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Mitchell’s WWE SmackDown Results & Report! (8/5/22)

We’re on the road to Cardiff!

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SmackDown 2022

The Tribal Chief will address the Scottish Warrior!

Roman Reigns is STILL Undisputed WWE Universal Champion, but he knows SmackDown’s Drew McIntyre is coming after him at Clash at the Castle! What will the Head of the Table have to say about his new challenger?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

  • Happy Corbin VS Ricochet; Ricochet wins.
  • WWE Intercontinental Championship Contender’s Match: Shinsuke Nakamura VS Ludwig Kaiser w/ GUNTHER; Nakamura wins and will challenge Gunther for the title next week.
  • The Viking Raiders VS Jim Mulkey & Tommy Gibson; The Viking Raiders win.
  • Kofi Kingston VS Erik w/ Ivar; Kofi wins.
  • SmackDown Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Gauntlet: Shayna Baszler wins and will challenge Liv Morgan for the title at Clash at the Castle.

PLAY BY PLAY

Pat McAfee gives us telestration of his match with Happy Corbin.

He pauses when Corbin bumps into the referee, and uses the yellow pen to circle the ref going down. Then he circles Corbin and himself to show the spacing. McAfee kicks Corbin’s balls through the upright, then says “SUCK IT!” before going up top. McAfee has that moment replay a couple times, actually. McAfee circles his right foot that has made millions (AND MILLIONS) of dollars, and then he has an arrow point from his eyes to “the tiny prize,” and that was all she wrote! The foot starts swinging, the balls start ringing! And look at that big dumb face! McAfee writes “OUCH, MAH BALLS!” for Corbin in a speech bubble. A storybook moment, McAfee has never been prouder.

Corbin is watching this, too.

As are a lot of the other superstars of SmackDown. And of course, everyone is laughing at Corbin. It’s not funny! Ricochet says karma is a beautiful thing. Well how about Corbin wipe Ricochet’s smile off his mouth! Sure, as soon as Corbin’s done pouting back here, they can “kickoff” SmackDown. Ricochet will head to the ring, and both he and his smile will wait for Corbin. Will Sad Corbin be able to redeem himself from what happened to him at SummerSlam?

Happy Corbin VS Ricochet!

The bell rings and Ricochet circles with Corbin. They tie up, go around, and Corbin TOSSES Ricochet to a corner. Corbin rushes in, Ricochet slips out and ROUNDHOUSES Corbin away! Ricochet then springboards up and over, but Corbin gets under! END OF- NO, Ricochet slips out, tiger wall kick and ENZIGURI! Corbin bails out, Ricochet builds speed and FLIES! Direct hit at the ramp and Greensville fires up! Corbin hurries back into the ring but Ricochet climbs up top. Ricochet leaps, but Corbin gets under, slides out and slides in to LARIAT! McAfee applauds because he does appreciate Corbin’s ability. Just needs to be a better person.

Corbin fires hands but fans mock “BUM ASS CORBIN!” Ricochet fires body shots and haymakers, then runs, but into a big elbow! Corbin tells the fans off and they boo him back. Corbin drags Ricochet up, puts him in a corner and whips corner to corner hard! Ricochet bounces off buckles and Corbin drags him back up. Corbin tosses Ricochet to the apron but Ricochet shoulders back in. Ricochet slingshots, into a HAYMAKER! Corbin drags Ricochet in, drags him up, but fans chant for “MCAFEE! MCAFEE!” Corbin knees Ricochet low, shushes the crowd then runs in, but Ricochet goes up! Corbin slides out, in but into stomps!

Ricochet goes out to BOOT Corbin from the apron! And SUPERKICK! Ricochet then MOIONSAULTS, but Corbin moves! Ricochet lands on his feet, comes back in, but Corbin alley-oops Ricochet INTO THE POST! The One and Only is down as SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns and Corbin has Ricochet in the ring with a half nelson chinbar. Ricochet endures and the fans rally up. Ricochet fights but Corbin thrashes him around. Fans taunt Corbin, Ricochet gets up and throws body shots. Ricochet ROCKS Corbin, runs, but Corbin hits a back drop! As if Ricochet doesn’t get air on his own! Cover, TWO! Corbin argues with the ref but the count was fair! Corbin goes back to Ricochet, taunts him to laugh now, but fans chant “You Suck! You Suck!” Corbin whips, Ricochet rolls off his back and fires off fast hands! Corbin shoves but Ricochet knees back. Ricochet then dodges, handsprings, and back elbows!

