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Mitchell’s WWE NXT Results & Report! (7/20/21)

WE ARE! N! X! Tian Sha…?

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NXT Coverage 2021

Could destiny dethrone Ricky Desperado?

With all the moving parts between brands, Xia Li’s path has been cleared! But can she fulfill her destiny by taking the NXT Women’s Championship from Raquel Gonzalez?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • KUSHIDA & Bobby Fish VS Roderick Strong & Tyler Rust w/ Diamond Mine; Kushida & Fish win.
  • Franky Monet w/ Jessi Kamea VS Jacy Jayne; Monet wins.
  • Kyle O’Reilly VS Austin Theory; Kyle wins.
  • NXT Breakout Tournament 2021 Opening Round: Odyssey Jones VS Andre Chase; Jones wins and advances to the next round.
  • LA Knight w/ Cameron Grimes VS Drake Maverick; Maverick wins.
  • NXT Women’s Championship: Raquel Gonzalez w/ Dakota Kai VS Xia Li w/ Tian Sha; Gonzalez wins and retains the title.

PLAY BY PLAY

Samoa Joe heads to the ring!

William Regal’s enforcer is not in a good mood given last week’s more than brutal confrontation with Karrion Kross. Joe gets a mic to say, “Tick-tock, tick-tock. Guess who’s come to smash your clock?” But speaking of Regal, he rushes out and says this isn’t what Joe’s role is about! Joe cannot be calling out superstars! But Joe says incorrect! He can because “if I was provoked!” So consider him provoked! Regal understands that, but Joe entered as a referee. Kross put his hands on Joe the ref, not Joe the management. Semantics! Regal of all people is explaining the ridiculousness of this? Kors sis out of control and needs to be put down! Didn’t you notice Kross’ field trip to Raw?

Joe says he is here to put Kross back under control! Regal wants Joe to understand something: Kross is on his way here. And when he gets here, all hell will NOT break loose! This will be solved peacefully! Understood? And don’t say another word unless it’s the right words. Fans want to “Let Them Fight!” but Joe says out of his deeply held respect for Regal, he promises tonight is the end of this. “But I can’t guarantee it’ll end peacefully. And I guarantee that somebody tonight is going to sleep!” Will it be a battle of sleeper holds the moment the NXT Champion returns to the CWC?

 

Xia Li speaks.

“Finally, I have been waiting for this moment. The is the most important match in my entire life. I will be the NEW NXT Women’s Champion! Raquel Gonzalez, I plan on doing to you the same thing I did to Mercedes Martinez. I will make history and leave tonight as the first Chinese NXT Women’s Champion!” The mission is clear and the target is in her sights! Will Tian Sha’s living weapon cut down Big Mami Cool?

 

KUSHIDA & Bobby Fish VS Roderick Strong & Tyler Rust w/ Diamond Mine!

The Time Splitter became a target, and the Infamous One wanted his former friend to face him head on. The Savior of the Backbreaker used his new protégé as a decoy, but now he has no choice but to step up! Will the Diamond Mine crack under the pressure?

Wait, as they make their entrance, Rust and Strong are jumped from behind! Kushida throws Rust in the ring then out of the ring, and Fish feeds Strong to Kushida’s haymakers! Fish adds on, Kushida feeds Strong to a KICK! Rust gets up but gets CLOBBERED by both Fish and Kushida! Then Strong is thrown out on top of Rust! Fans are thunderous as NXT goes to break!

NXT returns and the match is under way as Fish stomps Strong in a corner! Fish lets off, Strong knees low and throws boxing elbows! Strong runs but Fish drop toeholds him into buckles! Fish gets Strong up, clubs him with crossface forearms, then gets him to ropes to club him more. Tag to Kushida, they double wrench and double elbow breaker! They double whip and double KICK Strong down! Kushida covers, ONE! Kushida keeps on Strong with an armlock and grinds the shoulder. Fans rally behind him as Kushida hammerlocks the arm with a leg. Kushida gets the far arm, steps through and SNAPS the armlocks back!

Tag to Fish, Fish stalks Strong but Strong boots him! Tag to Rust but Fish fires off! Rust hits back, they brawl, Fish ROCKS Rust. Fish knees Rust in the corner, brings him around to give him more knees, then snapmares him at the ropes. Fish goes up and out and in with the slingshot senton! Cover, ONE! Tag to Kushida and Fish anchors Rust. Kushida picks Rust up but Rust powers him to the corner. Strong tags in and mugs Kushida. Kushida blocks a suplex, throws body shots and KICKS Strong in the arm! And again! Strong swings back but into a clinch, ARMBAR BULL- BACKBREAKER! Strong drags Kushida away from Fish to tag Rust, and Rust stomps Kushida down!

Rust gets Kushida up, back suplexes high and hard, then covers again, ONE!! Kushida writhes but Rust pulls on his top knot to KICK him in the back! Rust drags Kushida over, tags in Strong and they mug Kushida more. Strong CHOPS Kushida, bumps him off buckles, then CHOPS again. Strong gets in Kushida’s face as he eggs him on, and fans boo as Strong paces about. Kushida throws body shots, Strong gets him in a facelock then a BUTTERFLY SUPLEX! Cover, TWO! Strong hammers Kushida, wraps on a chinlock, and fans fire up as Kushida fights up. Kushida throws body shots but Rust tags in. Kushida fights off Diamond Mine!

But Rust hits hard and low! Diamond Mine double whips but Kushida handsprings to double back elbow! Tag to Fish and Fish rallies on Rust! Fish runs in to KNEE Rust at the corner! Fish dodges Strong, ROCKS him with a right then mule kicks Rust. SLIDING LARIAT! Cover, TWO! Rust survives but Fish keeps focus. Fish drags Rust up, Rust throws body shots but Fish clinches for more knees. Strong gets on the apron to grab and help Rust, but Fish throws more hands! Fish swipes at Strong, Strong gets away and Rust CLOBBERS Fish from behind! Tag to Strong and he gets Fish up to APRON BACK SUPLEX! Bivens is fired up as Fish flounders and NXT goes to break.

NXT returns again and Fish throws Strong down to a cover, ONE! Strong KNEES Fish right down, then throws down hands. Strong lets off to tag Rust, and Diamond Mine gets Fish up. They KNEE low, Rust runs to SCISSOR KICK! Cover, TWO! Bivens is still pleased as Rust clamps on with a chinlock. Fish fights up, Rust throws forearms but Fish clubs a leg! Rust SLAPS Fish, Fish throws hands! SLAP, haymakers! Rust trips Fish, and GROUND DRAGON SCREWS! Rust gets the leg, drags Fish away, and tags in Strong. Fish kicks Rust away but Strong stomps and drops knees on Fish. Strong digs his knee into Fish but Fish tries to chinbar back.

Fish fights up, Strong clinches but Fish throws body shots. Strong and Fish fight for grapple control, Fish throws knees, and fans fire up as he heads for Kushida! Strong sweeps the leg! Cover, TWO! Strong fires off furious knees, then grinds Fish down with a chinlock. Strong tags Rust and Diamond Mine gets Fish up. Fish fights back but Rust gives KICKS! Fish staggers, Rust wrenches and hooks Fish up for a modified Octopus Stretch! Fish endures but Rust fish hooks his face! The ref counts, Rust lets off and goes for a chinbar. Fish endures, pries the hold apart, and throws body shots! Fish throws forearms but Rust ROCKS him back!

Rust glares at Kushida, but Fish SPINEBUSTERS Rust! Both men are down, fans are thunderous again! Fish and Rust crawl, hot tags to Strong and Kushida! Kushida fires off SHOTEI after SHOTEI, then atomic drops to a whip and hip toss! Cartwheel basement dropkick! Fans are thunderous as Strong dodges fast ball and sunset flips, but he gets a BUZZSAW! Cover, TWO! Kushida wrenches Strong’s arm for the ARMBAR BULLDOG! Strong avoids the Penalty Kick, tag to Rust! Rust BOOTS and fires off forearms, then gut wrench SLAMS Kushida down! Fans boo but Rust is fired up. Kushida gets up, ducks the buzzsaw to ENZIGURI!

Rust wobbles, but he gets around to O’Conner Roll and ANKLE LOCK! Kushida rolls to throw Rust into buckles! Kushida ROCKS Rust, Rust ROCKS Kushida! They go back and forth, FAST- NO! Rust blocks, ROLLING CRAVAT! Cover, Fish breaks it! Then Fish CLOBBERS Strong and falls out to the floor with him! Kushida gets to a corner, he spots Rust stagger, FLYING KNEE to the arm! PENALTY KICK to the arm! Rust BOOTS, runs, but into the takedown! HOVERBOARD!! Rust taps, Kushida & Fish win!

Winners: Kushida & Bobby Fish, by submission

The Diamond Mine could not crush the Cruiserweight Champion or his friendly rival! Fish says it is only a matter of time, will he and Kushida close the mine down?

 

LA Knight and Cameron Grimes arrive.

Grimes being the butler, he is driving the nice white Corvette but Knight is bickering about something. Knight says they would’ve gotten here sooner if Grimes was listening to him and not to the GPS. Grimes says they would’ve gotten here faster in Grimes’ Rolls Royce. Knight tells the butler to get his bags. Yes, sir, Mr. Knight. Grimes laughs and goes to the trunk. Whoa, all of these? No problem. Grimes would carry bags back in the day! Does he have a story for everything? Yep, almost as many as Knight has bags! Whoops, dropped one. Drake Maverick helps but Grimes says it’s fine, it’s a whole thing.

Knight tells Maverick to stop, and then sends Grimes spinning away with the bags. This isn’t for Maverick, he should just mind his business. Maverick says he was just helping. Well Maverick’s gonna need help if he doesn’t stop now. Is it Bring Your Idiot to Work Day? Who even brought Maverick here? Hope daddy signed the permission slip, because tonight, Maverick gets Knight in the ring! Maverick’s up for that. Grimes apologizes but Knight makes him close the trunk. But that makes Grimes drop the bags. Grimes says he’s fine, he’s got this. Will Maverick use tonight to show up and shut up L, A, Knight?

 

Mark August 22, 2021 down on your calendars!

It’s going to be TAKEOVER 36!! The party may be in Las Vegas, but the fight is right here in the Capital Wrestling Center! Are you ready?

 

Odyssey Jones speaks.

“What up, WWE Universe? It’s ya boi, Odyssey Jones here, and I’m from Chrome, New York.” This is his opportunity to show us it is his time! Jones says he’s broken records in the weight room, broken jaws in the ring, and is about to break through in the tournament!

 

Samoa Joe watches the front door.

Kross is bound to arrive, and Joe wants to be the first one to meet him! Will those two tear the house down literally tonight?

 

Franky Monet w/ Jessi Kamea VS Jacy Jayne!

La Wera Loca is back in the ring, and now by her side is Robert Stone’s former client! Is this new take on #BougieBad going to start taking over NXT?

The bell rings and Franky circles with Jacy. They tie up, Stone hurries out to be with “his” team as Franky pie faces Jacy. That distracts Franky, Jacy throws a forearm and runs, but into Franky’s elbow! Franky snapmares and runs to slide, but Jacy ducks the kick! Jacy rolls Franky, TWO! Jacy dodges again to ENZIGURI! ANd BOOT! Franky ends up in a corner, Jacy roars and runs, but Franky moves! Jacy hits buckles, Franky comes back with the METEORA! Franky grins, stomps Jacy, and fires up again. Franky drags Jacy to center, but Jacy kicks back! Franky rolls and uses very Johnny Drip Drip like ground ‘n’ pound! Jacy shoves Franky away but Franky STOMPS her down!

Franky wraps on a chinlock but Mandy Rose appears at ringside! Mandy watches as Jacy fights out of the hold! Franky CLUBS Jacy while Mandy lounges on the announce desk. Franky runs in, Jacy elbows her away, and that pisses Franky off! Franky fires off hands, fireman’s carries, but Jacy fights free! Jacy runs, Franky dodges but Jacy RANAS! Jacy runs in to BOOT Franky down! Jacy sees Mandy, too, and is unsure what’s going on. But sh egoes back to Franky, ROCKS her, then roars as she hits a RUNNING NECKBREAKER! Cover, TWO!! Franky survives and is getting mad while Jacy hurries to fire off hammering hands!

Jacy gets Franky up, but Franky blocks the whip. Frank breaks free, mule kicks and then baits Jacy in for a spin and GLAM SLAM! Cover, Franky wins!

Winner: Franky Monet, by pinfall

Whatever reason the Golden Goddess came out here for doesn’t matter to Monet, she just gets her money! Will bougie bad stay undefeated? And will Stone understand who’s really in charge any time soon?

 

Backstage interview with Johnny Gargano & Austin Theory.

McKenzie knows things didn’t go Johnny’s way last week, but how has he been dealing with it. He’s been better. Maybe. Theory hasn’t slept in weeks but it doesn’t really have anything to do with this. But Kyle O’Reilly comes in and says, “I heard what you said about me.” Johnny didn’t say anything about Kyle. He knows that, he was talking to “this bonehead right here.” Theory? Theory said Kyle was sitting and crying, but it’s not really important. What is important is Kyle is in a fighting mood, so maybe Theory wants to square off with him. Oh is that a challenge? Yes, you thick-headed dork. Then Kyle’s one! Then Kyle will get his dancing shoes.

Gargano says Theory got himself in this one, he has to get himself out. Just like Johnny with Kross, he was all alone. If Theory wants to be like “Papa John,” he’s on his own. Good luck, sport! Theory is a bit surprised by that, but can he find a way to keep #CoolKyle from kicking his ass?

 

NXT moves to Syfy (for just two weeks).

While USA Network brings us back the Olympics and the gold medals, Brother Syfy will bring us the black ‘n’ gold brand! July 27th and August 3rd, make sure to check your guide!

 

Wade Barrett interviews Bronson Reed.

Barrett asks the Colossal Reed how losing the North American Championship has affected him. Reed knew that would come up, and says that winning the title was a big moment for him, his family, friends and wife, who all believed in him for 14 YEARS. And then losing it crushed them all. But Reed can’t live in the past, he has to push forward and fight even harder. So he wants to do that against Adam Cole next week! Cole is one of the greatest in NXT ever, is that wise? Reed says it’s very wise. Everyone considers Cole the best, so why not fight the best?

