Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE NXT Report! (8/15/18)

Published

6 years ago

August 15, 2018

It’s the last NXT before TakeOver: Brooklyn, and Kairi Sane warms up before challenging Women’s Championship, Shayna Baszler, in a MYC feud tiebreaker!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Street Profits VS The Mighty; Street Profits win.
Kairi Sane VS Aliyah; Kairi wins.
Tyler Bate w/ Trent Seven VS Roderick Strong w/ Kyle O’Reilly; Bate wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

WWE and NXT remember Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart.

The NXT Championship Match has changed!

After Tommaso Ciampa went after both Johnny Wrestling and Aleister Black as a way to get one over on both his archnemesis and his challenger, GM William Regal felt he had to make the match a Triple Threat for the title. History was going to be made, but then things had to be changed again. Aleister Black was attacked later that night, in the Full Sail parking lot! There were any number of suspects, from Johnny Gargano to the Undisputed Era, to even Kassius Ohno and a lurking Lars Sullivan. It is the most mysterious “Whodunnit” in NXT and WWE History! Who is the culprit behind robbing the fans of a Triple Threat in Brooklyn?

That mystery is to be left for later, as the NXT Championship will be a Last Man Standing Match! Ciampa and Gargano have already gone so far in their attempts get rid of the other. How much further will they go with the title on the line?

Street Profits VS The Mighty!

Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford are back after Shane Thorne & Nick Miller cheated to win. TM61 has changed their names and their tactics, but the #CurseofGreatness is constant. Will Dawkins & Ford get a big win on their return? Or will they kneel before The Mighty?

We start with Ford and Miller, and Miller gets annoyed by how jovial Ford is. Miller knees low then clubs Ford on the back. He chops FOrd in a corner, then brings him over to tag in Thorne. Miller chops and Thorne stomps, but the fans cheer on the Profits. Thorne throws a European Uppercut and a headbutt, then scoops Ford. Ford slips out and Dawkins tags in. Ford whips and Dawkins runs Thorne up. The Profits Wakanda Forever, then Ford is the human weapon, back suplex splash! Miller runs in but Dawkins catches him, for Ford to play leap frog! The Profits control the ring while The Mighty regroup. Dawkins is ready for Thorne and counters punches with punches and even forearms. Thorne kicks low then chops. He whips but Dawkins reverses.

Dawkins misses his cyclone clothesline, but Thorne hits the sucker punch. Tag to Miller who ax handles Dawkins, then gives some ground ‘n’ pound. Cover, TWO, but Miller keeps on Dawkins by hooking his nose. Miller trash talks Ford before stomping Dawkins. He puts Dawkins on teh ropes for a choke and more hooking. The referee reprimands him but Thorne gets a cheap shot. Miller goes back to Dawkins, tags Thorne, and The Mighty double back suplex Dawkins down. Cover, TWO, but Thorne stomps Dawkins out. Dawkins gets to ropes, but Thorne drags him over to The Mighty’s corner. Tag to Miller and Miller clubs Dawkins. Miller brings Dawkins to the center with a chinlock. Fans rally up while Dawkins endures. Dawkins fights back with back elbows, then runs, and kicks MIller’s back drop away, only to walk into a SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO, but Miller keeps Dawkins isolated.

Tag to Thorne, and Miller puts Dawkins in a corner. Miller hits a clothesline, Thorne hits a running EuroUpper. Fans boo and jeer but The Mighty just soak it in. Thorne grinds Dawkins with a facelock, but fans rally up for the Profits. Dawkins gets up, fights back, but Thorne gives him a big EuroUpper. Thorne misses in the corner, and Dawkins crawls for Ford. Fans fire up, but Thorne grabs a foot. Dawkins shoves Thorne into Miller, then dodges Thorne for a hot tag to Ford! Ford is on fire as he rallies on both Aussies. He sunsets over Thorne to clothesline Miller out, then he clotheslines Thorne! Ford runs in but is put on the apron. He dodges and counters Thorne, then kicks Miller. Slingshot sunset flip, TWO!

Thorne gets a waistlock but he wipes out Miller. Thorne rolls Ford up and holds tights! TWO as Ford rolls it back, and now Ford holds tights! The Street Profits win!

Winners: The Street Profits, Montez Ford pinning

The Mighty got a taste of their own medicine! Ford & Dawkins get the camera man to give him their black solo cup, and now it’s a party! Will the Profits profit from besting The Mighty at their own game?

The Undisputed Era speak.

Roderick Strong can’t believe they’re facing Mustache Mountain again. And in Brooklyn of all places. Why are the British Strong Style boys doing this to themselves? The last time they faced the NXT Tag Team Champions, Trent Seven’s leg was almost torn off by Kyle O’Reilly. And O’Reilly has no problem doing it all over again. But they think it’s hilarious Seven’s claiming to be 100%. If that’s 100%, the Undisputed Era is 1000%.

Then there’s the War Raiders, who want the champions after Brooklyn. But the Undisputed Era aren’t just any team. Between them and the Mustache Mountain duo, those four “idiots” aren’t clever at all. The clever ones are right here. Come Brooklyn, the titles stay where they belong. And that’s the beauty of it all: Brooklyn was where the Undisputed Era debuted. This will be the anniversary of their dominance. Adam Cole won’t hide from Ricochet, either. They’re going to show everyone that this is their era, and #ThatisUndisputed.

Kairi Sane VS Aliyah!

The Pirate Princess prepares for another rematch with The Queen of Spades, Shayna Baszler. Kairi won the inaugural Mae Young Classic finals, but Shayna won on her way to the top of the Women’s Division. Before this match, Shayna was spotted giving the Cat’s Meow some advice about how to face Kairi. Will Aliyah be able to use that advice and bring Kairi down before Brooklyn? Or will Kairi surprise Shayna before ever getting in the ring with her?

Speaking of, here comes Shayna herself. The NXT Women’s Champion wants a closer look at Kairi as she joins commentary. She’s done this before as a way to psych out her contenders, but Kairi shrugs it off. The bell rigns and she ties up with Aliyah.

Aliyah powers Kairi towards a corner but Kairi turns it around. Kairi backs off at 4, but Aliyah shoves her. Kairi shoves back, then chops Aliyah in the corner. Aliyah uses ropes as a defense, but Kairi glares at Shayna. Aliyah goes after Kairi, telling her she can’t worry about Shayna now. She whips Kairi but Kairi goes up and around to a school girl, that she makes into a stretch muffler! Kairi wants Shayna to know she can play submissions, too! Aliyah manages a ropebreak, and Kairi lets her go. Shayna isn’t scared as Aliyah throws furious forearms and uppercuts on Kairi. Aliyah kicks but Kairi catches it to a dragon whip takedown. Kairi runs, for the blockbuster! Then another!

Kairi whips but Aliyah reverses. Kairi stops herself, turns around and SPEARS Aliyah with the Interceptor. She fires up and stomps the plank. Fans fire up with her, and Kairi runs in for the Sliding D! Aliyah rolls to the drop zone while Kairi goes up top. Anchors Away, InSane elbow! But just as Shayna says the Princess has no killer instinct, Kairi goes back up! And she hits another InSane Elbow! That’s not good enough to impress Shayna? Then Kairi goes up again, for a THIRD InSane Elbow! Cover, Kairi lets Aliyah UP! Shayna is rather surprised, but perhaps a little upset, too. Kairi puts on the Anchor Lock! Shayna stands on the announce table to stare Kairi in the eyes, as Kairi stares and poitns back. Aliyah taps, Kairi wins!

Winner: Kairi Sane, by submission

If Kairi hasn’t gotten Shayna to eat her words yet, Kairi surely looks to in Brooklyn. Who will win this third go between inaugural MYC finalists?