Corbin end sup in a corner, Ricochet runs in to RAM Corbin, and springboard FLYING LARIAT! STANDING SHOOTING STAR! Cover, TWO! Fans fire up while Ricochet keeps his focus. Ricochet aims from a corner as Corbin rises, then runs in, but no Recoil as Corbin catches him! Ricochet fights free, BOOTS back, then runs and handsprings again, into a torture rack! Corbin swings around for the NECKBREAKER! Cover, TWO!! Ricochet survives, Corbin is furious, but the fans are loving it! “BUM ASS CORBIN!” drags Ricochet up again, choke grips and CHOEK- NO, RANA! Ricochet covers, TWO!!

Ricochet hurries to a corner, goes up and around to sunset flip, TWO!! Corbin is up, but into a SOBAT! Ricochet KICKS and runs, but Corbin hits a DEEP SIX! Cover, TWO!! Corbin is shocked that Ricochet escapes! Corbin drags Ricochet to a corner and up to the top rope. Fans chant “CORBIN SUCKS!” as he climbs up, and Ricochet fires hands! Ricochet CLUBS Corbin, goes up and SUPER SUNSET- NO, Corbin holds onto the ropes! Corbin drags Ricochet back up, only for Ricochet to fire off hands! Ricochet CLUBS Corbin, throws hands, but Corbin choke grips! Corbin SHOVES Ricochet off to HOTSHOT off ropes!

McAfee and Corbin stare down and Corbin talks trash, McAfee says he’ll do another round with him if he wants! But Ricochet trips Corbin up! Corbin lands on his happy boys! RECOIL!! Corbin is in the drop zone, Ricochet hurries up top! McAfee says Ricochet is gonna do something McAfee could never do! It’s the SHOOTING STAR PRESS! Cover, Ricochet wins!!

Winner: Ricochet, by pinfall

So much for wiping the smile off someone’s face! Ricochet’s smile is only bigger, as is McAfee’s and Greensville’s! McAfee passes the ball to Ricochet, and Ricochet passes it back! Touchdown! And then McAfee kicks the ball to the fans! And it’s good! Will Corbin’s frown continue to grow, too? Or will he come back after McAfee soon enough?

 

Sami Zayn walks the halls.

And of course, he goes to the dressing room of the Tribal Chief. He politely knocks, but what will he have to say to the Undisputed Universal Champion?

SmackDown returns, and Sami is still knocking. The Usos answer and the Honorary Uce is excited. Jey isn’t, though, but Sami wants to say, what they did at SummerSlam, mad respect. Speaking of… How is Paul Heyman? He’s fine, just needs some days off at home to rest. Okay, good. But that kinda makes sense, Sami was calling Heyman but didn’t get a response. Sami was hoping to talk to Roman, congratulate him on how great SummerSlam was. Jey says now’s not a good time. Dawg, what? It’s okay, Sami, they’ll shoot you a text when it’s okay. Well, alright, cool. Peace. But will Sami be told when it’s okay to talk to the Head of the Table?

 

Ronda Rousey has been fined and suspended!

After losing in admittedly controversial fashion, the Baddest Woman on the Planet perhaps lived up to that name, going after Liv Morgan and then the referee after the decision was final. Ronda will be gone just for this week, what mood will she be in when she returns?

 

WWE Intercontinental Championship Contender’s Match: Shinsuke Nakamura VS Ludwig Kaiser w/ GUNTHER!

The King of Strong Style has gone 1-1 with the Impeccable German of Imperium, and yet the Ring General hasn’t been happy with either result. Will he be even less happy when Nakamura wins again and gets a shot at the Intercontinental Championship? Or will Gunther have a say in how things go once again?