And we saw what happened: Cole ran his mouth, Reed shut him down. It’ll happen again next time, but Reed will finish the job. Will Cole have to brace for a Tsunami coming his way?

 

Kyle O’Reilly VS Austin Theory!

Kyle didn’t cry, sob, shed a tear, or any of that, but he might make The Way’s protégé do just that here! Will there be no way out of a heel hook?

The bell rings and Theory circles with Kyle. They tie up, go around, and Theory puts Kyle in a corner. The ref counts, Theory lets off and eggs Kyle on. They go again, tie up, Kyle wrenches an arm then gets a leg. Theory avoids the sweep, powers out, but Kyle waistlocks. Theory switches, slams Kyle, and makes the Way W at Kyle. They circle, tie up with knuckle locks, and Kyle rolls to get a leg. Theory gets to ropes but Kyle KICKS his leg! Theory hobbles, but he ROCKS Kyle with a right! Theory waistlocks, Kyle switches, Theory switches back but Kyle pries free to a wristlock! Theory powers Kyle back in, into a snap suplex!

Kyle gets up slowly, Theory is after him with forearms. Kyle forearms, Theory kicks, forearms and knees back! Theory snapmares and stomps Kyle, then eggs him on. Kyle knees back! Kyle throws forearms but Theory gets away to RAM Kyle into a corner! Theory hits a headlock takeover, grinds Kyle down and eggs him on. Fans rally and duel, Theory shrugs off the headscissor hold, “I told you, you’re a crybaby!” Kyle fights back, rolls to a cover, ONE! Kyle headscissors, Theory kips free, Kyle goes after legs but Theory kick shim away. Kyle shoots in, Theory blocks to get a headlock back, and Theory holds on as Kyle tires to power out.

Kyle tries again, Theory spins to make it a suplex! Kyle lands on his feet but Theory elbows him! Theory runs, but into Kyle’s KNEE! Kyle runs as Theory sits up, and Kyle fakes him out to SLAP him! Theory seethes, fans fire up but Theory ducks a kick! Theory rolls Kyle, runs in but is put on the apron! Kyle runs to KICK Theory off the apron! Fans fire up as NXT goes picture in picture.

Theory paces and seethes while Kyle waits in the ring. Theory takes his time returning, and then resets with Kyle. They feel out a grapple, Theory kicks low and scoops Kyle for a BACKBREAKER! Theory talks some trash on Kyle’s fans before he scuffs Kyle. Kyle gets him for a sunset flip! TWO, and Theory CLOBBERS Kyle! Cover, TWO! Theory grows annoyed, and he stomps Kyle to a corner. Kyle trips Theory up, has the foot and turns Theory over to CLUB him on the back. Kyle drives in knees, more clubbing elbows, and more knees. Kyle runs to drop a knee on Theory’s back! Kyle fish hooks Theory’s nose! The ref counts, Kyle lets off, and Theory scrambles away.

Kyle gets an arm, grinds the shoulder down, but Theory endures. Theory fights up, Kyle YANKS the arm, the wrenches. Theory kicks low, scoops and BACKBREAKERS again! Cover, TWO! Theory clamps on with a chinlock and grinds Kyle down. Kyle endures as Theory digs his knee into Kyle’s back. Kyle fights up but Theory knee shim low. NXT returns to single picture as Kyle wrenches free, but Theory shoves him, Kyle comes back with kick after kick and fast hands! Kyle KICKS a leg out, and Theory gets to a corner. Kyle runs corner to corner but blocks a boot. Theory ROCKS Kyle with a left, then somersault BLOCKBUSTERS! Cover, TWO!

Fans rally and duel as Theory gets to a corner. Theory hobbles over, stomps Kyle then rains down forearms. He tops it off with another stomp, then paces. Kyle comes back with a forearm but Theory kicks low. Theory ROCKS Kyle, brings him up and reels him in but Kyle slips under! Kyle waistlocks, Theory bucks him and somersaults, but Kyle catches the dropkick! HEEL HOOK! Theory rolls fast to get the ROPEBREAK! The ref counts, Kyle lets go and Theory gets to the apron. Kyle brings Theory up, Kyle goes to buckle bump but Theory blocks to give Kyle the bump! Theory throws Kyle down to slingshot stomp and RIPCORD SUPLEX! Cover, TWO!!

Kyle is still in this as Theory clamps on with a chicken wing and chinbar. Kyle endures, fights up, and fans rally again as Kyle throws body shots. Theory knees low, whips Kyle to ropes but Kyle reverses to kitchen sink knee! Theory sputters while Kyle catches his breath in a corner. Kyle gets Theory up for knee after knee, then a KICK to the leg! Palm strike, knee, KICK and leg sweep! Fans fire up as Kyle grits his teeth, Kyle runs corner to corner to forearm smash! Wrench and ELBOW BREAKR, to a KNEE in the corner! Kyle keeps moving, BOOT, to HALF HATCH and ARMBAR! Theory flails, clasps hands, but Kyle gets the leg! ANKLE LOCK!

Theory endures, reaches, and gets the ROPEBREAK! Kyle KNEES Theory’s arm down! Theory writhes, sits up, Kyle KICKS him in the arm! Fans duel hard as ever as Kyle gets the bad arm. Kyle wrenches, Theory breaks out, Kyle ducks one punch but the ELBOW gets him! Theory gets Kyle up but Kyle slips out of the bomb to ROCK Theory! Kyle runs in at the corner but Theory dodges the shining wizard CLUBBING forearm, torture rack, TOWER HACKER BOMB!! Cover, TWO!?! No one can believe Kyle survived, but Theory hurries to get Kyle up! AOI SHOUDO! Cover, TWO!!! Theory doesn’t understand why this isn’t working!

Kyle bails out, Theory goes out after him. Theory pulls steel steps apart! The ref has the ring count going and reprimands Theory, but Kyle gets up with fury in his eyes! KICK, smack off steps, into the boards, repeat! Kyle chases Theory into the ring, Theory ROCKS him but Kyle stays up! Kyle gets a takedown, ground ‘n’ pound with palm strikes, then Kowata Kicks! Fans are going nuts as Kyle hits AX and SMASH!! And a BIG knee into Kyle! Kyle goes to a corner, climbs up, KING KNOG KNEE DROP to the leg! HEEL HOOK!! Theory taps, Kyle wins!

Winner: Kyle O’Reilly, by submission

But Kyle has lost his cool, he’s not letting go! The ref pries Kyle off the hold and Theory finally gets away. Kyle said he felt there was something he needed to do to get back to the Kyle that won the tag titles. This might be that thing! Will this Kyle be the one to finally get THE NXT Championship?

 

Backstage interview with Raquel Gonzalez & Dakota Kai.

Huge title match tonight, but Xia vowed she’s walking out champion. Raquel’s response? Everyone says the same thing. Wasn’t McKenzie who asked if Ember hits the Eclipse? And what happened/ Raquel won! As for Xia and her “destiny,” not tonight, chica. Dakota says after beating Ember, Xia stole their spotlight. Now Raquel will destroy Xia for it. That kick doesn’t scare Raquel. Boa the bodyguard doesn’t scare Raquel. And her little friend who sits on her weird throne doesn’t scare Raquel. After putting Xia down, there will be no one left! Raquel and Dakota head out, but will they be eating all these words tonight?

 

Legado del Fantasma goes to the ring.

And judging from the mariachi guitarists in the ring waiting for them, there’s a musical performance in store. Santos Escobar wants everyone to stop, and dismisses the mariachis? Escobar says he was going to give us a taste of the best musical heritage in the world, but he changed his mind. He’s not going to lower himself to entertain the masses. Why? Because the fans ain’t worth it! Escobar won’t do the “Hit Row thing,” come out here and vomit some lines, embarrass himself and his people. Is this the battle of styles or something? Escobar will tell us what his style is: being the true and real CAMPEON, El Mero Mero!

So Hit Row, Escobar will take that North American Championship and put it up here, with blood, tradition, heritage, family and legacy! But here comes Hit Row themselves! Adonis has the music cut so he can say Escobar is talking real spicy. B-Fab, putting on notice. Like, really, Escobar? Que es esto? Your mariachi music was gonna be trash anyway. But wait, she gets what this is now. And what’s that? They’re celebrating their Quinceañera, thrown by Daddy Santos! Facts. We all know he’s their sugar daddy. But Mendoza & Wilde probably just call him “Papi Rico.” Check it. Top Falla says “You’re Escobar like Santos. I’m Escobar like Pablo! Plata promo, tatted on me, that’s how I go!” But when they see you, you and you, all he smells is guano! Who hotta than Top Dolla? Not nada!

Now look, Legado would never talk that tough talk to his face. And like Beyoncé say, that’s cuz it stay. To this day! All y’all stacked on top of each other, that’s like six eighths! Top Dolla was bigger than all y’all in sixth grade! And that wasn’t a bar, that was a fact. Then, now, forever, Hit Row runs the present, and that’s a wrap! Swerve wraps it up by giving us a history lesson: In 2020, it took all of Legado to stop him from getting Escobar’s title. That’s cool and all, cuz Swerve got a group of his own. So consider this payback! Thinking of it, Swerve hasn’t seen no one kidnapped in the back of a parking lot and returned right back.

So Legado, family is everything, right? Fruits of the Fantasma labors are beautiful to see. That is, until Swerve make Santos his bitch! And in 10 years, the apple won’t far from the tree. Oh yeah, keep doing that lame nursery rhyming all night. Legado will take the title and bring it back to Mexico, cabron! Bingo, we’ve got action! Hit Row steps up, Legado welcomes them, and fans are fired up as they duel between the two. And then it fires off! Wilde goes after Adonis, Mendoza is after Dolla, but Dolla puts Mendoza up top while Adonis drags Wilde down! And now it’s just Escobar and Swerve! Escobar takes off the jacket, Swerve takes off the title belt, and Swerve gets the first shot in!

Swerve fires off on Escobar but Escobar jams him in the eye! Escobar sees a guitar was left behind, and he grabs it! Swerve gets up but B-Fab stops the smash hit! Swerve DECKS Escobar and B-Fab wants him to go acoustic. Swerve gets the guitar but Escobar wants him to take it easy. Swerve says this is what Escobar’s owed, but Escobar bails out! Wilde gets in but Dolla warns Swerve. Wilde puts on the brakes but now he’s alone! Escobar isn’t coming back for him, either. Swerve steps, Wilde freaks out, and gets the LONG KISS GOODNIGHT from Adonis! Wilde is down, Dolla taunts Escobar with the belt, and Swerve says this is what Escobar’s gonna get. SMASH HIT!!

Fans go nuts as Wilde falls out of the ring and at Escobar’s feet. Legado may have targeted the wrong man this time. And if you didn’t know, now you know!

 

The Way talks backstage.

Gargano wants everyone to calm down. He’s the one not calm. What is going on? It has been awful lately! Candice & Indi lost the Women’s Tag titles, Gargano couldn’t get THE title, and why is Theory starting fights with people? Indi tells Candice to stop being so hard on everyone! If he wants to kiss Dexter, let him kiss Dexter! What? Theory doesn’t wanna kiss Dexter. Candice wants the therapist! Gargano says no, they don’t need the therapist. But Indi is projecting onto the others. Gargano is trying to keep the peace but Theory says the family is falling apart.

Theory reaches out for the high five but Papa John and Mama Candice are too concerned about #InDex. Theory walks out of the room, is The Way hitting a dead end?

 

Regal finds Joe still at the front door.

Regal wants Joe to know Kross has promised he’ll be here. So for everyone’s sake, Joe needs to calm down. Joe says Regal keeps getting this confused. This isn’t an issue of respect between the two of them, but Joe respects Regal. But Regal knows Joe will be the first man to “greet” Kross. Regal wants it to be peaceful, but the way Joe looks, it is going to be anything but.

 

NXT Breakout Tournament 2021 Opening Round: Odyssey Jones VS Andre Chase!

Two more new faces to NXT are ready to break out, but while Odyssey Jones has been waiting in the wings, Andre Chase says he is the number one seed in this tournament. Will Jones #SoundTheAlarm when he busts Chase’s bracket?

The bell rings and the two circle. They tie up and fans are behind Jones as he shoves Chase to the corner. Chase comes back, goes for a leg, but Jones gets him right up to a Canadian rack! Chase slips off to headlock but Jones powers out. Chase clotheslines but it does nothing! Jones grins but Chase fires off on the legs! Chase gets Jones down to a knee and BOOTS him! Jones stays up and Chase runs, into a big shoulder tackle! Jones fires up, runs, things speed up, but Jones catches Chase out of the air! Chase fights, Jones pops him away and clotheslines him out of the ring! Fans fire up with Jones as he pursues Chase. Chase gets back in and WRECKS Jones with a dropkick!

Chase PLANCHAS and takes Jones down! Chase almost hurts himself there, but he gets Jones up to throw forearms. Jones scoops to SNAKE EYES Chase off the desk! Jones runs but is sent into the girder! And then the post! Fans boo as Chase puts Jones in and covers, TWO! Jones gets up but Chase is on him with forearms. Chase whips but Jones blocks! Jones reverses, but Chase drop toeholds him into buckles! And KICKS him into the ring, for a SLINGHSOT STUNNER! Jones staggers, Chase climbs, and Chase MOONSAULTS! Direct hit and a cover, TWO!! Jones shakes out the cobwebs but Chase is after his arm!

Fans rally for Jones and he RAMS Chase into a corner. Chase runs but Jones CLOBBERS him! Jones starts to rally and hits a BODY CHECK! Jones fires up again, runs in to back body block, then rolls to come back and SPLASH! Chase flounders, Jones gets him up to whip and scoop, SIDE EFFECT! Cover, Jones wins!

Winner: Odyssey Jones, by pinfall (advances to the next round)

And the Odyssey begins! Bracket busted or not, will Jones be the new number one when he wins the whole thing?

 

Backstage interview with MSK.

Wes Lee & Nash Carter still have momentum, but what’s next? Well they’re ride the wave, it’s nice. And they look forward to whoever is stepping up next. They welcome any and all challengers. MSK All- Wait, what does that stand for? They didn’t tell you? Picture this. Dayton, Ohio, the year 2015.

