Raw
Raw Results
- The Bloodline w/ Paul Heyman def The New Day – ***
- Doudrop def Eva Marie – *
- Randy Orton w/ Riddle def AJ Styles w/ Omos – ***¼
- Shayna Baszler def Nia Jax – *½
- Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo def Mansoor & Mustafa Ali – **¼
- Rhea Ripley & Nikki A.S.H. def Natalya & Tamina (WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship) – **¼
- Jeff Hardy def Sheamus – **¾
- Roman Reigns w/ Paul Heyman def Bobby Lashley & Big E – ***¾
We open this week’s show with the New Day coming out to the ring to celebrate Big E’s big WWE Championship. Big E thanks everyone below the heavens and one great friend above the heavens and this gets a Brodie chant from the crowd. Big E then says they are going to have to cut the celebration short as they have some business to take care of with The Bloodline. Big E says Raw is now their show and they are going to send The Bloodline packing back to SmackDown. The Bloodline comes out and we get a staredown between the two trios as this match is surprisingly going to take place right after the commercial break.
The New Day and The Bloodline are having a really good match when Bobby Lashley storms out and take out everyone except for Reigns and Xavier Woods but all of this distracts Xavier Woods and allows Reigns to hit him with the Spear to pick up the win. After the match, Lashley hits a Spear on Reigns in the ring and then Spears Big E through the barricade. We see Lashley, Big E, and Paul Heyman all go into the office of Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville separately and this results in a triple threat match being made for the main event of the show.
Roman Reigns, Bobby Lashley, and Big E have one hell of a triple threat match in the main event that got a lot of time and has a lot of twists and turns as it looked like all three men were going to win at different points in the match, but in the end “The Tribal Chief” came out victorious after he hit a Spear on Lashley. I get wanting to keep Reigns strong but this match really should’ve been Big E’s to win if they want him to be the top guy on Raw as he came out of his first episode of Raw with two losses both to Reigns. Why should anyone care about Big E being the top guy on Raw when he can’t even pick up a win on his first night as WWE Champion. WWE did a good thing by putting the title on him even if it was a reactionary move but now they need to capitalize on it by booking him strong just like they did with Lashley. I fully expect a Lashley vs Big E match to be made sometime this week for this Sunday’s Extreme Rules show.
We then go to our second straight Eva Marie vs Doudrop and this one ends with Eva getting beat just like last week, but before the match happened this week we had Eva get on the mic and she fat shames Doudrop which was not needed and felt gross, but given this is WWE I wouldn’t expect any less as her saying that is probably Vince and company’s true thoughts about Doudrop. I feel bad for Eva Marie the person that her character had to fat shame someone because I know she is not like that in real life and with all the hate she already gets I can only imagine how much this added to it. I feel bad for both women that those in charge chose to take the low road on a feud that is at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to importance.
We get a really good match between Randy Orton and AJ Styles which is no surprise as they always have really good matches, Orton ends up picking up the win with an RKO. I guess with MVP out of action right now we are going back to the RK-Bro vs Styles and Omos feud seeing as there are no other heel teams on the show ready to compete for the tag titles.
After a video package showing why they split up, we get our Nia Jax vs Shayna Baszler and this one doesn’t last long as Shayna ends up choking out Nia despite her trying to escape the hold. After the match, Shayna continues the attack on Nia as she puts Nia’s arm in the arm hole that is in the steps and then stomps on it, but that isn’t enough for Shayna as she places Nia’s arm on the top of the steps and after taking a minute to contemplate what she was fixing to do she stomps on the arm. Nia starts shrieking at the top of her lungs to really sell the arm being injured. As Shayna goes to walk off she still looks unsure if what she just did was the right thing to do as there is no smile on her face like we have seen in the past when she would do such a heinous act to her opponent. I really hope this is the start of badass and remorseless Shayna returning as that Shayna has been missing for way too long and its time she comes back as we need some new names in the title picture and she should be a frontrunner to challenge for the title.
We go to a tag match where Mansoor and Mustafa Ali take on the newest tag team on Raw Angel Garza and Humberto Carrillo who they finally decided to put together after having them feud for what seemed like forever. This move to make them a tag team should’ve come a lot sooner as it makes complete sense to pair them together since they are family and if given a chance they could be a great addition to the tag division on either Raw or SmackDown. Garza and Carrillo end up getting the win with a combination move of a Muta Lock and a dropkick to the face.
We get a quick Karrion Kross video package since he won’t actually be on the show tonight.
Rhea Ripley and Nikki A.S.H. come out ahead of their tag title match to promote Connor’s Cure and this was a very emotional moment as Rhea got very choked up when delivering her lines to the point where she forgot what she was supposed to say. Nikki and Rhea dedicate their tag match to all of the kids who are currently dealing with or have beaten cancer as well as those who have donated to Connor’s Cure. We get a pretty quick match that sees Rhea take out Tamina with a Riptide on the apron and then Nikki counters a Sharpshooter attempt into a small package that picks up the win and we have new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. I am glad to finally see those titles change hands as it was time and I hope now that we have new champions we can finally see Nox and Shotzi get their earned shot at the titles.
We get some fun with our 24/7 goobers as this week Draka Maverick has come up with a plan to drop a net onto Reginald, but of course, with all of the idiots he surrounds himself with the plan ends up being a failure as Drew Gulak is caught in the net and Reggie gets away once again.
We get a match between Jeff Hardy and Sheamus where if Hardy wins the US Championship match at Extreme Rules will become a triple threat match which of course means that Hardy won as he countered a White Noise into a rollup for a surprise 3 count. After the match, Sheamus and Priest brawl around ringside until they are broken apart. It’s pretty crazy that Hardy has been put in the US Championship picture just a couple of weeks after going after the 24/7 title, but I am looking forward to this match as it could be a dark horse for best match of the night.
It’s now time for Alexa’s Playground with her special guest Charlotte Flair and when Charlotte enters the ring Alexa asks her to take a seat on the rocking horse but Charlotte would rather stand. Alexa then asks about Charlie after noticing she is missing and then Alexa brings Charlie out from behind the slide. Charlotte starts getting frustrated as she wants to face the old Alexa who used to be a fierce competitor and then talks about how Alexa may be able to fool everyone else, but she knows that all of these dolls, dresses, playgrounds, etc is just a way to hide how delicate and broken Alexa is. Charlotte says that Alexa used to walk to the ring with championships in her arms but now all she has is a doll and what’s worse is that the doll is more popular than Alexa is.
Charlotte can’t understand how she went from wrestling in the main event of WrestleMania 35 to now playing with dolls. Charlotte says she is the real deal as she has beaten everyone on Raw and now she is going to be a grown-ass woman who dresses like a child, Charlotte says she is going to make it her mission to knock some sense back into Alexa. Alexa then says that Charlotte may have won more titles than any other woman, but that means she has lost more titles as well, and then Alexa questions who Charlotte Flair even is without a championship. Alexa then says that Charlotte doesn’t even know who she is without a title because without a title Charlotte has nothing to brag about. Alexa says she doesn’t need to play mind games in order to expose Charlotte’s insecurities.