SmackDown returns and Imperium makes their entrance. The bell rings and Nakamura circles with Ludwig. They tie up, go around, and Ludwig chinbars then wrenches to a top wristlock. Ludwig wrangles Nakamura down, has a hammerlock and leans on the hold. Ludwig clamps on a chinlock but fans rally as Nakamura fights up. Gunther coaches Ludwig and he CLUBS Nakamura down. Ludwig sits Nakamura up to JAM an elbow into his face! Nakamura gets to a corner, Ludwig bumps him off buckles. Ludwig throws hands stomps Nakamura, then throws elbows. Ludwig lets off at the ref’s count of 4 to shout “NEIN!”

Ludwig stomps a mudhole in, but lets off at 4 again. Gunther coaches Ludwig to keep on Nakamura, and Ludwig bumps him off buckles again. Ludwig throws haymakers then stomps, but Nakamura grabs the leg! Nakamura CLUBS the leg, throws forearms and body shots and KICKS in the corner! And then he gives Ludwig BAD VIBRATIONS~! Gunther is upset but fans fire up as Nakamura says, “C’MON!” Ludwig runs in but into a knee! And a KICK! And more kicks! Ludwig blocks one but the ENZIGURI hits! Nakamura drops a knee on Ludwig’s head! Cover, TWO! Nakamura drags Ludwig up to waistlock but Ludwig wrenches out to ROCK Nakamura!

Ludwig climbs up the corner but Nakamura trips him up! TOP SHELF KNEE! Ludwig tumbles out and Gunther is furious! Nakamura runs, Ludwig gets in, things speed up, but Nakamura stops to KICK! Nakamura runs in, but into a tilt-o-whirl SLAM! Gunther is finally happy with what he sees while SmackDown goes to break.

SmackDown returns as Nakamura CLOBBERS Ludwig! Fans fire up as both men get up, and Nakamura fires of knees! Nakamura suplexes Ludwig up, hangs him out to dry and AX KICKS him down! Nakamura runs to SLIDING KNEE! Ludwig scrambles to a corner, Nakamura runs in but he blocks the boots! He puts Ludwig in the ropes, CHOP and SLIDING GERMAN! Nakamura dares Gunther to do something but Gunther tells him to focus on Ludwig. Ludwig WRECKS Nakamura with a dropkick! Gunther says he told Nakamura so. Ludwig goes out but Nakamura ELBOWS him, puts him on the apron and KNEES him into the ring!

Nakamura hurries to aim from a corner, “YAO~!” KIN- NO! UPPERCUT! Ludwig covers, TWO! Nakamura survives and Ludwig is shocked while Gunther is furious! Ludwig drags Nakamura up, Nakamura fires a forearm but Ludwig kicks away. But Nakamura boots him, only to swing into a PUMP HANDLE SUPLEX! Cover, TWO!! Nakamura survives again and Gunther is furious! Gunther tells Ludwig not to mess this up again, and Ludwig drags Nakamura up. Ludwig hooks Nakamura up, but Nakamura gets an ARMBAR! Ludwig stays up to STOMP, and then he covers! TWO!! Nakamura kicks, Ludwig ducks, but the WHEEL KICK hits!

Nakamura goes to the corner, runs back in, KINSHASA!! Cover, Nakamura wins!

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contender to the WWE Intercontinental Championship)

Fans fire up with the King of Strong Style, because he’s got that title match with Gunther! Gunther gets in the ring to get in Nakamura’s face, and Nakamura tells him, “C’MON!” Gunther snarls but he has no choice but to defend the title now. Will the King of Strong Style become a three-time Intercontinental Champion next week?

 

Backstage interview with Kofi Kingston.

A video recap plays of the Viking Raiders showing that new viciousness when they broke Xavier Woods’ ankle. Megan asks Kofi how Woods is doing. Woods is in high spirits, resting, recovering and recuperating, and he will be back soon enough. And that’s the thing: no matter how many times these “nasty, disgusting, gross, grotesque, crusty ass Vikings wanna put us down, we’re always gonna get back up. Because to us, it’s not just a gimmick when we say every day is a NEW~ Day~!” Kofi says it feels weird saying that alone without Woods or Big E. It’s been a long time since it’s just been him.