But wait, Imperium interrupts with a video message! Marcel Barthel remembers being 3 years old when his father sat him down and told him, “You must love, respect and honor this business with every fiber of your being. Because we’re different. To us, the mat is sacred.” Fabian Aichner asks, “What happened to our sport?” Just looking at the NXT Tag Team Division, from top to bottom all see are lucha libre losers, rappers who wanna be famous, hand signs all over, and immature champions with a meaningless reign. But this ends with Imperium! they are protecting the purity of this sport, by any means necessary.

And that’s why they’re MSK. It all makes sense now! So they had no idea what just happened? Will they not see Barthel & Aichner coming after them and those titles?

 

Pete Dunne & Oney Lorcan speak.

The Bruiserweight says, “For months now, I’ve been begging anyone that thinks they’re badder than me, anyone that thinks they’re a better technician than me, to prove it. And last week, finally, Thatcher & Ciampa stepped up.” But if those two think they’re badder and better, then let’s scrap! Oney’s down for a fight. Ciampa & Thatcher must think they’re real tough guys. But next week, we see how tough they really are. Who will survive when four of the grittiest men in NXT today throw down?

 

LA Knight w/ Cameron Grimes VS Drake Maverick!

The Million Dollar Megastar didn’t want anyone lightening the load on his Carolina Cavemanservant, and now he’s sending a message to the good Samaritan that came along. Will Knight make million dollar mashed potatoes out of Rockstar Spud?

The bell rings, Grimes holds onto the Million Dollar Championship for Knight and holds it up high, and then Knight turns around into haymakers! Maverick fires off, Knight shoves him away, but Maverick dropkicks al eg out! Then he redirects Knight to dropkick him down again! Knight gets to a corner, kicks back and ROCKS Maverick! Knight back suplexes high and hard, then paces as Maverick writhes. Fans still chants “TO THE MOON!” for Grimes and Knight gets annoyed. Knight goes out and tells Grimes to stay over by commentary now, while still holding the belt up. Grimes does his job, Knight gets in the ring, and Maverick slips under to back elbow!

Maverick goes up, Knight Electric Chair lifts, but Maverick spins to RANA! Knight flounders, Maverick goes up the corner and Grimes cheers him on as Maverick CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Maverick fires off hands, runs, but has to dodge a clothesline. He comes back but Knight scoops Maverick with one arm, for a FALL AWAY SLAM! Knight grins but he doesn’t like the fans chanting for Grimes. Grimes, hold the belt up! Grimes gets his arms up and Knight warns him to take this seriously. But Maverick dropkicks Knight into the belt! Maverick rolls Knight up, and WINS!

Winner: Drake Maverick, by pinfall

Grimes says that was awesome, but tells Maverick to get out of here fast! Maverick hurries but Knight CLOBBERS him! And rains down fists! The Million Dollar Megastar says this is on Grimes, and he stomps a million dollar mudhole into Maverick! Grimes pulls Knight off Maverick!? Grimes says this isn’t necessary, the match was over. No it’s not over! Knight says it’s GRIMES’ turn! Knight orders his butler to beat up Maverick! Knight gets Maverick up but Grimes walks away. Knight brings Grimes back into the ring, and says if Grimes is a man of his word, then he has to beat up Maverick! Knight stands Maverick up and orders Grimes to punch Maverick in the mouth.

Fans say, “NO! NO! NO!” and Grimes grimaces, but he DECKS Maverick! Grimes still compromises his character but Knight gloats in the control he has over Grimes! Knight tells Grimes to follow him out, and Grimes apologizes to Maverick. Will Grimes be pushed to a breaking point being under Knight’s thumb?

 

Karrion Kross finally arrives.

And Joe is right at the car door! But he drags out a staff member?! The guy says Kross paid him to park the car, Kross is already in the building! Joe shoves the guy down and storms back inside! Will Joe find Kross and make him pay for playing games?

 

NXT Women’s Championship: Raquel Gonzalez w/ Dakota Kai VS Xia Li!

Big Mami Cool defeated the Nightmare, dethroned the Evil Genius, and extinguished the Prophecy of Flames already in her reign. But Mei Ying has molded the once spicy Xia into a razor sharp steel blade. And surprisingly, Boa and Mei Ying stayed away for this one! Will Xia prove to Raquel that this is destiny when she does this all on her own? Or will the insurance policy known as #CapKota come into play?

The introductions are made, the belt is raised, and we see the difference between destiny and reality play out before our eyes!

The two tie up, Raquel powers Xia right into a corner but Xia slips away. Xia dodges, waistlocks, headlocks, but Raquel powers up. Raquel powers out, Xia comes back but Raquel runs her over! “I’M your champion! You WILL respect me!” But Xia kips up to stare her down! Xia KICKS a leg, jumps on and has a SLEEPER! Raquel flails, pries the hold, and throws Xia off! Raquel then double knuckle locks and brings Xia up, but Xia kicks and jumps up! Xia sunset flips but Raquel stays up. Raquel drags Xia up to throw into a corner! The ref almost didn’t get out of the way but Xia boots back! Raquel runs in but only gets buckles!

Raquel gets Xia again to put her back in a corner, but Xia kicks her. Xia leaps up and over, rolls, comes back but into a BOOT! Xia isn’t the only one with lethal feet! Raquel eggs Xia on but Xia bails out. Raquel follows, “This is what you wanted!” Raquel scoops Xia, to LAWN DART her into the post! Raquel puts Xia in, Xia flops back out. Dakota keeps her distance and Raquel says this won’t end on count out! She runs in but Xia moves! Raquel gets stuck in the corner and Xia SLAMS the leg against post! Raquel grabs at hair but Xia SLAMS the leg into post again! And again! Raquel shoves her away and gets free, but she hobbles away. Xia SHOVES her into steel steps!

Xia gets in the ring as NXT goes picture in picture! She fires up, Raquel gets in, and Xia KICKS her bad leg! Raquel hobbles, Xia KICKS her again! Xia fires off more kicks, Raquel shoves her but Xia dropkicks the leg out. Xia roars, tastes the victory coming, and KNEES Raquel in the side. Cover, TWO! Xia is furious but she just goes after Raquel at the ropes. Raquel shoves her away but Xia kicks her more! Xia fires off hands, stomps away in the corner, but lets off as the ref counts. Xia brings Raquel around, Raquel shoves her away but Xia just comes back for more! Xia has the bad leg, clubs it over an dover, then DRAGON SCREWS Raquel down!

Raquel writhes, Xia is after her again! Xia CLUBS her down, says this is her destiny, and then chokes Raquel on ropes! The ref counts, Xia lets off and then throws body shots. Raquel gets to a corner, Xia cravats but Raquel SLAMS her down! Cover, TWO! Xia KICKS the bad leg again! Xia drags Raquel from ropes, has hold of the foot, and drops down to a HEEL HOOK! Raquel endures, slaps at Xia’s leg, pries at the hold, but Xia stays clamped on. Raquel stomps with her free leg and gets free, then hurries to a corner. NXT returns to single picture as Xia runs in to knee! And again! Xia climbs up to rain down elbows, but Raquel shoves her away.

Xia comes back to get the leg on the rope and she dropkicks the knee! And again! Raquel tries to get free but the third dropkick knocks her down! Cover, TWO! Dakota is relieved but Xia is back on the foot. Xia tries to turn Raquel, and she does, for a HALF CRAB! Raquel endures, grits her teeth, powers up, and rolls to throw Xia down! Xia gets up and runs in, but into Raquel’s arms for a FALL AWAY SLAM! Xia flounders up, ducks a lariat but not the second! Raquel fires up and CLOBBERS Xia again! And manages a dropkick! Cover, TWO! Raquel is growing frustrated and she clutches the bad leg. Raquel gets Xia up as fans rally, but Xia fights off the fisherman!

Xia runs to wheelbarrow and victory roll to a EuroClutch! TWO, but Xia gets a jackknife on the return! TWO, and Xia stands right up to KICK Raquel in the back! Raquel flounders with the bad leg, and Xia runs to FALLING ROUNDHOUSE! Cover, TWO!! Raquel survives and Xia grows frustrated! Dakota panics as Xia gets Raquel up for SLAPS! Raquel blocks, gets the leg, and then pops Xia up for a SPINEBUSTER! Raquel goes to a corner, climbs up and VADER SENTONS! Cover, TWO!! Xia survives again and Raquel is beside herself. The ref checks on Xia while Raquel works on her bad leg. Raquel says Xia wanted this, she will end it!

Xia is being checked on the medic, Dakota coaches Raquel on this, and fans rally up in hopes this continues. Raquel grits her teeth as she stays fired up but Xia might be hurt. Somehow, Xia is okay to continue, so Raquel gets her up! CHINGONA BOMB! Raquel wins!

Winner: Raquel Gonzalez, by pinfall (still NXT Women’s Champion)

Xia might’ve rather taken the technical knockout, because in the end, there was a difference between destiny and reality: Raquel Gonzalez. Raquel and Dakota head out right as Joe storms in! Joe has a mic to call out “KARRION KROOOSS~! COME OUT TO PLAAAAY~!” Joe goes right to the ring and asks where, oh where, is our young champion, the man who refuses to learn?! Tonight, Kross learns there WILL be a reckoning! Kross, get your ass out here so Joe can stomp it all over the arena! But Kross talks via titantron that this isn’t the same world Joe walked away from on top. This is Kross’ world now.

Kross is the new beginning, and the NXT Championship means he can go wherever he wants. Kross can do whatever he wants, and he can hurt anyone he wants. For example… WILLIAM REGAL is down?! Joe hurries to the back, and Kross asks if Joe still feel sin control. “Who provoked who?” Kross leaves Regal down and out as he goes back to his car and pulls away just as Joe returns to the parking lot! Joe is furious but his wrath goes unsatisfied! What must Joe do to make Kross #FallAndPray?


My Thoughts:

A great NXT but I feel like they’re still having to find themselves while Vince is screwing around. For one, there is still the uncertainty of what’s going on with Mandy Rose after she got “traded” to NXT. She was scouting during Franky’s match, and Jacy Jayne got to look pretty good because of the distractions. Is she going to recruit Gigi Dolin and/or Jacy Jayne in a weird copycat of the Robert Stone Brand? And ironically, it is funny that Stone doesn’t realize Franky is taking over his stable, I can’t wait to see the moment he finally puts it together.

They could’ve done more to announce the next TakeOver, and since NXT isn’t touring, it is a shame it’ll just be generically named “TakeOver 36,” but at least it’s happening. A lot of groundwork is already set for various titles, but after a great women’s title match that had a bit of a rough ending, Raquel’s card is wide open. I do like Xia’s promo working the flush heel kick to Mercedes Martinez into things, and Raquel had a good response. And Dakota’s subtle frown at Raquel acting like there will be no one left to challenge her is a good detail, too. Dakota of course would want her own chance at the title but maybe Raquel doesn’t see her ally as a contender out of friendship. Maybe Dakota will turn on Raquel the way she did on Tegan and that gives us a big title match for TK36.

We got a very good tag match between Diamond Mine and Kushida-Fish, with good teamwork from both sides. Kushida and Fish win, but don’t be surprised if Kushida still gives Rust or Strong a Cruiserweight Championship match. I’m leaning towards Rust getting a title match so that Fish and Strong can have their grudge match, winner getting perhaps their own Cruiserweight title match down the line. I feel like the Diamond Mine as a faction needs to do more recruiting promo segments where they’re looking for a third fighter since the Nick Prick Khan releases took away Arturo Ruas and even Marina Shafir. *Cough* 205 Live */cough*

I like the interplay of MSK and Imperium, with the Imperium promo video completely overlapping MSK’s origin story. Obviously, Imperium is just stepping right up to the titles since there’s no Breezango to still feud with and the other teams are busy. Speaking of, we got a decent promo from Dunne & Oney, but Oney’s last line felt like an incomplete thought. I feel like he should’ve upped the ante by saying their match with Ciampa & Thatcher should just straight up be a special type of tag match. With these four, why not a Submission Tag, or Elimination Tag to see who is the last partner standing. Their match happening next week could mean we still get a tag contender’s match before TK36, Imperium VS I would assume Ciampa & Thatcher.

Kyle VS Theory was a great match that was in response to Theory’s social media video promo, but also worked out to propel both men’s stories. Kyle brings out that aggression and gets a great win, he is building momentum towards his tiebreaker with Adam Cole, and then Theory is feeling like the forgotten little brother in all of big sister Indi’s drama. Theory has really come into his own thanks to being with The Way, I just hope Vince doesn’t notice and take him away. And that’s not a pun, that’s legit, I hope Theory gets to see this through. And speaking of the drama within The Way, Candice is coming off a tad awkward but Indi is nailing the #InDex Freudian slips. I hope we finally get a big moment between her and Dexter at TK36.

With Maverick having absolutely no one anymore, with wife Renee Michelle working under AEW, and both his buddies, EC3 and Killian Dain, being released without WWE really trying with them, I am glad he’s even moderately involved in the Million Dollar Legacy story. Maverick tries to be a good guy, but no good deed goes unpunished, and while he wins against Knight in a great way, Knight makes Grimes do his dirty work here. I almost thought Grimes was going to refuse, but he doesn’t want to welsh on the bet so he hit Maverick. I hope Maverick brings up how pinning the champ should get him a title opportunity, since that is obviously WWE’s new policy, and maybe Grimes helps Maverick win to get out of being Knight’s butler.

I like that we were teased a parody of Hit Row’s cypher celebration, and then Escobar refuses to do it because he doesn’t want to pander to fans. That much I can respect, even if they’re dissing an honestly good bit of rap. Hit Row did a good job shooting back, and they had a great brawl. Swerve bringing up when Legado kept screwing him over was a natural move, and now maybe Hit Row will do that back to Escobar. But also, that Six Man Tag needs to happen first. Then we got a very good Breakout Tournament match, I am very happy to see Odyssey Jones win. They still haven’t given us a full bracket, but with Josh Briggs and Joe Gacy facing Carmelo Hayes and Trey Baxter, respectively, I feel like this Breakout Tournament is turning into Big Hoss Tournament.

Bronson Reed had a good interview promo with Wade Barrett, but I feel like there’s some bad news in Reed’s future. He’s aiming big with Adam Cole but I feel like Cole wins to build towards the tiebreaker with Kyle. At the same time, Reed seems to be on Vince’s radar so maybe the loser who leaves NXT will be Reed, not Cole. And of course, we got great stuff out Joe and Kross. I like that Joe references Kross being on Raw for no real reason, and then Kross acting like it’s because he can do whatever he wants. Though maybe Kross should’ve chosen to not go to Raw if he knew he’d be used as the poster boy for Vince dissing NXT.