NXT takes a look at Adam Cole VS Ricochet.

How has it been? He led the Undisputed Era in a raid on the NXT Tag Team and Championship matches. He led them to victory in the first ever NXT War Games match. And he’s the inaugural North American Champion. “Adam Cole cannot be stopped.” Cole and his cohorts have run roughshod over everyone. However, there’s One And Only King of Flight. Ricochet vows to change this industry forever, match after match. He can do things no one else can, and was almost the North American Champion if not for Adam Cole.

“There are three types of superstars: there’s good, there’s great, and there’s special.” In Cole’s mind, Ricochet is good, maybe even great. But he’s not special. Cole is special. Ricochet says it’s not about good, great or special, it’s about being better. He calls Cole out for being a coward, but Cole calls himself the man who makes the belt. Ricochet wants Cole to be a fighting champion, Cole just wants to stay champion. Cole will show he’s better, but Ricochet doesn’t think that’s possible. Whose name will be on those golden side plates when it’s all said and done?

Velveteen Dream heads to the ring!

The Patrick Clark Experience ended up all wet after his poolside summit with The Top One Percent. Dream wishes to speak ahead of his #TopOnePercentDreamMatch. “That’s funny, you cheer for the Dream.” You know what else is funny? EC3. EC3 is so smart, clever, and “oh so charming”. The fans chant “NX3!” for EC3, which annoys Dream a bit. But just like the fans, EC3 had the Dream’s curiosity. But now EC3 just has something he couldn’t buy if he tried. He has something that no one should want, he has the Dream’s attention. EC3 made an enemy out of Dream. “And this Saturday”, TakeOver: Brooklyn, it’ll be #DreamOver. But wait, here comes EC3 himself!

Ethan Carter III stares Dream down as he walks down the ramp. He has a mic of his own to speak. “So this is what it sounds like when doves cry?” Sick fanny pack, by the way. Fans chant “Fanny Pack!” while EC3 gets in the ring. EC3 knows what Dream’s up to, so don’t. He’s trying to get in EC3’s head, but EC3 lives in people’s heads. He paves parking lots in people’s heads, he builds theme restaurants in people’s heads, he builds condos in people’s heads. Dream’s head is a fixer upper, but EC3 will make that into profit. The time for talking is over, the time for fighting has come. And EC3 will add Dream to his streak of #VictoryAfterVictory after victory after victory–

After victory, yeah, Dream gets it! But there WON’T be an “after victory” after this. Dream vows that Brooklyn won’t have EC3’s hand raised. The only thing on EC3’s mind and the fans’ minds is #DreamOver. Fans troll Dream with “Fanny Pack!” EC3 tells Dream, while taking his jacket off, is that they don’t need to wait for Brooklyn. Dream responds as he takes off the fanny pack. They’re doing this now?! Dream takes off his jewelry while EC3 rolls up his sleeve. Dream fakes a bad shoulder, to then throw his vest! He unloads on EC3, but EC3 slips out of teh fireamn’s carry to give back some haymakers. EC3 lifts Dream, for the One Percent TKO! The Dream is down and dazed, will he be the other kind of over after Brooklyn?

NXT shares WWE Now’s coverage of the Aleister Black attack.

Cathy Kelly takes us on an indepth look at the footage NXT cameras managed to capture. The suspects are in order of their appearance as first, Johnny Gargano walks back inside the building as William Regal heads out. Second are the entire Undisputed Era, peeling out with their cars. Lars Sullivan is in a yellow shirt walking in the distance. Heavy Machinery are in the area as they’re documenting this for themselves, though they seem unlikely as they’re tag team competitors. However, next comes Kassius Ohno as he sits with Candice LeRae and Kairi Sane. Next come Wesley Blake and his new pals in Steve Cutler and Jaxson Ryker, who some know as calling themselves the Forgotten Sons, are headed out. The Finest, Kona Reeves is also there, but he shoos the cameras away.

There’s also Ricochet, who had himself only recovered from the Undisputed Era’s attack, on his way out. There’s also Velveteen Dream upset in the background while Shayna Baszler passes by, and then Cezar Bononi, Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel are around. The latter three might have done it to make an opening in the title scene for themselves, but that is anyone’s guess. Of course, there’s Tommaso Ciampa, where he and Gargano are both most likely given the Triple Threat status at the time. Last but not least is EC3. So many suspects with so many different reasons, who do you think did in the Dutch Destroyer?

NXT takes a look back at Gargano VS Ciampa.

They were team DIY, but paranoia and jealousy led to them breaking apart. Gargano’s goal became the NXT Championship, but guess who got there first? Hope is lost and faith is broken as Ciampa ends Gargano’s fairy tale. Gargano won the Unsanctioned Match to get his title back, but Ciampa won the Street Fight with his hands cuffed together. Ciampa used that to become #1 Contender, and then he used Gargano’s grudge as his opening to get the title. Gargano admitted his mistakes, which Aleister Black made him pay for with a Black Mass. But just as Aleister and Gargano were going to settle their score, Ciampa came in to mess it all up. Just as it looked as if this was truly Ciampa’s NXT, he gave Gargano a way back in.

The Triple Threat would’ve been Ciampa having to fight his past and his present, but then the mystery attack on Aleister complicated things again. Now it comes down to DIY’s Civil War one more time, and perhaps one last time, in a Last Man Standing Match! But understand the story: this isn’t Gargano’s story book ending, it’s Ciampa’s! One last shot, one last battle, and both sides vow to do whatever it takes to end it. Who will be standing at the end of TakeOver: Brooklyn?

Bianca Belair works her hardest at rehab.

Her injury has kept her out of the ring, but she vows to come back better than ever. She was already undefeated, but how much more will The EST gain on her way back?

Tyler Bate w/ Trent Seven VS Roderick Strong w/ Kyle O’Reilly!

Days before their third time around for the NXT Tag Team Championships, the student of Mustache Mountain and the Messiah of the Backbreaker go 1v1 to gain momentum! Will the Undisputed Era’s submission specialist be a distraction for Bate? Or will his Mustache Mountain mentor keep Kyle at bay?

The belts are put aside and the bell rings, Bate rushes Strong with a boot! Bate fires off in a corner, then around the ropes. Strong kicks and chops back, then whips. Bate reverses and back drops Strong! Bate throws hands in the corner, and even EuroUppers. He keeps on Strong in any corner, then whips. Strong reverses but Bate boots and knees Strong back. Kyle distracts but Bate fights him off. Strong yanks Bate off the top for a backbreaker! Strong rains down hands, then drops knees and stomps. Bate hits back but Strong chops him down. Strong stomps Bate more, then throws hands in a corner. He toys with Bate but Bate fires back. Strong drop toeholds to club away on Bate’s neck and back. He pulls Bate back in a half camel clutch while the fans duel.

Bate powers up and fights back. Strong half nelsons and gives Bate another backbreaker. Cover, TWO! Strong grabs Bate for a grounded abdominal stretch. Fans rally up for Bate while Strong bends and stretches him more. Bate gets up and out, then headbutts Strong. Bate gives a jawbreaker then a back elbow, but Strong throws haymakers and chops in return. Strong puts Bate on the top rope, then climbs up to join him. Bate resists, fights back with body shots and pushes Strong away. Strong comes back with another haymaker. Strong climbs back up, but Bate throws him off with a gordbuster! Bate flies with a flying EuroUpper! Both Seven and Kyle rally up for their tag partner, as do the fans. Bate throws hands but Strong gives them back, it’s a brawl.