But speaking of time, it is almost time for Kofi to make the Vikings pay! And do you know why, Megan? BECAUSE~! NEW! DAY ROCKS! NEW! DAY ROCKS! Kofi is ready for revenge, but can he do it all on his own?

 

Sami Zayn knocks on Roman’s door again?

The Usos answer the door again and Sami apologizes. It’s just that he gets bad reception in this arena, he isn’t sure if the text was coming through or not. Jimmy says good timing, he was just about to text Sami. Oh, well, then can he go in there? Well, they need a favor first. See, usually with Heyman here, he’s handling stuff backstage. He’s usually talking with the production truck to make sure the graphics are good, the music is good, and the pyro is good so that Roman’s entrance is perfect. Okay, okay. Can Sami do that for them? Really? Well, that’s not really his job. He’s the Honorary Uce! Jimmy says it would mean a lot to Roman.

Well… Okay. Tell Roman that Sami is taking care of this. He’ll get all the pyro. Sami heads off, but is this really for Roman? Or just so that Sami leaves the Bloodline alone tonight?

 

Liv Morgan is here!

Kayla Braxton is in the ring to introduce the SmackDown Women’s Champion, as well as interview her. SummerSlam, Liv was in the ring with a very vengeful Ronda. Ronda thought she won, but then snapped when she found out she lost. And Liv’s arm is in a brace while Ronda is suspended. What has Liv been feeling since Saturday? Liv says she is feeling so many different things. But when she looks at her title… She hears fans chant “YOU TAPPED OUT!” and she says this is why she wanted to come out here. She needs to address the elephant in the room. Fans keep chanting it but Liv says she appreciates being called out on her ish.

But what Liv wants to say about that, is that this championship means everything to her. its’ why shew as able to withstand armbar after armbar. She survived three of Ronda Rousey’s armbars, and yes she did tap, after she thought it was three. So she knows that when Ronda comes back- Wait! Here comes Sonya Deville! Sonya tells Liv that this is sad to see. Maybe we need a hard dose of reality. Liv can be all noble in front of the people, and some will buy it because they’re dumb. But they both know that Liv shouldn’t be champ right now. C’mon! This is pathetic, honestly. But what made Sonya happy: watching Ronda get her hands on Liv after Liv screwed Ronda.

But Sonya says it is also a testament to how bad Adam Pearce sucks at his job. But standing here, face to face, looking Liv in the eyes, Sonya really loves seeing Liv all hurt. So here’s what happens: Sonya wins tonight’s gauntlet match, and then she bets Liv at Clash at the Castle and break her heart because she takes away what Liv loves most. But wait! Here comes another of the gauntlet competitors, Aliyah! Because she and Sonya are first up! Will “Cruella” survive to the end? Or will #Aliyah317 take Sonya out real quick?

SmackDown Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Gauntlet!

Liv watches ringside as the bell rings and the two tie up. Aliyah headlocks, Sonya powers out, but Aliyah runs her over! Aliyah blows a kiss, runs, but into a big back elbow! Sonya then runs to KNEE Aliyah down! Sonya drags Aliyah up, puts her in the ropes and CHOKES her! The ref counts, Sonya lets off at 4, but Aliyah rolls Sonya up! TWO, and Sonya kicks low. Sonya fireman’s carries but Aliyah slips off and shoves Sonya to ropes. Sonya ducks, then comes back to hit a SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO! Sonya drags Aliyah up to thrash her around in a SLEEPER! Fans duel, Aliyah endures, and Aliyah fights up to hit a JAWBREAKER!

Sonya staggers away, runs back in but Aliyah dodges to hit a BULLDOG! And then a THESZ PRESS! Aliyah dodges again to SPRINGBOARD CROSSBODY! Cover, TWO! Aliyah watches Sonya go to ropes, runs in but Sonya YANKS her into the ropes! Aliyah sputters while the ref reprimands, and fans cheer for “RONDA ROUSEY!” Sonya scoops Aliyah to dragon sleeper and ELBOW DROP DDT! Cover, and Sonya ELIMINATES Aliyah! The #DevillesAdvocate scores, but here comes Big Mami Cool!