Anyway, Joe never gets to get at Kross and Kross gets some real serious Heel heat going after Regal directly. Joe has to destroy Kross at this point and send him and Scarlett off to Raw. Maybe then Vince gives Mr. & Mrs. Doomsday a fair shake.

My Score: 9/10


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Coverage

Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (3/18/24)

Talk about a Big Time Raw!

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Will The Man be the Last Woman Standing?

Becky Lynch and Nia Jax want to finally put this to an end, so tonight on Raw, it will be a Big Time Last Woman Standing match! Will the Irresistible Force force the WrestleMania 40 match to change?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: #DIY VS The Creed Brothers; DIY wins and advances to WrestleMania.
  • Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance; Candice & Indi win.
  • Dominik Mysterio w/ JD McDonagh VS Ricochet; Ricochet wins.
  • Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The Awesome Truth VS Indus Sher; The Awesome Truth wins and advances to WrestleMania.
  • Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The New Day VS The Alpha Academy; The New Day wins and advances to WrestleMania.
  • Last Woman Standing: Becky Lynch VS Nia Jax; Becky wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Jey Uso is here!

North Carolina State University fires up and bounces along with Main Event Jey, and Pat McAfee plays a dangerous game standing on the armchairs! From Bret VS Owen to Matt VS Jeff, we’re about to get Jey VS Jimmy in the third-ever Brother VS Brother WrestleMania grudge match! Jey gets the mic as fans chant “YEET! YEET! YEET!” Jey welcomes us to Monday Night Raw, and wants us to check this out. He knows his brothers are somewhere in the building. He knows The Bloodline’s in the building. He knows how the Bloodline rolls! SO Big Brother Jimmy, where you at?! Where you at, Uce!?

Jey waits for someone to show up somewhere, and the crowd spots them first! Fans boo as Jimmy & Solo make their way from the back of the stands. Jimmy gets a mic and goes to the apron while Solo paces around the outside. Fans chant “YEET! YEET! YEET!” again as Jey puts the sunglasses aside. The Usos stare each other down, the fans now chant “UCE! OH! UCE! OH!” Jey wants to say something, hesitates, but then says these two would always get to it but they always knew how to shake right back to this. But now it’s different. Regardless of what happened, the bad blood between them, Jey misses his brother. He does.

Jey knows Jimmy will say what he wants, but Jey doesn’t talk to him no more, doesn’t ride with him no more, doesn’t even see him no more! Jimmy can just come back. Jimmy says he never left! He protected Jey! Jey’s so dumb, he can’t see it! Jimmy is protecting Jey! It was Jey’s idea to leave The Bloodline, but Jimmy helped because he is Jey’s brother. So yeah, Jey leaves, and what happens? Lil’ Bro becomes the BIGGEST star on the Raw roster! Lil’ Bro becomes the top merch seller! Lil’ Bro goes off to become a tag team champion without Jimmy, but with CODY RHODES!? Who left who, Uce?

Jey forgot Jimmy! Everything Jey did that was big was cuz of Big Bro Jimmy! Everything! So listen loud and clear. The biggest moment in Jey’s career, the BIGGEST moment, is because of Jimmy! Jimmy stares Jey down, but Jey says no. Jey’s biggest moment in his career is going to be his dream match at WrestleMania 40: Jey VS Jimmy, and Jey knocks the yeet out Jimmy’s ass! Jey DECKS Jimmy, DECKS Solo off the apron, but then Jimmy SUPERKICKS Jey down! The fans boo but now Solo storms in and looms over Jey. Solo drags Jey up so Jimmy can look him in the face and tell him that Jey needs to get it right! JIMMY made Jey!

But here comes Cody Rhodes! The fans fire up as Cody DECKS Jimmy, then gets in to springboard and CODY CUTTER Solo!! The American Nightmare said he was gonna be a Bloodline Hunter, and he made sure they didn’t take out Jey! Cody tells The Bloodline it is only a matter of time before they lose it all at WrestleMania! Will Jey prove that younger or older doesn’t matter when he is the BETTER brother?

 

Adam Pearce is on the phone.

He’s telling Nick Aldis to stop being a hypocrite, telling Pearce to keep his roster in check when this is happening. But then Paul Heyman walks over and Pearce says he’ll call Aldis back. Pearce then asks Heyman what was all that, and Heyman says he owes Pearce an apology. He is sorry. That was not authorized by The Final Boss nor The Tribal Chief, and certainly not by Heyman. Jimmy & Solo went into business for themselves so Heyman apologizes. But listen, Pearce knows that there have been flight delays all day. Even private jets like theirs. Heyman is barely even dressed for TV, let alone has his make-up!

Pearce says those two were ready. Yeah, well, they got in on a different flight. But Roman Reigns is a chief of his word. Those two are already gone, out of the arena, and Pearce has Roman’s word. Call his bluff, put out a search party. Pearce knows Heyman is here on official business, which Heyman will handle, and then be gone. That is it. But when Heyman does his official business… everyone will be caught off guard. “And Mr. Pearce, sir, that’s not a prediction. That’s a spoiler.” The Wise Man heads out and calls Roman, but just what is Heyman teasing?

 

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: #DIY VS The Creed Brothers!

Unlike SmackDown’s mini-tournament, Raw and Adam Pearce say it’s win and you’re in! Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano want one more shot at Judgment Day, but so do Julius & Brutus! Will the Sicilian Psycho & Johnny Wrestling prove that when it comes to Mania Moments, you gotta do it yourself? Or will the Creeds be bringing golden tickets to the Diamond Mine?

Raw returns as The Creeds make their entrance. The teams fist bump to show respect, then the teams sort out. Julius starts against Ciampa, they circle and tie up. They’re in a deadlock, Ciampa goes for a waistlock but Julius facelocks. Julius wrangles Ciampa to the mat, flips him over, ONE, and Ciampa keeps moving. They trade facelocks, gator roll, and Julius gets another lateral press. ONE, but Julius gator rolls Ciampa around. Ciampa fights up, puts Julius on ropes, and the ref counts. Ciampa lets off, then CHOPS! Julius shoots in for the takedown! Julius has a leg, Ciampa fights but Julius turns him for the ANKLE LOCK!

Ciampa scrambles to the ROPEBREAK, and Julius lets off cleanly. Ciampa bails out, shakes it off, and he gets back in. They go again, Julius hits a fireman’s carry takeover! Tag to Brutus, and Julius feeds Ciampa to another fireman’s carry takeover! Brutus cording holds but Ciampa endures. Ciampa fights up, but Brutus facelocks. The fans rally as Brutus switches and rolls Ciampa. Ciampa fights up, headlocks, then ROCKS Brutus! Brutus DECKS Ciampa, then whips him to ropes. Ciampa ducks ‘n’ dodges, tag to Gargano! Ciampa slides, CHOPS, Gargano LARIATS and Ciampa JAWBREAKERS! Wrench and LARIAT!

Julius runs in, Gargano kicks and Ciampa gives him the boost for SLICED BREAD! The Creeds bail out, but DIY DOUBLE PLANCHA! Down go the Creeds, and DIY applaud and pat themselves on the back. The fans fire up and Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Ciampa has Julius in a chinlock. The fans rally, Julius fights up to throw body shots, but Ciampa hits a back suplex! Julius lands out of it, but Ciampa elbows him away. Ciampa drop toeholds Julius, gets legs, but Julius BOOTS Ciampa away! Hot tags to Gargano and Brutus! Brutus rallies on DIY, TOSSES Gargano, then blocks Ciampa’s kick to get under and POWERBOMB him! Brutus sees DIY regroup, then he runs in to SPLASH them both! O’Conner on Ciampa, but Gargano runs up! NORTHERN LIGHTS! Brutus has a DOUBLE BRIDGE, TWO!! Tag to Julius and he gut wrench SLAMS Brutus on Ciampa!

Brutus helps Julius flip up and over to SPLASH onto Ciampa! Cover, TWO! The fans rally up as Julius drags Ciampa up. Ciampa throat chops! A bit dirty but Ciampa wants that win! Ciampa storms up on Julius, but Julius basement stalling suplexes!! The fans are thunderous, Gargano runs in, but Brutus intercepts! Brutus suplexes Gargano now, stalls, and then the Creeds SLAM and kip up! Then they both STANDING MOONSAULT! Cover, TWO! Ciampa stays in this for DIY but the Creeds keep cool. Julius stomps Ciampa, tags Brutus, and they KNEE Ciampa around! Then they DOUBLE GUTBUSTER! Ciampa sputters but Brutus tags Julius in.

Julius drags Ciampa up, tags Brutus back in, and Brutus climbs. Julius Electric Chair Lifts, but Gargano makes the save! Gargano ROCKS Julius, Brutus ROCKS Gargano! Ciampa BOOTS Brutus, Gargano swings on Julius but is sent into Ciampa! Ciampa pushes Gargano back so he can ELBOW Julius! DIY set up again but Brutus stops the Sliced Bread! Julius DECKS Ciampa, KNEE into the WIDOWMAKER! Julius scrapes Gargano out, Brutus POUNCES Ciampa over the desk! Pat fires up with Brutus and so do the fans! The Creeds say they run this now, and then Brutus drags Ciampa up while Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Julius has Ciampa in a chinlock. Ciampa fights up, and he JAWBREAKERS free! Ciampa ELBOWS Brutus down, BOOTS Julius, then runs up, only for Julius to catch him and toss him back! But then Ciampa catches Julius for a REVERSE DDT! The fans fire up while both men are down and crawling! Hot tag to Gargano! Gargano slingshots to KICK Julius, then he CLOBBERS Brutus! ENZIGIRI for Julius, then he runs to DOUBLE KNEE Brutus! BULLDOG LARIAT COMBO! The fans fire up with Gargano while Julius ends up in another corner. Gargano runs in but is put on the apron!

Gargano GAMANGIRIS Julius, SUPERKICKS Brutus, then SLINGSHOT SPEARS Julius! Cover, TWO! Julius survives but Gargano puts him in a corner. Gargano CHOPS, then hoists Julius up top. Tag to Ciampa, Ciampa CHOPS Julius while Gargano DIVES onto Brutus! Ciampa CHOPS Julius again, goes up top, and fireman’s carries! Ciampa then tucks Julius in for the SUPER AIR RAID CRASH! Cover, TWO!! Julius survives again and shocks Ciampa! The fans are just as stunned, but Ciampa and Julius sit up. Ciampa stands, and he CHOPS! And CHOPS! Julius sits back up as Ciampa puts some stank on the CHOP!

Julius brings the straps down! Julius fires a forearm, Ciampa hits back, and the fans fire up as the shots keep going! They go faster and faster, harder and harder, meaner and meaner! The fans fire up as this just turns into a brawl of haymakers and SLAPS! Ciampa then gets around, ripcord and HAYMAKER! ROLLING- TACKLE from Julius! And then the ANKLE LOCK!! Ciampa reaches out, moves around, but Gargano runs up! Julius kicks him, then gets him up with one arm to POWERBOMB! Then it’s back to the ANKLE LOCK on Ciampa! Brutus gets in to get Gargano for an ANKLE LOCK of his own!

The fans are thunderous as DIY endures! Ciampa and Gargano fight, turn things over, SICILIAN CROSSFACE and GargaNO Escape!! The fans are thunderous as The Creeds power up and lift both DIY! They fireman’s carry, then TOSS DIY into each other!! The fans are thunderous as Julius goes up to MOONSAULT onto Ciampa! Brutus MOONSAULTS, too! Cover, TWO?!?! Ciampa survives and the fans are loving this! Julius tags back in, Brutus climbs up! “This is Awesome!” as Julius Electric Chair Lifts Ciampa! But Ciampa VICTORY ROLLS to get under the Brutus Ball!! Cover, Brutus tips it! Gargano TOSSES Brutus then SUPERKICKS Julius!! Ciampa has the cover, DIY WINS!!

Winners: DIY, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)

Julius can’t believe it! He kicked out at 3.1, but a loss is a loss! And for the first time ever, DIY is going to Mania! Will Philadelphia soon be historic for a DIY championship victory?

 

Judgment Day meets backstage.

Rhea Ripley is with Dominik Mysterio, Finn Balor & JD McDonagh, but also Andrade. Dom says he’s always liked Andrade’s style, but things have changed since the last time he was in the WWE. The Judgment Day runs Raw now. Rhea says yeah, and they don’t extend invitations to just anyone. Judgment Day is very exclusive. JD says very exclusive. But if Andrade continues to impress them, they’ll see about making things happen. And Finn says he just heard that Andrade has a match next week, so the Judgment Day will be watching him. Sounds good. See you next week. But then in steps Damian Priest.

The Punisher says hello to El Idolo, and El Idolo says hello to Senor Dinero. Andrade heads out, will he quite literally win his way into the club? But as for Priest, Finn asks him what he was up to. Priest was getting a closer look at that DIY VS Creeds match. DIY won, but whatever, they can handle those guys. But JD, they thought he could handle Ricochet last week, and run the gauntlet, and then go to WrestleMania to bring even more gold back to Judgment Day. JD says he did he belonged in there. But also, he battered Ricochet, who got lucky at the end there. Right, Finn? Finn hesitates, and Rhea says Priest is right on this one.

Ricochet made a fool out of JD! A fool? Yes. A fool? Yes. That’s why tonight, Dom will make it right. Right, Dom? Yeah, Mami. Let’s go talk to Pearce to make it official. Dom & JD head out, and the others are confident Dom’s got this. But does he, though? Or will the One and Only have two wins over Judgment Day in as many weeks?

 

Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance!

The Poison Pixie certainly lived up to that name last week when she bullied Maxxine Dupri as part of beating her and Ivy Nile last week. Will Candice’s toxic tongue strike again? Or will the party not be stopped by her harsh vibes?

