment Day is in WarGames sounds like quite the setup for a title change, which would be a nifty way to get the titles away from the stable.

Bianca Belair talks to Michin.

Post break, Damage CTRL has jumped Michin.

We recap Santos Escobar turning on Rey Mysterio and the LWO last week.

Dragon Lee vs. Axiom

Axiom is a guest star from NXT and we get a quick highlight package (because WWE is starting to get the little things that go a long way). Lee takes him down with a headlock to start and hits a big running flip dive to the floor. Back in and a running corner dropkick hits Axiom as we take a break. We come back with Axiom hitting his own dropkick to the floor, followed by a springboard moonsault.

They get back in with Lee tying him in the ropes for a top rope double stomp. Axiom hits a dropkick into a running kick to the chest, only to have Lee grab a brainbuster. Something like flipping piledriver hits Lee but he’s right back up top. Axiom’s enziguri sets up a super Spanish Fly for two but Lee blasts him with a running knee. Operation Dragon (Destino) finishes Axiom at 9:30.

Rating: B-. This was the showcase that you would have expected from these two as they can do the high flying rather well. Lee continues to feel like a major project in the making and putting him out there week after week to pile up wins is a good idea. I could also go for more of Axiom, who has shown that he can work well with just about anyone.

Here is Santos Escobar for his big explanation. Escobar talks about the saying of “never meet your heroes”. He comes from a famous wrestling family, but Rey Mysterio was his hero. Escobar wanted the future generation to see him as the new Rey Mysterio, who became a father figure to him. Then last week, he realized that Dominik Mysterio was right all along.

Escobar earned the US Title shot and wanted to rebuild the LWO, but guess who did it instead. And then Rey brought in an outsider like Carlito! Escobar will only apologize for not hurting Rey even more and hopes he loses his leg. Cue Zelina Vega to yell at Escobar and slap him in the face. Cruz del Toro and Joaquin Wilde come in so Escobar asks whose side they’re on. They try to talk him out of it and get jumped as well so here is Carlito for the save. Escobar was bringing the venom here and the justification makes sense. Rey vs. Escobar should be a hot feud when he gets back too.

We look at Kevin Owens filling in on commentary last week but getting suspended for attacking Grayson Waller and Austin Theory.

Grayson Waller vs. Cameron Grimes

Austin Theory is on commentary. Waller takes him down to start and hammers away before grabbing a chinlock. Grimes fights up and strikes away, only to miss the Cage In. Theory offers a distraction though, allowing Waller to hit the Dingo Driver (John Cena’s old Throwback) for the pin at 2:42. It’s sad to see Grimes as nothing more than a jobber to the stars as he’s done well when he has been given some chances.

Classic Smackdown Moment: Steve Austin vs. Booker T in a grocery store (the Green Frog Grocery Store for you history geeks).

Damage CTRL jumps Zelina Vega.

We look at Solo Sikoa crushing John Cena at Crown Jewel.

Here is the Bloodline (minus Roman Reigns of course) in the ring, with Paul Heyman honoring Sikoa for beating Cena at Crown Jewel. We get the tease of Cena showing up but naturally he’s not here tonight. Cena will never appear in a WWE ring again and Heyman gives him an official goodbye. Heyman counts down to Cena’s run in but there’s no Cena, because you’ll never experience that again and it’s all because of Sikoa. If Cena ever does come back, he has to go after Sikoa, because that’s who Cena is, but now he can’t speak.

Cue LA Knight (scheduled to face Jimmy Uso) to interrupt, saying the Bloodline is the only reason Reigns is still champion. That’s a problem and Knight is a problem solver. Knight is going to take out each member of the Bloodline until it’s just him and Reigns. We get a mocking of Heyman mocking Cena’s theme song before Knight promises to take Uso out.

Carlito vs. Santos Escobar is set for Survivor Series.

Out of options, Charlotte reluctantly agrees to make the phone call to….someone.

LA Knight vs. Jimmy Uso

Heyman gets a phone call and walks out with Sikoa, leaving this one on one. We start with the stomping in the corner until Knight is right back with a hard shot for two. Back up and Jimmy grabs a Samoan drop for a breather but Knight sends him outside. There’s the running dropkick through the ropes and Jimmy gets rammed into the announcers’ table over and over. Jimmy is sent over that table so we take a beak and come back with Knight avoiding a running Umaga attack. Knight grabs a DDT and a belly to back faceplant gets the same. BFT is broken up but the second attempt finishes Jimmy at 9:20.

Rating: B-. Knight loses big match, Knight comes back with some wins to regain momentum. This is wrestling 201 or so and it still works to this day. Knight very well could get a rematch with Reigns at the Royal Rumble to wrap up his story with them, though I’m not sure how you get out of that without Knight getting pinned again in a big moment. For now though, he’s doing well and keeping his momentum, with the back to back wins helping a lot.

Post match cue Solo Sikoa, with Jimmy knocking Knight to the floor. The Samoan Spike drops Knight…and Cody Rhodes runs in for the save. That’s interesting, as Knight could be brought in to even out Drew McIntyre, or it could be a red herring.

Charlotte made the phone call but she’s not sure if the fourth woman will be here in time.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Here are Bianca Belair, Charlotte and Shotzi to announce their fourth team member. First, they officially accept the challenge but Charlotte talks about knowing what it means to turn on a best friend. There is a thin line between love and hate but if she’s going to war, there is only one person she wants by her side.

Cue Damage CTRL to interrupt before the announcement and say the three of them aren’t making it to WarGames. The fight is….well hang on as here is Becky Lynch as the fourth woman. NOW the fight is on and Charlotte goes up for the moonsault, which misses more wrestlers than Becky missed on Jeopardy. Cole even gets in a Jeopardy reference as Damage CTRL is in trouble to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was the Smackdown (or any wrestling show) that I like: they covered a bunch of things and had some good enough action at the same time. The focuses were on setting up the women’s WarGames match, plus LA Knight’s continuing issues with the Bloodline. Throw in a Tag Team Title match being set up for next week, plus the Santos Escobar/LWO stuff and this was a good show as WWE is rolling on the way to Survivor Series.

Results
Street Profits b. Brawling Brutes and Pretty Deadly – Revelation to Holland
Dragon Lee b. Axiom – Operation Dragon
Grayson Waller b. Cameron Grimes – Dingo Driver
LA Knight b. Jimmy Uso – BFT

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Monday Night Raw
Date: November 13, 2023
Location: Capital One Arena, Washington DC
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are juts over a week away from Survivor Series and the big story on the Raw side is a WarGames match between Judgment Day/JD McDonagh vs. Cody Rhodes and Pals. There is always the chance of having another person added on either side and we very well could be getting another match or two thrown onto the card. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the setup for WarGames and last week’s announcement.

Opening sequence.