Sonya Deville VS Raquel Rodriguez!

Raquel rushes right into the ring, she picks Sonya up and RAMS her into the corner! And again and again! Raquel then picks Sonya up to TOSS her! Sonya lands on her feet but Raquel CLOBBERS her! Cover, TWO! Sonya kicks back, runs, but into a scoop! Sonya slips off to CHOP BLOCK! Fans boo as Sonya runs, and she BULLDOGS Raquel down! Cover, TWO! Sonya is frustrated but she clamps on a chinlock. Fans rally, Raquel grits her teeth and fights up, but Sonya throws Raquel by her hair! Sonya wraps on a chinlock, grinds Raquel down, but Raquel fights up. Fans chant for “LIV MORGAN!” but Raquel hits a SIDEWALK SLAM!

Sonya staggers, runs in at Raquel but Raquel elbows her away! Raquel then FLAPJACKS Sonya off buckles and BOOTS her down! Raquel goes up, VADER ELBOW! And then the TEXANA BOMB!! Cover, Raquel ELIMINATES Sonya! So much for Sonya’s promise. But here comes the wild child, SHOTZI! Will Shotzi keep Raquel from taking another opportunity she feels she deserves? We’ll find out, after the break.

Raquel Rodriguez VS Shotzi Blackheart!

SmackDown returns, Shotzi has Raquel in an IRON OCTOPUS! Raquel endures while fans rally, and Raquel powers up, only for Shotzi to elbow away on the ribs! Shotzi keeps on the octopus but Raquel still endures. Raquel powers up again, swings Shotzi around, and hits a FALL AWAY SLAM! Fans fire up as Raquel runs in at the corner, goes right up and VADER ELBOWS again! Raquel gets Shotzi up, TEXANA BOMB!! Cover, Raquel ELIMINATES Shotzi! But no time to rest, here comes the Protector turned Terminator, Xia Li!

Raquel Rodriguez VS Xia Li!

Xia storms into the ring, she dodges Raquel and fires off KICKS! And KICKS, and KICKS! Xia kicks out a leg, runs the ropes and dropkicks Raquel down! Raquel flounders to a corner but Xia stomps a mudhole into her. Raquel shoves Xia away, but Xia gets the leg to CLUB away on it! Xia puts the leg on ropes to drop a knee on the knee! Raquel writhes and flounders away, but a SLIDING KNEE takes her down! Cover, TWO! Xia snarls as Raquel is still in this. But Xia uses a body scissor takedown to a cover, TWO! Xia has the leg, HALF CRAB! Fans rally as Raquel endures and fights up! But Xia hip drops her down! And sits deep on the leg!

Xia STOMPS the leg into the mat! Raquel crawls to ropes but Xia pie faces her around. Xia talks trash but Raquel snarls. Raquel stands up and Xia CHOPS! It doesn’t matter to Raquel! Raquel blocks the punch, then the next, then HEADBUTTS Xia! Xia SOBATS back, runs in, but into Raquel’s FALL AWAY SLAM! Fans fire up as Raquel goes to the corner again, VADER ELBOW! And then, she drags Xia back up, TEXANA BOMB!! Cover, Raquel ELIMINATES Xia! That’s three in a row!! But here comes the Queen of Harts!

Raquel Rodriguez VS Natalya!

Natty slides in, kicks the bad leg then ROCKS Raquel with a right! Natty trips Raquel but Raquel kicks her away. Natty gets around, waistlocks but Raquel bucks that. So Natty CHOP BLOCKS the leg! Natty drags Raquel around, stomps the bad leg again and again, then DRAGON SCREWS it! Natty steps through for a KNEE JAMMER, then she ties the legs up in a BUTTERFLY DEATHLOCK! Raquel endures and Natty CHOPS her in the gut! Raquel keeps her shoulders up but Natty DECKS her! Raquel is down again, ONE! Natty taunts Raquel but Raquel SLAPS her! And then facelocks to roll and deadlift suplex!! Cover, TWO!!