The teams sort out and Candice starts against Kayden. Candice rushes up, Kayden gets around and O’Conner Rolls, TWO! Kayden springboards to basement dropkick! Cover, TWO! Kayden stalks Candice, Candice ELBOWS her away then tags Indi. Kayden dodges Candice to SUPERKICK, but Indi BOOTS Kayden! Cover, TWO! Indi drags Kayden up, tags Candice back in, and they mug Kayden. Candice CLUBS away on Kayden, fires off furious fists, then covers. TWO, and Candice grows frustrated already. The fans rally, Candice steps up but Kayden avoids the senton! Tags to Katana and Indi! Katana blasts past Indi, comes back and BULLDOGS!

Katana keeps moving, ducks ‘n’ dodges, then SHOTGUNS Indi to a corner! The fans fire up as Katana stomps away on Indi! Indi shoves Katana, Katana runs corner to corner to A-LIST LARIAT! Katana shoves Indi down, runs up, but into a back suplex! Katana lands out, but her leg jams! The ref and Kayden check, then the ref keeps Indi back. Indi says okay, and she stays by Candice. But Candice tags in to WRECK Kayden! And she SLAMS Katana’s leg into the post!! HALF CRAB and DEEP! Katana taps, Candice & Indi win!

Winners: Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell, by submission

Candice smiles and celebrates with Indi, but Indi doesn’t want to. Candice says a win is a win, but just what is going on in her toxic mind?

 

Cody Rhodes makes his way to the ring.

NC State fires up again as The American Nightmare walks down the ramp, and this time the fans can sing along with the song, “WHOA~ OH~!” Cody gets his pyro then gets the mic. “In less than three weeks time, I will stand opposed for the second year in a row, in the main event, with the lights on brightest, I will challenge for the WWE Undisputed Championship, against the greatest champion in all of sports, The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. And this Friday on SmackDown, Roman and I are going to have a little conversation, if you will. But there are… complications. Factors, elements, combustible elements, namely… The Rock.”

Fans boo but Cody says The Rock took to Instagram on Friday, and followed it up with “extremely entertaining” concert. Too bad The Rock didn’t wanna be here tonight. Something Cody took from the Instagram post: The Rock referred to himself as “Our Favorite Heel.” A bit of an inside term, but we’re not dumb, we know that means he’s the “bad guy.” Cody has known Heels. Bobby Heenan, Arn Anderson, Michael Hayes, “Superstar” Billy Graham, “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair! Fans “WOO~” and Cody says he doesn’t think The Rock is a Heel. He’s just an assh*le. The fans go nuts hearing that!

Cody doesn’t want Rock getting upset, he doesn’t want the “seven bucks team” to get upset, he doesn’t want anyone getting emotional. Cody knows how Rock feels about emotions, he poked fun at Cody tearing up at discussing “finishing the story” with good friend, Michael Cole. There’s no crying in pro-wrestling, Jimmy Dugan, we get it. But hasn’t The Rock been crying behind the scenes this whole time? Once that hashtag came out, once fans chanted something else, The Rock cried to his buddies on the TKO board and said “Hey, this is gonna be some good PR for The Rock! I need to save WWE!” God knows, look at this house. They sure needed “saving,” huh?

The fans cheer but Cody says Rock wanted great PR. Until it wasn’t. TKO said OMG yes, put on the Gucci shirt, get those muscles looking big. It’s because they are Yes People, they are enablers, they won’t dare tell The Rock like it is, so Cody’s going to. Cody tells The Rock, “You’re a lot of things. You’re a lot of wonderful things. You are the Braham Bull, you are The Great One.” Cody still has shoes with The Rock’s logo on it! The Rock is the only guy Cody honestly feels is a Mount Rushmore wrestler. But he is also a terrible salesman, a carny succubus, and for those who don’t get what that means, The Rock is “a whiny b*tch!”

Fans lose their minds again but Cody says The Rock has been convinced otherwise. But don’t think that for two seconds this locker room needs The Rock more than The Rock needs it! That’s a rule of wrestling, nobody is bigger than the business! And sure, Cody brought up his mom, so it is fair game for The Rock to use that. But Cody knows The Rock’s mom. Here’s what Cody will tell us about The Rock’s mom. She is a wonderful lady, salt of the earth, she helped Cody chop Kevin in a dark match. Cody has nothing but respect for The Rock’s mom, something The Rock should’ve echoed back towards Cody’s mom.

But see, The Rock was talking about whipping Cody, handing a bloody weight belt to Cody’s mom, and normally someone as powerful as The Rock, Mama Rhodes would tremble. But The Rock doesn’t know Cody’s mom. Cody was more scared than she was, because she ain’t scared of nothing. This is the same woman who once jumped out of her chair at a Willie Nelson concert and beat up an undercover cop! She ain’t afraid of The Rock! Cody has been asked, April 6th, biggest tag match of all time, Rock & Roman VS Cody & Seth. Seth Rollins, the World Heavyweight Champion, a man The Rock should respect because that man has carried The Rock’s company!

How will Cody get past that match? How will April 7th look? Will it be a fair fight? Cody can tell us honestly… He doesn’t know. Cody does not know if it will be Bloodline Rules or not. Hell, he might not #FinishTheStory. “But Dwayne… What do you know? How can you be so sure of your own self, right?” The Rock hasn’t been in the ring in real action in years! April 6th, the bell is gonna ring, and what happens then? Is The Rock gonna bring The Great One, the hero we all had growing up? Is he bringing that #BigDwayneEnergy? Or is it gonna be LDS, Little D*ck Syndrome?! The fans chant “L D S! L D S!”

Cody says The Rock has referred to himself as The Final Boss. Kudos for that nickname, maybe he really is that. Maybe Cody is too naive to see it. But at WrestleMania, Cody doesn’t think The Rock will be The Final Boss. At WrestleMania, he’s just Roman’s side chick. But then ladies and gentlemen, his name is Paul Heyman, and he serves as The Wise Man to Your Tribal Chief, the reigning! Defending! Undisputed! WWE Universal Heavyweight Champion, Roman… Reigns! And as Special Counsel to the Bloodline, Heyman is here to say to Cody that the ideals that Cody and Heyman share are far greater than the interests on which they conflict.

By example, don’t you hate it when someone comes out to demand an apology? Not that Cody’s done that, but Heyman is still going to do that. Heyman came out here with some “friends” of his, and he apologized. For a Wise Man, that was pretty freakin’ stupid. One: because it didn’t work. Two: because it was just dumb. And for that, Cody, to you and the fans, Heyman humbly apologizes. Cody says whoa, whoa, whoa. He didn’t ask for an apology, and he certainly knows Heyman wants permission to be in the ring. Heyman is a Hall of Famer starting this year, if he wants into the ring, be Cody’s guest.

Heyman thanks Cody for that but he’s fine on the apron. He carries with him a message from The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. Talk about Heels… You may think of Heyman anything negative you want, and that might be understanding the obvious. Heyman is not trustworthy, but Roman is a chief of his word. Heyman assures that this Friday on SmackDown, Roman will be face to face with Cody. American Nightmare, Tribal Chief, challenger and champion. And when they are face to face, there will not be a single other member of The Bloodline in sight. Except for Heyman, but he is no physical threat.

Heyman holds the title belt, the beads, whispers things in Roman’s ear, such as his love and respect. But Cody has Roman’s word that if he shows up on SmackDown, Roman will show up alone. Cody says Roman shows up alone, no Bloodline outside of Heyman, it’s a deal. They good? Heyman has some jet lag, he forgot one little point. And don’t boo him, he’s talking to Cody! Cody says yes they’re booing, and he’s about to go full Homelander and rip Heyman’s throat out if he doesn’t get to the point. Fans like the reference. Heyman composes himself and says if Roman Reigns shows up alone this Friday on SmackDown, then Cody must show up to SmackDown alone, too.

Cody steps closer to Heyman and Heyman is a bit nervous. Cody tells Heyman, “Deal!” They shake hands, and Heyman smiles. The Wise Man negotiated a purely one-on-one meeting between his Tribal Chief and American Nightmare, but can we trust Heyman was telling the truth about Roman telling the truth?

 

Nia Jax speaks.

“You know what I’ve realized? Becky Lynch has never beaten me. And after tonight, she never will. Because after I break her face again, I will be taking her spot at WrestleMania. I will finish business with Rhea Ripley, and not only will I walk out the Last Woman Standing, but I will become Women’s World Champion.” The Irresistible Force is ready for the Big Time, but will she A-Nia-late her?

 

Cody Rhodes returns backstage.

And Jey says there he go! But real quick, Cody can’t be going to SmackDown alone. Cody says he gave them his word. But The Bloodline isn’t gonna play fair! They’re all gonna be there! If Cody needs Jey, Jeys’ got him. Cody hears that, but he knows what he’s dealing with. They shake hands and Jey heads out. Will Cody be able to have that fair, one-on-one meeting? Or does Jey have a point about The Bloodline?

 

Dominik Mysterio w/ JD McDonagh VS Ricochet!

It seems Pearce agreed to the idea that Dirty Dom should try and clean up The Irish Ace’s mess. Will Dom be able to get revenge on Ricochet? Or will Ricochet be the One and Only person holding their head high tonight?

Raw returns and Dom has made his entrance. The bell rings, Dom and Ricochet circle, and they tie up. Ricochet waistlocks, Dom fights the lift and grabs ropes. The ref counts, Ricochet lets off, but Dom ELBOWS him away! Dom fires hands, soaks up the heat, then storms up, but into haymakers! Ricochet CHOPS, kicks then flexes on Dom. Ricochet whips, Dom reverses, but Ricochet goes up and over. Ricochet ducks ‘n’ dodges to then handspring back elbow! The fans fire up while Dom bails out! JD is there to coach Dom up, but Ricochet runs in! JD gets Dom to safety, but Ricochet handsprings to hero land!

The fans fire up, Ricochet then goes to ropes to TORNILLO PLANCHA! Direct hit on Dom and Ricochet tells JD to back off. Ricochet puts Dom in, Dom distracts the ref, but JD grabs Ricochet’s leg! Ricochet kicks JD away, but then Dom WRECKS Ricochet with a dropkick! Dom soaks up the heat and Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Dom has Ricochet up top. Dom climbs but Ricochet throws body shots! The fans rally behind Ricochet as he sends Dom staggering. Ricochet hops down as Dom comes running back, and Ricochet GAMANGIRIS him away! Ricochet then springboards, but Dom trips him up! Ricochet flops to the mat, then Dom kicks and FACEBUSTERS! Cover, TWO! Ricochet is still in this and JD argues the count. Dom looms over Ricochet, scuffs him around, then mockingly cheers him on. Fans boo but Dom brings Ricochet up. Dom gives some Latino Heat, then suplexes! Uno Amigo, but fans boo.

Dom gets Ricochet up but Ricochet suplexes Dom instead! And then fireman’s carry, DYNAMITE KICK! Cover, TWO! Dom is still in this and JD coaches him but the fans rally for Ricochet. Ricochet stands, storms up on Dom, but Dom shoots around to roll him up! With tights! TWO, Ricochet blocks a kick and KICKS Dom down! Ricochet hurries up top, the fans fire up, but Ricochet has to bail out of the 450 as Dom moves! Dom runs in again, but into a SUPERKICK! JD gets on the apron, so Ricochet triangle jump DROPKICKS! But then Dom DROPKICKS Ricochet onto ropes! Dom dials it up but Ricochet ducks!

Dom spins around, into the RECOIL!! Cover, Ricochet wins!

Winner: Ricochet, by pinfall

But then JD runs in! Ricochet dodges, goes up and around, BOOTS JD away, then BOOTS him again! Ricochet even flips up and out of the ring at the same time! Ricochet gets the better of Judgment Day again, just how disappointed is Mami going to be in her Latino Heat this time?

 

Sami Zayn is backstage.

He finds Chad Gable and wants to talk with him. Last week’s match, that was an honor. Sami hasn’t been pushed like that in a long time, it could’ve gone either way. Gable says yeah, it was great. Thanks. Is Gable alright? Yeah, he’s fine. Kinda feels like not… Gable says he’s fine, so leave it at that. C’mon, man, how many years have they known each other? Sami knows when something’s bothering Gable, so he should just say it. Gable says look, last week, the WrestleMania opportunity, the whole thing, it just meant more to him. Sami says he’s been hearing Gable say that for weeks, and it is really unfair.

Does Gable really think he’s the only one this title opportunity matters to? Sami has a family, too! Sami’s kid cries when Papa loses a match, too. Sami has people he’s let down and is trying to make proud. After all the years put into this, Gable can’t tell Sami what matters more because he doesn’t know Sami like that. Gable has Sami calm down, and says he knows all that. But it isn’t all about that. Then what is all this? Gable says Sami can’t beat Gunther. Gable then leaves, and Sami is at a loss for words. Is this bitter side of Gable only going to get worse as we go down this Road to WrestleMania?

 

Adam Pearce is in the ring.

Raw returns with the GM by a table, and he welcomes us to a contract signing to make official the Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship for WrestleMania! The fans cheer, and Pearce introduces first, the challenger, Sami Zayn! The Great Liberator makes his entrance and the fans sing along with his song. Sami still looks troubled by what Gable said just moments ago, but he still high-fives fans and gets in the ring. Then Pearce introduces the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion of all time, Der Ring General, GUNTHER! The fans boo as Gunther walks in, having reached Day 647!

Gunther smiles as Sami watches him make his way down the ramp and into the ring. Pearce says we know how this works, but Gunther says before we proceed, let us call this what it is: the most important contract signing for the most important match in the history of this championship. And why, why, why is the challenger dressed no better than any of the bums in the audience? Fans boo but Sami just shrugs that off. Sami gets a mic to say that Gunther keeps sitting there all smug, and it’s really starting to piss Sami off. Gunther thinks this is just another day at the office, that he’ll steamroll through Sami like any other contender.

But with all respect to Gunther, he really has. He has beaten everyone that has come his way, and has done it on his own. Gunther doesn’t believe Sami can do it. A lot of people didn’t believe Sami at many points in his career. They didn’t believe he’d even make it to WWE, let alone win championships and main event a WrestleMania. And if you ask The Usos, they didn’t believe Sami would be one of the guys to end the longest tag title reign in WWE history, but he did! And one year later, he will make history again by ending the longest Intercontinental title reign in WWE history! Sami signs his part and pushes the contract over to Gunther.