Bop up, Strong sees Bang coming, but Bop comes around from below! Strong gets up but gets more haymakers and body shots from Bate. Bate fires off heavy hands, then whips Strong corner to corner. Bate hits a running EuroUpper, then an Exploder! He kips up, standing Shooting Star! Cover, TWO! Kyle is frustrated for Strong’s sake as Bate brings Strong up. Strong denies the airplane spin, then pops Bate up, but Bate huricanranas! Bate gets a back suplex bridge, TWO! Kyle coaches Strong up, but Bate gets him first. Bate underhooks, but Strong back drops Bate. Bate boots, then smacks him with a haymaker. Strong gives a forearm, and catches the rolling kick! He tries for the Strong Hold but Bate reverses to a wheelbarrow pin, TWO! Strong fires off forearms and elbows, then the corner shining wizard, to side slam! Cover, TWO!

Seven coaches Bate up while some fans hope they “Fight Forever!” The fans duel as Strong stands up. Strong brings Bate up. Strong suplexes but Bate knees out. Bate walks into another backbreaker! Then the End of Heartache, but Bate lands on his feet! Rebound lariat caught into a half nelson into a crucifix, TWO! Strong lunges, Bate dodges and hits the rebound lariat! Strong rolls all the way out, but Bate is in pursuit. Bate builds speed and FLIES! He manages to hit Strong, then he puts him back in the ring. Bate brings Strong up, double underhook, but Kyle distracts again. Seven takes Kyle out, but Strong rocks Bate. Strong wrecks Seven, then boots and enziguris Bate. He jumps, but into BANG! Strong elbows back, but Bate hits the rolling kick! Bate fires back up, gets the underhook, Tyler Driver ’97!! Cover, Bate wins!!

Winner: Tyler Bate, by pinfall

That was fast and furious, and all in just a singles match! The tag team match promises to be twice as nice, but who will come away with those belts in the tiebreaker in Brooklyn?

My Thoughts:

This was a fantastic go-home for NXT! Knowing the real world implications of Aleister’s current injury, they did a great job adjusting. Not only do they circle back to the great story between Gargano & Ciampa, but they’ve set up any number of routes for the “Who Attacked Aleister?” story. I feel it’d be too obvious if it was Gargano or Ciampa, or Lars Sullivan. They all have their reasons for wanting Aleister out of action, but that’s exactly why it wasn’t them. There are more interesting things to do with this, such as Kassius Ohno turning Heel while trying to get into the title scene by any means necessary. The same goes for any of the other superstars without a program going, like Bononi, Aichner, Barthel, etc. Unpredictability is always a great part of pro-wrestling, and NXT is surely going to do great with this necessary improvisation.

Street Profits VS The Mighty was a great opener, and I like that Profits go over by cheating the cheaters back. War Raiders have staked their claim to the next title match, but this will be good to keep the Tag Team Division strong in the meantime. Kairi did great upping her game while Shayna was watching. The timing of Shayna saying Kairi isn’t vicious enough, followed up by Kairi’s overkill of Aliyah was perfect for their story. I’m betting Kairi wins here because the story almost demands it, but Shayna might get it back at WWE Evolution per my Four Horsewomen VS Four Horsewomen idea being studded with titles at Survivor Series.

The Undisputed Era had a great group promo and then the Cole VS Ricochet video was great. They’ll likely hold onto the tag titles because Bobby Fish can be the interference man for that, but I feel Cole will lose to Ricochet as his comeuppance for being so cocky. Plus, Ricochet deserves a title because he’s so great in the ring and improving on the mic. EC3 VS Dream is going to be another one to watch, Dream is always in show-stealing segments. I would love if Dream won this one, as validation of his run. Strong VS Bate was so great, so fast and competitive, but again, Bate gets the win now because Undisputed Era keep the titles.

My Score: 8.5/10

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (4/19/24)

Prepare for Backlash!

Published

12 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Steven Mitchell

Did you know that challenger in French is still “challenger?”

In a WrestleMania rematch, AJ Styles takes on LA Knight in a #1 contender’s match, to challenge WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at Backlash in France!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

Undisputed WWE Championship #1 Contender’s match: AJ Styles VS LA Knight; Styles wins and will challenge Cody Rhodes for the title at Backlash.
SmackDown/WWE Tag Team Championships #1 Contenders Fatal 4 Way: The Street Profits VS New Catch Republic VS The Authors of Pain VS Legado Del Fantasma; The Profits win and will challenge A-Town Down Under for the titles.
Carlito w/ Zelina Vega VS Santos Escobar w/ Elektra Lopez; Santos wins.
WWE Women’s Championship: Bayley VS Naomi; Bayley wins, by disqualification, and retains the title.

PLAY BY PLAY

Undisputed WWE Championship #1 Contender’s match: AJ Styles VS LA Knight!

After fighting their way through Triple Threats, the Phenomenal One and the Mega Star meet again, YEAH! It’s a WrestleMania Rematch, the winner moving on to Backlash, YEAH! Will AJ Styles avenge his loss at the biggest WrestleMania ever? Or will everyone from here to France know whose game it is?

The bell rings and the two step to each other. The fans in Pittsburgh “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” and Knight lets Styles know it. Styles snarls, they tie up, and they go around. Knight puts Styles in a corner, the ref counts, but Knight lets off slowly. Styles kicks low! The fans boo but Styles headlocks. Knight pulls hair, throws body shots, then headlocks in return. Styles pushes Knight to ropes, powers up and out, then hurdles, drops and DROP- NO, Knight avoids the dropkick to BOOT, and LARIAT! Knight then TOSSES Styles out of the ring, storms out after him, and brings him to commentary. Knight SMACKS Styles off the desk! And again! And again!

The fans chant “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” with every SMACK, then Knight tops it off with one last SMACK! Knight drags Styles up and into the ring, storms in, but Styles KICKS Knight in the ropes! Styles reels Knight in, but Knight back drops Styles up and out! Styles flounders on the floor, Knight runs to WRECK him with a dropkick! Styles hits desk again and Steel City is loving “L! A! KNIGHT, YEAH!” as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Styles soaks up the heat as he taunts Knight. Styles brings Knight up, but Knight fires haymakers! “YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!” Knight backs Styles down, whips, but Styles ducks ‘n dodges! Knight ducks ‘n’ dodges, then DOUBLE CROSSBODIES collide! Both men are down and the fans fire up. Both men slowly sit up, crawl around, and then stand. Styles fires a shot, but Knight gives it back! The haymakers go back and forth, “YEAH! BOO! YEAH!” Styles staggers but he still ROCKS Knight! Knight ROCKS Styles again and again, but Styles throat chops! Styles fires off the Phenomenal Blitz, but Knight ducks the lariat!

Knight JABS, JABS, JABS, and DECKS Styles! Knight stomps a mudhole in at the corner, “YEAH!” Knight then runs corner to corner to KNEE Styles down! The fans fire up, Knight puts Styles up, and Knight ROCKS Styles. Knight climbs, but Styles ROCKS him back! Knight staggers away, but returns to spring right up! SUPER DUPER PLEX! Cover, TWO!! Styles survives that crash but both men are down again. The fans rally as Knight rises, and he brings Styles around. Knight reels Styles in, suplexes, but Styles slips free! Styles goes to a corner, ELBOWS Knight away, then goes up to QUEBRADA DDT! Cover, TWO!

The fans fire up as Knight stays in this and Styles starts losing his cool. The fans rally for Knight but Styles looms over him. Styles brings Knight up and in, but Knight RAMS him into a corner! Knight then scoops Styles, but Styles slips free to roll up, TWO!! Knight escapes, swings, but Styles dodges to PELE! Knight ends up in a corner, Styles runs in, but Knight puts Styles on the apron! Styles ROCKS Knight, springboards, but Knight gets under! Styles comes back, into a scoop and POWERSLAM! Then JUMP ELBOW DROP! The fans fire up with with Knight as he storms around. Styles rises, Knight winds up, B F- NO, Styles bails out!