Here is Cody Rhodes to get things going. Rhodes wants to talk about getting the Tag Team Titles back tonight, but we also have WarGames at Survivor Series. He brings out the rest of his team, with Jey Uso, Sami Zayn and Seth Rollins joining us. Cody greets all of them, but brings up some past issues with Rollins. Cue Judgment Day to interrupt, with Finn Balor bringing up that Rollins can’t beat Rhodes. Oh and Uso can never win anything on his own and Zayn is a loser.

Dominik Mysterio tries to bring up Uso’s time with the Bloodline but Zayn says the truth is no one likes Mysterio. Zayn asks how the team got out here without Rhea Ripley, with Cody poking fun about the team not having a leader. Priest: “I AM THE LEADER!” Rollins wants a fight so a tag match is made.

Seth Rollins/Sami Zayn vs. JD McDonagh/Dominik Mysterio

An early cheap shot to Rollins slows him down but he’s right back up to take Dominik into the corner. Rollins gets stomped back down but reverses Three Amigos to put Dominik down. The villains try to leave but get cut off, allowing Zayn to exploder suplex Dominik into the corner.

Stereo dives put McDonagh and Mysterio down and we take a break. Back with Zayn catapulting McDonagh into the corner, allowing stereo catapults to bring in Rollins and Mysterio. The Pedigree is blocked so Rollins settles for a superkick and Buckle Bomb. Cue the rest of Judgment Day for the DQ at 10:35.

Rating: C+. With WarGames coming up, the DQ was all but a guarantee here as you don’t wan either side taking a clean loss. Rollins and Zayn beat them up pretty well here, which makes sense as they were fighting the lower level Judgment Day contingent. This was how the match should have gone and they didn’t bother wasting time with this one.

Post match the beatdown is on until Uso and Rhodes run in for the save. Adam Pearce comes out to say everyone involved in WarGames has to be out of the building by tonight’s Tag Team Title match.

Post break Rhea Ripley yells at Pearce, who says get over it. Ripley is…well he can’t get to saying she’s banned but here is Zoey Stark to interrupt. Stark talks about how many things Ripley has to worry about, but Ripley talks about her success and how she can handle all of this. She is always on top and can handle herself, Dominik and the fans because she is RHEA BLOODY RIPLEY! The fight is teased with Zoey sending her outside but not being able to launch the dive.

Shinsuke Nakamura is tired of someone having so much handed to him and how he is willing to wait on someone. Whomever that may be.

Seth Rollins runs into Cody Rhodes, who says they can hate each other 364 days a year but he needs Rollins for one night. Works for Rollins.

Otis vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

The rest of the Alpha Academy is here too. Nakamura strikes away to start but Otis easily slams him down. The running splash in the corner sends Nakamura outside, where Otis clotheslines him down. We take a break and come back with Otis fighting out o trouble and hitting a running elbow in the corner. A hard clothesline drops Nakamura and the Caterpillar gets two. Kinshasa is countered into a World’s Strongest Slam for two more. Nakamura strikes away and hits a middle rope knee. Two more Kinshasas finish Otis at 8:58.

Rating: C+. They kept Otis looking strong here but ultimately Nakamura is looking like he is in for a big showdown with whomever he is talking about this time. A match with Chad Gable wouldn’t be surprising either as that could do both of them some good. For now though, Nakamura gets an impressive enough win and he could use a few more of them.

Nakamura glares at Chad Gable post match.

Video on WarGames.

Seth Rollins runs into Drew McIntyre in the back, who shakes his hand after the loss at Crown Jewel. Rollins limps off.

Video on Tegan Nox returning from injury and her career taking off on the main roster.

Piper Niven vs. Tegan Nox

Chelsea Green and Natalya are here too. Nox strikes away to start but gets knocked down, setting up a backsplash for two. The chinlock keeps Nox in trouble and there’s a clothesline to put her back down. A shoulderbreaker gets two (and a Papa Shango reference from Barrett) but Nox kicks her in the head for the same.

The basement crossbody misses for Niven and Nox hits the Shiniest Wizard for two, thanks to a leg on the rope. Niven misses a sitdown splash and Nox crucifixes her for the pin at 4:48. I’m wondering if that Shiniest Wizard was supposed to be the pin but they were too close to the ropes and had to improvise.

Rating: C. It seems like WWE has been wanting to push Nox for a long time now and maybe they are trying again here. If she can stay healthy, it wouldn’t be shocking to see her move up the ladder a bit. Other than that, it’s almost strange to see Niven lose, though Green has lost enough already.

We look at Miz becoming #1 contender to the Intercontinental Title but getting decked by Ivar after the match.

Miz mocks Gunther but Ivar and Bronson Reed come in to threaten violence. Reed and Ivar threaten each other and Ivar walks off.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Ludwig Kaiser

Johnny Gargano and Giovanni Vinci are here too. Ciampa knees him outside to start but Kaiser stomps away back inside. A clothesline gives Ciampa two, only to have Vinci grab the leg for a distraction. That’s good for an ejection as we take a break. Back with Ciampa fighting out of a chinlock and blocking the wind up DDT. They strike it out until Kaiser goes up, only to get kneed out of the air. Cue Vinci to jump Gargano and the distraction lets Kaiser grab a rollup (with tights) for the pin at 10:00.

Rating: C+. DIY is in a weird place here as they’re freshly on Raw but keep losing. Even though there was some interference here, it is more than a little annoying to see them lose time after time. Ciampa is more than good hand, though it would be nice to see he and Gargano move on from this Imperium feud already.

Damian Priest apologizes for the leader comment but is appointed leader for WarGames. As for JD McDonagh, he’s on the team.

Xia Li vs. Indi Hartwell

Candice LeRae is here with Hartwell. Li kicks her into the corner to start and hammers away, followed by a running knee. Hartwell hits a clothesline into a spinebuster but Li kicks her silly for the stoppage at 2:38.

Post match here is Becky Lynch (who Li kicked out last week) to say we’ll do this on her time. She’s looking for a fight but Li bails from the threat of a Manhandle Slam. Lynch says Li has seven days to run because their match is official for next week.

Gunther comes up to Miz and says it’s time for the beating. Miz tells Gunther to watch his match tonight to see what he can do. At Survivor Series, Gunther is learning the difference between longest reigning and greatest of all time. Gunther says good luck for tonight, but it won’t be anything like Survivor Series.

We look back at Zoey Stark winning a battle royal to become #1 contender.

Shayna Baszler praises Stark, as does Raquel Rodriguez. Nia Jax comes in to mock all of them but Rodriguez challenges her for a fight.

Ivar vs. Miz

Valhalla is here with Ivar, who elbows him into the corner to start. A middle rope hurricanrana takes Ivar down but he runs Miz over on the floor. Back in and Miz strikes away but it’s too early for the Skull Crushing Finale. Cue Bronson Reed as Miz hits a bulldog out of the corner. The ans are actually behind Miz, even as Ivar hits a sitdown splash out of the corner. Reed grabs a chair as we take a break.