Alexa says she didn’t give Charlotte the doll for mind games she gave it to her as a pity gift because everyone deserves a friend and happiness, even a narcissistic bitch like Charlotte. As Charlotte lets out a Wooo Alexa says even that isn’t originally hers and Charlotte tells her not to even start on being original as she was eluding to Alexa basically taking over Bray Wyatt’s gimmick. Alexa says Charlotte can call her crazy or whatever she wants but at least she knows who she is and after Sunday Charlotte can call her champ. Charlotte piefaces Alexa and Alexa jumps on her but is thrown off and then Charlotte grabs Charlie and starts ripping it apart, but when she looks to be going for Lily Alexa jumps up and attacks Charlotte and she sends her rolling out of the ring after a DDT.
I was not expecting this segment to go as long as it did but I am not complaining at all as I thought this was very well done and I like how in the middle Alexa actually broke from the spooky character and cut into Charlotte as if she were the old Alexa which is what Charlotte wanted and was getting but didn’t even realize it as Alexa was talking. I hope I am right in saying that this could be a sneaky good match and hopefully Alexa can walk out with the gold by the end of the night.
One thing that did piss me off was the fact that Dave Meltzer tried to report that exactly 1,500 people left the building during this women’s segment (I guess his source was at the door counting heads), but Ringside News had people who were in the arena report to them that did not happen and if they did leave it was to go to the merch table and they came right back which completely contradicts what Meltzer reported. It also makes no sense to even say they left during this segment because the main event was still to come and I doubt people were going to leave before they saw the triple threat match. It’s one thing for fans to be on one company’s bandwagon and throw out false claims, but when the guy who is supposed to be the top source in wrestling journalism is on a bandwagon and is throwing out false claims just to disparage the other company that is just bad business and makes him no different than any cable news channel Things like this are why guys like Sean Ross Sapp and Andrew Zarian have become the go-to guys for reliable wrestling news as despite what some may think they put all companies on an equal playing field where Meltzer, as well as Alvarez, are clearly biased.
This week’s show was very enjoyable as it felt like the three hours went by pretty quick and outside of Eva Marie fat shaming there was nothing on the show that was bad or uninteresting as I thought they did a great job with the Big E vs Lashley vs Reigns match, I enjoyed the promo between Charlotte and Alexa, they did a really good job of reestablishing Shayna as a badass, and they gave us a feel-good moment with Nikki and Rhea finally winning the Women’s Tag Titles, so overall this episode of Raw gets a thumbs up from me.
NXT 2.0
NXT 2.0 Results
- Roderick Strong w/ The Diamond Mine def Kushida © (NXT Cruiserweight Championship) – ***¼
- Kay Lee Ray def Amari Miller – *¼
- Dante Chan def Trey Baxter – *¾
- Cameron Grimes def Joe Gacy – **½
- Elektra Lopez w/ Legado del Fantasma def Anna Scheer – *½
- Odyssey Jones def Cary Millman & Darren Chiapetta – *½
- Bron Breakker & Tommaso Ciampa def Pete Dunne & Ridge Holland – ***
After a recap of last week’s show, we go to the ring where many of the new young talents are standing and then we get the entrance of the new NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa. Ciampa gets on the mic and cuts a fiery promo on how everything he had to go through with his neck was worth it just to get Goldy back and then says that he will always be Mr. NXT. Ciampa says they may put a new coat of paint on NXT but the one thing that will never change is the passion of the talent and the fans of NXT. Ciampa says that with him holding the title and representing the brand NXT 2.0 will be the A show. Cameron Grimes & LA Knight come out wanting to stake their claim to become the first challenger to the NXT Championship but as they come out they get told off by the new guys.
Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland come out and Dunne tells the new guys they should make a name for themselves but as he looks around he sees a bunch of “geezers” too scared to throw a punch and this leads to Ciampa throwing the first punch and a giant brawl breaks out between everyone with more people from the locker room emptying out to join in on the fight. We cut to the back where some of the women are fighting as well and then we cut back to the ring where everyone has vanished except for Dunne, Holland, Ciampa, and Breakker. Ciampa and Breakker clear the ring and then challenge Dunne and Holland for a match later in the night and that match is indeed made for the main event of tonight’s show.
We then go to our first match of the night as Roderick Strong (along with the Diamond Mine) challenges Kushida for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship.
Kushida dodges a jumping knee and then we get both men jockeying for control and that leads to some action on the mat which Kushida escapes from, and then he takes Strong back down to the mat but can’t keep control as both try to continue to gain an advantage. Kushida finally catches Strong coming off the ropes with a hip toss into an armbar which he transitions into a hammerlock as he continues to twist the arm and then he falls back on it and this causes Strong to roll out of the ring for a breather.
We come back from a commercial to Strong trying for an Olympic slam but Kushida arm drags out of it and then Kushida catches Strong with a couple of Shoteis and then he sends Strong into the ropes where he catches him with a hip toss into a dropkick. Kushida hits Strong with the big wind-up punch and then tries for a running kick to the arm, but Strong is able to avoid it and hits Kushida with a big chop to the chest. Strong sets Kushida up on the top rope, but Kushida is able to grab the arm and takes Strong down with an arm breaker off the top and is then able to land the running kick he was looking for earlier. Strong is able to land a boot to the face and then he hits Kushida with a backbreaker and an Olympic slam for a 2 count.
Strong tries for his spot where he runs back and forth and hits his opponent with forearms, but Kushida lands a kick to the arm only for Strong to come back with several chops to the chest and a running forearm. Strong tries for his face-first slam but Kushida escapes with an arm drag and then locks in the Hoverboard Lock, but as the referee is looking to make sure Strong isn’t giving up we see Malcolm Bivens put Strong’s foot on the rope to force the break. Malcolm Bivens distracts the referee and The Creed Brothers pull Kushida out of the ring where Ivy Nile hits him with a Superman punch and then Julius Creed throws Kushida back in the ring where Strong hits a jumping knee strike followed by the End of Heartache and that is enough to pick up the win and we have a new NXT Cruiserweight Champion.
As the Diamond Mine are celebrating Roderick Strong’s win they are interrupted by Grayson Waller. Waller says that after last week when his buddy Drake Maverick go destroyed he realized that NXT 2.0 is a jungle but he was built to survive a jungle. Waller then challenges Strong to a match for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship for next week. Malcolm Bivens gets on the mic and he is not happy that their celebration was cut short and after talking it over with Strong they accept his challenge and next week they will show him why the Diamond Mine runs NXT 2.0.
We get another Tony D’Angelo promo and so far I am not that impressed or intrigued as to what this guy has in store as the whole Italian mobster gimmick feels about 10 years too late if not longer.