The fans boo but Knight storms over. Knight drags Styles up but Styles HOTSHOTS him! And pokes him in the eyes! Then ROCKS him! And springboards, to PHENOMENAL FOREARM!! Cover, Styles wins!

Winner: AJ Styles, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contender to the Undisputed WWE Championship)

Styles bent the rules, but a win is a win! He will get his shot at the American Nightmare in Lyon, France, will this year’s Backlash be phenomenal?

The Bloodline arrives backstage.

The car pulls up, Solo Sikoa steps out in a suit, and Paul Heyman is there to greet him. Nice threads, Solo. Tama Tonga walks over and Solo says meet the newest member of The Bloodline, Solo’s MFT. The Wise Man is stunned. But Solo cuts him off to ask if Kevin Owens is here. Heyman hesitates and Solo asks again, is Kevin here? If he is, he’s probably already in the locker room. Then take them to him. Heyman obeys and leads on. There have already been changes to the chain of command, is there about to be a change to the landscape of SmackDown, too?

Nick Aldis is in the ring.

In a familiar scene to Monday Night Raw, there is a podium with something under a satin sheet. The SmackDown General Manager welcomes to Pittsburgh the Chief Content Officer, Paul “Triple H” Levesque! The fans fire up as The Game makes his way to the ring! HHH joins Aldis in the ring, gets a mic, looks around at the crowd as he revels in the cheers, then says, “On the heels of the biggest, most epic, history making, record breaking, epic, unbelievable WrestleMania of all time, we are here tonight, sold out, 15 thousand strong, Pittsburgh, PA! So let me say, welcome to SmackDown!” The fans cheer that!

HHH wants to take a moment to say that he thinks Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis are both doing great jobs at leading their respective brands into the future. Thank you to both of them. And when we talk about the future, we have to talk about the history made coming into the future. So when history is made, HHH wants it to be represented here befitting of those that make it. So Aldis, if we could, let us bring the… champions out here. Aldis says without further ado, the NEW SmackDown Tag Team Champions, Austin Theory & Grayson Waller. The fans boo as A-Town Down Under make their way, blue belts in hand.

Theory & Waller join Aldis and HHH in the ring, mics already in hand, and they soak up the heat from Steel City. Waller says this is huge. Monday, we saw the second place champions get new belts. And now A-Town Down Under will be presented new titles! Theory says speaking of truth, didn’t Truth think HHH was a magician? Well, who knows what magic trick HHH has to make these guys look better than they already do, but hey, give it a try. HHH says congratulations on becoming tag team champions, so he will show them what they will wear going forward. From now on, they will be the WWE Tag Team Champions.

Reveal! In the style of the Attitude Era and Ruthless Aggression Era belts, the solid gold shines. HHH offers a handshake, but Waller leaves him hanging to shake Theory’s hand! Aldis makes it clear to them. They ever pop off and disrespect HHH like that, here’s a real magic trick: A-Clown Down Under will disappear, permanently! The fans like the sound of that! Aldis snatches the blue belts away since they won’t need them, and speaking of disappearing, there’s a chance one of the following four teams will make their title reign disappear. That #1 contenders match starts right now! The fans fire up, but which team defies the odds to get some golden tickets to France?

Backstage interview with Naomi.

Kayla Braxton is with The Glow and says last week, she beat Tiffany Stratton to get this title opportunity tonight. Will the friendship with Bayley get in the way of this match? Naomi says no, of course not. Bayley’s her sister, and she needed help against Damage CTRL, so Naomi was more than happy to help. But in no way will friendship get in the way of this opportunity. It has been over two YEARS since Naomi’s last WWE singles championship match, and there is nothing that will get in the way of making the most of this moment. Now last week, Tiffy Time felt the glow, so that same energy keeps going tonight.

Naomi is also looking forward to next week’s WWE Draft, where she will walk in the NEW WWE Women’s Champion. Naomi is ready, but will she be able to best Bayley in Bayley’s first title defense?

WWE Tag Team Championships #1 Contenders Fatal 4 Way: The Street Profits VS New Catch Republic VS The Authors of Pain VS Legado Del Fantasma!

SmackDown returns as Legado makes their entrance, followed by Akam & Rezar with the Final Testament. Waller & Theory are on commentary, Waller admitting he wants any team but AOP, and Theory saying these teams are fortunate to have real superstars leading their division. In this form of Fatal 4 Way, only two teams are active, so the Big Strong Boi, Tyler Bate, starts against Montez Ford. They circle, tie up, and Ford headlocks. Bate powers up to pry at the hold but Ford clamps on tighter. Bate powers up and out, drops, but Ford leaps over! The fans cheer, things keep moving, Bate feints high to drop low!

Bate shows knuckle lock, Ford obliges, but Bate wrenches, baits and double pump handles to FLIP Ford! Cover, TWO! Ford gets up to sweep and cover, TWO! Bate steps over, La Magistrol, TWO! Ford gets up, dropkicks cancel out, and both men kip up! The fans fire up and the two reset. But then Humberto Carrillo sneaks a tag, before he DECKS Bate with a sucker punch! Ford dodges Humberto but Angel Garza holds the ropes open! Ford tumbles out, Garza tags in, and Humberto sits Ford up. Garza runs in to KNEE Ford down! The fans boo, Garza drags Ford to a cover, TWO! Garza back suplexes, Ford lands out!

Ford tags Dawkins and he dodges Garza to FLYING ELBOW! Garza tags out to Akam, but then the Bruiserweight, Pete Dunne, tags in off Dawkins! Rezar tags, Dunne runs up but Akam LARIATS him down! Rezar DECKS Dawkins, then the AOP start clearing the corners! But Ford goes up to leap, but into an URENAGE! The fans boo but the AOP roar and soak up the heat. Waller’s worst case scenario might end up reality, but SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and the fans rally as Ford endures a facelock. Ford fights up, pries at the hold, but Rezar shoves him to ELBOW him down! Rezar talks trash, Waller taunts the Steelers players sitting in the front row that they don’t really know what championships are, and then Rezar sucker punches Dawkins down! Rezar stands Ford up, Canadian Racks and bends him! Ford endures, the fans rally, but Rezar thrashes Ford around! Ford kicks and flails, he gets free, hot tag to Dunne! Bate sneaks a tag, Dunne GAMANGIRIS Akam and then NCR fire off on Rezar! The fans fire up, Humberto runs in, but Dunne dodges to SNAP GERMAN!

Bate & Dunne STOMP Humberto’s hands! Then BASEMENT DROPKICK! Garza runs up, but into the REBOUNDER GERMAN COMBO!! The fans fire up with NCR, but Rezar runs up! He grabs Dunne, but Bate says Bop up, BANG! Bate fireman’s carries Rezar?! But Rezar ELBOWS right free! Dunne GAMANGIRIS, Ford SUPERKICKS, and Dawkins ENZIGIRIS! Rezar wobbles, and everyone helps Bate gets Rezar up! BIG STRONG AIRPLANE SPINE! But then Legado CLOBBER Bate and Rezar! They BOOT Dunne, whip the Profits but the Profits reverse to TOSS Legado out! Ellering coaches Rezar while the Profits regroup.

Bate gets up, Dawkins ROCKS him! Dawkins brings Bate to the very top, but Dunne CLUBS Dawkins! NCR mug Dawkins but Ford joins in! They brawl, but AOP add on! Humberto finds Rezar to tag in, before the DOUBLE TOWER OF DOOM!! Bate’s the only one left up top, so Legado mug him! They double trophy lift Bate, to DOUBLE ROCKET LAUNCH him onto everyone!! Humberto then finds Bate, sunset flips and rewinds, Garza jumps, MISSILE DROPKICK DOOMSDAY! Cover, DUNNE BREAKS IT! “This is Awesome!” as all eight men are down around ringside, and Waller says this is gonna be easy pickings for A-Town Down Under now.