Natty stomps the bad leg, drags Raquel around and ties her up. Natty SLAPS Raquel, before putting on the SHARPSHOOTER!! Raquel endures as Natty sits deep! Raquel reaches out, crawls forward, ROPEBREAK!! Fans fire up as Natty lets Raquel go. Natty stomps the legs again, stands Raquel up and fires off haymakers! The ref counts, Natty backs off but then climbs up to rain down fists! Raquel just uses that for the TEXANA BOMB!! Cover, Raquel ELIMINATES Natty!! But that just leaves the Queen of Spades! Will Raquel #TapNaporSnap after the break?

Raquel Rodriguez VS Shayna Baszler!

SmackDown returns and Raquel endures Shayna’s HEEL HOOK! Fans rally as Raquel kicks with her free leg! Shayna grabs that leg, turns Raquel over and STOMPS the ankle! Raquel writhes with both legs in a bad way! Raquel drags herself to a corner but Shayna stalks her. Shayna drags Raquel but Raquel holds ropes. Shayna KICKS the arms from the ropes then RAMS Raquel into buckles. Shayna digs her boot into Raquel, then gets the arm for a double wristlock takedown! Shayna grins as she looks at Liv and tortures Raquel’s arm! But Raquel fights up, scoops Shayna, and FALL AWAY SLAMS! Fans fire up as Raquel runs in, but Shayna dodges the splash!

Shayna cradles, TWO!! Shayna KNEES Raquel right down! Cover, TWO!! Shayna is furious that Raquel is still in this! Shayna drags Raquel up, Raquel throws body shots and haymakers! But Shayna shoots around to get a SLEEPER! Raquel throws her right off, runs in and SPLASHES! Fans fire up as Shayna is down! Raquel wants another, VADER ELBOW INTO THE KIRAFUDA KLUTCH!!! Shayna has Raquel caught!! Fans fire up as Raquel stands up, reaches out, but Shayna drags her away from ropes! Raquel is fading, but she uses her last gasp to get the ROPEBREAK Shayna holds on, so Raquel pushes back to roll and cover! TWO!!

Shayna lets go of the sleeper to waistlock and roll Raquel to a bridging cover, SHAYNA WINS!!

Winner: Shayna Baszler, by pinfall (NEW #1 Contender to the SmackDown Women’s Championship)

Raquel couldn’t catch her breath and Shayna is coming for Liv! Liv has a bad arm from fighting Ronda, will she not be able to survive Shayna?

 

Sami Zayn knocks on Roman’s door again.

The Usos answer again, and Sami promises he took care of all of it. The graphics, the music, the pyro, everything! He did get into a fight with the production guy, it was a whole thing, but he has to talk with Roman right now. Uce, it ain’t gonna happen tonight. Really? C’mon, man! This is just them giving him the runaround. Is he part of the group or not? Is he not the Honorary Uce or not? Jey has had it! Sami wants the truth? The truth is, The Bloodline leveled up at SummerSlam! Roman has two belts! The Usos have four! If Sami doesn’t pull his weight around here, he’ll be taking that Bloodline shirt off real soon. Jey heads out, and Jimmy just shakes his head. Will Sami be able to do something about that ultimatum?

 

The Viking Raiders VS Jim Mulkey & Tommy Gibson!

Erik & Ivar sidelined Xavier Woods, and they look ready to do the same to more opponents on their warpath to the top. Will the local boys here be lucky to walk out of here under their own power?

The teams sort out, Erik CLOBBERS Gibson! Then he DRAGS Mulkey into the ring, before he RAMS Gibson into the corner! Ivar tags in, Ivar BRONCO BUSTERS Mulkey, before Erik feeds him Gibson to scoop SLAM! Erik then scoop SLAMS Ivar onto Gibson! Fans are going nuts as Ivar drags Gibson into a corner to fire off back elbow after back elbow! Gibson flounders, Ivar tags Erik in, and Erik SPLASHES Mulkey to then scoop and SLAM him! Tag back to Ivar, Erik gets Gibson up as Ivar climbs. Erik hands Gibson off to Ivar for a SUPER POWERSLAM! Ivar tags Erik back in, then Ivar fetches Mulkey.