We then get a video where Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen tell us how they became friends after getting into a bar fight with each other and after the fight, they respected each other and decided to form a team and all of the other teams had better watch out. Brooks Jensen to me comes off as the personification of the good-looking guy that is in every small town in the country who ends up marrying the hottest cheerleader from his high school.
Our next match sees Kay Lee Ray taking on Amari Miller as they were two of the women fighting backstage earlier in the night.
When Amari came out she kept reaching out into the air and at first, I thought she was miming high-fiving the fans in the upper bleacher area around the entrance, but then I finally realize she is grabbing at bubbles which of course brings back memories of Emma and how WWE completely wasted a great talent.
Amari ducks a lockup attempt and fires away with forearms and a back elbow and then she pulls KLR in for a neckbreaker. KLR makes a comeback as she catches Amari coming off the ropes with a dropkick and then she hits her with a gourdbuster. KLR keeps beating Amari down until Amari hits a jawbreaker and then she goes for a spinning kick but KLR catches her and hits the Gory Bomb for the quick win.
We get an interview with Bron Breakker and Tommaso Ciampa ahead of their big match tonight and they seem to be on the same page.
We see Xyon Quinn escorting a couple of ladies into the building, but as he holds the door open a random guy tries to enter before the ladies which doesn’t sit well with Quinn as he beats him down before entering the building himself.
We then go to the debut match of WWE’s first wrestler from Singapore, Dante Chen and he is taking on Trey Baxter. Chen backs Baxter into the corner where we get a clean break, but Chen runs into a boot and Baxter hits him with a backbreaker and half-nelson suplex combo. Baxter goes up top only for Chen to grab his leg to stop him and then Baxter leaps over Chen and tries for a small package but Chen reverses and then powers Baxter up and hits a sitout jawbreaker for the very quick win. This was nothing more than a showcase for Chen. Later in the night, Baxter is down on his luck about losing his match but Cora Jade comes into the room, and apparently, they are a couple but whether this is a shoot couple or a kayfabe one I’m not sure. Cora cheers him up and gives him a kiss and then walks off. I have to say that Cora Jade is cute AF and is officially my favorite lady in this new NXT 2.0 class.
We get a vignette of Andre Chase teaching at Chase University where he talks about how Odyssey Jones choked in the finals of the Breakout Tournament, but then a student named Steve tried to be a smart ass as he reminds everyone that Chase lost in the first round of the Breakout Tournament to Odyssey Jones and this causes Mr. Chase to cuss out Steve and then he throws him out of the class. I agree completely that Steve was out of line and deserved what he got.
We get an in-ring promo from Joe Gacy where he talks about the ring being a safe space from the smallest microaggressions to the most heinous of grudges and he wants to resolve conflicts, but he won’t use his male privilege to get what he wants. Gacy wants to achieve unity and tolerance and he will show us peace in this safe space and he is going to start tonight. Gacy will be in action against Cameron Grimes and he is wrestling in a dress shirt and slacks.
Grimes tries to pick the leg but Gacy blocks it so Grimes takes him to the mat with a wristlock, Gacy backs Grimes into the ropes and tries for a cheap shot but Grimes ducks and then takes Gacy over with an arm drag and locks in an armbar. Gacy escapes the armbar and gets back to his feet. Grimes pushes Gacy into the ropes and rolls back into the center of the ring where he catches Gacy with a big kick to the chest. Gacy catches Grimes with a boot and sends him into the corner where he hits an avalanche and a spinning uranage, but Grimes hits a charging Gacy with a running forearm. Gacy ducks a clothesline and comes back with his own handspring clothesline for a very close 2 count. Grimes escapes a powerbomb attempt and lands a big kick to the head only for Gacy to come back with a bicycle kick of his own, but when Gacy runs off the ropes he is caught with the Cave In which is enough to get Grimes the win. After the match, Gacy hugs Grimes before walking away as Grimes looks on confused.
Of course, it should be no surprise that this company creates a heel character that is based on the current social justice movements going on because to them or to Vince in particular he views all of those people as “snowflakes” so it makes sense he would want to make light of the whole situation. I wouldn’t be surprised if next week they have Gacy come out and cut a promo making an overexaggerated attempt to try and get people to wear masks and get vaccinated. I wouldn’t be that surprised if this backfires on them and Gacy ends up getting cheered because his point of view is shared by more people in this country than you would think but Vince is too stubborn and closed-minded to realize that.
After a recap of the In-Dex wedding, we are told that next week we are getting footage from the honeymoon and this leads to Barret giving the line of the night which was “Thankfully Dexter learned some oral skills before the honeymoon” and the looks Beth and Vic give Barrett were great as well.
We get a video package for Von Wagner who says he is an unconventional man with unconventional methods.
Legado del Fantasma make their way to the ring as Elektra Lopez makes her in-ring debut against Anna Scheer.
Elektra takes it right to Anna with a kick to the gut and a big forearm before coming off the ropes with a couple of shoulder blocks. Elektra is in full control as she grabs Anna by the hair and starts talking trash to her before hitting her with a big slam. Anna tries to make a comeback at one point but Elektra catches her off a crossbody attempt and hits her with a swinging slam. Elektra hits a suplex and then rolls through to hit a modified Blue Thunder Bomb to pick up the win.
Santos Escobar gets on the mic and puts over Elektra saying she completes Legado del Fantasma and then he passes the mic to Elektra. Elektra says this was just a taste of what she has in store for B-Fab and the rest of the women in NXT 2.0. Elektra says that B-Fab is nothing but talk and if she has a problem with that she can get her ass out there. Hit Row comes out but it’s only the men of the group as B-Fab attacks Elektra from behind and they start brawling until their teammates break them apart.
Elektra Lopez is deceivingly powerful as she doesn’t come off that big when she is dressed in her trench coat and hat but once all of that is gone you see she is a big girl and I am already looking forward to the Elektra vs Raquel match down the road. I thought this squash was pretty impressive and I liked her modified Blue Thunder Bomb finisher as the Blue Thunder has been one of my favorite moves ever since I first saw it in WWF No Mercy. I’m not sure how this Elektra vs B-Fab match is going to look as B-Fab didn’t look that great in her debut match last week, but hopefully, Elektra can help her and they can have a good match.
We see Franky Monet and company run into Raquel Gonzalez in the hallway and Raquel lets her know they have a title match next week and Franky tells Raquel to enjoy
Odyssey Jones (who is back in his purple and orange High Energy gear) is in action next and he will be in a handicap against two unfortunate victims by the names of Cary Millman and Darren Chiapetta.
Both men get hyped up like they are really fixing to do something but when they try for a whip they get nowhere as he pulls them both in for a double shoulder block and then Jones is able to easily toss both men across the ring. Jones hits both men with splashes in the corner as Andre Chase makes his way down the aisle. Millman and Chiapetta get a couple of shots in until Jones pushes them away and takes them both down with a crossbody. Jones hits Chiapetta with a shoulder breaker but then Millman jumps on his back only for Jones to drive him into Chiapetta in the corner and then they fall out of the corner on top of each other, Jones goes up to the middle ropes and comes off with a frog splash and that gets him the win. After the match, Andre Chase tries to hit Jones with a chair but he catches it and the chair falls apart which causes Chase to retreat for fear of the same happening to him.