Dunne grabs Garza, Bate has Humberto, STEREO ANKLE LOCKS!! Grapevine for Garza! But Humberto BOOTS Bate onto Dunne! Legado is free, Ellering has AOP regroup, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Rezar CLUBS Dawkins down. Rezar soaks up heat, taunts the other teams, then CLUBS Dawkins again. Rezar brings Dawkins up again, but Dawkins fires off body shots! Rezar KNEES low, reels Dawkins in, talks more trash, and lifts Dawkins up, to POWERBOMB! But then Dunne runs up to ROCK Rezar! Akam gets in to scoop Dunne and SLAM him on Dawkins! Cover, TWO! Rezar looks to Ellering and he coaches AOP. Rezar HAMMERS Dawkins, Akam tags, and AOP get NCR up! The fans boo but NCR RANA free to send AOP into each other! Ford jumps in, as does Garza.

All the teams realize, they gotta do something about AOP. So they all mug AOP! The fans fire up as AOP tumble out, but now who strikes first? Dunne runs up but Garza SUPERKICKS him first! Bate waistlocks Garza and Ford winds up, but Garza ducks so the BACKHAND hits Bate! Garza SUPERKICKS Ford, but Dawkins DECKS Garza! Humberto springboards to FLYING CHUCK! Cover, TWO!! Theory says if A-Town Down Under were in this match, he’d knock everyone out and Waller could just sneak in to cover. Humberto and Dawkins rise and go to corners. Humberto runs up, but Dawkins POUNCES him away!

Dawkins gets Humberto up, Ford returns and tags in! Dawkins Electric Chair Lifts Humberto and Ford climbs! The stars are out for the BLOCKBUSTER DOOMSDAY! Cover, DUNNE BREAKS IT! Another save from the Bruiserweight and Ford is frustrated. Dunne drags Dawkins up to CHOP, but Dawkins ROCKS him! Dawkins whips Dunne out of the ring, but Dunne grabs the arm! And he pulls off the glove so he can SNAP fingers! The fans fire up, but Ford ENZIGIRIS Dunne down! Ford brings Humberto up, Humberto JAWBREAKERS! Bate tags in off Ford, BOOTS Garza, then runs up, but into a POP-UP! But Bate RANAS Humberto!!

Bate then DUMPS Garza out, goes to the apron, and Dunne lines up targets. Bate and Dunne climb, Ford runs in, NCR DOUBLE ARIHARA MOONSAULT while Ford FLIES over the corner post!! Down goes Legado and AOP!! The fans are losing their minds as Bate hurries to get Humberto up. Bate puts Humberto in, reels him in, underhooks, but Humberto fights it! Humberto back drops but Bate lands on his feet! Humberto cradles, TWO! Humberto LARIATS Bate, tag to Garza! Legado gets Bate up, feed to the POP-UP KICK!! #FTY! Humberto then DIVES to take out Dunne! Garza goes up the ropes to LIONSAULT!!

But Ford flies in FROM THE HEAVENS!! The fans are thunderous as everyone is down again! Bate flounders, Dawkins tags in! Dawkins whips Legado, Ford joins in, THE REVELATION!! Cover, PROFITS WIN!

Winners: The Street Profits, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contenders to the WWE Tag Team Championships)

Waller & Theory are relieved it isn’t AOP, but they still look a bit annoyed that it is Ford & Dawkins. The Profits are Triple Crown Tag Team Champions from Raw to SmackDown to NXT, but will they soon add the WWE Tag Team Championships to make it a grand slam?

Backstage interview with Bayley.

Byron Saxton is with The Role Model, and brings up the emotional moment from Monday Night Raw where Rhea Ripley had to relinquish her title. But let us focus on Bayley’s title, as she defends it for the first time against Naomi. Where is her head at ahead of the main event? Bayley says after seeing Rhea vacate the Women’s World Championship on Raw, Bayley appreciates her reign more. She is focused, and she has realized she’s THE Women’s Champion in WWE right now, something she does not take for granted. Because we all know that with the WWE Draft, things are bound to change.

And as excited as Bayley is to face her friend, Naomi, one thing that won’t change is her as THE WWE Women’s Champion. Bayley is just as confident at Naomi, so something’s gotta give! Will The Role Model #FeelTheGlow? Or will she still be shining with gold after tonight?

Paul Heyman talks with Solo Sikoa.

The Wise Man apologizes that they haven’t found Kevin Owens, but he has to be here somewhere. Just look at the time. They will find him, somewhere. Solo stops listening and heads to gorilla. Heyman follows after, but Solo gives him a look. Heyman says he isn’t trying to upset Solo. Please believe him. The last person on this planet Heyman wants to piss off is Solo. But respectfully, Solo is making decisions that are not his to make, yet. One day, these will all be Solo’s decisions. But not now, not here! These are decisions that can only be made by one man. Solo asks Heyman if he’s done talking. Heyman asks if MFT is coming with Solo.

Solo just gives a thumbs up, with that taped thumb. The music hits and Solo makes his entrance, Heyman still following all the way into the ring. What does the Enforcer have planned? We’ll find out, after the break.

SmackDown returns and Heyman has the mic to give his usual introduction. And he doesn’t know if there is a list of the most brilliant backstage maneuvering politicians int he history of the WWE, but if there were, Heyman would have to think that he personally is in the top… Well, permit Heyman, with Solo’s permission, to explain what’s going on right now within The Bloodline, “the premier act in the history of WWE.” The fans chant, “We Want Roman!” but Solo shrugs that off. Heyman assures us that as The Wise Man for… Heyman gets emotional, so Solo just snatches the mic! The fans boo but Solo paces.

Solo tries to talk but the fans boo. Solo says last week, he had to lose a brother! He had to! It was in order for him to find a new one! His MFT, Tama Tonga! And with that, a bloodied Kevin Owens is tossed out, by the Good Bad Guy! Tama shoves Kevin down the ramp, stalks behind him, and referees rush out to stop him from doing anything further! Kevin can’t even sit up, but Tama steps over him to go to the ring. The fans boo as Tama joins Solo in the ring while the refs help Kevin to his feet and to the back. Tama raises his finger to the sky, because he acknowledges Solo! Heyman has no choice but to go along, but wait! Kevin is heading back down the ramp!?

The fans fire up as Kevin shows his grit and defiance! He drags Tama out to fire off hands!! The fans cheer but then Solo whips Kevin into steel steps! Solo drags Kevin back up, puts him in the ring, but now security rushes in! Tama storms in after Kevin but Kevin TACKLES Tama! The security gets Kevin away from Tama, but Solo SAMOAN SPIKES Kevin down!! The fans boo but then Tama SPLASHES Kevin! Tama rains down fists on that bloody wound, then he DECKS guard after guard! Producers try but Tama is a madman! Tama shoves everyone away so he can slip out of the ring, to grab a chair!!

The fans boo as Tama storms back in, but now Aldis steps up! Aldis warns The Bloodline here, and Solo has Tama stand down. Solo takes the chair from Tama to show they’re done here. The fans chant “YOU SUCK! YOU SUCK!” but the damage is done. Solo & Tama are a dangerous duo, will nothing and no one stop them from taking over SmackDown?

Heyman goes to the parking lot.