We come back with Ivar slamming Miz out of the corner for two but missing a Bronco Buster. The YES Kicks hit Ivar but he counters a super Skull Crushing Finale into a World’s Strongest Slam for two. Ivar loads up the moonsault but Reed offers a distraction, allowing Miz to grab a rollup (with feet on the ropes) for the pin at 11:11.

Rating: C+. This was similar to Lex Luger (as Miz so often is) fighting one giant/monster after another on his way to a match against the Giant in WCW back in the day. That being said, he needed help to beat Ivar and that isn’t going to bode well for him against a real monster like Gunther. For now though, they’re at least setting things up well, even if Miz couldn’t feel much more like an underdog.

Post match Reed drops Ivar and hits the Tsunami.

Another video on WarGames.

Damian Priest goes up to JD McDonagh (It took him that long to find him?) and officially puts him on the team. Finn Balor comes in and tells McDonagh to find Dominik Mysterio and get out (as per Adam Pearce’s orders).

Gunther praises Giovanni Vinci for getting Imperium a win, making sure to ignore Ludwig Kaiser in the process. Indus Sher (egads they’re back) pop in to tell Kaiser to pick his next move wisely.

Otis is upset by his loss but the Creeds come in to say maybe he needs a new training method. Chad Gable isn’t impressed but the Creeds say they want the Tag Team Titles. New Day pops in and arguing ensues while Ivy Nile and Maxxine Dupri chat. Akira Tozawa comes in to dance with one of the NFL titles and everyone approves.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

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

Rhodes and Uso are challenging. Jey knocks Balor down to start and it’s a big slugout with Rhodes and Priest fighting to the floor. Cody comes in to work on Balor’s arm before it’s back to Uso, who gets kicked down by the champs. The fight heads outside again and we take a break.

Back with Balor raking the eyes to escape a fireman’s carry so Priest can slug away. Balor pulls Cody into an abdominal stretch before handing it back to Priest for something similar to Matt Riddle’s Bro Derek. Cody is right back up and handing it off to Uso to clean house. Balor cuts Uso off though and a clothesline puts him on the floor as we take another break.

Back again with Uso enziguring his way to freedom and handing it back to Cody. For some reason it’s already off to Uso again, meaning it’s a Superfly Splash for two on Priest. South Of Heaven is broken up and Cody gives Priest Cross Rhodes. The spear hits Balor and the Cody 1D connects with Priest making the save. Uso dives onto Priest but here is Drew McIntyre to hit Uso with a Claymore. Balor gets the pin to retain at 22:41.

Rating: B-. This got a lot of time, though McIntyre’s segment earlier felt like a bit of a warning sign for the ending. That isn’t a bad thing at all as there is a good chance that he will be added to WarGames in one way or another. For now though, they had the best match on the show and teased a title change before going with the more logical ending.

Rhea Ripley comes out to shake McIntyre’s hand to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. To say this show was only focused on a few things would be an understatement as this was mainly about WarGames and a few other things (the Women’s Title match and Gunther vs. Miz). There were other stories being touched on, but they were nothing compared to what really got the focus here. WarGames is pretty much all that matters for Raw on Survivor Series though and that’s what this show focused on. Next week can look at some other things, but for now, this was the WarGames’ show and not much else.

Results
Seth Rollins/Sami Zayn b. JD McDonagh/Dominik Mysterio via DQ when Judgment Day interfered
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Otis – Kinshasa
Tegan Nox b. Piper Niven – Crucifix
Ludwig Kaiser b. Tommaso Ciampa – Rollup with tights
Xia Li b. Indi Hartwell via referee stoppage
Miz b. Ivar – Rollup with feet on the ropes
Judgment Day b. Cody Rhodes/Jey Uso – Claymore to Uso from Drew McIntyre

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

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Smackdown
Date: November 10, 2023
Location: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Kevin Owens, Michael Cole, Kevin Patrick

Crown Jewel is out of the way and that means it is time to get closer to Survivor Series. That could make for some interesting situations around here, as we already have a WarGames match set on Raw. I’m not sure what they have around here for a Smackdown version, though Damage CTRL vs. etc. is an option. Let’s get to it.

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

Kevin Owens is brought out as the guest commentator since Corey Graves is at home with his new baby. That old excuse?

Here is the LWO (Owens is a fan) to get things going. Rey Mysterio talks about losing his US Title at Crown Jewel, but the reality is that Logan Paul stole it. Paul needed brass knuckles to win the title, but here is Carlito to interrupt. He wants to talk about Crown Jewel, where Santos Escobar left the knuckles on the apron. The argument is on and Escobar walks out, much to Rey’s chagrin.

Bobby Lashley vs. Carlito

The Street Profits and the LWO are at ringside. Lashley runs him over to start and hammers away in the corner as B-Fab is watching backstage. The Hurt Lock is countered with a jawbreaker and Carlito manages a suplex. They head outside where Lashley gets in a posting and we take a break. Back with B-Fab still watching as Ashante Thee Adonis comes up to ask what she’s doing before they leave together. Carlito fights back and the seconds get in a fight outside. Montez Ford gets in a cheap shot to Carlito though and Lashley hits the spear for the pin at 9:28.

Rating: C+. This feels like it was more about the pre-match deal with Escobar than anything here. That being said, despite Carlito’s recent return, he wasn’t in Lashley’s league on his best day so this was the right way to go. Lashley feels like he could be an easy step away from the main event scene again, so beating Carlito, even with an assist, makes sense.

Post match Santos Escobar doesn’t get in to help but Rey Mysterio runs in with a chair for the save. Rey yells at Escobar and checks on Carlito….and Escobar jumps Rey from behind. Escobar gets knocked to the apron but he crushes Rey’s leg in the steps.

Post break Escobar is leaving and says Rey had it coming.

Kevin Owens says he’s turned on a lot of people, but even he wouldn’t turn on Rey Mysterio.

We look at Iyo Sky defeating Bianca Belair to retain the Smackdown Women’s Title at Crown Jewel with an assist from the returning Kairi Sane.

Here is Bayley for a chat. She has had a lot of success since Damage CTRL started and we hear about everything Iyo Sky has done. Then Kairi Sane returned and Bayley would like an explanation. Cue the rest of Damage CTRL, plus Sane. Sky said she had her own plan and it involve Sane helping her keep the title. Bayley brings up her knocking Sane out of WWE back in 2020 (and we get a clip).

Dakota Kai says Sane makes the team stronger and they’re just trying to take some weight off of Bayley. Sane says she respects Bayley as the leader of Damage CTRL. We get the tentative hug but here is Bianca Belair to interrupt. Damage CTRL points out the numbers game so here is Charlotte…..and Asuka. Apparently tonight it’s a six woman tag.