We go to the back where Grayson Waller is chatting with some friends when Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams walk up and they tell him that even if Waller wins the NXT Cruiserweight Championship Hayes could cash in and bring his title reign to a very quick end. Waller and friends walk off and then Mandy Rose, Gigi Dolin, & Jacy Jayne walk by, and both Hayes and Williams instantly get thirsty as Gigi rubs her black rose down the chest of Williams.
Mandy, Gigi, and Jacy who are now known as Toxic Attraction come to the ring for a promo. Mandy talks about how she came back to NXT to be our golden goddess but when her face was beaten up after that dropkick from Sarray none of the fans were there for her as they would rather mock her. Mandy says that Gigi and Jacy don’t give a damn what we think and they have shown her that there is a beast underneath all of her beauty and she is going to release that beast as Toxic Attraction are the future of the women’s division in NXT 2.0.
Gigi takes over and says that her aggression has always been fueled by the pain of her past and she knew if she and Jacy were able to pull that out of Mandy they would be unstoppable. Gigi says that chaos without a purpose is just an accident waiting to happen so Mandy’s situation has become their purpose and that is what will make them unbeatable and will lead them to the top. Jacy says they are more than just three more pretty faces in the crowd and they are not going to sit back and wait for their opportunity like everyone else they are going to take it and they want the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships.
We go backstage where the NXT Women’s Tag Team Champions are being interviewed and Io says she doesn’t like them so they can have a title match and when Zoey suggests that should’ve been a conversation between the two of them Io starts accusing her of being with them and liking them, so Zoey quickly agrees with Io about them getting a title shot. We then see Indi Hartwell’s friend Persia walk up and she tells the champs that once Indi gets back from her honeymoon they are coming for those titles as well. We later find out that next week the titles will be defended as Io and Zoey will face Gigi and Jacy of Toxic Attraction.
It’s time for the main event as Bron Breakker teams with Tommaso Ciampa to take on the team of Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland.
Dunne and Ciampa start out the match trading punches and then Dunne sent Ciampa into the ropes which leads to a dropdown and leapfrog spot that ends with Ciampa catching Dunne with a backslide roll through into an attempted Fairy Tale Ending only for Dunne to escape and take Ciampa to the mat but Ciampa kicks him off and then he takes Dunne down but gets kicked off as well, Ciampa ducks an enziguri and then Dunne avoids a running knee as Ciampa shows just how close he was. We get a tag on both sides as the big boys come in and Holland is in control at first as he hits Breakker with an uppercut and a shoulder block only for Breakker to come back with one of his own. Breaker rolls Holland across the ring and then slams him face-first to the mat a couple of times with ease and then he catches Dunne with a powerslam as he tries to leapfrog over him.
Holland tries to regain control but Breakker reverses a whip into the corner where he catches Holland with a clothesline and then makes the tag to Ciampa who also hits Holland with a clothesline in the corner. Breakker hits Holland with an inverted atomic drop and Ciampa follows up with a bulldog, Ciampa locks in a reverse chinlock only for Holland to fight out of it so Ciampa hits him with a big chop which knocks him back so that Dunne can make a blind tag. Holland hits Ciampa with a spinebuster and Dunne follows up with a basement dropkick to the back of the head. Dunne then goes to doing what he knows best which is working over the arm and fingers of Ciampa, Dunne drags Ciampa over to the corner where he tags in Holland and then Dunne knocks Breakker off the apron. Ciampa catches a charging Dunne and sends him into Holland who falls back out to the floor and then Ciampa slides to the outside to trip up Dunne and then he sends Holland into the steps and Dunne over the announce table. Ciampa is proud of himself as he pats himself on the back but then he gets hit with a tackle that sends him over the announce table.
After a commercial break, we come back to Dunne stomping on the arm of Ciampa but he comes back with kicks of his own from the mat causing Dunne to fall into a tag to Holland. Ciampa tries to reach out for a tag but Holland grabs him and hits a crossface punch and then tries for a suplex, but Ciampa reverses into one of his own and then is able to make the tag to Breakker as Holland makes a tag to Dunne. Breakker hits a couple of shoulder blocks on Dunne and then a flying shoulder block for Holland and then he hits both opponents with a side belly-to-belly suplex. Breakker pulls down his straps and locks Dunne in the Steiner Recliner (I can’t wait to see what WWE makes him change the name of the move to) but Dunne is able to grab his hand and he jams his fingers into the mat which makes Breakker release the hold and then Dunne hits Breakker with the bicep stomp. Dunne tags in Holland who lifts Breakker up and after a kick to the back of Breakker’s head Holland hits him with an Alabama slam which gets a 2 count when Ciampa breaks up the pin.
Ciampa and Dunne trade strikes in the middle of the ring until Ciampa lands a bicycle knee and a clothesline in the corner and then both men trade forearms until Ciampa lands a rolling forearm taking Dunne off his feet. Both Holland and Breakker hit their respective opponent with an overhead belly-to-belly suplex and then they trade blows but neither is giving any until they run off the ropes and both go down courtesy of a double clothesline. Dunne slides back in the ring with Holland’s baton but before he has a chance to use it Ciampa grabs it out of his hand and throws it back out of the ring only to turn around into an enziguri from Dunne which sends Ciampa back out to the floor. Breakker looks for a press slam on Dunne but as he has him lifted Holland hits him with a headbutt. Holland goes out and grabs the baton but before he can do anything Kyle O’Reilly appears and takes the baton and hits Holland with it and then throws him back in the ring. Ciampa connects with the Willow’s Bell and then Breakker hits Holland with the military press powerslam to pick up the win.
It’s amazing that a guy like Bron Breakker has only been wrestling for seven months and he is already as good as he is and it doesn’t seem like he is going to have to wait too long before he wins gold. It is clear WWE is high on him and I have no doubt he will be NXT Champion by this time next year, if not before then. I know that we all groaned when we were reading that WWE was going back to putting a heavy focus on the bigger guys, but this match is proof the bigger guys aren’t the slow and plodding type like we saw in the 80s and 90s as these guys can go in the ring and can put on matches just as good as guys half their size.
I thought this was another fun episode of NXT 2.0 as I was always looking forward to what was going to happen next as we have been introduced to so many new characters over the past couple of weeks so every segment felt new and refreshing. I was skeptical at first but so far I am ok with this new direction for NXT as we are getting a lot of new faces while also having the established talents there as the anchors of the brand. If they keep steady on this path then I am going to be completely fine with this version of NXT.