He’s in shock, but Aldis finds him and pulls him along. Was Heyman aware of this? Aldis shows Heyman the aftermath of one car T-boning another! And in case Heyman can’t guess, the struck car was Kevin’s. The attacking car was Tama’s! Heyman says this wasn’t authorized! No, Heyman, Aldis is speaking now. He gets this is a conflict within The Bloodline, but on his show, things are settle din the ring. Next week is the Draft, a lot of eyeballs on it, and a lot top brass are gonna be here. So Aldis will not tolerate this behavior. So make sure The Bloodline understands. Because, Heyman, if you don’t, the repercussions will be equally savage.

Aldis brings Heyman in close to tell him losing isn’t the only thing that has consequences. Will the Wise Man be able to rein in such an unruly force as Solo and Tama?

Carlito w/ Zelina Vega VS Santos Escobar w/ Elektra Lopez!

The LWO still doesn’t believe Legado’s claims that they had nothing to do with Dragon Lee going down before WrestleMania, so they’re going to get to the bottom of this one themselves! Will Caribbean Cool make the Emperor of Lucha confess his crimes? Or will Santos prove he was right all along?

The bell rings and the two talk trash. Then they start throwing hands! Carlito backs Santos down but Santos gets around to whisper something in Carlito’s ear. Carlito ELBOWS Santos away, runs up and hits a THESZ PRESS! Carlito then bumps Santos off buckles, fires hands, then has him in another corner. Carlito whips corner to corner, runs up, but Santos BOOTS him! Santos runs up, but into a SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! Vega coaches Carlito to stay on Santos and he brings Santos up. Carlito ROCKS Santos, whips, but Santos KICKS him! Santos runs, but into a DROPKICK! Carlito kips up and the fans fire up!

Santos is on the outside, the ref won’t let Carlito go after him, but then Carlito WRECKS Santos with a dropkick! Carlito loads up to PLANCHA! Direct hit on Santos and Carlito hoists Vega up to celebrate! The fans cheer the LWO on as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Santos whips Carlito hard into buckles. Carlito falls over, Santos soaks up the heat, then Santos HEADBUTTS Carlito to a corner. Santos then CHOPS, gets space and runs in, to DOUBLE KNEE! Carlito slumps in the corner but Santos puts him up top! Santos GAMANGIRIS then climbs up! SUPER STEINER! Carlito flounders, Santos pushes him to a cover, TWO! Vega is relieved but Santos huffs and puffs. Santos rains down fists on Carlito, then clamps on a top wristlock. Carlito endures and Vega coaches him while the fans rally. Carlito rises, throws body shots, then LARIATS!

The fans rally as Carlito starts to rally with more clotheslines, and an ELBOW! Carlito kicks, runs, and KNEE LIFTS! Santos wobbles, Carlito LARIATS again! Cover, TWO! Santos is tougher than that but Carlito says he’s going up! Carlito climbs, but then Lopez gets on the apron! Vega storms right over to YANK her down! The fans fire up as Vega goes up, and RANAS, only for Lopez to block! Lopez SWINGS Vega into barriers! Carlito ROCKS Santos, steps in, but the ref is reprimanding Lopez so he misses Santos KICK ropes to jam Carlito low! Santos reels Carlito in to POST him, then brings him back for the fireman’s carry! PHANTOM DRIVER!! Cover, Santos wins!

Winner: Santos Escobar, by pinfall

La Madrina helps The Emperor steal this victory, them taking down the Caribbean Cool and La Muneca! Whether or not Legado beat down Dragon Lee, will nothing stop them from conquering SmackDown?

VIP Skybox interview with Damage CTRL!

Kayla is with Iyo Sky, Dakota Kai, Kairi Sane & Asuka as they sit way up in the back. What made the former WWE Women’s Champion and crew want a special view of this main event? Dakota takes offense for Iyo with the use of “former” there. Is Kayla trying to disrespect them? Iyo will take that title back when they’re good and ready. But for now, they’re here to watch two people they can’t stand tear each other apart! Does Dakota need to remind everyone here that DMG CTRL is still the most dominant force in the WWE!? The fans boo but Dakota says the Kabuki Warriors are STILL the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, and that will not change-

WAID! Jade Cargill is here! She makes her entrance from the other skybox, with Bianca Belair alongside her! The strongEST duo argues with DMG CTRL, their own title intentions clear. But for now, it’s time for the main event! Who shines with gold here in the Steel City? We find out, after the break!

Cody Rhodes speaks.

The American Nightmare is in the UK as part of Raw’s tour, but he still took time to say, “What is the task? Run up the score, leave no doubt, right? Formerly, the task was ‘win the big belt, in the big place.’ We’ve done that. Now, it’s a whole new frontier for us, undiscovered country.” There’s an old expression: the title can make the man, or the man makes the title. Which will it be for Cody? He’s in London tonight, the O2, 16 THOUSAND, then it’s on to Belfast, Ireland. Cody is keeping his promise to bring this title all around the world. Back home, AJ Styles has emerged the #1 contender to this championship.

So then, it will be two Georgia boys duking it out in Lyon, France. The first time ever, at that. Styles has an unprecedented reputation in pro-wrestling. The modern day Excellence of Execution, if you will. Styles rarely misses. But the same goes for Cody. So Backlash in France, Cody looks forward to it. The contract signing is next week, even as the WWE Draft is going on! Will things be explosive when American Nightmare and Phenomenal One meet face to face?

WWE Women’s Championship: Bayley VS Naomi!

SmackDown returns and Bayley makes her entrance. The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and either we shine or we glow!

The bell rings, the fans rally, and the two circle. The two tie up, go around, and Bayley headlocks. Naomi powers up but Bayley wrenches to wristlock. Naomi slips through, rolls Bayley up, ONE!! The fans rally as the two go again. Naomi waistlocks, Bayley headlocks to hit a takeover, and she makes it a cover, TWO! Naomi fights up to her feet, powers up but Bayley wrenches gain. Naomi waistlocks, O’Conner Rolls, ONE! Both women get up, Naomi ducks the boot but Bayley arm-drags her around! Bayley has the cording hold, the fans rally up, and Naomi fights to her feet. Naomi whips Bayley away, but Bayley runs her over!

The fans cheer and Bayley tells DMG CTRL she’s watching them, too. Things speed up, Naomi does the splits to duck under, then she comes back to kick from below! She drags Bayley into a cradle, ONE!! Bayley hurries to step over, LA MAGISTROL! ONE!! Naomi and Bayley get up, Naomi trips Bayley to jackknife, ONE!! Ghost pin, TWO! Both women hurry up, DOUBLE CROSSBODIES collide! The fans rally while both women are down, evenly matched in this chess game so far. Both women rise, and Naomi SHOTGUNS first! Then she runs up, uses the ropes to slingshot and BULLDOG! Cover, TWO! Naomi is frustrated but keeps her focus.

Naomi drags Bayley up, Bayley shoves her away. Naomi dodges the lariat to hit REAR VIEW! Cover, TWO!! Bayley survives but Naomi lets her know it was that close, and SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns again and Bayley whips Naomi to a corner, runs in, but into a BOOT! Bayley gets up, Naomi runs up, JAWBREAKER! Bayley ends up in a corner now, Naomi runs in, and she forearm SMASHES! Naomi then runs Bayley corner to corner for a BUCKLE BULLDOG! Naomi slips out to the apron while Bayley flounders, and Naomi climbs. The fans duel as Naomi CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Bayley is tougher than that but Naomi knows that. Naomi keeps her focus while DMG CTRL, Bianca & Jade all focus on them. Naomi ROCKS Bayley, tries the ropes again, but Bayley stops the bulldog to SMACK Naomi off buckles!