The fans cheer Sami on but Gunther waits it out. Gunther tells Sami, what Sami should do is listen to his new friend, Gable. Gable doesn’t believe Sami can win. The people here cheer Sami, they probably even love Sami. But even they don’t believe Sami can win. And y’know, when Gunther looks Sami in the eyes, and if Sami was honest with himself, even Sami doesn’t believe he can win. So what Sami is doing right now is standing on Gunther’s doorstep and begging him to get the beating of a lifetime on the Grandest Stage of Them All! So whatever Sami has to do, from training to believing, just keep doing that. Because at WrestleMania, Sami’s dreams will meet reality.

Gunther grins and signs his part, and it is now official! Gunther then stands, title on his shoulder, and takes his leave. The fans boo, but then Sami tells Gunther to wait. Gunther steps back inside to hear Sami as Sami turns around. Gunther looks in Sami’s eyes and believes Sami doesn’t believe? Sami stands to get in Gunther’s face and dares him to look again. Get a good long look, because these are the eyes of the man who will take you down at Mania! The fans fire up, and now Sami leaves first. Gunther still just grins, but will Sami use a Helluva Kick to wipe that smile off his face?

We follow Sami as he storms backstage, right past DIY and The Awesome Truth. Truth asks what’s up with Sami, but The Miz says that is the mindset of WrestleMania right there. That’s what they need. DIY wishes Awesome Truth luck. Awesome Truth knows DIY is into the ladder match, and they are gonna have their own qualifier. Miz & Truth just need to beat… Indus Sher. Jinder Mahal tells Veer & Sanga to warm up for the match. They head out, and Truth says he feels sorry for whoever has to face those guys. Miz stares at Truth, and he has DIY hold off. Miz will explain. The Awesome Truth heads to gorilla, their match is next!

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The Awesome Truth VS Indus Sher w/ Jinder Mahal!

Miz wants a remix of the theme song but Truth says to just follow his lead. NC State knows what’s up, but will the Awesome Truth finally reach the top of the tag division 13 years after they first teamed? We’ll see, after the break!

Raw returns as Indus Sher makes their entrance, the Modern Day Maharaja by their side. The teams sort out and Truth starts against Sanga. The fans echo “WHAT’S UP?!” but Sanga roars! Truth is scared now so he tags Miz. Truth fires Miz up, Miz runs up and dodges Sanga to fire off haymakers! Miz kicks, whips, but Sanga blocks! Sanga whips and CLOBBERS Miz! Jinder nods as Sanga then scoops Miz and brings him over. Veer tags in, Sanga SLAMS Miz, then Veer ELBOW DROPS! Indus Sher say “NAMASTE!” but the fans say “WHAT’S UP!?” with Truth. Veer HIP DROPS Miz, then looms over him.

Veer eggs Miz on, drags him up with shoulder claws, and then steps over Miz for the neck wrench! Miz endures as Veer still digs a claw into his shoulder. The fans rally for Miz, Miz fights up and throws body shots! Miz reaches out but Veer knees low! Veer SHOVES Miz to the corner, runs in, but Miz BOOTS! Miz ELBOWS Sanga, but Veer catches him! Veer puts Miz back int he corner, but Miz ducks the boot to tag Truth! Truth dodges Veer and starts up the shoulder tackles! Truth gets around Veer to SPIN-OUT BOMB! The fans fire up as Truth shouts out Cena with “You Can’t See Me!” Truth runs to Five Knuckle Shuffle!

Jinder is not happy now as Truth fireman’s carries! But Veer slips free! Truth drop toeholds to the STF!! The fans fire up but Sanga stomps Truth! Miz fires off kicks on Sanga, then body shots! Truth joins in, they mug and whip Sanga, to DOUBLE DROPKICK! Sanga staggers around, Veer runs up, but into a full nelson! Truth and Miz combine for a SKULL CRUSHING LIE DETECTOR!! But Sanga whips Miz away! Miz WRECKS Jinder with it, but Sanga runs up! Sanga knocks Miz down, Miz anchors Sanga, Sanga ELBOWS Truth, Truth falls onto Veer for the cover! Awesome Truth wins!!

Winners: The Awesome Truth, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)

The fans fire up, and Truth doesn’t even realize what happened! Miz celebrates with Truth and Truth puts it together! They’re now one of the six in the ladder match! Will this combination of teamwork and luck be just what they need to take those titles from Judgment Day?

 

Sami confronts Gable now.

Sami tells Gable to tell him why. Why what? Why does Gable think Sami can’t beat Gunther? Well you just saw why! With Gunther, it isn’t just physical, it is mental. Sami made his career out of being the underdog that crawls his way out of any hole he’s in, right? Just like last week! Sami found the window of opportunity to get out of a bad situation any time he can. Gunther’s on a different level! You gonna sit and wait for that window to appear? It doesn’t happen with Gunther! He’s a different beast, a different animal. If Sami doesn’t change his mentality, then he can’t beat Gunther. Gable leaves Sami with a lot to think again. Is there a way Sami can change enough to defeat Der Ring General?

 

CM Punk speaks.

“Do I plan at being in WrestleMania? WrestleMania is in Philadelphia, what’re the first four letters in Philadelphia? Phil. You can’t have WrestleMania Philadelphia without Phil. Whether I’m invited or uninvited, Punk will be there.” And next week in Chicago, Punk returns to Raw! Will the Second City Saint find a way to be part of the biggest WrestleMania ever?

 

Drew McIntyre is here!

The Scottish Terminator, or as his new shirt says, “The Savior of WrestleMania,” makes his way to the ring, NC State a bit torn about seeing him. But then Seth Rollins is here, too!? McIntyre is upset but the fans sing along, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” as The Visionary struts his way out. Rollins swaggers right past McIntyre in his green storm pattern suit, and steps into the ring first. McIntyre frowns as he follows Rollins in, and sits in a corner. The fans continue to sing, which Rollins revels in for a moment. Rollins has the mic to then say, “RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA~! Welcome to Monday Night Rollins~!

“And Drew, hah, sorry, I didn’t even see you there. I was too busy, uh, y’know, soaking up the spotlight, right?” McIntyre has a mic to say, “Alright, here we go.” Here goes what, Drew? McIntyre says no, no, get it all out of your system, he knows Rollins has more! McIntyre can stay in the back while Rollins enjoys the spotlight, because after WrestleMania, that spotlight’s all McIntyre’s. Hey, hey, c’mon. Rollins is here with an honest cause. Rollins doesn’t like McIntyre, he thinks he’s stupid, a hypocrite, has said a lot of dumb things lately, but Rollins is here to admit that one thing McIntyre said is absolutely right and he wants to say it to McIntyre’s face, right here in Raleigh, in front of the fine people.

Now, they always say the first step to recovery is the hardest, so bare with Rollins. He has been working on this all week, but… “My name is Seth Freakin’ Rollins, and I’m a spotlight junkie.” The fans chant “Spotlight Junkie!” and also sing, but McIntyre says everything is just a joke to Rollins, isn’t it? Look at Rollins! He’s a parody of himself at this point. But honestly, McIntyre doesn’t care. He tried reasoning, he gave the answers, and now he only cares about their match and the world title. And you wanna know the real punchline, funny man? “What?” McIntyre says they say that because they’re happy McIntyre sidelined Punk, thanks for remembering!

But the punchline is when McIntyre beats Rollins for that title. The fans chant for “C M PUNK!” but McIntyre says don’t be ridiculous. Punk’s waiting until next week to return because he’d never show up in a place like Raleigh. The fans boo but McIntyre says see, they’re booing Punk! Punk is only getting off his couch to be at his local arena. Rollins tells McIntyre to shut up already. Oh, seems McIntyre got Rollins’ attention. Rollins takes off the sunglasses to say yeah, McIntyre has his attention. Because this isn’t a joke! When Rollins says he is a junkie, it isn’t a joke! He’s been doing this for 20 YEARS! Just like McIntyre!

And every time Rollins comes out of the curtain, that’s his fix. And it gets better and better every single time. Rollins comes out here, lays it all on the line, and it just gets better and better! When he hears the fans sing the song so loud, Rollins can barely speak, “WHOA~ OH~ OHH~!” That’s Rollins’ fix! That is the spotlight he craves, and y’know what? Rollins wants the spotlight as bright as it can possibly be. So yeah, McIntyre’s been busy online entertaining people with memes, so he hasn’t been listening to Rollins. So Rollins will get this through McIntyre’s thick skull: Night One, Rollins takes the biggest star in Hollywood and his side chick, and makes them his b*tches!

Then on Night Two, the biggest spotlight possible will be shined down on McIntyre and Rollins and the World Heavyweight Championship! McIntyre says all hail the savior, Seth Rollins! This is what McIntyre wanted! The passion and desire, not the stupid laughing and dancing. Rollins had McIntyre all the way to the finish. Rollins has done this 20 years, just like McIntyre. They’ve given their lives to this industry, and that is what the title is about! The wrestlers’ title, the workhorse championship! Rollins had McIntyre with him until he mentioned the bigger spotlight and how Rollins pins one of the biggest stars in the world.

Why can’t it just be about Rollins’ hard work to make that title, and all of McIntyre’s hard work to get this chance? Why can’t that be the reason they’re getting the biggest spotlight!? Rollins has had his priorities all backwards, McIntyre has been giving him all the answers. McIntyre said he is over the BS, and all he cares about is Rollins making it to the ring on Night Two. And if Rollins can’t walk, then McIntyre will wheel him down. If not, McIntyre will carry Rollins down. At Mania, McIntyre doesn’t get the moment he deserves. He gets the moment he has bloody EARNED. The fans do cheer that!

Rollins smirks and says, “Ah, Drew. There it is. That’s right, you wanna call me a spotlight junkie, but you want the spotlight just as bad as I do, don’t you? You’re an addict, just like I am. And you’ve been begging for spotlight for the past four years, because you won the WrestleMania main event. You did, back in 2020, in an empty warehouse. And all we’ve been hearing from Drew McIntyre for the past four years was how that wasn’t good enough. You’ve been whining and complaining and bitching and moaning that you deserve better, that you deserve more. The problem is, Drew, when everybody came back around, and the lights got bright again, what happened? You fumbled the ball.

“And that’s the difference between you and me. When the lights are the brightest, I shine, baby. I shine bright. And at WrestleMania 40, the lights are gonna be as bright as they have ever been. And you are gonna find out you are not as good as you think you are.” Rollins drops the mic, but this time McIntyre smirks. The verbal battle continues, but who will put their money where their mouth is once this one finally happens?

 

Becky Lynch speaks.

“I’m a wanted woman, and I don’t even have the title. Yet. But we’re less than three weeks away from WrestleMania, so why would I risk it all? Because I don’t know anything else. All I know is taking risks. All I know is fighting. And all I know is tonight, I’m gonna be the Last Woman Standing.” Becky is fired up to finally do what she hasn’t done in the most extreme way possible. Will she be the immovable object to Nia’s irresistible force?

 

Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The New Day VS The Alpha Academy!

Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods have been W, W, E, World, Tag, Team, CHAMPIONS~, but they’ve never been a part of a title match as big as this Six Pack Ladder challenge! Will they look to be part of history once again? Or will Akira Tozawa & Otis say “A THANK YEW~!” for this golden opportunity?

Raw returns as the Academy makes their entrance. The teams sort out and Woods starts against the tree trunk, Otis. The fans rally for “NEW! DAY ROCKS!” Otis and Woods tie up, but Woods kicks low then headlocks. Otis powers up and out then runs Woods over! Otis storms up on Woods, GUT RAMS him back down, then brings him back up. Otis GUT RAMS Woods again, then runs to CLOBBER Woods! Otis swivels his hips, the fans echo “Oh~ yeah!” Otis tags Tozawa and the Academy mugs Woods. Tozawa brings Woods around but Woods CHOPS! Woods tags Kofi, he and Kofi double whip Tozawa but Tozawa holds ropes!

Tozawa fires hands, dodges Woods then BOOTS Woods down! Kofi kicks low, whips Tozawa to a corner, but Tozawa BOOTS Kofi away! Tozawa goes up to FLYING RANA! The fans fire up as Tozawa sees New Day regroup outside. Tozawa runs to DIVE! Direct hit on both New Day, and Otis joins in for “A THANK YEW~!” The Academy stands tall as Raw goes to break.

Raw returns again and Tozawa fights a chinlock. Tozawa reaches for Otis but Woods back suplexes. Tozawa lands out to then DROPKICK Woods down! The fans rally as Woods and Tozawa crawl, hot tags to Otis and Kofi! Otis CLOBBERS Kofi, CLOBBERS him again, then whips him to ropes. WRECKER ELBOW! Woods runs in, Otis dodges, to LARIAT! Otis sees Kofi leap off the corner, and catches him for a WORLD’S STRONGEST SLAM! Otis rips the shirt off, winds up the hips, and then starts up the CATERPILLAR! ELBOW DROP! Cover, TWO! Kofi survives but Otis hurries to step on him! Tag to Tozawa, and Otis goes up!

Otis VADER BOMBS but FLOPS as Kofi moves! Tozawa hurries up top while Kofi SUPERKICKS Otis! Kofi turns around into the CROSSBODY from Tozawa! Cover, TWO! Tozawa SUPERKICKS Kofi but Woods tags in! Woods GAMANGIRIS Tozawa, then steps in to TORNADO DDT! Cover, TWO! Tozawa toughs it out but Woods grits his teeth as he goes to the corner. Woods climbs, but Tozawa rises! Tozawa throws body shots, Woods CLUBS Tozawa! Tozawa throws more hands and climbs up! The fans rally as they brawl up top! Tozawa brings Woods up but Woods fights the lift! Woods throws body shots in return!

Woods shifts position to get under Tozawa for a fireman’s carry! But then Tozawa pops up to SUPER STEINER!! Tozawa rips off his shirt, climbs back up top, SUPER SENTON!! Cover, Kofi breaks it! The fans fire up but Otis drags Kofi out! Otis whips Kofi at steps, Kofi goes up and jumps off the steps to TORNADO DDT to the floor! Kofi hurries back up to the apron but Tozawa SCREW HIGH KICKS him down! Tozawa dodges Woods, pop-up, but Woods blocks the rana to then SPINNING POWERBOMB! Woods sees the WrestleMania sign, hurries up the corner, and he tightrope walks! LIMIT BREAK ELBOW!! Cover, New Day wins!

Winners: The New Day, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)

The New Day are the ones saying A THANK YEW~ as they put their names down for the Six Pack Ladder Match! Will they once again climb to the top of the WWE Tag Team Division and bring home those championships?