NXT UK
NXT UK Results
- Wolfgang w/ Gallus def Teoman w/ Rohan Raja (Heritage Cup Championship #1 Contender Tournament Semi-Final Match) – **¾
- Jinny w/ Joseph Conners def Isla Dawn – **
- A-Kid def Rampage Brown & Nathan Frazer (NXT Championship #1 Contender Match) – ***¾
Just like last week, we are kicking the show off with a semi-final match in the NXT Heritage Cup Championship #1 Contender Tournament as Wolfgang takes on Teoman.
Round 1: There was no feeling out period in this match as they start out trading strikes which Wolfgang gets the best of and once Teoman tries realizes this he tries to ground Wolfgang, but it doesn’t work out well as Wolfgang sends him hard into the corner and then hits him with a big crossbody in the corner. Rohan Raja distracts Wolfgang as he goes up top and as Wolfgang climbs back down to the mat he is met with a sliding dropkick to the knee which takes Wolfgang down to all fours and then Teoman hits him with a dropkick to the face. Teoman tries for a submission but Wolfgang powers out and hits Teoman with a backbreaker followed by a clothesline. Wolfgang hits Teoman with the bodyslam facebuster and that is enough to pick up the first fall for Wolfgang making the match 1-0.
Round 2: The second round starts just like the first one did with Teoman foolishly baiting Wolfgang into a battle of strikes and Wolfgang nails Teoman with several heavy forearms and when Teoman attacks him from behind he just shrugs it off and lights Teoman up with uppercuts. Teoman finally gets the advantage when he pulls down the top rope sending a charging Wolfgang out to the floor and it looks like he landed on the hurt arm which Teoman looks to work over but one punch from Wolfgang knocks Teoman back down and that allows Wolfgang to throw him back in the ring. Wolfgang backs Teoman into the ropes and clotheslines him right back out to the floor, Wolfgang goes to throw Teoman back in the ring but as he does this Teoman grabs the ring skirt and puts it over the head of Wolfgang to blind him as he nails him with some rapid-fire punches. Wolfgang is able to pull himself back in the ring at the last minute and as he gets back to his feet Teoman comes off the top with a missile dropkick to the back of the head for a 2 count. Wolfgang counters a crossface attempt into a pin which is unsuccessful but he does land one last uppercut as the round comes to an end.
Round 3: Teoman comes out of the gate with a running strike which Wolfgang dodges and then he hits Teoman with some punches but Teoman comes back with some overhand chops to the chest. Teoman tries for a leg pick but Wolfgang hits him with a clubbing blow to the back and then he shoves him into the ropes where he connects with a kitchen sink and a big senton splash. Rohan Raja jumps up on the apron for a distraction and Teoman takes Wolfgang down with a dropkick to the knee and a double stomp to the back. Teoman stomps the hands of Wolfgang and then hits his running forearm and that is all she wrote for this round as Teoman ties the score at 1-1.
Round 4: Teoman goes back to work on the arm only to be taken down with a clothesline, but Wolfgang is hurting bad and can’t follow up and as he grabs the top rope Teoman sees his opportunity and connects with a dropkick to the arm. Teoman tries to take Wolfgang down for a pin and at first, he can’t get him to move, but when Wolfgang tries to land a punch Teoman dodges causing Wolgang to hit the mat and that allows Teoman to take him down and he stacks Wolfgang up in a pin but is only able to get a 2 count. Teoman goes back to the arm as he wraps it up in the rope while he talks trash to the Coffey brothers at ringside, Teoman then tries for a big stomp on the arm but Wolfgang dodges and hits Teoman with an uppercut. Teoman staggers into the corner where Wolfgang hits him with the crossbody and then he comes off the top with an ax handle which didn’t feel good on the bad arm of Wolfgang.
Rohan Raja gets up on the apron yet again, but this time Gallus has had enough as Joe gets on the apron to distract Raja while Mark runs over and pulls Raja down and knocks him on his ass. Teoman is distracted by the happenings at ringside which leaves Wolfgang an opening as he hits Teoman with a punch which wasn’t a smart idea, but he then sends Teoman into the ropes and when he sees Teoman going for the handspring he runs off the opposite ropes and hits Teoman with the Spear and with that Wolfgang picks up the win and advances to the finals of the tournament where he will face Noam Dar.
I thought this was a good match with Wolfgang dominating for the majority of the match as Wolfgang’s power and heavy strikes won out over Teoman’s technical prowess on this occasion. It’s nice to see Wolfgang finally getting the spotlight as Joe Coffey has been the golden child of the Gallus trio since the beginning of NXT UK when Wolfgang is probably the best worker of the trio. Hopefully, Wolfgang can pull out another win when he faces Noam Dar as I’m sure a match between Wolfgang and Bate would be really great.
We get a video from earlier in the week where Blair Davenport once again threatens Sid Scala to reinstate her or else bad things are going to continue to happen.
We go to the UK PC where Subculture walks by Sam Gradwell and he starts laughing, they run over to see that he has spraypainted Yogurt over where they spraypainted Subculture on the wall.
We then see that Gallus are celebrating Wolfgang’s win in Jordan Devlin’s personal dressing room and they are even drinking his coffee (get it the Coffeys are drinking coffee) Devlin walks in and is pissed at what is happening, but they shove him back out to the hall and make faces at him through the little screen in the door like a bunch of teenagers and Devlin says he is going to tell Johnny Saint before he storms off.
It’s time for more action as NXT UK’s resident awkward creepy girl Isla Dawn is set to face “The Fashionista” Jinny.
Isla starts laughing at Jinny who fires off a couple of forearms before Isla comes back with some shots of her own as she takes Jinny down and starts stomping on the leg. Jinny is able to get back to her feet and she once again gets in a few forearms only for Isla to beat her down to the mat for a second time, Jinny is able to fight back as she ducks a clothesline and lands a knee to the gut. Isla reverses a whip into the corner but Jinny stops herself and catches a charging Isla with a back elbow and then stomps a mudhole into her. Jinny turns her focus to the referee for a moment and that allows Isla to switch things around as she beats Jinny down in the corner and then snapmares her into the center of the ring where she drives her forearm into the back of Jinny. Jinny shoves Isla into the ropes and Isla comes with a shoulder block but when she runs to the ropes Jinny catches her with a running back elbow for a 2 count.
Jinny hits some mounted punches and then bashes Isla’s head off the turnbuckle but Isla is able to reverse a whip into the corner and Jinny hits the buckle hard. Isla pulls Jinny up to her knees and looks for a big kick but Jinny ducks and then grabs a leg which she uses to make Isla fall face-first into her knee for a 2 count. Jinny looks to lock in an STF but Isla is able to get to the ropes before she can apply it. Isla pulls Jinny throat-first into the middle rope and then nails her with a running knee. Isla hits some kicks in the corner and then we get a fight on the apron which Jinny wins but then Isla sweeps her leg and then sends her into the barricade before she throws her back in the ring. Isla grabs the wrists of Joseph Conners and then does some Undertaker eye-rolling before going back into the ring where she kicks Jinny in the knee and then hits her with a Meteora for a 2 count. Isla goes up to the second rope and then gets distracted by Conners which allows Jinny to kick Isla’s leg causing her to be trapped and then she hits Isla with the Makeover for the win.