Video on Dragon Lee.

Dragon Lee vs. Cedric Alexander

Joined in progress with both of them running the ropes until Alexander dropkicks him to the floor. Back in and Alexander snaps off a tornado DDT, setting up the running kick to the back of the head. Lee is back with a dropkick to the floor for a running flip dive, followed by a sitout powerbomb back inside. Alexander sends him hard into the corner and they slug it out. Lee hits a basement superkick but charges into a running Spanish Fly. One heck of a Michinoku Driver gets two on Lee but the Lumbar Check is blocked. Destino finishes Alexander at 5:51.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of a match where you knew exactly what you were going to get as soon as the match was announced. They were able to go out and fly all over the place for about six minutes and that made for an entertaining spectacle. Alexander might not be doing anything important at the moment but he can still turn it on when he gets in the ring.

We look at Logan Paul winning the US Title at Crown Jewel.

Here is LA Knight for a chat before his match. Knight says Crown Jewel didn’t go as he planned and he could come out here and say things didn’t go as planned. The fans still seem to like him, so Knight talks about coming within an inch of winning the title. But then Jimmy Uso got involved and Knight was robbed. Roman Reigns needs to give Jimmy a raise but Knight isn’t done with the Bloodline until he wins the WWE Title.

Cue Grayson Waller (Knight’s scheduled opponent) to say Knight is blaming everyone but himself. Maybe Knight just isn’t the guy. Knight calls Waller a jackass and says the Grayson Waller Effect sounds like an STD. Waller doesn’t like being accused of being in his mother’s basement and the fight is on, with Waller taking some water to the face.

LA Knight vs. Grayson Waller

Knight clotheslines him down to start and cranks on the arm, with Waller bailing out to the floor. A slingshot shoulder hits Waller as this is one sided so far. Knight’s swinging neckbreaker seems to wake Waller up a bit as he hits Knight in the face. That doesn’t seem to bother Knight, who backdrops him to the floor, setting up the rams into the announcers’ table. Waller manages to send him into the steps and hit a hard clothesline though and we take a break.

Back with Waller stomping on the back and grabbing a half crab. With that broken up, the rope walk elbow gives Waller two. Knight avoids another elbow though and snaps off some alternating jabs. A DDT gives Knight two and the LA Elbow into the BFT finishes Waller off at 11:24.

Rating: C+. That’s all it needed to be as Knight needed a nice win to give him a boost after last week’s loss. Knight lost the biggest match of his career but he is already at least somewhat back on track. Waller is the definition of someone who can be built back up with a few annoying chats.

Owens gives us a slow motion video looking at his punch to Grayson Waller and Austin Theory two weeks ago. Telestrating is included.

Classic Smackdown moment: John Cena debuts and gives Kurt Angle a run for his money.

We look at Solo Sikoa laying out John Cena and possibly knocking him into retirement.

Owens shows us the punch again….so here are Austin Theory and Grayson Waller in person. They throw an empty water bottle at Kevin Patrick, so Owens says he’s about to get suspended (the penalty for getting physical tonight) and goes after them for the brawl.

Jimmy Uso is ready for LA Knight next week. He calls Roman Reigns, who makes him be a bit more serious.

Damage CTRL vs. Bianca Belair/Asuka/Charlotte

Belair slams Bayley down to start and the villains are sent to the floor in a heap. Charlotte boots Bayley outside as well and we take a break. Back with Charlotte sending Bayley flying with a fall away slam so it’s off to Sane. Belair comes in with a delayed vertical suplex but Sane gets in a shot to the face.

Some double teaming drops Belair on the apron for two and the beating ensues. Belair fights out of the corner but Sane pulls Charlotte to the floor. A shot to Bayley lets Belair get over for the tag….but Asuka pulls away and mists Belair. Asuka and Sane hug, with Bayley and Sky joining in. Charlotte breaks it up and the big beatdown is good for the DQ at 7:31.

Rating: C+. In a way, this felt like a way to turn this into a WarGames match, but they don’t have a ton of time left to make that happen. With only two shows left before Survivor Series, we have two weeks to find Damage CTRL a fourth opponent and announce the match. That could still be done, but that isn’t exactly leaving them a ton of time.

Post match the beating is on, with Shotzi’s save attempt not working well. Belair is back up but the beatdown is on, with the Insane Elbow leaving Shotzi laying. The villains pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a pretty by the book show and that isn’t a bad thing. On one hand, they seemed to set some stages for Survivor Series, but at the same time, it needed to be the kind of show that got things ready rather than getting ready to set things up later. What we got wasn’t bad, but I was expecting a little big more with the show less than three weeks away. Good enough show, even it might not have been the right kind.

Results
Bobby Lashley b. Carlito – Spear
Dragon Lee b. Cedric Alexander – Destino
LA Knight b. Grayson Waller – BFT
Charlotte/Asuka/Bianca Belair b. Damage CTRL via DQ when Damage CTRL attacked Charlotte

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

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AND

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Monday Night Raw
Date: November 6, 2023
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are done with Crown Jewel and that means we have less than three weeks to go before Survivor Series. There were only so many major changes at Crown Jewel, but the biggest on the Raw side might be Sami Zayn stealing Damian Priest’s Money In The Bank briefcase before the cash-in could take place. Priest won’t be happy with that and we might have some fallout to deal with tonight. Let’s get to it.

Here is Crown Jewel if you need a recap.

Crown Jewel recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Seth Rollins to get things going. Rollins is very glad to still be the World Heavyweight Champion and he has some people to thank. First of all, he thanks Drew McIntyre for a great match and making him a bit better than he was before. McIntyre said that he was not in league with the Judgment Day and that was proven on Saturday. Other than that, Sami Zayn helped him cut off a cash-in attempt so if Sami is listening, get on out here.

Cue Sami, minus the briefcase, which Adam Pearce made him return. Rollins thinks he owes Sami something but Sami cuts him off, saying he was there to help prevent Judgment Day from becoming the Bloodline 2.0 because they hold all but one title around here (Gunther anyone?).

He will fight to prevent Judgment Day from taking over but Rollins says the reality is he runs Raw. Rollins appreciates that but he has gotten Sami a little thank you: a title shot anytime he wants. Sami says he wants to beat a champion at 100% but Rollins knows Sami isn’t at 100% either. Rollins tells him to just say when so let’s do it tonight. They shake hands and Rollins is in.

Judgment Day is NOT pleased.