Erik and Ivar DOUBLE POEWRBOMB Mulkey onto Gibson! Stacked cover, The Viking Raiders win!

Winners: The Viking Raiders, by pinfall

And then they toss the Carolina boys out of the ring! The viciousness knows no bounds, but wait! Kofi rushes out and ambushes them! Kofi fires off with a kendo stick! Erik bails out, Kofi SMACKS away on Ivar! Ivar bails out as the kendo stick breaks apart! Fans are thunderous for Kofi, but Erik says Kofi is a dead man! Will Kofi regret trying to become a Viking slayer?

 

Kofi Kingston VS Erik w/ Ivar!

SmackDown returns and here’s Kofi’s chance! The bell rings, Kofi fires off on Erik but Erik shoves him away. Erik gets to a corner but Kofi fires off on him again! Erik shoves Kofi, Kofi ROCKS him, then runs corner to corner! Erik catches Kofi to throw him down, ACE TEN MAO! Kofi is down after that hard knee, and Erik rains down fists! Erik roars and looms over Kofi. Fans rally for Kofi but Erik kicks him to ropes. Erik drags Kofi up but Kofi fires body shots. Erik snapmares Kofi down for a chinlock! Erik grinds Kofi down with a chinbar, but Kofi fights up to throw body shots! Kofi fires uppercuts and forearms, then runs, but Erik CLOBBERS him! Cover, ONE!!

Erik crossface forearms Kofi again and again, then clamps the chinbar back on. Fans rally, Kofi fights up, and JAWBREAKERS! Erik shoves Kofi to a corner, but Kofi slips out and swing kicks! Kofi goes up and CROSSBODIES! Cover, TWO! Erik is still in this but fans rally behind Kofi. Erik shoves Kofi, but swings into SO- NO, Erik powers out and runs, to SPINEBUSTER! Cover, TWO!! Kofi survives that almost urenage style slam, but Erik keeps his focus. Erik drags Kofi up, brings him around, but Kofi wrenches out and swings, but into a FULL NELSON KNEE SMASH! Cover, TWO! Erik looms over Kofi, drags him up, and whips Kofi to a corner.

Kofi goes up to FLYING DROPKICK! Fans fire up, Kofi sends Erik out, and then builds speed to FLY! Direct hit and Kofi is all fired up! Ivar swings with his own kendo stick, but misses! GAMANGIRI for Ivar, but Erik ROCK Kofi! Erik puts Kofi in, full nelsons, and lifts but Kofi slips out! Roll up, KOFI WINS!

Winner: Kofi Kingston, by pinfall

Snatching victory from the jaws of defeat! The Power of Positivity holds it down for Kofi going solo, but will he be able to hold onto this momentum until Woods returns?

 

WWE has an announcement on the Women’s Tag Team Championships!

After being vacated roughly a month ago, this Monday Night Raw in Cleveland begins a tournament to crown NEW Women’s Tag Team Champions! Who will fight through the bracket to change their legacies with these titles?

 

The Bloodline heads to the ring!

And Sami Zayn got them a new graphic! The three heads are on one massive tree! Roman Reigns is still Undisputed WWE Universal Champion and the Usos are still Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions after a HUGE night on SummerSlam last Saturday. But even without Paul Heyman, the belts are still raised for the pyro, and then again when the Tribal Chief and the Usos get in the ring. Jimmy takes care of handing Roman the mic while fans cheer him on. Roman takes a moment to hear the crowd before saying, “Greensville, South Carolina… ACKNOWLEDGE ME!” Fans cheer, happy to raise up the fingers for #WeTheOnes.

“Well you know the deal. We defend these titles, we win the big one, and then we come back to SmackDown to brag about what we accomplished. But there’s a few things that need to be addressed before we get into all that. Number one: Let’s talk about Brock Lesnar.” Fans boo and Roman says he gets it. He HATES Brock Lesnar. But, Roman respects Brock Lesnar. But he still HATES Brock Lesnar! Lesnar tried to kill the Wise Man, which is why they’re without their Special Counsel tonight. They don’t know when he’ll be back, but this is what happens. When you get an F5 through a table, you end up in the hospital. So Roman wishes Heyman to get well soon.