This was a fine match outside of Isla’s creepy cosplay acting toward the end of the match, but at least that ended up costing her the match.
We go back to the UK PC where we see Subculture who strangely look a lot happier than they did from when we last saw them, Andrews is putting over Dani Luna who is lifting weights. Xia Brookside walks over and challenges Dani to a match and she agrees to it.
We get a video from earlier in the week where Ashton Smith and Oliver Carter are arguing about whether the Book End or the Rock Bottom is a better move and Trent Seven says the Rock Bottom is better and then compares Moustache Mountain to Smith and Carter and this leads to Seven challenging Carter and Smith to a tag match next week and they of course accept.
It’s now time for the main event as Rampage Brown, A-Kid, and Nathan Frazer compete to see who will be the first to challenge Ilja Dragunov for the NXT UK Championship.
After circling the ring both Frazer and A-Kid go after Brown but he is able to fight them off and they go out to the floor. Both men get back in the ring and A-Kid is able to lock in an octopus hold on Brown while Frazer kicks him and then Frazer hits him with a shotgun dropkick sending him back into the corner and A-Kid follows with a running kick as well, Frazer and A-Kid hit a double dropkick which sends Brown out to the floor. A-Kid and Frazer then turn their attention to each other. Frazer ducks a kick and then A-Kid ducks a clothesline and springs off the ropes so he can take Frazer over with an arm drag and then tries for a dropkick, but Frazer dodges and then A-Kid reverses a whip into the corner but Frazer backflips off the top and after some more running the ropes and dodging each other Frazer takes A-Kid down with a dropkick and he rolls out of the ring.
Just as Frazer thinks he has a moment of peace he turns around and Brown is back in the ring, Brown flips Frazer and he lands on his feet and then Brown runs into a back elbow. Frazer keeps ducking clotheslines and then Brown hits him with a big backdrop, A-Kid gets on the apron and they have a staredown until A-Kid gets in the ring and tries for a jumping kick but Brown ducks, and then A-Kid fires away with kicks until he is caught and thrown into the corner where he dodges a charging Brown and lands another kick to the chest. Brown walks out of the corner where A-Kid slaps him and then A-Kid springs off the ropes with a dropkick to the knee. A-Kid and Frazer take turns kicking Brown in the chest and then A-Kid catches Frazer with a hopping punch.
Brown ducks a kick and then pounces A-Kid into the corner and then Frazer catches Brown with a dropkick to the knee only for Brown to get back to his feet and throw Frazer into the corner with A-Kid. Brown biels Frazer across the ring and then biels A-Kid into Frazer as he is in full control of the match. Brown hits a big uranage for a 2 count and then knocks A-Kid off the apron as he tries to get back into the ring. Brown sets Frazer up on the top and then climbs up looking for a fireman’s carry, but Frazer fights out and then A-Kid comes in and kicks the leg sending Brown crashing back down to the mat. Frazer then looks for a springboard but A-Kid catches him with a kick knocking him back down to the mat. A-Kid locks Brown in a triangle but Brown uses his power to lift A-Kid up and he powerbombs him onto Frazer.
Brown gets to his feet first and sets Frazer up for the Dr. Bomb but Frazer counters into the Eye of the Hurricane and then Frazer goes up top only to be cut off by A-Kid who goes for an avalanche German suplex but Frazer lands on his feet and then low bridges the top rope sending a charging A-Kid flying out to the floor. Frazer hits A-Kid with a tope suicida and then gets back in the ring where so he can hit Brown with a tope con hilo. Frazer stops a potential dive from A-Kid and then goes for the moonsault into the Eye of the Hurricane but Brown comes in so he changes up into an inverted DDT and normal DDT combo on both opponents and all three men are laid out on the mat. Frazer is up first as he delivers punches to both opponents but then he messes up when he tries to lift Brown as he gets hit with a headbutt and then Brown catches the foot of A-Kid and swings it around to kick Frazer, Brown then takes both opponents down with a double back suplex. Brown gets to his feet first and after grabbing A-Kid in a waistlock he receives an armbreaker and then A-Kid connects with a kick to the head.
A-Kid then takes both opponents down with a springboard arm drag and headscissors combo. Frazer ducks a clothesline and springs up to the middle rope but gets caught when A-Kid jumps between the legs of Frazer and catches him with a German suplex and then A-Kid comes off the top with a crossbody for a very close 2 count. Frazer escapes a waistlock only to be hit with a northern lights suplex by A-Kid who rolls through into an armbar but ends up releasing the hold when he sees Brown coming back in the ring and he tries to lock in an omoplata only for Brown to power him up and hit a powerbomb and then Frazer connects with a superkick to Brown as all three men are down and out once again. A-Kid and Frazer are up first and A-Kid goes up top but is cut off by Frazer who is looking for a superplex but Brown comes underneath and puts Frazer on his shoulders but Frazer escapes and shoves Brown into the corner who once again crotches A-Kid who was looking to come off the top. Frazer is able to slam Brown and then goes back over to A-Kid who is still stuck on the top rope and this time he is able to hit a moonsault fallaway slam for a very close 2 count.
Brown tops Frazer and hammers him with strikes until A-Kid locks him in a rear-naked choke which he tries to transition into a guillotine but Brown lifts him for a suplex only to be dropped with a superkick from Frazer. Frazer picks up Brown but is knocked into the corner with a forearm but he catches Brown with a boot as he charges in and then goes for a springboard which ends up with him being caught with a powerslam by Brown. Brown hits the Doctor Bomb but before the referee can make a count A-Kid comes from behind and locks in a rear-naked choke, but Brown flings him off and goes for a slam but A-Kid slides out the back and then hits Brown with a superkick knocking him out of the ring. A-Kid hits a big German suplex on Frazer and that is followed by a big running kick and that is finally enough to keep Frazer down for the count.
This was a really good match and I think A-Kid was a great choice to be the first to challenge Dragunov as they are sure to have one hell of a match. I thought even with losing the match both Frazer and Brown looked really good in the match, especially Brown who was throwing both guys around the ring despite them hitting him with everything they had.
I thought this was a really good episode of NXT UK as both the opener and the main event matches were really good.