New Day vs. Judgment Day

Non-title. Kofi jumps over Balor to start and sicks the landing on a monkey flip to up the early frustration levels. Everything breaks down and some stereo running flip dives take out Judgment Day in a big crash. Back in and Woods’ honor Roll gets two on Priest as we take a break. We come back with Woods hitting a missile dropkick and the double tag bringing in Kingston and Priest to pick up the pace. Everything breaks down and a superplex into a top rope elbow gets two on Balor with Priest making the save. Balor Sling Blades Woods and the South Of Heaven into the Coup de Grace finishes Woods at 9:10.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure why you would burn through a match like this on Raw as it could easily be a major pay per view title match. Like them or not, New Day is one of the most successful tag teams in WWE history and can still hang with anyone around here. That could have been a big match and probably will be again at some point, but this is a weird way to use the first match.

Earlier, Drew McIntyre arrived and left.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Akira Tozawa

Nakamura strikes away to start but goes up and gets super hurricanranaed back down. The top rope backsplash hits knees but Tozawa snaps off another hurricanrana. Then Kinshasa cuts Tozawa in half for the pin at 2:31.

Post match Otis gets in Nakamura’s face, sending Nakamura bailing.

Video on Natalya.

Adam Pearce hypes up tonight’s four way Intercontinental Title #1 contenders match between the Miz, Bronson Reed, Ivar and Ricochet.

Seth Rollins assures Adam Pearce that he is ready for Sami Zayn tonight.

Miz vs. Bronson Reed vs. Ivar vs. Ricochet

The winner gets an Intercontinental Title shot at Survivor Series. Miz and Ricochet dropkick the monsters to start until Ricochet flips away and dropkicks Miz to the floor. Ivar is back up with a spinning kick to Ricochet but Miz is back in to break it up. Ricochet is draped over the ropes as Reed uses it as a springboard, which is enough to launch Ricochet into a hurricanrana to send Ivar back outside. The monsters crush the other two on the floor and then slam into each other as we take a break.

Back with Reed crushing Ivar in the back and going up, only to have Miz and Ricochet powerbomb both of them down. Miz is back in with a springboard crossbody and spinning DDT to plant Reed for two. Ricochet drops Miz for two but it’s Ivar coming back in with a splash for the save. The monsters drop Ricochet and Miz again before going up (gulp). Ivar’s moonsault hits Ricochet but Miz avoids Reed’s Tsunami, allowing Ivar and Miz to get the double pin at 13:43.

Rating: B-. They didn’t hide the fact that Miz was the likely winner here and that is ok. There is something funny about Miz being able to turn it up like he did here, as he was moving and working harder than usual. While I can’t imagine Miz taking the title from Gunther, he is a fresh challenger with a history of winning matches no one would expect him to win before.

Apparently Ricochet kicked out in time so only Miz wins and gets the title shot. Ivar drops Miz and gives him the moonsault anyway.

The Alpha Academy give Akira Tozawa a pep talk before his NXT Heritage Cup shot tomorrow. They’ll even be there live! Maxxine Dupri comes in and she’s ready to become #1 contender as well.

We look back at the Creed Brothers’ debut last week.

The Creeds and Ivy Nile officially signed with Raw earlier today when DIY came in to set up their match tonight.

Creed Brothers vs. DIY

Julius wrestles Ciampa down to start but Gargano comes in off a blind tag to double team Julius and take over. The Creeds are sent outside where they cut off stereo dives. DIY slips out of the counters but get dropped again as we take a break. Back with Ciampa cleaning house, setting up running kicks to the head in the corner.

Brutus Samoan drops Gargano so Julius can hit a standing shooting star, followed by Brutus’ standing moonsault for two. Gargano fights his way out of trouble and brings Ciampa back in to pick up the pace. Brutus breaks up Meet In The Middle though and cue Ludvig Kaiser to deck Gargano, allowing the Brutus Ball to connect for the pin at 9:39.

Rating: B. It might not have been quite as good as last week’s match against Alpha Academy but the Creeds seem to have proven themselves in two matches. DIY being kept somewhat protected is a good thing as well and now I’m curious to see where they go. While Judgment Day is tied up with the main event scene, if the Creeds run through another team or two, there won’t be anything left for them but going after the titles.

We look at Sami Zayn getting a title shot against Roman Reigns at Elimination Chamber in Montreal earlier this year. Jey Uso cost him the match and Zayn wasn’t happy.

Jey comes in to see Sami and apologizes for what happened at Elimination Chamber. Sami says that was then and this is now so Jey gives him a pep talk. As for Jey, he and Cody Rhodes have a Tag Team Title shot next week.

Becky Lynch is ready to fight anyone at Survivor Series after she wins the #1 contenders battle royal tonight. Nia Jax comes in to say no one is throwing her out tonight, which will make her as happy as she has been since she broke Lynch’s face. Lynch laughs that off and says that after that, she went on to headline Wrestlemania while Jax got fired.

Chelsea Green, Piper Niven, Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark seem ready to win the battle royal.

Battle Royal

Nia Jax, Becky Lynch, Piper Niven, Chelsea Green, Shayna Baszler, Becky Lynch, Kayden Carter, Katana Chance, Natalya, Indi Hartwell, Nikki Cross, Zoey Stark, Ivy Nile, Tegan Nox, Raquel Rodriguez, Maxxine Dupri

Hold on though as Xia Li comes in to jump Lynch during her entrance, meaning Li isn’t going to be allowed to compete. After a break, Becky is out as well due to having no memory of what happened. Cross stands in the middle of the ring again as the bell rings, meaning she is tossed pretty quickly. Everyone else fights on the floor as Cross keeps blankly staring. Nox and Maxxine get together and dump Niven but the distraction lets Nia get rid of Maxxine.

Carter and Chance start double teaming Nia but can’t get her out so they switch to Rodriguez instead. That’s broken up as well so Carter, Nile and Chance all go to the apron, with Nile getting rid of both of them. We take a break and come back with Rodriguez and Natalya being sent to the apron but Green can’t get in a double noggin knocker. Instead Green and Natalya switch places, leaving Green to slap both of them. Rodriguez puts Green out and Natalya does the same to Hartwell. Nile dropkicks Natalya out as her nice debut continues. Jax is back in to run a bunch of people over and Nox is out.

Everyone gets together and goes after Jax for the big elimination (and a ROAR from the crowd). We’re down to Stark, Nile, Baszler and Rodriguez…but Jax pulls Nile out to blow off some steam. Baszler and Stark get rid of Rodriguez, leaving them to fight on the apron. The Kirifuda Clutch goes on but Baszler lets go before Stark can flip her to the floor. That leaves Stark to hit a DDT and knock Baszler out for the win at 15:57.

Rating: C. This went long but the relief when Jax was eliminated helped quite a bit. Stark getting a singles match is a fresh way to go and I could go for seeing what she can do in the spot. Other than that, Nile had a very nice debut and seems to be someone WWE wants to push. They could have cut the time down a bit here but what matters the most is getting Ripley a challenger and that was well covered.