But wait!! Drew McIntyre is here! The Scottish Warrior storms out on stage and has a mic of his own! McIntyre tells Roman the “Tribal Queef” that he knew Roman would talk until we’re off the air. The fans have heard enough, and McIntyre just wants to get his hands on Roman! McIntyre can’t wait for Clash at the Castle. If you want McIntyre to tear up the Bloodline right now, let him hear you scream! Fans scream, but wait, what’s this? This music… It can’t be! But there’s Scarlett Bordeaux on stage! So where’s- KARRION KROSS ATTACKS MCINTYRE FROM BEHIND! Kross came through the crowd to surprise McIntyre!

Fans are losing their minds over the return of Mr. Doomsday! Kross rains down fists, then RAMS McIntyre into the steel steps! And dribbles his head off them! Kross roars as he watches McIntyre flounders away! Kross takes aim, DOOMSDAY FOREARM!! Kross has just destroyed the #1 Contender! Not that the Bloodline seems to care. But then Scarlett puts an hourglass in the ring, and turns it over. As the sands run down, she and Kross are telling Roman that tick tock, his time is running out! Will the Tribal Chief take this threat seriously? Or will he refuse to #FallAndPray?


My Thoughts:

What a great SmackDown to follow the great Raw after an awesome SummerSlam! Great opening bit with McAfee using a telestrator to go John Madden on his match with Corbin, and it was clever to use that to give us a match with Corbin and Ricochet. And of course Corbin loses from focusing too much on McAfee and not on Ricochet. Ricochet gets a very good win here, and it could lead to Ricochet being right behind Nakamura in the Intercontinental Championship race. Nakamura VS Ludwig Part 3 was very good, and of course Nakamura got the win. The title match is next week for a great ratings grab, but I just don’t know if Nakamura wins that. Nakamura would definitely be a big feather in Gunther’s cap for this reign of his.

An interesting play for the Viking Raiders to squash enhancement talent then have Erik take Kofi on 1v1 in the same night. I would’ve thought Kofi firing off on the Vikings with the kendo stick was enough, but I suppose the Vikings weren’t going to leave it at just the sneak attack. But Kofi winning by a roll-up is fine, it shows he “survived” Erik, and maybe we’ll get Kofi VS Ivar next week to see if he can survive again. And great segments out of Sami and the Usos. I knew from the very first one that Jey just wanted to tell Sami off, so him snapping in the final one makes sense. Sami “pulling his weight” either means he goes back for the Intercontinental Championship, or he helps Roman screw McIntyre over at Clash at the Castle.

Liv delivered well on her promo responding to the controversy of her win, but the fan reaction was a little curious to me personally. I suppose most fans do still like Ronda, so they’re upset Liv won that way, but I don’t expect Greensville to change WWE’s mind on Liv being Face. Especially after seeing the gauntlet match. That was a great match, with a great performance from Raquel taking out the majority of the field. But in the end, with Liv being Face, it makes sense a Heel wins out, and it makes even more sense that it is Shayna. Shayna is a training partner and friend of Ronda’s, with a very similar moveset, so Liv will basically have to worry about surviving the same menacing submission attacks.

Great to hear we’re finally getting the women’s tag title tournament as they promised a month ago, I can’t wait to see how that goes. And we got a great closing segment from The Bloodline, McIntyre, and the surprising return of Karrion Kross! Kross was let go after being used more like a joke than a menacing wrestler under Vince, so it’s great that HHH or someone on his team got Kross to return. Kross finally has Scarlett with him on the main roster, as well as all the other parts of his NXT 1.0 packaging, so he’ll finally feel how he should to the RawDown audience. Now, I don’t see him taking McIntyre’s spot at Clash, but Kross could always be in the background of the title scene, perhaps getting his shot at Extreme Rules.

My Score: 8.8/10


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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?


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

The semifinals are here!

Published

on

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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