Bayley then reels Naomi in, SAIDO! High stack, TWO! Naomi is still in this and Bayley remembers Naomi’s tougher than that, too. Bayley drags Naomi into a drop zone, then goes up the corner! Bayley aims, to MACHO ELBOW onto knees! Bayley writhes, Naomi goes to the apron. Bayley stands, runs up, but into a ROUNDHOUSE! Naomi slingshots, for a FACEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! Bayley survives and Naomi is stunned! Naomi refocuses, goes to the corner, and goes up to SPLIT LEG MOONSAULT onto knees! Bayley returns the favor and both women are down. Bayley shakes out the leg, stands and runs, to KNEE Naomi down!

Bayley hurries to put Naomi back in a drop zone, and then hobbles her way to a corner. Bayley climbs, to MACHO ELBOW!! Direct hit this time and Bayley covers, TWO!! Naomi survives and Bayley is frustrated. Bayley hobbles on the bad leg, leans on ropes while she catches her breath, and the fans duel even more. Bayley stalks Naomi, hooks her up, but Naomi PELES free! Naomi hurries to a corner, Bayley runs up, but Naomi goes up to sunset flip! TWO!! But into the BUTTERFLY LOCK!! Bayley endures, reaches out with her legs, but then she tucks to a cover, TWO!! Naomi gets up, both women throw forearms!

They both wobble, storm up, and Bayley eggs Naomi on. Naomi wants this, right? So hit her! Naomi fires a forearm, Bayley hits back! Naomi winds up to forearm, Bayley comes back with another! The fans fire up as the forearms go harder and faster! Bayley gets the edge, but Naomi SWATS one, to SCORPION KICK, and then JUMP KNEE! Bayley tumbles out of the ring, Naomi PLANCHAS! Direct hit and a hard one, both women are down on the floor! The ring count starts, Naomi stirs at 3 of 10. Naomi brings Bayley up, but BAYLEY2BELLY onto the desk!! The count is 7! Naomi flounders on the desk, but then TIFFANY ATTACKS BAYLEY!!!

Winner: Bayley, by disqualification (still WWE Women’s Champion)

Tiffany makes herself the center of attention as always as she ruins this main event! She dribbles Naomi off the desk, then RAMS Bayley into steel steps! Then she drags Naomi off the desk to POST her! Tiff storms back over to Bayley, puts her in the ring, then adds Naomi in, too. Tiff says sorry not sorry, but it’s Tiffy Time! Tiffy goes to the corner, for the PRETTIEST MOONSAULT EVER! Tiff flexes over both champion and challenger, having upset Bianca & Jade but having entertained DMG CTRL. But will Wrestling Barbie pay for pissing off the Role Model?

My Thoughts:

A great SmackDown that also acted as a WWE Draft go-home. Great match from Styles and Knight to open the night but also follow-up their WrestleMania match. Naturally, Styles wins because then he and Knight are 1-1 in 1v1 matches, and also natural Face VS Heel right there. Good promo from Cody Rhodes, that title match is going to be awesome. Awesome new looks for the WWE Tag Team Championships, though maybe too much gold. Nothing really pops when it’s all the same color, so they should’ve had silver on the WWE logo and the words, “Tag Team Champions,” but it’s still a great redesign.

We also got an awesome Fatal 4 Way tag match, with Theory & Waller decent on commentary. And pieces are falling into place for what I was thinking: Profits win the right to face Theory & Waller, we’ll surely get Lashley wanting the US Championship, we’ll get a good faction feud there as we approach those title matches. Also good continuation of the LWO VS Legado feud with Carlito VS Santos, and distractions of course helped Santos win. There’s gotta come a point where Carlito reveals it was him, Dragon Lee, it was him all along! Now, that would make like the third turn since the start of this rivalry (Santos to Heel, Andrade to Face and Carlito to Heel) but hey, the drama is heightened each time, and maybe Dragon Lee will actually get a win in this feud.

Great stuff in Bayley VS Naomi, as well as all the promos. DMG CTRL watching from the skybox, same as Bianca & Jade, was good stuff. The tag title match is definitely coming for Backlash, that will be great stuff. But I should’ve figured Tiffany would “ruin” the main event so that there won’t really be a choice between Bayley and Naomi. The Draft is coming, hopefully they think to keep all three on the same brand, and probably here on SmackDown, so that those three can have it out. I don’t know the chances of a Triple Threat for Backlash but it still feels possible. Though at the same time, I don’t think they’d take the title off Bayley after only a month, so she’d probably use Tiffany against Naomi to retain.

And what wild stuff with this new, more vicious Bloodline. Solo is in a suit because he certainly thinks he is Tribal Chief already, given Roman Reigns did give him the nod as “Tribal Heir” a few months ago. And while Tama is the MFT, which everyone is already wondering what that even means, it’s clear he’s also the right hand man and a loose cannon at that. Without the Draft, it’d be pretty wild for Jimmy to come back and help Kevin against this new Bloodline. With the Draft, we could get Jey back on the same brand as his family and then he and Jimmy stand against Solo and Tama. But either way, it’ll be a wild ride in this new chapter and I’m all for it.

My Score: 8.9/10

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Coverage

Andrew’s TNA iMPACT! Results & Match Ratings: 4.18.2024

Motor City Machine Guns either go out on their backs, or head to Rebellion as champs! Lets see how they finish their current run in TNA!

Published

1 day ago

April 18, 2024

Andrew Balaz

No burying the lead here! The Main Event is The System versus Motor City Machine Guns, and it’s the Go Home episode before Rebellion! So we’re guaranteed a damn good tag match, and we should get either new wrinkles, or ways to keep the storylines cooking going into the Pay-per-View.

With all the rumors and innuendo about the Guns being on their way out, I think we all assume that MCMG is losing, but my inner fanboy is still excited.

Part Three: Acceptance @TheJonGresham #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/NE9FPzCCz2

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 19, 2024

Ratings:

Little Guido w/New FBI vs Hammerstone: Hammerstone wins via Torture Rack – SQUASH
LSG vs Joe Hendry: Hendry wins via Standing Ovation – SQUASH
Mustafa Ali & GYV vs Cody Deaner, Jake Something & Rhyno: Ali wins via 450 Splash – ** 3/4
Rosemary w/Havok vs Jody Threat w/Dani Luna: Rosemary wins via Spear – ***
Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley) vs The System (Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers) w/Alisha Edwards: System wins via Roster Cut + Knee Party – *** 1/4

Results:

So we kick off the match with Josh coming out to commentary again to watch Hammerstone’s match. They really need a new way to try and keep heat without reusing the same tired gimmick of “ring side seat” to a Squash match.

Little Guido w/New FBI vs Hammerstone

Guido tries to shoot the half, but Hammerstone shrugs him off, lifts him like a child and runs him into a corner, few short shots and then just tosses him across the ring. Hammer gets a little distracted talking smack to Josh and eats a foot, but then tosses Guido with the ole Sack of Shit move and keeps working over Guido.

Hammer shoves Clayton, and provokes him to push him back right in front of the referee. She ejects them, Guido tries to take advantage but when he goes for the pinfall Hammer kicks out immediately and presses Guido out of thing through the ropes. Continues to dog walk Guido, puts the head gear on the ECW Original and then Torture Racks him while staring directly at Josh, and of course picks up the submission victory.

.@XiaBrookside and @Ashamae_Sebera face off NEXT WEEK on #TNAiMPACT! pic.twitter.com/Q0S3wSRpeu

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 19, 2024

LSG vs Joe Hendry

Hendry cuts a little promo, mentioning the Fat Uncle Phil joke…something about shopping at the TOP Dollar Store. Solid mic work.