Rhea Ripley is ready to face Zoey Stark at Survivor Series but Stark comes in to say she had Rhea beaten at Crown Jewel. Ripley hasn’t forgotten about her and says that while Zoey couldn’t beat one person, Ripley beat four at once.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

We look at John Cena getting beaten by Solo Sikoa and teasing retirement after.

Raw World Title: Sami Zayn vs. Seth Rollins

Zayn is challenging. Feeling out process to start before they go with the grappling. Zayn teases a shot to Rollins’ bad back but just taps it instead to play some mind games. Rollins is sent outside but avoids the dive, leaving them to go toe to toe. We take a break and come back with Rolling chopping away until Zayn hits a middle rope elbow for two.

Rollins fights up again and knocks him outside for a suicide dive. Back in and Rollins fires away with some running forearms in the corner, followed by a Swanton into a Lionsault for two. They head to the apron where Zayn can’t hit a Blue Thunder Bomb, but he can hit a backdrop to send Rollins crashing to the floor.

We take another break and come back again with the Stomp being countered into a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Zayn suplexes him into the corner but the Helluva Kick is countered into a Pedigree for two more. The Stomp is countered into a Liontamer of all things, followed by a regular Boston crab. That’s reversed as well and Rollins small packages him to retain at 20:20.

Rating: B. This was a rather good V main event and they even got in a few teases of a title change. Zayn coming after the title is certainly interesting and seeing him going on a long road to FINALLY winning a World Title could make for a heck of a story. Rollins moving forward to whomever is next is a good way to go, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see the two of them involved in WarGames, likely against Judgment Day.

Post match Judgment Day runs in to jump Zayn from behind and Rollins takes a beating of his own. Jey Uso runs in for the save but gets beaten down as well until Cody Rhodes makes the save. Referees and Adam Pearce come in to break it up, with Pearce saying they can play games if they want. IN WARGAMES! The brawl is on again and Rhodes jumps onto the pile to put Judgment Day down to end the show. They didn’t have much time to set up Survivor Series but this is the match that has been all but ready for months now anyway.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a heck of a show with one good match after another. They covered a bunch of stuff for Survivor Series, with two title matches plus WarGames being set. Raw has to do a lot of things to keep interest going for three hours but they pulled it off here. Pretty awesome show this week and if they can keep up that momentum going into Survivor Series, we could be in for an outstanding show.

Results
Judgment Day b. New Day – Coup de Grace to Woods
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Akira Tozawa – Kinshasa
Miz b. Bronson Reed, Ivar and Ricochet – Rollup to Reed
Creed Brothers b. DIY – Brutus Ball to Gargano
Zoey Stark won a battle royal last eliminating Shayna Baszler
Seth Rollins b. Sami Zayn – Small package

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

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

AND

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

Survivor Series 2002
Date: November 17, 2002
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 17,930
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz

Dudley Boyz/Jeff Hardy vs. Rico/3 Minute Warning

Stacy Keibler introduces Saliva to perform Always live at the World. At least we get some highlights for the show as a bonus.

Cruiserweight Title: Billy Kidman vs. Jamie Noble

Back in and Noble reverses a backslide into the tiger bomb for two but makes the mistake of putting Kidman on the top. A good looking super DDT plants Noble but since DDTs mean nothing, Jamie is right back up for a hanging DDT off the top for his own near fall. An enziguri drops Noble again and, after a failed Nidia distraction, the shooting star gives us a new champion.

Victoria is getting ready but apparently her mirror thinks Trish Stratus is prettier.

We recap Victoria vs. Trish. Victoria claims that Trish slept her way into a job after WWE wanted to sign both of them. Now Victoria is here to get revenge on her former friend. The music sounds like the shower scene from Psycho for a nice touch.

Smackdown World Title: Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

Heyman and Show run to the parking lot and drive away.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Chris Benoit/Kurt Angle vs. Los Guerreros vs. Edge/Rey Mysterio

Eddie gives Edge the frog splash but Benoit breaks it up with a Swan Dive for no apparent reason. Angle comes back in with the ankle lock on Eddie while Benoit Crossfaces Edge, only to have Chavo save Edge with the title. Kurt picks up the title so Benoit thinks it was him, leaving Edge to spear Benoit for the first elimination. That leaves us with two but Benoit and Angle wreck everyone before heading to the back. What poor sportsmanship.

Shawn Michaels is ready to talk about why he believes he can win but RNN BREAKING NEWS tells us that Randy came here to watch. Luckily a sexy flight attendant gave him an extra pillow so there was no further damage to his shoulder.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Booker T. vs. Kane vs. Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Rob Van Dam

Ratings Comparison

Dudley Boyz/Jeff Hardy vs. Rico/3 Minute Warning

Original: B

2012 Redo: B-

2017 Redo: C+

Billy Kidman vs. Jamie Noble

Original: C+

2012 Redo: B-

2017 Redo: C+

Victoria vs. Trish Stratus

Original: C-

2012 Redo: B

2017 Redo: B-

Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: D-

2012 Redo: D+

2017 Redo: C-

Los Guerreros vs. Kurt Angle/Chris Benoit vs. Edge/Rey Mysterio

Original: B

2012 Redo: B+

2017 Redo: B

Shawn Michaels vs. HHH vs. Booker T vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Kane vs. Chris Jericho

Original: B

2012 Redo: D+

2017 Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: B-

2012 Redo: C+

2017 Redo: C+

I must have been in a REALLY bad mood when I watched the main event for the second time.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/02/20/survivor-series-2002-the-longest-rant-about-anything-ive-ever-done/

And the 2012 Redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2015/11/10/survivor-series-count-up-2002/

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

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

AND

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

Crown Jewel 2023
Date: November 4, 2023
Location: Mohammed Abdu Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

WWE is back in Saudi Arabia for another pretty strong looking show. The main event will see LA Knight challenging Roman Reigns for the Smackdown World Title in a match that could see quite the set of fireworks. Other than that, Seth Rollins is defending the Raw World Title against Drew McIntyre and a good bit more. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Sami Zayn vs. JD McDonagh

They start slowly and fight over arm control, with the fans rather behind Zayn. An armdrag into an armbar has McDonagh in trouble and Zayn sends him into the corner a few times. McDonagh gets in a shot of his own to take over for a bit, only to have Zayn chop away in the corner.

Some choking has Zayn down again and a Spanish Fly gets two. McDonagh’s moonsault hits raised boots though and Zayn suplexes him into the corner (as there is a nasty bruise on McDonagh’s side). The Helluva Kick into the Blue Thunder Bomb finishes McDonagh off at 9:45.

Rating: C. This could have been on any given Raw and it would have been about the same. Zayn winning is going to get the fans off on the right foot and that should make for a good start to the show. If nothing else it was a bit of a twist to have it be the Kick into the Blue Thunder Bomb so they even shook it up a little.

The opening video looks at Riyadh and some of the bigger matches on the show.