SmackDown
SmackDown Results
- King Nakamura © w/ Rick Boogs def Apollo Crews w/ Commander Azeez (WWE Intercontinental Championship) – **½
- Zelina Vega w/ Carmella def Liv Morgan – *¼
- Nikki A.S.H. w/ Rhea Ripley def Natalya w/ Tamina – *½
- Roman Reigns w/ Paul Heyman def Montez Ford – ***
Becky Lynch comes out to open the show and as she makes her entrance we see a recap from Bianca Belair’s homecoming celebration from last week. Becky talks about last week and how Bianca seems to be doing good for herself but she isn’t the only one as Becky starts putting herself over for coming back in less than a year after having a baby and winning the SmackDown Women’s Championship in 26 seconds, but she is upset that she never got any kind of celebration. Becky says last week she tried to come out and be the better man but Bianca just had to show how powerful she is when she refused to let go of the handshake. Becky said Bianca left her no choice but to embarrass her in front of her family and friends and this is enough to bring out Bianca.
Bianca tells Becky to keep her parent’s names out of her mouth and then says she may have beat her at SummerSlam and then embarrassed her last week but that won’t be the case at Extreme Rules. Bianca says she didn’t even know that she was facing Becky at SummerSlam, but Becky interrupts her and said that might be the case but she did know she was going to have a match and she can’t call herself the EST if she isn’t always ready for anything. Bianca continues to state why she is going to win at Extreme Rules and then she offers to shake Becky’s hand but Becky slaps the taste out of her mouth instead and this leads to Biana beating Becky’s ass down in the corner but Becky is able to fight back and tries to hit Bianca with another Manhandle Slam, but Biana counters it and hits a K.O.D. Bianca walks up the ramp as Becky looks on furiously from the ring.
We get another Becky promo later in the night where she is still steaming from being embarrassed and she says that Extreme Rules she isn’t going to just beat Bianca she is going to break her.
I have really enjoyed this feud between Bianca and Becky as they play off each other very well and I can’t wait to see them actually have a match as I think they are going to tear the house down at Extreme Rules. I was disappointed Becky’s wardrobe was toned down this week as I was enjoying her gaudy fashion since her transition into “Big Time Bex”.
Our first match of the night is for the Intercontinental Championship as King Nakamura defends the title against former champion Apollo Crews. Before Nakamura and Boogs come to the ring we see them rocking out backstage and Toni Storm walks up and rocks with them, but unfortunately, she doesn’t come down to the ring with them which I think she should especially since they aren’t giving her anything else to do. The match was ok but nothing out of this world the highlight was Crews hitting Nakamura with a press slam from the ring to the floor. We see some involvement from Azeez and Boogs toward the end of the match. The finish comes when Nakamura counters an Olympic slam with a pinning combination and gets the 3 count.
After a recap video of all the happenings involving Roman Reigns on Raw, we go to an interview with Montez Ford who is riding solo tonight as Angelo Dawkins had other obligations, but assures he will be back in time for their match on Sunday against The Usos. Ford talks shit about The Usos and Reigns and then says Reigns and The Usos may be Bloodline cousins but he treats them like Bloodline bitches.
We go over to the locker room of Roman Reigns who is steaming after what Ford just said and then he tells Heyman he wants a match against Ford tonight, Heyman tries to talk him out of it but Reigns gives him a look and Heyman gets on the same page as Reigns. Heyman leaves to go talk to Pearce and Deville which we see a bit later and they agree to make the match which pleases Heyman, but he tells them after that match they can discuss the draft and the status of both Reigns and Lesnar.
After a recap of the Edge vs Seth Rollins feud, we go backstage where Rollins cuts a promo and he is upset that it has been a week and Edge has yet to answer the ultimatum he laid out last week, but that is fine because the fact that Edge hasn’t answered shows he is hurt bad. Rollins says that isn’t enough as he wants an actual response from Edge and he doesn’t want to wait any longer. Rollins says that either Edge shows up next week and tells everyone he is not Edge Lite or he is going to find where he sleeps and is going to beat him in front of Edge’s wife and kids. We later see that Edge responded on Twitter that he will be on SmackDown next week.
It would’ve made perfect sense for Rollins and Edge to finish their feud in a gimmick match at Extreme Rules, but it seems like they are going to do the blowoff at Crown Jewel which sucks as I don’t care to watch that show but at the same time I am really wanting to see how they finish off this feud as it has been one of my favorite feuds of the year.
It’s time for our next match of the night as Liv Morgan takes on Zelina Vega, before the match can begin Carmella comes out as she will be on commentary but instead of sitting in a chair she decides to sit across the top of the commentary table. There was nothing much to this match, just when Liv started gaining control she gets distracted by Carmella who she tries to bring into the ring and this allows Zelina to hit her with a running boot and a code red to pick up the win.
Are you joking me, how is it that ever since her return they have had Zelina lose every match she is in but the moment she goes against Liv (who actually has a PPV match) she picks up a win. Why are you having someone who has a PPV match lose to someone who has been on a losing streak for the past 2-3 months? I swear I am going to be so pissed if they don’t let Liv get the win on Sunday because Carmella doesn’t need it as she has had plenty of time in the spotlight it is now Liv’s time to shine.
It’s time for the debut edition of the newest talk show in WWE “Happy Talk” with your host Happy Corbin. Corbin’s talk show set consists of two big brown chairs and a hat rack. Corbin introduces his first guest which is himself and he talks about how rich he is and how much his wardrobe costs. He then moves on to Kevin Owens and this leads to a replay of him attacking KO last week. KO makes his way down the ramp but is attacked by a mysterious hooded man that reveals himself to be Riddick Moss and then both he and Corbin attack KO sending him into the steps and then they hit him with a double chokeslam onto the steps.
This segment felt like it last five minutes longer than it needed to as it felt like Corbin was never going to stop talking about how rich he is and get to the point of the segment. I am still surprised to see that Riddick Moss survived all those roster cuts as he has had a few start and stop pushes over the past few years. I am fine with Corbin and Moss as a team as it plays into Moss’s original gimmick of being rich back when he was in NXT except instead of Tino Sabbatelli by his side it’s Happy Corbin. I wouldn’t be surprised if Corbin vs KO is added to the Extreme Rules card at the last minute.
The new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Nikki A.S.H. and Rhea Ripley make their way to the ring as Nikki will be in action against Natalya. Nikki and Natalya have a quick match that sees Nikki pick up the win after reversing a small package. After the match, Shotzi & Nox make their way out in the tank and fire the missile at the tag champs as a way to let them know they want their title shot.
It looks like they are teasing a triple threat match between the three teams which is fine with me just as long as Shotzi and Nox get their title shot that they are past due on getting. Although most are not aware of it because it is never talked about on the show, but Shotzi and Nox have been putting out videos that if put on the show would make them even more popular than they already are as it shows just how much fun they have together, as one week they were visiting Dollywood and this week they were doing a Rocky training montage.
We go to the back where Dominik is frustrated with Rey as he is tired of him nitpicking everything he does and then claims he would’ve beat Sami Zayn the past two weeks had Rey not been at ringside. Rey says he is going to give Dominik some space because he clearly isn’t thinking straight and then he walks off. Sami Zayn then approaches Dominik and talks about how he has the tools to be one of the best and while he understands that Dominik’s confidence may be shaken right now he has nothing to be ashamed of. Zayn then says that Rey is a good man and he understands that he wants the best for Dominik, but it may be time for Dominik to trust his instincts more than his dad.