LSG is a damn good local talent, he’s been seen in ROH and AEW in the past (perhaps others, but that’s what comes to mind immediately for me), but we all know this is an enhancement match. A few nice chain wrestling spots early, but Hendry uses his power to stop the smaller wrestler, Sack of Shit into Standing Ovation and the match is over quickly.

Mustafa Ali & GYV vs Cody Deaner, Jake Something & Rhyno

Well okay, having Deaner ask the crowd if they wanted a 3v2 or their third member…RHYNO…is pretty much a no brainer in Philly. But at least the gimmick isn’t quite as cringe as I expected.

Jake starts with Zack Gibson and throws him around. Jake goes for the tag and Deaner asks the crowd who Jake should tag, and the crowd picks Rhyno. Rhyno Whips Gibson into a corner, Drake actually softens the impact, allowing Gibson to fire back, tag out, but Rhyno levels both GYV members and then even knocks Ali off the apron. Rhyno tries to call to the crowd to tag in Deaner and that goes over like a fart in church. He tags him in anyway, and the crowd is kinda dead and doing whatever it wants after the obvious ECW chants when Rhyno tagged in.

GYV take a couple lumps but they of course start to work over Deaner and capture some momentum. Solid tandem work from GYV, they cut off Deaner from making a tag and goad Jake a little to cause the ref to block off the babyfaces so the heels can take a few shortcuts. Cody eventually makes the tag to Rhyno, hot tag, he tries to set up the Gore but the GYV manage to stop him in his tracks and hit an Enzuigiri to daze the Man Beast, he falls to his corner and Jake tags himself in. Jake literally runs them all over, tags in Cody and Launches him from the Top Rope into Zack Gibson. Ali makes the save and Jake tries to get his hands on Ali, but the GYV keep throwing themselves at him, literally. The triple team finally gets the best of Jake, they hit 3 Dives and then post Jake, so they gather around Cody like hyenas.

They forgot about Rhyno, he’s set up for a Gore, he Gores Drake, Gibson and Ali take out Rhyno, but then Cody starts to fight back. Ali stops Deaner’s offense with an Avalanche Sunset Bomb, then hits his 450 Splash. Jake barely misses being able to break up the pin.

.@TheEricYoung channels "The Sickness" as he prepares for FULL METAL MAYHEM with @FrankieKazarian at #Rebellion! #TNAiMPACT pic.twitter.com/tm1TqxZBLo

— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) April 19, 2024

Rosemary w/Havok vs Jody Threat w/Dani Luna

Jody tries to start quickly with Shoulder Tackles, Lariats and Scoop Slams, and it does seem somewhat effective. Rosemary is having trouble finding offense against the intensity, but she keeps kicking out. Shotgun Dropkick finally gives Rosemary an opening, she goes into full mount and rains down strikes. Rosemary shoves Jody into a corner and Bites her in the corner. Jody tries to fight out, they go across and Rosemary catches her with the legs and puts her in the Upside Down. Splash in the corner from Rosemary, Exploder Suplex and Jody is eating a lot of offense.

Rosemary looks like she’s caught after she gets tripped up into the ropes and Jody goes for her Rope Knee into the German, but Rosemary dodges. Rosemary hits her own suplex and pulls out a beautiful Last Chancery! I haven’t seen her do that in a long time. Jody manages to fight to the ropes, Rosemary is a little slow to capitalize and eats a Pump Kick. Rosemary goes flying into the ropes, Jody hits the Double Knees into the German this time for 2, and they trade a few haymakers after that. Jody folds Rosemary with a low Lariat, Zombie rise spot a few times, Jody goes for a pinfall and Rosemary kicks out.

Havok jumps up on the apron, Dani meets her and they decide to step down, but the distraction was enough. Jody turns around and eats a Spear. Rosemary wins!

Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley) vs The System (Eddie Edwards & Brian Myers) w/Alisha Edwards

Eddie and Shelley start off, and its a very simple slow start. Mostly an early stalemate, the typical Japanese style the TNA seem to love to employ. Starters tag out, but then Shelley with the blind tag, Sabin Baseball Slides out, picks Eddie’s ankle and sends his face bouncing off the apron, while Shelley sneaks up being Myers and they hit a tandem move before we cut to commercial. Off of the commercial it looks like Eddie and Myers regained control. But a nice Jawbreaker from Shelley sends Eddie falling back into the MCMG corner. Dragon Screws to both legs from Sabin and Shelley, and we get the Dragon Screw dissection spot for the Guns.

Myers gets sick of things, tries to get involved, but Simultaneous Figure Fours from the MCMG makes The System look silly. Alisha does the classic “push the rope forward” gimmick to assist Eddie in breaking the hold. She keeps chirping at Shelley until she finally grabs his foot. Shelley doesn’t take kindly, tries to grab her by the hair but she gets away, Shelley eats a strike and falls back to the ropes so Lish can just throttle him with the rope, Sabin walks over and acts like he’s going to PK her and the look of disgust on her face is hilarious, like “how dare he threaten to kick her”. Would I be mad is Masha decides to team with Lish and they win the Knockouts Tag titles? No, because the Knockouts Tags are trash. But I still prefer Lish as valet/manager.

Shelley starts fighting back after another commercial break, Eddie tries to cut him off, but Sabin clocks Eddie and Shelley manages to make the tag and Sabin comes in. Lights up both System members, Kick off Tornado DDT, into a Running Gamengiri. Eddie tries to counter but Shelley assists, tandem strikes, Double Baseball Slide into the classic MCMG spot 5 Hole Dive! Keeping up with the classics Shelley stacks the System members on each other and hit the Missile Dropkick/Flatliner spot. As the Guns are rolling, Sabin accidentally catches Sabin with his foot and The System take control! They hit their pieces of the System Overload spot, but Sabin kicks out. Roster Cut attempt from Myers, but Shelley is back. High Speed Dirt, Machine Gun Sandwich, but Lish grabs Shelley’s foot when they’re setting up Skull and Bones. Shelley gets dropped on the turnbuckle and thrown out, Sabin eats the Roster Cut followed up with Boston Knee Party and System retains!

Its a little weird to have had the two commercial cuts and the fact there’s still Nic Nemeth to follow. So it feels a little flat, I hope this wasn’t their swan song match, because it was nice to see some classic spots, but it was entirely too abbreviated.

Nemeth comes out, goes into the crowd and finds a kid with a kendo stick and borrows a beer from someone, so he does a bit of a Sandman tribute. Moose cuts off his promo basically immediately. He throws out the “can’t beat the system” line again, and Nic rolls with the punches well. Moose uses a few cute analogies about Nic having a failure laden past, but Nemeth bites back and its really damn good. He says he can see it in Moose’s eyes that he thinks he’s getting in the ring with Dolph Ziggler, but no, there is no more old Dolph Ziggler, just the new Nic Nemeth. And Moose’s cool seems to be slightly shaken after those words. Good promo.

Overall Score: 6.5/10

So this was okay, if it didn’t end as strongly as it did, I would’ve rated this much lower. Two squash matches in the beginning, reusing the Josh comes out to the announce table to watch trope is boring, hell even Clayton’s shove to Hammerstone was super lame looking. The Deaner match was luke warm at best, but things picked up around the Rosemary match.

Lets also not overlook the segments with ASH & Xia, Jonathan Gresham’s whole deal and EY having to return to the violence/sickness/world class maniac, whatever you want to call it, were all great building blocks. This definitely wasn’t what I would call a strong Go Home, but it didn’t hurt things for Rebellion. The whole injury of Cardona was addressed, which honestly sounded weird since Jordynne basically said she was expecting them to have a backup plan so she has a backup plan. I don’t really like how that video package came across.

But who knows, all I know is, this wasn’t an awful episode, it just wasn’t really strong either. Here’s to hoping Rebellion Saturday is still strong.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!