We recap Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins for the Raw World Title. McIntyre is mad that he never got his big moment in front of the fans because of the pandemic but Rollins has told him to get over it. Now McIntyre wants his moment here instead.

Raw World Title: Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre

Rollins is defending. Feeling out process to start with the bigger McIntyre hitting some running shoulders. A snap suplex gives McIntyre one but Rollins knocks him to the floor for the dive….which is countered into a belly to belly onto the floor. Back in and Rollins’ bad back is whipped hard into the corner as McIntyre has a target. They chop it out until McIntyre kicks him down for two.

Rollins manages some kicks of his own, including an enziguri to stagger McIntyre. A knee to the face sets up a springboard Swanton and a Lionsault for two on McIntyre as Rollins mixes it up a bit. The Falcon Arrow gives Rollins two more, followed by the superplex but McIntyre grabs a brainbuster for two of his own. The Futureshock gives McIntyre two more and frustration is setting in.

Rollins plays a bit of possum and clotheslines McIntyre to the floor, setting up the suicide dive. McIntyre is fine enough to send him back first into the steps though and a side slam on the apron makes Rollins’ back far worse. Back in and a desperation Pedigree gives Rollins two but McIntyre kicks him down again. The Claymore is loaded up but Rollins reverses into the Stomp for a rather near fall. Rollins misses the Phoenix splash though and the Claymore gets two more. McIntyre loads up something else but Rollins reverses into a Pedigree and the Stomp retains at 19:25.

Rating: B. Good opening match here and it felt like an important title match, though they never quite hit that higher gear. What mattered here was getting McIntyre cleared out, though it would not surprise me to see him getting a rematch, likely at Survivor Series. He lost here however, and it came after a strong showing from both guys.

Post match Rollins celebrates….and here is Damian Priest to cash in. Before he can do that though, Sami Zayn pops in and takes the briefcase, meaning no cash-in.

In the back, Rhea Ripley gives Drew McIntyre an “I told you so” look.

We recap the Raw Women’s Title match, which is a five way hoss battle for Rhea Ripley’s title.

Raw Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Nia Jax vs. Shayna Baszler vs. Zoey Stark vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Ripley is defending and gets a very long entrance, with about twenty men carrying cups and making a mini tunnel for her. Jax bails to the floor so the others can trade shots to the head inside. Rodriguez gets taken down on the floor and Ripley’s dive onto Jax is broken up. Back in and Rodriguez gets two clean house but Ripley and Jax are back in for a fight of their own.

Jax crushes Ripley for two as Stark makes the save, only to get Pounced by Rodriguez. Back up and Baszler gets a hold on everyone but Stark, who has to make the save. Stark goes up top but gets caught in a Tower of Doom, leaving everyone but Jax down. That doesn’t last long as Jax is knocked down too, leaving Ripley and Rodriguez to kick each other down for another breather.

Stark is up with a springboard dive onto everyone but Jax on the floor. Back up and Jax runs some people over until an impressive Tejana Bomb puts her down, leaving Ripley to make the save. Riptide hits Baszler so Stark makes the save this time. With that not working, Rodriguez goes after Baszler but Ripley Riptides Stark onto both of them and pins Baszler to retain at 11:05.

Rating: B-. It was the hoss fight but there is only so much you can do with that many people in there. Instead of letting us have a showdown between two, or even three, of them it turned into the usual “these people fight and then someone else breaks up a pin” sequence over and over. Ripley winning is the right call, though I could go or her defending the title against some of these people one on one.

Video on Saudi Arabia, with everyone talking about how absolutely amazing the place is.

We recap John Cena vs. Solo Sikoa. Cena hasn’t won a televised singles match in over five years and is starting to doubt himself. Now he needs to prove he still has it.

John Cena vs. Solo Sikoa

Cena goes after the arm and hand to start, with commentary pointing out that he’s weakening the Spike hand. The hand is sent into the steps but Sikoa headbutts him right back down. A Banzai Drop hits Cena but it’s way too early for the Samoan Spike. Sikoa crushes him in the corner but Cena is right back with a crossface (not the STF Cole). That’s broken up and Sikoa hits a belly to belly for two.

Cena grabs a quick Protobomb but the AA is countered into a Samoan drop. Sikoa takes a bit too much time though and Cena gets up top for a high crossbody and a near fall of his own. A chokeslam of all things gives Cena two but Sikoa is back with Spinning Solo for two. Cena counters the Spike into the STF, sending Sikoa over to the ropes. Back up and Sikoa hits three straight Samoan Spikes but for some reason Sikoa won’t cover. The fourth Spike finishes Cena at 16:15.

Rating: B-. I said in my preview for the match that there was an interesting story to be told with Cena losing but I didn’t think they would go through with it. Cena losing his confidence and thinking that his time is up could lead to quite the story if he is gearing up for retirement, but now there are a few different ways to go from here. This also makes Sikoa look huge and I’m curious to see where this goes. Good ending here, even if the match was only pretty good for the most part.

Post match Cena gets the big respect moment and walks up the ramp rather slowly.

Here’s the Miz for an unadvertised MizTV. Miz wastes no time in bringing out Saudi Arabian actor Ibrahim Al Hajjaj. They exchange pleasantries but before they can get very far, Grayson Waller interrupts. Waller has his people take over and turn it into the Grayson Waller Effect but Al Hajjaj says he can talk to both of them. For now though, he’s here to be on the hottest talk show in WWE: MizTV. Waller doesn’t like that so a fight is teased but Miz makes the save, including an assist from Al Hajjaj. We’re not done as Al Hajjaj adds in a People’s Elbow. Nothing wrong with a quick segment for the live crowd.

We recap Logan Paul challenging Rey Mysterio for the US Title, which isn’t much of a story. Paul challenged Mysterio for the title and Mysterio accepted, with Paul jumping him backstage after the match was made.

Earlier today, Paul drove a fast vehicle of some kind around the desert.

US Title: Logan Paul vs. Rey Mysterio

Paul is challenging and drives said vehicle into the arena. Rey can’t do much with the power game to start and then cranks on the arm. Back up and Rey takes him down with Paul bailing out to the floor. The headscissors sends Paul into 619 position but he sends Rey to the apron instead. A Death Valley Driver into the corner sets up a Lionsault for two on Rey and Paul hammers on the ribs in the corner.

The waistlock stays on the ribs so Rey gets creative by stomping on the foot. Paul grabs a gorilla press drop into a Warrior Splash for two. The bearhug into an over the shoulder backbreaker has Rey in more trouble but he armdrags Paul into the post. A high crossbody gives Rey two but Paul is back up with a slingshot Swanton for two. Rey shrugs if off and pulls him into a crossface, sending Paul crawling over to the ropes.