 

Liv Morgan confronts Becky Lynch.

Becky asks if she’ll have to watch out for Liv as well. Well, you should always #WatchMe, but no, not tonight. Nia is all Becky’s. Liv just wants Becky to kick Nia’s ass. Liv leaves, will Becky kick ass and then some?

 

Cody walks with his dog, Pharaoh, backstage.

Rollins finds him and brings up Friday. One on one? One on one. Rollins nods and says he loves Pharaoh’s bandanna. The Visionary trusts the American Nightmare can handle himself, but will we be able to trust The Tribal Chief?

 

Last Woman Standing: Becky Lynch VS Nia Jax!

From the origins of “The Man” in WWE to the aftermath of Elimination Chamber: Perth, these two have battled, but never as brutally as this! They’re able to go anywhere and do anything, but who will be the Last Woman Standing this close to WrestleMania 40?

The bell rings and the two rush in! Becky DROPKICKS Nia and Nia goes to a corner. Becky runs in but Nia puts Becky on the apron. Becky ROCKS Nia, goes up a corner, then leaps to MISSILE DROPKCIK! Nia stumbles and tumbles out of the ring, so Becky WRECKS her with another dropkick! Becky then goes to the apron for a FLYING FOREARM! Nia stays up, Becky tries again, but Nia dodges! Fireman’s carry and Nia POSTS Becky, to then SAMOAN DROP her into barriers! The ref counts as Becky is down, but she stands at 4 of 10. Nia CLOBBERS Becky and wants the count! The count climbs but Nia is impatient.

Nia clears off the desk, Becky stands at 5 of 10, and she leans against barriers. Becky comes back with body shots and haymakers, but Nia ROCKS her with a forearm! Becky staggers away as Raw goes to break!

Raw returns and Becky is bringing out a table! The fans fire up as Becky sets that up ringside. There’s been a lot of chaos during the break according to commentary, from chairs to kendo sticks to even a copy of Becky’s book, The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl! But Nia storms over to stop Becky and SMACK her off the desk! Nia puts Becky in the ring, takes that table for her own and sets it up. The table doesn’t cooperate and fans boo, but Nia goes for chairs instead. She slides those in the ring, Becky manages to stand at 7 of 10, and she grabs at those chairs. Nia ditches the table, it just doesn’t wanna work.

Nia storms in but Becky JAMS her with a chair, SMACKS her with it, then clinches! Nia fights the slam, fireman’s carries Becky, and FULL METAL SAMOAN DROPS!! Becky writhes from hitting chairs but Nia looms over her. Nia soaks up the heat as she counts along. Becky flounders to ropes and drags herself up at 7! Nia sits a chair up, fans want a table, but Nia scoops Becky. Becky slips around to a SLEEPER! Nia RAMS Becky into buckles again and again until Becky lets go. But then Becky BULLDOGS Nia off the chair! Nia is down for the count now, and Becky leans against ropes to stay up herself.

Nia stirs at 5, stands at 8, but Becky is up top! Becky leaps, into a CHAIR SHOT! Nia SMACKS Becky again and again and again! The fans boo but Nia finally stops. Nia puts that chair aside and goes out to get some kendo sticks! Nia puts those in, but Becky grabs one! Nia snatches it from her to SMACK! And SMACK! And SMACK! Becky sputters and staggers, Nia clinches and scoops! Nia SLAMS Becky onto chairs! Then Nia runs to drop the leg, brother! Nia wants the count and the count begins! Becky sputters as we reach 5 of 10. Becky grabs that kendo stick but Nia SMACKS Becky with a chair! And again!

Nia kicks Becky around, then uses the chair to take a seat on Becky’s body!! The fans boo as the count begins, but Becky SMACKS Nia with the kendo stick! And again and again and again, even in the butt! Nia stands up, into more shots! Becky stands and she fires away until Nia scurries out of the ring! Becky pursues but Nia CLOBBERS her! Nia pulls the steel steps apart now, and takes that top half to RAM Becky down! Becky flounders, Nia hauls her up and puts her in the ring. Becky’s on the apron and Nia takes aim! Nia runs up, APRN LEG DROP only gets apron! Becky avoids disaster, then has Nia by the steps! DDT onto the steel!

Nia is down again and the count begins. Nia stirs at 5 of 10, sits up at 6, but Becky SMACKS her off steps! Nia falls over again and the count resets. Becky hurries to go looking for things while Nia rises again. Becky has a new table! The fans fire up as Becky gets that in the ring. Nia stands at 7, staggers after Becky, and Raw goes back to break.

Raw returns once again and Nia mugs Becky against barriers! Nia puts Becky on a table, and surprise! There’s a ladder set up now! Nia climbs the ladder?! She also demands Pat support the ladder. But Becky gets off the table so now Nia has no reason to be up there. Nia storms after Becky, but gets a FIRE EXTINGUISHER BLAST!! The fans fire up as Becky cools Nia off, then JAMS her with the canister! Becky puts Nia in the ring, and there’s a table waiting in a corner! Becky lines up the shot, and runs in, but Nia SAMOAN DROPS Becky through the table!!! Both women are down in the wreckage and the count begins!

Nia flounders away from the wreckage but she still needs to stand. Nia is up at 5, and she isn’t satisfied with this! She drags Becky all the way to another corner and puts her in the drop zone! Nia climbs up, for the A-NIA-LATOR!! Nia shouts for the count, the count begins, and Nia storms around as she points to the Mania sign. Becky is still down at 5 of 10, only starts stirring at 7, and she slumps out of the ring to stand up! Nia is furious, goes out after Becky, and kicks things aside to keep after her. Nia asks if Becky’s vision is blurry. Nia fireman’s carries Becky up the steel steps and along the apron, aiming for that other table!

The fans freak out but Becky fights with elbows! Becky CLUBS away on Nia and the fans are thunderous! Becky then clinches, for a MANHANDLE SLAM through the table!!! Both women are down int he wreckage again, and the count begins! Becky sits up at 4 while fans are still losing their minds! We pass 5 of 10, then 7! Nia sits up at 8 and stands at 9! But then she slumps back over! The count starts again, Nia flounders around and stands at 5. Becky goes up the ladder! Becky sees Nia approaching the desk, and then SUPER MAN’S LEG DROP through the desk!!! The fans lose their minds again while both men are down in more wreckage!

The count is 5 of 10! Becky flounders and crawls, drags herself up at 9, but Nia is still down! BECKY WINS!!

Winner: Becky Lynch

The Man conquers truly one of the most intense challenges in her career! But then here comes one of the most intense champions! The fans fire up as Rhea Ripley makes her way out, Women’s World Championship in hand. She goes right to the ring and looks at Becky. Rhea “congratulates” Becky for winning, but then Becky gets in Rhea’s face! The fans fire up, and now there are no obstacles in the way of Mami VS The Man! Who will be the champion after WrestleMania 40?


My Thoughts:

A great Raw right here, though the in-ring action kinda dipped down until that awesome Last Woman Standing main event. This is one of the times I wish they’d done picture in picture so we as the TV audience could see even more action. Great win for Becky, of course, but I also like that Becky had a moment with Liv just before, and of course she had a moment with Rhea to close out the night. Great promos with Sami and Gable that also blended into the contract signing from tonight. And I suppose Gable has a point that Sami, the comeback kid, can’t do that when Gunther has an arsenal of moves that would be “finishers” given all the different ways Gunther has won over the years.

And speaking of that contract signing segment, I really liked the segue they did in following Sami so that he’d cross paths with Awesome Truth at gorilla and we’d get their segment going into their match. WWE has been doing some really creative stuff in this newest era where Vince is truly out and apparently even Kevin Dunn has moved on. Awesome Truth had a really fun but also really quick tag match with Indus Sher, and then New Day VS Alpha Academy was solid stuff, but DIY VS Creeds was such an awesome match. For a moment, I thought Creeds were gonna take this one but DIY still found a way, and I like that DIY is in. Honestly, I’m liking that the HHH favorites are getting in, because we also have New Catch Republic on the other side that can still win into the match.

Judgment Day had good stuff tonight, too. Good group promo with Andrade to tease El Idolo possibly joining, but who knows if he does. Depends on how things go for Priest. He was watching the qualifiers, he’s not worried, but maybe he should be. Granted, he still has the MITB briefcase, he could go from losing the tag titles to taking the world title, who knows how the Judgment Day’s story is going to go as we move past Mania. Dom VS Ricochet was a really good match, and Ricochet winning was the right move to keep this feud going. I think there’s going to be Ricochet VS McDonagh next week as a rematch from the gauntlet, that’ll be great stuff, too.

Candice’s Heel turn slow burn continues as she takes advantage of the “hurt” leg. Indi also does a good job of being very conflicted about this. There’s a WWE YouTube exclusive where Ivy Nile confronts Candice so that’ll be a match, and then maybe when Candice again goes too far, Indi steps in and we get a match of Candice VS Indi at some point. Good little update promo from CM Punk, he’ll have a great homecoming moment in Chicago, but also probably McIntyre coming after him. McIntyre had a great promo segment with Rollins, and with all these continued moments where the other person gets the mic drop moment, it feels like McIntyre has to win the title.

And of course, great stuff with the Bloodline story even on Raw. Jey and Jimmy have great promos in their confrontation, and of course it turns into a brawl. Good segue from that to Heyman being here, and Heyman confronting Cody during Cody’s great promo segment. Cody really went off on The Rock, that was some wild stuff. But the supposed promise of “one on one and no one else aside from Heyman” might be kept, and we get a strong promo segment on SmackDown in a foreshadowing of the fair-and-square 1v1 match. Or it is a trap and that’s more a foreshadowing of Bloodline Rules where they can do whatever they want. Guess we’ll have to wait and see.

My Score: 8.9/10


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Mitchell’s NJPW New Japan Cup Results & Report! (3/18/24)

The semifinals are here!

Published

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We’re just one step away from the Cup!

Cold Skull faces The Fierce Warrior, and Gene Blast faces The King of Darkness, and when the smoke clears, we will have our New Japan Cup finalists!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • Boltin Oleg & Shoma Kato VS Zack Sabre Jr. & Mikey Nicholls; ZSJ & Mikey win.
  • Six Man Tag: El Desperado, Tomohiro Ishii & Togi Makabe VS Just5Guys; Just5Guys win.
  • Tanga Loa & Ryusuke Taguchi VS Great-O-Khan & Callum Newman; Loa & Taguchi win.
  • Six Man Tag: YOSHI-HASHI, Toru Yano & Hiroyoshi Tenzan VS Bullet Club; Bullet Club wins.
  • 8 Man Tag: Shota Umino, El Phantasmo, Hikuleo & YOH VS The House of Torture; Shota, ELP, Leo & Yoh win.
  • Six Man Tag: Los Ingobernables de Japon VS The United Empire; LIJ wins.
  • 2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: Yota Tsuji VS EVIL; Tsuji wins and advances to the finals.
  • 2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: SANADA VS Hirooki Goto; Goto wins and advances to the finals.

PLAY BY PLAY

2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: Yota Tsuji VS EVIL w/ Dick Togo!

The Gene Blast overcame the tricks Ren Narita tried, but that’s because the House of Torture was saving all the good stuff so they could slay the Rampaging Dragon. Will the deck be even more stacked to make sure Everything is Evil’s? Or will Yota be one step away from LIJ VS LIJ at Sakura Genesis?

Well, Dick is making his way out here, but where is Evil? Oh, there he is. No tricks just yet it seems. But then Yota DIVES onto Evil! The fans fire up but Dick attacks Yota! Dick whips, Yota stops himself, and then scoops Dick for a BACKBREAKER! The fans fire up and Yota wants the bell. The ref says yes, ring the bell, and this is on the record! Yota stomps and CLUBS Evil, then whips, but Evil reverses! Yota hits railing, and then Evil whips him into more railing! Evil CHOKES Yota against the railing, Yota fights back, but the ref gets knocked aside! Evil puts Yota in so he and Dick can stomp away!

The fans boo but here comes the rest of the House already! Narita, Yujiro, Kanemaru and Jack all stomp away on Yota, but here come Bushi & Hiromu! It’s a replay of yesterday as LIJ fights off the House, but the numbers are still against them! The ref rushes in to tell everyone to stop! Evil shoves the ref out of the ring, Yota fires off on him, but Evil CLAWS Yota’s eyes! The House CHOKES LIJ, but the ref says stop! The bell rings, but what is the decision!? NO CONTEST!?

No Contest

What does this mean!? Someone has to advance, right? The finals aren’t until the 20th, how can there be a no contest? The House started this, where’re the consequences?! Yota gets up but Evil TOSSES him back out! LIJ regroups and Yota asks for a mic. Yota tells Evil that he’s sick and tired of this! They ARE gonna finish this match! The fans like the sound of that! All the refs come out, including Red Shoes, to discuss how this will be handled. For starters, they tell all the extras to get outta here! LIJ is cool with that, and Hiromu tells the House to come along. Evil says fine, and Jack, Kanemaru, Narita, Yujiro and even Dick reluctantly exit.

The announcement is officially made, and the bell rings! Yota and Evil rush in, Evil kicks low but Yota CLUBS away on Evil! Evil CLAWS the eyes! Evil kicks, runs, RAMS, but Yota rebounds to run Evil over! Then run and SPLASH! Cover, TWO! Yota fires up and the fans are with him! Evil bails out but the fans rally for Yota. Evil wants Yota to stay back, then he slides in, only to slide right out! Yota runs out after Evil, but Evil kicks him! Evil RAMS Yota into the timekeeper! Abe-san and his table go flying! Evil gets the mic to tell Yota that this is what he gets! The fans boo but Evil tells them off, too! Evil stomps Yota then soaks up the heat.

Evil unties the blue buckle pad himself, then waits in the ring. The ref checks Yota and the fans rally up again. The Young Lions help Abe-san while Yota drags himself up. Yota slides in, the fans cheer, but Evil pulls on Yota’s hair! Evil wrenches the hair, then wrenches it again! And again! Evil CLUBS the hair! The ref reprimands but Evil just dusts off his hands. Evil covers, but the ref refuses to count! Evil is furious but he’s the one up to no good! The ref still says no, so Evil stands on Yota’s head. The fans rally up, Yota rises, and he grins as he winds up to ROCK Evil with a forearm! And ROCK him with another!