I really liked this little interaction between Zayn and Dominik as it was a nice change of pace to see Zayn being calm and reasonable rather than ranting and raving like a lunatic. I am all down for Zayn getting into the head of Dominik and slowly corrupting him and causing him to turn against Rey.
Naomi comes to the ring with her full entrance and she gets on the mic saying she has been fined, disrespected, insulted, and ignored but she is not going to quit and she wants a match so anyone who wants to fight needs to come out and face her right now. Sonya Deville then comes to the ring and says that isn’t happening as she is the one who makes the matches so Naomi suggests a match with Sonya and then gets the crowd to change “make the match” until Sonya cuts her mic and then has security come out to escort Naomi out of the ring, Naomi goes peacefully as the crowd boos Sonya.
I’m glad to see they are advancing this story past quick little backstage interactions as it feels like it is actually getting somewhere. If I had to guess I would imagine Naomi will eventually get matches with Zelina and Carmella that will last for a couple of months as Sonya will put them as buffers between her and Naomi and then we will eventually get the highly anticipated return to the ring of Sonya as she takes on Naomi.
We see The Bloodline walking toward Gorilla position when The Usos get distracted by Alpha Academy and they have a staredown teasing that as our next title feud and also somewhat spoiling the tag title match at Extreme Rules.
It’s time for the main event as Montez Ford has the biggest match of his career against Roman Reigns. Reigns and Ford have a really good match and if it wasn’t clear already this match made it even more obvious that Ford is going to be one hell of a star on his own whenever the Street Profits decide to part ways. There was a spot where Ford was supposed to dive off the commentary table onto Reigns, but when he stepped on the table it collapsed, but to his credit, he didn’t let it phase him as improvised by leaping off the steps instead. Pat McAfee hilariously blamed himself for that happening as he said it was because his fast ass was dancing on it earlier during the Nakamura match. The finish came when Ford went for the Frog Splash, but Reigns gets his knees up and then locks in the guillotine choke to force Ford to tap out.
After the match, Heyman wants Reigns to show Ford just how Extreme he can be, and then Reigns tells Heyman to summon The Usos, and moments later The Usos comes out and they throw Reigns a chair and while Reigns beats the hell out of Ford with the chair we see The Usos set up a table on the outside and moments later Reigns puts Ford through the table with a uranage. The lights go out and when they come back on we see Demon Balor on the top and he dives onto The Bloodline. Balor grabs a kendo stick and wears out The Usos and Reigns with it and then Reigns gets back in the ring where he is hit with a sling blade which is followed by Balor beating his ass with a chair. Reigns finally escapes the ring but Balor takes him out with a tope con hilo and the show comes to a close with Demon Balor standing tall.
I thought everything in this main event was great as we got a really good match between Reigns and Ford which did a great job to showcase Ford as a singles star and then the post-match activities did a great job of giving some last-minute hype to the Reigns vs Balor match on Sunday.
This was a really good episode as not only did we get an awesome main event but we got four, yes you read that right, four women’s segments on this show which is unheard of but it was nice to see, I just wish the matches involving the women got longer than 2-3 minutes. I feel like they did a good job of at least hyping the main event of Extreme Rules which was needed as that show feels like such an afterthought both in the eyes of management and the fans, as the fans are more interested in AEW right now and rightfully so and the management in WWE are looking ahead to the blood money Saudi show which is where we will get all of the big matches. There was no way this show was going to have more hype surrounding it than Rampage but at least they tried to do a few things to garner some interest in the show.
In the News
PW Insider reports that WWE has removed Ric Flair from the opening intro video and has also removed all of his merchandise from the WWE shop following the Dark Side of the Ring episode on the Plane Ride from Hell. I guess this is a nice gesture but he should’ve been punished when it happened instead of being given a pass because they claim it was just Flair being Flair.
Upon leaving WWE Daniel Bryan told management that he wouldn’t use the Yes chant or hand motions in AEW and I can’t wait until WWE tries their damndest to get over the Yes chants for someone else as that definitely seems like something they would do.
Fightful Select reports that Vince McMahon had sent several ideas for the future of NXT with one idea including the use of stronger language and different gear for the women’s wrestlers. Oh no, we do not need a 70-year-old man making fashion choices for women in their 20s and 30s.
Mas Lucha reports that Gran Metalik has asked for his release and is likely to be granted it.
Fightful Select reports that there was supposed to be a backstage segment on NXT 2.0 featuring many of the new female talents but it ended up being cut.
The original plan going into Monday’s Raw was to have the six-man tag main event the show, but after seeing how well the triple threat match was received by the fans at the live events Vince decided at the last minute to have it main event Raw.
It didn’t take long for the Joe Gacy gimmick to fail as less than a week into the gimmick WWE has already pulled everything involving the segment he was in as it was featured on various news outlets and was deemed by some as an attack on “the woke left”. I think it was dumb for them to try a gimmick with any kind of political or social justice aspects to it in this day and age as it is sure to piss off one-half of your viewing audience regardless of what side of the line the gimmick is towing.
Fightful Select put out a lengthy report of how meetings between WWE and Fox executives went during SummerSlam weekend. You can read the entire thing here
Deadline reports that WWE and MGM are working on yet another revival of American Gladiators which is set to feature a slew of WWE superstars on the show. Deadline reports that Mark Burnett and his team are currently in the process of pitching the show to different networks. Deadline also reports that both MGM and WWE would serve as executive producers for the show.
A big congratulations to Karrion Kross and Scarlett Bordeaux who got engaged this week.
Coming up this Week
Extreme Rules
- Roman Reigns © vs Finn Balor (WWE Universal Championship – Extreme Rules Match)
- Becky Lynch © vs Bianca Belair (SmackDown Women’s Championship)
- Charlotte Flair © vs Alexa Bliss (Raw Women’s Championship)
- Damian Priest © vs Sheamus vs Jeff Hardy (WWE United States Championship)
- The Usos © vs The Street Profits (SmackDown Tag Team Championship)
- Liv Morgan vs Carmella
Raw:
- The fallout from Extreme Rules
NXT 2.0:
- Raquel Gonzalez © vs Franky Monet (NXT Women’s Championship)
- Iso Shirai & Zoey Stark © vs Toxic Attraction (NXT Women’s Tag Team Championship)
- Roderick Strong © vs Grayson Waller (NXT Cruiserweight Championship)
- B-Fab vs Elektra Lopez (No DQ Match)
- Footage from In-Dex Honeymoon
- Lashing Out with Lash Legend
NXT UK
- Jordan Devlin vs Joe Coffey
- Moustache Mountain vs Ashton Smith & Oliver Carter
- The debut of Charlie Dempsey
SmackDown:
- The Fallout of Extreme Rules
- Night 1 of the 2021 WWE Draft
- Edge appearance