A springboard moonsault is loaded up but Paul has to catch Rey before he spikes his head on the mat. They go up, where Paul hits a flipping fall away slam for two in a heck of a crash. Rey tries a 619 but Paul pulls him out of the air and takes them up top. A super electric chair is countered into a superbomb, followed by a Code Red to give Rey two. Cue a member of Paul’s entourage to give Paul some brass knuckles but Rey breaks it up. Santos Escobar comes out to take care of the goon but Paul knocks Rey cold with the knuckles for the pin and the title at 17:53.

Rating: B. That’s exactly what it should have been and the ending fit perfectly. There was no reason to keep the title on Rey and Paul has needed to win something for a bit now. There will be a long list of people coming after Paul and he’ll bring some extra eyes to the title. As usual, the match was pretty strong and I’ll take that combined with the right result any day.

Post match Paul praises Rey, who says he knows what Paul did.

Bianca Belair says beating Bayley last night was phase one. Tonight it’s phase two, where she gets the Women’s Title back.

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

Sky is defending after cashing in Money In The Bank at Summerslam to take the title from Belair. Sky gets taken down to start and a delayed vertical suplex makes it worse. Some shots to the knee slow Belair down and a jumping stomp to the ribs gets two. Sky misses a top rope backsplash though and Belair sends her flying with a fall away slam.

Belair goes up but gets pulled down into the Tree of Woe to stay on the leg. The knee is fine enough to snap off a release German suplex. Belair wins a slugout but Sky rolls her up out of a Glam Slam attempt. Sky’s running hurricanrana is countered into a powerbomb faceplant before Belair uses the hair to pull her into the post.

Cue Bayley for a distraction though and Belair crashes off the top. Belair falls out to the floor and there’s a moonsault to knock her silly again. Back in and Belair gets in a knockdown of her own, only to miss a handspring moonsault. Belair fights up again and gets a rollup but Bayley distracts the referee. That earns Bayley a dive from Belair, leaving the referee to check on a downed Sky. Cue the returning Kairi Sane to jump Belair, allowing Sky to hit Over The Moonsault and retain at 16:36.

Rating: B-. This went a bit long though the Sane surprise at the end did help. Sky needed to get a more traditional win over Belair after the cash-in but this wasn’t clean either. The other problem is this just didn’t feel like a big match. Maybe it’s having Charlotte always looming over everything or Ripley being one of the biggest stars in WWE but this didn’t come off like a major title match. They got the result right though and that’s what matters most.

Post match the beatdown is on as Bayley seems rather confused by the whole thing.

We recap Cody Rhodes vs. Damian Priest, which is another part of the Raw Friends vs. Judgment Day. Their teams have traded the Tag Team Titles but now it’s a singles match.

Cody Rhodes vs. Damian Priest

Cody’s ankle is still a bit banged up following a recent attack. Priest jumps him before the bell but gets knocked outside rather quickly. Back in and Cody slugs away but he ankle gives out, allowing Priest to drop him. Cody fights back up and they go outside, where Priest is sent into the steps a few times.

A hard clothesline puts Cody down though and the Reckoning onto the announcers’ table drops him again. Back in and Cody counters another Reckoning into the Cross Rhodes but cue Finn Balor for a distraction. JD McDonagh comes out as well, allowing Priest to hit South Of Heaven for two.

Dominik Mysterio, with a chair, comes out but here is Jey Uso to clear things out. Cody hits a Flip Flop and Fly into the Bionic Elbow but the Cross Rhodes is broken up. A superkick knocks Priest out of the air though and the Cody Cutter gets two. Priest tries to fight up but gets Cross Rhodesed for the pin at 11:00.

Rating: B-. Pretty much the same thing again here, as we had a match that could have been a solid Raw main event and was good enough here. They seem to be heading towards building Cody up for Wrestlemania again and I can go with him beating Priest on the way there. If nothing else, it was kind of nice to just have a grudge match rather than something for a title for a change here as you don’t get that very often.

Some WWE people met some Saudi children. Nothing wrong with that.

We recap Roman Reigns vs. LA Knight. Reigns has been Universal Champion for over three years and is running out of challengers. Knight is on the roll of a lifetime though and is getting the biggest match of his career.

WWE Universal Title: LA Knight vs. Roman Reigns

Knight is challenging and starts fast with a neckbreaker. Reigns is knocked to the apron and an elbow to the chest sends him outside. There’s a clothesline to the floor but Reigns slugs away back inside and grabs a cravate to slow things down (as we get what sounds like a one person CM PUNK chant). Reigns knocks him into the corner but charges into a boot, setting up a middle rope bulldog for a double knockdown.

A Russian legsweep into a DDT gets two but Reigns is back with something close to a release Rock Bottom for the same. Back up and the Superman Punch is countered into the torture rack neckbreaker. The LA Elbow is cut off with a Superman Punch and they’re both down for a needed breather. Knight leapfrogs over the spear though and Reigns crashes hard into the buckle.

Reigns headbutts his way out of a superplex attempt but Knight jumps back up for the top rope superplex. Now the LA Elbow can connect but cue Jimmy Uso to pull Reigns outside. The distraction lets Reigns hit a Superman Punch and the spear gets two. We hit the front facelock but Knight fights up and drives him into the corner. BFT connects out of nowhere but Jimmy puts the foot on the rope.

Knight goes after Uso on the floor and sends him into the announcers’ table over and over. Reigns comes outside and gets sent into it as well, followed by Uso being sent through said table. Back up and Reigns spears Knight through the barricade, followed by another spear for the pin to retain at 20:04.

Rating: B. That’s a Roman Reigns title match all right and we’ll probably see him in January for the Rumble. I’m not sure what is next for him, but these title matches, while good, are getting repetitive. As for Knight, he did hang in there with Reigns but at the end of the day it’s interference and a spear to put him down. That doesn’t so much make him look special as much as it makes him look like everyone else who has fallen to Reigns and that’s not a good thing.

Overall Rating: B. This was a good show overall with nothing really bad, but there is nothing you need to go out of your way to see. The problem comes down to it being right before Survivor Series and then the Royal Rumble, which doesn’t leave a lot of room for this show to matter. This show was setting the table for the big stuff down the road and while it was good, Paul winning the US Title is pretty much the only significant moment. Check it out if you have the time, but it’s not required viewing.

Results
Sami Zayn b. JD McDonagh – Blue Thunder Bomb
Seth Rollins b. Drew McIntyre – Stomp
Rhea Ripley b. Shayna Baszler, Zoey Stark, Raquel Rodriguez and Nia Jax – Riptide onto Baszler
Solo Sikoa b. John Cena – Samoan Spike
Logan Paul b. Rey Mysterio – Right hand with brass knuckles
Iyo Sky b. Bianca Belair – Over The Moonsault
Cody Rhodes b. Damian Priest – Cross Rhodes
Roman Reigns b. LA Knight – Spear

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