Yota ROCKS Evil again, but Evil whips him into the bare buckles! Yota falls and the ref reprimands about the missing buckle pad. Evil stomps Yota, covers, TWO! The fans cheer but Evil is annoyed. Evil scuffs Yota, taunts him, and drags him up. Evil CHOPS, Yota drops to his knees, but Evil stands him back up. Evil CHOPS again and Yota grits his teeth as he drops to his knees! Evil stands Yota up again, to fake the chop to CLAW the eyes! The ref reprimands, Evil lets off, and then Evil stands on Yota in a corner. The ref counts, Evil lets go of the ropes but that’s not the problem! Evil steps away, drags Yota up but claims he’s dead weight.

The ref checks, Evil stands Yota up and wrenches an arm. Evil whips Yota into a corner, runs in, but into a BOOT! Evil runs in again, blocks the boot, but Yota brings Evil in for the STOMP! The fans fire up while Yota rests on the mat. The fans rally up and Yota rises again. Evil’s in the corner, runs out, but into the BACKBREAKER! COMPLETE SHOT! STOMP! The fans fire up again as Yota stands back up. Yota runs, to CURB STOMP!! Yota roars and the fans fire up again! Evil flounders while Yota aims. Yota runs in, but the ref is used as a shield! Evil kicks Yota low, then uses the ref in MAGIC KILLER!

All three men are down while the fans rally up again. Evil stands, he brings Yota up, and the ref also rises. Evil whips Yota into the bare buckles, then clotheslines him in! Then FISHERMAN BUSTER! Cover, but Evil lets off?! Evil wants to torture Yota but it’s hard to say if Yota is still even in this. Yota opens his eyes, rises up, but Evil fireman’s carries! DARKNESS FALLS! Cover, TWO!! Yota survives, the fans fire up, but Evil is furious! Evil slashes his throat and vows to end this now! Evil drags Yota up, spins him around, but Yota fights the STO with elbows! Evil kicks low, whips again, but Yota stops from hitting buckles!

Evil runs in, Yota dodges and Evil hits the buckles! SUPERKICK!! Both men are down again and the fans fire back up! We’re only ten minutes into this new match but this is on top of the madness from earlier. Evil drags Yota up, but Yota ROCKS Evil! Evil fights Yota’s fireman’s carry and CLUBS him, but both men wobble. Evil LARIATS, but Yota stays up! The fans fire up but Evil swings to LARIAT again! Yota drops to a knee, but he grins through the pain! Evil says alright, and he throws off his elbow pad. Evil runs to LARIAT! Yota grits his teeth to stay up! V-TRIGGER! Yota brings Evil in, suplexes, ORANGE CRUSH! Cover, TWO!!

Evil is still in this but the fans rally behind Yota again. Yota rises, drags Evil up, and then goes to the corner. Yota goes up and up and Evil moves the ref into the way! The ref takes the FLYING CURB STOMP!!! And now the House returns! The fans boo as Kanemaru, Dick, Yujiro, Narita & Jack all stomp away on Yota again! The fans tell them to go home, again, but these guys don’t care! They just put one out on Yota. They whip Yota to a corner, then DIck runs in to ELBOW! Kanemaru ELBOWS! Yujiro BOOTS! Jack SPLASHES! Narita ELBOWS! Then they snapmare and set Yota up! Dick climbs for the DICK CHOP!!

The fans boo but the House applauds their own dirtiness. But here come Bushi & Hiromu again! But they just get mugged again! They set Hiromu up for the DICK CHOP, while Bushi gets a JACK CHOP! The House then slithers away before a replacement ref rushes out here. Evil drags Yota up, winds up and runs, to LARIAT!! Cover, TWO!!! Yota survives and the fans are thunderous! Evil is at a loss for words, but he slashes his throat! He vows to end it for real, and he reels Yota in. EVERYTHING IS- Yota flips through!? And HEADBUTTS!! The fans fire up as Yota reels Evil in for a fireman’s carry! 70 CROSS!! Cover, TWO!!

Evil survives the swinging spinebuster and the House cheers! Yota drags himself to a corner, drags himself up with the ropes, and roars as he takes aim! Evil rises, but Yujiro distracts! Dick runs in, but gets a V-TRIGGER! The ref sees Dick, but misses the LOW BLOW! Then Evil RAMS Yota into the ref! That’s the second ref this match! Narita gets his push-up bar! The others set Yota up, but here comes SHINGO TAKAGI! The Rampaging Dragon has seen enough, and he’s still pissed from yesterday as it is! He dodges Narita to PUMPING BOMBER! Kanemaru & Yujiro kick Takagi, double whip, but he DOUBLE PUMPING BOMBERS!!

Jack gets in, but he gets ELBOW, JAB and YUKON LARIAT! Evil runs up but Takagi SWATS Evil’s lariat to JAB! Then feed to Hiromu’s SUPERKICK! Hiromu & Takagi set Evil up for Bushi’s BLACK MIST!! Evil can’t see, the PUMPING BOMBER turns him inside-out!! The fans are thunderous as LIJ helps Yota up! Red Shoes hurries out here, and Yota aims at Evil! GENE BLASTER!!! Cover, Yota wins!!!

Winner: Yota Tsuji, by pinfall (advances to the finals)

The House of Torture ran out of tricks, and now there is light at the end of the tournament! Will Yota do LIJ proud and bring home the Cup?

 

2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: SANADA VS Hirooki Goto!

One down, one to go. Yota Tsuji has made it through, now we see who joins him in the finals! Will the Cold Skull or Fierce Warrior be the one that steps closer to former glory?

The bell rings and the fans duel between “GO-TO-O!” and “SA-NA-DA!” Red Shoes measures the levels, and it seems to slightly favor Goto. Goto and Sanada circle, tie up, and are in a deadlock. Goto gets some leverage to put Sanada against ropes, but he lets off slowly. Goto pats Sanada on the shoulders and the fans cheer. The two reset, circle again, and tie up again. It’s another deadlock, but again Goto finds a way to put Sanada on ropes. Sanada turns things around, lets off slowly, and also pats Goto on the shoulders. The fans applaud and the two reset again. They feel things out, knuckle lock, then move to a clinch.

They fight for control, Sanada starts pushing Goto towards a corner but Goto slips away. They feel things out, knuckle lock again, then break. They tie up collar ‘n’ elbow, Goto waistlocks, but Sanada wrenches to wristlock. Goto rolls, wrenches, wristlocks, but Sanada spins, wrenches, only for Goto to roll! Goto gets a leg to trip Sanada up, and he has a toehold. Sanada fights back with a chinlock but Goto pulls on the leg. Sanada uses his free leg to hook Goto into an ARMBAR, but Goto clasps hands! Goto moves around, pops free, then headlocks. Sanada fights up, Goto grinds the headlock, but Sanada throws body shots.

Sanada powers up and out, but Goto runs him over! The fans rally as things speed up, and Goto counters hip toss with hip toss! Goto runs and he clotheslines Sanada up and out! The fans fire up and Goto slides out after Sanada. Goto stomps Sanada, drags him up, then CLUBS him on the neck! Sanada staggers, Goto CHOPS him, then kicks him, then CLUBS him! Goto whips but Sanada stops himself from hitting railing! Goto runs in but Sanada drop toeholds him into the railing! Goto goes down in a heap, but Sanada opens the gate. Sanada brings Goto through, then to the crowd! PILEDRIVER to the bare floor!

The fans are stunned but Red Shoes reprimands. Sanada leaves Goto behind and slides into the ring. The fans rally for Goto as the ring count begins. Goto crawls at 5 of 20, finds his way to ringside at 10, but still hobbles and crawls. He stands at 17 to slide in! The fans cheer, but Sanada stomps Goto. Sanada drags Goto up, CLUBS him on the neck, then brings him back up to CLUB him again. Goto CHOPS! And CHOPS! Sanada eggs Goto on so Goto CHOPS again! Goto whips, Sanada reverses to RUSSIAN LEG SWEEP! Cover, TWO! Sanada keeps cool and sits Goto up into a chinlock. Goto endures and the fans rally again.

Goto kicks forward, reaches out, but Sanada cranks on the hold! Goto keeps fighting, and has the ROPEBREAK! Sanada lets go cleanly, but then he stomps Goto while he’s down. Sanada then stands Goto up to CLUB him on the neck. Goto CHOPS in return! And CHOPS, and CHOPS, and has Sanada in a corner! Goto CHOPS again, then whips corner to corner. Goto runs in, but Sanada BOOTS first! Sanada runs, Goto follows, and Goto LARIATS Sanada down! The fans fire up and Goto rises, clutching his neck. Goto stands Sanada up to fire off forearms, then he whips corner to corner. Goto runs in, MURAMASA!

Sanada wobbles, into the SAIDO! Cover, TWO! The fans fire up while Goto grits his teeth. Goto drags Sanada up, fireman’s carries, but Sanada fights free! Sanada waistlocks, Goto throws elbows, then runs. Sanada hurdles, hurdles, and DROPKICKS! Goto tumbles out of the ring, Sanada PLANCHAS him down! The fans fire up and Sanada encourages them to get louder. The fans get louder and Sanada appreciates it. Sanada then goes back for Goto, brings him up and puts him in the ring. Sanada fireman’s carries but Goto throws elbows! Sanada turns around into Goto’s fireman’s carry, but then slips out into the dragon sleeper!

But Goto arm-drags free! Sanada kicks low, runs, but Goto follows! Sanada dodges this time, runs again, but Goto still follows! Sanada sidesteps this time, but Goto holds ropes to avoid the hurdle! Goto runs in, but Sanada fireman’s carries! T K O! Cover, TWO! Goto is still in this and the fans rally up! Sanada goes up the corner, ROUNDING BODY- NO, Sanada has to land out as Goto moves! Sanada runs in, but into the fireman’s carry! USHIGOROSHI! Both men are down and the fans fire up again! They cheer on “GO-TO-O!” but the “SA-NA-DA!” chants are still there. Red Shoes checks them both, and both men slowly rise.

The two crawl towards each other, and Goto fires a forearm! Sanada shakes his head, eggs Goto on, so Goto throws another! Goto eggs Sanada on, so Sanada fires a forearm! Goto fires a forearm back, and the two stand. Sanada UPPERCUTS! Goto comes back to forearm! Sanada UPPERCUTS again, and Goto drops back to a knee! The fans rally, Goto stands again, and he forearms! UPPERCUT, forearm, repeat! Goto growls, fires a flurry of forearms, and he ROCKS Sanada! Sanada drops to his hand and knees but Goto powers up! Goto KICKS but Sanada blocks! Goto fires more forearms, then waistlocks, but Sandaa fights free!

Sanada runs, but Goto fireman’s carries! And he throws Sanada into the dragon sleeper! But Sanada turns around and suplexes, for MAGIC SCREW! Both men are down again and the fans fire back up! Sanada roars as he rises up, and he aims from a corner. Sanada wants Goto to get up, and Goto sits up, into the SHINING WIZARD! Sanada then dragon sleepers, for the SKULL END!! Goto endures, flails, reaches out, but he’s caught in the body scissors! Goto fights around but he’s fading! The fans rally, Goto’s hand drops! Sanada lets him go to then climb! ROUNDING BODY PRESS! Cover, TWO!!

The fans fire up as Goto survives but Sanada storms around. Sanada drags Goto up, reels him in and clinches, but Goto slips free to shove Sanada away! Sanada forearms, ROLLING- HEADBUTT from Goto! The fans fire up and duel, and Goto drags Sanada up. But Sanada breaks free! Goto HEADBUTTS again! Sanada falls back down and Goto steadies himself. Goto roars, the fans are with him, and Goto sits Sanada up. Goto runs to PENALTY KICK! Shoutout to Shibata and the fans fire up more! Sanada grits his teeth as he sits back up but Goto takes aim! BUZZSAW! And then he hauls Sanada up to dragon sleeper! G T- BACKSLIDE COUNTER! TWO!!!

Sanada and Goto hurry up, Sanada dodges to O’Conner BRIDGE!! TWO?!!? Goto escapes and shocks everyone! Sanada resets, runs in, SHINING WIZARD!! The fans are thunderous as Sanada roars and drags Goto back up! Clinch and DEAD- NO, Goto slips around to ripcord and fireman’s carry! G T W!! Cover, TWO?!?!? Sanada survives but Goto is all fired up! The fans are thunderous as Goto dragon sleepers for G T R!!! Cover, GOTO WINS!!!

Winner: Hirooki Goto, by pinfall (advances to the finals)

Don’t call it a comeback, Goto’s been here for years! Sanada’s hopes of being IWGP World Heavyweight Champion again have been delayed, how long must he wait for another chance?

As for Goto, he’s going back to the New Japan Cup Finals for the first time since 2016, and his seventh overall! But before he can get the mic to speak, Yota makes his way back out here. Yota steps into the ring and he gets the mic first. Yota tells Goto, “In order to open the door to a new era, we must do this.” The fans applaud that, and Yota continues by asking Goto, “Are you ready?!” Yota drops the mic at Goto’s feet, and Goto stands up to speak. “I also have something I want to show you. As a three-time New Japan Cup Champion, I will show you my strength.” The fans like the sound of that!

The Fierce Warrior stares down with Gene Blast, a true generational showdown on the horizon! Will Goto return not juts to former glory, but finally ascend to top of NJPW? Or will Yota make it LIJ VS LIJ for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?


My Thoughts:

A great semifinal round for this tournament, with quite a surprising main event. Sanada VS Goto was great stuff, and while I felt Sanada wasn’t winning the Cup, I didn’t think he’d be out this round. Yota VS Evil was rather creatively put together, too. I did not think the House would get so involved that at first it was a No Contest but then they restart under a ringside ban. Takagi making sure Yota won was good stuff, too, maybe we can get Takagi VS Evil for the NEVER Openweight Championship if they’re not gonna circle back to more Shota Umino VS House of Torture stuff.

Goto VS Yota is going to be great stuff, and Goto is clearly a top utility guy. He’s had so many New Japan Cup finals appearances, certainly among the most ever, but I don’t think he gets a fourth Cup win against Yota, one of the “new era Musketeers” that NJPW clearly loves. Yota VS Naito is definitely the title match for Sakura Genesis.

My Score: 8.9/10


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